When things aren’t going according to plan, it’s natural to feel a bit discombobulated. In early 2019 I was on tour for my first book while writing my second book. I was in planes, trains and automobiles, with a coffee in one hand and a suitcase filled with wooly knits in the other.

I was thrilled, but exhausted.

So when one of the stops on my tour resulted in an unexpected blizzard, a closed airport, and three days stranded in a hotel (with a smattering of other injustices like no wifi, and only a sparse vending machine for meals) I was a bit worse for wear. I’d already finished the project I’d brought with me, but I had a souvenir skein I’d purchased at the local yarn shop and a pair of needles. I wound the skein by hand, all the while congratulating myself for buying it. See? I thought. Always buy the yarn - you never know when that next skein might save your bacon.

I cast on until I didn’t feel like casting on anymore - I didn’t even count the stitches. Outside my window the weather blitzed, and I sat on the bed and knit. And knit. And knit. I worried I’d run out of yarn before the airport opened, so I considered how to make it last a little longer: Bobbles! Full on, chubby bobbles. Lots of them. And while I didn’t have a plan ahead of time (and frankly, didn’t really care), it was inevitable that I’d fall into a pattern of some sort. And before I knew it, I’d knit a thing (a cowl, as it turned out). And the airport opened. And I lived happily ever after.

Lessons learned:
• Knitting is more important than food (not really, but kind of).
• Always buy the yarn.
• Never travel to the Midwest in the middle of winter.

Supplies
440-ish yards fingering weight superwash merino wool
US Size 3/3.25mm circular needles
Darning needle to weave in ends
Stitch marker

Gauge
Not essential

Finished Measurements (approximate)
48 in/122 cm circumference
8 in/20 cm tall