Lightbulb Moment

I have never been able to knit while on vacation. I traditionally return back from our annual two weeks on the Vineyard with all the knitting I packed left untouched. This has confounded me each year - I couldn't really figure out why I never really felt the urge to pick up the needles out there.

This year I knit, and I also solved the mystery of why I never have before. With 2 kids on our hands all day long, along with gorgeous weather that has us out and about during most of the daylight hours, the only quiet time Dan and I get is in the evening. Our little spot of heaven is so remote that we rely on LP gas lamps, fridges, stove and water heater. Our running water was provided by a gasoline-powered pump that you had to pull-start like a lawnmower to fill up two small-ish storage tanks.

Traditionally, the only electricity available was from a small generator which was really only run when one needed to run the washing machine or use power tools for working on the house. A number of years ago, we installed a small solar array so that we could have an electric water pump and not worry about running to the pump house in a towel when the water tanks ran empty during a shower. Last year, the solar system was enhanced with more panels and more storage batteries and some new items appeared in the house - two standing lamps, flanking the sofa. This year, I sat knitting, pleased with myself and wondering why I never did this before. Then the lightbulb went on, as I reached up and flicked a switch as the sun went down.



I promised myself before I left that I would stay monagamous to Celtic Dreams during my time off, and I was. I completed the top back and started on the top front. Not a ton of knitting, but knitting nonetheless. Now back to the daily grind and juggling three projects and spinning at once!