Imagine the following scenario, yarn-lovers. You’re out for the evening, and you arrive at the venue a little before the friend whom you’ve arranged to meet. So you order a glass of rioja, and look around for somewhere to sit. The bar area is crowded, and there are no tables free. You recognize a vague acquaintance, but you don’t really know them well enough to table-crash, so you smile/wave to them and move on. Eventually you find a low shelf thingy at the back of the room, so you settle yourself on it to wait for your friend. You pull out your knitting (of course), and then you notice this right beside you:-
How very civilised! Should not the entire world offer such facilities (especially doctors’ surgeries and train stations), better still with needles/hooks too, just in case any poor soul has nipped out without their WIP? This, my friends, was a very promising beginning to the evening.
And there was more yarnery to come.
My friend arrived, and we chattered (and chattered) over drinks. It was good to see her. But then we had to move, because our plan was to watch the comedian Jenny Eclair tell us all about middle age. Not that we’ve reached this life-stage quite yet, you understand, but the concept is beginning to loom in a way that suggests it’s not going to give up and go away. Forewarned is forearmed, so we took our seats in the auditorium, ready for the show to begin. We were only very slightly disconcerted to find a piece of semi-naked-Jenny bunting on each of our seats.
In case you don’t know who I’m talking about (I’m conscious that half of you are non-UK), Jenny Eclair is funny. She burst onto stage in the underwear pictured above, and only got round to dressing herself after she’d been making us laugh for a while. She talked about hot flushes. She talked about hormone-driven rage. She talked about exhaustion. She talked about the changing body. She talked a great deal about the menopause.
And can you guess one of the major side-effects of the menopause? Can you? We held our breath whilst we waited for her to educate us. And then she told us what it was:-
CRAFTS.
Oops.
There was much laughter at this point, of a kind that people do after gasping because they’ve been unexpectedly rumbled. Quite a few audience-members pointed at their neighbour open-mouthed, and shrieked. (My friend didn’t point at me, and for that alone, I shall eternally love her.)
So Jenny Eclair knits, as of quite recently. 🙂 She even showed us a cute little cat/dog (it was hard to tell from that far back in the auditorium) that she’d made. When she left the stage at the end of the evening she took it with her, saying that she didn’t trust us not to nick it. (She left behind the rest of her props, including a large yellow ball of yarn.) And if you look at her website any time soon, you’ll see her apologizing for tardy blogging due to tapestry. Gotta love a crafter.
She’s not the only crafter on stage, though. Look at this! An entire play about knitting/knitters! There’s no way I’m trekking off to Birmingham but if this was local, I’d be there like a shot. I love the idea that this play will be “performed in the round”, and that knitting amongst the audience is positively encouraged. Let’s hope this show goes on tour, people.
I can’t tell you how impressed I am – pubs with yarn and plays about yarn – the world is turning!! I’m living to see things I never dreamed of 😀
Yup, for all that’s terribly wrong with the world right now, there are also some things that are terribly right.
That is such a good idea, wonder are the owners into crafting etc
I’m not sure. It’s a lovely little arts centre. There was also a book exchange housed in a suitcase. Very very civilized. 🙂
I love your posts so much. I wonder if she travels to the US. Seems that I can find a “like” link anymore in the emails I get when you post.
I’m not sure whether she travels… I hope so, because she’s so very funny.
As for the missing ‘like’ link, I fear my technological skills are too basic to understand the reason, let alone put it right… Maybe the internet has decided that my posts are just not worthy of such a thing. Fair enough.
Jenny Eclair brilliant, knitting brilliant, yarn swops in pubs brilliant. One brilliant post!
Aww, thank you. T’was a good night. 🙂
What a fun evening. There is nothing quite like laughing out loud with friends, and even better, to find comedy that is so relatable. The fact that you found yarn sitting in a pub is brilliant.
I am middle aged (56) and have already experienced so many of these things you were laughing about. I’ll go have a look at her blog.
Thanks for the smile.
You’re very welcome. Jenny is rather wonderful. And I’m pretty much middle-aged, really (43), just in denial when I’m writing blog posts.
Meanwhile, I still haven’t read much of the book you recommended, but I have been doing lots of tidying and clearing out, which has certainly helped my state of mind. So thank you for indirectly inspiring me.
I popped over and read one of her posts. She’s my kind of woman.
I’m happy to hear that you’ve had a good clear out and that it has helped your state of mind. That is excellent news. Sometimes just getting started is the hardest part. Don’t forget the magic of the 15 minute timer as well. It works like a charm every time.
She’s sassy and clever and witty and feminist and funny and un-materialistic. Glad you like her too. 🙂
And yes to the 15 minute timer. I used to do something equivalent: I’d tell myself that I was going to tidy 50 objects. Worked a treat.
The essence of Jenny Eclair right there. Almost naked in her endeavours to gain complete transparency. She is a very brave (hilarious) soul is Jenny Eclair but that would have certainly set the tone of the evening and you would have been more than aware that you weren’t in Kansas any more. Real women on stage in real undies. Our time has come. I am not entirely sure the world is ready for us but we are overly represented, we are hormonally challenged and we are educated. “Look out world!”
Damn you, your comments are so wonderful that I can think of NOTHING to say in response. I’m just sitting here smiling and nodding. Thank you. (And yes, Jenny Éclair is fairly fabulous and witty and clever and non-vain and non-materialistic and feminist. Ticks a LOT of boxes.)
This is a hoot. I’m going to see is she’s on Youtube.
She must be, surely? She’s so witty/clever/funny/genuine.
I hope for reports from that knitters play, Phil. Lucky lucky you! I am silly about all kind of art and crafts, and also silly about silliness, a main happiness ingredient for me
Yup, I can relate to that! 🙂
The cancer centre in Hamilton Ontario Canada has baskets of yarn and needles. They ask that you knit a square or work on one that may be in progress. All squares are then sewn together for a blanket. These are then donated to the cancer patients. My dad received one even though he only went weekly for 1/2 hour treatments. It was therapeutic for me to take part in this knitting while waiting for my dad when he was having radiation. Yes, more places could have these baskets.
Oh wow, that’s taking the idea one stage further. What a beautiful idea. I hope your Dad received the best possible cancer treatment, too.