Friday, March 05, 2010

Six Things Passengers Waiting for This Flight to St. Louis Would Rather Do Than Sit in the One Empty Seat Next to the Guy with the Knitting Needles

  1. Perch on an armrest next to a ten-year-old who spews BBQ Pringles every time he makes a big kill on his little video game player.

  2. Sprawl on a carpet that is visibly soiled with popcorn droppings and invisibly soiled with heaven knows what else.

  3. Spy on said Knitting Guy from behind a pillar and take his picture with an iPhone.

  4. Move toward the empty seat as though to sit down, then reconsider and walk away, then come back, then walk away, then come back, then walk away, then come back, then walk away, then come back, then walk away, then come back, then walk away.

  5. Greedily devour a McDonald's Extra Value Meal while balanced unsteadily on the rim of a garbage can.

  6. Call "Maureen" and tell her you're "still in Chicago" and that now you've "seen everything."

177 comments:

  1. Wow, that is hilarious!

    Enjoy your elbow room!

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  2. Lucky you - they all sit beside me and tell me, "My grandmother used to do something like that. It's crocheting, right?"!!!

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  3. I wish you had seen the two knitter dudes at the Yarnery the other night, both heavily tattooed rocker types, buying yarn, and one was teaching the other one how to make a scarf for his girlfriend. They camped out for a while because the store was nearly empty, and i heard one tell the other, "No, Dude - you gotta hold it like a drumstick."

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  4. Anonymous4:30 PM

    I'm astounded.

    --elizaduckie

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  5. HAHAHA! You have made my day. Ah me, I'm wiping tears...

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  6. kejia4:33 PM

    Well, naturally. They thought you were a terrorist. You are lucky that Homeland Security didn't take you into custody.

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  7. Love it! And plane knitting is just so much better than just plain sitting.

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  8. I've found it surprising how long a seat on a bus will remain empty if I'm knitting in the one next to it, and I'm an innocuous-looking girl.

    The lengths people go to to avoid sitting next to *gasp* a dude knitting do sound hilarious, though.

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  9. patricia4:36 PM

    I'd sit next to you. Why stand?

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  10. Maybe it's just that they're intimidated by the full-page model shot of you in Interweave.

    Okay, probably not.

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  11. Nobody will sit next to me when I knit on the NYC subway, either. And I keep my elbows to my sides and knit with circs.

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  12. sheesh.. some people... I'd be thrilled to sit next to you, and that guy has nowhere near seen everything...

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  13. Recently, on a flight to Seattle, I pulled out my knitting -- a sock on 2mm needles -- the moment I got on the plane. The teenaged boy next to me pulled out his cell phone.

    All through the flight, the flight attendants would come by to remind him to turn off his cell phone, and he'd give me a look that would have curdled milk. Then they'd remind him to fasten his seat belt. Another death-look. Because, clearly, I, a large man with a shaved head and goatee, was just knitting so I could keep these little terrorist death-tools nearby, and yet the flight attendants were picking on him.

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  14. Individual #4 was just trying to decide if there would be elbow room for him/her to sit down and knit, too, but wondered if he would look like a copycat since you were there first.

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  15. Somebody TOOK YOUR PICTURE?! Oh my lord.

    I can't even... I have no words. What a bunch of bafoons. I would have been thrilled to see a knitting fellow knitter fellow... A fellow knitter fellow knitting? Anway I would have taken that seat. ;D

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  16. hmmm, do you think I could hire you to travel with me? I could use the elbow room.

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  17. I would have no problem sitting next to you.

    Maybe it's because I'm a knitter, but I don't get why people shy away from knitters? What's the big deal anyway? Is it because we have needles and yarn handy at all times?

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  18. If I ever saw you in the airport knitting, I would scream like I had seen a rock star (in a good way). It would absolutely make my day to be able to sit by you while you knit, and I could pull out my knitting needles to poke out the eyes of all the rude people.

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  19. Thanks - I needed a good laugh today! The guy who has now seen everything must lead a very isolated life! ~chris

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  20. In part hilarious and in part, saddens me to see how prejudiced some people are. Hope you enjoyed the elbow room though!

    This ad's been on billboards and bus shelters everywhere in Toronto: http://www.scaryideas.com/content/16211/

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  21. I would be thrilled to sit next to you, or any guy knitting. Well, maybe not any guy. But you, for sure.

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  22. You sure it's the knitting that frightens them off? No horns or anything??

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  23. But did anyone ask you about prison?

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  24. #3 could have been kinnearing you for their blog - keep an eye out for it!

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  25. I once had a woman loudly SCREAM at me and ask me how I got "those things" - referring to my knitting needles - through security.

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  26. well, I would have plunked right down next to you, knowing that I could pull out my traveling sock without any explanations

    silly people....of course,perhaps you have been kinneared by someone who recognized you !!

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  27. MaureenTakoma5:26 PM

    Well, this Maureen would've been thrilled if my husband had called from Chicago to say that he thought he spotted that knitting photographer blogger dude in the airport. I probably would've asked him to surreptitiously take a picture. Just saying.

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  28. I'm from St. Louis--although I haven't lived there in years. It's a sheltered town. Not much goes on. :)

    Did you get a chance to go to the Hill? Vivano's--great grocery store. For lunch, Cunettos.

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  29. All funny, but the last one made me laugh out loud!

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  30. Anonymous5:48 PM

    I would have TOTALLY sat next to you without blinking an eye and loved every minute of it. But I would also wonder if YOU wanted me to sit next to you 'cause you were probably counting or something.

    Love, love the full page ad of you and the yarn. kudos.

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  31. Obviously not a knitting in the bunch, because if there had been one, he or she would have plopped down next to you and whipped out a project.

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  32. That's ridiculous!!! But, now you've been kinneared! (did i spell that right?)

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  33. Maybe they were saving the seat for Dolores?

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  34. I find that so hard to believe. Are you sure you didn't forget to change out of your Garanimals again? Or that Dolores wasn't doing an interpretive pole dance behind you?

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  35. Okay, I almost choked on my apple when I read #4. Awesome.

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  36. Anonymous6:13 PM

    Like many of the others who have left comments, I would have been THRILLED to sit next to you. As a matter of fact, I may have initially been a bit shy but soon would have told you I am a huge fan of yours. I find it hard to believe you have no fans in St. Louis. Rock on. --Ramona (Madison, WI)

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  37. Anonymous6:32 PM

    Oh Franklin. I only wish I was there and took my "It Itches" book up to you and shyly asked for your autograph. Then maybe we could've discussed some new techniques for joining the first round on a sock seamlessly...

    oh, yeh. And number #6? He's lived a lame life if your knitting meant he had "seen everything".

    If it helps any I'm a girl and work in NYC (in the village!) - and I get strange looks on the subway when I'm knitting...

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  38. For what it's worth, if I spotted you in an airport I'd probably scream like a little girl and then turn into an inarticulate mass of quivering jelly as I tried to work up the nerve to approach you and thank you for all the little delights you have brought into my life. I'd like to think the cell phone stalker was having a similar attack of nerves, "Oh. My. God. That's, that's, that's FRANKLIN HABIT!!" I also hope you turned and waved to cell phone stalker. ;)

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  39. ROTFLMAO
    How provincial some people are. Our society is so full of stereotypical thinking. I am surprised another knitter did not plop down next to you and start chatting.

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  40. Anonymous6:47 PM

    I don't know, Franklin. That Addi add makes you look pretty tough. Were you wearing leather at the airport?

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  41. There have to be others out there like me that find a man knitting sexy as hell.

    Obviously they're not at the airport today.

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  42. Lucky you! I wish that worked on my trains ...

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  43. I wish knitting in public would grant me extra elbow room!

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  44. See, I assumed that the person taking the picture recognized you and was overcome by your celebrity.

    I also assumed that the other people were raised by wolves.

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  45. Geesh.. I would have rushed over, brought out my socks and proceeded to drool over whatever you were knitting.. then I would have blushed while asking to take a photo of us together, because you're like,... one of my heros!

    And if it helps, I had the same kind of experience with some non knitters recently at the Idaho airport, but also had a knitter rush up to me and share a wonderous hour of talking...

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  46. Orghlaith7:16 PM

    Franklin, I just saw your ad for Addis in the latest Vogue Knitting and you are one very sexy dude. I would sit next to you anytime. And yes, I know I have no chance. But I can admire, can't I?

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  47. Oh.. and when I had to fly recently, (I hadn't flown for years) and asked them about taking my knitting needles on the plane, the woman said, "Well, we do a little profiling.. you're fine(middleaged short woman) but some biker guy carrying knitting needles?, we'd check him out." I proceeded to tell her that one of the most celebrated knitters in our country happens to be a biker type guy... she had no comment for me!

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  48. I'd want to sit in the empty seat next to you, but I might be too shy; I wouldn't want you to think a strange middle-aged woman is stalking you, after all.

    I just wish I could tell the idiot(s) (there's at least one every time I travel) who asks me, "Are those things really allowed?" No, I just brought them along so I could stab idiots like you! Sheesh. I think I'd prefer your "Omigod, there's a MAN knitting over there!" treatment!

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  49. Person #3 probably recognized you but was too shy to approach... bet you've been Kinneared!

    I'd have sat next to you and talked your ear off. I apologize in advance, just in case I ever see you in an airport and actually do that. :)

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  50. oh my goodness. Sometimes I feel awkward knitting on the subway (like everyone is watching), and I'm a girl... This really puts things in perspective.
    p.s. I would have sat by you!

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  51. Anonymous7:32 PM

    Hmmmmmm - interesting. I rarely have comments when I knit while traveling &, when I do, they are usually of the "Oh I wish I could knit but I just don't have the patience" (I have given up telling them that I knit because I am impatient & it keeps me occupied.) or the nostalgic memories of moms or grandmas who knit. I fly back & forth between Midway & the coast (San Francisco usually) 3 or 4 times a year. I do occasionally get that corner of the eye look fro folks who don't want to appear rude which I find endearing (considering the number of rude folks one encounters). But then I AM a grandma so it probably seems more "normal" to see me knit to people with 1950's stereotypes rattling around in their heads.

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  52. With any luck, you'll have the same good fortune on the plane. It always seemed to work for me when I knit on the subway!

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  53. They must've seen your ad in Interweave looking dangerous in leather with sharp pointy sticks!

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  54. A couple weeks ago when I was knitting in the Detroit airport a young Russian woman came up with a camera and asked if she could take my picture - insisting that I don't look at the camera or make any faces. Then the man on the plane leaned as far away as possible... the whole flight.

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  55. I concur with other: if I ever see you or any guy knitting, and there's an empty seat next to him/you, I'm takin it! And taking my knitting out! And asking questions! And comparing notes!

    People, I tell ya. "Seen everything", really? REALLY, Maureen-caller?

    I really hope the iPhone person is in fact a shy knitter and that your pic will show up on someone's blog in a fanboy-type post ^_^

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  56. In every airport I have waited to board a flight since 9/11 some woman passenger has come up to me and said in a very authoritative voice "You can't bring those on the airplane" like I was carrying knitting needles of mass destruction. Fortunately for me I have three older sisters that tried for years to tell me what I can and cannot do. I am immune :)

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  57. Anonymous8:40 PM

    Well, this Maureen would sit next to you and pull out her knitting, too. If, that is, I weren't intimidated by being so near a spokesmodel.

    Great ad.

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  58. When people comment to me about knitting on planes, I remind them that pens and pencils make great weapons to stab people with -- and that I'm a second degree black belt as well as a middle-aged lady. You can sit next to me any time.

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  59. OMG that killed me. I hurt from laughing. I really like the one about taking the picture of you with their iPhone.

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  60. Dang... I would have sat down next to you and settled in for a chat as I took out my crochet hook and worked on my latest project.

    Some people just don't know what they missed!

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  61. Another reason to take the train. Personally, every time I take the Acela, I fantasize that you will be sitting across the aisle, knitting away on some magnificently ethereal lace based on a pattern developed by an obscure 17th century order of nuns and translated by you from the original Latin, but graciously willing to autograph the ball band of whatever humble yarn I have with me. Dolores, of course, will be causing trouble in the cafe car while Harry hides in the luggage rack.

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  62. I was knitting on a recent flight to Orlando and someone leaned over from another row and asked how I could manage to do "so many things at once". I was knitting. A Noro Scarf. I mean, really, I might have been chatting too but in the annals of multi-tasking it wasn't impressive.

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  63. I am so glad I was not eating when I read this. So funny!

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  64. I just got the new Interweave Knits and saw your Addi Ad! It was great! Good Job!

    People are so funny!

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  65. Anonymous10:25 PM

    Were you wearing an "I Learned To Knit In Prison" shirt?

    Aloha,

    Lisa

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  66. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  67. I cant believe there were no other knitters waiting for that plane!

    ... silly people.

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  68. Anonymous10:51 PM

    I wonder what they would have done if you'd been spinning on a spindle. I get hardly a glance when I knit but when I spin I must be mesmerizing because people can't seem to stop looking. Course I'm just a middle aged woman so perfectly harmless. ;p
    Janet

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  69. I would have sat down next to you and asked what you were working on as I pulled out my own project.

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  70. RRowffff, Franklin, I too have just seen your terribly apPEALing photo in IK and...shoot, them folks in the airport were just cowed! I hate to reveal my ignorance, but what IS that white item in your coat pocket?

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  71. Still chuckling an hour after reading this!

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  72. I live for the opportunity to sit next to anther knitter! I've done it once on a train to Manchester just before Christmas, and seen another sit in a different train station. However, I've nver seen a bloke doing it and I so wish I could!

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  73. I'm glad someone else wondered about whether you were wearing one of the "I learned to knit in prison" shirts...
    This reminds me obscurely of the time on layover in MSP with folks from various origins all heading to Philadelphia for a library conference, pulling out & working on my first sock ever and coalescing a group of 6 or 7 Ravelers-Librarians-Knitters. I hear our flight was delayed an hour; I don't believe any of us particularly noticed or minded. May you have suchlike traveling sacred-stranger connections the next time you travel.

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  74. HOWL! OMG - that is so funny. I just love a good laugh. I'm a little embarrassed to even think, but I sure hope I don't know Maureen's husband. ; )

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  75. Anonymous7:39 AM

    While others find this hilarious, it just makes me sad. The guy who thinks he's "seen everything" must live a very sheltered life.

    I would have immediately sat down and said, "Do you remember me? I was one of 1,000 knitters and I drove 500 miles to have you photograph me and, oooo, what are you working on???" And then asked someone to take MY picture WITH you!

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  76. 6) Write on your friend (who also KIP's) "I'm flying to STL and there's a scary looking guy here, at the airport, knitting."

    Franklin, If I'd known it was you, I'd have sent him over. He LOVED your Star Trek review.

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  77. I need more coffee. 7) Write on your friend's facebook wall...

    Sigh.

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  78. Geez. These people don't get out much, do they.

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  79. O'Hare or Midway? Both have their ... charms. Travelers in St. Louis will either embrace you or be even more weirded out, if my collegiate memories of them serve. We're headed to O'Hare next Monday for a week. Thank goodness my in-laws live near Loopy Yarns and will watch the kids when I "disappear".

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  80. I probably wouldn't have taken the one empty seat. But that's because my personal space bubble is a bit bigger than waiting-area seating allows.

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  81. I would have sat next to you, as would most people I know. I might have also asked very politely to take your picture, but only if I was feeling very brave.

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  82. Don't let it bother you. Non-knitters are idiots sometimes. If I had seen you knitting I would have come and sit next to you and pulled out my most recent Dr. Who insanity and knit my mindless garter along with you. :)

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  83. Gail (nosenabook)10:12 AM

    And the people in the terminal couldn't even see the title of the last post, "Footsie", OR the photo of the hairy sock. tee hee.

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  84. LOL - I'd be knocking people outta the way to sit by you! Too funny!

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  85. i woulda plunked right down next to you.

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  86. I've always thought knitting needles are a victim of totally unfair prejudice, simply because their name contains the word "needle." Even for the brief period after 9/11 when they *were* banned, crochet hooks got a free ride. Hmph.

    My usual reply to "are those things allowed?" is "they're no sharper than a ballpoint pen." (That only actually works if they're bigger than about a size 1, though.)

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  87. Don't be crabby. The iphone paparazzi was a fan.

    It's appreciably better than the prison break bus ride.

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  88. Anonymous1:04 PM

    I'll sit next to you, Franklin!
    -- Gretchen

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  89. Classic! You know the guy that kept walking by was really trying to get a better look at what you were doing and probably told the other guy with the iPhone to take a picture so he could study it while on the plane. That is if he wasn't sitting near you in flight where he could lurk!

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  90. So that's how to get enough space to settle in. . .

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  91. I'd totally sit next to you, sweetie; provided, of course, I get to spend some quality time drinking in the airport bar with Dolores.

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  92. On the bright side, no one grabbed your knitting and asked "what are you making?", right?

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  93. They are just jealous cuz they dont know how to knit!

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  94. Well, you could have been a terrorist. I'll bet they were watching you to see if you were going to knit an afghan.

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  95. seriously, someone took your photo with a phone? They probably texted someone and said "getta load of this hot guy knitting!" ;)

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  96. Were you picking your nose with your needles again?

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  97. Wow. If that were me, there would be a gap (except for the spouse) and I would be searched before going on the plane. I think that knitting is considered suspicious, because I'm searched more than 80% of the time.

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  98. If it makes you feel any better, if I saw a guy with knitting needles waiting for a plane with an empty seat beside him, I'd fill it in a moment, even if the rest of the lobby was empty.

    Most people are like lemmings and stick with the pack, suspicious of anything different and out of accordance with their own lifestyles.

    Artists - of whom you are one - march to a different drummer and why would you want to sit next to somebody normal when if you wait long enough, somebody more interesting might come along?

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  99. Otter5:12 PM

    If I was calling to say I'd seen everything, it wa\ould be because I was so excited to have seen you! But I would've sat next to you.

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  100. Linda5:40 PM

    Those people were so breathtakingly rude. Lucky we can all laugh about their awfulness.

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  101. That's funny stuff. But I have to say, who ARE you people and why are you all knitting in airports? After reading the comments, I feel like this is something that is just going on all over the place and I've been completely oblivious! You should start a secret airport knitters underground society.

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  102. What cretins! Can I sit next to you? (Your Addi ad is the best, by the way.)

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  103. OMG - too funny. At least you can keep the weirdos at bay....they come over to me to tell me that their grandma (mom, sister, aunt, great-aunt) used to knit..

    Or worse, they say, "Knit one Purl two" while I'm counting!
    (((Hugs)))
    Have a fun time in St. Louis!

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  104. This St. Louis girl would definitely take the seat. Then I'd pull out the lace shawl I brought along to keep me sane during air travel. I might even overcome my extreme shyness to ask about your project. (I think I learned the "don't talk to strangers lesson a little too well as a child.) But the kid with the game? I'd rather take my chances with the carpet.

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  105. Blogless Laura7:39 AM

    Oy! But makes me wonder what they did when they realized they actually had the seat next to you on the plane....... :)

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  106. Anonymous8:24 AM

    How tiny are your feet, anyway??

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  107. Stupid People! They are everywhere! Consider it a good thing you have an empty seat next to you. I find when I ride my commuter train to work and back and am working with 5 DPs, many come to sit down, then pretend they see a window seat and leave me alone, which is great because I have lots of room in which to wield my very dangerous DPs. Then, the best part is when someone asks me if I am crocheting! 5 DPs! Crocheting????

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  108. Hey, maybe the ipone person was a fan...

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  109. I've noticed that people stand on the bus rather than sit next to me when I'm knitting.

    Perhaps they fear anyone with pointy sticks? A courtesy so that we have room to work?

    Maybe I'm laughing out loud while listening to This American Life or humming to the music excessively which only confirms that I'm crazy?

    I dunno.

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  110. You've been Kinneared; it's official- you've made it.

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  111. My knitting husband (with spiky hair and a long goatee) would have gladly taken that spot. Actually, the last time we traveled my husband, three daughters and myself all pulled out our knitting, it makes traveling so much more pleasant. I find that people usually want to ask me questions about it though but I think they just stare at my husband. People are strange.

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  112. I would have sat next to you! We were traveling in the same neck of the country. I was headed to Montgomery.

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  113. Anonymous12:20 AM

    Wow - what you will do just to have some personal space at the airport! When I go to O'Hare, I usually just try to avoid the unwashed. Safe travels!

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  114. if that guy thinks hes seen everything now he has led a very sheltered existence

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  115. *eye roll* Seriously! People need to get over themselves. Hey, had I been there, I would have sat down and grilled you on what you were knitting, with what yarn, which needles...

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  116. #4 was memorizing your pattern and stealing it.

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  117. I'm just thankful, as I imagine you are, that the 10 year old spewing BBQ Pringles wasn't sitting next to you. ;-)

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  118. Anonymous10:22 AM

    well in everyone's defense I'd rather sprawl on the stained carpet then sit next to anyone. I sit in the end seat at the airport or on the carpet. I don't know why, maybe I just like the extra elbow room.

    OTOH: if there was a KNITTER in the seat next to me I'd probably think differently!

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  119. Anonymous10:38 AM

    I wish someone took a picture of me on their iphone!

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  120. You weren't by any chance brandishing your needles and muttering to yourself while casting futive glances around from under your heavily lidded eyes, were you? Sometimes I think I would do almost anything to preserve the empty seat beside me.

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  121. Anonymous10:53 AM

    I noticed about a year ago that nobody wants to sit next to the weird woman on the light rail transit who's doing needlework. Never fails. And I think I look pretty normal...

    Just started reading your blog a few weeks ago. LOVE it!

    Carol S.

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  122. It really isn't fair. I end up in the airport with people who can do nothing better than stare at a tv screen. Why can't I be at an airport with someone else (besides me) knitting?

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  123. Su128211:25 AM

    I don't like to sit next to anyone in airports and have spent time on the carpet in places like O'Hare and Kennedy therefore. Knitting, both times. People also give me a lot of space (40-something female business traveller knitting socks on metal circs with podcast in earbuds.)

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  124. It's good that you can make art and humor out of it. What a strange world we live in!

    Whatcha doin' in St. Louis? That's nearly in my back yard.

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  125. Anonymous12:38 PM

    Some people are so craftist.

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  126. If you think knitting in public gets strange reactions, try tatting.

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  127. Last time I was on a plane, a (male) flight attendant stopped by to check out the sock I was working on. He was working on a hat in the back of the plane. We started talking about knitting... and the look on my seat neighbors' faces was priceless. :)

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  128. you've been kinneared!

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  129. I would have sat next to you. probably making it impossible for you to knit while I urged you into gossiping about Dale Harriet, gushed about your work and told you how much I'm looking forward to seeing you again at Knit In. You're sure it was the knitting though right? I mean, you had showered and everything?

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  130. I would totally sit next to you and ask intrusive questions about what you're knitting. But then again, I'm a knitter and clearly we can't be trusted. Also, I really wish I'd been with Mary Lou the other night.

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  131. Anonymous3:52 PM

    Ain't life grand?

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  132. Anonymous3:57 PM

    What?!? You were in St. Louis and you didn't let your legions of Missouri fanboys and girls know?

    Seriously, Mr. Habit, you have to post your teaching schedule so that those of us who live in the middle of nowhere, but are willing to travel, can take advantage of your visits.

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  133. You can sit by me and knit any time.

    Next time we fly Southwest, my husband will get to hold the knitting until everyone's seated.

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  134. cherie9:19 PM

    Oh, Franklin, I would SO sit by you! I'll keep my eyes open the next time I travel!

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  135. Appears there would have been a lot of us Franklin fans lined up to take turns sitting in that empty seat.

    The Addi ad? Hot. Tamale. Train.

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  136. Congratulations, you've graduated to 'everything'. Love it. Fly with me next time, we can make people uncomfortable together.

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  137. OMG that is so funny.

    Go you!

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  138. OMG that is so funny.

    Go you!

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  139. knit happens12:42 PM

    I would have recognized you instantly and only maybe worked up the courage to approach you, depending on how intent you looked about protecting your privacy. You're famous now, you know.

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  140. As a guy who is also a knitter, I always enjoyed this aspect of my craft. I really hate being in close proximity to strangers and I can guarantee if there is only 1 empty seat on an airplane it will be right next to me and my needles.

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  141. Anonymous12:51 PM

    Wow. That is how my boyfriend feels at the Braves game. And my friends when we are at the bar. And my other friends when we are at another bar.

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  142. I would have been way too shy to sit next to you! I would have wanted to, though.

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  143. Enjoy the elbow room! In order to get that, I usually have to do the standard NYC move: cough, COUGH! Immediately gets you a circle of personal space, especially on elevators!

    ; )

    In case they missed your FABULOUS Addi ad, You should wear a ball & chain while so employed so they know where you learned to do that. (And it would come in handy for when you throw your Naomi supermodel fit... )

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  144. I finally got my Interweave knits magazine in the mail this last weekend, and I was casually paging through when I came across this ad, and the model looked not only spectacularly handsome, but ever-so-slightly familiar! Nice pic, Franklin! Really enjoyed seeing someone I almost know in a magazine! You're famous! LOL

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  145. I had a similar experience but with my drop spindle. I was next to the only available power strip (genius! forget just having 2 outlets!) in what felt like the entire airport. You know how valuable the seats are next to the outlets. Most people are curious about the drop spindling and watch you out of the corner of your eye. A woman started to sit down next to the power strip, looked at me spinning, did a double-take and virtually ran away from me. You would have thought I was going to attack her with it. She apparently thought the risk of sitting next to me outweighed being able to charge her laptop!

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  146. Too funny--didn't you want to, like, mess with them? Make a puppet out of your sock and start talking to it?

    Really looking forward to the knit-in this weekend--CRUSHED not to get to do your workshop, because nobody needs help with photos more than me.

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  147. Also: I find that winding yarn will clear an entire row if you do it the right way.

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  148. jeannine12:15 PM

    This happens to women, too, on public transportation. Or at least me, anyway.

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  149. Was it one person or multiple people?

    Feeling sorry for the guy that has now seen everything. What a boring, empty life he must have led if this is everything to him.

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  150. Anonymous2:10 PM

    Were you using the "I learned to knit in prison" tote bag?

    Linda in Erie PA

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  151. Nah, you were Kinneared. Next time the photographer will find you, photo in hand, and ask for an autograph. I would!

    Last year I took the train to MD. While waiting for the shuttle to the rental place at the airport a man sat down next to me to wait for the bus and recoiled so fast he bounced. "They let you on with THOSE??!" (American no. 3s. Wood. I was knitting socks in Noro. I am 43, female, and a slender 5'6". Clearly a Threat.)

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  152. Fiber Ninja10:52 AM

    #1-This is why I left the Midwest, oh, about five minutes after I graduated from college.
    #2-I'm a black belt in Taekwondo (Joe, Lars, and Ted's friend); I just stare down people like that.
    #3- Is it wrong that I bought Interweave Knits not for the patters, but for your picture?

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  153. At least you could count without some doofus telling you his life story! Hilarious!

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  154. I hope you smiled and waved to the person taking your picture with their iPhone.

    And then called someone on your phone and told them you'd just "seen everything".

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  155. Usually when I'm knitting in public people come up to me and want to know what I'm making or to share their (or their mother's, grandmother's, etc.) experiences. It's been a fun way to meet people. Maybe 'cause I'm a girl?

    Sorry you had a bad experience. If I ever see you knitting in public I'll be sure to come over and say hello!

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  156. Anonymous5:32 PM

    Hey, it's not just you - I'm the *last* one people sit next to on the local train system. The kid blaring death metal on the headphones gets a neighbor before I do, and mind, I'm a blonde, blue-eyed, svelte 19-year old, usually in business casual. Sometimes a crowd of people are filling up the aisle standing before someone gets the balls to sit next to me.

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  157. You should have been singing this song! Pardon Me

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  158. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  159. haha ... if they sit next to you they can't stare ... folks become mesmerized by the shiny needles!

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  160. Better than being talked to constantly while you're trying to count or follow a pattern. But hey, I would have sat next to you and pulled out my own knitting. Let them be scared.

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  161. Anonymous10:00 PM

    ...can you really blame them?

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  162. ellen in indy8:50 AM

    i'm flying to/from hawaii soon -- two plane-changes each way, so THREE airports will be plagued by this (not-so-)sweet old lady wielding pointy sticks and strange, multicolored string while making something people will tell me i could get 6 of for $5 at sprawlmart.

    last time i flew, i was chaperoning a teen choir returning from a week in jamaica, mon. and without even having any knitting, i was the one whose suitcase aroused so much suspicion that it got "sniffed" -- for EXPLOSIVES, not ganja, and thoroughly searched. i damn near missed the last leg of my trip. i got really strange looks from those around me, but like your airport encounters, it makes a great story.

    and if i ever see you in an airport, i'll sit down by you, whip out my sock-in-progress and let the idiots burn their eyes staring at us and trying to figure out how we are related/know each other, and which of us taught the other to do that weird thing with sticks and string!

    p.s.: my verification word is knolur. isn't that a knitting term in knorwegian or knamibian?

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  163. Anonymous11:44 AM

    Just so you know, I would actually "pick" the seat next to the guy with the knitting needles over any other seat! Stephenia

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  164. I wish you had seen the two knitter dudes at the Yarnery the other night, both heavily tattooed rocker types, buying yarn, and one was teaching the other one how to make a scarf for his girlfriend. They camped out for a while because the store was nearly empty, and i heard one tell the other, "No, Dude - you gotta hold it like a drumstick."

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  165. Lucky you - they all sit beside me and tell me, "My grandmother used to do something like that. It's crocheting, right?"!!!

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  166. Wow, that is hilarious!

    Enjoy your elbow room!

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  167. I have just read your story and it is hilarious, I was laughing while I was reading it actually, you are pretty creative and funny dude!

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  168. Lucky you! I wish that worked on my trains .

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  169. I know there are several more fun instances ahead for individuals who scan through your blog.

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  170. Anonymous5:46 AM

    Kondiloma akuminatum ialah vegetasi oleh Human Papiloma Virus tipe tertentu, bertangkai, dan permukaannya berjonjot. Tipe HPV tertentu mempunyai potensi onkogenik yang tinggi, yaitu tipe 16 dan 18. tipe ini merupakan jenis virus yang paling sering dijumpai pada kanker serviks. Sedangkan tipe 6 dan 11 lebih sering dijumpai pada kondiloma akuminatum dan neoplasia intraepitelial serviks derajat ringan. Kondiloma akuminatum ialah vegetasi oleh Human Papiloma Virus tipe tertentu, bertangkai, dan permukaannya berjonjot. Tipe HPV tertentu mempunyai potensi onkogenik yang tinggi, yaitu tipe 16 dan 18. tipe ini merupakan jenis virus yang paling sering dijumpai pada kanker serviks. Sedangkan tipe 6 dan 11 lebih sering dijumpai pada kondiloma akuminatum dan neoplasia intraepitelial serviks derajat ringan.

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