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Hail, Rainbow and All

I didn't work today and knew it was a day I should get a number of things done.  The heavy rains this morning made it a good time to stay inside.  I finished several items on my to do list including 2 projects.  They aren't quirky and even have to fit someone.  I do have moments when I  knit normal things, I have to admit.

Two baby wrapper sweaters
I've been working on these Baby Wrappers for some time so I've got the pattern down.  The pattern comes from Perl Grey a designing pair out of Nova Scotia and appears to be available only to retailers which is where I purchased my copy. This design made sense to me because I remember the dynamics of trying to get a sweater on a squirming little one.  Having a sweater that simply wraps around the baby's body seemed like a good solution.

There is a fair amount of picking up stitches that must be done to complete this sweater.  First you pick up stitches for each of the sleeves, second you pick up stitches to create the edging around the entire perimeter of the wrap.  (Thus my interest to the section of the math and knitting book I recently reviewed.)  The sleeves require a certain amount of exactness, but luckily the edging is quite forgiving.  Additionally, you'll note the yellow sweater has been blocked and looks wearable.  The blue sweater hasn't been blocked yet which explains why it appears not-so-ready to wear.  It will be blocked over the next day or so.

In the midst of this finishing work it rained, thundered (I think I can count on both hands the number of times I've heard thunder in Vancouver in the last 8 years) AND then it started to hail (another meteorological oddity here).

Hail on the deck; it left about as quickly as it came
Much of the hail was tiny but there were some  pea-sized pieces.  That and the thunder were unique enough and then a beautiful rainbow appeared and I could see both ends of it.  (I wasn't prepared to get on the water in the Inlet to determine if a pot of gold could be found.)

One half of the rainbow next to the single pine
As in most instances of trying to capture nature in a photo, this one doesn't come close to doing justice to the vibrancy of today's rainbow.  And like many things of beauty,  it came and left too quickly.  The rain, hail and rainbow passed followed by strong winds and sunshine just before sunset.  What a day.

Thanks greater Vancouver weather, you helped me get some good things done today and entertained me as well.
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