Knitting & Pool

A while back, I joined Ravelry.com, it's basically facebook for knitters and crocheters.  Yes, I might have some grandmother tendencies...whatever.  Anyways, there are a gazillion groups on Ravelry so I looked for one based in Dunedin and found the group Take Back the Knit (I believe it's an unwritten law that anything knitting related - be it store or ravelry group - needs to have a pun in the name). I emailed a couple of the members and asked where they meet during the summer and was given directions to one of the member's home.  Laura and Todd dropped me off on their way to coffee and I walked into a stranger's house to go knit.

Shockingly, I don't think I was the youngest person there!  There was another girl about my age who's getting a degree in Neuroscience at the University of Otago and 4 other women ranging in ages up to maybe 60.  It really was a knitting circle.  No TV, tea, chocolate, and 6 women knitting and talking.  Haha, it was completely cliche and spectacular!!! 

I got an education on fruitcake from one of the women.  She's flying up to Canada for someone's wedding so that she can make a fruitcake.  In NZ, it's tradition to have your wedding cake be fruitcake.  It's not just a disgusting Christmas cake here like it is in the states!  It's still a special dessert that makes an appearance not just at Christmas but apparently most weddings.  Apparently, baking it in a wooden box is best because then the corners don't burn and you only have to use 1 piece of baking paper and not 6.  There was also discussion on currants and which brandy to use to get a really dark cake as well as how to soak the fruit to get the best brandy absorption.  Seriously...an education.  I'm going back again this week.  

Being the only unemployed member of the household tends to sign you up for cooking on a regular basis so everyone else doesn't think you're useless.  Needless to say, I enjoy Fridays when the Friday Shop is open and we go buy steak pie for dinner.  Good.  Deal.  And there is literally a shop that is only open on Fridays and all they sell is gone by noon.  Theories abound that they're a catering company during the week as well, but it's amazing that they stay in business and are SO POPULAR when they're only open 5 hours a week.  

Friday was also the eve of Todd's birthday.  Saturday was booked already so we went out Friday to play some pool.  Laura DOES NOT know how to play and was very confused why the cue ball couldn't be moved wherever you wanted it to go.  Vanessa calls the stripes "BIGS" and the solids "LITTLES".  We're not sure if that's a Kiwi thing or a Vanessa thing.  Vanessa's not sure either.

Vanessa's good cuz she used to play a lot.  Todd got better the longer we played - helped that he had skill to begin with.  I get better after a beer and an hour of practice.  Laura's attention span isn't that long when beer's involved so we made up our own versions:
Quadrants: We all got our own quadrant.  If the cue ball stops in your quadrant, you get to hit it.  Solids/stripes and team rules still apply.
Speed Pool: You have 3 seconds after the cue ball stops moving to make your shot, solids/stripes and team rules still apply.  A) stinks when the cue ball stops but the ball you hit hasn't and you're not sure if it's going to go in B) good thing that nobody who was really playing was near us cuz we were making tracks around that pool table with our cuesticks sticking out at all wonky angles.  

After pool, we went to the Octagon (the center of town) and had wedges at Craic, one of many bars in the Octagon.  Wedges are just steak fries, but they're served with sour cream and sweet chili sauce.  I would put sweet chili sauce on par with ketchup for how prevalent a condiment it is.  All the Kiwis love it and would probably eat it with everything if given the chance.  And it is quite yummy - they're not crazy!