Cool! What Do You Call That?

[Knitting_Guy]

I was sitting at the counter in the truckstop a little while ago eating my dinner and chatting with the other drivers congregated there.

After I finished eating I pulled out the Irish Hiking Scarf I've been working on and started knitting. The driver on my left mentioned that he had been hearing about a lot of truckers taking up knitting recently. Seems they were talking about it on the XM Radio trucker's channels or something.

I explained how relaxing it is and he said he could see that it would be. Looked like he was seriously thinking about it.

The waitress walked over, she's very young - maybe late teens or early 20s tops, and said "That's really cool! How do you do that?"

I showed her the scarf and she insisted that I knit a little to show her how it's done. She then repeated that it was really cool and then asked me a question that almost knocked me off my seat. "What do you call that?"

"Ummm," I replied, "it's called knitting."

She said she had heard of that but had never actually seen it. I couldn't believe what she was saying. I thought everyone knew what knitting was.

An older lady, also a waitress, walked over and took a look. She said the seeing me knitting was a first for her, to which I chuckled a bit, and then she commented on how relaxing it is. She's a knitter herself.

I am just amazed to no end that someone would actually not know what knitting is or looks like. Very odd.

[redheadrachel]

Yeah, that does seem pretty strange, just like you said - it seems like everyone should know at least what knitting IS, even if they know nothing about how to do it.
However, I think it is just so extremely cool that you're a trucker/knitter. Just that you can go to truck stops and knit and other truckers and inquisitve, wanting to learn more about the cool stuff you're making. And if you hadn't been knitting there, that poor girl may have NEVER been introduced to knitting - that's tragedy if I've ever heard one! A lot of props for you, awesome

[Sara]

I once had a job, working in a woolen mill, in a small town in the eastern US. My new co-workers were making fun of my accent and demanded to know where I grew up. They refused to believe there was such a place as Iowa, so I had to show them my IA driver's license. In their defense, they HAD heard of Ohio and knew that potatoes came from Idaho.

[Susan P.]

Gosh..an american had not heard of Iowa! But sometimes we find general knowledge really low on issues. I think it says a lot about what children encounter as they're growing up. If a child never had mum or dad etc sew or knit or crochet then they may not be raised to know what it is as such. And then if the person doesn't read much etc.....

I have found taking fruit and vegetables thru a checkout interesting. Umm..mammmm..is this a tomato? No, it's a persimmon. But I've had checkout people not know what pecan nuts are and so on and they've had to ask me.

[newamy]

I am just amazed to no end that someone would actually not know what knitting is or looks like. Very odd.

We have a very commercial society now where everything you need is just bought at a store and unfortunately there is very little education about where it comes from. There are people who think potatoes come from a box. The young woman could have loads of machine knitted sweaters at home but not know how they are made if it was never explained. People don't know how to sew either, but one hopes they know what it its. I was pleased that when both my kids were in kindergarten they learned about fibers, knitting, weaving, sheep, at least a little. They didn't learn to knit though. Gardening units in school are also good for knowing where food comes from. They just need to add the bit about how truckers bring all of these things we eat and wear to the store.

[Knitting_Guy]

There are people who think potatoes come from a box.

That's just silly, everyone knows they come from a bag.

[Sara]

That's just silly, everyone knows they come from a bag.

[BinkyKat]

anybody have someone be flummoxed by the little cord hanging from the front of a car and assume that everyone in ND was way on the ball and already driving hybrid electric cars?
block heaters people...yeah, my 78 olds cutlass is actually green!

we learned in school all about where things come from on farms and so on. even hubby had more of that having gone to school in a rural area, even if he didn't grow up on a farm

That's just silly, everyone knows they come from a bag.

Funny guy!

[Ingrid]

Recently, I had a 4-year-old ask me what I was knitting. He's on the right track!