If not for knitting.....

I am back from a fortnight in Norway, where the scenery is stunning and the people are very friendly.

On the way to Bergen, however, we were fogged in at Shetland. Flybe was very accommodating. They arranged transport to and from the airport to a nice hotel in Lerwick and a voucher for dinner and breakfast. We arrived in Lerwick in time for a little walk through the centre. For me, this meant a bookstore and a trip to one of knitland's treasured sites--one of the Jamieson wool shops, which specialises, not surprisingly, in Shetland wool. Fortunately I had just a short time before they closed, so I had to stay focused and came out with just one small ball of wool.

I had planned to travel light and with all the hassle about knit needles on airplanes, only at the last minute decided to tuck in a small pair of circular needles and a pattern for wee hearts from one of those freebies included in a knit magazine. It turned out to be one of the best things to go into my bag.

When we checked in the day after our fogbound night, the weather did not look very promising. I had the foresight to ask about taking my wee needles in my hand luggage and was told, they were OK.

And then began the long wait. Maybe the flight would go; maybe not, and this not knowing lingered all day. I lost myself in the heart pattern. By the time we finally heard that the flight was taking off, I had nearly a half dozen little hearts.

A woman on the flight later commented, "You were always knitting" and that led to two things: a discussion of Northern Loops and my realisation that without my knitting I don't know how well I would have endured nine hours in a very small airport. That set me wondering about other folks' stories.

Was there a time when knitting helped you cope with a difficult situation or led to a conversation with a new person? I'd like to hear your stories.