Lilac Rain and I decided that Jeff needed a pair of knitted socks. Umm...what size to make? I did a little emailing, contacted the Official Wilco Spy Office, and within a few hours, the email with vital information was waiting for me. Unfortunately, it exploded within 10 seconds after I opened it. I immediately cast on and went to work. Little did I know that I was about to enter the gates of Crazyville.
I had *never* knit a pair of socks that size before in such a short time limit. What was I thinking?!? My only advantage was that I had 6 days left of Spring Break. I knit the first sock in 4 days. 4 DAYS!!!! On Saturday I couldn't knit; my wrists were cramped up. Sunday I cast on the second sock. This sock went much slower with much less pain. I finished it on Monday evening with time left to knit a little on my spiral shawl.
Socks: Yarn Harlot's plain vanilla sock pattern. The yarn is by Regia in the Kaffe Fassett colorway Landscape. 80 stitches in 2x2 ribbing all the way down the foot. Size 1 Clover bamboo needles. 6 in. cuff and 10 7/8 inches in the foot.Jim, Lilac Rain, Aaron (a friend who has never been to a Wilco show) and I piled into the car at 3:30 and left for Ashville. It's about a 3 hour drive. We got there with time to spare, did a little walking around, and I took some pics of my current sock in progress.
We made our way into the venue. When the guards searched my bag and found knitting needles, they wouldn't let me in. I either had to give them up or hike all the way back to the car. She said that anything that was considered a weapon was not allowed. Me being me, I politely asked her if her book of rules specifically said, "No knitting needles" and she replied, "Not exactly, but we have to be careful in case you might stab somebody." Then, me being me (and taking the idea from the ever resourceful Yarn Harlot), sweetly inquired, "Are pencils allowed in the venue?" She eyed me suspiciously and I added, "Because I could always knit with pencils" as I thought to myself, "Umm...hello?....a pencil could stab somebody, be *way* more dangerous, and do *way* more physical damage than my measly dull, metal double points." She informed me that you couldn't take knitting needles on a plane, and I assured her that a lot of times you can, and very rarely does a knitter go crazy and randomly kabob people for fun. Jim took the knitting back to the car, while she rolled her eyes and shoo-ed me to the door.
I thought that Wilco started off the show rather slow. They played a lot of slower tunes, and I didn't feel like they started to rock until the middle of the concert and continued until the end. It wasn't that they weren't ON; it was just that they had a little different start than other Wilco shows I've been to. It was almost like they teased us with some rockin' tune and then went back to a slower one, until about half way through...then they completely let loose! For the last song of the set, they played Hummingbird. Jim put Lilac Rain on his shoulders. The security guard came up to Jim and I thought that he was going to make Lilac Rain get down. The next thing I knew, she was running to the stage. When she got there, Jeff waved and took the mic off of the stand. Then he stopped the song completely. He said, "Hi Lilac! (To the audience) Lilac and I go way back. (To Lilac) How many times have we done this now? (Pause) 6 or 5? (Pause) 6?" And he jumped down and picked her up so she could sit on the edge of the stage. Then he sat next to her and they sang together. When it came to the chorus, he let Lilac Rain have control of the mic so she could sing by herself, and as soon as Lilac Rain started to sing, you could hear all the women (and probably some guys too) go, "Awwww...." She had the sweetest tone to her voice, and she belted it out! My daughter is definitely not shy!! (In the first pic below, Jeff looks positively enchanted!) Then they sang the chorus together again, and got up to do their little dance. After the song he gave her a hug and she came back to our seats. When they came back onstage for the encore, Jeff said something about how surprised they are every time they see her because she's getting so big. Then Jeff sang a bit of Cats in the Cradle in a sad, teary exaggerated voice that got some laughs from the audience.
Photos: The first and last pictures were taken by the extremely talented photographer, Charles Harris. Charles has taken pictures for Wilco on several different occasions, and he took the pictures of Lilac Rain and Wilco when she was 6. For a trip down memory lane, those pictures can be seen at http://www.charlesharris.com/wilco/hummingirlThe three pictures in the middle were taken by the rockin' Christen McNamara. She had front row seats and kindly emailed them to me. Thanks, Christen!!
After the show, we took our time leaving the venue. We met up with some online friends and people we've encountered at other shows and chatted for a bit. A few people were able to take pictures of Lilac Rain onstage and they kindly offered to email me pictures. Many others gave Lilac Rain high fives, congrats, and were just happy to talk to her. One very nice woman asked to take a picture with her, which Lilac Rain happily did. We finally made our way out to the tour buses. and it was FREEZING!! The wind was whipping and it started to drizzle. Only one other person was there. Jim went and got the car, and we waited in there for awhile. I went over to the security guard and he said that the band was only doing meet and greets for the people with backstage passes, so I decided to accept defeat until I noticed some Wilco workers over by the backdoor of the venue. I called one guy over and he seemed a little skeptical. I told him I was Lilac Rain's mama, and a smile instantly spread across his face. When I explained that we had a thank you gift for Jeff, he promised to give him the present. Then eyed it questioningly but warmly. I told him it was hand-knit socks, which he thought was oh so cool, and again he said that he would make sure that Jeff got them.
I'm extremely grateful that Lilac Rain got to have her rock star experience *yet again*, and I honestly believe that Jeff got the socks. I have my Official Wilco Spies on the lookout for any signs that he's wearing them, and a few have promised to casually inquire about them at their shows in the near future. I'm just hoping that they fit and he likes them. :)
