I apologize, but I will not be posting much about my participation in the Ravelympics, the knitting version of the Summer Games, here on my blog. The item I’m working on is destined for a reader, so it would hardly be fair to talk about it where they can read about it. Their surprise would be diminished and I would be sad to do that to either of us. So, if you’re a knitter (or crocheter) on Ravelry, please feel free to follow along with my progress there.

Suffice it to say to everyone else, I hope that I finish a little faster than when I participated in the Knitting Olympics in 2006.

And in the meantime I will share progress reports only in terribly vague ways, such as, “I have just finished the sixth row.”

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I have just finished the sixth row.

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After work I’m heading to the Sculpture Garden to meet with members of our local team, Team 51, for a few hours of knitting and tango music. I’m really looking forward to it.

Oh, and speaking of the Olympics, don’t forget that in addition to their stellar record on the environment (second only to the U.S., I believe) and their exception perspective on human rights (ditto), China also has an intriguing perspective on neighborly relations (::sigh:: ditto). My fellow knitters and I would like to remind you, as you’re watching the Opening Ceremonies, that NONE of us is free until ALL of us are free. Please feel free to read more here.

Tonight, from 8 to 9 in your own time zone, turn off your lights. And your tv. And your video games.

Go dark for an hour.

For the second year in a row, individuals, businesses, and governments around the globe are cutting back on their power usage to demonstrate the effectiveness of group conservation efforts.

From the Earth Hour website:

The aim of the campaign is to express that individual action on a mass scale can help change our planet for the better.

The event itself will clearly demonstrate in participating cities, the connection between energy usage and climate change, showing that we as broader community can address the biggest threat our planet has ever faced.

Not sure what to do for that hour? Here are some suggestions:

• Take a walk around your neighborhood
• Talk to your neighbors
• Tell ghost stories
• Eat dinner by candlelight
• Cuddle with your kids or with your significant other
• Knit or crochet or do some other handicraft that you can do by touch

And, of course, try to take the power of the lesson — that we easily can make a difference — and try to be more energy efficient in the hours and days that follow.

The House of Representatives today is going to debate the merit of allowing DC residents some semblance of Congressional representation. The bill, HR 1433 (“The District of Columbia House Voting Rights Act of 2007”), will add two seats to the House — one which will go to D.C. (presumably a Democratic seat) and one, which will temporarily be awarded to Utah (presumably a Republican one).

No one thinks this solution is an ideal one. But regardless of where you fall on the debate of D.C. statehood or Utah getting a gimme-seat, it can’t but seem unfair that half a million people in the U.S. have no legitimate voice in the halls of Congress. We fight wars to bring democracy to other nations, but true democracy does not yet exist for all here at home.

Please consider visiting this site to send a quick email to your local representative and senators. It’s quick and you don’t have to enter a lot of information to do a lot of good. Even if you can’t get to it today, the link will still be useful as a vote in the Senate has yet to be scheduled.

And if you want to go the extra mile, you can always call your representative’s office, either in D.C. or in your home district. If you don’t want to look up their number, the Capitol Switchboard, 202-224-3121, can connect you directly.

My fellow D.C. citizens and I thank you for your time.

Last year Reya at Grace’s Poppies put a call out for bloggers to publish poetry on Feb. 2. This year Deborah at Roots Down suggested we continue the tradition. I’m still trying to get out of December, so it was with some surprise that I stumbled across the fact that today is the day at Amanda’s blog at Clothesknit.

Suzanne at Luscious Fibers reminds me that I am remiss in multiple categories of blogging responsibility because today is Go Red for Women Day, when the American Heart Association hopes to raise awareness of the fact that heart disease is the number one killer of women. Not only did I not wear red today but I also don’t have any red photos posted online yet where I can link to them.

I work in health literacy and lost my paternal grandmother to heart disease, so I’m particularly upset about the latter slip.

So I figured I’d better tie them together in some way.

Believe it or not, I can do it.

I found this article, published two years ago by the American Physiological Society: “Reading Hexametric Rhyme Supports Cardiac Synchronization, Especially After A Heart Attack.”

The gist of the study is that European scientists found that by reading poetry written in dactylic hexameter aloud helps resynchronize your heart beat, particularly after a heart attack. Cool, huh? (Dactylic hexameter is poetry in which each line can be divided into seven sections that have an accented syllable followed by two unaccented syllable — BUM ba ba, BUM ba ba.)

Unfortunately, hexameter is hard to come by in English (we prefer pentameter, the rhythm of Shakespeare) and dactylic hexameter even harder. Those who wrote in it, tend, like Homer and Virgil, to have used it for long poems that are not condusive to replication in a blog post. Longfellow wrote “Evangeline,” a booklength poem in it, for example.

Since I cannot offer you a morsel that will protect your heart, I will instead offer you one that speaks to why it matters:

Thanks, everyone, for your pre-dance support with helping me choose a dress. I did, in fact, opt for the red. That was my preference, as well, so it was great to get such a resounding response. You really know how to prop a girl up.

It was fun to see a crowd that I normally only see in jeans (and, occasionally, in business wear) all dressed up. Who knew we cleaned up so well? And, as one friend remarked, how many other places can you ride public transportation in your formal gowns and suits and not have people think it odd?

We all gathered for a pre-party over on Capitol Hill, where most of our group of friends attending the ball live. It was nice to be able to meet up with people ahead of time, so you (I) didn’t have to worry about getting to the event and wondering where everyone else was.

The ball was, well, not especially ball-like. It might have been better described as “A formal political function featuring Mayor Fenty with musical interludes provided by various local D.C. entertainers.” The music was good; it just wasn’t really anything you could dance to, at least until the final performer of the night took the stage. Someone performed the national anthem, for goodness sake!

The funniest part of the night came when we were waiting in a mass of humanity waiting to be allowed through the metal detectors into the ballroom. One friend wandered off in the other direction for a minute and called back on his cell phone to let us know there was another entrance. We scurried to the other end of the convention center to find absolutely no wait and no one manning the metal detectors. I set it off by carrying my purse through it, walked back through, expecting to be asked to leave it behind so I could go through unimpeded, and then realized that no one was even paying attention. I guess all the good security was working the original side.

But the food was good and the evening made for some terrific people watching — particularly seeing what the crowds were wearing. And the company was great. I think we’d all get dolled up and go out again, but it just might not be to a politician’s “dance.” I suggested bowling, but I think others might have been thinking more along the lines of a club or a meal. (Perhaps this just reflects my blue-collar-hometown upbringing. What can I say? Our town boasted no movie theater for a couple of decades but still maintains two bowling alleys!)

Unfortunately, I seem to be coming down with something, because I’m just wiped out. I was home shortly after midnight when I promptly fell asleep on the couch (complete with makeup and contacts). Yesterday I had a hard time dragging myself off the couch because I felt utterly drained and lethargic. Today I’m congested and achy, so I’m staying home in hopes of nipping whatever this is in the bud before it turns into something more serious. In fact, I’m going back to bed right now.