I made good time, but their site said they closed at 5 on Sundays. It clearly was going to be tight. partway through Tennessee, I had an awful thought. Was Murfreesboro on Central or Eastern time? If it was Eastern time, I was out of luck, because I was going to lose an hour. I placed a cell phone call to the shop owner, who was clearly puzzled by me asking her what time zone she was in. It was Central. Woo! Still Golden!<\/p>\n Armed with my MapQuest directions, I arrived in Murfreesboro with about 45 minutes to spare. And promptly got lost. I doubled back about five times, called the yarn store owner for directions, doubled back a few more times, then gave it up and pulled into a gas station to ask for directions.<\/p>\n Me:<\/b><\/i> Excuse me, but I’m very lost. Well, that pretty much summed it up.<\/p>\n WOOT! I FOUND A KNITTER! Jo (we introduced ourselves, of course) gave me perfect directions, and she admired my Tofutsies socks, and we paused for a moment to talk about yarn. Then whoosh! I was back on the road! A short time later, I was doing the roundabout around the courthouse and Civil War statue – all Southern towns have a roundabout around a courthouse and Civil War statue – and the clock read 4:40. Yikes! It was gonna be close! But it was only about a mile further and there it was. The yellow house with the dressed-up tree. Huzzah! Meredith also clearly knows her customers, because I asked her about Jo, and what sort of thing she liked. She remembered that Jo liked blacks, browns, and earthy colors. I remember Jo had commented on the Tofutsies socks. Well, without Jo, I would never have made it to the store. ![](\"http:\/\/www.tvini.org\/images\/2007trip\/MurfKnaughtystore.jpg\")
<\/a>But I digress! I wanted to hit a yarn store in Murfreesboro, TN, called the Knaughty Knitter<\/a>. Apparently, they had spinning fiber as well as yarn. There was a Simucon farewell brunch at 11am, but I knew that would have me on the road too late, even without the yarn shop. With deep regrets, I said my goodbyes and hit the road a little after 10am.<\/p>\n
\nClerk:<\/i> Of course.<\/p>\n![](\"http:\/\/www.tvini.org\/images\/2007trip\/Murfclocktower-thumb.jpg\")
<\/a>Me:<\/b><\/i> I’m trying to get back to West College Street.
\nClerk:<\/i> Sure, we can get you there. Where are you trying to go?
\nMe:<\/b><\/i> The Knaughty Knitter.
\nClerk:<\/i> OH! That’s a great yarn shop! Here’s exactly what you need to do!<\/p>\n
\n
\n![](\"http:\/\/www.tvini.org\/images\/2007trip\/Murf3bagsfullwool-thumb.jpg\")
<\/a>I spoke with the owner, who said that since she was meeting someone there about a half hour after closing, she had to be there anyway and would be glad to keep the shop open late. Score! I wound up picking up some black Pacapuf<\/a> baby alpaca for my friend
\n![](\"http:\/\/www.tvini.org\/images\/2007trip\/Murfpacapeds-thumb.jpg\")
<\/a>
\nI couldn’t leave there without spinning fiber, so I picked up some Three Bags Full<\/a> roving, pictured left. It’s from a Romney\/Merino cross sheep, with some tussah and silk noil mixed in. Adding a little tie made of the spun yarn around the neck of the bag is a nice touch. As far as knitting material, I got the Paca Peds sock yarn<\/a> pictured to the right. I liked its denimy quality.
\n
\n![](\"http:\/\/www.tvini.org\/images\/2007trip\/MurfKnaughtyowner-thumb.jpg\")
<\/a>I have to give major props to Meredith, pictured left, for being willing to let me linger. It was gracious of her. I’d also like to point out that I spent a big wad of money (thanks again, Dad!) in her store as a result of her kindness, and perhaps if the owner of Earth Guild had been willing to stay open a little longer, some of that could have been hers. I’m just sayin’.<\/p>\n![](\"http:\/\/www.tvini.org\/images\/2007trip\/MurfJo-thumb.jpg\")
<\/a>When I was going to<\/i> the store, I made a serious point of being sure I could remember my way back<\/i> from the store. And so, I picked up a hank of Schaefer Anne<\/a> and brought it back to the gas station for Jo. She was touched, and so was I. We had a little Hallmark moment. Look at her. Isn’t she a sweetheart? It was really great to meet a new knitter, and so randomly and unexpectedly! Speaking of unexpected, it was after looking at this photo that I realized I’d forgotten my sunscreen that day. Oops.<\/p>\n