Hey, exactly how does one get in on this whole NATO deal, anyway? I mean, we don't have weapons of mass destruction, but we do have DPNs.
Read here and here; also here.
Hard to imagine George and Condi really appreciating a pair of Latvian Mittens, you know?
More reasons for secession, I'm just saying.
I think it'd be easier for you to emmigrate to Canada. Toronto to be specific. We're nice here, and our political leaders have our culturally ingrained appreciation for handknits. They have to in order to survive really...
Posted by: Rachel H | October 12, 2006 at 05:48 PM
Wonderful picture and story! Thanks Cate.
Posted by: M-H | October 12, 2006 at 07:11 PM
Wow. That's a lot of mittens. What a great photo.
Posted by: Carole | October 12, 2006 at 08:15 PM
wow! that is so awesome! thank you for posting this!
Posted by: jess | October 12, 2006 at 08:34 PM
I love it! Especially the historical info on the mittens, with the symbols explained. I think I have to get a pair of those on the needles soon.
Posted by: Chris | October 12, 2006 at 08:43 PM
Hyperventilating!
Deep, slow breaths....
Posted by: Jan | October 12, 2006 at 09:12 PM
make mittens, not war
Posted by: maryse | October 12, 2006 at 10:04 PM
Seems like a waste of perfectly good mittens. Let's divert them all to the Dulaan Project!
Posted by: amysue | October 12, 2006 at 10:44 PM
Can I move to Canada, too? Toronto is on the side of the lake that doesn't get snowed on as much!
Posted by: Diane | October 12, 2006 at 10:56 PM
I'm with Rachel H - just come to Canada. :) Except I'd personally recommend Whistler - or at least the West Coast (not that there's anything wrong with Toronto). Lots of Gulf Island sheep and alpaca farms, spinning and knitting, a moderate climate similar to the UK (ie. perfect sweater weather), amazing scenery, and the most tolerant political climate you're likely to find anywhere in North America.
All that aside, I love the symbolism in the mittens - I found it interesting that the sun is a feminine symbol, and the moon the male god of war - most cultures have it the other way around.
Posted by: Ruth | October 12, 2006 at 11:21 PM
Wowzers. I like your thinking -- what do I have to do to gain admission (and a pair of mittens)? Clearly, we'd all appreciate them a lot more than the people for whom they are intended. 5,000 pairs?! The mind boggles.
Posted by: Liz | October 12, 2006 at 11:26 PM
That is one fantabulous photo. It brings a tear to my eye, actually. The beauty!
Posted by: Norma | October 12, 2006 at 11:46 PM
That is SO cool. Such talent all displayed on one table.
Posted by: Laurie | October 13, 2006 at 06:47 AM
Very cool! I wish I was standing at that table to peruse them all. Beautiful.
Posted by: Manise | October 13, 2006 at 06:50 AM
Wow! Thanks, Cate. Can you imagine living in a country where mittens are considered a national treasure? Boggleboggle. If we secede, you you think Latvia will take us?
Posted by: Marcy, Not so Blogless | October 13, 2006 at 07:24 AM
Awesome! One of the articles says that the media will also get pairs -- so, perhaps Latvian mittens on the NBC Nightly News -- one can only hope!
Posted by: Kathy | October 13, 2006 at 09:31 AM
That one picture expresses so many cultural and political differences. Definitely a case of a mitten being worth a thousand words.
Posted by: Sneaksleep | October 13, 2006 at 10:24 AM
Those mittens will just be wasted on Condi - wasted, I tell you! And also? Latvia, that is the best party favor ever - thanks for sharing.
Posted by: Donna | October 13, 2006 at 11:10 AM
I liked the traditions "you should never wipe your nose in a pair of mittens or you will never be rich" If you wiped your nose in a pair of those and I'd made them (as if) not being rich would be the least of your worries.
Thank you for that, it was an impressive photo and a lovely thought for the day, the 268 knitters busily knitting away on such a major project.
Posted by: Caroline M | October 13, 2006 at 11:56 AM
No way. No freakin' way... That photograph is practically p*rn from a knitter's perspective. I just made it my desktop wallpaper. Man, I hope the delegates really understand and appreciate what they're getting.
Thanks for all the links! There's some interesting historical stuff in there about the meaning of the patterns, etc (though I have been suspicious of "meanings" ever since reading the introduction to _Aran Knitting_.)
Posted by: Beth S. | October 13, 2006 at 12:38 PM
That is, quite possibly, the most awesome picture I've ever encountered on a knitting blog.
Posted by: Katherine | October 13, 2006 at 01:41 PM
That is unreal!!! I can't imagine the hours involved in all of those mittens!!
Posted by: Stacie | October 13, 2006 at 01:52 PM
Yup, send them to Dulaan. What a sea of beautiful colors and designs!
Posted by: Kathode Ray Tube | October 14, 2006 at 10:42 AM
Here's another article on the NATO mittens that I found interesting.
http://go.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=oddlyEnoughNews&storyID=13439507&src=rss/oddlyEnoughNews
The actual sight of the all those mittens is absolutely mind-boggling!
Posted by: Bethe | October 14, 2006 at 02:49 PM
I wish there were a way for us non-Latvian knitters to send the Latvian knitters something - socks? yarn?
Posted by: Alison | October 15, 2006 at 09:24 AM