The Arnie Blanket

Day 44: It's close enough to the unavoidable moment for me to post this: Park Plant Ecologist and good friend Arnie is retiring, a fact which saddens me to no end. His wife is also hanging up her hat, so we're having a party for them on Thursday. This handwoven blanket will be my retirement gift to them. I also made a matching scarf for Sara, and Joe Dreimiller mounted photos of Team Biota's most memorable finds in a large frame. During his too-brief stint at Mount Rainier National Park, Arnie has been very supportive of me and of Team Biota. He has also helped me become a better scientist, teaching by example, gently correcting my errors, guiding my focus to the finer details of botany. We had some good days in the field (most of which wound up with me as the punch line when I sunk thigh-deep in mud or took a tumble into a bog), and I will forever be grateful for the hours he spent listening to me rave about a certain rare fungus, absorbing every word and then coming to me at some later date with printouts of research papers on the subject in the hopes of providing further insight into its special ecology. His support has meant the world to me, allowing me to "do science" on the Park's behalf. He will be missed by many people in the Park, but I think none quite so much as me.

Ah, yes, the blanket. It was woven as a double layer on a four-foot floor loom, and the design was based loosely on the famous "Hudson Bay" blankets of yesteryear. I used standard "fabric store" knitting worsted for warp and weft, and finished it with twisted fringe. I'm sure they'll enjoy it during chilly nights at Crater Lake where Arnie plans to continue working as a VOLUNTEER!