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Last night was extraordinarily beautiful despite being cloudy. The breeze was both warm and cool. Comfortable to me. I know I tend to be more suited to cooler weather than most, though. What a wonderful night to have been out in!
The warm weather out deserved something cooler than my heavy winter coat and something nicer than the overused thin jackets.
I realized that my oldest cloak is almost exactly eight years old. Spring 1996, I made it, my sophomore year when I was living off campus. I remember the day that inspired it: all misty and warm, the remnants of snow still clinging to the ground. I remember following my impulse to JoAnn Fabrics and getting the wool, the flannel and the thread. I didn't have a sewing machine, a pattern, or even a measuring tape. I had scissors and string, though, and I had a rudimentary knowledge of hand sewing. I remember working straight through until it was done.
It isn't perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but it's soft and warm. For a while after I made it, it served as the blanket on my bed closest to my skin. I wore it all over campus. It went with me to rituals. It protected me from rain and snow, from chill air, and from ever fully blending in with the bulk of the students at Oswego. I found myself with an amusing sort of notoriety - I was dubbed the cloak-girl.
So, last night I brought out my old friend. It seemed right to enjoy the pleasant night in the way I had so many years ago.
Since then I've made other cloaks, cloaks that were made with more attention to detail or made from patterns. I've sold two of them. None of those carry the personal connection I feel with my first, though, and none of them are as saturated with good memories.
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Reminds me of a conversation with some random 12-or-so-year-old in worcester one day:
Him: If you were a super hero, you'd be, like, `guy who wears a big cloak'
Me: Would I really?
Him: Yeah! I'd be afraid of you.
From:
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The funny thing was, before long I wasn't the only cloaked student on campus. The most startling bit was being mistaken for someone I'd never seen or met simply by the length of my hair and clothing I was wearing. Eventually I did meet her, though I don't recall her name. I remember she talked a lot about SCA stuff. Kinda hard to live on the same side of campus and not be introduced at some point. *** had moved back on-campus in later years***