Friday, January 26, 2007

Cranberry-Pudding-Red

When the snowmobile, the new one, was bought and brought to us, I was upstairs doing something that I consider as important household chores. It was a Friday. The moment the toy came, my husband was off with it. Half an hour later or so, he opened the front door and I heard him calling me. I dropped everything I was doing and thought that something urgent had turned up. So I practically run down and was greeted by a very happy looking man. I was told to come to the window to look at how fast he was driving on the ice of the lake in front of the house. There I was, looking out of the window, waiting for this shuttle to pass my house. (I see snowmobiles on the ice quite frequently driving very fast, and frankly I could not see a big difference…) Then he drives up to the house and sincerely seeks for my opinion of the speed he was doing. “Did I look fast?” I realized that this was one of these important moments in our marriage and that there was only one possible answer. My whole being was radiating admiration.

Yesterday we were out again with the snowmobiles and met two men from the village. And they wanted to have a test drive with our new toy. So I jumped off the mobile to let each of them to have a drive and sort of was looking away to see something that had caught my attention, but I was brought back to the scene with the words “look how fast he is driving!” There I was in the man world, not only as a spectator but I had stepped right inside. This brief, almost sacred plain moment among these three men was quite refreshing.

I know I made someone very happy. I got a big bouquet of roses. And later last night when I was knitting my Koigu socks, he got very poetic.

His box of crayons has only green, blue, brown, yellow, red and black of course. Then there are bunch of colours that leave him puzzled like violet, turquoise and orange. Orange is always red. Violet and turquoise can be anything from the above list. I have tried to make him see more, like if he talks about e.g. green I have asked, green like olives or green like fresh birch leaves. He looks very puzzled and will say, after some serious consideration, like green as green.


But last night was different, he called my socks cranberry-pudding-red.

40 comments:

  1. Anonymous16:55

    How sweet and amazing those few words about color and your husband...Makes me laugh loud alone in the house !
    Just to say that, we ever, never, know what's really in the bottom(or top !) of someone else's mind...I think he made an effort to please, to be kind, to try to understand your feelings about wool and the subtilities of color variations because you had be able to participate to his world and his feelings of joy about speed with his toy...
    Good spirit between you two, wishing you a good continuation !
    Esther
    p.s. your socks look like strawberry mousse with a lot of whipped cream in it..

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  2. Anonymous17:13

    I love that story. Definitely the right answer in yes, a very important moment in your marriage.

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  3. What a lovely story - I believe that sort of tender awareness and good will in the small things is what makes a marriage truly wonderful.

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  4. Hmm. I have apparently never seen cranberry pudding. Had I been asked to liken the color to food in a poetic way, it would have been strawberry whipped cream, but never would I have come up with that unbidden.
    My husband definitely enjoys the speed of a snowmobile - I think yours and mine would get along swimmingly. :-)

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  5. Sweet. It sounds like you are each learning to speak the other's language.

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  6. Anonymous18:42

    A very endearing story...
    What a great way to start a day, to read a story like that; I know that I will be in a good mood for the rest of the day!

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  7. What a lovely story! It's always such a treat to find a new entry in your blog!

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  8. Anonymous19:43

    I know what you mean about man-dom. I have a family of boys and we ride dirt bikes. I'm proud of myself when I keep up, can find my way through the bush(better than them;0), pick up my own bike when I dump it,and don't have to be babysat like other wives ;0). Besides, I love it too. Your post today was wonderful, a great piece of writing, lots of endearing images, makes one smile! Bravo! Celeste
    (www.2stix.blogspot.com)

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  9. That's is one of the sweetest stories I have ever heard. I work with color everyday in my job-printing prints of artist's paintings and framing. My dad, who owns the business, likes to let me be the one to work with customers on picking colors to use in their frames. If it was up to him he would always pick a white or gray mat with a black frame.

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  10. Anonymous20:36

    They seem to be magical, romantic socks. I would definitely save them for a first wearing on February 14, St. Valentine's Day.

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  11. I could see why he called those stocking Cranberry Pudding Red - especially if you mixed a bit of stewed cranberries into some delicious whipped cream!
    It is interesting being part of a man's world for a bit. I was raised with three older brothers, and I sometimes think I think the way I do because of them. Not a bad thing. Thanks for the story!

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  12. Hah! My husband says the only real colors are blue, yellow, green, red, purple, orange, brown, black & white. Any of these can be modified by "light" or "dark," and grey and tan are acceptable descriptors for what he really thinks of as "light black" (or maybe "dark white") and "light brown." Turquoise, fuchsia, scarlet, maroon, jade, mauve -- they don't count.

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  13. Aww! What a sweet post. I think.. I think you have a successful marriage, is what I think ;-)

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  14. It is wonderful how these very different things can bring husbands and wives closer.

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  15. What a great story - made me grin.
    And I think the socks look (as my little ones say) "D. E. licious!"

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  16. What a sweet, funny story. :-) Your husband sounds like a great guy.

    I agree with whoever said to save the finished socks for Valentine's Day--they'll be perfect for the occasion. :-)

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  17. Anonymous23:34

    That was very funny and charming. I take it your husband doesn't read your blog, right?

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  18. It is good that there is at least one artist in the family.

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  19. How very apt - I suppose he said 'vispipuuro'. I've always called it whipped porridge (direct translation) because I've had to come up with English names for Finnish foods but cranberry pudding sounds so nice.

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  20. That was two marriage defining moments. How wonderful!

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  21. Enjoyed hearing about the cranberry pudding red socks.

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  22. aww! i love that story!

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  23. That is a very nice story.

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  24. They are very lovely socks, and I bet you are so happy he described the colour he thought they are. Fast toys are good.

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  25. Anonymous14:14

    That is so romantic. A story with two of the best things, love and knitting. Sometimes it is hard for spouses to really speak each others language. My husband doesn't have a snowmobile, but he has model trains. Similar scenario.

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  26. Beautifully endearing story, tender, touching....thank you.

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  27. Them boys. One asked me what I want for Christmas. A diary, i told him, a big one, one day per one page, and, did i say it?, a BIG diary. So I have a wee cute thingie, one week per two pages and it's smaller than my hands,I cannot squeeze my big letters into the tiny lines... On the other hand, I'm making a Christmas sweater for the guy (Christmas 2006, for that matter) (and no, he isn't my boyfriend, should someone think of the sweater curse)... and he's able to name the colours. Using words like bright blue and dark blue, and.... burgundy.
    Sometimes the guys seem as if they had only one part of the brain operating at a time. We have to learn to live with it.

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  28. Anonymous19:24

    I think your husband is absolutely correct - good for him! The colour reminds me exactly of the marjapuuro my mother and aunt made when I was younger. They used lingonberries, as I recall.

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  29. Anonymous21:12

    How wonderful to read about you two reaching across the boundaries seeking to understand and be part of the other's world.
    The socks are beautiful; I hope to be able to knit something that gorgeous someday!

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  30. Anonymous02:39

    Love the Embossed Leaves! I made them in a green Koigu with a little golden brown--very leafy-looking! I love them. Also, I love your descriptions and your obsevations. Thanks for letting me peek into life so far north.

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  31. How nice of you to appreciate your husbands new toy. That is a good wife.
    I love the color of your new socks and that pattern is lovely

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  32. This is a beautiful post. I have only recently begun to read your blog, and have enjoyed all the posts I've read, but this was my favorite so far. Thank you for sharing this.

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  33. I know you'll tuck those two special, yet profoundly simple, moments when you each deliberately reached out to join hands in trying to learn the other's passions.

    Thank you for sharing, and encouraging me to try to see things through my husband's eyes.

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  34. P.S---by the way--love those socks
    Monica

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  35. Oh Lena - how sweet.
    Amazingly beautiful reindeer photos.

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  36. Don't you just love Koigu!? And what a delicate color. Reminds me of puolukkavispipuuro, but I suppose that would probably be pretty close to "cranberry pudding". :)

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  37. This entry really made me smile! Husbands are wonderful creatures... And this entry also made me wish to live away from the city (it's in the works, give us 2 years!) and to have a fireplace.
    The socks look very nice indeed!

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  38. Anonymous19:57

    I was thinking about this post this morning and was chuckling to myself, I know this feeling exactly. I did not comment at first, because I felt like you had said it all so perfectly, I had nothing to add, but I want to tell you I enjoy your blog very much.
    I enjoy your knitting and your drawings, I enjoyed watching Tina fall asleep and her attention to the mice.

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  39. Lol, I love your husband's description of colours. My husband is similar, but we do know he is colour blind. Not the red/green kind (good thing as he is a sailor!) but the blues and purples and violets. I had a set of pictures in a book to find out - probably a psychology text from a few years ago. Suddenly it all made sense why we were always arguing about colour!

    Your blog is wonderful, your weaving is fantastic, just found you today, but when I got back this far in you archive I felt I had to comment and tell you of the colour issues that husband and I have.

    Best wishes from Liverpool (UK)

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