My friend Erin and I learned to knit together several years ago. She is a talented and awesome friend. This status can only be reinforced by receipt of a pair of handmade mittens for Christmas! They are gorgeous, warm, and fit like a glove, er… like a mitten! Basically, they’re fantastic and so is she.
(ADDENDUM: Even more fabulous – Erin is on Ravelry too! AND she posted about this awesome gift – which happen to be called Chevalier Mittens!)
These are especially fantastic because it is flippin’ cold in Chicago. I can’t remember the last time I saw the sun, so all happy-thoughts must be obtained through friends and exercise (and of course, fantastic gifts). Food was a good source too, but there needs to be a little less of it now that the holidays are over. 
