A few of us, along with our ever-energetic leader Ann, spent a recent afternoon in the AFSC basement, where we were greeted by our favorite sight:

Piles and piles of envelopes and boxes, all full to the brim with gorgeous, colorful and warm hats, socks and mittens. Our mission that day was to open each package and to sort items by category, which left us plenty of time to admire the quality and creativity of so many knitters and crocheters.

Marina (left) and Sue got a first-hand look at the latest package from a4A cheerleader, Renée. It was great to see all these socks and mittens in person after admiring them on Ravelry, where Renée (revknits) co-moderates the "Fans of afghans for Afghans" group.

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These fair-isle mittens are the work of another long-time supporter, Gail. Not only are they beautiful, but the color-stranding makes them exceptionally warm. What a truly special gift to pass on to an Afghan child or teenager. No wonder we all came out from the afternoon's shift motivated to cast on for even more small handknits for this campaign. Please join us if you haven't already, and continue to send mittens, hats and socks to the AFSC -- these small handknits are going to make a world of difference to so many.

That's Bolani with a capital "B" in Culver City.

Last December, I was knocked out to find Bolani's bolani for sale at Costco in San Francisco. (Bolani, with a capital B, is now their trademark.)

Well, lo and behold, I was at the farmer's market in Culver City (next to Los Angeles) a couple weeks ago and ran right into the Bolani booth! Meant to be, no doubt. I was with my friend Wendy. We spent quite a long time hanging out with the hospitable Ahad, who joyfully served samples of bolani, including spinach, pumpkin, and lentil, with sauces. He's was a magnet for shoppers in a place where no one slows down for much. How about a bumper sticker that says: "We brake for Bolani! (I am going to email Ahad about that.) We had such a fun time and went home with several packages, but not enough. One of Wendy's sons is a vegan, so she was thrilled to find a new option for the family table.

Ahad's family left Afghanistan in the 80s, and he talked with us some about their experience. Ahad is a marvelous ambassador for his homeland. He's also modest and doesn't really like photos, and I think he was just too darn nice to say no --

(I am the one in the Noro shawl.)

If you or your friends are in Los Angeles. Visit the Culver City farmer's market on Tuesdays and say hello to Ahad.

Tell him you are knitting and crocheting for the people of Afghanistan. Stock up on Bolani.