1,2. Buckle My Shoe

"1,2,3,4, Mary's at the kitchen door. 5,6,7,8, eating cherries off a plate. "

I need to learn to count.

"1 is for bad news, 2 is for mirth, 3 is a wedding, 4 is a birth, 5 is for riches, 6 is a thief, 7 is a journey, 8 is for grief."

It's clearly something I have trouble with.

"1,2,3,4,5. Once I caught a fish alive. 6,7,8,9,10 then I let it go again."

Counting is very important when you're trying to substitute cable patterns.

"This old man, he played 1."

There's an important fact you need to keep in mind when you're working across 38 stitches, 8 of which are border stitches.

"1 little, 2 little, 3 little Indians. 4 little, 5 little, 6 little Indians."

28 is not the same as 36. Not only that, it never will be.

"12 lords a-leaping, 11 ladies dancing, 10 pipers piping, 9 drummers drumming, 8 maids a-milking."

Happily, it is still a multiple of 8 plus 4.