Well done Buttermilk, both for finishing the shawl and for working out the number of stitches
I agree about working in black. I once knitted a very large Aran in Heb yarn and on circular needles so for every second row I had to reverse the instructions. The thing took me 6 months and by the time I finished it my eyes hurt and I never wanted to see black again. If you wear a white pinny when you're working in black it does help it to stand out.
I now use one of those daylight standard lamps where I need more light, but I love the idea of a head torch - much more mobile.
Get yourself some of those bright metallic needles (Addi do them but so does Knit-Pro I think) so the dark yarn shows up.
Keep us updated with your progress