A View from Sierra County

And The Winner Is....

2006-10-01T16:20:00.000-07:00

.... answers are waiting over at my new home on the web, here!

It does not look so nice yet, and I still have to unpack my boxes and put pictures on the walls, so to speak, but please head on over and bookmark my new location so that we don't lose touch with each other.

This site will remain!

Saturday Morning in the Mountains

2006-09-30T17:23:00.000-07:00

I am not usually at work early on a Saturday morning, but this is what the view from my office door looked like at 7:30 AM today.

Teaching and Learning

2006-09-27T19:43:00.000-07:00

From the wild sheep's fleece in olden times,
The wool was won and washed and spun.

Sheep gave the wool,
people gave it form.

With link on link
And row on row

The one long thread
Begins to show

How the work of our fingers
With patience transforms;

Now the wild sheep's fleece
Can clothe peoples' forms.

This verse, my adaptation of the original from Gertrude Madey, is the one I use with my second grade handwork class to close each lesson session. I am finding my work fun and rewarding, but the time for each lesson far too short. Through it all, children learn, and most especially in this situation is knitting about process. Stitch counting helps with math, sitting at one's desk, using both hands to concentrate on creating an object is a grounding and centering activity for the young child, and of course there is great excitement and pride of accomplishment at finishing a project.

Sara and I met this afternoon to review the curriculum I am piecing together; she taught at Live Oak Waldorf School for several years while her two sons, now 28 and 30, were in elementary...

We discussed the differences and similarities between the public version and work within the private Waldorf setting, as well as the changes that have taken place with a new generation of parents bringing children, and also needing for both to work full-time. There are far more separated families, for example.

I am very fortunate to have a group of parent helpers, fulfilling their volunteer hours that are required for their children to attend a public charter school of this type, with me through each and every lesson, and we still felt pretty overwhelmed as our group of 30 first-graders all made their first attempts at a garter stitch this morning. Out of that number, I was delighted to see that there were five with previous knitting experience, through their families, who were capably charging through three rows in the same time the very beginning students were struggling through their first few stitches.

Sara and some of the staff have also cautioned me to set limits on the out-of-class I devote, and so "correcting" will mainly take place during classes, so that I don't become a slave to re-doing, fixing, etc. Sara had several examples of her sons' stuffed animals, made during their early years, and a few "next step" projects for my second grade students, a few who are close to exhausting the steps taken in previous years.

Teaching is always an adventure involving staying a few steps ahead of your students, no matter how familiar the subject or how long one has been teaching it. Sara reflected on how much that is the case in teaching adults in the fiber arts as well. A wonderful, end-of-summer meeting of the minds at one of our lovely outdoor cafes in Nevada City, before winter sets in... thanks so very much for your generous gift of time, Sara.

A last note, to remind all who haven't done so yet... there is still time to enter my 375th Post Contest; I haven't gotten my new Typepad site ready to launch and am behind schedule, but the contest will take place on time:). There's also still plenty of time to join in the fun for the Twisted Knitters Dye-Spin-Knit Along, not that you have nothing to do!

Forest Canopy Shoulder Shawlette

2006-09-24T19:00:00.000-07:00

As promised, I took advantage of the lovely autumn weather on the first day of fall to capture a few views of my completed shawlette. The pattern is available online from Susan Lawrence. I started my version the day I returned home from getting to hang out with Susan and Margene at Great Basin Fiber Fair, using yarn that Margene had dyed under Susan's tutelage in the spring. The colors reflected the Utah landscape for me, especially the trees whose leaves were starting to turn color, and the completed shawlette will wrap me in memories of that wonderful visit and all the fun we had at our spindle class together... so I renamed my personal version "Echoes of Hugs".

Glenn took this photo for me, with our Forest City high country house in the background.
The shawlette is light and lovely and a great accent with fall outfits.

Although the color doesn't quite come through accurately (it misses the pinky sunset shades that led Margene to dub this "Merlot"), the detail is very good.

This shot gives a truer idea of the lovely colors in the yarn.

The pattern was an absolute joy to knit, easy to see unfolding as I went along, and short enough to be finished quickly (just over two weeks of about an hour a day). The instructions include a great tutorial for those who have never knitted lace before, and although I have knitted quite a few lacy items over the years, this is the first finished piece that done in laceweight. I loved the edging, which is a creative extension and finishing off of the pattern, and the two-row bind-off allowed the edging to remain elastic, while being easy to complete. The points all finished blocking very nicely!

In fact, I loved the pattern so much that I started a second one, a gift, in a dusty green Misti Alpaca, re-learning that not all laceweights are the same, as this second version needs a needle size smaller, which I will have to pick up tomorrow. I highly recommend Susan's pattern for those beginning to think about gift knitting!

Smoky Saturday Sky

2006-09-23T18:59:00.000-07:00

This Saturday sky is pretty ugly with brown smoke (that smudgy layer just above the mountains), although the visibility has increased since 24 hours of high winds blew our smoke somebody else's way... a shot taken from the pass on Mountain House between the North Yuba River drainage (which we are looking up) and the Oregon Creek drainage (behind me while I was taking the photo). The Bassetts fire is about 8 miles as the crow flies, now 70% contained, but not after threatening homes, camps and resorts in the Lakes Basin area since Tuesday afternoon.

Twisted Knitters and a Shawl Drying

2006-09-22T16:02:00.000-07:00

Yes, I DID finish my shawl and no, I am NOT posting a picture of my Forest Canopy shawlette that is blocking today up in my studio; I am making you wait to see a real photo shoot of it, to take place this weekend.

I just wanted to give you a heads up to check Margene's announcement about a neat, new KAL and consider joining in the fun and sporting the snazzy button I just put up! I will be linking to the blog for this KAL just as soon as it is ready, so check back regularly to watch us all dye, spin, and knit together.

Have a great weekend!

Forest Canopy Is Closing In On Finish!

2006-09-20T21:50:00.000-07:00

This is one of those teaser posts where my time would be better spent in knitting, as the lovely Forest Canopy shoulder shawl, from Susan Lawrence's pattern, is almost done, in fact I have only a few more border rows and blocking!

Why am I typing and not knitting, you ask? Well, I have learned the hard way to faithfully follow the "No Lace After 9 PM" rule, having found that my eyes and my concentration both weaken and mistakes happen (that ugly "M" word). However, getting caught up on email and blogs after 9 PM works pretty well... I also had to read all the latest fire news for California as the smoke was thick today from a fire at the crest of Yuba Pass, east of Downieville, forcing one dear friend from my crafts co-op to evacuate with her husband to their other house in Reno (for their health from the smoke; their house is safe so far).

I will probably squeeze in one, last purl row before bed, and finish the edging tomorrow, so watch for a FO by this weekend (doing a little happy dance:)

Making Knitting Needles

2006-09-18T20:49:00.000-07:00

There are many sites on the Internet that will give you directions for making your own knitting needles, and that is not what I am going to do... I do want to fill you in on the great job my group of 30 first grade handwork students have done in making their first set of needles.

Of course, they have had plenty of assistance from their teacher, who posted a photo last week of cutting apart the hardwood dowels into 10-inchs lengths. What I didn't know then was that the wood is actually a very nice quality, and did not require much in the way of sanding.

The next step after cutting 60 lengths was to use one of the school's pencil sharpeners to rough out points. Then, the students spent their handwork periods last week and today sanding their needles, until the points were smooth. Now, using a pencil sharpener and sandpaper has made me far more appreciative of my bamboo and ebony needles - some of the points are "pointier" or "scoopier" (those of you who have used these adjectives to describe your favorite needles will feel the lack thereof immediately), and then again, some are a bit too rounded for my liking.

However, looking over last year's crop of needles, still in ready use by my second grade students, showed that the needles had almost all developed the patina that comes from being clutched in a pair of small hands, and that the students turned out excellent projects with them.

I spent most of yesterday evening doing some finish sanding, and getting ready to glue these lovely beads on the ends; I found that 11 of my students had finished both of their needles, while 11 more had only a bit of sanding on the second one to reach their goal. I also discovered that I had grabbed the wrong size of glue sticks (even though the packages were hanging on a display with the hot glue gun I bought last week, they were too big).

Here is the assembly line set-up, to make sure that each student had a pair of matching beads and all needles were ready for glueing.

Our class today went well, with most students having the increased motivation to finish their pair of needles, since those who were done sanding got to pay a visit to the handwork room (where older students have their classes, and where the WOOL is kept on shelves, displayed in color groupings of the rainbow).

These students brought back bags of many colors, and helped roll up small balls. We now have a large basket full of an array of colors, waiting for the lessons in How To Knit, and much practice, as the students make their first project, a striped case to hold their flutes when not in use for music lessons!

Those pairs of needles that are finished have been tied together and are ready for me to present to the students at the next class, on Wednesday.
Don't they look nice, resting in my Booga Bag? There will be a little story, and a knitting verse to help them remember the steps as well, at our next lesson.

I have to say that it really warms my heart to pass on my love of fiber (or is it an addiction?) I am also grateful that the school has a well-organized parent volunteer program, as I have had at least two parent helpers for each class period! The time still flies by, and I will be working all year to contain the after-hours portion to a reasonable amount of time, so that I can get to my own knitting. After spending five hours of weekend time over the past two weekends on the needle construction, it's time for me to have some quality moments with my Forest Canopy shoulder shawl.

2006-09-16T21:17:00.000-07:00

This week's Saturday sky features the view to the northwest that I get to see in the evenings while driving home from Nevada City....today's sky was hazy, as fires continue in California. Yesterday's clouds and low temperatures have passed, but it is doubtful we will see the hot weather of summer again.

Why Spin?

2006-09-13T19:42:00.000-07:00

In the midst of developing a new, back-to-school routine, I have had a few episodes of insomnia, one of which was filled with the ideas for this post... It all started when I read Katherine's line "Spinning is the new Knitting", and started mulling over why there would be so many recent converts.

Remember hearing "Knitting is the new Yoga"? I believe that the attraction for so many knitters was that you could achieve a meditative state, reflecting on the process of yarn moving through fingers while still also experiencing creative juices warming up, and turning out finished objects that were sources of pride. Of course, not being a "new" knitter when this giant resurgence started five years ago, I am only projecting ...

Now, spinning being something I have recently (and finally) successfully gotten a handle on, gives me the insight of a beginner and why there is such an attraction for me. When I first tried my hand at spinning, back at age 17 (with a drop spindle that only dropped), I was in a "do-it-yourself-from-scratch" phase in my life, learning lots of new and earthy skills. My first wheel followed on the heels of the drop spindle, with greater success, but still not much to write home about. I do have some of that early yarn woven into a Navajo rug sampler...

When I tried again, about a dozen years ago, I was knitting profusely by then, and wanted to extend my efforts into spinning, but not with the enthusiasm I have right now. My efforts quickly waned, as carding and spinning took too much time away from knitting.

This time, I have decided that I would mainly stick with already cleaned and prepared fibers, allowing me to lose less knitting time. I still get a lot of hands -on spinning time that way.

While tossing and turning the other night, I came up with this list of why to turn over some of that precious time to spinning:

1. Spinning gets you deeply in touch with the fiber. It helps you see and feel the difference between, say, a Corriedale and a Navajo-Churro (sheep that were originally raised to produce wool for rug weaving). The yarn shops have enlightened us as to the value of merino over other wools, or the exotic-ness of alpaca or cashmere, but I am much closer to the source (i.e., the animal's recently-cropped locks) when spinning and seeing how the fibers differ in length, crimp, and feel, as well as opportunities for choices about how to handle these differences in turning fiber into yarn.

2. Planning a project from start to finish, including selecting the right fiber choice for the desired yarn is deeply creative and deeply rewarding. I get to make the decisions every step of the way, rather than relying on what is readily available. I can even decide to dye the fiber or resultant yarn in the color blend of my own choosing.

3. Spinning is very much about process, even more so than knitting. You watch and watch as the yarn spins its way out of the magic triangle where fiber is turning into yarn, right through your fingertips, and detach yourself from when the results will be done, or even what you will make next. I am much more in the moment spinning than in many of the other creative processes in my life.

4. There are great wooden spindles (or wheels, if that's what you want) that turn that mass of fiber into the yarn you were dreaming of, and there is the challenge of learning the steps and choices to be successful in using them. This keeps my mind alert and ever-learning, and keeps me from aging!

If you haven't considered trying spinning, stop next time you are at a fiber fair, and take someone up on their offer to let you give it a try!

375th Post and a Contest

2006-09-10T19:19:00.000-07:00

Yes, I am still finding it hard to believe that I have actually come up with varied and interesting content for 375 posts!

Highlights

There have been fun adventures, such as Death Valley, Black Sheep and Estes Park. There has been lots of Sierra scenery, knitting, and of course, burros, and even wild mustangs! There have been lots of good times and sad ones with my family. What I never would have guessed when I started on this blogging adventure was how many new and wonderful friends there would be! I have been fortunate to get to meet several of the bloggers I regularly read and exchange emails with, and some of my contest swag, displayed below, is even the handiwork of fellow knit bloggers.

Contest Rules

I decided that there would be multiple contests in honor of my 375th post, all centered around my desire to do a blog make-over in light of making it this far. Looks like I'm in it for the long haul, so I am sprucing up and customizing my online image (heck, I even plan to go shopping for new clothes next weekend, and might get a haircut or wax my eyebrows:). Later this month, I will be moving over to Typepad and introducing a truly personal blog-look.

Everyone who emails me before 9:00 PM (PDT) on September 30th (email: dyespringcolorATgmailDOTcom) will be entered into a random-number generated drawing.

However, there will be a special prize drawing for those of you submitting the best and most useable tips to help me make this changeover... I will be needing a button, a banner, and some changeover advice, as well as would appreciate those personal comments and pointers that show you are familiar with my blog and what I choose to write about, and how I can incorporate that into my new format. I don't fully understand Typepad yet, having only used it as a guest author, but can see that I have more possibilities ... I would like to add a gallery of FOs and WIPs to make things less redundant. These tips should also be sent to the same email address. So what's in it for you?

Contest Swag

This photo shows some of the prizes I collected on my trip last week, including soaps from Blessed Juno, a bee tape measure and a sheep ornament, as well as a beautiful abalone shawl pin (the grand prize in the "tips" drawing). In back is a skein of Knitpicks merino fingering, specially dyed by moi, with cochineal, which will accompany a few small other prizes for the "random" drawing. At the very front is a DPN case from Nana Sadie Rose, the business run by one of my longest-running blog buddies, Knitnana.

This photo shows more prizes: the accessory bag in back is quilted and sewn by fellow Mountain Harvest Crafts Co-op member, Peggy (and we will have a web presence just as soon as I can get to it, but she is only licensed to make a small amount of these bags each year, so they are only available by coming to Downieville - or winning this one!)

So what are you waiting for?! Enter now!

Status of WIPs

I spent part of the weekend diligently working on my two favorite WIPS.

Bianca's back is almost to the armholes.

This sweater will grow quickly, which is good, as I love the feel of the yarn and look forward to wearing it often, but knitting it is a bit harder on the hands than some things...

Susan's lovely Forest Canopy shoulder shawl, renamed "Echos of Hugs" by me in honor of what wonderful friends she and Margene (who dyed the lovely "Merlot" colorway, with Kool-Aid stolen from Susan, I hear), has been my favorite companion, spending time with me during Saturday's shift at the crafts coop... I have progressed to the point where pictures are no longer and it looks like a beautifully-colored blob. If you have not tried laceweight yet, this is the perfect pattern to do it with - the pattern is easy to follow, and to 'read' as you knit (remember the lace maxim: "admire your lace early and often"), and the shawlette makes up quickly, so that you can wear it and get lots of compliments on your awesome knitting skills, before leaping into more complicated lacework (you know you will).

There was also homework, as I began my handwork teaching job for Yuba River Charter School on Wednesday, only to learn that my first graders had not yet gotten the supplies to make their sets of knitting needles...

That's my thumb, balancing the hacksaw while cutting one of 60 lengths (can you see the dowel held in the wooden vise?) that the children will begin sanding tomorrow during their lesson time with me... betcha didn't know I could manage basic woodworking skills too... me neither!

Teacher's homework also includes fixing mistakes. This basket, perched behind the pickup's front seat, contains my second graders' workbags, with needles they made last year, and some have WIPs from the end of first grade (yup, the WIP pressure starts early).

The piece on top is destined to be a recorder case and one of my more advanced students brought it to me for another student, tellling me "There's a dropped stitch, but it's too far down for me to get" (isn't that too sweet!). This basket represents the work bags of 29 students, sitting atop a pile of small, colored balls of Lambs Pride bulky wool yarns, for those ready to start a new project.

You will notice that there was no sky photo this Saturday... our usually bright and blue sky has been obscured by lots of smoke from a big wildland fire in Foresthill (as well as a smaller one closer on Thursday, still putting out smoke, although controlled), and I just couldn't bear to take a photo. Plus, there were air quality warnings to stay inside! DD and I took an late afternoon hike along the North Yuba for about a half hour, as we needed the exercise and the conditions have improved today; keep your fingers crossed that things don't get any worse here in California, where there are dozens of fires burning. DH is on the Day Fire in SoCal; Ventana Wilderness, working long hours but relatively safe, while one son is on the Foresthill one...

R is for Roving

2006-09-08T18:40:00.000-07:00

Spinning is all about the fibers, which is why this letter in the alphabet couldn't have arrived at a better time! My main purpose in going back to Utah for the Great Basin Fiber Fair was to take Elizabeth Dailey's Advanced Spindling class.... and it was well worth it.

I had already spent Saturday spinning up some merino top I had brought with me, using my original "toy wheel spindle". I was determined to spin up the "Pinedale" colorway... the total amount was only one ounce, and I wanted to complete it before going on to anything else. Ironically, one of the things Elizabeth pointed out to all of us is how much slipperier top (where all the fibers are going the same direction) is to spin than Roving, or carded wool (where the fibers are going different directions, but cling more to each other).

Elizabeth gave us this sampler pack to teach us about the different fiber qualities and how to approach spinning them; we tried different weights and styles of spindles for each with her guidance. The variegated blue shiny stuff in the middle is top, as is the red mixture above it. The fuzzy greys are good examples of Roving.

I had already visited with Elizabeth and Bart (aka, Greensleeves Spindles)Saturday, purchasing the spinning equipment I had so looked forward to selecting in person. Most of you don't know this about me, in fact even DH didn't, but I have a bit of a fetish for hardwoods, and fiber-related items made from them, making me a natural spindle consumer. I loved the tulipwood, and selected a one-yard niddy noddy and a large-whorled, long-shafted spindle from this wood, as well as a nostepinne (which is the all-pink version of tulipwood, dubbed "bubblegum"), used to wind center-pull balls.

I just realized typing that sentence that I could easily slip into erotic poetry about these lovely wood items, but this is a G-rated blog.... and Connie, another member of our class, really has the edge on all of us when it comes to collecting spindles. She was carrying them around Elizabeth's booth like flower bouquets and wouldn't own up to how many she actually has....

Tulipwood niddy noddy and nostepinne and Flagship Lizzy Kate in walnut.

The other item I wanted from Greensleeves Spindles was Elizabeth's own invention to address the task of trying to ply two or more single yarns together - the Lizzy Kate. This device allows the spindles to stand, with their respective threads through the top, to be plied tangle-free together onto a new (hence the need for larger) spindle. I knew I would be receiving a student spindle (very high quality all the same) from Elizabeth along with our other course materials the next day, so the only other spindle I purchased was an aromatic cedar spindle from Gabe Jaramillo, which I used to try out some very nice white Lincoln cross Roving, from family sheep farmers in southern Utah.

This is the sum total of purchases: three spindles from l to r: Mjolinar from Greensleeves, Basic from Greensleeves, and aromatic cedar from Jaramillo, standing in my Lizzy, surrounded by packets of camel down, white Lincoln, Spinderella's thrums, and gift mohair/wool Roving (brighter blue). The lone ball of yarn ready to go is some lovely Merino Oro teal laceweight, purchased at the Wool Cabin for Mim's Hidcote Garden shawl.

I took my new Greensleeves spindle and began to spin a very lovely mohair/wool Roving that Margene had given me the night before, while visiting.... Karen located a bargain on camel down, so I also snatched up three ounces for $3.00, to try after I had been enlightened as to how best to approach this exotic fiber at the class.

Meanwhile, Margene and Susan were busy all day Satuday, dyeing pounds of Roving, along with their classmates... here are photos of the snakes in the grass drying in the hot sun.

Here, Susan is painting on the colors for her fiery Roving.

On Sunday, our knowledge grew by leaps and bounds, under the tutelage of

Elizabeth, our most illustrious teacher, describing the virtues of some of the spindles laid out before her on the table.

Susan spins up some lofty yarn.

Margene, concentrating on her Roving.

We tried out Coopworth, Shetland, Romney, Corriedale, South Alps, Polworth, cashmere, pure silk, silk blend, merino top, alpaca, and even quivit!

I know you are wondering if any knitting got done throughout this spinning odyssey; here is my third Trekking sock (Mim's Simple Trekking sock pattern, although I shortened the leg a bit), which I finished while staying at Margene's and photographed at the stream running through Sundance on our outing Monday. The match to it was also cast on and several inches accomplished.

I also received this lovely laceweight from Margene while we had a fun time poring over her stash (it's not as big as you thought, but just right for her). She named this yarn Merlot, but it especially reminds me of the trees on her mountains whose leaves are beginning to change colors.

It quickly started becoming this.... Susan's Forest Canopy Shoulder Shawl (see her September 1st post, if you just can't stand it and have to buy the pattern right away), which I have re-named the "Echoes of Hugs" shawl in honor of these two dear friends that I would not have met without my blog!

Which brings me to the 375th post contest ... I had miscounted because of a sneaky draft post that had hidden in my list, so this is actually post #374. I will be running a contest through the month of September in honor of the upcoming and promised magic number (well, it is impressive to me!), so come back by for details.

Finally, in other news I want to let you all know that my birthday is coming right up - in fact it is October 11th, which qualifies me for entry into Bev's October Birthday Swap. If you know anyone else who wants to join us, send them on over.

Great Basin Fiber Fair

2006-09-07T04:55:00.000-07:00

Great Basin was all about fiber friends for me! I had such a wonderful time reconnecting with old friends and meeting new ones.

Susan picked me up at the airport and whisked me through two of the SLC Stitch n Bitch grrls' favorite LYS, and then we got to spend parts of Saturday and Sunday together, including our Advanced Spindling class Sunday morning. She also won a first prize for one of her Mountain Stream scarves made from her handspun! Margene has a wonderful photo of it here.

Susan and Margene stir their dyepot during their Saturday class.

Margene and her DH, Smith, were the most wonderful, considerate and nuturing hosts! Besides all of the fiber fun, they also toured me around Salt Lake, finding some of the best Italian food at Canella's Friday night with their dear friend, Creek, and an awesome Mexican food dinner at the Rio Grande Cafe, located downtown, on Saturday night (not to mention that Smith is wicked with the bar-be-que). We also toured the backcountry east of SLC, all the way over to Sundance on Labor Day, and you can see Margene's wonderful photos here.

I also got to hang out with Laurie while she sold her fabulous soap like hotcakes. I wish she lived next door, so we could sit out on the porch and have a beer together every now and then. Of course, the soaps all smelled heavenly - I think some of the best I have found, and you know how unbiased I am... so go over and buy some from her!

Lots of the Utah grrls made it to the Fiber Fest, and I met up once again with Anne, who was my Better Pal last winter, as well as a traveling companion to Estes Park in June. Karen also spent part of the afternoon with us in the soap and t-shirt booth, working on a sock from her handspun... it was Karen's beautiful spinning during our group sleepover in June that got me hooked on spinning, so it was good to be able to thank her and show her my progress.

Miriam was also there, with her loving and tolerant husband Caleb (he smiled a lot but wasn't mashing fibers like the rest of us). Her sister had a booth selling many delightful crocheted items and displaying some of Mim's work, as well as her prizes and ribbons from recent fairs.

The shawl at the back is her newest design, Hidcote Garden, which she entered in the Utah State Fair, opening today.

I met so many new friends, too....

Katherine's shirts are the best knitting-related design I have seen, so I had to buy a brown one and a light pink one. She had very few left over, but if you can't resist either, pay a visit to her blog and put in your request. Plus, we connected over geographical family history! I almost felt bad, making her homesick for the California foothills.

Elizabeth Dailey, of Greensleeves Spindles, and her husband Bart (who liked my name so much that he asked permission to use it in a book!), more Utah bloggers and/or SNBers, including Terry, Nicole, Anne, Bonnie (who I had met in June) and Dave.

And a new friend who taught me how to spin on a 250-year old great wheel... awesome experience that put me in touch with the days when most yarns were made that way here in the U.S.

Yes, I did make some purchases, thanks for asking, and they will be on display tomorrow, as well as photos of the dye class and spindling class. I also grabbed some prizes for y'all, as my 375th post is right around the corner, and there WILL be a contest.... stay tuned!

Feeling Better, Thank You, and I'm Outta Here

2006-08-31T17:37:00.000-07:00

Thanks, everyone, for good wishes to my recovery. I work at a clinic part-time so have the benefit of consulting multiple minds and offer this reminder - even the best job setting up a buffet, smorgasbord, or salad bar does not prevent cross-contamination of foods. There are times when you will take the chance and mostly be fine, such as at parties or weddings where all the food is set out at once, but there are other times when it would be best to order from the menu.

That travel tip was hard-earned these past few days. Tuesday was a blur of pain, chills, fever, restlessness, and bits of sleep. Yesterday being climbing back up the other side and spending a lot of time in the recliner meant that, while spindling would only make me dizzier, CeCe and I could become better friends. We had renewed our acquaintance over the weekend, and Monday night saw me assembling the parts to work my way up the yoke... those first dozen or so rows seem to take forever.

Then, I noticed yesterday that my fronts were uneven. I wanted to ignore this flaw, but knew it would haunt me every time I wore her. I also knew, that given my hazy state of mind, I would be tempted to throw her in a dark corner before ripping all the way back (actually, I would have carefully tinked). I decided to go online and take a look at Margene's and Dorothy's versions... I knew each of them had successfully finished and now loved theirs.

What did I do? Something fairly novel... I decided to isolate the part that needed to be converted from pattern to plain stockinette to match the other side (do you think I should have counted better in the first place, so both sides matched? do you think?!), and then treat them as droppped stitches and pick them back up. Ya know, it worked! I am so impressed with this lovely Rowan Calmer yarn, having the stretchy moxie to allow me to get away with this... it kept me entertained with my cleverness (am even more easily amused when ill and low on oxygen to the brain, obviously) and now I am starting to see some shrinking in row length.

CeCe will be accompanying me on my visit to Margene, Smith and the Great Basin Fiber Fair. So will my Trekking sock and my favorite spindle, and maybe a few clothes, but must leave room for fiber purchases. We leave in the morning! I am almost well enough to be excited, but still hope not to be too excited to get a good night's sleep tonight, as I am a little wiped out, and spent part of the afternoon on DD's couch between two of my jobs. My class is on Sunday, so Saturday I get to spend time with Laurie at her soap booth. And guess what famous SLC celeb is picking me up at the airport? Lacy Susan herself! I feel like royalty.

There will be no Saturday Sky on Saturday, but check out Margene's to see what I am ogling... I will have lots of photos when I return, and will be announcing a contest in honor of my 375th post, coming right up!

We Interrupt This Program For...

2006-08-30T06:48:00.000-07:00

A brief illness. Yesterday was a long, aching, scary day of illness, beginning with what I thought was food poisoning, being awakened at 3 AM. Over the course of a day of fever and chills, I started to question my original theory and opt for the flu as the cause. I was particularly worried that I would have to miss my trip this weekend, and in the few moments of lucidity, managed to cancel work for last night and today, giving ample time for recovery.

You have all had those days where minor illness kept you home, but at least you could curl up on the couch and read and nap - maybe even knit a bit. Not so this time. Even sitting in the desk chair trying to read my email hurt. All I did was either sleep or try to sleep, as sometimes I was simply too uncomfortable... DH finally insisted on feeding me something late last night, which was probably good, as I was completely out of fuel. I woke this morning much clearer headed, and optimistic about careful recovery getting me to my plane on time.

Catching up

2006-08-27T10:50:00.000-07:00

I have been feeling a bit introspective this weekend, watching summer wind down, and decided to take stock of some current projects:

CeCe

Why have I been neglecting CeCe lately? She is such a pretty color and so super soft .... CeCe got off to a flying start, but I had to use my Palm to keep track of the pattern and increases, and never have made it to the intuitive stage with this pattern... on the other hand, when I put her aside to make Lily of the Valley, I just flew through the pattern. Now, if I were Carole, I would forge ahead, staying up late nights if need be, to have CeCe completed to wear to Great Basin this coming weekend. She is accompanying me to my shift at the crafts co-op later today, and I will see how I feel after spending some time with her again. But then, the reality is that I am NOT Carole - go visit her blog and check her progress in the Wing of the Moth Shawl Race; she set a handicap of finishing her Adamas shawl before even starting, and now that Vanessa has won the race in only two days of knitting (non-stop?), it will be interesting to see if she plunges ahead.

Me, I just have been running around too much, as well as doing a lot of spinning practice - yes, it does cut into my knitting time, but I am fine with that right now, since it is what I am choosing to do... there will be more yarn photos soon.

Four socks do NOT two pair make! (Or "Trek Along With Me" Revisited)

I started the summer taking on the project of learning to knit socks on two circs rather than the four DPs I had used for years... my first sock in Sockotta cotton above, just worked up to be too loose for real sock wearing, despite being "on gauge", a lesson to me that there is more to consider than simply matching someone elses' number. Did I rip out and start over... oh, no, of course not! Wanting to join in the action at the Trek Along KAL, I bought some Trekking yarn as soon as I touched down in Salt Lake City for my visit with Margene (she is such a lovely enabler), and started what turned out to be my first pair for the KAL (they are the ones that match, just in case you were wondering!). I enjoyed the first pair, finished by the end of July, and wanted to keep on taking photos of socks in great hiking locations, so started a second pair, using Mim's free pattern (sorry, Mim, I can't locate the download link on your new site). Things slowed down considerably at this point, as spinning took on momentum after I signed up for a class next weekend, and wanted to at least qualify as "advanced beginner", or maybe, possibly, "intermediate" spindler.

I was closing in on the toe of the first sock, happy enough to be able to have finished one pair by the Labor Day weekend deadline, when it hit me the other night that I was doing the toe decreases wrong... half as frequently as required to get that nice, round shape... Caution: Frog Pond Ahead!

A close up of the two problem socks; the Trekking pair will get finished up over the next few weeks, but the Sockotta will be ripped and put away till further inspiration strikes... this is a very pretty yarn, but I will be returning to wearing wool socks (which I do for about three-quarters of the year), and will probably save this yarn to make a pair of socks next spring.

Moving Forward

Fall weather means a change in more than just socks, and I have been wanting a slightly warmer cardi... this yarn came home with me Friday, destined to become Bianca's Jacket from the Fall 2006 Interweave Knits. I fell in love with the pattern, but it called for Muench Sir Galli, a silk worsted, that my LYS owner said has been discontinued... while we were searching through the shop to see what might work, I came upon this lush Inca Cotton. It appealed to my newly learned handspinning skills, with a thick and thin quality that experienced spinners say is hard to get back to, once you do lots of even spinning, and also to my years of tea-dying various fabrics and yarns for projects.

Now, both yarns are listed as worsteds, but me being me, of course my new choice is working up in swatches as much looser; this time I think it is the quality of the cotton yarn as much as it is my "loose woman" knitting style, so I spent last night recalculating and crunching the numbers to get the pattern to work with the yarn. I realized that "intuitive" works well for me the more involved I am in seeing the shape and intent of a project or stitch, and that all the number-crunching I used to do in drafting my own patterns was still tucked away there in the aging brain.

I just read an interesting overview of Adult Numeracy learning, that included a synopsis of one study of women engaged in knitting and quilting. The researcher learned that "The women's understanding and use of math emerged within contexts that were meaningful and pleasurable" - but you knew that already.

The other exciting news is that I was interviewed and hired on Friday to teach knitting to first and second graders at Yuba River Charter School, as part of their Waldorf-based handwork training program throughout the grades! I will be doing this on Monday and Wednesday mornings, working around the GED classes I will be teaching at our county jail... a good balance between children and adults, I think. My work plate is full now, and hopefully will meet my needs so that I can avoid further agonizing and searching. Special thanks to those of you who sent me support and love over the summer as I waded through the muck of transition and change.

This photo is for She Knits, who asked to see the donkey puppet I found when I met up with Becca two weeks ago.

Lastly, today is my beautiful daughter Nikki's 23rd birthday! She is just coming out of a more agonizing work transition than me, but it included moving closer to us and I get to see her a few times a week. She and I and her two crazy brothers, one older and one younger all had a celebratory Chinese food feast last night in her honor.

Among all her other good qualities, Nikki is always willing to visit a yarn shop with me. She rocks!

Saturday Dawn

2006-08-26T07:57:00.000-07:00

Dawn is coming later with each passing day, a sure sign of fall ... if you haven't read Shelly Thacker Meinhardt's story titled "Wild and Woolly" in the new fall issue of Interweave Knits, do so, soon (borrow a friend's copy if you don't want to buy the issue, since the story is a quick, one-page read). It is a tribute to both wool and the fall season, which brings those of us who knit back to dreaming of warm items to make and wear.

Q is for Quince

2006-08-23T21:02:00.000-07:00

I have been fascinated by the quince ever since I was a child, when my father would routinely make quince jelly. A member of the Rose family, its botanical name is Pyrus cydonia, and it is one of the first flowering trees to bloom in early spring. When we purchased our property and drew up a permaculture plan for the small acreage, this was one of the first trees I wanted to include, planning to make jelly myself someday.

I also loved to read The Owl and The Pussycat to my children when they were little, with such terrific lines as "and they dined on mince and slices of quince, which they ate with a runcible spoon" (according to Wikipedia, author Edward Lear made up the runcible spoon for its nonsensical sound - darn, all these years I had been waiting to find one at an antique store somewhere).

Perennials, especially shrubs and trees, take longer than usual to establish here at Slate Range Camp, mainly because our soil is a heavy red clay low in nutrients. My tree is bearing fruit for the first time this year, although only a handful:

The quince is fuzzy on the tree, before ripe and harvested. My variety is a pineapple quince; there is also a variety that changes from yellow to red when cooked!

The quince has been under cultivation from very early times, and an interesting botanical history appears here.

Quince was believed to be very healthful, and legend has it that Mary, Queen of Scots, carried quince marmalade with her to ease seasickness when she traveled from Calais to Scotland, back in 1561. In a poetic aside, if you get the chance, read Bittersweet Within My Heart, a collection of the love poems of Mary's, who was less than a week old when she inherited the crown of Scotland, later was crowned queen of France, having married Dauphin Francis at age fifteen, but spent the last 20 years of her life locked in the Tower of London, Elizabeth I's prisoner... so much for family politics (they were distantly related).

You won't find quinces in the stores, but may be lucky enough to find a long-abandoned tree in your neighborhood, where you can gather the fruit and try the recipe listed on the above link for Quince Marmalade.

Saturday Sky - On Monday

2006-08-21T07:18:00.000-07:00

Saturday's sky is late this week, as we went camping over the weekend, after both needing to work in the morning. We are lucky to be able to get into very private little lakes, the Tamaracks, with only about an hour's driving from Downieville, and shared this spot with only another pair of campers and their pooch, who we only met briefly.

My Saturday sky featured mostly blues, with white, puffy cumulus clouds through the afternoon, over beautiful Upper Tamarack Lake.

Glenn standing on a large boulder overlooking the east side of the lake.

This water pump brings spring water into the Pack Saddle campground.

We spent Sunday morning hiking, more like bushwhacking and cross-country, as I helped my DH search for old trails that could be re-opened. I did take a brief dip in the lake to cool off, then relaxed and read while he explored further. I had my spindle with me, but it was a bit too windy for spinning.

Heading home, we took the Jeep down the face of the Sierra Buttes, on a road that really hangs to the edge of the mountain, ending our trip with an early dinner at Bassetts, a local restaurant famous for their burgers and shakes.

I Belong in Dublin

2006-08-18T17:45:00.000-07:00

OK, I don't normally cop out and offer up even one meme, let alone two in a week, but somehow my back started a muscle spasm thing this morning that has lasted through the day, and I have to go back and get in "legs lying up" position, which precludes either spinning or knitting, and makes reading a weird experience, holding something over my head. I am sure it has to do with stress and driving over 100 miles three different days this week, while trying to put together a new work schedule... I got this one from Sallee, although she belongs in Paris:

You Belong in Dublin

Friendly and down to earth, you want to enjoy Europe without snobbery or pretensions.

You're the perfect person to go wild on a pub crawl... or enjoy a quiet bike ride through the old part of town.

What European City Do You Belong In?

Thanks for all the compliments on Lily, and to Sharon for sending a much clearer photo, which I will post next... I love this shawl and will be starting a variation, the shawlette featuring scallops and the lilies as an edging, featured in the fall 2006 issue of Interweave Knits. There may not be much posting about it, as it will be a surprise gift, so my updates will have to be written-only till mid-October... someone is going to be very lucky and very happy. Have a great weekend. Back to the floor for me...

Lily of the Valley Revealed

2006-08-17T21:48:00.000-07:00

Here she is... my Lily of the Valley, done in Textiles A Mano cotton/rayon (I have misplaced the trade name).

I absolutely love this shawl, and so did the members of my quilt guild when I showed it off at our monthly meeting last night. The pattern looks much more complicated than it really is, and after the first set, I had determined that I could readily follow it. It made up quickly, and I want to try some variations again soon. The photo was taken by Sharon at the fair on Friday, but when I sized it up so you could see better, I lost even more quality than the original low light conditions. I need to do a real photo shoot to do her justice, but wanted to quell the rising rumors that she didn't really exist... I might have imaginary friends but I DO have a real shawl, which is a delight as the nights have taken on a bit of a chill, moving towards fall.

Things I Have Done In My Life

2006-08-15T09:53:00.000-07:00

I saw this meme a few times in the past week, most recently at The Knitty Professor's, and decided to share a little private information with all of you. Tomorrow, I will be introducing my Lily to the web world, so stay tuned.

Things about me, I have:

01. Bought everyone in the bar a drink
02. Swam with wild dolphins
03. Climbed a mountain
04. Taken a Ferrari for a test drive
05. Been inside the Great Pyramid
06. Held a tarantula
07. Taken a candlelit bath with someone
08. Said 'I love you' and meant it - yeah, like every day!
09. Hugged a tree
10. Bungee jumped
11. Visited Paris
12. Watched a lightning storm at sea
13. Stayed up all night long and saw the sun rise
14. Seen the Northern Lights
15. Gone to a huge sports game
16. Walked the stairs to the top of the leaning Tower of Pisa
17. Grown and eaten your own vegetables
18. Touched an iceberg
19. Slept under the stars
20. Changed a baby's diaper
21. Taken a trip in a hot air balloon
22. Watched a meteor shower -my record was over 300 shooting stars at one sitting
23. Gotten drunk on champagne
24. Given more than you can afford to charity
25. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope
26. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment
27. Had a food fight
28. Bet on a winning horse
29. Asked out a stranger
30. Had a snowball fight
31. Screamed as loudly as you possibly can
32. Held a lamb
33. Seen a total eclipse
34. Ridden a roller coaster
35. Hit a home run
36. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking
37. Adopted an accent for an entire day
38. Actually felt happy about your life, even for just a moment
39. Had two hard drives for your computer
40. Visited all 50 states
41. Taken care of someone who was drunk
42. Had amazing friends
43. Danced with a stranger in a foreign country
44. Watched wild whales
45. Stolen a sign
46. Backpacked in Europe
47. Taken a road-trip
48. Gone rock climbing
49. Midnight walk on the beach
50. Gone sky diving
51. Visited Ireland
52. Been heartbroken longer then you were actually in love
53. In a restaurant, sat at a stranger's table and had a meal with them
54. Visited Japan
55. Milked a cow - do 50 goats at once count?
56. Alphabetized your cd's
57. Pretended to be a superhero
58. Sung karaoke
59. Lounged around in bed all day
60. Posed nude in front of strangers
61. Gone scuba diving
62. Kissed in the rain
63. Played in the mud
64. Played in the rain
65. Gone to a drive-in theater
66. Visited the Great Wall of China
67. Started a business
68. Fallen in love and not had your heart broken
69. Toured ancient sites
70. Taken a martial arts class
71. Played D&D for more than 6 hours straight
72. Gotten married
73. Been in a movie
74. Crashed a party
75. Gotten divorced
76. Gone without food for 5 days
77. Made cookies from scratch
78. Won first prize in a costume contest
79. Ridden a gondola in Venice
80. Gotten a tattoo
81. Rafted the Snake River
82. Been on television news programs as an "expert"
83. Got flowers for no reason
84. Performed on stage
85. Been to Las Vegas
86. Recorded music
87. Eaten shark
88. Had a one-night stand
89. Gone to Thailand
90. Bought a house
91. Been in a combat zone
92. Buried one of your parents
93. Been on a cruise ship
94. Spoken more than one language fluently
95. Performed in Rocky Horror.
96. Raised children
97. Followed your favorite band/singer on tour
98. Created and named your own constellation of stars
99. Taken an exotic bicycle tour in a foreign country
100. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over
101. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge
102. Sang loudly in the car, and didn't stop when you knew someone was looking
103. Had plastic surgery
104. Survived an illness that you shouldn't have survived
105. Wrote articles for a large publication
106. Lost over 100 pounds
107. Held someone while they were having a flashback
108. Piloted an airplane
109. Petted a stingray
110. Broken someone's heart
111. Helped an animal give birth
112. Won money on a T.V. game show
113. Broken a bone
114. Gone on an African photo safari
115. Had a body part of yours below the neck pierced
116. Fired a rifle, shotgun, or pistol
117. Eaten mushrooms that were gathered in the wild
118. Ridden a horse
119. Had major surgery
120. Had a snake as a pet
121. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon
122. Slept for more than 30 hours over the course of 48 hours
123. Visited more foreign countries than U.S. states
124. Visited all 7 continents
125. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days
126. Eaten kangaroo meat
127. Eaten sushi
128. Had your picture in the newspaper
129. Changed someone's mind about something you care deeply about
130. Gone back to school
131. Parasailed
132. Petted a cockroach
133. Eaten fried green tomatoes
134. Read The Iliad - and the Odyssey
135. Selected one "important" author who you missed in school, and read
136. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
137. Skipped all your school reunions
138. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language
139. Been elected to public office
140. Written your own computer language
141. Thought to yourself that you're living your dream (every day)
142. Had to put someone you love into hospice care
143. Built your own PC from parts
144. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn't know you
145. Had a booth at a street fair
146: Dyed your hair
147: Been a DJ
148: Shaved your head
149: Caused a car accident
150: Saved someone's life

Friends: Virtual or Imaginary?

2006-08-14T11:13:00.000-07:00

When you were a little child, did you have an imaginary playmate? Someone who would always keep you company and share your secret thoughts and dreams? Brothers began to be deposited on my doorstop but some animal I had never seen, called the "stork", starting when I was 16 months old (3 of them by the time I was four, including a set of twins!), so I never really had the chance to develop any imaginary playmates - there was an abundance of real ones around all the time.

However, as an adult living in a rural area, raising a family of my own, I often wished there were more opportunities to develop friendships with like-minded people to "play" with... I had some hiking buddies, and always enjoyed the big parties where the grrls could get together and catch up on each others' lives, but until I joined the knit blogging community a few years back, didn't really have the companionship of "fiber-soulmates".

The Internet is a wonderful medium, allowing us to learn about a wealth of new ideas and I have been able to expand my fiber pursuits greatly. I started out wondering if I was publishing into a void, only to discover gradually that I really did have readers... but were they real? We each have our two-dimensional persona that comes through in what we choose to post, sharing parts of our creativity and bits of our everyday lives as well, but I had never met any of the bloggers in person, or talked to them on the telephone, until last fall, when Sallee helped me learn Quick Books, involving lots of email and a couple of emergency telephone calls... she had a voice! It was a bit deeper than I would have pictured, but every bit as warm!

Then, this spring I made plans to go to Estes Park along with Margene and a carload of people, and was met at the Salt Lake City airport by her and Carole, later having dinner with Susan. These people were real, and very much like old friends. Even better, over the course of the weekend I met bloggers I had read, such as Laurie, and others I hadn't discovered yet, including Kristi and Jen. It was a giant slumber party/reunion, and a little voice inside my head commented "See, they really are REAL!" (kind of like how I thought of fairies when I was a child, and just as magical).

I feel especially blest this weekend to have had the chance to meet three more knit-bloggers: Amy, Sharon and Becca.

I wrote about my fun time at the Nevada County Fair with Amy and Sharon, and you can see more of the great fiber displays, plus views of our beautiful fairgrounds, on their blogs. You could also make plans to head over to the Nevada State Fair, where Amy will be in charge of assembling the textile displays and keeping them staffed, just as Beryl and Igor have for our guild the past week plus.

Yesterday, I drove over to Graeagle to meet up with Becca, whose parents have a vacation home in Portola to the north of our meeting place, at the Outpost where we sat on the deck with coffee, happily knitting in public and getting to know each other a bit more. Becca lives in Berkeley, which couldn't be further from my daily reality, but I grew up in Sacramento and it was visits to Berkeley as a teen college student that spurred my further interest in the fiber arts. She brought me delightful chocolate, and showed me her yoga bag WIP, made in a linen/modal combo that I really liked, while I worked on the toe of my first sock of my second pair of Trekking socks... and then we browsed through the shops together, having a wonderful afternoon and each finding treasures. Becca found a pair of lovely bud vases at an antique store, while I snatched up a furry Donkey handpuppet (how could I resist?). Alas, there are no pictures, as I was tired from the evening of revelry at the wedding Saturday night, and didn't think to ask perfect strangers to take photos for us. However, I did confide as we parted that it was very reassuring to know that my virtual friends really were real, and not just in my imagination!

2006-08-12T09:29:00.000-07:00

Here is my Saturday Sky, also featuring one of my gladioli in bloom right now, giving me great joy each time I catch a glimpse. Such a noble flower, heralding the height of summer for us.

Spinning At the Nevada County Fair

2006-08-12T09:00:00.000-07:00

I have been complaining about missing summer whizzing by, but when to sleep happy last night, having spent the day at the Nevada County Fair, a distinctly summertime pleasure. I had free admittance and parking, as a demonstrator for our guild, which watches over the display at Sugar Pine Lodge, of some of the fibery entries and displays. There is also a large textile display of quilts, embroidery, knitting and crochet in another building, as well as 4-H exhibits, livestock, and gardening exhibits, along with the usual midway and fair food, and still today and tomorrow to attend.

Although this photo absolutely does not do it justice, here is Amy's hand-painted Ashford Kiwi wheel, making its world debut at the Nevada County Fair, where our Foothill Fibers Guild has staged demonstrations in spinning, weaving and knitting throughout the fair's five-day run.

Here, Amy is spinning some of her "life-time supply" of fiber.

One of the best parts of being a demonstrator was watching the very young take an interest in the fiber arts. Children were fascinated with spinning, and I could honestly tell them that I had only been using my intriguing spindle for two weeks and here I was producing yarn from lambswool. Several children took to spinning like ducks to water, and these lovely little girls were engrossed with the rigid heddle looms.

Sharon had gotten this young man hooked on spinning; he headed over to have Jan teach him how to use her Turkish spindle when his aunt (a year younger than him) took his place at the wheel.... she was a natural and we sent them both home with instructions on making a CD spindle, resources to check on the web and a bit of practice fiber.

I believe that children are just yearning for the chance to touch real fibers and find their hands at work, making something, a chance that is sorely missing in their daily lives and our current mainstream educational experience. I also greatly enjoyed the conversations I had with children, wearing "Mutton Buster" t-shirts about the snakes painted on Amy's wheel, or the mechanics of spinning wheels, or how they did in the animal competitions with the goats, sheep or pigs they had raised.

And a very entertaining and educational display about silkworms and spinning silk.

Here, Jan is showing Amy how to wind off her spindle to get set up for Andean (also called Peruvian) plying... their hands are too fast for my lens!

The competitions included fleece and spun skeins.

A display of entries

The best part of working at the fair was getting to know Sharon and Amy better... we had discovered each other through blogging, and they have been friends and members of the Carson Sierra Spinners and Weavers, I had never met either in person. They were both so delightful and invited me to attend their guilds retreat/camp-out at the end of September, so it is on my calendar now... Sharon and I share a passion to get a different color than yellow from natural dyeing and Amy is a very skilled spindler, along with her magnificent production on her four wheels. She was able to point out some postural adjustments to my spinning technique that would make it more ergonomic and more effective at producing yarns, as well as gave me lots of encouragement yesterday, as I worked my way through about an ounce worth of CVM x Merino lambswool, a lovely thing to be spinning on a soul-satifying summer afternoon at the fair.

Updates and Things You Might Not Know

2006-08-09T15:33:00.000-07:00

Lily of the Valley

Those following my progress on this shawl have come to love her as much as I do... the Textiles a Mano cotton/rayon yarn is very shimmery and drapey, and it looks like she will be done and ready to accompany me to a Saturday evening wedding, a high school friend of DD's is marrying into the large and fun-loving family of an old friend and former co-worker - what could be the makings of a better party?!

The edging pattern from Jean Schrouder is just the perfect finishing touch for my Lily, except that I decided I didn't like the swallowtail effect at the bottom center and am going to redo my corner-turning to have one large point. My fervent hope is to finish the edging tonight, so that I can steam-block the shawl tomorrow and take her to the County Fair with me on Friday, so that Amy and Sharon can meet her in person. Although really, I am more looking forward to meeting them in person and to getting to see Amy's just-completed spinning wheel... a hand-painted treasure that you must go and see right now.

Spindling

Now that you are back, I can show you a spindling update:

Here are my two, contrasting spinning accomplishments - the big, red ball on the left is obviously my beginnger yarn, a Blue-faced Leicester hand-painted roving full of tights and looses, bumps and lumps. The turquoise yarn on the spindle is so much more even! Though I had tried to spin it before I knew what I was doing wrong, and cast it aside in disgust, when I went back to this roving after finishing all of the red, and tried again, it slid through my fingers like a dream, giving me a tremendous sense of accomplishment. Still not anything fancy, but there is definitely hope.

What I have learned from spindling so far:

1. It really is essential to prepare your fibers first; I discovered most of the way through the red roving that I needed to divide it into thirds, rather than the halves my teacher had suggested, to have smooth results.

2. The hands really do try to remember their ancestral memories, and you just have to be patient and let them.

3. The connection between brain and hands cannot be overlooked, either, which is why reading about spinning and observing others spin is so valuable... at some point the brain is going to remind the hands: "remember, when ... was pulling the fibers just so (or pinching just so, etc.)", and the hands are going to move into position adjusting to the brain's advice, and see that they have found their way further along to the results they are seeking. I also noticed that, being tool-using primates for so many, many centuries, our brain tries to help us accomodate things like disabilities, and still be able to use our hands. One of my GED students was practicing diligently last night for her math test today, and seemed a bit embarrassed that I observed she was counting on her fingers while re-checking an answer... too bad I didn't think to tell her till later, working on this post, that we were given brains and hands for a reason, and they should be put jointly to use.

4. It is perfectly ok that spindling is a little slower; after all, what's the hurry? Better to enjoy what I am doing, sitting in a more ergonomic posture than I am able with the wheel, and even eventually being able to walk around while spinning. I have noticed that blogging can make me (and maybe some of you) a tad bit competitive about my knitting achievements, wanting to keep up with the KALs, be amongst the first to make the next great new pattern. Really, this isn't all that different than rushing out to buy the fall fashions shown in Vogue or Glamour.... and spindling has helped to ground me. Yes, there IS one sweater in Interweave Knits that I want to make and wear this fall, but I am thinking now in terms of what will go with my lifestyle and the clothes I already am planning to wear this fall and winter as I search for the yarn, and holding back from the temptation to plan a huge multitude of projects I probably can't humanly expect to get to before my desires change once again.... and enjoying the increasing speed and skill I am developing on the spindle.

Where am I still stuck?:

1. I still occasionally have the yarn break, although now I can tell in advance if I am heading towards too thin or too unspun, both conditions which could lead to a break, and can mostly make a correction to prevent it.

2. I have found that winding on past half full or so on my spindle affects the balance and the first half usually goes better - now I need to learn what to do about this!

3. I am still going in fits and starts, although getting better spin on the spindle, and quicker draw, and uptake. I need to learn what will make the entire sequence flow more smoothly. Which is where Amy comes in - she has offered to watch and give advice while we are working at the fiber guild's fair booth.

Other Random Things You Need to Know

I am sick. Well, maybe you don't really need to know that, but a summer cold/sore throat thingie snuck up on me yesterday, making me quite miserable by evening, overnight, and this morning. Neena's recipe for a detox bath sounded appropriate, but I didn't have the ingredients, so I used some bath salts I had with ginger and mustard in them, and it may have helped. I went to work, but only briefly, and am resting up this afternoon.

The peaches and figs are ripe around here!

The kiddos got successfully moved over the weekend, and DES called while I was preparing to drift off to nap-land, to tell me he got the job he interviewed for yesterday, as Front Desk Manager at the Northern Queen, one of the prettiest hotels in Nevada City. Now, cross your fingers that DD will have equally good news about her application as a preschool coordinator, and that I will be hired as handwork teacher...

Lastly, animal lover that I am (and DD adored pandas all the while growing up), I had no idea that their babies were bright fuschia. Check this out.

P is for Produce ....

2006-08-07T08:18:00.000-07:00

Local, that is!

We are in the midst of the season of glorious, riotous abundance here in California, as evidenced by this pile of massive tomatoes at the Oroville Farmers' Market Saturday morning. The California of my childhood was the breadbasket of the nation, and even though we now import much of our food, I can still drive past fields of rice, sunflowers, beets, tomatoes, strawberries, orchards of almond, peach, plum, nectarine, pluot and more trees, all favored by the hot summers of our Mediterranean-style climate.

The Sacramento of my college days was in the process of renaming itself "River City" , trying to get away from the "Sacratomato" moniker that resulted from the strong smell of cooking tomatoes that lingered over the city throughout August and September each year as the canneries put up the harvest... I still get nostalgic smelling blanching tomatoes or cooked pasta sauce.

Farmers markets and small market gardens and family farms cannot compete with the large-scale industrialization of agriculture, but have definitely gone through a resurgence in the past decade, with every medium-sized town having at least one designated morning or evening a week when fresh produce markets are set up. Chico, Nevada City and Grass Valley have expanded this concept to host an evening of entertainment each week in conjunction with the farmers market, bringing people and culture back together on the streets.

A vendor arranging flower bouquets, for sale next to a large pile of pattypan squash.

The small growers are working to preserve and bring to people unusual and heirloom varieties of tomatoes, and speciality items not found regularly at the mainstream grocery chains. I saw lemon cucumbers, yellow watermelon, japanese eggplant, and six different heirloom tomatoes, along with a variety of herbs, at the various farm stands, and chatted with a young man who is growing 20 different kinds of vegetables on his one-acre plot, which is about what one person can manage to tend to alone!

Summer is also about babies, as evidenced by these two swallows, about to fledge from their nest above the door to my friend Cheri's antique shop in downtown Downieville. I know it has nothing to do with the letter "P", but couldn't resist sharing the shot.

Oak Woodland Sky

2006-08-06T00:18:00.000-07:00

This Saturday's sky, posted on Sunday, was taken on the way to Chico yesterday morning to help DD and DES move to Grass Valley. I will be happier to have them closer, but have loved the part of the drive that takes me through oak woodlands that still relatively undeveloped.

I tried for "Big Valley Sky", as there are views of the foothills heading down into the Sacramento Valley, but the air quality is trash right now, with heat, smog and high ozone levels all working against me. Then, in the late afternoon, huge cumulus clouds were building in the Sierras to the east of Chico, but I deemed it unwise to try to take a photo while traveling somewhere between 50 and 65 mph, carrying a load on the truck, and in the middle of our three-car caravan... sorry, there is only so much I will do for all of you!

Today is being spent on catching up at home, on laundry, spinning practice, reading, lounging... I let them borrow the truck for the last load.

Some of you might have noticed that Great Basin Fiber Arts Fair button at the top... turns out that a tiny bit of fortune smiled upon me last week, allowing me the luxury of signing up for the Advanced Spindling class being offered there on Sunday, September 3rd, along with Margene and Susan (and Kristi?). I sent in my registration and bought my plane ticket, and now I am madly practicing so that I will be at least intermediate-level (I am taking the class as part of my strategy to become advanced, you see). Let me know if you will be there... I will not be taking a Saturday class, but will be tagging along with Margene and Susan, who are taking a dye class that day, shopping, practicing my spinning, taking photos of animals, and all the other great fair activities, and want to plan a blogger meet-up, if possible!

Amy, Sharon and I are all going to meet at the Nevada County Fair this coming Friday - they are the bloggers closest to me, besides Sara; I am always amazed when I read about some of you who get to hang out with your blogging buddies frequently in real time as well! Amy has been working on a marathon job of painting her new Ashford Kiwi wheel in designs based on traditional Mexican folk art, go take a look - it is simply incredible!

Things you may not have known about me.....

2006-08-04T08:49:00.000-07:00

Thanks, everyone, for ideas for finishing the Lily of the Valley (and all the kind compliments - I love her too). I will be knitting on an edging pattern that Sara got from a class she took with Jean Schrouder, but probably not until Monday, since I will be helping DD and DES (as in eldest- I knew you were wondering) move to their new apartment over the weekend - I am providing the truck but they have to provide the muscles (and the pizza and beer, Kat suggests - oh, and she has great Eye Candy up today).

This has been floating around Blogland for a bit, and usually I just plain resist. However, my dear, blogless friend Danna emailed it to me and I really enjoyed the new things I learned about her, even though we have been friends for over a decade, which prompted me to post it here. If you haven't done this yet, think about letting all of us know a bit more about YOU! Have a great weekend.

A) Four jobs I have had:

1. Nurse
2. Goat milker
3. Childbirth educator
4. Teacher in both preschool and high school

B) Four movies I would watch over and over:
1. Pirates of the Caribbean
2. A Christmas Story ("you'll shoot your eye out")
3. Milagro Bean Field War
4. Paint Your Wagon

C) Four places I have lived:
1. Ashland, OR
2. Lake Tahoe
3. Menlo Park, CA
4. Forest City, CA

D) Four TV shows I enjoy watching:
1. Deadwood
2. Mosaic (on Link TV)
3. Cast Iron Cooking (on RFDTV)
4. Trading Spaces

E) Four places I have been on vacation:

1. Calloway Gardens, Georgia
2. Niagra Falls
3. Lake Tahoe
4. Seaside, Cannon Beach and Astoria, OR

F) Websites I visit daily: (or semi-weekly)

1. Email
2. Bloglines
3. Zeneedle
4. Carole Knits

G) Four of my favorite foods:

1. Red peppers
2. Chocolate
3. Broccoli
4. Peaches (or is it blackberries, or figs - any fruit that you only get to really enjoy when in season a few short weeks!)

H) Four places I would rather be right now:
1. Next to a high Sierra lake
2. touring the Rockies
3. Cuba
4. home in Forest City, practicing spinning

Lily of the Valley Update

2006-08-03T07:00:00.000-07:00

I have both very exciting news and a knitter's dilemma to share. First, the good news, as these photos will show, is that I finished the body of the Lily of the Valley Shawl... this pattern is very easy, once you get the rhythm of it, and I want to try it again with a laceweight wool and slightly smaller needles to see what happens. My version is a cotton/rayon, probably fingering weight, from Textiles a Mano.

This photo shows closer detail of the lily of the valley stems, and the bobbles that make the flower clusters. It also shows the top edging, a nice wavy edging, from Edith Haller's pattern.

I can't believe it, but between the first photo, taken at mid-afternoon yesterday, and late last night, I completed the body of the shawl! The early morning light in my family room relies on rather dim bulbs, but I wanted to show Sylvia the actual size for the medium version. Look at that drape! I was a trifle worried that this fiber combo would slide right off my shoulders, but now I think not.

I need some help and suggestions from everyone... the pattern came from an issue of Spinoff a few years back, and Edith Haller, the elderly lady who made hundreds of these, knitted an edging for the bottom of the triangle and then sewed it on, to match the knitted edging that is the shawl's beginning up at the top. I don't know about the rest of you, but I simply cannot imagine the sense of knitting it, then sewing it on, when I could be picking up stitches and working an edging that was complete when bound off (do I need this for structural integrity? - the bobbles add greatly to keeping the large needle/fine thread combo from stretching out too much).

I would have to reverse the rows (and think my way through that first, so I don't make a lot of mistakes). Another option is to do a different knitted edging (check out this one that Sara is adding to her current shawl project - Sara, would you email the directions?), also by picking up the stitches around the two bottom sides of the triangle. The shawl will sit over the weekend while I ponder my options. Please, give me some suggestions!

Presents?... For Moi?!

2006-08-02T07:18:00.000-07:00

I have felt particularly blest the past few days, somewhat swamped in gifties...

First, I picked up Saturday's mail and there were not one, but two, wonderful magazines to go home and gobble up: Interweave Knits, and the first issue of my recently purchased subscription to Spin-Off. How delightful! I greatly enjoyed the article about Annie Modisett, as I admire her fierce sense of creativity (a Knitting Boudica comes to mind), and have already downloaded her Morris Fern Cardigan from the subscriber section of the website, as I love William Morris' designs, and can certainly relate to being inspired by him... this would be a capstone project to my knitting career, but I will "work towards" it! I also plan to make the Swallowtail Shawl (I would call it a shawlette) for a friend, since I already got the exact yarn called for while back at Estes, and would love to make Bianca's Jacket for myself for fall...

Spinoff was the summer issue, which has been out since June, but that was just fine with me, as I hadn't gotten it yet, and wanted to have the Estonian puppet patterns, even though I will probably have to make them from commercial yarn, as it will be quite a while before my own yarn reaches that fine quality. There is a wonderful article by Judith MacKenzie about plying and another great one by Julie Beers about adapting to having MS and still pursuing the arts of spinning and knitting for the soul satisfaction they give; although the accomodations took time and thought, the pleasure eases the pain of her illness- very inspiring to me.

DD approves of Interweave's policy to send out the subscriptions first, before you can pick up the magazine at the newsstands... we both have resented over the years the trend to make sure the flash and glitz is out there, while neglecting your subscription base. Just sayin' ...

Then, Saturday evening, DH returned from the Heart fire complex down in Southern California, bringing me this lovely book; this time he worked as a fire line archaeologist.
The photos are awesome, and I was glad that he took a break in Bishop, one of our favorite Eastern slope (of the Sierras) towns to stretch his legs, get a coffee beverage and comb through the great local bookstore there.

But the best gift came on Monday, when I opened a package locker at the post office to pull out this:

My Knit Sock Swap Kit! Assembled by Kat, who lives in the dubiously tropical-sounding town of Jamaica Plains, it
includes a fabulous felted bag (see closer-up, below for more accurate color portrayal), a Fiber Trends sock pattern and the necessary long Addi Turbo to make it with the Magic Loop method, some wonderfully-colored merino/tencel hand-dyed yarn, goodies (Cranberry Bog Frogs are most excellent, and there was dark chocolate, tea, and a little Maple Sugar Man), and very useful tools:

Note the little box... it is really a tape measure! There are also cucumber eye patches, for when my eyes get tired from knitting so much... she thought of everything. I am completed spoiled and delighted, and thanks so much, Kat. This turned out to be such a fun and entertaining swap - hats off to Scout again, she sure comes up with good ones.

Fabulous felted bag, nestling among pots on the plant table, with way cool yarn poking out.

Spinning Success Story

2006-07-31T18:52:00.000-07:00

I have mentioned a bit that I bought a lovely Greensleeves spindle at Estes Park and have been trying to learn to spin since then... however, it wasn't until last Thursday on my early morning walk that it crossed my mind that my lack of success was possibly due to being left-handed. I recalled that the woman who sold me the spindle had said "just reverse the motions" so I unwound all the yarn and leader and rewound the opposite direction... not what I needed, I still couldn't get the right amount of twist to hold my yarn together. I planned to purchase a heavier practice spindle and a variety of fibers and see if one of my fellow guild members could help me out.

Then, I met Lisa at Lambtown. She had a display of $5.00 oak spindles, not fancy but very functional in her hands, as well as some very lovely choices in hand-dyed rovings. I picked up a spindle to buy, and then noticed that she was holding her wool in her right hand and pushing the spindle with the left, opposite of what most people do, but exactly what I had been trying to master!

Lisa, my spinning angel who corrected my errors and got me producing a real yarn. This is a really terrible photograph, but lying on the table are several of her beautiful rovings.

Lisa then showed me and helped me with the spindle, in a two-person version of "park and draft" until I was producing several yards of real, actual yarn that held together. Lisa caught on to what mistakes I had been making and I went around gathering up some wonderful other fibers to try out. I also met Connie Delaney, from Salmon, Idaho, and bought her book, Spindle Spinning: From Novice to Expert. Connie has also spent a lot of time coming up with a calculation system that allows you to figure out what to do with your handspun; check out her patterns, which do the math for you based on the wraps per inch you get with your handspun yarn. Plus, she was the judge for the spinning contests I wrote about yesterday and has a wicked sense of humor.

I headed home with my booty and started spinning. I began with this beautiful hand-painted Blue-faced Leicester roving, aptly named "Sangria", in love with the colors.

By Sunday, I had my spindle about 2/3rds full, and decided to take it off and try my hand at plying. I followed the instructions in Connie's very handy little book, and turned out a respectable but tiny skein of yarn, washed it and hung it to dry overnight.

Proud parent .... my first skein!

Here are some of the tidbits I got from my private lesson with Lisa:

1. She showed me how to use the hook on the top of the high whorl to put a spin on the first chunk of fleece and turn it into a leader; take it off the hook, tie or wrap around your spindle shaft and you are good to go.
2. A left-handed (legged, too) person like me needs to roll the spindle down the left leg to spin, producing a clockwise spin, and up to ply, producing a counter-clockwise spin.
3. Make sure the yarn comes up directly behind the hook in a straight line to keep the spindle spinning in balance.
4. Keep tension on your thread while winding on to the spindle.
5. When you quit a spinning session, allow the yarn near the hook to double back on itself (it will look plied) to hold your tension while stored; you can wrap this bit around the hook a time or two for insurance.
6. She encouraged me to "park and draft", meaning stopping the spindle between my legs and drafting the rest of the twist up the fibers, rather than get flustered, allow the spindle to reverse its spin, etc.
7. Stop and breathe periodically!
8. Fan out and draw out the roving before beginning to draft to allow the fibers room to "stretch".
9. If the twist runs too far up into the fibers, stop the spindle, untwist and draw out, then add more twist to the new, thinner section.

Those of you who already spin might find these suggestions simplistic or redundant, but they made all the difference to me, and now I can honestly say I have been spinning successfully.

Lastly, here's my small fiber haul, enough to get me trying several fibers:

The bagged selection in front, dubbed "Pink Dawn Variety Pack" is from The Dizzy Ewe, and contains an ounce each of (R to L) 'Rose' Merino & Silk, 'Red' Merino and Tencel, 'Pinedale Merino', 'Pink' Solid Merino and 'Rose Quartz' Merino, an obvious color pak with my name on it.. Ruth puts together pleasing combos like this at the very reasonable price of $12 (write if you want to know how to reach her). In back, the darker beige is CVM cross Merino lambswool, and the larger light beige and honey colored blend is alpaca roving (I can aspire to greatness, can't I?).

One final note - if you didn't follow Bakerina and the Blogathon over the weekend, head over to her site and check out the amazing stats; $97,000 raised for various charities in the 24 hour period by over 285 bloggers. You still have a chance to pledge in support of her efforts for Heifer International. Way to go, grrl.

Lambtown

2006-07-30T14:33:00.000-07:00

I had been debating for the past six weeks, since going to Estes Park, whether I would brave the heat to make it to Lambtown.. after all, it is the closest fiber festival to my home, kinda in my own backyard, so I really should attend.

However, with the temps in the 115 range last weekend, it was looking doubtful. Then, the heat wave finally broke, and the Lambtown website was promoting that the fair would open at noon on Friday, for the first year (this was the 20th year!). Since I had also been putting off the trip to Sacramento to get a certified copy of my birth certificate (suffice it to say that 2003 laws to protect us from identity theft have made appearing in person to buy one much more practical, and look to see if you have yours stashed somewhere), I jumped at the chance to go and shop for spinning fibers!

Unfortunately, although the organizers had wanted the fair to be open an extra day, they didn't get everyone else in on the program, and most of the animals hadn't arrived, and only about 2/3rds of the vendors... it was enough to keep me entertained for the afternoon, and the temperatures stayed below 100... almost balmy after the previous week and a half.

In order to get spinning fibers, first you must have animals:

Look at the lovely, curly wool on this sweetie!

My favorite breed, the Shetland... they have so much personality.

All of the vendors were housed in a building with huge fans circulating the air... although the light was not all that good:

Got wheels? This big pile was awaiting fancier display by the Carolina Homespun staff, who also consider this their "backyard" fiber fair. They had the space of about three booths , and over the course of the afternoon, put lots and lots on display.

One advantage of the mostly empty vendor building (of shoppers, anyway), was that I got to browse comfortably, without elbowing from competing buyers, and to have some lovely conversations... of course there were disadvantages as well. Renee, of Ren-Con Ranch and my guild, wasn't going to set up until Saturday morning, so we couldn't connect, and I also missed seeing Robin Lynde of Meridian Road Jacobs, who I had camped with last year at Black Sheep Gathering. Darn!

I came upon a wonderful deal - an oak spindle for $5 that came with my own private spinning lesson from Lisa, who I noticed was spinning left-handed! Tomorrow's post will contain the saga of my spinning learning curve and exquisite fiber purchases...

After my bag was loaded to capacity with new treasures, I came upon the spinning competition, about to start. There are six parts, including something called the Triathalon that includes spinning blindfolded for a stretch, then with gloves, and a third way that the contestant I asked couldn't remember. I sat through two of them while working on my Lily of the Valley shawl... This photo is of the long thread competition in progress. The six competitors were given 10 grams of the same prepared Cormo/Angora rabbit crimson roving, and their task was to spin the longest thread over the course of 20 minutes.

Annie, the only spindle entrant, got extra points, and also managed to produce 28 yards; she came in second.

She needed to climb up on a chair for the strategic spinning contest, which provided each contestant with a "mystery" fiber to produce the most, as well as best use, of over a 30 minute period. Annie was adding slubs to hers at very regular intervals; she is my idol.

Annie's dog must attend these events regularly, and knew there would be a wait!

I am hoping to return next year, weather permitting, and to also visit the Dixon fairgrounds September 23rd for the Scottish Games. The weekend before that, from September 15-17, will mark the 9th annual California Wool & Fiber Festival, a part of the Mendocino County Fair & Apple Show, in Boonville. A few vendors told me that this festival, and the Redway one October 1 and 2 at the Mateel Community Center, are both on the small side, but well worth attending if you are nearby, or want to take a fall vacation through the California North Coast and redwoods.

Myself, I will probably have to content myself with waiting until October to go over to the Yolo Wool Mill-In, at the mill in Woodland, about 70 miles from here. Keep ya posted!

Sunrise Saturday Sky

2006-07-29T18:15:00.000-07:00

While my Saturday dawned with a much less dramatic sky than Margene's, we were extremely grateful to have a day in the high 80s, a big drop from the 11-day heat wave of 100+ temperatures. This led to catching up around Slate Range Camp, including filling up the trash cans, washing and hanging things to dry, watering, and a run to drop off recycling, all things that it was far too hot to tackle last weekend.

I had a delightful afternoon at Lambtown yesterday, and promise a post full on photos tomorrow.

An Update on Trekking Sock V2.0

2006-07-28T06:56:00.000-07:00

My second pair of Trekking socks is progressing nicely, especially since I have decided that I want to make them shorter than Mim designed the pattern. I like to have ankle length socks in this hot climate for summer hiking, so made a 3 1/2 inch leg, instead of the more usual 7, and started the heel flap last night, but was too tired to make it all the way through the heel.

It appears that the heat wave has finally broken, but that means the temp. yesterday was 98 instead of over 100, so the sock, DD and a little bitty friend of ours spent part of the afternoon here:

Jackson Hole, North Yuba river

Anabel pretended to be sleeping. Perhaps she was bored by the sock.

Here's a close up, showing off the nice cuff rib pattern.

Now, I am off to get ready to run an errand in Sacramento, then head to Dixon for Lambtown, which opens today at noon. I won't be taking any classes, but will be eyeing the sheep and the fiber. I promise you photos. Have a great weekend.

Nice Neighbors

2006-07-27T08:17:00.000-07:00

I have always been an isolated fiber artist, with no pals to dye yarn, or shop the sales or travel to festivals with me. When I started blogging, I found like-minded souls, but noticed there was also a definite dearth of fiber bloggers in my northern California region. I felt a bit deprived, reading blogs and learning that those is SF, SLC and Boston actually could both read each others' blogs and meet to KIP.

Slowly, I have managed to "collect" a short list of lovely, near-neighbor bloggers (diversion - it just struck me - did the word "neighbor" derive from being close enough to hear their horses neigh?). While these blog neighbors might not be that close, I could manage to drive to meet them in less than a day, and have met one several times. Let me introduce you to some of my neighbors:

I found the first knit bloggers less than 100 miles away from me about a year and a half ago. Lynette lived in Folsom and Jenn in Quincy at the time (she has since relocated to Placerville). Both are fellow members of the California Knit Bloggers. I got to share hiking stories with Lynette last summer, since we love some of the same favorite Sierra spots, and then follow the story of her wedding, pregnancy and birth of their lovely little daughter, Karalyn, whose name is blended from hers and husband Karl's. Lynette's knitting has focused on babies recently, but she also just started a Leaf Lace Shawl and a lacy poncho.

Jenn and I both love Quincy and the beautiful Indian Valley, where Greenville is located. She has three lovely children, and her oldest daughter helps her make beaded stitch markers, some of which went to one of my secret swap buddies earlier this year. Jenn's mama happens to own a yarn shop (how lucky, most of you are saying!), Filati Fine Yarns, in Rocklin. I drove by it a few times while attending computer training down there this spring, but unfortunately started too early and finished too late to get a visit in. Jenn and I are both participating in Trek Along and the Knit Sock Kit Swap this summer. If you get a chance, drop by and give her a few words of encouragement, as she is just facing some scary health challenges.

Last fall, a local fiber blogger found me! Sara Lamb is well-known to some in the fiber world as a great teacher. She does workshops at several conferences a year, and lives in Nevada City where she is also deeply involved in the Foothill Fiber Guild. Back in November, she left a comment inviting me to the next guild meeting, where they were featuring a slide show about WARP, Weave a Real Peace, a nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering women and communities-in-need around the world through textile arts (description taken from their publications). It was a great event and I signed on as a guild member, mainly attending Spinning Saturdays, and getting to know a whole new group of spinners, weavers and knitters, almost entirely blogless, but living only about 25 miles from me!

Sara started blogging to help promote an enduring interest in weaving, and has offered such diverse and fascinating pieces as a tutorial on inkle weaving, and another (this week) on making your own hammered copper shawl pins. She also spent a huge amount of creative time on preparing for her son's recent wedding, including weaving and sewing him a vest, making all the table runners for the rehearsal dinner (and later to be used by the happy couple in entertaining at their home in Colorado), and even lovely sachets for the bridal party. Such talent! Sara will be teaching a Silk Cut Pile workshop at SOAR this fall, in Lake Tahoe (also less than 100 miles from me!) but the class is already full.... let me know if you plan to attend the public part and want to meet up.

In the past month I found two more near-neighbors, also Foothill Fiber guild members, but living on the opposite side of the Sierras - Sharon and Amy. Amy lives in Reno, where she is the head of something important (oops, I forgot and can't locate it for you) at University of Reno. You have to go and take a look at the awesome needle-felted chair she made recently, her latest post.

Sharon lives an hour north of Reno, and has Shetland sheep and a llama! She also does a lot of natural dyeing, always interesting to read about, and has some great photos of the beautiful high mountain desert where she lives. These ladies are both also members of the Carson Sierra Spinners and Weavers guild, but we will get to meet in two weeks, when we all help our guild at their booth at the Nevada County Fair.

If you are not familiar with any of these bloggers, go and pay a visit. I think you will find something you like in my neighbors. I also want to point out the button at the top - please go and sign on to support Bakerina in the Blogathon this coming weekend. She will be heroically blogging away for 24 hours straight, raising money for Heifer International one of my favorite charities, and needs our help and encouragement. I got to spend two days with Bakerina while at Estes Park last month, and was one of the recipients of her magnificent cooking, and mustering up support is my small way of saying "thank you" for all the love she poured over our group.

Trekking Socks Finished

2006-07-25T09:12:00.000-07:00

Yes, rumors are true; I have finished my Trekking Socks

Now, to borrow briefly from Carole, for The Good, The Bad and The Ugly:

Good: They are done, they fit my feet and I really love the color!

Bad: You probably can't tell from the photo, and it certainly won't show when my feet are encased in hiking shoes, but halfway down the second foot, I noticed that I had one less rib! Somehow, when I had finished with the heel, I didn't get the ribbing pattern going over the same amount of stitches.

Ugly: No, I didn't bother to rip; the ugly part is that I decided I just don't care... so what, etc. Maybe it's the heat (which will be triple digits for a record-breaking 11th day in a row). Maybe it's the demoralizing search for a job, or the even more demoralizing attempt to assist my two oldest relocate to Grass Valley, where there is a rental housing shortage, and a depressingly impossible set of expectations amongst the landlords we have met to date (as in, having lived here already for six months to a year - how you gonna ever get out of that tent?).

When I took stock and looked at the half-finished foot on the needles and the finished sock in my other hand, I realized it would be easier to live with the hardly visible mis-matched ribbing than it would to live with ripping so much out and re-doing. I was also ready to go on the the next pair, which are in Trekking Color #18, and made their first appearance here in Saturday's post. Oh, and don't look too closely at the toes, either. I do know how to Kitchener, and really don't have the fear and dread of it that other people mention, but just did a cruddy job this time. Well, there's another sock on the needles already and another chance to get it right.

In other news, I wanted to share a photo of this lovely packet that came yesterday from Jean Franklin, of my Foothill Fibers Guild:

Jean sells Ashford wheels and when she read on our Guild Yahoo list that I wanted to repair mine, emailed back and forth with me (which included pictures and diagrams but no circles and arrows), till we figured out exactly what replacement parts I needed, rounded them up and sent them off in the mail. That would be wonderful enough of her, but she also included FIBER!! From her own Shetland sheep to boot! I can see that she and I will have to have a conversation about sheep coming to live here at Slate Range Camp in the (near?) future. I fully intend to spin that lovely, soft stuff up right away.

Another Guild member, Amy, has promised to review my spindling technique and give me tips and pointers to get me on the road to success in early August, when we both will be working at the Guild booth at the Nevada County Fair. The fair dates are August 9-13, and this year's theme is "Wild About Ewe" - if you have a chance to attend, it is a true county fair set in the pines surrounded by our green foothills, with lots of livestock, music on various small stages, rides, Treat Street (a whole lane full of fair food booths), and buildings with great garden and textiles exhibits!

A final photo - this one of a lovely Saturday sky on a Tuesday.

Saturday Sky, Overheated and New, New, New

2006-07-23T15:47:00.000-07:00

Saturday Sky on Sunday - yes, I do feel like I have been lost in a time-warp the past few days, resulting in no new posts. The temperatures decided to climb rather than fall, and everyone has gotten a little cranky as a result. While we were barely tolerating the high 90s, the triple-digit temps (109 in Grass Valley yesterday afternoon - luckily it wasn't my car with the thermometer, or I might have perished at the realization) are simply pinning us down to the house near the cooler, or the air-conditioned car. Today's sky is a reflection of the way that such heat waves bring cloud build-up, and sometimes dry lightening, to our mountains. While the clouds look pretty, I tend to get a bit uneasy and pray that this batch won't develop into thunderheads.

There were some inevitable things I simply had to do at the end of the week, including a lot of family business at home on Thursday, leaving me no other computer time afterwards, and a fast trip to Chico, since it was time to bite the bullet and re-up for another two years of cell service. I have a four-line family plan, and had hoped to dump my present carrier, but unfortunately adding DH last summer, when he finally decided he needed a phone of his own, got him out of sync with the rest of us ... the good news was the other three of us got new phones.

Trying to decide, Cody checks out the features on the phone Nikki later chose.

DD followed me back home late Friday afternoon, but first we had to stop at a big box bookstore to get iced coffee drinks to fortify us. That is where I picked up a copy of Knitting (on the left in the photo above) - the English magazine with such a unique title. It was quite a bit of fun to find a knitting magazine I hadn't discovered before, and that it had an article about teaching children to knit, as well as some great information about fashion/knitwear design (quite the well-developed industry in UK, perhaps because they seldom have heat waves).

Also on display is my new phone.... yes, there really is that trendy side of me that just had to have the pink Razr. I am still searching for a suitable ringtone (maybe a donkey braying), and have to find some time to get started putting music on it. I am really not much of a gadget person, hating to spend perfectly good money that could go to books or yarn, so I have never gotten around to getting an MP3 player (although youngest son got one of the earliest on the market for a BD present several years back) or an IPod, but now that a mobile phone has become "almost a necessity" (I do remember doing just fine 89% of the time without one), why not in pink, and why not with music?!

The phone is partially obscuring A Handspindle Treasury, which arrived in Friday's mail, and traveled back and forth to Chico, unopened, since there really wasn't any reading time. I still have only had the chance to thumb through and get oriented, as this Interweave Press publication includes the best of the articles they have featured on spindle spinning over the past twenty years, and there are some great gems of wisdom in here. The best gem for me was realizing that it was spindle spinning and not wheel spinning that has gotten me interested in spinning once again. I am all about carrying handwork around with me, making more time to visit with people while doing a piece that doesn't need full concentration, such as knitting a sock or spinning on the high whorl (once I get the hang of it). The process of spindling is identical to wheel spinning in so many ways and yet different in the ability to be mobile. Perhaps it is my aging body, but I have tended to shy away from sitting at any kind of apparatus in a cramped position for hours, and don't regret that I no longer weave and rarely spend a whole day at the sewing machine any longer. Different tools for different stages of life...

The book to the right is a very cute book, Kids Knitting, that is written to the level of a mid-elementary aged child, and has great kid-oriented patterns, such as bean bags (and you were wondering what to do with all those gauge swatches!), hats, toys, the ever-recommended "first project scarf", and even socks. Why did I pick up this book yesterday, when DD and I ventured out into the heat to Grass Valley to search for rentals for her and two of the three DSs? I have been knitting since I was five and my kids are all too old for the instructional style... but I submitted an application for a job as "handwork teacher" at one of our local public charter schools, and am hoping for at least an interview, so I can talk them into hiring me to teach knitting and other crafts to elementary students! Please, please think good thoughts about this being a good match, both for me and for the school. It feels like a better match than teaching at the county jail, where I visited the classrooms last week (intimidating, even though I know I didn't commit any crimes).

This final photo, taken at one of the Chico parking lots, is for Carole - the other new thing is the beginning of a second pair of Trekking socks, using Mim's Simple Trekking Socks pattern. Somewhere in the chaos between teaching Thursday night, getting the burros ready for the farrier, and assisting him with hoof-trimming Friday morning, then dashing around Chico, I managed to finish the first pair, and cast on another, in color #18 (a light lavender and blue fleck). I figured, what the heck? Summer is still young, and there's lots more trekking to be done! There will be photos of the finished socks later in the week, when I can manage to have clean enough feet to put on brand-new, hand-made socks... that are wool and hot!

There will also be other catching up to do, as I had planned a nice, chatty post about how there are finally a few other fiber bloggers within a 75-mile distance of me, but that will have to wait, as well as doing a Local Meal post for Liz. I have been eating local food, but I wouldn't call much of it a meal --- too hot to work in the kitchen.

Wednesday Hodge Podge

2006-07-19T19:08:00.000-07:00

Summer around Slate Range Camp

Today's post will be a jumble of a variety of things going on over the past few days. DH is working as a line archaelogist (as in "fire line") at the large fire complex in San Bernardino (SoCal), so I am trying to keep up with tending the home fires, and boy, it's been pretty hot here. Hovering around 100, and even though "it's a dry heat", it can feel like a blast furnace around midday. Successfully coping with such heat involves a siesta mentality, long derided by those in cooler climates as being a slacker. Let me tell you, no slacker I know gets up around 5 AM in order to put in a few hours of chores in the cool of the day, before cleaning up and going to work. There really hasn't been any "cool of the evening" around here until well after dark! I am hoping for some relief soon.

Yesterday morning, I repaired some animal fencing, watered, washed a load of laundry and hung it to dry, fed and then moved the animals around, so that an unused pasture was re-occupied by Rita and the teenaged Assteroid, and also cut herbs to dry, all before 7:45, when the sun was suddenly hitting every place I still need to do some work. This morning it was more watering and more fence repair (I am afraid to turn on the hot wire and have it short out and start a fire), with three or four more mornings of repair work needed to really get things secure around the old Camp. However, it is a bit cloudy overhead, and cooler, so I am hoping the day won't have to hit the 100 mark again.

Freshly-cut lavender... there are also bunches of peppermint and rosemary drying.

The peach jam was made on Sunday morning... it's yummy. Mim has a great jam tutorial on her new blog site (she moved over to Word Press), if this gets you hankering to try making some of your own.

Update on Rita

Sylvia asked for a new photo of Rita, as she was concerned to know how Rita is coping with the loss of her long-time burro companion Louise, who died a few weeks ago. She is still a bit lonely and needy, and here takes advantage of special rations. I am pulling her out from everyone else at breakfast several days a week to bolster her nutritionally, as she looks too bony to me the past several months.

Here is a photo of Rita two years ago, more vital and leading a pack string of animals on an EARs Club outing in Forest City. EARS stands for Equuis Assinus Recreationus Society, just in case you were wondering.

The farrier is coming to trim feet tomorrow, and Rita will be seeing the vet soon, and quite possibly an equine dentist to float her teeth, all efforts to maximize her late middle aged years ... she is now 24 years old!

Lily of the Valley Shawl

I am absolutely loving working on this shawl... I had my doubts about using such large needles, in fact dropped down from a size 15 as recommended to a size 11 (you can see my trusty Denise interchangeables in the photo below). I am still a bit concerned that large, loose loops (say that three times, fast!) could get caught on something while wearing this, but I did opt for a medium-sized version, which will help to contain the abundance of fabric.

The top border and first repeat of my Lily of the Valley Shawl

The pattern is such that I very quickly started to see it develop; each step has a "cue" from the previous row, and the trickiest part is making six sets of bobbles for each of the panels over the course of an 18-row repeat. What this means to the knitter is that on six of the eighteen rows, you will be increasing five stitches out of one, not too difficult if you remember to add a bit of give as you make each increase. The second part of the process, decreasing back down, is a bit more interesting. The directions in the Spin-off article suggest three methods, the first two I considered and abandoned were either to purl five together (yeah, right! I could imagine dropped stitches, but it might work for you), or to use a crochet hook to slip the five off and do some passing over manuever (now why would I do that when I am already holding a knitting needle in each hand - do they know people with three hands?). My method has been to slip the first four, knit the fifth and then one by one pass them over it. This method might be a tad bit slower, but gets my bobble all nice and neatly lined up - at least it is more often than not, now that I have done this 60 times.... it takes me awhile.

What is amazing me is how rapidly this project is going, starting from a knitted cast-on of 176 stitches and steadily decreasing in triangular fashion. I like to work with a mid-range of needles between say about sizes 3 and 8 or 9 best, so I am thinking already that I want to experiment with how laceweight and smaller needles work in this pattern, as well as how fingering, which I am using, looks if I drop down to size 8. Right now though, I feel part of a grand, international tradition, since my fabric looks like that created by the German knitters, working from the notes made in South Africa by a refugee who grew up in Estonia, Edith Haller. Isn't it wonderful the connections that we get from knitting?!

As a side note, while you are over visiting the Interweave Press site to check out that issue of Spin-Off, print the free instructions to make your own Charkha spinning wheel from a cigar box, not that you need another project or anything. I think I would have more fun building the wheel than trying to spin fine cotton thread with it, but who knows what heights of greatness I might aspire to next?!

Knit Sock Kit Swap

This is the cute little bag I made for my Swap buddie in the Knit Sock Kit Swap (check out my sidebar, if you are wondering what this is). I included Mim's Trekking Socks pattern, some lovely Trekking yarn, a card made by one of the other members in our crafts co-op, showing a calico sheep, and a small bundle of freshly-cut lavender from the garden. Not shown is a large bar of Endangered Species chocolate, some sandal candles (they float!), a Soap Rock, and some sock-shaped point protectors. I am hoping she loves using it as much as I did making the bag and assembling the kit.

This has been a post of this and that, fraught with battles on my end with the computer line, Blogger, and Firefox, all conspiring against me at some point. But remember, "Who loves ya, baby?"

O is for Oasis

2006-07-18T08:18:00.000-07:00

Our inner backyard is in the shade most of the hot summer afternoon, providing us with a cool oasis while the Mediterranean climate pins us down until evening.

I build up a collection of potted plants each season to keep us company. This year, we are featuring geraniums, a pepper plant, glads which haven't flowered yet, a strawberry pot, basil, cilantro, sweet william, pansies, and a creeping geranium.

I can sit in my knitting chair in the relatively cool shade, while the sun beats down behind me on the front lawn, breathing in the aroma of my jasmine, partially in view on the right side of the photo. Heaven is right outside my bedroom door.

Kids' Fishing Day

2006-07-17T07:22:00.000-07:00

Those of us who love the wild and who work with the young often think about passing along a sense of protecting the places we treasure to the next generation. There are lots of ways to instill a love of nature in the very young, but the best one I have found over the years is to put them in a beautiful spot and let them have a good time.

This weekend, our local Fish and Game Commission collaborated with two of the surrounding Forest Service Ranger Districts to host the Annual Kids' Free Fishing Day at Packer Lake, with just such a goal in mind. Local fishing experts were on hand to check out loaner equipment for the morning and give casting lessons. The Forest Service sent a handful of employees (including DH, whose job is High Country Ranger, covering the area where the lake and two dozen others are, called Lakes Basin and adjacent to the Sierra Buttes) to set up displays on fish, amphibians, plants, animals and other natural wonders. The kids were there by the dozens, having a terrific time. This post is pretty heavy on photos, but the scenery is worth it!

Here a very young boy and his grandma enjoy fishing lakeside.

Packer Lake was full of fisherpeople.

A mother teaching her toddler son the basics.

Mason is very proud of the fish her dad, Brandon, helped her catch, but she doesn't want to hold it!

There were nature craft activities, such as pressing plaster casts of animal tracks into clay rounds to take home.

A popular stop was at the fish printing tables, where fabric paints and free t-shirts and tank tops were ready for imprinting with your design.

Under that paint is a real fish, used for fish-printing.

Lifting the shirt off the fish reveals a fish print.

Several completed fish shirts. Some crafters added the date, the lake's name, a caption, or even "family reunion".

MY FO of the weekend - a fish print tank top! I like that my fish is going after bugs...

An idyllic way to spend a summer day.

2006-07-15T16:16:00.000-07:00

This Saturday's sky was taken at Packer Lake, where several osprey were competing with the kids attending Kids Fishing Day, an annual event to promote fishing for trout in our local lakes. I kept trying, hoping to be able to show you the distinctive wing bands on the undersides, important to identifying these birds, although sitting at lake edge and listening to three of them communicating with each other made me realize that their call is just as distinctive.

Thursday Posing as Sunday

2006-07-13T20:57:00.000-07:00

Since DH has Wednesdays and Thursdays off this summer, and works the weekends, I have been trying (unsuccessfully) to schedule my work week to have time off with him. It looks a lot like a workaholic's weekend, but we did fit some nice things in, nonetheless.

First, I had the morning off yesterday, which allowed us to have a late "Friday night", sleep in and chat over morning coffee, and have a slow start to the day. My evening activity was getting started on the Lily of the Valley shawl featured in Spin-Off Spring 2004, which I found at Estes Park Wool Mart. This shawl has been on my list since Susan featured the book, in German, that Interweave Press published after this initial article. The shawl does not look to be too difficult, in fact may well fall quickly into the intuitive category, however the traditional technique used was that of very large needles (size 15 is recommended, although I decided 11s would work fine for my style of knitting) and fine thread - I am using Textiles A Manos cotton/rayon fingering weight.

Yesterday, even though it was DH's "Saturday", I did have a meeting to attend an hour and a half away, and conned convinced him into coming with me... initially we intended to camp, but decided to take the back roads over a seasonal mountain pass home to our high country house, so we could spend the night there.

This is the season irreverently known in our neck of the woods as "construction season" (the joke is 'there are four seasons: almost winter, winter, still winter, and construction'), and between his leisurely day-off driving style (I finally had to remind him that this wasn't a sight-seeing trip for me, and I had to get a move on) and stopping three separate times in a 40 mile stretch for road work, I was a trifle late arriving; lucky for me so was another of the board members. Our meeting took a few hours, then we headed to Sierraville for an early Mexican food dinner. Stuffed to the gills, we took Highway 89 to the Henness Pass road, where the traffic greatly diminished, and of course I have mountain photos for you:

We weren't sure of the name of this large mountain meadow that parallels the road, but there are many such meadows in the high Sierras, all in bloom right now!

There are two major fire complexes going here in California, one in Stanislaus county (central) and one in San Bernardino (south - where DS Rex and his Forest Service helitack crew are working), so the sky grew hazier as we traveled west.

This is Meadow Lake, one of my all-time favorites... it has been a private fishing resort for the past several years, but a short walk from the main road, so we went in to take a few photos. Looking south, you can see a hazy view of English meadow and Mountain.

The historic Meadow Lake Lodge, now a private residence, but once a road house on the route to the Comstock mines.

The cabin of my dreams, so that I could spend the entire summer in the high country at Meadow Lake! The donkeys would love it...

Further to the west, we stopped at Keystone Gap - even hazier.

The total distance was about 25 miles of back roads, allowing us to spend a relaxing evening at our original home in Forest City, where no dogs currently live and there is virtually no traffic - talk about quiet! We reveled in it, and I finished up a Feather and Fan washcloth to put in the shop tomorrow, and the top edging of the shawl (now to dive into the famous Lily of the Valley pattern).

Some of you may be wondering why I didn't take my Trekking sock on this lovely trek; we are having a bit of time apart. My hands were craving time with larger needles, and my sanguine nature wanted to see something finished, and something new started, both at the same time. The sock and I will be able to spend quality time together over the weekend, and may even fit in a wildflower hike, as although we saw some flowers at Meadow Lake, not the profusion that is in full bloom at some of the other secret spots I know and love.

I spent a little time peering at my mail and a tiny handful of blogs, but the computer up there is a family discard, and the line is slower than any of you can possibly imagine, so going online is more about a quick news update and checking to make sure there are no crises needing attention, with real catch-up time now, while I am waiting for my evening students to show up - yes my "Sunday" afternoon reverted to the real work week, needing to clean up and get to Grass Valley by mid-afternoon to check with the school staff for messages and drop off paperwork, and then teach an adult ed class. Poor DH was left to fend for himself...

I did have a late lunch at a local coffeehouse while perusing the new Knitpicks catalog; too bad I bought all those Addi Turbos last month at four times the price! Their new line of needles has great promise and I am eager to hear from people who are trying them out.

I also want to ask you to drop by Laurie's blog and offer your condolences; it appears that she lost her lovely Wool Peddler's Shawl while hustling to the SLC airport to catch a flight to Boston for a teacherly training... Margene made a mad dash yesterday evening to peer in her car windows and make sure it wasn't left on the seat or caught in the door.... only we knitters can understand the sorrow this loss would cause in one of our own.

N is for Nevada

2006-07-11T13:40:00.000-07:00

I can't really say exactly why, but I just love Nevada. We live less than two hours from Reno, and it is often the springboard for great adventures throughout the state. I love visiting the desert and the high mountains both. I love touring across the empty lands and staring up into the big, huge, blue skies.

I love the Wild West history and lore:

Goldfield Hotel side view The abandoned Goldfield hotel

I love being able to see mustangs in the wild:

A small band outside Virginia City

I love the crazy events they put on over there, like Hot August Nights:

I have driven across Nevada in a blizzard and snowboarded on the slopes. It's cold, it's hot, there's blowing sand, there's snakes and bugs and still I find it all very beautiful.

A storm descending upon Lake Tahoe

Frequent viewers might recognize one or two of these photos, for they are among the best in my collection of Nevada shots, more of which will follow in the future, I'm sure!

Saturday Sky and Summer Things

2006-07-10T18:11:00.000-07:00

I had a wonderful, rejuvenating weekend away, and so my Saturday Sky is a few days late, and of course has a tale of adventure to go with it.

I left work Friday afternoon, and headed over to Mohawk (near Graeagle) to meet my dear, long-time friend Suzie who had convinced me to go to the Taylorsville Solar Cook-off and Blues Fest with her. This is the 16th year for the event, which brings a few thousand people to the county park on the edge of Indian Valley, in a town with only a few hundred residents (and only 86 miles from home). Suzie had arranged to borrow her dad's motorhome, so we camped in near luxury, commenting on how much harder the ground had gotten in recent years.

Suzie driving the RV

Saturday morning, we started our day listening to music from friends, Penny and her husband Dude... Penny is an elementary school principal in the district where Suzie and I have worked together, in her non-musical life. It was then that I discovered my camera's batteries were too low. I didn't manage to get any other pictures than of the sky shown above, taken about 1:30 in the afternoon, while we were wading in the creek next to the campground, along with about 100 other people, trying to cool off from the sweltering 88 degrees or so heat. You can see some photos of the event here.

Lucky for us, cooling down a bit made us take notice of how hungry we had gotten, and we headed back to the motor home and were eating a late lunch when thunder, lightening, and marble-sized hail started... the music continued under the shelter of a huge tent awning while it rained for the next two hours.

Suzie took a nap and I worked on my Trekking sock in dry comfort, but we were able to catch the last of the music when the rains stopped. Some of the people who had set up their dinners to cook in solar cookers were disappointed; they hadn't started early enough to catch all that morning sunlight and dinner wasn't done... others feasted on leg of lamb, roast chicken, various stews and casseroles, cookies and brownies, and that's just what we saw cooking. Most cooking is done in dark pots, so we couldn't always tell what it was. Suzie, my DD Nikki and I had set up a solar cooking site when we attended back in 2001, making brownies and a chicken/veggie dish, but this time I decided to attend on short notice and didn't dig out the solar gear, which I haven't used yet this season. If you would like to explore solar cooking alternatives, check this site out.

The event has been sponsored every year by Blackhawk Solar of Quincy, and they offered a great deal on Sun Ovens at the festival - $200 for an oven to take home, about $50-$75 off usual retail prices. Suzie picked up one for a friend and one for her son. I learned about two more great local food sources, Mountain Meadows Mead and Tehama Gold olive oil, and will be writing about them for the Eat Local Challenge website this week, so come by and visit. Liz is hosting a "Local Meal a Week" challenge over at Pocket Farm, a gentle way to become part of your local food web.

We had to pack up early on Sunday, but I was able to get some batteries for the camera in Quincy, and get this photo of her parents' view over the Mohawk Valley as we were cleaning out the motor home:

I also managed to produce a FO while at the event, a Feather and Fan facecloth gifted to Anita, my adult ed program supervisor, today for her birthday party with a group of co-workers (sorry, no photo, but it was beautiful in natural cotton, and accompanied by soap from a fellow crafts co-op member, and one of my photo cards), as well as getting past the heel on Trekking sock #2!

Most importantly, we felt like we really had a summer outing, doing "summer things": camping, listening to live music outdoors, swimming in the creek and eating summer fruits. Happy Summer to everyone else out there, and make sure you are making room for your own special summer things.

Philosophy Channeled Through Grief

2006-07-06T18:18:00.000-07:00

It seems that I have spent the past few months waiting for doors to open... I grieved not getting to spend my days in the way I had planned for the past three years, running a child-centered daycare program based in my home community where I had worked and served and socialized (as well as lived on the very rural outskirts) since 1990. I also looked at what was opening up for me, and applied for a handful of jobs, taught a GED prep class, and found that the staff of that program and I hit it off. I could look at my resume, my education and background, and realize that I was very talented, but not likely to move to a large, urbanized area populated with employers who would want to snatch me right up. The Golden Ticket hasn't appeared yet.

I found lots of solace in knitting, great joy in getting to hang out with some of my blogland friends in mid-June, and still had to wonder how was I going to make an adequate living or pursue my own work-life passions. I have thought most of my adult life that when one door closes, another opens, and I have tried to stay receptive and open to the fact that the door might look more like a crack in the wall or a hole in the ground, and not turn aside an opportunity simply because it wasn't what I expected or how I perceived myself.

Nothing happened ... at least on the plane where I could notice.

Then, last week, my three adult children came into a crisis that has deeply touched me and made me re-examine what we do and why we live. I wrote about them losing their dear aunt unexpectedly, and lots of you wrote back with love and concern. What I didn't expect was how profound it would be for all of us to ponder what their lives would be without me. My DD is the most emotional, and grabbed me and clung to me in tears when she arrived for the holiday weekend, and I could only promise I would try hard to live a very long time. All three of them had immediately reached out to support their two cousins, also in their twenties... and I could only be thankful that I got to be 39 before losing my own mother. It has been a very sad time around the Camp.

I have been taking greater care in driving (I drive way too much per week, and have to be vigilant not to take the process for granted), have watched my diet and thought about my health, and even started weight training again. I mean it - I will be trying to stick around for them.

I have also thought a lot about the quality of the time I spend working and what it means to the quality of the time that I have left over to give my family and dear friends. I can see that my most important contribution to the world to date has been raising three compassionate, committed individuals who would reach out beyond their own awkwardness to their cousins and value their mother so much; I did something right and something powerful in that.

I have come to the conclusion that I do not want work that will keep me too busy for those I cherish, too overwhelmed to see other needs than my own job, or too tired to care. Many people I know have expressed themselves through their careers and accomplishments, but I have been much happier expressing myself through the love I could give, through being a good wife and mother, a true and loyal friend, and a creative person. Knitting, writing, photography and other passions have been my opportunity to excel in something for pure art's sake, for the simple joy of it.

Where does that leave me in paying my bills, having a nest egg so that I can work less as I age, or being able to help others, travel to meet up with friends, or even buy yarn or a new outfit? That part is still a bit murky, although I was offered additional teaching hours this week, which will kick in by August... as I say, the doors aren't big and looming, but still obscured.

I am sending these thoughts out because I believe we all should be consciously weighing the worth of our lives, while we have the chance. Make it count, in the way that matters to you.

Small Town Celebration

2006-07-04T16:21:00.000-07:00

Our town may be small, but it can celebrate the 4th like nobody's business! The highlight is the noon parade, closing the state highway for all of twenty minutes!

The town's antique fire truck follows the color guard opening the parade (we do have a few modern ones as well).

Old time buggy, sponsored by the clinic where I work. It is traditional for people on the floats to throw candy to the crowd... keeping the children busy trying to gather it all up.

Smokey the Bear waves from the back of one of the Forest Service trucks, accompanied by a handler - Smokey cannot speak, being a bear, and always has someone interpreting for him when he meets the public.

Smoothieville's staff do the hula on their float, complete with inflatable palm tree.

Staff from the grocery passes out free water to the watching crowd.

Since our town is so small, the parade is pretty short. There just aren't that many businesses and community organizations to put together parade floats. Therefore,

the parade has turned around and is coming back for its second pass through town. Following behind the end of the parade, Downieville Grocery owners Dan and Ingrid offered up "Sierra County Fire-less Works", unrolling two 100 foot rolls of bubble wrap, with people following behind them, stomping and replicating the sound of dozens of firecrackers - a great idea in our forest, where fire danger grows by the day each summer.

Once things settle down from the parade, there are rides on the fire truck, BBQ hamburgers and hot dogs sold by the Lions Club, a crafts fair and foot races for all ages from 1 to over 50, broken down by age and sex. It is great fun to see your friends' kids and grandkids race. Then there is a tug-of-war contest, natives against tourists, for both men and women. This year, with the holiday falling at the end of an especially long weekend, attendance at the events were down, but still a fun day. Hope yours was too!

Playing Catch-Up

2006-07-02T18:35:00.000-07:00

This Sunday was spent trying to get a handle on just how huge my stash, list of WIPs and list of In the Queues (ITQ?) has grown. Then there was the list of items to get into the crafts co-op shop in the next few weeks, since tourist season is when the bulk of our sales take place. I was overwhelmed... however I did make some great progress in deciding where to go next. Which was to Ben Franklin, to purchase the rest of the supplies I need to finish my Knit Sock Kit Swap buddy's bag! I also picked up supplies to make DD a bag (she was helping with trim and handle choices) and another to put in the shop, as well as a pillow form for a pillow ready to go in the shop, and a set of those cute little sock-shaped point protectors to go with the Kit... yarn is on its way here and pattern is printed up and in a nice plastic sleeve. I'm sure glad something is getting done around here!

Wools I wound this afternoon: the handpainted blue/green/purple yarn that goes so well with the watermelon was my Dye-O-Rama gift from Bev, the light green is a cotton/rayon laceweight from Textiles a Mano, for a Lily of the Valley shawl that will be started later this month, and the sunset pinks and purples, from Plain and Fancy (no web address, sorry), will be socks, although a pair for DH will come between them and finishing my Trekking socks.

I also came up with some great items to contribute to a gathering of labeled yarns being collected as a benefit for Emma and her son Oliver; I read about this project on Susan's blog, where there is an address to mail off any yarns you decide to contribute. I was both heartened and dismayed to find that while there were full skeins in my stash I would be ok parting with, most did not have ball bands, as required.... heartened to see that much of what I have amassed comes from small producers, but dismayed that I had so little to contribute, and that several balls had been rolled up, then not put into use! I did decide that the four balls of Rowan Cork sent to me by accident by the vendor I got Rowan Calmer for CeCe from was better used in this way than languishing in my stash - it was a gift to me in the end, so I am gifting it further.

While busily winding those lovely balls, I reached my divorce point with my swift... it is a lovely wood item that I bought on Ebay, made by a craftsman who doesn't have a twit's idea what you use the thing for... I wanted a model that would sit on the table, rather than clamp on, and the two legs for this sit firmly on the table, with nice little rubber feet, and are solid, but it's all downhill from there. The two arms that the yarn drapes over are made to assemble and be held with a crafty turned peg, very pretty but totally worthless. The pegs that you adjust for skein size promise four different holes to put them in on each of the four directions will allow you to accomodate all kinds of sizes of skeins, but it isn't till you are in full swing that you realize the center peg wobbles off, the individual pegs on the arms can fly loose at any time, sending your skeing into tangles, and also require constant re-adjustment as the skein gets smaller.... it's time for an improved and saner version of ballwinding here at the old Camp and I am certainly open to suggestions!

Thanks for the Find of the Week go to Margene, who suggested that I might enjoy this book, especially since my gauge is so far off from everyone elses'.... I am in love, and can't wait to find the time to try several combinations. The charts are such an excellent help for someone like me, saving me the math of adjusting every single pattern I want to make. This could even warrant a future Product Review (anyone remember those? It's been awhile...).

For those of you NOT working tomorrow, I do truly hope you enjoy yourselves, and I will do my darndest not to be bitter.

Saturday Thunder Sky

2006-07-01T18:38:00.000-07:00

This Saturday sky features the thunderheads that are prominent in our mountains in early summer; as the heat cranks up in the valley, mountains block its rise and it mixes with colder air, causing the occasional freak hailstorm I described earlier this week. Taken out the door of my office a few days ago...

Hope you are having a great time this holiday weekend. I finished Trekking Sock #1 and cast on for #2 and also put in several inches on CeCe while watching a three-hour Deadwood marathon last night, and also managed to make it to the annual Firemans' Muster, a popular event each year in our little town.

Friday Looks Better

2006-06-30T08:15:00.000-07:00

I have been in a general funk the past two days, but woke up more my bright and shiny self this morning. Nothing could get knitted, or read, or tended to... my head hurt and life has been a bit rough around the edges lately. I am going to a job interview later this morning, which has me a tiny bit nervous, as well. I am hoping to convince the regional Headstart agency to hire me on to direct one of their sites, preferably the one closest to me. This would be an outgrowth of directing the program I helped start a few years ago; that job ended back in February and we definitely need to have me working more! How on earth will I be able to buy all the yarn I want? JK, the most difficult thing about being on a reduced income the past few months has been needing to decrease my generosity - I can't say "yes" to as much as is normal for me, and want to see that change.

The three of our five children that I gave birth to are grieving the sudden and surprising death of their step-mom's sister on Thursday; this is the closest "young" (she was 45 and there was no indication that she had health issues, but "heart" is listed as the cause of death) relative or friend any of them have faced going on without, and all three have had telephone conversations with me about how they feel, what to say to their now-motherless cousins, how to help their dad and step-mom, and how to face going forward.

I can't say I had any brilliant advice; I just told each of them in answer to "What do I say?", that it is not about what you say, but that you make the effort to share their grief. There is nothing to say, except "I am sad too", when all is said and done. I have always been one to hate platitudes or cliches. I am awed and proud of each of them for how open they have been able to be about both their own grief and their fears in dealing with death.

That said, I am really looking forward to the holiday weekend! I am almost done with Trekking Sock #1 and will be able to start #2, if not today, than then tomorrow morning while doing my shift at our crafts co-op in Downieville. Once my shift is over, there are multiple options for fun, including visiting our dear friends in Sierra City, where they manage the RV park for the summer, then come and stay with us each winter. There will also be a highly entertaining Fireman's muster in the mid-afternoon, a great BBQ to benefit the local VFD, and a street dance tomorrow night, if I can just stay awake that long!

I hope that everyone enjoys the weekend, and those who have Monday off (you know who you are and I am not one of you!) get a long and restful vacation. Fireworks are illegal where we are, because the forest fire danger is really high (there were over 30 small fires on our Forest alone from Tuesday's storm that I described below), but several communities have great displays over lakes - just none near me, so oooh and aaah for me.

Trekking to Rowland Falls

2006-06-29T07:29:00.000-07:00

Yesterday afternoon DH, my Trekking sock and I took a hike into Rowland Falls, just a few miles from our Forest City house. Wednesdays will be our only day off together this summer, so we will be trying to spend most of them relaxing. The weather was cooler and cloudy, but no hailstorms this time! We even got in the water, but it was too cold for more than a quick dip to wash the sweat off.

My sock, basking near the deeper pool. I am close to finishing the first one!

From the second descending pool, just before the falls drop off.

This one's for Neena.

My husband's favorite craft activity is building rock walls. While I knitted on my Trekking sock, he built a small wall that raised the water height in the upper pool by four inches. I only added two inches to the foot....

Glenn relaxes in the shade after all that hard work

I promised a follow-up to the picnic story from yesterday's post. These are the three washcloths I won at the guild picnic. Our names went into a hat, with the number of cloths we had brought to swap, then we were called in the rotating order of the drawing, getting to choose our favorite each time from the dwindling pile. I have made the swirling round one a few times myself, and will have to look around for the pattern!

More Adventures and a Spinner's Picnic

2006-06-27T21:34:00.000-07:00

I used to travel over 9 miles of dirt road each way to work, except for when the deepest snows blocked the road, forcing me to drive an alternate (paved) route of 46 miles, and often could claim that I had more adventures before breakfast than most people had all day, but I thought I was over that phase... till last week.

My great adventures with Margene, Carole, and Anne should have been enough, but my day turned into another adventure when I least expected it. Twice. In the same day.

I am a commissioner for our county's Children and Families Commission (also known as First Five and associated recently in the news with Rob Reiner), and attend a monthly meeting on the other side of the county, which results in good community service because of my child development background, quality mindless-knitting time, and good blog photos as I travel through some awesome and mainly empty country over Yuba Pass and through the Sierra Valley. Today, the Sierra Valley was full of smoke, blown in from a wildland fire in western Nevada, and too thick to offer good photos. I had a meeting at the health dept. first, then our commission meeting at noon. The meeting went well, though longer than usual, and in the late afternoon, I headed on a different route - 90 miles to Nevada City, so that I could join my guild members for the annual picnic.

We have been experiencing a heat wave for almost a week, the weather pattern that pulls cool air in from the ocean and results in thunderstorms when that mix of air backs up against the Sierras on the eastern side of the Central Valley. There have been several days of lightening strikes and smallish wildfires. Just my luck to end up caught in a "wicked" hailstorm, with hail the size of large marbles, or ball-bearings, quickly filling the roadway... when I looked through my rearview mirror and saw that the "rain" was bouncing in the bed of my truck, I thought it prudent to pull over... well at least long enough to shift into 4 wheel drive. Then, when I looked out the window and noticed that the roadside was beginning to turn white, I decided stopping a bit was wise. I was wearing flip-flops, a skirt and a sleeveless shirt - not ideal for sliding off the road. I found a wide spot, filled in with three other vehicles eventually, and spent about 20 minutes waiting for the hail to turn back to rain!

By the time I reached Truckee, I was out from under the storm and it was sunny again, but an alert came on the radio for even more severe hailstorm activity at the south end of Lake Tahoe, warning boaters off the water! I was a bit disappointed that my personal storm hadn't warrented an alert.

All was good till I got to Nevada City and realized that I had wretched directions and was not entirely sure I could find the house where the picnic was to take place. Those who have suffered through using online directions will probably relish devising an appropriately derisive name to label such torture. I had only 45 minutes at work before leaving for Loyalton, and had checked the address on Yahoo the first go-round, since Margene had been so sorely disappointed with Map Quest. At least I knew my county, and could quickly see that the directions leaving Loyalton sent me off on a seasonal dirt road towards the Interstate. Shorter? Maybe. Crazy-making? Definitely. I took another shot with Map Quest, and the start was correct, but I didn't catch that then address had gotten garbled, and I was being sent to another part of the town.

Not until I was trying to follow them, anyway. I passed the same spot twice, just like we did in Estes, but I knew this spot, and I wasn't getting any closer, and I hadn't copied down the hostess's phone onto my hopeless directions like I had planned, in the rush to get out of the office on time. I circled around to the library, hoping to check a map or get on a computer, but all the employees were driving their cars out when I arrived. Sigh, that meant I was already late to the picnic!

The good old spirit of adventure kicked in again though. I WAS NOT going to head home (24 miles away) without trying to locate the place, even if I had little to go on. After all, I still had half a tank of gas. You'd do it too, for food and fiber friends, right?

I knew which exit to take, and headed in the right general direction, hoping that the road name would pop up. It helps that our state assigns house numbers increasing in size as they move away from the city centers. I turned onto the major road I had remembered from the Yahoo directions, and came upon "Hillcrest" (but I had been remembering it as "Hillside", decided to turn and found a man directing traffic. I had to admit to him that I was lost and not even sure I was supposed to be attending his party - was this the spinning party?

I had hit paydirt and almost kissed the poor husband-of-a-weaver (these men that stick with us fibery women are such good souls). My whole trip had been so surreal over the past two and a half hours, but sure enough, there were my guild friends in line for delectable foods and desserts.

A special feature of this year's picnic was two exchanges: woven handtowels and knitted washcloths (someone even participated in both!). I had a few washcloths to contribute and came home with some very nice ones I chose each time it was my turn... I promise a photo tomorrow.

Another sweet moment was the "crowning" of two members, each celebrating their 80th birthdays this year, with paper crowns, as our revered elders (they also no longer have to pay their annual dues). I had a relaxing time and was sure glad I had charged through my adventures to be there.

Gold Rush Days

2006-06-26T16:52:00.000-07:00

Our little town of Downieville began re-living its Wild West heritage five years ago, when the Chamber of Commerce initiated Gold Rush Days as a part of California's three-year Sesquicentennial Celebration. The first one featured a genuine Wells Fargo stagecoach, however, they have been tamer ever since. Many people dress in period costume, adding to the flavor of the event, but we are in the middle of a heat wave this weekend, so the heavy clothing was not as prevalent as in the past.

The local storekeeper runs screaming from the building, setting the stage for a mock robbery and gunfight between good and evil, courtesy of Gunslingers, Inc.

The "robbers" deposit the loot and attempt to flee. Note, our crafts co-op, Mountain Harvest in the background on the left, and the street sign, harking to earlier mining camp days.

My sock and I pose in the shade for a moment during Gold Rush Days. I look a bit wilted and disheveled, but it was already 98 degrees, and now I understand why we don't dress this way every day.

Sunday was spent staying inside trying to avoid the heat wave that has hit us... as it does about three times each summer season. The temps have been hovering around 100 degrees, thunderheads each afternoon, and dry lightening (which means fire danger) in the high country to our east. It struck me yesterday that I can be pinned inside as easily by trying to avoid heat stroke in summer as I can trying to stay dry during the deluges of winter. DD is visiting so we went to the "big" town of Grass Valley so I could get supplies to make a bag for my sock kit pal. I have been hit-and-miss with knitting, feeling restless, and doing a few rows of one project and then a few of another, as well as practicing with the spindle. I am looking forward to a cooling trend predicted for the middle of the week.

M is for Mommy

2006-06-25T17:04:00.000-07:00

My greatest accomplishment isn't the complicated lace, nor is it the Masters in Humanities and Leadership, or even the thirteen years living in the backcountry of the Sierras, hiking in all winter long, although all three of these are right at the top. My greatest accomplishment has been being a mother, and ending up happy with the results. Frequent readers know that photos of family often grace my pages, as well as stories of our adventures. I have three children who were all born at home: Jesse, 20, Nikki, 22, and Cody, 27, and a step-son (also born at home, but not to me), Rex, 27. I ordered my life and my choices around actively raising them, and have never regretted the choices I made. I worked at a variety of jobs, and didn't finish my own education until the oldest was already in college, but sure had a lot of fun along the way.

My oldest son and I dancing at our Christmas party.

"MY Mommy" is the frequent and humorous cry between siblings, echoing back to when they were little. I am so very lucky to be close to my children, all young adults now.

Nikki, me, Jesse, and Cody

Sadly, my own mother died in 1995, of emphysema. I was deeply involved in helping her make care decisions for my father, who developed Alzheimers at age 62, and then in meeting with doctors over her care as well, and really got to give back to her when she needed it. I was a single mother at that time, and it was one of the most stressful, but I am grateful to be able to say I could be there for her. I still miss her, but the love I was raised with grew into the love that I raised children with, and hopefully will guide each of them when I am gone.

What I Learned At Estes

2006-06-23T10:30:00.000-07:00

First, I want to thank everyone for the love and support to us in losing Louise... we are all doing fair, and it really helps to know you care (didn't really intend to make that rhyme). Poor Rita, who had been with Louise for 12 years, is waking us up braying at night, and as Glenn said this morning "You know what she's doing, don't you? She's trying to find Louise" ... brings me to tears.

My first Estes post covered the road trip and the people - today's addresses the purchases and the great stuff I learned along the way to making them. One of the best things about being a passionate knitter is that I never get bored... there is always something new to learn.

Take socks ... now, I made my first pair of socks ("hunting socks" the pattern said, in knitting worsted) for a boyfriend back in the mid 1970s, when the patterns were very boring and standardized, kind of like the school curriculum currently being foisted on our youth from the "No Child Left Behind" act. They were burly and not particularly hard, and a decade or so later, I made batches of similar ones for my second (and best) husband, some of my children, and even more interesting ones for myself, although this was still a dozen years before self-patterning sock yarns.

I gave it up for a long stretch, as using tiny DPs was hard on hands that also used the computer steadily all day. Still, I figured I know from socks, right? Wrong! My regular readers will recall that just before my travels, I accepted the will of the people who voted for socks as the best travel/vacation project, and went searching for Trekking yarn. Not one to be daunted by its unavailability, I went off the deep end into knitting with two circulars, and started a sock for DH and one for myself, both from yarns in the stash. I also bought pairs of Addi Turbos in four sizes, eventually.....first I had to learn the hard lesson about altering my knitting to suit socks. I am a firm believer about "getting gauge", but had lots of trouble with this, and the Sockotta sock I worked on during the plane trip to SLC and the drive to Estes Park has the right gauge, but the fabric really isn't dense enough for the wear that socks get. It may well be destined to end up in the frog pond.

Driving across the brown of Wyoming, I bravely cast on my new Trekking yarn, dropping down the routine one size, and mulling over the info I had read the day before in Knitting Rules about gauge and its inherent problems. The first effort brought astute comments from Margene "That's not dense enough for socks". I knew she was right before I even pulled out the measuring tape. I dropped down another size and started over; Wyoming takes a long time to cross. When that attempt proved in an hour or so to have the same stitches per inch, I was ready to throw the knitting out the window and let it fly along behind us as a banner, we were going to a wool festival after all.

Lucky for me, I had three other sock knitters in the car problem-solving with me. "Haven't you made socks before?"
"Yes, but I used DPs"
"You'll just have to think about tightening up your knitting".

All this input came up with some enlightment: I knit looser using Continental and began again using the throw style, immediately seeing improvement. My Trekking socks were going to go a lot slower, but at least the fabric was finally looking and measuring up right! About the same time, I learned that Margene is an excellent driver.

My trekking sock on a boulder at Silver Lake.

The first night at Estes, my fellow condo-dwellers and I learned that Stephanie had acquired a most wonderful fleece, with lots of crimp and very long staples. I remembered that at one time I knew a lot about fleece and sheep, and even consented to sit down at her wheel and give spinning a try. Even though I have owned three spinning wheels at various times, and have an Ashford traditional wheel upstairs in my workroom (I admit this now, knowing that the secret's already out with that condo crowd and there is no use trying to hide it any longer), I do not know from spinning. I produced quite a bit of mediocre and uneven yarn back in the day, and used it in natural dyeing experiments, thereby avoiding expensive disasters, but never mastered spinning. Even with Carole's tutoring, I didn't do much better last Friday night, although I could easily blame it on how tired I was. Margene, on the other hand, was not similarly affected and produced a pretty respectable yarn on the first try!

Now, I had a shopping list with me, and getting a spindle was on that list... I have been intending to try, try again. What better source of information than Carole? She claims that she doesn't know that much about spindle spinning, preferring one of her three wheels (yes, she owns hers all at the same time, rather than consecutively). She did give me some shopping tips, though, before we headed to bed with visions of sugarplums of wool dancing in our heads.

We arrived at the vendor building bright and early Saturday morning, only to be told to wait, we couldn't enter yet, only the vendors. "Hey, it's after 9 already!"

When the doors *finally* opened, we rushed to keep up with Margene's long legs as she headed for Grayce's Plain and Fancy yarns... the colors are simply fantastic and I sure hope she takes Kristi up on the offer to make her a website, so that it is easier to get these yarns. I was looking for laceweight, but didn't like the very few colors in one small basket that she had left, so opted for this sportweight for hiking socks:

Plain and Fancy on the right, and Misti Alpaca on the left, a skein that Mim "helped" me buy when she took me to meet her former LYS owners from Smithfield, UT. It is destined to become a gift Mountain Stream scarf.

I wandered through Galina's Skaska booth, eyeing the fantastic fibers and the very fine yarns, but this year, nothing struck my fancy. I have her Gossamer Webs book that I got at a fiber fest last year and am constantly in awe of the fabulous Orenberg shawls she makes, so it is always inspiring.

Always wanting to learn more about knitting and try new things, I had to pore over unfamiliar books and patterns on my wanderings up and down the aisles. My best find of the shopping trip was snagging a copy of Spinoff from Spring 2004, the one with the Lily of the Valley pattern in it; of course this meant I had to locate something wonderful to make a shawl with, which led me to Textiles A Mano. These yarns were totally awesome, and I had a very hard time making a selection. I chose a seafoam green cotton/rayon for the shawl and also picked up a big skein of beautiful desert colors for my Monday night knitting hostess, Linda - these are some of her favorite colors:

Periodically, I would come across one of my fellow condo-ites, and we had to exchange quick stories of our finds. One of those shoppers was Laurie, the wearer of a most fabulous Wool Peddler's Shawl the night before. I also learned by the end of the day that she was definitely the best bargain finder of our group. When we met up mid-morning, she had discovered some beautiful and soft Cormo wool, available from Elsa Sheep and Wool Company, and only in natural colors. Now I knew what I wanted to make my Peddler's shawl from, and headed over to buy these:

I also came across an expert circular sock knitting machiner, Cathy from Indiana, who gave me a crash refresher course in making short row heels and toes on the machine, plus lots of encouragement, bless her heart.

We interrupted our shopping to head for the Knitbloggers' Meet-up at 11 AM and I learned that there were more knitbloggers than names I was capable of learning at once! We splintered off into various configurations to find some lunch, and I ate on the deck of a small cafe with Bonnie, Jessamyn, and Karen. Karen is a terrific spindle-yarn spinner and became my guide and mentor in choosing a high whorl spindle after lunch. First, we stopped off at the Interweave Press booth, where Amanda demonstrated how to spin, using drop spindles made with CDs (let me know if you want to try this at home and I will forward Foothill Fiber Guild's instructions, which they pass out at fairs and other public events).

Then, we headed to the Bountiful booth where Karen explained what benefits the various whorl weights had and how they affected the type of yarn it would be possible to spin. She counseled that a heavier whorl producing thicker yarn would be the best for a beginner. One of the Bountiful employees helped me trial a particularly appealing Greensleeves spindle called "Katherine's Cup", made from Honduras Red Heart on Bois de Rose (doesn't it sound tres chic?), and I had learned from Amanda and Karen how to watch to make sure that the spindle tracked smoothly, and didn't wobble. I even managed to spin a respectable thread under the watchful eyes of my tutors, something I haven't done as well since. I signed on for one spindle and free bag of bright turquoise roving. The salesperson advised that I practice five minutes or more every single day, so that my hands would remember how to do this... I am still pretty uneven:

All I can say about this photo is that my spindle looks like its trying to roll away.... sorry for the dizzying effect.

Karen uses the spindle so elegantly.

I also learned that knitbloggers are the most generous, funny, warm, entertaining people I have ever spent time with, and that most of us felt like we knew each other immediately, even if we had never encountered each others' blogs yet.

As an example, here Amanda gives Taelixev (Dragon Knits) pointers about spinning.
We have this common bond of knitting, for one thing, and are more outgoing and willing to "put ourselves out there" for another. Carole suggested during one group conversation that bloggers are natural leaders, being willing to communicate even when unsure who's listening. So many times in the past few years I have seen someone in Blogland come up with a great idea and immediately build a team to help make that idea come to life, whether for a knitalong, a charity project or an experiment such as Dye-O-Rama. I felt so blessed and so proud to be a part of that world.

Louise, the BLM Burro

2006-06-22T06:46:00.000-07:00

I have another post about Estes, covering the market and all the great things I learned and bought, but it will have to wait until tomorrow, for today's post is in honor of Louise. Regular followers will recognize that she is one of my five burros ... or was. I came home yesterday evening to learn that she died sometime while we were away at work. Although by a rough calculation, she was somewhere around 30 years old ("ancient for a horse", as my burro-expert buddy Ginny said), I am still deeply saddened. While feeding yesterday morning, she came up to show me that part of her tongue was swollen. Her sight has dimmed a bit in the two years we have had her, and apparently she managed to get stung by a bee on the tongue twice in the past two weeks. The first one, ten days ago was much more severe, and treatment with benedryl had reduced the swelling to near normal in only an hour, so I gave her a dose and watched to see that she was eating with the rest before leaving. However, her age put her at risk as well as the high 90s heat... although my animals have lots of deep shade within their pasture, it is still WAY hot here. We will never really know, but suspect anaphylactic shock.

Louise, grazing in the sun.

Louise came to me in March 2004, when I learned through one of my animal lists about a man who was searching for a home for two jennets because his health was failing and he could no longer care for them. His plight immediately resonated with me, as my day would at some point as well. We only had one burro, Rose, at that point and somehow I persuaded DH to let me take the two girls in... Glenn, Ginny and I hauled them here in her stock trailer and although Rita was 22 and Louise 25 at the time, they were still pretty lively.

According to her records, Louise had been captured off an unidentified BLM range at an estimated 9-10 years old. Mac had gotten her to keep Rita company, and they have lived together for 12 years... it was Rita who came up to Glenn yesterday evening while he was feeding, trying her best to tell him that something was wrong; she led him out to where Louise lay, on the shady point at the farthest east boundary of our place. I have learned that burros have an alert understanding of certain things, much like dogs.

Louise in foreground, with Rita behind her, taken this winter

I went out in the dusk to visit the animals, and then walked to where Glenn and a neighbor had buried Louise... Rita came and joined me. I had promised Mac I would keep them together, and I had succeeded, until now. Louise had the chance to roam in a very large, wooded pasture her last few years. We stared out into the woods together and I had no better idea than Rita where our Louisey had gone.

Road Trip

2006-06-21T08:34:00.000-07:00

These words have always been music to my ears. Maybe it's from growing up in the West, where there are big expanses to be covered if you are even going to be able to say you've been to another state. I just love throwing a few necessities in the car and taking off to see what lies ahead. For the past twenty years or so, I have preferred the backcountry to the interstate, but either way, driving into other peoples' towns, getting to peek into their back yards, see different kinds of skies, and watch for rivers and wildlife has given me some of my peak moments. As an environmentalist, I have had a bit of guilt here and there; I have been working on a little piece of writing entitled "The Conundrum of Travel" which will appear later, but for now, let me share my travels to Estes Park and back with you.

My journey started with a two hour drive to the Reno airport and a short flight to Salt Lake City. The elderly gentleman seated next to me was totally fascinated by the two circs knitting socks, and couldn't figure out what I was making. We conversed much of the journey, and it turned out he had been a paratrooper in World War II, making 17 jumps into Germany near the end of the war. He also had lived in Salt Lake City many years and was returning for a family reunion, so proved to be a great tour guide as we descended to the airport.

It was much more hectic there than in Reno, and I phoned Margene, who told me where to meet her and Carole, who had arrived about 45 minutes ahead of me.... I wasn't sure I would be able to find them, but there they were, smiling and waiting at the bottom of the stairs to baggage claim. One of the great things about bloggers is that they can recognize each other and don't need to stand, looking embarassed holding stiff cardboard signs saying "Sundstrom" or some other such nonsense... instead we were all hugging instantly.

Our first stop was The Wool Cabin, where Margene had promised I would be able to get some Trekking yarn, not available near me, so that I and my sock could trek together to Estes Park and back.

I was starved, having missed lunch, and got to have a snack at Margene's, but she had arranged for a dinner with Susan, Margene's husband Smith and friend Camille (a photo is here). Of course, we dressed for the occasion, with me wearing my Mountain Stream for Susan to see, Carole wearing her just-off-the-needles Flower Basket Shawl, and Margene wearing...

We all got up before the crack of dawn (really, it wasn't as hard as it sounds - we were pretty excited), rounded up Anne, then met a carload of the Utah grrls... Mim, who bounded out to hug us all, Laurie, Michaele who was behind the wheel, and Karen (blogless but found at Sleeping Dragon). We were transferring luggage and that was the last we saw of them until evening, as they made much better time and didn't get caught in a huge snarl of bad directions and roadwork adventures in Loveland, where we met Cathy, who stole Anne away, to meet up with us on Saturday.

The other knit bloggers sharing the lodgings that Margene had located for us (right downtown, in spite of the cruddy MapQuest directions) were greatly relieved to see us - more hugs all around and lots of laughing and knitting before walking downtown for dinner.

Margene, Stephanie and Carole trying to decide what to order.

Michaele takes a photo of the Mile High grrls...

It was great fun getting the forty or so bloggers who showed for the meet-up together for photos... kinda like herding cats!

Margene will have to tell you who this knitblogger is... I didn't catch most peoples' names!

One of my highlights from the meet-up was meeting Imbrium, who won the yarn for these socks in a contest I had hosted a few months back... she said that they were still a bit damp from their initial blocking when she donned them to head out Saturday morning. Great job!

Of course you have to see the gorgeous sky at 7500 feet in the Rockies... I never had before and was awed by the beauty of the place.

It's all about the haul, as Stephanie and Carole discuss. Carole fell for this beautiful Corriedale fleece and Steph found more spinning supplies.

A tour of the animal barns let us meet the sources of fiber up close.. I liked this colorful alpaca, but she was wary of us. Did you know that alpacas hum when they are nervous?

Stephanie took a two-day spinning workshop before the rest of us arrived, and so she headed home to Laramie late Saturday afternoon. We were sad to see her go... from left to right, Margene, me, Carole and Stephanie. Do ya think I'm tired?

Chatting and knitting while Jen (Bakerina) prepares a feast for us.

Those in our car called it a night pretty early, as we needed to depart by 6:oo AM for the long drive (Carole kept saying how brown Wyoming is). We were sad to have to say good-bye to everyone, but Kristi (Fiber Fool) got a ride back to Loveland with us, where we traded her back to her husband and took in Anne for the journey to Salt Lake City.

On the way out of Estes we met up with this guy. While not the only elk we saw, he was certainly the grandest. He is employed by the city of Estes Park to provide photo ops to tourists like us, turning his massive, antler-clad head from side to side in response to camera flashes.

Trekking across the Continental Divide - Carole and I pose with our socks.

This post has been all about the people and the journey, and tomorrow's will be about the stash enhancement, learning and projects in store.... stay tuned.

Questionnaire for Knit Sock Kit Swap

2006-06-20T12:44:00.000-07:00

I sent off a welcoming message to the pal assigned to me, and then noticed that she was really on top of things and had already posted these answers ..... here's mine:

What are your favorite colors?
Green, purple and blue.

Are you a new sock knitter?
No

How long have you been knitting socks?
made my first pair 30 years ago, but inconsistent; intermediate sock knitter

Do you prefer solid or multicolored yarn?
No preference

What fibers do you prefer in sock yarn?
Wool

Where do you usually knit socks?
On the go

How do you usually carry/store small projects?
I currently use two small bags that zip closed

What are your favorite sock knitting patterns?
Top down and intuitive enough not to have to read the pattern all the time.

What are your favorite sock knitting techniques?
Using two circs.

What new techniques would you like to try?
I just switched to two circs and am totally happy with it.

Do you prefer circulars or dpns for sock knitting?
Circs

What are some of your favorite yarns?
Unique yarns from small growers and dyers
Sport weight is ok too, as I hike a lot and its cold here in winter

What yarn do you totally covet?

I just discovered Plain and Fancy Wool at Estes and totally loved it, but I am very easily pleased.

Any pattern you would love to make if money and time were no object?
Miriam's Eleanora sock, but I knit much looser than most people and would have to use very tiny needles for that.

Favorite kind of needles (brand, materials, straights or circs, etc)?
I am partial to Addi Turbos but also like bamboo

If you were a specific kind of yarn, which brand and kind of yarn would you be?
Alpaca from a remote mountain village

Do you have a favorite candy or mail-able snack?
Chocolate!

What’s your favorite animal?
I love burros and dogs, but cats are pretty cool too...

Do you have pets?
Yes

What are their species/names/ages?
I have five burros: Assteroid (2), April (5), Rose (10), Rita (24), and Louise (27) - yup, they are very long-lived animals! I am searching for one or two dogs to adopt.

If you were a color, what color would you be?

The pale bright green of new leaves in spring.

Describe your favorite shirt (yours or someone else’s).
stumped here

What is your most inspiring image, flower, or object in nature?
The mountains.

Tell me the best quote you've ever heard or read.
"In order to be an artist, one must be deeply rooted in the society" - Simone de Beauvoir which I love so much that I keep it at the top of my blog.

Do you have a wishlist?
No.

Silver Lake Yesterday, Home Today

2006-06-20T05:57:00.000-07:00

Ahh, the wonders of air travel... I was able to spend a long weekend in Salt Lake City and driving to and from the Estes Park Wool Market, yet still be back at work at the clinic in Downieville today. I will be posting about our adventurous trip to and from the Wool Market, and the many bloggers we met along the way tomorrow, and filling you in on my new purchases and projects the next day, as I was very tired, have a mountain of dirty clothes (you think I had all the laundry done before I left?!), and still have many photos to process.

Here's a little teaser, though:

Table still life at the famous resort where I breakfasted with Carole and Margene yesterday morning.

In case you were dying to know, the seared trout breakfast at the Silver Lake Lodge is fabulous, and served on pretty china in a rustic lodge setting that can't be beat. I had to add Chalupa salsa to my eggs, though.

After our lovely breakfast, we spent a bit of time on the deck admiring the violet-green swallows and a prairie dog rolling in the grass (luxuriating, really, and you would too after the long winter up there), as well as took some photos that will appear elsewhere throughout the week, then drove the short distance up the hill to meet Silver Lake, a regular guest on Margene's blog. We took the mile-long path around the lake, admiring spring at 10,000 feet.

The lake from another point along the trail.

L is for ..... Lakes

2006-06-14T08:44:00.000-07:00

Although I was born and raised in the teeming metropolis of Sacramento, I have always been a mountain grrl at heart. My earliest fond memories were of family trips to the surrounding lakes, and, later, camping and canoeing with my dad (Mom didn't "do" camping, and probably rejoiced at the break from all of us).

Later, as a thirty-something adult, working in a school library, I discovered Cynthia Rylant's book, When I Was Young in the Mountains, and felt I had come home reading it. By then, I was living in the mountains myself, the mighty Sierras, and raising my own children in a mining town, gold instead of coal.

One of the best parts was how much closer the lakes were, especially the magical Lakes Basin, where I have hiked to at least 26 lakes within a several-square mile area. Just to the east of where we lived in Forest City, we could visit even more isolated mountain lakes, only accessible during the summer months, swimming and kayaking.

I had the great fortune to work as an outdoor leader for a youth program for eight summers from 1998 to 2005, hiking and backpacking into many small lakes, and kayaking on several as well. One of the most magical outings was a two-day kayak trip on Lake Tahoe, staying at a boat-in-only campground.

Group photo on Lake Tahoe two years ago... in the "trip-of-a-lifetime" category. I lived at Tahoe briefly when I was 19, and then my eldest son lived there for eight years while in college and after, so I have spent a lot of time there over the years, however, being on the water, paddling with all our gear, was a completely different experience.

Jumping into Lake Tahoe

Of course, much of our time has been spent at the smaller lakes, enjoying the quest to get there, the swim to cool off, and the privacy of having a whole lake to ourselves.

A smaller pond...

I am not a very worldly person. I have only been to eight other states in my entire 51 years, and my one out-of-country experience was crossing into Canada to see the other side of Niagara Falls. However, I have concentrated on the depth of getting to know this fabulous place in the Sierras where I blessedly landed twenty years ago. I will leave you with this quote from Rylant's book:

....when I was young in the mountains, I never wanted to go to the ocean, and I never wanted to go to the desert. I never wanted to go anywhere else in the world, for I was in the mountains. And that was always enough.

I will be flying from Reno to Salt Lake City tomorrow morning, to meet up with Margene and Carole and travel to Estes Park. I look forward to the travel, the new people, and the wool, and to bringing back a story to share with everyone.

Nature At Her Fingertips

2006-06-13T15:20:00.000-07:00

I was excited to open the package from my Dye-O-Rama pal, Bev, but even more awestruck to pull out this incredible yarn:

Vinca Minor, the yarn, next to Vinca Major, the plant

Bev says "I used dyes from Aljo. They were silk/wool acide dyes and green came from "Topaz Yellow" with "Turquoise"; purple from "Maroon" and "Midnight Blue", and the blue from "Midnight Blue" and "Turquoise". I cannot believe that Bev is a dyeing novice!

This yarn is from Socks That Fit, and I am hoping that is what it will turn into over the summer!

K is for Keepsakes

2006-06-12T17:10:00.000-07:00

All right, all right, I already know that my "K" post is over two weeks late... but I really had trouble with this letter, until about ten days ago, when "keepsake" popped into my head (I certainly didn't want to do kale, kangaroo, or Kool-Aid, amongst the possibilities out there).

I realized that I save lots of stuff, particularly photos and memorabilia surrounding my family. There are pictures, cutesy gifts from the children when back in kindergarten, my mother's high school yearbooks, my dad's photos from when he served in the Navy in World War II, my husband's handprint gift to his mom, and much, much more, much of it stored in boxes in the attic.

Some of you will recall a crisis at the Camp a few months back, when snow crashed through the window at the high-country homestead, and threatened a box of photos from my childhood, some of my mother's collection. We managed to rescue them, but providing a photograph with any interest to outsiders, for the sake of the ABC Along was a daunting task... that allowed me to procrastinate right straight through till other participants' "L" posts started appearing.

Even though the photo quality is way below my standards, I am sharing a few of the keepsakes that adorn our antique house:

My great aunt and uncle in their marriage portrait; they were children of parents from the Azores, married in their late teens in Folsom, California (now a suburb of Sacramento, but back then farmland), and I attended their 50th wedding anniversary, amongst the many visits paid to them in my childhood. While Aunt Mary never had children of her own, my mother was her favorite niece and they were always quite close.

A collection of family photos gracing my mother's piano, the largest family keepsake in my collection. I just can't bear to part with it, unless it is going to be played regularly by someone who will appreciate it as much as she did. Amongst these photos... top row, son Cody's high school grad portrait, daughter Nikki and son Jesse side by side in grades 8 and 6, respectively, various high school grad shots of Jesse, with a kindergarten photo just below, an antique stereoviewer of DH's, Nikki in junior high. On piano music stand: a book of my mother's sheet music, Nikki at 6th grade and obscured behind, her high school grad portrait, next to her is a framed photo of dear departed Queen of Dogs, Zippy, and a miniature of all four children at the time DH and I married, in 1994, which resided on my desk at work for many years.

The observant amongst you will notice the cracking plaster in the background; these photos all fill the formal parlor in our 1854 house, and it is the one room that we have kept in its original condition, true to the historic character, although DH is the one responsible for that peculiarity.

I also have a large portfolio of artwork made by my kiddos when they were little... this is one of the few sculptures:

Sutter's Mill as depicted by DS, Jesse, while back in middle school.

There is so much more that it would bore you to tears.. .I am the type to treasure little mementos of adventures, ages and stages, people that I love, all of it.

Ready for Summer Fun?

2006-06-11T16:16:00.000-07:00

It is hard to resist all the golden opportunities that KnitBlogLand has to offer us, in the form of KALs and secret gifting, and I have noticed that this spring has led me in that direction more than ever. I had such a great time doing the Dye-O-Rama that I couldn't resist another Scout-hosted (along with Bev) event, the Knit Sock Kit Swap... click the button to the left if you get here before Tuesday AM, and want to join in the fun.

World Wide Knit In Public Day at the Nevada County Library

2006-06-10T20:39:00.000-07:00

Our guild, Foothill Fibers, uses the meeting from at the Madelyn Helling Library in Nevada City on the second Saturday of each month for "Spinning Saturday", a casual gathering for working, sharing, learning, talking and laughing, so some of the movers and shakers got pretty excited to learn a few weeks ago that this coincided with World Wide Knit In Public Day. They got permission for us to start early, at 10 AM, and to be outdoors near the main entrance, doing just that.

Then there was the t-shirt - someone discovered that there were shirts available and that we could get "Nevada County" added to the list and get them (or tote bags). While picking up a latte at one of the best local bakeries, I came out of the bathroom to find Beryl waiting in line; we were both wearing our shirts, but SHE had thought to color her design with fabric markers! Guess what's next on my list to do ...

When I arrived, several knitters were already set up and going at it, along with a few rebel spinners (hey, yarn has to come from somewhere). A canopy was in place to keep us shaded and we kept at our knitting until noon, when those staying for the afternoon adjourned to the usual meeting room.

Ginger working on a sample scarf, Sara finishing up her Fir Cone Shawl (from Folk Shawls) in a silk/wool blend, and another member whose name I have forgotten, using my favorite shade of aqua for a lacy summer top (and wearing a lacy linen vest I really envied).

Two other members, a mother and daughter, were making washcloths for our upcoming exchange at the annual picnic at the end of June (weavers are making hand-towels while us non-weavers are knitting). Another was starting a great winter cardigan from her own handspun, while yet another was sewing up a sample short-sleeved sweater for one of our LYSs to display.

Sue knitting a sock from her handspun yarn. Just out of view to the left, Jan is spinning already-dyed fleece for an upcoming guild project. Most of the members are weavers as well as spinners and knitters. The conversation amongst us and with curious library-goers was fun and stimulating and we even met a man who "knew the lingo", punning from the knitting and weaving vocabulary. Turned out that he had learned to weave in the round at one point, and could knit as well, but considered knitting too stressful - give me input here, men that knit! Some of you must find it as relaxing as I do....

I spent most of my time working on one of two pair of socks I have started using my "new to me" method of two circulars. Yesterday I ripped out DH's ragg wool one, as the gauge was too loose. I had been told that most people knit tighter using this method, but I have been using circs almost exclusively for something like 15 years now, and knit with looser tension than most. In spite of that "bump in the road", I am totally excited about using circs, and started a different pair with Plymouth Sockotta, improvising with a wooden size 1 and a composite... both 29 inches long, which is too much, and both shall remain nameless as the joins on both were total pains. I made steady progess, and went to Meadowfarm Yarn Studio on the way home, bit the bullet and got two pair of Addi Turbos in size 1 AND in size 3 for DH's worsted socks.

While at the shop, I got into a fun and animated discussion with another customer and Eileen, a member of our guild who works and teaches at the shop, about making socks with circs (all of us new to this process), and about ways to store circular needles. In a moment of group inspiration, we agreed that using a CD case from the dollar store, the kind with plastic sleeves to slide the CDs in and a zipper around the outside, would be ideal.... someone will write and tell me that they have known about this for years, but maybe its the hundredth knitting monkey phenomenon.

Back at home:

My 100 year old cherry tree is completely loaded with fruit this year, and we are keeping an eye on it to try and get the fruit fully ripe but beat the birds to it.

I spent the rest of the afternoon at a bar-be-que for Erica, the daughter of my friend Donna, and the younger sister of DD Nikki's best friend, Jessica, through her high school years. Erica graduated today, and Nikki and DS Jesse joined me in celebrating. Jesse graduated from the same high school two years ago, and he and Erica have many friends in common, including one who was killed in an auto accident a few days before graduating, along with his younger brother. Erica was wearing a memorial t-shirt, and Jesse told me about his remembrances of this young man, a funny and loving person. Hug your kids extra-tight today, for me, and for the grieving parents of these two boys. Don't ever take anything for granted, and make all the time you can for your passions.

One of Those Days

2006-06-07T15:37:00.000-07:00

Yup, it was one of those really embarassing days... when you do something stupid and there's just no way to hide it. This is one of my two teaching afternoons for adult ed, and I also usually take the morning to run into town to the main school site and program office. Even though I have not taught full time all year, I guess the stress of the end of the school year could still be blamed for what happened, as I was returning a box of textbooks.

As I pushed my truck door closed with my hip, balancing the box of books, I had a sinking feeling right as I heard the door click. Followed by immediate embarassment and feelings of ditzy blondness... I had left the car keys on the seat, along with my purse, and phone (or at least I thought the phone was in there; turns out it was on the kitchen table - lotta good it does there when we can't get cell service out at our place!).

So, as I go in to an office where the people barely know me yet, to be greeted with the usual "Hi, how are you"s, I have to repeatedly say "Fine, but I just locked my keys in the car"... I mean, how dumb is that? I remembered going through this about four years ago, when my DD was first driving on her own, but I have been behind the wheel as long as Moses...

One employee suggested that the school Police Officer could probably help me; he and I headed back out to the parking lot with his trusty Slim Jim. Now, it's a good thing for him that he is on the right side of the law, and not trying to make a living boosting cars, since the handle of the Slim Jim broke off in his hand while he was trying to get my passenger door open. He headed to the trunk of his patrol car to get another, then yelled that he had to go answer a call - an irate student was assualting a teacher. Yikes!

I had to drag myself back inside and ask to use a phone to call AAA. My supervisor was laughing and saying this story was better than a movie - now I know I will be remembered by the staff. Twenty minutes into my wait for a tow truck, the police officer came back, things under control, so I promised to return his Slim Jim when it got liberated from my car.

I was on my way once again in under an hour, but was now short of time to get the errands done and out to work, and my stomach was grumbling and asking for lunch. Plus, the temperature had climbed into the mid-80s already!

One of those errands was to try and find a longer size 4 cirular needle for Mountain Peaks; I didn't find the Bernat I have been so happy using and decided to continue on my 16-inch until I can get somewhere else, or until I go crazy trying to keep the stitches on. I also didn't find any Trekking yarn for the Trek Along With Me KAL - lucky it is still early in summer, as the search might be the primary Trek for me!

What I did end up succumbing to, at Meadowfarm Yarn Studio, my LYS, was Cat Bordi's book, Socks Soar on Two Circular Needles. I was looking for Trekking yarn when I overheard owner Ellen describing the process to a customer. Since so many of you have recommended socks for travel knitting (thanks!), I listened in, then went looking for the book. At the checkout, Ellen told me how she had converted her employee/instructor Eileen, who had claimed she was going to stick to good, old-fashioned DPs until she started getting requests from students to "show me how to do that circular sock thingie".

Now, I USED to knit socks, in fact lots of them for the whole family. I got to a point where my hands were rebelling, backed away from the DPs, and haven't returned in many years. Last year, I purchased an antique circular sock knitting machine and have been sporadically learning how to use it (I can make a very nice tube, for those who are nosy and want to know my progress). DH was looking very forlorn yesterday as I thumbed through the latest Sierra Trading Post Shoes catalog (I secretly adore shoes, which is why I was not aghast when DD reported the DES - dear eldest son - was aiming to acquire 30 shoes while he works this summer for a local sporting goods store, complete with significant discount; like Mother, like Son, I say). I pointed out a few different pairs of very functional work socks, on sale at terrific prices, to which he could only answer in a barely audible whisper, "want sock machine socks".

I read the entire introduction while waiting to pick up a prescription at the pharmacy, and decided to stop back by Meadowfarm on my way out of town to pick up a pair of 24-inch Addi Turbos in size 4 (wait, I could use one for my shawl if this doesn't work out - lightening is striking me and I will resume when the smoke settles), and give this great invention/"unvention" a whirl. DH will be surprised to discover that, if all goes well this weekend, he will end up with my first pair of circularly knitted socks, made in worsted for practice purposes... I know he will be happy with any socks that come from my needles - so nice to be cherished for my knitting. With DES, it's the hats. I guess I must have done something right in spite of being so ditzy.

I am happy to finally be able to reveal that the recipient of my Dye-O-Rama project is Margene. I knew that if I mentioned anything on the blog about dyeing yarn with cochineal, she would guess, since I had asked her at the beginning if she were vegetarian (cochineal dye comes from the insects of the same name, sacrificed in the name of the crimson dye they produced; that is how the fabric for "Redcoats" was originally dyed). I put together a photo essay/tutorial about the process for the Dye-O-Rama blog, which you can read here. Interestingly enough, although I used alum to mordant my Knitpicks Color Your Own fingering wool, I ended up with lavender yarn instead of crimson - luckily that was on her color wish list as well (whew!). I had ordered two skeins, just in case I screwed up the first one really badly, and so have one of my own to make a shawlette or pair of socks with later this summer... and I also dyed a skein of 300 yards of silk from Aurora Silk, where I got my cochineal bug powder, with the leftover bucket of dye - I have NO idea what I will do with it yet, but it is very decorative slowly drying in the bathroom.

Travel Knitting

2006-06-06T20:20:00.000-07:00

It sure feels like summer this late afternoon, hot and sultry, with the light that spells "close to the solstice" to my mind. Actually, we are just over two weeks away from the official start of summer. This brings to mind travel and vacations.

Some of you probably already know that I am planning to attend the Estes Park Wool Market on June 17th. Carole knows that she and I fly into the Salt Lake City airport within an hour of each other, from opposite coasts, next Thursday (can I get a whoo hoo?!). Margene knows to come and pick us both up.

What nobody knows is that I have been contemplating what knitting to bring for the trip rather than appropriate vacationing clothes! Now, it's true that I did check the weather for both SLC and Estes this morning, noting that it was quite similar over the next ten days to mine here in the Sierras. That's good enough, I'll just make sure to do laundry a few days ahead of my departure....

Now, back to the problem of what to knit while traveling. I gave this quite a bit of thought on my morning walk (I am not doing the I'm Fit and I Knit KAL nor the one either, but I am walking almost every morning for 25-30 minutes!) and realized that the ideal travel knitting is probably a ribbed sock! First, the item has to be small enough to quickly drop into a bag, without dumping off the needles, as there is all that standing in airport lines, showing tickets and IDs to people, going through security, etc.

It also has to be very simple to "read", either stockinette or ribbing or something equally mindless, since traveling sometimes stimulates much conversation. While more the shy type around strangers, I imagine that no lace patterns or other difficult knitting will be accomplished during the blogger meet-up at 11:00 A.M. on Saturday at the Wool Market, or any other time when knitters get together and converse!

And, lastly, the pattern can't be complicated, involve lots of directions to keep track of, or special tools, since the extra luggage space is supposed to be reserved for my finds along the way.

Last year while traveling on the train and attending Black Sheep, my knit project of choice was a stockinette tank top, which proved to be very versatile, and even provided enough knitting to get me through a five day jaunt (although I purchased some alpaca boucle yarn and made a skinny scarf while there as well - of course, I was carrying extra knitting needles, wouldn't you?!). I am on a "use what you have in your stash" kick this year, though, and will need to dig through there and see what I can come up with...

Of course, there are all the reasons why none of the projects currently on my needles are suitable: Mountain Peaks may come with me, but needs total concentration; its plus is that lace doesn't take up much room in the suitcase. DH's vest-to-be-felted can't say that; it has grown too big and hot and heavy to be appropriate to take traveling. CeCe will be coming along, since I decided that she would be a more entertaining companion as a project than as an object to wear (does that mean I am really a process knitter instead of a product knitter?), plus I don't want any pressing deadlines to have her done and wearable!

The stash has provided me with several items all in the queue, all destined to be shawls or other lace projects (I might be approaching a fetish here). I know there are other wonders in there that I have forgotten about so tomorrow morning I will be throwing around parts of my stash, digging through boxes and drawers, in search of something appropriate. What kind of knitting would you choose to take traveling?

A Very Special Party

2006-06-04T20:54:00.000-07:00

Tea, anyone?

Friday was my afternoon to be tending the crafts co-op shop, but along about 3 PM, I tacked a note to the door that read: "The shopkeeper has closed temporarily to attend the tea party of a very special little girl up at the schoolyard, and will return by 4:00".

One of the children I have known since birth, and also got to have as my student while running the child care program last winter, had decided that she missed her friends from that time, and wanted to see them. She and her mother agreed to host a tea party, and I was honored to be one of the people she wanted to attend. I even dressed in a skirt. All day. I brought along my Ruffled Shawl, but it was hot and muggy by 3:00 PM, so the shawl stayed in the car (I did end up needing it for the drive home late at night, following the school play, as the muggy weather turned into a mountain thunderstorm).

My very important friend, who has re-named herself Annabelle in the past few months, determining if we have enough ice for iced tea for everyone.

This was a festive occasion, with me bringing a tablecloth, cloth napkins, vases and irises, and cookies I had baked before work in the morning, Annabelle's mother, my friend Robin, preparing trays of fruits and cookies, as well as a fruity tea, and bringing tiny teaware, and Annabelle shopping in advance for small purple straw bags, filled with presents for her three child-sized guests. As you can see from this photo, purple was the color of the day (although she had also picked out pink paper plates and napkins for the event). Can you remember back to when you would have been thrilled to have a reason to wear a purple fur hat with your lilac brocade dress?

One of the guests was equally delighted to have a chance to dress for the afternoon - as a princess complete with "up-do" and crown. And, yes, that IS Barbie appliqued to the front of her ball gown!

There were many special treats, including cheeses, cherries in bowls, and tea cookies. My cookies are Jae's Maple Flax Cookies, a shortbready-tasting treat perfect to serve at teas.

Of courese, a three-year old can only sit and sip tea for so long, and then it's time to get down to some serious play.

I attended another party on Saturday, for a long-time coworker who is "officially retiring" as the elementary portion of the school where I worked for eight years (until the high school portion closed last year, putting me out of a job) is now also closing next week when the school year ends. Cheryl is also a neighbor in Forest City, where I originally landed here in the mountains 20 years ago; she is now full-time there while I am only part-time, but for many years it was the other way around. I got to visit with lots of old friends, and also discover that my lilacs at the house there are in full bloom (this is pretty extraordinary, as they do not bloom every year at the higher elevation, and this is the best I can remember).

Today was spent on laundry, house chores, and setting up a Cafe Press store (note the sidebar to the left). I had placed three framed prints from an art show I entered a few years back into the co-op shop on Friday before going to the tea party, and also discussed with another member putting cards with some of my photos in the shop this summer. I have been looking through some of the photos over the weekend, ordering prints, and realizing that my photography has steadily improved, and that living where I do has given me some unique subject matter over the years. I still discard three-fourths of the photos I take, although some of them pass through here first as illustrations for posts. A few of the more interesting ones will be making their way to my new store, where they can be ordered adorning useful household items, shirts, or greeting cards, so do stop by!

Bits of Anxiety

2006-06-01T19:52:00.000-07:00

It has been a bit fragmented around the old camp... on Tuesday, DH went for his annual work physical, and the nurse practitioner (my boss at the clinic where I work) spent a long time looking at one of his eyes, before making him an emergency appointment with an opthamologist. He was afraid that DH, a Type I diabetic for almost 20 years now, had developed retinopathy, which can very quickly cause blindness. There was also concern over his blood pressure, which has usually been stable, but is often elevated by the disease state.

We both lost sleep overnight, and headed to the appointment yesterday worried about the outcome, and whether treatment (usually by laser surgery) would be immediate. Lucky for me I had CeCe to work on during the hour wait. The opthamologist spent a long time looking, but determined that there was no retinopathy (what a relief!), but that there were gradual changes taking place. Diabetes can lead to glaucoma as well, so it was agreed to set up a schedule for more frequent monitoring, about every six months now. We also hit the drug store and purchased a blood pressure cuff, as well as talked about needing to get him eating more fruits and veggies... his blood pressure readings have been within normal ranges, and lower than mine (although I think mine returned to a more normal figure after getting the news that he is ok).

I also got a request to submit an application to our regional Headstart, where they are making plans for next fall, so spent the rest of the afternoon preparing my application packet to mail today. When I tiredly decided I was done and could knit a bit, I foolishly picked up Mountain Peaks and proceeded to knit one row right, one row wrong, rip back, and then realize I had violated Margene's 9 PM rule (as in, don't try to knit lace when you are tired).

I read instead... although only a few pages. I am reading Gaia's Garden, by Toby Hemenway, which is an overview of permaculture on a backyard scale. I took the design course back in 2000, and even hosted a design workshop here for our property as part of my work on my Masters degree, but this book is serving as both a review and a refinement, being much more accessible than Bill Mollison's Permaculture: A Designer's Manual (sometimes there is just too much information to process).

I also managed to write up a post about fresh strawberries for the Eat Local Challenge blog; even though May is over, the great content will continue on the site, so check for updates.

My biggest accomplishment still cannot be posted in pictures; I have finished my dye project for Dye-O-Rama, packaged the yarn with a suitable label and a little gift, and have it ready for tomorrow's mail!

I also managed to find that there are more shawls I want to make, the Shapely Shawlette that Carole just finished, and Truly Tasha, by Nancy Bush, being high on the list of future wraps. So many shawls, so little time.... I think I need a bumper sticker. If you get tired of knitted ones, check these woven ones out, all by members of my guild, Foothill Fibers.

Our guild is planning to join Worldwide Knit in Public Day on June 10th by knitting in front of the Nevada County public library on Saturday morning from 10-12, then proceeding with the usual Spinning Saturday plans, at the meeting room in air-conditioned comfort. If you are anywhere nearby and want to join us, bring a chair, sunscreen and lunch, and give me a shout if you need more information.

Family Camp

2006-05-29T20:16:00.000-07:00

For several of the past years, DH's family has held a family reunion over Memorial Day weekend, and this is the third year that it has taken place at our house. As you can imagine, things have been pretty hectic around Slate Range Camp, especially since we had a house guest for the week prior to family reunion, and those guests started arriving Wednesday and don't depart until tomorrow.

We have plenty of room around the old Camp, and Mom and Dad, as well as sis Erika and her husband Dave, and daughter Karlee, brought their own shells with them. Our barn is in the background, my raised bed garden in the foreground and the parents' fifth wheel to the side, with an impromptu camp circle to gather us together.

Four of the five children Glenn and I have managed to put in appearances at one point or another, with Cody and Nikki spending Friday night with Grandma, Grandpa and us... then departing for work commitments, while Jesse and Rex came by for Saturday's adventures. Glenn's brother Dave zoomed through, from Salt Lake City, by way of Oakland airport and Walnut Creek, where his girlfriend Angie and son Tyler reside. She provided the transport as they ended up in Reno Saturday night, but not before Tyler was able to take driving lessons on Glenn's lawn tractor... he was one happy 12-year old! Dave called while trying to find Beckwourth Pass, to tell me it was snowing on them Saturday afternoon, and to describe landmarks ("Dave, tell me what was on that sign you last drove past?"), but I got him safely to Portola and back on a major highway.

On Sunday, we were down to just seven and drove up the North Yuba River to see the Sierra Buttes. Most of the family had not been to Sardine Lake before and they were awestruck. People around here refer to this view as the "mini-Alps".

Sierra Buttes from shore of Sardine Lake

It was probably almost as cold, with lots of clouds, so we only stayed for the morning, taking a short hike:

This view is from the interpretive trail in an area flooded by beavers constructing a dam a few decades ago; the flooding killed most of the trees, and the beavers ate much of the willow, opening up a marshy meadow environment. Now, the beavers have been gone for five years, and it is a great example of ecological succession, with plant species beginning to shift.

We have eaten and feasted and eaten some more: leg of lamb on Saturday afternoon, followed by brownie sundaes at our town's little restaurant; sourdough pancakes and fresh berries for breakfast, a bratwurst feast tonight, and a few picnics. We had a large bonfire last night, and sat around telling stories about Glenn's younger brother, Steve, who died in a plane crash while serving in the Air Force 14 years ago, as our own family Memorial Day tribute.

Today, we traveled to the next ridge over, to visit Malakoff Diggins State Historical Park , celebrating the Gold Rush and hydraulic mining.

Tent cabins in a meadow

Old general store and post office

Grandma Diana and Karlee decided to borrow gold pans from the park office and give panning for gold a try.

Grandma panning for gold in Humbug Creek, so named because very little gold was found here, and they didn't either.

We also hiked around Blair Lake, a small lake with lots of fish....and came home tired and a little sunburned. It has been cooler than usual, but very pleasant, and even the rain showers Friday and Saturday were refreshing.

I did manage to get my yarn dyed for my Dye-O-Rama recipient, and it will be heading off by mail later this week (yarn is drying as I type), but very little real knitting done... CeCe is started, though!

Out, Out, Damn Funk!

2006-05-26T15:51:00.000-07:00

Yahoo! My replacement yarn for CeCe arrived in the mail today!

I was so delighted that I had to snap a picture right away! It is the same Sour colorway as the Rowan Cork sent by mistake, but the Cork seems a little brighter.... thanks to Spiderwoman for comforting me with a suggested use for Cork. And thanks from the bottom of my heart to all who tried to console and cajole me out of my funk. I have not gotten much done, period, around here of late. For the past week, we have been swamped with visitors (one did leave with a handknitted washcloth :) I am not complaining, as I dearly love the people in my life, and treasure the times spent with those that live too far to see regularly, but I haven't been able to be a good hostess and knit a complicated lace pattern at the same time (Susan, does that come with time?). We have feasted on strawberries, which are coming ripe in the lower elevations near here, as well as other treats. Roast leg of lamb and BBQ shrimp are on the menu for the weekend, as well as entertaining little nieces with craft projects and burro hikes (pictures, I promise!).

However, this trying week is finally over, and I realized yesterday that the funk wasn't really with the knitting, it was with the looming prospect of attending a major state committee meeting yesterday, where we would attempt to appeal being displaced in our scoring, and losing a $250,000 capital improvement grant for our clinic. Sitting in the power capital of Sacramento, where two State Senators were also pleading the cases of health centers in their districts (and the media was on the prowl hoping to see Mexican President Vincente Fox meet with Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger), I realized that it was really as hopeless as I thought when I reviewed the letter stating that evaluation of other agencies' appeals had led to our defunding... there were so many meritorious centers, and any gain would be someone elses' loss. That is the quick and dirty summary of the terrible state of health care in our country.

There have been other trials and disappointments this week, and I am very thankful that CeCe can get started this weekend, as I do believe getting my knitting mojo back will help my outlook. That, and gardening.

Have a fun and restful holiday.

Stuck in a Holding Pattern

2006-05-23T21:41:00.000-07:00

You know how it is, end of a long flight, your destination in sight, and air traffic control has you circling the airport... you can almost see the loved ones staring out the window waiting for you....

I am having a knitting holding pattern. Somehow, the Ebay vendor I ordered Rowan Calmer from (she will remain nameless to save her from further embarassment) sent me the right colorway, Sour, but the wrong yarn, Cork, instead. Since Rowan is enjoying putting out yarn with ball bands the color of natural organic cotton teeshirts, and text using the same font, no matter the yarn, I could almost see how she would make this mistake, and I didn't notice myself till I already had about six rows of a generous swatch for CeCe going, when it occurred to me that the texture didn't feel quite right (duh! there's a big difference between merino/nylon in the Cork and cotton/microfiber in the Calmer). Actually, the Cork has a very interesting, springy texture, and I now have 4 balls, since the seller is sending the Calmer to me, and offered the Cork as a gift to make up for my inconvenience. Not bad, I guess, except that I was all ready to start, and am casting about for ways to fill my time....

I could finish up the "sew-off" and fringe on Ruana, and probably will tomorrow evening so I can use it.

I could knit a bit on Mountain Peaks (or a lot, for that matter!), but have been suffering from allergies and lack of concentration abilities the past few days.

I could make a washcloth (bleagh), and actually started on the circular one in Mason-Dixon Knitting.

I could finish the teeny-tiny sleeve for DD's sweater and give it to her this weekend (now, there's a thought!).

I could even sit around watching sock knitting machine video instruction and conquer my fear of making heels with the machine, so that I could turn out some socks for DH - oh, and I could even pull out the boring dark green vest-to-be-felted for him.

But, I was so looking forward to CeCe.

If you haven't already, go and read Spiderwoman's story about Knitting Local and the Possibility of Defiant Sheep... I definitely feel sometimes as if my projects are feeling defiant (or is it me?). She talks about how some projects just match right up, while others fight you the whole way, and muses about whether knitting with yarn sheared off happy sheep makes for better project success than that from mass-market-raised sheep. Food for thought, or needles, as the case may be. I am very happy with my local wool, and looking forward to what I will find from small producers at Estes Park (yes, I did buy my ticket the other day, when the planets were in a more decisive and harmonious alignment). I am not thinking big this year, but "just right", and looking for yarn that calls out loudly what it wants to be and that it wants to come home to my mountains and become something beautiful.

I am also feeling cranky because I had to miss guild night and the terrific, fabulous Tailgate Sale, because my meeting over in the Sierra Valley ran on too long... midway through, since I was serving as Acting Chair, I had to whimper a bit that I hadn't been the one to change our monthly meeting to the 4th Tuesday, and that the person who had wanted this day of the month wasn't even in attendance. I mumbled about having a conflicting engagement each month, but was a bit reluctant to admit that it was my guild meeting, since this is one of my "important professional responsibilities", but I pouted all the way home, especially when I hit Sierraville, and realized that even taking the shorter of the two routes that would get me to Nevada City, 70 miles or so later, would also make me too late to catch any of the bargains. Once a year, everyone brings their spinning, weaving, knitting, fiber stuff in advance of the meeting for a mini-Swap Meet, and I missed out. I am seriously rethinking some of my obligations, while I coast around in the knitting holding pattern.

It is also a good time to ponder what to do for World Wide Knit In Public Day (WWKIPD), on June 10, 2006. Sara has suggested that our guild get together, either in front of the library or at the growers' market (I am voting for the growers' market as the shadier alternative, as the temperature will probably be back up in the high 80s by then) to knit in public. She even found us a source for the necessary t-shirts. Sara also has a fabulous inkle weaving tutorial on her blog, if you want to consider diversifying....

I have succeeded in frittering a good amount of time on the Internet, blogging and reading, instead of taking up a "lesser" knitting project - does this qualify as a funk? I certainly hope to feel more inspired in the morning!

Ruana Update

2006-05-21T08:45:00.000-07:00

I did it, I finally did it! I managed to get Ruana off the needles, and the side bound off using Elizabeth Zimmerman's "cast on-cast off" as described in Folk Shawls... this took what seemed to be forever, since you are actually using a tapestry needle, but does make for a very stretchy bound off edge. As I was finishing this section Thursday night, I realized that I actually hadn't spent all that long on Ruana, was just getting anxious to finish since the temps here on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday all reached the high 80s, definitely heading towards summer. I started Ruana on Easter, so really have only been knitting an hour or two a day for a month! The casting off took me right up to bedtime Thursday night, but at least the main part of the knitting was DONE, and the next steps were finish work.

The next step, taken Friday evening, was to cut loose the waste yarn and open up the front opening. Cheryl Oberle does a great job of using practical ideas, and in this case, has you use waste yarn for each side of the front opening to serve as stitch holders.

Once the stitches were free, I could begin work on the clever short-row shawl collar that fills in the traditional deep V in back (which would be a great place to catch a draft were it not for this very nice collar). The collar worked up quickly, and folds over to help hold the ruana in place when worn:

Detail of the collar

The green thread shown above is the waste thread holding these collar stitches in place, for the almost-final finishing step, returning to the same slow tapestry needle cast off to bind off 321 stitches... this should take a mere two or three hours, considering my earlier pace. Maybe it will go a little faster, now that I have already had so much practice!

I got to try on my big project when the collar was safely on a string holder yesterday evening, and realized that, even with my planning and adjusting for my height, this ruana is long. So long, that I will need to trim the fringes, even after tying into groups. Long enough that I am not sure I am completely happy about it. I pondered this, looking at myself in the mirror, realizing that if I were 5'11", it would hang to about my knees, which would probably be more versatile than hanging to mid-calf on me. However, the ruana does look very traditional in the longer length, will be very elegant and cape-like, and will see much use as a meditation shawl, since I can wrap it around myself a few times, lie down at the end of practice in Savasana, with it as a blankie to completely cover me, and then get up and wear it as a wrap to head home from yoga class.

The back view, in all its glory!

Maybe a security blanket was really what I was wanting; I have been feeling very ill with allergies all week, and have also come face to face with just how much grieving over life changes I have been both doing and avoiding in recent weeks. A dear, old friend has been visiting a few days, and commented watching me knit up the ruana collar, "Birdsong, you really like to knit! This is your meditation, isn't it?" To which, my answer was "yes", and quietly, the deeper realization came that this meditation practice of relentlessly knitting has both healed me and protected me from the devastation I felt a few months back at the loss of my job and dream at the same time, as well as provided a sense of well-being and reward as I attempted to ponder what I would do next in life.

I have found several very positive niches in my little world in which to be useful and productive. I write far more, and have put out a lot of volunteer time. I began a new teaching position, helping people find a way to move past dropping out of high school, have contributed to the Eat Local Challenge blog, and have been working with other community members to increase our local resourcefulness.

However, I backed away from attending an event featuring a powerful and dynamic early childhood educator this weekend, as I found it hard to conceive of going when I didn't have a population of children to come back and improve the environment for. I doubt that I will move from where I live in order to find a new center to direct, and therefore will probably be drifting around a bit more, working outside of my area of passion, but hopefully bringing meaning to people. I also have to figure out better ways to support our needs.

One small way has been to concentrate on getting food plants into the ground. Here is my special raised bed garden, created by my then-teen son as a Mother's Day gift for me five years ago; those of you familiar with permaculture will immediately recognize that this is NOT the herb spiral I had asked for, but those who know me well will also recognize that I would never turn away a gift of love or ask that it be modified.

This raised bed garden has served me very well in the intervening years. In a very small space, it can provide quite a bit of food, and even too much for our needs in the way of herbs (some of the dried herbs will make their way to the farmer's market here in August, along with knitted washcloths for sale).

Currently, five heirloom tomato plants are in the upper tier, protected by marigolds, with some parsley and the remnants of sugar snap peas that I attempted to plant a month and a half ago (which didn't begin to grow till the rains stopped three weeks ago). The border edging of the upper tier is a creeping rosemary hedge, started from a six-pack, which I trimmed back severely in order to allow light to once again reach the soil of the lower tier, which has been planted with hills of Delicata squash, a few seeds of Mexican sunflower plants on each end, and oregano plants added last year in the very front.

Unfortunately, the stevia plants I put in this bed last year didn't survive the winter, but a mullein plant graciously volunteered... I am a strong believer in plant communities, harking back to my earliest days of studying John Jeavons' work, and the mullein is a plant I have a very special affinity for... if ever a mullein graces my garden, she is allowed to stay where she lands, and grow up amongst those plants crowded around her, where she provides a towering and comforting presence, as well as leaves that can be used for tea for lung ailments (which is why I love her so dearly), and precious little yellow flowers, gathered each summer and infused in olive oil as a remedy in case someone should have an earache the following winter.

As an update from my very crummy attempt at "I is for Iris", I have some photos to share of my irises, who have finally consented to appear, in far greater glory than ever before, perhaps to make up for their tardiness:

This model is the eviably colorful gold with purple... I have had a few requests from friends to give them rhizomes for their gardens, and yesterday Lois, Linda and I hit upon a way to identify them while in flower and mark them for division in August, the right month in my climate... I will fish around to find embroidery thread in matching colors to tie and mark each one, so that when I divide them, I can keep track of what they used to look like in bloom. Clever, eh?

This one is my personal favorite... and offered up two heavy blooms on one stem, hence the froggie garden stake in the background, lending a helping frog leg or two.

More gardening took place over the weekend, however it has rained most of today, which helped my allergies quite a bit (I actually fell asleep after work on Friday, I was so groggy), but prevented further garden activities. I am swatching for CeCe, which is exciting, and was only able to get one row of Mountain Peaks in all week, but now that my push to finish Ruana is almost over, I am happy to look forward to more time with my lovely charcoal shawl.

Mid-Week Update

2006-05-17T14:55:00.000-07:00

I cannot believe that I am really within inches of being finished with Ruana! It all depends on where I lay it out to measure, though. If I use the couch or the bed that I measured the first half on, I am almost done. But if I use the floor, a hard surface, I still have a few inches to go and the first half is probably an inch or two narrower than I thought. I have decided that I will keep comparing the two halves on either side of the waste yarn that marks the center opening (to be edged when I bind off), and when they match, I will be done. This will at least make for symmetry.

It really isn't all that wierd to have an ever-changing length measurement, as this project uses large needles and aims for a fabric that is a bit loose and drapey. I am betting that I was wise to make the length a LOT shorter than the pattern called for, and not just 'cuz of my short stature (not sure what she meant when Margene commented awhile back that I was shorter than she had thought; I am 5'3 1/2"). The weight of this large project is apt to make it one of those that "grows" or stretches out in length from draping it over my shoulders, so I can count on being plenty warm in it. I was pretty warm (maybe too much so) last night while working on it, as I would occasionally turn a row and end up with the whole pile on my lap, promoting feelings of imminent hot flashes. Good thing I will be done soon.

Carole posted a picture of a fabulous little shawlette today, prompting me to comment that she was a shawl-knittin' mama! She even added beads! I would feel woefully inadequate, but my Mountain Peaks is looking pretty promising... there will be update photos when I can get a longer needle in the right size, so that I can transfer the stitches over and spread the darn thing out to photograph, without losing the stitches (yes, it is possible to learn from one's mistakes). I ran out of time to stop at my LYS today while in town and before class time, as my secret ingredients for Dye-O-Rama involved more stores than I originally planned for....

I got in a few more inches on Ruana than I had planned last night, as I decided to watch a rather compelling edition of Frontline, titled "Can You Afford to Retire?", dealing with 401(k)s and retirement issues. I found it disturbing, but somehow not surprising to hear one of the business professors interviewed state that "the new retirement will be work" (as in working through our retirement years).

Apparently, letting people who are not trained investment advisors (such as you and me) manage their own 401(k) plans only worked for the employers who were now making significantly less in contributions, but not for the employees who mainly were not savvy enough to a) put enough money in for the long haul, or b) invest in areas that gave the best return. On top of it, those of us within 10-20 years of retirement (or less) were amongst the guinea-pig pool of workers who have been experiemented upon by this bait-and-switch method of getting corporate America out of the pension plan option, with no clear idea of the long-term social costs.

Do I sound a tad bit bitter? I am not, really, for myself, as I have always known that what was available to me in my working life would be woefully inadequate, and would not allow me to ever fully "retire". I have intended to keep trying out new jobs, and refining what was best to do at a given time based on my skills, abilities, and health, as well as managed a rental business for the past decade to help bolster our income.

However, most of my fellow baby boomers (I was born in 1954, at the tail end of the boom) have gone through their working lives duped into thinking that there would be a time, at a relative young age, when they could "stop working and kick back", yet continue to live a posh lifestyle. Statistics are proving otherwise.

I am sharing this depressing information with you, my dear and loyal readers, not to ruin your day or week, but to encourage you to do a bit of soul-searching right now. Are you truly living the life you want? Are you deferring some plan or dream, thinking you will have more time and/or money for it later, "when I retire"? My answer to that is DON'T. Do what you love right now, as much as you can fit it in, and be thinking of what you can do that makes money doing what you love, and that you can change if your abilities and health changes.

I told my husband, who I forced into watching this hour-long bummer with me, that I thought he should start making custom furniture now, during his winters off, since he has been amassing skills, tools and materials, since that would be a much more compatible occupation than his present one, hefting a chain saw and hiking through the back woods 8-10 hours a day clearing recreational trails for the Forest Service.

You may not ever really retire or want to retire, but it is critical to love what you do in order to face every day with hope.

Third Time's The Charm?

2006-05-14T17:13:00.000-07:00

Back about two months ago, I joined the Mountain Lace KAL, excited because I just knew that I had the perfect yarn for each pattern... I cast on for Mountain Peaks first, not caring to wait to join in the contest fun, but just wanting to get my hands on the Knitpicks Alpaca Cloud I had just waiting to be a shawl. I didn't make much headway at first, and decided by about the fifth row of Chart 1 that I was using needles too large for this very fine, two-ply "laceweight". I ripped everything out, and started over, dropping down two needles sizes.

In an afternoon of work, I caught back up to where I had been originally, and pinned out the work, admiring the supersoft hand. The stitch definition was much better, but the stitches still had trouble staying on the needle, and I lost a bunch of the work while unpinning, thankful there was a lifeline in place already.

I was disgusted though, and dove right in to work on Mountain Stream. The yarn I had chosen was a bit different here as well, but this time I was happy with the results, and flew through the pattern, finishing a few weeks ago.

Since that time, I have been watching as others finish their Mountain Peaks shawls, and still thinking this is a wonderful pattern. Two weeks ago, while attending the Portola quilt guild's show, I got to see some of the yarn my friend Anna had spun commercially from her flock, and right then and there it hit me that the yarn I was trying to use for my shawl simply wasn't right, but that I wanted some of her lovely charcoal laceweight to make another run at it.

Anna's laceweight yarn is from her spinning flock of Coopworth-Salish sheep and is a springy, somewhat tightly spun two ply, crisp where the Alpaca Cloud is soft. I realized that I would get the stitch definition I wanted for the pattern, as well as have a much easier time keeping the stitches on the needles. Blocking might be more of a challenge, as such springy yarns have a tendency to "bounce back", while the alpaca would stay pressed in place, much the way my wool/silk blend Mountain Stream blocked up so effectively. I emailed Anna and asked her to save me some till I would be at her needle-felting class next month; long story short is that the package arrived in Friday's mail.

I cast on this morning, while waiting to meet up with my family for Mother's Day brunch. After our lovely meal in a beautiful spring setting at the Palace Restaurant at Lake Frances Resort, I spent part of the afternoon trialing this new yarn. Here it is, pinned down to check density.

I have since made it through the Top Chart and almost all the way through my first repeat of Chart One. This version will look completely different from the one I might have turned out using Alpaca Cloud, if I could have had the heart to try again.... however, I think I am going to like this version a lot better. I have been wanting an earthy, charcoal-black shawl for some time, and had even considered making the Peddler's Shawl in Folk Shawls. It will work well when I am in costume at historical re-enactment-type events. I am also delighted to be making Mim's pattern from wool taken from mountain sheep:) I have found it quite interesting to see the range of what is classified as "laceweight", and am beginning to think that it is anything too small to qualify as fingering! Anna's laceweight is quite a bit denser than the Alpaca Cloud, and many of the choices other KALers are using fall somewhere between my two choices.

I worked on Ruana yesterday, and really didn't want to get distracted away, as there are only between 9 and 11 inches to go at this point, and I really want to finish it rather than stash it away because the weather is too hot to work on it (this afternoon, with temps in the high 80s, is a warning to me). I will be concentrating on finishing her during the evenings in the coming week, as well as adding those final tentacles to Nautie. I also want to get started on CeCe, as the yarn is calling to me from my smaller knitting bag, and I want to get a lot of wear out of this cute little sweater in the coming season, so I think that my new version of Mountain Peaks will have to take turns for awhile, but at last there is hope once again.

Now don't go feeling too sorry for all that lovely, evening violet-colored Alpaca Cloud... I have a plan for it as well.

I have had fun answering a quiz or two, so decided to create my own for you to take, and see how well you know me!

Happy Mother's Day to all my dear, creative Mothers of Invention in the knitting world and elsewhere....

J is for Journaling

2006-05-13T17:37:00.000-07:00

J is for journaling, which I have been committed to since a teenager. I have different sorts of journals, boxed away (I couldn't find them this morning to photograph; the boxes are buried under the stored items we moved around this winter), reflecting different styles as the years went by... there are the illustrated ones from my rapidograph phase, with some drawings I like and many I think are absolutely awful.. I loved putting ink to paper and even tried ink in different colors but the constant clogging and cleaning led me away, to lined books from office supply store racks, during my period of living outdoors. There is the time period, when pregnant with my DD, that I was studying Jungian-Senoi dreamwork and kept detailed journals of my very vivid dreams. Another period reflects my reading A Midwife's Tale: The Life of Martha Ballard, Based on Her Diary, 1785-1812 in the early 1990s, and keeping daily records of our accomplishments, along the lines of "1 pair of socks finished and 5 quarts of applesauce canned today". I was fascinated by how much she and her daughters contributed to the community income, in fact more than their husbands, and gained a lot of respect for myself as a single mother of three small children, keeping track of all I was managing to do each day and month. Journaling has been an important part of my life and my development as a writer.

J is also for Journalism, a subject which I taught for eight years, with great enjoyment. It was both creative and thought-provoking, and occasionally controversial. I don't really have the "qualifications" or experience at a big-time newspaper to go further in the world of teaching journalism, but do believe that it is an important area of the curriculum in need of teachers with integrity. My interest in journalism led me into blogging about a year and a half ago, which has deeply enriched my life. Now, I often write with my audience in mind, and with a clearer idea of who they are and why they come back regularly to read my work. I cannot tell you how gratifying this has been, to connect with people in other parts of the world I will probably never have the opportunity to visit. That is why I jumped at the chance to join a group blog, the Eat Local Challenge, and engage in a broader conversation on another subject that is almost as dear to me as knitting and burros, the topic of food. I have absorbed this year that I don't see writing in my life as a hobby, but as a passion, one that is integral to who I am and what my purpose here is. Thanks for being a part of my listening audience, and for giving me so much feedback.

Dye-O-Rama Update

I have not written much about Dye-O-Rama yet, nor have I put up a button (remiss, must correct that soon), and that is mainly because I am a bit afraid of giving myself away; turns out the person I am dyeing yarn for is a sometimes reader. This means that almost all of what I am doing will have to remain a deep, dark secret until the yarn has been received.... but, I can divulge just how excited I am today about this project! This is Spinning Saturday at Foothill Fibers, my local spin/weave/knit (love wool) guild, and during the week, I had emailed Sara, desperate for assistance in getting my yarn done in time... you see, I have a special plan. Of course, she and Beryl came to the rescue with data and recipes and sources to make sure that I will succeed. I will be documenting the process as I go, in anticipation of putting up a detailed post, and I can promise that my project will be unique.

A Special Day in Donkeydom

2006-05-10T21:07:00.000-07:00

Kathy has asked after the burros, so I thought I would feature them this evening. Spring is our donkeys' favorite time; the grass gets long and goes to seed and we tether them outside of the usual fenced pastures to feed and enjoy this special season. The weather is still mild, otherwise being out in the sun would be pretty intense, even for a donkey.

This week, DH rigged some barriers to give the four used to being outside of the fences a chance to roam about the back side of the property, under his occasional supervision. Donkeys are herd animals, and like to keep tabs on each other, but could also just as easily stage a mutiny together and head up the road to so-called greener pastures; luckily his system has proven effective so far.

He was unable to coax April, our semi-wild burro from the Sheldon Wildlife Refuge to join the rest, until today. She is not halter-trained yet, although approachable and finally over her year-long shyness of us. She was very intimidated by the fencing (which is usually electrified at the top) and even though she had seen the others go in and out of gates time after time without harm, would not try until today. I am a bit nervous to let her out, but very proud of her bravery, and how she simply followed her stablemates, her son Assteroid and buddy Rose, back into the pen this evening. April is the only chocolate-brown burro, and the shaggy little one, her son Assteroid, was born here shortly after her arrival and will be two years old next week (I think this will call for some carrot cake!).

Rose in front with April behind her

Everyone enjoying the spring greens

Assteroid munching on spring grass

Progress Report and a Chocolate Recipe

2006-05-08T19:28:00.000-07:00

I had a few requests to show you what the ruana is looking like, so I draped it over a chair this afternoon, and took a photo... to the right, the stitches are all bunched up on the needle and tied closed so that I wouldn't lose any, and you can get a glimpse of bright green waste yarn, which will later be transformed into the front opening.

I am really enjoying the striping process, and also happy to realize that there is only about 15 more inches to go... there are items waiting patiently in the queue, and I got the latest issue of Interweave Knits in today's mail!

I have stayed focused and true to my two projects over the weekend, and as a result, now have a Nautie with pink head, but minus pink tentacles and felt eyes... that will come over the next few days.

I really enjoyed the comments and info about what you will be knitting for spring and am also happy to see that the doldrums bouncing around blogland about a month ago have faded and we knitters have become re-energized with the change in seasons.

I am continuing to have a great time with the Eat Local Challenge, and have even talked myself into making sourdough starter, which used to grace my pantry for years. While I am waiting for my starter to be ready, let me share the recipe for a family favorite:

Sourdough Chocolate Cake

1/2 cup starter (thick)
1 cup water
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1/4 cup nonfat dry milk

Mix and let ferment for 2 to 3 hours in a warm place until bubbly and there is the odor of clean, sour milk.

Add:

3/4 cup honey
1 cup shortening or butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
2 eggs
3 squares melted chocolate

Cream fat, honey, flour, spices, flavorings, flour, salt and baking soda. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Combine creamed mixture and melted chocolate with sourdough starter. Stir three hundred strokes until blended. Pour into two greased and floured layer pans or one large pan. Bake at 305 degrees fahrenheit for 25 to 30 minutes. Cool and frost as desired.

Now, I know someone is going to point out that this recipe is awfully high in fat to be considered "healthy". In our family, this is the sort of cake made only for someone's birthday or other very memorable occasion, and I have always been a baker to scrimp the rest of the year, but not for a celebration... everything in moderation! If you have not used sourdough starter, or just want a refresher course, read Claire's post at the ELC website today for directions. I will add the tip that, when making a cake such as this, I would take out the starter needed, and replenish by directly feeding my sourdough crock, and not from the sponge after it had risen. I never, ever put anything in my crock except flour and water. Sourdough is an even quirkier mystery than knitting!

What Are You Making For May?

2006-05-05T16:10:00.000-07:00

I know that you were beginning to think it was all about the food around here, and that's a big part of May, as well as beginning to get out and work with the burros more, now that the weather is nice. But, there's still, and always, knitting going on around here. In fact, while attending an inservice this morning, I finished one variegated washcloth (greens) and started on another (pastels)... they go that fast!

My main goal is to finish the ruana, and since I have made it past the halfway point, feel somewhat optimistic, but you all know what it's like to knit all day, hoping for 10 inches and seeming to only turn out two. I know there's a good chance that the second half won't be as exciting as the first (kind of like 'second-sock' syndrome, only bigger), but I am still enjoying the time spent in my knitting chair, watching the stripes go by. I wanted to be even more random than Fibonacci, but have used the sequence for parts, and then thrown in an out-of-sequence mix of rows, then gone back to dear ol' Fib... I still love the various shades of light purples and the occasional surprises thrown in and I think I will enjoy using this item for a long while.

Since I am finished with Mountain Stream, I was all set to go back to Mountain Peaks, and I will, but I am going to switch yarns, so will have to wait to re-start (hey, third time's the charm, they say) until I can get together with Anna and get some of her laceweight.

I also intend to dig out DD's skimpy tank and re-do the sleeve (actually, make a new, correct and third sleeve, and see which one was the wrong version - there are two tiny cap sleeves ready, but they don't match, and it started raining in earnest early last fall when I figured that out, so she said "just wait till spring" - tempting words to a fickle and sanguine knitter like me).

I am awaiting the arrival of my Rowan Calmer in the color Sour (which is actually a pale apple green) so that I can get started on CeCe... it would be really great to have it done to wear to Estes Park next month, but since I bought the yarn from one of the Ebay yarn stores based in Britain, who knows when I will be able to start.

There's usually a little something unexpected that slips in each month, and here is May's:

This is my version of Nautie, about three-fourths of the body is done. I am using some Noro Blossom that I received as a gift earlier this year, and it is absolutely perfect for this... the colors look very "natural" and earthy. But in keeping with the playful spirit, the face will be pale pink! I am planning to hang my Nautie in our large bathroom window, which overlooks our private inner yard.

I had a nice conversation with Anna of My Fashionable Life earlier this week about fun and sexy summer knitting, and eagerly await what designs she might publish that I can make up later in the season. I also hanker to make the Elsebeth Lavold top I never got around to before winter. So, what are YOU working on this month?

Poised For A Challenge

2006-05-03T20:28:00.000-07:00

I have been promoting sending all of you on your own version of the Eat Local Challenge, and decided it would be fair to let you know what my version looks like. These questions came from the ELC website:

1. What's your definition of local for this challenge?

I decided to go with "local as I can" as my definition, while aiming this month to find more sources for daily food needs that are between 50 and 100 miles of my home. I live in a particularly rich part of the country; when I was born in the 1950s, California fed the world - or at least that was its claim. The widest assortment of food was grown here of almost all the states, except maybe for the New Jersey of that era, which had been the garden for New York City for over a century. Now, much of our food is imported from other countries. Luckily, there have grown to be quite a few small, organic family farms and artisanal food producers within that radius. I can get meat, dairy, eggs, many veggies, almonds, walnuts, pistachios, olives and olive oil, various wines, and, of course, rice all close at hand, and much of it organic.

That said, I have made a strong commitment to eating organic foods over the years, and don't plan to give that up for the Challenge; I will be looking instead at preserving more of my own local foods in season, such as freezing the hordes of locally grown strawberries available during May, so that I will be eating local when I put them in smoothies next winter. If there is something that is organic, but still a bit outside that 100-mile range, I won't hesitate to eat it, and support the organic farmers.

2. What exemptions will you claim?

Oh, probably more than I care to admit! I will continue to drink the fair-traded coffee we have purchased for two decades, as well as consume chocolate and spices. I don't eat much in the way of grains, so rice will be ok, but I will exempt the Rudy's Organic bread I do eat, even though it comes from Colorado, and the Straus Family Creamery dairy products I get at my local coop, even though they are 183.88 miles from me (thanks, Map Quest), because they are a responsible family farm that employs reusable glass milk bottles in their packaging. I decided I balance the extra oil consumption involved in getting these products by getting my eggs at either the local feed store or from a friend who delivers them to me at work, and my meats from my cousin and my friend, Anna.

I will probably eat out once or twice a week, especially if traveling, and maybe for Mother's Day, depending on what my family concocts for me. We will be hosting all of DH's family over Memorial Day weekend, and I will eat almost everything put in front of me, as I consider it more important to nurture family ties than alienate family members by refusing to eat their food. I will, however, save some of my choicest local finds to feast with them.

3. What is your personal goal for the month?

I have a few: to search out new, closer sources (such as my next olive oil purchase), to reconnect with preserving the abundance of the seasons in order to broaden our food choices down the line, while localizing further, and to contribute to the education of others.

So you're ready to take the challenge ... now what?

Be sure and read our group blog regularly (it is colorful and entertaining), to try new produce that is in season at your local farmers market, and to plant something you can eat, even if it is just one pot of kitchen herbs! Don't hesitate to write and share your thoughts, fears and questions. I have loved food and cooking all my life, and am still learning new things, very exciting for me.

Mountain Stream, She is Finished

2006-05-02T20:23:00.000-07:00

I am so delighted with this pattern and how lovely (and different) the blocked scarf looks. Lace is just such a leap of faith, not really looking like all that much until you roughly stretch and pin out the points and the pattern finally emerges in all its glory.

Here is the scarf blocked and drying... I made the pattern two repeats longer than stated, as I was using a different yarn, and knew I had plenty. It drapes over my shoulders on each side to a happy length, so I would buy extra yarn if needed to repeat the pattern in the future.

This close up really shows off the detail.

I used Garnstudio Silke-Woole, a gift from my Better Pal, Beth earlier this winter, and I was amazed when I pulled the pins out this morning to see that the silk component helped the pattern to "hold" its stiffness from blocking. I love the dark green color but it did bleed off a lot of dye when I soaked the piece to block.

We are almost past scarf-wearing weather around here, but I will be using it as a light scarf in the early mornings, and also when I am up in the higher elevations. I am still planning to get Mountain Peaks finished, but have made the decision to order some of my friend Anna's charcoal laceweight to make it and to abandon the Alpaca Cloud to another project (possibly Eunny's Print o' the Wave Stole - I am in love with lace).

In other news, please consider taking the Eat Local Challenge participant button I put up on my sidebar, even if you only want to scope out your local possibilities. Anyplace along the spectrum is just fine! The group blog is up and running and well worth a visit to see all the talent and the cross-section of the country represented by our authors.

The Melt is On

2006-04-30T13:31:00.000-07:00

This is a roaring freshest, coming off the mountainside to add to the swelling North Yuba, normally barely detectable as a dry wash the rest of the year. The river is full of rafters, kayakers, and fisher-people for opening weekend of trout season (a big event around here).

The past few days have been wonderful, warm spring days... we have gone from rains and temps in the 50s to bright sunshine and the 80s; it's a bit of a shock, but we can finally wear our spring clothes and sandals. I have even toyed with putting the wool projects aside into storage and starting on something I could wear very soon, such as this, in Rowan Calmer's Sour colorway.

I spent yesterday out and about, including getting to see the Portola quilt guild's Cabin Fever quilt show. There, I also connected with Anna, our friend whose sheep farm was featured here back in mid-March. She has gotten some of her wool back from being spun up and so I bought a nice, medium-grey skein of light worsted weight to make my own version of the Nautie featured in the spring issue of Knitty. Unfortunately, that is really the only thing in there that caught my fancy this time (well, maybe the pedicure socks, but do I really need them?). However, I was also enamored with Anna's charcoal laceweight wool and thought about switching my Mountain Peaks shawl to a yarn choice that would give me better stitch definition, especially now that I have seen a few completed on the Mountain Lacealong site - go take a look.

Yesterday afternoon, I did finally get my Mountain Stream scarf off the needles, finding a few quiet moments to turn the last corner and graft the last bit of the border together... a clever pattern that I just loved and will probably make again when fall comes along. I hope to block it this afternoon and have photos to show later in the week. My version may actually block out to a narrow stole.....

I was also able to capture a few photos of my great, new tool from Nana Sadie Rose:

My DPs, neatly and beautifully organized in my new Odessa case. I have just finished reading Wendy's chapter about knitting tools, so can feel very smug and self-satisfied to have so many lovely bamboo dps (a few sets aren't even in there yet), and a lovely way to store them.

My rolled up DPs

The one project that has seen some attention is the ruana, which has grown steadily to almost the mid-point; I may even be able to finish it while the evenings remain cool; it is growing into a rather warm mass of knitting which will be way too warm to hold onto in another month.

I have been working on expanding my writing into other formats and have some good news and some bad news. As you know, I wrote a review of Wendy's book as a Product Review a few posts back. She asked if I would submit it to Amazon, which I dutifully did, adding how much I enjoyed her Bad-Ass Knitters' Kitties' Manifesto. There were no reviews for her book yet, so I waited optimistically. Unfortunately, I totally forgot how parts of the world outside of blogland are much more "language-sensitive"; now there are several reviews up on the site, but none of them are mine. Heck!

The good news is that I have been asked to contribute to a group blog to entertain and inform others about the Eat Local Challenge. You will be hearing a bit about my efforts here, but most of my food writing will move to that site. I will be posting there about once a week.

In acknowledgement of the return of spring and outdoor living to the Sundstrom burrostead, I stopped by the fish store on the way home from work the other day and picked up two new and improved pets:

These pretty babies are Comets. Long and faithful readers may remember that two years ago, for Father's Day, I built DH a backyard water feature, right next to the place where our outdoor easy chairs are...and attempted to have a few fish in it as well as the plants and fountain. The first year, we tried feeder goldfish, who ended up attracting garter snakes. Last year, larger goldfish resisted the returning snakes but succumbed to raccoons (I know, it's the food chain in action, but geez... these are MY fish we're talking about here). This year, the newly cleaned out water garden has a wire mesh cover, partially visible, and much larger fish. Keep your fingers crossed.

Learning to Make Art

2006-04-28T20:15:00.000-07:00

I spent some time getting oriented to my new teaching job this afternoon, with Anita, who is the administrator in charge of the various alternative education programs including Adult Education and GED. As we were reviewing her list of important things to tell me, she apologetically said that she would probably overwhelm me with details because of her "sequential" learning style. Later in the conversation, I revealed that I had to work to be organized because I was an "abstract-random". For those not familiar with education jargonese, take a moment to read this article about the Gregorc learning styles model, and how these learning styles make a difference in how of us processes information throughout our lives. I promise, there IS a relevance here to what I am about to discuss.

Driving home, I got to pondering how working in education had taught me a lot about myself, and how much being abstract-random affects the way I go about creating art. If you were to walk up my stairs and into my studio right now, it would look pretty organized, as I just spent some spring-cleaning time bonding with my stash and putting my tools in order. I even set up a countertop, actually an antique treadle sewing machine with the zigzag machine removed and in storage (I have TWO other machines, so probably won't be treadling unless electricity goes away for good), and attached my circular sock machine to the counter. This is actually deceptive though, a temporary sense of order to the usual chaotic methods I live with.

One of the issues for people who are abstract-random is that of getting easily scattered. My dearest colleague, Chgeryl, from years of teaching (she is also my neighbor at the high country house) was the only other abstract-random when we did a group exercise with our school team and several other schools at a conference about five years ago. We realized that we were the most artistic on the staff, and that our type of learning style played a rather narrow role in being educators; most people transmitting information are much more linear (sequential) and need things to be solid (concrete). Cheryl's elementary classroom, where all four of our children spent their youth, was one giant art studio, with lots of experiential learning happening. Oh, there were desks and chairs, and math with manipulatives as well as reading lessons, but there was also a kitchen and lots of cooking activities, and art materials lining almost every square inch. I set up my two rigid heddle looms for her in the hallway, and there was a huge box of yarn for students to use in practicing the weaving process. There were bottles of paint and easels, and when the school diminished in size because of lowered enrollment, she spilled over across the hall, where students learned science by planting seeds, and later sorting and drying ones from the school garden.

This is a common feature of the abstract-random mind... we jump from thing to thing, are intuitive in our ideas and understanding, and, at least for me, need to have everything in sight to "remember" that it exists, what it looks like, and where it is located. I spin a lot of pictures (and word pictures) in my mind, which in part is how I became a strong writer, doing lots of advance pre-writing.

However, when I am developing a quilt or a knitting project, I need to have all the components I am considering out in plain sight, where I can walk by them regularly, and touch and more the colors around in order to visualize what the project will develop into.. especially when I am using multiple colors of yarn or pieces of fabric. It is a bit easier when there is just one color of yarn; then, I pick up and fondle the yarn as I go by, each time imprinting into my consciousness the feel, weight, texture, and re-examining whether I am heading in the right direction with my ideas. I can usually look at a photo of an existing pattern and decide rather quickly these days if it will look good on me (after many past mistakes, both in handmade and purchased clothing), so I have often determined already what I am heading towards making. Not always, though, and sometimes that repeated imprinting is helping me to hear what the yarn wants to be. That is what it feels like when the inspiration finally strikes.

How do you go about choosing your next project? What did considering these different learning styles say to you about your own methods of creating and how you personally learn? I am finding that the more I respect this part of my individual nature, the more I nurture the artist within. I am eager to hear how other people address these issues in their work.

I is for Iris

2006-04-26T16:07:00.000-07:00

Iris, the most noble of flowers,
graces the warm spring and early summer hours.
Fair and tall, lush in color,
A flower like no other.

A bit of doggeral I concocted when I first decided awhile back that my "I" post would be Iris. However, this year the irises haven't cooperated, as the late rains and cold and snow delayed their unfurling. I really had to search to come up with even these two lonely examples, when usually at this time of year you can find them crowding beds that look plain and lackluster the rest of the year. I was so disappointed with the turnout that I didn't even bother to enter Ann's photo contest until now! There's still time, if you haven't entered yet...

The generic purple version is anything but ordinary. There are many color variations, thanks to the diligent efforts of gardener/breeders, but the purple must be one of the oldest, at least in my area, where you often find them blooming at abandoned homesteads.

This pure white iris is blooming in front of the tiny, historic Catholic Church in North San Juan.

Irises really love to have sun on their rhizomes (no, they are not bulbs, though often thrown in the same class) and that could well be why there are so few blooming yet. They also get a little cranky when their rootlets crowd each other too much, and stop blooming. Then, it is appropriate to dig up the whole bed, trim back the excess root growth, and replant with a better spacing - and wait a few years for them to settle back in and bloom anew. This seems like a lot of trouble to some, but I have repeated the process several times over the years, and they are hardy and drought tolerant, repaying my efforts by having the good grace not to die on me. And when a mass of them bloom at once, the effect is spectacular.

Exciting News and a Product Review

2006-04-25T20:07:00.000-07:00

The exciting news is that I received a call at 7:30 this morning, as I was struggling to get out the door, to tell me that the two people from the school district I interviewed with yesterday had selected me! I knew I had interviewed well, but I still didn't expect them to pick me, because of the math. Did I admit that I managed to get a college degree without taking any math classes? I certainly hadn't told the interviewers, but did say that this was my weakest area out of the five subjects that the GED tests... anyway, I will be starting to teach two afternoon classes a week next week.

I had to quickly rearrange my plans for the day in order to get back to Nevada City and get fingerprinted. Do you know someone who has to have fingerprint clearance for their job? Well, I have been through this many times as far back as 25 years ago, when ink and paper were used, since I have almost always worked with children. I support the concept, and think that it is pretty cool the way they can roll your fingers over a glass similar to the copy machine and your prints appear on a computer monitor, get accepted or rejected (then we try again!), and can be instantly transmitted to the Department of Justice. That said, I had never needed to go through this process in Nevada County, and was stunned to show up, form from school district in hand, and learn that there was at least an hour's wait ... and I had left my knitting in the car!

I spent my wait time with my trusty Palm, making a list of words for every remaining letter of the alphabet, so that I could be planning my post! Now before you get too envious over how together I am, let me tell you that some of those words are pretty sappy, and several won't make for good photos of any kind, so it was really more for self-entertainment.

I did also jot down my ideas for the Eat Challenge posts I will be doing; the other "job offer" I got in the past week was to join a group blog of authors writing about the Eat Local Challenge and related issues. I have committed to one original-content post a month, as well as smaller ones as I am so moved, and the blog will be up by this weekend. Us authors just voted on logos, and I will have a button up very soon too. I hope that if you are considering trying an Eat Local Challenge of your own any time this year, you will let me know and link to this blog, once it is up and running. I do intend to try to inject some humor into the subject, including the story of my first attempt at making kimchi... I just love food and want the idea of eating locally to be a fun challenge and not a scary one.

After the endless wait and the indignity of having four of my ten fingers rejected, I finally was turned loose of the sheriff's office, and headed to one of my favorite coffee shops for an early dinner of soup and cafe mexicali mocha, while I read Wendy's new book (see Product Review below) and waited to attend an already-ongoing GED prep class in Grass Valley to pick up some teaching materials. I felt inspired about the positive impact I could have when I realized that three of my former students who had dropped out before finishing high school were among the dozen or so hard at work taking practice tests. I didn't stay for the whole session, as I need to leave early tomorrow AM to take training in a brand new software to be installed at our clinic, but on the way home I had to stop and capture this sky for you:

Spring sky in the evening light

I am the luckiest person in the world to live here!

Product Review

Stats:

Yarn name: Wendy Knits: My Never-ending Adventures with Yarn, by Wendy D. Johnson
Manufacture:Plume: April 2006
MSRP: $14.00

This book, just out, and probably already familiar to everyone from reading other blogs, is a totally delightful read. Why buy some other book with 20 knitting patterns, only, and miss out on Wendy's funny, entertaining, and touching stories about her cat, knitting on public transit (you'd be amazed at how rude people can be to knitters, unless you have knit on public transit yourself), and being surprise gifted by fellow bloggers (we already know that we are the kindest, most generous bloggers around). The patterns are great too, and range from a catnip mouse and felted pet bed through her own unvention of toe-up socks and some very stylish yet classic sweaters. My knitting night buddy Linda got a kick out of reading the intro to knitting with socks, which Wendy managed to avoid for the first 40 years of her knitting life.

I also learned that Wendy's knitting website gets over a million hits a month; talk about bursting my bubble and making me feel insignificant! (I know, that wasn't her intention - hey, I don't really want to try and compete). She discusses having an epiphany about trying to continually outdo herself, and then realizing there was lots of value to making simple, wearable garments as well as the most complex things possible. Also, according to Wendy, it helps your blog popularity to have a photogenic cat.

This book can be readily purchased at a discount through some of the mainstream online sources, or when you buy lots of yarn at Knitpicks and get free shipping (and probably other ways I am not aware of) so there is no excuse not to get it and have a great laugh reading it. You will then keep it around and make a few things out of it, as the patterns are versatile and timeless. You will also love her knitting manifesto, if you haven't already seen it, as well as be supporting one of the most informative knitting writers in blogland.

We Have A Winner and A Little Zen

2006-04-24T21:14:00.000-07:00

It's very late, as I had to work, go 46 miles to my interview, then 46 miles back to Downieville for a meeting and knitting night, and finally I am home, where the lovely random number generator that Margene directed me to has picked a winner for the colorful sock yarn prize in my 300th post contest.

Drumroll please! And the winner is.... Imbrium! Check out her recent post about being marooned on Sleeve Island, and give a word of encouragement. Thanks to everyone who entered; I didn't even realize that many people read my blog!

Deni pointed out that my email address on one of my Destash items wasn't working; went and fixed that. Maybe I am trying to do too much? once again? That was the trait about myself I revealed as one of my weaknesses in my interview for the GED teaching position this afternoon. I won't know for a day or so if I got the job, but the questions were interesting, and even more insightful was realizing on the drive back to Downieville that it would be wonderful either way. A wonderful opportunity to use my teaching skills to help others if I got the chance and a wonderful way to continue to have time to blog about knitting and the Eat Local Challenge, and work with my animals if I didn't. I think this might be as close as I will ever get to zen principles in action in my life - a truly magic moment for me.

Knitting night was great fun, with Stephanie and Linda working on socks, and Earlene trying to knit a baby blanket with the assistance of Linda's tortoiseshell cat, Missy. Missy has decided that we are all really cool, and that it is especially fun to find a willing lap, get comfortable, and then attempt to chew on the yarn as it passes by. Good thing she is pretty!

Linda and I will get the lamb meat that we ordered from our sheep/wool raising friends, the Harveys, tomorrow, and Linda will even get a preview of the lovely wool that Anna has had spun up when she visits the upcoming quilt show in Portola this weekend, where Anna will have a booth featuring her wool quilt batting and her yarn. If summer ever gets here, we will have a needle-felting class at the farm to look forward to, set for June 8th. If you are anywhere near, and want to know more, give me a shout.

Spring Cleaning

2006-04-23T15:51:00.000-07:00

Look, it really IS spring!

After spending half of the day doing Saturday errands, which included filling up with the cheapest gas we could find (ouch) and buying the most expensive load of grass hay to date (direct corollary there, no doubt), we headed home yesterday to tackle some spring cleaning, which has spilled over into today as well.

One purchase I made was a tub to store records for the children's center business that changed hands a few months back. As I moved the records from paper bags into the tub, I also moved around some other items in the room that has served us as storage for several years. The cute DH got the urge to rearrange, since he has long yearned to turn this room into a genuine guest room.

Here are the results of yesterday's labors. We bought the air bed just before Christmas, as we had slept on one at some friends' and discovered they were much more comfortable as well as easier to move around than fold-out couches. The highback chair was my great-grandmother's, reupholstered in the late 1970s by my dad. The red flowers on the floor are actual 1930s linoleum (that DH, he collects all kinds of things!). Just out of the photo on the right is a little desk I used as a girl, given to me by my great aunt. A sentimental room, all in all.

The best part is the view out the attic window of our inner yard, lush from all that rain, and the large cherry treen in full bloom. Beyond the fence is a thin dirt drive leading down to a classic 1930s cabin on our property, and beyond is donkey pasture. While trying out the chair and the view yesterday evening, I looked out just in time to see six deer sproinging their way through the pasture and sailing over fences to get away from the big, scary donkeys they had met up with, coming from the wide open spaces of the rolling hills just beyond your view here.

Cleaning has led to more items to post on the DestashAlong site, and I also have made significant progress on the ruana over the past several days. Teresa pointed out that I had said I was making it 45 feet wide; luckily that was just a typo, or I would never finish in this lifetime! Mary suggested that I try the Fibonacci sequence in my striping and I have been enjoying that; I now have about 10 inches on the first half done. Sallee asked about measurements; this pattern is from Folk Shawls by Cheryl Oberle, and I decided that I wanted a ruana that would hit me at the knees, rather than close to floor length as in the photo in the book (how tall IS that model? was my first thought....). Following the formula in the book, which includes calculating for 14 inches of fringe to be trimmed up to 10 inches when completed, my version will be 70 inches wide, draping over me front and back, resulting in my casting on 161 stitches on size 9 needles (keep in mind that I usually drop down one size from most people).

This project with all its varieties of yarns pretty much ties me to my knitting chair

shown here. I need to have the quilt ruler to measure out 14 inches before attaching each new yarn, the scissors to cut loose the old, and tie the fringes together before proceeding with each new stripe. A nice project for evenings at home.

Thanks for all the congratulations on my 300th post and compliments on the boots. You will all be happy to know that I have gotten to wear them quite a bit already and being rubber, they are flexible and the mud washes right off!

I sure hope that spring is blessing you and yours more than it has California this year; it has been grey and a bit rainy all weekend. I am off to a job interview tomorrow afternoon, teaching GED students, something I hadn't pictured myself doing. However, I just finished my assignments for my writing class this weekend, and can say that I have a new appreciation for inspiring others to bring out their stories through their writings. I will be writing regular posts for a new group blog that will be part of the Eat Local Challenge this spring, and so will Liz; details to follow once the site is up and running.

I will be posting the winner of the 300th post sock yarn tomorrow, and Vicki is having a contest to win a copy of Mason-Dixon Knitting, so hurry over and enter before tomorrow. I found out just after I ordered a copy and some Knitpicks yarn to dye for Dye-O-Rama, so you have better odds of winning without me in there, hee hee.

The Clock Is Ticking

2006-04-21T20:29:00.000-07:00

This is a quickie reminder that my 300th post contest ends Sunday, April 23rd, at midnight (or is that Monday, at 12 AM). You still have a chance to rifle through a few posts and find out how to enter! I was so heartened by the amount of responses I found waiting when I returned from my little jaunt; sometimes it can feel like you are blogging in a void. I had no idea some of you read my writings regularly! See what launching a contest will do... thanks for the continued support. Next week will feature more knitting, more burros (they are so excited! the grass is green and we can tether them out to munch it), and an intro to a new Eat Local group blog I will be writing for regularly! Stay tuned.

A Spring Sojourn

2006-04-20T17:34:00.000-07:00

Some of you might have noticed my absence the past few days, and some might not have... Monday morning we headed east in spite of the snow that was finishing up and stayed in Reno a few days. Glenn's brother, Dave has a house there, even though he is currently living and working in the Salt Lake City area, so we took advantage of having a convenient place to hang our hats while we explored some of our favorite desert country.

Reno is just on the eastern side of the Sierra Nevadas, and the mountains tower over the city, providing breathtaking views, when the vista isn't clogged by rapidly expanding suburbia. Dave's house is about a quarter mile from the Truckee River, which wends it's way through downtown Reno and westward to end in Lake Tahoe (I learned this trip that the worldwide collegiate kayaking competition takes place on the river in Reno, as part of the Reno River Festival next month). It might be my favorite city, as I really don't like cities as a whole, and Reno is a scale that you could walk away from in a day (this is important to me, for some bizarre reason). Spring has definitely arrived there, as the storms that have kept us down on the west side of the mountains are diminished in force by the time they cross over the mountain peaks, and lots more sun has led to lots more bloom: daffodils, flowering trees, green grass, I was almost overwhelmed with delight.

This dove is basking in spring's glow on the roof of Dave's house.

I took a vacation from the computer, the phone, work, household chores (our dear friends, Dale and Lois, who manage Sierra Skies RV Park in summer and spend winters with us, looked out after the donkeys for us), and almost even knitting! I brought along the felted vest for DH, and made slight progress in the evenings, but we spent the days being outside and exploring. I walked, did yoga, and even sat around the nearby coffee shop in the morning reading the paper; I felt very lucky to have a break.

Tuesday morning, we headed over to Virginia City, where the streets were empty when we arrived but filled with visitors by midday.

Virginia City is one of our favorite "old west" towns to visit; although there is significant commercialization to keep business afloat, what they are promoting is the history of the famous Comstock Lode silver mines, which boosted the economy during the Civil War so much that Nevada became a state and the Union could continue to finance the war.

There are many examples of brick commercial buildings, mansions built by silver tycoons, and more modest Victorian homes. I doubt there are many other little towns with such a concentration of "museums", some of which are large and extensive, and others which are merely novelties. Over the years we have been through most of the museums; the Comstock Firemen's Museum is highly enlightening (the museum lent an antique engine to the San Franciso Earthquake Centennial events last weekend) and so is the Julia Bulette Red Light museum (Julia was a well-loved prostitute, who made the local fire department her favorite charity; she was murdered for her jewels, and in tribute for her contributions to the community, was given one of the largest funerals in the town's history - we are talking Old West history here).

This visit, we spent an hour or more touring the St. Marys of the Mountains Catholic Church and museum, which is very cared for and provides a glimpse into the social structure and culture of the early days of Virginia City, as well as continues to preserve an amazing Gothic church, a landmark in the cityscape. Other great places to tour, which we have visited in the past, include the Mackey Mansion and the Fourth Ward School, which Glenn's grandma attended as a girl!

We enjoy walking up and down the streets admiring the architecture, checking the progress on the restoration of Piper's Opera House, and poking through our favorite bookstore there, Mark Twain Books. Virginia City is one of the places that can legitimately say "Mark Twain slept (and wrote) here!", and the bookstore features a huge collection of new and used western books, Mark Twain's works, and even both reprinted and modern-day maps and tourbooks of the overland western emigration routes. We have traveled over parts of the routes in Nevada, and pored over some of the books, hoping to take a four-wheel expedition one day of the Oregon Trail and/or the California route; it's much safer and more comfortable these days than back in 1849!

After lunch at one of the local restaurants, we did a little four-wheeling of our own, taking a back route out of Virginia City into the Virginia Highlands. This area has been subdivided into very private desert homes, and we thought we would drive north and see if we could find an alternate route back to Reno... this type of thinking has led us into some of our greatest adventures and Tuesday was no exception. The road was a little rough but no big deal, so we pressed on.

This desert oasis of year-round spring, cottonwood trees, and willows, hasn't leafed out yet, allowing us to catch a glimpse of a band of four Virginia Range wild horses, including the darling baby nursing. We had pulled into this area because the archaeologist husband just knew that there would be signs of prehistoric visitation; there were plenty, including flakes of obsidian, three kinds of chert, and basalt. I spotted mother and baby when we first exited the car, and shushed him long enough for the pair to remain alert, but not bolt right away, so was able to get many pictures of this band.

The lush grass and readily available water makes this spot a heavily-visited area, and even when the group decided they were uncomfortable with our presence, they only moved a few hundred yards off, not wanting to give up the yummy grass.

The Virginia Range horses live on private and non-BLM Nevada public lands to the east of Reno, and are not protected in the same way that BLM wild horses are; they have been in this area for a century or more, since the decline in the silver mines, but in recent years development has encroached seriously on their home range, putting them in conflict with humans. The link above will take you to the Virginia Range Wildlife Protection Association, based in Virginia City, and enlighten you further. If you have ever considered adopting a wild horse, please think of these animals, as they lack the concerted efforts towards adoption that the BLM program has built up, and the pressure is only increasing on their habitat. Currently, the nearby Carson City state prison manages a training program to gentle captured Comstock horses and train them so that they will be more adoptable.

Now, I have searched for wild horses and burros several times in recent years, with limited success. However, this time, without even thinking about the possibility until we came upon the first band of eight horses, prior to stopping at the oasis, I hit paydirt. Over the course of the afternoon, we observed 50 horses and 4 foals! As in the two occasions in recent years when I went out at night to watch for spectacular shows of shooting stars, started counting and saw over 300 each time, I felt like I was particularly blest to have the good fortune to observe these animals in the wild. It crossed my mind that most people will never have this chance and that I should take lots of photos and share them with all of you.

The stallion is in the foreground in this photo, looking a little pissed off and had already signaled to the two mares to head away from us.

A closer view shows his tense posture, particularly in the neck.

A close-up of mom and baby, taken a bit further downstream

It became obvious that it takes extra work to find these extra-special backcountry features; as we would our way north, the road got progressively worse. Luckily, DH drives off-road for a living, working for the U.S. Forest Service, and we have spent lots of time 4 wheeling over the years. This is a drop-off that he could feel confident in, but one of the few spots that really gave me pause. The green Jeep Cherokee below contains a father/son duo we met up with; the son is a Planning Commissioner for Storey County, and had been on the back roads in the past, but not on this stretch. We were following his maps and teamed up in the late afternoon to safely travel out of the backcountry as the road got more extreme. The front of our truck is perched above the drop-off that was the steepest creek crossing. I will not bore you with the gory details, but do want to mention that we passed through Lagomarsino Canyon, part of which contains a huge field of petroglyphs. If you ever have the opportunity to spend some time around Reno, contact me for more information about these extraordinary features just a few miles away from the bright lights and casinos.

The highlight of Wednesday was spending three hours at the National Auto Museum, which was built originally to house Bill Harrah's extensive private collection, and has since expanded into a highly professional and impressive museum. We headed home in the late afternoon, thankful for a break in the daily routine and our first taste of spring. Life is good.

300th Post Contest

2006-04-16T15:33:00.000-07:00

Happy Easter to everyone! This is also a significant personal milestone for me, as this post marks my 300th blog entry. Blogging has brought me lots of personal fulfillment, strengthened my writing skills, and given me wonderful, new friends I never would have known otherwise. I was so heartened by the response to my Friday post; it is an excellent example of how blogging allows us to connect with each other across the miles and trials of our lives. Check below for details about my 300th post contest.

First, a bit of knitting news:

As you can tell from the button over on my sidebar, I have been participating in the Mountain Lace KAL. While Mountain Peaks has been a challenge, and is currently languishing, here's the latest on Mountain Stream:

Mountain Stream only needs a top border!

Here is a close-up of the unblocked scarf; I love this pattern and will probably make it again in a different yarn, once I figure out why I can't get the top border chart right.

I have put out a call for help to my fellow KALers and to designer Susan, but HAD to keep knitting something:

These are two samples I made last night to check for gauge before starting my ruana. This pattern is in Cheryl Oberle's Folk Shawls book, and is a great exercise in color creativity.

Cheryl gives a very precise formula to obtain the correct number of stitches based on the length you want and the gauge you get out of these trial samples (which is good, since I am shorter than average and needed to modify the pattern so it wouldn't drag on the ground). From there, you are pretty much on your own color-blending, which I absolutely love.

I am a fan of stripes in plain knitting. Over the years, I have made a feather and fan afghan, a circular calf-length skirt, a vest, and my felted traveling bag, all in stripe variations derived as I knit, pulling from a bag full of yarn selected to meet a specific color scheme. The results are always delightful and the knitting entertaining, as I can't wait to see what will happen next.

The piece is made all at once, a 45' by 70" rectangle in the end, with waste yarn used midway along to be opened back up into the neck/front edge while finishing, so there is a LOT of plain knitting ahead. The fringe technique employed has you cutting a specific amount each time you change colors, and that avoids tying on a lot of fringe at the end, but also will relegate this project to a knitting-chair one, with quilt ruler balanced on one of the wooden arms, ready to measure each fringe, which is then tied to the previous one. I finished my calculations last night, and decided that I preferred a varying, somewhat random row sequence of 1-3-5-3-1-1-, etc., rather than a three-row sequence or something more precise. The colors blend better together that way, and keep with the tonal, light-purple-as-a-neutral, effect I am going for. I have a great collection of various types and weights to work with and got off to a flying start this morning. This is not a project that will lend itself well to pictures, so I doubt I will be posting much about it... just the same, old rectangle, slowly getting bigger, but I will share the results when they start becoming something noticeable.

If you live in California, you don't need me to tell you that it is STILL raining, and even snowing in lots of the state for Easter Sunday. A few weeks ago, I decided one sure-fire way to get it to stop, and finally become spring, was to order the rainboots I had been admiring in Smith and Hawkin's garden catalog. If I started wearing them, it would stop raining for sure:

I was happy to get to wear these great new boots yesterday and today!

300th Post Contest

I wanted to commemorate my 300th post by holding a contest all week. The prize is this lovely, spring/summer-colored Cotton Fun sock yarn by Lana Grossa. Just send me an email to knitinhiding@hotmail.com sometime before midnight next Sunday (note: modified late tonight to explain this means Sunday April 23rd), and you will be entered to win!