SparkCrafted

Weaving

2012-01-01T22:09:00.001-05:00

I resolve to be as crafty as I wanna be in 2012.

A very interesting Thanksgiving

2011-11-25T13:42:00.001-05:00

Sometimes, I tweet "special" occasions - full moon antics, adventures in cheese-smoking, Fun Times at the House of Cheese. Most recently, I tweeted Thanksgiving with my family. Here're those tweets (italicized), in order, with some commentary (typically without emphasis). I'm sorry Mom.

Many things are happening here at my parents. 1. My dad'll be a millionaire bc he fixes stupid. 2. We think the skeleton's a fox. My parents had there porch deck replaced on Wednesday. Upon removing the old decking, the contractors discovered the skeleton of an animal. My sister placed a beer can next to it, took a picture, and sent it to me via text.

Also, dad walked in and called mom brokeback osama terrorist bitch. The we watched the honey badger. Then, the recycling gave him hrt attck. I could explain the first part of this, but holy mother of seahorses, you really would not be able to understand that what he called her was ACTUALLY a term of endearment. The honey badger, while neither caring nor giving a shit, features again later in the festivities.

We have been here 90 minutes and holy crap I don't even know wtf to think.

so long as I have a signal in this swamp, i'll be tweeting this shit. Also, listening to motley cruel. Holidays BITCHES.

So he said she can't kill him by putting his trash on the ground because he fixes stupid. She said it was too dark to see and full of pee. My dad? He pees on his trash cans sometimes. And by sometimes, I mean pretty much all the time.

Holy crap, motley crue to Celine Dion. And Mike just called their cat an asshole, while he wears his new beer cozy hoodie. My life. At least it wasn't Josh Groban. My parents don't cultivate playlists on their iPods. They just put it on shuffle and wait to hear what happens.

he's calling their cat an asshole because he let her out and then my dad yelled at him for an hour. CATastrophe. Sacrilege. My father and his cat have this bond. They also have a routine. Not-quite-ready-for-a-circus routine, but a routine. Mike disrupted that routine.

Now we're listening to Abba while mom designs a room onhttp://Ikea.com. No, really. And the asshole cat paces at the door. This is just crazytalk, and happens way too often. Like, the last time Mom and I visited my sister in Massachusetts, as we drove over the line and towards Sturbridge, the BeeGee's starting singing, Massachusetts.

Mom: get down on all 4s and talk sweet talk. Mike: i got a backstroke! Dad now calls us all terrorists bc I didn't pack shoes for Mike. I don't need to explain this one, do I? OK, fine. They're trying to brush my dad's cat.

Re: skeleton, we ruled out possum, muskrat, raccoon, and honey badger. Bc honey badger is totally possible. Little Mermaid soundtrack now. Remember that part about loading all songs on the iPod and then hitting shuffle? Yeah....

Fyi, dad is up way past his bed time. And we just had our first really inappropriate comment. Coincidence? I like to say "fyi" like Randall does in the honey badger video. And, you know it's REALLY inappropriate if 1. I say so and 2. I won't even post it.

Babytalkin' to the asshole cat. "did you give them the claw? " something about a sperm collection drive. Google it, stupid. OMG WTF.

Laugh inside, not outside. Also, we're back on the skeleton and how it was a dino: underporchasaurus. My dad, getting ready to go to bed, scolds the women of the house, telling them he didn't want to be jolted awake by maniacal laughter at midnight. AGAIN. So, he wants us to keep the laughing inside of us. Part 2 of that tweet? Nevermind that the porch was initially added to the front of the house AFTER they moved there in 1981.

Some people are gonna develop vacuums in their colons tmrw. Irritable bowel is the new angry birds. I pooped Hawaii! FULL colon cleanse. Don't despair, friends - dad's not yet in bed, and we're now at the poop-portion of the evening. Also, who among us has not pooped Hawaii?

Self-indouched colon cleanse. Happy colon, happy sleep. Ancient Chinese secret.

Dr. Oz says your poop should be s-shaped. Cursive or print? My dad loves dr. Oz. Poop Primer. Dad confirms his love for Dr. Oz. We watch a video that reminds me of another video:

SNL with Charlie Day: Ask Dr. Oz
- Watch more Funny Videos at Vodpod.

Relationship btwn wizard of Oz and Dr. Oz, and would there have been a movie if everyone just pooped. No place like home. To poop. Straw man? Too dry, needed water. Tin man? Too creaky, needed lube. Cowardly lion? Too scarded, needed to relax. Tornado as a metaphor for flushing.

so, we're still talking about the skeleton the contractors found under the deck. apparently, they just tossed it in the street yesterday... I draw the line at posting skeleton pictures on my blog. It's a weird line to draw, but there it is. Also, Happy Thanksgiving! It's officially Thursday!

now my sister is burying it in the pet "cementary" (my mom spelled it wrong). upon closer investigation, it's pretty much a cat. poor kitty. I won't tell you that burying consisted of catapulting the skeleton into the woods behind my parents' house. Still, I suppose that's better than TOSSING IT INTO THE STREET LIKE SOME KIND OF COMMON DOUCHEBAG.

it's noon, so i'm going to have wine. i expect things to be quiet until about 3ish when my dad emerges from his cave again. I believe it was 12:07, to be exact.

wrongo. have you heard about The Body? somehow there's a dressmaker's body in my mom's tree IN HER FRONT YARD. it's been there for weeks. So much for predicted calmness. Also, The Body deserves its own post.

There's a story behind this, but I'm going to let the picture speak for itself for now.

On making Yonanas: you put a banana in and then it comes out like softserve and it doesn't taste like bananas! Even tho only ing is bananas. I love my mother. I really do. MOM, I LOVE YOU. But she buys CRAZY things. I'm not saying they're not awesome or cool or useful. But, there are more times than I can remember when I've visited or talked with her and she's said, "OOOH, wait until you see this new AWESOME thing I bought! It does AWESOME STUFF!" And, Ma, it's awesome. But it's also funny.

So I said, I don't like bananas & she said it doesn't taste like them. So I asked what're the ing again? Oh, right. Just BANANAS.

Guys, I'm sorry. Dinner was sedate, with only a brief conversation about Dr. Oz and poop. Maybe dessert will be better. I'm here 'til 8.

Ahhhh. Discussing whether my dad's truck is the automobile equivalent of a hermaphrodite. He has an Avalanche.

Aunt and mother and sister and I are skyping. IN THE SAME HOUSE. What is SMS? SS Minnow? What?

Farting: it's a medical condition. Only after careful discussion of colostomy bags and various surgeries was it determined that farting should be excused as not only natural but also a medical condition.

My mom, on a river clean-up: most people found tires, i found a penis. OMG, this is such a STORY. So, my mother did a Earth Day clean-up thing years ago, riding a personal watercraft over to the Christina River, full-on wet suit and everything. Somehow, she won the lottery and discovered a water-logged dildo with burst bumps (design feature or the effects of being lost to the march?) AND BROUGHT IT HOME. She eventually threw it under the front porch. You know, where the underporchasaurus was found. As far as we know, the contractors did NOT throw a dildo in the street.

Handjob can opener. Black dildo with syphilis. Blind handjobs. Unrelated. Or are they?

Why would you shave your asshole? Salad tossing. And, we're having dessert now.

Front bidet is like turning your balls into a punching bag. Also had to explain glory holes to mom. #samsmom Because apparently Sam and his mom were discussing glory holes BEFORE dinner at their house. And yes, there's a Twitter hashtag for Sam's mom. If you have to ask, you really don't want to know.

I don't pee when i sneeze because i do my elliptical exercises. For my ill lips. Do kegels and improve your bagel hole. My aunt, preparing for a sneeze, is told to not pee her pants. She informs us she does elliptical exercises, so there. YOU MEAN KEGELS???? Yeah, I always mix those words up.

HONEY BADGER AGAIN OMG WTF. DYING. AND PEEING. Really should've pushed for Jack Chop, too.

We made a video. It is terrible and perhaps not 100% correct. But it gives you an idea of what it's like in the Jerz. For the record, I am 100% sober, just showing that my natural state of mind is pretty fucked up. Also, I'm sorry Mom.

the last thing my dad said to me last night was he was going to spend the day today pleasuring his leaves. Think about it. My father did not feature as largely in this year's feast as he has in previous years. One year, he came to my house in a 3-piece suit, only to strip down before dessert revealing his squirrel-with-nuts t-shirt on underneath. I do have a video of him that shows him in profile with someone (me) stage-whispering, "THE LEGEND", but he only appears in the video for like 3 seconds. The rest of the video is of someone sleeping with her face almost in an empty Tupperwhatsit, snoring. BUT I'M NOT POSTING THAT ONE, MOM. You're welcome.

More conversations from home

2011-11-18T15:42:00.000-05:00

Mike: I ran out of soap. And shampoo.

(Me, thinking: Please let this not be the start of the conversation I think it is. Please let it be something crazy, but not Crazy, like, he's going to make his own soap or shampoo, or use baking soda or something like that.)

Mike: So, I made a decision.

Me, bracing: Oh?

Mike: I'm on a horse.

Me: What?

Mike: I'm ON ... a horse.

Me: WHAT???

Mike: I'm ooooon a HORSE.

Me: OK..... Like, Mane and Tail Shampoo?

Mike: What?

Me: Because I've always wanted to try that.

Mike: No. You'll see. I'm on a horse.

And so I go upstairs, with Mike yelling behind me, "I'M ON A HORSE!!!!!"

Shit, he's on a horse. I predict this will be the first thing he says to me every morning until the Old Spice runs out.

3,000 days later

2011-11-14T18:14:00.000-05:00

It feels like it's been a thousand years since we started our inadvertent dining room remodel. It all started with a leaky tub and a pesky water stain on the ceiling in the dining room. It was so long ago, that we've lost the photos, but I can tell you there were LOTS of photos! High-quality images of 3mp using a fantastic Olympus digital camera that would now cause everyone to fall down laughing but was top-notch in 2002.

We fought with that leaky tub for years. First, it was the overflow. Then, it was faulty drain seal. Then, it was water coming from behind the missing tile. It was always something, and just when we'd fix it, something else would start to leak. Water leaks are a bitch like that. So, in order to replace the dining room ceiling, we had to complete a bathroom remodel. That's another post for another day, but let me tell you how Not Fun it is to live without a functioning bathroom in a one-bathroom row house. Thank goodness our neighbors were having a baby the week we were without a toilet because there's a limit to how many times one should use a bucket for things other than mop water.

Once the bathroom was done, we were able to install the dining room ceiling. It only took about 9 years. It was worth the wait.

Long time

2011-11-01T21:25:00.001-04:00

Once upon a time, many years ago, in the days before high-speed internets, and the Miracle of the Ikea Closet System, Mike and I popped over to my parents' house unannounced. We knew my mom was out, but that she was due back soon, so we let ourselves in and proceeded back to the old man cave to say hey to my dad.

We weren't being particularly quiet or stealthy, though we could have been riding angry camels down the hall and my dad probably wouldn't have heard us coming given that the volume on the TV was set to Deafen. We get to the door and I poke my head in, casual-like, and find my dad engrossed completely in whatever is on TV. I nudge Mike to have him look in, too, because my dad ... he was a sight to behold: laid back in his recliner, watching Gangs of New York or The Beach, wearing his stew-shirt (an old SJU sweatshirt, covered in food stains, that my dad claims he will boil and use for sustenance when the apocalypse, in whatever form it takes, comes), and a pair of drumsticks tucked under his armpits.

Now, when I tell this story in person, people often look a little confused. Drumsticks? Like, the ice cream cone things? Like actual chicken drumsticks? And I have to tell them neither of those is correct. My dad had actual drum-upon-the-snare-drum drumsticks stuck in each armpit. I want to say that I don't know or understand why, but I do, on many levels. Here're two: I bought my dad the drumsticks as a gift one year (perhaps even THAT year) and 2. drumsticks are perfect for sticking in your armpits - it just works, especially when reclined.

So, there we are, 1/2 of a bad version of the Town Musicians of Bremen, peering amusedly around the door jamb, quietly trying to not call attention to ourselves. Suddenly, my dad loudly proclaims, "Me love you long time, Titanic Boy!"

Unable to control ourselves, we scram down the hall, doubled over in laughter. After several minutes, we're finally able to whisper without choking on countless belly-chortles. I say to Mike, "Holy crap! He recognizes Leonardo DiCaprio from another movie!" And that only makes us laugh more.

Earlier today, Mike emailed me to let me know that a special package had arrived in the mail. I thought it was something for me, something delightfully fibery, something crafty. But, I was wrong. He replied to me with one word: "DRUMSTICKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" And that was when I realized that no matter how much I try to deny it or rationalize it or ignore it, I really have married some version of my father.

boy pictures

(Original image here. I decided to have some fun....)

Crazytalk

2011-10-28T11:49:00.000-04:00

One of the best things about Mike being out of work is he now has time to randomly chat me up during the day. Mike's kept himself busy the last several weeks, first finishing our bathroom renovation, and now undertaking the replacement of our dining room ceiling (I KNOW - it's only been like 8 years!). Last night, we had a quick chat about light fixtures for the dining room - after the wiring was run. We sent links back and forth before I told him we'd have to wait until I got home to discuss this further.

Mike: I am going to go cry now.
Me: NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOo! eat cabbage!
Mike: Already did.
Me: farty!
Mike: bye.

This morning, he was meeting up with a friend of guy we affectionately refer to as a Ricky Bobby. I decided to call him Bicky Robby.

Mike: BR said he needs sheetrock to do the work. He needs to coordinate with RB. He also does not flush the toilet and does not wash his hands. I am pretty sure he also peed with the door open.
Me: whhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhat? that's nasty.
Mike: He is a nasty dude. He looked like the perfect participant for NastyFest. Very porny...
Me: so, totes down with the penicorn drawing on the backdoor. is he coming back Monday?
Mike: He might be coming back today or tomorrow if he can get someone in here to rock it up.
Me: i bet that's what he said.
Mike: yeeeeeeeeeeeeeah, i'ma need someone to come rock it up first. like a fluffer. porn star. So now I have to put more furring strips in along the wall with the windows. I will do that now.

This is what 15 years of marriage gets you, people: made up names, mythical wang creatures, and cabbage for dinner.

Rhinebomb

2011-10-18T16:29:00.000-04:00

Some of my most favoritest people are here in this picture by Eutrapelia. Another fantastic weekend, complete with so much laughter, so much wine, and never enough cheese.

Embracing the ordinary

2011-09-27T13:48:00.000-04:00

I've been trying to be better about accepting and, even, celebrating the state of being good enough. It's hard - I'm used to beating myself up over not being the best.

Success isn't black and white. Success can be grey, murky, somewhat undefined at close-range.

Shining isn't about blinding others.

Choosing to embrace the ordinary, the everyday, the normal isn't a sign of surrender or a mark of failure.

Pushing the limits will become unsustainable.

I'm opening myself to the notion of just being - in the moment, moderate.

Karma

2011-09-19T13:50:00.001-04:00

In 1995, I made a very bad choice and decided to lend a good friend a sizable sum of money. It was for a down-payment on a car that Mike co-signed, and the three of us joked in the dealer's office that, worst case scenario, we'll just take over the car and lose a friend.

And that's exactly what happened. The guy only made one and a half payments on the loan in the 9 months that he owned the car, and he never made a single attempt to repay me. The spring before we were married, Mike took over the balance of the car loan and we took our ex-friend to small claims court - I'd at least had the foresight to have an agreement drawn up that specified the terms of my loan to this guy and we had a lawyer witness the signing of said agreement. The judge, obviously, ruled in our favor. Still, I recovered less than a tenth of the money owed, and after months of physically pursuing this guy and taking him back to court at least once more, I gave up. The energy involved in that sort of thing was exhausting. Plus, I was towards the end of planning my wedding. I considered it a bad experience and a lesson learned, and moved on as best as I could.

Over the years, though, I've often thought about the difference that full sum of money would make. Maybe we would have bought a house sooner, maybe Mike could have finished school sooner, maybe we could have spent those lean years making ends not just meet but overlap. Not a week has gone by when I haven't wondered to myself, "How different would things be with that missing money recovered?" And really, I know that things have worked out, for better or worse. We bought a house, we both finished school, we've found ways to live within our means. I don't think, for as much money as it was, that things today would be drastically different than they are.

When Mike got laid off just over 3 weeks ago, it was during the week of the company's performance ratings. Mike fully expected to walk out of that room with a stellar performance review and maybe, just maybe, a raise. He didn't think anything of the fact that he was among the last to be called down, or even that the owner of the company was sitting in on the session. Things didn't work out like that, clearly. In the days immediately after being laid off, Mike talked with some of his former coworkers at length, including the other guy they laid off, K. K. was somewhat devastated by the turn of events and was made even more bitter by the news that a number of the retained employees received raises.

At first, I was almost as pissed about this as K. How dare the company give raises to employees when 3 people were unexpectedly laid off! But the more I thought about it, the less upset I was - after all, had Mike not been laid off, chances are his boss would have proposed he get a raise. And hard work deserves acknowledgement. For whatever reasons, whether it was majority rules or a matter of hard numbers or personal vendetta (K.'s belief...), the fact remains that Mike was let go. Being angry at the company for then rewarding some of the remaining employees isn't doing anyone any good.

Last week, I met Mike downtown for a drink. We were going to a show at XPN later in the evening (having bought the tickets months in advance) and one of his former coworkers, who'd been in Greece during the Great Lay-Off 2011, wanted to see Mike. Mike waffled about it, but ultimately decided a few rounds for old times never hurt anyone. I joined Mike and E. a little before 6. We shared a final round of drinks together before Mike and I headed over to the venue and E. headed home. When we parted, E. gave Mike an envelope. He said it was half of the money from his raise and that he couldn't take it in good conscious knowing that he was only as good an engineer as Mike had challenged him to be. Mike, of course, refused this offer, but E. insisted, and as you know, it's rude to turn down money twice. Plus, E. was threatening bodily harm if Mike tried to pull another bullshit punk-ass refusal.

I don't remember the walk over the Schuylkill. We both were pretty stunned. After we found our seats for the show, Mike opened the envelope. The check inside was for the exact amount I'd lost to the ex-friend in 1995. And I'm sure it means nothing, it's a coincidence, happenstance, whatever, but part of me felt such a warmth, that I was sure had I been standing, I would have passed out.

This random act of kindness, this unexpected windfall, completely humbles me. Thank you is not enough, and yet it is all I can give right now. It really is true that what goes around comes around.

Apple Holy Shits

2011-09-15T22:36:00.001-04:00

Loom, Roku, and Teddy Thompson covers.

Great adventure

2011-08-23T17:03:00.000-04:00

Late in June, my dear sweetheart decided to kayak from Philadelphia, PA to Penns Grove, NJ. This is what is looks like via highway.

Early on a Saturday morning, we loaded up the PCS car and headed down to the Schuylkill Banks trail. There's river access just north of 25th and Locust. Barely. Here you can see a splash of water has crested the wall. The tide was still coming in at this point, which if you're curious was 6:17am.

From Drop Box

Mike got this kayak off of Craigslist. It's inflatable and packs down to just big enough to not fit in the back of the Karmann Ghia (not that we've tried, I'm just imagining). It's definitely too big to strap on the back of the motorcycle. But, it's perfect for car-camping - as long as the car is a wagon or SUV. Or a hatchback. Anyway, it's a two-person kayak, but can be used as a single. Mike ended up buying two skirts for it after taking it out for a float test earlier in the month. Below, he has the single skirt installed. For times when we both go out, we have the option for the double skirt. The skirt definitely helped keep things dryer and it kept his legs out of the direct sun. Wise investment all around. Here he is slathering on sunscreen, with everything he'll need for the day packed on or in the kayak.

From Drop Box

Without too many complications, he was able to put in to the Schuylkill River at 6:29am, just 2 short hours after getting up. On a Saturday. He was nervous, but felt pretty good overall about the trip. He'd been planning it out for a few weeks, consulting different maps and scoping out resting spots. He even factored in the tides, which appeared to be largely in his favor - by the time he got to the Delaware River, the tide would be going out. Stowed on the kayak with him, he had 2 Nalgenes full of water, his water filtration set-up (which apparently saved the day when he was climbing Kilimanjaro), a whack of Clif Bars, a small first aid kit, an air horn, a solar charger, his cell phone (in a zippie bag when in his life vest, in an Otterbox otherwise), ID, atm card, dried fruit, sunscreen, dual action pump, and the carrying bag for the kayak. We discussed answering the call of nature, and I explicitly told him to either take a pee bottle or go ashore. "Do not," I said, "stand up in the kayak to pee over the edge." He assured me he would paddle to land to do his business. And then he was off.

From Drop Box

We both use Google Latitude on our phones. It's been a huge anxiety-reducer for me. I worry a lot about things that are out of my control, especially when it comes to Mike. And I worry with good reason when it comes to him: he's been hit by cars at least 3 times while bicycle commuting. Also, he's known to be a little crazy when it comes to his various adventures: running down Kilimanjaro, he discovered, is about as advisable as having your ass-over-teakettle tumble stopped by a rock. He's done both. I sometimes wish I could put him in a protective bubble, but I can't. So, being able to track him on my phone is the next best thing - at least this way I know WHERE he is.*

I went home and returned the car, and then did some laundry. I checked on his status about once every 45 minutes or so, and he was definitely paddling his way down the Schuylkill. He was making great time, just under 3mph, and my quick calculations had him arriving in Penns Grove sometime around 5pm.

I packed up our stuff for overnighting and pool-partying at my parents' place. That was the plan, after all - he kayaks on down, I ride down to meet him, and then we stay overnight. Sunday, we'd cook up a simple barbeque, jump in the pool, float around, and relax before heading back up to Philadelphia. Our friends The Lampesalots were going to come down on Sunday, too.

I read, I did dishes, I packed, did some more laundry, brushed the little cat, and then loaded up my bike with packed cases. I even had to use my tank bag - but that was mostly because I needed more space for the beer (not that we couldn't buy it in NJ, we just had some perfectly drinkable - so I hear - Oberon on hand). I looked like I was hitting the road for a 400 mile trek, but really, I was just going about 35. By the time I left, Mike had made it all the way down the Schuylkill and had crossed the Delaware River to be on the Jersey side. Here, in this photo he sent me, you can see the Philadelphia skyline in the background.

From Drop Box

He took a pee break and stretched his legs, then hopped back on his float for more southward paddling. By now, I was in Carneys Point and found my mom at my brother's soon-to-be-old-house. Rich and Morgan were packing up in preparation for their move to State College, PA. We left them to go grocery shopping and find distractions. Mike sent another photo, and that was entertaining.

From Drop Box

Here's a map - the placemarkers that are along the river are spots I'm about to refer to. There are other placemarkers just for funsies, like the farm Mike worked on as a 14 year old and the flea market/rodeo I worked on as a 16 year old. Mike originally intended to put out in Helm's Cove. But, small town drama, as relayed to me by my mother, meant he would have to modify his destination a bit. Mom suggested the boat ramp at the end of Main Street, except when we drove out that way, there was nothing there but a lousy promenade. Blech. Promenades. So, I called my brother and asked him of other boat ramps/beach access in the area. He suggested Plant Road, down a block from our childhood home, but that would add to Mike's trek and, honestly, I didn't want to do that - even if he was feeling like going for a walk, there's something sinister about adding a few hundred yards to a 25+ mile kayak trip.

I called Mike to let him know about his destination options. He sounded horrible. He was exhausted. He was down to his very last sip of water. The battery on his phone was dying, his solar charger wasn't working. He had no idea how much longer it would take him, but estimated at least two more hours. This was at 5:30. He thought he was outside of the old D.O.D., which until today I thought meant Department of Defense, but it does not. It's the Delaware Ordnance Depot. So weird! My paternal grandmother used to take us shopping at the base store. And my brother's first big-boy haircut was at the barber on base. ANYWAY, that was a rabbit hole (no, really, I just spent an hour looking at D.O.D. things).

So, I call my brother again because he knows the D.O.D. better than I do. It was still a functioning army base until the mid-nineties, and he was a 15 year old kid with dirt-bike-riding friends when the base was deaccessioned in '95. He said there was a boat ramp and beach at the D.O.D., but that it required a bit of off-road driving. Mom and her Prius were up for the challenge, so we went as fast as a hybrid, low-clearance car can go down an orange-dirt, sandy-mudded, potholed trail with manmade ponds on either side of the lane and 10 foot drop offs. Needless to say, I was an even bigger mass of nerves than necessary. So much stuff, out of my control! Latitude had stopped updating his location for some reason (the cell signal in Salem County is about as reliable as the emergency call boxes on 295 in Salem County. Which is to say, there is neither...). We were gambling that we'd get to the river in time for him to spot us and, well, row the boat ashore. Many long minutes later, we parked at the river's edge, stampeded through sea grass, and found ourselves on the narrowest of beaches. We were set in a mini-cove, so views of the river were limited. From where we stood, we couldn't see anything besides a couple of buoys and Delaware (which, technically, was lapping at out feet since the state line is funky in Delaware). Richard said he'd go as far north as he could without wading and began to traverse the sea detritus, and I tried not to pace. I was hoping against hope that he was north of where we were standing. Richard threw a log in the water about 50 yards north of us, and as we looked up, we saw the tip of an orange paddle dipping into the water. There he was! Just 100 yards out!

Slowly, he paddled over to us, resting for the count of 4 and then paddling 4 strokes. As he reached the beach, he stood, weakly, and began to dry heave. We pulled out his kayak, and mom and Richard lugged it up to the car. Mike wobbled and retched his way behind me. I hadn't thought to bring water - by the time I knew he was out of water, we were already trying to find a place to pull him in. We broke down his gear, shoved it all in the back of the Prius, and then began the lump-bumpy ride back to Rte 130. The first corner store we saw, I popped out and got Mike some fluids. Then, we all went to my mom's house and unloaded the gear. It was a bit frightening to see Mike, a fairly fit dude, so sheerly exhausted. His hands were involuntarily making paddle gripping motions, he was shivering, pale, and sweaty. He'd paddled a distance greater than a marathon - 26.4 miles - and it showed.

I got him situated in the shower, making sure he had his change of clothes and a towel, then went off with mom to pick up dinner. We'd ordered Mexican from a little dive near ... Helm's Cove. It was delicious, and reminded me a lot of La Lupe. Over dinner, we got to hear the tale of Mike's trip.

Things went well until the Commodore Barry Bridge. Then, the winds picked up, the tide turned, and the last 8 miles took him twice as long as he'd anticipated. When he got to the bridge, he had 3/4 of his water remaining. But, as he continued to struggle against the wind and the tide, he found himself getting exhausted and making hardly any progress. He picked out landmarks on the shore and started to get discouraged when, after a quarter hour of paddling, he looked over to realize he'd made little headway. When he was down to only a quarter of his total water, he started rationing it. He kept thinking every bend was the last bend before landfall. And every bend just revealed more bends ahead. Later that night, I said to him, "I bet you'd never been so happy to see my brother in your entire life." He agreed. He also announced he was never doing that trip again. It was the most difficult thing he's ever done (and he's done some crazy-hard things). He's glad he got the chance to do it, though, and I'm glad he didn't die.

Sunday, we were all much-better rested. Mike, while sore, felt like a living, breathing person, though I made sure if he wasn't sitting, he was laying down somewhere. And drinking lots of water. We prepared for the afternoon, fixing mom's beans, making GF pasta salad, and inflating pool toys. We were all ready by 11am, so I put on my swimsuit and went out to check on Mike - he'd shuffled outside at some point, insisting on vacuuming my mom's Prius ("I MADE IT DIRTY! I HAVE TO CLEAN IT!" "MICHAEL! Stop! Stop it! No means no! Do not touch that vacuum! DAMN it!!!"). I found him taking a break.

From Drop Box

I put sunscreen on his limbs, and then left him to doze in the sun. Win-win.

*Although sometimes the Latitude is insane. Once, while he was biking his normal route home from work, he showed up as being in Singapore. I took a photo because I figured nobody would believe me if I told them this without evidence. He's also apparently biked home via Italy and Florida.

Circus Freaks

2011-08-10T19:32:00.001-04:00

Mike contemplating the state of Sideshow Bob.

Separation anxiety

2011-08-01T22:39:00.000-04:00

I've joked the last few weeks about our old neighbors' kids having a harder time adjusting to the move to the new house simply because they'll be 7 miles away from their beloved Miki, instead of 700 feet away.

I take it back.

Saturday night, after a long two days helping our friends move into their new place, I had a terrible dream. Josh told me he never wanted me in his house or near his children ever again. I begged and pleaded with him, but he would not relent. I don't remember why he was so adamant about this, but he was. In my dreams, names were called and things were said, and it was all very terrible. So terrible, that when I woke up Sunday morning, I was not entirely sure it had only been a dream.

Sarah assured me today that this whole nightmare couldn't be further from the truth. And that's nice and all, but I miss those guys. I think I'll go eat some jellybeans.

Babysittin'

2011-07-29T11:14:00.001-04:00

OMG, these kids have Cooties.

History, or Dingbats in Birthday Hats

2011-07-18T11:33:00.002-04:00

Lots of stuff happened on this day ...

FDR was nominated for a third term as President.
Nero's Rome burned (who remembers that one?).
Ted Kennedy drove off a bridge.
Titanic wreckage video was released.
Pete Rose hit a grand slam against the Phillies.
Nadia Comaneci scored a perfect 10 in gymnastics.
Napoleon V Bonaparte, Harriet Hilliard Nelson, Nelson Mandela, Richard Dix, Peter Singer, and Anfernee Hardaway were born.
Garden State Park track opens.
Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown tied the knot.
Crayola introduces scented crayons.

But all of that pales in comparison to one very important thing that happened on this day some *mumblemumble-ty* years ago - my mom was born! And let's face it, most of you would be a whole lot sadder if it weren't for her being born. Not because she's so awesome (though she is), but because without her, I wouldn't be here!*

But seriously. I am so grateful to have the kind of mother I do. She's always been supportive of her kids, even if they decided digging a hole in the ground and filling it with hose water and then laying in the resulting mud pit was The Best Idea, she was there taking pictures (I think I confiscated them all). She's never not been there for me, whether I needed her or not. She's always willing to try something new, whether it's Pad Thai or turning left instead of right. Everything I've become as an adult can be blamed on her. Er, I mean, it's all her fault. Er, I mean, somehow I've turned into my mother.... You know what I mean!!!!

Here's to another *mumblety* years of MmmBoppa Big Momma crafting, pan-a-lanching, exploring, and more! Love ya! Mean it!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!

*Like my dad always says, "Having kids is hereditary. If your parents didn't, chances are you won't either."

Wishes

2011-06-15T09:50:00.000-04:00

Eatin' & Drankin'.

Crazytalk.

The Fonz.

Down and dirty.

Definitely topless.

Stick-hazzin' hiker.

My best friend.

Happy Birthday, Miki!

The opposite of wrinkly

2011-02-24T14:44:00.000-05:00

"I will warn you, if you think you might not want to know the answer, the LAST person you want to ask is sparkcrafted." - The Adrian

Au contraire, mon frère, I am the first person you want to ask because I will tell you shit.

I have stories for later, including one that involves tripe. Glorious, wonderful tripe.

Drive-by posting

2011-02-11T13:24:00.000-05:00

I feel a little like I'm running away from home. I packed my bags this morning just after Mike left for work and I won't see him until tomorrow night. I trudged up to work with a suitcase and backpack over-filled for one night away. I'm heading south for what promises to be great day with my mom. She's treating me to an Open Hearth Cooking Workshop at the Read House in Historic New Castle. She's gone for the past few years and has always enjoyed it. I was particularly interested in going this year because this year, the focus is on my adopted hometown, Philadelphia. We'll learn cooking techniques, participate in a discussion about Philadelphia cooks and cookbook authors, and finally feast! No idea what to expect food-wise, but I think the experience itself will be tasty for sure.

And then there were 4.

2011-01-24T10:33:00.001-05:00

I don't know how these things happen. I mean, I do - invariably, someone gets in touch with me and says something like "practically free, hardly used spinning wheel - know anyone that might be interested?" This is how I came to be in possession of something like 36 POUNDS of possibly-suri alpaca. It's also how I ended up with half of my craft books. And, it's how, at one time, I ended up with something like 5 sofas and/or loveseats in my house. I just can't say no.

Late Friday night, my old friend Danielle messaged me via Facebook. She wanted to know if I knew of anyone looking to buy a spinning wheel - she was selling hers. After a volley of messages, we agreed to meet up Sunday around noon at our local yarn shop.

Then, I broke the news to Mike as gently as possible: "OMG, I'M PROBABLY BUYING A NEW WHEEL ON SUNDAY AND PLEASE TELL ME IT'S OK BECAUSE I KINDA WANT TO BUY IT BECAUSE IF I BUY IT I WILL LOVE IT. And, I'll do some laundry...."*

Needless to say, he wasn't pleased, but resigned himself, a la Richard Bucket, and replied, "Yes, dear. Whatever you want dear." Actually, I think he first got more to eat and then opened a second bottle of wine, and then told me to do whatever I want. In as nice a way as possible. With absolutely no swearing. OK, there was swearing. But he did not say no.

Sunday, I drove out the the yarn shop to give this wheel a spin. I was actively trying to convince myself that I didn't need to buy it. That it wouldn't be all that nice. That the price, while right, still cut into my budget for learning how to weave. But, the blank check in my back pocket said something different. It said, "BUY!!!!"

I got to the shop just as Danielle did. We caught up on what's been going down and then got right to business. I'm fortunate to know a few people that already own the very wheel that was being offered for sale, so I knew my way around it. Within seconds, I was happily treadling away and making yarn. Ah, blissful creation of fluff into stuff, you are my happy place. I put the wheel through its paces, trying all of the ratios, making the necessary adjustments, and I spun long-draw and short-draw and worsted and woolen and then I filled in the blanks on the check and bought me a wheel.

It's a Lendrum DT folding! It came with the basics: 4 bobbins, lazy kate, and regular flyer (6:1, 8:1, 10:1 - and let me tell you, the 10:1 is slick! I usually spin at 17:1 and above simply because I like to make fine plies, but I was very impressed with the regular flyer and its ratios). I do plan to eventually get the Very Fast Flyer (26:1, 30:1, 36:1, and 44:1) as well as the quill head (6:1, 25:1, and 37:1). I'd also like to get a bag for the wheel - that would really cut down on the awkwardness of transporting the folded wheel.

Yesterday, I spun up the other 3.5/8 oz of fiber my sister gave me to spin for her (worsted-weight long-draw single) and then easily moved on to starting my next lace project for Sam (he gave me a bag of fiber he bought in a destash with the explicit instructions to make him some yarn, bitch). Later this week, Mike and I are taking a trip up to NH, ME, and MA (he's climbing Mt. Washington and camping overnight at the summit, I'm visiting the wh-ealer in ME, and then we've got a friend-festival in and around Boston), and I'm excited to hit the road with this new wheel.

* Those of you that don't know Mike, I will say this: he is the best. He does the laundry! He washes the dishes! He lets me sleep in on snowy mornings while he shovels! He knows just how much cream I like in my coffee, IF YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN.

The Bus

2011-01-21T13:45:00.002-05:00

Or, Sandra B.'s Got Nothing On Me.

Yesterday, I worked at a different location than normal. With snow still on the ground from the last storm and more snow predicted for last night-into-this-morning, I opted to leave my bike home and take public transportation.

Wait, I don't think I've told you about my new bike (unless you're my pal on Facebook. Or in real life.)....

You can't see it, because of the helmet, but I'm sticking my tongue out in this picture.

Mike and I had talked about upgrading my ride, but every time the topic came up seriously, I would freak out. Large purchases do that to me. Hell, I remember when I was going to St. Joseph's University for undergrad and calling my mom from the parking lot of a Borders because I'd just bought a compact OED for myself.... What college student has $500 to drop on a dictionary? That comes with a magnifying glass?

Anyway, my wonderful husband surprised me on my birthday with this sweet ride. It's a 2010 BMW G650GS and I rode it off of the lot with 4 miles back in August. I've been riding it ever since, as much as I can. In fact, I took it out yesterday morning before going to work to run some errands. And, I should have taken it to work, but, like I said, there was snow in the forecast.

So.

My commute into work was uneventful. I took a new-to-me bus, something I always enjoy. This one had a route that wrapped around the back of LaSalle University and took me through parts of the city I hadn't traveled through before.

My work day was relatively uneventful - working with the public, there's ALWAYS an event. But yesterday, nobody decided to howl at the full moon (metaphorically or literally. Because that's happened. Once.). I even got to work with the children, just like the old days of Summer 2010*.... Ahhhh, memories.

I left work and experienced that rare but wonderful feeling of paying my fare just as the next train arrived. I was quite chuffed and was even more pleased when I came up from underground to see the next leg of my commute pulling up. Smugly, I thought, "I'm going to be home so early! It's going to be as if I tried to get home in less than 15 minutes!" *Mental fist pump*

The snow predicted for the evening had yet to start. The roads were clear of traffic, slush, and ambling jaywalkers. Even the traffic lights switched green as the bus approached each intersection. I couldn't believe my good fortune. I couldn't have piloted a better trip home myself! And then the bus made an unexpected left turn and my eyes darted up to the electronic display at the front of the bus and I realized I was on the wrong bus.

Injured? Just my dignity...

I thought, almost instantly, of Speed. I've never seen the movie, but I know it's about a bus that gets taken hostage, and there's a bomb involved. Actually, what I thought of was that episode of Seinfeld where George's dad talks about movies he's seen recently: The Bus, starring the girl from The Net. I briefly entertained the idea of begging and pleading with the bus driver to take me home, and (as a last resort) commandeering the bus. Instead, I rationalized that I'm within walking distance of the house, it's not snowing, the sidewalks are relatively clear, and I could use a brisk walk home in my sensible librarian shoes.

I pulled the cord and got off at the next stop. I called Mike to let him know I'd done something stupid: "Hey, it's me. I kinda took the wrong bus home. I took the WTC R and not the H&M R**, so I'm at 30th and Allegheny and I'm just going to walk home now." To his credit, he had a margarita waiting for me when I finally trudged up the back steps.

My walk home was pleasant enough - nobody tried to break out of the ~~juvenile detention center~~ er, I mean, juvenile residential treatment center as I ambled up the deceptively not-wee hill (it's a slightly more gradual incline, but nevertheless, it has to go up to my home's elevation). And even with this detour-of-sorts, I still made it home earlier than I would have on the correct bus. So, point to me, right?

*I made the switch from Children's work to Adult/Teen librarianship in September. I'm enjoying the new challenges, for sure, and gaining an appreciation for public service at all ages. But, it's nice to be able to fill in as a Children's Librarian without feeling like OMG, these children are going to devour my soul!!! (Note: it totally still feels like that a little.)

**In my defense, this particular bus has two routes. These routes are only distinguished by the fine print (which is perfectly readable from street-side, just not when one is wearing smug-colored commuting glasses...). Also, I thought the variation on this route was a weekend-only route. And, I've only ever seen the H&M R bus because that's the one that goes by my house - the other one barely comes within a mile of my abode. Come to think of it, I don't think I've ever taken this bus home before. Still, what the hell!??!

Storytime!

2010-12-29T16:29:00.001-05:00

We bought our house about 10 years ago off a lady that was throwing everything away and moving to Seattle on whim or a dare. She showed up to settlement with her last puff of smoke being breathed out of her nostrils, a fleece zippered Henley unzipped and displaying her less-than-impressive saggy bra and its contents, and a face covered in soft down reminiscent of a cover model for Weekly World News.

We said she looked like a more grizzled version of Neil Young.

After settlement, we rushed back to Our House, and immediately set about ripping out the kelly green carpeting that was wall-to-wall and top-to-bottom. We rolled rooms' worth of this musty, piss-stained, and smoke-redolent carpet and plopped it all in the living room. Then, we ordered cheesesteaks, fries, and sodas, and used the rolls of spent carpet as an impromptu dinette. The following day, we set about attacking the custom window treatments, discovering that years of smoking had turned the ecru swaths of fabric camel-y yellow. Still, by the end of the weekend, all carpeting and drapery were in the basement and we could move on to the next step: removing wallpaper from walls and ceilings. Oh what fun!

Over the next few weeks, we managed to repaint the entire house and refinish the downstairs floors and meet our neighbors. We also learned that our hunch about the former owner was correct - she was batshit crazy. One neighbor told us she'd accused him of peeping on her from across the street (he'd sit on his front porch and just watch the goings-on in the 'hood). Another told us she forbid any neighbor from visiting her. Another said she called the cops if she didn't like the way a car was parked along side the house. She was generally severely anti-social though if you happened to catch her at the right/wrong moment, she'd talk for hours about various conspiracies.

5 or 6 years ago, she moved back to Philadelphia. She apparently stopped by to complain to our next-door neighbor about how we'd removed her bushes from the front yard and how dare we put a deck on the back of her house! As diplomatically as possible, the neighbor told her to shove off. We didn't really react when we learned she was back. It didn't really matter to us one way or the other. Plus, it wasn't as if our paths would cross.

Fast-forward to just recently. I'm at my current work location. Who should come in (wearing the same Henley-zippered fleece, I think, even) but the lady that sold her house to us. She's going on about her DVD collection and demanding to know where all of her labels went and it takes me a few minutes to get her to calm down enough to fully explain just what the hell is her issue. And, it's a valid issue, albeit tinged with her brand of crazy: when her brother died, she donated his DVD collection to this particular branch. She bought labels to affix to each DVD and did so before donating them. She's now pissed that all of the DVDs she donated seem to have been repackaged and her $100 labels have been trashed and wasted. She demanded to know who would be so cruel as to dishonor her brother's memory and damn it, she'll just take all of the DVDs back since clearly we don't want them.

I do what I can to explain to her that some of the DVDs were repackaged for security reasons and that others, like the multiple disc series, were split apart so that each disc was in a security case. This upsets her more and she wants to know why she can't just have a Bat-Shit Crazy Lady's Brother Memorial DVD collection here.

So, whatever. We go around and back and forth like this for a few minutes, and then I confess that I know her and that triggers a different response from her entirely. She's convinced, momentarily, that I've been stalking her. How else would I know her name? Or where she used to live? I re-explain the connection and then something jogs her memory and she calms down a bit, only to then start asking kind of accusatory questions about what we've done to the house. I defer them by commenting with things like, "The house was in such good structural shape when we moved in," and "Everything was nice and clean" (if not covered in a thick film of years of living alone and smoking heavily). Eventually, she leaves, but with the promise to return to check on my progress. Uh. OK.

Today, she returns. She comes in with a clipboard and darts her eyes around the room, looking for people. I generally look up at everyone that comes in - it's a good practice, establishes non-verbal contact, and often makes patrons feel more comfortable approaching me - so it's not out of character for me to look up and, when I do so this afternoon, I see her. She moves quickly over to the DVD collection and starts making checkmarks on her clipboard, though she seems to just be using her finger and not any writing implement. I let her do her thing, not wanting to poke the bear, and knowing that she'll come over to me anyway before she leaves.

And she does come over, clutching the clipboard to her chest, and demands to know where the labels are and why the DVDs are not in their original cases. Again. Same as the last time. And I explain it all, again, same as the last time. She's not as frenzied this time and it only takes one round of explaining for her to seem to understand. I think we're done and she's walking away, and then she turns and says, "I don't believe what you told me last time I was here."

I look at her and ask her what she means. She proceeds to tell me that there's no way she left that house in any kind of good condition because the last two days she spent in it were the worst of her life and the movers packed her trashcan and I have no right to tell her such lies, even if they are well-intentioned, because she would have paid for a cleaning person to come in and clean the house if that's what I'm after, she'll give me a check right now for the cost of cleaning. I keep looking at her, hoping that these words coming out of her mouth and into my ears will start making some type of sense, but she continues on with this rambling rant for another 5 minutes. "I thought about what you said the last time and you're just wrong." And then she does what I imagine to be her best flounce and tromps out.

The End.

Happy Holidays

2010-12-23T15:24:00.000-05:00

We're on the eve of the Eve, people. If you haven't busted out with your mad wrappin' skillz, perhaps you will find this informative video helpful.*

*Among the most frequent admonishments administered to our acrobatic pussycats is this: "Are you helping or hindering?" Without fail, they are always hindering...

Ten Favorite Places for Online Shopping

2010-11-30T14:31:00.000-05:00

When I got the email for this week's Ten on Tuesday, I misread it as 10 Favorite Small Shops Online - a subtle difference. Anyway, I was initially very excited at the thought of paging through different ToT posts today, learning about everyone's favorite indie shop. Then, I reread the prompt, realized my mistake and decided I was gonna do my interpretation anyway - I'm pretty sure we can all already count as among our favorite online shopping spots Amazon.com (which, truth be told, is probably the site I window-shop the most).

1. Threadless

I love their $10 tee sales, but more than that, I love browsing through the clever tees. And then, I love buying them for Mike so I can see the tees in action. Like this one. Communist Party.

2. BoyGirlParty

I found BoyGirlParty the way I find most things on the Internets. I did a search for squirrels. In this case, I was searching only Etsy, but no matter - squirrels abound on Etsy (just like everywhere else). I have this very notepad and I ration out its sheets like sheets of titanium, encrusted with diamonds, and woven with threads of gold.

3. bomobob
I've not actually purchased anything from this shop, but in looking for a replacement for another Etsy shop that seems to be on hiatus (new baby, understandable), I came across this shop. I am a sucker for vignette-y photos of fluffy weeds and seeds. I have no doubt I will make multiple purchases from this shop - right after I favorite every item for sale.

4. RebekahMakes

I like old cameras, and I cannot lie. They don't have to work, they just have to be old. I don't usually buy my cameras online. I prefer to discover them in the nooks and crannies of antique and consignment shops. But I am particularly lusting after the Antique Devry Box Camera on this site.

5. ThinkGeek

ThinkGeek is the place I jump to when I'm shopping for nerds. Whether they're Trekkies, engineers, gear heads, or just plain old DIYers, I can find something for everynerd at ThinkGeek.

6. FledglingFactotum, and 7. laceramiste

Unique, beautiful gifts for the fiber artist and quilter in your life. I have a quilt pendant necklace and love it (I found mine at a craft show and cannot find the artist online). These two shops each have interesting items, many of which I'd buy and/or gift!

8. studiokmo

I have a thing for maps. I have a couple on display in my house, but nothing quite as lovely (and insanely awesome) as what you can find in this shop. I bought the above prints a couple of months ago - simple line drawings of my adopted hometown. But, what really inspires me are the crazytalk mapcuts. Even if you can't afford one (they're mostly $500 and up, except for the wee 10x10 personalized mapcut - that's an affordable $90), you should click on over and marvel at the skill and patience.*

9. dlkdesigns

I stumbled on this shop by accident and luck and I am so glad I did. I can't reveal what I've purchased from this shop, but I will tell you it involves two points on a vintage map. I think I'll be revisiting this shop a LOT. Maps on Scrabble tiles? Yes, please.

10. Three Potato Four

I saved this one for last because it's a two-fer - not only do they have a fairly fabulous online shop, but 3P4 happens to be right around the corner (and down the road, and over the bridge, and on the side of a hill) from me. I just ordered some fun stuff from them yesterday and opted for the in-store pick-up, so I can't wait to do that Saturday morning!

*My friend Stacy did one of these mapcuts for fun and leisure (not for sale!). She's awesome. When I grow up, I want to be as crafty and lucky and lovely as her. :-)

Tilt-a-whirl

2010-11-02T13:29:00.000-04:00

About a month ago, my friend A. and I took a quilting class together. The instructor showed us a way to cut and sew simple, curved patchwork. Just as advertised, it was super-easy and QUICK! By the next day, I'd finished piecing my squares (all 84 of them).

When laid out one way, the effect is similar to blades of a windmill.

I'm not normally one to follow directions when it comes to crafting (see: every sweater I've knit has failed because of this tendency), and so I decided to play around with different ways of piecing this quilt. I liked the idea of staggered, deconstructed windmill blades. To lend a bit more to the staggering, I threw in the occasional scrap of solid (as in, uncut) fabric, and then sewed the squares into vertical columns.

I used my living room carpet as my design board, something I've done dozens of times in the past. I carefully laid everything out, paying attention to pattern and color repeats and proximity. Then, I took a couple of photos, and went to bed, just like I'd done the same dozens of times before.

The next morning, Mike got up and went about his morning routine. When he came back up to say good-bye, he said, "Uh, did you need the fabric to stay in order from last night?"

Half asleep, I mumbled back that it didn't matter, I'd taken a photo. "Why?"

"Well, I think one of the cats got to it last night."

Suspect is a female torty flops-a-lot kitten

And while there's another cat in the house, we honestly knew it wasn't her doing, whatever it was that was done. Aside from her incessant chattering and constant need to be ALL UP IN YOUR GRILL, Penny's not a bad cat at all. She's more likely to nap upon the laid out craft-in-progress than anything else. Unless it's yarn - she will chase a ball of yarn like it's going out of style. Good thing I'm not so much into the knitting these days, right?

Anyway, I figured whatever Lucy had done to the fabric was no big deal. I figured maybe Miss Flop had decided to flop on the fabric and that maybe that had caused things to move slightly askew. Mike didn't elaborate - and I went back to dozing for another 20 minutes or so.

When I finally did get up and moving, I went downstairs and found this:

And honestly, the only thing I could do was laugh. I tried to imagine her delight as she played with the fabric strips, batting them around the living room and into the dining room. Then, I picked them up, laid them out again, numbered them in the order I wanted, and folded them into neat little piles before storing them in a large zippie bag.

All's well that ends well - I managed to finish the top a couple of days after the "incident". It's not at all close to the order I'd originally intended or, for that matter, the second order I laid out. Still, I like it and can't wait to finish this one. More photos when that happens, for sure!

Almost better than all the rest

2010-10-26T10:34:00.005-04:00

Me: Hey, Alex, I'm the best!

Alex: Yeah, Heather, I fink you are the best!

Me: Hey, Alex, Miki is second best!

Alex: *giggles* yeah, Miki is SECOND BEST!

Me: Alex, I'm going to get you and Iris some ice cream. Because I'm the best!

Alex: Yeah, Heather, we're best friends, too!

Me: And what's Miki?

Alex: Second best! Because I fink you are the BEST!

(I may or may not have told the kids that Miki might try to steal their ice cream because that's what second best does.)

Rhinebeck and kitties and lucky number 14

2010-10-19T18:52:00.003-04:00

I had a blast at Rhinebeck, just as usual. I did not come home with another spinning wheel this year, though I did manage to procure a Jumbo Ball Winder, and not too soon - my old plastic ball winder is falling apart. I'm trying to convince myself to keep it, but it's really seen better days.

I did finish fixing my Swirl Shawl (Rav link) and I got SOOOO many compliments on it. Thanks everyone - it was nice to be fondled by yarn-y friends and strangers. Here's the only finished picture I have of the shawl (I'm all the way to the right):

photo from David of Southern Cross Fibre

Even with the blocking incident(s), I felt pretty happy with the overall project, though I don't think I'll knit it again. However, I've got the shawl/wrap bug and have cast on for Revontuli (Rav link). I'm doing mine in a laceweight yarn (something I picked up from Nangellini's here in Philadelphia) and substituting yarnovers for all of the increases. It took a good three starts to get it right, but I'm moving along nicely now.

In other news, our new cat, Lucia, has been spending her nights with us. She's really come such a long way from those early days when I wasn't sure if she was even in the house (I was convinced she'd found a wormhole or something. A portal. To Hoth, maybe.). Penny is still adjusting to Lucia's presence and generally seems to accept her. It's funny to watch the two of them interact - Lucia, easily 12 pounds of awkward one-year-old kitten, flops over and submits instantly to Penny, a 6.9 pound lady of the night cat. Here they are sharing a sunbeam last week:

Speaking of sharing stuff, Mr. Sparks and I celebrated 14 short years of wedded bliss yesterday. We were too busy buying kayak paddles, wine, clothes, and running 378 other errands (including a romantic trip for two to the local dump) to have a proper night on the town, but I think it was even better to do mundane chores with the one I love.

Love you, Miki. And, I'd *probably* say yes again.

Finished Uh-Oh

2010-09-20T11:14:00.003-04:00

Long ago and not so very far away, I bought the yarn and pattern for the Swirl Shawl (Rav link). It was the first time I bought not only the yarn a pattern called for but also the exact colorway used in the pattern. Anyway, I think it was on the joint PhillyKnitters/Ravelry yarn crawl and, as I recall, I was sicker than a dog...

Anyway, it seemed like a nice, portable project. Each hexagon was a little project in itself and made for measurable progress. Instead of crying out "one more row", I'd demand the time to finish one more hexagon! After I got through the first set of hexagons, I could knit the decreasing pattern in my sleep. I'm not a fast knitter, but I could finish one hexagon, from cast-on to bind-off, in about 30 minutes, making it the perfect TV-knitting. It was long enough for a sit-com, but not so long that my hands would grow tired or my mind start to wander.

As spinning and quilting became more and more prevalent in my crafting life, I set aside the shawl and stopped working on it for about a year. I'd pack it on trips with the intent to work on it, but it would just sit in my bag, taking up valuable spindle-space. Then, this August, I decided to finish up some in-progress projects. Not only would I be able to clear some things off the needles, but I might even come up with a nice, new handknit for Rhinebeck! Score, and score.

It only took a few weeks to finish the shawl - when I stopped working on it, I was 80% done. Sunday morning, while lounging about with my Mom, I bound off the last hexagon, wove in the last of the ends, snipped the excess yarn, and gave the shawl a nice, warm dunk in Eucalan. Then, to help make the hexagon swirls really pop, I set about pinning and blocking the piece. And that's when I put the Uh-Oh in the FO...

It doesn't look bad in that photo, but what you can't see is the first half of the shawl and the three hexagons that unraveled as I blocked and pinned. Each hexagon is worked from the outside in, often with picking up stitches on 2 or 3 sides of the adjoining hexagons. So, the unraveling would start at the center and if I were a more skilled knitter, I'd be able to save the hexagons without completely unraveling each one.

Here's a close up on one unraveling as I blocked:

It's kinda hard to see, but my problem is factoring in both the yarn overs and the decreases when fixing the boo-boos. I've fixed two since blocking the item yesterday, but I've also found another one, bringing the total to 7. At first, I couldn't figure out why this was happening, but then I realized the tails I'd woven in for the center bind-off were too short for the zealous blocking I'd performed - what was adequate for a scrunched up, unblocked tangled of yarn was severely inadequate for my expected results.

My plan is to fix the remaining hexagons and then go back and secure the center of each hexagon. Then, I'll reblock and, hopefully, will then have the finished object I've been wanting. Still, mistakes and post-blocking surgery aside, I'm really pleased with how this project turned out. The yarn is gorgeous, especially in brilliant almost-autumn sunlight, and I cannot wait to wear it!

Charmed!

2010-08-31T13:55:00.000-04:00

Here's a neat little contest that 44th Street Fabric's hosting!

Ceremony Panorama

2010-08-31T11:13:00.001-04:00

ceremony panorama, originally uploaded by The Heatherness.

Working my way through the 1,000+ photos from Rich and Morgan's (2nd) wedding. I have several favorites, but I'm really pleased with how this panorama of the ceremony turned out.

Fam-damily

2010-08-25T12:46:00.001-04:00

PICT3319, originally uploaded by The Heatherness.

This picture makes me laugh.

A tale of one lost kitty, and how you can help

2010-07-26T15:06:00.011-04:00

About two weeks ago, my library received a furry visitor: a handsome boy, all black save for a white spot on his chest, with medium to long hair. It was a drizzly, cloudy day and this guy obviously wanted to come in to the library where it was dry.

It's no secret that I'm all for cats in the library, but I was overruled and out-numbered. Out he stayed, though he never strayed too far from the door. In fact, if he wasn't at the door, he was sleeping right up against the glass block behind my boss's desk.

As the days passed, it became more and more obvious that this was not just another stray cat. He craved human attention, for one. Any time I would go out in the courtyard, he'd come running from his spot near the glass block, meowing and purring. He'd jump up next to me while I sat on the ledge of the wall and demand to be pet. He even gave himself self-service pets - not content with the amount of attention I was giving him, he'd rub his whole body under my hand in an attempt to say, "Hey, LADY! I need some petting!"

When it became clear that he wasn't going to leave, I started asking around to see if anyone knew of someone looking for a new cat. Nobody was initially willing to take him, citing housing situations, multiple pets already in the house, and a general dislike of cats (I KNOW. Dislike of cats? What?). By now, my boss had given me the go-ahead to feed our courtyard kitty (we'd been named Megadeth. I don't know why...).

Late last week, it was determined that if Megadeth was not removed from the library property, he would be placed in a kill-shelter. I ramped up my efforts to find him a home, if only temporarily, and late Thursday night the call came in - my friend A. would help rescue him. She couldn't keep him for the same reasons that I couldn't (existing cats in the house, no way to quarantine a new cat) but she was pretty sure she could convince her mother-in-law to foster him for a night or two.

The earliest I could facilitate the rescue was Sunday morning - Friday and Saturday were going to be spent driving to NJ and preparing for a triathlon (Mike, not me. I'm just the cheering squad/photographer). So, A. and I agreed to meet around 9am and crossed our fingers that we'd have luck catching the cat. A. found a vet that accepted walk-ins and we discussed the best and worst case scenarios. Best: the cat would have been micro-chipped and would soon be reunited with his owner. Worst: he'd be full of bad kitty diseases and we'd have to have him euthanized.

We arrived at the library around 9:30 and I approached the cat's typical hiding spot, fully expecting him to come jumping out from the azalea bush and onto the ledge. That had, after all, become our routine the last 10 days. When that didn't happen, though, I started to think an even worse case scenario had played out - until I remembered that on Mondays, library staff would be greeted at the front door by this cat... We were at the back door! On a hunch, I ran around to the front door. A quick second later, and Megadeth was running over to me, talkative, hungry, and in need of love. I scooped him up, took him around back, and got him into the carrier with hardly any trouble. We then drove from the NW part of the city to the SW part of the city, listening to the cat meow and cry and otherwise carry on for 25 minutes. He was not, as you can imagine, amused. But, he was still fairly well-behaved.

Less than an hour later, we had the all-clear for Dave, the Cat Formerly Known as Megadeth (we renamed him in the car; he likes the name, too). He tested negative for FeLV and FIV, got dosed with some Frontline, and was ready for his first foster home. So, back up to the NW part of the city... Once we had him at his temporary home, Dave walked around, sniffed, ate some kibble, and begged for some love. Since leaving him yesterday around noon, I've heard that he's nothing if not a gentleman - he hasn't sprayed or marked once in his strange, new home and he regularly checks on his fosterer. He's eating and drinking and grooming and, above all, napping like any house cat should.

A. was hoping to get him to the vet tonight for a more comprehensive examination, including, perhaps, an estimation of his age. To our untrained eyes, he appears to be altered and he has not been declawed. He's a fluffy guy, complete with ear and toe tufts. He likes to bonk his head on you and when you pet him, he leans in to get *thatmuchmore* love. I've not known many cats as sweet as this guy.

Dave's story isn't over yet. He needs a forever home in order to complete this story. Do you know of anyone that needs a sweet fluffy guy in their life? Please send them my way.

Want to help but can't commit to taking this guy as a foster or a forever cat? Please donate whatever you can to help offset Dave's vet fees by clicking on the button below:

Update: Dave will be going to the vet Tuesday for his exam. And, A. has offered self-cleaning litterbox to whoever takes Dave as their forever-cat.

Update #2: Dave has been to the vet and once again charmed everyone. The vet places his age at around 3-4 years old. Dave is NOT altered, he is an intact male - so, we're going to explore low-cost neutering for sure. *points to donate button above* Dave also is on antibiotics for a wound on one of his front paws. Hopefully, the antibiotics will clear up the infection. If not, Dave will need surgical attention. *points harder and more emphatically to donate button above*

Update #3: Today is N-Day for Dave - he's getting neutered (perhaps as I type!). Thanks so much to those of you that have donated - we've got more than half of Dave's vet bills covered! If you haven't donated (any amount!!!) but would like to, it's not too late - click on the PayPal button above.

Also, Dave still needs a home! He'll be recovering from his surgery for the next couple of days, but he'll be ready for his forever home as soon as early next week. Know of anyone that needs a handsome kitty? Point them in my direction!

Ten on Tuesday

2010-07-13T09:27:00.002-04:00

10 things I like about where I live:

1. I'm in a great quasi-suburban neighborhood in Philadelphia, a mere 17 minutes by slow train to Center City and a quick 12 minute stroll to trail heads that drop you into the Wissahickon Creek area of Fairmount Park.

2. Aside from living in Philadelphia, I'm pretty close to other major cities and can always justify a quick day trip to NYC, DC, or Baltimore.

3. I'm close to home - my husband and I grew up in rural Salem County, NJ, a mere 45 minutes away by highway (closer to 2 hours if we take back roads because we tend to get lost).

4. I've found my place in a great group of friends. Whether it's knitting, library-talk, or just whatever, my friends are the best. I would not have met them all if I didn't live in Philadelphia.

5. We've got history - William Penn, Lenni Lenape, Swedes, and more. It's fun to play tourist in your own city!

6. We're a scrappy town, a city full of 'tude. There's nothing quite like a Philly fan, and don't youse guys forget it. Any given sport, any given season, you're going to hear someone complain about the shittiest team, the best team, the worst play, the miraculous play, and so on. Chances are they're talking about the events of a single game. We can smack talk the crap out of our players and teams but still profess undying love for them at the end of the season. We're allowed to do that, but don't you visiting teams try it.

7. FOOD. Restaurants, cheesesteaks, water ice (say it with me - wooder ice), the Italian Market and Reading Terminal Market, trucks at Penn, the hot dog man outside of the museums, and the "don't tell mom I let you eat a pretzel from the guy outside of the stadiums".

8. I like that I live in a place that has all four seasons, though to be honest, I'd trade some summer for more winter. Still, the surrounding counties are full of parks and vistas and trails and all kinds of fun stuff to do out-of-doors. And the drive to get to, say, French Creek or the Jim Thorpe is especially nice if we take the twisty back roads and our motorcycles.

9. Speaking of out-of-doors, I love that we're pretty close to both the Appalachian Mountains and the Atlantic Ocean. Any given long weekend, we could go either direction and bask in the glory of nature.

10. I really love my house. We've been here for 10 years now and have done a lot to improve our living space. Most of the work we did ourselves. One Thanksgiving, I tiled the kitchen floor, another late August, we built a deck in a week. We've rewired, retrimmed, repainted, receilinged, and repurposed. I love that we have a secluded walled garden and a garage. I love that we're an end-of-row and have lots of windows and trees. It's still very much a work-in-progress (as I type, there's a guy doing demolition to our front porch ceiling), but it's our work-in-progress.

Retreat!

2010-05-02T23:55:00.000-04:00

I feel less jealous of everyone that spent this past weekend fondling fleeces and ogling yarn and fiber at Maryland Sheep and Wool because I spent the weekend before at the Spinning Loft's Spring Retreat 2010. It was held at a magnificent bed and breakfast and I spent the mornings learning, the afternoons spinning, and the rest of the time waiting for food to be delivered magically. Forget spa weekends and cabana boys - give me a suitable supply of fiber, a box of wine, and my own personal chef.

Shearer Elegance, the B & B owned by Beth's parents.

Mornings were spent playing with fiber. On Friday morning, we played with fine wools, flicking and then spinning the locks. On Saturday, we played with long wools and combed and spun the locks. Sunday morning, we played with the down breeds and hand-carded then spun the locks. I think I'm remembering the order correctly: Friday was Merino, Cormo (amazingly luscious locks of cormo), and Corriedale. Saturday was Lincoln, Leicester Longwool, and Wensleydale. Sunday was Jacob, Dorset, Cheviot, and Scottish Blackface.

Friday and Saturday afternoons found us engaging in the orgiastic joy of more spinning and more fiber. Beth and Chelsea had set up a lovely mobile shop in one of the front rooms of the B&B and I believe every one of us wandered through that room 25 times each day, fondling and plucking new fluff to add to our growing to-buy piles. Friday, some of us learned more spindling techniques. Saturday, spinners got to practice long-draw techniques. And Sunday, we all gathered 'round the table and got schooled in the fine art of drum-carding. I managed to keep my to-buy pile manageable and even put some things back (I'd had several spindles vying for my attention, but then I decided - right after the last set sold out of the mobile shop - that I really wanted a pair of hand combs and should save my money for those).

When we weren't in class or shopping, we spun. There was charkha action, spindle plying, and 20 or more spinning wheels whirring away on the patio, the porch, and in the parlor. In addition to the half bobbin of stuff from class that I spun, I plowed through nearly 4 oz of Polwarth from Southern Cross Fibre in the Pandora colorway (laceweight, on the Matchless), came within mere micro-ounces of finishing Gnomespun's Polwarth in the War for the Oaks colorway (laceweight, on the Bee) (I've since finished it, chain-plied it, dunked it, and neglected to photograph it).

Incidentally, I've finally figured out what the P in Polwarth stands for: "Please, Hammer, don't hurt me." You see, when I'm spinning Polwarth it's all I can do to warn others away with a simple "You can't touch this!" I think if we all remember what the P stands for, my spinning can become more productive. I'm only half-kidding....

And, of course there was the Stuff That Came Home With Me - Yarn Hollow and Spunky Eclectic made up most of my loot with the two prominent fibers being Wensleydale and Polwarth (surprise!). I also bought 2 oz of Tussah silk top dyed by cjkoho in the Bethie colorway - my only other experience with spinning silk was right after I got my first wheel and while it was not a bad skein, I now know a lot more about spinning and think I can do a finer job with the silk. We'll see!

All in all, it was simply a wonderful weekend spent doing something I truly love, meeting new and interesting people, and learning about different sheep breeds and fiber prep techniques. I can't wait to sign up for next year's retreat (Beth! You MUST have another one!!!) nor can I wait to go home and play with my fiber!

Spindle-licious!

2010-04-28T18:33:00.004-04:00

I have a new spindle! Actually, it's now no longer my newest spindle, but it's a newer spindle.

It's a Wildcraft spindle that I bought from the Spinning Loft, along with a poof of possum/cashmere/merino that remains unphotographed. I'm kinda in love with this spindle.

I haven't spun anything from fluff to yarn on it yet, but I did play and ply with this lovely spindle. I'd tried a while back to figure out chain plying on a spindle and my first attempts were mild successes in that, yes, I made some kind of yarn.... But, I didn't do it well. Practicing the technique would be ideal, but instead I set the idea aside and focused my energy on doing spinny things that I already knew how to do reasonable well. For instance, this gorgeous 3-ply:

I used an oatmeal BFL combo - Majestic and Deep Thoughts (Southern Cross Fibre) and a bump of BFL I picked up from Briar Rose Fibers while at Rhinebeck. I actually spun the BRF BFL super-fine and had a bit left over that led to me practicing chain-plying on a spindle - I mean, what else was I gonna do with less than an ounce of super-fine singles?

And a shot for perspective - wee little skein and pretty wild spindle!

I feel like I really got the hang of chain plying on a spindle and even enjoyed it, but it's definitely more of a slow and steady activity for me. I think this little skein measures just around 50 yards and it's a little finer than sock weight. I love the fuzzy halo on it and hope I can use it in a project that will showcase rather than hide it. If not, I'll just keep it on my nightstand and pet it before drifting off to sleep.

I'm hoping to have a blog post soon about the wonderful Spinning Loft Spring 2010 Retreat I just attended. I fell in love with a closet, got bested by a jetted tub, and learned new words (like blumpkin. Really, don't Google it...). I also learned spinning and fiber prep techniques and spent more hours spinning than I thought possible! It was, in a word, wonderful. I can't wait to share it with you!!!

Third time really is the charm

2010-04-19T11:33:00.002-04:00

When my dear friend Kate revealed she and her husband were expecting, I knew I just had to make her a wee quilt. More than serving as my go-to quilt guru, she's known in her circle of friends for creating magnificent scrappy and designer quilts to celebrate and commemorate life's milestones. I'd been trying to come up with a way to show my appreciation for all her help and encouragement, you know, a way to say, "Thanks, friend!". Admittedly, I got the inspiration for the quilt a little later in her pregnancy than I should have - I should have started planning and searching for patterns and fabric back in November when she shared the news. Instead, I found the fabric in Connecticut on the way home from helping my sister move into her new place in late January: Arcadia by Sanae for Moda.

Ready for seaming!

This would be my first time working with a pre-cut stack and I wanted to make sure I made the most of each little bit, so I started looking for patterns. My first stop was Moda Bake Shop - after all, the pre-cut was a Moda layer cake - and after just a few minutes of browsing the different patterns, I settled on one that looked perfect AND, as an added bonus, used the same fabric that I'd bought!

This would be my first quilt that followed a real pattern, so I took my time, measured twice, and carefully cut just once. As I pressed open each seam, I couldn't help but grow more and more excited about this quilt.

One half of the original plan.

I had grand plans for laying out the different squares *just so* and even tried to apply some level of logic to it - if pattern A is here, then pattern D must share the seam - so, I took great care in laying out the pieces and taking photos of the order I wanted.

...and the other half of the original plan.

That's not how it went down though - whatever order I'd wanted was forgotten and it's just as well. There's no real point in making things more stressful than they have to be, right? And with a deadline on this quilt (finish it before the baby shower), I figured that would be stress enough! I pieced the top and then attached the border, thrilled that I'd had the foresight to set aside the squares of fabric that were the more neutral of the bunch.

Less than perfect seams that are, actually, just perfectly fine!

Border!

I cruised right along with this quilt top and hit a snag only when I tried to come up with a suitable backing fabric. At first I considered doing the same pattern for the back, making the quilt totally reversible. And while the pattern was definitely the easiest thing I've done on my sewing machine, I found the idea of a solid back more appealing. I considered yardage from the Arcadia line, but couldn't pick just one. I considered something more neutral and even picked up a yard or two of Me & My Sister's Nesting Stripe Brown to see how that worked with the quilt top.

But then, I found myself browsing some fabric/quilting blog or another and read about The Fabric: Sweetwater's Make Life Silly! I thought it was perfect in so many ways: expectant parents are making life, having a baby makes life crazy and new and different, and when the dust settles, we're still able to make the most of our little lives. The multi-colored print also tied in nicely with the colors of the quilt top, don't you think?

I would make this quilt again and again.

I knew I wanted to use the Make Life... fabric for the binding, but I didn't want it to get lost on the back. Fortunately, I had quite a bit of the border pieces leftover from the front borders and I quickly attached them to a large cut of the backing. I used a straight, horizontal line with a tangerine-colored thread for the quilting and spaced the lines randomly. I tried to do the continuous binding technique on this quilt, too, but missed some important step it seems. No worries - it came out fine.

Quilting and borders and binding, oh my!

I enlisted the help of Mike for a quick photo shot:

In that one shot, I told him to love the quilt. He did a good job, eh?

Then, it was time to give the quilt to the parents-to-be. Referencing a seemingly old joke, we wrapped it in a tarp and presented it along with the other gifts. The shower invitation suggested we bring a 1/4 yard or more of fabric that reminded us of the parents-to-be with the hope that Kate could one day make a wonderful scrappy quilt from it. I thought it would be fun to wrap the tarp (which wrapped the quilt) with the remaining yard and half of the Make Life Silly fabric. Kate was initially very excited about the fabric more than the gift it wrapped, though that might be because she thought she was only getting a tarp.

Kate and Nate tell the story of the tarp.
Not surprisingly, it originated with my husband.

Kate gets a little verklempt as she realizes the
quilt's been for her wee one all along.

Thank you, once again, Kate, for turning me onto quilting. I cannot wait to meet your new little person and I hope that whatever you do, you make life silly!

A quilt for Alex

2010-04-17T11:19:00.002-04:00

Before finishing the quilt for Iris, I knew that I wanted to make one for her older brother, Alex. In a moment of frustration (my machine needed service!), I visited Etsy and went crazy on fabric for an Alex-appropriate quilt: trains, planes, and diggers!

I followed no real pattern and actually spent a lot of time playing around with the different sequences before settling on a square and strip sort of thing.

I pushed the limits of my little Singer when quilting this one - I did wide, long zig zag stitch on the diagonal and then went back and did the same stitch horizontally. It turned out great - I just wish I had used construction site yellow instead of all purpose white thread.

The fabrics for this quilt were of different weights and I neglected to pre-shrink them. So, when I did wash the quilted top, I had some fraying. I used a short and wide zig zag stitch to pull those sections together and am not unhappy with how that turned out!

Using the technique that Kate showed me for the continuous binding, I finished off the quilt with different length scraps. Everything was ready just in time for a birthday ... nap!

Little girl quilt

2010-04-16T14:38:00.003-04:00

Sometime in December, just as the holiday rush was starting to settle in for a final push, I got it into my head that I needed to make a quilt for my favorite little stink-eyed girl (I say that with love). I already had the perfect fabric, too - Heather Ross's Far, Far Away cotton gauze, Unicorns in every color!

Using four of the five colors, I cut the fabric into 6" squares and then arranged and sewed four squares into a large square. Then, I used the remaining color (the orange, in this case - I felt that each of the other prints had something orange and this would make it easy to tie it all together) as sashing.

I backed it with a teal corduroy I'd picked up at a crafty yard sale and then did a simple straight-line quilting.

The corduroy had a couple of worn spots - it was clean and totally usable, it just might have sat folded for too long - and you can see in the photo above that I had to do some minor patchwork. This is probably my favorite part of the quilt!

My friend Kate helped me to understand the intricacies of the continuous binding and before I knew it, I was done my first quilt. After a quick run through the delicate cycle, I ran down to give the quilt to its recipient. I think she liked it.
.

Whirlwind update!

2010-03-17T10:02:00.002-04:00

Life has been crazy-making these last few months, so here's a list-like thing of what's new and improved...

We're 98% done with the Entertainment Room - all that's left is to tackle the Closet o'Doom.
The destashing has begun, if only slowly... Most of my scrapbooking supplies are on their way to new homes - I hated admitting I'd never get into that craft, but it feels so very good to not have that on my list of things at which to be mediocre.
QUILTING has become my obsession - I'm now one of those people that gets on waiting lists for upcoming fabric line releases. Wha?
Spinning still wins out over knitting ...
... but I've been on a knitting WIP finishing streak -
felted guitar strap, felted bag, hat for coworker, socks for me, and a shawl that's just about a week or so from being done (if I were to focus only on that for a week)
I'm having an argument with my Matchless. She's currently winning, but I'm about to take her back behind the toolshed and give her the what-for, little bitch.
I'm collecting inspirational photos for my spring dye day (TBA).
We got a new cat. Or, as we're calling her New Cat. She's a 'fraidy cat and has spent most of her time hiding in the basement...
Back on the MC with this gorgeous pre-Spring weather and fuck, do I love it or what?
Bertha the WunderGhia still has a brake problem. Boo.... Not that I've tried to fix it, so at least it's not an ongoing issue; it's simply the same, unrepaired issue.
Even though it is our goal to clean out the basement soon, I trash-picked a gorgeous set of French doors. I swear, they're not for me! I'm just holding them for someone!
Changing a flat tire on access road to the Platt Bridge is scary. Slow down, people, you don't have to fly to the airport!
ETA: Made arrangements to take my first solo trip by plane (I know, right?) only to have it canceled TWICE due to super-stoopid snow (really, PHL? 3" on grassy surfaces? Really?)
AND, to go with that last one, agreed to do AM babysittin' in exchange for a ride to the airport only to be met with a Stewie-sized diaper of doom. Iris, I thought we were FRIENDS!!!!!

I'm not going to make any promises, but I'm hopeful that I can get back into this blogging thing... I miss my online friends and I miss sharing fragments of my life.

Home Improvement

2010-01-19T12:42:00.002-05:00

Mike and I pushed through over the holidays and finished up our new entertainment room. We treated ourselves to a Jumbotron, surround sound, and a dude that plasters in blizzards. We've got it mostly done - we're in the book- and file-purging homestretch now. It's easily my new favorite room in the house, though that'll change soon enough.

Fun panorama with my new camera

The other room that we're working on is my craft room. It's a sad room - some of you might remember last year's craftalanche. No sooner had my mom and I placed the last well-organized piece in place, then a shelf collapsed spilling books and stash all over the floor and ripping chunks of plaster out of the wall. It was a HUGE bummer. Out of spite or lack of motivation, that room has remained a worsening mess since that day. Initially, it was just the books and cardstock that were out of order, but as various fiber clubs and purchases came in, the entire space became an unbridled shove fest. Weeks and months passed when I had little to no idea as to what I had in my room outside of a huge mess.

I've come to the realization that I just have too much stuff. But before I can attempt a proper destash, I need to put that room together. A huge help was moving the excess furniture out of that room - we had tried making this room our spare bedroom, but that originated in the days Before Crafting, when the only thing going into the guest room were guests and cats. And another huge help is moving more shelving into that room - a process we've only just started (see above bit about book and file purging...).

I'm feeling good about having a room more completely dedicated to my crafting. I accept (and hopefully Mike does, too) that the crafts can't necessarily be contained to that one room (three spinning wheels, a sewing machine, and just about every color of floss DMC makes? In a 9x11 room?) - in fact, the current spinning wheel arrangement is: Matchless in the living room, Bee in the entertainment room, Fricke in the craft room.

Here's the room in it's current state of disarray - most of the stash is in one corner for now since we have some water damage issues to address in an external corner of the room (basically, the corner behind where I stood to take this series of photos). Corralling the stash into one corner of this room makes it easier to throw a drop cloth over it all. Also, space bagging most of the fiber and yarn is an act of genius - I'm pretty sure without doing this I'd not be able to get away with the amount of fiber I have squirreled away. The books are temporarily housed on the tall shelf and I almost have access to the closet again (I have no idea how much fleece and fiber are hidden in there... it's been months since I've been in there.)...

Another fun panorama.

I'm going to spend the next month or so breaking out each craft and organizing it by itself. The problem I've had previously with organizing this room is that I try to tackle everything at once. If I can just go in there and say, "Today is going to be fabric and fabric only," I feel like I'll be able to retain my focus and keep motivated.

How do you keep things under control - paper clutter, home libraries, yarn and stash overflows?

Spunky Santa Swap

2010-01-04T09:35:00.003-05:00

Over on Ravelry, the Spunky Club group put together a Secret Santa Swap. We went with the magic ball method, using fiber instead of yarn. I got some lovely goodies all wrapped in my most favorite spinning fiber - FINN (I cannot think of this fiber without it being ALL CAPS. FINN FINN FINN.)

Can't wait to spin the FINN! I'm hoping to get to it before I deliver the visiting wheel to Boogie just so I can "test" her wheel out - quality assurance, etc. But, I'm also sort of on a quilting kick these day - as much as I love FINN, I think I love FABRIC almost more... Almost.

Balls

2009-12-23T12:28:00.007-05:00

I'm in the middle of the end of this quilt for The Lampesalots' youngest and wouldn't you know it but my sewing machine conks out. The presser foot lifter seems to have lost resistance or tension. I took off the cover on the end and tried to see if there was an easy fix - something unaligned or slightly askew - but my untrained eye could see nothing amiss. So, one pleading phone call later, and the sensei has use of her gakusei's machine for a little while. Phew.

I can't say that I'm surprised with the machine's sudden fit of recalcitrance - I have been crazy sewing lately:

Prepping for a sewing marathon

Quilting while Mike climbed Kilimanjaro

Sewing catchalls all lined up in a row

I even made one for myself!

Unicorns!

I've probably used my machines more days in the last two months than I have ever. With the exception of Thanksgiving and one other day, the dang thing's been set up and in use, transforming the dining room into an auxiliary craft room.

And, I've not just been sewing - in the last week, I've found myself designing, too. I've made a couple of prototypes and have ripped more seams than I thought legal. But, I think I'm close to having something that is uniquely mine. Pictures of that later, though - just a few more details to iron out.

The day after - let's blame it on the tryptophan!

2009-11-27T09:45:00.002-05:00

A Thanksgiving Meme

Do you cook all or part of the meal?

I've done every variation, from cooking the entire meal, soup to nuts, to showing up an hour before dinner empty-handed. I prefer, honestly, to cook it all. Something about being able to prepare food and welcome guests to eat at my table that is just satisfying.

How much do you spend buying groceries for the meal?

Once, when we were poor, our entire Thanksgiving budget was under $20. More recently, though, we've made sacrifices in other areas so that we can afford the sort of food we want to eat - free range, organic, fair trade, and all that hippie drippie shite.

Do you eat at home or go to someone else's?

Occasionally we sup with my in-laws, though mostly we end up either doing something small and quiet at home, just the two of us, or driving the 45 minutes to Salem County, NJ, and gorging ourselves for 36 hours straight.

Describe your perfect bite?
Cranberries, a morsel of turkey, swabbed in mashed potatoes, and dipped in gravy.

White meat or dark?
White! I have just never enjoyed dark meat.

Stuffing with giblets or without?

I don't make it with, but I have consumed it with. I kinda don't even like to see the bag o' giblets come out of the turkey...

Anything you won't eat at the Thanksgiving meal?
There are a few things I can't eat, so that there eliminates most of the breads and desserts. I tend to not eat coleslaw - I don't like mayonnaise - and I don't think I've ever eaten the green Jello salad that my mother makes... Must be a green food thing.

Carve Mr. Gobble at the table or serve on a platter?
When it's just the two of us, we tend to pick and serve at the table. But for gatherings, it's easier to prep the carvings in the kitchen and serve it on a platter.

Favorite pie?
My sister-in-law made a completely delcious gluten-free pecan pie for yesterday's dessert. I really enjoyed that. But, I prefer ice cream to pie.

Formal table or Chinet?

I don't have fine china - I don't really believe in it, it's not my thing. I prefer to use my dishes every day rather than just on special occasions. So, let's say semi-formal table. Business-casual table. Glassware and stemware and matching silverware... I recently got in a table linen groove and have been using cloth napkins for our soirees. I imagine once I get a loom (damn, it's not longer a question of "if...?"), I'll make table runners and placemats galore!

Your menu?

This year's menu: two hickory-smoked turkeys, southern-style cornbread stuffing, a gravy worth chugging out on, sweet-glazed carrots, green bean casserole, coleslaw, creamed onions, green Jello salad, cranberry relish, freshly baked bread, mashed potatoes with Penzey's magic, pumpkin pie, GF chocolate pie, and GF pecan pie. I think that's it... No sweet potatoes this year. No squash...

Favorite leftover?
EVERYTHING. I totally cannot wait to go home from work today and put together a big ol' plate of leftovers! That anticipation would be why I didn't bring leftovers for lunch!!!

Extended family, friends, both or just immediate family for dinner?
This year, we entertained friends AND family. It was swell. Next year, I should be able to travel (I won't have to work Friday and Saturday - maybe), so we'll see where we end up...

After dinner, do you go to the latest movie or football on TV?

Football is on TV all day. I usually curl up somewhere and craft and finish off whatever bottle of booze needs finishing.

Do you watch the Macy's parade?

I'm not really into parades. Early in the day, we'll tune into the Philadelphia parade, but most of the time, I'll throw on some music and entertain myself.

Christmas decorations up before or after?

In years' past, we've put them up over the holiday weekend. This year, we've got a lot of home improvement going on and we have a deadline in mind, as well. Decorating, as bah-humbug as it may sound, will just interfere with that progress. Plus, the basement is a royal mess... Even if we wanted to decorate, it would first require a considerable amount of basement cleaning...

Black Friday shopping or sleep in?

Option C - work. The one and only time I went shopping on Black Friday was years ago with my mom. By the time we got to the head of the line to check out, the manager had browbeat the cashier to such an extent that we lodged complaints against him. Here's to you, Asshole John - after all these years, I still think you have a little wienie.

Any special Thanksgiving tradition?

As kids in the band, a lot of our Thanksgivings were spent at footballs games, doing pre-game and halftime shows. We'd come home to a house full of delicious aromas. That was our tradition for years. Now, the tradition is for my husband and my sister to argue over who's green bean casserole it is (is it Mike's because he's older? Is it Amy's because our mom makes it? The debate ensues!). My mom always makes a veggie tray for pre-meal snacking, and she makes the green Jello salad and coleslaw. If we're traveling to New Jersey, we usually make a traditional stop at the booze store in DE before crossing over the Delaware Memorial Bridge.

Favorite thing about Thanksgiving?

That moment just before everyone asks for seconds...

Favorite Thanksgiving memory?

Post-meal turkey comas are ALWAYS a good memory.

Hope those of you that celebrated had a wonderfully warm and tasty holiday!

My Handsome Boy

2009-10-28T07:50:00.000-04:00

After much debate, we decided to put Chico down. A number of factors were considered and in the end, Mike and I agreed that life would just be better for everyone involved if we let Chico pass comfortably.

Most of you that have met him are probably not-so-secretly relieved that you'll be able to visit our house without worrying about being trapped in the bathroom by Meanest Cat In World. You can cheer and revel amongst yourselves, I'm just a little verklemmt.

And for as mean as he was, Chico still had a sweet side. He almost always slept with us at night, and would rarely wake up at cat o'clock to do those things that most cats do - walk on your head, bat jewelry off of the dresser, play balancing games, yowl, scamper. Instead, he'd contently snuggle up behind Mike's legs, risking getting kicked in the head (Mike's a twitchy sleeper), and would only get up briefly for food before returning to bed.

Of the two of us, Chico loved Mike much more. Or, at least, he was more affectionate with Mike. This really used to upset me, being a cat person and all, but I eventually came to accept that it was not my lap the cat wanted. Chico would follow Mike from room to room throughout the weekend. If Mike was in the basement, Chico perched on a step and watched. If Mike was in the dining room, Chico sat on a chair and watched. And if Mike was just finishing up in the shower, Chico would start yammering at him as soon as the water stopped running.

That's not to say that Chico and I didn't have our good times. He'd sing along whenever I whistled "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer". Okay, so maybe he was really protesting and maybe I was antagonizing, and maybe I just figured out why he felt so compelled to jump on my head. Still, we had our moments - early mornings, the cat would snuggle up to my chest in-between snooze alarms. Winter evenings, Chico would wait patiently for me to get settled with knitting and a lap blanket before wedging himself in my lap. Lazy summer afternoons, Chico and I would sun ourselves on the deck. I never got the same treatment from him that he gave Mike, but I learned to love what I was given.

I hope we've done the right thing and I hope he's no longer in pain or angry or being just plain mean. He wasn't really a good cat, I'll be honest, but I loved him just the same.

Chico, April 1996 - October 2009

What I Learned About Sam's Mom

2009-10-20T16:19:00.003-04:00

Or, how to camp in the woods when your campground loses electric and locks the bathrooms down....

Despite the constant threat of wet weather and the unexpected electric shut-off, I have to say that Rhinebeck '09 was by far the best yet. We had dry nights and camp fires, meals cooked over open flame, and no need to worry that the food might go bad because nature became our refrigerator.

I met a lot of Spunkies, finally introduced myself to Carol of Black Bunny Fibers, and just really made the most of the situation.

We're thinking about camping again next year, though it will likely NOT be at Mills-Norrie - a neighboring crew of cabin-campers said that there's been some sort of electric situation every year for the last three years.

Photos soon!

Stung

2009-09-16T12:58:00.002-04:00

The Garden State Sheep Breeders' Sheep and Fiber Festival was laid back and enjoyable, even if it did rain, mist, or otherwise saturate the air the entire day, keeping away crowds and making it hard to walk outside without encountering ankle-deep mud (at least, I hope it was mud. Hard to be certain with so many animals being walked around...).

I came well short of my goal of selling out of my luscious alpaca (for the record, I sold none), but I had a surprising 8 or so sales of hand-spun and hand-dyed. The alpaca will go up on Etsy and I'm inspired to dye more - so much so that I've got a pound of merino hanging out in my craft room and a pound of finn on its way to me. It'll be hard to let the finn go, I'm sure. I freakin' love finn. If it were legal, I'd divorce my husband and MARRY finn.

Ahem.

Okay, maybe I wouldn't do that. I mean, my husband's pretty awesome. In fact, as I was recounting the day with him Saturday evening (drowsily and sorely as I'd stupidly forgotten to pack a chair and ended up literally standing from 8:30 until 5:30, except for the 3 minutes when I braved the portapotty. In the rain. Hoping that was mud all over the floor... Oh, and the 30 minutes or so that I spent testing wheels.), he mentioned that he thought I should get a charkha. Actually, he said, "You should get that wheel that sits on the table and you spin it sideways, like Gandhi." And I replied, "Well, considering I was thinking about getting a Martha (from Watson Wheels) and how expensive that is, maybe I could get the charkha AND a Bee!" He didn't know what a Bee was, so I showed him the site (with video!), and he approved. I think his actual words were, "That's pretty cool!"

And, actually, it is pretty cool. There were a few wheel retailers at the festival, and since I'd seen fit to forget any sort of craft-in-progress to occupy whatever downtime I might have, I ended up roaming around the booths, testing Louets and Ladybugs just to spin a bit. I bought a spindle from Jesh, and some lovely fiber from Roclans, and that helped take the edge off of not having anything of my own to spin. Sometime around my 3rd or 4th lap of the vendors (and just before my 2nd bowl of 4-H chili), I saw the Bee in BitsyKnits's booth and decided I should try that one, too. I admit, I was skeptical of the Spinolution wheels in general, but the cuteness of the Bee was what attracted me. It's wee, it's foldable, it's fast! And, after a couple of herky-jerky starts, I managed to sit back and spin an even single. The treadling is a little different, more of a rocking than a pedaling action, but I found that was just a matter of finding the right muscle motion. Bitsy was fantastic and showed me how easy it was to fold and unfold the wheel, change ratios, and everything. She left me to it once I was set-up, and I could have honestly sat there for the entire day. The spinning was smooth, the wheel was quiet (or as quiet as I could determine given that I was in a barn with people milling about), and I have to admit - I kinda fell a little bit in love with it.

I'm now debating my next step (and, honestly, the next step depends on what happens with the Pennsylvania budget and whether or not libraries close as scheduled October 2), but I feel that I'm leaning towards the Bee over the Martha right now. It isn't so much that it's the cheaper (or, if you prefer, more affordable) option, but that it's a true traveling wheel. Yeah, I can bang about with my Fricke, and the Matchless has a shoulder strap somewhere, but both of those wheels remain bulky for traveling on the bus. The Bee? Why, I could tuck her in a saddlebag and take her on the motorcycle. Or, I could gently place her in the Ghia's boot (read: toss) and travel to spin-ins and spin-outs with a human passenger.

If you didn't get to the Garden State Sheep Breeders' fest, I definitely recommend you try to make it next year. And who knows - I might be there again, though this time I'll have a chair. And maybe I'll be spinning on a Bee!

Fiber festival appearance

2009-09-10T10:28:00.004-04:00

Things have been hectic 'round these bits, as I'm sure things are hectic 'round your bits. Life happens, etc.

This weekend is the Garden State Sheep Breeders Sheep and Fiber Festival and I'll be helping Brook of Twisted Fiber fame in her booth. Brook's featuring some of my fibers and handspun in exchange for me being her booth bitch. I'll definitely have some lovely handspun yarns and some blended batts, but the real draw is going to be these lovelies:

This alpaca came to me from a gentlewoman's farm in Delaware. The fleece has been sorted and the bulk of the VM has been removed. The fiber has not been cleaned, but, as a rule, alpaca doesn't need the same scouring that most wool fleeces need during fiber prep.

While I'm hoping to sell out of alpaca sometime mid-afternoon Saturday, I assure you that whatever doesn't go will be posted to Etsy sometime in the next week. I've been sitting on a huge Etsy update for months now - tons of hand-dyed yarns and rovings in addition to some handspun. Look for a preview sometime next week!

Weekend getaway

2009-07-21T07:18:00.002-04:00

When Mike asked me what I wanted for my birthday this year, I knew I could pretty much ask for anything. After all, he's going to Africa in November. And while I'm sure I'd not be unhappy with another spinning wheel or a bigger motorcycle or a freshly repainted car, I found that this year, all I wanted to do was spend time with the one I love. So, we booked a weekend at the Apple Valley Inn.

Mike met me at my library around 4pm on Friday and we drove a non-highway route to North Jersey. I'd debated renting a car because of predicted rain, but in the end, we took the Ghia on her first long-distance trip. The drive up was a little anxiety-inducing - scattered rain showers, chance of hail, rush hour traffic, and a prone-to-leaking-and-rusting vintage VW. We made it, though, and were greeted by a beautiful inn and room:

After what seemed like an 8-course breakfast, the next day we headed out for some local sight-seeing. First up: Warwick Valley Winery. We'd stopped here on the way back from Rhinebeck last year, but stayed long enough to park the car because it was so incredibly crowded. That's what you get, I suppose, when you visit a winery/apple orchard at the height of the season. This time, though, we were there as the place opened and were joined by a Sangria Tour. The tour group had scheduled a private tasting, so we had the room to ourselves.

We each tasted 6 different wines and hard ciders before ponying up and tasting a few brandies. Then, we shopped! We showed some restraint, coming away with just over a dozen bottles of wine, cider, and brandy. As we were checking out, I spied a bucket labeled BOCCE. I nudged Mike and gave him the eye, causing him to nearly drop our basket of bottled goods - the man loves him some bocce. So, we rented a bucket and headed up to the courts.

I had an initial good showing: the score after round 1 was 4-0.

But my beginner's luck was no match for Mike's skill....

End result: 12-4 and 12-7, both to Mike.

We headed back to the inn after lunch and took naps, sat by the creek, read, and generally did absolutely nothing - it was glorious.

Then, we headed out for a nostalgic treat: a movie at the nearby drive-in theater!

We saw The Hangover, which was much funnier than I expected.

Sunday, we had another massive breakfast and then headed back into Warwick to play a round of disc golf. I'm by far no good at the damn sport, but that doesn't mean I don't enjoy it. Here I am skipping back after going way off the fairway:

Incidentally, this reminds me of the old default XP wallpaper.

Eventually, our fantastic weekend away had to end - cats needed feeding, jobs needed working, and so on. We had time to stop at a general store for lunch, feasting on some good ol' Jersey tomatoes.

All in all, this was one of the best weekends away. It was nice to be there and not have a schedule and Mike and I really got to unwind. We both would love to visit the Inn again - and given that there're probably a dozen local things we didn't do this time around, we shouldn't have any problems justifying another trip!

Knocking at my cellar door

2009-07-20T17:06:00.003-04:00

On sunny afternoons, when the laundry is sitting in post-apocolyptic piles and the dishes are "soaking" (a trick I learned as a kid as a way to get out of doing dishes for an hour or so - "But MOM! They're soaking!!!"), I take the spinning wheel out on the deck. Sometimes, Chico comes outside with me - for as grumpy as he is, he can be rather content to just have a sunny spot on the deck. Sometimes, I'm joined by a member of the Revolution:

This guy is Homicidal Squirrel, Jr. Or, maybe the Third, Esq. It's not like he provides identification outside of his aggressive chittering and stunts.

Recently, Penelope's been wanting to join me on the deck for some outdoor adventures. We actually did let her out a few weeks ago, assuming she'd be occupied for a bit with all the new stuff to smell and rub her face on. No sooner had we let her out, though, and she made a beeline for the neighbors' deck. After much coaxing, Mike finally threw his arms up and proceeded to climb over our deck rail to our neighbors' deck. He was tired and coming off the adrenaline rush of having completed his first triathlon, and really wasn't up for wrestling with a little cat. I guess Penny picked up on that, because as soon as he was between the two decks, she frolicked back over to home, where I scooped her up and deposited her back in the house.

Since then, as soon as the back door opens, Penelope's RIGHT THERE, hoping to escape.

Now, who could this be?

The damn feline trollop gets so worked up about the possibility of coming outside in the outside world where there is outside air and outside stuff, that she gets at least one claw stuck in the storm door EVERY time she begs to come out. This, invariably, cracks me up, and I leave her stuck, one paw raised as if in some weird person-to-cat game of Mother, May I? until I take pity on her and help get her free. Usually, she's only hung up for 10 seconds - I'm fairly frightened she might freak out and damage her claws if left in the stuck position longer, BUT I also want to give her a chance to free herself - you'd think since she's done this manuever enough times, she'd have figured out a way to free herself.

Oh, I know who it is! Penelope!

Next up: our getaway weekend!

Crunching the numbers (and bones), or how we spent Memorial Day Weekend

2009-05-26T10:12:00.003-04:00

How long ago did I mean to post this? Ohhhh, about 6 weeks ago....

6,250 - pounds of dirt, sand, aggregate, river rock, and pavers moved, selected, loaded, unloaded, positioned, used, and filled in
2 - items we bought off of Mr. Softee on Saturday

2 - times I had to reserve the CarShare for hardware store trips
300 - cost, in dollars, of additional materials (the pavers were leftover from the backyard patio installed 4 or so years ago)
14 - friends hung out with in the evening
4 - nights spent grilling
3 - containers of ice cream
2 - recycling buckets put curbside after a weekend of friends and drinking
1 - pair of pants destroyed in the process
22 - hours spent doing hard labor
24 - Advil administered for aches and pains
36 - tulip, daffodil, and crocus bulbs unearthed and replanted
1 - sage replanted
4 - rows of knitting completed for the entire Memorial Day weekend
0 - yards spun on wheels or spindles
28 - beers and ciders consumed by the workers (that is, me and Mike)

Add that all up, and you get this:

Wilde

2009-05-11T19:15:00.003-04:00

I finally took the time to check out a soon-to-be gone local mill. John Wilde & Brother has been in Philadelphia for about 125 years, predominantly offering carpet wools, though in more recent years, had started carrying products for hand-knitters and spinners. I say had because Wilde is no longer producing yarns, though they have some stock in their retail shop (hours by appointment or luck). I called sometime last week to see about stopping by on Thursday. I spent 30 minutes milling (har har, fiber pun) about, looking at the odd lots and the rummage bags (25 cents each!), examining a mohair fleece, and fondling the cones before settling on a large fiber-festival sized bag of goods:

From the top, clockwise: 4,800 yards of laceweight singles, 480 yards of bulky singles, a peek of the 2lbs carded wool, bits and bobs from the rummage bags (red, orange, blue), 1,400 yards 3-ply down in front, and a white bag full of 1 or 2 lbs mohair fleece.

I won't even tell you how much I paid for it all because that would make me seem obscene. And possibly dishonest - you will not believe how little I paid. In fact, I will just say this: the carded wool, the 2 lbs of it? Cost nearly 50% more than EVERYTHING ELSE on that chair, together.

Love the tags on the bulky singles.

I spent Saturday night and Sunday morning skeining up the big hanks - the 3-ply was portioned out in 110 yard skeins (with the intention of pairing them for 220 yard lots) while the laceweight singles were skeined a couple of ways - I had 8 hanks of 250 each and 5 hanks of 500 each and a leftover hank of 300 yards. I do not recommend winding hanks by hand, though I will say that my Fricke skein winder was absolutely the only thing that kept me sane whilst winding at midnight on Saturday. Or is that Sunday? It doesn't matter - it was all a blur.

I did all of this winding off and tying up in preparation for dyeing on Sunday. The original plan was for my dear friend Anj to come up to the Falls and we'd spend the day dyeing al fresco. But, poor Mike was just as sick as he's been all year, so I went to South Philly instead. I packed up my suitcase full of yarn and fiber and trundled on down. I managed to only get about half of the yarn dyed, much to my disappointment, but have made a somewhat firm date for more dyeing to take place in the near future, much to my delight.

Most of the yarn should be dry now (I started with the laceweight) while the carded wool is still lurking about in Anj's basement, dripping itself dry. Eventually, everything will go up on the shop, but for now, here's a wee sneak:

Two hanks, fraternally dyed for your knitting pleasure.

Greens

These two and the rest of what I dyed yesterday will go up on Etsy the beginning of June. Then, by mid-June, I hope to have the 3-ply dyed and ready to go, along with a few other things. Check my Flickr for preview photos, or subscribe to SparkCrafted's RSS feed to keep up with new listings.

A brief and recent history of illness

2009-05-09T08:30:00.001-04:00

A few weeks ago - maybe even last week, though at this point, the days and weeks all just blur together and have found that I am losing my grip on temporal things - Mike checked out the new produce market in our neighborhood. For those of you that aren't familiar with our neighborhood, we really don't have any viable options for shopping. Sure, there are corner stores and bodegas, and down near the historic cemetery, there's a "marketplace" (though at a two-bus ride or 3+ mile round trip walk, it's not convenient. Plus, there are only so many Fuji apples one can eat...), and we've got a couple of pharmacies. But, there's no grocery store. There are grocery stores within driving distance, though we don't have a daily driver of a car.

Anyway, we were excited to see a produce market open closer to the house - if nothing else, we'd be able to stroll the 4 blocks to the market and back whenever we wanted to. Mike, finding himself home alone (I was either working or hanging out with my mom), checked the place out and pronounced it awful - but not before buying some apples, oranges, and a bag of seedless grapes. He started in on the grapes immediately, and it wasn't until he got to the last few in the bag that he made a somewhat gross discovery - when trying to pull the stem off of one of the grapes, he realized he was tugging on a worm. He immediately chucked the remaining half-dozen grapes, but was likewise immediately convinced he'd consumed who-knows-how-many worms.

Our discussion when I got home that night went something like this:
Mike: I have worms.
Me: What?
Mike: Yeah, you need to take me to the vet.
Me: WHAT?
Mike: The vet needs to get rid of my worms for me.
Me: You do realize that you could go to a people-doctor for worms?
Mike: But vets deal with worms all the time!!!
Me: You don't have worms.
Mike: Yuh-huh! I ate them! They're in my belly!

Later, Mike: Maybe they're eels.

Like with most of my husband's claims of ailment, I laughed and humored him. Getting home after work, I'd ask him how his worms were. Swimming at the Y, I'd ask if the eels were restless. I even asked him, one night, if he had the urge to drag his bare butt across the rug. He may be insane, but I'm right there with him.

He emailed me yesterday to let me know that his "worms have no concept of what day it is. I'm pretty sure they're celebrating Cinco de Mayo right now, even though they shouldn't be." Likely translation? He had gas....

After biking through the last 8-10 days of Philadelphia rain, Mike's developed a bit of the sniffles: sore throat, ache-y, sneeze-y, and so on. Of course, he's convinced that he has the Swine Flu, though he's taken to calling it the hiney flu (H1N1). He's further convinced that the worms in his belly are somehow involved in this head case and is currently planning tactics for eradicating the worms. I have no idea what that means. As I was getting ready for work, all I could hear was him moaning, "Woooooooooormmmmmmmmmmmmms!!!" Then, he'd shuffle by, tissues in hand, shaking his head. When I left, he was prone on the couch, the cats peering at him quizzically. I have no idea what to expect when I get home from work, though I suppose bringing home some gummy worms is not the best idea today.

Two-wheeler

2009-04-18T13:02:00.002-04:00

We've been watching Long Way Down, Charley Boorman and Ewan McGregor's documented trip from John o'Groats, Scotland to Cape Town, South Africa. We're at the part where Ewan's wife joins them, just inside the Malawi border. Eve's relatively new to motorbiking* at this point, and I can't help but feel a certain Anne Shirley-esque kinship because of that. Here you've got a woman of certain age, willingly learning something new and wanting to do so because then she can share that interest with her husband. Sounds like a kindred spirit to me! Except Eve doesn't do all that well and regularly drops the bike. So, over the last day and a half, every time something's gone awry with me and my bike, I've chirped out, "But I'm better the Eve! I haven't dropped it!"

The question is, though, how much better. And I'd have to honestly say, not really better at all - just differently bad. To wit:

On my way in yesterday, I discovered the crash bar works, which is just another way of saying, "I hit something". Typical newbie mistake - I misjudged the width of something and clipped the crash bar on a landscaping trailer.
On my way home yesterday, I came upon some serious traffic in Germantown and the Falls. Since I'm still gaining confidence with my low-speed and walking skills (motorcycle walking, not two-legs walking) (though there are days when I wonder if I have those skills, too), I got a little panicked at the thought of creeping and crawling along in a line of cars and tried to find a side street to loop me back somewhere at least less congested. This was a great plan until my bike started to not run. Rolling along, and then sput-sput-sputter-off. I ran out of gas....
Still out of gas, I flipped the petcock (hee!) to reserve. Or, what I thought was reserve.... I managed to get nearly 5 blocks from home before the fuel in the bowls was completely exhausted. Had I flipped it to the correct reserve (instead of cutting the fuel off entirely, d'oh!), I'd've made it home no problem. Instead, the Mighty Swede cycled up and spotted me a half gallon or so of petrol*.

I will admit that I was a little spooked this morning, given my adventure yesterday, but rather than look at my mistakes, I've rewritten them as positive experiences. So I clipped the crash bar. It did no damage (to my bike), the crash bar did it's thang, and most importantly, I did not lose control of the bike. Go me! And, yeah, I ran out of gas. But, in each instance, I was able to get the bike out of traffic and thus avoid becoming part of an even bigger traffic jam. And, I'm also fairly certain that I won't ever again confuse the lever on the petcock (hee!!!).

Eve and I are probably tied right now in terms of road skills. Yeah, she's fallen and dropped her bike at least a dozen times, but she's always gotten right back on it and tried it again. I've commited all kinds of stupid mistakes, and yet I'm still upright. In a sense, I suppose it is all good.

*Motorbike and petrol are courtesy of McGregor and Boorman. They've gotten into my head, what with their accents and vocabulary and shit.

Stop me if you've heard this story before...

2009-03-21T09:33:00.003-04:00

Over on the Spunky Rav Group, we're talking about ear worms. Actually, the conversation started out with the simple question of "Who's on Twitter?", but in true Spunquistador form, took a turn for the worse by page 2. I had some alone-time last night (Mike was congregating with the old office mates and realizing, WOW, the old office is a veritable shit-hole), so in between drum carding (woot! batts!), I checked email and Ravelry.

Anyway, my contribution was the theme from The Facts of Life. It's pretty catchy, most of us have seen it (either first-run or re-run), and it is definitely a song that can get all up inside yo' head.

My husband has his own lyrics for that song. In fact, he regularly makes up his own lyrics for lots of songs, most of which are not fit for public consumption. His version of "Big Rock Candy Mountain" takes inspiration from Brokeback Mountain - 'nuff said.

Now, Mike and I have been together a LOOOOOONG time - we met in '90, started dating in '94, and married in '96. So, he's been a part of my life for, well, more than half of my existence. As such, he's taken on a lot of family memories as his own - even those that he wasn't around for - simply because he's heard the stories so many times. My favorite is when he tells the story of my dad and his buddies doing donuts at the local Catholic school being put under citizen's arrest by Davy Crockett. But, that's another time.

Way back when I was a kid, my mom sponsored a child in Africa. Mom's always been one to reach out and help others. I inherited that from her, though I consider it a blessing and a curse since I've been known to help others at my own expense. Still. The child she sponsored in Africa lived in Kenya and his name was Josphat Kipligat (or Kiplagat - it's been years since the paperwork was discarded, which is ashame because it would be kinda cool to look at those drawings and letters again). He was a black-as-night-save-for-his-gleaming-white-smile sweetie of a kid and would send drawings and little notes of gratitude. He'd share stories about what he'd been up to, how his family was doing, and such. The letters were fairly regular for a couple of years and then, one day, they stopped. Some time after that, mom got a letter from the sponsoring organization informing her that our little Kenyan boy had died. We were all very sad. Despite his health and our support, Josphat died of a snake bite he'd received while getting water from the nearby lake. The nearest hospital was too far away and there was no medical help available in the village. We mourned the loss of a kid we never really met and my mom then sponsored Sonia Thunder Cloud, a Native American.

You're wondering how this ties in to the song from The Facts of Life, right? Well, here it is. Mike made up a song as a way of, er, celebrating Josphat's life and death as we knew it:

You give me this, you give that,
You gave me Josphat Kipligat,
The facts of life, the facts of life.
When you cross the street
You're hit by that
You go fly-ing and then go splat,
The facts of life, the facts of life.
When you're bit by a snake -
There's nothing you can do
but go and die by the lake -
And that's just the facts of life,
That's just the facts of life......

Poor Josphat! Though, there's something to be said for remembering - seemingly forever - a child that lived half a world away and died 20 or more years ago. I don't know what that something is, but it's something. We've incorporated Josphat in other ways, too - the recordable bottle opener? Sings just "Jos-phat Kip-li-gat". Henry the Talking Gnome sings a fast-paced, high-pitched Josphat song (on occasion - Henry also says naughty things like "eat shit and die" and "if you like it then you shoulda put a ring on it" and "ouch, my taint!" - such are the perils of living with Mike, people. Also, ladies - back off, he's all mine....). Holidays inevitably feature Josphat and his little song at some point. In fact, hardly a week goes by when I don't think of that little boy in some way. So, thanks, Josphat, for the memories. I hope wherever you are, you're smiling big and bright - I know we are.

SparkCrafted goes a little bit big

2009-03-06T14:44:00.004-05:00

I spent last weekend going through my handspun, measuring yardage, setting twist, drying skeins, and taking photographs.

And with hanks of yarn at the ready, I designed some labels:

Then, just to mix it up a little bit, I got out my beads and wire and threw together a set of stitch markers:

I've gone ahead and opened up an Etsy shop: SparkCrafted.etsy.com, a so-far-very-small shop offering a variety of handspun yarns, some hand-dyed items, stitch markers, and heather batts (for spinning or felting!). I love knitting, but I love spinning even more! And while I do spin-to-knit, I mostly just spin for the sake of spinning. I'll be offering handspun from fibers dyed by Amy of Spunky Eclectic, Carol of Black Bunny Fibers, David of Southern Cross Fibre, and others. Let my bounty of spinning come live in your stash! Or, just tell a friend. I'm adding new items about twice a week and hope to spend some time soon making more stitch markers (next to spinning, making stitch markers rates up there on my list of What I Really Really Like).

Anyone that wants to sort of proofread or offer feedback, please feel free to either Convo me on Etsy or email me at htsparks @ gmail . com.

The Opinionated Knitter

2009-02-05T08:43:00.002-05:00

Looks like I'm waiting 'til after dark to retrieve my book... Because this is one head-to-head I know to avoid.

A whack of WIPs

2009-02-04T14:13:00.002-05:00

There's a little bit of project ADD going on in my life right now.

First, there's the bedroom closet.

It's all done save for the trim (we're trying to match it to the rest of the house, which isn't easy since the house was built in the '20s) and inside customization. Actually, Mike's side is done save for one further piece. My side? I just have the clothes rod. We managed to install the closets themselves with very little difficulty (I KNOW! There's always some kind of difficulty! This time - very little!) and I'm already convinced that every other closet in the house needs to be Ikea-ified.

Next, there's a sweater vest. This is Fence from Knotions. I'm using stash yarn and making it longer than pattern calls for. I've got the back done and here it is blocking away:

I cast on and started the front last night and am vowing that come finishing time, I will not rush through it all just to have a FO. A stitch in time and all that shit.

Then there's the revival of my quilting foray. After discovering that Little Miss Penelope and Her Wonky Head of Attacking had managed to pull some holes in our current quilt, coupled with the fact that we're in the middle of redecorating the bedroom, whether we planned that or not, I've decided I need a new quilt for our bed. I bought fabric:

I'm going a little backwards about this and bought the fabric without having a pattern first. I think 8 yards of fabric will be enough, though for a queen sized quilt. If it's not, then OH DARN, I'll have to go back to Spool or Fabrics on the Hill and shop. Again. Ow, that's my arm you're not twisting...

Here're some closer shots of each of the 8 fabrics.

P&B Textiles, Clara 988E

Jay McCarroll's Woodland Wonderland, JY10

Kaffe Fassett Millefiore

Amy Butler, Midwest Modern 2 Sky/Fresh Poppies

Kaffe Fasset, Paperweight

Amy Butler, Midwest Modern 2 Green/Park Fountains

Unknown print, but I like it!

Sandra Banava for Robert Kaufman, Potpourri Blue

Click through on those fabric shots to get up close and personal.

The fiber I posted about previously - the organic merino from Spunky Eclectic - is spinning finely - 40-60 WPI, with most of the singles being 50 WPI. I'm nearly through the first 2 oz of the merino and am looking forward to seeing how the BFL spins! I really, truly can't wait to move this one to the FO column. While I love spinning and I really, truly love spinning for this particular project (which, by the way, is called "The Project in Which I Spin A Super Thin Yarn"), spinning 2 oz this thin is taking FOREVER. And then I'm going to do the same with the BFL. I must be crazy ... or crafty!

My fear of drowning

2009-02-04T13:32:00.001-05:00

I don't think I've always had this fear, though recently I've started having nightmares in which I drown.

Separated at birth

2009-02-01T10:01:00.002-05:00

This is a tale of two fibers, dyed in different batches, in different parts of the country, by different people.

Twilight, an organic merino, dyed by Amy of Spunky Eclectic for the Fiber of the Month club.

This is BFL, dyed by Brook.

The two dyers would be able to tell the two dye jobs apart, and most avid spinners would know that the two offerings are not identical twins. But, even so, I find it to be some sort of sign that my two favorite local dyers (and despite the 10 hour drive between me and Maine, I do consider Amy to be local. Oh, wait. I consider her to be loco.... I kid.) have presented the same colorway on separate occasions.

I'm spinning the merino super fine (50+ wpi). I split the bump in half and did minimum pre-drafting. I'm using the highest ratio with the least amount of tension on Mr. Fricke and I'm treadling sloooooooow, focusing more on achieving a consistent yarn and not worrying about how long it takes to get through 2 oz. Which, by the way? Takes forever....

I'm going to split the BFL into 1 oz strips length-wise, theoretically varying the color repeat. Then, I'll spin it as close to 40+ wpi. I'll ply the two and end up with scads of what I'm imagining to be the most beautiful yarn ever. Of course, I may be biased.

I think I'll only be able to do this for a total of 4 oz - the remaining half of each bump may have to wait in the stash for some other project. Maybe I'll card the two together, either on the drum carder or the hand carders. Or, who knows? Maybe I'll keep spinning the fiber fine and end up with thousands of yards...

Group FO

2009-01-15T11:07:00.003-05:00

This FO wouldn't have happened without three people: Amy dyed, I spun, and Angela knit. The first two parts of the road to FO were detailed a bit here. Angela sent me photos of the FO and I'm just about KO'ed by how gorgeously perfect the yarn and the colors and the project ended up.

I seriously want to make so much more of this yarn! It doesn't have to be the same exact colors or WPI, but the way I went about spinning this yarn in terms of finished hank goals is definitely something I'd want to do again.

2009 First FO

2009-01-07T14:13:00.000-05:00

I blogged earlier about making the batts and spinning the yarn, but as of late, late last night, I have a FO to share!!!

Using all but a dozen or so yards of my handspun, I made a top-down hat with horizontal ribbing. I cast on 8 stitches and increased evenly around until the hat was wide enough for my head (and hair), and at the same time, maintained a loose pattern of knit 4-6 rounds, purl 4-6 rounds. Once long enough to hit my ears, I knit the remaining rounds allowing for the inevitable stockinette curl. Here's the result:

I've worn the hat all day today and it's suitably warm but not too itchy. It's slightly too big, but I'm planning to do a little hand-agitation when I soak the hat later. Believe it or not, this is my FIRST hat that I've made for myself! I could get used to making hats for myself!!!

Pharm knits

2008-12-22T22:06:00.002-05:00

My friend Angela recently asked me to do some custom spinning for her. A Canadian friend of hers has hit a bit of a rough patch, to put it mildly, and Angela wanted to create a one-of-a-kind scarf steeped in sentimentality. She had very specific colors in mind: greens and golds of a summer field with hay rolls, sunshine yellow and sky blue, dawn and sunrise colors, bonfire reds, oranges, and smokey grays and browns, midnight blue with patches of white for the night sky and a little Glitz (fireworks and sparklers), and black. All of the colorways requested would progress from one end to the other, representing on some level the escape and solace in friendship and memories from life's darkess (the black).

Since finding pre-dyed fiber to match that order wouldn't be easy, I sent a request to my favorite dyer/supplier: Amy King. Considering the final project would have to be soft and hardwearing, I went with my current favorite fiber, superwash Corriedale. I gave Amy my instructions, allowed her some creative freedom, and in a matter of just a few days, had 8 oz of perfectly dyed fiber:

Top arranged in anticipation of final knit - green progressing to the black and the the black moving back out to the green. Two nearly identical, perfectly dyed bumps.

I couldn't wait to start spinning, but still had a little more planning to do. One, Angela requested a bulky yarn. Two, she wanted a 2-ply. Finally, she wanted the two plies to sort of play off each other with the color - rather than have big chunks of color, she wanted something that would fade out of one color and into the next. I split each hunk of fiber into two equal strips and then exchanged one strip from one hunk with one strip from the other. This was sort of my control for the final yarn and I hoped that it would be enough to even out any discrepancies that might be glaring in the finished knit. Then, I spun the fiber on my Matchless using the 9:1 ratio and a supported long draw. I did very little pre-drafting and ended up with lofty, lovely singles.

The spinning went so fast that I never got a chance to take pictures of the singles, plus I was on a deadline! In a matter of days, though, I'd managed to plow through all 8 oz. I plied using the same ratio (9:1) and then wet-finished the yarn with a thorough soak in Eucalan, hot water, and some hand agitation once the water had cooled. The resulting yarn fluffed out to about 5-6 wpi. I calculated the yardage and want to say it all totaled somewhere over 200, but I can't find the receipt scrap that I scribbled that information on... Anyway, yarn!

Angela's been knitting on the scarf for the last 8 days. When I saw her last Sunday, she'd managed to get through the greens and into the yellows and golds. By Thursday, it was reported she'd reach the halfway point. She's promised to take tons of photos of the finished scarf and I cannot wait to see them!

From the edge

2008-12-18T09:35:00.006-05:00

I'm at the edge of just jumping and calling this year (calendar or fiscal - not sure yet) done. Things were going great until the middle of October - since then, I've been sick. I've have head colds, sinus congestion, ear aches (debilitating, too), fevers, chills, and now, most recently, severe gastroenteritis. Whee? Through it all, I've tried to take as few sick days as possible and only when necessary. That there could be part of the problem - not allowing my body enough time to recuperate. But the other factor to consider here is my daily proximity to Children, many of whom Love Me.

I've been working as a public librarian for over three years now and expected the first year to be plagued with illnesses, and it was, complete with my first ever case of the flu. The Flu - oh, people, I had no idea that the Flu was that bad! All this time, I'd thought that coworkers or friends or family or strangers that complained about having the Flu were just weak. I mean, what's a little snuffle, eh? Well, I learned the hard way that year that the Flu? The Flu wants to make you its bitch, so STFU and suffer.

The next year, I got a flu shot (woot!), and managed to avoid any real, interfering illness. Yeah, I got lots of colds and probably took a few days here and there, but I really thought my resistance was building, the germs were losing, and I was on my way to being Super Girl.

Instead, I've spent more time sick than not in the last two months. And I'm learning, whether I like it or not, that I do need to take day(s) off to truly get better. I'm also learning that without cable, there is nothing on television (we have antenna service which means we pay $12/month and get all the channels you'd get with an antenna, plus some public access channels, home shopping channels, and Spanish language channels - all without static). For instance, this last round of illin' has found me tuning in to NBC for much of the day. Public television has loads of kids' programming or food programming - I couldn't stomach either of those. Home shopping channels annoy me - I think I've watch any type of home shopping channel a total of one minute in my entire cable-television watching lifetime.

Anyway, I've been exposed to a lot of commercials these last few days.

Hair Cuttery's new ad with Nick Gilder's Hot Child in the City. Is it just me, or does this chick look like she's tweeking out on some bad high? Dear Hair Cuttery - I do not want you anywhere near my hair even more now.
There's the ad about how your local car dealers have access to all kinds of different credit to get you in the car you want. Um. Where to begin...
Progresso vs. Campbell's. Who knew this was the latest heavyweight matchup? I saw one for Campbell's on Tuesday (I think, I looked away when I saw it was food) wherein Campbell's claimed to not have MSG in any of it's soups, but Progresso? OMG, MSG! THEN, yesterday, I saw a Progresso ad that claimed some 20 varieties of their soup have no MSG and they're working to remove MSG from all of their soups, unlike MSG-laden CAMPBELL'S. I am so confused.
CD commercials - I don't care that Toby Keith has a new album out. Plus, I only see these CD commercials, like, ever 6 months. It's like some weird cycle. Fortunately, it's not the same CD being offered each cycle. That would be awful.
I like butter as much as the next person. But the absurdity of this commercial?

Dear NBC - Momma's Boys is not, I repeat, NOT the most eagerly anticipated show of all time, or whatever claim you are making. I'd expect that type of "entertainment" from Fox. Now that the show's debuted, the commercials for that event are over, but I'm dreading the weekly pixel-barf touting the next episode.
The Jewelry Exchange in Norristown suggests great stocking stuffers, such as pearl necklaces. Am I the only sick mind that snerks like a schoolyard boy at both stocking stuffers and pearl necklaces, especially when the two are used in the same sentence?

What commercials bug you these days?

Batts!

2008-12-09T07:46:00.001-05:00

I had a dozen or so wannabe titles for this post, Bats in the Belfry, Batt-ers Up!, Batt-shit Crazy, Batt-tastic, and so on. But, I think calling it what it is, plain and simple, is sufficient.

After one pass through the drum carder:

Two passes for a blended batt:

And the resulting yarn:

The fiber is shetland and was the November installment of Spunky Eclectic's Fiber Club. The colorway was Raisin Wannabe and originally had broad splashes of purples, pinks, and bright green. After seeing some batts on Ravelry, I felt inspired to lug the drum carder downstairs and experiment. I passed the fiber through the carder twice and during the process added a pinch of glitz - I wanted there to be just a hint of sparkle. Once the batts were ready, I spun the fiber using a supported long-draw technique - wow, spinning that way is FAST. I'm satisfied that I was able to spin the entire 4 oz using that technique, but I definitely feel like I'm not in control of that skill. Guess this means I have to practice more ... Oh darn! I did a 2-ply yarn and have 162 yards of light bulky weight yarn. The longer skein (84 yds) has been wet finished - an overnight soak with hot - cold water (that is, I put the skein in a sink full of hot water and some Eucalan, and then forgot it was in the sink until morning...) and some slight hand agitation before a few thwacks on the side of the tub. It's remarkably fuzzy and lovely. The shorter skein has not yet been wet finished, but I will give it the same treatment.

I'm eventually going to make myself a hat using this yarn - funny, but for as many hats as I've knit, I don't have one to call my own! I might also try to get another 4 oz of the colorway and do another batt for a pair of mittens.

Chico approves of fiber. Actually, Chico approves of sunbeams. He couldn't care a fig about fiber...

Stash!

2008-11-24T08:43:00.000-05:00

I've been, to put it mildly, under the weather for the last two weeks. This weekend, instead of working as scheduled, I remained wrapped in blankets and drank a lot of tea. And, I managed to get some images uploaded to Flickr. Finally. I mean, I probably could have uploaded them weeks ago, but I had this huge imaging project looming overhead and I just didn't feel right working on other images until it was done.... And, while it took much longer than I expected, it's done and I can now resume taking pictures of yarn, fiber, and stuff.

Here's a Mystery Bump I picked up at Rhinebeck. It's about the size of a 2L bottle and promises to be an interesting spin.

I got some other fiber, but haven't taken a photo of it yet. My stash has been experiencing some growing pains and I've decided to sell some of it - I'm sure you can understand. I'm on the fence still about putting up my sweater quantities, and I remain hopeful that if I give it one. more. chance., I'll be able to knit a sweater *and* love it. Anyway, here's a link to the destash on Ravelry. I'm in no rush to move everything out - it really just feels good to have an idea of what stays and what goes.

After Rhinebeck, I found myself motivated to finish up the spinning I'd started on the Jensen. After months of trying to make our relationship solid, I admitted to myself that me and Mr. Jensen were just not going to be BFF. So, early on the first day of Rhinebeck (the line at The Fold was only about 10 deep), I made a deal on a Schacht Matchless - the wheel that I originally wanted before having the Jensen fall in my lap. I could not be happier with this wheel and feel like it complements the Fricke perfectly. Here's some yarn I spun on the Jensen and plied on the Matchless:

It's just over half of the 8oz of merino from Black Bunny Fibers, colorway Helleborus. I think it was my first installment in Carol's fiber club... It's really a scrumptious fiber and spun up without any problems. I Navajo-plied the singles and once I fulled and finished the yarn, found that it reminded me of the stains red wine leaves on white tablecloths.

Mr. Fricke is still getting loads of action - I spun up Spunky Eclectic's Acadia (FOTM) and then Navajo-plied those singles, getting 422 yds of lovely, fingering weight yarn. The fiber is Finn and the end yarn is called Dream It's Over.

Did I blog about this?

This is SW merino, custom dyed by Amy King. I spun it as part of a wedding blanket project and regret not having ordered more of this fiber and color. It's so squishy and perfect. The recipients, that dynamic duo Anj and Sue, will surely be warm all winter and every winter.

Finally, the cats. Oi, the cats. Things continue to be interesting. Just this week, in fact, we've woken up more mornings than not to discover two cats snuggled in bed with us. And, the other day, I found both Chico and Penelope practically sharing a windowsill (alright, so she was on the windowsill and he was on the table, but they were mere INCHES apart), drawn together by the Power of the Sunbeam. The Sunbeam is so powerful, little Miss P follows it from the floor to the bookcase:

And if that doesn't make you want to go home and snuggle, then I don't know what will. For those that will be celebrating, have a Happy Thanksgiving.

A Very Knitterly Birthday!

2008-11-20T16:00:00.002-05:00

This past weekend, Mom and I drove alllllll the way up to just outside Boston, MA to surprise my little sister on her 30th birthday. And while the weekend's festivities were definitely subdued (Big Sis has the flu, or something very much like the flu), I'm pretty sure the Birthday Girl still had a blast. Here she is modeling garments from Twist Collective at The Yarn and Fiber Company's Fashion Show:

That's part 1 of 3 and my sister is Amy, the first (and BEST) of the models. Everything she wore was amazing - in fact, everything that was modeled was amazing to see in person. I feel like my Ravelry queue just exploded a little from all the recent growth.

If you haven't checked out the latest issue of Twist Collective, do so now! Mittens, shawls, sweaters, and more - there's definitely something for everyone!

Every time I think of you

2008-11-01T22:41:00.004-04:00

It's been emotion central these last few days in Sparks Land and Monday might be the best day yet. But, to bring you up to speed: my little Ghia, Miss Bertha, has come home with a valid inspection sticker and a clean bill of auto-health.

In case you're newer to the blog, Mike bought the car for me a couple of years ago (it just happened to be around my birthday). I think the plan had been for me just to drive a Ghia that year as my birthday present, but I'm rarely one to go only part of the way. One short drive under my belt and we were making the arrangements to make the car mine.

Of course, whenever you buy a used car you can expect to encounter some problems. Guess how much those problems increase when you purchase a car that was built in 1974 and is known for its rusting abilities? If you guessed A LOT, you are right! And, if you've been reading this blog for the last two years or so, you'll probably remember the first failed inspection, the disappointing estimates for body repair, and then the horrific year of a car that would pass inspection, if only we could get the thing to run.

Admitting defeat was hard - it meant not only acknowledging that we weren't able to RTFM (I'm sure there's a joke to be made out of the idea of an engineer and a librarian looking under the hood....), but also preparing for yet another handful of cash thrown at the car. While my mechanic is highly esteemed among VW owners, both classic and new, it was hard to finally decide to make that call to him and then the tow company, if not for any other reason than it meant we would have to push the damn car out of the garage and onto the street and somehow manage to park it legally-ish...

But all of that is now history. All of that is now just another chapter in my sweet car's long history, a history that includes incomplete carburetors, asshole body mechanics, and, at one point between the factory and today, eggplant metallic paint. All of that is history because after a week of speaking with Howard the Genius every other day, I was able to drive my car for the first time since March 2007 last night. And while I was nervous to be on the road in my car - unfamiliar after all this time, plus, you know, I WAS IN MY CAR AND IT WAS GOING! - I was, to some extent, complete. Having Little Bert pass inspection finally? Well, it's been a long time coming.

Since picking her up last night, I've driven the car a short 20 or so miles just around the neighborhood, picking up dinner last night, getting gas, and trying out driving with the top down. I have to tell you, it's fucking awesome. I don't have any new pictures (yet), but here's my favorite:

We're far from done with our little project - paint job, new top, seats... The list goes on, but now? Now we can really start checking things off!

Peanuts and crackerjacks!

2008-10-29T22:30:00.002-04:00

I'm really much more of a football-and-hockey kinda gal and will tell you, whether I'm asked or not, that I hate baseball. I don't mind going to the occasional game because there's lots to look at while not watching a bunch of chewing-and-spitting men scratch themselves and run in circles. Plus? The number of non-hits in a game? Booooooooooooooring. I want action! I want hitting! I want the satisfaction of a well-aimed pass landing in the outstretched arms (or stick) of a receiving teammate and the resulting points to go up on the board as the crowd goes wild. If you catch a ball in baseball? That's usually an out.

So, I hate baseball, but I secretly love (and by love, I mean "if I have to") the Phillies. As a young girl, summer weekends always had the game as background noise, whether it was static-y on the TV or buzzing from the AM dial. I don't remember the 1980 season or victory, but I'm sure I listened to the game from somewhere in the house. I do remember team members, household names then and now: Mike Schmidt, Steve Carlton, Tug McGraw, Garry Maddox, Larry Bowa. These names are so vivid that just thinking of them brings up still-images of televised game coverage, the colors of the away uniforms seemingly remembered as a much more pleasant combination...

The Phillies became the team to love/hate and my only connection to baseball. I didn't care a lick about the Yankees, the Sox (White or Red), the Dodgers, the Royals, the Orioles, the Mets, or any of 'em. I avoided the Little League games of my siblings and wouldn't date a ball player in high school just so I didn't have game obligations. I mean, come on - the only thing stupider than baseball was tennis. (Except I've also seemed to develop a serious interest in tennis lately)

But, despite this aversion to baseball, I always knew where the Phils were in the standings, maybe not exactly, but relative. Winning? Losing? Middle of the road? If confronted in a sports bar, I could have held my ground enough so that I wouldn't be mistaken for a fan of the other team (and beaten to a pulp, some might say).

But recently, all of this has changed, and it's not just because we're the mother-effing 2008 World Series champions. No, not really, because I would have gone back to secretly enjoying my Phils if we'd stretched it out to 7 games and given up the go ahead run in the 9th of the final game. I do the same for the Eagles every year they disappoint. It's not a bandwagon'ing type of affection - it's more like the rocky relationship of two people forced together and maybe, just maybe 20 years after having to listen to the same thing again and again and again, until finally one or both give in and say, FINE, we're not getting any better or any worse, this is just how it is.

Anyway, maybe it's a sign of aging, maybe I've accepted that if I've liked (relatively) a team for this long (more than 30 years), it's ok to go public. Maybe it's something else, but over the last few years (since Bowa's last season in '04, for no particular reason), I've followed the Phils a little more closely and cheered a little less privately, and refrained from calling the Boys the Sillies, and instead have sought out 950 AM and have not argued when the TV's been tuned to the game. I've root, root, rooted for the home team, damn it, and I'm so proud of our Phillies that I had tears in my eyes and a lump in my throat last night.

We did it, now let's have a parade!!!

Goats go to hell

2008-10-26T18:03:00.001-04:00

If nothing else, climbing on my second mountain has enabled me to discover something about myself: I do not like climbing mountains! I like hiking with mild elevation changes (say, 100-500 feet, spread over the length of the hike), I enjoy nature, and I really love spending time with Mike.

We'd planned to climb Hunter Mountain, the second highest peak in the Catskills, via an old fire tower access road. But, we ended up taking the wrong trail. Twice.

Once we got on the right trail, we faced a fairly strenuous climb along a narrow, rocky, and leaf-covered trail.

I twisted both of my ankles at least twice each, Mike got bit by a snake (thank goodness for high-top boots!), and I pulled a gecko move when I laid flat on an overlook and hung the camera over the edge to snap a picture, scaring Mike more than I'd anticipated.

And while we hiked the mountain via two wrong trails and never summited Hunter Mountain and spent 10 hours (including travel time to the trail head) away from flush toilets (not that I needed them because whatever I drank, I sweated out and whatever I ate, I burned up), I wouldn't say the hike was a complete waste.

All told, we hiked about 10 miles, had an ascent of about 1500 feet, and peaked just below 3700 feet. As we were leaving the trailhead, we passed the trail we'd intended to take, the signs nestled among the trees. And for whatever reason (let's call it pride), I vowed to return next year and climb the right damn trail. Of course, Mike didn't argue.

It's the most wonderful time of the year!

2008-10-14T14:15:00.005-04:00

Just checked the Rhinebeck forecast (for the Nth time today, bringing the total times checked since the 10-day included Saturday up to 11,000) and it looks like we're going to be sunny and brisk! Who can't wait? I CAN'T WAIT. I am so glad that Mike is willing to go with me this year - we're surely going to have a special 12th anniversary celebration.

Here're our plans so far:

Get up early Friday and drive an hour and a half to the trail head for climbing Hunter Mountain. At just over 4,000 feet, it's the second tallest peak in the Catskills. Mike's treating it as a piece of cake, but I think summiting a mountain is a big deal. It's not like we're strolling up a hill.
Spend Saturday strolling the festival. I've already looked at the event schedule and have marked off anything that is strictly non-fiber for Mike's enjoyment. This includes: canine Frisbee demonstration, pumpkin chucking, and a hand-drawn map of the wine and cheese barn. I expect I'll have to text him hourly just to make sure he's not trying to catch a Frisbee in his mouth or in a cheese coma.
Have a lovely dinner that may or may not involve banana ketchup outside of the house. If you're not familiar with banana ketchup, get some at your local international supermarket.
Play some disc golf as we make our way home.

Now, if you're keeping score, you'll see there are THREE THINGS on that list that are basically all for the benefit of Mike - mountains, cheese comas, and banana ketchup. And I only have the one measly day at the festival as my prize. I'll just muddle through, though. The things I do for that man!

Say hey if you see me! I'll be toting this bag again:

And, if all goes well, I'll be wearing a modified version of this sweater:

(Apparently I don't have any finished pictures of this sweater?
Anyway, I'm taking off the sleeves and seeing what happens...)

0-60, sometime in the future

2008-10-12T22:39:00.002-04:00

I'm exercising my right to be Bad Ass (it's in the Constitution!). Rode my motorcycle to work for first time on Saturday and consider the trip to and from an overall success - no crashes, no problems, and it was FUN!

True or False

2008-10-07T07:21:00.001-04:00

It is better to have knit and frogged than to have never knit at all.

My Hey Teach didn't make it - but not for my usual reasons! This time I knit it entirely way too big. Here's hoping I can churn out a vest using bulky yarn and US 9s. If not, I'll just have to be content with strolling the barns at Rhinebeck. Darn.

Still no photos!

2008-09-16T07:55:00.001-04:00

My camera is resting after shooting 550+ shots for a wedding last weekend, which reminds me... I really need to sit down at some point this week/weekend and go through those shots. Anyway, that's my lame-o excuse for not having progress shots of my overdue Ravelympics knitting. Yeah, I didn't think you'd buy it either.

Here're the deets, though, on the sweater as is - the body is complete, the shoulders are seamed, the neckline is done. I'm weaving in ends (I needed something relatively mindless to do last night after a long day at work) before starting the sleeves. I thought if I focused, really FOCUSED, I'd get the sleeves done by this weekend... But, there's other stuff keeping me from my knitting.

First, the car? She might start tonight. Don't ask me what was wrong. It might have been the fuel pump. It might have been the spark plugs. It might have just been bitchy. After we get her started, the plan of attack is: re-insuring, re-registering, re-inspecting. Dear Ghia Gods: please let her pass. I can't afford much more in terms of repair costs. A paint job is necessary, but will have to wait until we have that kind of dough to spare.

Second, I'm test riding a motorcycle tonight. Pretty freakin' excited about that. It's a '76 Honda CB200T and aside from being Bright Orange, is perfect for what I need in a bike right now. We tried to get the '73 Honda CB350F to work for me, but I was just too short for that set up (and lowering the bike? Probably not a good idea. I really hate when people fuck with what works on vintage vehicles.). I've sat the '76 a couple of times, it's narrower and lower. If all goes according to plan, I'll be buying boots and a jacket this weekend. I'd love to take the Safety Course that PA offers, but my Saturdays are about to be jacked by work. I will have to settle for being taught by two motorcycle nuts - Mike and the Mighty Swede.

Cat update (for those that have asked): Chico has left the downstairs! It took MONTHS of waiting, but he's now back in the habit of coming to bed with us at some point in the night and as soon as the alarm clock sounds, getting all snuggly up in my face. Awww, Chico. The trick? Last Thursday, I carried his fat as up to bed when we retired and after an initial WTF on his part, he settled down and purred himself to sleep. SEE - HE'S NOT THAT MEAN. Penelope shows us her belly at least twice a day and continues to be one of the sweetest cats ever. In her brief time with us, she's earned a whole slate of nicknames: Piglet, Princess, Girl(ie) Cat, Slut, and Bad Girl. The two of them are co-existing and that's really all I ever asked for.

Got it bad, got it bad, got it bad

2008-08-29T08:05:00.000-04:00

You'd think I'd finish that with something about being aroused for an educational professional. I tricked you. Instead, the badness I refer to is wheel lust. Hello, my name is Heather, and I'm a spinning addict.

Rhinebeck's on my mind, even though I have two major weekends between now and then. I just can't get the scene out of my mind: the crispness to the morning air, the vendors, the random alpacas strolling by in scarves, the bunnies, and the people. It really is among the happiest places on earth. And that's why I wanted to go this year, not because I had some list on the side or an urge to wait in line for one of the prize-winning fleeces or even to buy anything (except wine and cheese and pie to keep the Pieman from running after Our Lady of Boog).

Except, in the last two days, I've suddenly developed the notion, nay the desire to acquire a third wheel. And this third wheel would be something completely different than the other two (not a stretch to accomplish at all). I want something portable, more portable than my Fricke. And I want something that's less than $300. I want something cute and easy to use and compact. So, I've narrowed it down to two possibilities: a Charkha spinning wheel or a HitchHiker.

I know, I know. I really shouldn't compare apples to oranges. And, I should be wholly honest with myself (and you) and just say that I probably also just listed one of those as my potential fourth wheel. So, the question becomes, which do I need more at this time? I'd love to spin on a 100:1 ratio - that would be CRAZY, I bet. But, I don't often spin cotton and other short stapled fibers. Still, how Zen'ed out would I be, sitting somewhere with my little book Charkha, and making fine, fine thread. I suppose I could really go nutso-like and make my Mom custom embroidery cottons... Drawbacks - I'm not familiar with the Charkha, I don't know anyone that has one, and it's hand-cranked as opposed to treadled.

Then, there's the HitchHiker. Where the Charkha is refined, the HitchHiker wins for cuteness - foot-shaped treadle, hitchhiker cut-out handle, and teeny! The ratios aren't great in terms of range, but it's nothing a little fiber prep can't handle. I can see myself taking the HH many more places than the Charkha if only because it would allow me to do the kind of spinning I'm most used to right now.

Have any of your tried either of these wheels? What's your opinion? Have another recommendation for something inexpensive and portable?

FOR SALE (baby not included)

2008-08-27T10:45:00.001-04:00

Mike's officially put his 1973 Honda CB350 up for sale. It's been a fun few years, complete with breakdowns and rebuilds a-plenty. Overall, the bike's not a bad little thing to tool around town with. The biggest reason we've hung a For Sale sign on it is Mike wants a 750. If you know of anyone interested in a vintage Japanese motorcycle, let me know - I can give them any information they might need or put them in touch with Mike.

More photos, if you're interested, are here.

ftw

2008-08-24T12:10:00.003-04:00

While I failed to finish the Sweater Sprint event of the Ravelympics, I have gold medaled in spinning. 94 yards of delicious superwash merino in a heavy worsted weight 3-ply. It's soaking now, so pictures later.

Where I failed with the Sweater Sprint - I don't knit fast enough, I don't knit often enough, and I modified the pattern so much that I went from the recommended US8s to US4s. Part of that was yarn substitution, no doubt. If I weren't such a tight knitter, I'm afraid I would have been knitting miles and miles of stockinette on US3s.

I lied in my last post when I said there wasn't much other news to report in the land of Sparks - I'm going to Rhinebeck! It took some trickery and some convincing and the promise to do something "special" for him (namely, climb one of the Catskills). Rhinebeck's always tough for this household simply because it's our anniversary weekend. The last two years, Mike's been very wonderful about letting me go away with girlfriends for the weekend. I told him after last year that I'd not go this year and instead do something with him for our anniversary.

Except, as the chatter about RHINEBECK! grew louder, I found myself really wanting to be there. When my little sister announced she'd be making the trip down from Boston, I started brainstorming. While Mike is highly fiber-tolerant (this morning, he served as a human Kate), he initially refused even the idea of going anywhere near the fiber festival. Slowly, though, I brought him ~~over to the dark side~~ around. It took the wine and cheese barn, deep-fried artichokes, and promises of pie. And, it also took the prospect of hiking a portion of the AT or climbing Hunter Mountain. It may hardly seem like much, but I think this is the largest compromise we've ever had to make in our relationship. Something tells me he's going to find the festival to be so much better than he imagined. Also, I now anticipate spending more on food than fiber that day, but such is life with a human garbage disposal.

Are you going to Rhinebeck?

A Tail of Two Kitties*

2008-08-22T08:01:00.001-04:00

I don't doubt that either one is unaware of the other. In fact, recent cat news is Chico left the dining room and kitchen this week and joined us in the bedroom. Consensus is he's seeking snuggles what with the cooler overnight temperatures.

Not much else to report in Sparks-a-lot Land. I'm knitting, spinning, and enjoying as much time outside as I can!

*awful, awful, awful, but it begged to be written.

Speed bump

2008-08-06T09:36:00.003-04:00

Dear Carol,

I really tried to spin last night in an effort to finish up the first shipment, clearing off the third bobbin (with some difficult since I don't have a kate for the Jensen and my Fricke kate doesn't work with the Jensen bobbins - OF COURSE):

Uncounted poof of a skein that came already spun on the bobbin thanks to Ms. Boogie.

I knew if I could get started on bobbin #3 last night, I'd be in good shape for the luscious yarn you're ~~threatening~~ promising for this next shipment. I fixed myself a tall, ice cold glass of water, lined up a ration of Swedish fish, and got my spinning outfit on (pajamas. DUH.). Just as I was ready to finally sit and spin for a couple of hours, I found myself facing an obstacle:

Miss Penelope is pooped out after sleeping and eating all day.

Now, I know what you might be thinking - why didn't I just move the wheel and spin from a different seat? Well.... I didn't think of that option until just now. So, instead, I booted the sleeping cat off of the couch and finished the second bobbin before starting the third:

Two down, at least one to go!

Anyway, I promise to work hard and get this all spun up so that I can be ready and waiting for the next squishy package.

Spinningly yours,
Heather

Blood, sweat, and gears

2008-08-03T15:43:00.002-04:00

Ladies and gentlemen, I am back in the saddle!

It's been since December '07 since I've ridden my bike outside (the trainer counts, but then again it doesn't since I can't seem to force myself to use the trainer no matter how many carrots I dangle in front of me). Today, to celebrate and break in Mike's new bike, we took a quick ride on West River Drive. And I made it! I'm sweaty, there's grease on my shirt and on my leg (had to lube the chain, etc), and I've no doubt that I'll feel stiff tonight and tomorrow. But, shit, I'm back on the bike and that feels so freakin' wonderful!

I'm going to medicate, ice, and monitor my knee(s), but our plan is to take a couple of more rides over the next few weekends and then, by September, get back into bike-commuting 3-4 days a week.

Birthdays and everydays: a photo post

2008-07-26T07:37:00.002-04:00

Mike bought me a drum carder for my birthday.

Homegirl learns how to spindle spin.

Her rubbery street ears are now soft and silky.

On the left, STR silk/merino in "Loch Ness"; on the left Spunky Eclectic's FOTM for June, "Flowering Weeds"

Pairing the two together - a perfect match.

572 yards, dunked, thwacked, and abused. More pictures if you click over to Flickr. I finished plying the rest of the 3 oz of "Flowering Weeds" and "Loch Ness" and eked out another 150 yards. Total yardage - 722. That's some mighty fine spinning I done did!!!

Hypnotized

2008-07-25T08:00:00.001-04:00

I'm in the middle of plying up yards and yards and yards of some fiber and can't help but sit back and watch as the two strands ply together. The yarn itself is coming out just as I suspected, yet, it's coming out better. I have pictures trapped on my camera that I might get to tonight or tomorrow morning (fingers crossed).

Other news/updates:

* Miss Penelope has fully adjusted to the pampered life and Mr. Chico has stopped pooping on the kitchen floor. He still won't spend much time out of the kitchen, but he is creeping to the basement as necessary. So, that's progress.

* I'm getting my motorcycle license at some future point. I tried to convince Mike to fix up the Honda and let it be mine, but he is on the verge of hating that bike (see all previous mentions of the damn thing). I say it's a good bike, even if it does occasionally have hissy fits. Anyway, the bottom line is I don't fit on the '73 we have, but I do fit the '76 the Mighty Swede has. Guess I'll just have to wait until he's ready to sell it. Or, grow 2 inches.

* We're moving along with the house - the patches have been painted, the wall's repaired (ish), the gate's being made (new tools!). We still have to rewire the study and the kitchen, relocate the kitchen sink, and install a ceiling in the dining room. But, we're making progress, people! That's excellent.

* The Ghia's still sitting untouched since last year. Every weekend, I think about rolling her out and making a list of what we need to fix her. Sadly, I think we need one small thing and we just haven't gotten motivated enough to have that one small thing shipped from California. I really think I need to figure out if that's it, order what's needed, then schedule a week off from work to get her running, registered and inspected.

* My grandmother has been in and out of surgery and is currently recuperating in a nursing home. We're not clear on whether or not she will be released and allowed to go home or if she's going to require 24/7 care from now on. She's in mostly good spirits and I'm planning on visiting her Tuesday night (I've got the Swede's Soob while he and Homegirl are out of town).

Tonight's plan: gazpacho, Portuguese bean salad, sangria, and crafting - all with some of my closest friends. I cannot wait!

Nobody puts Baby in the corner

2008-07-02T18:31:00.008-04:00

By now, most of you know Bob, the overgrown fern that we inherited when some friends of ours blew this two-light town and headed west. At the end of last summer, we made the mistake of splitting Bob into 4 (or was it 6?) plants. Don't get me wrong, Bob was due for some aggressive changes, but I think we would have been better off if we'd waited until April to split him. Bob and the gang of Boblings has been looking pretty sad.

I'm hoping that'll all change, though, since we recently moved Bob and the gang out to the front porch (I'd love to have him in the back yard but we're still waiting on the masons to finish fixing our fucking wall). Life in the back yard has typically been very, very good to Bob (ignore the wine in the foreground and focus, instead, on those voluptuous fronds).

So far, Bob's been pretty content sittin' on the porch, which is good because I kinda needed his old corner for something new:

Just like all the good things in life, I wasn't exactly looking for a Jensen spinning wheel (a Matchless, maybe)... it just sorta found me. And, I couldn't be happier! Most nights, I come home from work and while Mike works at the dining room table (60+ hour weeks are starting to wear him out), I spin a few ounces. While I'm spinning a fairly consistent and thin single now, I'm saving up to buy the high-speed kit to further improve my lace-spinning skills. Some people try to get more miles to gallon; I want more yards to the ounce.

In other spinning news, my spindle collection has exploded in the last few months. When I visited Amy and her shop back in May, I bought a couple. Then, just a few weeks ago (as in, when I picked up the wheel), I bought another spindle. Last night, I taught my neighbor to spin on a drop spindle, effectively reducing my spindle collection by one. And while 7 or 8 spindles isn't much, I have in mind at least that many for purchase. And let's not talk about the 3rd wheel (it has been found and it might just come to my house to live for free)...

In completely unrelated crafting news, I cut off all my hair. I'm sporty a sassy, fresh 'do and I can't tell you how much cutting off 10" of hair has done to improve my attitude! Besides needing the style change, though, my hair was getting hard to handle (tangles!) and dried out (tangles!) and was just generally becoming a pain in the ass (TANGLES!!!). I've yet to get a good picture of my sassy self, and ETA - apparently I don't know how to make Flickr cooperate right now...

Happy 4th to my fellow Americans! We'll be spending part of the holiday weekend cleaning the basement and the other part of the weekend celebrating my birthday. It's good to be an almost firecracker baby!

Customer Service, #1!

2008-06-10T12:16:00.002-04:00

Years ago, I cut my customer service teeth spending summers working for Home Depot. I didn't really know what I was getting into when I applied for the job other than I would be working in the nursery and making the most money of my life. Prior to my job at the Depot, I would often declare that I hated people and never wanted to work with or talk to or deal with people - it was my excuse for not being a bank teller or a grocery store cashier or anything remotely social. For whatever reason, though, I applied at Home Depot and my life actually changed. I know, that sounds so dramatic and so propaganda-y. But it's true!

Before my Home Depot days, I never gave customer service a second thought. And, even when I was actually working at the Depot, I don't know that I fully appreciated customer service from the other side. Sure, I earned merit badges for outstanding service and co-workers throughout the store knew who I was, the lowly seasonal employee that was outstanding in outdoor garden. My department dubbed me the Garden Angel after one particularly satisfied customer wrote the store manager and described me as such. And while most mornings, I dreaded going to work (5am, with forecasts for 95+ degrees, and everyone and their brother guaranteed to come to the store that day and buy buy buy), I did my job and I did it with pride.

I think a large part of the reason I'm now in public service is because of my time at Home Depot - for better or worse, I discovered that I excelled at helping people and that their satisfaction was the ultimate measure of my success. I strive for the same today, though my customers are a much more varied bunch. And, I expect outstanding service wherever I go - I feel like I can truly demand it given that I'm a leader in customer service myself.

So what's this all leading to, anyway? Well, a fiber-y customer service story!

Rhinebeck 'o7 found me searching for a pair of hand-carders. I have to confess, I did very little price research and instead focused on what brand I thought I wanted. A number of bloggers had written about Ashford carders, so I figured that was the way to go. With minimal searching, I found a pair of hand-carders at Fiber Kingdom's booth (they were in the Building 22, the white and green barn sorta in the middle of it all). The salesperson told me I was getting a good deal on last year's model and that I was paying last year's price. Satisfied, I forked over my $65 and bagged the set.

I wandered the festival grounds once more and where I'd previously not been able to find carders there suddenly seemed to be hand carders everywhere. Curious about the price difference (I mean, if I was paying last year's price, then surely this year's price is a doozy!), I started picking up random Ashford hand cards. And, I quickly discovered that most other places were pricing their sets $10-15 less than I paid for my deal. By the time I finished my last go-around, I knew I'd paid way more than I should have. I convinced myself, though, that it was okay (partially because time had run out and the girls I was traveling with were ready to head home), stuffed them in the few spare centimeters that remained in Jody's trunk, and rode home on a fiber high.

Later, as I was photographing the Rhinebeck haul, I realized the carders I'd bought were in less-than-new condition. Under the price tag, the wood was a different color, the effect of being covered from the damage of sun, dust, and hands. There was also some white paint splatter on the cards. Knowing that I'd already paid a lot for the set, I was fired up enough to compose an email to Fiber Kingdom. I fired it off and saved it to my drafts, reread it the next day, made it more civil, took a deep breath, and hit send. The worst that could happen, I believed, was one of two things - my message could go ignored, or the response would be a curt "too bad".

I waited for a response and a few days went by with nothing. Knowing that most of the known world does not have nearly the same email obsession that I have (my cell phone is now email capable and oh dear god, how did I live before this?), I vowed to wait at least 2 weeks before giving up or trying again. That time passed and I got no response. Happy enough (but not satisfied) with the purchase, I proceeded to blend some of the small batches of different fibers I'd purchased at Rhinebeck - bamboo, rayon, and merino:

By Christmas, I'd partly forgotten and mostly given up that I'd ever get a response from Fiber Kingdom. I told myself that the pricing discrepancy (I later found the same hand carders for as low as $42.50 new online) was forgivable, that I'd done my part to support a small business, and that maybe next time, I'd be a little more selective. And then I promptly stopped carding, bitter about the whole thing because I thought I was a better shopper than that...

Fast forward to April, when out of the blue, I get an email from Sylvia, proprietress of Fiber Kingdom. For whatever happy reason, my original message had been overlooked. Sylvia, having discovered and read my message, was prepared to exchange the over-priced, stained carders I'd bought with a pair of Louet fine hand carders. She wrote that she wasn't sure how the set I bought ended up at the booth, but that they weren't supposed to be there and she wanted to make it right. After much back-and-forth on email, as well as along the Northeast coast (I went to Massachusetts and Maine for almost a week), I arrived home late last night to my brand new Louet fine hand cards. I was so ecstatic that I nearly forwent sleep for fiber blending...

You'd think the customer service gone right story would end there, but it doesn't. Inside the package, Sylvia had enclosed a check to cover the shipping for the set I'd returned! That's the extra step that restores my faith in Fiber Kingdom, completely and totally. I mean, as soon as I saw the Louet package on my dining room table last night, I was prepared to blog about the wonderful turn of events. Finding the unexpected shipping refund was, well, unexpectedly wonderful. Sylvia and the bunnies at Fiber Kingdom can count me, finally, as a wholly satisfied customer.

13 weeks later...

2008-05-21T14:26:00.003-04:00

... and we are officially a two-cat household.

It's hard to get a good picture of Penelope because she's always moving. Also, because she's so tiny and light-footed, it's hard to know where she is until she's right up on you. That's not a problem for Mike or me, but it is a huge problem (still) for Chico... So, we put a pretty belled collar on Miss P. Now, every time the bell tinkles, Chico slinks away to hide.

Aside from the fact that the Little Girl wants to eat eat eat all the time, the only other problem we've experienced is, well, not really a problem so much as it is just typical cat behavior:

It's been tough dealing with two cats, and we're still not 100% integrated - Chico continues to be thoroughly miffed that he has an intruder in his house. That intruder? She spent last night sleeping in-between us all night. For the most part, though, the fighting and attacking have stopped (also, the random "I'm scared shitless" literally has stopped. THAT'S good...). Penny recognizes Chico as top cat and the worst confrontations now involve him hissing at her and her tucking her tail down and backing away.

This weekend, we'll reclaim the study - that's where we've had Penelope set up the last few months. And once we've got the work on our bedroom completed (another few days!!!), we can make plans to update the electrical in the study. Progress, people! We have progress!!!

Big wheels keep on turning

2008-05-19T16:12:00.002-04:00

I may have bought a new wheel.

Actually, there's no may about it - I DID buy a new wheel. And while I had been shopping for a new wheel, I wasn't shopping for this particular wheel....

Insert picture here

I'd show you a picture, but I don't have the wheel yet! It's still in Maine!!! And I've spent the last 8 days trying to figure out how to get it here. Relay from seller to sister to me? Maybe. Shipping? Maybe. Crazy road-trip? Maybe. Vacation? Maybe.

Unknown courier driving south? Maybe - I mean, are any of you willing to drive a portion or the entire journey from Maine to Philadelphia?

The ironical (as Martin would say) thing is, the wheel used to live in New Jersey prior to moving to Maine - that would have made acquisition easier. :-) Still, Maine's not that far away and I know that soon, I'll have the new-to-me wheel in my house. I mean, I kinda have to have it now - I've got a spot for it, picked out a name for it, and have spent countless hours *squeeing* in expectation.

In somewhat related news, the craft room is on the verge of being reclaimed as a... craft room! We spent the weekend painting the master bedroom and all that's preventing us from moving back in is the last coat on the trim and a good scrub of the floor. THEN, I can get back into the craft room and put up shelves and organize fiber and stash yarn and luxuriate in a room of my own.

Upcoming - Matchy Matchy in Real Life, the New Wheel, Kitty Kat Update, and Vacation - all good stuff!!!

3 margaritas and a screwdriver walk into a bar

2008-05-01T23:22:00.002-04:00

I'm back from ME - but still in Mass. WOWWEE WOW WOW. Dear Amy King, I love you. The End.

Seriously. Merino cashmere blend. Spindles. Merino bamboo blend. Wrongly curved CVM label (think of what vowel a V most closely resembles....). WHEELS! I didn't buy one, but I totally know what everyone is saying now about the Julia. OMG. She's a lovely, lovely wheel.

We hit Kittery, ME, for outlet shopping (J Jill! New pajamas! - don't ask how the other set got ruined after one night of sleeping here.... ) before returning to my sister's apartment and now I'm making a list of what to buy at WEBS tomorrow.

I think we're all going to bed. Or, at least 2/3 of us are going to bed. I'm going to couch. I don't know if that is a step up from sleeping on the futon or not.....

Celebration time!

2008-04-30T06:54:00.002-04:00

I'm off for a week of needleworkin' fun! It's the annual Celebration of Needlework in Nashua, NH. It's also the annual visit-my-sister-10-miles-south-of-Nashua-and-stay-for-free. Mom and I are getting ready to go to the airport (hopefully my spindle will clear security...).

Other plans (besides taking cross-stitch classes and drinking) include visiting WEBS in Northampton, Mass, the Kittery Outlets in ME (mom was a new Coach bag...), and Miss Amy all the way up in Lisbon, ME. Word has it that pants are optional up that way. :-P

So while the rest of the knitting world travels south to MDSW, I'll be snuggling up with my best girls, literally laughing my ass off, and enjoying every minute of it.

Have a great week, everyone!!!

New addition

2008-04-21T16:44:00.002-04:00

As we pulled up to Kirsten's on Friday night, she bounded down the steps and greeted us, asking how we were. I made some sort of stressed gesture, as if to indicate that riding on the back of the motorcycle stresses me. And as I was doing that, I thought, "But that's not true!"

I love riding on the back of the motorcycle. And, since Mike got the little Honda back up and running a few weeks ago, I've had ample opportunity to indulge. Riding back from West Philly on Friday night, I closed my eyes as we came up on Kelly Drive, nestling closer to Mike. Doing this makes the curves are non-existent and our bodies move together naturally. Twilight rides are different; they make me feel like I'm sneaking out, like a good girl gone bad.

Saturday afternoon, after taking care of some business in the morning, we took a ride out Rte 23 to Conshohocken. I couldn't help but look up in wonder at the wisps of clouds and the pristine sky. The heat from the bike, Mike's body, and the pavement is sweatless, endurable, pleasant. The smell of the bike as it idles, gasoline and oil, grime and grit, fresh sweat and leather, is nostalgically erotic and basic.

I waffle between wanting my own bike and being content with sitting bitch. Today, I feel rebellious and butch - there's something infinitely confidant about a woman on a bike. When we stopped by the Triumph dealer in Manayunk Saturday afternoon, my eyes were drawn to the T100. It's probably too large a bike for me, engine and size both, but it's a looker. I keep joking, with myself and my neighbor, that I'll buy his Honda CB200, which is smaller than Mike's Honda CB350. Then again, I don't know if I want to mess with another vehicle that's as old as me (or older). Nor do I know if I really want to learn how to shift a motorcycle - it just seems so complicated. I understand how it works (1st is one direction, the rest are another), but I don't know that I need to prove to myself that I can do it.

Now, if I were 2 or 3 inches taller, I'd be spending my spare weekends learning to ride the CB350 since we now have this:

1979 Triumph Bonneville Special

It doesn't run, but it will (*fingers crossed*). Mike's now the fourth owner, after the bike spent all of its previous years in the same family. It's fairly intact in terms of original parts and it should clean up rather well. I'm trying really really really hard to use this as my bargaining chip for elevating my house to a two-wheel house, but I think he's still too stunned to make sense of anything beyond the fact that he currently has TWO MOTORCYCLES....

All fiber, all the time

2008-04-14T19:13:00.007-04:00

Subtitled, "I wish!"

Over the weekend, I finished up one spinning project and started another.

First up, the FOTM for March, Mud Season:

194 yards of sproingy, squishy Navajo-plied merino. Mike said it was my best yarn yet. He just wants me to stop bringing cats and yarn home. At the same time...

I was aiming for a sock-weight yarn, but that end result still eludes me. This is light worsted and feels like a hank of Cascade 220 and looks like Araucunia Ranco Multi. I could knit up some instant-gratification socks with it, or I could just sit back and admire the fine job I did for another few weeks...

Speaking of sitting back, guess what's back on the road?

Aw, yeah! The Little Honda That Could is running pretty well these days. Could this mean that the Ghia isn't too far behind?

After thwacking the merino, I got started on the next fiber endeavor:

I carefully split the roving by color - red for rage, blue for tears, and chocolate for CHOCOLATE--then split each color into pencil roving sections. The blue and the brown I left at its original length, the red I split in half. I then lined up the little corriedale muffins in an attempt to achieve some sort of pattern.

My hope is to spin a consistent 36 wpi single (so far, mostly so good), Navajo-ply it (clearly, I'm all about the Navajo plying lately), and have a randomly striping yarn. The colorway, incidentally, is called Time of the Month and was dyed by the Fiber Queen herself, Miss Amy Boogie. Word on the 'net is she's doing a special boy color next... I better get my spin on so I can get in on that fiber action!!!

Let's get ready to RUMBLE

2008-04-14T18:17:00.005-04:00

In this corner, weighing in at a sturdy 17.2 lbs, we have Chico "Meanest Cat in World" Bean:

And in this corner, from the wilds of North Philadelphia, we have 6.9 lbs of pure evil girl cat genius, Pen-nellllllllllllllll-a-peee Sparkssssssszzzzzzzzzzzz:

Sunday, Sunday, Sunday was the first real attempt we made at cat integration. We've spent almost the last 8 weeks doing a delicate cat dance wherein we supervised any and all visits (well, except for that first night when she broke out of her isolation room and waltzed into the bathroom while I was in the middle of a onesies...). We reassured Chico he was #1 in our lives, and gave him extra treats, extra snuggles, extra sunshine-on-the-deck time, extra lunchmeat, and extra popcorn (he LOVES popcorn and will snuggle right in between us while we snack on it and patiently wait his treat). Still, we fully expected the full integration to be nothing less than problematic.

We expected any or all of the following to happen:

bite wounds on one or both animals
scratches on him from her (he's declawed, she's not)
death of one animal (which, as Mike put it, would actually solve our problem)

This is what actually happened: NOTHING. Okay, so that's a bit of a lie. SOMEthing did happen, but nothing that we predicted. After breakfast, we released her from her isolation and went about our day - Mike had work to do, I primed the bedroom in phase I of Operation: Get the Fuck Off the Futon. By lunch, no blood had been shed. By dinner, the worst of the day had been when both cats tore off from the basement all the way up to the craft room (note - this is the futon room, too, so not only is it crammed with crafts, but it's got a futon open in it and it's only a 9x11 room to begin with... Add in two pissed off cats, and you can understand why I feared for my yarns' safety.).

I know this is only day 1 of probably another month of animal issues, but for the first day, it wasn't nearly as horrible as we expected. In the interest of getting sleep last night, we did re-isolate her, and Mr. Bean came to bed with us eventually. And that return to normalcy is a really big good sign - my concern was that he'd hate us and hold this whole incident against like a goth-y teenager being forced by her mom to wear pink to prom (I'm not talking about myself.) (No, really....) (OK. Maybe a little.). But, he didn't clam up or hide out or run away. And this morning? He was actually a little loving. Who knew?

Miss Penelope, despite her 6 months or so living on the streets, is really a lap cat. She loves to be *in* your lap. She also loves to explore everything and does not like going back into her room at night (Mike has a scratch on his face, I have a bite on my hand). Worse than all that, though, she's in need of a desperate yarn-training... I was calculating yardage on some handspun yesterday (194 yds, Anj! Not 300+... What were we thinking?) (Also, that yarn'll get it's own post) and she ATTACKED as the yarn came out of the center-pull ball. Oh, kitten-at-heart, you shall learn how to behave around yarn. Or, you'll go back to the streets....

The power of the swatch

2008-04-09T15:31:00.002-04:00

I think I might almost have learned my lesson this time. You know, the lesson about swatching and test-felting that swatch if the final object is supposed to be felted? Oh, and that little caveat that is mentioned in each pattern that calls for hot water, agitation, and soap? The one that says something like felting times vary depending on wool, washer, and moon phase? (I added the moon phase part). Fellow felters, take heed.

The before shots I took are trapped on Mike's camera. This is an after shot. I don't like the handles and feel that they are too long and too weak. I'm thinking about busting out with some grommets and recycling the straps to run lengthwise rather than along the sides.

(Watch the caption on that one if you click through as it's NSFW)

Overall, I'm fairly happy with the yarn for this bag (I used Bartlett's Fisherman 2-ply). I was concerned that yarn would felt and yet retain some of its initial roughness. It felts up with almost a mohair effect, though. Of course, I have to shave the bag (oh, that sounds naughty) and trim any ends that I missed snipping pre-felting.

Prior to installing the grommets (and, by the way, I love grommets!), I'm going to make a lining for the bag. The upside of having it over-felt is I should have more than enough fabric to do a full lining. Lemons --> lemonade, right? I have tomorrow off, so I might spend some time with my sewing machine then. Hopefully, I can have the whole thing done within the next week so it can see some use before summer.

Secret garden

2008-03-22T09:51:00.002-04:00

A couple of weeks ago, I went down for the count with a case of bronchitis coupled with some other infection-exasperated afflictions. In addition to staying home from work for a week, I also did not a lick of spinning! Yes, that's how sick I was....

The good news is, though, I wasn't too sick to knit. And knit I did:

PhillyKnitters is doing another round of Secret Pal, and in my first package, my pal sent me some sock yarn from Spirit Trail, along with a note to finally knit some socks for myself. Of course, when I saw the yarn, I instantly thought, "These would make great socks for Mike!!!"

My pal also included the pattern (one from my Ravelry.com queue, no less!), and Mike didn't seem to be too enthusiastic about having a "girlie sock". So, I cast on for myself from the beginning. This figure-8 cast-on is my best yet and the foot worked up quickly. The heel even came out nicely, though I think the short-row eyelets are more of a happy accident and less of a pattern plan.

The cable pattern on the leg is really neat--I like the way the reverse stockinette works up in the middle of the cables. I will say that I've had some problems with my version of the pattern (don't know if it was an early version, or if I just got a misprint)--the chart is keyed wrong! I don't have it handy to explain exactly what's wrong, but had I followed the chart as keyed, my cables would have tilted in the wrong direction entirely. A couple of bottles of NyQuil and several naps later, I re-keyed the chart and everything came out beautifully.

Modifications I've made:

A deeper heel. I think the pattern specifies short-rowing to 16 stitches, I went to 12. No reason other than I got carried away.
The 5-stitch cable that runs up the leg (3 cn f, k2, p last st from cn, then k2 from cn) is supposed to be over 4 rows. I misread the chart* and made it over 2 rows. It's a little tighter, but I think it lends a vine-y look to the sock.
In an effort to use up as much of the yarn as possible, I mirrored the cable pattern from the center of the largest cable and then increased 6 stitches over several rows before switching to a k3, p1 ribbing.

I'm nearly done the first sock. It's now become my part-time knitting since I'm back on the wheel. Still, I like the colorway and the yarn and every time I pick up the sock, I feel like peeping through a keyhole into a secret garden.

*The confusion stems, in part, from working from another chart that shows each row as opposed to the chart for the Keyhole Cable Sock which only shows RS rows.

Getting felt up

2008-03-10T16:49:00.004-04:00

One of my current WIP is the Celtic Tote from Winter 2007 IK. In terms of knitting and craft goals for '08, this one might not have made the written list. However, I've not really ever knit from a chart. By "not really", I mean, I've knit from a chart, but it's been very, very basic (think: knits and purls, nothing much else), and only after I translated the chart into written instructions. So. I've not really ever worked with a chart.

I'm more than halfway done--maybe as much as 60%. The back, sides, and bottom are complete and I've cast on for the front.

The yarn is Bartlett's Fisherman 2-ply. I picked it up on the way up to my sister's place last year in Sturbridge, Mass., I think it was the Quilting Cabbage? Anyway, I got the yarn, some fabric and bag pattern all at the same place and promptly left this yarn to hibernate in the stash. I can't even remember what the other bag pattern looks like... Maybe I am only imagining I bought the pattern--I can't find it in my room, though to be honest, the craft room? Right now, it's a bit of a mess.

I'm really enjoying the IK pattern. A couple of times, I've had to stop and think about the way the pattern was written, but I've mostly been able to plow right along with this project. I have run into a problem with the set of Addi circs I'm using--there seems to be a burr or something on the tip of one and it interferes with my knitting speed. I tried using my Denises instead, but the yarn works better with metal needles. Fickle, fickle fiber!

The yarn is definitely rustic and not for anti-VM. Every yard or so, there's some variety of VM, most of which I've pulled out. I think the yarn label mentions something about being spun from soft fleeces, but overall, I'd rate the yarn as best for outerwear or felted items.

The only modification I've made so far is I decided to end the cables on the body of the bag rather than let the cables travel up and along the handles. I felt (ha!) like that was a detail that might get lost in the process and like the idea of a contained motif.

The bag should be ready for the felt cycle in about a week--then I have to dust off the sewing machine and see if I can still wind a bobbin and sew a lining for the bag. I'll add pictures to the set on Flickr as I get them.

Other WIPs: Keyhole Cable Sock (one is nearly to the heel! Magic Loop and toe-up!), low-twist worsted weight singles in spinning, and cashmere meets Icelandic.

Goodness gracious, it's lace!

2008-03-04T07:15:00.000-05:00

Because three fibers on the bobbins, two on the drop spindles, 1 bag, 1 sweater, and 2 socks aren't enough WIP (and I haven't even mentioned the cross-stitch and embroidery projects), I decided over the weekend to cast on for the Leaf and Acorn Lace Scarf, offered through Elann.com. I bought a lovely fingering weight alpaca from a fellow Raveler and couldn't wait to start using it.

Three days later, I'm ready to be quit of it--both yarn and pattern. I'm on my ~~third~~ fourth attempt to get this underway, having now knit the same 14 rows and checked off the same 14 rows as done and counted the same 14 rows to make sure the stitch count is matching up with the pattern. And everything is perfect, and then I get to row 8 and everything goes to shit.

*sigh*

I might give this pattern one more try, and hopefully that sticks--I have to repeat row 8 5 (or, as my original intent was, 6) more times. Plus, if row 8 is so bad, what am I going to think of the remaining 52 row-repeat?

Meet Penelope!

2008-02-28T07:29:00.004-05:00

After months of watching this little girl cat roam the corner of my second bus-stop, I decided to take action. Even if all I could do was get her off the streets and into a foster home, I felt that doing so would be better than leaving her to beg for food and shiver in the cold.

I rescued her a couple of weeks ago (two weeks as of tomorrow) and after getting the all-clear from the vet (she's healthy, non-feral, and spayed), we began the integration process. I also realized that I had to take her in as my own kitty because, well, she picked me.

Chico showed some initial signs of acceptance by taking a serious sun-nap on the towel I'd used in the cat carrier for the new kitty.

Penelope has been almost nothing but the sweetest thing ever. She's nearly always purring, she's rolls on her back for belly rubs, she rubs her whole body on you if you sit still for a second, and she's 100% litter trained.

There's a few other shots here, and as the cats get better about living with each other, there will surely be some pictures that make you go "Awwwwww". Last week we focused on keeping Penelope in a room of her own while Chico was free to roam. This week, we've spent the evenings hosting supervised visits. I've learned that my big mean Chico (you know, the cat that hates everyone so much he's The Cat Most Likely To Destroy The World?) is, well, a pussy when it comes to dealing with Penelope. And Penelope, at less than 7 lbs, is a scrapper of a cat and will scratch you while she's purring.

I've been told that things are progressing well, so that's encouraging.

Believe it or not...

2008-02-25T08:56:00.003-05:00

...we're still talking about Rhinebeck!

While in the middle of the Ravelry/blogger meet-up (near the Building o' Wine and the gem and minerals AND The Fold building (I should become a cartographer)), I fell into an interview for the podcast Let's Knit 2gether. I was drawn to Cat's Clapotis like a moth to the candle, and before I knew it, we were rolling.

Somehow, I managed to not sound super-nasal or like a total tool (except for my answer to the first question... All the way from Philadelphia... As if that's some distance. Anyway, aside from the fact that I'm in the podcast, it's actually a nicely done piece AND there's the added benefit of revisiting Rhinebeck '07, if only for a few minutes.

I'm towards the end, after a spinner in a hot pink shirt with fiber to match and before Subway Knitter!

Here's the link to the webpage if the movie doesn't work for you.

Year-end FOs

2008-01-22T10:57:00.000-05:00

I've fallen out of the photo-taking habit. Actually, that's not altogether true. I take photos, I just leave them trapped on my camera because by the time I get home most nights, all I want to do is spin. Yup. I have a problem.

First FO to mention: 4-ply handspun hat. I used Spunky Eclectic's Fiber of the Month for October. I split the roving length-wise into 4 1-oz sections and then spun it to about heavy-fingering weight. I plied it and managed to preserve most of the color changes. The resulting yarn knit up nicely on US10 dpns. Here's a shot of the hat as it blocks on my alien head:

And here's a wistful shot:

The next FO is the Natalya Gauntlets by Jody (she recently redesigned her site and I can't find the pattern!!!). As much as I loved knitting this pattern, I loved working with the yarn more! I used Mission Falls Merino Superwash, and my stars, am I ever in love with that yarn now. It is the embodiment of smoosh.

The only modification I made was minor--I mirrored the cables so that they would twist complementary to each other. My favorite part of the pattern was the thumb gusset--for whatever reason, that detail just made me happier than happy. Neither of these details is readily evident given the sumptuous darkness of the yarn.

More later--I'm battling Flickr and the home PC to get all of my stash shots uploaded before week's end.

Knitting (and spinning) resolutions

2008-01-16T10:15:00.000-05:00

A little late, but better than nothing, I've been musing on some crafty resolutions. I'd drawn up a big, overwhelming list and then realized that everything fits into one of four categories (LOL, I started with two...), which I've detailed a bit more below.

First, challenge myself to learn new techniques.

Afterthought heel - I'm working on a plain ol' toe-up 2x2 ribbed sock (Austermann Step, yarn I fondled thrice before making it mine). To make it a little more interesting, I thought I'd give the afterthought heel a try. I've read some stuff online and it seems easy enough, plus if the heel wears out (I haven't had that happen yet on any of the hand-knit socks I wear), I can replace it.

Intarsia - I queued Buster a couple of months ago and haven't gotten much further than the preliminary color decisions. Part of this is because I've become more of a spinner lately, part of this is because I'm a little timid to try colorwork, and part of this is due to the fact that I'm still having issues with properly finishing sweaters, which leads me to my next goal.

Finishing - whether I try to finesse something ala over the edge or just want to knit and finish something that actually fits in all respects, I still need to work on finishing a garment and having it work. I'm not asking for perfection or store-bought replicas, but I would like to be able to wear the sweaters I knit rather than stare at them in the closet and scoff.

Spindle-ply - I can spindle-spin a pretty fine single, but when it comes to plying, I either turn to the wheel, or leave the singles as is. There's no reason for having not spindle-plied yet other than I just haven't done it.

Spinning, general - I want to spin more consistent singles. I'm good at this with the spindle, but on the wheel... Well, sometimes I just go a little nuts and let the fiber go where it takes me. That's great for practice, but not necessarily for practicality. So, I'll eventually order a spinner's control card so I can better manage the width of the single as it's spun. The Woolery has one for about $10.50; I'll get on that soon enough.

Second, I want to spin to knit. Any fiber that isn't married to a project (even as vague a project as "socks"; it doesn't have to be a specific pattern, though that would be helpful) should either get hitched or get lost. Some of the projects in mind include:

Spin up the Coopworth I bought at Rhinebeck and make it a two-ply. It might be pushing it to also expect to knit socks from it, but that's the plan down the road. I actually bought this with the intention of making socks for Mike, so this will likely be a subdued pattern.
Spin up the gorgeous merino and make a vest out of it. (See resolution about finishing techniques above...). The vest I'm planning on right now is the XOXO vest from TKBOY.
Spin the STR silk/merino (LOCH NESS!) as finely as possible, make a snuggly scarf.
Card, spin, dye the locks, bamboo, and rayon. The different fibers will take the dye at various levels, which should create a lovely semi-solid skein in the end. All told, I'll end up with about 4 oz of this blend. I think in and of itself, the yarn will be the project.
Finish spinning the two plies for Brooking. Make Mr. Greenjeans.

Perhaps the hardest task I've assigned myself for the year: fix what I knit. Part of this relates directly to the issues I have with properly finishing a sweater (I rush the body, I think blocking will perform an incredible miracle...). Part of it is related to the fact that sometimes, sometimes, I can be st00pid.

Fix the Wicked sweater I bastarded from the good folks over at Nashua. This may involve simply picking up the bottom hem and crocheting a round to help things lay flat. Or, it may be a frog candidate.
Fix Anastasia. Is she a sweater? Is she a vest? Sit down, calculate the sleeves, and make the damn thing work already!
Fix the top-down raglan turtleneck with cabled details. Provided, of course, I have enough yarn--I think I need a skein of Malabrigo Pearl. Ravelry tells me I don't. Ravelry can be a big ol' liar-head. If I don't have another skein, then I'll just have to frog the sweater AGAIN and make it into something that frakkin' works once and for all.
Fix the Shapely Tee I made for my mom--I have half a skein of that Jo Sharp and I need to fix the armholes. Knowing now what I do, this should be easy-peasy. I'll get to that next month. :-P
Fix the RPM socks I made for Mike... They're not for me, they're not for me, they're not for me... EVEN IF THEY DO FIT!!!

Lastly, organize the stash and its related stuff. Ravelry is my friend, right?

Inventory the stash: yarn, fiber, and handspun (which *is* yarn, but it's also special...)
Inventory the books. I have nearly purchased an already-owned book on more than one occasion.
Inventory needles. Why do I always seem to buy the same size? Also, what size DON'T I have?
Keep a running list of what I don't have and think I need. Evaluate that list periodically and shop from it wisely.
Keep my notebook over at Ravelry up-to-date. I've really not used the site to its fullest. I need to take photos of my stash, keep projects updated, and mingle with the other Ravelers.

I'm hoping that by 2009, my little hobby will be less like Audrey II and more under control. It's not so much that it's out of control now (some might argue otherwise), but the semi-stress of managing things bothers me. Some projects I don't even tackle because it would just be too much work to even start them. With the exception of the last category, these resolutions should be fairly fun to keep. I mean, I've basically just resolved to knit and spin more. What's so bad about that? And, if I'm going to be completely honest, the prospect of whipping my (I nearly called it collection) stash into shape is actually quite appealing. If nothing else, I'll gain an idea of what I don't have and what I might be able to get.

This weekend coming up is a long one for me (sweet honey and sugar, I cannot wait). I'm hopeful that I can start tackling the organizational goals then! Stay tuned...

'tis the season

2007-12-15T15:13:00.000-05:00

...for procrastination!

The Christmas Meme

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags?
A few years ago, I was on this "I will make my own wrapping paper" kick that resulted in me spending about $100 on brown craft paper, rubber stamps, and stamp pads. Then, I spent a few years carefully coordinating wrapping papers--colors, patterns, themes, etc. I still wrap, but the stamp pads have long since dried out and the paper is so mis-matched, it's funny. I use gift bags for hard-to-wrap items, like wine. Or gin. For some reason, I give a lot of gin. Go figure.

2. Real or artificial tree?
Last year, we had a real tree for the first time in ages and it was WONDERFUL. It was also much more gigantic than we'd anticipated. Note for future reference: saving the dried up tree to use as firewood? Not the most brilliant idea.

3. When do you put up the tree?
Usually the weekend after Thanksgiving, or the following weekend.

4. When do you take it down?
I try to have to down by the Feast of the Epiphany if only to keep the neighbors from talking smack on me. I have, however, left the tree up as late as February (if by February, I mean early March. That was a bad year all-around, though).

5. Do you like eggnog?
No. No matter the amount of rum or brandy used.

6. Favorite gift received as a child?
Gosh. I can't remember just one. I have fond memories of the rocking horse, the stuffed poodle that my Uncle Jon had "wrapped" in a garbabe bag, and loads of Barbie stuff.

7. (I'm adding this) Favorite gift received as an adult?
A piano. And not so much the piano (I do love it), but the way I had to "unwrap" it... Mike sent me on a scavenger hunt that started somewhere under out Christmas tree and ended 2 or so miles away at my parents' house. He'd hidden clues behind stop signs, in the tree, all over the apartment, and at my mom's.

8. Do you have a nativity scene?
I think we had one when I was growing up, though I might be thinking of one that my grandmother has.

9. Hardest person to buy for?
It varies from year to year. Some years, I have no idea what to get my dad. Other years, I'm at a loss as to what to get my husband. I always come up with some ideas, though--even if it is with only days to spare.

10. Easiest person to buy for?
ME!!! Actually, that's not true. I'm the worst to shop for because I'm so dang picky. My mom is usually the easiest to shop for, and usually the first on my done list.

11. Worst Christmas present you ever got?
A monogrammed tote from Lillian Vernon. It was garish. And hardly a tote seeing as it barely fit a book in it. Somewhere, someone else is sporting that bag...

12. Mail or email Christmas cards?
We have a core of about 25 or so family members that send us cards, so we reciprocate. Every other year, I get motivated enough to find the addresses of friends and send them cards. This year, though, Mike's doing the Christmas card thing. I am equally relieved and fearful.

13. Favorite Christmas movie?
National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation and A Christmas Story.

14. When do you start shopping for Christmas?
I've actually bought Christmas presents as early as June and July, though invariably, I end up giving the recipient the gift early *and* still giving another gift at Christmas.

15. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present?
YES--and not that long ago, either.

15. Favorite thing to eat on Christmas?
Growing up, we would go to my grandmother's for breakfast and eat red gravy and biscuits. I like that memory, or at least my version of it. I think I'd enjoy having a Christmas breakfast in bed at home--we haven't spent a Christmas at home in years.

16. Clear lights or colored on the tree?
For the longest time, I was a clear-light purist, but in the last couple of years, the twinkly colored lights have spoken to me. I don't know what they're saying, I just know they are speaking. To me.

17. Favorite Christmas song?
"I want a Hippopotamus for Christmas". And I didn't even know I LOVED it until I heard it while my Mom and I were shopping a few weekends ago.

18. Travel at Christmas or stay home?
We've got a traditional routine where we drive south and spend Christmas Eve with his family and then drive over to my parents to spend Christmas Day. It's not far from home, and yet... it is.

19. Can you name all of Santa's Reindeer?
Without singing their names, maybe not.

20. Angel or star on top of tree?
Since we're not decorating this year, I don't honestly know WHAT we've got. We've had both at some point, though not at the same time.

21. Open presents Christmas Eve or morning.
Well, we open gifts with his family on Christmas Eve--does that count? We usually don't exchange gifts ourselves until late Christmas Day, though this year will be a leeetle different.

22. Most annoying thing this time of year?
People thinking that buying more equals giving more. Or, that getting more means you were "a good girl".

23. Do you decorate your tree in any theme or color?
God, all this stuff I used to do.... We've had plenty o' themed Christmasses: there was the year of the hay on the tree (it actually looked great), the candied fruit year, the dried fruit year (different fruit), the green-on-green year, the Hallmark year, the blue balls year, the we-need-more-white-lights year, and so on.

24. What do you leave for Santa?
If Santa's lucky, I give him a nice little going away present on December 23, if you know what I mean.

25. What's your Christmas wish this year?
A snow day on December 26th would be nice.

breaking rocks all day

2007-12-12T19:22:00.000-05:00

Wow. I can hardly believe that I've been without a post for over a month.

I still don't have any Koigu, though I did pick up some Claudia's Handpainted, some Cascade 220 (for felted clogs), some Lorna's Laces roving (Black Purl), and I scored about 2 pounds of natural colored unknown wool from my good friend Sam.

In the last month, I've gotten a new boss, dealt with a semi-major plumbing issue, had my roof serviced, hosted the local knitting group's monthly Stitch 'n' Bitch, cleaned the holy hell out of my house (which included, among so many other things, shredding documents for 3 hours straight. Enron much?), and succumbed to the tempation that is sleeping late, as brought to me daily by my heated mattress pad.

I'm spending those last few minutes before dream-time reading Alden Amos' Big Book of Handspinning and having the predicted reactions: "I know that! It makes sense!" "I didn't know that, but damn, it makes sense!!!"

I was knitting on a sock for my mom until I poked my left pointer finger senseless. While that heals up, I'm knitting the first of two pairs of felted clogs. I've knit them before and forgot how quick a knit they are! I also forgot how much counting was involved until last night. We were on the couch, Mike was tuned into Deal or No Deal (it's SO his show), gabbing away about this and that when I sighed a Great Big Sigh and sniped, "I'm trying to count here!"

I've asked Santa for a blocking board and some Noro sock yarn. How about you?

The next to last thing I need

2007-11-06T11:37:00.000-05:00

I need Koigu. I need it bad. I've been playing with some Lorna's Laces Shepherd's Sock (the Vera colorway) but no patterns are really clicking with that yarn. Then, as I cast on and worked the ribbing for a fourth sock, I remembered Broadripple. I knit a pair of those using Koigu, though the colorway is lost (the label MIGHT be in my craft room. It might also be some other place, like, say, the garbage.) and the socks were a gift for a friend... So I suppose I could justify a pair of those for myself. And, if I can use up the two skeins of LL that I have, well, I should certainly permit myself to buy a couple skeins of KPPPM, right?

I'm currently tackling the Rainbow socks from MagKnits, using OnLine's Supersocke 6-ply Winter in colorway 887--that's a combination of cinnamon, earth brown, royal blue, grey, cream, and mustard yellow. I picked it up at Rosie's back in late July when Mom and I were killing time before going to the theatre. There was a ton of this yarn in the sale bin and never one to either leave a yarn store empty handed OR pass up at least an earnest glance through the sale bin, I asked Mom to pick out a skein and I'd make her socks. Figured now was as good a time as any to start THAT project. So far, I'm enjoying this pattern and think it's a really neat way to work with the self-patterning yarns. A little unpredictable--and the end result looks kind of hard. Plus--short rows? Who doesn't like short rows?