Please To Meet...

the newest additon.

(No no no...  Grandbebe Next hasn't made her appearance yet.)

We took advantage of the local animal shelters offer to waive the adoption fee for adults cats through the end of the month.

After the trip to Oklahoma, which always brings with it a trip to the shelter where my SIL works, I think I was softened up.  I suggested to Wonderful Guy that 'we just go see'.

(Yeah, right.)

And there was the Kitty Boy. With no claws.  After meeting him and spending some time with him...well, it seemed the thing to do.  He needed to come home with someone, and there we were.

He's adjusting to Best Dog Ever and The Cat Who Is Still Queen (and a bit bent out of shape, I must say), but we are working on making sure everyone knows their worth and their place in the feeder people's hearts.

She is not amused...

He has found a place under a bed to hang out where he thinks he safe.  I am scooping additional stuff from the litter box, so that is good.  I don't know about eating.  It's hard to say with other critters grazing, you know, but he's a big guy, and isn't going to starve to death right away.

He likes catnip, and he is playful, too.  It's fun having a playful one around again.

Pumpkin and Piccalilli

While my ham and beans are complete with some chopped onions (apparently DSis and my upbringing diverge when it comes to onions…), Wonderful Guy’s memories include something called piccalilli on the ham and beans of his youth.

Piccalilli that his grandmother canned…

Hmmm…that’s a tough an act to follow.

Of course there's not a 'historical' recipe, so I searched the internet and found about a million ‘Grandma’s best-ever old-fashioned piccalilli recipe’ or various derivations thereof.  There seemed to be a couple running variations, and I chose with the following criteria:

• I should have most, if not all, the seasonings/spices on hand (or be able to make do).
• It should not required sitting in a stone crock with brine overnight (I have a stone crock, but it's sort of old, being an antique..).

Armed with two likely recipes, I headed to the farmer’s market and picked up the onions and peppers required.  Then I headed to the basement to assess my canning supplies.

I have canned plenty in the distant past.  I put up a lot of veggies when the girls were young. It was educational and felt good and saved lots of money at a time when there didn’t seem to be enough and also took a whole lot of energy when I hardly had any to spare.  I have toted my canner and all my jars with me in all my moves since I left Texas in 1983.  There has been a bit of putting by that has happened along the way, but not like back then.  Yet I have not been able to let these things go.

And Saturday, when I wanted to put up some pumpkin for pies, and make some piccalilli for The Guy, I didn’t have to do anything but…unpack those boxes.  Oh. MY.  I have about 12 or 14 dozen quart jars and maybe 2 dozen pints, along with a dozen jelly jars.  I found plenty of rings, and enough flats to do Saturday’s work.

I could not find my mother’s food grinder.  For the life of me, I cannot place where I have put it (and I don’t believe I would have gotten rid of it). Therefore, I was reduced to cutting and chopping all the vegetables for the piccalilli, which worked pretty well.  The pumpkin I split and baked, then put through Mom’s fruit and vegetable press (another hi-tech item that I have carried with me forevah…).  According to the USDA guidelines, it is no longer considered safe to can pumpkin puree, so after smooshing it through the press, I filled two pint jars, sealed them, let them cool, and stuck them in the freezer.

Very easy, and makes me want to do more!  But really, how many pints of pumpkin do I need per year?

I added the seasonings and spices to the piccalilli and started it cooking.  When The Guy came in from riding the motorcycle, he said it smelled like piccalilli, so I felt I might be on the right track.  Not ever having had piccalilli, though, I was sort of operating in unknown territory.  Forging ahead, I finished following the recipe and filled the jars.

There is a time in canning that the seals take, and the lids ‘pop’. When I hear that distinctive pop,  I know I have done something right.  That gives me a buzz, and when those ‘pops’ started on Saturday, I was suddenly taken back to those summer days in Texas, when my mom was visiting my family, helping with the girls, and showing me what she remembered about stocking up.

Except she never showed me piccalilli.

When The Guy came back from washing the motorcycle, he was surprised the finished result was pink.  Well, I had red cabbage on hand, and that makes everything pink!  Also, apparently Grandma used corn in hers, but other than that, mine tastes like piccalilli.

Colorful results of the day’s efforts.

Political Discourse

I am as tired of being hit over the head with the Constitution by Tea Partiers, as I was being whacked with the King James Version of the Bible by those conservatives in religious circles I have passed through in my life.

I read this earlier this week in Newsweek, in an article titled ‘America’s Holy Writ  (How Teapartier’s Got It Wrong)’.

“‘When Barack Obama took office, experts rushed to declare an end to the old battles over race, religion, and reproductive rights—whether because of Obama’s alleged healing powers, or the Great Recession, or both. But these analyses ignored an important reality: at heart, the culture wars were really never about anything as specific as abortion or gay marriage. Instead, as James Davison Hunter wrote in Culture Wars, the book that popularized the term, the conflicts of the 1990s represented something bigger: “a struggle over…who we have been...who we are now, and...who we, as a nation, will aspire” to be. Such conflicts, Hunter explained, pit “orthodox” Americans, who like the way things were, against their more “progressive” peers, who are comfortable with the way things are becoming.

For the forces of orthodoxy, the election of a black, urban, liberal Democrat with a Muslim name wasn’t a panacea at all; it was a provocation. So when the recession hit, and new economic anxieties displaced the lingering social concerns of the Clinton era, political fundamentalists sought refuge in a more relevant scripture—one that could still be made to accommodate the simpler, surer past they longed for but happened to dwell on taxes and government instead of sinning and being saved.’” [emphasis mine]

I have come to believe it’s not about the Constitution (or the Bible), because I see now, as I saw then, a certain ‘cherry picking’ going on.

Those that heaved out their Bibles to denounce women in leadership (then, and perhaps the acceptance of gays now) kindly looked over those scriptures addressing slavery, cutting of hair, and certain laws regarding how ownership of property is handled.  Also, the obligatory tithe off the top of one’s income to one’s house of worship is almost always skipped over.  Not always, but very, very often.  I know.  I was once the wife of a minister.

And now, in likewise fashion, I am being beaten about the head and shoulders by those who do not like what has happened in the past two years in Washington.  It is said that the actions of our elected leaders is not what the Founding Fathers intended, and indeed, is unconstitutional.  We need a return to the basics of that revered document.

Make no mistake.  I revere the Constitution, and believe that Adams and Madison and Jefferson and Franklin were amazing, intelligent, and visionary individuals that pulled off an incredible feat in forming this embryonic nation with farsightedness and intellectualism that humbles me.

And by necessity, I believe we have built on that document.  Less than 150 years ago, we had to spell out that slavery was against the laws of this country (Amendment 13).  And only 140 years ago, it was noted that race was not to be used as a bar to voting (Amendment 15).

It was only 90 years ago this document was changed to give women the right to vote (Amendment 19).   And less than 50 years ago, this document spelled out a law against poll taxes, leveling the playing field for ‘less than wealthy’ voters (Amendment 24).

All of these events moved this country out of a comfort zone and closer to what we aspire to be.  All of these events were met with calls of derision by those who took the change uneasily, or just plain felt the change. Mostly people don’t like change.  I sure didn’t, when the X took his leave.  My whole apple cart was upset.  I understand this reticence.

But my little recitation here begs a question.  If we are going to hearken back to the Constitution, as our founding fathers envisioned it, are we talking just going back a couple years?  I might suggest some constitutionality issues the Bush administration had with search and seizure (Amendment 4) and right to a speedy trial (Amendment 6). Those don’t seem to get much press these days.

Do the Tea Partiers wish to take the Constitution back beyond Civil Rights?  Perhaps take back my right to vote and to own property?

Or perhaps like Clarence Thomas (and we are not even going to go there, my friends…especially today…).  From the same article as I quoted above, ‘Thomas sympathizes with a radical version of originalism known as the Constitution in Exile. In his view, the Supreme Court of the 1930s unwisely discarded the 19th-century’s strict judicial limits on Federal power, and the only way to resurrect the “original” Constitution—and regain our unalienable rights—is by rolling back the welfare state, repealing regulations, and perhaps even putting an end to progressive taxation….As Cass Sunstein, a centrist legal scholar at the University of Chicago who now serves in the Obama administration, has explained, “many decisions of the Federal Communications Commission, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, and possibly the National Labor Relations Board would be [ruled] unconstitutional” if Thomas got his way. Social Security could be eliminated. Same goes for the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Federal Reserve. Individual states might be allowed to establish official religions. Even minimum-wage and maximum-hour laws would be jeopardized. [emphasis mine]

I am betting Tea Partiers do not wish to hearken back to a pre-social security, pre-medicare constitution.  Which is another thing…

Those that have their government provided healthcare all tied up in a nice tidy package, paid for by taxes, cannot seem to see how that is government run healthcare.  And those that are screaming about how health insurance premiums are going up this year, are not relating to the fact that the rise in health insurance premiums have effectively taken away all raises, and eaten away at our standard of living for the past decade and a half.

I think I have now completed my political discourse, inadequate as it may be.  I am a chemist, not a political scientist.  However...

Separation of church and state?  Amendment 1, people.

Unfortunate Side of Organization

There is a down side to having an organized space.  With a place for everything and everything in it’s place?

I can see exactly where I have room for something else.

D-oh!

I know exactly what I have, what I don’t have, and thereby, what else I think I need.

Okay…want…

I start to think in terms of ‘this is really great, but you know what would make it even better…’

That’s the crack talking, and it won’t stop.  Ever.

So I back off, talk myself down, look at what I have, and see that my craft room is good.  It’s very good. 

It’s a room, for pete’s sake.

That having almost every back issue of Interweave Knits (except for 4) is adequate.  More than adequate, actually.  Just one example, by the way. (edit: I think I have found 3 of those four back issues on Ravelry from someone who is de-stashing some mags...)

And I have plenty of yarn and fiber to keep me knitting and spinning and dyeing until the cows…or maybe sheep...come home.  Plenty.

Which, however, will not keep me from purchasing a bargain when one appears.  I am nothing if not honest with myself.

Nor will it keep from making a purchasing of something extra-ordinary.  Like this:

Stansborough Grey. “Stansborough Farm, in the Wairarapa district, NZ, has the only flock of Stansborough sheep in the world making this fiber truly a unique find. Stansborough Grey wool was woven to make the famous costumes for Lord of The Rings and Narnia movies.” 

And being the complete LOTR dork that I am…I will say no more.

More Spinning Lessons

I know what I was thinking.  I was thinking I wanted to finesse my spinning skills and that I wanted to take another class from Maggie Casey to do that, and I got on the ‘pre-newsletter call list’, and when I got the call, I was thinking I was going to go for it.

And go for it I did.  I signed up for the fall Spinning 201 class.  At Shuttles.  In Boulder.  On Thursday nights from 7-9:30.  Starting November 4. For four weeks, skipping Thanksgiving.

What was I thinking?  It will be cold and dark and the weather might be lousy, too.  When I get home from work, ask the Guy.  It’s like pulling teeth to get me back out, and here I have plunked down money for just that very privilege.

But just not getting out for, say, a trip to Home Depot.  Oh noooooo.  I will be…

Driving over an hour both ways.

In the dark.

In the cold.

And probably the rain…by myself…

Getting home WA-AA-AY past my getting-in-my-stretchy-pants time.

For spinning.

Well, I won’t be totally alone.  Molly, the Marvelous Matchless will be riding shotgun!

I may be certifiably bonkers.

Comfort Food

At the farmer’s market a few weeks back, just when I thought I was done with shopping and we were on our way back to the car, we passed a vendor that had bags of locally grown pinto beans for sale.

First, I am really a sucker for the locally grown stuff.  That is why I am at the market buying from the little booths.  And second, it was the one chilly Saturday we have had so far this fall.  There was a real nip in the air, and those pinto beans called out to me….ham, beans, and cornbread…

So a bag was added to the rest of the day’s produce, and ham was purchased at the grocery store.

Now ham and beans is not something prepared for dinner eating when I get home from work.  Ham and beans take forethought and planning.  Ham and beans could be a weekend meal, surely, but we often are not home for lengthy periods of time during the days on the weekends, for which to check water levels and such.  There are crockpots, but my crockpot beans have never panned out, really.

Like I said, forethought and planning.  So my thinking and plan went like this….

I put the beans on to cook on low before work and enlisted the help of Wonderful Guy (who could do as I ask, let the beans burn, or go hungry that evening…his choice…) to keep a eye out on the water level.

Working from home has some distinct advantages, I must say, and on my return from work, I turned them up, gave them a taste, mixed up the cornbread, and presto!  We had ourselves a meal.

Ham and beans was a standard of my mother’s, but she used an inexpensive ham hock for flavoring, which allowed about three bites of ham per pot of beans.  I supposed that worked out okay because there were only the three of us: Mom, DSis, and myself.  But Mom would make a mess of those beans, thinking the leftovers would keep us happy and out of her hair, and her out of the kitchen for a bit.  But I grew to think the beans mighty boring and weak after that first bite of ham was gone, and the corn bread no longer warm and fresh.

Still…ham and beans, with warm corn bread and fresh chopped onions….mmmmm……

I use a chunk of ham, though, and only cook enough for 2 meals.  Just right on a chilly autumn day.

Teasing Fiber

In this example, the CVM/Corriedale (2 different links) fleece.

I can’t wait to see how this spins. I wonder what I will end up wearing this as. It may be sweater.

Let’s review, shall we? (And we shall, since I am in charge of these here parts…)

5 ½ pounds of CVM/Corriedale (link) fleece purchased at the Estes Park Wool Market from a young woman who, with her sister, raise their critters in south central Colorado at a place called Heart Cross Ranch. They call them by name. Or so they say...this ones name is Oreo.  Or so they say....

After scouring and teasing, I will weigh it again.  It had a bit of lanolin, and some vegetable matter but mostly was pretty clean, being a coated fleece.  That means the sheep wore a coat, like a blanket, that 'buckled' underneath it's tummy, to keep the best part of the fleece the best part of the fleece.  Coated (and skirted)fleece bring premium dollars from spinners.  So much easier to clean.

I enjoyed teasing this fleece. Picking up a clump, I just start opening up the locks.

 It is such nice wool and cleaned up so well.

It pulls apart cleanly and softly and holds such promise! I am anxious to see it carded up.

See all the little bits?  And the not so little bit?  And the fuzz ball? Those are the rejects from the teasing process.  Like I mentioned before, it's dirty work, but I think worth it.

Pumpkin Patch 2010

The last two years, excursions to the local fields have been less than stellar. Three years ago, before Grandbebe Girl was walking, it was an extraordinary day. The next year, mud. Last year, cold wind and a lousy pumpkin year.

This year was another good one with shirt sleeve temps and some pretty good sunshine. It was a good day to go to the farm.

Earlier in the day, putting away groceries proved to be dangerous for me. The bread basket fell off the top of the fridge and beaned me good.

When we met Youngest and her fam, Grandbebe Girl asked, ‘what happened to your nose, Grandma?’ As I explained, she kept crinkling her own nose. It was very hard to keep my concentration.

Anyway, back to the farm.

Pumpkins were picked.

Of all sizes.

The day was enjoyed by all.

And the scary birds have made their yearly appearance.

Carding Fiber (By Drum Carder)

One reason I was inclined to seek out the spinner’s/weaver’s guild was their equipment rental policy for members. Of course, after visiting the monthly meetings, I discovered there was going to be much, much more to membership, but this past weekend, I took advantage of my first inclination.

I rented a drum carder.

I have some cleaned fleeces, and some even teased, from the summer needing to be carded. I have cleaned a couple more recently. It’s a little overwhelming to think about hand carding it all. I also have a whole lot of other stuff needing to be done and hand carding doesn't seem as appealing or necessary. And I also want to try my hand with one of those things.

Here is how it went.

Really fast! That’s how it went!

I took on the Strauch for fine wool, and it worked well for my purposes. I started with some rose grey alpaca already teased (which is the process after scouring and drying of pulling apart the locks, loosening any remaining veggie matter, etc).

In hardly anytime at all, I had myself carded alpaca. Done…and done!

Well, that was pretty sweet, I must say. So I went to work on the Jacob, deciding to blend the colors together with this fleece. Also documenting with photos.

Feeding the uptake…

Removing the batt…

Recarding the batt (which I did twice after the initial carding)…

I then rolled up the batts and weighed them. The alpaca lost very little, not having any lanolin. The Jacob I lost half its weight. This sort of documentation is valuable in the education it holds for me.

Anyway. Alpaca done. Jacob done. The CVM/Corriedale is up next. I have thought in the past that I surely coveted my own drum carder, but now have different thinking.

First, I will try the different ones the guild rents (there are 3, I think). And then…for the price I can rent one for a month? I am not sure I need to #1 make the investment myself, or #2 take up the space in my craft room to store one.

Bebe Bootees

More FO’s…

Sarrtje’s Booties, out of Brown Sheep Wildefoote for Grandbebe Next.

And my own handspun from (cleaned and carded by me) alpaca for Eldest to gift to an expectant friend.

Sweet Peasy complete with buttons, too.

All use buttons that I had on hand. Which is always a plus.

And some awesome socks (Charlene Schurch’s Sensational Knitted Socks, Welt Fantastic, out of Steinbach Wolle Avtic Effekt) that I think turned out pretty cool. I didn’t match the stripes in these. It would have required ‘wasting’ what was, in my opinion, ‘too much’ yarn. So they are of a ‘wild’ variety. Which I am liking in this instance.

I have been busy as a bee. Another pair of socks has already been cast on. ButtonUp Neckwarmers are being knitted. February Baby Sweaters (EZimmermann’s idea, Rav linky) are in the works out of handspun for Christmas gifting.

And yet, strangely enough, I am not even close to running out of yarn…

It's miraculous.

Fiber Prep Tutorial

Soaking and scouring

Two Icelandic (wiki link) fleeces were given to me, and I purchased a Baby Doll  fleece in August, too. All of these were admittedly full of vegetable and priced accordingly. The Icelandics were free, if that paints a clearer picture.

My research has led me to believe that an overnight soak is just the thing for a really dirty fleece, and I realized last week that unless I wanted to wake up with a skim of ice on the top of my soak water, I better get those fleeces processing.

Getting fleece clean is not a pretty sight. While the finished product is (hopefully) soft yarn that smells of ...well....nothing, shorn fleece is straight from the barnyard. And all that that implies. It’s the first true reality show, with no edits, and all the smells.

I took photos anyway. Someone might be interested. This follows the Babydoll fleece...

Skirted fleece (skirted by me, so we will use that term loosely). I learned everything I know about skirting fleeces from the book, In Sheep’s Clothing, by the Fourniers. See. I am an expert.

Overnight soak in water from the hose, floating freely.

I have previously scoured fleece in lingerie bags (pillow case sized), but that doesn’t allow for the ‘haystacks’ to float away, and hay! these fleeces have plenty. Research and advice from the experts led me to buy these baskets (on sale at Target) and drill some holes in the bottom. I split each fleece in half and scoured as follows:

Hot H20 (140F) with plenty of Dawn (water should be slippy) for 20 minutes
Hot H20 (140F) with less Dawn for 20 minutes (possibly additional if req)
Hot H20 (140F) with vinegar (a couple of good glugs) for 20 minutes
Hot H2O (140F) for some minutes (repeat clean rinse until clear)

(This was during the third soap wash...the water was much cleaner at this point...I know...)

Important! Keep hands off during the above steps! I so want to do just a little swishing..but at the least manipulation at this point will mat the fleece, and at the worst, felt it. I push the fleece down gently (because wool will float until wet). I slowly re-arrange the baskets to drain, and to wash out the tub between steps. But I really have to keep my hands off!!!

[This did not remove all the grass/seeds/hay from the Icelandic, but I am processing these fleeces for the experience of working with Icelandic. Icelandic is a primitive sheep with a short undercoat (called the thel) and a longer outer coat (the thog). The undercoat is much softer than the outer, and often is separated before using.  When it is spun together, it is called lopi yarn.  According to my resources.  I am looking forward to the carding and spinning experience.  Even if it means fighting the VM.  It's for free...]

After scouring, I gently press the excess water out of the fleece, lift it to towels and roll it up for more drying, and lay it out on the patio, in these cases, overnight.

All the lanolin is gone (Icelandics are not lanolin heavy). The nastiest veggie matter is gone. The dust is gone. It is mostly clean. Washing after spinning will help with the remainder of the dirt.  Most importantly, the barnyard odor is completely gone. I will spend some time picking through for removing the grass and seeds and hay in this case, then teasing before carding.

In the past, as I mentioned, I have not used the overnight soak, and I don't think it is particularly necessary for cleaner fleeces.  I have also used lingerie bags, and I don't know which I like better, baskets or bags.  I am thinking maybe baskets.

What I love?  Is my tankless hot water heater that I can crank up to 140F on demand without hassle, and never ever ever run out of hot water during this process.  Then I just go press the button again to return the device to our normal temp.  Then off for a shower!

That was one sweet investment!

The Book Sale

It’s that time of the year! Time for the Friend’s of the Library Book Sale!!

Frankly, I was very concerned. I didn’t get there at lunch time. I waited until after work. I was really afraid all the good stuff might be gone!

And the Guy wanted to go, too. Not for the books.  Just to get out of the house, but he had some stuff to do first! I had to wait on him

Tick tock tick tock…I knew people were buying my books!

Finally. We got there. What a relief. The tables were still full. There was plenty to choose from.  And at dinner time on Friday? There were no crowds to fight. It was a very nice experience overall. And I made quite a haul.

Yes, indeed. I have reading material for another year. At least. (clicky for biggy and the titles/authors may be readable)

Now the Guy isn’t so much into the booksale. He looked around at other palces in the mall, checking in on me a couple of times. I gave him a call when I was ready to check out. Seems he had walked across the parking lot, across the street, to another shopping area. Could I bring the pickup over there and pick him up? Not a problem.

Except? I don’t usually carry the truck key with me. (To carry both key fobs gets bulky…) So I get halfway to the truck, toting all the above books, with my key ring in my hand and look down, and think…

Uh-oh.

I called back Wonderful Guy, himself who typically doesn’t carry the Subaru key, and told him he’s going to need to walk back across the street. And I would be waiting.

At least I had some books to leaf through while I waited.

Out and About

My Saturday was a full day. I rose early to be at the farmer’s market shortly after they opened. Which is 8:00am for the one I was shooting for. There is another that opens at 10 or 11, and another mid-morning on Sunday, and perhaps another on a mid-week afternoon. Times change. I remember ‘Farmer’s Market’ used to imply before the crack of dawn on Saturday, at a very inconvenient area mid-city, and if one arrived after 7AM, nothing but the dregs were left. The worst we worry about now at the market I frequent is whether we will get a parking place right across the street.

Also? Gourmet dog biscuits and hand lotion bars are sold. Items likely not found at the markets of the past…

Any way, my market booty will provide us with roasted beets and carrots (both of the usual and purple varietals!) and onions and squash and new potatoes and plums.

And one gourmet dog biscuit.

After a quick round of the vendors, a mad dash home, tossing the produce in the fridge, grabbing another cup of joe, I was off to the monthly meeting of the weavers and spinners guild that I joined over the summer. I missed the first meeting in September when all the offspring were in the vicinity so I wanted to make it to this one. I am all serious about figuring out how this organization works. I am intrigued by this group of talented and interesting folk. I did not stay for the program, however.

I had plans, you see.

I dashed out immediately after the business meeting and headed south. I met my friend from college days for a last lunch before she moves north….wa-aa-ay north…for a few years.

We ate at one of my favorite places for lunch in Denver. We ate at Andre’s. I had Dobisch Torte for dessert. (For those that know about these things…)

After a great lunch, and a wonderful visit, we said good-bye for now, and I made a stop at a close-by LYS, the Lamb Shoppe. I didn’t make any purchases, though. I was beginning to feel the effects of my day’s schedule. I looked around quite a bit, and searched through their Mini Mochi bin looking for another ball of the colorway 118, but to no avail.

I thought I might head home through Boulder, taking in an LYS there, and maybe spying some foliage for photos, but traffic was poor, and after several minutes of stop and go, I turned Scooby-Roo north.

The day was already full enough.

No Idea (And An FO)

Others had mentioned it, but it didn’t really register, as much I hear, until I have the actual experience. But heaven help me, these grandbebe girls are the blueberry pie after my big family dinner of life!

And I love me some blueberry pie.

We gathered for the Lovely Step-Daughter’s birthday (as we can now, since she lives nearby!), and the Youngest fetched over her offspring and cuppycakes made for the occasion.

Grandbebe Girl comes trotting out to the patio, and on seeing Lovely Aunt, says ‘we bought a card for you…’ and goes to retrieve said card. Bringing it to her aunt, Grandbebe Girl opens envelope, extracts the card, and gives it to Lovely Aunt, saying ‘here…’

So helpful! And Lovely Step-Daughter was delighted!

Grandbebe Two is walking walking walking walking, saying peekaboo (after a fashion), making ‘flirty’ eyes, and adopts any smallish chair around as hers. And why not? Aren’t they her size, after all.

After lunch, back at the homestead, Grandbebe Girl said ‘Grandma, let’s play hide and seek.’ So, of course we did. Her momma helped her a bit, but she was always thrilled and excited and squealed shrilly whenever she found me. (I am very good at hiding.)

After a bit, however, her sister needed attention from her momma, so Grandbebe Girl was left to her own devices at the game, whereupon she told me, when it was her turn, ‘Grandma, I will count to three, and you go hide in the bathroom.’

When it was her turn to hide? She could never stay put. I would say ‘ready or not’, and she would be running out of her hiding place down the hall, ‘here I am!’.

Like I said…I had no idea at all how these grandbebes were going to work their way into my soul.

I took the opportunity to have her try on Sweet Peasy. I was on the 2nd sleeve without a fitting. I know…walking that edge…but it fits very well. She was a bit mystified about trying it on with the needles still through the stitches, but she trusts her grandmama (mostly) and the yarn is very softy indeed.

Here it is blocking.  And still drying, obviously.  I am still debating on the buttons.

It’s done now, except for sewing on buttons, but I think I will save it for a Christmas gift. I don’t think she will remember. Sweet Peasy, by Heidi Kirrmaier, out of Xian by Textiles a Mano.

End Of Quarter

Well, another quarter has come and gone, and it's time to check in with The List of Goals.

• Finish Grandbebe Bean’s quilt, for one. (last qtr-Pending. Still.) (last qtr-Stitches have been made, so progress.) Well…there it sits…
• Knit sweaters (in particular Feb Lady Sweater and EZ’s Green Sweater). (last qtr- Check, and 2 others on the needles. That’s right. Another FLS, and Peasy!) (last qtr-Another FLS and a Sunkist cardi (Sunkist from handdyed handspun) are completed, along with a Sweet Peasy. Finessing this goal now to pullovers…) I have plans for 2 Feb Baby Sweaters for Christmas, but no pullover plans in the immediate queue ( EZ’s Green Sweater is shelved until Schoolhouse Press does downloadable patterns.)
• Knit more socks (2 3 4 pair). (last qtr-2 adult and a couple for the bebes, but I am only counting the two adult pairs.) (last qtr- 2 more adult pair finished) 2 and ½ pair complete, and at least 3 pair planned for Christmas knitting.
• Go to Philly (week penciled in). Done! Spectacularly!!
• Go to Yellowstone (reservations made). (last qtr -Lists are drawn up! Packing is happening! Days are being counted!) Oh. My. Stars! What a time was had by all! Where can we go next???
• Take a photography class (scheduled). (last qtr-Done! Still practicing.) (last qtr-And still practicing.) And still…
• Learn to dye? (maybe) (last qtr-Actually. Yeah.) (last qtr - Bought lots of Easter Egg dye on sale…) Dyed some ‘batches’ in the old blue enamel canning pot.
• Commute by bike (starting in May) at least 600 miles. (last qtr-One month out from starting!) (last qtr - 220 miles.) New bike and 600+ miles. Made it.
• Hike 40 miles. (last qtr- Hmmm…probably 6 so far?) Maybe 28 so far.
• Snowshoe. (last qtr-Uh. Didn’t happen this year.) But maybe this winter..
• Brush off the soap making skilz. (Last qtr - Fresh research. Inventory of supplies. Progress…) If I don’t make some soon, there won’t be any for Christmas.

• Learn some different spinning skilz. (last qtr-Navajo! New wheel! Taking the workshop at the Wool Market!) (last qtr - Using new techniques learned at the EPWM workshop. Contemplating a Spinning 201 class at Shuttles this fall.) Signed up for the Spinning 201 class at Shuttles, starting in November. Joined the Weaving/Spinning Guild.
• Improve photoshop skilz. (last qtr -Some gains made.) Ongoing…
• Paint upstairs rooms. (last qtr - Rearranged a craft room without painting. More expeditious that way.) Working on re-carpeting and painting the MBR and bath.
• Rail fence section in the yard.
• Sew some. (last qtr -Some. But minimal.) Plans for Xmas gifts.
• Stay honest. Be open. Remember the lessons that brought me here. (last qtr-Now what were they again?) (last qtr -Kidding! Still working this one. Hard.) With the job and med ins challenges, this one has had a work-out this quarter.
Okay. Not so bad really. And yet I see some glaring omissions and some things I really really wanted to get done.
The thing about lists and goals for me is a lesson about balance. Balance in how I see my accomplishments. Balance in how I talk to myself about what I have done and haven’t done. Balance in what I go after and how I go after it. Balance in how I let the list guide me.
Deep breath. There’s the list. Some things are done, and done well. (Well done?) Some will be off the list at the end of the year. Some won’t.
And there will be a new list of goals to work on for 2011. Some of these will be on that list…carry-overs…as it were.

Looking for Trouble

Sometimes there isn’t any, but I find still some.

Recently I was finishing up some travel knitting from the South Dakota trip. These Button Up Neckwarmers (by Mavis Adams, Spin-Off, Fall 2009)) are wonderful projects for knitting up small amounts (~90 yards, more or less) of handspun or the smooshy soft leftovers of other projects that you really want to use for something but what????

Anyway. No seaming, but button sewing is required. Instructions say ‘Sew on buttons as shown.’

So apparently it wasn’t made blatantly clear to me by the finished ‘as shown’ photo, because I didn’t sew the buttons on the right edge. Which I found after I sewed all three on, then tried on, buttoning up in front of the mirror.

D-oh! Off came the buttons. Re-alignment. Re-sewing, and success.

Suri alpaca/Silk handspun, my own (with vintage buttons from my old button collection)

I paid more attention to sew the buttons on the long edge of next one, rather than the short end. And when I tried it one, things were wrong! Again! I thought to myself, ‘Self, you picked the wrong long edge, you did!’

Off came the buttons. Re-positioning, re-sewing, and trying on again. With the same result? WTH???

Then…I flipped the piece.

D-oh! Worked just fine. Seems it was fine first time around, and I re-sewed the buttons needlessly. I just needed to flip it and button it on the other side.

Doubting myself, and looking for trouble needlessly. I sure cause myself a lot of extra work!

Lonesome Stone Mountain Feat (leftovers) (with vintage buttons again)