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*deep breath*
It is amazing to me how slowly time can go in the morning.
Today, I was rudely awoken at 630 and while it wasn’t dark (far from it, there were sunbeams!), it was still only 6 and a half hours from when I put my book down and I closed my eyes. As the cat clawed at my arms, I pushed her off, saw the clock and thought, ‘just half hour more’…and then the attacked my toes and all thoughts of sleeping went right out the window. I got up, showered, dressed, pin curled my hair and took a seat to review my plan of action for the day. Had some coffee and just as my coffee is getting cold, I looked at the clock. 8am. Really? When I have to get ready for work the times flies by! When I’m at work the evening races and when I get home it seems like its only a few minutes before its 1am and I finally feel like I could sleep. But mornings…they are special to me. I hear the birds singing, I feel the earth warming up, I can see the sun filtering through the trees…it is just this special time for me and I really love mornings in general. Granted, in the recent past I was sleeping until 9 or 10 so it wasnt so much “morning” anymore but just in this past week or so I have been making more of an effort to get up and get going by 8 and in the last few days I’ve been up closer to 7.
Why?
Because the insane part of me forgot how classes can add up on you if you aren’t paying attention and decided to take not 1, not 2 but 3 classes this 11 week term in addition to working full time. That is 14 credits; a full-time student. Not only do those classes meet online and have extensive “discussions” but two of them (Anatomy and Physiology 2 and Microbiology) have in-person labs which mean 6 Saturdays, 1 per month per class, I get to spend in Renton, a 2+ hour drive for a 4 hour lab. Did I mention that one of those begins at 8am? Not looking forward to that one so much because of the freakishly early start time for my driving, especially since I highly doubt that M will want to go to that one with me. He is coming with me today though for my first day of lab and for that I am very grateful.
So here I am. Trying to manage my time well to get in classes and work and Oh, did I mention that I’m supposed to be training for three races? Yeah, the first one is on May 20th and I am far from ready. My schedule for this upcoming month is going to be packed with the addition of focused running so I don’t A) Hurt myself and/or B) make a fool of myself come the 20th.
Oh wait…did I mention that I am still trying to knit and spin to save my sanity? Yup, there is still a lot of both going on in Chez Sisu, especially now since I bought the wheel of my dreams. She is a Schacht Matchless and is everything that I could have ever wanted. There will be photos of her to come, along with a review.
All in all, I am so very happy with my busy-ness and actually am getting more done. I focus my time and effort on one thing at a time and it all gets done and I’m happy with the results. I still do some things via multi-tasking. I listen and watch A&P lectures while I spin, pausing to take notes every once in a while. I knit mindlessly while reading texts. I take my texts to work with me and read during my dinner break (not while knitting too, just reading). I set dinner to cook while participating in online discussions. The one thing that I can’t multi-task is the running…which is a good thing. With so much else going on, I think that I need that one task that takes me away from it all. But I’ll have to get back to you on that…I haven’t run in over a week now simply because it was not something I could multi-task!
Instead of launching into a mass of reasons why I haven’t posted, what has been going on with me and my general life status; it should suffice to say that I have been floundering in an ocean of depression, have taken many mouthfuls of brackish water, dodged the flotsam and jetsam of plans, saved all the wool, planted a long awaited garden and finally, finally learnt to swim again.
The Wool:
A trio of socks; blue for me, boy colours for the boy.
A shawl. More specifically The Jubilee Year Shawl
…which I am calling “Happiness” both because it is making me very happy to use this skein of Noro Kureyon Sock yarn (188) which I have had in my stash since 2008 or so and happy because I finally feel like I have found the true calling for this yarn. It has tried to be socks and mittens and a hat and none of those things looked…right. And then I found this pattern purely by chance and it is perfect.
What you aren’t seeing in this wool section is something that is done and gone and I, being the forgetful Auntie that I am, forgot to take photos of said items first. I made my new nephew (RGB) 12 single socks from KP’s Imagination and then knit him blanket squared with the remaining 22g of the skein. Actually, what I did was a bit more complicated than that…I wound each 50g skein into a ball, knit a single baby sock using my standard baby sock pattern, weighed the remaining and split it into 2 22g balls. I then used 22g to knit RGB’s baby blanket. 
What you see here is the second 22g knit into mitered squares with a bundle left over on top. As I finish this project, I’ll give you more details on it but the general plan is that this will be joined by 12 more colours (24 total), yes, I know you only see 7 here but the other yarn isn’t squared yet, and become a blanket and more baby socks.
Also in Wool is the beautiful Intentions yarn that I have been spinning and thinking through. This project became so much more than I thought it would and while life got in the way and derailed my plans for doing the project in a year, I am so happy to still be working through it.
This is Patience and is perfect for the lesson that I am learning. Thats part of what makes me love my Intentions project. Though it is nothing like I planned, it is exactly what I needed and has been fitting into my life exactly as I needed it.
The Garden:
6 years ago, I made a plan. I wanted a herb garden in a strawberry pot. I knew I wanted rosemary on top, cilantro (coriander), dill, thyme, marjoram, oregano, chives and sage, all the herbs I love to use, in the pockets. The only problem was that I was living remotely and the getting of said pot, herbs and soil was an insurmountable challenge due to cost and logistics. Since then I haven’t lived long enough in a big enough town to have my dreamed of herb garden.
Until now.
I can not tell you how happy it makes me to have this wee garden. Something that I have wanted for ages is finally mine and just the thought of it makes me smile. And salivate because I can’t wait to use the herbs along the way.
I also planted Orange mint and Spearmint with a Chamomile between them:
And two of a crazy plant that I couldn’t resist because of my love of and for them:
Artichokes.
Swimming:
In other parts of life, I have gotten back into running almost by force. I say “force” but what I really mean is that I registered for the Rhody run (12k) on May 20th, the Seattle 10k at the end of August (again) AND the Seattle Half Marathon the Sunday after Thanksgiving and if I don’t “get back into running” then the registration monies go down the toilet and I embarrass myself when I try to complete any or all of these events. So running it is and I feel great doing it. Makes me wonder why I was foolish to ever let myself stop.
In all parts of life…I feel like I am…getting there.
Emotionally. Physically. Mentally.
I’m not quite sure where “there” is but, as always,
“It is the Journey, Not the Destination”.
Healing: Regeneration of the body, mind or spirit.
To risk a “Duh” statement; Healing is a part of growth.
Healing is necessary to…fix…whatever has been broken.
Make it, whatever ‘it’ may be, better, faster, stronger,
more resilient, educated, wiser,
practised, skilled, educated,
regenerated, restored, and meliorated.
Healing is as intentional as unintentional; more so, if you think about it.
People ‘fade’ pretty darn fast when they ‘have lost the will to live’.
Your body will fix itself if given the chance and the right medicines,
but no medicine in the world can really ‘fix’ your emotions and no time can heal your heart if you don’t let it.
If you chose to hold on to an emotional hurt it becomes a festering sore that will eventually seep into every pore of your life and poison all the good things.
An Intentional Healing as a part of life is not about “forgive and forget” because if to truly heal you must have learned and grown from the experience and gotten better because of it;
though the “better” part may be hard to see in your immediate healing aftermath.
Take the time to look at your own hurts and where you need to heal today.
In the spinning of Healing, I know that I did and I feel better because of it.
I’m healing too.
Intentions:
Fertility: Paving the way for new ideas, new life and new creation.
Started in April, Fertility seemed to have quite apropriate timing for its journey thru my fingers, wheel and mind.
Nelson Lagoon was starting to show signs of thawing as I finished and I was germinating ideas of my new life at the same time.
After “resting” for nearly 4 months before plying since I ply when I only have one bobbin left so there is generally a few days of ‘plying party’ in Chez Sisu which, as it happens, also included a huge move, it seemed odd to be thinking again about fertility.
And then I remembered…growth is always. My growth is continual.
When I spun this yarn, I was living in my own house in Nelson Lagoon Alaska working as a Community Health Aide and it was April.
When I plied this yarn it was July, I was living in Hoquiam Washington with M and his mom and working at figuring out what the heck I was going to do next.
As I write this post it is November, I am living in our own apartment in Port Townsend Washington and I am working as a Certified Nurses Aide.
The only constant IS change and there will always be new ideas, new life and new creation…as long as we are willing to look for that other road…which may or may not be paved.
Not that that makes much difference in the end because there are always going to be bumps, wrong turns, U-Turns, stops, starts and going the wrong way on a one way, paving or no.
But the point is we have to be open to the idea for the newness of things,
for the possibility of change,
for the discovery of new passions and dislikes,
for life to stop being something that is happening and that we are living through and start being something that we are doing and that we are living.
For the growth that is essential to life itself to take place.
My hope for myself and for you?
Be ever changing.
Be growing.
Be fertile.
This whole ‘work hours warp’ is still getting the best of me. I work the evening shift, from 2-10pm and that means that 2 main things are out of whack for me.
#1: “Lunch is Dinner”
Since I only get half hour ‘lunch’ break while working and that generally comes between 4 and 6pm, if I get it at all, I don’t really have time to have a real meal. One of the most important parts of my day is having a meal with M, knowing that I’ve made this lovely, healthy, nutritious meal for us…so that means that I make our big meal lunch. Since its more healthy to have a large meal earlier in the day than later in the evening, this is a good thing.
#2: Time in general
General Poll: Who goes to bed within an hour of getting off of work? Yeah, me neither.
I get done with work and get home between 1030 and 11pm and then spend the next 2-3 hours decompressing and relaxing and chatting with M. That means that I don’t get to bed before midnight any night of the week because I have to TRY to keep some semblance of routine in my scheduled life. I also am a morning person so that means, being sick with a cold notwithstanding, I am fully awake and up by 830am. That would be the time for coffee and BBC world news podcast. And food needs to be on the table by 1230 so I can relax and eat and get out the door by 140 so I am planning a full dinner at the midnight previous and getting things moving by 10am, a scant 2-3 hours after getting up. Somewhere in there I also try to get in 30 minutes of running (though not as faithfully as I intend to), knitting on various projects and, oh yes, spinning time too. The best time for the knitting is in the mornings and the spinning is the evenings and in between cooking and laundry and cleaning, it all gets worked on. Except for the blog.
But here is a photo list of what I’m working on!
Socks for M. In Boy Colours. In Aran weight yarn. On 3′s. Because a knitters man always has substantially bigger feet than the knitter herself.
This first sock is toe up and the plan is for me to knit until there is 50g of yarn left and then do the second. Hopefully this works as a plan but I have a call out on Ravelry for a second skein of this colourway (Jarbo Garn Raggi in 1580) so hopefully the de-stasher will get back to me soon! In the meantime though, I bought some more boy colours too:
A vest for myself, which, despite making calculations to get the fit right, I totally made it too big. So it may be a Christmas gift so I shan’t give more detailed photos than this.
My second attempt at Nanny Ogg Mittens (real name: Hedgehog Mittens by Spilly Jane who blogs here) You can see my first attempt over here but, I’m warning you, it isn’t pretty.
I’m liking this second attempt much more than the first and I’m actually using two solid yarns and the pattern as written (to a point) this time. Not that those are connected at all. Ahem.
My Rimefrost socks using Fiesta Baby Boom in Arctic. Yes, I know they haven’t gotten very far yet but I can only do one charted knitting pattern at a time without madness ensuing and I need warm hands more than new socks so the mittens come first and the socks wait their turn. Not too long if last years attempt at the Nanny Mittens are anything to go by!
There also has been some spinning going on and I do promise that I will update you as to my progress thru the Intentions line. I bought some beautiful merino, alpaca, silk/bamboo blend on Friday that is singing its sirens song (along with much more of my other stash) and I want to move into a new project soon but I am dedicated to my Intentions and give that my focus.
I’m on to ‘Joy’ now and am remembering the joy that spinning gives me and being mindful of all the joy I have in my life.
I know that I am blessed and hope you feel the same way today and everyday.
I am getting back on “a schedule” and am LOVING IT! Not only does my day have a rhythm again focused by work but that means that my crafting life can merge too. While I am still in the early stages of scheduling, there is a smoothness that I really, really enjoy. Let me catch you up on what I’ve been doing:
There is a “guest room” that is in shambles
and will be tidied tomorrow on my day off 
I had a hard time at Jo-Annes on Saturday…learning what size of fabric could work and what couldn’t but I finally came away with
patterns
and fabric for PJ trousers for Mike 
and I 
and fabric for skirts…
and for a jumper 
Just let me tell you how excited I am about getting into these….VERY. I finally live in a place where I can wear skirts and my oh so comfortable heels on a regular basis and not worry about sand and wind and now, all I have to wait for is an iron and then I can get started in making some very nice new skirts to wear!
The sewing machine hasn’t been idle though…First up was a duvet cover that I did when making sure that the machine worked. 
It would be folded but needs to be washed because I am pretty sure that the sheets were last washed in Tide and I do NOT want a full body allergic reaction…my hands were itchy enough.
I had planned to hand stitch a small market bag from leftover tulle and old ribbon at the end of June but, after a few failed attempts due to darn slippery tulle, put it aside until last Saturday when it finally became this:
Sorry for the overexposure but you can see the flower edging there around the bag and the handle too. I also, while sorting thru the odds and ends I rescued from dry-rotting away, I found a cut out (what I though) leg to cotton trousers. Since I can’t wear just one leg of trousers with the blinds up, I thought that I would just lay the fabric on the remains to use as a pattern and just make another and then sew them up…and I did : 
and then I talked to my mum and found out that PJ patterns are Fronts and Backs, not just legs…so the excess fabric in the front of my new trousers isn’t because I mis-sewed, it’s because I don’t have a rear on my front. Go figure. I’ll wear them regardless because a) they are my first adult garment and b) I like the stamp fabric. 
On the spinning front, I have been happily plying Intentions and I’ll have a few of those in specific posts. I am still working on them and still loving them and I’ll update you all ASAP.
On the knitting front, I finished the top for E
and, despite thinking that it would be ribbing hell, it wasn’t that bad. I knit mindlessly while watching Season 7 of Greys Anatomy, which is my form of TV crack, and finished it yesterday. I’m going to see E on Friday and we’ll see if it fits. If so, YAY! If not, well, its a good thing that she has a little brother, C! Yes, it does look small and skinny but remember, ribbing stretches and what gets wider also gets shorter so it needs to be oddly long so it fits.
Since finishing, I began a Karin Kurbits hat (that is Johanne, the designers, blog and photos) (Rav link) (Loopy Ewe Link) in Spud and Chloe in “Popcorn” which is nearly white but just this side of cream and Noro Kureyon Sock in 188 which is gorgeous purple and green, both of which I bought at The Loopy Ewe from the fabulous Sheri. 
I love colourwork and can’t wait to get thru this ribbing and onto the stranding. I’m using my Kollage square 2.25mms to rib and think that I’ll switch to my KP’s 1.5′s (2.5mm) to do the colourwork but as the hat is ‘slouchy’, I may stay with the smaller needles to make it less slouchy and more of a fitted hat but we’ll see!
Thats all for now as I’m off to make lunch. One of the biggest changes in my life is that lunch has become the biggest meal of the day since I am working from 2pm-10pm but I’m enjoying that change.
TTFN!
As I begin my dive into a new craft, I have to wonder why I pick such -ing expensive hobbies.
My shopping basket at Spoonflower holds $150 of merchandise. Better than the $350 that it did before the paring, but still. My KnitPicks cart has $597 and my cart at The Loopy Ewe has $130. None of this $877 will be spent on a SINGLE constructed object however so that price in no way includes my time. Granted, not all of the supplies will make something for me…in fact in the KnitPicks cart only $150 is for making me anything!
And then I remember…
It may cost $36 for the fabric for a skirt but it costs $38 for a basic, bottom-of-the-bin rock tumbler.
It costs at least $99 for scuba diving lessons.
A set of womens golf clubs are $600.
And I couldn’t even find a price for underwater basketweaving lessons but I bet its a combo of basket weaving class ($40) and scuba diving lessons ($99)…oh wait…I guess I can take that Underwater Basket Weaving course as close as Portland, OR.
I spend the money on my crafting supplies because they are a hobby but one that I take great pride in remembering that after enjoying playing around with said supplies, I MAKE something with those supplies. Yes, those $600 golf clubs are only bought once but after you play a round, what do you have to take home with you? If I buy $600 worth of fabric, I have a few outfits in the end. If I buy $600 of wool to spin firstly I get to spin it and then I get to knit it and wear the outcome. I get to see photos of cute kids in my knitwear. I get to wear warm socks and sweaters and show off my creativity to just about everyone because, no matter who you are, knitter or non, if I tell you that I am wearing a sweater that I knit myself, you will take a moment to admire it and praise me for my industrious behaviour. I don’t think that many Sunday golfers get that satisfaction when announcing their scores to non-golfers.
Will I buy those carts today? Well, my Loopy Ewe cart has been there for over 6 months and considering the size of my sock yarn stash, I’m pretty sure that one is safe for a while.
The KnitPicks cart may get moved about a bit with more going to the “Wish List” to be bought at a future date when other projects get finished.
The Spoonflower cart?
Mine, all Mine. And a great start to my new craft.
Sometimes, I swear, this blog writes itself.
Other times I realise that its been over a week without posting and that I have these millions of thoughts and ideas and
wanttogetthemoutbuthavenoideawheretostartsoI
justhavetositandstarttypingbeforeIexplode….
Lets start with our visitors, shall we?
Right now, Mike and I are living with his mom in Hoquiam, WA. Its a quiet place that is very laid-back with very little really going on but for me in my transition time, this is perfect. I still feel a bit overwhelmed at the grocery store but I’m getting to feel more secure and less…explode-y…around large groups of people who I don’t know. One of my favourite things about being here though is that there are trees and forest just within reach. A short drive or hecl, even a walk puts us into undeveloped lands which brings me to our visitors. In most every North American city you will find cousins of my visitors, officially named Procyon lotor but more commonly known as…
We first met one afternoon when I was washing dishes and happened to look up and see the stripy tail poking out at me from under the bush. Lucky for me, this one waited for me to dry my hands and grab my camera before turning to face me for a while. After a snack of bird food, ring-tail wandered away and the dogs were intensely interested in that area when they went out for potty-breaks.
And then a few weeks went by and there was next to no sign of them…
and then they came back…
with babies…
My poor Sisu has been going crazy trying to figure out how to deal with these invaders, especially since Mamma Coon has an extreme aversion to having her babies smelled by the ‘Su. She managed to tree a litter of 3 in the backyard a few days ago and couldn’t decided who was of more interest, Mamma Coon on the other side of a fence or Coon Kits up in the tree. I helped a bit by ‘watching’ (photographing) the kits while she barked at a ticked-off Mamma but sadly none of those shots came out and retreat was the only sane course of action. The next day a different Mamma came through the front yard with her two kits and stopped just alongside the driveway for a photo opp. I got within 5′ and snapped about 20 shots before, with little discussion…
they wandered off to go be raccoons.
Remember last week when I told you about the Romedale X roving I just bought
and how touching it and seeing it made me want to pull out my wheel and spin RIGHTNOW?
Well, I did unpack my wheel and I did start spinning this last week but the best laid plans vague ideas of mice and Tashies oft go awry…so its no surprise that this one did too!
I had fully intended on finishing Intentions: Hope and then beginning this lovely Romedale.
Yeah…No.
Well, I did finish the I: Hope but then I was completely called Inspired by Intentions: Inspiration
You can see that ‘Hope’ is there on the top left and sadly, that is the only photo I have of it in progress. Ah well, there is always the plying to photograph and trust me, the plying will come soon.
Fertility and Healing have been “resting” for a while now so they are in perfect shape to N-ply*first and second and by that time Hope will be ready to go and then Inspiration!
Which only leaves me with Joy, Love, Patience, Peace, Perseverance and Strength to go…
And just 6 weeks to go until my 30th birthday. Holy Crickets.
We won’t talk about that right now…lets talk about another looming deadline, my 101 in 1001.
Ok, lets no look too hard at that list because it shows a bit too much of my delusional side…but lets focus on #34: Run 2-5k’s
Now, I’ve run 3.1 miles before…I’ve even run 6.2 (10k) but never in a real race with official sign-ups or anything.
And here is where my Intentions: Inspiration came in because I was totally inspired to make the leap and sign up for my first official run.
The Pasta Dash begins August 7th at 6pm at the Olympia Farmers Market and if you’re free, I’d love a cheering section and I’m sure Mike would love your company!
To show further proof of my insanity, I’ll tell you about the other races that I’m thinking about:
Seattle Marathon 10k August 27th
Iron Girl Seattle 10k September 11th
Seattle Marathon Half Marathon November 27th
(Yes, the SM 10K is in August and the Marathon itself is in November; No, I have no idea why)
I’m really wondering if I can do a 10K before my birthday though. I need to get out onto the track and see how I do and if I would be able to train fully for a 10 k in 5 weeks…any one out there have advice? I’d appreciate it!
* You have to** let your single rest for a while on the bobbin before plying (twisting it with itself or another piece of wool) or else it can be too twisty and kink up while you try to ply. This leads to much cursing and possibly tears. Since, while N-plying, you are only working with the one single and forming a chain ply, I find that the more rest and relaxation the single has to “know” its new twisted form, the better I am able to ply sans cursing.
** “Have to” is totally negotiable. I know people who ‘always’ and people who ‘never’ rest before plying. For me, I “Have To” when it comes of Navajo/Chain plying but its negotiable for everything else.
Its been a while since I’ve told you about my WIP’s so its time to ‘fess up.
I have more socks on the needles than I would care to admit…but I will….also show you photos of my 4th weekend to lessen the shock.
First up…Wedding Socks for Mum.
Rather, the Wedding Sock and cuff. I had originally intended these to be mailed before April 25th and be working on my matching pair during the wedding itself. Yeah, I was THAT delusional.
Yarn: Lornas Laces Shepherd Sock in Royal Wedding, the April 2011 special colourway.
Needles: KP’s Nickel DPN size 0 (2mm)
Oh Look! There is a beautiful hydrangia in bloom in the yard! Did you know that you can change their colours depending on the pH of the soil?
Next up are my IBS socks, so named because a friend (IBS) from Ravelry sent me the yarn as a Thank You for helping her find a Knit Picks order that had gone astray. 
While I am normally quite dilligent about casting on for the second sock directly after the first comes off the needles, this one was a bit different. I used US 1.5 (2.5mm) needles for the cuffs of the Royal Wedding socks and then US 0 (2mm) for the rest and the IBS sock needles 1.5′s were the only other needles I had to hand since my others are still packed as packaging for my wheel. SO…when I finished the first IBS sock, I had to wait to finish the first Royal Wedding sock so I could then start the second Royal Wedding sock with my 1.5′s and THEN switch to the 0′s and use the 1.5′s on my IBS socks. Granted, its been a few days since I got to the second leg of the Royal Wedding sock and I still haven’t started the second IBS…
OH Look! A Hummingbird!
Did you know there is a yarn store in Aberdeen, WA? Thanks to Ravelry, I did!
It is The Yarn Corner and while looking slightly disheveled at the moment while the owner is going thru chemo, it has great selections and I made one
I had been wanting to try Tofutsies for a while now and when I saw this colour…well, the pink just spoke to me. Its #806 and while I hate that SWTC doesn’t give the name on the label, it does on the website and my #806 becomes “Wiggle your Toes”. I am really liking working with this yarn and as soon as I get thru this pair, I’ll give a full review of it here. They are supposed to be socks for Mike but I may commandeer them. There were also needles bought at The Yarn Corner too…I needed them because what good is new yarn if you haven’t the tools to knit it? More on that later but more specifically, these are Crystal Palace 5″ bamboo 0′s and while I like how light they are, I hate their bendy-ness and the dull tips. I’ll use them for these socks and then they’ll go up for sale or trade or in a giveaway
Oooohhhh…Look at how the light is caught in the spiderweb!!!
Mike and I spent our 4th with an Army buddy of his and his family who live in Gig Harbor. We had a fantastic time and I learned a new skill from the Army buddies’ AMAZING wife: Wire Crochet.
C really enjoys beading and teaches classes and when she found out how crafty I am, she thought it would be fun to teach me and she was SO right!
She showed me how, gave me the wire and beads and set me to work.
That night, I had a beautiful new necklace, a new skill and a new friend. Thanks C!!
Because of them and the drive to their house, I also have a new yarn shop that I just love and will have to take C to next time we visit.
It helps that she also wants to learn to knit
It is:
(Click on photo to go to the shop page)
And I bought 5oz of this beautiful fawn coloured Romedale Cross from my sales lady Lois’, who I think may be the owner too, sheep.
Totally makes me want to unpack my wheel right now…and I think I will later today.
This beautiful earthenware button was done by Terry Nokell, aka “The Loggers Daughter”, a local artist.
Remember me talking earlier about needing to buy needles to go with my new sock yarn?
Yeah…it happened again…
I really, really have been wanting to try these Kollage square needles for a while now and there have been a pair in my basket over on The Loopy Ewe for just ages…
…but Lois had them in the store and I couldn’t resist.
Seriously.
Locally handyed sock yarn just makes me salivate and in more “Boy” colours makes for better socks for Mike too.
And speaking of “boy colours”…
Lois also had Waikiwi yarn that would look very nice together with coordinating cuff, heels and toes.
It helps that I have been really wanting to try this yarn too The possum content is what really attracted me…
FYI: There is a MAJOR difference between the New Zealand Possum and the Opossum that Western Hemisphere readers will know.
In NZ, the possum is a major ecological pest and does major damage to the native ecosystem as it was an introduced species from Australia
While I am very anti-fur and think fur coats look better on the animal than any human, this is my one exception, especially since the critter is just so darn disastrous.
Well, that and the fact that Lois said that an employee who is a very tough sock yarn reviewer just loves it and says it holds up really, really well.
OH LOOK!! Another hummingbird!
And some lavender!
Its a good thing I saw the lavender…its great for keeping moths away and man, do I have a potential feast for them!
Its a good thing that I passenge while Mike drives because otherwise I wouldn’t have half the knitting time that I do
Hope is important. In my life, it is the hope for a more beautiful tomorrow that really keeps me going. That is not to say that today isn’t wonderful and brilliant but, if you think about it and for me, every ‘next day’ IS more beautiful than the last simply because it is the next and holds all sorts of untold and potentially amazing adventures. Of course, it could also be rather bland but that is OK too.
Someday soon I am going to have to track down exactly when I became such a Pollyanna…I’m becoming annoyed with me.
The past two weeks for me have been about my hope for a future out of Nelson Lagoon. Not that this place and the people here are not beautiful and perfect for what and who they are…they are, for certain, and I will love and miss them each in their own ways. But there is something calling me…
And that voice always means one thing for certain:
Packing.
Ok, so this isnt my ideal amount of “stuff” but bear with me here since one of the green and one of the grey are Ms’ leftovers so those don’t even count! The others are mine though and I claim them One grey is linens…2 sets of sheets, a quilt and a duvet.
One of the green is books, a few fiction that I adore, cookbooks that get a weekly if not daily workout and knitting books that I refuse to live without. I had a few others packed for sentimental reasons but have decided to share them. Whats the point of a great book if you hide it?
The blue has two suitcases in it and those have my shoes, dress clothes and my sleeping bag. Those things cannot be pared any more…I’m already sending shoes to my mum!
The other green has food stuffs that would not be easy to re-buy. Most are specialty from the UK so are totally worth the shipping charge. Also in the box are my kitchen utensils that I really love and don’t want to re-buy, my mugs that are special to me and the flatware of my childhood.
The last grey is my fragile box. Inside are glass balls and Marsali…both packed with copious amounts of egg carton foam and bubble-wrap that I virtuously left un-popped. There are also my framed prints and Christmas decorations. Since there are only 2 prints and I have just a small tree with only lights and no decorations, I don’t feel the need to pare there either.
Left to be packed?
Just a few bags and skeins of fiber-y goodness Honestly though, those become the “packing material” for my wheel. I never have been more grateful that I kept a box in my life. The wheel fits in and all the contents of those totes go-round and keep each other safe during shipping. Yes, I insure the box heavily…after a quick inventory, I have well over $700 in spinning fiber alone and most of those are unrepeatable colours. This doesn’t even cover the yarns so yes, there is major insurance. I also insure the computer box, another box that I am glad I kept (but I knew that I would be moving when I bought it so I kept it on purpose) and, for the first time, I am insuring a separate tote because that will have my laptop in it, along with other odds and ends. Those things will go out on Tuesday the 7th.
Finally left? My backpack with clothes and Sisu with her kennel. I know that I can’t manage her kennel, her on a leash AND a suitcase AND a carry-on so I’m down to my red backpack as a carry on (complete with Kindle, iPod and knitting) and my large backpack as my luggage. When I get off the plane in Anchorage I can zip-tie one backpack t’other and Roberts my mothers brother! Hand free to leash the Su’ and manage the unwieldy kennel.
So where does “Hope” come in?
I hope I can get thru Intentions: “Hope” before I have to pack my wheel.
I hope that I haven’t overlooked something key.
I hope that, while leaving my buddy is painful, the inspiration of my own possibilities carries me thru.
I hope that I remember that the light at the end of the tunnel isn’t really a train, though I may feel like I’ve been hit by one.
I dwell in Hope…
Always.
