Thank You

Thank you God for your grace, understanding and occasional insight. Thank you for allowing me to be able to step out of my own selfish, single minded, baggage at times.  Thank you for giving me glimpses of what others are bogged down with, and the compassion to let my stuff go and move forward in Your love. Forgive me that my sinful oblivious nature does not recognize Your whispers in a timely manner. Help me to hear You Holy Spirit!

Ups n downs

I had a month of loneliness, frustration and sadness.
My empty nest seems to get emptier all the time.
The oldest used to text me every night
when she got home from her evening late shifts.
I wouldn't wake to the notification like I used to when the girls were 16,
but upon rising in the morning,
the phone was the first thing I looked at
and I smiled when I read that "home! love you, night!"
The youngest has almost never texted me with such silliness.

Last month, I stopped getting those texts.
At first I broke out in a sweat wondering how quickly I could get to Austin,
thinking the worst of course.
Then I tried to tell myself, that it is silly for her to text me every evening.
She is an adult after all.

The youngest has been to camp most of the summer,
has many friends, and bless her heart,
stays up into the wee hours of the night constantly.
She works and volunteers.
She rarely answers my texts,
never views funny videos of her dog that I send,
and hardly ever comments on my fb posts.
I was jealous of her old friends and her new friends alike.
(She used to watch her favorite tv shows with me....
why else would I now watch
True Blood, and Walking Dead and King of Thrones)
Now, she has other tv buddies.

Again, she is an adult, and has her own life.

I just miss my girls.

BUT...AND....
I have lovely friends.  My schedule can be as full as I want it to be.
I am enjoying watching the grand dog. 

My Chuck has lost four pounds just chasing after and around our new addition.
This is his impression of a bear skin rug!

I recently was blessed with two Ashford spinning wheels.
A friend of a friend was getting rid of her mother's unwanted ladies.
My friend thought of me.
Now, these wheels are in fantastic shape.
However, for the past seven years I have learned and have been spinning
on a double treadle (foot pads), and the two Ashfords are a single treadle.
I took them home to try them out.
If you know me, I am NOT one who likes any change at all.
Especially as I get older and set in my routines, ways, and muscle memory.

I dusted, polished with lemon oil, and greased all the moving parts.
Spinning was quite difficult.
I changed tension of the wheel and the brake, and try as I might,
just could not get the wheel to spin constantly in one direction.
I explained to the hubby that it is like trying to peddle a bicycle
with only one peddle.
The other foot just dangling there.
My thigh and calf muscles began to ache.

After carding and spinning some Romney, instead of using a prepared roving,
I began to get the hang of things.
I was peddling very quickly, but did have a rhythm going.
I looked down at one point and laughed and laughed!

I had once heard a story of an old spinner who was given an electric wheel to try.
She didn't like it much, but after a while, was spinning a lovely single.
The folks around her began to smile and giggle behind their hands.
She asked what was so funny.
They told her that even though it was an electric wheel,
and did not have treadles,
her feet were still peddling!

Yup, my left foot was peddling air, as my right foot was working the wheel!

I now have two full bobbins of woolen spun Romney on each Ashford.
The traditional and the traveler are my new favorite ladies.
I love my tried and true Kromski and will use her for my school work.
She also has a more advanced design and is able to produce difficult yarns.
The Ashfords are production wheels.

I should find names for these ladies.
Thinking Rosie for the Kromski,
as in Rosie the Riveter

Lizzy for the Traveler  from Pride and Prejudice




















and Jo from Little Women for the Traditional.

I'm not a sentimentalist when it comes to tools,
but something as familiar as a name seems...right.

I was also blessed tonight from an unexpected source.
A disappointment, expressed kindly, resulted in a gift.
It always pays to be nice.

SO with this rainy, feet aching evening,
I am sitting with the puppies, and knitting on some socks.

I am feeling blessed and content and happy.
Life turns on a dime, so why was I moping around?
I am loved and blessed by so many.

 Yes.....all three spinning wheels in one room....each to it's own chair.  I move around the room!

butterfly!

It has been a most spectacular year!
I have been loved by so many wonderful people.
Because of broken bones and hurting feet,
I have not been able to work at all in the garden I love.
And that has been the biggest blessing.
Yes there are weeds!
But from all the work I have put into the yard over the past ten years,
God has blessed me with His version of what my garden really is.

Species have appeared with out me planting them.
Vegetable are growing from past years, just because I let them go to seed.
Trees are appearing right where they need to be for the shade I will need someday.
And if I ever planted anything that gives me more joy,
it would be the butterfly bushes.
The grape like scent it gives off brings multitudes of butterflies and hummingbirds.

It was a cool 60 degrees today on the back porch.
No mosquitoes thankfully. 
I and my sweater enjoyed the morning taking in the garden.
I mowed the yard yesterday, so my feet are requiring some rest today.
My hands ache to pull weeds, but think I'll just wait until next spring.

Enjoy some pics!
I am blessed!
So very blessed!

 

Old's CollegeMaster Spinner Program: year two

This past week I spent in Brighton Michigan.
I rented a car and drove up to Howell Michigan last Sunday.
Monday morning I began an intensive study for level two of
Old's Master Spinner class.
I have four years to go.


Last year, my classmates met in the Spinning Loft, as strangers.

This year we met in the home of one of our member's homes, connected.
Evil Michelle was a gracious hostess,
and her fiber basement is to drool over and die for.
Her nickname has changed from Evil to Squishy.
Evil was only because she is such a fiber enabler.
One never regrets the items she forces upon you!
However, we learned this week, what a loving, giving, squishy
attentive hostess, friend she really is.
Thanks Michelle! 
We'll be back next year.

Strangers only a year ago, friends now!
Wonderful how common interests build friendships so quickly!
Also quite comforting to know that we all are basically, caring, fun loving,
enabling, hospitality oriented people.
Some work with computers, some are retired medical, some students,
some military, some homemakers, some working with the
worst of the worst in our prison systems, but all open and loving.
However, we truly missed our classmate Stetson from last year,
and Sarah was a nice addition to our group.

Our instructor for level two...and hopefully level three, was Leslie.
What a wonderful teacher she is.
She also discovered Ravelry and our group's page!
Full of information, patience, and wonder and excitement herself for our "craft".


Well, I have a year to complete level two and have a great beginning.
I was provided all the necessary fibers to complete the samples.
I also bout a few other fibers to continue my breed study independently.
This year is camelids...llama, alpaca, both suri and huacaya.
The year will also include mohair, silks, and much blending of both fiber and color.
I will be spinning knitting yarn, crochet yarn and needlepoint yarn.
I will calculate twists per inch using algebra.
I will calculate the amount of raw fleece needed for a sweater....again using algebra.
I am looking forward to this year....with NO BROKEN BONES!

After arriving home, I was exhausted,
but I have come to expect no rest when returning from a trip.
Life begins again as I left it with a weeks worth of....moving forward without me...problems.
I tackled figuring out the broken doggie door, and fixing it,
discovering moths all over my house!
Yes, the wool eating kind.

So today I spent the majority of the morning bagging up all of my unprocessed fiber
that was not sealed in plastic boxes.



I will place these bags in the hot cars for a week or so, then into the freezer for a week.  Out for two weeks then back into the freezer for another week.  I will then store these fibers in paper lawn bags which will be stored in ventilated cleaner bags.

 

 

Laundry, cleaning, lawn mowing, paying bills, etc.  Life has started again!

I loved the week away, but really missed home.

Muddy puppy prints on my bed, the construction on Main Street, meals to make for new babies,

suet for the birds, tomatoes to pick. 

It feels good to be back!

Next week will begin sorting and washing fleece, spinning and combing and knitting.

For now,  life moves forward.

I am blessed.

So blessed that the crack in the rental's windshield, I did not do! 

Would have been nice for Enterprise to let me know this ahead of time.

 

Below are only a tiny example of different drop spindles.

Top whorl, bottom whorl, supported, kick spindles......

I have hated spinning with a drop spindle for years.

I have now tried a few and possible will enjoy this process.

I have high hopes.

 

 I REALLY want this Jensen Turkish spindle above!