tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83793142012-01-29T07:02:57.764-08:00Snail SpiralsSuehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.comBlogger6831100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-72008648917494587112012-01-26T09:51:00.000-08:002012-01-26T13:17:27.620-08:00Jasmine tea. Yum.
Also, I no longer find sugar necessary, even for black tea blends. It's not just unbearably bitter bitter bitter anymore. I can taste the citrusy flavors in Earl Grey, and the floral sweetness of the jasmine.
This really is very strange, that I suddenly like tea. I feel like I'm having an out-of-body experience. Who am I?Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-77039801563030699002012-01-21T21:21:00.000-08:002012-01-21T22:19:39.479-08:00A spinning wheel with a 30" drive wheel really isn't THAT much bigger than a wheel with a 22" drive wheel, right?
Right?
OK, so I measured and compared to Emma's Ashford Traditional wheel... Overall, a Schacht Reeves 30" Saxony wheel is 11" longer, 5" taller, and 6" wider.
That's not so bad.
(Stop it, Sue. Stop it, stop it, stop it.)Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-56133791716148173102012-01-17T08:40:00.000-08:002012-01-17T08:40:48.287-08:00All morning, through getting myself and Emma up and out the door, driving her to school and myself to work, and sitting here at my desk for a half hour, I've felt sort of off kilter. Everything was just...off. I was having trouble focussing, like I had been up until 3:00am again, except this time I HADN'T! I had a good night last night, went to bed before midnight and stayed asleep all night. Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-50346638295594183972012-01-14T10:50:00.001-08:002012-01-14T20:37:02.776-08:00For the longest time, I didn't really understand why anyone would own more than one spinning wheel. They take up space, and you can't spin on more than one at a time, anyway. Get one wheel that you love, and enjoy it fully.
When I bought my Schacht, there was no question that I would sell the Ashford I had. I had no need for two wheels. I was perfectly fine with this. Then I realized that Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-18194473955383012812012-01-12T14:18:00.000-08:002012-01-12T15:11:08.541-08:00I promise I'm not going to show a video of every skein of yarn that Emma spins. But here she is last Saturday, plying for the very first time ever in her entire life...
...using the Corriedale singles she spun earlier that day as shown in the last video I posted. Note, please, that she is (with great coordination!) plying from both ends of the ball of singles. And here is the resulting Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-28622103692661924642012-01-11T20:21:00.000-08:002012-01-12T00:13:15.326-08:00The bedtime whining I love to hear:
"Moooooommmmmm, I don't waaaaaant to go to bed! I want to keep spiiiiinnnnnning!"Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-62437115727922023772012-01-10T07:28:00.000-08:002012-01-10T07:28:00.641-08:00Pardon me while I try not to hyperventilate- I just ordered 30 pounds of assorted sock yarns and 5 pounds of laceweight yarn to dye so I can get my Etsy shop back up and running, and start building up stock for the Farmer's Market next summer.
I ordered merino/silk, merino/nylon, merino/cashmere/nylon, and merino/bamboo. I'm going to have so much fun playing with color.
But still- THIRTY-FIVE Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-76674443912896972172012-01-09T14:46:00.000-08:002012-01-09T14:59:14.319-08:00Listening to "The Nutcracker Ballet" on my iPod while at work makes me want to go leaping and twirling down the hallway.
Must...Restrain...Self.....Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-4255138601033373872012-01-07T15:30:00.000-08:002012-01-18T18:57:48.367-08:00How about a fiber round-up? I've been busy recently, and finally got around to taking pictures this morning.
First, though, I want to show this:
Emma's really getting the hang of spinning! She finished her first full bobbin of singles at Crafty Night this week, and is well on her way to filling a second this morning. I really can't think of a better way to spend a Saturday morning than a Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-70667518699777211592012-01-02T02:40:00.000-08:002012-01-02T02:52:52.883-08:00
Why do I suddenly like tea? I have never liked hot drinks in general, and most tea was too tongue-curlingly bitter for me, even with the masking effects of sugar. Mint tea with honey when I had a sore throat was about the only hot drink I would ever want.
Now, suddenly, I find myself reaching for a mug of tea more and more. Usually not anything with caffeine, because it makes me jittery, Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-74194829576784128132011-12-31T22:44:00.000-08:002012-01-18T19:00:53.240-08:00Isn't this a lovely sight?
I must say, I had forgotten that the Traditional has a larger drive wheel than the Matchless. It's only a 2.5" difference (22" vs 19.5"), but that combined with the inherently larger footprint of a Saxony wheel makes the Matchless seem so much smaller by comparison.
I finished the first bobbin of superfine merino I started spinning after I repaired my wheel, and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-29963134561562344842011-12-29T02:41:00.000-08:002012-01-12T00:17:14.494-08:00So the stage was set...
And then it was Christmas morning!
Going in for a closer look...She likes it!
Later that morning, after all the other presents were opened, we sat down to spin!
This just makes me feel all warm and fuzzy. Sigh.
Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-42536538780197884572011-12-20T09:13:00.001-08:002011-12-20T09:13:37.994-08:00Today I got the final permit for a project that I've been working on for three and a half years. It's been a long road, with many bumps and detours.
HOORAY!Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-75866201925981143022011-12-18T21:55:00.000-08:002012-01-14T20:44:51.808-08:00Well, I got a lot of my to-do list accomplished this weekend. The house is well on the way to being in order, the presents I have are wrapped, I ordered a birthday present for my dad, and I should be finished knitting his Christmas present by Christmas. (Last minute knitting? Who, me?) Emma's room is ready for my dad- Emma was a champ at getting everything on her to-do list checked off as well.
Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-58509262315669666292011-12-16T19:22:00.000-08:002011-12-16T19:22:13.188-08:00Today I had a startling realization. When this realization hit, at about 1:00 this afternoon while I was at work wrestling with a boring document I'm trying to write, I had to stop for a moment and think about whether it was really, really true.
Christmas is nine days away.
How did this happen? How did I miss this, despite having an excited 8-year-old in the house and getting a Christmas treeSuehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-27817864598017620622011-12-15T02:10:00.000-08:002012-01-12T00:18:09.343-08:00How this for a pretty picture? I really like the simpler, cleaner lines of the older model Ashford Traditional wheels. They're so much more elegant than the new ones that have the fussier turnings.
Emma's new old wheel cleaned up beautifully- finally. It was a long road. Sadly, I neglected to take any "during" pictures. Sorry.
Its spa treatment included complete disassembly (except for Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-78210001645751011042011-12-09T00:15:00.000-08:002011-12-09T00:15:49.064-08:00A list:
Headache.
Tired.
So tired.
Itchy-eyed tired.
Weights-on-my-shoulders tired.
Total of 10 hours sleep since Sunday.
Depressing monkey mind that won't shut up.
Can't. Fall. Asleeeep!
Taking a Tylenol PM now and will listen to my meditation CD.
That is all.Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-2109805714251887122011-11-28T12:08:00.000-08:002012-01-12T00:56:34.812-08:00Pssst! Don't tell Emma what Santa is packing in his sleigh for her this year!
This is an older Ashford Traditional wheel, made sometime between 1975 and 1980 according to the timeline on the Ashford website. It's very dirty but otherwise in great condition. The drive wheel runs absolutely true, and there aren't any cracks or even any major dings in the wood. It's currently in pieces in Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-18298795709295788942011-11-18T16:13:00.001-08:002011-11-18T16:14:40.128-08:00Friday afternoon. End of the work week. Two whole days ahead that I can spend (almost) any way I want.
TGIF.Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-10878663263467401382011-11-16T12:35:00.000-08:002011-11-16T12:35:00.426-08:00Why is it that almost every day, I look at a clock at exactly 12:34, 2:34, or 11:11? I can go for hours without checking the time, and have no idea what time it is. Then when I do check the clock, it's one of those "fancy" times. It doesn't matter if it's a.m. or p.m. (although I seem to see 2:34 a.m. more than 2:34 p.m., thank you so much, insomnia), and it's never one of the other Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-57233717172221620762011-11-15T07:24:00.000-08:002011-11-15T12:54:31.905-08:00“Life can either be accepted or changed. If it is not accepted, it must be changed. If it cannot be changed, then it must be accepted."
-Winston ChurchillSuehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-29637376133542932532011-11-14T17:57:00.000-08:002011-11-14T17:57:29.505-08:00Here's a sweet look at a sweet kitty,
who never fails to give me a cuddle and a purr whenever needed.Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-12893260980627896372011-11-13T12:00:00.000-08:002011-11-13T18:47:11.313-08:00I must not fear.
Fear is the mind-killer.
Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration.
I will face my fear.
I will permit it to pass over me and through me.
And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path.
Where the fear has gone there will be nothing.
Only I will remain.
Bene Gesserit Litany against Fear
--from Dune, by Frank HerbertSuehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-17901247085437517742011-11-12T15:29:00.000-08:002011-11-12T16:54:34.626-08:00Here's a radical thought- how about some pictures? And maybe a post that's crafty instead of me wallowing in self-pity?
I took a 2-day class last May, through the local arts center, on how to make lampworked glass beads. This is something I've always wanted to try, so I jumped at the chance when my friend showed the beads she had made at the previous session.
It's so much fun!
These Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-78189675761552563332011-11-07T12:25:00.000-08:002011-11-07T12:25:26.226-08:00Dear co-worker,
Is it really entirely necessary to conduct every phone conversation on speakerphone, with your office door open? Yes, I have my door closed. Yes, I am now constantly wearing my ipod. Yes, I can still hear you, loud and clear.
Sincerely,
MeSuehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-46309363236569716622011-11-02T21:49:00.000-07:002011-11-08T21:26:03.450-08:00
Hyperbole and a Half is a blog of funny stories told through quirky pictures. When I read the most recent post and saw this picture, though, it quite literally brought tears to my eyes.
Picture by Allie at Hyperbole and a Half.
See that miserable person crumpled in a ball behind the couch?
THAT IS ME.
This picture perfectly captures the essence of depression, of feeling like youSuehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-77228117268079106842011-10-26T19:38:00.000-07:002011-11-05T13:28:03.139-07:00Today I am thankful...
that I have Emma to remind me that I am neither as held-together as the face I
present to the world, nor as falling-apart as I seem to myself
that I have a sister who gets me
that I have good friends to go knit and spin with every week
that I have a job
that I have a roof over my head and food in the fridge
that cats only require a lap, a food bowl, and a clean litterboxSuehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-51116195579208032082011-10-19T22:30:00.000-07:002011-11-05T13:28:03.092-07:00Today was the kind of day when the question "How's it goin'?", asked just-in-passing in the hallway at work, feels like a trick question.
It's a conversation filler, really, the same as saying "Hey!" or "Good morning!" (another trick question, by the way- maybe your morning is good...), and while I know the socially acceptable response is "Fine", I really struggle with it lately.
Things are so Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-60214498260072416132011-10-12T12:08:00.000-07:002011-11-05T13:28:03.114-07:00
Lately, this song speaks to me:
"The scars of your love, they leave me breathless..."
Oh yes.Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-51984132318185047092011-09-04T18:37:00.000-07:002011-11-05T13:32:21.732-07:00It is almost impossible to remain entirely unhappy when weaving a fancy twill.
This is another warp of bookmarks. I dyed the warp green and am using straight white for the weft in all the bookmarks. All I have to think about is the treadling sequence, and that's just enough to keep my mind busy and unwanted thoughts at bay, without taxing it too much.
It's my standard bookmark Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-24962778356558915502011-08-28T22:46:00.000-07:002012-01-12T00:19:04.120-08:00Emma and I had a fun day today, in between the normal weekend housecleaning and after a mysterious 103° fever that she developed in the space of 15 minutes yesterday morning. We were at the Farmer's Market, and one minute she was running around with her friends, then she was back sitting with me at my table, then 10 minutes later she was shivering and goosebumpy because she was so cold (it was 90Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-62140906704269305642011-08-24T18:17:00.000-07:002011-09-04T22:00:39.447-07:00I'm still completely smitten with my Kuchulu. I started another bundle of Sock Summit fiber yesterday. It is gorgeous...
This is top from Fiber Optic Yarns, 50% superwash merino / 50% bamboo (rayon). It's beautiful stuff, that shimmers and sparkles and fairly glows. It's spinning up wonderfully, and should make beautiful laceweight. I have 4 ounces (115 grams), so it will also make a LOT Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-16845101758220660362011-08-21T22:54:00.000-07:002011-08-22T01:16:44.551-07:00Well.
I have something to show you.
That, my friends, is a very full Kuchulu. Yes, that is my Kuchulu somewhere in that ball of singles. Yikes!
I may have taken this personal challenge of mine, high yardage on a Kuchulu, just a wee bit far.
This is the last of the Bunny Patch Fibers merino/angora top from New Hues Handspuns. I was spinning merrily along, and when I paused to evaluate Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-81976248930040207422011-08-15T16:35:00.000-07:002011-08-15T16:36:18.104-07:00Finally, I have ripe tomatoes! Between the cool weather and the deer, it's been a hard-won victory this year.
Only four so far, but there are plenty more on the way. If only the frost holds off for at least another month....Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-60679661792561322292011-08-14T23:51:00.000-07:002011-08-16T16:58:20.850-07:00I filled the Kuchulu again this weekend. I just can't stop.
I got 16 grams of fiber on it this time, and it is very full. You can just barely see the tips of the arms sticking out.
I measured the yardage again, just for fun, and it worked out to 465 yards for the 16 grams. The singles are about the same size as the last spindleful, but there's an extra gram on the spindle and thus more Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-59954190988118848632011-08-12T21:00:00.000-07:002011-08-21T19:36:35.090-07:00Well that didn't take long. I had to pop open another of my Sock Summit purchases and start spinning. Resistance is futile when faced with the Kuchulu.
This is the 59 gram bundle of Bunny Patch Fiber by New Hue Handpuns, in colorway William. Beautiful earthy greens and browns, made of 80% merino and 20% angora. Lovely.
Also, I found the perfect size tin to make a travel case for an Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-23040084553383787392011-08-10T21:19:00.000-07:002011-08-16T16:58:20.853-07:00It's done! My first project on the Kuchulu is finished and off all spindles. I wound a plying ball on Tuesday afternoon. This is two strands held together, wrapped into one ball. I used a horse chestnut for a core, because I couldn't find the little felt ball I made for this express purpose. I suspect it has become a cat toy.
So the singles were wound together, remaining nicely under Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-53345751585114835162011-08-08T23:42:00.000-07:002011-08-16T16:58:20.854-07:00And then there were two!
All done up into singles, so pretty!
The second half of the batt spun into 432 yards (!!), so the grand total is 802 yards of singles for 30 grams of fiber.
On to the plying...Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-8347150845586974872011-08-07T23:58:00.000-07:002011-08-16T16:58:20.855-07:00I am completely smitten.
I can't put this spindle down. This is 11 of the final 15 grams of the AbbyBatt, spun in three sittings and numerous snatched moments over the past two days.
Smitten.Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-89563500789099889082011-08-05T22:55:00.000-07:002011-08-16T16:58:20.856-07:00My mission at Sock Summit was to get a spindle. I got one last time, and it seems like a good tradition to continue. Spindles are great because they're so portable, and while I love the speed of a wheel, there's just something about a lovely wood spindle that really appeals. They're like precious jewels, each unique and beautiful. Plus, getting one every two years is fairly easy on the Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-71955462676725651072011-08-01T08:32:00.000-07:002011-11-05T13:28:03.122-07:00Sock Summit was super SUPER fun. If I can get my act together later, I'll show pictures of what I got.
I had so much fun and would go again in a heartbeat, but the jury is still out on whether SuperFunHappyTimes are worth the sickening thud of coming back to reality.Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-54455633637932504052011-07-28T10:53:00.000-07:002011-07-28T10:53:57.260-07:00On a more cheerful note, I'm going to Sock Summit this weekend, and can't wait! A friend and I are driving over after work on Friday afternoon, and not returning until Sunday.
I'm soooo ready for a weekend away, and hanging out with fiber folk is even better.Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-34434120163196290562011-07-22T16:51:00.000-07:002011-11-05T13:28:03.071-07:00Well, if anyone's still reading this lonely blog, I'm still here. The situation that I mentioned in February still has not resolved, and my life for the past eight months has sucked. Truly sucked.
I never would have expected that I would have to deal with adultery and chronic lying in my marriage, but here I am.
I've felt alternately angry, sad, in denial, ashamed, confused, tired, angry, Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-31288171798699820312011-02-17T13:32:00.000-08:002011-11-05T13:28:03.061-07:00What to say, what to say. I've been very bad at the whole blogging thing recently, haven't I? Over the past year, with finances, job stress, my health, and everything else, it seems like everything sort of snowballed and kept me overwhelmed.
I'm not likely to be posting much in the next little while, either. I have recently been confronted with the most difficult challenge of my life, and I Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-32417596182780665872011-01-31T20:13:00.000-08:002011-01-31T20:16:22.659-08:00My contribution to the Sixth Annual Blogger's (Silent) Poetry Reading:
A Dream Pang
by Robert Frost
I had withdrawn in forest, and my song
Was swallowed up in leaves that blew alway;
And to the forest edge you came one day
(this was my dream) and looked and pondered long,
But did not enter, though the wish was strong:
You shook your pensive head as who should say,
'I dare not--too far in his Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-85109330157872279482011-01-19T16:09:00.000-08:002011-01-19T16:09:20.080-08:00I am very very tired.
The following has happened over the past week and half: Emma had the monster flu with high fever for six days, then she was feeling better for approximately 11 hours except for residual violent phlegmy coughing, then she got a monster ear infection with high fever for three days.
She hardly ate. She hardly moved. She watched way too much TV. She lay on the couch and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-22539815920370095302010-12-23T22:26:00.000-08:002010-12-23T22:26:53.662-08:00I can't stop laughing at my daughter. I'm trying not to, but I just can't stop giggling.
She's walking around the house, carrying her little musical moose, singing "We Wish You a Merry Christmas", but with her own... creative... words.
She couldn't understand all the words the moose was singing, so she filled in words that sounded close.
We wish you a Merry Christmas,
We wish you a Merry Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-87164054166673805232010-11-15T17:30:00.000-08:002010-11-15T17:58:32.623-08:00Wow. Total bureaucratic fail at work today. I guess we won't be doing that wetland enhancement project after all. So much for looking at the big picture. Let's just keep grazing and mowing it.
Sometimes it's very discouraging being a biologist.Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-70618034027056790582010-11-12T16:36:00.000-08:002011-01-31T20:13:15.104-08:00I did a little canning this fall, though not as much as I would have liked. Shockingly, I didn't make a bit of jam. Since I still have an adequate (roughly, oh, five year?) supply of jam in the pantry, I think we'll survive. However, since I bought ten pounds of cucumbers at the last Farmer's Market, I did make pickles!
This is seven quarts of cucumber dill slices. I got this bug in my brainSuehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-83985302996579851892010-11-11T22:42:00.000-08:002011-01-31T20:01:12.265-08:00Yes, yes, I know that Halloween is past and the world has moved on, but I have to show Emma's costume from this year. It was too good not to share. Besides, if the stores can start putting Christmas decorations out in early October, I can show Halloween pictures in mid-November.
Can you guess who she went as?
(Wow, that was a toughie, wasn't it?)
Yes, she was our very own Princess Leia. Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-82957352109248835102010-11-07T12:09:00.000-08:002010-11-11T16:53:56.346-08:00OK. I think I need to write this out and get it off my chest. I wasn't going to because it's pretty personal, but it goes a long way to explain why I've been silent for so long. It was life-controlling, and I had no room for anything that wasn't absolutely necessary.
This is probably going to be more than the world needs to know, but I need to say it, and who knows, someone else in a similar Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-15922878993129561702010-11-06T11:04:00.001-07:002010-11-06T11:04:46.210-07:00Bloglines is back! Yay!Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-89472742237433950422010-11-05T09:05:00.000-07:002012-01-01T20:34:15.445-08:00My goodness, two posts in two days- what is the world coming to?
I wanted to show off my new aquarium. I can't call it a fish tank, because it has no fish in it. This is a freshwater shrimp tank.
It's a 10-gallon tank, set up on September 12 with plants, driftwood, rocks, sand, etc from another tank to jumpstart the establishment of the nitrogen bacteria colony. It ran with only snails (Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-55549708870096778732010-11-04T09:52:00.000-07:002010-11-04T12:24:46.855-07:00Well. So. How the heck have you been? Apparently I needed a break.Let me esplain. No, there is too much. Let me sum up.In the past six months that this blog has been silent:I went back to work, part time, again. It's been slow but relatively steady, and I've been working 4 hours a day on average. We had some personnel rearrangements in my group - we hired two new people, then the seniorSuehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-13524596966782842622010-04-30T17:22:00.000-07:002010-04-30T17:29:06.334-07:00Well, we're still kicking. And I think we've kicked out the germs. Hooray!I've been doing a bunch of spinning, and am plotting weaving projects, and trying to get back into the swing of things. I am going to be selling at my local Farmer's Market this summer, and need to keep my inventory up. It starts in three weeks! Eek!Oh, and I am also starting back at work part-time on Monday. I don't Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-27356194485469415812010-04-21T10:45:00.000-07:002010-04-21T11:21:46.145-07:00I have never before in my life been sick enough to stay in bed so many days. Since last Thursday-six days! This bug has steamrollered me. The only time I've ever felt close to this bad was when I had mono, and I thought nothing could match that level of sore-throatedness and fatigue. Ugh.However! Things are looking up today. The sore throat is almost gone though my tonsils are still visiblySuehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-33153927359109863212010-04-16T15:26:00.000-07:002010-04-16T15:34:49.292-07:00Ode to a VirusO rice bag, how I adore your heat,To chase the fever chills,And Tylenol, thou art a magic pill,To cool me from one-oh-three.The headache's throb,And the grinding-bone ache,Conspire to keep me limp,Unable to read,To blink,To think,And my pillow is stuffed with rocks.-------------Yeah, it's been a fun couple days.Apparently I was in tears last night, because Naia (my cat) said he was Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-6486305521146047002010-04-04T22:10:00.000-07:002010-04-04T23:27:21.548-07:00I really don't see how it is possible that 2010 is one quarter done already. I really can't fathom it.Anyway, onward. I have been jamming again: 4 pints last Friday.This is Strawberry-Lemon Marmalade, tweaked a bit. Holy buckets. Folks, if you are at all a fan of strawberries, and have ever wanted to try making jam, you have to make this.My tweaks: I used frozen strawberries rather than Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-44467924468795982062010-03-21T19:07:00.000-07:002010-04-03T15:32:50.544-07:00Still making progress on the doily, though I took a few days off. Here it is with 35 rounds completed, and 14.75 hours elapsed.I have five rounds left. Then each point is worked separately, followed by three rounds of single crochet worked around the entire thing. It's going to take a while.I do like how the zigzags look, though!Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-72421307801078332722010-03-18T20:41:00.000-07:002010-11-05T11:10:29.857-07:00A silly cat moment for you...It was nice of Naia to apologize to Coco and let her know that they're still friends!Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-30977858548174422642010-03-17T12:14:00.000-07:002011-08-05T20:54:24.678-07:00So. Weaving.
The more I weave, the more I like it. When I started weaving as an adult in 2002 (not considering for now the potholders I made as a child, and the set of placemats in high school art class), I didn't like warping. For many years I didn't like warping. Measuring the warp, then sleying the reed and threading the heddles and winding it on, and making sure to get the tension Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-3269673325083369512010-03-14T11:24:00.000-07:002010-03-15T03:53:08.743-07:00I wove a scarf yesterday, and it came out great, but that show and tell post is going to have to wait, because my heart is bursting with pride. Emma wove all by herself on the floor loom yesterday.(Please don't mind the fuzzy hat-hair braids. She was playing outside all day. I really do brush my daughter's hair!)She was watching me weave, and was incredibly intent and focused. When I was Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-56138648745421690882010-03-13T22:01:00.000-08:002010-03-13T22:09:14.864-08:00A quickie post, to show the Aerangis citrata in full bloom.So pretty!Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-54778858901565277802010-03-09T21:28:00.000-08:002010-03-09T21:49:46.479-08:00Moving right along on the doily, with a break over the weekend for some contract spinning.This is 30 rounds completed, and 11 hours elapsed. I like how the pattern is working up. The zigzags are pretty, and complement the pineapples nicely.In OrchidWatch news, the Aerangis citrata has opened! All the full-plant shots I took this afternoon came out blurry, so I'll leave you with this closeup Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-9033333425101737742010-03-03T18:17:00.000-08:002010-03-03T18:48:58.372-08:00Speeding right along with the sewing thread doily. Here it is with 25 rounds complete, and 7.5 hours elapsed.I like crocheting pineapples. They're pretty, easy to figure out what comes next, and nice and orderly. They can verge on too frou-frou when done in excess, though. I think what hooked me with this pattern is the layers of bold zigzaggy lines between the rings of pineapples. Sort of Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-2691301408949452502010-03-01T17:28:00.000-08:002010-03-01T20:05:20.743-08:00Pretty! Remember a couple weeks ago I posted about the floral happenings around my house? Well, the first Phalaenopsis 'Golden Light' flower has opened, and the second bud looks ready to pop!And the Aerangis citrata is sooooo close to opening...Two of the five amaryllis buds opened today, but somehow I neglected to take a picture of them. I'll get those tomorrow.In crocheting news, the doily Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-16173952978915940232010-02-26T12:11:00.000-08:002010-03-03T18:56:56.456-08:00I started a new project, of a type I haven't done in a while.I'm once again crocheting with sewing thread. This is the Sunburst Pineapple doily, originally published in 1951.That picture shows the results of an hour and a half of work: 10 rounds.Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-788291403033702412010-02-20T21:09:00.000-08:002010-02-20T21:29:44.521-08:00My dad gave Emma a whole pile of assorted story CDs for Christmas a couple years ago, which he recorded off the 30+ year old records that my sister and I listened to when we were children. Emma was listening to the "Lady and the Tramp" CD earlier today, and I told her that I listened to those same stories when I was her age, which she thought was very cool.Then she asked if I still have my CD Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-22658992186113851152010-02-19T21:28:00.000-08:002010-02-19T23:28:44.315-08:00I wove off another set of bookmarks last week. This was the purple silk warp I dyed in January, along with some lighter purple silk to use as weft.The one on top shows the lavender weft, in the sections on the ends. The rest of these have all white weft. There were two other bookmarks from this warp, which used the lavender weft, but I don't have pictures of them since they have already left Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-82346790708342872492010-02-17T22:57:00.000-08:002010-02-18T14:57:20.734-08:00I've enjoyed growing orchids for more than a decade. They're just such beautiful plants, with the added bonus of gorgeous flowers. I wanted to share the exciting botanical happenings that are going on at my house right now, with a couple plants in bud.This is Phalaenopsis Golden Light, which (strangely enough) does not have a yellow or gold flower. It is a multi-species hybrid cross with deep,Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-87689768182742412342010-02-02T10:01:00.000-08:002011-01-31T19:58:54.810-08:00My contribution to the Fifth Annual Blogger's (Silent) Poetry Reading:
Tremulations
by Sue Brady
I loved you before I met you.
That spark
Brought to startling clarity,
Boundless and immediate,
With your first breath.
Realizing this was true and forever,
I still could not fathom its depth.
Resonating between us,
Amplified,
Love building on itself.
You were eight days old and I wept-
For all Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-66687383769350654282010-01-31T15:12:00.000-08:002010-01-31T16:20:43.753-08:00Fact: I like pickled mushrooms.Fact: Only one grocery store in my town (sometimes) carries them, and they are $8.95 for a 10 ounce jar.Fact: Therefore, I never buy pickled mushrooms.I mean, really. Cucumber pickles don't cost that much. Why do they charge so much for mushroom pickles?Anyway, yesterday I took matters into my own hands.Button mushrooms were on sale at the grocery store, so I Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-73827744969955449632010-01-27T20:49:00.000-08:002010-01-27T21:07:59.009-08:00Not much to report, but I have been doing some dyeing.This is a total of 1.5 pounds of lovely soft bluefaced leicester wool, dyed in four different colorways. This is all destined for my shop; I'll probably leave some as top, and use some in carded batts. I love the yellow/orange one - so bright and cheerful. Of course, I also like the green one, and the blue one, and the blue/purple one. It Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-88539121875224591352010-01-23T18:24:00.000-08:002010-01-23T22:01:25.651-08:00I have been remiss in introducing a new member of the family. Meet Coco.Coco was a stray that showed up outside our house last September. We have an old barn in our backyard, and there has been a semi-feral cat living under it since before we moved in. He's skittish, and never lets us get too close. We did feed him, though. When Coco started coming around, presumably for the food, she was Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-13402800921695655962010-01-14T16:03:00.000-08:002010-01-14T17:07:22.934-08:00I've been home a lot in the past couple weeks, since I had my hours at work reduced to zero (yes, again). I was limping long at 5-10 hours a week for a couple months before Christmas, then they said "sure, take two weeks off for the holidays, no problem", so we went to visit family. When we got back, I went into work on Monday Jan. 4, and was told that there is nothing for me to work on until Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-38897406118874779022010-01-08T20:34:00.000-08:002010-01-08T22:43:05.654-08:00Once upon a time I was a little girl who played music. I started soprano recorder and viola in fourth grade, and tenor recorder in fifth grade. I stopped playing recorder when I started junior high, and quit viola when I started high school. I was tired of practicing, had too many other things going on, and was tired of practicing (did I mention I was tired of practicing?), so I didn't Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-61653329893893040832009-12-31T22:58:00.000-08:002010-01-02T15:25:01.985-08:00Well, I'm not much for year-end wrap up posts, but tonight as I was tidying up my books for my contract spinning gig, I realized just how much yarn I have spun for Tanglewood Fiber Creations this year.I spun a total of 689.5 ounces.That is 43.1 pounds.And that doesn't even include my personal spinning projects.Holy guacamole.Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-80394529852015105382009-12-28T19:18:00.000-08:002009-12-28T20:24:07.774-08:00Now see, this is why I need to keep up with the blogging. I finished another big weaving project this fall, and I can't even remember what month it was. I think it was mid October. Could have been November. Honestly, the past couple months have been a gray blur.One fun thing about this project was that I finally got to use my end-feed shuttle, which I bought two years ago and haven't done Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-26667246174595480392009-12-26T22:17:00.001-08:002009-12-26T23:17:43.824-08:00So here I go. I'm working through the backlog of photos from the past couple blogless months, and I think I'll start with the earliest ones.In early October Emma and I went with my dad to a family reunion in Phoenix, Arizona. My great-aunt (my maternal grandmother's sister) was celebrating her 90th birthday, and family from near and far gathered. The familial relationships were complicated- Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-45609633297786194672009-12-25T20:42:00.000-08:002009-12-25T21:04:31.070-08:00Nothing since OCTOBER? Two and a half months since I posted? Really? I think this is the first time in my five years as a blogger that I have actually missed an entire calendar month.Bad blogger.I have been doing things, really I have. November was a weirdly disjointed and apathetic month, as was December, and though I was doing things I mostly felt like hibernating. I'm kind of glad that Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-45611918371942572182009-10-05T20:55:00.000-07:002009-10-05T22:15:54.212-07:00I finished weaving off the 8-yard bookmark warp, plus another 2-yard warp. Actually, I finished these more than a week ago, but just haven't gotten around to photographing them. I've been busy doing contract spinning and trying to live with and around and through sorrow. Thank you to everyone for the kind comments on my last post.Weaving these was so much fun. They're relatively fast, and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-18038547694447872982009-09-28T10:52:00.000-07:002009-09-28T11:38:35.748-07:00Today is a sore heart day.My mother-in-law lost her battle with cancer and passed away early this morning. A year and three months from diagnosis.I don't know what to say. It's not fair.Everyone hug someone you love today.Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-9838787714496684652009-09-25T21:43:00.000-07:002009-09-25T21:46:50.852-07:00Dear metastatized melanoma cancer cells that today were declared untreatable and are killing my mother in law:You suck.Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-44903027872487545002009-09-24T19:38:00.000-07:002009-09-24T21:42:09.995-07:00OK, so I've not been in a blogging mood recently. Obviously. I even missed my own 5th blogiversary back on the 18th. It's been a stressful little while here, what with the severe reduction in my hours at work, and Shaun's nine-month University contract schedule which means that he doesn't start getting paid again until Oct. 1. Next week can't come fast enough.Anyway, the whole taking picturesSuehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-90046716989489125612009-09-14T00:58:00.001-07:002009-09-14T02:03:12.001-07:00I seem to be on a weaving kick right now. I just finished up a batch of bookmarks:This was a fun and easy project, and quite gratifying. I did this entire project yesterday, all the way from measuring the warp to ironing the finished bookmarks. The warp is 20/2 silk, and the wefts are various. Left to right, they are:white-same 20/2 silk as the warppurple- the hand dyed merino/silk handspun Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-71309541869159138592009-08-25T21:20:00.000-07:002009-09-14T02:07:56.274-07:00I had a quick weaving project on the go over the past couple weeks, to put in my Etsy shop.Quick in terms of time actually spent working on it, that is. I did most of it (measuring the warp, sleying, threading, beaming, and weaving) in two days during the week before Sock Summit. I just got around to twisting the fringe yesterday. So it was a three day weaving project, spread over three Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-80383413157187518632009-08-24T23:19:00.000-07:002009-08-25T23:31:27.415-07:00I've been doing a lot of spinning in the past couple years, and when I sat down to my wheel on Saturday afternoon, I realized that it was getting hard to treadle. I started troubleshooting- it wasn't wood rubbing on wood from the treadle and it wasn't the drive wheel sticking since it would spin freely when the drive band was off. I narrowed it down to the flyer mechanism, specifically the Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-51424571812919179932009-08-22T22:52:00.000-07:002009-08-25T23:36:30.553-07:00I finally finished plying my green sweater yarn yesterday. This was stalled for a long time, but once I actually sat down to do it, I finished all the plying in one night.Amazingly enough, this is the sum total of leftover singles.Two of the final three balls came out exactly even(!), and the remaining one only had 7 grams on it, which I chain-plyed into a 10-yard mini-skein.After a quick swim Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-79263807325499559002009-08-13T20:24:00.000-07:002009-08-25T23:31:08.110-07:00We took a post-Sock-Summit quickie trip to the coast, to Newport, Oregon. It was really fun. This is actually the first time in the eight and a half years I've lived on the West Coast that I've been to the outer coast. (Eight and a half years? I've been out here eight and a half years? Almost a decade?) Yes, we lived on an island in the middle of Puget Sound for a big chunk of that time, Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-71136802606133156162009-08-10T14:50:00.000-07:002009-08-10T22:15:28.250-07:00Sock Summit was so much fun. I don't yet know how much of my yarn sold, but even aside from that, it was great. This is the first fiber festival type thing I've ever been to, and I'm so glad I went. The energy, the enthusiasm, in the convention center was unbelievable. Everyone was friendly and excited to be there. The air fairly hummed.Thursday was the set up day, and I spent the day at theSuehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-68694415991756505262009-08-08T00:34:00.000-07:002009-08-08T00:37:08.023-07:00There is a LOT OF YARN in Portland, Oregon right now.There are a LOT OF KNITTERS in Portland, Oregon right now.It is amazing.I had lots of fun.Details Sunday when we get back from our side trip to the coast and I download the camera.Fun fun fun fun fun!Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-12451905033885677222009-08-05T07:52:00.000-07:002009-08-05T07:52:00.095-07:00Emma was in a right state yesterday when I picked her up from daycare at noon. I could tell that she was tired and hungry and hot. She cried and whined the whole time we were biking home, that her legs were tired and she wanted to just watch a movie.Now, I was tired and hungry and hot as well. I was in no mood to deal with a tantrum. I announced that we were both having Quiet Time as soon as Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-84785816796175217952009-08-04T20:54:00.000-07:002009-08-05T07:47:34.445-07:00I did something this weekend I haven't done in a long time. I pulled out my cross stitch supplies. I haven't stitched in years, but I suddenly just felt like making something.I didn't, however, feel like jumping right into one of my unfinished projects. I did pull them all out and look at them, and I really should finish them off because they're pretty. The two big ones are Great Blue Heron Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-14100160228346873122009-08-03T15:57:00.000-07:002009-08-03T18:13:01.636-07:00So things are going along. I'm actually still working part time, because they dug up a project that I can work on. So it could be worse. I imagine we'll manage to squeak by until Shaun starts getting paid again at the end of September (love that 9-month contract).The afternoons off are nice, and I am getting back to working on yarny stuff. Silver lining, I guess?I have made two socks (but notSuehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-24883886123017976232009-08-02T15:16:00.000-07:002009-08-03T15:42:14.019-07:00I really don't understand how it can be that Emma is getting so big so fast. Wasn't it just yesterday that she was gazing up at me as she nursed, with my finger clutched in her little fist?Our local county fair was this weekend, and Emma had a very special event on Saturday. I'm so not ready for this.Her first horse show! She got second place out of a group of five kids in the "Lead Line - 6 Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-52316204000861607022009-07-29T16:11:00.000-07:002009-08-03T18:15:34.823-07:00The Great Jam Adventure of 2009 has begun. We went to Cove (across the valley) last weekend and picked cherries at a u-pick place in someone's yard. I spent some quality time jammin'.Yum. I ended up with 60 half-pints of cherry jam. I think that should be enough, don't you?It was a LOT of cherries. Luckily I had help pitting them.I gave Emma the pot and spoon after the first batch Sunday Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-30376305520219235712009-07-20T14:13:00.000-07:002009-08-25T23:47:39.058-07:00We went camping last weekend, over near Bend, Oregon. Shaun was signed up for a triathlon, so I took a half day off Friday and we got away. It was nice to not think about work (or lack thereof).We took the trailer and camped at the Newberry National Volcanic Monument, right in the caldera of an (active!) volcano in the Deschutes National Forest.This is looking out over East Lake, toward the Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-82668722426647648362009-07-16T11:28:00.000-07:002009-07-16T20:40:24.195-07:00You know, you think you're doing OK...You're treading water nicely, the waves are mere ripples.The shore is possibly even getting a bit closer.Then a big wave rolls in from behind, swamps you, and you're back to feeling drowned.Laid off.Again.Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-60664260565526419242009-06-20T21:14:00.001-07:002009-06-21T09:48:37.837-07:00I so enjoy my aquarium. There's always something to watch. The veritable feeding frenzy when I drop in an algae wafer always amuses me.All those panda cories are ones that I raised from eggs spawned in my tank. The littlest one is the baby I found in my filter in January. As you can see, he is thriving.The other catfish are Otocinclus vittatus (I think, or possibly O. mariae. Or possibly Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8379314.post-77999898400319368592009-06-09T22:52:00.000-07:002009-06-10T02:12:54.384-07:00I have been spinning, but mostly several pounds of cashmere/silk singles for contract work. I did ply a couple more skeins of the green sweater yarn (I think I have seven plied now), but haven't taken a picture. Therefore, in an effort to distract you from the fact that I have nothing at all fibery to talk about, I'm going to show some more pretty pictures.We drove down to southern California Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11706897871184267996noreply@blogger.com2