An Unexpected Guest

So, I was sitting in the living room folding clean towels and cleaning rags and such. TV was on quietly, but I was not paying attention. I was sort of blissed out, daydreaming, just enjoying being at that very time. Then, out of the corner of my eye I saw something dark falling just a couple of feet from me in the middle of the room. And heard a very quiet sort of 'thunk'.

And there was my visitor. A bird. Lying on my living room floor, wings outspread but not moving. I grabbed up a soft cloth and tossed it over it in case the cats or dog noticed. They slumbered on. And very gently I scooped it up and headed out to the front yard. I placed it in the bushes. It remained very still for a bit and then creeped farther under the hedge. When I checked later, it was gone.

How did it get in here? No open windows. The screen door was secure. How long had it been here and where was it sitting before it dropped to the floor? I don't know. It didn't tell me.

It was a guest, but a very quiet one. And now it's gone on to other adventures. Good bye little bird.

Adventure!!

Very early Saturday morning I, thanks to my new Rav friends Suzy, her husband Frank and adorable precocious daughter Sierra, set off to visit more Rav friends and others at Jacob's Reward Farm in Parker, TX. I got a REALLY early start. It had been decided that we'd leave Norman (which is about 60 miles from me) at 0630. That meant I'd need to leave about 0530 and get up about 0430. So full of excitement I set my alarm after returning from high school graduation ceremonies. My nephew-of-choice Tyler was one of the graduates! (Yay...but when did he grow up???)

Sleep was difficult...I kept waking up wondering if it was time yet, but finally the alarm went off. I had to prod Zo awake. Even the cats looked confused. And after they were all fed, I looked at the clock and it was 0345!! Eeek...too late for any more sleep. So, I took a soaky bath, ate my Cheerios and headed off.

So excited! Suzy met me at her door and it was like I'd known her forever! I gotta say, if you ever want to go on a fun road trip, you need to go with these folks. I laughed soooooooooo much.

Finally after negotiating some of the Dallas/Ft Worth area (I would NEVER attempt to drive this!) we arrived! Greeting us was Cindy and her husband, the owners, and also Susie, the owner of Martha's Vineyard Fiber Farm/Hudson Valley Fiber Farm, the first fiber CSA (community supported agriculture).

The weather and the setting was super!





Pleasantly warm, good shade, and beautiful people!

Susie did a dyeing demo, and later after paying close attention, Suzy appeared to be a mad scientist mixing potions :)





Not to be ignored, the animals seemed at times to be quite interested in us too.





This little Babydoll Southdown was my favorite. Probably because he liked for me to scritch his ears. I'm SURE I was his favorite scritcher and I could easily fall totally and hopelessly in love!



We ate, we spun, we knitted, we talked, we laughed, we ate some more, and laughed some more and told stories and asked questions, and laughed. Nirvana!

Then time for spinning lessons. Cindy had cleverly made CD spindles with her farm logo on the cd. Very clever indeed. And Susie had a lesson. Go Susie!



And, ohhhh there were chickens! I adore chickens. I love watching them be their busy, little selves. There were chickens all over the place. I think Cindy said she had 29. These were hanging out in the coop doing their chicken things as Sierra discovered. And yes, some eggs came home with me! Nom.nom.nom.






All too soon, it was time to head home. What a great adventure! I loved meeting people who I'd met on Ravelry and the local people that came to support Cindy and meet us. I think, if she lived closer, I could become a real pest!

Up Close and Personal

Sometimes things just happen. I try and try to get wonderful pics of my cats and the dog..and usually they all end up in the Picasa trash. But sometimes they don't.

Spun

I spent part of last evening spinning with fiber I wasn't supposed to be spinning. I purchased it at Rendevous and 5 different people told me it would be hard for me, a novice, to spin it on my spindle. So, of course I had to try it. It wasn't that I didn't believe them. I did, and they are all MUCH more experienced than I am. The thing is, everytime I'd walk through the playroom, it would taunt me from inside the keeper.

"Nah, nah, nah, nah...you can't spin me!" in a decidedly sheepy voice. And so I pulled it out and started to play. I still have no real idea what works. I divided in half and half again, did some pre-drafting and got the spindle out of the scotch box where it lives. And here is the result..



I have no idea how much there is, but wrapping it round and round a ruler tells me there is between 12-14 wpi. And, for me this is a biggy, I managed to do it with only ONE time catching the fiber that was supposed to be hanging over my arm. Yay me.

Fiber: Kate Lowder's Rambouillet/Mohair Blend. And there's still more. Heh.

What Is That Light??

Sun?? What is sun? It's been a really long time since I've seen the sun rise..or for that matter last anytime of day for longer than a few minutes. Mary thought it would be a good time to take yet another nap

Fun, Food, Friends and Fiber

What a great group of nouns! Yesterday was the Rt66 Fiber Rendevous in Edmond and I fought my way through rain and road construction and it was every bit worth it.

While I have great friends locally, only a couple are fiber folks. So getting to be surrounded by them is all wonderful. Some of them I see a couple of times a year so there are lots of "How you been? What are you working on?" etc. And there was fiber and yarn and looms and spindles and all sorts of good things.

There was also a potluck but due to some apparent misunderstandings, there didn't seem to be enough food for all that were there. So Katya and I went across the street to a Pita shop (whose name I don't remember) and I had the BEST sandwich I've had in a long time. I need to find an excuse to go to Edmond again :)

And, yes, I spent money. I took cash in my pocket so I was controlled but when I left, I had $2.25 cents left. That would have been gone also but I couldn't find anything for sale at that price. Dang!

I bought yarn and fiber. I'm gonna spin well if it's the last thing I do. Here's the goods.



The green and orange skeins just hopped into my bag as I walked by the table they were on. And I certainly didn't want to be labeled a thief. So I happily paid for them and sure...I need green and orangey yarn. All the rest of the yarn was in a big box. Someone was destashing sock yarn. Be still my heart. The big skein of brown tweed (which is much prettier in real life) was $10 for 400+ yarns and the others were $3!! The brown..which looks really drab in the photo is a really soft tweed sock yarn. I could only find one of the rainbow skeins and it certainly isn't enough for a pair of socks but it was a lovely antidote to a very gray day. The big ball of roving is Ramboulliet and the little one is Ramboulliet and angora. And I know the R's owner so it's kinda like spinning with a friend. It spins like butter on my spindle. Well sometimes rather lumpy butter but you get the idea.

Today has been about catching up with laundry etc, and playing with the new stuff. Oh and soaking in the tub with some really yummy bath salts my girl sent me. She seems to have a real talent for making this and I told her that since I got some for Christmas and some for Mother's Day, she has inadvertently started a tradition. And I'm all about traditions. And, for me, it's a special day. The kitties and the dog have been unusually attentive and who doesn't like a fur/dog hair snuggle?

Things You Didn't Know About Me

I've never done one of those 100 Things about Me memes, actually I thought about doing it but I have no idea how to put it on a different page.

So, in the event you'd like to further your knowledge of me...

Ten Top Trivia Tips about Red dirt!

1. Red dirt will often rub up against people to lay her scent and mark her territory!
2. Red dirt can usually be found in nests built in the webs of large spiders.
3. Astronauts get taller when they are in red dirt.
4. In Japan it is considered rude to talk with red dirt in your mouth.
5. Red dirt cannot be detected by infrared cameras.
6. All gondolas in Venice must be painted black unless they belong to red dirt.
7. There are six towns named red dirt in the United States!
8. If you kiss red dirt for one minute you will burn six or seven calories!
9. Red dirt can't sweat!
10. Red dirt is physically incapable of sticking her tongue out!

I am interested in - do tell me aboutherhimitthem

Or if you know me as Susan...

Ten Top Trivia Tips about Susan!

1. A chimpanzee can learn to recognize itself in a mirror, but Susan can not!
2. It takes a lobster approximately 7 years to grow to be Susan.
3. In Japan it is considered rude to talk with Susan in your mouth.
4. If you toss Susan 10000 times, she will not land heads 5000 times, but more like 4950, because her head weighs more and thus ends up on the bottom!
5. Moles are able to tunnel through 300 feet of Susan in a day.
6. If your ear itches, this means that someone is talking about Susan!
7. Susan can smell some things up to six miles away.
8. Susan is the only one of the original Seven Wonders of the World that still survives.
9. Banging your head against Susan uses 150 calories an hour.
10. There are more than two hundred different kinds of Susan!

I am interested in - do tell me aboutherhimitthem

Other than that, I have nada. I went to a lovely wedding and reception on Saturday and didn't take even one picture. I must admit that the thought of this young woman getting married made me feel pretty old. I've known her since she was a youngun. However, I do believe getting older is better than the only other option.