End of week three

Who knew that I would be better at  getting rid of stuff than I was at making stuff?

This afternoon I will fill a bag with the 10 items for this week. (It's a sad commentary on my house that I am not having any trouble meeting my 10 item quota. )  I am doing better in that area than I am on making things.

On the craft front, I have been spinning the hair from my 2 Shetland Sheepdogs almost every day.
The weather has been most cooperative and so the screened porch is a delight during most of the day. My spinning production has improved since I have put the bag of dog hair and the spindle next to my favorite chair on the porch and spin when I let the dogs out to go potty. It has confused the dogs no end. Conner will walk by and smell the spindle and just stand and look at it. I guess he is trying to figure out how he can be in his own skin and yet have part of him on "that wooden thing". Nah, that would be giving Conner more alert brain cells than he has.  Allie tends to ignore the entire spinning process. This could be a result of trying to put her nose in the spokes of a spinning wheel when I first got her. Maybe she has just decided to stay away from anything that goes around, including the hand spindles.

One thing that can really eat up the time is Pinterest.  It is great fun looking at all the various ideas. I have now posted so many that I will need an army of crafters to get it all done. If you haven't found Pinterest, be sure to check it out. You too can become addicted.  Guess that  would make  me an enabler.

Days 1-3 creativity

Well, I thought this project was going to take one day but I really underestimated the time needed. However it's done and I am pretty pleased with the finished product.

I made Halloween cards. To me there is something so satisfying about working with paper and a glue stick. Maybe it takes me back to 1st grade and that fabulous paste that came in jars. It smelled great (well, not perfume great, but still a good smell.) It was fun to put it on your fingers and then let it dry. Peeling it off with your fingerprints on it was most entertaining. (Please tell me other people did this. I have always been fairly easy to entertain but I really don't think I was the only one.) A little bit of it didn't taste too badly either.

I still have to tweak the cards but it was a fun start and felt great to be creating something.

Rock and Roll, High School, and old bladders

This post should have been published in 2009 but somehow didn't so here it is a few years late.

Went back to my old High School tonight for the first time in 48 years. There was a concert to raise money for the 2 radio stations at the school.

The concert was awesome and worth every penny (dollar) of the ticket price. It was 3 hours of great entertainment, both new songs and some old rock classics. If you are a performer, you better know your lyrics when the audience is singing along with you.

The opening act was a classmate and it was wonderful to see him on stage. His style of music has changed over the years but he is still as good and funny as we remembered him being.

We were in the balcony which doesn't have any bathrooms on that floor. Not a problem when you are a teenager but quite a problem over 40 years later. It's not nice to take comfort in the fact that you weren't one of those who had to make the up and down trip twice but sometimes in life you take comfort in what you can.

Anyway, the company was good and the music made us all feel young again, even if just for a few hours. It also reminded me how very, very glad I am to be the age I am. I am also grateful for having grown up in the time that I did. (Ok, now that did sound like an old person's comment. It's the truth however.)

Really, a year?

Well, as hard as it is for me to believe an entire year plus a few days has passed since I wrote the last post. I know you have suffered greatly missing my ramblings.

A lot has happened, almost all of it very positive but I won't bore you with all the details. A quick summary is that I made a major move and have rejoiced everyday since. When you have great peace after making a decision, it is almost always the right one. At least it seems to be that way for me.

Now, 12 months later I find that I really STILL haven't gotten rid of enough stuff. It is so much easier to acquire things than it  is to get rid of them. Why don't they teach that in schools? It would be a fabulous and much needed lesson that would certainly come in handy later in life.

All of which brings me to a challenge I am setting for myself. For the next year I am going to work toward 2 goals.

The first goal is to create something every day. Whether it is a card, a collage, a knitted washcloth, or finishing a larger project, it doesn't matter. What matters is that I exercise my creative side daily, not weekly, not sporadically, but daily. I'm depending on my friends to hold me accountable--- and join me in this endeavor if you wish. Birds of a feather and all that.

The second part is to get rid of the clutter. I recently took a carload of family stuff to my son with the understanding that he is free to toss whatever he wants. Getting it in the car was the easy part. Letting    go of ownership and, yes, guardianship, was harder but very, very freeing.  

Yesterday I came across a blog which talks about getting rid of ten items each week.. Well, as sometimes happens, I read it at an impressionable moment and immediately got rid of ten items from my closet. Put them in a bag and the bag in my car. That was so much fun, and painless, I now have a second bag in the car waiting for the trip to a local charity.

So, the second part of my one year challenge is to get rid of 10 items each week.  That's 520 things that will go away. Ok, that large a number sounds overwhelming so I am going to only think of the ten each week. Just those ten not the big number, definitely not the big number.

You are welcome to join me in this adventure also--double dog dare you.

The Mountains

The Mountains, a photo by january spin on Flickr.

Surprise!

What a wonderful surprise package arrived today.There was a drawing on the Knits for Needs blog (See earlier post here about the wonderful things being done through Knits for Needs.) and I was one of the winners. WOW!
 There were several knitting books and wonder of wonders, quite a few of them had patterns for baby things. I have several precious babies that I want to make things for so this was a huge gift. I am thrilled and can't wait to get started. An unexpected gift from a very wonderful cause.

I finished the prayer shawl for Prayer Shawls 4 Fallen Soldiers and just realized I didn't take a picture of it before I mailed it off. I really do think all this hot weather has melted several vital brain cells. I still have another shawl ready but haven't been able to contact the recipient to verify the address. Has to go on the Must Do list for next week.

Well, the house is being shown again tomorrow morning. Maybe this will be THE one. I am working on keeping a positive attitude but sometimes sitting in a really clean (boring) house makes that difficult. Netflix and playing with my iPad2 are the major things holding my sanity together since I can't get my craft/art stuff out. Ok, I could get it out but anyone who makes things knows that getting into a project and having to put it away in the middle of it is not conducive to creativity. Nor does it make for a happy camper.

Ok, now I really do have to go hide more stuff. My sweet realtor doesn't know I have taken a break from packing for over a month .  I need to look like I have done something before she comes to take the next set of pictures.

Babies and Two Year Olds

There is something about holding a little baby that just tugs at the heartstrings. They make little baby noises and just seem to naturally cuddle. What a shame that sometimes we lose that ability when we become adults. The cuddling part, not  the noises part. The noises part we have and it's not always good, but we should try harder to hold onto the cuddling part. Whether it's a parent holding a child, a husband holding a wife, a friend comforting a friend, or an adult child holding an elderly parent, we should remember how to cuddle someone. It's one of those things that seems to bring comfort to the one who is being cuddled and the one who is doing the cuddling.

Last night I got to cuddle the 2 month old baby of my precious niece and her wonderful husband. It had been a couple of years since I had been around a baby I could cuddle. There's magic in that feel. You look into that little face and you see all the amazing things that life can offer. At that moment, there aren't any cant's, wont's, or limits. I just see a huge world and a tiny baby who hopefully will embrace the joy of living and exploring that world. I see love and trust and possibilities.

I also got to hold her 2 year old brother . He was scared because Mom and Dad had gone out and he had only seen me a few times before in his young life. The possibilities of life were still there but some of the scariness had crept in also. He was starting to discover that life didn't always go as you planned or wanted it to and sometimes you just had to adapt. Although tears and yelling were ways to vent that frustration and disappointment , and we've all done that at one point or the other, acceptance of change brings more peace.

I've found that you can't make people's problems go away permanently. The best thing you can do it just to be there when they need you. Hold them close and sometimes when they are a scared two year old, tell them they are loved, and safe,  and sing An Irish Lullaby to them as your Mother did for you when you were two and scared.

So little ones, I wish for you people in your life who will help you explore this marvelous world and will be there to cuddle you when it looks a little bit scary. 

One at a time

In case no one has noticed, the real estate market is the pits right now. How frustrating to have a house for sale that is really priced well for the neighborhood, and is even kept clean and no one is looking!  If I have to live like this, at least people should come look at all this sterile cleanliness. Several friends have said my house doesn't even look like me with all the fun stuff packed away.

As a result of keeping things clean, I only have one project out at a time. Talk about sticking to one thing! The current project isn't boring, I am enjoying it. It's just having one project at a time to work on that's driving me nuts.

My current project is a prayer shawl for Prayer Shawls 4 Fallen Soldiers. This one will go to a Mom in GA. I am enjoying the pattern which is super simple. It's the  Lacy Prayer Shawl pattern  on Ravelry. I am about half way through and am pleased with the way it is looking. I am using worsted weight yarn and size 13 needles to make sure the pattern has an open look to it. I decided to use Vanna's Choice yarn which is an acrylic. For an acrylic, I think this one is fairly soft and it will be easy to wash and care for.

I think the next project will be to finish spinning the silk for the next shawl. Naturally, I have to hide the bobbin with the spun silk on it when the house is being shown as the people wandering thru seem to be easily distracted.  It's kind of like Hide and Seek around here.

Ok, that's it for today. I'm going to go surf the net and look at the houses in FL that are for sale that I can't buy until I sell this one. Dominoes people, Dominoes.

The Other Gold

There's a Brownie / Girl Scout song that goes "Make new friends, but keep the old. One is silver and the other gold." I always loved that song. To me it meant treasuring what you had but always being open to something new.

Although I have some Silver friends who are really in the Platinum category, I want to talk about the ones in the Gold category today.

I went to my 50th high school reunion recently. First of all, there's a big credibility gap between my actual chronological age and my mindset age. A couple of years ago I went to an immunologist and I was thrilled because he was also a pediatrician. To me it meant I was in my second childhood: however my closest family and friends say I have never left my first one. I don't consider that a bad thing. It makes life ever so much more fun.

I digress--and probably will more than once since I am right brained . Back to the reunion. Sadly there were people who didn't come because 1) no one will know me, 2) I won't know who anyone is, 3) I don't earn as much as some of my classmates, 4) I've gained weight, 5) I have wrinkles, 6) I'm not married, 7) my hair is gray (I have no hair), 8) my life didn't turn out as I expected, etc, etc, etc.

I've got news for you. When you go to a 50 year reunion no one is really seeing you as you are now. If they are there for the right reasons, they are seeing you, not with their eyes, but with their heart. If they are there just to impress people with their current status and how "successful" they are, then they have missed the meaning of success and the only thing you can do is show compassion, and avoid them like the plague!

Unfortunately when you are part of a huge senior class (620 plus), you not only don't know everyone, but you don't get to visit with all the ones you know at the  reunions. One dear friend, Judy, who was also a college roommate, didn't come to the reunion, so I called her on Sunday afternoon and we visited for over an hour on the phone. It was great fun and one of the few people I actually got to have a long visit with over the weekend.

I was thrilled to find out that Ann is now a weaver. We had discussed weaving at our 40th reunion and she had come over to see my looms and wheels. I gave her some sources and she took some classes and is now weaving. I was even able to unload give her some books on weaving before she left this time.

Jim is not only a physician but he also enjoys photography and travel so I was able to give him the contact information for a long time friend on the West Coast that I am sure he will enjoy meeting. I do love connecting interesting people with others who have similar hobbies.

Gloria and Margarette are almost always seen together and they are two people I really admire and adore being around. They both have had very impressive careers and yet their friendship remains steady and they are two of the most down to earth people I know. I just love hanging out with them.

Particularly special was seeing those with whom I had attended elementary school. Who would have thought back then that we would be living so far away from each other as adults. Several of the guys and their wives take a trip together each year. How awesome is that? Again, there just wasn't enough time to really visit, but just seeing those dear, remembered faces was a huge plus for the weekend.

To me, friendship means being involved in each others lives, not just a lunch or get together once in a while. It means calling a friend to chat, dropping a note in the mail, sending a text when something funny or special happens. It means responding to a prayer request with more than just a routine reply but rather actually doing the praying. I have been blessed to have friends in my life who get the real meaning of friendship and I treasure every one of them.

I remember my Momma had some friends that she played bridge with but that wasn't the only time she saw them. They visited with each other and truly enjoyed each other's company. Not at "functions" but rather as part of their daily lives. That's friendship: the "over the back fence" type of friendship.

Well, I told you in the beginning that I was going to ramble and sure enough I have. Bottom line, while I didn't get to visit with everyone I wanted to at the reunion, I hope that the reconnections made there will lead to better communication in the future. Finding Gold again is always special and it remains very valuable even if it isn't polished as often as it should be. I hope to do better in the polishing area.

Knits for Needs

Do you love making things but are running out of people on your gift list? There are people out there who need your knitted or crocheted items.

Based in GA  Knits for Needs  is  a wonderful project which fiber people all over the world are supporting. Knitted and crocheted items such as hats, scarves, & blankets, etc are sent to KFN and they are  forwarded on to places where they are needed.

Knits for Needs
PO Box 551
Woodstock, GA 30188

Check out the blog at Knits for Needs

Who is manufacturing the yarn?

Surely I couldn't have bought all this yarn? Some secret elf has been at work stuffing it into boxes and closets and tote bags while I slept. I just found 6  boxes of handspun cotton. SIX boxes!!! What was I thinking? Not only do I buy yarn but I also make it.

Ok, here it is in writing---I'm not buying one bit of yarn until I have made a huge dent in "the stash".

Let's face it--getting on tv because you hoard yarn is really, really going to look bad. People always ask me what I do with my handspun and I laugh and reply that I put it in baskets and admire it. Well, apparently that's exactly what I do with it. I am a process person--no apologies, that's what I am. I enjoy the doing. The product just isn't that important, or at least it's not my focus. The craft world is divided into process and product people. The product people are those that finish things. They have a goal and follow through on it. They buy yarn with a purpose in mind. They know what they want and they work until they achieve the end result that they want, or as close to it as possible.

Those of us that are process people tend to have a LOT of unfinished projects around. Once we figure out how to do something, we are usually ready to move on to something else--hence the unfinished projects. We buy yarn because we love the feel of it, or the look of it. It may remain in the stash for years unused but still appreciated. We can sit at our spinning wheels and produce boxes of handspun yarn without any plans whatsoever for it's use. We are happy in our endeavors. Every once in a while we will run into a product person. Show and tell time is where they excel. We look at what they have done and secretly resolve to do something about finishing a project so we will have something for show and tell also. We are also a bit delusional in this regard. Now every so often, we do finish something, much to our surprise and the surprise of our fiber friends. (Nonfiber people are never, ever allowed to see our stash. They would never recover from the shock of the volume.) Finishing something is always celebrated and we resolve to do more of that in the future but , well, the best laid plans and all that.

Where does the time go?

I can hardly believe it has been 5 months since I last posted on my blog. I have been busy but not THAT busy, surely. I would resolve to do better but a promise like that might involve guilt . Hopefully I will post more often but if I don't, please know that the thought is there--somewhere.

January Spin-in 2011 had 123 attendees this year. Our record high so far. I think the room may hold another 15- 20 and then we are going to have to limit the registrations if we are to keep the vendors in the same room as the spinners. Several groups came through with skits/songs and they were very well received. It's a good thing we can laugh at ourselves.

The CBSG skit involved some very impressive costumes. Perhaps the one that really  had the most time invested in it was Connie S's mermaid costume. How many people would knit a mermaid tail and top for a skit? 

The theme for 2012 is Shawl We Dance so I have started the search for the shawl that I will make to fit the theme.  I'm so glad Ravelry has so many available patterns.

Before the rain

Before the rain
Originally uploaded by january spin

There is nothing like the approach of a storm in the mountains. You can watch the clouds gather and you still might not get wet as the rain could be in the next county. I saw a rainbow yesterday which was lovely and of course I didn't have my camera with me. So instead of getting a picture to show you, I just stood and enjoyed the moment. The dogs missed it entirely as the rabbits a few yards away were much more interesting. 

Aunt Joanne

Aunt Joanne
Originally uploaded by january spin

Ever have a relative you just love to be around? For me it's my Aunt
Joanne. Any time I can get to see her is a great time. She is very
intelligent and her sense of humor and view of life has always been a
source of enjoyment to me.

She says we get along so well because we both have a "quirky" sense of
humor. Could be. We both find something funny in almost everything.

She traveled all around the world with her husband, had an
interesting career, and helps to hold our family connected. She has
always been true to who she is and that's something not everyone
manages to do. At 91 she is one of my heroes.

Faith and Patriotism

I started the morning by going to the Smokey Mountain Center for the Performing Arts (ok, long name but a beautiful building.). Dr. Dennis Swanberg was going to conduct chapel and since I had sometimes watched Swan's Place on tv, I knew it would be a fun experience. He was a Baptist minister for 20 years and then left to become a minister of encouragement. He has made it a point to bring his message to troops overseas as well as people all over this country. He is very funny and his message is indeed one of encouragement. The hour and a half passed quickly and it was a great way to start the day.

After this I grabbed a really good turkey pastrami at the Motor City Diner and then walked down a couple of blocks to the square where a Tea Party was being held. Contrary to what is often reported on the national news, there were no lunatics, fanatics, or dangerous looking people. What I saw were small town American people from all over the area who were alarmed by the direction their country was headed. That they loved their country was evident. Patriotic songs were sung and speakers said their piece. Nothing way out of line, just a general concern and lots of smiles for those driving by.  I do confess that I shopped during the speeches and listened to the music.

There was one sign  which I absolutely loved and wished I could have gotten a picture of it. The sign said "Next time read the bill before you vote on it." Ok, now that's funny!  I don't care what your political point of view is.  You know politicians don't read all the stuff they vote on and we get the results of their ignorance.

I also stopped in a store which had a wonderful display of quality crafts made in the area. The shop owner was very nice and we discussed how hard it is for small businesses to survive and get the word out about what they have to offer.

Franklin, NC

Franklin is a small town with about 3500 people here for the winter population and about 35000 in the entire county according to the helpful lady at the Visitors Information Center. I have found everyone in town to be extremely nice and I have realized just how much I miss living in a smaller community.

Saturday night was a Concert on the Square and there were 2 singles and a group featured. The music for the night was gospel and, I think, 13 year old Nathan Phillips stole the show. His voice is amazing and the fact that he sang some of my all time favorites was an extra gift.

A childhood friend has a place up here and MH was kind enough to spend Friday and Saturday showing me around the area before she returned home to FL on Sunday. While we were sitting at the concert, a very nice lady put her chair next to ours. Now, this is where it gets really interesting. We got to talking as people tend to do at small town events. She has a daughter in law who is going to apply for a teaching job in , as it turns out, the district from which MH just retired a couple of years ago as head of HR. Names were exchanged, of course. Then we did the usual "where are you from" and she was from Fort Walton Beach FL. She is a member of St.Simons Episcopal Church there. I commented on how much I loved their annual craft fair and mentioned that a friend of mine had a booth there for years. She asked the friend's name. I told her it was BC and of course she knew BC. We talked about how sad it was that she had passed away this year and how much we both enjoyed wearing her handwoven clothing . It gets better. I mentioned that I had attended Shalimar UMC when I lived in that area. She asked if I knew Roger and Bronie who of course I did as R had served on the building committee with H. How wild is that? I do love discovering connections!!!

The downtown area is decorated with red/white and blue bunting and quite a few of the houses in the area are similarly decked out for the 4th.

Sorry for the lack of pictures but I was having such a good time, I forgot all about using the camera.

Baby bird

Baby bird
Originally uploaded by january spin

This little one was discovered just a few feet from the villa. He was possibly 3 inches in length, if that long. He stayed very still . So still in fact that the dogs didn't even notice him--smart bird. I hope he made it safely through the night since he was gone in the morning . While I was taking this picture, without the dogs in attendance, the adult birds were giving me a very strong lecture about getting so close to their baby.

I love having so much of the outdoors close by without the city noises. I think I am a country girl at heart. 

From the Porch

From the Porch
Originally uploaded by january spin

I am enjoying the beauty of the North Carolina mountains while escaping the usual summer heat of lower elevations.

This is the view from the villa's screened in porch. Mornings were in
the 60s and the views while walking were wonderful.

The locals complain about how warm it is. HA! This weather is great.  Frequenting the pond are 8 Canada geese - 2 parents and 6 babies. They are a source of fascination for the dogs but only for watching. For some odd reason they don't bark at the geese--just the golfers. It could be because the geese don't hit golf balls in their direction.  I also observed 2 beavers who are working very hard to build a dam in this pond. It's amazing what large branches they can tow across the pond in their endeavor.

A large turtle with a shell that appears to be about 12 inches across was spotted yesterday and a couple of fair sized fish.  I have wondered if any of them have been hit by the golf balls as some of the golfers can't seem to make it 1) to the hole instead of past that to the water, or 2) tee off with a strong enough shot to clear the water for the next hole. I think I could retire on the number of balls in that pond if I could retrieve them and sell them. The birds spotted so far are lots of indigo buntings, finches, a rufous sided towee and of course the inevitable sparrows.

Knit in Public Day Great Fun!!!

BRRS at B & N
Originally uploaded by january spin

We came, we knitted, we ate, and we had a great time. We so need to do this again soon....after some rest.

We had several new people join our knitting group to celebrate WWKIP. Wonderful to have them and I think everyone had a great time. We started at the Farmer's Market, then went to Barnes and Noble bookstore. California Pizza Kitchen was the spot for lunch. We were supposed to go to the library for the next couple of hours but between work, dogs that needed to be let out, and just being tired, that didn't happen. We did manage to gather again at Brew HaHa for frozen lemonade / coffee and the most wonderful desserts--cake balls.

Since we had pretty much pigged out all day, we elected to skip supper and go home and collapse.
It might be noted that the 3 year old, Harley, hung in there all day and was in better shape than most of us at the end.

With all of that knitting activity, I am not sure how I only managed to get 4 rows done on the prayer shawl I'm knitting but that was the total production for the day.

Thanks goodness tomorrow is a day of rest. I'll tell you about the concert last night later.

Saints Pig

Saints Pig
Originally uploaded by january spin

Never let it be said that we miss an opportunity to celebrate a
winning team in strange and wonderful ways.

This pig was reclining in front of Magnolia Cafe which serves some
really great food at very reasonable prices. I would like to show you
the fabulous turkey sandwich on toasted pita complete with avocado
slices and sprouts I would show it to you but I finished it before I
thought of you and a picture. You're going to have to get your own.