I’m BACK baby!

February 26, 2007 By

So it would seem that my Wookie Winder (as G called it) or my Willy Wonka (as Claire called it) or my WooLee Winder, as it’s properly called, and I have been getting along after all. You know how you meet some people, and at first they piss you off to no end and you think why would I spend more than five seconds in a room with this person and then suddenly as your forced together more and more you start to see something you missed in that first five seconds? You start to think, hmmmmmm. I could grow to love this person. I’m not saying I’m in love or anything, but I will say that I’ve never plied better in my life. In my LIFE people!

I’ve had some questions about what a WooLee Winder is – it’s a flyer that goes on your wheel in place of the flyer it came with and it has a mechanized bobbin attachment or some such thingy that allows the bobbin to fill up on it’s own – meaning you don’t have to stop and change hooks or move hooks in order to fill the bobbin evenly. The flyer moves back and forth, powered by the spinning wheel, and fills the bobbin in an even and orderly way. So you can essentially spin forever without getting up to pee or pet your cat or hug your husband – you can sit there until the bobbin is full. And these bobbins are quite large and can hold like half a sheep or something. You have to buy the WooLee Winder that is right for your wheel (assuming one is made for it) and you have to buy special bobbins for it, but it’s not terribly expensive. All the information you need can be found here.

So it seems all I needed was a little more patience and/or Ann laughing at me, calling me a petulant child and pointing jeeringly as I stomped my feet at my own frustration. (Seriously – who doesn’t need a friend that can point jeeringly?) Ann invited me out to Lawn Guyland last week to attend one of her FABULOUS guild meetings. She’s always bragging about her guild – they’re all so talented, they have the best classes, blah blah blah. (Secretly I think she wanted me out there so we could practice our new Bee Gees act. Don’t know what I’m talking about? Look here. Or maybe we’re going to have to be the LI edition of Bronx Beat, which is hands down the funniest new skit to come out of SNL since Will Farrell was a cheerleader.

What are you Sioux? Are you Sioux? Cherokee? Are you Sioux? Funniest fucking thing ever. Go watch.)

Okay. Sorry – back to business. So last week I traveled out to LI to the Spinning Study Group of Long Island meeting. Before hand I spent the afternoon spinning with Ann so she could help me get the feel for the WW. Then I spent the night at the meeting, where they had almost FORTY people show up to spin in a wonderful old barn in Smithtown, spinning my little heart out. I loved the meeting so much I JOINED! YAY! I’m officially a GUILD MEMBER! WHOO HOO! I feel like a real spinner now! Thanks Ann and everyone out there in Smithtown. It was great to meet you all! Thank you for accepting me into the fold.

When I got home the next day I ignored the piles of work I had to do and got down to some serious spinning. The WW is very fast so I was able to spin up aroung 2 oz on Thursday night in just a few hours and 2oz on Friday night in another few hours. But then it was time to ply. For a long time I’ve had some issues with my Lendrum Lazy Kate (apparently this is Lendrum owner wide – it’s not the best out there by a long shot.) I knew, too, that my new bobbins would probably be even worse on the Lendrum LK because they’re a bit wider and taller. So I put on my thinking cap and remembered that it’s fairly easy to make your own Lazy Kate. One of the first places I looked for instruction was over at Theresa’s – she’s always got GREAT stuff – especially on spinning. Didn’t take me more than a second to find what I was looking for: A Do It Yourself Lazy Kate.

I had everything I needed right in my house – a cardboard box (wide enough for the bobbins, but not too wide so there was lots of room for the needles to stick out), some excess cardboard (I used the flaps from the box), two knitting needles (size 9s were perfect to fit through the bobbins and the box), and some waste yarn. I also used a box cutter, but a scissors would work.

This is how I made the Lazy Kate. I stuck the needles through the box. That’s it! Done! No, okay, really, I stuck the needles through the box to establish the holes, then I cut up some cardboard and folded it so that it would act as a buffer against the bobbins so they wouldn’t slosh around on the needles, then I loaded up the cardboard and the bobbin and stuck the needle through the other side of the box. Pefection!

In order to provide some tensioning on the Kate, I thread some waste yarn through a hole in the side of the box, right at the corner, then over the grooves in the bobbins, then out the other side through another hole. Then I pulled it a bit taut and tied a knot.

I’m not sure if it was the lazy kate or the WooLee Winder or both together but I have never had an easier time plying. AND I was a teensy bit handy which is like a miracle for me. G was so impressed!! Thanks There
sa!

The roving I spun is from Dudley Spinner. She sells wool blends in super bright tie dyed colors. This particular color is called Lamba Bada (I think – I can’t seem to find the little piece of paper it came with) and was a bit more than 4 oz. I ended up with about 320 yds – I’d guess it’s sport weight. I’m very happy with it – and I can’t wait to decide what to spin up next!

Re: The Oscars. Clive Owen is HOT. Markie Mark is HOT. The Japanese guy was HOT. Whoever dressed that little girl should be shot. What a sin. Jerry Seinfeld introducing the Feature Documentary was by far the best part of the night. Every time they announced another title, Georgie and I laughed harder and harder. I’m so glad Martin Scorsese won – it was a CRIME he didn’t win for Raging Bull. And please, Academy people, bring back Billy Crystal. He seems to be the only one who can make this evening tolerable (or maybe Will Ferrell? I love Will Ferrell.)

And last but not least, thank you for all your comments on my last post. It’s so nice not to write in a vacuum. I really appreciate your reading my blog.

Filed Under: Spin

The Grass is Always Greener

February 23, 2007 By

I’m not perfect. (Even if I strive for it at times with an unhealthy force.) I’m human. I can guarantee you that, on a fairly regular basis, I piss off and annoy and sometimes hurt the people that love me and that I love most in this world. So imagine the damage that I can inflict upon the strangers that may stumble upon this blog. I have deliberately chosen to write this blog in an open, intimate way – I’m not sure I could do it another way; that’s how I am in real life – and because of that it may seem to regular readers, and even casual readers, that you know me. The closer you feel to a person, the more you think you know about their life, the easier it is for them to let you down and disappoint. It’s just the way it is.

It’s been suggested that I put myself in someone else’s shoes. I am empathetic to a fault, but the truth of the matter is that I CAN’T put myself in anyone else’s shoes. I can ONLY KNOW my own life. I’ve often said that one of the reasons my marriage is as healthy as it is, is that early on I figured out that people CANNOT read your mind. If you want something from someone – if you’re not getting what you need – you MUST communicate what those needs are! You can’t fault anyone for not giving you what you want if you’ve never told them what it is you need and/or expect. (Now if they don’t deliver after that – or your demands are extraordinary – well – that’s what couples therapy is for.)

Many times I’ve felt myself apologizing to people when I talk about my problems, my pains, my disappointments because they just aren’t as bad or important as war or famine or disease – or whatever horrible thing you or someone else has had to suffer through. My problems surely aren’t as bad as other peoples. But I still have problems. And they’re the only problems I know. And because they’re my problems and I have to live with them every day, I can’t diminish how they make me feel. NEVER APOLOGIZE FOR HOW YOU FEEL. Feelings aren’t rational. They oftentimes come out of nowhere and don’t make any sense whatsoever but they are what they are and there’s nothing you can do about them. If you’ve got a hangnail and it’s making your day as shitty as it possibly could be – THAT IS VALID because you’re having a shitty day. There is no need to feel bad about your shitty day because someone else found out that their loved one is very sick. Or they lost their job. Or their kid is being picked on in school. You can feel for those people, sure, but you can still feel bad for yourself.

I think this is really important. We live in a society that is always comparing things – my tv is bigger than yours. Your house is bigger than mine. My stash blows away your stash. Children are starving – why are you still buying yarn? Size matters. And, honestly, I don’t see anything wrong with a little healthy competition every now and again. But not when it comes to feelings. My feelings are my feelings and I have every right to feel them – whether you think I’m an ass or not – just like you have a right to your wonderful, horrible, gut wrenching, soul soaring feelings. I would never take that away from you. I would never judge your bad day in the face of all the horribleness happening in this world at any given minute of the day.

I think one of the greatest strengths of humans is the inability to really understand other people. It’s our most useful survival mechanism. If we could be in each other’s head – if we could actually feel the pain of others – we’d all be doomed. How could we possibly live with the weight of the world literally on our shoulders? As it is, it’s enough that we have to feel our own pain. And through that pain, we can imagine what other’s might be feeling and show them the compassion we’d want shown to us.

We all know how hard it is to get the people around the us – the people we live with every single day – our partners, our children, our parents, our friends, our co-workers. We SEE them – their body language, their facial expressions, the evidence of the bad hair day, the hang nail, the sore back that makes them moody and belligerant. We HEAR the pain in their voices, the excitement, the pity. We can FEEL their arms around us, the hand on our backs, making us feel that it’s going to be okay. All this and we STILL have trouble understanding what they’re really all about. As great as the Internet is, there is A LOT missing. Honestly, if I had every one of your phone numbers, I’d call you in a heartbeat – way before I returned an email. I NEED that connection. But since that’s not practical (and my husband would plotz at the phone bill) we must make do with this superior, albeit, cold communication. We miss so, so much. We read things wrong all the time. We say the wrong things all the time. I, myself, have hurt people through email and have been hurt through email. I’ve imagined relationships that weren’t really there. I’ve been disappointed, I’ve disappointed. I’ve also found some of my best friendships. A commaraderie that I never imagined I’d find. An understanding I’d never thought I’d realize.

I’m not perfect. I’m human after all. And more than compassion or sympathy or understanding, the one thing I’d like most in this world, the one thing I try very hard to extend (and I fail miserably sometimes) and have extended to me is RESPECT. From respect grows all manners of human kindness.

My Woolee Winder and I have come to a temporary truce.

We’ve decided to start over from a place of respect. I communicated my needs, and it communicated it’s needs and hopefully we’ll have some new yarn to show you on Monday.

As always, I know you have a choice on the Internet. Boundless choices, actually. And I fully understand if you don’t like what you read here. I encourage you to move on and find something new. But if you choose to stick around, I’d ask you to remember – I can’t read your mind. I can’t see your face or hear your voice. I don’t know how you’re feeling and you don’t know how I’m feeling unless I tell you. Most of the time that’s better for all of us. I hope, though, that to the best of your abilities, you will treat my little corner of the internet with respect. And I promise, to the best of my ability, to treat you with respect. I thank you for spending some of your hard-earned time with me and wish you only the best.

L, C

Filed Under: Life, Spin

Jump Start

February 21, 2007 By

Aw man. You guys make me blush. Hard. Thank you so much for all the kind words on my CPH. I hope you all knit it – it’s really a nice sweater – and like I said – it’s a great FIRST sweater. I forgot to mention yesterday that there’s a KAL going on – with all kinds of nice pictures and good advice. I never officially joined up – but I certainly referenced the site. Thanks again! It’s great to be able to share my knits with such a receptive audience. I mean, Georgie’s suitably impressed and all, but you know what I’m saying.

Okay. Now I want you to click here. It’s okay – nothing work inappropriate. Just click and then come back. I’ll wait.

See that? Yup. That’s right. I used to SPIN! USED TO being the operative words here. Used to. Back in October, I finished my first handspun project which I knit with my own handspun. I loved the shawl, loved the yarn, loved the fact that I had spun the yarn to make the shawl – loved all of it. I loved it so much that right after I finished it I decided to buy a Woolee Winder because everyone said they made spinning so much better and plying a breeze and gosh darnit, I deserved one. I thought I might be able to buy it and pick it up at Rhinebeck, but the Woolee Winder people weren’t going to be there, so I ordered it and thought it might be here when I got back from Rhinebeck.

Well, it wasn’t. And then I waited and waited and I had emtpy bobbins and I didn’t want to start any spinning projects because I was waiting for the Woolee Winder. No use starting something only to abandon it in the middle when the new toy comes. So I waited and waited and after about a month I started to question the whole Woolee Winder thing. In the meantime, G got sick and I reverted back to my first love – knitting – and let the whole spinning thing fall by the wayside. And I STILL freaking waited for this Woolee Winder. Of course, the day I send the threatening email (after about 100 nice ones before that: “Um, dear sir, can you please tell me when my Woolee Winder will finally be arriving, you know the one you were paid for six weeks ago?) it comes in the mail. But by that time I was so disgusted with the whole thing (and, honestly, the world in general) that I let it sit in the box for a few weeks before I ever took it out to try.

One day, though, I did try it and maybe I just had a lot of bad karma stored up around this particular apparatus because I hated it. I couldn’t get the tension right, I was wasting good fiber on it and eventually I pulled out some of my plain vanilla BFL to practice on. I still couldn’t get it and truth be told it’s been sitting there ever since, my poor wheel, lonely and neglected because of this freaking Woolee Winder. Why didn’t I just take it off, you ask, and go back to spinning without it – the wonderful way I know how? Because I was too pissed off. I figured I’d ruin everything I touched.

But now I think I’m ready to get back on track. Tonight I’m going to my inaugural Guild meeting way out in Lawn Guyland. I’m hoping this will jump start the whole spinning thing. I really, really miss it! And if it doesn’t go so well, watch this space for a very slightly used Woolee Winder. I’ll be selling it. See you Friday!

Filed Under: Spin

The Miseducation of January One

August 24, 2006 By

Yesterday was all about the learnin’. I will share.

~~ When you change a password, best check what that changed password will affect. The comments are working now.

~~ Spin all your singles up at once. Then ply everything up at once. It will make for a more consistent finished yarn – especially given my newbie status.

I finished spinning up the 8 oz I had of Moonstone, merino roving from Spunky Eclectic. I was so looking forward to finishing this stuff up because I had grand grand plans for it! I was going to make my first handspun project from this yarn. And now that it’s off the bobbins, I’ve got to say, I’m a bit disappointed. I should clarify – this has EVERYTHING to do with my spinning and NOTHING to do with the fiber. Of all the fiber I’ve spun (which is limited – I will admit) Spunky Eclectic is by far my favorite – for the color AND the prep. I was quite pleased with the first batch (see post here). I managed a nice tight ply and I liked that a lot. This time around, not so much.

Can you see the difference?

How about now?

NOW?!? New yarn on the left, old yarn on the right.

The new yarn is not as tight at ALL. And therefore I think it looks a little loosy and sloppy. It’s not as smooth. Although it looks a TON better now that it’s been washed and dried. It’s also a bit thinner. I finally see a reason for two wheels. Before you all either start laughing or groaning – how great would it be to have one wheel for plying – where I could keep the tension and everything JUST SO and then be spinning on another wheel where I could also keep the tension and everything JUST SO. As it is now, I’m going to have to spin up all of the singles and THEN start plying. Clearly I’m not good enough to go back and forth. I need the stability of keeping things JUST SO.

In the first batch I’ve got about 310 yds and the second batch I’ve got about 566 yds, so a decent amount. I had wanted to make a shawl with it – and I guess I still could – I could use the 310 yds at the top of the shawl – where it’s a bit bigger, and then use the rest as it gets to the point. Any and all suggestions for about 800 yds of fingering weight (I’m guessing here) would be great. I’d love a pattern that shows off the yarn – so something with a bit of stockinette to it would be great.

Eh. I’ll do better next time.

By the way – before I change topics – CJ asked me to mention a new swap she and Christina have put together: The Spinning Roving Swap. All information can be found at that link. I’m off swaps for a while now, but if I was going to get in on one – this looks really good. Different sign ups for people wanting to learn to spin, and for experienced spinners. Check it out.

~~ Don’t be afraid to try new things.

I’m very reluctant to show you this:


Yup. It’s a toe up sock – STR – Pebble Beach colorway – old put up. I had almost given up the other day when I had tried the Magic Cast On, Wendy’s short row method and Purly’s YO method. Then, yesterday in the comments (before I broke them), Rachel mentioned that I should try the Turkish Cast On. So I checked a couple tutorials and MY GOD. This is the most mind-blowingly easy thing I have ever tried. Just wrap the yarn around two needles and start knitting. Seriously. LOOK AT THIS TOE!


The top down knee high I just finished – kitchener stitch at the close – is on the left and the brand new toe up Turkish Cast On goodness is on the right. They barely look any different. All you toe up people – why would you use anything other than this cast on? Also, I love me some M1. I’ve mastered the right leaning M1 and the left leaning M1 and it’s so much nicer (TO ME) than short rows. So much nicer. Check it out!


Again, top down on the left, toe up on the right. You can barely tell the difference. Recently I’ve learned that I like a wider toe. I start my toe decreases very late – almost at the top of my pinky toe, and then I decrease four stitches every other row until I have fourteen on the top of the toe and the bottom of the toe (28 altogether.) Then I slip the stitch right inside the outer stitches over the outer stitch (I read it somewhere – makes the toe a bit rounder and not as pointy on the edges) then kitchener the 24 remaining stitches. Perfection!

So yesterday, I cast on 24 stitches – 12 on the top, 12 on the bottom) and knit a couple rows then started increasing four stitches every other round until I got to 64. DONE! Perfection
!

The jury is still out on these socks, though, because I really don’t like a short row heel. So if I can’t figure out the toe up heel flap – I don’t know. This might be a 325 yd STR prototype and then I’ll start knitting from the top down again. Question for anyone out there that has knit a toe up heel flap: When knitting from the top down, I generally have about 58 rows between my last gusset decrease and the start of my toe decreases. Is it the same when knitting toe up – should I start my gusset INCREASES at row 59 from the toe decreases? How do you know where to start the heel? THANK YOU!

Okay. I’m off to help my newbie again today. She’s finished the bottom of her bag – I’m so proud. Unfortunately the dog ate my homework. I’ve done like 20 rows out of 66 on my own bag.

Have a great day!

Filed Under: Spin, Toe Up

My Aching Back

August 14, 2006 By

G and I were sitting on the couch, both of us in pain, and he said how much it sucked to get old. Now he just had a birthday putting him in the EIGHT YEARS OLDER than me category and I said, “DUDE I am not old.” And he replied, “That’s what makes you all the more pathetic.”

Fucker. I hate it when he’s right.

I know I’ve talked about this before – god, it’s over ten years now – once upon a time G went away on a business trip and I slept funny in the bed and it got a little too cold that night and the muscles between my shoulder blades basically froze and I was in extraordinary pain for a couple of days. I remember going to work that morning and almost throwing up on the subway and when I took a car service home the jostling in the car almost made me pass out. I was able to function after a couple of days and it went away completely about a week later but it left me with a weak spot. Know what I mean? Whenever I sleep a little too deep or the temperature drops a bit or the sun transverses the moon at a 180° trajectory or some other such nonesense I get a nice crick in the muscles between my shoulders. See what happens when you wish for Fall and Summer’s not finished with you yet?

I woke up Saturday and true to rules of the universe, my funk seemed to have passed, but my back was killing me. I’ve never ever had it as bad as the first time, but it’s annoying nonetheless and I want to weep for my husband who is in physical pain on a pretty much constant basis. I probably would be better right now but I’m not because, you see, my husband was in more pain than usual this weekend and nothing tortures my sweet boy more than the weather being a shade better than perfect and him not being able to run around on the tennis court. A good indication as to how much pain he’s in: he asked ME to play tennis with him.

I was going to the tennis court anyway to sit and knit and enjoy the outdoors while he played but he said he might not be able to find anyone to play with so could I bring my stuff. Just in case. I said sure full well knowing he’d find someone. I mean it’s been AGES since I played with him. No such luck. You know what? I’m not bad. He even said I could be really good if I took lessons. You know why? Agression. I’ve got it in spades. I’m not kidding. One time we took a golf lesson out in Palm Springs and I could barely connect with the golf ball but the pro was really impressed. He told G that I had a lot of agression in my swing and “you can’t teach that.” The same applies to tennis. One guy that was there told G that I hit really hard. I do. And I love it when G hits hard back. (Go to it google freaks.)

About thirty seconds into playing I knew I was going to pay for it the rest of the weekend. It didn’t really hurt my back to play, but I knew that as soon as I cooled off I was going to be fucked.

Fucker. I hate it when I’m right.

My back has been awful ever since. And not just my back but pretty much every other muscle in my torso, and a couple in my legs and arms too. Although I have been able to wrangle quite a few BENGAY massages this weekend. Soooo sexxxy!

I did have fun though. I’m looking forward to playing again – sooner rather than later. I also did a lot of knitting and a lot of spinning, neither of which helped my body recover at all. BUT I finished spinning up the rest of the Blue Heaven singles. I think I’m going to wait a few days to ply it all because I want my back to be better not worse. And, of course, I finished the first of the STR Knee Highs. G, in particular, loves the sock. He’s already requested the outfit I’m to wear with it but honestly, these babies will be staying under cover. Like wearing sexy underwear – only you know it’s there but oh does it make you feel good. I’ve cast on for the next one and I’m about halfway through the ribbing. I can’t get a really comfy position to knit with though so I don’t know what I’m going to do. Request for stats on the sock: US #1 Addis. I started with 325 yds of STR (in the old put up) and I have a little more than 1/2 oz left. Not sure what the yardage on that would be. You probably need AT LEAST 500 yds depending on how high you want to go and how big your leg is. I start out with 88 stitches, increase up to 98, then head all the way back down to 64. Whee!

Before I called it a day fiber wise, I decided to turn my attention to the roving Teyani sent me to finish off my Sock Hop Knee Highs. Now that the Blue Heaven only has plying left, I can think ahead to spinning up the heel/toe yarn:

I quickly (read: sloppily – I was in pain and frankly tired of spinning) spun up about a tenth of an ounce of roving to see how it would look and to test run if I can get it thin enough. I think I did okay considering I was high off BENGAY fumes.

The colored yarn is a couple strands from each of the skeins I’m using for the sock bodies. My plan now is to spin it up (I’ve got enough for like five pairs of socks here – at least it seems that way) and do the heels and knit with the old stuff until I run out or I need to start decreasing for the toes. Then, I MIGHT, might – depending on how it looks, clip the cast on stitches and unravel the American Pie yarn down to the stockinette and then knit it back in stockinette and only then start the ribbing with the new blue stuff. Does that make sense? Would it work? I’ve only got like 20 rows of ribbing – then I can make them extra long. We’ll see. But I have a feeling it will work just fine.

Filed Under: Knee Highs, Sock Hop Socks, Spin

Marathon

August 9, 2006 By

DUDES! Enough with the L words. If you’re not careful, you’re going to turn this blog into a more scary than sexy soft porn cable drama about women who say they love women but only end up hurting each other in the end. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. I’m on L word overload – too many to process – but I’m all about turning lemons into lemonade so hopefully I’ll have a new ABC entry this weekend. Get your M words ready. Just in case.

And thanks for the book ideas. I used to read more than I now knit so I’m always gratified to ask for book titles and find that I’ve read a hell of lot. It’s one of the only bad things about knitting – I read so much less it’s pathetic. I’m off to the book store today, so I’ll let you know what I pick up.

Yesterday was an experiment of sorts. I started out the day with only a couple of goals: Fold the laundry. Check. Spin up the rest of the blue merino. Not so check. Guess what I learned about spinning? The first 4oz? Exciting! Fun! You don’t know what you’re going to get so you spin spin spin and then you ply ply ply so you can smother yourself in handspun goodness! I MADE THIS! It’s beautiful! Look! I turned THIS into THIS. YIPEEEEEE!

The second 4oz? Not so much. OH MY GOD I’M SO BORED I CAN’T STAND IT ANYMORE!

So I take the wheel out onto the deck because it’s still early enough that the sun hasn’t come around to my side of the building and I download a couple of episodes of Cast On because Ann and Julia have been singing Brenda’s praises and I have my water and phone and fiber and I’m ready to go. There’s a nice breeze and it’s fairly quiet (read no kids in the pool) and I start spinning. It’s okay. I’m not loving it – but it’s nice to be outside and not sweat and stuff. The podcast is fairly interesting but I keep getting the headphones caught in the fiber and then my water goes flying with a big gust of wind and I’m sure the fiber’s wet now and after I curse for like ten minutes and the headphones come flying out of the CD player (no IPOD here thank you very much) I pack everything up and head inside.

Lesson learned: I’m not an aural kind of girl.

Even the Bruce music I love so much I love because of the words – not so much the music. G is all about the music. He’s always telling me what a great song such and such is and I’m always horrified because the words are like “I’ll be so happy when you die” or something like that. But he doesn’t even hear the words. Don’t get me wrong, I like music – even love music – but it’s the words that get me. Anyway. I’m not an aural kind of girl. I’m visual. I’m about touch. I’m not so into a voice inside my head (unless, of course, it’s my own voice driving me insane – then again, I’m not really so into that either.)

Lesson learned: You know what I like to do when I spin? Watch TV. So much for the lofty pursuit of zen while spinning. I only want to watch episodes of Another World. That’s it. And since I was all about accomplishing something yesterday, that’s what I did. I moved the wheel back into my bedroom (where the Tivo lives) and started watching. But I was still so bored!!! It was then I realized that I have never gone back to a fiber before – I usually buy a decent amount of something I like but when I spin up and ply that first bunch – I don’t go back. I move onto something new. But I want to knit something significant with this blue stuff so I’ve made a concerted effort to go back.

It was about two episodes in, when I couldn’t even stand the latest Cass and Frankie shenanigans anymore and I was tired of waiting for the new Vicky to show up so her and Ryan can get it on, that I finally understood the TRUE zen like quality of spinning. I’m going to go out on a limb and say it’s like hitting the wall when running a marathon. I’ve never run a marathon and can pretty much guarantee I never will, but I can understand that point where you just can’t do it anymore. You are dead for all intents and purposes and somewhere deep in you, you need to find the strength to soldier on. I think I hit that wall in spinning yesterday. I couldn’t do it. The yarn was killing me. I was blurry from the wheel spinning and spinning and on my god the spinning and my fingers were burning a little bit from running the fiber through my hand and I had a weird tingling sensation radiating down from my left shoulder and it got so bad I couldn’t tell the difference anymore between Vicky and Marley and OH MY GOD! I DON’T CARE IF I NEVER SPIN ENOUGH FIBER TO EVER KNIT ANYTHING BIGGER THAN A BABY HAT! MAKE IT STOP PLEASE!!

And then, as quickly as it came on, it was over. I kept on spinning and I broke through that wall and achieved some kind of fiber like zen that I can’t quite communicate to you. It was a centering, a balance between my hands and my heart and the fiber and I did the only thing a person can do when they are in that sacred place:


I cast on for another pair of knee highs.

Filed Under: Knee Highs, Spin

PS: Blue Heaven

June 27, 2006 By

I told myself that if I folded the 87 loads of laundry and put my stuff away INCLUDING the piles of towels and sheets that had been sitting on the floor folded for like two months, I was allowed to ply up all the merino I spun up on Sunday.

I was a good girl, obviously. I switched out my regular flyer for my plying flyer and plying bobbin because I wanted to ply it ALL. I’ve got about 310 yds there. For some reason (and yes I can hear you all laughing) I get really obsessed with the spinning and have to get it all done AT THIS MINUTE. And I never remember how long it all takes. I’m ALWAYS surprised at how physical the plying is – much more physical than the spinning – and seriously – it takes forever.

I’ve really only had one spinning lesson and that was really focused on plying and I was taught that no matter how thick or thin the singles being plied, the distance between the two singles should always be the same. I think I’m managing that pretty well.

I’ve got another 4oz of Amy’s Spunky Eclectic Merino in the Moonflower colorway from the Almost Solid series to spin up. I still don’t know what the wpi is on this but I compared it to some STR lightweight I had and I’d say it’s a fairly consistent sportweight. I’m also still feeling really precious about my hanspun and I have visions of a large basket or bowl sitting on the magic dresser filled with handspun – something like a living art installation where I can see it and touch it but never never actually USE it. I was thinking socks for this patch but how can I put this stuff on my feet and wear it around in smelly shoes and god forbid I get a hole.

In all the Spin Out excitement, I forgot to annouce the Bruce Quiz winner!!!

CHRIS from Woolybuns!

Congratulations Chris! I hope you enjoy the CDs and Yarn! Thanks everyone for taking my funny quiz. I think out of 202 quizzes, 95 were eligible to win. For those of you with less than stellar performances, here’s a little annotated answer grid:

Question 1: Which album introduced me to Bruce?
A) The Wild, The Innocent & The E Street Shuffle
B) Tunnel of Love
Georgie used to drive me around NJ and sing me Tunnel of Love. Incidentally, I fell in love with both G and Bruce at the same time. Cheezy I know.
C) The River
D) Lucky Town

Question 2: Am I
A) wrapped up like a douche?
B) asleep in a papoose?
C) snapped by a noose?
D) cut loose like a deuce?
Manfred Mann recorded Bruce’s Blinded by the Light and totally mangled the words. To this day Manfred Mann’s version is Bruce’s highest ranked song – it reached #1 on the charts.

Question 3: Which artist DID NOT appear at a Bruce performance I attended?
A) Terrence Trent D’Arby
B) Billy Joel
C) Peter Gabriel
We attended the Rainforest Concert at Carnegie Hall a bunch of years ago that featured Bruce and Elton and Sting and Billy Joel and a bunch of others. Billy Joel also showed up at a concert we went to out on Long Island and Terrence Trent D’Arby showed up at a concert to sing Jumpin’ Jack Flash.
D) Sting

Question 4: Which song was first played for me at a toll booth on the New Jersey Turnpike?
A) Drive All Night
I’ve told this story before.
B) Thunder Road
C) Racing in the Street
D) Stolen Car

Question 5: Where did they blow up The Chicken Man?
A) Trenton
B) Philadelphia
Well they blew up the chicken man in Philly last night they blew up his house too….
C) New York
D) Atlantic City

Question 6: What was my first Springsteen concert tour?
A) Born in the USA
B) Human Touch/Lucky Town
’91 or ’92. Can’t remember. I pumped my fist so freaking hard I had black and blue marks across my palms. No lie.
C) Tunnel of Love
D) The E Street Band Reunion Tour

Question 7: In how many states have I seen Bruce play?
A) 9
B) 5
C) 3
New Jersey, New York & Pennsylvania
D) 1

Question 8: Which song did Bruce write about a suicide bomber?
A) Point Blank
B) Paradise
Lyrics here. But I just the few people who gave answer C!
C) You Can Look (But You Better Not Touch)
D) Souls of the Departed

Question 9: Bruce sings about getting stuck “somewhere in the swamps of Jersey.” Who’s he trying to get to?
A) Mary
B) Terry
C) Rosie

My tires were slashed and I almost crashed but the Lord had mercy
My machine she’s a dud, I’m stuck in the mud somewhere in the swamps of Jersey
Hold on tight, stay up all night ’cause Rosie I’m comin’ on strong
By the time we meet the morning light I will hold you in my arms
D) Linda

Question 10: Will I cry at the concert tonight?
A) Nah. I only cry when the E Street Band’s playing.
B) Maybe. Depends on the set-list.
C) Only if he plays The Fever.
D) Are you kidding? The waterworks will start on the Turnpike on our way down to Camden.
I’m pretty sure I made it there without any tears, but I was totally crying when
he played We Shall Overcome. I’m a wimp!

Last but not least – all you Chi-Town folks! You think I’m dumb just because I’m from New Joisey? The first thing I did when I found out I was heading out to Chicago was call Toni at The Fold and tell her I’m coming. 😉 G and I are roadtripping out there Saturday. I basically have Friday night, Saturday morning, Saturday night, Sunday morning and all day Monday free. We’re staying right off of North Michigan Avenue if that means anything to anyone.

Toodles!

Filed Under: Project Spectrum, Spin

PS: Forever in Blue Jeans

June 26, 2006 By

All I did yesterday was SPIN! I was so inspired by all of the spinners – old and new – at Saturday’s gathering that I couldn’t help myself. And I was so tired I didn’t want to have to think or use any brain power whatsoever. So I watched like 8 hours of Another World and spun up this GORGEOUS blue merino from Amy at Spunky Eclectic. It’s Moonflower – part of the almost solid series – but I think it should be called Forever in Blue Jeans.

I’m one of those people who drops trou the minute they walk in the door and leaves the clothes wherever they find the floor. So yesterday I was spinning in the bedroom and out of the corner of my eye I was constantly seeing my favorite pair of jeans (read the only pair that fits my fat ass these days) on the floor (pretty close to the closet door but more towards the middle of the walkway) and they looked JUST like the fiber I was spinning up.

This is my first attempt with merino and I have to say I’m really proud of how I’m doing. It’s a bit overspun in spots when I forget that I’ve got the drive band set on the lowest whorl and I’m treadling away like a madwoman, but for the most part it’s good. I’m going to finish up the little bit I have left of the first 4oz today and hopefully ply it all tonight. I think it’s a nice sportweight and I’m very tempted to make a pair of socks out of it. Depends on how much I get from the 4oz. I have another 4oz of this so if I get a lot I may make a shawl or something. We’ll see.

I promise a nice long post about Saturday but I’m really beat and need to process it all. When I talked to Shana and found out we had a place, I totally lost it. Tears and everything. I was just so relieved. Thank you again Shana and thank you Kim McNeal at the Parks Dept. Seriously rocking my world.

There’s still LOTS to do with Spin Out. The registry will close on Friday – but as of right now we’ve raised $13,467!!!! There are a few more prizes to announce and I can tell you right now that prizes will not be awarded until after July 4th. I’m sorry about the delay – but my family’s coming up to visit Friday thru Wednesday and I still haven’t received all of the prizes to put together gift packages. So I’m not going to kill myself about it all. I know you know that it will all get out and things will be GRAND! THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH!

Here’s something for some of you to think about: I’m coming to CHICAGO! Yarn crawl anyone? I’ll be there the third weekend in July – Fri-Mon and while some of my time will be spent with G, it’s a work thing for him so I’ll be on my own a lot too. Let’s plan something!! (ETA: Um, I meant the weekend of the 15th. I figured that’s the third weekend because the 1st is on a Saturday. So sorry!)

PS:
Is this you? Or someone you know?

I’ve had a request for information about the spindle you were using on Saturday, but I’m sorry, I forgot your name! Can you leave me a comment so I can get in touch with you? Thank you so much!

Filed Under: Project Spectrum, Spin

500

June 5, 2006 By

This is my 500th post. And wouldn’t you know, I couldn’t come up with a good title.

There isn’t any knitting. I think I finally finished the heel flap on my second Heat Wave sock, but I have to count again. I really miss my squares and I just don’t feel like knitting anything else. So I spin….

I’ve had this Dudley Spinner tie-dyed roving in my stash since I first bought my spindle. I don’t have a lot of it – I think that’s about 3 3/4 oz so I wanted to make sure I could REALLY spin before I used it. I first saw the Dudley Spinner roving spun up at Mary’s and I was INSTANTLY inspired. For some reason, when I pulled it out this weekend, I thought it was merino. I was all set to tackle merino – to see what I could do with it! And I couldn’t believe how well I was doing. It wasn’t until I went to look up which colorway the fiber was (Mattie in case you’re interested, but I don’t think she does repeats on anything) I realized that it’s a wool blend. Maybe there’s some merino in there, maybe not. Obviously, no matter how well I think I’m doing, I’m still a newbie. Merino, not merino, I’m very pleased with the results!

I’ve got about 220 yds here and it’s probably overspun and overplied but this yarn is EXACTLY why I spin. So I’m happy.

And I’m ECSTATIC about how things are going with the SPIN OUT and the Registry! Do you see the total today? Over $3300! THAT’S AMAZING! I’m so thankful to all of you who’ve donated! Just FANTASTIC! I’m adding some new prizes today as well: Heather over at All Things Heather is putting together some hand-dyed yarns for us and Peggy at Rivers Edge Wool & Fibre has promised us some handspun yarn and vintage knitting needles. Thank you ladies! AND Tom Diak of Grafton Fibers has graciously donated a Swan Drop Spindle, a crochet hook and a pair of US8 circular needles! His woodwork is just gorgeous – make sure you check it out. Thank you TOM!

THANK YOU ALL!

Filed Under: Spin

The Beat Goes On

June 2, 2006 By

Did you see!?!?!? (Check the sidebar!) We’re over HALF WAY THERE!!! I’m so excited. Thank you all SO MUCH! This means so much to me. YOU ROCK!

After my marathon spinning weekend, I haven’t done much spinning or knitting. I did finish plying up what I could of the Spunky Eclectic Tahiti Biffle:

It’s even thinner than the stuff I plied the other day! Socks – here I come!! I think I’m going to practice on some Merino I have in the stash before I dip into the really really really cool stuff:

That’s The Beat Goes On on the top and Mustang Sally on the bottom. Fiber from Teyani over at Crown Mountain Farms so I can spin my own Sock Hop Sock Yarn! How great is that! I’m so excited to spin this stuff up, but I have to practice practice practice first. I want to knit my own handspun socks. It’s nice to have goals! Wish me luck!

My sister had a great day at her first day of work yesterday. Ah to be 24 and beautiful and smart and have the world at your feet. I have to admit, I’m a little jealous. It’s so great to see her so excited – she’s been looking for awhile, trying to decide what she wants to do, and this job seems to be the perfect fit for her. And it will be really nice to have her so close. She was in Michigan for college. It’s kind of funny – when I went to college in NYC she was five and she would come and stay with me and sleep in my dorm room and now she’s all grown up. Man I feel old.

Oh yeah and did I mention WE’RE GOING TO SEE BRUCE!!!!!!?! Only 18 days and counting! Yeah Baby! Everyone I’ve spoken to who’s seen the new shows says their AMAZING! If you have AOL, you can catch a glimpse – they’re showing clips from each night of the US concerts. Oh Mary Don’t You Weep is my absolute favorite from the album – I listen to it over and over and over again. Bliss!

Have a great weekend! DON’T FORGET TO DONATE! THANK YOU!
L, C

PS – I just arranged to have my new stove installed on 06/06/06. That’s a good thing, right?

Filed Under: Spin
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