A Catastrophic Ice Event? *gulp*

That’s what the weatherman said, “catastrophic ice event”. Not ice storm. Not a wintery mix. Catastrophic. My first instinct was to see how many sheep, goats and chickens I could fit into my blazer (think clown car) and head to Michelle’s or Dani’s house in the Pacific Northwest and never look back. Then I realized it was too late for that.

We have everything we need to survive it. No problem there. Sure it will be rather inconvenient to keep water available for the animals when the power goes out.

I have plenty of carding, spinning, knitting, sewing  and reading to keep me entertained. None of those things require power.

It’s the men folk who live here that I’m worried about. What on Earth are they going to do without computers, internet, video games or power tools? They are going to drive me stark raving mad.

I may have to lock myself in Sheville and barricade the door.

Hello, My Name is Christine

The Wikipedia article regarding addictions starts out,

“Historically, addiction has been defined as physical and psychological dependence on psychoactive substances (for example alcohol, tobacco, heroin and other drugs) which cross the blood-brain barrier once ingested, temporarily altering the chemical milieu of the brain.

Addiction can also be viewed as a continued involvement with a substance or activity despite the negative consequences associated with it. Pleasure and enjoyment would have originally been sought, however over a period of time involvement with the substance or activity is needed to feel normal.^”

I’m starting to suspect I might have a fiber addiction. It draws me like a bug to a zapper.  To me the smell is intoxicating. Touching it certainly brings pleasure and enjoyment.  I want to cuddle up and take a nap with this Shetland/BFL lamb fleece.

I put Dorothy’s fleece out for display so I can walk past it, see it and touch it every day.

After a quick run through the drum carder even her britch wool is soft and has been making wonderful felted projects. She got an extra cookie last night because of it.

I even like washing the fleeces. I can’t wait to see what Rose’s lamb fleece looks like under all that dirt.

And then there is the actual act of spinning it into yarn. And knitting it into something useful.

*sigh*

I definitely have a problem. I’m starting to need it to feel normal.

Hand Painting Yarn

Some gals got together last night at Under the Son Farm for a yarn painting class. Theresa’s basement is a moth’s idea of heaven. I mean can you imagine being able to just go shop your own basement when you’re ready to start a new project. *sigh*

The dye process is really quite simple. The most difficult part is choosing which colors to work with. We played around with methods of applying the dye to the yarn. Some preferred the slosh and smoosh method.

While others preferred a more controlled spooning application.

The best part of doing it in a group like this is to watch and learn by what everyone else does.

After applying the dye the yarn gets cooked in the microwave for a few minutes then allowed to cool completely. It is surprising how the color changes and blends.

It is also interesting to see how the dye looks on colored yarn. The skein below started as a grey yarn giving it a heathered look.

A good time was had by all, so much so we considered making this a regular event.

I came home with two skeins of  dyed sock yarn. One with my favorite harvest colors with a very blended look. Then another with colors outside of my comfort zone with more defined stripes to allow me to understand better how the colors will look once they are knitted up.

I have to say, I learned a lot during this class.  The most important thing being that I need more sheep. Lots more sheep.  White ones. Lots of white ones.

Finding Buried Treasure

I’m still working on that whole Mission Organization 2011 thing. We’ve moved the desk and all the office supplies out of the guest room and into the parlor. We intend for the parlor to become the office/library/man cave and the guest room to be just a guest room. Novel concept, yes?

It’s been a major chore. I spent most of Monday filing away a year’s worth of paperwork that somehow escaped my attention. Easy to do when it is hidden away in a closet where nobody can see it.  It is a pain, but getting organized does have it’s benefits. Just this morning, while cleaning out the desk, I stumbled upon some buried treasure.

I can’t remember the last time I used a film camera. I can’t even remember what my last film camera looked like. The disposable cameras, no doubt, were shot by my children. Who knows what pictures lie inside? Once I found an old role of film and had it developed. The photos were of a friend’s wedding, by the time I got them back she had already divorced!

I found a $50 restaurant gift card. Note the chewed up corner. I remember that Geo was chewing on it so I took it from him and stuffed it where I found it. Sure miss that cool cat. I think I’ll have to save this, but I’m sure going to use the gift card inside. I’m not passing up the opportunity to have someone else cook for me.

When I found this piece of paper I let out a whoop that scared the daylights out of the cat. The previous owners of this old place had left us the stain recipe for all of the trim in the house. In order to alter or refinish any woodwork (which there is a LOT of) we would need to match the stain. I thought I had lost the recipe forever. I can’t tell you how happy I am to not have to try to figure out how to recreate it. And, in case I ever lose it again, I’m going to document it here on the ol’ blog. It’s Minwax stain 1/2 pint 233, 1/4 pint 210B and 1/4 pint 225. Yay!

Last, and certainly not least, I found the most priceless of all documents. It is the score card from the one and only time I have ever beat my Mom and my aunt at scrabble. They are DIE HARD scrabble players. Ruthless. Completely ruthless. So my winning against them was akin to the Cubs winning the World Series. I think I’m going to frame this and hang it on the wall.

What Do Chickens Do All Day Inside the Coop?

It’s been so cold and so snowy the chickens won’t come outside. They just stay inside the coop all day. So I wondered what they do to keep themselves entertained. I set up a video camera to find out and this is what I discovered…

Zzzzz…

Ah, what a great day. It’s hot. The sun is shining and I’m on a floaty in the lake hanging with my BFF. We’re sipping cocktails and jumping in for a swim to cool off. It doesn’t get any better than this…

*beep, beep, beep, beep, beep*

Huh? Wha? (rubs eyes)

Oh man, it’s January and it’s snowing AGAIN.

Where’s the snooze button?

Whatever Toasts Your Whiskers

It’s cold. Really cold.

I hope you’re keeping your whiskers toasty.