Fibergasm

Today I went to Cottage Fiber for a spinning lesson. I was under the impression that the cost was $10 for about an hour and a half. But, because I have a techno-spindle, which she makes and sells, the lesson was free! FREE! Although it is rudimentary at best, I am spinning on the techno-spindle. I think this is one of those things that you have to practice and practice to get right. Don't laugh!

I was in absolute heaven there. Tons of cool fiber, yarns, looms, spinning wheels--you name it. She shares the space with a weaver. He had one ginormous loom that was about 14 feet wide. And another smaller loom that he had warped with colors that correspond with the stars. The warp was from his astrological reading. How interesting. The place was totally inspiring. And the woman who runs it is so very cool.

She showed me how to card my own fiber so I can create my own colourways and roving. So, I bought some fiber and carders. I'm so jazzed.

During our conversation, I learned that she intends to close her shop. She's been in business for three years now and has not received the support from fiber artists she thought she would. Now, that's a bummer. I finally find a place I LOVE and it's going to go out of business. I know that the owner belongs to the KC Fiber Guild, so I'll just have to join that next.

When I came home from my lesson, I had a package from Spunky Eclectic waiting for me. Here is the new color.

It is called Snow Squall. The inscription reads: If you've ever lived in snow country when a really big storm is coming in there is a weird mix of grey and blue in the sky. One minute you have this crystal clear turquoise and the next it's deep blue and then all of a sudden it's grey and about to snow.

I also got my spinning wheel earlier this week. I talked to the woman that owns Cottage Fiber and she can give me lessons. I can't wait. But, I'm going to spend time with my hand spindle so I can get the hang of it.

I was hoping to have my socks done from last month's Spunky Eclectic sock yarn. I was busy knitting away when there was a pet fiasco. Piddles chased the cat sown the hallway and he hauled ass into the office and jumped up on the desk, tipping over a FULL glass of water all over my lap, keyboard, and my knitting, which was on my lap. The whole ball of yarn was soaking. So, It's currently drying out.

I've put that muddy puppy down for a nap. I'm going to spin, spin, spin.

One down

I finished one of the clown socks. I never would have purchased this colourway on my own. It was my first shipment from the Spunky Eclectic Sock Yarn Club. I decided to be a good sport about it and knit it up anyway. I wondered if I was out of touch and these types of colors are actually fashionable. Dustin remarked that he liked the socks when I was knitting on them when I was over at my parents' house yesterday. So, maybe it is cool and I'm just an old fart. However, I hope that my next shipment is more of a subdued colorway.

I've been trying to have Natto and rice for breakfast each morning. It's incredibly cheap, filling and about 330 calories. My fascination with Natto is that it is supposed to help prevent osteoporosis, which my mother has been ravished by. The Japanese have Natto with rice for breakfast. The Japanese also have a very low osteoporosis rate. And when you think about it, the Japanese don't use a bunch of dairy products in their cuisine. They have to be getting the calcium somewhere. About a year ago, I was diagnosed with osteopenia, which is the early stage of osteoporosis. The doctor put me on Actonel, and I was pretty good about taking it for about 6 months or so. I am a little wary of the medication because the long-term effects of taking it can cause a degeneration of the jaw. This last time my mother was in the hospital, they took her off Fosamax as they wondered if some of her swallowing issues were caused by the drug. She's been on Fosamax for about 10 years now. So, I'm trying to have Natto once a day in hopes that I can avoid getting worse. This meant a little shopping trip to the local Asian grocer today so that I could stock up on Natto. I also purchased Soba Noodles for my lunch today. I used this recipe and it was very good.

I put the stock in containers and have it all in the freezer. I forgot what a gigantic mess making stock is. I really didn't want to spend the majority of my day off in the kitchen. But I also don't want to start the work week with a messy kitchen. I should probably go clean my office. But, the second sock is calling me.

3 Day Weekend

It's a three day weekend for me. Yay.

My plan was to spend the majority of my time cleaning like a banshee. When I separated from my ex-husband about ten years ago, I spent most evenings going through the clutter. He is a huge pack-rat. I got the garage and basement all organized. I've noticed I've gotten kind of slack since the kids moved out and now my crap and Sam's crap has been piling up. So, I wanted to go through stuff and reorganize. I've been going through stuff and chucking it or boxing it up to donate and getting everything as neat as a pin.

I returned two tops my MIL gave me for Christmas and had a $110 credit at Dillards. I high-tailed it to the housewares department. Normally, it would take me about 3 minutes to blow through that at a kitchen store like Williams Sonoma. But, this place didn't have that great of a selection. It took us a long time trying to find something suitable to get. I ended up getting a rice cooker and an immersion blender.

I found myself taking a break from all the cleaning by knitting on socks. I'm just using a plain sock pattern. However, I am using the Magic Loop method and it is going very fast. This yarn is too bright for anything but that. It's very soothing to knit socks. And this bright colourway is just what the doctor ordered. It has been so cold and gray these days.

I discovered that Piddles has chewed the corner of the carpet in the family room. I'm not upset about it because my plan is to replace this awful carpeting with some type of Pergo flooring. Hopefully, this Spring. The dogs just make too much of a mess to have carpeting.

We are making a huge pot of chicken stock. I roasted the chicken pieces and the aromatics before getting them into the pot. It should make a nice rich stock.

My mom's condition seems to be stabilizing. She went to the doctor on Friday and had a blood test. They still haven't figured out how or why she is losing blood.

25 Things I Never Get Tired Of

I was reading some of my favorite blogs when I found that some people were posting a list of 25 things they never got tired of. I thought this was a spin on a gratitude list worth giving a try. So, here is mine. Not in any particular order.

1) Laughing with my kids
2) Casting on for a new project
3) Hot tea in the morning
4) The smell of freshly cut grass
5) Cats purring
6) Reading cookbooks
7) Listening to Joni Mitchell’s music
8) Chips and salsa
9) Going to the farmer’s market
10) Fresh tomatoes straight from the vine
11) Browsing through yarn shops
12) Joy perfume
13) Trying a new recipe
14) Teasing my coworkers
15) The ocean
16) Making things for my kids
17) Long, hot baths
18) A fire in the fireplace
19) Happy Hour with my coworkers
20) Wagging dog tails
21) The first sign of Spring
22) Sleeping in on the weekends
23) Watching people
24) Buying magazines
25) Tuberoses

Sicko

This cold I've caught has kicked me straight in the ass. Sam took the last of the cold medicine leaving me with one dose yesterday. And as the day progressed, I became more and more miserable. He brought some more home with him when he came back from work, but they took a long time to start working again.
I didn't have the energy to make dinner, so Sam made grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup. Always a hit in my book. And he uses sourdough bread and white sharp cheddar, so they are very tasty indeed.
I found myself dozing off before ten last night, so I packed it up and went to bed. But, every time the cold medicine would wear off, I'd be up to take more.
I've got a ton of cleaning to do today. Rainy weather and Basset puppies do not mix well. I figured that I can clean and slip in a few rows here and there. However, I just took my first dose of cold medicine and I've taken the P.M. blend by mistake, thanks to my 48 year old eyes. Crappers. I'll probably be dragging soon.
I had to frog the Koolhaas hat again (#2!) as I messed up the ribbing. Now I am even more determined to figure this one out.
I won't be able to attend Sunday Dinner at my parents' house this weekend. Their health is too fragile to be around anyone who is sick. They still haven't determined what the cause is for my mother's loss of blood. Though this hospital visit has taken it's toll on her over-all health, she sounds okay on the phone. And she's still experiencing pain in her stomach region.
Maybe I'll make some chicken soup with Matzo balls for dinner tonight.

Chart Hell

I had gotten about half way through the first pattern repeat of Koolhaas, when I realized that I misread the chart. Blast! So, I've frogged it completely. I'll figure out charts this year if it kills me. It can't be that hard.
I didn't knit at all last night, but spent the evening in the kitchen. We made Eggplant Parmigiana. Tonight, it's Pollo al Diavolo. Yes, I'm dabbling around in my new copy of Molto Italiano. It is served with a simple parsley salad.
One of my friends at work feeds fresh veggies to her dogs along with the dry food each day. For the past week or so, I've been adding steamed vegetables and small amounts of fresh fruit to their dry food. I thought maybe it would take a little weight off of the Beagle. At first, she didn't like it, but now they both go for the fresh food first. And I've noticed that the Beagle isn't wolfing her food down.
I'll get the ribbing done on Koolhaas tonight and work on Lady Eleanor.
I've caught Sam's cold. Damn it.

With a side of stress

I spent the majority of last night in the ER with my Mom. I got home in the wee hours of the morning, so I took today off. I was afraid the the Alligator Puppy wouldn't let me sleep. But, she was great. She was content to sleep in her exercise pen with her lovie until late in the morning.
I got to watch hours and hours of awful late night television with my Mom. She made some particularly funny remarks about the erectile dysfunction medication commercials. "Look at the way the women look at the men!" "Now they are sitting in two tubs staring at the sun? How stupid is that?" And then we watched some lengthy infomercial for Mineral Makeup. "Well, of course the 'before' looks bad. They aren't even smiling." I brought my knitting to the ER, but was too tired and stressed out to knit. Ditto this morning. I felt like I had been beaten all over with a ball peen hammer. Later on, I decided to treat myself by casting on for Koolhaas using Malibrigo. I love, love, love this yarn. It's sooo soft. Maybe one day I can make an entire sweater out of this yarn for me. It's such yummy yarn.
Oh, I ended up getting one of the techno-spindles from my sister! It just arrived late. I'm so happy about that. Next, I will take a spinning lesson from the Cottage Fiber Studio.
We found a Chinese restaurant that delivers. Tonight, we will order from them. I plan on taking it easy and going to bed early.