a simple yarn

There is a fine line between being enthusiastic about a new thought, pursuit or experience and being smug. I confess it’s a bit of a risk, for you may toss this in the latter category. I hope not, but that’s a risk I’m willing to take.

Back in 1975, the BBC aired a sit-com called ‘The Good Life,’ depicting a fairly affluent suburban couple who, much to their neighbours’ horror, decide to ‘get off the grid’ and find ultimate happiness and much humour in a self-sufficient life in suburbia.

Confession: I think that show is funny and I am a self-sufficient wannabe.
There is something in me that wants to reduce our dependency upon that-unseen-Big-Brother-monster-known-as-the-grid. I want to unplug, reduce, reuse and recycle (to recycle some well-worn, hackneyed phrases). Okay, that was easier when we were living in our own home on 2 acres in suburban Ohio. A bit more challenging in an urban rental in Dublin.

Well, the most obvious solution is to get out of the city.
Every time I’m sitting in the middle of perpetually-non-moving-traffic, I ask myself why not leave it, the country would be lovely! But, the kids are finally settled in school and Husband-Will-Who-Uses-Bike-As-Second-Car focuses much of his work in the city centre, an easy commute. So, the greater challenge is to be as self-sufficient as possible in a rented house in Ireland’s capital. Gonna have to give this some thought…and get some good advice. Bought these two books and will give ‘em a read through…think my thoughts…see where I fit in the cycle of things.

Don’t worry Mum, it’s not about joining the Green Party, being a Communist or becoming a vegetarian. It’s just about simplifying and doing my little bit to preserve God’s green earth…while it’s still green. Oh yes, we’ll also be retreating to the Dublin hills this week to do a little house sitting and animal minding, while I practice my yarn spinning as well. I’d like to think I can ponder these things while I spin, but being a newbie, I’ll probably have to concentrate on yarn. No matter, this is the type of thing that needs mulling.

So, that’s what I’m about these days…thinking my embryonic thoughts and spinning them into my simple yarn of life. And I hope that doesn’t sound smug.

I wonder if it’s possible to be a postmodern spinner? If so, then I definitely am one!

Got the loaner spinning wheel from Holly as they’re on holiday for the next 10 days. (Fear not, I doubt she will suffer wheel-withdrawal as she’s got a very-cute-mini-sized-travel-one to take with her!)

Okay, no more hemming, hawing, stammering or stalling. The time has come. I sit to spin. And here’s where we go postmodern…

If you look at the end product as wonderfully personal freedom of expression, then by all means, this is a bohemian success! However, if you lean to the more modern-right-vs-wrong-technical approach, then my final result leaves much to be desired!

First solo flight
The brief critique:

Beginning with my own start-from-scratch-hand-made roving (longish ropes of combed fleece), it was certainly more difficult to get the fibres smooth for an even twist.

Having absolutely no experience with the pros and cons of various sheep breeds, I found this Galway Cross to be a little challenging, coarse and a bit dry, in my humble opinion. Of course, that might be a convenient excuse for my lack of skill!

With the dryness came randomised inevitable bumps in the yarn. Now, some people would pay for these ’slubs,’ as they’re called, but to me they’re merely an interruption in a smooth yarn.

Having a second go…
Don’t get me wrong, though, I’m quite thrilled with the afternoon’s work. And taking the postmodern view, to me it’s 5 ounces of pure satisfaction.

Iced tea…probably the best summer drink in the US…at least in my view.

When we moved to Dublin I thought that this cultural habit would continue, drinking iced tea, but it did not. Living in a cooler, drizzlier, damper environment lends itself to a lovely cup of hot tea. So, the thought of putting ice in it never entered my head. Enter Summer 2006. Hot, dry….even humid. So, back to making ice cubes.

But this is not just your ordinary, garden variety iced tea. It has a lovely twist….splash of cranberry-raspberry juice. Yum! I love raspberry tea. The sweetness of the fruit juice takes away any lingering bitterness in the tea.

So much do I love berry iced tea that when I was having lunch with a friend in Avoca, on a hot summer’s day, I looked at the menu hoping for a nice, cool, thirst-quenching treat. What do they have here? Lemon iced-tea, peach iced tea. Okay, lemon is good…don’t much like peaches…hmmmm….I wonder…..

‘Oh miss,’ said I to the server, ‘do you have raspberry or cranberry juice in the kitchen?’
‘Yes,’ she replied, never expecting my next request.
‘Then may I order a lemon iced tea and would you be so kind as to put a splash of that berry juice in it?’
‘Errrrrr….okayyyyyyy……’ she stammered in an if-you-say-so-but-I-think-you-are-having-heat-stroke sort of way.

And so I experienced pure iced tea bliss at Avoca. I’m keeping a lookout at the menu because if I suddenly see ‘Berry Iced Tea’ listed, I’m wondering if I should ask for a commission?

She likes cappuccino. So do I.

She likes reading. So do I.

She likes weaving. So do I.

She likes blogging. So do I.

She listens to the Pride & Prejudice soundtrack when she works. So do I.

When people say, ‘You’re just like your mother’,  will it be a blessing or curse?
She is like me as I am like her.

So she does and…so do I.

Okay, repeat after me…’One successful dye-job does not an expert make.’

Because if you ignore that little bit of wisdom, you will be lured into thinking that creating this:

Food colouring dye in cochineal and yellow.Will prevent you from doing this:

Food colouring dye in blue, green and yellow, although I have no idea what that ‘muck-stuck-to-the-bottom-of-my-shoe colour is.How can someone mess up blue, green and yellow? Doesn’t the logic of the colour chart dictate that these three colours are compatible? Obviously not. I can only hope that when it’s spun up, it will have an ‘earthy’ feel, rather than a ‘this-is-the-colour-of-my-face-excuse-me-while-I-vomit’ feel.

So, ditch the blue and take the remaining yellow, that’s accidentally been adulterated with some of the green, use half in the next small batch of fleece. Add a bit more green to the remaining yellow and come out with a respectable chartreuse-appley combo. Actually, I kind of like that, but I highly doubt that I can ever repeat it, so it’ll have to be a ‘one skein’ project…

While I’m feeling lucky, I try blue again (with fear and trepidation, mind you) mixing it with the colour-of-the-day cochineal.

So, three-out-of-four is not a shabby dye record, but once again, repeat after me, ‘One (fairly) successful dye-job does not an expert make.’

There are times when I wish that my brain came with an ‘on/off’ switch…

I wonder why it is, apart from caffeine, that my mind periodically shuns sleep? It’s not that I’m not tired, but as I lie in bed, a willing sacrifice to the REM gods…sleep will not come. It would seem that rather than an on/off switch, I have a stand-by button, ready to go at the slightest effort. And as we know, that uses up needless energy…

It is not often that way. More typically, I am an ‘out-with-the-light’ sleeper. Eight hours of uninterrupted bliss. Even as the kiddies stir in the middle of the night, Ever-Alert-Husband-Will is first responder.

But not so this night. Tossing. Turning. Ticking. Tocking. Nothing.

Plan B, make use of the time:

Catch up on email.

Browse the list of websites that I never have time to look up.

Pay bills online.

Review financial situation.

Ponder merits of urban self-sufficiency.

Make airline reservations for Christmas holidays.

So, I’ve done a full day’s work in these wee small hours. Will feel good about playing with fibre tomorrow today. Better get back to bed for a couple of winks as the sun will soon be rising. But wait…..

Had my brain been switched to ‘off,’ I would have missed this moment entirely. Brief insomnia is a small price to pay for such beauty.

Right, so it’s important to remember that a) I don’t crochet and b) I don’t speak Japanese.

In the beginning of my foray into weblogs, I would spend countless hours poring over likewise countless knitting blogs. My, there are so many of them! I must confess that after a while, my head would begin to throb from being exposed to high levels of creativity. Understandably, I’ve had to cut back for as I say to Daughter-Kate in my best ‘I-am-your-mother-come-listen-to-my-wisdom’ voice, ‘Too much of even a good thing is not good for you.’ And like caffeine, I have to measure this stimulant.

But after seeing this book on the 11 May yarnstorm post…(I confess I don’t know what possessed me)…I wanted to purchase it.

Remember, a) no crochet skills and b) no Japanese language skills.

It was not an impulse purchase, though. After waiting more than 2 months before pursuing it and then maneuvering the Japanese Amazon website, which should have been more than enough deterrence, I was not kept from my quest.

It came in the post today and, while I may never make anything from this book right away, I am indeed stimulated…in a measured sort of way.

‘What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.’             -King Solomon, Book of Ecclesiastes, chapter 1, verse 9.

I bought a few Vogue knitting magazines on eBay. I had seen this pattern for a Fair Isle waistcoat.

How cute! With the right colours, I think it’ll make a nice little statement under a jacket. I’ve never yet attempted Fair Isle. Sheesh, I’m still working out my intarsia shortcomings! But this little temptation has opened the door in my thinking, enough so, that I bought the magazine. Given time, I’ll work up my courage to buy the yarn and cast it on.

As I said, though, I bought a few magazines and as I was giving the others a perusal, I found this interesting article:

Why, just the other day, Masoumeh-From-The-Library-Knitting-Group-Who’s-As-Lovely-As-Her-Name, was asking me for the mitred square pattern. How serendipitous! I’ll pass this information along to her…

Wow, another gem! Having just recently had a Fibre-Fun-Play-Day-With-Dyes, I find this Kool-Aid article quite timely… Timely….hmmmm….

Do you think you’ve missed important stuff in the latest Vogue? Not to worry…did I mention that my eBay purchases were all published in 1994?!

While it may be said that there’s nothing new under the sun, perhaps another way of looking at it, good ideas are timeless!

I am the kind of person who, if I had the space, would regularly rearrange the furniture, just for a new perspective on life.

And so, I wonder if Great-Aunt-Sadie will mind that, after having lived with it for a few months, I’ve set aside her lovely crazy cushion for a simple yarn backdrop? Ah, we’ll see….it won’t be that way forever, it’s safe to say…

Eeek! Only six more days until Fibre-Friend-Holly loans me her spinning wheel while she’s on holiday. I better get crackin’ on processing that fleece in the garage!

After sending the kiddies off for a second week of summer camp, I got down to the business of carding more fleece. It’s a slow, tedious, rather boring job, and not very photo-friendly. Made a nice stack of batts, but hardly a dent in the amount of washed wool sitting in rubbish bags in the garage…

(Might challenge Husband-Will to arm wrestling match after turning the drum carder crank all morning.)

Believe I’ll reward my diligence with a little fibre-fun-dyeing in the afternoon. Don’t have the pans for Procion dyeing….haven’t read the instructions yet for food colour dyeing…..okay, Kool-Aid it is.

Yes, I know the kids will not be happy that I’m using Kool-Aid to dye wool. And yes, I know people ask what kind of parent would give their kids a drink that can dye wool. A conundrum indeed…but that will have to wait for another day. I’ve got wool to dye! And thankfully, it’s fool-proof even for a dyeing neophyte like me:

Measure out 1 ounce of wool (about 28.34952 grammes give or take)

Pour powder from little packet in microwaveable dish and add some water.

Amount of water is irrelevant, the dye to wool ratio is important.

Add wool. Smoosh down and add enough additional water to cover wool.

Microwave for 2 minutes. Let it rest a little bit. Cook 2 more minutes.

Continue in this way until water in dish is clear.

Drain. Spin. Let dry.

Better yet, check knitty.com as their instructions are far more thorough and specific…Wow! About as easy as making a cup of tea! So, here are the results from today’s play…

Clockwise from top right: Pink Lemonade; Black Cherry; my attempt at brown with Cherry and Lemon-Lime; Grape; Orange; Lemon-Lime; another attempt at colour-mixing, a Chartreuse from Lemonade with a splash of Lemon-Lime. Strawberry in the centre.Wasn’t savvy or patient enough to do variegated dyeing with the Kool-Aid, so will have to go back to Holly for next lesson of carding the dyed fleeces together in a pleasing-to-the-eye-colourway-with-cute-fruit-or-veg-name. Perhaps….

Watermelon

Black Raspberry

Melon

Lettuce & CeleryLooking at the clock, sadly, playtime is over for today. Time to get dinner. But there’s always tomorrow!

To b(ake) or not to b(ake)…that is the question in our household…

This past Sunday witnessed a miracle in our family. My children don’t often want to do a group baking thing, but on this day, Daughter-Kate said, ‘Can we bake cookies together, Mama?’ What mother doesn’t have sentimental pangs that reverberate through her heart at the lovely, idyllic picture that paints? A mother lovingly working alongside her two children on a beautiful Sunday afternoon…….

When the mist and fog from the dream drift away, I am left with the reality of Daughter and Son bickering to see who can put in the sugar, who can turn on the mixer, who can measure the flour, who got more chocolate chips to taste…..(can’t hear for the throbbing in my head.) And usually, they lose their enthusiasm before the first batch is in the oven and I am left alone amongst the whirlwind mess. Sigh.

But as I said, miracles do happen. The children and I baked chocolate chip cookies together….no arguing…..extreme cooperation….no reprimands…..no headache. And the only ‘disagreement’ was which was better, baked cookies or the dough.

When most people go on holiday, they often send a ‘wish you were here’ picture postcard. In that same spirit, we, who are not on holiday, send this picture postcard to our Nordic-Holidaying-Knitting-Friend-Tea-And-Cakes…

Dear Isobel,

We-Five-Who-Were-Only-Four-Without-You (Clickety Knits, Tangelled Angel, Winona Queen and myself) got together for a bit of a knit-in yesterday. How we wish you were here! Sharon brought up Wexford strawberries and oh my, were they a treat! I wrestled another box of the tasty delights out of her hands to take home with me! As you can see, they go quite well with the berries-and-cream yarn that Sara has spun.

The kitty twins wreaked playful havoc with the yarn and our legs. They were sure to be tired at the end of the day.

We chatted about fibre and projects and your upcoming coup d’etat. Hope you’ve had time to finalise your plans!

Love the traveling sock against the Nordic sky. Envy the scenery you’re seeing…

Looking forward to your return,

We Five