Scenes from February

February has been full of highs and lows...much like this textured bathroom rug I'm knitting out of my handspun Hebridean and Churro yarns.  On the good side, full of love and busy times at home.  I had a couple articles run in the Vancouver Independent: 

Tu B'Shevat when it's -30

and Rejoice or slog? You choose

and I've submitted some pieces for publication in the fiber arts world, which will hopefully appear in due course!

We've worked hard to keep spirits up during some very cold weather.  My lovely professor bought us flowers from the local florist--while they struggled with a flower shortage and some challenging weather.  We had an extreme weather warning for two weeks or so, and every single day was -40 windchill or colder. No, kids don't go outside at those temperatures, and we adults and the dog only brave it when we must! It has finally "warmed up" in Winnipeg today to -16C (3F) with a windchill of -26C (-13F) and I just about threw the kids, husband and dog outside to get some exercise while they could.  --Note:  I did the first walk this AM, when windchill was -35C, so you know, I'm taking a pass on the second walk!!

I'm continuing to work on a new design when I can fit it in.  Some kind followers on instagram convinced me that my newest wrap looks a lot like 'wings' and a hug.  I'm working on how to name it, as well as writing up the technical details at night when twins are asleep...but hopefully will finish it soon.

I also keep sewing, and while you cannot tell from this crumply looking photo, this dress is adapted from the 100 acts of sewing dress no2 pattern.  It's a green herringbone wool, and it's cozy with a cardigan and wool tights.  I definitely made some errors there in the sewing department, it's not perfect, but I'm continuing to make myself clothing, so I'm proud of that.

We've had a lot of drama lately with keeping the household running.  The cold temperatures make for hard times when the car needs fixing, and our dishwasher line has been freezing pretty regularly. A regular service call for our boiler became a big repair, complete with a new hot water heater as well.  It meant keeping two 9 nine year olds and a dog contained on the third floor for nearly an entire work day so the plumbers could work--and almost $2200 CAD in repairs.  Ouch.  However, we never went without heat and the water wasn't off for long, and during a streak of days when the temperature high was around -30C, well, being warm was most important. 

We're still remote schooling, too...lots of projects in play, including our own virtual week of Festival du Voyageur.  (You know I can't pass up a good festival!)

What's not happening?  Those who follow me because of my opinion columns may notice--none of these have been happening.  Why?  Well, I still try to write them, at night, on weekends--whenever I can fit it in.  However, I haven't had any luck in placing them.  Some editors never respond. Others write kind rejection notes--but nothing is selling.

What's new? I've written about a recent Winnipeg city council decision to support a multi-use development in my neighbourhood which will knock down three homes-- each one is a hundred years old-- to build an enormous new building over three lots.  68 people objected to this, and only 6 people supported it (developers, lawyer, investors, and real estate agents) --but Winnipeg is allowing it to go ahead. (Developers and their money apparently outvote the rest of us?)   

One media outlet didn't acknowledge my submission at all.  The other (local publication) said they couldn't run something like this, because then it would open the floodgates to anyone else who wanted to write about these 'specific disputes' and 'local skirmishes.'

Past pieces-written, but never sold:  About the gendered power politics of mask wearing and making room on the sidewalks...and another, about how nobody likes to hear "I told you so"--even when certain pandemic related events are easily predicted by the scientists. 

Yet, whenever I'm taking it all too seriously, I'm heartened by funny 'art' installations around the house.  I'll leave you with our grassheads, named Bob and Squidward Squeeesh (formerly known as Qushy Gushy.)  Here's hoping for warmer times ahead.

Back to School Sale!

The first day of school went smoothly around here, thank goodness...and I am finally getting back to my work life.  All the work (writing, etc.) has to happen when kids are asleep, guests have left, and this makes for one very tired freelancer.

I recently had an article come out here--but I need to avoid commenting on details to protect the privacy of some vulnerable minors.  It's a bad situation, but that's all I can say for now.  It fits under the category of 'something has gone really wrong with protecting kids.' I used to teach in inner-city environments like DC and Buffalo, NY, I know when something should be reported, but I'm worried that no one will look into this, despite my best efforts to report the info safely.

In happier news:

I'm having an article come out in the next issue of PLY Magazine!  It's called "The Mad Felter" and I'm excited to see how it looks in print.

In other happy news...

I am running a sale over on Ravelry!

Use the coupon code:
backtoschool2019

and get 20% off all my Rav patterns until September 12th.  (ends midnight, CT, US & Canada)

This is your chance to get my new pattern, Strippy McStrippit, on sale, too!

I'm giving blog readers a special opportunity to get the sale a little bit ahead of everyone else, too...if you read this, feel free to share the promotion! Thanks for checking out my work!  Happy September!