Update from springtime

Dear blog readers, I am not sure how many of you are still out there!  Some friends may still visit?  It's hard to tell --I used to receive lots of comments and make conversation on every post.  Now?  Nothing.  Hard to tell...So here are some updates from my world...

I made an unfortunate knitting project choice back in March.  One of my twins asked for a gray sweater and I agreed to knit it during our most gray, long, wet, puddle filled and flooded time of year.  True, the yarn is Polwarth wool so lovely and soft.  It will make a nice dress sweater. I finished it on one of the first warm days and my kid didn't even want to try it on long enough for fit.  Good news with twins is that if one does not want it, the other likely will...assuming it still fits somebody in the fall.

We also happened to hear about a new baby...so I made an "upsized" Worry Bear.  I took the pattern for a small pocket sized bear, which is really supposed to meet specific needs for those with anxiety, sensory issues, autism, dementia, etc. and I knit it on #8(5mm) double pointed needles and I used three strands of sportweight yarn.  Stuffed with wool, it will be perfect for a toddler to carry around or chew on.

The world news has also really gotten me down. I've struggled to keep cheerful. Our province has opened up to crowded events, without masks, despite an increasing rate of COVID deaths and health care cannot keep up. Meanwhile, war and gun violence are happening-completely avoidable deaths that politicians refuse to be mature enough to take prompt action on...people who can resolve conflicts peaceably seem to be in short supply.

When I'm particularly stressed by these things, I "make" a lot more...more sewing, spinning, knitting and cooking.  To my surprise, I discovered I'd cranked out over 900 yards of 2 ply Clun Forest wool  (Western Canadian wool) while processing bad news.  I washed and skeined it, and? - have absolutely nothing planned for it.  So, if you're taking on a big dyeing, weaving, knitting, or other project and could use handspun for it, let me know.  Let's make a deal!

There's also been an uptick in special life events.  Twins turned 11!  Alas, the gelati cakes from the past no longer are made at our favourite shop, but birthdays continue.  Mommy cake came to the rescue....although I truly failed "buttercream 101" in my 'breads and desserts' course in university...I made a big cake, and everyone seemed happy.  Yes, this is true, I took an elective course in breads and desserts at the Cornell hotel school.  Since I already knew how to bake bread, I ended up cranking it out to feed people during our labs and sales rather than getting tips on, say, icing application.  That's ok though, even poor icing skills taste good and satisfy my household!  

Work has been slower, despite the insistence that everyone is bouncing back now. It's kind of discouraging. Some of the markets I used to write for have stopped publishing or changed what they print. In one case, the publication's even been so disorganized or slow to respond that the short deadlines/low pay/weird responses have made it impossible to continue with them. 

In any case, I still had wool to wash this spring, and surprise!  I still know how...even if I wasn't able to write about it for publication. (This was the first of several loads for my household, no way I could do it one garment at a time...)

I'm still here... continuing to pitch publications, I write my column and my knitting designs are still out there on Ravelry, Payhip and Lovecrafts.  I post a bit more frequently on Instagram here: @yrnspinner.

I'm also celebrating our glorious (and short) spring in Winnipeg.

Last but not least?  I've had a very strange work email snafu...if you've reached out to me via email for work reasons since last October?  I may not have your message!  Last weekend, my account somehow disappeared messages from the last 7 months.  No amount of customer service or 'restore' functions seem to be working. Please do reach out if you need anything!  I'm still here, even after this new challenge.

It's been an important reminder, too.  No matter how hard I'm trying, many things are out of my control.  For instance, due to some infill construction near us, we have this large dead tree hanging over our power lines. It's not on our property, so legally, we can't do a thing about it, though of course, like losing work email in a strange blip, it's out of our control.  We cannot fix this.  So I'm trying hard to tilt my head, look at the blossoms in our yard, and hope for the best. 

Wool 'n won't

A few days ago, back when I was feeling well (more on that later), I washed fleece.  I had this gorgeous fleece--waiting to be washed-- from my friend Gerry's farm sitting in my basement since June. The professor bought it for me as an anniversary gift!

It is a Romney/Texel fleece, and according to her notes, 8.5lbs before washing.  It was pretty clean, but even so, it took many trips up and down the basement stairs to wash it.  I had to use the washing machine as a set tub, divide the fleece in half, each 'half' had one hot water wash and 2 rinses, AND because our hot water heater is not set to "very hot", I boiled water in my electric kettle (upstairs) to raise the temperature of the soak water.

(A note on childproofing: our hot water heater can't be really cranked up because the water can't be so hot as to burn twins' fingers.  Perhaps with one kid at a time, you can monitor whether or not they've turned on the hot water by accident, but with two?

Better safe than sorry...  our house is full of gates, latches, and other minor adult inconveniences which keep our offspring from killing themselves or others.)
---PS: The professor also fixed our 100 year old laundry chute as another anniversary gift.  It is bliss to be able to pitch down the dirty sheets, etc. to the basement from the second and third floor.  Yet, in another note on childproofing?  It is a secret amongst adults here.  The boys do not know it exists. SHHH!  We do not want anyone throwing toys or brothers down this chute....

The fleece is gorgeous and these basement snapshots do not do it justice.

Plus, taking a day to submerge my hands in fleece was really therapeutic.

In the midst of all this, my CBC piece on how Manitobans can pull together to welcome Syrian refugees came out.  

--Another Note: Please don't click on this if  you have small kids around or if you haven't already seen some of the graphic refugee images in the news.  I didn't choose the photos, and these were upsetting so that I had to hide the iPad from my kids when I saw the article online.

Despite the overwhelmingly negative comments on the article page, I got a lot of positive feedback as well from other sources, so I am glad it got published.

In a rare confluence of fiber/knitting and social justice, Ram Wools, one of our local yarn shops, is cooperating in the 1000 stitches for Syria campaign.  I discovered this group on Ravelry and wanted to participate.  Basically, since Canada is welcoming lots of refugees here during the winter time, knitters are trying to work together to provide each newcomer with a handknit woolly item--a hat, mitts, scarf, etc. to help make it through the cold here.  I was also thrilled to see the effort written up on the local CBC Manitoba website.

Now on to the "won't" part of my post.  A week or two ago, the professor and a house guest of ours both had bad colds/viruses.  We tried to take good care of them and I thought we would either be lucky (hah) or it would only be a matter of time until the rest of us got sick.  The professor got better, the house guest went home, and bingo!  The virus didn't want to leave.  On Sunday, we were at home nearly all day with two under-the-weather four year olds.

On Monday, one kid was well enough to go to preschool.  I spent both Monday and Tuesday on the couch with the other kid, watching WAY more Sesame Street and Sid the Science Kid than I'd prefer.  Now, the kid version of this seems to include sniffles, a cough, usual cold thing.  I have a virus too, but mine is world's worst fatigue, achey, hurt, sore feeling all over.

(Hint: It was so bad that I couldn't cook at all so gave everybody hot dogs, baked beans, and leftover brown rice for dinner on Monday.  The boys liked it anyhow.)   It was also so bad that any big ten years of blogging celebration has been scuttled.  Pffft.  Just like that. I'm sad about that, but seem to lack the get up and go to try to make a fuss.

Have you been reading this blog for ten years?  more? less? If so, say hi!?


It is now Wednesday, both boys are back at school.  Not all better, but getting better, and missing friends and school activities.  I, however, feel so limp, tired, and hurty that I am wary of attempting much.    I did gather this bag of three clean and new/nearly new knitted items and a whole lot of wool or wool blend yarn for others to knit up.  I want to bring it to the yarn shop to donate.  My stash is so deep that collecting this only took about five minutes, and I don't  feel I will miss any of it!  (wow.  That is saying something....)  I am even giving away some gorgeous lite-lopi (I love that yarn) in an electric blue that I just cannot see anybody being willing to wear.  It's a very 80s color.


OK, I'm off to do some more groaning on the couch.  At least it is quiet today, and I have the couch to myself.  I'm trying to transport myself back to that fleece washing day, where the wool locks felt amazing and I too felt strong and able....oh well.

Woolly wash!

 It's suddenly spring-ish, and time to wash our woollies.  I always try to do a wash of our mitts, hats, etc. before tucking them away for the summer.  I love the moment where all of this hard work, these handknits and handspun garments, are clean and dancing in the warm breeze.  A good once-a-year image!

Moths are attracted to dirty wool, so our wool should get cleaned now and then. :)

Here's a close up of two different pairs of Due North Mittens.

These are variations on The Hole Inside Mitts.  The one on the right is all handspun, hand-dyed purple and natural brown finnsheep wool.

Here are the special order handspun mitts  (placed last fall by a twin with a fondness for a special flock of sheep!) with a stripe from Margaret's Shetland gray wool.  These show hardly any wear, but sadly, will likely no longer fit the twin in question in the fall.

What else was on the line?  Handknits/handwovens by Didi (the twins' grandma), Slippy the cowl and some gorgeous green wool scarves from Ireland, used for wrapping up preschoolers' faces when it is -40 out.

Also this week, another new column of mine came out:
Young people are interested in social justice...let's engage them

(Again, definitely not my title.)  The way this is framed, it sounds as though community elders must condescend to younger folks to get them involved.  On the contrary, I believe Gen X, Y and Millennials are already reaching out to make change...their elders need to acknowledge it and make space for them in established institutions.  If you want to meet someplace, why not your place of worship?  If you make it too hard to gain entry into your building, we'll just meet at Starbucks (or wherever) instead...

Suddenly I'm humming..

People get ready, there's a train a-coming...You don't need no baggage, 

You just get on board