I snapped these photos with my phone on my walk from the coffee shop to my car last week — before the snow, sleet, and coldness that blew through here over the weekend. I do love spring. (Also, I love that purple paint job in the first picture!)
And here’s my sweet dog, keeping me company as I knit around and around on my lilac wine cowl. I could probably bind off anytime, but I sort of want to use up all the yarn. We’ll see…
Hooray for handspun! That’s about 450 yards of light worsted/worsted 2-ply, spun from Pigeonroof Studios merino in Bronzed Teal. Boh seems sort of interested, doesn’t he?
Yeah, maybe not.
Anyway, I’m excited! I have no idea what I want to make.
I’m not sure I can count on Boh to help me pick a pattern — what do you think?
One more Boh shot: lounging in the sweet spot of sunshine.
You know, the deal I make with Boh all the time: he is a good boy, and I take him on good walks. I’ve been slacking a bit with regard to my responsibilities in the W-A-L-K department, especially these last few weeks. With my writing deadline behind me (last week’s colloquium went very well), I set out to make things right.
On Saturday we headed up to campus to wander the little paths, shortcuts, and suspension bridges tucked all around it.
Here we are after our walk. I know Boh just looks worried, but trust me, he had a great time. (And snored for hours to prove it.)
Today it was absolutely gorgeous out — sunny, and into the high 80s. After a busy morning on campus, I took Boh down to one of the parks at the base of the lake. We walked until he seemed a bit too hot (after all, he’s still wearing his spring coat), and then headed back to the house, where he lounged next to my spinning wheel in the shade of my office.
See? What a good boy. I finished spinning the second bump of the Pigeonroof Studios fiber in bronzed teal, and I’m psyched to ply it. Stay tuned for yarn pictures!
It’s Friday, and I’m making up words. Here’s why:
I know I’m late to this party, but I do think there is a connection between stripes and happiness. This mismatched pairing made me oh-so-happy on Wednesday.
A close-up. (Also, I’ve noticed that when I take pictures of what I’m wearing, I often have a hand on my hip. Is this because I just don’t know where to put it? Or has my subconscious received all sorts of messaging about how to pose that I just can’t help it? That’s what I think about when I look at this picture. Well, that and how much I love stripes.) This is what happens when I post right before bed.
Also, I’ve been spinning! This is Pigeonroof Studios Fiber in Bronzed Teal. I’ve got two bumps, and I’m spinning up a squishy light-worsted 2-ply. I should have about 450 yards when I’m done. And I’m almost halfway there!
Plying.
My lazy kate, propped up on a pile of books in my office. This was not really a good idea, as it toppled so many times I lost count.
Yarn, pre-soak. I snapped this picture because I was so pleased with how well-balanced this particular skein seems to be. Sort of hard to see that in the photo, but I’m really happy with it.
And then there’s this guy. I’m so very happy with him, too. The weather is supposed to be extra nice tomorrow, and I’m hoping we’ll get in a nice long walk. He’s earned it. Happy weekend!
Apologies for the radio silence over here, folks. It’s been a crazy week or so — getting that draft of a chunk of the first chapter of my dissertation “ready” for a departmental colloquium happening later this week, teaching, and even a research trip (which, happily, meant not just super busy days at the archive, but also time spent hanging out with Mick of Much-Adored).
The only pictures I’ve been taking lately have been of documents, but that doesn’t mean I haven’t been knitting — and I’ve got significant progress on my Lilac Wine cowl to prove it. I thought the 1×1 rib of this pattern would be annoying to knit, but instead I’m finding it incredibly soothing. It goes slower than stockinette, of course, but I don’t think I mind!
Here it is on a pile of books I should read. (For scale.) I can’t believe it is already almost mid-April. More soon!
Which, incidentally, also describes my back pain: floating down in intensity. I’ve got a massage scheduled for as soon as I’m done teaching tomorrow morning, and that should make it a lot better. Thank you for all of your kind comments. I’ve been trying to take it easy while still getting my work done. It’s going to be another busy week… (I feel like I’ve been saying that a lot this semester!) Anyway, do you want to see some handspun?
I thought so.
This is Hello Yarn 75% BFL/25% Tussah Silk in Floating Down, spun as singles. I ended up with just over 400 yards of this delicious stuff. What should I make?
Boh is excited.
Or not. (Silly, silly dog.)
We took a long, slow walk with a friend and her dog on Friday, which seemed to help with my back twinge. Along the way, we saw this bald eagle! (Apologies for the poor photo quality — I took this with my iphone, and zoomed in as much as I could.)
We also saw this Great Blue Heron. Boh and Madigan were too busy focusing on all the Canadian Geese to notice.
I got sorrel in my CSA box this week, and sauteed it with butter and onions and leftover rice. It was delicious.
And last night, I made a big batch of Heidi’s Millet Fried Rice, from Super Natural Cooking. I’d forgotten how much I like millet — and how much I like this recipe. Basically, you cook the millet, and when that’s almost done, you make a super thin egg pancake, by melting butter with some toasted sesame oil in a large pan, beating a couple of eggs as if to make an omelette, and then pouring in the egg. You swirl the eggs around to get a really thin layer, and then fold the eggs over on themselves once they are cooked enough to let you do that. Shortly after that, you remove the egg from the pan, and then stirfry whatever veggies you’re using in a super hot pan, and then you add the millet, some soy sauce, and then you slice the egg pancake into strips and add that, too. I topped mine with onion sprouts and some canned roasted red pepper, both from my spring CSA box. I might have eaten this for lunch and dinner today, too.
Also, last night was Earth Hour, and I participated by turning off as much electricity as possible in my home, and lighting some candles to read by. While I believe that lifestyle activism on its own isn’t enough, I like doing this, and it is nice to remind myself how much I enjoy turning everything off for awhile. I certainly recognize my own privilege in all of this –and that not everyone has the power to make this choice. Still, this is about mindfulness for me. I didn’t really plan ahead, in terms of what I might read, so I was scrambling for something as the official time approached.
I ended up spending part of my hour reading some Mary Oliver poems. The book I’m teaching this week opens with Oliver’s “Wild Geese” as the epigraph, which I read to my students on Wednesday. It begins, “You do not have to be good. You do not have to walk on your knees/ For a hundred miles through the desert, repenting.” It was nice to read it by candlelight.
Looks like today’s photos are all in pairs. I like it. Also, Happy April!
barefoot rooster 