Stash!

I've been, to put it mildly, under the weather for the last two weeks. This weekend, instead of working as scheduled, I remained wrapped in blankets and drank a lot of tea. And, I managed to get some images uploaded to Flickr. Finally. I mean, I probably could have uploaded them weeks ago, but I had this huge imaging project looming overhead and I just didn't feel right working on other images until it was done.... And, while it took much longer than I expected, it's done and I can now resume taking pictures of yarn, fiber, and stuff.

Here's a Mystery Bump I picked up at Rhinebeck. It's about the size of a 2L bottle and promises to be an interesting spin.







I got some other fiber, but haven't taken a photo of it yet. My stash has been experiencing some growing pains and I've decided to sell some of it - I'm sure you can understand. I'm on the fence still about putting up my sweater quantities, and I remain hopeful that if I give it one. more. chance., I'll be able to knit a sweater *and* love it. Anyway, here's a link to the destash on Ravelry. I'm in no rush to move everything out - it really just feels good to have an idea of what stays and what goes.

After Rhinebeck, I found myself motivated to finish up the spinning I'd started on the Jensen. After months of trying to make our relationship solid, I admitted to myself that me and Mr. Jensen were just not going to be BFF. So, early on the first day of Rhinebeck (the line at The Fold was only about 10 deep), I made a deal on a Schacht Matchless - the wheel that I originally wanted before having the Jensen fall in my lap. I could not be happier with this wheel and feel like it complements the Fricke perfectly. Here's some yarn I spun on the Jensen and plied on the Matchless:





It's just over half of the 8oz of merino from Black Bunny Fibers, colorway Helleborus. I think it was my first installment in Carol's fiber club... It's really a scrumptious fiber and spun up without any problems. I Navajo-plied the singles and once I fulled and finished the yarn, found that it reminded me of the stains red wine leaves on white tablecloths.

Mr. Fricke is still getting loads of action - I spun up Spunky Eclectic's Acadia (FOTM) and then Navajo-plied those singles, getting 422 yds of lovely, fingering weight yarn. The fiber is Finn and the end yarn is called Dream It's Over.



Did I blog about this?



This is SW merino, custom dyed by Amy King. I spun it as part of a wedding blanket project and regret not having ordered more of this fiber and color. It's so squishy and perfect. The recipients, that dynamic duo Anj and Sue, will surely be warm all winter and every winter.



Finally, the cats. Oi, the cats. Things continue to be interesting. Just this week, in fact, we've woken up more mornings than not to discover two cats snuggled in bed with us. And, the other day, I found both Chico and Penelope practically sharing a windowsill (alright, so she was on the windowsill and he was on the table, but they were mere INCHES apart), drawn together by the Power of the Sunbeam. The Sunbeam is so powerful, little Miss P follows it from the floor to the bookcase:



And if that doesn't make you want to go home and snuggle, then I don't know what will. For those that will be celebrating, have a Happy Thanksgiving.

A Very Knitterly Birthday!

This past weekend, Mom and I drove alllllll the way up to just outside Boston, MA to surprise my little sister on her 30th birthday. And while the weekend's festivities were definitely subdued (Big Sis has the flu, or something very much like the flu), I'm pretty sure the Birthday Girl still had a blast. Here she is modeling garments from Twist Collective at The Yarn and Fiber Company's Fashion Show:

That's part 1 of 3 and my sister is Amy, the first (and BEST) of the models. Everything she wore was amazing - in fact, everything that was modeled was amazing to see in person. I feel like my Ravelry queue just exploded a little from all the recent growth.

If you haven't checked out the latest issue of Twist Collective, do so now! Mittens, shawls, sweaters, and more - there's definitely something for everyone!

Every time I think of you

It's been emotion central these last few days in Sparks Land and Monday might be the best day yet. But, to bring you up to speed: my little Ghia, Miss Bertha, has come home with a valid inspection sticker and a clean bill of auto-health.

In case you're newer to the blog, Mike bought the car for me a couple of years ago (it just happened to be around my birthday). I think the plan had been for me just to drive a Ghia that year as my birthday present, but I'm rarely one to go only part of the way. One short drive under my belt and we were making the arrangements to make the car mine.

Of course, whenever you buy a used car you can expect to encounter some problems. Guess how much those problems increase when you purchase a car that was built in 1974 and is known for its rusting abilities? If you guessed A LOT, you are right! And, if you've been reading this blog for the last two years or so, you'll probably remember the first failed inspection, the disappointing estimates for body repair, and then the horrific year of a car that would pass inspection, if only we could get the thing to run.

Admitting defeat was hard - it meant not only acknowledging that we weren't able to RTFM (I'm sure there's a joke to be made out of the idea of an engineer and a librarian looking under the hood....), but also preparing for yet another handful of cash thrown at the car. While my mechanic is highly esteemed among VW owners, both classic and new, it was hard to finally decide to make that call to him and then the tow company, if not for any other reason than it meant we would have to push the damn car out of the garage and onto the street and somehow manage to park it legally-ish...

But all of that is now history. All of that is now just another chapter in my sweet car's long history, a history that includes incomplete carburetors, asshole body mechanics, and, at one point between the factory and today, eggplant metallic paint. All of that is history because after a week of speaking with Howard the Genius every other day, I was able to drive my car for the first time since March 2007 last night. And while I was nervous to be on the road in my car - unfamiliar after all this time, plus, you know, I WAS IN MY CAR AND IT WAS GOING! - I was, to some extent, complete. Having Little Bert pass inspection finally? Well, it's been a long time coming.

Since picking her up last night, I've driven the car a short 20 or so miles just around the neighborhood, picking up dinner last night, getting gas, and trying out driving with the top down. I have to tell you, it's fucking awesome. I don't have any new pictures (yet), but here's my favorite:



We're far from done with our little project - paint job, new top, seats... The list goes on, but now? Now we can really start checking things off!