Tranquility

One of two gazebos down the road

My time here in Onsala has been very, very, restful.  I am not the person who measures a trip by sights seen, preferring, instead, to just observe how people live their day to day lives as best as I can.  There's also a little thing called jet lag I don't seem to be adjusting from.  Not so easy as when I was a lot younger, that's for sure.

My visits with my friend have included running errands and a visit to the local mall (yes, they're here, too).  I found that day particularly interesting, as I was able to see a nice variety of people, mostly women, out shopping.  One observation I made is that the primary color palette in the women's clothing stores appears to be neutrals, lots of grey and black, with colors being the accents and not the main feature.  It is a look that I see on the women, and it is, to my mind, quietly elegant...accent scarves, attention to hair and makeup, and an amazing assortment of boots topping it all off.  I must admit to feeling the slob, wearing my mommy jeans and no make up.  Something to think about for when I go home.

Another treat has been grocery shopping.  The store is very small, compared to our enormous grocery stores, but well stocked.  Many items are packaged in much smaller quantities than I see at home.  This could be one of the reasons why I have seen only a handful of people I would even consider calling overweight...that, and the local passion for walking.  I see my neighbors burning up the lane walking each day, sometimes twice a day.  (Note to file.)

I leave you with this picture of my new favorite yogurt.  It is a whopping 10g of fat per 4 oz. serving, but I'm pretending I can't read that and am happily slathering it all over Wasa crackers (one of few concessions to Weight Watchers).  I love this little lady on the carton...she just cracks me up, everything I open the refrigerator.

Far, far, away

I am in Sweden.

It seems so strange to say that, for some reason.  Maybe because I don't recall ever blogging from out of country, or because I haven't been here before, or maybe, just maybe, it's because I've been pretty firmly planted in the southwest the last good number of years.

At last, the spell has been broken and I am truly here, after years of plans made and cancelled.

Fall is here.  It was hot and sticky when I left San Diego last Friday.  Rain and autumn leaves are a nice change.  I am staying near the sea, which has that pungent odor I recall from my years as a child, visiting the beach at Santa Barbara.  Maybe it's the sea weed on the shore, or maybe it's that the air here is so fresh and brisk, things are more magnified.  It's lovely.  I wish I could share it with you.

Not in the plans

When I sailed off for the summer at the beach, I envisioned it to be one very long stretch of very long days, enjoying the kids, sewing, reading, and resting.

Not quite! It has been very fun, but very busy.  Then, a couple of weeks ago, I got word that my little cat Larry was sinking, and sinking fast.  I had been watching him for months, taking note that he hadn't been grooming himself very well.  Last Wednesday found me flying back to NM to be with him during his last days.

It was beyond special.  I wish I could have had time like that with my loved ones I've lost in years past.  It made his leaving easier.  We had said all we had to say, confident in our feelings about each other, and when he was finally out of pain, I found myself happy for him.

I decided he couldn't just leave without some official notification to friends and family, and sent out the following obituary:

It is with great sadness that I must inform you that Lorenzo de Valdez, aka Larry the cat, left this lifetime on Monday, July 30, after suffering quietly with an undiagnosed malady the last month.  For those of you who knew him well, you will note that Larry was never quiet.  (This, alone, was cause for concern.)

He is survived by his humans, two Rottweilers, and his sometime companion and frequent sparring partner, Roberto del Gato, or Bob, as he is known to those in his inner circle.

Larry came to us from the local animal shelter in the fall of 1997.  He was a mere 1.3 lbs. and not in good health.  He spent most of his life battling inflammatory bowel disease, so he never really knew good health.  He was, as many chronically ill patients may be, loathe to see his doctors, and because of his behavior in their offices, he was not their favorite patient.  (In fact, his file had a notation that he was fractious.)

He will be remembered as quite a conversationalist.  While his favorite topics were issues relating to his existential angst, he was also able to hold his own when it came time to register complaints about household issues.  I imagine he might go on to be a great orator in his next life.

There will be a private service for immediate family members only on a future date.

Our family requests that you show your pets some extra love in his memory.

Nothing but blue skies ahead

Summer doesn't officially start until next week, but it is definitely in full swing here in the mountains.  The wildflowers are blooming, the days are warm, the humidity is very low and the evenings remain in the mid-forties...good sleeping weather, as it has been said.

You may have seen news of the two largest fires in NM.  They're down in the southern part of the state; so far, we have stayed safe up here.  The afternoon thunderheads are starting to build and we hope our summer monsoons will start in a few weeks, both because we need the moisture and because we don't want dry lightning to start more fires.

Things have been busy here.  The former shop space will be empty in another week and as some of it leaves in a rental truck for California, I will fly ahead to meet it at the other end.  I'm looking forward to a summer with my family, my quilting, and my friends.

I've decided to give myself a break and not worry about posting here this summer.  I'll still be following your blogs, and I'm not saying I won't come back...I just want to focus on lots of other things for a while.

So, my friends...have a wonderful summer, and if you wish to be in touch privately, please feel free to e-mail me...I'd love to hear from you!

Rug hooking: yarn or fabric?

A few weeks ago, I posted about starting a hit or miss kind of rug with odds and ends of hand spun wool yarns I deemed tough enough to be rug-worthy.  I had some questions about using wool yarn instead of wool fabric, but turned up little in my brief search on the internet...so I purchased Judy Taylor's updated edition of Joy of Hooking with Yarn.

While I'm waiting for a lightning bolt of design inspiration to hit me, I've been plying skeins of singles into two and four ply yarns to use in whatever this next rug will be.  One day, while peddling my little heart out at the wheel, I had a minor epiphany:  why the heck am I buying wool yardage to cut into strips when I am about buried in wool and wool yarns?  Hmmmm...well...maybe because my first and only attempt at hooking with yarn left me feeling a bit unsatisfied.  Maybe because I feel like it will take longer (not a valid excuse in my book)?  Maybe because I've not been particularly inspired by the pieces I've seen, so far, hooked with yarns?  Maybe I like the look of rugs hooked with wool strips better than those hooked with yarns?  Or, as my new hooking friend Andy mentioned, am I a wool snob of some sort???

So that's what's been on my mind, while I've been busy packing up the last of the mess that's moving home from the former yarn shop, or pulling some weeds here and there, which is somehow therapeutic.

What do you think???

New roving

Among my many bad habits, buying more roving to spin is high on the list.  Regardless of the fact that I already own what might well add up to a hundred or more pounds of wool to dye and spin, somehow I have little control when Ani has her freshly dyed rovings hanging up to dry.  It's the magpie effect, I think she calls it.  I start pawing through the many color combinations and feel compelled to pick a favorite.  You know how it is...someone else's toys always look to be more fun than our own.

This past week, it was some Rambouillet roving that caught my attention.  Also known as French Merino, this is an old breed that was begun around 1786, when Louis XVI bought some Merino sheep from his cousin, King Charles III of Spain, and bred them with his own selection of English long wool sheep.  I've never been wild about spinning Merino wool but am loving this stuff.  It is light and soft and draws like magic.  I'm spinning it for some two ply lace weight yarn, with no specific project in mind...just that I like to spin finer yarns when I have time. 

Sorry, Robyn.  I thought of you when I did it, really I did.

It's baaaaccccckkkkkkk....

This morning at 4:15 a.m. MST, Ani heard the sound of glass somewhere near her room.  Wisely waiting until daylight, here is what she discovered.  Please note the incredible forensic and tracking skills from years of watching CSI.  Who says it's not good to watch TV?

Easy to pop screen

Dye experiment

Footprints:  Honey Yellow

Ingress/Egress

Leaving the scene of the crime

Forensic evidence