This Is Teapot

This is Teapot. This is last winter on a beautiful afternoon waiting for cross country skiers to come by his post....... this picture is the perfect picture of Teapot.... he loves tea and especially out in the woods. 

Happy Birthday, dear! Let's go find the perfect spot in the woods for a cup of tea!

Phsssstttttt!

That's me blowing raspberries from my straight jacket......

I have been chasing the ever elusive 12 t.p.i. I thought I had it..... yes I did.... but I washed the skein and it relaxed and turned into a 10 t.p.i. So I'm back at it again today.

All day yesterday I spent nursing my prolapsed disk and all the stupid radiating pain down my left leg from sleeping on the ground on a mattress that wouldn't hold up a starving African, let alone a fat middle aged balogna butt. And while doing that, I did some catching up on write ups for work previously done on my level 3 homework.... yeah, yeah, yeah.... I know it is due today. Phhhhssssttt to that too!

Anyway, my 12 t.p.i. turned into a 10 t.p.i. and so I still had a little bit of cotton singles on two spools so I jumped right on that and spun the rest of the cotton as a two ply yarn and guess what..... no guesses eh?...  ok I'll tell you what.... I got my 15 t.p.i. It is washed and hanging to dry as we speak.... All I have left of that blinking section is the dumb and ever elusive 12 t.p.i.

Then there are only two sections left.

It is 5:44 a.m. and the sky is orange, purple and grey off to the east.... I'm hoping it will be a nice day.  I might even take my spinning out on the deck. All is quiet on the home front.... though Daughter #1 is away at a sleep over with one of her friends. I love this time of the day. There are no ruddy interruptions and all is beautifully quiet. Dreamer the horse is pacing in her paddock... the sheep are stirring and milling about, the alpacas are soporific... the cat is off hunting and not making a racket to come in and check his dish for crunchies.  The bats have settled for the day after hunting all night and they are not soaring and veering around the outside of the house... the birds are just starting their morning chatter.  All is well with the world.

Except for that d#$n 12 t.p.i. I think I'll go try again... (sigh)!

A Cold Night Brings Thoughts Of School

I think I can safely say that Canadians generally tend to watch weather patterns. This morning I woke and came downstairs to our first frost. It didn't really surprise me since this area often receives frost between the middle of August and then end of August. Last night, before I went to bed I let Jiggs out... and as I did I had a look at the night sky.... it was full of stars with a crystal clearness that signals a cold night. A sure reminder that it won't be summer for long. We are beginning to think about school again as Teapot and the girls head back a week from now. The growing season is almost over and what didn't die off in the heat over the last few months, is turning brilliant shades of yellow, mustard, and gold. After this frost there will be red as well, I expect.

I awoke this morning to thick fog and wanted to go out into the fog looking for photos.... but the cold chased me back to bed to another hour of reading and partaking of the last few sleep-ins that we'll enjoy before the normal schedule of getting people out the door for school returns. Teapot and I are thinking that we might take the girls for a shopping day soon. Our camping trip was cut short due to weather but the least we can do is give them some time to think about what they want and need before school starts. A shopping trip to the great big city would be good for them... actually for all of us.

Living in a small town has given us good memories over the years. We have on occasion taken our two Daughters for shopping trips and have always found something to laugh about due to their lack of know-how in the big city. Having grown up in a small city (albeit a city all the same) I find that my children's lack of understanding for city things amazes and amuses me no end. For instance, they love to ride on escalators, they love to be the one to press the button on the elevator, and they are not sure what to do when they walk on the sidewalk and come to a street corner where there is a cross walk.... (you know... press the button and wait for the little white walking man) these are the things that having grown up in the city you don't realize that was taught to you to at some point in time.... it doesn't come as a-priori knowledge.  City folk take these things for granted.... we think it is magic!

Our idea of shopping,  living in the north and such a small town, (population about 1000), is to turn on the computer and surf. We can buy just about anything that we want just by surfing around and googling specific terms.... like jeans and runners. The problem is that as the Daughters get older... (and shaplier), there is more of a need to try things on, so that is why Teapot and I think that perhaps it is time they go shopping for real. We have a few things that we are waiting on before we head off for this trip.... (if we go at all) but if we go we will make a bit of a holiday of it and stay in a real live hotel..... oooooh! aaaaah! (And the crowd goes wild!) The Daughters would be able to ride escalators to their hearts content!

Isn't it amazing what a cold night will bring....

That's Not Fair....

Oh what a beautiful morning...... it's sunny.... and to think we could be paddling and enjoying the river if we were still there. Greeeaaatttt! And we came home because the forecast was calling for rain, rain and more rain.... well, I just want to know were all that rain is!!!

I'm seriously p--sed!  : (

I'm Sure Murphy's Law Reigns Supreme

Forget moral law,  forget state law, forget law of any kind except Murphy's Law. That fellow Murphy must have had some power..... I mean his law reigns supreme.... at least in my life.... no doubt about it! Yup.... all summer I begged, pleaded, and desired rain like nothing else and I finally got it. Yup... right when I was camping....
 The grass was wet.... the fire wood was wet... the sleeping bag was wet, (because stupid here forgot to close the vent in the tent)..... my shoes were wet.... my pants were wet.... the matches were wet.... the containers we carried our food in were wet.... the toilet paper was wet.... the dogs were wet.... and muddy. And... my backside hurt from a severe case of siatica.

Murphy... you got to love him.

I'm home again after three arduous days of camping in the bush.... and I mean bush.

After packing on Tuesday... and Wednesday morning, Teapot, the Daughters and I headed off for a hopeful few days of traveling down river with the intention of camping in different spots each night when we got off the river. It didn't quite happen the way we hoped.

Our first camp site was only 20 minutes down river. we did this purposely because we had never camped with the Daughters in this rough situation before, and we thought that if there were any problems after the first night we could combat them with a quick stop at our house as we passed by on our second day. (Our starting point was upriver from our house.) I had never paddled in the steering position on a river before, so it was with trepidation that I set off with Daughter #2 in my canoe about 50 feet ahead of Teapot and Daughter #1. Teapot and Daughter #1 have way more power than Me and Daughter #2 so it was not long before they had caught up to us and we were able to chat away as we paddled along. There were loons and geese all over the place and we saw an eagle on the shore tearing a fish to bits and eating it.... It was overcast but pleasantly warm and just a very soft breeze.


Soon the island that we were going to camp on the first night (one on which we had camped before) was quickly coming up and I was getting nervous thinking about having to maneuver toward shore. one screw up and we would be finding a different island to camp on. The river was high and so it was flowing fairly quickly. There was too much room for mistakes... Teapot was trying to direct me to paddle into a back eddy however if I missed that I was going to be washed right past the whole island.... so in a panic I quit listening to him and headed for shore straight on.... anywhere.... I didn't care if I hit the rocks head on.... I just went for it.... and guess what.... I hit a back eddy that we hadn't seen just a little ways from where Teapot was directing me and made a perfect.... I mean text book... landing.  Daughter #2 and I both had such looks of surprise on our faces that you would have laughed.  I think even Teapot was surprised.... of course I acted like I knew it was going to happen like that.....

Night #1
We set up camp and settled down to making a good supper. Along about 10 p.m. it was dark and getting cool and the Daughters were tired and ready for bed so we all decided to head into the tent.... that when we discovered that one of the air mattresses was leaking.... Teapot found the leak and made an effort to fix it with the great Canadian fix-all tool.... Duct Tape... gotta love it...

After a few short hours of sleep... (ha like that really happened) I looked across to Daughter #1 who was wide awake with her iPod on.... By 5 a.m., Teapot had slept but really no one else had.... (does that say something about men?) due to a too thin mattress, an air mattress that wouldn't stay blown up, and a decrepit old lady with a back problem (ah, that would be moi). The day was cool and grey with the threat of rain.... and sure enough we had a few showers.... but none that lasted long... Everyone was wiped and my back.... ( stupid thing) had decided to seise up.... By noon, I could hardly stand up and certainly not straight.... so much for sleeping on an air bed.... aren't they supposed to be the ultimate in outdoor bedroom facilities?!

Teapot returned home, which was directly across the river from where we were camping, (as the crow flys about 2 1/2 km away) to get foamies and an extra tent so that we could fix the sleeping situation. With my back so bad we thought that not going further down river would be smart until the medication that I always carry for just such situations, kicked in. 

Night #2
It started to rain along about supper time and rained right through the night which would have been alright except that Jiggs in her excitement to rip around the campsite the first night, had hit one of the guy ropes on the tent and provided some permanent damage to the fly... which for you non campers is the thing that helps to keep out the rain. Also I had forgotten the vent and the rain had been pouring in on the neck of my sleeping bag and pajamas.... that meant that when I went to go to bed.... well I was wet. I didn't bother with pajamas that night opting instead for a pair of sweat pants and a t-shirt. The Daughters by this time were in the tent that Teapot had gotten at the house earlier in the day and  we were in the wet tent with a tarp strung over it. This was good! My sleeping bag was not as bad as I expected and proved to only be wet on the outside.... which I covered up with and extra blanket. I slept but not well, (I read a lot and even practiced Takli spinning in bed) still though it was better than the first night...

So where was I.... oh yes... all night long it poured,.... and poured,.... and poured..... when we woke it was still pouring..... but we managed to get breakfast lunch and supper in the pouring down rain.... with another tarp over our heads, that Teapot had to climb several trees to string. Along about 9 p.m. we all decided that with the rain it wasn't worth staying up and so we headed off to bed. That's when it stopped raining. It was quite a bit cooler. Teapot and I had given up our nice air bed to the Daughters so that they were able to sleep better and my back was just about gone altogether (remember, I read a lot and even practiced Takli spinning in bed)..... I had two 2 inch foamies and Teapot was sleeping on the dud air mattress with the 1 inch foamie over that... And he slept!!!! (I'm sure that says something about men....!)


The next day we enjoyed rain showers off and on with a little bit of sun for about an hour around noon. But it wasn't long before we were back to showers. We kept dry as best we could though walking through the knee high wet grass to the bathroom facilities that Teapot had built, was not helping at all. It was a lot cooler... (only 9 degrees) and my back was continuing to give problems.... that medication was just not doing the trick so I doubled it. Nope... that didn't do the trick either. Teapot tried fishing.... no fish biting with all that rain. He set up a scavenger hunt with his GPS for the Daughters and while they were off looking for his items it really poured. Finally we were all feeling pretty low so we went to bed with the hopes that there would be better weather on the next day.

Night #3
I hit the bed in complete exhaustion.... my jammies were dry.... the tent was dry.... the sleeping bag was dry..... from that short burst of sunshine around noon.... so I was a happy camper. I fell asleep right away and only woke in the middle of the night to the cry of coyotes on the next island.... (very near and quite awesome in a shiver-up-your-back kind of way). I prayed that it would be nice in the morning and promptly fell back to sleep. At 6 a.m. I woke to a light shower hitting the tent so I went back to sleep again.... an hour later I woke again and it had stopped raining.

We got up at about 9 a.m. and had breakfast and called Fadder on the cell to see what the forecast was. Rain, rain and more rain. So we figured that we should pack up while the going was good and cut our mini vacation short. It was just as we were packing that canoes when the last rain shower hit. We got drenched. Down the river to the boat launch which was not far away.... and home for showers and warm dry clothes.

Highlights of the trip???? The full moon coming out from behind the clouds on the first night. Playing finger games with a sleepless Daughter #1 in the middle of the night. Eagle on shore with a fish for its supper. a flock of Canada geese coming in for a landing on the river not far from us. A perfect landing in the canoe. paddling through standing waves perfectly for the first time. Making the decision to buy a Voyageur Canoe also known as a Big Canoe. Getting pretty good at Takli night spinning by flash light.Paddling with Daughter #2. And getting home and dry and warm. Typical trip eh?

Getting to our campsite where our canoes are pulled up.

Looking up river from our campsite.

Looking down river from our campsite.

Sunset

Look at that sunshine as the sun goes down.

Almost gone is that glorious sun. that's the last we saw of it!

Camp fire discussion of what to do about the air mattress in the background.

Roasting marshmellows.

Beautiful clouds....

All around.

Teapot (probably wishing he was fishing...)

Heading home today...

We're old pros by now.....

Off loading the canoes...

That's quite a pile of gear.

Waiting for pick up.

Helping with the canoes... this is not ours but one that we borrowed.

This is ours.

Jiggs looks happy...

Daughter #2 looks happy... well, sort of....

Daughter #1 looks happy.....

Tootsie just looks hairy and nobody can tell if he is happy.... but he probably is.

Teapot looks happy.

That smile means I'm happy....

I think we'd all do it again in a heartbeat... even in the rain!

It Is Really Going To Happen

Everything is just about packed. Teapot came home with two heaping bales of hay from the family that we are buying the 12 bales from. So we are set for hay. The food is packed. The tent is packed. The sleeping bags are almost packed..... I was up till quite late last night repairing a rip in one of the Daughters bags, so that will get packed this morning. The life jackets are ready as are the paddles and the two canoes just need to be loaded....

This is my first time paddling solo.... well not completely solo.... but in the steering seat. While Daughter #2 paddles in the front, I will be in the back keeping the canoe on the straight and narrow.  The first camp spot is not far so I won't have to worry about anything out of the ordinary.... I will just have to make sure that when Teapot pulls into a bay for a landing in his canoe with Daughter #1, that I am right behind him. the first camping spot is only 20 mins down river...so not too far. We will even still get cell coverage there. We will be staying in that camp site for two nights. then after that it gets a little hairier!

Teapot and I have decided to camp at another site for the next two nights that is about 3 hours or 25 km away. We have to pass through a place called the gates. This scares the heck out of me because I know that there can be, depending on how much water is running, a fearsome roll in the water. It is certainly not white water but if you don't hit it right you can get quite wet with the bow plowing under some pretty good rolling waves. We've taken on water there before and it means a good soaking and having to stop and unload the canoe and turning the canoe over and dumping out any water that we have taken on. I really hate that. Once we get past that it is pretty much smooth sailing except for a few spots where there are sand bars that protrude out into the river and if you don't hit the deeper water going around them you can bottom out pretty bad.

Ok... all hell has just broken loose.... we can't find Jiggs......

Later:

Ok... Jiggs came back but not without Teapot having to drive around our area looking for her.... it took a while but she is back... just goes to show that when your back is turned and you're not watching her she will take off. Argh!

Right have managed to finish the other sleeping bag and we are just having a quick lunch and then we are off.... I think we have pack ed everything and all is ready... except for the corn on the cob... which is sitting on the couch... now where in the h--- am I going to put that?!!!

We're off.... see ya!

Conversations Come To An End

Too much of a good thing can get.... well.... let's just say too much of a good thing!  While I've had a hoot writing the last few blog posts, there comes a time when having conversations like that is one step away from a straight jacket and I just don't want to go there. : )

Ok so all summer I was desperate for rain..... we didn't get much... at all.  This week we were planning a trip camping down river... and we are still going to go... but it really ticks me off that the weather is not co-operating. It is raining every day.... not much but enough that it is making going camping.... well not so desirable.  Teapot is off today to haul hay for the animals and then we are going to pack for a trip down river with the girls. We have two canoes we have our list of gear and we are starting to gather everything and prepare... we were supposed to leave today but we are having a hard time finding hay to tide us through till our big shipment arrives.  We have 12 bales ordered from a family who live not too far away from here and another 12 bales ordered from a farm that is a three hour drive away. We are down to 14 sheep now which means that we have rid ourselves of ten.... which also means that they are eating a whole lot less. Still, we are down to the last little bit of hay, and if we want to go away for a few days then we need to have enough to get the people who are going to feed our animals through till we get back.  Meanwhile it is threatening rain. I just had a look on the forecast and it is calling for rain right through the next week.  This is the last little bit of summer vacation and we are down to the wire for a trip down river so we really want to go... after this it just won't happen.

Teapot and the girls go back to school on the 7th. I can't believe that summer has come and gone, yet when I look out the window and see the trees turning yellow and orange then it hits me that the North wind is coming and all those frozen days of winter. The fall birds are back and they are telling us to prepare for those long days of winter too. the sheep are starting to look fluffy again. The dog has stopped shedding. I wore pants the other day and I actually considered socks! In the evening I'm sitting outside still but with a warm poncho thrown around my shoulders. Yep winter isn't far away. When I think that it is only 4 months till Christmas eve... oooh, that's a scary thought.

I have been busily working on my level 3 homework and have made some good inroads into it. I have just finished the 12 t.p.i. question and am hoping that I can get it into the book today. Mind you I slept in till 10 a.m. which is virtually unheard of and that makes for a very short day.  I only have one week to meat my deadline.... well it is my deadline... nobody gave me a solid deadline but I did want to be finished by the 1st of September. I don't think that is going to happen but it is so close I can almost taste it. I never thought it would take me so long to get those t.p.i. questions done and done right.
I have one t.p.i. question left to do and two sections... one on count and the other on commercial yarns and then I'm finished.... not much left to do but enough that I'm chomping at the bit....and now I am going away... that will seriously cut into my time remaining to get this finished. Oh well.... when do I ever meat deadlines on time..... rarely..... as the Big j.c. was an indication!

Just so you know... I will be off line for the next few days as we travel with our girls.... wish us luck... the river is drawing us to it.... as it always does. Canoeing and exploring the water world of this beautiful valley.

Further Conversations (It Get's Quite Interesting Around here Sometimes)

Toes (left foot):  Brrr it is sooo cold....

Toes (right foot): Yeah I'm frozen too.  I wouldn't mind a pair of socks you know....

Toes: (lf): Yep, it's that time of the year when she freezes us out... it's cold in the morning and she just refuses to wear socks....

Brain (both sides!): What's that?!  Did I hear the dreaded word..... Did I hear the S word?!

Toes (all together): Oh no no no we didn't say anything.....

Toes (lf): How did she hear that.... I only whispered!

Toes (rf): Yeah but she hears everything especially when it comes to socks. You know socks are her nemesis.

Brain (bs): I heaaarrr you! Shut up about the d-mn socks.... it's only August for God's sake.... I will not go find socks yet.....

Toes (all together): But we're coooollllddddd! How can you do this to us.... we carry you around all the time and you never treat us properly..... you just let us freeze to death.... it's not faaaaiiiiirrr!

Brain (bs): Stop whining.... you'll get socks in time... when the weather gets cold.... it's still only summer and we don't even open the (beep) drawer until October.... you have a full month and a half to go yet... besides.... it's all in your imagination....

Toes (all together): but you are our imagination!....

Brain (bs): Oh yeah....

Brain (left side): They do have a point you know....

Brain (right side): Whose side are you on anyway.....

Brain (all together): Look quit whining... it won't do you any good... you know how we feel about socks and we will not go and look for socks until October.... so it is no good to whine.

Toes (all together): WE WANT SOCKS! WE WANT SOCKS! WE WANT SOC....

Brain (all together): Ohhhh now you're chanting at me... like that will get you anywhere... I REFUSE TO FIND SOCKS!!!

Toes: You are such a meany.... Look we are soo cold and you are not taking good care of us...

Brain: Well we could negotiate something..... how about flip flops.... would that be ok?

Toes: Anything at this point....

Later.

Brain: How does that feel?

Toes: Much better!

Toes (left side): Are you really feeling better?

Toes (right side): No I'm still frozen.... look I'm even turning BLUE!!!!

Conversation To Myself (I told you I live inside my own head)

Me (left brain): la tee da tee da.... oh this is good writing for the blog.....

Me (right brain): No it is not you imbecile......

Me (lb): What.... who's that talking back.....

Me (rb): It's me you nut case..... you think you are so smart and you are soooo totally NOT!

Me (lb): I am not stupid and what is wrong with this writing?!

Me (rb): It sucks.... who wants to hear about all this sh-- that you are writing about.... you might as well write about your bathroom habits.... it would be more interesting....

Me ( lb): Waaaaaa!

Me (rb): Oh stop sniveling.... I'm giving you a helping hand here.....

Me (lb): (sniff, sniff) well what do you think I should write about?

Me (rb): I think you should write about the huge fire and how the house burned down and how life will never be the same again now that the insurance company won't give you insurance money because the house burned down in a wild forest fire and it was an act of God and they don't cover that kind of thing.....

Me (lb): but that is so NOT TRUE! You can't talk about stuff that is not true......

Me (rb): Well I suppose you want to write some insipid poem..... get over yourself.... who cares if it is NOT TRUE... just write it.... it's interesting.... well at least more interesting than writing about what you did today and what you plan on doing and the weather and cra- like that!!!!!

Me (lb): But the leaves are so pretty now that they are turning and I was going to talk about how nice it is to get up early and look out at the fog with the sun burning through and the beautiful colours now that the trees are turning yellow and orange...

Me (rb): Sh--! If anyone wanted to know about that all they would have to do is go on some stupid tour of the Maritimes in October.... or look out their own window....

Me (lb): Well I could talk about all the cool things I have been spinning and the nice 12 t.p.i. yarn I spun....

Me (rb): Look nobody wants to hear about that.... why don't you talk about how the dam burst and the whole valley was flooded and you are so miserable because you can never paddle the Peace again! Yeah and you could say that the neighbour's dog drowned and they had to taken out on a helicopter..... Yeah... that would be cool....

Me (lb); Listen here, you.... I told you I am not writing things that are not true! I will write about Daughter #1 riding her horse and how she is teaching Daughter #2 to ride and maybe I'll even post some pictures.....

Me (rb): For God's sake!! You'll have everyone snoring if you write about that cra-! At least say that Daughter #1 was thrown from her horse and she can't ride for the next 6 weeks and she is teaching her sister how not to fall off a horse and she is not looking forward to going back to school because the bullies will push her around and make her life miserable and she might rebreak her leg and therefore she should be home schooled....and....

Me (lb): ONLY TRUE STUFF I SAID!

Me (rb): Oh all right...... but just remember... I told you so.....

Me (lb): they will love it because I have such an interesting life!

Me (rb): snore (yeah right like your life is so awesomely interesting.... you belong on Oprah!)

Me (left brain): la tee da tee da.... oh this is good writing for the blog.....

Conversations Between Teapot And The-Lost-In-Computerland

Teapot: Hi Love.

Me: (click, click, click)

Teapot: Hmmm.... :(

Later.

Teapot: I'm going to watch a movie.... do you want to join me?

Me: (click, click, click)..... I'm typing......

Teapot: I see that......

Me:

Later.

Teapot: I'm going to bed....

Me: (click, click, click)

Later.

Me: What did you say dear?

Teapot: zzzzzzzz (upstairs)

Me: Dear????

Next morning....

Me: I'm getting up... my back is killing me.....

Teapot: zzzzzzz......

Later.

Teapot: Good morning..... I'm going to make pancakes..... do you want some.....

Me: (click, click, click)

Teapot: Hmmm.... :(

Later.

Me: I didn't know you were making pancakes.......

Teapot: Hmmm..... :(

Me: I think we should shear Fanny and Greigg today...... Greigg is going next week and I would like to get his fleece off before he goes....... it's a nice cool day..... let's get that done.....

Teapot: Hmmmm.....! :(

If you want to see what I was working on while in computerland you can have a look at the above links under the picture of me in the canoe......

Snore..... That's What I should Be Doing

I've had a few things on my mind and I haven't really had time to get back to this blog and write the way I've wanted. When I look back on this summer it feels like I have been really busy but then I feel like I haven't got much to show for it. I'm stuck in a bit of a rut with my homework books and I've been busily working on that all summer and recently in the last few days I have been busy getting the blog/newsletter ready for the PCSW. So really I haven't been sitting doing nothing and when I think back to that dyeing weekend retreat there in July.... well, lets just say that I made huge inroads into my level 4 homework.... but for all intents and purposes it really doesn't feel like I've been working or doing anything, probably because I haven't got anything to show for my work.... well, anything useable that is. Still the newsletter is out for another season. If you would like to view it you can go to Threads Along The Peace for a little look at what I have been doing for the last week.

I took on the newsletter as a volunteer position for the PCSW about a year ago and convinced everyone in the guild that we should modernize and stop sending out a paper newsletter (also sent as an attachment for those with a computer) and start sending out an online newsletter instead. It has been no small task to do that. Convincing people that our guild won't suffer because we publish online has not necessarily been easy. There is an issue with privacy.... so once again I don't put any personal information on the blog/newsletter about anyone who writes or is written about. Everyone can view it online and they can do so with anonymity. It can be viewed in colour and we can now see pictures... which I'm still not sure that people have figured out yet, since I hardly ever get pictures for the reports and articles that people send to me to be published. Anyway, I'm working on these ladies to get the newsletter to be something more than just a sheaf of papers that get sent out three times a year with a cheery report from each guild involved, to a newsletter that informs, and captures attention, and makes a difference in the lives of the spinners, weavers and dyers who read it. At first, the newsletter was closed to only members but at our last meeting in the spring, there was a vote to open it to the general public... it is now ok for me to talk about it here and give a link.... which I think is great because it can only further our influence and knowledge. I'm hoping it will be received well but that is not necessarily the case since some of the ladies in the guild are a little on the technical spaz side of things.... : ) but they're learning.

Meanwhile, while I was waiting for the reports to be completed and the articles to be sent in and then in between typing up the things that I received last week, I would spin. I am working on two questions at once for the level 3 homework. I am still working on the cotton summer question, though I have two spools of cotton spun and am now working on the third, and I have one spool of wool/cotton/silk blend for the baby sweater done. They are both coming along fine and the break from treadling there a week ago has helped my back... (yeah!) So now I work on the regular spinning wheel for a few hours, and then I give myself a break and read.... and then I work on the charkha for a few hours, and then give myself a break and blog/write for the newsletter for a while. It's working quite well except that it feels like I'm making no progress.... I guess I am though. I'm seeing slow and steady progress but no great leaps forward. It will probably all come at one time when I get a whole bunch of stuff finished all in one fell swoop!

Actually it is the wee small hours of the morning right now and it is raining. I know it seems like it is raining all the time here because I keep announcing the rain when it comes... still though everything around here is dreadfully dry. The rain, when it comes, is in very small amounts.... like 3 mm.... and doesn't last long and is usually followed by two days of dry southern wind which whisks away all the moisture and makes it so that it really wasn't any good at all..... the grass, which turned brown ages ago is now that grey/white of dead beyond all reckoning. The trees are turning full yellow, and now that we are getting cooler nights the leaves are starting to fall off the trees that survived the drought.... the trees that didn't survive the drought don't have leaves to turn. Daughter #1 takes her horse out for exercise and the dust kicks up from her walking feet in small little poofs. It would take two weeks of solid rain to make the water table come back up at all and even then we would have to have regular rain after that for a month to bring this place back to life.... mind you it is Aug 17th and I expect that everything will just die off for the season now.

Teapot has been culling the flock. We still have the lambs and we have Fanny, Nellie, and Xavier, which we will keep, with Krunch, Palmer, and Ipwitch next up on the chopping block... the lambs will go in the early fall. Winnie, Lulu, and Griegg are going to a friend's place to be cared for there.

Wow, the rain is really coming down right now and I think I see lightning every now and again!

I do have one bad thing to say.... Oozle the cat has gone missing and hasn't been seen for a week... we checked with the animal control guy, (who's not entirely trustworthy) and he has been away vacationing for a few weeks... his wife told us that there have been no cats brought in...the day Oozle went missing we found a dead rabbit by the hay stack.... hmm... We haven't entirely given up on finding him.... but chances are slim.... Daughter #1 is taking it well considering that it was her cat. Actually everyone is..... well, except me... which is weird since I have a real love/hate relationship with the cats. But for some dumb reason.... well, I miss the little guy. I hate that he might have been eaten or died a nasty death or is stuck somewhere starving in a slow death... it's just dreadful... I hate getting attached to cats!..... I did tell Daughter #1 though, that there would be no more cats because my allergies to them is, while not bad, has been a whole lot worse lately. So for now we will wait and wonder and hope that he returns.... (the stupid blighter.... I only just spent a fortune on him in the spring getting him neutered and getting his shots).

I just heard a clap of thunder off in the distance.... hmm... I think there is a storm on the way... I love night time electrical storms. I love to sit/lie in the dark and watch the lightning play on the walls around me.... and if I can be out in it.... well, even better.

So, while I've been sitting here writing this, time has been marching on... it is 1:45 a.m. and Teapot and the Daughters have been in bed for hours. All is quiet.... except for the in-the-distance thunder. It's actually quite pleasant sitting here working away....but I think it is time to climb the stairs, turn out the lights, crawl into my soft, warm, safe bed, and toss and turn for a few more hours before falling into an exhausted sleep just before dawn.... maybe waiting for the storm will put me to sleep.... usually if I want to stay awake for a reason that's when I fall asleep like a baby..... you know... Murphy's Law!

I'm all about Murphy's Law..... so yeah I'm off to snore or at least try..... good night.

The Home Where I live....

This valley never ceases to amaze me. It is a wonderful place to live and I love the river in all its glory, be it summer, fall, winter or spring. Teapot has been loading pictures from the old computer to the new computer and so we have been looking at the pictures more than we would normally. I have taken many pictures of the valley and the river but I thought that today I would show you this valley in all its splendor by posting my favorite pictures of the river and the valley which I call home.


There is always an abundance of wildlife on the river... of course, birds of all kinds flock there for their very survival. I love canoeing on the river because there are always interesting birds to look at, from Kingfishers diving for their lunch, to Eagles patrolling the waters for any sign of things they can eat, be it fish or a baby beaver. There are no small number of wading shore birds like this little sand piper.

Or this flock of geese.....

I love the way the sun sparkles on the water on beautiful sunny days as the water rolls along under the bow of the canoe drifting lazily along and always carrying us forward.

Sparkling water always makes me feel happy....

And we are not the only ones who love the river when it sparkles.....

It makes for an awesome day of rich, bright, soul renewing light.....

The water has many different faces and colours that often evoke similar feelings in me.

There is a rich blue....of energy....

An azure..... of tranquility....

and sometimes even a somber green....

And sandy or rocky cliffs tower over you as you drift silently past. I find myself wondering if those cliffs are watching as they did when the Voyageurs passed this way... these cliffs are covered in hoodoos...

I have drifted past cliffs of shale rock that have made me wonder if they would slide into the river. Once, just as we got past, a little slide occurred and we hurried away from the slopes that somehow seemed formidable.

The water swirls and eddies under the canoe sometimes as the river rolls along over boulders that have been there for thousands of years.... it is quite a thrill when the river lifts you and pushes you around when you drift across one if its many eddies.


Islands dot it's waters where ecosystems of ancient times thrive and provide sanctuary for who knows how many species. They are awesome to explore and you find ferns as high as 6 or 7 feet and mushrooms that are so delicate in their growth that they look like something out of an alien world.

My favorite time to paddle the river is autumn, when the colours of the trees are reflected in the water and the mist plays havoc with your senses.

It is a beautiful valley... a place of peace....

It's water often lies hidden in the mist... as are the homes of the many people who love this valley as I do...

It is the place I call home..... a real jewel that gives me peace of mind and a sanctuary too...

Inside My Own Head

I've always been a bit of a loner. When I was going through my teens I always enjoyed walking on the beach that graced the town of my grand parents. I'd wait until the evening came when everyone was gone for the day and then I would walk along the beach in the pleasure of my own company. Even now, years later, I really don't have an issue with being alone. I always find something to keep me busy. As a matter of a fact after spending time in the company of friends, more often than not I get to the point where I start to feel restless and this is an indication that I've had enough of chatting and gabbing and I need to go off on my own. That is why I find it so strange that I am not looking forward to the time when school starts again. At that time Teapot and the Daughters will be returning to another year of school and I will be once again on my own.

Most of my life has been spent inside my own head and I find it quite soothing at times to not have to express myself to others. I do that through my art, I think. Poetry has been an outlet for me for many years. Originally it started as a bit of fun. I would write some foolish stuff to who ever was having a birthday or special occasion, but then it became something a little more. I'd often sit down with a journal and write poems. Some of them totally suck : ) and some of them are a little better. I also express myself in the form of paintings. I paint all the time. Sometimes I paint with water colours and sometimes I paint with acrylics but it is always a joy and a pleasure to put a paint brush to work. Then there is this blog which is a way for me to come out of my own head a little and let people know that I exist, (you know... because I am such a fading flower!!!). Still that time spent inside my own head is really quite alright. My head is so busy that really it is quite enough to keep it all straight so I actually think that I need that time away from the business that is the world around me.

A problem arises though when you live mostly in your own mind.... people have a tendency to think you are stand offish. Really though that is completely unintentional.... however, it does make for some really awesome people watching.

I remember having a chat with some friends of mine and we were talking about creativity. They mentioned that back in the 60s and 70s when they were younger they did drugs and found that it really enhanced their creative minds. I found that to be strange because it almost seems like an artificial creativity... I had another good friend a little older than the other ones who did drugs, and she said that her best creative moments came when she was in the bathroom.... I had a good laugh at that one.... and have occasionally used that myself. However, my best creative moments come unforeseen and unexpected and at any time at all.... my mind for some reason never really turns off. The minute my eyes open I start to see things as they could be and not necessarily as they are. I am always coming up with good ideas.... which sometimes can really irritate Teapot. And sometimes my mind doesn't really turn off at all... even when I am asleep.... those are the nights I hate because the ideas won't stop but they never fully form and you wake up not well rested at all.....

I can see how this would all seem a little dangerous. Perhaps I'm standing on the edge of a precipice and don't even know it. I'm sure a psychologist would have a field day with me... all I can say is that living inside my own head is not really all that bad and I do get out occasionally.....

No you don't...
Yes I do.....
No you don't...
Yes I do....

Argh! See what I mean....

Smells And Other Things....

I have a very sensitive nose. This is not always a good thing. For the last two weeks I wake up in the morning and I smell smoke. B.C. presently has something over 400 wildfires burning and this valley seems to suck smoke into it like there is no tomorrow. So upon waking I can smell smoke and it tells me that once again there is dry, warm weather prevailing. Still, in this neck of the woods, though it is still extremely dry, there is a change in the air. The nights are now beginning to feel cooler and in the morning there is a crispness in the air that wasn't there a few short days ago. People around here are predicting a heavy snowpack this year and since our actual rainfall is low every year, we rely heavily on a high snowpack for most of the moisture for growing things in the garden, so I will be happy if what everyone is predicting comes true..... we need it.

So I am now working on the cotton summer sweater question and I have been spinning on my charkha in an effort to get my summer sweater sample finished before summer is at a complete end. I am using dyed rovings that I painted this summer at the cotton dyeing workshop that I did in Olds. It is looking really pretty. It is a really nice soft summer green, which is one of my favorite colours. I have one spool of singles done and I need to do two more then ply the whole thing. I've picked out a lovely knitted lace top from Vogue Knitting magazine. It feels really good to see progress on my books.

Teapot has finished the fencing on the new paddock for the horse. He still has some work to do on the fencing for the sheep/alpaca paddocks. It will be good to get it done as then the animals can get out on grass in the summer. Teapot has worked hard this summer and though the roof on the electrical shed is not done yet I feel that we will get it finished before the snow comes.

It looks like we will be taking a short vacation before the end of the summer arrives. Teapot and I are working on the logistics.... yes I know I am making it sound like a covert operation. But we are planning on going down the river for a couple of days with the Daughters and possibly another couple if they decide they want to come.... the logistics involves figuring out how to get four adults, two youths, two dogs, and all our camping gear into two canoes. You see it is because we have been teaching the Daughters how to paddle this summer that we feel they are not ready yet to take a canoe of their own.... after watching them paddle about for a number of days on the lake and knowing that they don't really have good control over the canoe that we have decided that they are not ready for the river where there is current to push and pull the canoe around. Teapot is going to ferry everything down to the camping spot. We are going to make a number of trips (hopefully only two) with me and the gear being dropped off on round one.... I will set up camp (this is on an island) while Teapot makes a short trip down the river to a boat launch where Opa (my dad) will pick him up, at which point he will load the canoe on top of Opa's van and they will drive back up river and then come down river with the Daughters and dogs. The other couple are on their own if they come at all. Then later on when Teapot has time after our hay has been picked up and purchased we will take the Daughters down to PG for a pre-school shopping trip which they will be ecstatic about..... and know nothing of yet.

But meanwhile I have lots of work and need to get at it.... so I had better go and start working on the cotton punis that I carded last night in the middle of the night, while waiting for Jiggs to come in after she f--ted and evacuated Teapot and I from our bedroom..... there is seriously something wrong with a dog that smells that bad! See what I mean?.... Having a sensitive nose is not always a good thing..... argh! And on that unfortunate note I will end this epistle here... thanks heavens eh?!!

I can't wait. (It's all about now!)

Woopee! After waiting a year I finally have the tub in the downstairs bathroom hooked up with running water. See those taps and that shower head...... It is all hooked up!!!! For the first time in eight years I can have a bath again without having to wait till we go on vacation where there is a hotel with a tub. When we moved into this house the bathroom had a lovely shower but no tub... I've never been a linger-in-the-tub kind of person but after eight years I can safely say that having the option would have been nice. I do occasionally like to stretch out in a tub and have a nice bath with bath salts. Very soothing..... and now I can. I can't wait....

Yesterday, TCH came by and hooked up the tub and all the unfinished plumbing that Teapot didn't know how to finish or was too nervous to do. And what's even better is that he'll come in October and finish all the other stuff (like that paneling off to the right of the tub in the above picture) that Teapot doesn't have time to finish. I'm so excited that by Christmas I will finally be able to finish the floors and walls and electrical and finally have the renovation on the inside of our house finished! Oh happy day! Next year there will only be the stonework on the outside of the addition to finish and that will be mine and Teapot's work for the summer. Oh how nice it will be to have it all done. I can't wait for this either.

I have been working hard at another question for the level 3 homework. I have been braiding on my Marudai a distaff out of cabled yarn. This was a question that I started way back in the winter and never completed. I had cabled some lovely silk hankies and then woven, on my little 4x6 Weavette, two pieces for the side of a distaff bag. And then I wove, on the round, (that means weaving on a paper plate or plastic margarine container lid), the bottom for the bag, and sewed the whole thing together.... it still needed a handle and it needed some dangley bits to wrap your fibre around, but then I didn't get around to finishing it and so it sat all winter waiting to be finished. Yesterday I made the dangley bits and now I'm braiding the handle. It is going to look awesome. With the outerwear question done, (this is the knitted sample)..... and this distaff question nearing completion, I am beginning to feel good about my progress again. I am hoping to finish the distaff bag question today. And this is something else that I can't wait about.....

We have found a new home for two of our sheep... I was telling a friend about the dreadful issues I was having finding hay and how far I was going to have to haul hay from, and that's when she dropped the bomb and said she would like to have sheep to eat some of the brushy stuff that she and her husband have been trying for year after year to get rid of..... well of course I jumped on that like you wouldn't believe. So she is going to come by and have a look and pick out a couple of sheep for their farm.... I feel a whole lot better knowing that those sheep will be on another farm somewhere and not butchered in the freezer. There is a slight issue with cougars and coyotes and wolves and stuff but they plan on building a wee barn for the sheep to go into in the night time and that should be good. So I will be really glad to have that little bit of peace of mind which means, that once again.... yup you guessed it.... I can't wait.

Hmmmm.... what is that I'm sitting on..... oh lookee..... a ball of cotton yarn.... that I spun back in the winter.... (it was jammed down between the cushion and the arm of the chair I am sitting in)..... Wow, I did a really good job spinning that cotton..... hmmm.... did I really spin that.... gee if that was me.... I did a pretty darn good job.... naaah, it has to be commercial yarn..... yeah.... hmmmmmm..... maybe I had better go and check it against the one cone of commercial cotton I own.... well, it might have been me.....right.... I can't wait. I've got to go and figure this one out....

Just remember... it's all about now!

The Teapot Strikes Again!

You know what I just thought about?

I'm a little teapot short and stout. Here is my handle, here is my spout. When I get all steamed up hear me shout... just tip me over pour me out.

Yep there are no devils hanging around me tonight.....

Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!

And I got another question done on my level 3.

See what I mean?! There are no devils around when you get work done....!

Reckoning

I had to make a terrible decision yesterday. Oscar the ram will have to be slaughtered.... I'm so upset. He is my all time favorite sheep. But the decision was made because his horns do not have a good configuration.... that sounds so dumb really because it sounds like we are out to keep only animals that look nice... but horns can be tricky things. The horns are full of nerve endings and if they are not polled when they are very young then it is more difficult to poll them as they get older. You would think that horns would grow properly but like human teeth they don't always do that. Oscar horns started giving us trouble early in the spring when they began to curl against his eye. Teapot bought a little saw and we began to saw the tips off so that they would not cause blindness or worse. The problem is that as Oscar's horns grow longer they also begin to thicken.... and the thickening is beginning to squeeze his skull. He is such an easy tempered guy that I hate to slaughter him but unfortunately I've tried every source I can think of to find a solution and unless I want to spend a fortune dehorning him then I have to slaughter him.... When you are trying to run a farm then the idea is to make it as cost effective as you can and this time that means slaughtering one of my favorite sheep.

Xavier, our other ram is still on our list of keepers, so at least I can breed again when the fall comes. Xavier is a pure bred BFL (Blue Faced Liecester) and he will make a very good breeding ram over time. He has a lovely configuration and to my eyes no sign of horns yet... mind you he is still young so perhaps the horns haven't come in yet, but it is certainly something that I will watch for. But then, not knowing a whole lot about the breed other than I really like their fibre, I do believe that both sexes are polled.... meaning that they are bred to be hornless I think. I really never gave any of this much thought when I bought him, since I was planning on using Oscar primarily and Xavier would be just used to breed with Oscar's offspring.

Teapot wants me to cull the flock back even further than the six/seven I had picked out and since he does so much to help me with them and since my back issues dictate that I need help, I will have to take his desires into consideration. I have decided on Xavier, Greigg, Fanny, and Nellie. That will give me ten animals in all when you include the alpacas.

For days now I have had a bad back.... this is nothing abnormal for me since my back has gone through horrible stresses and surgeries since I was a child. Normally, medication keeps everything going along tickety boom... but this week the back monster reared it's ugly head and I have had shooting pains up and down my legs as the nerves for these areas are being horrible compressed.... I continue to hope that nothing back there has changed radically in the last week but am beginning to wonder since five days of drugs is the most that it has ever taken to get things back under control. Like Oscar, my day of reckoning has come..... well... I'm not going to meet my maker..... I'm just going to have to stop treddling for a few weeks, which is a horror since I have not made much progress over the summer on the level 3 homework. But I have two questions that I can work on for sure. I have to spin a yarn appropriate for a summer top, and I have to spin a yarn appropriate for a baby outfit.... both of these can be done on things other than spinning wheels. The summer top of course will need cotton and so I will spin that on my charkha, which does not require my feet or legs at all. The other can be spun on the charkha as well if I use cotton, or I can spin on my drop spindle if I choose to use some other fibre.... possibly a blend of silk and alpaca and wool, (for a christening gown). I might even be able to spend the time writing up the questions on count since I have tons of samples from the t.p.i. questions that I can use them for the count questions. I also have the fibre spun for the distaff and the distaff is pretty much finished but I need construct a handle and do a little trimming on it to finish it off.... all these questions can be completed without treadling and so I am going forward today with that.

After the last few weeks, and though rain has been sporadic and only a little, there is some green on the ground.... not lots mind you, but at least it is not that brilliant golden almost white of dead grass... I took a short walk yesterday on the trails through the forest and discovered that the leaves from the Poplar trees are beginning to fall, see these little yellow things in our driveway, they are dead fallen leaves.....
and this tree has turned mostly yellow under the outside canopy of green....
and autumn coolness is definitely in the morning air. As I sit here with the window open above my desk, the air is penetrating my joints and making both my fingers and toes very cold. Many of the birds have begun to flock and head south. The crows began their journey a week ago. We are on the slippery slope down into another kind of reckoning.... the reckoning of winter, and probably an early one too!