It’s Got a Hold on Us

Tags

chickens, knitting, snow, Spinning

Late winter that is.  We have Had weeks of well below normal temperatures.  Last week we got a total of 19 inches of snow over two separate snow falls.  School for Grandson hasn’t occurred in over a week.  President’s Day in the US is typically a holiday for schools, but his school had scheduled a makeup day from a previously missed weather day and the makeup day was cancelled along with the rest of the week and Monday and today of this week.  We weren’t quite sure why today was cancelled as the roads seemed to be mostly cleared, the forecast for a very cold night last night and normal cold day today.  The Superintendent must have an inside track to the weatherman as we woke to more snow.  The areas that had cleared on our one aberrant warm day are again lightly covered.  I don’t think we will see much but even another inch or two is not welcomed.  Most days are hovering just at or below freezing and nights about 10 to 15 degrees colder, but a few day ago, we thought spring had come, the thermometer said it got up to 50f (10c) a real heatwave.  The snow started to melt, the driveway became a muddy mess as our farmer friend had been too over zealous in his scraping, piling huge mounds of snow 4 or more feet high in front of and beside the house.  Then it got cold again and the melt became an ice slick.  We haven’t had mail delivery in over a week though we have been able to get in and out all but a couple of days.

The freeze thaw freeze cycle has made chicken chores a challenge.  One of the scrapes to a mound is just outside the garage door on the side of the house.  The footprints from walking over have become crusty with ice under them and the walk over a slick tricky path.  Trying to create a new path involves taking a step on unbroken snow and not knowing if it will hold or break through a couple of inches or knee deep.  Water sloshes, feed scatters then the chooks don’t want to come out at all.

So what’s a girl to do, why order yarn to knit and spin fiber of course.  I had been dallying on a spinning project of some roving that I ended up not liking very much.  It was white through shades of pink to maroon then white to shades of gray to charcoal.  I ended with one full bobbin, knowing if I plied it on itself, I wouldn’t have much yarn from it.  In my fiber basket was a ball of maroon merino roving, so I spun a second solid single of it and used the two together to make yarn.

It isn’t really my color choice, but I ended up with almost 300 yards of DK/Light Worsted yarn.  It may be sold, perhaps I will find a project for it.

Earlier this winter, I knit a yoked sweater of Brown Sheep yarn to go with my Hitchhiker scarf.

I ended up realizing that after years of knitting Raglan sleeve sweaters, that I much prefer the Yoke style.  I love the pattern that I made and love the sweater, but hate the yarn.  It is soft and pills terribly.  Another sweater of the same style seemed in order and I had made a sweater a couple of years ago from Bovidae sport weight yarn that I had purchased at the SAFF festival and though that yarn isn’t soft, it is warm, holds up beautifully and doesn’t pill.  An order was placed for more of that yarn in a color similar to the Brown Sheep and a new yoke sweater has been cast on.

Last night as I was about to do the second increase row, I realized there was an error about an inch back, so about a third of my progress was ripped out, stitches picked up and today I will progress on.  My last knitting project prior to the current sweater is a gradient moebius cowl of sport weight yarn.  I have decided that sport weight is my preferred knitting yarn.

Modeled by my beautiful daughter.  Hmmm, do you see a color preference here?

In two days, I will abandon Mountaingdad, Daughter and the two grands for a few days at a spinning retreat in West Virginia.  A couple of days of socialization and no responsibilities.  A mini vacation and time to unwind and recharge.