Sunday, September 23, 2007

Highest Highs, Lowest Lows...

This sunny Sunday began on a note so high it could only be heard by particularly large-eared canines. It had "promise." Great big buckets-full of gooey, squishy, delightful promise!

I awoke to find that my Fall Cold symptoms had dwindled markedly during the overnight hours, leaving behind a minor bit of the snufflies and some coughing. Also gone was the super-cool raspy voice and I rather mourned my short-lived career as The Gal With The Come Hither Voice. But it was a good trade-off since there is little benefit to having a Come Hither Voice if all anyone sees when they get to Hither is a red-nosed, drippy, whiny Sheep.

As I proceeded into the kitchen, I checked the dehydrator. Having been running for twenty-four hours and emitting more heat into the atmosphere of the Sheepie Condo than I really needed, it was ready to relinquish its bounty:



Raisins!!!!
For the record, I have never liked raisins and always made it my personal mission to pick the wrinkly little interlopers out of any foodstuff into which they had made a nest. Then I made my own. Turns out, I do like raisins! I just like them all plump and fresh rather than out of a cardboard box. Life is an adventure, isn't it?
With raisins in hand, one and a half nostrils open and able to take in air, and an attitude as bright as a solar flare, I headed out to the grocery store to do the weekly marketing. There, another happy moment awaited.
I made it to the second aisle before my shopping endeavors were blocked. Despite there only being ten people in the store at that hour, it did not surprise me to find an obstacle early in the game. My roadblock was a gentleman perusing the cereal box labels. He had strategically arranged his body and his cart in such a clever fashion as to make further travel on my part impossible. This is not anything new for me at the supermarket. I give off an aura that tends to stupefy shoppers and cause them to suddenly stop abruptly in mid-shop for up to sixty seconds. I do not know if they remember this once they return to consciousness for I have never really had the nerve to ask. I just accept the phenomenon and practice patience. Mr. Cereal, however, must have been made of sterner mental stuff. He perceived me almost immediately and fairly leaped to correct the situation. Further, he apologized heartily and with such sincerity that I feared I might actually weep right there next to the instant oatmeal.
Our time together was so very brief, Mr. Cereal...but I will think of you often and with fondness. ::sniff::
There was even a good selection of black and white cookies to be had now that the tourist season here at the beach is over! The whole morning was nothing but clear sinuses, raisins and wide open aisles! You can see how I might get a little full of the optimism, can't you? It isn't too much of a leap to think that I might decided to try a little lace knitting free from the cold medications that allowed me to ignore any mistakes and plunge onward, letting fate take over the process. This seems logical, does it not?
Thank heavens I came to my senses last night after I finished the first repeat and put in that lifeline, that's all I can say. I know I was all mocking and devil-may-care about the whole thing while flush with the Nyquil. But, in the cold light of sober day, it seemed prudent to take one or two precautions. The lace is back in the basket for the time being and we will not discuss it for a few days. That should be enough time for that twitch in my eye to settle down somewhat...
Spinning seemed like a better idea. I know this doesn't look all that different from the last time I put up a picture, but it is. I swear it.

There is more now. I know this because I put it there.
This is the kind of stuff that spinners dream of when they close their little eyes for sleepy-time. It is a smooth, soft superwash merino from the magical dye pot over at Susie's place. The length of time it is taking me to finish this sock yarn is really more of a declaration of my love rather than a desire to avoid it. Spinning a fine single that can be plied into a reasonable sock yarn is almost unavoidable. It just wants to be that way. I tend to spin only when the urge is powerful as I find that's the best way to get the yarn I really want. When I spin because I feel I have to "get it done," it shows in the finished product. Every time. I'm a little disappointed that this wasn't done before the summer vacation ran out as I'd planned, but am almost happy to have it for the spinning now. I need its soft, well-behaved comfort after my knitting managed to go so horribly awry this morning. If it knits up as well as it has spun for me then I believe the resulting socks will give me the power of flight or x-ray vision.
It will not, I suspect, empower me to successfully complete a 24 row lace repeat without excessive drama. That would take a miracle. And, since I already experienced the parting of the carts in the cereal aisle, I daresay I've reached my quota for a while.
SA

18 comments:

Anonymous said...

He moved out of your way AND apologized? That definitely IS a miracle!

Very pretty sock yarn in progress you've got there!

Mia said...

x-ray vision eh? Now THAT could be full of possibilities :)

Glad to hear you're feelin' better sheepie :)

Donna Lee said...

I love the sock yarn. Pretty good for one who so recently was suffering from the dreaded Fall Cold. Now, I have a question. What kind of grapes did you use to make your raisins? We are intrigued and want to try grapes,(so far we have dried bananas, mushrooms, tomatoes, pineapple and other fruits with some success) but were not sure if the kind/color mattered.

Mouse said...

I have some singles on the wheel right now that are destined to be sock yarn at some point in the near future.. and I'm also taking my time with them. I spin like crap 'under pressure' and since I spin for enjoyment.. there's no point in rushing.

Anonymous said...

Raisins from Sheepie's kitchen, woohooo....they look really good. The sock yarn is very nice too. Speaking of socks,have the moosie ones ever materialized? I missed so many posts in the past few months, definitely don't want to miss those!!!

Sleep well, feel better...take care
Huggs to D and P and headbonks from the Mitz and Mr. C.

sheep#100 said...

Number Guy and I felt the same way about our "cop when you need one quota" last April. There really was a cop-on-the spot (wonder if his name was John? Oh, sorry, my ailing self digressed there for a moment.) when one was needed. Of course, the trafic violation occurred right outside a Dunkin Donuts, so maybe it didn't fill our quota afterall.

Nice single!

Lazuli said...

I'm glad to hear that you're feeling better, both on the Fall Cold and the Not-Whooping-Nor-Coughing fronts! I see I missed some RM/HM drama while away this past week, though I have to say, had I received that email, I (or a part of me) might have had a similar reaction to HM! ;-)

Anonymous said...

I'm interested to know what kind of grapes you used, too. I'm impressed by the raisins.

And that drives me batty when people park their cart in the middle of the aisle and stand there to look at things.

Sheila said...

Both of my older children picked up whooping cough a few years ago on a trip (they were in their teens and no longer protected by their childhood immunization). It was aweful and my son was nearly hospitalized ....he now has asthma from all the scar tissue, and my duaghter still has painful coughing fits whenever she eats something cold. Whooping cough BAD, Sheepy lucky not to have.

Here's to feeling better! (clinking of glasses heard).
The knitting looks lovely, as does the spinning.

Mel said...

A 24 row lace repeat? No wonder it's giving you fits. You, Sheepie, need to be working with lace that has a shorter repeat. I'm thinking absolutely no more than 8 rows for now. With a similarly-sized stitch repeat. Until you can build your powers of concentration (and maybe keep HM and RM from distracting you every 30 seconds), there is no reason for you to be pushing your luck further.

Anonymous said...

I'm sorry about the lace. I hope a rest is all it needs.
But a big YAY for the departure of the cold. I have entered that packed sinus, full drip stage. I think my eyes are going to fall out.
Your singles are lovely and the raisins look yummy.
Karen
http://nothingbutknit.blog-city.com/

lobstah said...

Our grocery store is emptying out too. Although I notice that the quality of produce goes down in the winter, as though the locals aren't good enough for the "first run" stuff.
The spinning looks great.

Anne P said...

Nice! Can't ask for any better day than that, can ya? I think you are going to absolutely LOVE that sock yarn when you get it finished. Hope you keep on the mend too. :)

Anonymous said...

I love to have a "come hither voice" after a cold.... it leads me to the thought of having a 1-900 phone line and making extra money. If only the voice would last.....

Alwen said...

Tell me my Fall Cold will soon be gone! Yuck-ers.

The tourists are thinning out here along the shore of Lake Michigan, too, and it is again possible to buy dog chow without waiting behind the leathery women discussing on their cell phones at length about whether little Tin-tin could possibly stomach Purina instead of the duck-and-potato kibble she is used to.

debsnm said...

From a lace knitting newbie - persistence is the key. And a lifeline. And lots and LOTS of stitch markers. Throwing it across the room doesn't hurt either. :)

The Kelly Green Rogue said...

I wanna see the lace!

Windyridge said...

yep our family is catching the sniffles too. Love the colors in your spinning!