Wow, I needed that.

It was a good day. It wasn't super-busy, there weren't a lot of oblivious parental-types who let their children run and squeal like banshees, I didn't wind up having to wait forever at the lunch place.

It didn't even rain until I was driving home (Although it looked like it was going to for most of the day).

The BEST part of the day, though? I met Linda, who is the owner of "Yarn Again" - the little yarn shop inside Morningstar Treasures. We got to talking - she was spinning on a drop spindle and I mentioned that I had two - one from a kit and one that someone made for me - and I couldn't get the hang of spinning with them, and when I tried, it was just a big mess.

So she asked me if I had a few minutes. I said sure. And she sat me down and gave me a free lesson! And I saw how I was doing it wrong - the video I used before didn't emphasize the importance of not letting the spin get "sucked" into your undrawn wool. She also showed me that I could spin the spindle by rolling it down my thigh rather than trying to make it spin and then drop it. I actually spun a little bit.

Then - she let me try out her Fricke wheel! (I kind of messed up the yarn in progress but she said it was ok, it was the spinning she demoed to people). There would be a pretty big learning curve for me to learn to use a wheel (for one thing, I need to get way better at drafting). But I can totally see how it's one of those "zone" activities - that when you get good enough that you don't tense up while trying to do it, it must be incredibly relaxing - that soothing quality of the rhythm of the wheel, and the mesmerizing spin of the bobbin. She also told me basically how you use a lazy kate to ply.

(I sort of want a wheel now. Except, what I really want is a wheel and sessions with a teacher, or a week at a folk-school where I can learn to use it properly).

Oh, and I did buy some of her yarn. I was going to anyway. I got more of the handdyed merino sockyarn - this time in sort of muted pastels with tan. And a big ball of Socka in grey with flashes of primary colors.

When I got home, I pulled out the two spindles I have - the one that came with the kid, and the one TChem sent me. I rejected the kit spindle right away - I guess it's a high-whorling spindle only; there's no hook near the whorl to hold the fiber. TChem's was more like the one Linda showed me how to use. So I tried it again. And I made yarn! Well, it's crappy overspun thick-and-thin singles, but it's better than I could do before. I guess the trick is to keep trying and keep practicing and not feel bad throwing out the bad singles I spin, until I can get good singles.

So that made it a Most Excellent day - getting to meet a fellow fiber enthusiast and even learning something new. (I stood there as she showed me the wheel-spinning before having me try, and I just spontaneously exclaimed, "That. Is. So. COOL." as I watched her spin. How many people outside the fiber community would react that way?)

I also found some neat stuff. One of the things I love about antiquing is that you find things you'd never think to buy otherwise, but when you see them, you decide you really want them. It's as if the thing whispers to me, "buy me and take me home."



This is a Frankoma pottery tile of the Cherokee alphabet. Now, I am neither Cherokee nor a linguist, but I just wanted it - it's so cool. And it matches with my living room. (And I have another Frankoma plate in that color - it's an AAUW commemorative plate; a former member of our chapter left them to the chapter with the instructions that they were to be distributed to members. I was lucky enough to "win" one in the drawing).

I also bought a few more vintage Czech glass buttons, to be used on blouses or cardigans someday. And some oddments of feedsack fabric.

And I went to Quilt Asylum. I had a filled card, which meant I got 10% off.

So I got fabric for my next quilt:



I'm going to do that "Zipper" quilt from the contemporary quilts book in brown and turquoise. (I know, those are the "hip colors" right now and I never, ever do anything hip. But I just liked the turquoise and wanted something that would look good with it.)

I also went to Michael's - they've eliminated any miniatures (I was looking on behalf of Wilbur) in favor of Yet More Permutations of "Disney Princess" cutouts to be used in scrapbooking. (Now, I know - some people love scrapbooking and find a lot of joy in it. But it leaves me a little cold. I suppose that's because I neither have children, pets, nor go on fascinating vacations, so I'm more often than not on the receiving end of seeing the end products of scrapbooking sessions. But, seriously - does Michael's need 10 aisles of the stuff?)

They did have Paton's Classic Wool. A few balls were obtained for future critters. There was a particularly lovely leaf green, which may become an alligator in the future.


Then, after I got home, I did the machine-stitching of the binding on the latest pastel quilt.

And I took some photos of Perky Goth Bumblebee Girl, in her finished state.

Here's the Jess Hutchinson style shot, in a souvenir teacup:




And she seems to be quite friendly. Here she is making friends with Steggy:



And she's telling Solly, a snake I made several years ago, that she thinks his stripes are totally cool:


And having tea with Wilbur.


She says: "Wilbur, I really like you. We should go out dancing sometime - we're about the same size."
And Wilbur responded: "Yeah, but there's the little fact that I have four left feet."


I'm still calling her Perky Goth Bumblebee Girl because I don't have a good name for her yet. I tried out Demeter and Hestia, but they seem a bit grand. Was there a Greek goddess or muse or something of laughter? Or of stomping in mud puddles?


The one sour note of the day was driving home. It was raining, it was kind of crummy. And I was in the lefthand lane, having just passed a couple of cars that had slowed to take an exit, and I was about to get back into the righthand lane, when, roaring up out of nowhere, a car went past me on the right (and seriously? If I hadn't been quicker and hadn't been looking, I would have been sideswiped) and THEN cut me off in the lefthand lane.

it was a little blue Neon or somesuch, Texas plates. And here's the kicker - a big pink and purple bumper sticker declaring that the driver was a "Princess."

What is up with that? I have to admit I'm always a little mistrustful of young women who declare themselves "princesses," even if they're doing it ironically. Because, to me, when I see someone with a "Princess" t-shirt or bumper sticker or whatever, my first thought is "Sense of entitlement much?"

And I have to say: Why are so many young women with Princess bumper stickers such terrible drivers? This is not the first time I've nearly been run off the road by a self-declared Princess. I swan, some of those girls drive as if they're the only ones on the road.

I don't know - in the family where I grew up, Princess (or similar things) were never used as terms of endearment - "honey" or "hon" or "sweetheart" or "dear" were, but nothing ever indicating any kind of exalted status.