Projects simmering

Thanks for all the comments on the why of blue and my apologies to all whom I owe emails. One of these days I'll shock you.

About 9 pm on Solistic. While our yard was mostly in shadows, sunlight still played in our neighbor's yard as the sun bid farewell to a long pleasant day. Lately my life has been feeling kind of like this: Too many heddles on the loom in seeming disarray with multitudes of attached lines pulling for my attention. My interest zooms from one project to the next, half starting something only to careen to another fiber, a different craft. (No, this isn't my loom, but another dream.)

A few weeks ago I purchased some striking merino roving from Matahari Spinnery. (While you're at it stop by Arianie's blog to see some beautiful wheels.) I had a specific project in mind when I ordered this roving. A project calling for almost 1200 yards of DK, plied. That's 2400 yards of singles spun on a drop spindle. As a person who naturally spins on the thinner end of the spectrum it's a challenge to try to consistently spin thicker. My heavy Turkish spindles are excellent for spinning finer weight yarns but I was having a hard time getting a loftier, thicker yarn so transferred to a bamboo spindle.

Not having any experience with spinning multicolored roving I was surprised at the colors. Originally I debated splitting the rovings into the seperate colors but didn't want a stripey finish. So far I've finish spinning 2 ounces and have about 20 more to go. I've worked up the first bits of the item and am delighted how quickly that stage comes together. More details on this mystery item to come. :-) (Which reminds me, I'm so tempted to sign up for MS3. What craziness when I've never really knitted lace, let alone set my eyes on yet another project!) As June zips past I've been wondering if I need to stop looking at new patterns and fibers, instead to discipline myself to focus on only four projects. Even that seems too many. How can I narrow it down to only a couple? Or should I? See what comes when a yarn calls out your name and whispers what it wants to be. I've been drooling over Deb's Fearless Fibers for quite some time and a trade with Deb for some of our lace needles was the perfect opportunity. So far I've been good and have only fondled and dreamed, it's soft, lucious wool that I'm eager to work with. A feeling akin to despair overwhelms me when I think of: the stash of yarn patiently waiting; weaving to finish and get off of the loom; charollais wool lanquishing near the spindle; chocolate sock yarn barely on the needles; a Red Sweater that only needs the last cuff finished (the sight of a short bit of yarn left has thwarted me); a cotton summer sweater one third done that I'd really like to wear while it's still summer; let alone the aforementioned mystery project.

The feeling of being a "jack of all trades, master of none" is slightly haunting. It'd be good to really master one particular area.

Early edges of dawn light showed two neighbor dogs one of our cats who'd perhaps had strayed a bit too close to them. They gave happy chase as it zipped under the skirting of our mobile home. Not deterred in the least they ripped their way through with a horrendous noise, startling us out of the last shreds of slumber, bursting out into our backyard. Where they were happily trapped. They dashed around following their noses through the garden and up onto the back porch at which point I decided it was time to get up and open the gate for them. The dogs were delighted to see me and even more joyful at the sight of the open gate. I followed them out to make sure they returned safely home across the road. Heading back past the weed bed I noticed a small bud on our miniature rose plant.