Bad Karma Day ends well.....

I asked if it were going to rain today, and was told "no", so I left the house with out my raincoat....and it began to rain as soon as I turned the first corner.  

I thought I would head out early for the optician to have my new glasses adjusted since they are slipping a bit.   It is just north of the Temple, so an easy stop on the way, but when I got there there was a sign on the door which said "Closed today, sorry for the inconvenience."   Yes, it is inconvenient since they are not open late enough during the week to stop by after work. So now, I have to try again next Saturday morning.

I was plenty early for my Torah Study class (Torah is the first 5 Books of the Bible, for those unfamiliar) which I have been attending  since 1987.....A line, a word, a phrase, or no progress at all and we are still in Leviticus having started at Genesis 1:1.   Sounds weird, I know, but it is a wonderful group of people and led by two great Rabbis.   But, I digress.   Instead of going straight to the Temple, I decided to stop at Starbucks which is conveniently situated in a shopping center next to the Temple.    My grande non-fat latte and I got back into the car, and yes, you guessed it, the car wouldn't start.   Turn the key, all the lights come on, the radio comes on, but no ignition, no engagement of the starter, just the click and a slight hummm.  I sat there calmly sipping my caffeine fix and occasionally trying again.   Turn the wheel, step on the brakes, in and out of gear, depress the clutch, trying each time to get the car to start.  Run through the gears, sip some latte, try again.  NOTHING.    I eventually left a note on the windshield saying the car died, and help would be coming at 12:15, because with the way the morning had been going so far, it was likely to be towed, or ticketed for overstaying my welcome in front of Starbucks.    I had called the hub and he would come to my rescue after my class.   I walked over to Temple and enjoyed the session as usual, then walked back to find him waiting already.   He put the car in neutral and coasted it back out of the parking space, now it was blocking the driving lane in the shopping center.  With the kindness of strangers, since hub's back is bad, and mine is weak as well, we got a push, the clutch was popped and the engine started.   Off to the Hyundai dealer straight away, because I was afraid if I turned off the car again, it would be dead again.    Turns out there is a switch that engages under the clutch area that allows the starter to start, and mine was intermittently shorting out preventing its starting.   Easy peasy, except, no part in stock and they can't get it and fix the car until Tuesday.  

I took out my frustrations with the day so far hand carding more of my Shetland fleece.   It cards very nicely, even if the process is slower and the volume is less than a drum carder.   I figured out how to roll the rolags and then stretch them out into nice little balls of roving.   Each ball is between 5-10 grams in weight and now ready for spinning.

I finished the afternoon by heading over to the new 24 Hour Fitness club which just opened yesterday, replacing my old, small, and definitely yucky club that I have been a member of for over 10 years.  Not that I have been using it too much lately, but now I vow to start up again.   They grandfathered in all the people who went to the now closed site, and we do not have to pay an upcharge to go to this brand new fancy schmancy club with all the amenities.  Yay!   So I worked out....elliptical, treadmill, some weight machines, and on Wednesday I meet with a trainer for a fitness orientation, to jump start my training program again.  It is convenient to home and on the way home from work so I have no excuses....well, only a few....but I need all my readers to encourage me to keep on keeping on and to try to regain my former level of fitness, which has greatly suffered with too many free lunches and less mobility on my new job.  I ain't getting any younger, so it is now or never.

So a good ending to a lousy start of the day.    Good Karma wishes for tomorrow, everyone!  And some happy orchid photos to enjoy!

2 skeins done, and lots to go

I plyed up the singles from the Shetland fleece I have been working on, and the the net results so far are 5.5 oz and about 215 yards done up into two skeins. I never weighed the washed fleece, so I am only guessing that there are about 1.5 pounds left to card and spin. Here is it together.

 And here is a closeup.

I'm not sure if I am going to try dying the finished yarn or not, but I'll probably wait until more of it is finished and I have a project in mind.

I returned the drum carder and I almost bought one on ebay today, but was outbid in the last 20 minutes.   Probably a good thing, because the savings were not considerable over a new one, and there would be no recourse if anything was wrong with it when it arrived.   I can wait.....it is not like I don't have anything to work on..............

Now back to some knitting..........

FLEECE PROCESSING MACHINE!

The system worked like a machine.   Here is what I mean:

Pre-soak

Wash

Rinse 

Spin

Dryer

Card into batts

Batts into Roving

Spin into yarn!

Lest you think I worked on this 24 hours a day all weekend, this is the tally.   All the fiber has been washed from Thursday through tonight.   The last batch of 3 mesh bags is drying outside overnight and a total of 9 bags altogether..    About 3-4 oz. has been carded into batts and 1 1/2 oz.  has been spun into single ply yarn.   Believe me, I have a long way to go to finish this fleece, but at least I have a record and sampling of how long it took me and what the yarn is like.    It is not really as soft as it may look, so it will be suitable to outerwear, felting and accessories.   I may even give dying a try since there will be so much of it and it is such a neutral color.   My plan at this point is to 2-ply it to a worsted weight and then measure and weigh the final product before deciding what it will become.

With the three day weekend, I even managed two walks, 2 loads of laundry, a couple of movies, some reading, and more general relaxing.   I guess what they say is true: you get more done when you have lots to do.  Or something like that.

This should keep me busy for a while!

Today's mail brought a box.... a big box.  And inside is a whole shetland fleece from a sheep named Mary, from Flutterby Farms in the San Diego area.    This fleece was living happily on Mary until last Saturday, the 27th, when John Quimby from Roseburg, OR sheared her.   All this info came from Jeri, (Fluffysgarden on Ravelry) who offered to select and ship several fleeces at a really good price.  How could I turn down such an offer.  Talk about fresh!    It was too windy to unfold it onto the mesh picnic table outside, so I spread a twin size sheet in the basement and carefully spread it out.

 I removed the yucky poopy bits, the second cuts and the coarser parts around the edges.

What is left has a staple length of about 4-5 inches and I really look forward to processing it to see what results.    

The cut side of the fleece is a lovely oatmeal color, while the tip ends are more yellow.   

I did bundle up about 6 oz of it into mesh bags to soak and wash over the next couple of days and I will be interested to see what the final color will be.    

I finished the Romney silver that I started a few weeks ago and ended up with about 5 oz of worsted weight yarn.   It was a pleasure to card and spin.

As a break from all the neutral colors, I have also been spinning up Dark Cathedral, by JulieSpins.   I originally thought it would be for socks but I think I am spinning too thin for that.   As a two ply, it should make pretty dramatic lace weight yarn.  This yarn is superwash merino, bamboo, and nylon.

And the shopping bag is coming along nicely.    My hands are getting used to the coarseness of the hemp fiber and it is a simple enough pattern to carry along for portable knitting.