By Golly I've Been TAGGED!

I haven't played a game of tag since well, before the turn of the century. While blog-tag is not as physically adventurous as the traditional, playground game it is pretty exciting to be invited by Melisa of Coppermouse Dolls. She's an absolutely fantastic creator of one-of-a-kind collector dolls! (For me it's the equivalent of being invited by one of the cool kids to come join in a game at recess, even if it is a random thing.)

Here are the rules:
1. Link to the person that tagged you.
2. Post the rules on your blog.
3. Share six non-important things/habits/quirks about yourself.
4. Tag six random people at the end of your post by linking to their blogs.
5. Let each random person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their website.

Now for the part where I get winded, my face turns a brilliant burnt sienna and I trip over my shoe laces. Actually, this shouldn't be too hard as I enjoy a myriad of non-important quirks and habits. It's the choosing...

MY SIX REVELATIONS

1. My first crushes were on Speed Racer, a cartoon character, and Don West of Lost In Space fame-the reruns, not the terrible movie. To soften the blow I'd like to add that my best friend had a mad crush on Bob Denver who played Gilligan of Gilligan's Island. She would write to him and he'd write her back. (I'm proud to say, for the record, that I never wrote to Speed Racer.)

2. I'm afraid of balloons. I think it's all that popping that they do. (I'd prefer it if you did not share this information with my little nephew. He would only put it to evil use.)

3. I was a vegetarian for 5 years during which I never once craived meat but, I did have a few extremely vivid dreams about bacon.

4. I have both a banjo and a violin. I am equally terrible on both and available for your next campfire sing-along. I also terrorize the clarinet, the piano, and the guitar. As a child I used to dream about hosting a variety show in my neighbor's barn. (We lived in the city but, somehow our neighbor had a big old barn.)

5. Every Spring I suffer from delusions of gardening-grandieur. I become disillusioned by Summer and my spouse takes over. One year we had a tremendous, bumper crop of tomatoes so I started canning vast quantities of hot and spicey salsa until I was asked by my sweet, older neighbor to please cease and desist. Apparently her eyes became inflamed and watery as she hung her laundry outside our kitchen window.

6. We have an evil parakeet named "Madge". She is the only non-shedding animal (and to a hand spinner shedding is a treasured feature in a pet) that we support. She is quite the whistler and bell ringer and is also available for your campfire sing-along needs.

NOW, to the following folks, "Tag You're it."

• Needle and Clay
• Spritebites and her awesome sphinx!
• Cindy Riccardelli!
• ABOUT WOOL
• Dropped a Stitch
• QUEENIE

And, NO TAG-BACKS!

The Treadler

New Equipment In the Studio

Well, I can't sleep. It's early a.m. and I finished the book I was reading. This seems like a good time to blog about the new washboard I bought last week! I've been wanting an old-fashioned washboard for a long, long while but, not quite enough to pay to have one shipped. (And, they aren't as easy as one might imagine to pick up while running errands about town.)

I'd hoped to find a shiny new washboard under the Christmas tree with a pretty red bow on it but, when that didn't happen I figured my husband wasn't too tickled with the possibility that people might ask what he got me for Christmas and I'd say, "a washboard", and they'd say, "That's terrible!" and glare at him which would be most unfair seeing as he does a good deal of the actual clothes washing around here and I don't even want the washboard for that purpose anyway.

A while back I was having a rather jolly good time wet felting wool and experimenting with all kinds of shapes, colors and textures. That's when I got onto this washboard kick. My hands were starting to look a lot older than the rest of me. (It's one of the telltale signs of a serious fiber affliction.) And the whole process loses something if you wear those big, rubber dish gloves. For one thing they are too drippy! I figured a washboard would modernize my entire operation.

So, last week I finally took action. I called hardware stores and craft shops and mega stores. I can't find anything at those mega stores. Although it's a story for another time I once went on this eternal odyssey searching for toothpicks at a Super Walmart. Finally, at a little family-owned hardware store I made my connection! And they only had one washboard left. I got a little overly excited about it and asked would they please hold the thing behind the counter for me if I promised to get over there right away you know, in case there was a mad dash for washboards in the next 15 minutes. (Somebody's husband might be Valentine's Day shopping, buy that last washboard and destroy my dream.)

Long story short (ha, ha, ha, ha, ha) I got my washboard. It looks just like the old fashioned kind too, except it has a web site printed on it: http://www.columbuswashboard.com/ so I figure it's cutting edge. Exciting times ahead for The Treadler!

Why I Spin My Own Yarn

There are all kinds of reasons for wanting to spin your own yarn. I spin for one purpose alone. There definitely are a lot of side-effects of spinning that I greatly value but, my purpose in spinning boils down to the simple fact that there is no other reasonable way to get the yarn I want made to the specifications I need.

Probably now more than ever before you can buy some of the most fantastic mill spun yarns you'd ever hope to see. Certainly you can get by without spinning your own yarn but, unless you own a mill that caters to your every whim, or have hired a personal spinster who twists fiber to you bidding you will always be limited to only what is available. If you develop the skills to spin what you want then the creative control you have over any fiber project increases 100%!

Owning a spinning wheel, and knowing how to use it is like owning a miniature yarn mill that caters to your every whim. (And, a spinning wheel is a great deal more affordable.) True, I've invested a good sum of money in hand spinning equipment and fiber. A person can buy a lot of yarn for the price of a quality wheel alone. The investment in fiber studio equipment is somewhat like setting up and supplying yourself with a personal kitchen if you enjoy gourmet dining. It would make no sense to have a good gas stove, a refrigerator, copper pots and pans etc. if you never ever eat or if you only enjoy fast food. I have a voracious appetite for high quality yarn. (Since I think of yarn as the food of my project work I'll continue with this metaphor).

If I know I want to eat gourmet food all the rest of my days then I need to either spend a great deal of money on fine dining or learn to cook well. In the long run dining out is going to cost me much more and my choices will forever be limited to what is on the menu and the hours of operation. I'll also have little control over portion size. (Ever buy a whole skein of yarn when you only needed a yard or two of a specific color? Did you get the exact color you wanted?) What if I'm in the mood for just one of a very unique Italian egg roll at 4:00 a.m.? If I couldn't make it myself I would constantly have to settle for something other than what I really want in my work.

By the way, while I admit I'm a yarn snob I am anything but a connoisseur of good food. Like most addicts I get so lost in my substance of choice (wool) that I forget to eat altogether. When hunger does intervene I grab whatever is edible, quick and easy. Sad really, but honest.

When Duty Calls

Sometimes real life interferes with the ability to pursue one's obsession. Here I'm speaking of my weekend ahead and the fact that all time is accounted for elsewhere. (Any fiber-related activity will have to occur in stolen moments.) I wish I could give the whole day to a project I have brewing but, to do so this weekend would be wrong.

There are people in the world who have such a powerful single-mindedness for their specific passion that absolutely nothing else ever takes priority over it. You read about these people on occasion. They are admired greatly in their fields, considered masters of their crafts and often either live completely alone or have family who've been terribly neglected having been forced to sacrifice too much of their own dreams.

This brings us to an important rule: If you wish to avoid an uncomfortable family intervention never allow your fiber addiction to cause those who genuinely support you to become resentful. Sometimes you simply have to rip yourself away from your obsession to focus with true sincerity elsewhere. (I recommend a quick rip like you would use in pulling off a band-aid.)

Slippery Slope

Well, it was all downhill from there. And, like other kinds of addicts I rationalize the crazy decisions that I make around my "need" to delve deeper and deeper into this fiber Odyssey. Ex: I have good reason for keeping every one of the 5 spinning wheels I "need". Furthermore, I have my husband thoroughly convinced as well. (We do not speak of the elephant in the room.)

Allow me to digress a moment...

There are two things you must do in order to normalize and maintain your addiction:

1. Your spouse must be convinced beyond all doubt that your behavior is actually a delightful and unique aspect of the wonderfulness of you! This is not an easy task when he's tripping over fleeces while holding his arms out straight so you can wind a skein. If he falls in love with a project you must not sell that project. If he expresses curiosity about whether or not it is possible to hand spin dryer lint or pill bottle cotton you must humor him and spin it, ply it, and knit him an egg cozy from it! Keep him intrigued or take your chances that he'll wake up, smell the coffee and realize he's been cocooned in wool.
2. Convince yourself that nothing is wrong. The best way to do this is to make sure that most of your friends are fellow addicts. Join a fiber guild. Surround yourself with other people who use their crock pots to dye wool and their salad spinners to wring out fiber. I personally know 3 people who have a second microwave used solely for heat-setting acid dyes.

Now here's the rub. You can convince your spouse that you're normal, you can surround yourself with fellow addicts, but good luck tricking your children. They learn early on that none of their friends have drum carders vice-clamped onto the dining table. They look around in the orthodontist's office and see that no one else's mother is twirling a drop spindle. (They have no use for lint-spun egg cozies.) All you can do is lay low. Best advice here, try to be "cool" once in a while. (It can happen.) Heck, look at me I'M BLOGGING. Well, time is up. The microwave just told me the Corriedale is color set.