Seen while driving in town the other day…
I liked the patterns of the wood. I especially noticed the part that doesn’t show up very well here but the bottom right where the heartwood (I think) makes the half circles. Weaving ideas.
Also while driving. I was on Pedrick Road east of Dixon. I really wanted a photo of the snow-covered Sierras. It’s been awhile since we’ve had that view. The lens on the phone makes the mountains too far away for that shot, but I like seeing the train.
In this shot too.
I may have shown this photo before, but I like this sunset view. It makes the mud and swampy “lake” worthwhile.
And speaking of lots of water, this was a result of the last storm that came through. This is a very old fig tree that the kids used to play in a long time ago. Note the steps and the treehouse platform. The roots of this tree have been rotten for some time and the dogs often found something to bark at in the hole in the trunk. 
I’ll bet you didn’t know that we had giraffes in Solano County. These two are about a mile from here where I take Ginny to herding lessons.
And while we’re talking about herding, this is Ginny working “her flock” at home.
Random Thoughts in Photos
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Dona took this photo of all of us as we stopped for a group photo in the barn.
This is Jade sporting her new eartag. The ewe lambs’ small tags were replaced with their grown-up tags. I decided to start color coding again. All the 2015 lambs have orange. There were also a lot of adult sheep whose ear tags were missing, so we replaced those.
We got son, Chris to the barn to take a group shot so Dona could be in it too.
We finished up at the ram pen. I took fleece samples to send in for micron testing.
Time to relax in the shop…
…and enjoy donuts that Mary brought to celebrate Dona’s birthday last week.
Its a good sign when the chickens start laying again. That means there is more daylight. I have 5 chickens, 1 of whom is old and the other is ancient. I don’t expect eggs from the old chickens, but it’s nice to know the young ones have kicked into high gear.
Rain. That’s a good thing, although I’m never really happy about dealing with the mud on the way to the compost (manure) pile.
However, it’s good when the manure pile is wet through and through. It will become a compost pile much more quickly. I was going to try these for dye but I went out today and they are all shriveled up. Not very long-lived.
My friends came and did a Shop Intervention. I need to drastically change some things and get rid of the clutter. I still haven’t dealt with that big box but that is all the newest Timm Ranch yarn. I need to get that on the website and start working with it. After the friends left there was room…
…for a Learn to Weave class.
Mid-January always means that I’m getting older as my youngest son celebrates his birthday. That isn’t the full amount of candles he should have had, but it is bright enough!
This is the beautiful Horton Grand Hotel…
…and this is Sunshine, a paper-mache horse who stands in the lobby. He came from the saddle shop that was on the ground floor of the neighboring less formal hotel. The hotels were built in the mid 1800’s but the saddle shop originated in 1912. Wickipedia says: “Both hotels were scheduled for demolition in the 1970s when the City of San Diego purchased them to build the Horton Plaza shopping center on the site. The hotels were dismantled brick by brick, with each brick numbered, catalogued, and stored. In 1986 the hotels were rebuilt into an entirely new hotel at the present location at Fourth Street and Island Avenue.”
Our room was lovely.
What fun to decorate a hotel like this. The furniture was all old so I assume it was found at estate sales and flea markets. We even had a fireplace (gas so no wool hauling).
We spent a lot of our time at the San Diego Convention Center.
Here is a message to be read on the way there. This quote in context of time and author if quite serious. In my world the last sentence has particular meaning and is serious enough in my life, if not with as profound a meaning. 
Fun view while going up the escalator in the Convention Center.
Leaving the hotel at night. This is the Gas Lamp District, kind of like Old Sac is for Sacramento.
We ate one night at The Field, an Irish pub, while listening to Irish music and dancers. This sign caught my notice.
But first I found some new equipment. These are prototypes of cool little sample looms designed by author and teacher, Liz Gipson. The unique thing about these looms is that they will be produced in 8, 10, and 12 epi versions, enabling quick sampling of yarns at those setts (and at 4, 5, and 6 epi). There are a few other gadgets I am purchasing here as well. 
This is the Meow and Woof collection from Ancient Arts Yarns. Each yarn has a photo of the cat or dog that inspired the color. I strayed from my “buy American” plan because I was so enamored with these. They were spun in Italy and are sold by a Canadian company and a percentage of sales goes to dog and cat rescue groups. I have wove a scarf out of the calico cat yarn–that is another post.
I already 
The Fiber Seed will be a new yarn for me. They have some wonderful gradient yarns put together in kits. I’ll get those as well as some of the solids and variegated yarns.
What time I have spent in the snow has been well after the storms have come through. There is something very different and beautiful about being there immediately after the snowfall…
…while the branches are still heavy with snow.
I loved seeing the snow clear to the tops of the trees. As the sun started warming the trees, snow cascaded from the highest branches.
I spent the night at M & K’s (Dan came home for chores and dog duty) and the next day Dan came back and brought Chris and Meryl with him. Then we celebrated our private family Christmas.
The younger generation helping the older one with digital issues.
Chris plays a mini-flute sporting his new Storm Trooper oven mitt.
Here are my sheep/barn related Christmas gifts. My wheelbarrows constantly need their tires pumped up so Dan got the fittings to go on an extra air compressor in the barn. There are tubes and tires for my handtruck. Dog treats from Hawaii. Sheep and dog magnets. All the attachments for my new GoPro (birthday present). Footrot Flats is a comic strip series that I think only a sheep farmer would enjoy. Hand and foot warmers packets that I’ll share with Farm Club in the barn. 
We took another hike that afternoon. This was a great two-day Christmas celebration with family. And it’s not quite over. The kids are taking us to see StarWars in a couple of days. The only thing missing was my granddaughter and her family but at least we spent a week with them not long ago.
The potential for wildlife photography began with turkeys walking down the road in front of the house where we are staying, but that is my only wildlife photo.
First things first. An island girl has to have her nails painted… 
…and then stay out of the house until the polish dries.
On the way to the beach.
Stopping to smell the flowers.
Kirby gets a good view of the ocean.
We discover that she doesn’t like the feel of sand on her feet. 
It’s hard to get in the water if you won’t walk in the sand. The water was a bit cool at the start and Kirby decided that it really wasn’t for her. 
While Mom and Dad swam…
Kirby was happier in the safety of the lounge chair, although I walked the beach with her quite a bit too.
After the beach trip we met up with my father-in-law and others to see the Macadamia Nut Company.
One of many special nut flavors.
Photos at the gift shop.
Gorgeous fleece.
Why, it’s Jade! Who else? She’s the one in the Santa hat in the 
Sheep going out to pasture last week. I’ve closed the gate today. The grasses are dormant and need warm weather and more daylight to get growing well again…if they get water, that is. This grass is showing signs of drying out. I hope some of the rain that is predicted comes through.
…a holiday craft project (above) and…
…a photo op with our friendliest sheep dressed in her Christmas garb.
Here are some more ornaments that I made from locally grown and dyed wool.
This is 5 batches of yarn out of the same dye pot. The first four skeins on the top are from the first batch. The next four are from the second and I crammed the tablecloth in that pot too. The rest of that row is from the third batch using the same dye. It looked like there was still plenty of dye in the pot so I did two more batches that are on the bottom row. They are lighter but still colored. 
Here is another view. It is interesting (at least to me) that the fifth batch appears to have slightly more color than the fourth. It is a different yarn. The first four batches included 
I was photographing the skeins outside and out of the corner of my eye I kept seeing this other brilliant color.
The first was a rigid heddle weaving class with four students.
The second class was a new one I developed using the Schacht 
I couldn’t bring 16 different cones with me but I had wound off several groups of all those colors in 8 yards (enough for a Zoom Loom square) each. It wasn’t difficult to separate the colors.
Students learned how to use the loom and went home with flowers and the knowledge to go further with the little loom.
After that Sunday morning class Katie and Kirby and I walked around the vendor buildings.
These are batts of fiber ready to felt…
…on the needlefelt loom that this vendor brings to the shows. Customers can needlefelt the fiber they buy from her for no charge or pay a fee to use the loom for fiber that they bring.
Angora goats are common in Texas and there were some at the show.
Where you have Angora goat producers you’re going to have dyed mohair.
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