March Miscellany

Posted on March 24, 2015 by Robin

I am fairly organized with my photos when I transfer them from my camera to the computer. But the “photo stream” from the iPhone is another matter. They all show up in a file labeled March. I take a lot of these intending to write blog posts that never make it through the fingertips to the keyboard. So this is a jumble of these photos that might have become blog posts if I didn’t have to allocate at least a few hours for sleeping. I’ll probably need to break this into two posts.The Lambing Board at the beginning of the month.First day on the pasture and looking for mom.

The Little Chicken, who has lived here forever, was not too crazy about……the New Chickens that a friend gave me.Finally, fresh eggs again.This is an example of clasped weft in a rigid heddle weaving class……and this is weaving students taking a lamb break in the barn.And speaking of holding lambs, I love this photo. These are three Farm club members (and friends) who have spent many hours helping me here, not only during lambing but at other times also.Weaving. I’ve spent a little time at the loom, although I still have projects ~~looming~~ hanging over my head and that is getting very frustrating. These are wool blankets woven using one of my favorite patterns, but usually done in one color.Marilyn with the first lamb of twins.About a week ago I went to my uncle’s memorial service. His ashes were placed in a family plot with his wife’s and next to those of his two sisters (one of whom was my mom). The end of that generation in our family.Life moves on. This is Spring who looks as though she should have sprung days ago.

Lamb Portraits

Posted on March 24, 2015 by Robin

It’s Spring Across the Road

Posted on February 23, 2015 by Robin

I just posted springtime photos taken near my house. Then I looked at my iPhone photos and found some from Across the Road. Almonds blooming along the canal. Mushrooms.

Mustard.

Even thistles are pretty.Wild radish.The alfalfa field. Rusty has posted in quite awhile. There are a lot of dog photos so I’ll let him use the computer tomorrow.

Farm Day

Posted on February 22, 2015 by Robin

This year’s pre-lambing Farm Day overlapped with Stitches West so some of our members chose shopping over barn cleaning, thinking that their yarn stashes needed a little reinforcing. However we still had an effective crew and finished our scheduled chores in just a couple of hours. (Dona was shopping so thanks to Lisa for providing some of these photos.)Lisa, Cindy, Alison, and Stephany helped clean the barn and vaccinate all the sheep. Betty came later and we skirted fleeces.We gathered all the ewes in the barn.

Some are looking quite large.

We checked eyelids of the ewe lambs for anemia using the FAMACHA scorecard and dewormed those who scored 2 or 3.Amaryllis is always happy when Lisa comes.

Faulkner was all fired up after yesterday’s tryst with Donna, who spent the day with him in anticipation of July lambs, but alas, it was just us Farmers who came to call today.After skirting fleeces in the afternoon……Betty and I treated the ewes to snacks.Usually Farm Day lasts well into the afternoon but today everyone had places to be (including me who went to Berkeley to see out-of-state cousins who had all gathered for a birthday celebration), but it was a beautiful morning to spend with friends.We didn’t do much hard labor today but someone was tired out.

More Cuteness in Texas

Posted on February 4, 2015 by Robin

After a too-short visit here who was waiting at home:

Random 1030 photos

Posted on January 29, 2015 by Robin

I had a good time with this post of random photos so here is another. Jazz (#1030 ) is another one of my ewes. Here is her photo and a bunch of other photos that come up when I search 1030.Jazz as a yearling.

Jazz with triplets.

I took this at Pinnacles National Park when we camped there last year.

Chris showing his goats when he was a sophomore in 2006.

A handwoven vest from the new book Weave, Knit, Wear, that I just got into the shop…the book, not the vest. But I tried on the vest at TNNA and it fit me. Matt & Kaleena in 2009.

Benny & Katie 2002 Katie and Benny in 2002.

Distracted

Posted on January 16, 2015 by Robin

I am updating my sheep info in my sheep database. I am looking through the manual to pick up on the stuff that I haven’t figured out or noticed yet–entering photos, entering ancestors of sheep I didn’t breed, etc. I am exporting photos so that they can be entered properly. Searching sheep by # and/or name in Aperture, my photo program. As you can guess from this blog, I like taking photos. I have A LOT of photos. Entering #868, a sheep named Clover born in 2008. Not too many photos of her but when I search 868 dozens of other 868’s pop up–of course these are photos that have 868 somewhere in the file name. So here is a random idea for a blog post and, in my opinion, a better way to “waste” time than on Facebook because I like looking at my photos. Maybe some of you will too. Here is the 868 I was looking for. I wonder if I should put the rest in order by date or not… I think I’ll go with random. One of the wool blankets I wove for my recent show using Sincere Sheep yarn. This is Katie, about 6 years old, and Sequoia, a calf who was born prematurely and I raised on the back porch for months. That’s my first Border Collie, Flash. Kaleena (DIL) and Matt (son) and Guinness and Sam a few years ago somewhere in the El Dorado National Forest. Dan, Matt, and me in my once/year 5 km run to support Kaleena and research on ovarian cancer. This is Chris and Meryl and Matt and me (Kaleena must be taking the photo) taking a Duck Tour in Boston on the way to Katie’s wedding in VT a few years ago. A handwoven blanket of Jacob yarn on Mom’s rocking chair. Spotted in the pasture. My cousin, Kyle Vincent, (who has a new album out) performing in our barn. Christmas in 2013 when all my kids and spouses (and spouse to be) were in one place. Leaping lamb. Chris selling a hog at the auction at the Solano County Fair. He looks young–maybe a sophomore?Tencel scarves woven in advancing twill that made an issue of Handwoven a couple of years ago.

Well, that’s it for 868, Clover. This was fun. I may do it again.

TNNA 2015

Posted on January 13, 2015 by Robin

TNNA is The National NeedleArts Association and there is a trade show every winter. This year’s was in Phoenix where I met up with my friend of 35 years, Irene who owns Cotton Clouds.

We stayed at the Hyatt… …and here is the view from our window. Kind of makes me think of Ghostbusters. But wait……Here it is as I saw it without the aid of the camera.

We spent Saturday and Sunday on the show floor. I hadn’t planned to buy anything for my shop this year because it is already pretty full. But there were some things that I couldn’t resist.

This is just to pique your interest. I will be selling these kits and developing a new class in this technique for making very cool scarves. What a way to use up leftover yarn! Sincere sheep cormo I already sell Sincere Sheep’s Bannock Targhee yarn but then I saw their Cormo yarn that is grown and spun in Wyoming. How can I choose from all these colors? I really can’t have them all. Sincere sheep cormo (1) These will be in the shop in a couple of months. I saw the “Olympic sweater” in person. This sweater was knit with very soft wonderful yarn that I sell here and that I used in some of the pieces in my November show.

Irene and I took a class taught by Judith Sangold who wrote a wonderful book called Weave-Knit-Wear which I will have in the shop shortly. An advantage of taking the class was that we got to try on the garments that are in the book. They all fit me just right!

There were photo ops…

In the Spinning and Weaving Group’s booth with Liz Gipson, promoting Spinzilla……and with Irene. Hey, why am I wearing the funky hat and she didn’t dress up?

This is in the Lavishea booth. I’ll be getting new scents of this great lotion bar. Is there something about us that says The Beautiful Hero and the Weird Sidekick?Speaking of weird, what about this book? I love some of the projects in it. How about a knitted moosehead to hand over your fireplace or a knitted wolf head hat? Hey, I’d wear that scarf. Did you know that I made my husband a cow tie once complete with head and tail? But that’s another story.This is Irene and me sandwiching a new friend who also designs kits for Irene but whom I’d never met.

And speaking of yarn, here is more that I bought:Unfortunately this lovely lady won’t be coming home with it because she had to return to England. The yarn is called Titus, after Sir Titus Salt who became important in the burgeoning textile industry in Yorkshire in the early 1800’s. It is a wonderful blend of Wensleydale, BFL and alpaca. I couldn’t afford to buy bags of all 13 colors but will be getting these 4 as well as packs that include all the colors in small quantities.

Here is one more photo of Irene and me. I just learned how to use Instagram and this is my first photo on it.

After getting home I emptied all my loot out on a couple of tables. Can you believe that I got all of this into my carry-on suitcase along with my clothes?

Sheep Grow Up

Posted on December 28, 2014 by Robin

Farm Club came and helped get the barn ready for shearing next weekend. We also made sure that my sheep list was current and we looked at fleeces. The lamb fleeces are gorgeous and it made me think about how sheep grow up. Here are some examples.Ventura’s baby picture…

…in the fall……as an adult. Rosie as a young lamb……half grown……and grown up with her own lambs. Onyx as a lamb……and grown up.

This is Jane with her lamb this year who I have named Jean.Jean during the summer…

…and a few weeks ago.

Here is one last one. Jerry (Garcia) is the wether who keeps the BFL ram, Faulkner, company. Jerry is a lucky sheep because he would not have been kept as a ram with his narrow horn set and lots of black fiber (too much to register, but great if you like dark wool).Jerry as a baby……with Faulkner after shearing a few years ago…

…and now ready to be shorn next week.

The wool is what it’s all about.

Jerry’s fleece from last year.Ventura’s fleece.

Water and Fire and Water

Posted on December 4, 2014 by Robin

One of my friends was leaving at the last Spinners Night Out the Friday evening before Thanksgiving. She came back into the shop to say that she was sprayed in the face by water and asked if there a sprinkler on. I went out to look and found that the pressure tank for the well was spraying water from a rust hole. We turned the water off and the next day Dan welded a patch on the tank. That was enough to get us through the weekend (turning the water off at night because it was still leaking), but was not a permanent fix. After the welded patch–better than before, but only a temporary fix. I picked up a new tank in Sacramento. It’s nice to have a son-in-law who is in the well and pump business and could get me a good price on a tank. He wasn’t here for the installation but gave tech support on the phone. That evening I came home from a meeting and found Dan watching to make sure there were no leaks. On the Friday after Thanksgiving conditions were right that we could burn the brush pile that had been getting bigger all summer and Chris came over to do that while I was busy with other things. It was too big to burn in place so we pushed it behind the barn where it was farther away from structures. This is the aftermath of that pile. As that one was smoldering Chris set the blackberry pile on fire. He lit a palm frond on fire to get the pile burning. This one was getting a little scary. We really didn’t want that palm tree to catch fire. Good thing Chris is a professional. This was a HOT fire. I wondered if our two garden hoses were enough to keep it in check. It didn’t take long to get to this point. Chris dug a line around it and we let it smolder all night. This is the next morning. The other pile was smoking even two days later and after a light rain. Saturday night I heard a leak in the cellar. (This is a low-ceiling room beneath the house with access from the outside. Before the drought years this basement would flood 3-4 feet in the winter and we had to keep a sump pump running so that the water would not flood the water heater.) It turns out that the old water heater was leaking, probably as a result of the higher pressure that our new pressure tank was providing to the house. I won’t show a photo of what this room looked like before I cleaned out all the junk that was along these walls because that is embarrassing. Believe me that it was not pretty considering what kind of critters spend time in basements and the fact that it has flooded periodically. Fortunately this incident was on the weekend and Dan was able to install a new water heater on Sunday. This photo was taken this morning (Wednesday). Notice the water in the basement. sump pump That is why we have to keep this pump set up in the winter. It wasn’t used the last couple of winters, but we woke up to this: The water level was at 2.0 inches since the evening before. We haven’t seen that in a long time.