Mid September

Hello Gentle Readers. Early autumn is in the air. Last Friday we drove to Nebraska City to buy some apples from Kimmel Orchards. The corn stalks are that beautiful straw color that comes as they dry just before harvest. All concerns about big business agriculture aside, the sight of the fields against a September blue sky is part of the autumn landscape. The apples are delicious and the outing made for a nice afternoon. The drive is about an hour, each way, so I knitted washcloths. I like to keep a few tucked away for small gifts. They go so nicely with a bar a soap. 

I am joining Kat and the Unravelers to post about making and reading this week. I spent some time mending a hand-pieced and hand-quilted quilt. In fact I pulled a needle through layers so many times that my hand became sore. Oy. I am getting to be a delicate flower. I don't remember any soreness when I did all the hand quilting but I was younger. I did cast on a large size scarf with an all over leaf lace pattern. I enjoy knitting leaf shapes so this pattern (Rav Link) caught my eye. Every row is slightly different which slows my knitting but that has been good for my right hand. I wondered if the design would be too complicated to be fun but the pattern and charts are well written. So far, so good.

I'm reading Becoming Madam Secretary by Stephanie Dray. My daughter recommended and gave me  this work of historical fiction about the life of Frances Perkins. Perkins was FDR's Secretary of Labor and the first woman to serve as a Cabinet officer. Trained as an economist, her professional life was dedicated to better working conditions for men, women, and children. Perkins was also a wife and mother and quite keenly feels the pull between professional and personal life. Her story is fascinating and has some interesting parallels in our current time. I am sorry to say, I never heard of Perkins until my daughter mentioned this book. 

A family who lives just down the street from us has a little patch of parkway on their yard. Both parents have a generous spirit, and the three children are often outdoors. The Mom and the children plant sunflowers in the parkway. Catmint also grows there. One day I walked down to get the mail and saw morning glories blooming in the catmint. I just love the wildness of this little spot. Even among the concrete and a few weeds, flowers grow. This week, I wish you the joy of unexpected flowers.  

Finished and Frogged

Hello Gentle Readers. The weather feels like September, days with warm dusty afternoons, stiff breezes, and shorter daylight hours. After dinner, I walk around the block in the most gorgeous evening light. While I'm still wearing shorts, tees, and sandals, fall is in the air. My garden and flower beds have that ragged, end of the season look. I divided several clumps of iris. Everything is so dry it is hard to weed. At least that is my excuse and I'm sticking to it. 

On this Wednesday, I link with Kat and the Unravelers to post about making and reading. I have both finished and frogged projects. I finished the shawl knit from a skein of handspun and some odds and ends of a commercial yarn. It's a good thing I like to weave in ends because there were plenty. The simple pattern lets the handspun shine. The yarn from a BFL/silk blend has such a nice soft hand and drape. While learning to spin, I stayed away from fiber with silk content because the silk can be tricky. Now that I've successfully spun with this blend, I'd like to try more. 

I frogged the summer top knitted with fingering weight cotton yarn. The fabric was lovely but after about three rounds, my hands hurt and it was so monotonous. Frogging it was freeing.  I cast on the Purl Soho Arched Gusset mittens in Noro Silk Garden. Alas, I love the elegant line of the arched gusset but the pattern is written for a lighter weight yarn. Knitting the pattern in Aran weight yarn was making a sloppy rather weirdly shaped mitten. Winter's cold is serious business and I like mittens to be snug and warm.  Last night I frogged the start of the mitten and am auditioning the Antler pattern. I've knit this pattern several times and have been pleased with the mittens. 

As for reading, I finished Clear by Carys Davies. I loved this short novel about kindness and human connection. Two people who know little about each other and speak different languages encounter each other on a remote Shetland Island. The sparse storyline reminded me of Claire Keegan's book, Foster. I learned more about Scottish history and a lost language. As a bonus, the man on the island collected wool tufts from sheep and spun them into yarn. He was also a knitter. Davies understands  and writes well about both processes. I can't help but wonder if she is a knitter.  I also wonder if she has any connection to the designer Kate Davies. Maybe Davies is a common name in that part of the world. 

Finally, this date, 9/11, is so poignant. I remember the television monitors set up in the district school office playing the news videos over and over. It is well to remember and be grateful for all first responders. Now there is another generation for whom the events of that day are history and not lived experience. 

Take good care. 

Hello September

Hello Gentle Readers and Hello September. Labor Day weekend and my birthday have come and gone. The long weekend brought three gorgeous early Autumn days. Cool mornings and warm afternoons felt like summer's end. Yesterday morning I saw a large perfectly spun spider web suspended between a tree and a bush. Sunday evening, a single long thread was backlit by the setting sun. I'm waiting for the bright yellow goldfinches to find the dried cone flowers. 

Family and friends greeted me warmly on birthday, which this year fell on Labor Day.  I made a few cupcakes and we enjoyed fresh BLT's and watermelon for dinner. Tuesday I went to the doctor and was diagnosed with impetigo. Here's to medical care and antibiotics. My immune system isn't what it was when I worked with little children. 

Today is a day to link with Kat and the Unravelers to post about making and reading. Late last week, I finished the last skein of a spinning project in the first photo. The Corriedale fiber was part of last year's birthday gift from my son and his family. Once I was able to get a little more twist into the fiber, (thank you Kat and Sarah) I spun a lovely sport weight-ish yarn. When I began, I hoped to have enough yardage to knit a shawl but at 1100 yards I've enough for a sweater. 

In the meantime, I'm knitting and enjoying this shawl. According to the pattern I'm almost to the point where I've used 80% of the yarn so I'm on the home stretch. The BLF/Silk handspun has such a nice hand. 

As for reading, I couldn't find an audio book available on Libby but on Hoopla, I came upon The Dangerous Old Woman by Clarissa Pinkola Estés. As far as I can tell, this work is available only in audio format. Estés is Jungian analyst who extracts meaning from the archetypes of women in old folk and fairy tales. Some of the stories she tells are better than others but I am enjoying her thoughts about old women as elders and "weavers" of culture and tradition. I can say that Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs will never be the same. The synchronicity seemed appropriate for the weekend I completed 73 trips around the sun. Estés who serves as narrator is also a wonderful oral storyteller.  

The Connecticut kids went back to school last Friday. They had a terrific summer and everyone had a good first day of school. Norah started kindergarten, Jonah is in the third grade (with the best teacher ever - got to love a positive attitude) Micah is a fifth grader at the top of the heap, and Emmet is in the eighth grade. The beginning of a school year is a new season filled with promise. Micah and Jonah are happy to serve as "little sister security."  Emmett is about to be taller than his Mom. How does this happen so quickly?   Have a good week.