Look, I'm posting!!!

Yes, I'm still alive. It's just taken me a while to get around to sitting down to catch up (not that I've done anything else, really, other than work, eat, surf the Net, and sleep, but still), but somehow I've ended up done with my reading before 7 pm, so I thought I take a few minutes and figure out what I've done for the last two weeks.

Let's see, I left off right before the Route 66 Fiber Rendezvous. What a fun day, and we were lucky to have a nice day before the 90+ degree temps kicked in the next week.

I grew up not far north of Arcadia, so I'm very familiar with the area, and it was nice to get back out to the country. Not long after I left I-35 to travel east on the Mother Road, I saw two young deer trying to cross the road. Fortunately they turned around and went back the way they came from (this was just north of Lake Arcadia). Unfortunately for me, I had had such a crazy night and that morning (Maggie was sick all over the bed, and twice I had to do laundry, in less than 12 hours), that I didn't realize I had forgotten my camera until I was almost there. However, you can see some nice photos here at Emily's blog (Hi, Emily--it was nice to meet you!). One of the best parts of the day was meeting the beautiful alpacas and the darling little baby sheep named Peppermint. She was so cute! There was also a lovely lady named Gina who spent all day over hot dye pots to dye fabric and fibers for us with natural dyes. Everyone really enjoyed watching how things turned out, and it's amazing to see what colors come out of plants and bark and other things--most of the time it's definitely not what you would think!

The weather was lovely, and I met a lot of really nice people--people who shared my addiction to all things fiber! How cool is that? It was glorious. I spent lots of money, bought lots of fiber, some natural dyes, and a spindle. I had some sock yarn natural dyed in indigo and cochineal (gorgeous blue and pink). Unfortunately, someone made off with one of my cochineal skeins, but oh, well, I was in such a good mood that I didn't even care (what the hell was wrong with me?). I called Missy and ended up buying her some purple-verigated yarn that she could use to make something for Baby Kelsey, as well as some smelly stuff for being a new mom and a great friend.

I spent most of the day visiting with my new friends and watching people spin. I've never seen anyone else spin before, so it was fascinating to watch how it's really done. My new friend Aubrey, who makes wonderful soaps and other things, decided she was going to help me figure out what kind of wheel I needed to buy. We discussed all types of things, and she came to the same conclusion that I had already made--I need a portable wheel. I want to be able to take it when I go places (not that I go that many places, but that could change--you never know), and her recommendation was the wheel my friend Noel has--the Lendrum Folding Wheel. It's one of the most versatile wheels out there, and it definitely is portable. I'm still kinda holding out on buying it, but when I do, that's the one for me.

So now I've met all these lovely people, I have intentions for a new wheel and some beautiful fiber to spin--I need to get to a Log Cabin Spinners meeting! I promise I will do that soon--I had such a good time with all these folks, I'd like to get to know them better, and I know I'll definitely learn something along the way.

The next day, Sunday, marked the end of my beloved "West Wing." It's funny how people can get so hooked on a TV show that when you don't see it every week, you actually miss the actors like they were your friends and family or something. I credit this show and my ex-boss (who came along after I started watching TWW) for getting me so interested in politics. I remember when this show came on the air--I couldn't imagine why anyone would want to watch a one-hour drama about working in the White House. Then I actually sat down and watched it, and man, I was hooked like a rat on crack.

Work has been really, really busy lately, and then I got that nasty bug last weekend, and I feel like I've lost the time that passed between the Fiber Rendezvous and today. Today's the first day since last Friday that I've been able to eat anything and not have my stomach throw an absolute fit. I still felt bad enough on Monday that I stayed home--heck, I'm not sure I could have made it to work without having "issues" before I got there, if you know what I mean. But today I feel pretty good, except for the fact that tomorrow is Friday and it's a holiday weekend and hotter than hell and I have a hundred thousand things I need to do or get before the weekend and it's just not gonna happen.

Poop.

I guess I'll have to break my normal "don't leave the house on the weekends" rule and run some errands on Saturday. At least I have another day to make up for it.

On the bright side, I'm having lunch tomorrow with a friend from my last job, and he has promised lots of good gossip, so that will be fun.

Right now I think I'm gonna go sit on the couch with Maggie and watch "30 Years of Live from Lincoln Center" and work on my special, super-secret knitting project. All I can tell you is it's little and it's cotton. That's it, no more, not even if you torture me!

And if you're lucky, this weekend I'll have photos of my newly planted garden, seeing as I haven't planted the stuff I bought before Easter!!!