Spinning, Knitting, Crocheting, Organic Gardening, Living off-grid, and chasing sheep - because- I'm, like, NOT SANE!

Sunday, June 25, 2006

The Facts of LIfe


'take the good...take the bad...take them both and there you have.....' =an evil blogger who plants annoying songs in your head. In desperate times, the resourceful will abandon their complex (I know some of you are laughing at me, but complex is a low threshold in my knitting existence) projects and move to something a little more simplistic. So, I started another shawl, since they are something I feel fairly confident in knitting and because I was itching to use some of the homespun that was left from my Fiber Frolic stash. In the interess of not being a total wimp, I am venturing out of stockinette land and have really gone off the deep end by using a ripple stitch! Knitting my own yarn that I've made from the back of my ewes, to the dye pots that sit murming 'come back to us, it was not our fault', to the picker who sits with a sinister grin reminding me to drink coffee and be alert before I pick locks, past the drum-carder who knows her days are limited until I can afford an electric machine, to Rose who made it soft and succulent - is a real experience. I should do it more often. I am reminded, in this process, of why I do this the long way. I like a yarn that does the work for me. I like a palette of color that amuses me through the thick and thin of knitting. And, I like alot of surprise. I kinda feel that surprise (specifying the delightful sort) is the karmic anecdote to life's little 'you're screwed, get over it' episodes. Hence, I needed alot of colorful surprise.

And, maybe it is working. Preliminary water quality tests on the well indicate that a good flushing may be all that is needed to return our water quality to pre-doofus incident standards. However, the same test has concluded that we have a serious run-off issue with nitrates from the local river which borders our swamp. Great! We are awaiting another, more conclusive test to check for chemical contamination and will, in the mean time, be looking into a filtration system for the OTHER issue. Now, for those who say I should be seeing that this horrific incident was meant to be, like to make me aware of the other problem - I have only this to say: The near heart-attack and subsequent bouts of self-loathing, hair-ripping, and general gut-wrenching panic that I suffered was NOT necessary. I am not the brightest pumpkin in the patch but I do contend that such terror was not necessary and I am sure that any Divine beings who needed to intervene and enlighten me to the fact that my well was yucko could (or should) have found a more harmless way of doing so. I would expect Superior beings to AT LEAST be smarter than little ole me. Nonetheless, I am thinking of dropping this subject entirely as I can never seem to look at myself afterward without thinking, 'what a dumbass'. NOTE: My only defense is that my dye skills are obviously awesome as the pool had little staining meaning my red was pretty darn colorfast and the 2nd rinse was clear. I may be an idiot but I DO know how to read instructions and (sometimes) follow them.

If you've ever breast-fed, then you know my triumph in announcing that the orphan bunnies are weaned and eating their grain, veggies, and drinking water ON THEIR OWN. This means I no longer have to bottle-feed or hold BARBIErabbit down to get them fed. Ahh. Relief.