Accidental Cleaning

 Today my plan was to go to the grocery store and then come home to weave and spin.  What actually happened was I started to put a few things away.  Go through some paperwork. Do a recall for my air fryer.  Before I knew it time had flown by and it was 4:30 pm.  I am not quite sure how it happened.  I was in a cleaning zone.  

Then all of a sudden I was tired and took a nap before dinner.  John graciously assembled dinner. After dinner I did manage to go through a few color changes on the scarf.  It is definitely going to be a one of a kind scarf.  I would be hard pressed to find the yarn to assemble another scarf just like this one.  I can’t wait to see how it turns out.  It will definitely go with everything I own.  

Weaving a Scarf

 This is a small portion of a scarf that I am weaving with bits and pieces of leftover lace weight yarn. I could not part with the yarn without using it. I am using a 10 dent heddle.  That’s 10 threads per inch.  If it was wider than 6 inches it would make a great fabric for a top. So far I have done a good job of transitioning the little balls of yarn. In the picture below there are 3 yarn transitions.  .   

Things about the Summer Heatwave

 It has been so hot in Tucson that even my newest Yeti cups are being challenged by the summer heat.  I find that instead of adding ice once or twice a day, I always have to add ice to the tumbler after a trip outside plus a couple more times.  I can’t imagine how much ice I would go through without my Yeti 30 ounce Tumblers.  Also since I am drinking to keep up with the heat my tumbler is being filled more often. I even take it to the bedroom at night so I don’t have to go as far to get water.  That’s not all that the heat is effecting.  My Fitbit watch bands need to be washed more frequently too. Even the trees look hot and tired.  The little over an inch of rain was just not enough for them.  We have a new batch of younger lizards using our front porch as a cooling station, which is fine because in return they eat plenty of bugs.  They are even paving the roads at night because it’s too hot to pave during the day. 

I did venture out to go to spinning today at Grandmas Spinning Wheel and had a great time. I took a drop spindle because I did not feel like carrying my Louet Victoria out in the heat.  I left early when my hands got tired.  I know that they were tired because I dropped my drop spindle 3 times in 5 minutes.  That’s when I know it’s time to stop. I can home and took an unintended nap.  

It need not be said because it is happening so frequently lately, laundry was done by 9 am.  I gave my appliances the afternoon off.  

TTFN

It’s Warmer Than Last Summer

 I am finding that the longer the summer temperatures stay in the really do you really want to go outside zone I am doing things differently.  Like laundry.  Tonight before bed I set up the first load of the day for tomorrow.  If I get up for any reason after 3am, I will start the load and put it in the dryer 1st thing when I wake up.  That way there is a possibility of getting a second load of laundry done.  Towels and sheets can’t be done on the same day either.  They both take too long to dry.  I do this to do my part in keeping the stress off the power grid. No laundry after 100F.  Which is hitting really early this year.  

I will do a couple of laps around Target before I start my shopping to gentry to get enough steps for the day in.  Same with the craft store. I am starting to get bored, but it is too hot to go out to eat even with misters. 

I am playing too many games on my iPad and not doing enough knitting, spinning or weaving.   I am doing more 5 minute Zenning  periods during the day.  I am enjoying watching the smaller lizards use our front porch as a cool down zone.  The benefit of this is that they eat the smaller bugs.  They have even gotten all the little spiders and egg pods around the front door.  To read as one less chore for us.  Also one fast food meal for the baby lizards.  

I gave my appliances most of the day off

 Yes, it was another hot day in the Old Pueblo.  The monsoons are late.  The over night temperatures are not falling much below 90 degrees F.  Which means I have to start the laundry earlier to have the washer and dryer off before it hits 100.  Today I finished the laundry before 8:00 am and it was already in the high 90’s F.  

So this afternoon was spent listening to a book and knitting.  My hand is still very crunchy, but I have more use of it.  I worked on 2 different knitting projects and 2 different spinning projects today.  Nothing got finished.  

Tomorrow it will be more of the same.  Stay cool and hydrated.  

A Fun Filled Fiber Day

 It was a busy day on the fiber front.  This morning I washed and thwacked one skein of yarn by 7 am.  The sad thing about this is it was so hot that the water was drying up as I went to hang the yarn.  I then plyed a second skein and put it in its hot wash.  Since it was even warmer when this one came out of its hot bath the water dried up even faster.  Yet the full skeins of yarn are still damp in the garage this evening.

I finally figured out a glitch in a new pattern design. It has taken months.  I did have an epiphany last night. So this afternoon I cast on and it’s exactly like I want it. Now just to do the math so I can finish writing the pattern and knitting the sample. This made me very happy. Yes I am currently working on 3 new pattern designs at the moment.  I think the heat has gotten to me.  All I really want to do is go to a coffee shop and have a cuppa tea and knit like in pre COVID19 times. Now it’s outdoor dining for me, so it’s kinda not an option, because it’s too hot to sit outside even with misters.  So I go from room to room to work on different projects.  That’s just like going to a coffee shop, right?

With the exception of 1 skein of yarn drying in the garage, I have all the yarn priced for the knitting guilds Christmas in July event.  I even priced it at a 30% discount in hopes that it does not come back home with me.  I am also debating whether to make more stitch markers or move back to dog pillows, then on to a new blanket for my daughter.  Then I did get the parts to fix my small ridged heddle, so there are scarfs to weave also.  

I did say it was a fiber filled day.  

TTFN

New Glasses and more

 Dispute my body and I not getting along today, I did manage to get out of the house early.  We headed to Costco to pick new glasses and get the lenses replaced in my sun glasses.  My new indoor glasses happened to be the first pair I picked out.  For the first time in I can’t remember when, I did not need to get high index lens.  This is all due to the cataract surgery.  They should be here in about 2 weeks.  As usual we bought more than was on our list of nuts and new glasses.  It was not all me getting extras this time.  

After dinner I was finally ready to spin, so I plyed 1 skein of yarn out of the 2 that needed to be plyed.  The skein will hit the hot water as soon as I wake up tomorrow. Then thwacking and off to a hot garage to dry. The only question remains, will the thwacking water evaporate before I finish hanging up the yarn. I will ply the other skein tomorrow.  Then decide on my next spin.

Did I mention that they extended the heat emergency until Monday?  So there is not much to do except cleaning, spinning, knitting, weaving and deep cleaning.  

Beading

 Today was spent doing the usual Sunday morning chores.  I did manage to get the bed stripped and into the washer for the second week in a row. This is one step forward in my Hand recovery.  

I spent a few hours making one of a kind stitch markers for crocheting and keep track of the front side of knitting projects. I had a great time playing with my beads. I also went through my bead crafting drawers and am going to destash some findings that I no longer need, because I am no longer doing fund raisers for Eric’s day program.  I use to make between 50 and 100 pairs a year to raise money. That was followed by lunch and a very long nap.  I find that by either using my hand or going to physical therapy both do require naps afterwards.  

Tomorrow I plan on making more stitch markers.  Of course a nap will follow.  

Sewing Room

 Today I am working in the sewing room. Doing minor repairs. Making some stitch markers and stitch stoppers. Maybe even sewing on a button or 2. Maybe even a dog pillow or 2.  The end result is going to be less projects piled up waiting for me. 

The first completed repair jobs were 2 shopping bags that had holes that needed patching.  The largest one with the turquoise bottom, got the small green patch today. You many have noticed that I tend to overlap the patches.  I think that gives the bags more strength and less places to have break through holes. I have had this shopping bag since before we were married so last century. The one with the dark blue patch is newer.  I find the newer bags need more repair work than the older ones. Just goes to show they don’t make things like they used to. Now they are heading to the laundry before they go back into rotation. I wash my bags with regularity and they seem to last longer. I also put my groceries in these bags so I want them clean.

Now back to the sewing room to see what I can finish today.

Six Plus Heat

 It was a 6 jigsaw puzzle day. I had physical therapy for my right hand today.  After a few errands and lunch it was nap time.  Afterwords I could not hold a knitting needle or do any spinning. So I listened to a book and did jigsaw puzzle after jigsaw puzzle this afternoon.  

It was also pretty hot outside today with another day of 110f temperatures.  This being Tucson it is not unusual for this time of year before our summer rains. No matter what they say on the national news broadcasts.  I really hope we get some rain in the next week or 2. Otherwise it will be a very long hot summer.  Also for those of you not use to this kind of heat if it is going to be above 90f you want to start your walk or hike very early and plan to be OFF the trail by no later than 10 a.m.   Then go hydrate. If you feel thirsty you are already low on water. No matter what ads you see or read, water is the best summer drink around.  

I will see where my hand is tomorrow.  Maybe after my early morning errands I will actually be able to spin a bit or do some sewing. Maybe it will cool off tonight a little, it’s still 92f at 11 p.m.  

TTFN

Busy Again

 I was busy today.  I finished 2 more dog pillows before breakfast. Went to lunch and knit with a friend.  Truth be told we brought our lunch back to the house, it was even too hot for a patio with misters.  Worked on a new pattern and got past the half way point and color change. Did some random cleaning. Grocery shopping. All this dispute my body and a heat wave.  Tucson peaked out at 110f today. 

I ran out of energy for spinning and tagging yarn.  I am now going to call it an early night.  

Big Steps

 With Christmas in July coming to the Old Pueblo Knitting Guild on July 19th at 9:30 am,  I have been spinning up a storm and deciding which of my current hand spun yarns are going to leave the nest.  With my hand issues still not going away. Add to that my limited time to use my hands daily some big decisions had to be made. I only kept what is currently talking to me.  To that end, I now have over 1 cubic feet of hand spun yarn tagged and ready for the 19th.  I still have a bit more to tag tomorrow.  

When that is done I will come up with a few more simple things that I hope my friends will love.  I also have a bunch of dog pillows to make.  Then those will leave the house too.  I think I might be able to fill my car with dog pillows once I am done.  

I am really hoping we don’t have another summer like 1994 with over 100 days over 100f. On the other hand being just a couple of years older the heat seems to be effecting me a bit more.  I am less heat tolerant.  I am trying hard not to mope and being more proactive on getting things done.  

One last thing.  This is the first batch of Tour De Fleece 2023 newly minted or should I say hand spun yarn.  I had fun spinning it.