I have enjoyed this morning.
It's warmer than earlier in the week. Here's Monday's thermometer on the back porch.
Yes, that reads minus 10 degrees. And the wind was out of the North, so the wind chill was terrible.
This morning I dug out a pathway in the snow to get to the bird feeders and put out more peanuts and sunflower seeds. We now have a pair of cardinals coming for food, some juncos, a sparrow (yes, only one!), some starlings that I chased away at first, then decided they might be hungry too, and a grackle all by his lonesome who I have now left alone to eat what he can, as long as he behaves and doesn't chase away the other smaller birds.
When not out shoveling, I am listening to the radio - classical music - and catching up on needlework. Sort of. When I was gone last September, one of my early stops was in Lawrence, Kansas at the Yarn Barn. I love the wonderful wool and linen threads they have there. I bought a Japanese crochet book - written in Japanese - but with charts for crocheting so that you don't need to know the language. I also bought this wool.
It says on the wrap that it is laceweight Rambouillet yarn, sourced in Wyoming, spun in Springvale, Maine, dyed in Saco Maine. There are 450 yards to a hank. I could have had them wind the yarn into balls while I was in the shop, but I really like the skeins better for looking at and envisioning how I will make it up.
So, while it is snowing outside my window, I am cozy enough watching, listening, and winding. I have a perfect chair for help with the winding.
I plan to make a shawl with the yarn. I found in a library book . . .
this chart for what the author calls Linen Stich. I used to do this all the time and it didn't have a name back in the olden days.
These
skeins are 450 yards of wool to wind and I have had to take a break since my
arms were about to fall off from both shoveling and winding.
But it's a very good day and I'm glad for that.
