Woolgathering

1. Yesterday we had mail from our old bank - we are closing the account, and have moved all our funds to our new bank, but they haven’t actioned the closure yet. The letter told us of a cheque that had just been presented and they wanted funds to cover it, plus £29 in fees. We were mystified. As we had destroyed our cheque books we were unable to check the problem out and had to ring the bank up.

   Investigation revealed that a cheque for £5.10 written on the 14th July had just been presented.

   (Full marks to the RBS One Account - for voluntarily waiving the fee without our having to request that)

2. A “client” who wants to come to see us about a web site sent a subsequent email at the weekend, explaining that they want to consult us to find out what questions they should be asking when they go to see a web designer.

   They want our (free) time and our expertise - to advise them on how to present their business to a competitor.

   (Clearly we are never going to become rich. Perhaps our rewards will come in Heaven…)

3. We just spent half an hour on the phone with the two of us attempting to assist FiL with his prize crossword (a weekly event.) He needed a five letter word E-I-S, meaning Arab Princess. At the outset, Mr L enquired “are you sure it’s princess, not princes?” “No, it’s princess” quoth Mr L Snr. After half an hour’s fruitless struggling and checking other answers for the letters we had - we gave up. One last enquiry from Mr L: “How are you spelling Princess?“

   “Princess - spelled P.R.I.N.C.E.S.“, the old feller said…

   (Well, what can you do except go find your sense of humour in the location that you misplaced it.)

Is it me? Or are other people just plain bonkers/awkward/unfathomable? Are they sent just to try us?

Some days I wish had stayed in bed. And there’s not a drop of chocolate in the entire house!

Right - now I need to go and brew some soup for lunch. Comfort food today.

Blink is blocking. I didn’t plan to block it because I liked its texture but after I soaked it I found that it really wanted to contract, so I pinned it out roughly. I only did the basic 12 and a half repeats in the end - then fretted as I knitted the decreases because I didn’t think that it would be long enough… but it has blocked to 67″ by 8″ or thereabouts. I do believe that I could have got more length out of it quite easily, but it is on the kitchen table and just fits that nicely as it is.

Time to move on. A few rows on the Morning Surf today, I think, so that I see some progress there, then I’ll cast on my slippers  if needles are available.

I survived the first day of this busy week and feel pretty much unscathed. I did forget that it was Monday and failed to get my rubbish out for collection… but apart from that all seems to have gone well. I finished my materials for this afternoon’s training and then made first a gingerbread for Wednesday and followed that up by creating a very nice chicken and mushroom risotto for lunch, then sped off to do my training session. Home just after 6pm, with a list of jobs to do to fix a few gremlins on the web site, then some tea. Since when I have been catching up on reading in readiness for Thursday night’s meeting. And now? Obviously - Blink! I cannot believe that it is half past eight already.

1) Thanks to Jenny,I now have a UK source of slipper soles - just what I was seeking. I knew I had seen them previously but couldn’t track them down when I looked the other day. Thank you very much.

2) and for your next trick, dear readers, I want some polystyrene feet. Again, I know I have seen them somewhere but am having trouble finding them. They are for photographing sock FOs and maybe for felting overlarge socks into slippers - so they need to be sized, at least roughly. I want UK Ladies size 7 (ish) - I never got the hang of Euro sizes (41?) and don’t have a clue how UK sizes map to US ones. Nor do I really know how Men’s and Women’s sizes map to each other…

3) Blink stalled a bit over the weekend as I have been very busy. I have no idea where the weekend went to but I appear to have wasted it doing proper work. In short, I barely picked up the scarf all weekend but managed last night to edge it to the end of 12 repeats. Theoretically I can go for the end now, but there is yarn to spare and I like a longer scarf. I’d like to make 15 repeats - though I’m not sure about my yardage there and I am running out of September.

4) Spinning is here this week - I’d like to make a gingerbread cake today and give it time to relax before Wednesday

5) but I have to go out and spend my afternoon delivering some training (and most of this morning will be spent in preparation)

Maybe I’ll get Blink off the needles tonight - I’d certainly like to. The Manos is gorgeous and I want to have a go at those slippers soon. Do they count for Socktoberfest? They are kind of like socks, really… can I complete Blink and a pair of Slippers before 1st October maybe?

Perhaps tomorrow I’ll force my way through the pile that is blocking the doorway in my workroom and take proper stock of my sock yarn stash and make a plan for October.

Yeah.

Right.

In Other News - Sandaysoft is becoming rather too busy for comfort. It’s time to decide whether or not to develop the business into a proper money spinner rather than a hobby, and aim for a shift away from employment to self-employment - because the way things are, the one is not earning enough money but is taking too much time away from the other. So, do we build the business? It will take time away from the knitting, that’s for sure.

Right, I need to crack on. Lots to do today.

My life has become incredibly busy of late. I cannot imagine what has happened!

This coming week will see me rushed off my feet: I have three separate clients to see for Sandaysoft, an appointment for training an individual for another client, a Development Trust Board meeting, a mountain of documentation to write, three web sites to bring up to date, spinning group to host and cake to make, my quilting homework to do - and my Blink to complete!

Well, something is going to have to suffer. I could claim that it will be the blog(s) but it is more likely to be the housework and dog-walking. On the other hand, I could just go for it hell for leather and try to get Blink finished tonight. I’ve been too busy today to pick up the needles until now. Mr L made me a wonderful Sichuan Chicken with cashew nuts for my dinner and I am too stuffed to move. I reckon that sitting on the sofa and knitting* is about all I am good for.

*Can I have wine with that?

Announcing: A Fiber Tour of My Home Town

So, I was reading the Twist Collective Blog and giggling away to myself at the notion of producing a fibre tour of my home (distinctly-not-a) town. Then I thought on it a bit and, you know, it’s really not such a nonsensical idea. After all, we have Orkney Angora, as featured by Ysolda in her Rose Red beret. And there’s the Spinning Group, always happy to welcome a fibre-loving holidaymaker into the fold and offer them cake and coffee on a Wednesday morning, and the Sanday Craft Club would welcome visitors too, I expect. Then there is Ayre’s Rock, partnering with The Sanday Spinners to offer beginners’ spinning courses. Of course, Maggie will probably be more than happy to welcome knitting customers at her tea rooms and restaurant at Backaskaill… and so on.

But the temptation to stick a pin in the map for every field with a sheep in it would be enormous - instead of “Heere Be Dragones”, our map might bear the legend Heere Be Hebrideans, or Heere Be Jacobs and Heere Be Gotlands… even Heere Be Alpaca and Heere Be Angora Goats

It may be a small island, but it seems that we have plenty to offer to the holiday-making fibre afficionado!

There are lights beginning to show at the end of the Blink tunnel. Eight repeats completed and the first skein is close to its end.

I shall need to crack on, as the yarn for my slippers arrived this morning and is beckoning to me. I need to go look for some suede or leather soles that I can stitch onto the knitted slipper, for longevity (and safety - we have a lot of hard flooring in this house.) Information on where such may be found would be gratefully received. Go on, talk to me, I know you are out there!

Blimey. I got votes. I wasn’t expecting that. I’m a Company Director! and there was me thinking I was just there to do the teas

I think I need a stiff drink and a little bit of calming knittery.

Interesting presentation at the AGM tonight, about Branding. I wonder what, exactly, Sanday The Brand is. I guess that’s for us to be working on in the coming months and years.

50% done.

Hurrah!

(nominally, at least - because I shall be knitting until the yarn runs out)

Pretty though, isn’t it?

Onward!

Blink seems to be steadfastly resisting the halfway point and I seem to be spending more time going backwards than I am spending going towards my goal. This scarf is turning out to be anything but the quick knit that I intended it to be. I don’t know what it is - because it is a simple enough pattern. Perhaps it is because I am stressed and upset at the moment and that is causing lapses of attention. And it does not help when one corrects an error from the wrong pattern row, either.

Well, all I can say is that I must spin a good yarn, as it is holding up well to all this punishment.

I had hoped to take my knitting and sit quietly in the back row with it tonight but as I have been conned into doing asked to do chairs and teas, that will not be possible.

In Other News - I just bought a kilo of gorgeous natural BFL. It’s not all for me, I hasten to add.

Frankly, the thought of spinning an even yarn for a whole jumper is even more scary than tonight’s elections or my job application!

Ah, well - back to Blink. Let’s hope for some forwards progression!