Facebook Page Quickies

So I've not been very active here, but I have been over on my Facebook page . It's quick, easy and I don't have to fuss with formating. I've posted some flower fairies a friend and I made a couple weeks ago. I also bought a Brother Scan-n-cut and I think I like it better than the Cricut. I found the cricut to be limiting. I really like the scan-n-cut canvas application. This machine suits me better since I love my rubber stamps. I can get them fussy cut without straining my eyes, my back, or my wrists. Yay!

Anyhow, if you want to stay up to date on my adventures in crafting, head over to the FB page. I love being able to just pop on it (I'm on it all the time because I keep in touch with folks through messenger), post a quickie (snort!), and not feel drained afterwards. Sometimes updating the blog has done that to me. I log on with the intend of a quick post and then end up writing a flippin book.

Still dealing with the chronic back pain. Taking Lyrica and sometimes muscle relaxers to ease the ever present tension that I can't seem to be rid of. Still dealing with litigations but things are about to come to a head and I suspect my employment will end because of it. It kind of makes me sad, because most of the folks there are pretty nice. And some of them, I would gladly never see again. I've dealt with a lot of side-glances and bullshit gossip ever since they found out I probably would not be able to go back to driving. So nice of people to judge, and one of them is a bible thumper. Guess the "judge not lest you be judged" doesn't apply when you can't SEE the pain I deal with. Doc has me on a permanent light-duty work restriction, no bus driving for me anymore. I'm also cleared for 8 hours, but they insist they don't have a position for me. Oh yes, and they reduced my pay. Naughty. That's gonna bite them in the arse.  It's really hit me in the pocket book, but it will all be resolved soon enough.

BOOK!!!


Until next time...
***All content is Copyright year and date of posting, and are the sole property of C4G/CCW unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved. Unauthorized reproduction of any part of this website (text, photo's, etc)is strictly prohibited (linking to the post is OK). I've had to revert to moderating all comments due to spammers.***

Chronic

How do you deal with chronic pain?

Since my back injury in early December of 2015, I continue to struggle with chronic pain. When regular OTC pain meds don't work, I turn to alcohol which numbs everything so I can get some relief. At least once a week I find myself in so much pain that IBU simply doesn't cut it and I turn to alcohol. The wind was ruff today, sending the bus I drive to one side or another of the road. The extra effort in having to over compensate for that force triggered pain that would not relent until I drank (after my driving was done for the day, of course). I love my job. I really do. But I find that at least once a week I am struggling with chronic pain, or fatique...brought on by the pain. I don't know what to do. Today, all I wanted to do was curl up in a ball and fade away because the pain was so persistent. This is my new reality. Pain management.

And it sucks ass.



Until next time...
***All content is Copyright year and date of posting, and are the sole property of C4G/CCW unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved. Unauthorized reproduction of any part of this website (text, photo's, etc)is strictly prohibited (linking to the post is OK). I've had to revert to moderating all comments due to spammers.***

A-tisket, a-tasket, a fiber filled basket

I love shopping at the second hand stores. I almost ALWAYS find something I can use. Like this basket that is just beautiful! It is being used to hold all my alpaca rolags which I have finally started to spin. All carding and no spinning makes for a dull time.









I also found this lovely enamel teapot for $3 this week. It holds about three cups worth of tea. It fits perfectly atop my double boiler maker so I can keep it warm with a tealight under it. How charming!!
















And it's that time of year when I start to crave fresh food so I have been getting the sprouts going. Here we have sunflower sprouts in a rotisserie chicken terrarium (cleaned and sanitized, of course). I harvest them yesterday and had them atop a home made chicken salad. Om nom nom nom! Spring is coming, as soon as this last sub-zero snap passes.






Until next time...
***All content is Copyright year and date of posting, and are the sole property of C4G/CCW unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved. Unauthorized reproduction of any part of this website (text, photo's, etc)is strictly prohibited (linking to the post is OK). I've had to revert to moderating all comments due to spammers.***

Carded!

I got that nesting feeling...

 I found out really  quickly that I needed to relearn how to card with paddles. The carpal tunnel in my left arm started acting up and I started to question weather I was doing it correctly.
Nope.
A couple youtube videos later, gotta love that resource, I corrected the position of the paddles in relation to my body and carding became less painful and more productive. SO now I have a basket of aplaca "nests". I tried rolling a couple width wise since there was one video author that mentioned they preferred it that way. I'm actually starting to question weather or not I really am right handed because I do A LOT with my left.
I like to try different things to make my own determination. I have yet to start spinning this particular work. I am trying to get a couple spools free that I am spinning Jacob/Alpaca lace on.

Evil Second Cuts

I am also finding a lot of second cuts in this commission fleece. Not sure what to make of that, or if it's normal.

I got another batch of silkworms going on silkworm "chow" (powered mulberry leaf). They are slower to grow on this than fresh leaves, but that's okay. Some of these are going to a friend to feed her lizard, who LOVES them, some of them will go to feed Mr. TreeFrog who is currently in hibernation mode. I have not seen him in since it got cold. Hopefully he has not passed away. I know they go into suspended animation in the winter. I'll find out once these guys get a little bigger and I spritz his cage.


 To end this post I give you a video of some very disturbing V-Day merch found at one of our local discount stores. Dis-turb-ing.


















Until next time...
***All content is Copyright year and date of posting, and are the sole property of C4G/CCW unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved. Unauthorized reproduction of any part of this website (text, photo's, etc)is strictly prohibited (linking to the post is OK). I've had to revert to moderating all comments due to spammers.***

Welly Swotting over Suri

Working on this Suri fleece has been quite the chore and learning experience. I've had to rethink how to process it several times, and the sheer amount of dust that is still sticking to the fleece after multiple washes is driving me batty.

At first I was putting it through the drum carder and it was, kind of, working. A lot of the fiber would stick to the lickr-in drum, and then it would poof out as if it had a hand in an electrical socket. Remember those electrified balls that the museums would have to show you the effects of static charge?  Yea, that's what it looked like. I did try spraying it with some watered down conditioner, but that didn't do much for it. I washed the resulting batt and it came out the purest bright white!! Nothing like the rest of the "washed" fleece!!

Then I tried my combs. Found out the giant course Indigo Hound combs I have are not really meant for this kind of fiber. I haven't used them hardly at all in the nearly 10 years I have had them. I may sell them in order to get a finerViking set. I tried out a pair last week at The Dancing Lamb, and I got a pretty good sliver from that, although it was a lot of effort.



So I've resorted to my carding paddles. I've been making several dozen Puni's a day. Thankfully it's only three pounds worth of fiber to process and I have till May to get it done. I'm still off work from a back injury so I've been spending a lot of time inside watching movies, spinning, processing and knitting. I do have exercises from visiting the PT to do, other than getting some walking in which I am told is the best thing I could do for a back injury. The exercises are developing some underused muscles in an effort to support my back in hopes that it doesn't get any worse. As a result, I have been craving protein, MEAT, like a fiend. I ate three chickens from the grocer last week. THREE!! I eat all the dark meat right away and then make a casserole with the white meat because it tends to be dryer.

The trader wanted the resulting yarn dyed Magenta. I thought I had magenta in my dye stash, and it turned out I did not so ended up having to buy some from Dharma. Pretty darn cheap from there!! So I gave a spun sample a good washing and dyed it. Pretty!!!





I also ventured to try a scouring soap I've never seen before and....it's absolutely HORRIBLE!!! It did not take the dust off the fiber like Unicorn Scour Power does, and the smell....THE. SMELL. To me it smells like rancid latex, or a dildo....neither of which I can stand. (If you have to ask, don't.)  As soon as I opened it I felt nauseated and had a headache for the rest of the day. Of course I am stuck with it now. Attempting to resell it on Ebay since I only used a fraction of an ounce to test wash with. The buyer from Etsy would not accept it as a return, and she said she liked it's smell over Unicorn.
Never again will I stray from Unicorn Scour Power! I enjoy the light floral scent it has.

Afterwards, I spun some shetland like
a mad wommin so I could finally
work on MY projects.

Update: After working on this constantly for three months, putting my own projects on hold, then returning the spun yarn, I was basically told my yarn was shit and it was "too thin". Trader said "spinners choice" and I spin lace, so that's what I did. I was booted from the group Spin-a-pound-get-a-pound without notice, and told after-the-fact. I would advise people to avoid that group because the group moderators are complete assholes. The rumors I read about them when I did a google search on them do not fall short. What a waste of time and energy that was. I gave the rest of the fleece away because I didn't want that bullshit in my home. I've been spinning on and off for 15 years. I am no novice. Follow are photos of the said yarn, which I would have loved to have knit some lace with. That fleece was the most frustrating fleece I have EVER worked with. Fuck you Sapgap and your snotty, uppity, ways. My world is a better place without you.

Until next time...
***All content is Copyright year and date of posting, and are the sole property of C4G/CCW unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved. Unauthorized reproduction of any part of this website (text, photo's, etc)is strictly prohibited (linking to the post is OK). I've had to revert to moderating all comments due to spammers.***