Meerkat in Memphis!

What a Handsome Fellow!

Our friends from Chicago were visiting last week and it was a great chance to see some of the things Memphis has to offer that of course we've been too busy to just stop and visit ourselves!
We went (of course) to the Zoo and it was a BEAUTIFUL facility! Almost all the exhibits contained running water and overall it was clean and friendly and didn't cost an arm and a leg and some quivit for entry. This guy stole my heart along with the other meerkats there..between they and the lemurs I am smitten!

Yesterday I mowed for the first time this season..saw something wriggling, wriggling like mad and swooped on it. Baby bullfrog I nearly chopped into soup! Yikes! I gathered him up and of course in his distress he 'peeped' at me repeatedly while I carried him through the house insisting to Jack that we put him into an aquarium. Jack convinced me to release him next to the pool however. We were also in the pool for the first time yesterday - water temp was 77 and It Is Not Even May. Woo Hoo, take THAT Chicago!

Our Spinning guild met last Sunday and did the 2nd half of our program on silk that Mary was teaching. We soaked cocoons, pulled out baby silkworms and their 'ahem' leavings, stretched them over frames we'd built, reeled silk onto cardboard and dyed a layer of silk hankies all in one afternoon! Some of my new friends were there and it was fun to sit and chat with them also! I don't feel as if I learned much other than how to remove the worms from the cocoon honestly..there were alot of participants and it was difficult at times to hear but I had great fun and brought home a little sample pack of all the offerings for my spinning notebook!

I've been deadline knitting for 2 weeks and most of it is swap/secret pal stuff that I can't post pics of until after our Knitting guild on Tuesday. I have 2 projects going for that plus the sweater from French Girl Knits that I don't have any decent pictures of yet.

May 9th is All About Women and I'm excited about being there in a spinning/knitting capacity in the 'life' section of the convention, where women learn about ways to enjoy life and just have some down time. On May 1st I'm scheduled to help my friend Mary with Pioneer Days at a school in Collierville with a spinning demo as well. Fun!

Ok, enough for now. May 1st is NOT that far off and I also have 35 of Jack's Department Heads and Managers coming to our house that day for a quarterly meeting which means 'get busy'!

One more pic - Buddah helps us keep it in perspective (to his belly, that is!)

Knitters Virtual Vacation Swap

I had never joined a swap before although I swapped yarns with a lady overseas for a bit. I'd read the etiquette and made darn sure that I overnighted my tourist's package so it would arrive on Friday.

No Word.

Ok, maybe she went away for the weekend (while my evil inner voice is whispering "She HATED it, you're the worst swapper EVER")

So today I check and still No Word.

The evil whisper escalates to a mad cackle and I begin to lose all faith in my package (even though I thought it was pretty damn nice on Thursday). Finally, a light flickers and I call my shipping guy for a tracking number.

There was some glitcho with the address "Cannot deliver without a valid street number. We have sent the recipient a postcard requesting the correct information". HUH? I mean, if you can't deliver it how in the hell is the postcard going to arrive? Does a postcard stealthily slip through where a shoebox size package cannot?

I had one of the tour guides email my tourist and I left the info in comments on her blog since I didn't want to blow the surprise. She's on her way to pick it up now!

Oh me of little faith.

WOW!

I swear, I didn't realize I'd totally abandoned this blog! No way has it been a month since I posted anything!

Actually it has - I was depressed over losing Louise (thanks for the kind thoughts, everyone!) and then we had a little vacation trip to D.C. and then the re-entry into the real world after vacation..bleh! Time just flies!

So, D.C. was cool, I'd never been there. We stayed in Baltimore and commuted each day to see different stuff. My sweetie mapped out a trail to several different yarn stores and very patiently spent an entire day driving me to them and waiting while I prowled around. I bought some souvenier yarn here and there but really didn't go crazy. I 'did' treat myself to a pair of Lantern Moon wooden needles that I loved!

I finished 3 dishcloths on the trip as well as forging ahead on the table runner I was making. BAG from hell. I knitted like crazy to finish this thing and was soooo excited about felting it and 70 dollars worth of yarn later um...it just doesn't work right for me. The straps won't stay over my shoulder and it now sits home hanging over a doorknob. Lovely decoration. Pffffffffffttttttttt.

Stitches Midwest was here last weekend! I began knitting after all the cool classes had sold out but I went to the market on Sunday. I ran across Franklin, this great guy who is doing a photo shoot of a thousand knitters. I was really, REALLY shy but worked up the nerve to sit for him. He was funny and very easy to talk to! The best part of the market was finding the ladies at the wool coop booth and getting a lesson on a drop spindle with some lovely green shetland. OH YEAH! I've been dying to learn to spin but know better than to bring home a wheel before I've exhibited the correct fortitude to Jack by learning the cheaper version first! I'm still struggling with tension and stuff but it is such an awesome process and I feel incredibly smart for trying! Ha! Modest too!

Ok, that's enough psycho babble for now. Here are a few pictures I happen to have downloaded to my work PC.