The new do
Mood:  special
Now Playing: "Summer" by War
Here is a picture of my new hair-do. Very blond, and shorter than it had been.



And I treated myself to all kinds of haircare products.

As the commercial says "I'm worth it!" :)

I've also finished editing the IAGARB newsletter. Next step is copying it, making 140 sample skeins, and then mailing it. Think I can do it by Thursday morning?

My little water rats
Mood:  happy
Now Playing: "All Out of Love" by Air Supply
Here is a picture of my two boys; their sheer delight at having a pool to play in was worth the cost, and the time setting it up (I spent 1 hour trying to get the ladder together, and still failed; DH had it together in 15 minutes!).



I think they are going to be just like I was when I was a kid; not leaving the water until I was called in to eat meals. :)

One very long but great weekend
Mood:  celebratory
Now Playing: "Beach Baby" by First Class on AOL's Summer Daze
Topic: Various things
We had a wonderful weekend. The July 4th parade was a great success. We attended three different parties on July 4th in the evening, and yesterday was spent shopping for a pool.

The pool is one of those big blue things that are showing up in yards all over the country. They are much less expensive than a regular above ground pool, but a starting place to see if we like the work involved in owning a pool.

So far, it took us 10 hours to fill it; yes, it is that big. But I've been trying to set up the ladder so the boys can go into it, and I'm not having much success. So we are waiting for DH to get home to do the job; he'll probably have it together in 10 minutes as opposed to my hour tangling with it. :)

Other than that, not much else is going on. The rabbits are doing well, and now that we are having days in the mid 70's, they are much more comfortable. Merlot, my newest buck was shorn 10-14 days before coming here the first week of June; his fur is now over 2 inches long. I'm seeing over 1/4" of growth each week, and I'm really impressed with this. For a summer growth, that is spectacular.

Annie's babies are almost 4 months old. I'm seeing great shoulder width on Jack Frost along with a good coat, who is going to a nice lady up in Maine, and the other three does are showing good coats too. Once they are at 4 months, I plan to evaluate them according to IAGARB, and figure out which doe stays here, and which ones go to their new homes.

Rush, rush, rush
Mood:  bright
Now Playing: "I Know There's Somthing Going On" by Frida on Radio AOL
Topic: Daily musings
Today's errands include a trip over to Webs to buy Addi Turbo needles so that I can knit while waiting at the reviewing stand of tomorrow's parade (I have the job of greeting our special guests, which I do like doing. I'm one of the few committee members that actually gets to see the entire parade!). Then it's back home to wait for the rental company to drop off the canopy, then to the farmer's market for veggies if it hasn't closed, and back home to figure out decorations for the reviewing stand.

It won't be a relaxing weekend, but it will be fulfilling.

Have a wonderful July 4th everyone! :)

Lazy Summer Days
Mood:  on fire
Now Playing: "Sailing" by Christopher Cross
Twenty four years ago this week I was spending my first two weeks at the beach, and developing my first crush on an older guy (he was 20). John is now one of my best friends; we remained friends through the years, past that horrible crush stage (I was MUCH too young for him!), to the point where we call each other up to discuss work (he's an appraiser too; got into it after I did). And Sea Isle City is still one of my favorite places to be. I want a portion of my ashes to be scattered there when I die. :)

Here is a picture of SIC:



While that is a horrible photo, the beaches are clean, with very soft white sand, the water is always in the 70's in August, and the people are friendly.

On the fiber front; I haven't done much. I have three more days until the parade, and then I can kick back and relax for a month.

It is raining here. I love the smell of rain in the summer time. Everything smells clean.

Feeling Nostalgic
Mood:  chillin'
Now Playing: "Could It Be I'm Falling In Love" by the Spinners
So far this summer, the weather has been perfect, and hearing the above mentioned song makes me think of the summers long ago that I used to spend down in southern NJ at my grandmothers. She ran a grocery store for many years with my Uncle Babe, who sold it to my cousin Paul, who ran it for several years, then closed it. My grandmother worked in the store as a cashier 40+ hours a week until she was 85 years old. My fondest childhood memories are of being down at my grandmothers; swimming at my aunt's pool (she lives across the street from where my grandmother lived, the house my uncle now owns), taking day trips down to the beach, hanging out at the store, sometimes even getting paid to work (I liked to dust cans and shelves as a small child; too bad that dusting urge didn't hold over to adulthood!) and seeing all of my cousins, aunts and uncles. Sometimes you just don't know how good you had it until much later in life.

No fiber work to speak of right now. Its crunch time with getting the parade set for Sunday, and I'm a bit behind on work. I might sit down tonight and spin a bit on my Joy wheel, with Halcyon's fleece. I'd rather be knitting, but because I still need my Addi Turbos in size 7 and 8, I can't do that. :)

All this yarn staring me in the face
Mood:  cool
Now Playing: "Heart of the Matter" by Don Henley

And I've yet to start a project. :)

Actually, that is the plan for today. Since my inspection this morning was canceled, I can finish up the one job I have, and then knit or spin for the day while my house is being cleaned (thank goodness for housecleaners!).

I suppose that I should start on the angora tank. That would be the best one to start on, although my fingers are itching to do a swatch up for the Icelandic barn sweater.

What I'd really love to do today is to take drive down to the Wool Connection in Avon, CT. But I think I'll skip that. Since gas prices are still high (even though we are now below $2 a gallon), I think I'll stick closer to home. Too bad that none of my LYS's carry Addi Turbos. That is what I really want.

I forgot to mention
Now Playing: "I Ran" by A Flock of Seagulls

That my wonderful husband also got then rest of the garden planted the other night when I was in a meeting (I had meetings on both Wednesday and Thursday night). All of the veggies are in, and doing great.

We just might have a Victory Garden yet (for those that remember the PBS series, and it was hosted by Jim Crockett).

A perfectly delightful day
Mood:  happy
Now Playing: "Ride Like the Wind" by Christopher Cross on AOL's Awesome 80's
We were up in Saxton's River, VT., today, at the Grafton Fibers Spin-In. There is nothing like a fiber event to leave someone energized and feeling like they can take on the fiber world.

Not only did I have a great day, just having fun, but I was finally able to meet some people that I've known online for many months (and in the case of one, a couple of years). I met Helen from the NETA list, who is a delightful woman. She has such a relaxed air about her, that just being in her presence allows one to feel very much at home with her, and I met Elaine (aka Wet) from the Sheep Thrills list. While I didn't really get a chance to talk too much to Elaine, she's such a cheerful person, that one knows that you would have fun hanging out with her.
I also made a purchase today; Lucas Fletcher from Ewephoric Icelandic Farm was there, and he had the most gorgeous bulky weight Icelandic yarn. I just had to buy two skeins in this pale grey. I'm eyeing this as a barn sweater for when the weather turns cooler. :)

I was able to chat today with Cath, Alice and Jeff, David and Kathy from the Merlin Tree, Marcy, Harry, Wendy (who will be taking one of Mia's babies home in September!), Ritu, Dan, and Linda and Tom. Tom even sang for us, and is an amazing guitar player. In fact, when Tom took Linda's newest sheep home, my husband went with him, and now has lathe envy (o.k., so he already had that, but now he really wants one). I'm glad Dale was able to meet Tom finally, I think that made his day being able to hang out with a couple of other guys.

I'm not sure what we'll do tomorrow. All I want to do tonight is kick back and relax. I have a pint of Bart's Cookies and Cream ice cream in the freezer, and I'll eat a bit of that, and go watch "Cops".

Record reading
Mood:  lyrical
Now Playing: "Too Hot" by Kool and the Gang on Summer Daze Radio AOL
I finished reading "The Shop on Blossom Street" this morning. It is a wonderful book, and I highly recommend it. The story takes place in Seattle, and starts at a new yarn shop called "A Good Yarn". Each chapter is about one of the four women that attend knitting class at the shop and how their lives evolve and change due to this knitting class.
If you are looking for a book to sit back and relax with this summer, I highly recommend this book.

Today I am going to try to register Twist with IAGARB. I'm not sure he'll pass the wool registration; we've had some incredibly hot days in the past month, and his fur isn't as long as I'd like. I have seen a good increase in his wool since I started him on Leslie's food (and for the record, only the purebred Germans are on this food, everyone else is on the Blue Seal feed). If he doesn't pass today, then we'll go for another registration, probably sometime in the late Fall.

I will be at Linda's spin-in tomorrow. I have lots of rovings to bring, along with one or two bunnies to sell. :)