It's the end of the week and the end of the month, and it's been a strange couple of days here. We've had a lot of smoke come into the area from the Canadian wildfires, so our air quality has been horrible here -- code purple, which is one step above code red. It's given me a good idea of what it must've been like to live here at the height of the steel era. When I got up yesterday morning, I could not see to the end of our (pretty short) street due to the combination of smoke and fog. Here are some images captured by a local photographer I follow to give you a sense:
Things are supposed to improve a lot today, thankfully; I haven't been outside to exercise in two days, and I miss being outdoors!
I'm taking today off from work, using the second of my two personal days per year that expire today, and I have plans to take advantage of having the day to myself. I hope to run today, and then Mo and I have some things to do. We've got a bunch of clothes to box up and send off to ThredUP. We may do some baking for tonight's dessert. And on top of my list is taking final photos of these socks so I can publish the pattern (I got it back from my tech editor earlier this week, so all that's left to do is the final photos):
I'm obviously not going to finish the entire project before the end of the month, but it's possible I could finish (or get close to finishing) the singles of my combo spin.
I finished up the second bobbin (the purple one) yesterday and started on the third. Only three of the four balls of the final colorway are shown here because I'm nearly finished with the one that's missing. I've really been focused on this project this week because I'm really anxious/excited to see what the final yarn will look like, but I know I still have a lot of spinning -- and a lot of treadling! -- ahead of me. I'm also excited to spin something that isn't green!
We've got a pretty low-key weekend ahead, and our only plans for the 4th of July are going over to my brother- and sister-in-law's place for a BBQ. I'm hoping the weekend brings clearer air and lots of crafting time. I hope whatever you have planned is enjoyable!
After 4 days of extremely bad air quality here, too, today is finally looking a bit better. (I finally broke down and purchased a good air purifier with extra "toxin" filters. . . ) I am hoping to get outside for more than just a few minutes today, too. Here's to a fresh, clear weekend for all of us -- and an end to the fires in Canada! (C'mon, rain!)
ReplyDeleteI don't think our air quality is quite as bad as yours, but my eyes still sting after being outside for only 10 minutes or so, and I can't hang laundry outdoors. I don't want to be a whiner as I imagine it's worse in Canada, so this is sad all around. Your green spinning is gorgeous and I hope you have a lovely weekend!
ReplyDeleteThat air quality looks awful. Yesterday I came out of the grocery store and noticed an absolutely beautiful clear blue sky with some wispy white cloud formations and scallops. It was a moment of gratitude and delight for me. This green spin is also beautiful. Hooray for cuff down shorty socks with a tab! I hope to give them a try at some point. I already bought the pattern.
ReplyDeleteThese wildfires are terrible - I hope that it really did clear up a little yesterday and you were able to spend some time outside. I also hope that your day off was a good one! Enjoy your weekend!
ReplyDeleteHoping you had a nice, long weekend and I sure hope the air has cleared for you. Fletch cleaned one of our outside windows on our front door and the cloth was black! I haven't really noticed any odor of smoke or anything more than a little haze, but is sure is frustrating.
ReplyDeleteBack in about 1969 my two girlfriends and I took a road trip over spring break from Minneapolis to Boston (where one had a sister) and New York (where the other had a friend). It was very foggy as we passed Chicago. As we passed Gary, Indiana, the fog first turned red, then black. Yes, those were the days before the EPA.
ReplyDeleteMy father has often talked about the heyday of steel here, when men used to have to take an extra shirt to work downtown so they could change halfway through the day. Yuck!
Delete