Unraveled, Week 41/2024

Thank you all for putting up with my whining about my lost weekend in my last post and for your kind words. I'm happy to report that I'm feeling back to normal now -- even my arm, which was sore for several days after my shots, is better. With all of that bellyaching, I totally lost sight of the fact that Monday was October 7 and a very solemn day for Jews around the world. I don't want to bring you all down, but I'll note that I listened to a couple of podcasts on Monday that I felt helped me to understand the situation a bit better. This episode of This American Life tells the stories of some of the released hostages, and this episode of the Ezra Klein Show gave me a much better understanding of the political situation in Israel. If, like me, you get anxious when things seem out of control and feel better when you have more information, you might find them helpful.

Leaving the sadder events of the world behind, let's return to the fact that today is Wednesday, which means that it's time to join up with Kat and the Unravelers. Today I have finished handspun to share, thanks to a quiet work day on Monday.

This skein looked fairly messy until I twisted it up, likely due to the inconsistencies in the fiber. I spun this from roving -- and by that, I don't mean the term that's become a stand-in for "spinning fiber." True roving is a woolen or carded preparation, meaning that the fibers are all jumbled up and pointing every which way. Because of that arrangement, the fibers are not going to lie down neatly aligned when they're spun, so there's a lot of variation in the singles, even though I spun the roving with my usual short forward draw. I do like that this results in a more rustic look, though, that seems fitting to the blend of the fibers and the tweedy look the yarn has. The finished yarn is fingering to sport weight and about 380 yards of two ply. I did try different angles and lighting in an effort to capture the sparkly bits, but alas, they seem to be camera shy.

I have some more fiber from Margene in a very similar colorway that I was going to put on the wheel next, but I am planning to cast on a gnome soon and thought I should probably have some yarn on hand that could be used for a beard, so I pulled out a small bag of mystery white fiber (I suspect some leftovers from the Ross Farm when we were bagging it up several years ago for the the Rhinebeck booth) and spun about half of it yesterday afternoon:

If I had to guess, I'd say this is either Cheviot or Romney, mainly because I know that their offerings of white/cream wool are limited. But it's definitely very sheepy (and has a fair amount of VM) and a medium wool, not terribly soft but pleasant enough to work with. It'll be perfect for gnome beards, particularly as I don't expect to end up with a ton of yardage.

I still haven't started my handspun sweater, mainly because my brain hasn't felt totally up to following a pattern the past several days, so I've stuck to stockinette socks. Perhaps tonight's the night, though!

With the holiday and everything else going on last week, I did not have a ton of time to read, but when I did, I prioritized finishing up one book:

You may remember that I found an old hardback copy of September at that local church book sale in the summer, and Kat proposed a buddy read in the month of September (Carole later joined in the fun, too). This was a pure comfort read, set in a small Scottish town and following the lives of the members of several local families in the months leading up to a big party. The characters are all fully fleshed out and individual, and we learn more about them as the story unfolds -- their past loves, their heartbreaks, their regrets, their hopes and dreams. There's a bit of intrigue that seems a bit over the top and dramatic, but even that couldn't take away from the charm. I particularly liked how an immigrant family was portrayed; they play a very minor role in the story, but they are so lovingly treated by the locals and the author. My only real complaint is the (sometimes excessive) use of the phrase "as well" --  do they never say "also" in Scotland?! I gave it 4 stars.

I am currently reading the next Read With Us selection, Intermezzo, which I lucked out in getting very quickly from the library because I put it on hold within seconds of getting a notification alert that the library had it and ended up third on the wait list as a result. I am also reading Louise Erdrich's latest, The Mighty Red, which I had preordered from her bookstore earlier in the year, and I am listening to Quarterlife. I'm in my happy place now, with one book in each modality (digital, print, audio). I just hope the rest of the week provides me with the time to spend with all three!

What are you making and reading this week?