Episode 20 - Snow & Such

Hello everyone!
Had some snow that covered the ground this past week, but the temps warmed up and we received some rain, so guess where that went?  Here's hoping for some more white stuff.

Fiber Conquests

Knitting:

The Mystery Cowl KAL is done.  The cowl now has a name:  The Sartorial Cowl.  The word "sartorial" means 'of or relating to a tailor.'  My cowl is blocking---I'll be adding buttons when it's dry.

I'll be starting a couple of pairs of fingerless mitts for some of the men in my family for holiday gifts.  The pattern is from Knits Men Want by Bruce Weinstein.  The book gives multiple gauges for the projects which is extremely helpful when trying to use up stash yarn or whatever is on hand at any given time.  I'm going to be using my own mill-spun yarn for these projects:  a warm dark grey yarn from Harvey's and Dugel's fleeces.

Crochet:

Work on the Fine Feathered Cloche by Linda Cyr continues (Clever Crocheted Accessories by Brett Bara). 

I'll be starting another hat from this same book (another gift, most likely):  The Sedimentary Hat by KJ Hay.  This hat uses two colors---the main color will be, again, the warm dark grey yarn from my sheep and a cream-colored yarn from Maple's fleece.

No news in spinning or other crafting as these have taken a back seat to the holiday rush gifts!

What's happening on the farm and in the barn?

Well, we had a yearly vet visit this week.  The sheep received all their shots (vaccinations) and they were checked over.  Bentley, our Golden Retriever, also had an exam and some blood drawn to check for parasites---he was good as gold (no pun intended!)

Seymour is in good health and will be off to visit 4 other BFL lady sheep on another farm this Saturday.  The farm is owned by a friend and I made her no promises about his verility.

The DH and I had to take a hacksaw to Harvey's wayward horns after the vet left.  His horns grow straight into his head unless we chip away at them every now and again.  He is, certainly, my most genetically-mutant sheep amongst the bunch---but he is our first and only (so far) lamb born on the farm and so, he's kind of special to us.........his fleece is beautiful too---and when you're a spinner, that's a good reason to keep on keeping on.....

Chickens!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! have arrived!  Oh, it's so good to have chickens back on the farm again.  We have four---all different breeds:  Golden Comet, Rhode Island Red, Buff Orpington, and Bard Rock.  Can't wait for the fresh eggs again---yahoo!

Our wild birds have been coming to the feeder (which I just re-hung for the year) in droves.  We have mostly chickadees and grey jays---it's great to watch them though.  We had to move the feeder already because Cooper was chowing down on the feed that was dumped on the ground---makes for a very high fiber diet for a dog.

Sleeping on the Job:  Cognitive changes due to anesthesia

The studies that are out there right now are inconclusive---in other words, is this phenomenon caused by anesthesia, surgery, inflammation, or a combination of these three.  A lot of times, the cognitive changes are already there and anesthesia serves to "unmask" what a person has successfully been able to hide or compensate for.  So, it may be what the patient brings to the table as this type of phenomenon is most common in the elderly.  Sometimes, just some soothing words are enough to calm a patient who is experiencing emergence delirium.

Yammer:

Folks, remember, we are having a giveaway for the month of December.  On New Year's eve, I will be choosing one lucky listener to receive Cast On Bind Off:  211 Ways to Begin and End Your Knitting by Cap Sease.  All you have to do is go on over to the Counting Sheep Podcast Group on Ravelry (please join us!) and leave a comment on the thread---tell be what your favorite cast on and/or bind off is.  We've already had some great comments---thanks!

Geo-Georgie comes to visit

Cooper with Geo-Georgie

I was given the opportunity to participate in a 2nd-grader's homework assignment and I had a blast.  The 2nd-grader is Daniel, the son of a dear friend in NJ.  Geo-Georgie is a cartoon turtle colored by Daniel----I took Georgie on a picture-tour of some sites in Windsor and on the farm and picked up some old photographs in town to send back to NJ with him.




So that's all for this week...........take care!