Redo- A New Concept

My friend, Lauren came by the other day. I was friends with her mom, Suzanne first, but Lauren and I have developed our own friendship of equals. I remember when she was born that it took her parents three months to name her. And Lauren was the first of the next generation to pass me on her outgrown clothing. She is now twenty six and living the kind of life that you would want for someone you love. Sitting in my studio with her mom and I, Lauren tells how her long term boyfriend asked her to marry him. It seems as though his first attempt, undermined by his runaway enthusiasm, was a bit lacking. Lauren offered him a "redo". And so, the next day he asks as if for the first time, perfectly.
What if we all did this for the people in our own lives? What if we had that option ourselves?
What harm would there be in saying, "This did not work out as I envisioned. May I have a "redo' "? We could then go on to undo the negative action and leave a more positive one in it's place. I have seen the future and it includes "redo's" for all!
Blog On!
Leslie

Someone Gave Me A Man For My Birthday

But he doesn't have a leg to stand on.

Gosh, I'll miss him

Blog On!

Leslie

59! Who me!

Today is my birthday and the whole thing feels surreal. How can I be this age? How could so much time have passed since my 40th birthday when older friends said that forty is so young and I thought they were crazy? How could I have changed so much in some ways and remain so stuck in others? How could it be that I am just starting to feel like I am getting the hang of what living is all about?
Since my last birthday I have lost two family members. That does kind of change my perspective on getting older. Gratitude reshapes a lot of perspectives. And choices. This is definitely the year to recalibrate. Everything, from who I let into my life and why to attitudes that need to be updated is open for examination. This is going to take constant mindfulness, but hey, I've got the rest of my life to do it.
Blog On!
Leslie

Spinning Off the Bunny

My booth at the Jamaica Fiber Festival had the advantage of being in the perfect spot to see Bella, short for Portabella, sit contentedly in Ruth's lap as Ruth "spun off the bun".

I love this show for the small town factor. The sense of community is strong enough for even those of us not living there to feel. And then there is the display of fiber and fiber related items. I was also in the perfect position to see Green Mountain Spinnery's booth which was filled with beautiful yarns and sweaters and other items made from the yarn.

Lunch was a varied selection of sandwiches plus a fabulous corn chowder. Despite the too good a price of $1 for two deserts (home made) I resisted.

Thank you Margi's Muse, http://margiesmuse.com/ , for making this happen.

Blog On!

Leslie

Pirate Sheep!?

One of the drawbacks to being a vendor at a sheep and wool show is that I miss some unique events that I would never get to see in the day to day world. This event at the New Hampshire Sheep and Wool Show was documented by my friend, Alexander. I got to know him through our weekly Sea Shanty nights at Cameron's Restaurant in Gloucester, MA. Under the auspices of the Schooner Adventure,

http://www.schooner-adventure.org/

the group has been singing together on a regular basis for a few years.

Long before I knew he was a talented photographer,

http://silverimagelimited.com/

I was attracted to his singing. Not just his voice, but his comfortable delivery and choice of material made me curious how he got to that point while I still hung back.

Discovering that his longtime friend, Richard lived close to the fair and was willing to put us up made a road trip possible. So for two days I "personed" my booth while Alexander roamed his first sheep and wool festival. How I wished I could have put a video camera on him so I could see all the events that he was photographing. His photo of two children in costumes that co-ordinated with their lambs is a good example.

Richard's house was way neater than mine and very comfortable. The biggest hint that a single guy lived there was the array of remotes lined up on the arm of the spacious couch in front of the high tech TV. Were it in my house I would get no work done. Since both men are open conversationalists, our topics were wide ranging and interesting. The only downside was that I find myself recovering from an overdose of second hand testosterone.

Blog On!,

Leslie

Mother - Daughter Socks

The New Hampshire Sheep and Wool Show was a joy for me this year . First of all the weather was cool but mostly sunny and no rain unlike the flood of two years ago.

Secondly I got to share my booth with Judy,

http://www.ballandskein.com/

which meant I could run to visit Chris Morgan, http://woolybuns.typepad.com/visit the ladies' room and get food (oh those cookies from the Rolling in the Dough booth. (I think I remembered the name correctly). Making and keeping the connections at these events is key to our "close knit" community.

And then there is the parade of fashions! The top jacket stopped me in my tracks. I sadly forgot to get her name, but the jacket looked like she had such fun!

The sock story was a sweet Mother's Day discovery. Mom, Denise

http://www.said-the-hobbit.blogspot.com/ had made daughter, Sarah

http://www.geekxnerd.com/

eight pairs of socks for her birthday! The rust orange pair on the left is one of those eight. The striped sock on the right, modeled by Denise, is knitted from the remainders of those eight pairs. Those are the kinds of gifts really show caring.

Blog On!

Leslie

Three Shows, in Three States, in Three Weeks

This time of year is a polar opposite Christmas season for me. It is that insane over the top activity but I don't just stay home and let the world come to me. One of the biggest surprises is that I actually like all the aspects of it. Well, that is assuming that I have made and brought enough items in the right categories and the right styles to feel confident.
This will be my third New Hampshire Sheep and Wool Growers Show ( http://http//www.nhswga.com/content/view/36/33/ ). I know to bring things to make while I sit there. I know to bring healthy snacks as the booth with huge wonderful cookies is just a few places away.
The best part of these shows is seeing the response to new designs. The Internet is wonderful for selling but nothing beats hearing the response from knitters and other fiber artists who are motivated to come to these shows.
I will post pictures and stories next week.
Blog On!