So I started this blog and wandered away again…

…pretty typical, wouldn’t you say? It’s been a weird and discomfiting summer and fall. And apparently I missed all of October.

I finally got a huge order of sock yarn off to The Loopy Ewe. It’s not posted (as of today) but will be shortly. I sent 12 skeins times 15 colorways…a whole bunch of work. And now I’m hanking up 15 pounds of laceweight for the dyepot as well. I’ve been invited to do some sockweight yarns for a Ravelry group called Blankie Mania…I’m so honored! And just 5 skeins away from being ready.

I’ve actually done some knitting. I won some handdyed fiber at the fiber fest in West Branch in September…a 60/40 Superwash Merino/Seacell blend. I enjoyed spinning it so much that I immediately plied it up. I had 83 yards of chunky yarn…what to do with it? Knit it into a simple cowl, that’s what! It’s beautiful. The Seacell gives the yarn quite a gleam.

*I have pictures but have completely forgotten how to put them into posts, so I’ll edit this when I finally figure it out again. :::sigh::: That’s what I get for taking long vacations between posts.

**Wait a second! I uploaded the pictures to flickr, and you can see them right next to this post! Technological ineptitude be damned! There they are!

In other news, I’m working on a sweater for Danny…we’ll see if I actually get it finished before it gets to hot again. And I’ve just put a hat for him on the needles…the others I knit last years are all too small. He’s grown so much this summer. And I’m in the midst of crocheting a blankie for him. His other grandmother was Oma-on-the-spot with the knitted items when he was born, but I was Nana-in-the-delivery-room and Nana-rocking-the-newborn-so-mama-can-sleep and never finished anything but the cashmere hat he wore in the hospital. So I’m trying to catch up now.

Speaking of grandson and daughter, my amazing Kate spent a month looking around online for a house, with her husband (over in Qatar) and a friend in Shreveport who did the legwork of checking the houses out. Last week Kate and Danny flew to Louisiana to close on, and actually see, for the first time, their new home. She’s thrilled, and I’m incredibly proud that my 23 year old daughter orchestrated the entire thing pretty much all by herself. I don’t know if I could have done the same. And it looks like Mike will be home before Christmas…hopefully they will have a wonderful holiday celebration in their new home.

There’s so much more but this has been sitting here in the ‘edit’ mode for a two days now, so here it is. I miss all you guys!

***It just occurred to me that this is November, the NaBloPoMo. And if I had posted this the day I wrote it originally, I might actually have given consideration to participating. Maybe I can try to post once a week?

Thank you all so much!

I came back to my blog and was floored by all the love and comments. Thank you all *so* much!

I’ve been trying to sort things out and make some life-changing decisions, like…where am I going to live? …how will I pay the bills? …what do I do with all the animals? …am I leaving Michigan and if I do, will I have to live in the south? (Most of my family is in Florida, Georgia and Louisiana. Have I ever mentioned here how much I hate the heat?)

Financially things are tight, but by the grace of God I’m making it. I’ve got so much yarn to dye, so much handspun and handdyed to post in my shops, a pattern and yarn KAL to post in my Rav group and more. And absolutely no ambition to do any of it. Chasing my grandson is so much more fun and distracting.

I’m comfortable with the idea of living alone…I like quiet. I’m trusting God that I’ll figure out how to handle things financially. I just need to figure out where I’ll be. I’m seriously considering looking around in Grand Rapids for a job and a place to live.

The biggest issue is insurance. Right now the stbx* has good insurance that covers most everything including optical and dental. Once divorced, I no longer qualify. As it works, the courts would require him to pay me some rehabilitive alimony (nearly 50% of his takehome pay) and also for him to carry ‘comparable’ insurance for me. Because of my health issues and medications, that would be costly….likely more than he actually makes. Apparently we cannot afford to get divorced.

So Monday I’m heading down to FIA to find out what my options are if I just file and don’t ask for any additional support. I do have the house (his name’s on it, but he may be willing to sign a quit claim deed for me since he did tell me that any profit from a sale would be mine..thank you, dear) but selling anything up here right now is nearly impossible. Crawford County is the 2nd or 3rd poorest county in the state. It’s unlikely that I will be able to even list, never mind sell the house until the snow’s melted (late April 2010.) So I’m digging in and getting the propane filled, having pellets delivered (we heat with a pellet stove) and trying to patch anything in the roof that might lead to water in the house.

This house is an older manufactured home, pre-BOCA, which means that it didn’t have to conform to very strict standards. The wallboard is 3/8″, the plumbing is leaky grey plastic Quest, and there is absolutely no insulation anywhere between the inside and outside. None. It needs a new bathroom (mine) and new roof (something that I’ll make a concession on in a sale) and to be completely painted (we’re working on this.) And after that, if I can scrounge up enough money and get a good enough deal from a local purveyor, we’ll put down some new carpeting. All this is speculation, given that I’m still working for grocery money.

Emotionally, I think I’m doing all right. I find it’s hard to tell. I’ve read a few books about it and find that I don’t really conform to anything they’re saying. Perhaps it has something to do with still being in my home…or having my daughter and grandson here rather than being alone…I’ve no clue. But I do feel pretty strong. I guess time will tell.

And that’s all I have to say. Life’s still going on and I’m doing pretty good. Thank you all for caring…that’s the best part!

My babies…:-)

 

 

*stbx: soon-to-be-ex

“What’s new, Susie?” “Oh, not much. I’m getting divorced. What’s new with you?”

How did 25 years slip by, to only now discover that I don’t really know this person I’ve been with all this time?

In the past couple of years, there’s been some knitting and some spinning and a whole lot of dyeing, but the rest has been kinda hard and often unpleasant. There’s been a lot of fighting and unhappiness too. A sold business, a lost job, both kids grown and gone, and two people who don’t have the same view of the future. Turns out we’re best friends who can’t live together.

If you happened to click over here wondering if I’d perished somehow or been kidnapped or something, nothing of the sort has happened. This may be almost as weird, though. I’m going to have to learn to live alone. To work at a 9-5 job and make enough money to support myself. To convince my brother David to send me to Australia so that I can climb the Sydney Harbour Bridge before I’m too old. I’m taking some time to actually figure out what I want to be when…and if…I grow up. I’m going to post everything I’ve got in both my shops and have a divorce sale soon.

Thank you all who’ve been so faithful about checking on me. I’m okay…surprisingly. And I hope that this will once again be a fiber blog. That would be nice.

…and then I wasn’t in Louisiana anymore.

Several weeks of hanging in Shreveport with my kids and grandson…fun, but terribly hot and sticky. Still, I mushed through, thanks to the godsend of air conditioning. No knitting or spinning to speak of, but I brought with me from Michigan the whole tub of unposted yarns (and a few rovings.) Pictures were taken, some color correction and resizing done, a couple posted in my shop. A LOT of time with Daniel in my arms. I couldn’t be happier. :-)

However, after a couple of weeks I figured they’d had enough of my company for a while, so I called my sister in Atlanta. It’s in the South, right? Couldn’t be that far from Shreveport, right? Straight through on I20, right? Off I headed. Right.

Just fyi, it’s about 625 miles, or roughly half the distance from Northern Michigan to Shreveport. Imagine my surprise when I was still driving after 11 hours. Perhaps a quick peek at a map, or maybe even a glimpse at Mapquest might have alerted me to the fact that I would spend an entire day driving each way. I drove across almost all of Louisiana, all the way across Mississippi, all the way across Alabama, and a goodly distance into Georgia. Waved to all the knitters/spinners/Ravelers in each state as I passed by. :::waves:::

No matter. I’m here now, in one of my most favorite places to be. (I love my sisters’ homes…they feel like my own home only bigger and I don’t have to vacuum.) We spent yesterday afternoon in a huge antique exhibition hall (two halls, actually. Huge.) I had no idea that there was so much old stuff to be had. Patty (my sister) has a fabulously well appointed home and she knows a lot about a lot of antique stuff (I was clueless but more educated about some of the stuff by the time we left.) Today I got to sleep in. It’s a lot like vacation.

It occurred to me that I never posted a picture of Danny here. He’s grown so much. At 13 months (I know! How did that happen?) he’s walking everywhere, working on talking and busting through a whole bunch of teeth. What a doll. I did the Nana thing and bought him a popcorn popper. After attempting to use it as a battering ram, he was persuaded that it was actually and could be used as a toy. Maybe.

There’s more, but once again, if I don’t hit the ‘Post’ button immediately…y’all know what happens then.

:::off to knit:::

…acting all nonchalant, as though I hadn’t been gone for months…

So I never managed to blog from The Netherlands (much) because my brother kept me moving most of the time. We cycled, walked, cycled some more, saw the Keukenhof Gardens, Amsterdam, and much of Rotterdam. In an effort to keep from being labeled ‘lame’ I gave it my all. I returned to the US bruised and battered, minus 7 pounds of unsightly Me that was left behind. There’s something to this exercise thing, right?

********************************************************

That first paragraph was written on May 26th. Somehow I never got around to posting. I suppose I could enumerate the reasons why this poor blog has been ignored, but I’ve no intention of boring anyone with the dailyness. Suffice it to say that it’s been real.

Meantime, I drove from northern Michigan to Shreveport, Louisiana where I’m currently baby wrangling. Mike is fixing to deploy to Qatar in the next few weeks. I came down early so that Kate and he could have a small baby-less vacation before he leaves. I was here last in November when Daniel was just 6 months old and almost sitting up by himself. Now he’s walking and talking and very, very busy. He requires less sleep than any baby I’ve ever seen except, perhaps, his mother. He’s smart and beautiful and astonishingly strong. He’s sunshine-y most of the time…those other times he’s sort of tornado-y.

I’m feeling a bit displaced. I’ve been here for about two weeks now.  We haven’t set a firm date to return to Michigan…wait…did I mention that I’m driving back with Kate, Daniel, two cats and all the stuff we can fit into the car for the near-six months that they’ll be with us in Michigan? Probably not. But that’s the plan. It remains to be seen how the cats will take the trip. I’m pretty sure we’re going to have to take three or four days rather than the two I usually make it in, simply because I can’t imagine Danny tolerating the car seat for that long. How many hotels take cats? :::off to Google hotels:::

It would appear that quite a few do, though it costs a little more. At least we won’t be leaving them in the car to howl all night. I’m sure they’ll do that in our hotel room.

Knitting. Right. I’ve been doing some of that. Spinning…a little. I brought a spindle and roving to Shreveport this time, not a wheel. Both wheels are sitting at home with full bobbins, ready to ply. Dyeing…well, I finished the laceweight for Sheri at The Loopy Ewe. Next up will be more 24/7 Sockyarn, once I get home.

And before I was even ready, Kate decided to start a Perchance To Knit group on Ravelry. I’m stunned at how many wonderful knitters have joined. Kathy (Runs With Needles) has given me a hand and a terrific start. I continue to need input…I’ve never done this sort of thing before, so I’m looking to everyone else for what they’d like the group to be/do. Once I’m in a dyeing place again I know that there’ll be some sort of contest with yarn/roving prizes. I’d love to do some sort of pattern/yarn kit in my Etsy shop…anyone interested? Need input!

Since I drove down, I brought all the unposted yarn/handspun/roving (not much roving) with me to Louisiana. It’s been photographed. Now I have to resize, color correct if necessary, and get them posted in my shops. I promise that there’ll be new stuff soon.

So that’s about all I know at the moment. If I don’t hit the ‘post’ button now this will sit here again for who knows how long.

Met excuses…

That actually means, “With apologies…’ in Dutch. No excuses, just an apology. I really intended to post regularly as I did when I went to Okinawa, but we’ve so seldom actually been home (here) that there’s been almost no time. I do promise at least one long, picture filled post when I get back to Michigan. I have lots to show and tell.

:::Sorry for being a blog slacker:::

Rotterdam, the first post

After an uneventful 8 hour flight I arrived at Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam. My brother was expecting two of his offspring as well as me in some triple crown of orchestrated arrivals (we were flying three different carriers and coming from three different cities), and within an hour we were on our way home to Rotterdam. It took me until today to get my sleep turned around. Miserable does not begin to cover it. Around here, walking is the main mode of transportation. I’ve been valiant and not whined or moaned, but I was not happy. Today, I’m happy.

There are SO many differences in lifestyle between my house and his. I have pictures of many of them and will post as I get myself together. Simple things I take for granted don’t exist here, mostly for efficiency’s sake. It’s a different mindset entirely. Any of you who’re ex-pats understand what I mean; any of you who’ve traveled a little further into Europe than, say, the main cities, will also know what I mean.

Space is at a premium in the cities, so things are as economically sized as possible. The stairwells are narrow and the stairs themselves are steep. The rooms often serve more than one purpose. Certain aspects of daily life are simplified. To wit:    

 Refrigerator, freezer, stovetop. Handy.

Washer…it’s waist high. See a dryer anywhere? Nope. That’s out here, where the rain is threatening:

 

 

 

 

 

(Sry for fuzzy; wind was blowing)

 

 

 

 

 

And now I know why Europeans drive small cars. Can’t see my Envoy fitting down most of these side streets. And parking? Who am *I* kidding?

I’m having issues with pictures, so I’ll leave that until I have a little more time. I’m adjusting to the time difference, think I’m done with jet lag and the blisters on my feet from walking everywhere are retreating. I’m ready to start looking around.

Tot ziens!

Leavin’ on a jet plane…!

I’m heading to The Netherlands, courtesy of my brother David (who lives in Rotterdam.) I’ve shipped everyone’s purchases, closed the shops, packed 2/3 of everthing I own (and put some of it back…) I’m going on vacation! …sort of.

Here’s the thing about vacations: to my way of thinking, I’ve not really had a real, real vacation in a very long time. In my mind, a vacation is where someone else makes the bed and cooks, and you can sleep until you wake up on your own. Many times I’ve gone away, sometimes as far as Japan, but it’s always been to see family. And as much as I adore my family (and I really, really do) it seldom meets the above criteria. It is a possibility that this trip may be moreso than most others mainly because there aren’t nieces and nephews there, giving me the opportunity to sleep a little later most days. And David is a phenomenal gourmet cook, so I’m guessing that he won’t want me in the kitchen making spaghetti from a jar or mac ‘n’ cheese. I’ll probably still have to make my own bed, but two outta three ain’t bad. (I’ll get to see the nieces and nephews next time around…I’m thinking I’ll be missing them.)

I’ll have my computer with me, and my camera, so I’m going to try to make this a mini-travelogue. I’ve already connected with several knitters in Rotterdam via Ravelry, so there’ll be some of that too. For the record, I’ve got 3 skeins of hand dyed yarn, 3 skeins of handspun yarn, and several batts of hand dyed roving to take with me. I’ll either be hawking it in the streets, giving it as gifts, or knitting it up myself. Time will tell.

I’ve also got a line on several yarn shops…they’re a little different over there. And I’ll have to take a train halfway across the country to get to some of them (woot!) If my directions are good and I can find someone who can understand either my English or my broken Dutch, I should be all good.

So that’s the story. I’ll post again sometime after the 8 hour flight and some sleep. I arrive in Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam at 7:20am local time, or about 1:20am according to my body clock. It’ll be interesting.

Dag!

Call me irresponsible, call me unreliable…

…and you’d be correct on both counts.

How is it that I managed to keep a relatively successful blog going for 3+ years and once I got rid of it I seemed to drop the blogging ball entirely? It’s not that I have nothing to say, that’s for sure. It’s not that I’m not around the computer all the time…so just what *is* it then?

I’m clueless. That may be it.

So I’m gathering all the stuff I need to put a group together. I’m waiting on someone to find out if I can use the icons and avatar she created before I make a group and have someone flame me (long story.) I’ve got to go ask Kathy if she’ll help me figure out this administrator/moderator thing…can’t just assume.

April 20th

Can you believe how the time flies…! Okay. I’m irresponsible. But! I did send an email to the above noted Kathy, requesting her help with the group. And I’ve got a pm into the graphic artist and I’ve taken a meeting with the designer…she’s already got a lovely (and unique, just for us!) sock pattern for the first…I dunno what you call it…KAL? perhaps? I’ll be putting the yarn and pattern together as a package to be purchased by members of the group and we’ll have a KAL, then a showing off of our work.

I am open to any ideas that y’all may have concerning this group. I’ve already gotten a few and will implement those early on. I’m thinking that we’ll be ready to do this all within 4 weeks. Mostly because I’m leaving on Wednesday to go visit my brother.

Okay. Nothing else to say except to tell you all that I’m almost done with the sales (20% off almost everything in both shops, and free shipping for orders over $50 in the US.) I have a little more yarn to post, and then I’ll be closing the shops on the 22nd. When I reopen them the prices with go back up and the free shipping with go up to orders over $75. You have been warned!

Thank you to all who’ve commented and gotten ahold of me in other ways. Wait…did I mention that I actually met one of my blog friends *in person* last week? Woot! Dana, of OCD…Knitting has a cabin up north, somewhat near me. We met (along with her friend and neighbor, Christine) at the yarn shop in Gaylord and had lunch at Applebee’s. She’s a very cool lady and we had a lot of fun chatting. Maybe this’ll encourage her to start blogging again…

Anyone else want to come visit?

In not knitting news, Saturday was Prom…Miescha’s last one. Nick hired a limo and wore a fancy tux, Miescha was totally surprised. They look so pretty!  

 One more thing…if you do decide to purchase something(s) from my shops, leave the words, “I saw it on your blog” in the ‘notes to seller’ part, and I’ll give you another 5% off your total purchase…that’s 25% off everything, and free shipping if you purchase more than $50 of fiber/yarn.

And I’ll give it my best shot at blogging again this decade.

(Thanks to all who’re still voting for Scott in the Quaker State thing. He’s still holding a strong second place thanks to you all!)

I’m a little bit skeered. (Could you hold my hand?)

I’ve decided to take the plunge and start a Ravelry group. It’ll take me a week or two to get it together because I’d like to have everything in place before I announce it. I will send invites to everyone I know, but first and most especially to all here for your encouragement and kind words while I’ve been waffling about it. I am a little scared, but y’all have given me enough backbone to get started.

If you’ve got ideas about what you’d like to see in the group, please let me know. And one other thing…I have reason to believe that there is a possibility that I will be needing both a group administrator and a moderator (and if it gets big (as if…) I’ll need more. Yay!) Currently I’m waiting on a lot of base yarns and rovings, so right now dyeing the stuff and getting it put into shops is my priority. I don’t want to put the proverbial cart before the horse; I’ll keep y’all posted.

And that’s all I know for now. Back in a bit.