Pages

Crazy as a Loom

Thursday, March 12, 2009

My life is boring-YAY.


Here are the rep weave towels I am working on, from a pattern in an old Handwoven magazine. I made some for my daughter for her birthday, and now I need to weave this warp off.
Getting the studio clean today, for the weaving weekend that starts tomorrow. It is a big house, and I make BIG messes. Thank God, I had Tammy. She is a godsend.
I put my tall, rubber boots on. They are covered with writing........that says "Anyone who says sunshine brings happiness, has never danced in the rain." I went outside and checked out the crocus and snowdrops coming up on the south side of the house. Then I mogged out through the snow, to see if I could walk the labyrinth, but I couldn't. But soon, soon. I am going to have a bench or two out there in my secret garden, a table where I can go and have lunch, I want to create a place of serenity and relaxation.
I am so excited to start planting perennials and shrubs. Of course, since I got the idea to put the labyrinth out there, I don't have as much space to fill. But that's OK, I have a small meadow right behind the labyrinth, and I am going to plant wildflowers there. As soon as the ground is thawed out, I will have it someone come and run the discs over it, to rough it up, and then I will broadcast a wildflower mix. I will plant some heirloom seeds around the barn.

The barn is half tool shed, and half fabric storage. I had a floor and walls put in one side of it, to store sock seconds, and big fabric rolls. I had to plug up every possible crack with wire mesh, so the squirrels wouldn't keep trying to store sunflower seeds in there. The loft is like a lot of old barns, open on both ends, with lots of spaces between the boards. When I bought the house, the barn listed badly to the west. In another couple of winters, it would have probably fallen down. So we had "the barn man" come and yank it upright, replace rotten beams, and repair what he could. The metal roof was rusty, and the rain came right down through it, so we put on a new, green metal roof. We have had a three year battle with wood chucks. I am happy to live and let live, but they insist on having their "main" hole INSIDE the barn. This is unacceptable. So the war was on. We tried everything, but no matter what we did, the hole kept reappearing. But finally, I stumbled on something that was "unacceptable" to them. I started dumping my used kitty litter down the hole, and down every other woodchuck hole I found. So far, the holes have not reappeared. But I know that they went into hibernation in late fall, so I will be looking for evidence any day that they are back. I just want them to stay out of the barn, is that too much to ask?
I got thinking about blogging. I started posting in February 2007. I wrote sporadically. It felt strange. I don't think anyone read any of it, and I had no idea how to make that happen. But I wrote anyway.
Now I write on my blog often, almost every day, and I just like doing it. What I find is that I pay more attention to what happens during my day, I look at everything with a fresher approach. I think I am more inclined to explore my life, so I can share it. I guess it just make me more aware of what is going on in my life on a day to day basis, and makes me appreciate every bit of it. And that is a good thing.
How crazy is that?


7 comments:

Hilary said...

Certainly no crazier than the rest of us. :)

I'm intrigued by your Labyrinth and imagine you'll post more about it at some point. I totally understand your need to keep the critter outside of your space. I fought with a raccoon mama last spring - and lost. They're determined little critters and make good blog fodder (three posts worth!). Those towels are lovely. I quite enjoyed this post. :)

Lynnette said...

I've just found your blog and really enjoyed the read. The towels are fabulous! Love the colours and the pattern. No wood chucks here, but star nose moles have totally undermined my garden path!

Candy Duell said...

I agree, your towels are beautiful.

How come you have much less snow than I do???? The only place you can see ground is where it was plowed.

Hilary said...

Hilary......the labyrinth was an impulse, everyone thought I had gone over the edge.....where's the edge? But I love it....I can't explain it, but I just love it.
Lynnette.....Thanks for visiting.......moles don't sound half bad....I have had woodchucks, skunks, opossums.......quite the variety!
Candy....thanks.....the towels aren't as hard as they look......you must live in a snow belt over there in Corinth!

Eulalia Benejam Cobb said...

You'll be walking that labyrinth before you know it. It's good to be reading you again. Your photos are beautiful.

Life Looms Large said...

I know of 3 labyrinths around here (in NH). We are, after all, the granite state - we have to do something with all those rocks!! Maybe you'll be able to walk it on the equinox. That seems like a labyrinthine time!

Love those towels. I've eyed them, but haven't committed to making them. Was there anything particularly tricky or difficult about setting them up? (They're Ripsmatta, or rep, right?)

I like blogging too. A little like having a journal about the best things in life....where my private journals are often about the toughest things. I feel like my blog helps me appreciate things more. Not to mention how it encourages me to create things, and encourages me to take lots of pictures.

Blog on!!

Sue

Anonymous said...

I love your labyrinth. It looks so peaceful. I can't wait to see what it looks like when everything gets green!

Welcome to my world.

Because every thread counts

Because every thread counts