It was warm enough yesterday to once more walk down the familiar track alongside the Creek that is really a Ditch-
– to the Farm across the Way. We have not done this walk in months and it felt Marvellous.
This familiar sight once more. The big white barn.
This is the Point of View from the White barn looking back to the home farm.
Below: This Image is for Jean. It is called Man Walking. This is one of the few I will print and put on my own wall.
John did not much like the track as it was still covered in snow. So he took the low road and the dogs and I (and Camera House) took the high road (it is up on bank of the ditch so it stands to reason that it is the High Road.) But we got this shot. It says it all. Life is a journey. Go for a walk along your life.
Good morning. Poppy is not in Standing Heat quite yet, though she is in foaming-at-the-mouth-bash-stuff-and-run-away heat. We will have another look in the morning – but she is close.
And this afternoon the Shearer is coming. Then we will have our last wool clip. Last year I got 4 dollars a fleece. So I am keeping this wool and I will send it to a mill to be cleaned and carded and spun into yarn. Then I am thinking I might make a blanket, when? I am not terribly sure! I wish I could weave – wouldn’t that be cool!
I hope you are all going to find loveliness today.
Your friend on the farm
celi
The Kitchen's Garden 
48 responses to “Man Walking”
Love the desolate look of the Man Walking picture. I hope he was wrapped up well!
I have a local friend with sheep and she has been making a blanket with their wool. I’ll see if I can get a photo.
Poppy: you stand still, there’s a good girl, and you will have your reward.
Love,
ViV xox
Morning Celi, how is Boo doing? Still “skunky”! I couldn’t believe it when I read that!! I love the kitties having a good time! Spring is here!
Have a good day – in the mud!!!
Love the Man Walking picture. It says a lot. The other photos are lovely too. It is nice to emerge into the almost spring, isn’t it?
Poppy sure is drawing this out 🙂 Still looks chilly there – especially the frozen creek- that-really-is- a ditch. Beautiful picture of solitary man in vast landscape. Laura
adding another string to your bow! I am astounded that you have even got time to consider doing another project such as weaving and making blankets. Do you ever sleep?
The picture image of the man walking reminds me of Haiku poetry. Lovely.
Yarn can be made into weaving, crochet, or knitting. Or, it can be cleaned and felted. If you want to weave it into a blanket, you need to specify the number of strands or “plys” to make the yarn. Probably you’ll want to try different things. I think the reason people crochet ‘granny squares” is because you can work them on your lap at quiet moments, save them up, and put them together into a blanket or throw at your leisure. Weaving takes space for a loom, equipment (a loom and other stuff), and quite a bit of time to load up the yarn into the loom. It’s a wonderful process. My mother taught me how to do this when I was a little girl and I had the use of my own child sized loom when she was taking classes at Greenfield Village in Michigan in the 1950’s, pleasure moments for me. That loom is still there BTW, I visited the weavers building a few years ago and the docent showed me upstairs to the work room because my mother had been a student back then. Have fun. Fiber arts are addictive though, I have to warn you. LOL Diann Dirks – thegardenladyofga.wordpress.com
To carry on the comments about fiber arts, there’s a wonderful little product called the Zoom Loom, which makes woven squares you can then sew together into a blanket or all kinds of things. They are much like the potholder looms we used to use as a child. You can make a little loom, too, with a square wood frame and nails. The cool thing about them is they are small and easy to deal with, and fast. Of course, when you’re finished, there’s a lot of sewing together…Anyway, I look forward to seeing what you do with that wool!
Yes, the Zoom Loom would be an easy way to weave a blanket yourself. Or, if you wish to explore other options, I’m the quiet member of the Fellowship, sitting in the corner knitting because my looms are too loud and I don’t want to drown out the conversation. Amy in St Louis, weaver
Wow, Amy. i would very much like a woven blanket,in fact more than anything – using white on white with a heavy white thread.. maybe email me and we can work out how i get the wool prepared.. would you have the time for that? and even whether three fleeces would make a little blanket.
The weaving is not so difficult – it’s the carding the wool and spinning of the yarn that’s tedious. Can be done little at a time. There all all sorts of looms you can make/use – even from cardboard boxes or scraps of wood for a frame loom or back strap loom. Amy can probably head you in the right direction or the library. (Sometimes you can find good quality looms of all sizes at flea markets, junk shops – generally looms are well made and last even if you have to order a replacement unrusty reed. Another grad student and I made and sold floor looms in college – all metal parts are easily ordered. Universities/summer camps/wool shops often have used looms for sale posted on bulletin boards. ) i had a lovely Canadian floor loom, but moved to off loom fiber sculpture. Still took up a lot of room.
If you find a nice table loom, you should grab it. Would be a nice activity for your guests. People like that hands on back to roots thing. Weaving fits farm life – and you have sheep. Maybe a grad student would trade room and board to teach you basics or set up the warp on the loom. If you warp with a basic yarn, you can do multiple small projects with one set up. There are weavers guilds and groups maybe you could network with to get the word out or post on your farmy opportunities?
Slow and steady as always…
I would knit it for you!
Seriously 😃
I am taking you seriously.. c
Ohhh!! I love the “man walking” photo.
The picture of the man walking is beautifully austere. My favorite today is the bashing about and running away shot of Poppy…she’s a hormone laden character. I’m glad you finally got to walk the ditch again and I’m sure the dogs enjoyed it as well. Here hoping for a standing piggie soon.
Not standing again.. hope she has not gone off heat in the night.. c
Lovely photos… oh, but it still looks so cold there. Your photos are lovely… quiet. Well, except for those playful kitties and hormonal Poppy!! Yesterday we had a load of much-needed rain. I think we will reach 70° today.
I just found loveliness right here. The photos are stunning. You should sell prints of man walking. It is beautiful. Would Venice in black and white too which it practically already is. So well done! An important and beautiful walk.
Venice was supposed to be “be nice” but my Italian phone is making patriotic typographic errors. Sorry.
I enjoy the phone corrections, trying to work out what people really meant to say, but I was stumped on “Venice’……thought maybe it was a private thing between you and Miss C ….:)
Not yet,, but maybe one day! I would LOVE to see Venice.. off season of course.. c
Can you get a picture of Marcel for us today? It has been a while since we saw his smile.
Gracie update: not much to say. eating very little and what she does eat is trash food – dog treats. turns her nose up to all the good food I have cooked for her. I got some fresh free range – pet chickens actually – eggs from a farmer near us – I tried scrambled, fried, boiled and raw – to no avail. Even the chicken, chicken water and chicken rice is a no go. Even the homemade yogurt with pumpkin a friend brought me was distasteful. And that is one treat she will fight for usually.
She still wags her tail, barks at every living thing outside and is bright eyed…. bathroom tasks still all a go and normal. So we wait some more for her…..
So hard to offer favorite foods and stand by to see her refuse them. My cat is on a med called mirtazapine for appetite stimulation. I have to give it every third day.so far it is working but very iffy, especially by the third day.
Interesting that she is so bright and bubbly and in working order.. surely that is a good sign?.. much love.. c
Celi, you can weave. You just don’t know how yet. But for something quick to do with the cleaned and carded fleece, make yourself some felted slippers for round the house. Paint the soles with latex to make them hardwearing and non slip. Admire them smugly: I grew that, I felted that, I’m wearing that.