the quacking fiber addict

dē-tergĕo , si, sum, (2)
detergis: detergunt, id.
To wipe off, wipe away (v)
A. Lit.: lacrimas pollice, Ovid. Metamorphoses. 13, 746 ;

• 2. Transf., to cleanse by wiping, to wipe off, wipe clean, to clean out: caput pallio, Plautus. Casina. 2, 3, 20

This'll sound insane (probably because it is), but I think one of the symptoms of this bug we've got involves compulsive cleaning. Seriously. As I was getting ready for bed last night I suddenly decided that my bathroom was a disgrace and proceeded to spend the next hour scrubbing it down (before coming to my senses, realising that it was 2 AM and I could clean after sleeping). Then, today, I simply had to clean the sewing room. To the point that it now looks like this:


I would chalk this all up to my own personal insanity, but both my Mum and Dad have been on weird cleaning spurts. We all feel crappy for a couple of hours and then proceed to scrub something for an hour before feeling dead again. If my brother actually cleans something within the next 24 hours (remember, he's a teenage male and "lazy" doesn't even begin to describe him), I'm calling either NIH or the CDC.

Just a thought.

Between my bouts of compulsive cleaning today, I also got a lot of knitting and spinning done. Somehow, if I was spinning something my head and joints didn't ache and I wasn't as nauseous. I think I might recommend handspinning to the local hospital...

Anyway. I got another one of my Pre-New Year's Resolutions checked off of my list - by finishing one spinning project. I have now finished spinning and plying ALL of my Louet rose merino/silk top. I have absolutely no idea what I shall do with said yarn now, but it's done. I also got three spindles cleaned off today (read: the yarn on them was plyed and skeined), and all the remaining baby alpaca/silk waste yarn spun up. And I've started the crown decreases on my Dulaan child's cap. Here's a group shot:


And before you ask, YES that IS a 6-bobbin lazy kate. I just know you handspinners are salivating over it. It was a gift from my parents, a reward for getting on the Dean's List, I think. It holds any 6 spinning wheel bobbins and has 6 thread guides for easy plying. It came with a hook, too, which is sitting in the thread guide. It also came with a matching cage distaff (which is being stored with my Medieval distaff from Alden Amos). I love this lazy kate. LOVE IT. LOVELOVELOVE. Love! My Lendrum lazy kate has been reassigned to my fat-core lace bobbins (of which I have 3, so it's perfect).

I know you hardcore spinners'll want to know where I got this magical little toy, and the answer is Carolina Homespun. For the record, I love them too. LOVE. They have the most fantastic selection of goodies. Seriously. If I ever were to do product placement, it'd be for them. Especially since they carry special lots of superwash merino mixes (with tencel or silk, for instance).

Anyway, back to News. I nearly wept with joy today when I found one of my favouritest spindles, EVER, in a bag of flax (we won't ask how it got there, since it had baby alpaca on it...). I had thought (for the past 8 months) that I'd lost it or something equally horrible, but I FOUND it! To celebrate this fact, I must now find a project for it. I think some lace-weight. I have some soy silk around here somewhere...

I also have 2 oz of Guanaco. Under lock and key. So don't even think about it.

Okay. My goal tonight is to finish the Dulaan cap (I also found another child's cap I'd knitted a while back for Caps for Kids that somehow didn't go in with the rest!!) and L's b-day gift. That'll make 2 less items on my Pre-New Year's Resolutions. I am still determined to finish D's gansey, and cleaning Shawn's fleece (which I pulled out and sat on top of my pile), but I might go easier on myself once everything else is done.

OH! I remembered!! My birthday AND the deadline for my Ducky Contest is tomorrow night! I have to go shopping tomorrow for the dinner. And YOU have 24 hours to submit photos, to win some loverly handspun yarn (1st place) and vintage knitting needles (1st - 3rd) from me (and some pretty yarn for 2nd and 3rd, just likely not handspun). So far, I only have 2 entrants, so... If only one more person enters, then they'll all win by default. And, remember I have tons of exotic fiber sitting here, and some handspun already made up if you want more immediate satisfaction/ or have wanted it since I posted pix. Remember that baby camel down?

Now I think that's everything. Time to get back to knitting.