As an adult, I have long ago realized that things rarely go exactly as planned or meet expectations. Since I enter into most anticipated events with this as my given, I am a lot less stressed. This modus vivendi also means that what would be a good time under impossible expectations can be a great time as I no longer expect perfection.
This past weekend was spectacularly awesome – even by my standards. First, it was the annual Wool Gathering at Young’s Dairy in Yellow Springs, Ohio. Second, the day was perfect – not too hot, not too cold, sunny, with a slight breeze. Third, I had been able to convince my mom and aunt (my mom’s younger sister) to join me on the trek.
We rode up together and died laughing as we talked to each other. After everything that has happened, it was good to just talk and laugh. The drive seemed really short – a lot shorter than when I drive up alone. We got to Young’s Dairy and the Flat Marcos (FM) adventures began.
I had a picture of my nephew and gave it to my mom to tape to a Swiffer handle so she could take pictures with him during the day. FM saw llamas, alpacas, sheep, and angora bunnies. He got his picture taken in hay stacks, corn shocks, piles of fleece, at lunch, dinner and brunch. FM got to do a lot. FM was a pretty good companion for the day as he didn’t whine, cry, throw a fit, or need to go to the bathroom constantly. He was the perfect child.
Mom and my aunt were good companions, too as they didn’t whine, cry, or need to go to the bathroom constantly. My mom was even a good sport about getting close enough to the livestock to get a picture with her and her grandchild next to a pen of llama. I was impressed.
As usual, there were plenty of options for the fiber addict. I had to maintain tunnel vision – spindle, fiber (no yarn), some stitch markers, a swift, and home – to keep from going crazy. I even resisted temptation of the sale bin at one of my favorite yarn dyers. It was not due to my virtue, but more that I refused to let myself linger.
I was afraid my shopping conservatism was putting a cramp in my mom and aunt’s style. They are marathon shoppers and I am not. I got my spindle and fiber, sat in a chair and started to use it. I could have sat there the rest of the day spinning with my new spindle, were it not for the sun and my lack of sunscreen. They got finished and we went to eat some of the best ice cream in the world.
In short, this is the kind of day I dream of, and it wasn’t even finished.
We had lunch with one set of my knitting friends and dinner with another. There was a point when finding the restaurant for dinner seemed a bit iffy. I wondered as we passed the entrance of Wright State several times why they had a row of porta potties by the entrance. We found the restaurant, but the burning questions of the porta potties never got answered.
Several of us spent the night in the same hotel and we stayed up talking, knitting and spindling until midnight. I stayed up a little longer because I was dying to ply some of the singles I had spun on my new spindle.
I bought a Greensleeves spindle in the Loki model. It is a 0.7 oz spindle and I love it. It spins incredible thin singles. The balance is great. Of course the fiber I am using to practice with is awesome, too. I got 4oz of Three Bags Full Signs of Spring fiber in a dark purple blend. The fiber is a mix of silk and merino cross. The silk has slubs in it that when plied make a tweedy yarn. I think the only things that made me stop spinning was the right hand cramp and the left finger spasm. Just like the ice cream after lunch and the margarita at dinner, it was probably too much of a good thing.
The weekend with my mom, aunt and friends was just long enough to be fabulous and short enough that we didn’t get tired of one another. I was glad that the people that are so important to me got to meet each other. My friends definitely learned where my storytelling gene comes from – and they only met half the equation. My mom and aunt were able to see that all the friends I talk about on a regular basic are in fact real and not figments of my imagination.
I am already looking forward to next year. I am already researching what event we can attend. I am hoping that my other aunt and some of my cousins can join us. I have also thought that perhaps we can pay for the hotel and event by booking a performance at the local comedy club – The McDonald Girls on the Road. Then again, we would just look at each other after one word and spend the rest of the time laughing. For some reason that doesn’t translate well to larger audiences.
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