Wow does time fly!

It is a whole week since the last time I got in to post, but that week has been a busy one. Gpa and I made a trip to the zoo, with our favorite toddler. She had her third birthday on Saturday, and of course, I've been hooking as much as I could. Almost finished whipping a small Easter mat I made for her, will finish it this afternoon. It is a redeux of a mat from before I had control over my supplies.(learned to dye)Will post a before and after shot sometime soon.

This week looks to be almost as busy, as I'll be headed off to the Hankamer Hookin on Thursday - Saturday. This hook in is hostessed by Stash Sisters, the Atha Chapter that I attend once per month. This will be the anniversary of my first hook in ever attended, and my first exposure to wool vendors in the same room. I did fairly well last year, keeping my spending under $100. Not entirely by choice, ;), but it was just as easy to stop there as it would have been to stop anywhere below a $1000, and a good deal more realistic.  As in "Get Real", and I was saving up for my first rug camp at Tyler in May. Last year was a memorable one in my rug hooking life. Began dyeing as well as traveling for fun. This year, still working on finishing the last 3 of my 12 basic color wheel colors. In all honesty, I need to redye some of my favorites as well, but standing is more difficulty this year.

Our granddaughter's birthday will always be a good way to keep track of how many years I've been retired. She turned 1 the first year I retired, so that will always be a way to remember. 

Progress is so slow.... but worth the time, a conundrum

Hooked rugs have to by their very nature be made one loop at a time. Here is the rose floral rug I've shown before. The BRIGHT yellow outlining near the top left is a place holder. I've begun filling in the background with wool recently purchased from Heavens to Betsy. Wanted darker green to help separate the floral motif from the varied greens in the background. Christy Mason of Double M Woolens dyed the remainder of the wools for this rug, as I had not yet begun to dye... Although the colors in my personal palette tend to look very similar to what you see here. 

Being in the moment isn't absolutely necessary to pull loops, but it makes such a difference in how much enjoyment you can derive from hooking. This rug has been in progress for well over a year, and it will be awhile until it can be bound and whipped. So important to me, to finish it with consciousness. Life is made of such moments.

Winner! Winner! Chicken Dinner!

This has been a lucky month for me, in many large and small ways, but the win that delighted me the most was the result of posting a picture of our grandaughter's birthday rug, on Rug Hooking Daily in the 10 Minute Rug Hookers Group.  The purpose of this group is to encourage using 10 minutes every day doing rug hooking. Now although my favorite form of rug hooking activity involves pulling wool through the backing, April has made it clear that other kinds of things like dyeing, sketching or making your foundation, cutting wool for a project also count. So if you've been thinking about joining, but think you might not be able to keep up, give it a try! It has given me the impetus to dye my own palette in 8 color strips, draw several patterns of my own, and definitely finish much more than I had previously. (My biggest problem could have been to limit it to 10 minutes.) Being retired, but busy does make that a beginning not a limitation.

April is one of the most generous people I've known in the rug hooking community. If you are a rug hooker, you know that generosity is a trait common to those people who create. But none the less she would be near the top of my list for a lifetime. She shares knowledge freely, and has helped me to grow as a fiber artist without a doubt to me.

She gives prizes to people who finish projects, and post a picture of the finished rug, purse, or whatever. I was one of the lucky winners this time! I received an apron with the motto "Dyeing to Hook" and a pack of palette wool from her as well. I requested her Macintosh Million 101 ~ Red. (Haven't seen a batch of her wool I didn't want)

Hi, Margaret! ;)

How bout some Boom Boom Pow?

While we're waiting for the kickoff and then half time.... here is one of my fav black eyed peas songs/videos. Caution to parents/grandparents it does have the s word in it... your call.

This is a great video shown originally on the Oprah show, I dare you to watch it without feeling happy!
This one is family friendly!

Have you got $25. to help rebuild our economy?

http://www.kiva.org/lend/270328

I'm currently in my fourth loan to Kiva.org    When I first heard about Kiva, the thing that attracted me was the idea of ordinary people putting a small amount into a loan to someone in the third world, where a relatively small amount of money might have huge leverage. This last time, I loaned money to a man in San Antonio, TX. He is a handyman who needed $$$ for parts and supplies. If he can grow his business, his family will have more to take care of their own needs, such as food, clothing, housing. If his business is really successful, he could hire an additional worker.

Currently there was only one loan that came up for the United States, and that is linked above. It is for a woman entrepreneur so for some of my readers that might be a plus.  But if you'd prefer Canada, Mexico, Haiti or another country it is relatively easy to join. They do take Paypal, and my $25 dollar donation has been repaid 3 times, and is in process of pay back now. When that is repaid, I'll loan it again. You might have more to invest in building our economy, or changing the life of a hard working woman or man somewhere in the world.

Why not check www.kiva.org out   One loan at a time ordinary people can help change the world.

Houston has two seasons.....Summer and February

Are you kidding me? Our temperature this morning is 18 degrees. With the 25 mph wind that means the wind chill brings it down to what we usually call our "feels like" temperature of 12!(above) Ya know when they say, "When Hell freezes over" well, that seems likely to occur this week!   Know some of you are laughing, my dh and I kinda snickered at the locals here when we came down to look for a home some 25 years ago. We had nice warm jackets, although we'd shed them by the end of that week as too warm. But folks were walking around with blazers and sweaters, no coats in sight....probably because like us now, no coats in the closet. First we kept them in a back closet, but eventually they didn't fit on the one week or so they were needed, so off to Good Will for somebody who could use them. 

If we get the 1-3 inches of snow this Friday as predicted it will be the first time ever in recorded weather history which goes back over a century that Houston has ever had snow 3 winters in a row. But our problems while possibly fatal to those who are homeless and can't or won't go into a shelter are nothing compared to what is going on in other parts of the country. So although I'm whining and complaining, I do have some understanding or rather in our case reactivation of memory of what winter really means! Hang in there, before long you'll read my whining and complaining about our summer that starts early and goes on for what seems like forever!