this is my current spinning project. I've used a higher ratio to get thinner yarn. i can't decide whether to ply it with itself or dye some pale beige roving to ply it with so I get more yardage.


Luke and his cousin had Sparky in training as a bandit. Ratbags they are.


And then I got this lovely photo of Rose and Sparks catching some autumn sunshine


I'm still getting migraines every other day. I've spoken to work about having another three months off once this lot of leave runs out at end of December, taking me up til end of March 09. Hopefully this will give me time to have my heart surgery and recover fully from it (and hopefully my migraines will improve with that also)

I thought someone had tossed a roadkill possum into our garden. I'd already told Mike to get the shovel out..........when I realised it was Mr Sparkles catching some late summer rays lol!


Managed to finish some spinning and just waiting to ply it. I'm trying to read up on plying before I tackle this one so I can improve my technique.
I've also tried using a smaller ratio to spin finer yarn - boy, it makes a huge difference.


I've got some nice yarn to make a winter jacket. Its a wool/ acrylic mix in a lovely heathered lavender colour (el cheapo off ebay as I'm broke but its lovely even so). I'm going to make this one here. And I've even done a gauge swatch!

Mike is off to Belgium tomorrow so my lovely mother in law is on stand by to come and take Rosie out for a very long walk.


I've got a date for attending pre-assessment clinic to have my cardiac surgery - 3rd October 2008. Hopefully the operation will be 3-4 weeks after that so the countdown begins. Eek!
had a very tired migraine'y couple of days. I've really upped my anti convulsants so expect a couple of sleepy weeks.

The visit to the neurologist went very well. She was really on the ball and had a lot of suggestions re: preventative drugs and drugs to take when I get a migraine. One of the drugs she has on the list to try has had very good results in the lab with rats apparently!
I was in the middle of getting one while in with her which was useful!

This gives me hope that there may be light at the end of the tunnel. And I got off my backside and contacted some friends last night and had a good chat - I get so anti-social when my head hurts day in and day out and need to keep making the effort to keep in touch with friends more.

Poor little Lukey Lu has been off school today with a tummy bug - luckily Grandma doesn't work on a Friday so Rosie and Luke have spent the morning there.

And when I got home the lovely roving from Mandie in Australia had arrived and its stunning. I am so glad I bought both of them. No idea what to make from it yet so I'll just have to stroke it for a while until it decides.

feeling really worried about seeing new neurologist tomorrow. the last neurologist could not have been less interested. As he said ' I'm actually more interested in epilepsy' and made me feel like it was a neurotic female thing I had. bastard. so fingers crossed something positive may come out of this visit.

A thread on one of the spinning groups I belong to has made me feel really sad. Someone was asking 'what are your other passions' .....

I used to: do photography and develop my own photos, walk my dog, work and love my job, cook and bake, read loads of novels, watch films, do lots of studying and be extremely sociable.

Now: - I try to hold it together for Luke, sleep, get migraines, sleep some more and just try to get through the day, with some occasional spinning or knitting ..... and I'm bored, lonely and its shit.

so I hope this neurologist is half way interested or I will be throwing a fit.

I received the most incredible box of goodies from my spinning swap partner Helen - look at all this loveliness. I felt very spoilt and can't thank her enough



close up of the lovely bracelet:



even Sparky got some use out of the envelope. two days use in fact:



managed to get some spinning finished today at last. Yay! dyed it myself too. just wish I'd done more.

... and I'm back with my moaning. bet you wish someone would just put me out of my misery. Mike says he's gonna get a block booking for me and the animals at the vet. says it will be worth every penny. nice.
so i've had the migraine from hell since last Wednesday.... god it was bad. And I thus missed going to London for the Knitting show on Saturday (sorry, Sonja ...).

But, as I saved money not going to London, I've done some more cheer up stash enhancement!

This is from Ewe Give Me The Knits in Oz. it could only be an Australian site with a name like that. Makes me laugh everytime I see it. I just happened to be in the right place at the right time when Mandie was updating and snagged these two beauties:



And I got this one this morning from Baby Long Legs aka Sarah on etsy. This is destined to be funky socks for my cold feet:



So now I need some time actually spinning, not just stash enhancing ...

Received some lovely fibres through the post from Karen at Wildcraft. They are superwash BFL and destined to be a nice long woolly pair of socks for me.


I'm spinning this superwash merino at the moment that I dyed myself. Its a right slippery bugger though so not doing a very good job at it so far!


I'm really looking forward to going to the knitting and yarn show in London tomorrow. Just hope I feel OK. Luke has gone back to school and seems to be really enjoying it so far which is good.

been a bad blogger as have had awful migraines this week. Been hardly able to think as my head has been hurting so much.
The weather hasn't been great. Rain, Rain, Rain.