A Slow Start, and a New Friend!

 I'm back at the loom, albeit sporadically and not always productively.  

I began weaving my current "challenge" piece, two table runners using overshot, on July 16th.  I've only ever done a 2-shuttle weave once before (not overshot), many years ago, so I knew that the project wouldn't be speedy.  To keep track of where I am in the treadling, I am using mini-sticky notes to isolate the steps along the way.

The first part of the runner, a border design that is around 5 inches long, went well enough.  The center section, which can be repeated as many times as it takes to create the length desired, has been another story.  The first repeat went well, as did the second I thought.  After weaving the third, I saw a mistake that required me to un-weave back to the beginning of the third repeat.  Now, un-weaving is never fast, and when using end-feed shuttles, as opposed to plain shuttles with bobbins, it is much, much slower.  So why use the EFS, you ask??  Because the quality of the weaving is better, at least for me, and faster, as long as you don't have to un-weave too much.

After un-weaving to the beginning of the third repeat, I carefully re-wove it and was pleased with the result.  I took a photo to post on my Ravelry project page and this blog.  It was only after I posted the photo that I saw a major mistake at the beginning of the second repeat!  

Needless to say, I just carefully laid down the shuttles and walked away.  I was so disgusted (well, maybe that's a tad harsh) with myself for creating so much extra work that I couldn't even bring myself to look at the loom for a couple of days.  It was at that point that I decided to just pick away at un-weaving, a little bit a day, so's not to get too (much more) frustrated.  I have since woven several repeats correctly, so the project is back on track, but progress is slow due to family visits and other appointments.  

Here are some images in reverse order, so that the mistake is not the first image that everyone sees when this is posted!

here is a shot of the "big" mistake.  If you look at the center "blocks," you can see that the second ones (directly under the bottom shuttle) are missing the thicker bottom bits.

In other news, I went to the local animal shelter to walk some dogs on my usual Thursday morning, and somehow ended up adopting a cat!  Her name was Olive and is now Ivy, she's 5 yrs old but a tiny thing compared to Dinger.  I just love her markings!  She was quite friendly at the shelter, loved being petted but only from inside her little cat cave.  They said that she is good with cats, dogs, and kids, so I figured we'd have all of our future bases covered.

She is slowly feeling more at home, spending a bit of time letting us pat her, or getting on my chair for a minute or two.  Dinger is still not a fan, though he is relaxing a bit as well.  She can be quite loud and bossy when she wants something, which is pretty hysterical given her size.

She is incredibly fast and crazy-strong for such a little kitty, and she proved that Friday when we tried to get her in her carrier for her first vet visit.  Hubby is a veteran cat guy, and he couldn't do it either.  We rescheduled for yesterday, ditched the soft carrier and left the hard carrier out with the door open all weekend.  I put some catnip in over the weekend, and she spent quite a bit of time in there, grooming, resting, and of course, going a bit nip-crazy.  Yesterday she must have known something was up, because she wouldn't go near it.  I ended up grabbing her and put her flailing little body in with my son's help, and I think I was as traumatized as she was.  The vet is 1.5 miles down the road, and I should have expected something when her plaintive yowling ceased for a few seconds and was then much reduced.  Sure enough, she'd pooped in her crate.  Luckily hers isn't too messy (though just as gross, especially when she would lie on it in the exam room), but I guess it isn't all that uncommon.  None of our other cats have ever done it.  Bottom line is she's healthy, and hopefully she won't have to go again for a year.  I'm keeping the carrier out, and I'm getting a soft pad and some pheremone spray to try to see if it makes it a more appealing place.

I have a favor to ask you.  If any of you has experienced a breast MRI, I would love to hear about your experiences, especially if you have any lower back pain.  I have one scheduled at the end of the month, and while I've had MRI's before, I've never had to lie on my stomach, a position that I never use because of chronic back pain.  I know I can have a Xanax if I want, but it isn't anxiety that I'm worried about, it's having to move, even a little, before the 45 minutes are up, ruining the results and thus having to repeat it.

This is a crazy busy week, with several appointments, one of which was cancelled when I was already on the road, along with a couple of opportunities to hear some outdoor music so not much time to weave.  I'll be sure to post my progress when there is more to see.

(Steps on soapbox) Summer is speeding along and will be over before we know it.  I had hoped that the pandemic would remain in its retreat until we all had to head indoors in the fall, but boy was I wrong.  It's very frustrating and maddening that the minority out there who are refusing to get vaccinated because of misleading information is causing so many people to be at risk.  The Delta variant is no joke and yet there will be more variants coming that could be more contagious and more deadly, perhaps even evading the protections of the vaccines.  How can we not do the right thing to protect those who cannot get vaccinated?  What kind of society does not do everything that they can to protect its children and most vulnerable citizens??  I feel like the idea of personal liberty has gone WAY beyond what is safe and viable in any society.  If your personal liberty causes others to become sick or die, that's where it ends.  You do not have a "Constitutional right" to infect people with a lethal virus.  Safeguards during a deadly pandemic have nothing to do with the Constitution or anyone's rights.  I'm so glad that businesses are stepping up and starting to require their workers to be vaccinated, since governments cannot seem to do that.  We are in a race against this virus, and if we don't turn this around before outdoor time is limited this winter, I think the toll will be far worse than we can imagine.  Please, people, put your ideological and political beliefs aside and do the right thing so we can all get past this.  How many more have to die or suffer with long Covid?  I consider myself lucky that I had a mild case and only have some coughing and thick mucous as a result.  Just do the right thing! (steps off soapbox).

Happy August, everyone!