21 December 2007

Peace on Earth!

Well, folks, I have given a gift to the world that every person has on the top of their list... peace on earth.

That's right. I've lost my voice.

06 December 2007

Second Spinning Class And...

So, the second of four spinning classes was last night and I have to say, it felt much better last night than it did the week before. It was so long ago that I first learned to knit (we're talking the first time I ever picked up needles to do anything.. not when I started reteaching myself within the past year) that I had nicely forgotten how awkward learning new movements can feel and how frustrating it seems. Second class was a bit better.. I'm more comfortable with drafting, I asked some questions that I had accumulated over the week and I'm feeling much, much better.

The class was joined by the "monthly" spin night at Yarns Etc. We had four spinners join us, all with their wheels and projects and it was really nice to be surrounded by people who were all stricken with the fiber disease. The class and the spinners all intermingled, shared puppy stories, and we got to talking about the fiber community. As it turns out, despite this area having well-defined knitting groups, that same community doesn't exist for the spinners. Mary Ann, our teacher, mentioned that she had been off/on organizing, but that it was just really a lot of work that she didn't feel she had the extra time for.

As I started thinking about it, it just seemed as if maybe what was lacking was a communication system between all the different enclaves of spinners sprinkled around. If we could communicate with one another, events, meetings, spin nights, etc., could occur more frequently and we may be able to create a vibrant and healthy community. It really strikes me as a bid.. odd.. that these systems aren't even in place, but as a new spinner (and one with lots of questions!), having the ability to meet and network with more experienced spinners after the class is an invaluable tool.

With all that being said (!), I've created a group on Yahoo to encourage conversation between spinners in the area:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/chspinners/

PLEASE join and talk! I am really excited about the possibility of this creating a viable spinning community in the area--even if I don't continue to spin forever and ever.