I want to thank you so far...

All of the first batch of fiber/yarn has sold, and I was given donations by two fabulous, thoughtful friends. I am really thrilled and grateful, and I thank you all from the bottom of my heart.

I'm going to do something in your names when I'm in the village, but I haven't figured out what yet.

Please stay tuned for more products to be posted this weekend, including some handspun.

Maybe this one?

So, here we go! Fiber and Yarn!

To respond to Kourtney, I need donations as soon as possible. I have to pay for my share of the mission by mid-February.

Following you will find fiber and yarn that I have dyed and will sell to raise funds. Detail as follows: Please contact me to purchase (spinknit@me.com), and note the name of the product, ie: sock1. I will provide a paypal address to you, and can accept non-credit card funded payments. Prices do not include shipping, though I'd be happy to arrange pickup and perhaps deliveries in Calgary. If you purchase something in support of the Mexico mission, you will not get a tax receipt. In order to get a receipt you would need to make a cash donation.

SOLD OUT!!!

More to come!

If you have any questions about these products or the mission, please comment or drop me a note.

Thanks in advance for your support.

I need help

Several years ago I travelled to Mexico to join a YUGO mission to build houses. I went with BFML and his sister Donna & her family. Donna organized the mission through her church; at the time it was her second mission working with YUGO. There were approximately 40 people who joined in, and we built 3 houses and 3 outhouses (although there were other missionaries there and a grand total of 6 houses and a church were built that week).

The main group is separated into teams for each house/outhouse, and assigned a family. The family's obligation is to purchase the land the house will be built on, and they must establish that they can and will pay the mortgage on the property. There are very many visits between the family and YUGO before they are accepted into the program and become eligible for a house. Now.. Churches and organizations worldwide take part in these missions, and their responsibilities include paying for the building materials, (normally) furnishing the houses, and taking the family on a shopping trip to supply some wish-list items (such as groceries, bedding, etc). The teams are also responsible for paying for air travel, van rental, several days of meals (between legs of the journey), 2 nights hotel, and dorm/food fees at YUGO.

I was hoping that I could attend the upcoming mission, but was unsure if I could due to changing jobs. Thankfully, Mona was able to get Rose to cover for me that week (which is during spring break), Dida agreed to take care of Mug, and besides the dogs, the only issue I have left is funding.

So, I'm going to believe that it's possible, and I've committed to attend. Here's where you come in.

Beginning soon, I'm going to post dyed fiber and a small amount of dyed sock yarn for sale. All proceeds will go towards the mission. Also (or, instead), if you chose, you could mail a donation directly to me or to Unity Baptist Church. There are a lot of options regarding donations; all of which will get you a charitable tax receipt. You could donate in my name, and those dollars will go towards paying for my trip/expenses (noted above). You could donate towards the mission as a whole, or towards building materials for the second house (the first one has been paid already), towards furnishings, or any combination of things. So that donations are correctly applied, please note that funds are for the 2009 Mexico mission. If you would like to contribute to my trip, please note my name as well (I'm the only Annie going!).

If I collect funds above what I need for my expenses, I plan to donate the balance to my Mexican family towards their mortgage. Jim and I did this last time on a very small scale, and it was a very beautiful thing for all of us, family and otherwise. Also, we purchased a swing-set for the little daughter of the house (there are no playgrounds or playground equipment in these small mountain villages).

Our last Mexican family were wonderful, loving people who were living in a cardboard box. They had been doing fairly well until the mother became ill, and all of their money went towards paying medical bills; after a year of illness they became debt ridden. It is extremely difficult to make a living in this area. In order to have a job, you need to get off the mountain and out of the village. To do that, you need a car. In a place where the average daily earnings top out at approximately $7.00, paying for a car and gas at US rates.. well, it just isn't that easy. Kids there can't go to school unless they have a uniform and school supplies. They actually erase all of their work so that they can re-use paper.

Here's a link to a video that Jim made of the 2006 Mexico mission.

I'm going to believe that I'll raise money for this trip, so in that spirit, I'm thanking you in advance. If you would like more information on this mission or the budget associated, please contact me, or email Unity Baptist Church, attention: Holly.

In which I do battle with the earworm.

Night 3. THAT song is going through my head, over and over.

There was only one solution.. replace it with a stronger entity that isn't as distasteful.

Take a Letter Maria.

I had no choice, I had to bring out the big guns. This would have been my third consecutive sleepless night. The good news is that TaLM hasn't re-rooted in my brain so far. Maybe I'm safe?

Hockey was a bit sad for me and HUGELY, MASSIVELY successful for Aidan. When the Saddledome lights dimmed and I could see swirling spotlights I was expecting to see him. However, two colour commentary guys suddenly filled the screen and talked about stats. Grrrrr... (Oh well.. I got a few rows of the Marie Antoinette socks done while I waited)

Aidan came home with 2 hockey pucks, a beautiful jersey, and more joy that any boy is normally entitled to. He'll be talking about last night until he' a very old man, I'm quite sure.

Earworms

I have one.

Here is a pretty good explanation of them.

The last time I was infected, I heard 'Take a Letter Maria' in my head, on and off, for 3 years.

God help me.. this time its Britney Spears singing Womanizer. I swear I have been singing Take a Letter Maria out LOUD trying to get rid of that other song which I cannot say the name of twice.

Hence, awake at 1am.

Hockey. No kidding. You must watch it tomorrow.

I am the wicked step-mom to a wonderful little guy, aged 9. This is him:



If you'd like to see a better picture of him, then your best bet would be to watch the Calgary/San Jose game tomorrow night. He has been chosen to skate a loop around the Saddledome ice with the Calgary Flames, and to join them for the national anthem. They are giving him a jersey, and tickets for the game. He calls tomorrow 'Happy Day', and he's been counting sleeps until HD since Christmas. Honestly, it is happy day for all of us, because he's been working so hard to be a good hockey player himself, and this is such an honour and a blessing for him. He feels like a winner.. and he is. I hope that you can share his moment of glory.

And, yes, he wears that balaclava all the time. He really does.

I thought I'd share this picture with you:



Not because I'm happy to say that the Christmas tree has been dismantled, but because you might notice that all of our decorations are special; the toilet paper angel has a very special place in my heart, and has been on the tree for years. Blogless C might notice that, yes, we have disco ball ornaments.

If you have children, I would suggest that you buy a big bag of non-breakable Christmas balls, and every year give your kids a ball and a felt pen. We have a collection from years and years back, and I love each and every one of them. You can see one or two in the picture. It's not fancy, it's just them, leaving their marks for you to see when they are not so little any more.

And here you have the early stages of Marie Antoinette.



Gale blogged about it, and I loved her sock so much that I bought the pattern and ordered the yarn. I was endlessly thinking about the sock though, so I brought out a ball of yarn that I bought in Brooklyn during the Rhinebeck extravaganza. It's a cashmere blend, but I can't give you details because I somehow lost the ball band. I totally love the intended yarn (which is Tupelo Honey by the Woolen Rabbit, $22.00 shipped), but I am not sorry that I started with the yarn I used.

In case you're wondering.. today was my first full day at the Knitting Room. It went well, it was a very, very busy day, and I saw a few familiar, smiling faces. Thank you for coming in to say hi; I really appreciated it.

Tonight? I'm up to my elbows in dyed fiber and sock yarn. It's all good!

ps: The Alphagetti was fantabulous.

What I've really wanted

...for what seems like forever, is some time to myself to create. I have been too this, and too that, and haven't had the opportunity to just sit at the wheel and spin. Everything has had a deadline of some sort, and finally I ended up with a deadline that helped me achieve some time at the wheel.

You see, Donna loaned me her Majacraft Rose to spin over Christmas. After everything was said and done, and all things Christmas were achieved, I found two solid days to sit at the wheel before it goes back to its rightful owner. I spent a good deal of time doing research on the wheel, making adjustments, talking to Mandie (she's a distributor) and generally searching for the holy grail. It was so great. I really, really love spinning.

But you knew that, right?

Thank you so much Donna!

My next goal is to dye. I have the weekend ahead of me, and I feel as thought the window of opportunity might just open.

Tomorrow? I'll be at the Knitting Room for several hours, and after that, Alphagetti with Kathi. I'm so looking forward to both things.