Aaaaaah

School has started. That big sigh of relief you hear is me, dragging out my knitting and my spinning and RELAXING for the first time in a long time.

So far school seems to be going well. Sr. Jr. seems happy with his classes. He's particularly pleased that he could get into Latin this year. He couldn't last year because his school schedules all foreign languages for each grade in one period, so the kids can't take a second language as an elective. I can understand that not many kids would want to take two modern languages at once, but I bet there's a not insignificant population who would want to take one modern language along with Latin. Luckily, it worked out for this year.

Jr. Jr. seems ok with his. His teacher is very good, but I think the composition of the class leaves something to be desired. Only one of his good buddies is in class with him. There are two boys who tend to have behavioral issues, and I suspect that putting them together won't help. We'll see.

I put aside Paper Crane for a bit to work on Hallett's Ledge. I'm almost finished with the body of the sweater.


I'm farther along with the back now, of course. I just haven't taken any new pictures. I think when I'm done with the body, I'll pick up Paper Crane again and finish the body on that sweater. Switch back to Hallett for sleeves, and then back to Paper Crane again. It's a plan.

So far I'm having no issues with the pattern. It's all going very smoothly. I hope it fits! It looks small, but I know that the rib-like pattern will stretch out when it's blocked.

The other thing I'm doing now that I have time again is spinning. I just started a spinning project this morning. I worked at it all morning long until my hand was cramping and I needed a break.

I'm spinning some Crown Mountain Farms merino in the Thistle colorway, a colorway I like so much I unknowingly bought it two separate times, two separate years, at Maryland Sheep and Wool. Here's what it looks like pre-spinning:


Here's the bit I've spun so far this morning, about half a bobbin, with the obligatory dime shot following:



I plan to make a two ply yarn out of this. I think it will end up as a heavy laceweight or fingering weight, but we'll see.

I've been reading another great book, Skippy Dies, by Paul Murray. It's about boys (and others) at a school in the UK. There are parts that are read aloud/laugh aloud funny, and parts that are full of the pathos in any teen's life. Very, very good.