caracolina

With John gone there is no way I can finish these rugs by myself. For some time I tried to put all my effort into weaving, but it just wasn’t fast enough. Fiber Factor called because we are already 10 days late to return the loom past the grace period and it just was too overwhelming. I checked with Sharie Monsam and based on her advice just took off the warps and weaving. I rolled them up carefully and hope to return to them when I have free loom space (yes, I still have another unfinished rug).

I got up early and drove down to the Phoenix Public Market to meet Celia, Jimmie, and Pam. This was the first time I drove myself downtown; I was really nervous but I stared at all my destinations on Google streetview until I felt I knew where I was going. My hands were still tingly from drumming the night before so I wore my wedding band on a chain around my neck. I didn’t plan on being at the market all morning but they were busy and I helped here and there and also knitted a little so the time went by really fast. For lunch I had a vegan black bean burrito from one of the stands there, then I took off to pick up John’s lenses from Photo Forum and browse for an hour at Buffalo Exchange at 7th and Missouri.

I didn’t feel like going home and being alone so I decided to try drumming again. AZ Rhythm Connection meets on Friday Nights in a Yoga studio around the corner from my office in the Scottsdale Airpark. We tried this out in Spring when my mother was here and I enjoyed it a lot. Frank was happy to see me again and made me feel very welcome. I learned a few new melodies and pounded that djembe so hard that my fingers were too swollen to put my wedding band back on but I smiled all the way home.  I hope to be back soon!

It was tough to leave John in Santa Barbara but I had to go back to work. On the way to Burbank we stopped at the beach near Sea Cliff for a moment to gaze at the surf. The weather was just brilliant. I arrived at the office midday, finished the work day and then took our car home (which we had left in the parking lot there on Friday).

This morning John and I took off to Santa Barbara together early in the day with another rental car. The office graciously gave me a couple days off so I can stay until Monday (I’ll fly home). Leaving so early allowed us to make great time. When we arrived Uncle Woody was out of surgery and looked pretty good. Still disoriented, but actually sitting up! Let’s hope this continues.

Today, the day before John was supposed to come home from Santa Barbara, Uncle Woody fell and broke his hip. He was reaching for the sliding glass door in the kitchen, leaning precariously on his walker, and it just slid out from under him. Needless to say, this is awful for someone his age.

True to his word, John drove off to Santa Barbara to stay for a week with our Uncle and Aunt. This time he’s taking his computer because he is planning to use any extra time to update photo tags. Also, he bought Spore and is probably going to be addicted to playing it for a while, based on some previous experiences with Civilization, long time ago. I feel a bit unnerved because I haven’t been driving for a while.

It was high time for us to return to S.B. for a visit and what could be better than a long weekend? To make things easier on us we didn’t leave Friday afternoon to struggle with the traffic but instead got up early Saturday morning and had a good drive without any problems. We spent the afternoon with Boyd, and John barbecued some hot dogs from Buffalo. Uncle Woody was pushing around with his cast (he broke a bone in his foot about 10 days ago), I was suprised how mobile he was. The walker really helps.

After the usual breakfast at Cajun Kitchen on Sunday, John and I visited the Goleta Farmer’s Market and bought a bunch of green beans, olive oil, and some other interesting things, like strawberry guavas. By Monday we had decided that John and I would go home and then John would return and spend some time with them, for company and to help out driving. We really made good time on the way home, somehow we avoided the holiday weekend traffic.

As expected, I didn’t finish my rug, but I carried off this awesome inkle loom, a gift from Sharie Monsam, our instructor. I had mentioned I bought a book about inkle weaving because I want to make woven bags and thought inkle weaving would be good for the bag straps and Sharie decided to let me have her inkle loom because she’s not using it. I’m so excited! The only problem is that I have to finish my rug and give back the loaner loom before I can even begin to think of starting yet another weaving project…

We drove up to Nutrioso on Friday night so I could attend a 2-day tapestry weaving workshop with Janie Hoffman. Terri and Dave of Waugh Mountain Alpacas hosted the workshop at their ranch. It was a lot of fun and we met Sandy again, too. I came away with a brand new tapestry loom made out of copper pipes. Very slick looking and portable!