Friday, March 22, 2019

The best laid plans of nice wo-men...

...to misquote the esteemed Robert Burns.

Last night I had a couple moments of dizziness, which I chalked up to wearing my reading glasses while moving around, or tiredness. But by the time I was getting ready for bed, it was a full-blown case of vertigo; ugh. All I could do was lay down and hang on while my world whirled. This morning felt more like a slow merry-go-round, but even those made me motion-sick as a child so I stayed in bed while Rick did all the animal chores and got kindling and firewood should I get up and want to build a fire. (Bless his heart!) Now I am up and moving very slowly and carefully; I've eaten a little and a fire is built, but today is clearly not going to be productive and that stinks. Just sitting here and posting this is requiring frequent breaks, and I might just go lay down again before I finish. Phhfft. (I ended up doing just that for the last six or seven hours.)

I'm feeling slightly better now (as long as I don't turn my head or bend over), and I have a few things to share. The one time I went outside this morning (to empty the ash bin so I could clean out the firebox) I took this:
Rain, flowering plum buds opening, and daffodils – an iconic spring day! And a relief to the earth and plants, I'm sure, as it was shockingly dry for March. I also managed to finish spinning the last bit of the FatCatKnits fiber:

I plan on plying this for the April "15 minutes a day" challenge in the Jenkins Ravelry group. It should make a beautiful gradient skein of fingering!

Yesterday when I stopped at the post office for work, a woman wearing a handsome colorwork sweater was also getting her mail. I complimented her on it, and she thanked me warmly. I asked her if she made it, and she said she not only made it years ago, but owned and sheared the sheep it came from and spun their wool! Of course I had to touch it and ask what kind of sheep she had (Corriedale), and tell her I have Shetlands. Then I left, but regretted not getting a photo so turned around and went back in. She had moved to the service counter, so I just took a sneak shot and left again.

A week or so ago, Rick finished turning another bowl – or rather, an urn – out of pear. I think this is his best so far; a masterpiece!




It's 9" tall and about that across. I wish I had a good display space, like a lighted china cabinet, for Rick's creations. Right now five of them (including this one, and the small vessel that holds our napkins) are on the dining table, with more shut inside the antique pie safe.

Thanks to a Facebook group set up for the mission trip, we've learned that Brian made it safely to Belize, then Guatemala and the job site. He's learning how to lay block!


One last photo. Several weeks ago I picked up some free pots advertised on Freecycle, then bought some pretty pansies to put in that blue one. Good thing I didn't get around to potting them, because tulips are coming up in it now!

That's it for now from . . .



8 comments:

Retired Knitter said...

Vertigo! I HATE vertigo! I had a spell of it myself years ago - it was thought to be a virus that was going around at that time. It took a week till I was sort of normal and about a 6 weeks before all the symptoms went away - AND if left me with maybe once year little episodes of 5 seconds or less of vertigo - until my brain clicked in and corrected it. The doc I saw say I probably had a little bit of inner ear damage from the virus. Maybe you have a virus, or maybe you are just coming down from a severely stressful period. Stay safe until it passes. Bed or chair is best. And don't make it a rocking chair - I did that and set the darn vertigo off again!! Ugh!

wyomingheart said...

Hope you get rid of that vertigo. I have trouble with that when allergy season hits in the fall. It's awesome that you get to see what Brian is doing, half a world away! Please take care!

Mama Pea said...

What an inopportune time for that darned vertigo to kick in. Hoping it vanishes quickly.

Wow, Rick's talent with wood turning is something else! I know he's worked at it, but it seems such a short time since he started doing it.

Such a nice interaction you had at the P.O. with the (ex)shepherdess. What a great feeling you and she must have to know you can clothe yourself (and others) in warmth and comfort.

Nice picture of Brian. Here's hoping this mission trip of his lights a spark that he will carry throughout his life.

Fat Dormouse said...


I'm not a doctor BUT I have - in the past - had vertigo caused by loose crystals of something in the inner ear.BPPV (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benign_paroxysmal_positional_vertigo)
There is a very simple exercise you could try - if it's the same thing, then it should help. And if it's NOT that I don't imagine it will do much harm. This video gives a good explanation https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mQR6b7CAiqk

I used to be really afraid of my vertigo sessions until I found this manouvre which cures my vertigo after about two/three repetitions.

Jeanne said...

I'm sorry you've been struggling with vertigo. I haven't had it for a while. Haven't missed it a bit! I pray that you'll soon be free of it. Mine has always been the benign paroxysmal vertigo. One trip to a physical therapist usually fixes it. Nothing like instant relief! I see that Allison commented and included information.

The lady who had the beautiful sweater is very talented.

Brian is looking good.

Michelle said...

RK, I've had it just once before and thought then that it might have been connected to a bug I was dealing with; that time was even worse than this. But this time seems unrelated to anything else, so I'm wondering if it is BPPV. I just wish it would go away, because I can't get anything done!

The internet is definitely good for some things, wyomingheart!

It really has been a relatively short time, Mama Pea; less than two years. He definitely has talent for turning! And I, too, hope this mission trip brings lifetime benefits....

Thank-you for that link, Alison! I watched it a few times and just the thought of going through those motions made me sicker, but figured it was worth a try if it works. I tried it once (kept a bowl handy just in case) and it DID make it worse; I've just waited the 15 minutes and will try again on the other ear. (I can't really tell which ear is causing it.)

Keeping praying for me, Jeanne, and thank-you!

thecrazysheeplady said...

I remember a story on JZ's blog a couple years ago about a bad bout she had. Can't remember what she did to fix it, but seems like there was something.

Rick's wood turnings are fantastic. Has he tried making any drop spindles yet?

Love the way the colors show on your spindle. I'd never unwrap it and just enjoy as is :-).

FullyFleeced said...

sorry to hear about the vertigo. ugh. what a pain. Rick's urn is lovely, as is your spinning!