just a ride

i have always loved bike riding. the freedom of hopping on and being able to go..... fast or slow it didn't matter. we bought really nice bikes ages ago and found that it was something we loved to do as a couple. even when the kids came along, we got the seats to have them with us. but it became less fun as we worried about getting hit on the road or finding the time to travel to a bike path to ride in safety. it seemed that the bikes just spent most of their time hanging in the garage. until this year....

my cousin was here for a visit and needed a place to go running. i had heard about this great new pathway in the community, but hadn't gotten there. she enjoyed it and raved that it was one of the nicer path's she had been on. after giving it a go, i realized what a gift was in my back yard! ( really it's just about a quarter of a mile away, but close enough :)
the  manchester gateway trail has become my almost daily obsession.

i've seen all sorts of creatures, and can usually find the perfect time of day to travel the 3 miles alone.

sometimes....... i even take the herd with me ;)

Finger Lakes Fiber Festival - 2013

i'm not sure that i have completely recovered from the festival. i have so many words to describe the event and i really just want to get to see it all again.
set-up began on friday afternoon. it was a hot, sunny day and it would just figure that it was the last nice day of the season! my car was full, i didn't forget a thing. we were able to get the signs all up and guild display organized in good time.
saturday dawned warm, but with clouds threatening. sure enough, rain started falling by late morning and the temps plummeted. even with that weather, over 1000 hearty fiber folk made their way to visit us. my job has become the parking gate person. i have been blessed to work with the most amazing volunteers and this year was no exception. these folks stood in the pouring rain and happily greeted each car. i met the crazy sheep lady  in the flesh. i've been following her blog for quite a while, and i know i made a fool of myself trying to make the connection.... in the rain.... in the parking lot. she has posted some great photo's on her blog ( hint- go take a look).
on a quick break, i made my way to see that amythefibergoddess was doing really well and longmeadow farms was staying dry. lots of beautiful stuff in each booth, and by the end of the festival they were pretty empty!

so, the guild display~ one of the nicest ever.

last years 'viewers choice' winners were prominently displayed....

there were 19 bags on display for festival goers to choose their favorite....

since the festival falls on -world wide spin in public day' we even had an area set up for folks to 'give it a whirl :)....

there are lots of votes for me to sort through, i'll get to it soon.

by sunday the rain had stopped, and little bits of sun shone down... but we were wading in mud...

i'm happy to say, with a bit a quick thinking we kept the cars from getting stuck. it made for longer walks for our patrons, but they could easily get out. the yarn  harlot was on the grounds sunday for her lecture and to shop. i didn't get a chance to meet her, but we could hear the laughter of the crowd out in the field.
monday she provided a class on knitting for speed and i was beyond excited to finally get to meet her and be a student. she did not disappoint! i'm committed to learning a new skill and invest the time to make it work. i took pages and pages of notes.... and had a fantastic time.

at it again

with fiber festival fast approaching..... our dyeing days have become numbered. and that number is making amythefibergoddess frazzled. my time has become restricted, so we are power-dyeing! we accomplished this yesterday....

huge 'wow' factor with this batch! we did it all, blues, greens, pinks. sock yarn and roving. she even let me choose a color-way. i was feeling very confident that i had graduated from minion to apprentice dyer, then really thought about it..... she was just tired ;)
i'll get pictures of my attempt next time.