Onward

Thank you all for the enthusiasm and support for the podcast. It may end up being a weekly podcast sooner rather than later, because I am very excited about recording additional content.

In the meantime, I still have other work to do. I was going to clean off the apple trees yesterday. I didn’t get it done when the kids were here. Sunnie caught a grizzly bear on the game cam in her orchard a few days ago, so I thought it was time. Just as I was getting ready to go out, though, it started raining. Arggghhhh.

My plan for the afternoon was to make more class samples. I flipped the schedule and made the class samples in the morning. I am teaching a class next month on making socks on the serger and the store wants some to display. I took a similar class at Sew Expo last spring, but I wanted to refine the design and create a handout. To do that, I needed to go through the process of measuring and cutting and sewing. In that Sew Expo class, we used a flatlock stitch. That’s a great stitch when you don’t want seams rubbing against skin, but it’s also a bit tricky. We’re going to make socks with a three-thread narrow seam using wooly nylon/wooly polyester. I hate wearing uncomfortable clothing, but the seams in the socks I made don’t bother me.

Socks require some very stretchy material. I had a length of swimwear fabric on hand so I used that:

I am going to try making some in other fabrics, like microfleece, but the store will have these for display.

The morning rain showers gave way to sunshine, so after lunch, I went out to clean off apple trees. The Red Wealthy apples were ready. They look really nice. I ought to make some applesauce with them. I don’t have a lot of pest pressure on my apple trees despite not treating them with anything. I don’t treat mostly because I am lazy and never get around to spraying them. I was in a seminar about five years ago on preventing insect damage to fruit trees, and I asked if not having insect damage was normal. Everyone assured me that the bugs just hadn’t found the trees yet. Part of me thinks, though, that treating fruit trees is like treating with antibiotics—it runs the risk of creating bugs that are resistant.

I do what works, and until my system no longer works, I’ll leave the trees alone.

I have two Honeycrisp trees, but the apples are just this side of ripe. (I tasted one.) I’d like to leave them for a few more days. The husband likes those for snacking, but so do bears.

I’m teaching my Harper Cardigan class today. I think I’m going to wear the same outfit I wore for church on Sunday. After making socks yesterday, I pulled out a couple of sweater knits and stacked them near the cutting table. They’ll become cardigans in the near future.

[Let’s all take a moment to appreciate the irony of a former knitting designer sewing socks and cardigans, shall we?]

Oh, it feels good to be sewing again!

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The processor called yesterday to get my cutting instructions for the pork. I think we may use this processor again in the future. The guy I talked to was friendly and professional and they offer several options we hadn’t had before. I chose to have half the sausage made plain and half as garlic and pepper. He said the garlic and pepper was their most popular sausage.

The Spokane Conservation District opened registration this week for their annual Farm and Food Expo. I’ve been to a couple of those in the past—one with Elysian—and thought they were well done. The pandemic seemed to have thrown SCD off its stride, though, and they’ve had a bit of trouble getting back on track. I was considering attending this conference, but it’s not going to fit into the schedule. It is November 15 and 16 (Wednesday and Thursday) and I am scheduled to teach the Lark Tee in Missoula on the 14th and 15th. I had thought that if they scheduled the farm expo on Thursday and Friday, I would just travel from Missoula to Spokane. I may do that anyway if I can schedule another serger class in Spokane for those days.