Lucky Day...

 at the charity shop, where there was a bin on the floor with a bit of yarn in it. It was mostly odd balls, partial skeins, and scraps, but there were a few full balls, too. Of course, I had a rummage around and found some that wanted to come live with me.

orphan yarn no more--she only asked for a euro

I know the multicoloured partial skein with the green in it is acrylic. I like the colours and know how I am going to use it. I have a large pin loom project on the go and I am curious to see how it will look doubled up and woven on my loom. And it's the right weight to use single stranded on my heart loom, so I might make a heart or two, too!

The small grey partial skein looked like Donegal tweed wool. The fuzzy blue with the blobs seemed to be at least mostly mohair. I did the burn test when I got home and right on both counts--yay! I'm not sure yet how I will use these, but I'm sure they will be right at home in a future scrappy project.

I could tell what the last bit is because there are a few full balls with label, as well as the ball and a bit more. All in all, I think there are at least 4 full balls here. It's 46% mohair, 44% cotton, and 10% nylon. I know how I'm going to use that, too--also with my pin loom. Last fall, a friend gave me a sweater made by his late wife and asked me if I could deconstruct it and reuse the yarn. I said I could. Because I wanted to preserve some of her work, I removed the sleeves and made a bag out of one of them. 

The burn test indicates that this yarn is also mostly mohair. I unraveled the body of the sweater and used the yarn to weave squares on my pin loom. The mohair/cotton blend I got today contains both of these colours, and some slubs like this, too, so it will work together nicely. I will use it to weave more squares. Funnily enough, I have been thinking about this project for several days now. I have 8 hanks of purple wool that another friend brought back for me from a thrift store in Boston last autumn. My plan was to combine the pin loom squares I have with crochet in the purple yarn to make a jacket. I've been trying to decide how I was going to construct that, but have been going back and forth, bouncing around between different ideas. Now I'm glad I was so indecisive, because I'll have a bunch more squares with my new yarn to incorporate. 

I'm thrilled at my little orphan yarn haul and surprised that I found a bunch of yarn that works so well in my work-in-progress. 

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The Forgotten Girls: An American Story by Monica Potts

 The Forgotten Girls: An American Story

by Monica Potts

Publication Date: April 18, 2023

Penguin Press UK – Allen Lane, Particular, Pelican, Penguin Classics, Allen Lane

ISBN 9780241320525

Once upon a time, in the foothills of the Ozarks, there lived two girls, Monica and Darci. They quickly became best friends, in spite of the fact that their personalities were quite different. There were similarities. Both were gifted, did well academically, and were encouraged in school. Both wanted to leave Clinton, Arkansas, dreaming dreams and making schoolgirl plans to go to college far away after they graduated from high school. But life isn't a fairytale and as the 1990s progressed, they started to grow apart. Their lives diverged. One continued to focus on the dream of leaving and the other started to spiral into addiction, dysfunctional and dangerous behaviour, and self-harm, tying her ever more tightly to the town she used to want to leave. They lost touch for several years until one day, Darci tracked Monica down on social media and got in touch.

By this time, Monica was a journalist. She knew that there are rural areas all around the country with the same problems and societal pressures at work, wreaking havoc with the lives of their inhabitants. She wanted to know more about these pressures and why some people escape (as her mother saw it) and some end up staying, often simply because they don't see any other possibility. She and Darci were a couple of examples and she decided to use their stories to tell a larger tale. 

Darci gave Monica permission to read her diaries. Monica interviewed many people in the town and essentially began a participant observation project. She dug through data. This powerful and important book is the result--part memoir, part sociology, part journalism. It's extremely well done, quite thought-provoking, and highly readable. I did not want to put it down. When I had to, I was thinking about it and eagerly looking forward to picking it up again. Potts does a fine job of using her story and Darci's as the structure on which the book is built while skillfully broadening the narrative lens so we can see how their lives fit into the bigger picture. She inserts the data in a way that does not interrupt the flow of the story. Because the story is ongoing there is no neat and tidy ending. We leave these two women at a recent moment in their lives, hoping that eventually, a happy (or at least happy-ish) ending will come. 

I enthusiastically recommend this book. Definitely 5 stars. 

I received a digital copy of this excellent book in exchange for a fair review. I thank NetGalley, the publishers, and the author.

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Poverty, by America by Matthew Desmond

 Poverty, by America

by Matthew Desmond

ISBN 9780241543221

Published by: Penguin Press UK – Allen Lane, Particular, Pelican, Penguin Classics

There are many false assumptions and misunderstandings about poverty and the people who live that reality in the US. In this excellent, informative, and important book, Matthew Desmond both illuminates the reality of poverty in the US and issues a call to action. He states that, "This is who we are: the richest country on earth, with more poverty than any other advanced democracy." (p 6) Desmond is interested in why-why is there so much poverty in the US? This book is his response to that question. He makes it clear up front that this is not another book about "the poor," but rather "a book about how the other other half lives , about how some lives are made small so that others may grow." (p 7-8) And by the other other half, he means not just the wealthy, but also middle class people. "People benefit from poverty in all kinds of ways. It's the plainest social fact there is, and yet when you put it like this, the air becomes charged. You feel rude bringing it up...People accuse you of inciting class warfare when you're merely pointing out the obvious." (p 42) 

As someone who has studied US culture for over half a century, both formally and informally, and who has had the very experience he is describing when discussing many different issues that people don't like to or cannot comfortably face, I can say that not only do I agree with him, but I think more people need to start saying these things. Awareness is required. It's not that people deliberately set out to harm others by their actions--at least most of them--but rather that they take advantage of the breaks they're given without thinking much about it. We're all enculturated into our society and tend to see things as "just the way things are." This keeps a lot hidden from our consciousness. And there are politicians who will use misleading language to exploit that and gain support, which leads to poor public policy. When you drill a little deeper and get past the superficial, though, it really is obvious, as he says. That's not to say people want to hear these things--they definitely don't, at least in my experience. There is a lot of defensiveness and an unwillingness to be inconvenienced. But it's important to get this stuff out into the open. 

I think this, for me, was the most important part of the book and why I am giving it 5 stars. The research and data is extremely important, as is the myth-busting that Desmond does throughout the book, but that still keeps those who are not poor at a distance, even if they're better informed. By talking about the ways in which those who don't live in poverty benefit from it and even help perpetuate it, he lets people know that we all have skin in the game. It becomes less a distant set of circumstances happening to someone else that has nothing to do with us and more something that everyone is actively involved in. Helping more people to see this is vital. I cannot recommend this very well-written, thoroughly researched, very relevant, eye-opening, important book highly enough. 

I received a digital copy of the book in exchange for a fair review. I thank NetGalley, the publishers, and the author.

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The Dress Diary of Mrs Anne Sykes: Secrets from a Victorian Woman’s Wardrobe by Kate Strasdin

 The Dress Diary of Mrs Anne Sykes

Secrets from a Victorian Woman’s Wardrobe

by Kate Strasdin

published by Random House UK, Vintage, Chatto & Windus

ISBN 9781784743819

Oh, how I enjoyed this book! Not only is it a great read, but it's quite informative and very well-written, too.

The author was given an old album containing 422 pages, 2134 fabric swatches, and captions, which began in the 1830s. She was intrigued and set about looking for clues as to who it belonged to, deciding to transcribe the captions by hand. Since the captions were written in the 3rd person, she wasn't having any luck until she came to one that used 'I.' Then she knew that the book had belonged to Mrs. Anne Sykes and she was on her way. Because she was dealing with something belonging to a woman that contained swatches related mostly to clothing (there were only 8 swatches devoted to home furnishings), information was not always easy to find. Although she reached a few dead ends and some of her questions remain unanswered, she was able to track down a great deal of information. I found the book fascinating.

The fabric swatches in Mrs. Sykes' diary were not all from her own clothing. Friends, family, and others gave her little pieces of fabric that they'd used to have their own clothes made. Anne carefully placed all the swatches in her book and wrote captions, indicating whose fabric it was and sometimes the occasion on which the resulting clothing was worn. The author used this information to look into various aspects of life during the time span of the diary. For example, Anne and her merchant husband, Adam, spent 7 years in Singapore living in a British community there. Through the fabric swatches and captions, followed by the author's research, we learn about what life was like in such communities, what people felt about being so far from home, the relationships that developed, and the kinds of material goods that were a part of everyday life. When they returned to England, styles had changed and we learn about the kinds of events and occasions that people of a certain class would have attended, how mourning fashions evolved and became big business, and more.

The author rightly categorizes the album as a form of life writing. She states,"Anne's story is both remarkable and ordinary. She gave voice to the women in her world. She caught a tiny piece of them and protected their colourful variety in her most unusual of diaries. Not through her written word do we find these women, and Anne Sykes herself, but through these precious pieces of cloth." (p 268)

The book contains a bibliography and colour photos of the fabric swatches discussed.

I highly recommend this book. 5 stars.

I received a digital copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for a review. I thank them, the publisher, and the author.

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The Age of Cats: From the Savannah to Your Sofa by Jonathan B. Losos

 The Age of Cats

From the Savannah to Your Sofa

by Jonathan B. Losos

Published by William Collins

ISBN 9780008339487

The author of this book is a lizard expert who happens to love and live with cats. He got interested in cat behavior, evolution, domestication, genetics, interactions with humans (from both sides),  and roaming patterns (including cultural differences in whether or not domestic cats should be allowed to roam). He has also been involved in cats shows as a participant and a judge. Since he studies these things with regard to lizards, he decided to use his scientific background to look into the research on cats.

The book is fascinating as the reader learns about wild cats, various cat species, what is known about cats from the archaeological record, and how various wild cats behave. Losos does what the subtitle says--takes us from the Savannah to the sofa--as he describes the ways in which cats might have become domesticated and how domestic counts differ biologically and behaviorally from wild cats. 

There are a few chapters around the middle of the book that are about cat breeders and the traits that become popular and that breeders try to select for. I must confess that I was getting annoyed when reading these. One breeder, who is also an artist, gushed about how breeding cats for certain traits is using genetics to create art. In my opinion, it's nothing of the sort--these cats are living, sentient beings not pieces of clay to sculpt at will. There will be many cats born as people like this try to get cats that look a particular way because they think it would be 'cool.' Near the end of this section of the book, the author acknowledges the arguments on both sides. He mentions that his sister is someone who only adopts rescue cats and black ones at that, because they're hard to place. As someone who is not a fan of breeding, I was pleased to see him acknowledge the issues. It was clear that he is on the side of the 'breeding is cool' side of the equation, but he fairly represented both sides, so I thought that was fair enough.

Another such situation arose in the chapters on research into outdoor cat behaviour. As I was reading, it seemed to me that some of the methods would cause great stress to the cats. Again, Losos is aware of this, discusses it, and gives his own opinion while fairly illustrating the arguments of those who disagree.

All in all, this is a well-written, thorough, and enjoyable book. One does not have to be a scientist to understand what he is writing about. My one quibble was the footnotes. I do not like them. They interrupt the flow for me. Again, he is aware of this and says early on that no one has to read the footnotes to understand the book, but there is some cool stuff in them.

If you're a cat person, I can certainly recommend this book. I learned a lot from reading it.

I received a digital copy of this book through NetGalley. I thank them, the publisher, and the author.

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Hot Off the Hook: Scrappy Socks

 I was in the mood for a scrappy project. Some of my older socks are starting to show signs of wear so I've been knitting new ones here and there, picking them up and putting them down as the mood strikes. This time I felt like making socks out of some sock yarn scraps and I wanted to crochet them. So I did. First I rummaged around in my bag of scraps and pulled some out that went well together. Then I sat one night while listening to podcasts and Booktube, joining the scraps together using a joining method that creates an almost invisible join without knots. When I had two balls of about equal size, each ball having at least one colourway in common, I started crocheting, using one of my own patterns. The yarn went further than I thought it would, so with the addition of a few more scraps, I was able to get two pair of socks so far. I will be making another pair that won't be quite as scrappy because I have more leftovers of some yarn than I used for these.

fabric detail

I have another pair of socks I made like this several years ago and they are so comfortable to wear! That pair is not really scrappy--but the socks are mismatched. This bothers some people but I quite like it. Plus, it was a great way to use the yarn that each by itself was enough for one sock, but not a pair.

I plan to wear these socks with hiking sandals when it gets slightly warmer. I know some people don't like the socks with sandals thing, either, but since all my socks are made by my own hands, I enjoy seeing my (sometimes funky) handiwork as I walk around and I find hiking sandals and Birkenstocks to be the most comfortable shoes, so I like to wear them as much as I can. My funky socks extend their season. To each their own. 

I'll probably start another pair, but I also have another couple of projects I want to make by the end of the month so I can mail them, so I'll be focusing on those for a little while now.

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Slow Cooker Lasagne

 Bill recently posted a picture of the slow cooker lasagne I make sometimes and someone asked if I could do a post about how to make it, so here it is! It only takes a few minutes to put together and then you can leave it to cook and fill your home with the mouth-watering smell!

Lasagna noodles/lasagne sheets--for the past few decades, I have not cooked these before assembling the lasagne in the oven and there is especially no need to do so in the slow cooker, which creates moisture as it cooks the food. They will cook just fine in the crock. This saves time, energy, and makes assembly faster and easier. In the US, they used to have 'no-boil' lasagna noodles, but they came in a smaller box and were more expensive than the regular ones--no need to buy no boil noodles--regular noodles are what I use.

Sauce--you can make your own or use a prepared sauce. I make a quick, simple sauce using some passata and tomato puree to get the consistency I want and then add granulated garlic, dried oregano, and dried basil. I make a pot full and freeze any leftovers. Note that in the US, the tomato products are called by different names so there I used to use tomato puree and tomato paste and the herbs. If you prefer ready-made sauce, by all means, use that.

Cheeses--I use mozzarella and either cottage cheese or ricotta depending on what I can get. I have used homemade ricotta and that is extra yummy! In a pinch, when plain mozzarella has not been available, I've used a mozzarella/cheddar blend, which is what is shown in the photo.

That's all the ingredients I use, but if you want to use meat, brown it in a pan before adding it to the crock. I don't add veggies to the lasagne, but you could--perhaps it would be a good idea to sweat them a bit in the pan to get some of the moisture out.

The amounts will depend on how big your slow cooker is and how much you want. I always make a lot so we can have leftovers.

To assemble, simply ladle some sauce in the bottom of the slow cooker crock and spread to coat the bottom. Add a layer of lasagne sheets (you'll have to break them to make them fit). Add more sauce, spreading to cover the noodles. Spread a layer of cottage/ricotta cheese across the sauce. Sprinkle a layer of mozzarella over the cottage/ricotta (or lay slices down if you're using those). Then repeat from the noodle layer. Don't fill the crock all the way to the top because the noodles will expand as they cook, so you want to leave and inch or two at the top. For the final layer, add noodles, cover them with sauce, and add one more layer of mozzarella.

If using meat and/or veg, simply add layers of those in between the cheese layers.

Place the lid on the slow cooker, turn it on high and let it cook for 4 hours, then turn it off and let it sit for 20-25 minutes before cutting. 

I've started using my slow cooker for things I never thought of in the past and I'm not sure why it took me so long to do this! In addition to the lasagne, I make Thanksgiving stuffing in it (it is perfect for that because of the moist heat that cooks the food), and I bake bread in it. I'm sure there are more uses for this appliance that I have yet to discover. It's the small cooking appliance I use the most. 

Bon appetit!

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Project Completed and Delivered

 In December, a friend gave me a bunch of yarn that she'd found at a Goodwill in Boston when she was there for Thanksgiving. She scored big on that trip, finding really nice yarn for me and for herself. For herself she picked up 10 skeins of chunky superwash wool that was very soft and squishy. 

She asked if I'd knit her a sleeveless jumper with it. Of course I said I would be happy to and we looked around for patterns that would work with the limited amount of yarn we had. Since the yarn has been discontinued, we could not get more. She started looking in earnest in January and found the style she wanted, but it was for a smaller gauge and would possibly require more yarn than we had. Still, she bought the pattern from a seller on Etsy and downloaded it. She considered buying a yarn that might go well with what we had, but she really wanted it to be just that yarn without a contrast. Meanwhile, I found a pattern in an old magazine that would work for some parts of the garment. We agreed on how to proceed; I did a gauge swatch and did some calculations, working from those, the measurements, and the neck style from the two different patterns to get what she wanted. Then I did some tweaking to make the design fit and look better with the bulky yarn. I finished Monday, but I left long tails at the armholes so they could be adjusted, if necessary.

Today we hopped on the bus and met her for lunch and a visit. I brought my needle case with scissors so I could weave in those tails. She was wearing a sweater she'd gotten to go under the vest and went into the bathroom to try it on. She came out happily wearing it. The armholes did not need adjusting and she says it's exactly what she wanted. Phew! I was thrilled that it fit as she wanted it to. I had very little yarn left, so had given some thought as to how to best make it work. It's great when ideas work out well. So I had fun with the project--the yarn was really nice to work with--and she is happy with her new garment. And we had a lovely visit and a nice lunch. It was a good day!

detail of the knitted fabric which gives a sense of the colours

Hope you're having a good day, too.

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