black sheep gathering

After kayaking time, I went down to Eugene for my first Black Sheep Gathering. And I can confirm: it is one amazing fiber show!

To start with, I took a sheep shearing class.

Then I bought too much fiber, although I restrained from the full fleeces.

Also nearly adopted a new dog to guard my non-existent cattle.

Finally, I had to wrestle my luggage into submission at the airport from way too many sheep-related purchases. Oops.

It goes without saying, but I will be finding reasons in the future to attend more Black Sheep Gatherings.

oregon

Thanks to a great org- First Descents- I spent the last week in Oregon, kayaking, rafting and bonding with a stellar group of young adult cancer survivors.

We stayed in Hood River, OR, and kayaked/rafted the Klikitat, White Salmon and Columbia Rivers. Every morning, I woke up to a view of Mt. Hood. We had stellar guides, good conversations, cathartic arts & crafts sessions...

If anybody out there is a young adult survivor, looking for friends and adventure (for free), First Descents is the group for you. I have absolutely no regrets about doing this program and I feel stronger for having faced down some fears in the river... Great group, great time.

county fair entries

In this year's county fair, I entered a skein of yarn and the High Contrast blanket in the fiber arts competition. After striking out last year, I was pleased to see that I got two (maybe three) awards!

First place for the blanket:

Honorable mention and Judge's Favorite for the skein of yarn (and a very favorable display):

Yipee!