I bought two pairs of shoes from Shoebuy last week. The first pair showed up today. Shipping was pretty fast, and shipping both here and should I need to return them, back is free for ground service via UPS. They provided a tracking number for each shipment within just a few hours of ordering, and they ship very quickly even using standard ground.

Both pairs of shoes are from Merrell. I've bought other shoes from them and they're always very comfortable. I've needed a comfortable pair of shoes since I started having pregnancy related back problems.

The shoes that I received today are tan slip on shoes (for when I can no longer reach my toes), lined in fleece. They have excellent arch support.  Despite the fact that they are ugly as sin, I'm keeping them because they're SO comfy. They have arch support like nobody's business. Yay!

I'm so impressed and grateful that technology has advanced enough that people all over the world watched today's inauguration together.

I feel like I'm chaneling Seinfeld, but the phrase really expresses my thoughts...

What's the deal with these new spinners who buy one wheel and think that wheel is the wheel, the best one for everybody all the time?

How can experienced spinners best help to educate new spinners that while it's great that they love their wheel, that there are LOTS of wheels out there, and thank goodness there are!

I have to admit that I'm specifically thinking about the Mach1 and Fidelis owners out there.  Every one I've met has been rabid about their wheels, and several of them to the point of trashing other wheels.  While I'm thrilled that an engineer has created this Mach1 wheel, I'm actually not thrilled with the wheel itself.  The treadle mechanism, while innovative, doesn't work well for me.  I also don't like that the flyer setup is so...  odd.  I wouldn't have it in a house with children.  The fact that it needs a brake due to the weight of the drive wheel , rather than being able to put my hand on the wheel to stop it really makes this an adult only piece of furniture.  Plus I just don't like how it looks.  The thing is danged heavy, and not quite stable enough for my taste.  That said, it seems to work, it adds twist, and there's a market for it.

The Fidelis wheel is another story.  While the wheel seems to work, it really disturbs me that the makers can't be bothered to get their drive system right on their web site.  Is the wheel Scotch Tension or Irish tension?  Are you sure? 

It's Irish tension (bobbin led), but that's not what it says on their Etsy site.  I had to look at the YouTube video to be sure, and what's worse to me is that a beginning spinner is NOT going to know the difference.

Finally, I have one more rant:  People, just because you spend all day on the computer and next to a phone does not mean that our wheel crafters do as well.  Please don't expect same or next day service!  These folks are one or two person shops, working to build the best product they can.  Sometimes they just don't use email.  Sometimes they're so busy that they take a while to get back to their customers.  If you have a bad experience with a wheel maker, please take it up with the wheel maker, don't go ranting about to everyone looking to buy a new wheel.

-Lauren, grouchy spinner

My dear sweet husband did it again.  He somehow manages to find me gifts that I would never buy for myself, but somehow are really pleasing to me.

This year he bought me my very own Capitals jersey, with plenty of room for growth. :)

I'm not sure why this is so pleasing to me, but it really really is!

I did get some spinning done this week.  Of course now I'm at the office so I can't take photos to share.  Let's just say that I finished a bobbin of SW BFL (Superwash Blue Faced Leicester for those non-sheepie people), which amounted to about four ounces.  I have another four ounces to go, and of course the first four ounces still need to be plied.

I've been eating badly lately, I'm either not hungry, or I'm not getting enough water, or something else is just conspiring against my ability to put food down my gullet.  And then this morning when I WAS finally hungry, all I could find to eat was garbage.  I think I need to go find myself a bottle of decaf tea (the kind I make myself in my 24oz Camelbak bottle) and start sipping that for the day.

Also, I can't decide if the baby either doesn't like my toothpaste, or my gag reflex is just heightened, as I had my first real puke this morning. This was NOT supposed to happen in the second trimester!

And now I must go friendslock this post, as the general public really doesn't need to know about my puking habits and ever increasing waistline thankyouverymuch.

ETA: Happy Hannukah everyone!

I want to post a big shout out to my sis, who amazingly talked me through buying a dress today.  I was in Macy's and she was on the phone.  It's one of the few times where I can say that technology can be a wonderful thing :)

My Mojo made a surprise appearance at yesterday's spin in at my house.  I've spun up almost a full bobbin of Lame Duck Mallard, superwash BFL in a thick woolen single.  I was so impressed with Elizabeth's yarn that I had to spin up mine.

I'll be two plying this yarn.  I've only done four of the eight ounces, and I'm thinking I may card the second four ounces into batts.  The clors will be much more homogonized, but should still knit up well together.  These spunky club fibers bring up something weird in me.  I have to kind of commit myself to not caring too much about what they'll turn out like.  They're not always colors I'd pick for myself, but they're always an adventure.  I get a different fiber type every month.  Sometimes they're great, and sometimes they're not, but it's worth it for the experimentation.  I'll be joining up again when the club goes live on the 21st.  December's fiber will be 1 year of club membership for me.

In other fiber news, I have two Polwarth fleeces marinating upstairs.  Sunday I pulled a lock out of the superfine silver fleece and thighspun a four ply cabled yarn, just enough to tie around my wrist to see if I could put the yarn against my skin.  I've kind of fallen in love with this yarn. It's a light worsted weight, spun woolen.  I think if I had to do a sweater's worth I'd spin it worsted, instead.  It's a little fuzzy for a sweater right now.  I'll see what happens after I finish my Lame Duck Mallard project.

It's dark, so there are no photos. You'll just have to take my word for it.

Since SOAR my Mojo has been gone.  Not just knitting, but spinning too.  I've not knit or spun much since coming back.

Yesterday I went down to one of my LYS, and picked up four little balls of tapestry wool.  It's actual wool, knitting worsted weight.  I'm thinking about trying a log cabin style blanket. 

Let's see how this goes...

• 23:04 Military hospital opens for dogs wounded in war - www.cnn.com/2008/US/10/21/war.dogs.hospital.ap/index.html #

• 22:00 Hello @Silversun. Always glad to have another follower. Did you get my moo card at SOAR? #
• 22:00 @DanWaldo Sorry I didn't get to see you before you left. Best of luck in SC! #