Livin' La Needle Loca

...and I'm working away on my Ravellenics projects. Unlike Tour de Fleece, I usually participate in Ravellenics without a team. Not many of my spinning buddies participate, and the existing teams really don't match with my interests or group affiliations. Anyway, now that I've finished my WIP Dancing entries, I'm working on my Freestyle Spinning entries. I spun Meriadoc Handspun [ Ravelry ]: and the close-up: Specs: Started 2/5/2026 Finished 2/9/2026 4.0 oz Polwarth-silk from Into The Whirled 162.5 yds. chain-ply; 11 WPI  I've started a second handspun, but it might be the last one for this event. I'd like to get back to the mermaid now that I've completely removed the Waterlilies silk stitches that looked muddy. WIPs Roll Call Worked On: Morgana (cross stitch) Finished removing Waterlilies Fir stitches and restarted the stitching. Waterlilies Handspun [ Ravelry ] Started 2/10  No Work This We...

...cross stitch and knitting for Ravellenics 2026. I finished Collector's Heart 2026. I did not use the ribbon included in the chart pack and I changed the position of the year: Specs: Started 1/22/2026 Finished 2/6/2026 Collector’s Heart 2001 chart pack from Heart in Hand Needleart For Ravellenics 2026 in the WIP Dancing event, I finished two sets of Melt the ICE Badges - 3D [ Ravelry ] and the flat version [ Ravelry ]: Specs: Started 2/5/2026 Finished 2/8/2026 Pattern: Melt the ICE Badge - 3D and Melt the ICE badge 1.2, by Hasani Yarn: Caron Simply Soft in Harvest Red 

...some progress, but getting tired of cross stitch. I can't wait until the Ravellenic Games start in a couple of days. I'm ready for some spinning. The construction guys working on the studio remodel have been doing a lot of noisy work, making it difficult to work in the living room. I can't hear the TV and I can see them working in my peripheral vision. It's very distracting, so I work in my bedroom. The set-up there is not ideal, but I do what I can. Because I need the lighted magnifier to work on the mermaid and it's a pain to move from room to room, I leave the mermaid in the living room. I work on small cross stitch projects and knitting when I'm in the bedroom. I finished knitting my first Melt the ICE hat [ Ravelry ]: Specs: Started 1/23/2026 Finished 1/31/2026 Pattern:  Paul S. Neary, Needle & Skein in Twin Cities, MN Yarn: Caron Simply Soft in Harvest Red  This hat has been promised to a friend. I've s...

...and there's verhy little blooming in the yard. We have a few Gazanias: some cape mallow: and the nasturtiums are still going strong. 

 ...and working on my crafts to ease my mind. So much going on in the US...it's unbelievable and heart-breaking. As a Mexican-American woman, I am worried about !CE and all of the horrible things happening associated with them. I have a lot of family in LA and I'm particularly worried about them. All of our remaining family is US-born, but as we've seen, that doesn't matter. I've started carrying my birth certificate again and my passport card. The last time I felt that I had to carry my birth certificate was in the late 60s. 😶  I'm donating to a few Minnesota-centered groups who are helping with immigration issues. I've downloaded and started the Melt The ICE hat [ Ravelry ][ website ]. I knitted Pussy Hats in 2017, so there was no question that I'd knit these hats this year.  I'm alternating between knitting and cross-stitching the latest mermaid while watching TV that doesn't elevate my BP or anxiety. Currently, I'm binging Bake-Off: The ...

...and I'm trying hard to fill them with family and crafts rather than doom-scrolling. Yesterday, The Husband and I celebrated our 40/45th anniversary. 45 years ago we had our pivotal 3rd date. I couldn't get a sitter, so we took my daughter along. He planned an entire day that included an almost-three-year-old child, doing things that she might enjoy. We all had a great time! Five years later, we married on the anniversary of that 3rd date. 45 years later, we are still together and he still makes my heart sing. We've raised a wonderful daughter, endured the loss of our parents and other family members, celebrated weddings and birthdays, and learned to just be with each other. We celebrated our love and life with a dinner at a favorite restaurant. With the world spinning out of control, we know we have each other.