Escaping Suburbia

At 7:30 this morning, our power went out. It’s amazing how quiet it gets when there’s no electricity… I sometimes wonder what that constant hum is doing to us. Anyway, I was a little nervous because we’re having company today and I had a little cooking and baking to do. I calmed myself by realizing that we have plenty of alcohol, if the power stays off we could just sit by the fire and drink. Hahaha.

And before I even had a mimosa, I was picturing us and all the neighbors (who were also without power) gathered in the street, holding hands and singing, just like in Whoville. I’m not even kidding… that thought came before alcohol. I mean, I’d just woken up, what do you take me for?

Please excuse me, I must go watch Elf now. Hope you have a happy day!

I found out on Sunday that my favorite antique store in Albany is closing. Pastime Antique Mall on 1st Ave. is closing on December 31st. I didn’t hear why, but when we went by on Sunday, several of the dealers were clearing out their spaces.

I really hope I can find several of them again, once they move to new places. I could go to that shop (and they were open 7 days a week, which is practically unheard of) and find something I wanted, every time. Couldn’t always afford what I wanted, but there was always something! I could always, always get a Pyrex fix there, and there was a whole space dedicated to Fiestaware. I’ve never seen so much Fiestaware in one place before… too bad I don’t know anything about it. I have a couple of pieces my grandmother gave me, and I love them.

Anyway, this is sad. Downtown Albany’s been looking so good lately, with Clemenza’s opening up, and the boutique stores, and a few photographers getting studio space along 1st Ave. The coffee shop closed, but it’s a lovely space, so I’m hoping someone’s moving in soon, and I hope it’s another coffee shop. (I think we should appeal to Red Horse to open a second location!)  There is a lot of potential over there… I hope they can pull through the rough times.

There’s a gorgeous storefront location right next to Clemenza’s, with a brick wall and wood floors. I wish I had a reason to rent it. I would absolutely love to open a yarn and fiber store that carries mainly locally produced yarns and fibers. Anyone want to give me the startup cash for that? Ha.

I think, with my day off today, I shall make one more trip over to the antique mall. I had my eye on a Pyrex cake pan last time.

I snagged an Etsy Treasury tonight, so I built the whole thing around Corvallis artists:

Love for my Corvallis peeps

The other day, I wrote a post about A Day Without a Bag, the Heal the Bay-sponsored event in Los Angeles taking place on Thursday, December 18th. In support of the idea, I suggested we participate from afar. (Plus I have some readers in Los Angeles.)

Looks like it’s going to be easy here in Corvallis/Albany… I don’t know about you guys, but I’m pretty much going to work and going straight home every day that we have ice on the road. However, there might be a stop at the grocery store on the way home or something, so I’ll have my reusable bags in the car.

Here’s another idea for reducing plastic bag waste that goes into landfills… do you get your newspaper in a plastic bag? Did you know you could return those for re-use? If you get a paper from the GT or the DH, your newspaper carrier is an independent contractor who is responsible for purchasing their own supplies. You can leave a note for your carrier, or speak to them if you see them, and see if they will take the bags back for re-use, thus cutting down on their expense. Many people save them up and leave a stash for the carrier every once in a while. The other option is to bring them to the GT office in Corvallis, where they will be offered to carriers who want to take them. (I am not sure if the DH will accept the bags in the office, but you could check with them.)

Remember to leave a comment tomorrow if you participate by not using a bag. I’ll be giving away two cotton market bags!

I almost forgot to mention this! I tried spinning some yak fiber. It is amazingly soft and beautiful… I’ve read it’s comparable to cashmere. I had some trouble spinning it by itself, though, because the staple is so short, so I hand carded it with some undyed merino and here is my resulting skein:

Not all the guard hairs got removed, you can see the little dark wiry hairs sticking out in the first photo, but it’s still lovely and soft. I don’t like hand carding — probably because I suck at it… see the barber pole effect? — so it’s a small skein. Am not sure yet what I will do with it.

Haven’t done a “now spinning” post in a while. Here’s what’s currently on the wheel:

Both photos can be clicked to see larger images on Flickr. I used a flash for these shots, so the color isn’t perfect. This is 4oz. of BFL from Abstract Fiber in the colorway “Asia”. When we went to Portland in November, I wrangled a visit to Abundant Yarn & Dyeworks and picked this up there, along with some Sulka that got turned into a hat for Mr. Wolf.

I’ve finished a few skeins now and desperately need to photograph and update the Etsy shop. Hmph. Sounds like work!

Heal the Bay down in Los Angeles county is coordinating their second annual Day Without a Bag event on December 18th. The event itself is only for LA county, but I decided to pilfer the idea and let you all know about it too. Can you go one full day without using a disposable bag? I’m sure many people have canvas bags or totes or other means of carrying purchases. I know I do. I leave them at home all the time, or in the car, despite my best intentions.

There are so many good reasons to reduce our use of plastic. But here’s one very graphic reason I can give you:

This is a sea lion in Newport, Oregon and that’s a plastic bag stuck around its neck. Tissue and muscle (I think?) have now grown around the bag and there is no way for it to be removed without causing more damage or death.

This photo was taken some time ago. I know the sea lion was being monitored when I took the photo (there was a sign on the dock), but I don’t know what’s happened to him since then.

So, December 18th… who’s in? I’m going to put up a post on the 18th inviting comments… tell me how you participated, and you’ll be entered in a drawing for a hand-made, cotton market bag. I have two made right now, and if I can get a few more done between now and the end of the year, I’ll give those up, too.

Here’s one of the bags I have made. The other one is purple.

Only people who are NOT in the LA area are eligible, please. You guys already have a neat event and a whole mess of places to pick up a free bag. But your comments are welcome, of course!

Several weeks ago, I was browsing through the ’shop local’ section of Etsy and came across the work of Corvallis artist Jennifer Lommers. I was immediately drawn in by the rich, vibrant colors of her paintings and couldn’t resist purchasing a print. I was in such a rush to get my hands on it, I used the wrong Paypal account — oops! But, Jennifer is, in Etsy terms, “convo friendly” (some sellers are not, you’d be surprised…), so I dashed off a note explaining my mistake and she was very friendly and patient about the error, which delayed payment to her. 

Finally, a week or so later, I had my gorgeous print of two little birds “under the canopy of a thousand lights”. I’m now eyeing the print shown above, “Anita’s Poppies”.

Hmm, I think I will send a link to Mr. Wolf as a Christmas hint…

At Jennifer’s Etsy shop, she has a really nice range of items and prices. From original work to individual art cards, it’s a good possibility everyone will find something within their budget. I’m always so disappointed to find an artist whose work I love, only to discover I can’t afford a single thing they produce. Happily, that was not the case here!

I also found 2009 calendars at Jennifer’s blog — three styles, either birds, flowers, or landscapes. All lovely… how to choose?

I’d like to hear from readers who participate in gift-giving during the holidays… what are your plans this year? Either with your family or within the community, or both? Is the economy having a bearing on your plans?

There was an article recently in the Seattle PI about how local gift-giving plans are not really changing, despite the downturn. And, in fact, people are willing to spend more on “green” gifts (although one would hope that they are paying attention to “greenwashing” tactics). Folks commenting on the article aren’t impressed — they’d like to see money given to charitable organizations or at least see people scale back.

Not that it’s anyone’s business what other people do with their money, but I’ve never noticed a shortage of people willing to comment anyway. Myself included… somewhere in my deleted posts is a little rant about people who insist that the underpaid cashiers at Walmart wish them a “merry Christmas”, rather than “happy holidays”. I am pretty sure I mentioned child-sized Escalades in that post. Well, that whole “war on Christmas” nonsense still rankles, so… trailing off now…

Anyway! Plans! We are lucky to have a close-knit group of friends here in Oregon. The guys have all known each other since high school or longer, or are siblings (Mr. Wolf and his brother), and the wives are good friends. It would be hard for any couple to try to get gifts for all the other couples, but we all enjoy giving. Last year we drew names and did a straight-up exchange, and this year we initially thought we’d do a white elephant exchange, but sister-in-law Gigi had another idea. We drew names via Elfster, and we are going to give second-hand books. The books can come from either from a second-hand store or off our own bookshelves. I love the element of thought that will go into this exchange as we look for just the right book… and even if you have one in mind, as I do, it may be impossible to find at a used-book store, so you have to keep your eyes and mind open to the possibilities.

We plan to get together on January 1st to exchange gifts, taking stress off Christmas day.

As for giving within the community, I can’t decide where to focus. Is it better to spread a little bit around to many organizations, or try to do more for one or two families? (No, I know, there’s not really a question of what is “better”, just different choices and I need to decide.) And then, local or more far-flung? I’ve done a little in both arenas, but I’m thinking now I will work on a separate post about charitable giving and will talk a bit about it there. There are so many options… look for a nice long post in the next day or two.

I’m also working on some “shop local” posts featuring local artists and merchants, with some gift-giving ideas. Stay tuned!

The Ford logo on an old farm truck. Taken at Detering Orchards.