Song To Make Me Still

Lower your eyelids
over the water
Join the night
like the trees
you lie under

How many crickets
How many waves
easy after easy
on the one way shore

There are stars
from another view
and a moon
to draw the seaweed through

No one calls the crickets vain
in their time
in their time
no one will call you idle
for dying with the sun

Leonard Cohen
The Spice-Box of Earth 1961

Goats, Sheep, Llama

I made my annual visit to the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair today, where I actually bought Christmas presents! On November 8! Pretty impressive.
I like the Royal for it's shopping, food tasting, and for the opportunity to pat goats and sheep. Though each year I find I'm a little more bothered by the animal agriculture for meat areas. It's weird to pat a pig then walk ten feet and buy back bacon on a bun for lunch. I'm not vegetarian though The Daughter is. We keep a veggie kitchen and I've become quite the good vegetarian cook. Frankly, I'm happy to let others deal with cooking the meat products. I only eat meat now when I'm out but, lately, even in restaurants, I choose the veggie option. I think it's only a matter of time before I stop eating meat altogether.

Cute goat, n'est pas?

The source of LYS stock.

My two new friends. These girls were super friendly.

Of course, there was yarn. This is Llama from Ontario.I also
counted three booths selling locally raised alpaca fibre.

Happy Halloween!

Here's hoping everyone had a safe and happy Halloween. The Daughter and I sure did, rocking out to scary tunes, handing out candy on our porch (she, heavily bundled under her fairy wings, fighting back the feverish flu). Costume highlights include a headless man, three Oompa Loompas and a fuzzy zebra. My favourite however, had to be the swashbuckling princess. Seriously, the little girl wore a traditional pink princess dress with a black plumed hat, boots and sword. Chalk one up for girl power!

Check out the house across the street from our building. These people were decorating for days. The house literally stopped traffic. Hard core.

Red Day

Cast on Damson in Ancient Threads Yarn logwood reds.

Bought a red-orange coat in a vintage shop. The buttons sealed the deal.

Autumn Sunday

It was such a stunning day here in Toronto. Autumn is in full swing. This is the tree outside my front window. Unfortunately, it like every other maple for the past ten years or so, has that black spot blight on the leaves. What is that anyway? Close up the leaves look scarred and ugly. Yet from afar, still glorious.

I "passed by" Lettuce Knit the other day on the way somewhere else. Naturally one can't just pass without stopping in for a hello. It was a $75.00 hello. I picked up some needles, the Holiday Vogue and this creamy Berroco Linen Jeans in a blue-grey. It was on sale, an excellent value. However, it strikes me that someone without a full time job shouldn't be impulse buying in this manner. My lack of restraint annoys me. I may have to stay out of yarn stores altogether.

Twist Me A Twig

I just got back from The Toronto Downtown Knit Collective's monthly meeting. This month's feature was a Skype interview with Kate Gilbert and trunk show from Twist Collective. After seeing and touching Robin Melanson's stunning Twigs & Leaves Cardigan, (Modelled by Robin herself!) I downloaded it immediately upon walking in the door. I think I may have found my cabled cardy!