photos

Here are a few photos from the past months,
just a few snapshots in time.


This wool came to me as a gift of fiber from a raveller, Stitchlily. The wool came from Kerry Woollen Mills originally, near Killarney. Here it is as spun by me.



Four donkeys in a field, beside Mr Binman depot, Ballyneety, Co Limerick.


Cows on the road being herded home for milking, near Ennistymon, Co Clare, photographed on my way home from a spinning Skills Swap, mid June.


More spinning, this time of Angelica fiber, purchased from a raveller in UK. This was supposed to be my spinning project for February or March 2011, but I didn't spin it till June.

the Irish summer continues, den irländska sommaren bara fortsätter

so the Irish summer continues, ie, it is drizzly and overcast...
The difference between summer and winter in Ireland seems to be that in summer it's drizzly and overcast and a bit humid, whereas in winter it's raining and overcast and quite cold. wet and warm vs wet and cold.
I would not be able for hot temperatures anyway, so I do not complain. I like overcast days. I like the challenge of trying to get clothes dry outdoors in these conditions. I like the way one can think clearly in this weather. I do not like the way my brain melts in heat.

I am about to stop blogging very soon. Work will demand more of me this coming year and I will need to give more of my time to planning and preparation.
I have enjoyed reading your blogs enormously, and wish you all the best of luck in your endeavours. Thank you to those who have stopped by to comment.
Those of you who need to contact me probably already have my email address.
regards
liz

back in Ireland again, hemma på Irland igen

Nu är vi hemma på Irland igen, sedan i fredags egentligen men det tar sin lilla tid att vänja sig vid att vara här igen, efter nästan 2 veckor i Sverige.
Vädret här på Irland har varit mulet, regnigt och t.o.m. kallt ibland! Idag har solen kommit fram men inte har vi blå himmel inte, nej fortfarande molnigt. Men det gör mig inget, jag klarar inte av varmare väder ändå.
Ja så nu börjar det vanliga sysselsättningarna igen: tvätt, dammsugningen, köpa skoluniform till de 4, köpa skolböcker till de 4, och sedan planera själv inför det kommande skolåret, nu när jag ska ha 3e och 4e klass måste jag planera en hel del.
Inte kan man ställa sig framför 29 barn på den 1e sept och inte vet vad man ska göra med dem!
Och så vill jag hinna att sticka och spinna en del med, innan det blir dags för skolan igen. Och jag måste visa er bilder på den fina garnvindan jag köpte på loppis i Sverige, samt ett par handkardor, en stor stark slända, och en Knifty Knitter loom, och den lilla disktrasan jag virkade när jag var på semsetern, min allra första virkade objekt!

Now we are at home in Ireland again, we're back since last Friday actually, but it takes a little time to get used to being here again, after almost two weeks in Sweden.
The weather here in Ireland has been overcast, rainy and even cold sometimes! Today the sun came out but we don't have blue skies, oh no, it's still cloudy. But it doesn't bother me, I can't cope with warmer weather anyway.
So now it's back to the usual stuff again: laundry, vacuuming, buying school uniforms for the four kids, buying school books for them too, and then planning myself for the upcoming school year, now that I will have 3rd and 4th class, I will have to plan a lot. I can't just stand in front of 29 children on the 1st of Sept and not know what to do with them!
And then I really want to make time to knit and spin before I go back to school again. I also have to show you pictures of the yummy wooden woll Swift I bought at the flea market in Sweden, and a pair of hand carders, also a chunky spindle, and a Knifty Knitter loom, and the little dishcloth I crocheted while I was in Sweden, it's my very first crocheted items !

sommarstängt! closed for the holidays

well, not really closed, but just wanted to say that I am far from Ireland this week, we are on our hoildays in Sweden! usually this would have meant no access to a working internet connection, but luckily this year we have internet access and so here i am on my holidays writing a blog post.
Weather: mixed, as in cloudy morning, bright afternoon, rain shower in the evening. So far so good, we have been able to go swimming every day since we got here (here equals Karlstad)
so we swim and shop and eat yummy food and swim and read and relax.
wonderful.
enjoy wherever you are this summer!
liz

växlande väder...., changeable weather

men mest regn, blåst och kyla....
så har juni varit än så länge.
nå, allt går vidare ändå,
dottern fyllde 16 och har gjort färdigt sina tentor, Junior Certficiate heter det, nationella prov.
sporten fortsätter, lite camogie, soccer och Gaelisk fotboll.
Lillpojken är allergisk mot någon slags pollen såhärårs, och behövde till och med, steroider för att svullnaden kring ögonen skulle gå ner.
Jag jobbar vidare, drömmer om garn och stickning om nätterna. har precis tagit den första av mina stickmaskiner till en kille som kan laga och reperera den, och jag kanske stickar nåt under helgen på den. annars fortsätter jag att sticka för hand som vanligt.
Jag åkte till Doolin i lördags och var med i ett Spinnträff, där jag fick mycket inspiration för spinningen och för färgning av ull. mycket intressant.
Nästan klar med skolan, dock inte förran den 30e juni.
Tyvärr måste jag byta klass på jobbet, det kommer att bli 3e och 4e klass nästa år för mig. Hoppas att jag får inspiration och stamina någonstansifrån.
Annars, så kör jag hit och dit, med Ulf Lundell på stereon, och med an sång i mitt hjärta, eftersom livet är verkligen så underbart.
'Vi ses, vi ses, i Connemara, där livet kan vara så underbart....' Ulf Lundell.

Swedish to English translation
Changeable weather, but mostly we've had rain, wind and cold so far this June.
Well, life goes on anyway,
Our eldest daughter turned 16 and has finished her exams, the Junior Certficiate, which is a state exam.
Sport continues, some camogie, soccer and Gaelic football.
Our little fella is allergic to some kind of pollen at this time of the year, and has had steroids to take the swelling around the eyes down.
I'm working at school during the day, dreaming about yarn and knitting at night! I've just taken the first of my knitting machines to a guy who can service it and repair it, and I might knit something over the weekend on it. Otherwise, I continue to knit by hand as usual.
I went to Doolin on Saturday and was at a spinning gathering, with 4 very experienced spinners, where I got a lot of inspiration for spinning and dyeing of wool. very interesting.
I'm almost finished with school, but not until the 30th June.
Unfortunately I have to change class at my job, I will teach 3rd and 4th class next year. I hope that I get the required inspiration and stamina from somewhere.
Otherwise, I drive back and forth to school, to training sessions, to matches, to the shops, with Ulf Lundell on the stereo, and with a song in my heart, because life is really so wonderful.
'Vi ses, vi ses, i Connemara, där livet kan vara så underbart....' Ulf Lundell.

'See you, see you, in Connemara, where life can be so wonderful ....' Ulf Lundell.

our summer, all in one day...

summer came and it was gorgeous while it lasted, all 48 hours of it!
back to windswept wet and cold weather now,
let's hope the summer comes again before last day of August!

summer is coming, tomorrow!

yes, dear readers, you heard me right, summer is coming tomorrow, up to 22 or 24 degrees Centigrade is forecast for tomorrow, and sweetest news of all, i have the day off!
Our staff decided back in darkest November to take tomorrow off as one of our discretionary days, and now it feels great! tomorrow we will be off! and the sun will shine!
this Summer of which I speak, is forecast to last for about 48hours, so that's from 2pm today, when the sun came out at last, to 2pm on Saturday, so we are going to enjoy the good weather while we have it. It has been a long cold wet windy May.
Thank you to all the visitors who have popped by, from near and far, please do leave a little comment, it would be greatly appreciated,
regards to you all
from liz