Apple Rose Farm

I went to Apple Rose Farm, the farm where (online) I bought some California Red sheep roving earlier this year, to see the lambs that were just recently born and meet the owner and get some more roving. It was kind of an "artist's date" (a la The Artist's Way) and an exercise in pushing my own boundaries a little. I was a little scared to venture outside my safety zone and meet somebody new, and check out something I didn't know anything about, plus I went by myself after my career counseling session on Wednesday. Like a mook I forgot to take pictures! That's the only thing I feel stupid about. But I had a good time.

Elizabeth Ferraro, the owner, is a retired school administrator (like my mom). She and her husband have had the farm for the past 8 years. They own and raise both Calif. Red and Cormo sheep. They had five lambs - a set of twins and a set of triplets - that I got to meet and pet and let suck my fingers. They are very cute! of course. Adam warned me ahead of time that I wasn't allowed to bring one home as a pet, so even if they hadn't all already been sold to other farms I couldn't get one. But truthfully, I'm perfectly happy to let them be in the hands of people who work hard to take care of them - feed them and make sure they stay healthy and shear them. I'll buy the wool. Some day I could see owning some sheep, but not any time soon. I like living this far away from the city and no farther, not yet anyway. And I don't like bugs. (But I digress.)

I bought roving - Cormo this time, rather than Calif. Red, because it's so much softer. Elizabeth had some wacky dyed roving that had been supposed to be black but came out all wrong, but I liked it a great deal, so I got about 9 oz of that, and I got a big bag (about 3.5 lbs) of undyed that I'll dye myself.

This Sunday there is a meeting or gathering or something of the Essex County Spinners Guild, which I joined over a month ago because I needed advice about the problems I was having with my thumb. This is the first "f2f" meeting they will have had since I joined and I am looking forward to it, though again with trepidation because it's a whole bunch of people I don't know and I'm nervous about that. But I will bring my wheel and some fiber and hope for the best. I am sure to learn a lot, and I'm sure it will be a very good experience. Probably more so because it's so daunting!

I have three new handspun yarns to list on my shop tomorrow or the day after; two of them are currently drying in the bathroom. I made some sales over the weekend, which I was very excited about and encouraged by.
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