Fiber Fest

For at least a couple of years I have known of the existence of fiber festivals, namely Rhinebeck. (To me it is not a town. It is a fiber festival.) I've slowly come to learn a bit more about these festivals and finally made my way over to the Southern Adirondack Fiber Festival with my boys on Saturday. Even though I went with an essentially non-existent budget, it was pretty cool. It only cost $4 total to get in with a coupon, and as if it wasn't enough to drool over all the barns full of yarn, fiber, spindles, and such, there were enough activities to keep the boys happy too (museum, caboose, animals, sheep dog demo, etc.).

Now I can't help but look ahead to making a tradition of finding and attending as many fiber festivals as I can reasonably manage (probably 1-2 per year, depending on the year). I think, too, that even though it's not in the budget this year, Rhinebeck might just be a necessity in 2012. Hopefully I can save up a little cash the next time around; I just can't find that much variety in one store - at least, not anywhere near where I live, and I hate to pay shipping, so... If I plan well enough, I can surely buy a year's worth of fiber goodies there, at good prices, and not have to scramble to find something locally, as the need arises, throughout the year. (I don't really buy that much yarn each year anyway; at least not comparatively to so many others who share the same love for fiber.)

Or maybe I'm dreaming, but that's okay too, right?

I was wrong.

I do have peppers, and they look great!

I have ten jalapenos now plus several more starting, and they look fantastic. There are about five or six cayenne peppers at this point, and there may be more of those on the way as well. I think I lost some of those (actually, some of each, but especially those) to the wind and rain when they were just flowers. My sweet bell peppers aren't looking quite as promising; I have only three tiny peppers starting now, but they took forever to germinate, so I'm not giving up yet. They may just have to stay inside for a while...

This makes all the disappointment with my other gardening failures 110% worth it. (Yes, I'm ridiculously excited about these peppers!) I still haven't decided what to do with them, but if I manage to pickle some of them, I will be doubly excited, and I'll look forward to trying again next year. ♥

P.S. I definitely saw a woodchuck in the backyard today. He may have been disappointed to see that I have no outdoor crops for now...