Sunday, September 11, 2011

Before I say anything else, I have to acknowledge that today is Sept 11.  aka Patriot's Day here in the US. It's the tenth anniversary of the attacks on the WTC and the Pentagon.  I have tried to avoid the hype leading up to this day all week.  I just can't stand to hear it over and over.  Now that the day is here, I find myself feeling choked up at odd times as I remember that day and how it felt and the awful weeks afterwards.  It was an event that changed our lives forever.  Some freedoms we took for granted have been eroded and our sense of safety has likewise been deminished. 

But, as someone who lived through it said, we can choose to dwell in the past or move forward.  I choose to move forward and to try to learn something from the experience.

This was a productive weekend for us.  We kept our promise to ourselves to go to the gym twice this week by going Saturday morning.  Pk did his regular workout and I took the aqua fit class.  It was an hour of nonstop movement and last night I felt everysinglemuscle in my body as they all cried out every time I moved.  At least I know all the jumping around was working!  Why is exercise done in the pool more fun?  And how is it that I can sweat when I'm working out in water? 

Today Pk, Kate and I went to the sheep show.  The weather was not promising but there was only a 40% chance of rain so we opted to chance it.  We dressed for mud and were glad we did.  The show is in a field (as these things are) and it's been raining quite a bit lately. 


Jacob sheep

angora goat

The first two barns were animals.  We saw angora goats, alpacas, llamas (which were taller than I am which is a bit disconcerting), Jacob's sheep, lots of rabbits and a pony. 



Kate made friends with a bunny.  I had to remind her she lives in a small apartment with fish and frogs and a large dog.  Kobold would love the bunny, probably love it to death.  I will admit, it was like petting a cloud with eyes.

There was one little alpaca guy who was feeling anxious.  He was humming and humming. 
The weather was humid but the rain stayed away so we went outside to watch a demonstration of a border collie herding a small flock of flightless ducks. 

The dogs were determined to get the ducks to stay together and to jump through hoops (literally) but the ducks kept trying to escape. 

Dogs herding ducks
Ducks making a break for it




Dogs herding them back

 They were hilarious.  In the end, the dogs got the ducks back into their crate.

And what did I buy today, I hear you wonder.  Well, I bought some alpaca.  Some grey mill spun and some white handspun which is soft and lovely.  I want to make a beret style hat for myself to wear with my red coat this winter. 

And I bought Bruce.    He's a alpaca with flair.  He will have a place of honor on the Christmas tree in December but for now, Elanor wants him to live on the cd player so that's where he'll be.  Some stitch markers might have fallen into my bag as well.  They're stone hearts and just seemed to want to be mine (and some connectors for my knitpicks interchangeables but those aren't photogenic). 


We had a nice time.  Of course Mother Nature chose today to remind me I'm a woman (acutally, she chose overnight when I wasn't prepared and was sleeping on white sheets) and I was feeling less than optimal.  Nothing some yarn fumes and advil couldn't cure.

On the way home, we passed the Sculpture Garden of Faces.  We didn't go and explore, we'll save that for another day.  These two faces were hanging out on the side of the road. 
 
It's almost dinner time and I have only 4 rows left on my beaded shawl.  It won't get finished tonight but I'll come close.  Maybe this week will see it completed and blocked.   Now that it's almost done, I am feelling the excitement that I lost somewhere in the middle. 
 
I hope you all had a good weekend and have a safe and pleasant week! 

7 comments:

amy said...

"Petting a cloud with eyes!" That's great. And I like the photos of the dogs and ducks, too. In the spring we met my son's class for a field trip at a farm, and the owners had the sheep dog demonstrate some herding skills for us. Later my toddler took off down the path herself (she wanted to see something; she's like that) and the dog trotted after her, going in a wide circle to end up in front of her. I swear he was trying to herd her back. ;)

Today is also my 12th anniversary. I always feel a little guilty bringing it up, like I don't have a right to something good on this day. Yet I also feel like if I don't have a right to something good, that's a defeat of some sort. So I end up feeling conflicted every year.

Bells said...

i was avoid the hype too (we get a lot of here too) and almost didn't watch the 'rebirth' documentary on Sunday night but then found myself drawn in most unexpectedly.

I think the film captured beautifully that sentiment you focus on - the moving forward. I was stunned by the end to learn of the healing and peace those featured in the film could speak about.

They remembered. They learned. they grew and they lived. I think it's a film that should be used as a way to learn how to heal. Amazing stuff.

roxie said...

I'm with you on not wanting my emotions manipulated by the media. Didn't watch much TV this weekend. "Remember! Remember!" Lord, how could we forget?

Love Amy's comment. My nephew got an Australian sheepdog with blue eyes, and herding is just built into his genes. He tries to herd chipmunks and butterflies. And when he was young, you had to take a stick with you every time you went outside or he would nip your ankles trying to herd YOU!

"Petting a cloud with eyes," is pure poetry. I may steal it and file the serial numbers off.

Hooray for gym time! Good on you!

Sheepish Annie said...

It is so strange to me that I am teaching kids now who are too young to remember what it was like on 9/11. They aren't being rude or anything like that...they just need me to explain it to them before they understand what happened that day. One student I spoke with today asked me about it because he had no idea what happened at all.

Weird...

Anonymous said...

oh so many conflicting feelings about 9/11. i feel sick everytime i see the footage, i feel sick everytime i think whats happened since. i just wish our esteemed leaders would learn to do things differently, but they never do. at least you got to be around yarn fumes, and sheep, and pretty 'packys, and the clever dogs. my Possum does that kind of work, its about 80% instinct 20% training and is amazing to watch develop.

Galad said...

I'd want to keep the fuzzy bunny too :-)

Didn't watch any of the 9/11 coverage. Feelings are still to raw from all the family trauma this year. It isn't like I'm likely to forget.

You do such fun weekend jaunts. Wish I was close enough to tag along!

Louiz said...

What an amazing sounding trip.

I also have been trying to avoid the hype, although it is fairly well on every channel during the weekend.

I know people who were in New York that day, and I will never forget the worry, and then relief that they were ok.

Happy Sunday!  I am sitting here working on my sweater made with the cashmere yarn my husband gave me for my birthday last year. I’m further...