Alpacalooza

Yesterday I had the wonderful opportunity to visit Splitrock Farms up in Ridgeway, Ontario. For the last several years the owners, Glenn and Lynda, have run a bed and breakfast and built up their herd of alpacas. Now that they've got around 48 alpacas (with 11 more on the way!) they're planning to cease running the b and b and focus solely on the animals. Many of their animals have won high honors across Canada and they are starting to see some real results of a careful breeding program.

My friend Katherine is a longtime friend of Lynda and Glenn and when she realized I'd heard of alpacas she set up a private tour with Lynda (thank you again!!!) We headed up a little after noon and about 20 minutes later arrived at the farm. The b and b is gorgeous, I'm sure it's hosted many satisfied guests over the years. And the alpacas ... omg, they are so cute! They were sheared just last month so you can really see what lean animals they are. It was so much fun to watch them play and interact. It was also fascinating how Lynda described their individual personalities and the specific "roles" different animals play in the herd.

The capstone to the day, of course, was looking through the yarn that's been spun from these beautiful alpacas. I just love the idea of knitting with the yarn of an animal you've actually met. I had about $20 Canadian burning a hole in my pocket (living 5 minutes from the border I've kept a Canadian change jar for the last couple years ... it won't do me much good in Indiana) so I picked up some gorgeous silvery-grey yarn in a lace/sport weight.

So, how can a less well-connected individual share in the Splitrock Farms experience? Lucky for you they host an Open House in the fall, September 27-28 between the hours of 10am-4pm. For more info you can visit their website. I think the yarn I saw yesterday will be available for sale at the open house ... believe me, you want to go check it out!!!

Banished!

Today was yard sale day here in Buffalo, in preparation for the move. I finally came to accept that I will never use the 100% acrylic yarn in my stash so it has been BANISHED! It wasn't all junky, some of it was Lion Brand Micro-spun and such, so hopefully it will still be made into something by some kind soul. I just have so much other yarn and every time I think, "maybe I'll make something from that acrylic yarn" I sort of cringe and pick up some bamboo or alpaca instead ... it's amazing how easy it is to become a yarn snob.

Have I mentioned that my new place in Indy is a 7 minute walk from the yarn store? 7 minutes? Oh dear. :)

Wish us luck with packing!

Run like the wind!

Today was the big Race for the Cure 5k ... I finished in 30 minutes 16 seconds. Yea! My goal was under 32 minutes (which would be a 10 minute mile pace) so I did better than I hoped! I am very proud of both my running partner and I for all our hard work over the last 7 weeks. I have to put in a big endorsement for the Couch to 5K training program, which is what we followed. It's a great way to gradually work up to a 3 mile run.

Thank you to everyone who has written or called to ask about my dad and step-mom in Cedar Rapids. They've apparently been taking on some water in the their basement and are trying to keep it out of the carpet with a shop-vac every few hours but, while there is a very real risk of developing mold in the walls and carpet, they are indeed safe and at least 20 blocks from the flood zone. The biggest concern right now is the lack of drinking water and the inability for the city to receive supplies since most of the major highways are closed until the water recedes.

More updates to come about the Indy move (and maybe I'll get around to talking about some knitting eventually ...) Until then, have a great weekend!!