whackadoodle coconut

it's been a busy last month.  a little crazy, but I've made it to August. phew!  I hope to capture the last two months in a short list. 1.  began teaching Women's 101 at our local shop - 37 future gun owners and lady shooters 2.  recruited new members for CCLSC.  we had 3 new shooters join our club.  my game warden and I have a lot of fun activities to do for the rest of our first year. 3.  certified in another NRA class - PP in the home.  this particular class was challenging for me and I passed and earned a 94% on the test. 4.  wrote my first article for the Austin Sure Shots magazine and my first On the Firing Line radio show. 5.  taught my first shotgun clinic for my hub's company picnic. 6.  purchased a set of combs for spinning wool.  this was a coolest. I'm super excited about it.  I have a pair of cards already and I'm not too sure if these produced the kind of preparation I was hoping for.  I have...

well, a lot of things actually.  in this case, what do I do when the hubby's down for a week with the sick?  I'll show you. a few bags of 1 ounce measure of sheep hairs.  these have been shorn, dyed and cleaned through ready to card and spin. this is what they look like once you've pulled them out of the bag and have them ready to card. yes like a dog brush. I know you will ask.  these are 112 flat carders that are used to "brush" or "tease" the wool so they are ready to spin. think of it as separating the locks so they can be drafted easily onto the wheel. I actually had to learn a new spinning method to do this. really unsure at this point if this is working.  looks like it is, but that really isn't a guarantee of anything. we'll see when I get ready to ply, then wash and finally knit something with it. so you all know, I do more than pew pew pew in my time.  this has been a huge undertaking. I am one step away from s...

I did a little shooting and then shooting a few weeks back.  It feels like forever since I've posted something.  So a recap is probably in need here.  I took some awesome pictures though, getting better and making do with what light I have and then getting into position to shoot properly has all been a benefit to growing. The best one ever of the Hubby - John and his Tavor.  Which promptly sparked the comment "a boy and his dog"? What can I say, I didn't mean to, but my best photos are when I don't mean to take something and it just turns out just fantastic!  And this is no exception. My bestie also had some work at an exhibit in Santa Barbara.  She has been such a huge help with honing my photo skills. Here are her pieces that she had- The glare is ridiculous.  Sorry for that.  Camera Phones what can you do? Finally, this week I went shooting to get a little in and wahoo, here's my target that I taunted buddy Julie with. ...

take a looksy at the list. 1.  35 and my second round in braces. it's just as "awesome" as the first time. minutes after the ortho visit. 2.  being a leader is harder than it sounds.  but frankly it's just as fun as you'd think if you were one of "those" people. not really a "leader" picture, but how do you really photograph that? 3.  happiness is a lot of things.  but I'm sure that it's none of those things you see on pinterest.  really. 4.  dying to spin on that wheel over there (pointing).  funny thing, I saw a post on facebook of the company and there was the man who made my wheel sitting right there. hubby asks, "who is that?"  I said "I think he's the guy to made my wheel" (picking up my wheel and turning it over) "see?  there's his name on the bottom." it's like the earth just opened up and revealed a tiny pot of gold. yup, right there on the bottom. #176 5.  ...

it's been nice weather lately.  warm but not too warm.  it feels like summer and it smells like the sun.  yes.  it smells like the sun.  I actually love the way the sun smells. I can't really describe it, but imagine the smell of coppertone, banana boat, chlorine, salt, sand, concrete, grass, warmth....the smell of, well, summer. so, in this sudden feeling of whimsy, I take to my spinning wheel and relax.  ahhhh.  the whir, the hum, the calm. when I'm through with this batch, I think I will learn to use my cards and create something amazing. I've been shooting too, don't get me wrong, the powder, the cold, the sound of gunfire.  in fact over Easter weekend, the hubby and I shot some steel at 400 yards.  I scored 3/20, with my zombie killer.  I stopped while I was ahead.  not bad, since I couldn't hit it with a .308 a while back.  I am still disappointed about that one.  I might do better now.  the regular workouts...

at least the one that covers my bed.  yes that means after almost a year, actually about 8 months I have finished the duvet.  do you want to see?  of course you do.  the size of the duvet is for a king sized bed, adjusted pattern for our queen sized bed.  the reverse is the lighter sage green solid fabric making for a reversible duvet. the edging on the three sides are flat like a pillow case whereas the bottom with snaps is hemmed a bit to reinforce the snap closure.  there's about a 1.5 inch hem there to help stabilize the edge.  the only unfortunate part of the entire thing is that I had to hand stitch the snaps on the edge. the machine just wouldn't do a good job.  but the silver lining is the snaps are invisible to the top side. and there is no seam on the bottom edge. first thing this morning picture the edging close up  snaps.  to finish the bottom closure. there are about 75 there. guess what will never fall out t...

I have been accused of going 160 km in one direction at any given time.  you mean that I give 110% to what I do and believe in?  go figure.  you have coaches telling you that all the time.  give it all you've got.  not a bad thing.  really it isn't. dichotomy -  a division or contrast between two things that are or are represented as being opposed or entirely different. I live this. the contrast between my newest handbags and my chest rig for example.  lovin' it. schooling macho men in how to operate their (or my) firearms, major ego check.  the smell of my perfume in my tactical condor alpha fleece. yup takes you off guard. I like to think of it as being who I am and loving every minute of it. a whole new happy.  find it. on the couch and packed for the day -