In between

I stopped and had a salad and soup at Sweet Tomatoes on the way home last night. The guy who runs the register there said, "You're eating here with us tonight?!?" referring to the fact that I always get my salad to go. I said yes, but it's so much more expensive--about twice the cost--to eat in than to take it home, and he reminded me that I only get salad--when I eat there, I get salad, and soup, and (counting off on his fingers now) muffins and pizza and ice cream . . . And that's sort of the point. If I get it and take it home, I just get salad, if I eat there, I eat salad, and soup, and a muffin . . .

Oh, while I was getting my soup, some guy walked up, and you know how some people will take the soup ladle and stir it around in the soup, and dip some out and look at it, and if they could, they'd just taste it out of the ladle?

This guy was messing around with some chili, and he asked the guy behind the counter, "What kind of meat is in this?" The guy answered, "Beef," and the first guy said, "What kind of beef? Ground round? Sirloin? Hamburger?" The poor guy behind the counter--most of the people who work there speak very little English--had to go find someone who could help him interpret.

I walked away before I heard the answer, but I just want to shake people like that and ask, "What is your problem?" If you're too good to eat hamburger, then have some chicken soup, or cream of mushroom, which is what I had. If you're worried about the fat content, just shut up and eat your salad, or eat at home.

It's magic!

It's sitting on top of the dryer with a couple of rolled-up towels inside it to help keep its shape while it dries. So weird. It's almost sculptural. This is the pattern I used, but I made it shallower, and I wanted it to have a flat bottom. I think mine actually felted more than the one shown in that picture, and more than the other ones I've seen pictures of; I don't know why, maybe my washer has a more vigorous agitation than some.

It's not an exact science, there are a lot of factors involved, and you never really know what it's going to look like when it comes out of the washer. I want to make more things now! I probably have enough yarn left (the green and the natural that I didn't use, plus a few odds and ends of the beige and purple) to make a small purse, like one of those flat ones on a long cord, maybe. And I've got a pattern for a big rectangular-shaped bag, but I don't think I'd made that one, it's not really my style.

But felting is very fun! I hadn't thought about it smelling, but it kind of smelled like, well, wet hair in here for awhile. Like a big wet dog, or like the beauty parlor on Saturday mornings.

So once it dries, I need to sew on the handles, and it's done! The pattern said that the yarn ends would felt into the fabric, but they didn't, really, so I've got all these weird yarn ends inside the bag that I'm not sure what to do with. I guess I can cut them off, once I'm sure that nothing is going to unravel.

Once I get the handles on it I'll take a picture of it with the same perspective as the "before" shot to show the difference.