The Quest for the Illusive Selvedge

So have you ever had a sore toe and then you seem to hit it on everything? The dog even stands on it?  Well, my sore knee is much like that toe... just begging to be hit.  I rapped it hard against the beam on the loom, cracked it on the coffee table and then the final straw,  I pushed it sideways trying to reach up and turn off a bed side light.   ~*ouch*~  is the only word I can write here in polite company.

So its been well iced, anti inflammatory gel rubbed and generally babied. I even resorted to a cane to help me up out of chair and on stairs. Its paid off and I'm back to my normal cranky knee and stepping on a treadle again didn't seem to bother it today.  yeah!

The side issue from this recent little episode is that there's been no weaving. I've been working on some drafts and playing with the Fiberworks program while I had my leg up. I had planned to get one more blog post in for May but that didn't happen. Then I was wondering what the heck to write about when a friend asked me to share how I get my edges when weaving. I can do that!   So I've been thinking about the things I do, the tools I use to get my selvedges.  Its been a learning curve much like anything else we learn and do in the weaving world!

My dear friend and mentor Margaret gave me some tips and advise when I was still a newbie weaver back in 1997, but the one pearl that stuck with me was to "simply weave a mile". Turns out her weaving teacher had told her that way back when in 1947 when she started weaving. Margaret used to be an occupational therapist before she retired and used weaving to help recovering veterans from World War 2 with their therapy.

"Weave a Mile" sounds funny at first, then silly.....but when you stop to think about it, it makes sense.  When you are new, you fuss over every shot, every pic. By the end of a mile, its about simply getting the job done and the edges just disappear from your overall view. A mile means you have perfected your throw and catch, when to apply the thumb to brake the yarn, how much to angle the yarn so it draws in what it needs before the shed closes. You also develop a good rhythm and synchronize your movements.

Margaret had me sitting properly at the loom and mindful of my posture right from the start of my weaving career. When I got my big Woolhouse loom in July 1998, she was there on the doorstep right away before I ever threw a shuttle to make sure my new bench was the right height and how to use it properly so not to abuse my body.

She also told me that once you have the basics maneuvers under control (more of that mile again), then use whatever tools you have to hand to assist you in a successful project.  Temples (or stretchers) and end delivery shuttles (also known as end feed shuttles).

I requested one for Christmas as it was a bit spendy. Not sure about this new shuttle as I had no experience with one, other than a hearty recommendation from Margaret. Santa brought me a twelve inch Schacht end delivery shuttle and a bag of five red plastic pirns. Winding the pirns took some practice but I managed to get the knack. By the end of my scarf project, I had requested a second one for my birthday in March!  I was sold, sold, sold!  My edges were respectable before and looked great now!

Lay the yarn between the two plates and gently pull down and slide the tail of the yarn into the slot.

Then slide the tail up and over that little post and that's it.

If you are changing yarns and need more or less tension, then you make small adjustments at this point with the allen key that comes with the shuttle. The screw tightens or loosens the compression plates. Make the adjustments small as the little screw could fall out if tightened too much. Happily, that hasn't happened for me and I've used some fine yarns. If there are little loops at the selvedge, then tighten and if there is a bit of draw in, then loosen the plates off.  The nice benefit of this type of compression plate is that you set the tension and then if using the same yarn pirn after pirn, you seldom need to touch it again.

The pirn slides on to the aluminum shaft and after time of lifting and dropping the shaft again, it may need to be raised a bit. An adjustment at this point under the shuttle will raise the pirn shaft.  The pirn needs to be level so the yarn feeding off the tip travels straight through the compression plates. I'd like to add that I have only adjusted the shuttles for this only once each since I got them so its not a step you do very often.

I had eventually bought the larger fifteen inch Schacht shuttles that use the longer black pirns. Perfect for wider projects such as towels, shawls and baby blankets. The black pirns hold so much more weft yarn than regular shuttle bobbins. That means less joins in your work.  Who doesn't like that?

This is the best spot to mention that a tightly wound pirn also means smooth and easy weft being pulled off the tip of the pirn and laid into the pic. If  the weft digs down into the lower layer on the pirn, or is loose and an entire section comes off as a lump, you can guess the result.  I find when this happens you usually have to cut the weft lump and then that yarn is wasted. The answer is to apply tension to the thread as its being wound onto the pirn.  

You can hold the yarn between a small piece of leather, wear a glove or use a tensioner.  I went on a search for a new electric winder a couple of years ago and finally decided on the AVL model. I want to point out that Leclerc has one and so does Schacht and no doubt there are others too. The AVL model had what I was looking for, and was on sale at the time too! So I'm going to focus on the tensioner part as they do sell that part individually. It can be adapted and added to an existing winder set up if you are handy with tools or have a crafty husband.

The yarn goes through the pink ring on the far right, then between the tension plates and through the small pink hole, then through the pigtails. The "U" notch is where you can add a yardage counter if you like.  This whole apparatus slides to and fro in a notch on the stand. 

You control the tension on the plates by tightening the little white nob on the end of the spring. It adjusts for varying grists of yarns

Here you can see that I can't get the point of the scissors down into the yarn on the pirn. Its as hard as can be.  It pulls off the end smoothly and with no drag at all!

Weaving towels, particularly twill towels, sometimes had more draw in than I liked even with the end delivery shuttles. The weft travels over every second, third or even fifth thread and so the warp threads snuggle into their position closer together. Even with good technique and an end feed shuttle, you can still get draw in. Hard to stop it.... but you can reduce it.  Anything over half an inch to an inch is a lot so reduction is a good thing.

Temples or stretchers are in common use in European  weaving. They don't think twice about using them. Its a tool to accomplish their project. I liken it to a woodworker using what ever he has in his shop to make a beautiful wooden work of art. Hand tools, power tools.  Who sees the tools used later when the piece is done and presented?    With a handwoven, there's no indication that says "this was woven with a temple"   :)

It seems there is an idea in some North American weaving circles that using a temples is a crutch. That you should somehow get nice edges or less draw in on your own merit.  I strongly disagree .  Yes, new weavers should learn how to 'weave their mile' but after that, use the tools available. It all still requires proper technique and a good warp, and the temple doesn't replace that.

I stick the teeth into the edge about  two eighths of an inch in from the edge....

The temple sits about a quarter of an inch below the fell or leading edge of the work.

I repeat on the left hand side and then press the parts together and down, sliding the brass ring over to hold them in place. Then I force the wood bits apart and slide in the holding pin.

As you can see, I really spread them! It allows extra weft to be laid into each pic . I also beat on a closed shed. The twill will still draw in as that's the nature of the beast. It will also shrink in width as well. If I want twenty three inch wide towels, I usually plan for twenty five + /- in the reed. It all depends on the warp yarn and sett density. Lots of variables! Some of these details are hard to explain as you simply pick things up along the way and absorb them like osmosis and then simply do what you need, and adjust as you go.  (You are making me really think Martha!)

So see for yourself below.... temples seems to work. This edge result is a combination of end delivery shuttle and a temple. There are no holes from the temple as they disappear. Yes, you may stick yourself on the teeth but only a couple of times and you learn to be careful. Moving it is a pain say some..... I think the results show its worth the effort. I moved this temple every one pattern repeat which is 24 shots for my 12 shaft pattern. Any longer and the draw in starts to show again.

(... I'll share this project details in full another time okay? Its still under way right now...)

Here are some other end delivery shuttles:

Both sizes of the Schacht. The red pirns will fit the larger model but not the reverse.

The mini Bluster Bay end delivery shuttle and the shaped card board pirn it uses. You thread the yarn around the hooks to produce drag on the yarn.  Works nicely but must be rethreaded every pirn change. Here is one threaded at the top of this post. Its also uses the opposite side to the Schacht! Took my head a while to get around that.  :)

This is the mini AVL and its stubby little pirn. It uses compression plates.

This is the large model of the AVL end delivery shuttle. It uses the large black pirns. Its *heavy* in the hand. I would think wide warps and a good heft. You'll have amazing biceps in no time. Watch your feet if you drop it though!

I hear wonderful reports about Crossley end delivery shuttles. The link also show further comparisons of EDS as well as a Crossley model. Not many are around for sale since they went out of business in 2006. Weavers who have them, hang onto them!  I hope to try one some day if I can find one for sale.

So what else do I do to get a good edge? Well, you must have an even, well tensioned warp. No one can weave well on a bad one, although you can weave badly on a good one!  Get comfortable with your warping skills and if you haven't tried the back to front method, then consider switching. I use this method on all my looms.  

Hate beaming warps?  Then get a friend or hubby to help you. The company is always nice and showing someone how you do it actually reinforces your knowledge and ability to do it! I always try to ensure the warp is properly centered on the back beam to avoid it being skewed.  If the warp is to be fourteen inches in the reed, I like to spread the warp to fourteen and a quarter inches on the back beam. That way the warp angles in towards the heddles and reed ever so slightly. It aids in minimizing abrasion of the edge threads. Things just seem to behave better when I do, and I don't seem to be able to give you a very technical explanation I'm afraid.

This is the new warp on the Louet Spring that I finished setting up yesterday. You can see that I threw three shots and beat, then another three.... then wove  for an inch in a high contrast yarn. I'm looking for errors. So far it looks good! There is a floating selvedge on either side and I tied on this time as the yarn (10/2 cotton, 28 epi) has some 'bite' to it... some 'tooth' and so tying overhand knots hold nicely. I'm able to get good tension with yarns  like this. Slippery yarns such as tencel, bamboo and some silks, I will lace on to get better tension and reduce loom waste. (I always make small bouts.) Take a look at the warp again and notice that there is little to no draw in. I'm only using the Schacht end delivery shuttle. No temple.

I don't expect to need a temple for this project, but if it did draw in more than I like, then I would use one. I have slowly added to my Glimakra temple line up and have some for narrow scarves right through to a wide blanket.  They are as important as your shuttle is.

Like Forrest Gump said "like peas and carrots"

Well, if you are still with me at this point, well done! For someone who didn't know what to write, I have surpassed myself!

Hot on the Trail

On the west coast of BC, Canada, summer has finally arrived!  This was after weeks of cool temperatures and rain which had most people feeling like we were missing out after seeing the east coast basking in toasty heat.  I was okay with the situation as cooler weather means you can do more and not feel like a limp noodle, and suffer less with seasonal allergies.  I knew that inevitably the heat would come!

It arrived just as we were heading out to the Okanagan Valley, in an older minivan who's AC just died!  *gasp*  We're heading to go and pick up the new to me Megado loom.

There were lots of preparations to make before we left, such as take out all the back seats in the van and gather old blankets and such to protect the coming load and tie down straps to prevent shifting.  We also had to water the beejeesus out of the garden and take down the many hanging baskets and place them under cover in the shade to keep them from drying out while we were away.

I also had to do some serious shopping!  The results will be shown a bit later on. During the shopping trip, I had pulled a muscle in my right shoulder while trying on clothes. It was very painful and so for the duration of the coming days, I took ibuprofen and iced my shoulder well. It made basic tasks rather difficult and weaving was out of the question (which upset me more than making a bed or cooking or packing a bag!)

Finally with our suitcase packed, and the dog off to the kennel for a holiday of her own, we hit the road! We were bright and early at the ferry terminal and enjoyed our two hour ride over.

The drive to Kelowna was soon under way! There was no point of taking pictures as we drove as there was a blue haze everywhere and apparently it was high level smoke from the forest fires in Siberia that had crossed the Pacific and covering much of the province.  The drive was much like our last one, but with much less snow pack through the mountains.  We spotted a forest fire at one point but it had already been called in.  We could feel the heat increasing as we approached the valley! Now, I had a plan for cooling. I had brought a large beautiful silk head scarf and I  put it on and tied the corners around to the back of my neck and we rolled down the windows and we listened to the wind buffeting at our windows for many miles as we drove at 110 km per hour!  The scarf prevented my now longer hair  from being whipped into a frazzle of knots. I had pictures of my mother wearing her scarves in the 1960's running through my mind as it was a common practice for ladies back then. I didn't worry what people would think as they passed us as most likely, I would never see them again!

We stayed at my mother in law's town house and had a lovely visit with her. She had just celebrated her 89th birthday and so the house was full of flowers and cards.... and then we came through the door with more and gifts too!

We arrived in the Okanagan Valley on a day when the temperature had reached 37 degrees Celsius (or 99 degrees Fahrenheit).  We felt like we were melting! Our bedroom was in the much cooler basement thankfully!

The next day we headed to my friend Margaret's house which is in Lake Country north of Kelowna and there are a series of smaller lakes there. Its very pretty country! (we used to live there).

Meet Margaret! We have been friends for many years now and she was my first weaving mentor.  I started weaving in the spring of 1996 and met her shortly after this. Due to her encouragement, I joined the Guild of Canadian Weavers in 1997. I later went onto become their BC Provincial Representative, then President of the Guild (2003-2007) and also served as an active past president for a further year co-running the guild during a medical leave of the then president.  All thanks due to Margaret and her encouragement!

So enough about me, now let me share a bit about Margaret: She is a retired occupational therapist and so had me seated correctly at my looms right from my weaving start. The height of your bench, proper posture and correct throwing of shuttles and her famous advise on getting good selvedges: "simply weave a mile!"    Margaret has been the official mentor for test candidates of the Guild of Canadian Weavers Master Weaver program for many years now and, is one of the special thirty weavers since 1947 to receive their master weaver certification. Her 1994 thesis was on Opphamta  The link will show you an example of this type of weave structure but is not Margaret's weaving) Needless to say we had many weaving  and guild (local and national) related adventures together.

I had full intentions of photographing the loom in its complete state before dismantling began, but we started talking and  before we knew it, Bruce had a lot of parts off and starting to stack them into the back of the van! So here is the loom, somewhat reduced:

Bruce has the bin underneath and so when the side rails are worked free the frames and castle will rest on the bin. Our minivan had been driven around the corner of the condo building and parked directly outside the patio door where the loom was situated.  Bruce had been busy! What the picture doesn't show you is the HEAT!! 

Margaret lives in the ground floor condo and despite a busy bustling gated community behind her, her view is this:

Aspens and natural woods to the left....

.... and a stunning calm lake view from the front! There were neighbours above and to the side, but the building design has them discreetly out of view. Its a beautiful place to live!

Meanwhile, while we continued to chat and reminisce, Bruce soldiered on! (I did have a wounded shoulder to nurse you know). It was his idea for us to visit while he worked and very kind of him.

We're getting there! I helped with the main frame and small parts.  Meanwhile, Margaret is opening some gifts from us.... 

A runner, woven by me, for her dark teak dining room table (more on the runners in the next post) Her wood table showed the subtle pattern off nicely! The picture above shows it on the counter at home before gift wrapping.

 More personally, there was a hand painted silk scarf, made by a local artisan from the Cowichan Vallley. The soft muted peach, pinks and greens reminded me very much of the Telana dyes that Margaret and I used to paint silk warps. The overall colours would go well with her wardrobe colours I know that she favours.  Margaret loved it!

There was also one of my recent book marks for her winter reading and a card, also made locally that is hand beaded: (check out the detail!)

Then, all was done and the van was fully loaded and well wrapped, tied down and secure. The bags have all the small parts.... We still had to get a suitcase and other bags in there yet for the trip home!

Despite smiles and waves, the good byes were difficult.  Friends.

We left the next morning before the heat was under way and by lunch time we were at my son and daughter in law's home for a quick stop.  We had some clothes for Ethan who is coming up to being 3 months old.

Ethan seems to really take to Bruce (who held him first as I was still trying to get in the door and put my gear and gifts down!)

He's grown so much! As you can see, he's quite taken with his Grandad!  Then it was my turn and he spit up milk all over my shoulder within seconds of being picked up!  I was assured that makes me a bonafide Nana but I still went and tried to 'sweeten up' with soap and water! We couldn't stay over this time or even for very long as we had another stop to make and so after a energy shot of coffee, it was time to hit the road again.  Another good bye but we'll be back!

Bruce snapped this great picture of daughter in law Lisa, Ethan and myself.  She's doing a great job of being a mum.

Next, we headed over to see my father for a visit and we enjoyed the time there with him. We all sipped cold ginger ale while sitting on his patio and before too long, it was time to go and race to the ferry terminal at Horseshoe Bay......which we missed by five minutes.... and so we sat and waited for an hour and a half for the next boat. It was comforting to be almost first in line though... The quiet time was nice after the hectic pace of the day.

The ferry ride across to 'home' was lovely. It was warm and the strait was flat calm. The sunset was starting and I commented that all we needed was whales or seals and PRESTO!  The next thing I know, Bruce yelled and pointed off to amidships that he'd just seen two orcas!  Sure enough, there were two killer whales steadily heading north through the water away from us. The ship's captain told the passengers over the loud speakers where to look for them and I wondered why the boat didn't list to starboard with everyone racing to look!

We got home about 10 pm and then it took a while to completely unload the van, including the loom into the house.  Its parts are strewn all over the studio now and await the rebuilding efforts to come!

There's its head! (or brain if you like  ;-)  I have to rebuild it with Bruce's help and also locate a small reconditioned laptop or notebook to run it. If anyone out there has experience with this sort of thing and can advise, please leave a comment.

It was well after midnight before we climbed into bed.... very tired after a very long day that started at 5:30 am and covered +/- 500 km's.

The A,B,C's and 1,2,3's of Classic Crackle

I briefly mentioned crackle weave in my last post and later I even got a  request to cover it so apparently its time has come!   I did the first level of the Guild of Canadian Weavers test program  (they have a newly designed web page!) and so I have done some in depth study of several weave structures and that included Crackle or Jamtlandvaev. If you click on the link under crackle, it will take you to a downloadable file at Handweaving.net and shows the original article by Mary Meigs Atwater.   The link under Mary's name will take you to an older post of mine where I do a review of the book featuring the story of her amazing life. You don't have to be a weaver to enjoy her story and she literally packed six lifetimes into one!

So if you are planning a project for upholstery fabric, then crackle fits the bill nicely. There are no long floats and the weave structure is tied down every fourth thread.  Upholstery textiles needs tie downs as chair cushions can get a lot of abrasion! It also works well for blankets for babies as you don't want long floats to catch little fingers.

True classic crackle never has more than a three thread float. (but there are other variations that will go as far as five ends.) We are sticking to the classic version for now.  Each threading group uses only three shafts and four warp threads.

It is a two shuttle weave with pattern weft shots and tabby shots alternating in between. As with other two shuttle weaves, you are weaving a plain weave ground cloth and have pattern weft shots as well. A good beat is required! Proper shuttle rotation will lock the wefts at the edge for a neat appearance or if this is fabric for a sewing project, then it is usual to carry the threads up the selvedges.

Crackle is more complex than summer and winter weave as it weaves two pattern blocks at the same time.  If you weave block A, you also weave D. If you weave block B, you also weave block A. Then if you weave block C, you also get block B. Lastly, if you weave D you also get block C. Its like a two for one special with no limits on the order!  See the photo of the paper draft to see the blocks involved. The draft shows the tabby shots in the drawdown. Click to enlarge for detail!

The end results, especially if  several colours are used, are quite visually complex! We are sticking to a four shaft crackle for now but you can see where an eight shaft crackle could get very involved!

Okay, now we come to the actual drafting with crackle blocks and there are some rules that must be followed for a successful outcome. Incidentals. What they are and what they do.... and why you need them.  The various four shaft crackle blocks are:

A  is threaded: 1, 2, 3, 2
B is threaded:  2, 3, 4, 3
C is threaded: 3, 4, 1, 4
D is threaded: 4, 1, 2, 1

If you visualize the threadings in your mind or take another look at the paper draft above, you will see they are tiny little point twills and even look suspiciously like a close cousin to overshot. (overshot flows from one threading group to another with two threading groups sharing a common thread) It is common to repeat at least two threadings of a group and this becomes a unit. ( I used three groupings to form a unit in the draft above) Then you use multiple units in the designing. More on units or unit weaves at another time!

 With crackle you can thread as many block A's together as you like but when you shift to B there is a bit of a disconnect so how do you get the groups to flow?

This is where the incidentals come to the rescue! 
Incidentals or extra threads are inserted into the crackle threading to provide continuity between blocks and avoid a 'flat'. A flat is where two warp threads are unintentionally threaded through heddles on the same shaft. There are standard incidentals used with each separate crackle block:

A = 1
B = 2
C = 3
C = 4

So when you want to shift from block A and design with block B you add an incidental thread on shaft 1 and the two groups join up nicely! So you add the corresponding number 2 as you shift from B to C. You must also add them if you go in reverse!

How do you remember which one to use and which number goes with each block?  Simple. Change the name of the blocks from A, B, C and D to 1, 2, 3, 4. The number is the incidental you need! Now books will show a crackle draft, especially profile drafts, as A, B, C and D still so you will have to convert them to this.

So let's say that your particular pattern is better if you have blocks of A  and then C. No B's at all.  You can do this!  When designing using A you add the incidental for the missing B and then also for the preferred block of C.  You must use the connecting incidental for B even though you won't be using the B units.  This rule applies to joining up any group combination. Remember to do this either going forward or backwards in your groups.
{ I tried writing this last section using the corresponding number but it got too busy so you have to do the mental substitution of A=1, B=2, C=3, D=4}

Clear as mud?   Take a minute to read the last three sections again and take another look at the paper draft and see the circled incidentals in place.

We'll wait.....     :)

So incidentally speaking:  A, B, C, D is 1, 2, 3, 4 or  D, C, B, A is 4, 3, 2, 1.  A, C, D is still 1, 2, 3, 4, or  C, D, A is 3, 4, 1
 
Got it yet?

Edit: caught one crackle victim already   :)
No typo there.... A,C,D is  1,2,3,4  Don't forget you are adding incidentals for blocks that are not being used so to transition to the next block you are using! 
If it was A, and D only, it still would be 1,2,3,4   (but if you were going backwards D to A, it would be just 4 to join them)

Once you have this under your belt, then you are free to play and design!   I find my weaving program invaluable for times like this as you can shift blocks around and get the design in your mind onto the screen.
Multi shaft designs will have assigned threadings for shafts 5 to 8 (for example) and might be labeled E, F, G, H but they are also 5, 6, 7, 8!


 Helpful Tip:  At the loom I tape a threading print out from my PCW Fiberworks program and then use two small mini 'post it note's' to isolate the grouping I'm working on and then advance the notes carefully to the incidental required and then again to the new block being threaded next.  It can be very easy to lose your place with crackle threadings and so I recommend you take measures to keep track!

Now for some show and tell.  This sample show my understanding of block placement and not colour interaction. So this is why there is a single solid colour for the pattern.

The blocks were woven in a climbing sequence A, B, C, D. look at the bottom corner and see block A. Notice block D in the centre of the diamond. It came along for the ride! If you visually pinpoint the block being treadled on the angle, you can see the additional woven bonus block. Finally at D they descend in reverse order to A and so on.

I also completed a six week intermediate workshop many years ago held by GCW Masterweaver Margaret Hahn and one of those weeks we covered crackle and some variations:

This is crackle woven 'overshot style'. Literally woven using a summer and winter treadling.

This crackle woven on 'opposites'. So using treadles 1 and 2 against 3 and 4 (or 2 and 3 against 4 and 1)

... and finally a crackle sample treadled 'polychrome style'

If you'd like to do more reading on this topic, this link takes you to a PDF which explores four shaft classic arrangement, variations with longer floats and multi shaft designs. There are some great designs that show the  beautiful designs possible.

This book is fairly new on the market and having spent some time reviewing it, I can assure you its worth every penny! It explains everything I told you above (more clearly and with much better diagrams) and then goes onto much more and has all the beautiful pictures to show you what colour can do with this weave structure!  Its timing couldn't be better in my opinion as there has been relatively few books to turn to on crackle.

There is a brief chapter on crackle in Key to Weaving  by Mary E. Black (1982 revision). The only other book in my collection on crackle is this one:

This has been a standard by Mary E. Snyder and while filled with good information, is rather sparse, limited to four shafts, and only black and white images.

I know there is a wealth of information on crackle at Peg's blog Talking About Weaving  Peg isn't active at her blog right now but if you type in crackle weave into her  'search this blog' box and you can surf her past posts on her exploration of crackle. She loves this weave structure!

The beauty of weaving in this time period of history in which we live is that you can simply google crackle weave and read more on line. You still need to understand the basic rules of Classic Crackle.... so as you progress in this study, you can bend and break the rules.

Its really hard to cover everything off in a brief blog post and I hope this little primer helps you on your way to further in depth study and playing with crackle on your loom! (any mistakes are mine and most likely come about due to not being clear in my explanations, so feel free to straighten me out!)

On a more personal note...
Thank you for all the kind emails regarding my four years of blogging! The guest towels are on their way to all the winners and I'm looking forward to hearing what they think.

I'm back in the studio again but there's just a continuation of the older projects that were stuck in limbo during Christmas and the health crisis. New projects are being planned and so I should have more to show you soon.

Speaking of the health crisis: Bruce is much improved and now walking with no crutches or cane, no more antibiotics and is regaining his strength. The heel/ foot gets tired and so he needs rests but I know he's getting better  as he's arguing with me about what he thinks he can do. The wives out there will recognize that one and sympathize I'm sure!

As a parting shot.... here's the road to our place, taken this morning:

Winter 2012 has finally shown up. That's the view from the house and just a dusting of snow. With luck, it will be all we get.... but I see its started falling again. I'm calling it a 'snow day off' anyway..