In Episode 7 we go on a field trip! I recorded earlier this week because I am out of town until the middle of next week. (Note, Episode 8 may be a little late because of this.) I also talk about my birthday adventures, our 99-member prize drawing, and the small amount of knitting I got done this week. I share some final vampire info as we finish Dracula. The Dean’s list might surprise you!

Welcome to everyone who has joined the Ewe University group on Ravelry, an erudite group of fabulous people who are experts at the proper use of the apostrophe.  You should join us, if you haven’t already!  Thank you so much to everyone who contacted me this week.  I love hearing from you!  You can subscribe to the show on iTunes or on this web site by clicking on the “Follow” tab at the bottom of the page and entering your email address.  For the show’s RSS feed, look on the right sidebar menu — scroll down until you see the “Entries RSS” link and click on it.

Thank you to show sponsor Halcyarn Knitting Accessories.

Listen to the Show:

 

SHOW NOTES

Around Campus

I visited a favorite LYS, Serendipity Yarn Shoppe in Muscatine, Iowa.  There I bought some Jacobs Wool by High Prairie Fibers.  I’ve never  knit with Jacobs wool and didn’t know much about it so did a little research on this rare breed of sheep, at least in the U.S.  Here is a picture of a Jacobs sheep:

And here is my yarn, which I’m planning on making a vest out of:

I also talk about my adventures in and around the small town of Henry, Illinois — the site of the first lock and dam on the Illinois River.

There is also a cool old lighthouse which was built by “Steamboat Elsie” out of stones from the original lock and dam:

Henry was also the home to Charles and Edna Perdew, who are famous makers of duck decoys and duck calls.  Their house and workshop are being restored and turned into a museum.

Wow, who knew so much was going on in a tiny town in central Illinois!

Awards and Scholarships

This week we reached (and exceeded!) 99 members in our Ravelry group, so I did the 99-member Giveaway!  The winner was sokyknitter, who is Sally from Kentucky — congratulations, Sally!!  Sally won 2 skeins of gorgeous Claudia Handpainted yarn in the Magician’s Cape colorway, which was generously donated by Lauren (tskmstr on Ravelry).  A huge thank you goes out to Lauren for this donation!  The prize is already on its way to Sally.

 A Class Project

Until the end of October we are working on a class project called the Teacher Tribute.  Acknowledge someone who has been a meaningful teacher in your life (could be formal educational setting or a more informal setting like someone from your family or a friend).  Write a letter to this person and mail it via old-fashioned snail mail.  Then go to our Ravelry thread and post a brief tribute to this person.  Everyone who completes this class project by the October 31 deadline will be entered into a drawing for two fabulous prizes.

• One person will win a knitting project bag of their choice from Halcyarn Knitting Accessories
• One person will win a skein of yarn of their choice from Evermore Studios

The Dean’s List

This week I applaud Jenny Doan of the Missouri Star Quilt Company for her awesome Youtube video tutorials on sewing and quilting techniques.  I have learned a lot from her!

The Academic Status of My Knitting Projects

This week I don’t have a lot of knitting content, as I’ve mostly been working on small projects.

GRADUATED:  Fingerless Mitts for my niece

This is the Happily Ever After pattern by Susan B. Anderson (free on Ravelry).  I used Panda Soy yarn, which is a blend of bamboo, soy, and elastic/nylon on a U.S. size 2 (s.75mm) 9-inch circular needle.

SOPHOMORE:  I think the sock circle socks have reached sophomore status.  I am currently working on Sally’s socks — adding my section to them.

Sally started with the lime green cuffs (right side of photo), then Rose added the stripes in a cable pattern.  In my section I’m using Decadently Divine Decadent Sock, which is 75% merino and 25% nylon.  I decided to keep using the chevron pattern from Elphaba by Valerie Johnson.  This project is on my Hiya Hiya Sharps, size U.S. 1 (2.25mm) 9-inch circular needles.

At the Library

This week I finished listening to Dracula!  I give the book 5 stars and the main reader, Greg Wise, 5 stars as well.

I’m still in the market for classic horror novel recommendations.  I decided to spend all of October reading classic horror instead of reading just one for Halloween.  So if you have any suggestions, please post them on our Ravelry thread.

In Episode 7 I talk about the history of vampire myths and some interesting research into the matter.  I cover the research of Katharina Wilson, a professor at the University of Georgia on the earliest written descriptions of vampire superstitions as well as the first use of the word “vampire.”  I also go into a couple of interesting theories that have been proposed to explain vampire legends.  The first is University of British Columbia biochemist David Dolphin‘s theory that vampires may have been nothing more than people suffering from a rare genetic disease called porphyria.  Although intriguing, this theory has pretty much been dismissed by medical experts.  However, another theory seems more promising.  Dr. Juan Gomez-Alonso, a Spanish neurologist, proposes that rabies may be the key in the development of vampire legends.  I talk about how this theory can explain pretty much all vampire characteristics.

Field Trip!

The last weekend in September every year is National Alpaca Farm Days where alpaca farms all across America hold open houses and welcome visitors to meet the alpaca and learn about them.  This week’s episode features a field trip to Heartland Criations, a local alpaca farm that I visited.  In the show I talk about this farm and about alpaca in general.  Here are some pictures:

I did take a few videos of the alpaca but could not get them to post here — sorry!   But if you have a chance to visit an alpaca farm in person, I’m confident you will enjoy it!