Fiberaddict's Fiber Fumblings

1. ANNA (and other watchers) - have you seen this?? Umm....don't think it's legal, not that *that* means anything any more.

2. An educational video site, with contributors including MIT. I haven't done a lot of browsing yet, but wanted to get it out there.

3. In the same vein, here's a site with free piano lessons. I can't vouch for the quality of the teaching, but it's someplace to start, anyway.

4. HOW 'BOUT THEM RANGERS?!!!! :grin: *FANTASTIC* game last night, and they're home for the next 3 games. :bounce:

5. Our weekend just got scheduled. Since we have all these lovely cattle panels, we needed to find some fence posts. My main problem? SG wanted everything to "look the same" - since he did the back of the buck pen with 5", 8' tall round wooden posts, that's what he wants for the rest of the property. Do you have *any* idea how expensive that is? :sigh: $12/post, and we need 5 posts for every panel. (3 in the ground, 2 on top). So...I hit Craigslist. And I hit the jackpot - a guy had 75 8' tall, 5.5" round CEDAR posts...for $6.50. SG bought 60 of them.

Yes, *60*. We're going out there tomorrow to pay, and the guy said he'd deliver them since we bought most of what he had left. It'll only do 12 panels (if I've calculated correctly), but that'll do the buckling fence and the doe fence (not the whole pen, but the "outside" fence), and maybe finish the back of the buck pen. Although I'd rather re-do the FRONT of the buck pen...but that's minor.

6. There is no #6. I just wanted to have 7 points.

7. I'm not sure WHAT is going on, here - I know the Jews asked for a reprieve, and received it. I know we're in a waiting mode.....and I know that we keep getting blessed with things we need. It's humbling...and odd. We need hay - that's tentatively on the docket for next weekend, should He tarry longer.


Gotta get suited up for milking - yesterday it was in the 30's, today it's 50*. THIS is more "normal" Fall weather.......but it's a *cold* 50. Supposed to be chilly and WET for the 3 WS games here......fun stuff. :grin:

OK, this is ALL Anna's fault. Seriously - it's ALL because of her that I found these links. :nods: I honestly wouldn't have gone searching - wait, let me back up a bit.

A while back, Anna posted about their History lesson. They had learned about Sargon, an ancient Akkadian ruler that sounded suspiciously like Moses. I made a mental note : Sargon, add if our book doesn't mention him : and went on.

Well, our book *did* mention him. Anna had linked to a paper model of a ziggurat; I had saved it for when we got to that point so Himself would have something to do. He LOVED it; this was a win/win - he got into the History lesson and actually *retained* it, because he made a model.

So....I read ahead, and decided to find a paper model of a pyramid. Building one out of sugar just won't work in our house - if the (damn) mice don't come out, the dogs will destroy it. So...pyramids are pretty easy, right? We *could* do an origami one...but Himself mentioned that he'd like a more...."authentic" one. All righty, then...the search was on!

Well......one thing led to another, and another, and another (you've been there, right?)..and I ended up at...well, This site. The MOTHER-LODE of paper models. TONS of links, to all sorts of time-frames.....

3 hours later, I had downloaded 4 of the 7 Wonders of the Ancient World, a bunch of castles from various regions and styles, the Wright Brothers' flyer, a paddle-wheel steamer, St. Basil's Cathedral in Russia...and a bunch of other stuff. I *even* found the Great Pyramid! (AND the Sphinx...wait, that makes 5 of the 7!)

The funny thing is, I started out here. I don't remember my search term..but this was one of the first links. How I got to the above, I don't know. :lol: (You don't have to download any software; if you go to the "Build" link, you can print out/save each part on your harddrive and go from there.)

Anyway, I was sitting at the desk, making little "ooooh!" and "ahhhhh!" sounds (I found King Ludwig's Neuschwanstein Castle - one of my absolute FAVORITE castles. It's GORGEOUS!), so Himself came over to see what the deal was. I had just found Canon's (yes, THAT Canon!) Paper Craft site....and it turned his crank so hard it wasn't even funny.

"MOM! That is SO COOL! What is it for? Wait - what's that? Oh - we're doing these for History? Can we do History EVERY DAY? This is - wait, click on that - OHHHHHHHH! That's - can we do that one, please? Will we be studying - what's THAT? Oh! I want that! And..." :snicker:

I'm glad I have a 500G hard drive dedicated to Homeschooling, because I spent another 2 hours last night downloading more. Herself wasn't interested, until she saw the Animal section. (Zoology, anyone?)

I need to take a look at what I have, and see what else I "need" for History lessons. Why not - Himself is currently building Ludwig's castle, and he's having a blast. He LOVED the ziggurat yesterday (even if the model didn't go together quite like the instructions said....and we had to reprint 1 page because you needed 2 copies of 1 part. Why they didn't just include it, I don't know....waste of paper and ink, in my opinion.)

And yes - I do lay the blame (or credit! :lol:) entirely at Anna's feet. I wouldn't have started looking for paper models if she hadn't linked that ziggurat. I didn't realize Himself would enjoy this type of stuff.....now?

Now I need to order yet more ink. I foresee a LOT of printing in my future. :lol: (Be aware that you ARE going to get sucked in if you click any of these links. You WILL lose a lot of time...so be prepared!)

OK.....I figured I'd post this here instead of emailing those of my friends who homeschool. I found these - anyone have any feelings about them as use in homeschooling?

www.coolmath.com

www.sciencemonster.com

www.budgethomeschool.com

I also found this: www.ocw.mit.edu/index.htm - a list of FREE MIT courses. They are, of course, college-level, but perhaps some use can be made of them.

Still searching - budget homeschool has a ton of links I need to check out.

If anyone has other links/ideas they'd like to share, please do - I'm trying to get everything in a row so we can proceed.

I decided to post my goat info here - some of it I may have posted before, some of it's new. I tend to over research stuff, and I don't mind sharing to keep your valuable time free for other stuff. I know a lot of you aren't "doing" goats....but you never know. The way the economy is going, you might find yourself in a position to *need* a safe dairy supply, and goats are the cheapest and best way to do it. So...that being said, here we go:

( Cut to save my FL...don't wanna overwhelm you (it got kinda long..) )

*whew* That was long! But important - guys, things are bad now...and it's only going to get worse. I'm trying to get things together so my family and I will have food....IF I'm right, prices are going to shoot up so high, and incomes are going to drop. You have to have food/water....I'd rather grow as much of my own as possible. I ran the numbers - I can provide my family with ALL our dairy needs for much much less than buying commercial. (My eggs, too, come to think of it - but that's a different topic!). Plus - the excess kids will provide us with meat, and the Cashemere goats will give us warm clothing.

IF I'm wrong - I'm still saving my family money. I don't think I'm wrong, though....

Those of you who know me IRL know that I normally wear my hair up via a hair fork. Here lately I've become enamored with wooden forks......and I'm going to list my favorite vendors here (both for me, and as a gift to you. :grin: I realize this'll probably make prices go up.....but hey - I need to spread the joy! :grin:) For the record, I have very fine, thin hair. It's currently sitting at about 1.5" from waist (when pulled straight - when left alone, there's enough curl/waves that it's right at the middle of my bra strap) at the longest point. I don't *need* a heavy-duty, stout fork, so I tend to not even *look* at those. Most of these vendors, though, have a wide selection of sizes/thicknessess.

I started out with a few metal ones from Crafty Celts. I have 2 bronze ones (1 short and thick, 1 long and skinny) and a silver one. They hold well....but they're kinda heavy. (Well, relatively speaking. 1 oz isn't a whole lotta weight!) They're also not that decorative - but they are functional. I think I paid about $20/each for them - not too bad for a neat hair toy!

I then decided I needed to switch to pretty wooden ones - I love, love, LOVE exotic hardwoods, and there are some really *gorgeous* ones out there. Interestingly enough, there are a few vendors out there that are *cheaper* than Crafty Celts (but shhhhhhhhhhhhhh! Don't spread the word! My credit card will implode! :lol:) Being cheap, I hit eBay....

My personal favorite is 60th Street Productions. Beautiful work, gorgeous woods, very very very inexpensive. The ONLY drawback (well, not for me! :grin:) is that his forks are a bit dainty and delicate-looking. If you have thick hair that eats toys for snacks, you might not want to try his wares. *I* have fine, thin hair, so they work perfectly for *me*, but...they might not be what you thick-haired folks need. His customer service is *superb*, his forks are wonderful, and I can't say enough good things about him. I currently have 3 of his forks, and am drooling over a few more - but I wanted to share the love, so to speak. His forks are a bit....plain (dare I say that??), which I prefer, but the plain design lets the wood do the talking. He has a wide variety of wood choices (which is why I haven't bought another one - I can't make up my mind! :grin:), and they have a great, smooth, matte finish. (Even the diamondwood - most vendors make the diamondwood shiny, but 60th Street's are matte. Different) He's got some listed right now for $15 BIN. (Ooops - I shouldn't have said that, should I? :lol:)

Like his stuff, but have thick hair? Try Jimfo43 I have *1* of his diamondwood forks. It's lovely, it's stout, and....I never wear it. No real reason - except that it's a bit big for my hair. It's pretty, but it doesn't hold my fine, silky hair well - it keeps sliding out. I'm hoping, as my hair gets longer, it'll start working.....we'll see. His prices are comparable to 60th Street's, and his forks are also plain-jane. He puts on a shiny finish - my fork is pretty, pretty, pretty - but it doesn't work with my hair (hmmm..wonder if I should try it with dirty hair instead of clean? Worth a shot......) They are supposedly waterproof...I might try it in the pool. Must think on this....

Ready for more pricey hair toys? Try Baerries. GORGEOUS forks - you can buy them direct, or on Etsy, or Amazon, or eBay (don't ask me how I know this, OK? :grin:) I have an Egyptian in cocobolo from them (and a Finny in Padouk is on it's way! :grin:) - it's pretty, it holds like iron....but they are about 2x the price of 60th Street and Jimfo43. They are stouter than 60th Street, and.....more elegant than Jimfo43, though. They have a few more styles, too - so you can have a variety of ways to dress up your up-dos. Lots of wood choices, too - and the finish is nice. Not as shiny as some, but not matte, either.

Artistree does *beautiful* work - and does customs! I have a 5-prong French Twist comb from him in Bloodwood - it's stunning! It's a bit heavy for my hair.....I have to reset it a few times each day, but it's *so* pretty and smooth, I don't mind. I'm contemplating another one from him...a 2-prong, this time, but I'm not sure. He's very easy to work with, and his craftsmanship is top-notch. Prices are comparable to Baerries...maybe a titch less, but not by much. He has a few more styles - and a pretty good selection of woods to choose from.

Then there's Monk the Monk eBay only, as far as I know - but WOW his stuff is *awesome*! I have an ebony and green burlewood inlay comb - it's stunning. Holds my hair like iron - it goes in, and stays in; never has to be reset. Pretty, pretty fork - AND he's willing to do custom work. He's very popular with the LHC crowd, so prices tend to go up and up and up, but - he's well worth the price. I've never seen him repeat a fork exactly (well - 1 custom fork he's done for 2 or 3 people - but WITH the original owner's permission. I'm impressed with that!)

Graydog is also popular......I've got 1. I'm....not that impressed, to tell you the truth. The fork is nice (diamondwood), it's well made...but it's nothing spectacular (IMHO). I paid *way* too much for it (almost $50), but that's the way eBay works. Some people LOVE Graydog - I'll let them have them. :grin: Understand - there is NOTHING wrong with their work (in fact, I'm wearing mine today!), it's just....I'd rather spend the money on something more suited to my taste. I think they tend towards diamondwood - the choices are all pretty, and colorful. Well made...but I actually prefer "real" wood. :grin:

Ron Quattro has a wide selection of styles. I can't comment - yet - as my first fork is in route. BIN prices are in-line with the other "pricey" vendors; he has a few unique styles. He seems to be well thought of in the LHC circles. ETA : My Quattro fork arrived, and is GORGEOUS. A bit too big and heavy for my hair, but I'm keeping it anyway. If I get it set just right, it holds like iron - and it's Pretty.

Ketylo has recently started selling hair forks. I don't have anything to say (since I'm still waiting on a reply to my inquiry) except that Ketylo has a good rep on LHC, and the forks look really nice. Price is comparable, wood choice seems pretty good.....I'll nab one *if* I ever hear back (they have these "contracted" out, it seems. I emailed the artist Tuesday...and haven't heard back yet. Ah, well - the credit card appreciates it!) ETA: I now have 2 Ketylos - 1 5.5" (the one from eBay) and 1 6" (from the LHC Swap board) - both are LOVELY, both hold like iron, and the 5.5" one is PERFECT for my hair. It'll hold both buns AND twists, which is rare, and - so far - doesn't have to be reset at all. Beautiful work, good prices - definately a keeper.


Most of these vendors do hairsticks and barrettes too - but my hair HATES sticks, and I hate barrettes. :grin: I'm sure the quality is the same as the forks, though - and they seem to be pretty popular.

And now my fork links are all in one place! :lol:

ETA I am now a Ficcare addict - the small Maximas holds my hair neatly and perfectly, with no pulling and virtually no weight. LOVE them - well worth the money! :grin: