The first step is admitting you have a problem.

I’m not sure exactly what was going on last year that prevented me from going (probably some wedding planning stuff), but I missed California Wool and Fiber in 2009. Now, it’s probably for the best, because I ended up buying a fleece at Spinner’s Day on the Farm. If I’d ended up going to CWFF, then I’d probably be in the hole for two fleeces instead of just one.

But this year, there was no way I was going to miss it. Work obligations will keep me from Lambtown in Dixon yet again (I don’t know how this always works out), and everyone on Ravelry seems to be making plans and destashing and generally squeeing about Rhinebeck. Now, I can’t really afford the massive hit to my credit card that would happen there, especially when it comes with a mandatory plane ticket attached. I tried and tried and tried to make this work. I even tried to convince myself that it was the right thing to do, because my sister is now living about two hours’ drive from upstate New York, and I really should go visit her in grad school. But eventually I had to admit that dragging a sibling who is uninterested in fiber to a major fiber festival wouldn’t really be much of a visit for her.

So, being unable to make the trek to the Fiber Mecca that is New York Sheep and Wool, I absolutely HAD to go to my local fiber festival. And really, even though it’s not as big as Rhinebeck, CWFF is still a really good time.



In addition to delicious fleeces, the dude got to make friends



and look at some crazy machinery:



We saw that we are not the only people to equate fiber crafts with pixel art:



We ate very unhealthy fair food:



We saw lots of colorful characters, of the human variety:



and the sheepy variety:







Finally (and I am really proud of myself for this), I did not buy another fleece. I realized that in the year since I bought Blake’s fleece, I have washed maybe 1/5 of it and spun up two skeins. In the same amount of time in 2008, I’d washed, spun, and knit a sweater from my first fleece. Clearly, I was in need of a little help. So I handed off my fleece to the lovely Shari of Morro Fleece Works. I knew we had to go to CWFF this year, because she goes every year, and I could save myself shipping costs in one direction by taking it there in person. I expected to feel a little sad, but leaving the big plastic bag lifted a literal and figurative weight from my shoulders. I was getting help. I’m moving forward. I’ve seen Shari’s work, and I cannot wait for the day my box of washed and pin-drafted roving arrives on my doorstep. Delicious!