Spinning Out Of Control

At one time, my spinning was out of control! Did I tell y’all that I “spin yarns” both figuratively and literally?

Yes, spinning yarn on a spinning wheel is a hobby of mine, and it’s what led to me becoming a storyteller, or “spinner of yarns.”

Twenty-seven years ago, I was demonstrating spinning yarn for the public at a local historical event. As children passed, I showed them how to spin yarn on a drop spindle and told them Hopi Indian legends about the spindle. A man watching me stepped over and said, “You are spinning yarn and spinning yarns. You are a storyteller. Come meet some people who tell stories in schools.”

That was the beginning of my career as a storyteller.

As I said, though, at one time my spinning was out of control. I’m pretty obsessive when I get interested in something. When I get a new hobby, I immerse myself in it. I have a collection of spinning wheels and weaving looms. I once raised angora rabbits to use their hair for spinning. I raised my own garden of plants for dyeing the wools. I spun all the time.

You don’t believe me? When both of my children were learning to speak, their first word was not “Mommy.” It was “whi-whee” — their pronunciation of “spinning wheel!” Now, hobbies are a good thing, but that was a “wake-up call.” Not when the first one said it — that was “cute.” When the second child said it, I realized that perhaps I should slow down with the spinning, or those kids wouldn’t know who there Momma was!

I slowed down on the spinning after that, and my kids are now grown and gone. I could start spinning again. However, a couple of years ago I got obsessive about blogging! I found myself constantly running to check my “stats,” and always writing a blog post in my head. Sometimes, I refused to go someplace fun because I thought I needed to write a blog post! It wasn’t until I moved my computer upstairs (and didn’t want to climb the steps to check on the computer) that I realized quite how badly I had succumbed to the addiction of the internet!

Hobbies are important, I think. I believe that remaining active with a hobby helps people live longer, healthier lives — as long as they don’t go spinning out of control. I think I’ve gotten myself back on track.

For the last several days, I’ve been “re-discovering” the Shelly who once was — and that’s my Only The Good. I’ve been out in my garden (until I got poison ivy, which is healed now), and re-decorating the house (until I hurt my back, which is better now), and visiting with friends. It’s all been good.

I’ve even gotten out one of my spinning wheels to “play” a little bit. I don’t think I’ll go overboard with it. You see, I have five cats, and this is the view they see:

If you had four legs, could you resist that dangling wool?

So, what are your hobbies? And, what’s going on in your world that is good? Leave me a comment if you like, and then go visit some of the other fine folks who post “optimistically” on Friday.

Here are some other folks who have joined in periodically:
RV Poetry; Candid Karina; All My Great, or Not So Great Adventures; Inside Mo’s Mind; Thorne’s World; Down River Drivel; Duward Discussion; Ramblings of an Unstable Mind; Insightful Nana; Newbie Lifeline; Everyday Tarot; West of Mars; Life’s Journey; Round Circle; Barbara’s Travels; Blog of Revelation; Desert Diva; Blogjem

Related posts:

1. Frazzled
2. VaVoom-Chicky-Chicky
3. Warped
4. Step Up To The Plate
5. Friday Feast #137

Tagged as: hobbies, Only The Good Friday, optimism, photographs