An Island in the Winter

When I tell people that I live year-round on an island, I am often asked the question "What do you DO in the winter?" A reasonable question, I guess, if the person asking has always lived in an urban environment. The assumption, I suppose, is that the island shuts down and all activity screeches to a halt. Quite the opposite happens, truth be told. I think people are just as busy here as they would be in any other town, our activities might be just a little different.

My week last week, for example:

On Monday the silk scarves came off the loom! I twisted fringe, washed, photographed. Now they will be listed on Etsy and perhaps Art Fire.





I immediately started planning the next project. Linen scarves or shawls?



Hmmm. I also have some ideas for some completely new projects, and I am doing some research right now. What do cigar boxes and embroidery have in common? I'll let you know when I figure it out. Thinking...thinking...



This guy took a bit of my time last week.



A mysterious limp found us at the vet's office (much to his great dismay) and he spent a few days confined. Luckily it's winter and he spent much of the time sleeping. I am happy to report that he seems to be recovered. It's Freddie the cat, by the way, adopted by us from the MSPCA about a year ago. I highly recommend adopting adult cats, we've done it 3 times and I'll be happy to tell you all about our experiences if you want to know.

I also had my first committee meeting for the Nantucket Farmers and Artisan's Market last week. The Farmer's Market is put on by Sustainable Nantucket, an important grass-roots organization that works "To preserve the community character of Nantucket while sustaining its economic and environmental vitality." The market is a wonderful community event that brings year round and summer residents together to support and benefit from the local harvest of fresh produce, plants, hand baked and hand made goods. A worthy endeavor indeed and I'm glad to be a member of the committee this year. I hope to have photos to post this summer.

This time of year I have two evening groups that I meet with, Knitters Night Out at my favorite LYS, Sheep to Shore (web site coming soon!) and a weekly gathering of crafty ladies and good friends. This second craft night started as a way for a small group of good friends to get together for a few hours a week in the winter and sew, knit, crochet, drink wine, eat cheese, and socialize. The group has slowly expanded in number, and has evolved to include a once-monthly gathering at our library, the Nantucket Atheneum, where we will not only create and socialize, but we will be graced by a variety of speakers, all experts in their given craft. I'm crossing my fingers for a very accomplished embroiderer who shall remain nameless for the time being, and a woman who will talk to us about Pysanky, the Ukranian art of decorating Easter Eggs.

Thanks to these weekly get togethers, I manage to find time to work on my knitting (which has been sorely neglected lately) and I'm making slow progress on Arwen. I notice with cabling that if I don't work on it daily, I fall out of my groove with the pattern and make lots of mistakes. This leads to frogging, frogging, frogging. Ribbit.



OK, so what else? Winter days spent working, meeting, planning, gathering with friends, creating, caring for four legged family members. Add to that weekend dinners with friends, cooking, reading, planning the garden for this coming summer (it'll be here before you know it!). Also important is the time to decompress. For most of us who live here, life on Nantucket has a definite rhythm. Summer is so extremely busy and most of us work double time to earn our year's income in a few short months. The winter allows time to recover from that pace and gear up for the coming summer chaos.

Oh yes, and I almost forgot - my classes at the Artists Association of Nantucket which start this week. "Intro to Macs" begins tonight, and my weaving workshops start in March or April.

We also take advantage of whatever nice weather comes our way by taking long walks through the moors and woods, along the shore, or through the quiet neighborhoods that are all but shut down for the season. It's so nice to be able to enjoy all of this without heavy traffic, hustle and bustle, and the distractions that come with a large influx of people. I love the quiet times. I don't miss mini malls, strip malls, megaplexes, traffic lights, or highways. If I get an urge for culture, change, diversion, Boston is only a boat ride and a short drive away.