is Knitting silly?

Sometimes I can't help but feel a little silly for enjoying knitting and spinning. It seems like such an obsolete art. Why do I enjoy twisting wool into yarn? My husband doesn't understand why either--he calls it my "hair collection". I know that spinning and knitting used to be vital to life before China made everything for us. Imagine when ALL the thread for cloth had to be spun by hand. But now it don't get no respect: people seem to think it is just some weird thing that little old ladies like to do--make itchy, ugly hats for grandchildren. Any thoughts?

some background

Here's the beginning of the lace coat. This is where I am right now. I will continue the history of the making, but I thought I'd introduce the protagonist now. This is from a pattern in the holiday issue of Vogue Knitting. I've been knitting for other people for years, so I finally decided to knit something for myself. Could it be a hat? no Could it be a scarf, No--it had to be a 37" long lace coat.

dirty dirty

The next step is to find somewhere to wash 10 lbs of extremely dirty fleece. It is a rule that the alpaca with the best wool is also the alpaca that really enjoys rolling in the mud. If you have access to a veterinary clinic or a dog groomer, I found the raised bathtubs very convenient. I am one of the veterinarians, so I can get away with using the tubs. If you are an employee, this might be a bit trickier. I recommend using a large piece of window screen to wrap the fleece in to keep it from clogging up the drains. Sorry I don't have a picture today--I forgot the cable for my camera.

The Lace Coat. A Tale of Big Ambitions, Frustrations and Multitasking

First you shear an alpaca. This is not easy, especially if you do not have electric shearing clippers. Don't worry about what the alpaca looks like, just get as much of the wool off as you can without being kicked or spat on (much).