Sound Challenges

I miss public radio in Houston!  I have always liked to have background noise when I am working.  The last few years I've primarily listened to KUHF and KPFT.  The last year or so I had an HD radio and listened almost exclusively to KUHF HD 2.  Lots of radio talk shows, as long as I wasn't working on something difficult I could listen to talk radio.  Now that my studio is set up I'm ready to get to work, but I have nothing to listen to... I tried bringing my laptop up but the signal was weak and the speakers even weaker.  Peter suggested I get a wireless adaptor for the computer that runs the Megado.  So I made a trip to the mall - 10 minute walk to train, 10 minute train ride, ride the escalator 5 floors, repeat to get home. Stores don't open till 11 am I am there at 10 am - back home.  Make a 2nd trip, got a wireless adaptor and speakers, also picked up an Ipod Nano to replace my Ipod that went missing in our shipment.  Damn those concrete walls I could not get a signal in that room (modem on 2nd floor, looms on 3rd floor).  Yea, I have the Ipod and it is fun to listen to but the headphone wires catch on things, I can't hear the doorbell, the kids etc.  So I think a docking station would be good.  Back to the mall, found a nice little docking station with a clock :)  Back home plug in docking station, hear loud pop.  Wait till Peter gets home and ask nicely for him to take me back to the mall.  Staff at store very nice gave me new plug, go back home.  Bet you guessed the loud pop happens again.  Sigh.... Meanwhile Peter finds out he has to fly back to Houston in 2 days!! I abandon my efforts to get some sound in to the loom room because I have to finish weaving the Color and Weave samples and tax information so Peter can hand deliver both. There is a TV with cable in the room with the baby wolf so I can listen to something while weaving on the baby wolf.  Peter left at 2 am Friday morning so I was get back to putting a warp on the Megado in a quiet room.  Friday evening we went in search of Mexican food (in Asia) with my Texas neighbors.  John is an IT guy and I mentioned my dilemma.  He offered to get me set up with wireless internet on the 3rd floor.  I tried  not to get over excited and let him see my desperation. Saturday I decided I could download episdoes/podcasts of some of my favorite NPR shows on to the Nano as a temporary talk radio fix.  I was able to get 8 episodes of Wait, Wait don't tell me downloaded before the hard drive on my computer was full!  Sunday John arrived with  3 gizmos (home plug device) and in 30 minutes he had me all set.  You can plug one of these devices  in where the modem is connected and another in the room where the computer is and the internet connection passes through the wires, it is a miracle!  Sunday the kids and I went back to the mall and I took back the docking station, this time they gave me a new unit and it works!  By Sunday evening I had a working docking station and an internet connection.  Now I have choices of what I can listen to!

Final cost = wireless adaptor, speakers, Ipod Nano, docking station, 3 homeplug devices, 6 trips to the mall, loads of time and frustration

So, the Color and Weave Samples are done (see last post for information).  The theme of this exchange is "Design Challenge" and elements were assigned.  My elements are:  Black and White only, Shadow Weave and Use Metallic.  The black metallic I used added nothing to the final fabric.  I did not bring a large stash to Singapore so I did not have the ability to subsitute, so I stayed the course and finished with what I had.  I decided I just don't like a whole lot of Color and Weave pattern without something to break it up.  To jarring to the eyes, especially in all black and white.

Here is the finished lenth before cutting, the pattern really looks like diamonds from this angle.

On the end of the warp I used some red, I got tired of Black and White!  In this close up you can see the square within a square and rectangle within a rectangle pattern better.

I have dressed the megado with a beautiful silk warp.  I'll post some pictures once I get farther along.  The first picture is of the warp skeins. I ordered some more silk for the weft, Peter will bring that back with him this weekend.

Happy Weaving, now what shall I listen to?

Tracy