A story on the news tonight brought me to the computer to share it with you and has me wishing that they gave tours so that I could see this with my own eyes. I can just barely knit or crochet but the way this yarn is being produced is fascinating.
BartlettYarms is an historic mill in Harmony, Maine that has been spinning fine, pure wool since 1821. That, in itself, is quite a feat with places going out of business no matter where we turn. What sets this wonderful old mill apart is that it has the only active “mule” spinning frame in the United States.
Information found on the mule in Wikipedia states:
“In 1779 Samuel Crompton invented the spinning mule or mule jenny, so called because it is a hybrid of Arkwright’s water frame and Hargreaves’ spinning jenny. The mule has a fixed frame with a creel of bobbins to hold the roving, connected through the headstock to a parallel carriage with the spindles. On the outward motion, the rovings are paid out and twisted. On the return, the roving is clamped and the spindles reversed to take up the 
newly spun thread.
Crompton built his mule from wood. Although he used Hargreaves’ ideas of spinning multiple threads and of attenuating the roving with rollers, it was he who put the spindles on the carriage and fixed a creel of roving bobbins on the frame. Both the rollers and the outward motion of the carriage remove irregularities from the rove before it is wound on the spindle. When Arkwright’s patents expired, the mule was developed by several manufacturers.
The mule produced strong, thin yarn, suitable for any kind of textile. It was first used to spin cotton, then other fibres.
Samuel Crompton could not afford to patent his invention. He sold the rights to David Dale and returned to weaving. Dale patented the mule and profited from it.”
A full explanation of the mule and how it works can be found by clicking HERE to access the entire Wikipedia page. It makes for fascinating reading if you would like to know more about these old machines.
Meanwhile back here in Maine, BartlettYarns has a website with a virtual tour of the mill. For those of you in a hurry, I have shown one of the clips from YouTube here but if you have the time, mosey on over to the BartlettYarns mill page and check out all the video’s.
BarlettYarns can be found at 20 Water ST in Harmony, Maine or on the web at www.bartlettyarns.com. Their online store features blankets, hats, socks, patterns, kits and more. Oh yes, did I mention that they sell yarn?? Click on over and check them out.
Just in case you are wondering, I am not affiliated in any way with BartlettYarns. I found it very interesting when I saw the clip on TV and I wanted to share it with you. Enjoy!
Tags: crochet, historic, hunters orange yarn, knit, roving, wool, yarn
The hubby & I just had a nice bowl of popcorn for a snack this evening. So what, you say! Well, immediately after eating the 
popcorn, I headed for the kitchen cabinet for a toothpick and decided to write this post. What does a toothpick have to do with Maine? Once upon a time 90% of toothpicks were made right here in the great state of Maine!
According to an article written in “The Manufacturer and Builder Volume 0019 Issue 12 (December 1887)”, it all started right in Strong, Maine! The article states the following:
“The wooden toothpick is no small thing in the industrial activity of Maine. The original wooden toothpick man is said to be Charles Forster, of Strong, Franklin county. He has done more for the teeth of America, it is said, than any other man under the sweep of her eagle’s wings. He whittled the original box of Yankee toothpicks, but he copied the art from natives of South America, where he was a merchant years ago. The South Americans picked their teeth with whittled out splints. Forster sent a sample box to his wife in the United States as a curiosity. A hotel man got hold of them and sent to Forster for a box, and the latter whittled them out and filled the order. More orders came, and he began to get busy. Pretty soon he had natives whittling out toothpicks for hotels all over the United States. He moved home and opened up a branch office, and in 1860 began making his toothpicks by machinery. The first year he sold 65 cases, containing 250,000 toothpicks each. Now he sells 30,000 cases a year. He is thought to make three-fifths of all the wooden toothpicks made in the country.” There is a bit more to the article and if you are interested, you can click HERE to read it.
Forster Manufacturing Company produced toothpicks in Strong until 2003, when the mill was closed. Most toothpicks are made in China these days.
While I was researching for this article, I discovered that toothpicks are not only used for picking your teeth. Folks use toothpicks to create art and crafts. Those of you that know me, know that I wouldn’t have the patience to be one of those crafty folks. 
Well, there you have it. Just think, this post started with an evening snack!
Tags: Forster, Maine, Strong, Toothpicks
It is hard to believe how time flies! You know the old adage that says “wait until you retire—you will have ALL kinds of time”. It sure isn’t working that way for us. Seems that we are always on the go or doing something. The good thing is that it isn’t always “work” (although we do some of that too ).
After my post in August, we went to Florida on a “trawler crawl”. We spent a week traveling over a lot of the state looking at boats that our broker had set up for us to see. We had a great time but picked a really hot time to be there. We did learn that the photo’s that are shown on Yachtworld are not necessarily what the boat looks like now. We found a boat at the end of that week that we really liked. We are still negotiating on it and hopefully it will be ours soon.
Shortly after returning from the trawler crawl, we spent two weeks in Pennsylvania. My mom was in the hospital and wasn’t doing well. We traveled back and forth to the hospital each day and finally saw a bit of improvement. When we left, she was still not able to get around on her own. She went to a nursing home shortly after we left and probably won’t ever make it back home. It is sad when a very independent person can no longer take care of themselves but like everything else in her life, she is taking it in stride. Her life has been hard at times, and I admire the way that she comes back fighting each time. She is making the best of her situation and I am really proud of her.
Since returning from Pennsylvania, we have spent more time in Florida. The hubby has been down once without me because I wanted to hunt. Yes, we are both deer hunters. For those of you that don’t hunt, you will be happy to know that the deer won this year and neither of us got one.
While all of this was going on, we are finishing our house. We added on a couple of years ago and still had all the trim to do in the old part of the house, plus there was more work to do once we added on. Somehow, that is all coming together and it is finally almost done! But now that it is almost done, we are talking about possibly selling and moving to a warmer climate. We wouldn’t like to live in Florida (way too hot and muggy in the summer) but we are thinking that maybe North Carolina or Tennessee would be nice. We would still like to see the seasons change—just not so drastically. Maine is a wonderful place to live but the winters can be sooooo long. Who knows what the future will bring.
We plan on continuing to enjoy our retirement and will share our adventures on this blog. If all goes well with the boat, we will be doing some cruising this summer. If this boat doesn’t work out, we will continue to look for one that suits our needs.
My friend has just posted “RECIPE FOR A HAPPY NEW YEAR” on her blog. It is wonderful. Take a minute to go to “My Maine Backyard Treasures” to read this wonderful recipe, and while you are there be sure to check out the wildlife photo’s that she has that were taken right in her own back yard.
Yes, we are busy but in a good way! We are so blessed. We wish all of you have a very happy, healthy and prosperous New Year!
Tags: 2010, cruising, New Year, retirement, trawler
I just read that male reindeer lose their antlers by December, therefore all of Santa’s reindeer—including Rudolph—must be female???
According to the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, while both male and female reindeer grow antlers in the summer each year (the only members of the deer family, Cervidae, to have females do so), male reindeer drop their antlers at the beginning of winter, usually late November to mid December. Female reindeer retain their antlers till after they give birth in the spring.
Well, we have all seen the photo’s showing good ole Santa with his sleigh full of toys being pulled around by nine antlered reindeer (that, of course, includes Rudolph). Now we know the truth…Santa’s sleigh is pulled by 
“girls”!
Well, duh, of course they must be females…they travel all over the world on Christmas eve. I ask you, have you heard of Santa getting lost? It is a well known fact that males will not ask for directions so as the old saying goes—the proof is in the pudding!
Merry Christmas To All…And To All A Goodnight!
Tags: legend, Merry Christmas, reindeer, Santa
This summer has been incredibly busy and I’m afraid that I just got kind of lazy with the blog. I will TRY to do better.
Hubby and I just returned from a whirlwind trip. We drove to Portland and then flew to Atlanta, GA. From there we rented a car and drove to Chattanooga , TN, then to Scottsboro, AL and down to to Gulf Coast, first to Mobile, Alabama and then to Long Beach, Mississippi.
Why you ask?? We were looking for a boat. Last winter, shortly after he retired (for the second time), my husband presented me with a map of the Great Loop and a book by Ron & Eva Stob, titled “Honey, Let’s Get A Boat“. As you might imagine, this came as a shock to me. I had been picturing us spending more time at the lake and maybe—finally—getting the house finished. He had other idea’s of retired life (sigh). He has finally convinced me that it might be fun so we are looking for the perfect boat for us.
We
looked for a trawler here in Maine but the few that were available were not to our liking. After combing the internet and emailing back and forth with brokers and owners, we found what sounded like a boat that we might like in Tennessee. We made reservations to leave town on the 21st and to see it on the 22nd. Unfortunately, the boat owner called us the night before we left to say that the boat had sold. Since we had non-refundable tickets, we decided to go anyway. We drove to Chattanooga to see it, just in case the deal fell through. ” Dutch Master” was just exactly as advertised (unlike many of them) and if it had not been sold, we probably would have had our trawler. While in Chattanooga, we also looked at a Hyatt motor cruiser but neither of us cared for it. Tennessee was a shock to us—who knew that the waterways were so plentiful and that these big boats could travel in the central part of the country on them. We were amazed. The area around Chattanooga is very beautiful and the river-ways are huge!
The owner of “Dutch Master” told us of friends of his that had a boat for sale in Scottsboro, Alabama. He contacted them to see if the boat was still for sale. Paul and Stacy live aboard the SeaSea and graciously invited us to see the boat and to have brunch with them. Their 44′ Gulfstar was perfect in every way EXCEPT it was a bit out of our price range. Darn!!! We spent a delightful afternoon aboard the SeaSea with Paul and Stacy telling us about their adventures on the Great Loop and other experiences living on the boat. Stacy refers to her house on land as her “dirt” house, which gave hubby and I a chuckle. They both were a wealth of knowledge and they willingly shared it with us, putting a lot of my fears to rest. By the way, Stacy is the captain of the boat and Paul the first mate under most circumstances. Before we left, they showed us two other boats that were for sale by friends of theirs at the marina but neither one was right for us. These folks were a joy to meet and talk with. Hopefully our paths will cross again.
We left the marina and meandered south towards Mobile where we had an appointment on Tuesday to see two more boats. We stopped in more marina’s along the way to check out any boats that were for sale and just to enjoy the beautiful countryside. We spent that night about half way between Scottsboro and Mobile. We arrived in Mobile on Monday and wanted to get some beach time in.
We drove to Orange Beach, Alabama and stayed at a Holiday Inn right on the water. We had dinner—seafood, of course and then walked on the beach. It was a wonderful warm evening.
We drove back into Mobile along scenic route 98, that runs along the ocean. We stopped at Fairhope to check out the municipal fishing pier. To our delight, Henry the heron posed while I took his photo. Isn’t he handsome??
We saw two more boats that afternoon, one in Mobile and the other in Long Beach, Mississippi. Neither boat suited us but seeing the countryside was wonderful. Long Beach was hit by Katrina and there are long stretches of beach where houses once stood and houses that still have not been repaired. Mother Nature can be so fierce and unforgiving.
We spent the night in Mobile and then headed back to Atlanta, spending our last night in a brand new motel just three miles from the airport. There was a fierce storm in the evening that actually knocked off the electric at the hotel. After a few minutes of darkness, the generators kicked on and lights came back on. Unfortunately only minimal air conditioning came back so our room was a bit uncomfortable for us northern folk.
Thursday arrived with some clouds and fairly nice weather although it was supposed to rain in the afternoon. We climbed on the airplane and were back in Portland in about two and a half hours and then in another two or so we arrived home. The trip was a nice change of scenery for both of us. The states that we traveled through were beautiful and not at all like we had imagined. We came home without a boat but with a whole different view of the area.
Our trip south was fun and informational. Finally, I can say (and really mean it ) “Sure honey, we can get a boat…”
Tags: cruiser, Great Loop, Gulfstar, Tennessee River, trawler, yacht
The contest is officialy closed. Lynne, who is right here in Maine, has contacted me with her mailing info and I will be sending the book off to her soon. Thanks to those that entered and please watch for future giveaways.
Lynne, (see what Lynne wrote below). However, Lynne, you did not leave me a way to contact you. If you read this, please contact me by July 15th with your name and address so that I can send the book to you (don’t worry, I will not publish that info). Congratulations!
Lynne says:
Thanks so much! I love looking for moose when we’re at Moosehead Lake or Baxter State Park.
Note: If I don’t hear from Lynne by the 15th of July, I will draw another name.
When I started the giveaway and decided to draw a winner at the end of the month, I forgot that I was going to be away during that time because of the upcoming holiday. I will announce the winner upon my return which will be around the 6th of July. We have family here and we will be spending lots of time at our camp at Nicatous Lake. Weather doesn’t look too promising but I’m sure a good time will be had by all anyway. Enjoy the holiday weekend and stay safe.
Tags: giveaway, holiday, Independence Day
It has been a rainy and cool spring here in Maine. We have had over 5″ of rain in our area from Friday through Monday with temperatures around 60° and the winds were blowing a gale. This is a strange weather system. Most of our weather patterns come from the north, the west or even from the south, but this one is coming at us from the east. The low is stuck right over the ocean and as you look at the weather map, the rains are moving from east to west. Today is Tuesday and guess what?! It’s still raining. Isn’t this supposed to be the second day of summer???
Needless to say, last weekend was not quite so much fun at camp. A trip to the outhouse or the woodpile meant coming back into the cabin looking like a drowned rat. While sitting in my favorite chair looking out at the waves in the lake and the rain spatters on the sliding doors, I mused about a photo that my brother had sent me last week from Texas.
My brother lives in North Dakota and is a long-distance truck driver. He has driven pretty much all over the lower 48 (although he has never been to our part of Maine). He is fortunate to have his wife as a traveling companion during his many “road trips”. Last week he sent me the photo to the right of his wife that was taken at a roadside rest in Texas. I simply can’t imagine stopping at a roadside rest where there was a sign that read “Watch Out For Rattlesnakes”!! What a scary thought—that a snake could visit you during a bathroom break!
Yikes!! As the photo floated through my mind, the wind, the rain and the cool weather suddenly didn’t really seem so bad. The weather may be frightful but we never have to worry about crossing the path of a rattlesnake on the way to or inside of the outhouse. 
I snuggled down in my chair next to a cheery fire in the woodstove and read a good book. Rain…no big deal! Rattlesnakes — indeed!
Tags: rainy weekend, rattlesnake, weather, wind
It’s been almost a year now since I started this blog. It’s been fun to share Maine (well, mostly Maine), my thoughts and travels with other folks. I thought that the perfect way to celebrate this anniversay is to give something away so taa…daa!!
One lucky reader will win the “Moose Watcher’s Handbook” by Bill Silliker on June 30th.
This book has lots of large color photographs of moose. It gives the top moose watching locations in North America, and tips on how to photograph moose. The author, Bill Silliker, was a renowned photographer who traveled far and wide to photograph wildlife. His specialty was moose, which he photographed from Maine to Alaska. His photography is featured in many publications and he wrote many articles and books. I remember him, fondly, from the times that he spent with us at Kidney Pond Camps at Baxter State Park where my husband and I worked as rangers.
It’s easy to win. All you need to do to enter is to leave a comment on this post with your email address OR blog address (so I can contact you if you win). If you link back to this post from your blog, please let me know. If the lucky winner has linked back, you will win an additional surprise prize.
That’s all there is to it. The winner will be announced on June 30th. Good luck to all.
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