Temptations: Spinners & 4-Tops

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So... you're expecting a blog post extolling the virtues of Motown music?

Psych!

Don't get me wrong -- me loves me some Motown. As a teenager and college kid, I went to many parties where "Beach Music" was all that was played, and the "shag" was the only way to dance. For Beach Music afficianados, Motown is king.

But since this blog is not about music or dancing, this post shall remain in keeping with the highest standard of fiber-related content for which I continuously strive. (Ha!)

Seriously, though, the topic I'm focusing on here is something that the lovely Bess, (or, the Evil Temptress, as I now refer to her), has taunted me with lately.

It all started with an email Bess sent me in response to my post about the upcoming Camp Stitches in Asheville, NC. Turns out there's another lovely place in North Carolina, the John C. Campbell Folk School in Brasstown, that regularly holds week-long (!) craft classes. As Bess & I exchanged several more emails, I marveled at the wonderful choices in knitting classes offered, and noted that they also hold spinning classes. Bess then shared that she not only spins, but she teaches spinning classes herself.

Well, Pandora's Box has been opened. For, I've been contemplating spinning quite a bit lately. I've seen Knitty Gritty's spinning episode at least five times now, and it really seems like a craft I could not only learn, with time, but something that I could easily become addicted to ,obsessed with enamored of.

I've been resisting spinning, though, for several reasons:

* I'm still a new knitter -- perhaps I should master one hobby before picking up yet another one?
* I already have a thousand hobbies -- do I really even need one more?
* I live in a tiny and incredibly cluttered house, and I don't really have the space for a spinning wheel, the rovings, and everything else that goes with the craft.
* And if I start to spin, and fall in love with it, will I abandon knitting altogether, never to progress beyond rectangles?

I resist, but my resolve is weakening, as Ms. Bess is relentless. "You should try drop spindles", she says. And to further entice me, she sends me a link to this website, which has some of the most gorgeous drop spindles imaginable. After drooling over a few of them, I think my favorite is this one:

or perhaps this one:

But I must be strong. I must try to avoid the temptations of spinners and tops. (See, I pulled in this post's title, finally -- it makes sense now, right? I've always thought drop spindles looked a little like a top. Get it?)

And so, with waivering resolve, my somewhat tongue-in-cheek response to Bess, a fellow former Gertie Girl, has been:

Get thee behind me, Satan!!!

Who wants to take bets on how long I can hold out?

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