A weird topic, I know but....my husband wants to visit the Northwest, so I've been looking around at what's out there.  I can't believe I lived there four years and never went anywhere.  Of course, I ws only 13 when we moved there, but still.  I don't even remember asking.  There are so many historical sites and natural wonders in Montana--gold mines, Little Bighorn, the Sunrise Trail....My husband couldn't believe we never went to Yellowstone National Park the whole time we were out there.  My parents lived there 15 years and never went.  

Recently, I posted about some truly glorious Peace silk yarn I'd found online, and the evils of commercial silk.  Immediately after I did so, the universe decided to make me eat my words.  While looking around for a less expensive alternative to the website I originally found this lovely yarn on, I came across this site: www.wormspit.com.  The very talented man who runs it had some interesting things to say about Peace silk and commercial silk that have me wondering which is actually the lesser evil.

Here's how commercial silk works.  The moths lay the eggs, the breeders wait til they hatch and raise the catapillers.  After the catapillers cocoon themselves, all but a few (kept for future breeding) are either baked, gassed or tossed in boiling water.  Then the silk is processed, reeled etc while the poor dead catapillers get tossed.  Sounds pretty awful, right?

Here's how peace silk works.  The moths lay eggs.  The eggs hatch.  The breeders take as many catapillers as they need/want/have the resources to support, and raise them.  The rest.....die.  Starve or dry up, whichever comes first.  See, the thing is, silk moths are completely domesticated.  They literally can't live without human intervention.  A human being has to physically pick the catapillers up and move them to their food, then continue to drop food on top of them, 'cause they literally can't move more than a few inches.  Now, given that each moth lays hundreds of eggs, the breeders can't allow them all to live, so they kill thousands of catapillars that they can't support, just leave them to die of starvation/dehydration.

So which is worse?  I'm trying to decide.  I kind of have a hard time with the idea that any creature is dying so that I can have a luxury item.  Necessities, like food?  Sure.  But I'm starting to wonder if silk isn't the same as fur, just not so cute animals.

Yes, it's true, I'm in love.  And it's true love, too; I took Dean's picture off my cell phone and put up these: http://aurorasilk.com/yarns_and_threads/images/tussah_twisttight_big.jpg  http://aurorasilk.com/yarns_and_threads/images/silk_knitheavy_big.jpg    http://aurorasilk.com/yarns_and_threads/yarns/handspun_tussah_silk_yarn/soft_fluffy.html   

Isn't it gorgeous?  The colors are natural, too, even that lovely golden brown.  And the white...!  Makes me wish I needed a wedding dress, that color and sheen would be heavenly!  I have a dress pattern that is just begging for this yarn, but I'd go bankrupt lol.  Still....I can just imagine how soft and smooth it must be, how cool and....well....silky lol.  

All of the yarns here are at least 50% Tussah, or "Peace" silk--the golden skeins are 100% Peace silk.  That means the cute little silk catapillars get to grow up and be moths rather than be BOILED ALIVE IN THEIR COCOONS!! 

Deep breaths, count to 10......

I never knew that's how commerical silk was made; I guess I'm just naive and assumed that of course the breeders let them live.  I don't think I can ever wear silk again.  Unless it's Peace silk, of course :)  

The downside, of course, is the price.  $85/lb for the extra bulky, which only gets 230 yards to the pound.  So since I crochet, I'd have to buy like 5 or 6 pounds to make a sweater--yikes!  That baby would be an heirloom for sure lol.  The standard size is $20 per 2oz skein, which comes out to about $160 per pound....!!!!  At least it gets about 900 yards to the pound.  Though that means it's about 6 times smaller....so it probably works out about the same pricewise lol.  The difference would be in the time saved by using the bulky, provided that your pattern could support it.  

But enough of that--this post is about me being in love....sigh.  I'm trying really hard not to think about the money I have saved up for my SPN cruise.....

Just wanted to wish Jared a happy birthday today.  Hope he didn't have to work too hard.  I sent him a small gift, though it won't get there until Monday :(
I'm sure he and Jensen are going to have a great time this weekend.  

Jensen used his card again!  This is even more exciting for me, because it means he kept the card I sent him even after all the original money was used up.  Which means maybe he read the letter I sent him about adding more money to it every month.  I'm just so happy and excited about all this--it feels very special that he might have actually read and remembered the letter I sent him.  I'm definitely going to keep the card active now--within reason, of course lol.
Now if only Jared would use his, I wouldn't need a car, I could just float everywhere lol.

At the LA Supernatural convention in March, I gave Jensen and Jared personalized Starbucks cards and Jensen used his!  I kept the number so I could add more money onto it if it looked like they were actually using them (I kinda liked the idea of buying them a cup of coffee once in a while, you know?) and for a like a month neither of them put anything on the cards.  Then, yesterday, I went to check them and Jensen had used his!  I can't believe it, I'm so excited!  I mean, that was the idea, I know, but I didn't know if they would even get the cards from the convention.  My husband thinks I've gone crazy, he just keeps laughing at me, but I love knowing that Jensen is using the gift I gave him.  It just makes me feel good.
Jared hasn't used his yet, but I'm going to keep checking.  Maybe he hasn't wanted coffee while he's been here in Texas.  But maybe once he's in Vancouver.  I hope it isn't that long, but that's okay, I can wait, it will just be so awesome to know that he's using my gift.