Winter Stripe, hand-dyed wool yarns, handwoven rug, 65″ x 36.5″ ©Sherri Coffey all rights reserved
The title for this piece seems appropriate for the weather this New Year’s Day, although I really do like the colors. This striped piece was woven soon after the Summer Stripe piece, which made a title very easy for me. And maybe I should say this, but both pieces were woven because I had no idea what I wanted to weave next AND to use up yarns on hand.
Does everyone know about the tradition here in Texas to eat black-eyed peas on New Year’s Day? Frankly, any black-eyes that aren’t fresh just doesn’t cut it for me, so I was lucky that I had some fresh ones (with snaps!) in the freezer. In case you want to try out some for yourself, the local newspaper had an article and recipes from the Cowgirl Chef () to help. Below is a quote from the article preceding the recipes. The boldface is mine, but you can see the mindset in this part of the world.
Every New Year’s Day, my mom calls me in the afternoon and the first thing she’ll say is, “Have you eaten your peas?” Because by then she certainly has — along with jalapeño cornbread made in a cast-iron skillet, just like always.
Last year, I didn’t eat a single black-eyed pea, and I had one of the worst years I can remember. I lost someone I once loved, I lost someone I still love, and in the middle of it all, I packed and unpacked and moved around four times — all while trying to find a new place to live on the other side of the world.