I was over at my in-laws with my mom, looking at wedding photos. She has never seen the pictures, due to our computer issues. She had fun looking at them, though. We went through every shot, I found some really fun ones that weren't good enough for Facebook, but were still really good. I think I could make a whole post of getting ready. I started counting, and at one point, there were 3 bridesmaids and my other friend attempting to get me shoved into the wedding dress. I still don't know what the problem was, the dress fit, LOL.
I finished one of the ornaments for my partner for the Christmas ornament exchange. I think I am going to stitch 3 of them for her, then do 3 for myself. I Facebooked the lady who finished some ornaments for me for last Christmas and she said she'd do the finishing, so hopefully, I can have those out the door to her this weekend.
I placed the order for the JCS Halloween book. It shipped yesterday, so hopefully it will be here this weekend as well. I can't wait to see this one. From what I've been told, it's really good and I want to stitch from it!
31 August 2011
29 August 2011
My WIP and finishes
This computer is making a world of difference! The old desktop wouldn't even have finished booting up and I've already uploaded photos! And it was easy as pie to set up. I was online in 5 minutes after the battery charged. Pretty good for non-tech-savvy me. Anyway . . . I can now update the blog from anywhere, and I think that is pretty stinkin' cool. It's time we blow the dustbunnies out of the corners, get to showin' some stitchin' and get back to bloggin'.
This is my most recent update on CItA. I think it's looking really good and Part 3 stitches up so quickly.
I put it down to get some other things stitched, but it won't be for long.
This is the finished "Brave Hearts." You'll have to forgive the wrinkles on it. Left-brain is downstairs, lifting weights and listening to Carmina Burana, so ironing is out of the question, and, after all, I think we've all got a few more wrinkles after the last 5 days, don't you?
I'm going to get it ironed and properly framed. The most important thing is that it's complete, in time to honor those who died on and as a result of September 11th.
Lastly, here is my little piece for Beazer.
I gave him a tongue. He is looking at food, after all!
Left-brain says it doesn't look much like him, but I think you can see a vague resemblance between that and his picture here:
I wasn't sure if the pinstripe fabric would work for this, but, in the end, it looks good, at least I think so. I'm pleased with it. Not a fancy project that is going to change the world, but it's pretty cute.
I'm going to start working on my scissor crypts this week too. I am making one for myself to practice my technique. I know I am going to have to alter the design a little because my crypts "talk", so I'm trying to decide how to cover the voice mechanism. I may have to have Left-brain weigh in on this. I'm also going to work on my ornaments for the ornament exchange. I really want to be on the ball this year and have everything ready early, so getting those done is a priority.
Thank you again for thinking of us here on the East Coast during the storm. I know people are complaining about the storm being over-hyped, but it wasn't exactly fun to go through, even this far inland. I am glad for the warnings we received. We did get some bad news; we had planned to spend our anniversary at Camp Hatteras, where we spent our honeymoon. Til we found out the road was washed out in several places. Left-brain was hopeful they could fix it in time, but they can't, not in six weeks, so we've regrouped, and I'm praying for the people that live in the area and depend on tourism for a living. I also found out that the wild ponies on Assateague weathered the storm. At least the Chincoteague herd did, no news yet on the Maryland herd, but I would imagine we'd have heard something by now if it was something bad. It probably sounds odd that I do worry so much about wild animals that would kick me and steal my chips given the chance, but I do, I guess I don't want my "perfect place" ruined. I will continue to pray for those in the Northeast who are still feeling the effects of the storm. We'll get through this together.
I
This is my most recent update on CItA. I think it's looking really good and Part 3 stitches up so quickly.
I put it down to get some other things stitched, but it won't be for long.
This is the finished "Brave Hearts." You'll have to forgive the wrinkles on it. Left-brain is downstairs, lifting weights and listening to Carmina Burana, so ironing is out of the question, and, after all, I think we've all got a few more wrinkles after the last 5 days, don't you?
I'm going to get it ironed and properly framed. The most important thing is that it's complete, in time to honor those who died on and as a result of September 11th.
Lastly, here is my little piece for Beazer.
I gave him a tongue. He is looking at food, after all!
Left-brain says it doesn't look much like him, but I think you can see a vague resemblance between that and his picture here:
I wasn't sure if the pinstripe fabric would work for this, but, in the end, it looks good, at least I think so. I'm pleased with it. Not a fancy project that is going to change the world, but it's pretty cute.
I'm going to start working on my scissor crypts this week too. I am making one for myself to practice my technique. I know I am going to have to alter the design a little because my crypts "talk", so I'm trying to decide how to cover the voice mechanism. I may have to have Left-brain weigh in on this. I'm also going to work on my ornaments for the ornament exchange. I really want to be on the ball this year and have everything ready early, so getting those done is a priority.
Thank you again for thinking of us here on the East Coast during the storm. I know people are complaining about the storm being over-hyped, but it wasn't exactly fun to go through, even this far inland. I am glad for the warnings we received. We did get some bad news; we had planned to spend our anniversary at Camp Hatteras, where we spent our honeymoon. Til we found out the road was washed out in several places. Left-brain was hopeful they could fix it in time, but they can't, not in six weeks, so we've regrouped, and I'm praying for the people that live in the area and depend on tourism for a living. I also found out that the wild ponies on Assateague weathered the storm. At least the Chincoteague herd did, no news yet on the Maryland herd, but I would imagine we'd have heard something by now if it was something bad. It probably sounds odd that I do worry so much about wild animals that would kick me and steal my chips given the chance, but I do, I guess I don't want my "perfect place" ruined. I will continue to pray for those in the Northeast who are still feeling the effects of the storm. We'll get through this together.
I
28 August 2011
Goodbye, Irene
Irene is leaving us this morning. So far, it was not too bad for us. It started blowing and raining at around noon, when I decamped to my mother's house. It didn't get too bad here til 9PM, when the wind really picked up. Robbie spent the evening barking at the wind (this must be something genetic with Schipperkes, all of my Schips have had the wierd habit of spinning, goggle-eyed around, stiff-legged jumping, barking at NOTHING, after a while, it gets a bit . . . tedious.). Chancey just gave him a look, but she was doing it this morning, so . . .
My mom's house seemed to weather the storm OK. There were some branches down; I stacked those as best I could. We never lost power, which is AMAZING considering she has PEPCO--if you've ever lived in the DC area and had the misfortune to go through a storm, you'll understand, it doesn't take much to lose power with them. We did lose cable, and her air conditioner didn't seem to work right, but I can go without cable to have power.
Especially because Left-brain texted me at 2:15 to tell me the steps on our deck were gone. A branch came down and took them out. He was OK with it, though. Better the steps than for it to come through the roof. And we need to replace the deck anyway. Once I heard that, I didn't feel like sleeping. So I sat up and read, and stitched. I finished my Beazer picture while I was sleepless. It looks OK. I even managed to put his hip-heart on there. It's not a masterpiece, but it's pretty stinking cute! I will post a picture later. I can do this now. Left-brain bought me a new laptop and it's so much nicer than the old PC.
My mom's house seemed to weather the storm OK. There were some branches down; I stacked those as best I could. We never lost power, which is AMAZING considering she has PEPCO--if you've ever lived in the DC area and had the misfortune to go through a storm, you'll understand, it doesn't take much to lose power with them. We did lose cable, and her air conditioner didn't seem to work right, but I can go without cable to have power.
Especially because Left-brain texted me at 2:15 to tell me the steps on our deck were gone. A branch came down and took them out. He was OK with it, though. Better the steps than for it to come through the roof. And we need to replace the deck anyway. Once I heard that, I didn't feel like sleeping. So I sat up and read, and stitched. I finished my Beazer picture while I was sleepless. It looks OK. I even managed to put his hip-heart on there. It's not a masterpiece, but it's pretty stinking cute! I will post a picture later. I can do this now. Left-brain bought me a new laptop and it's so much nicer than the old PC.
26 August 2011
Hurricane Irene
As I write, Hurricane Irene is churning its way towards the East coast. Most of the places I love are threatened or will be under a hurricane warning by tomorrow. Assateague Island, Ocean City, the Outer Banks, even the family cottage on the Choptank River, all are threatened. My aunt works at a big box home improvement store in Virginia Beach; even though she lives inland, she's had a busy couple of days, not what she expected when she took the job in the garden department. My parents are travelling to Pennsylvania for a family reunion; I already told them that, if it looks like it might be bad, they are not to come home. I'm staying with the Mongrel Horde for the weekend, and to watch over the house. I'm worried; a lot of the neighborhoods right outside DC are old with very mature trees, and high wind and big trees don't mix. I lived in my mother's house (then my gramma's house) during Isabel in 2003, and it was very humbling, and we breathed a prayer that the large pine tree by the house would stay up. I'm going to pray extra hard that it does that this time.
One of the parts of my job as an flood insurance underwriter that I've had to accept is that my job exists because of hurricanes and the like. One of the ways I think we cope is to distance ourself from what they actually mean on a basic level. Because it's not us that are affected. But we might be this time . . . . I worry about the people who refuse to leave; the lady at Salty Yarns in Ocean City is not evacuating. I worry about the wild ponies and the deer on Assateague and Corolla, I know they have a bred-in sense and know where to go to stay safe, and I do think that the dense shrubbery helps them, but still, it troubles me.
One of my former boyfriends once said hurricanes are the price you pay for life on the coast. 364 days a year, it's beautiful. This weekend may be the days it's not.
One of the parts of my job as an flood insurance underwriter that I've had to accept is that my job exists because of hurricanes and the like. One of the ways I think we cope is to distance ourself from what they actually mean on a basic level. Because it's not us that are affected. But we might be this time . . . . I worry about the people who refuse to leave; the lady at Salty Yarns in Ocean City is not evacuating. I worry about the wild ponies and the deer on Assateague and Corolla, I know they have a bred-in sense and know where to go to stay safe, and I do think that the dense shrubbery helps them, but still, it troubles me.
One of my former boyfriends once said hurricanes are the price you pay for life on the coast. 364 days a year, it's beautiful. This weekend may be the days it's not.
25 August 2011
Lesson for the day
Pitbulls are not easy to stitch.
I'm almost done with my piece for Beazer, though I did have to actually use his real name in it for the sake of posterity. There is a cute little brown dog at the bottom. I decided to change it into a brown and white dog.
You would not believe the questions Left-brain and I have asked each other. Here is a sampling.
"Is Beazer's tail white or brown?"
"Brown. He has a brown tail."
"Are you sure?"
"Let me let him in." From the kitchen, "Beazer has a white tail."
"You've owned him since he was a puppy and you don't know what color tail he has? Are you serious?"
We've repeated this with his ears (he has two brown ears, we discovered), and his legs (all are white, no brown on those legs!), and his back end is brown on top, white on the bottom with a little heart-shaped spot to remind us Beazer is WUV. Unless you're his stuffed toys or a water bottle. The poor dog has been poked and inspected like a show dog. And he has tolerated it like a champ, asking only for a peanut . . . or two . . . or four. I'm hoping to have him replicated, as close as I can without going tooo far (and, basically, I'm there now), and have the piece finished by the weekend. Fortunately, the companion piece is a yellow tabby, sono changes need to be made to that. I'm glad--whew!
I'm almost done with my piece for Beazer, though I did have to actually use his real name in it for the sake of posterity. There is a cute little brown dog at the bottom. I decided to change it into a brown and white dog.
You would not believe the questions Left-brain and I have asked each other. Here is a sampling.
"Is Beazer's tail white or brown?"
"Brown. He has a brown tail."
"Are you sure?"
"Let me let him in." From the kitchen, "Beazer has a white tail."
"You've owned him since he was a puppy and you don't know what color tail he has? Are you serious?"
We've repeated this with his ears (he has two brown ears, we discovered), and his legs (all are white, no brown on those legs!), and his back end is brown on top, white on the bottom with a little heart-shaped spot to remind us Beazer is WUV. Unless you're his stuffed toys or a water bottle. The poor dog has been poked and inspected like a show dog. And he has tolerated it like a champ, asking only for a peanut . . . or two . . . or four. I'm hoping to have him replicated, as close as I can without going tooo far (and, basically, I'm there now), and have the piece finished by the weekend. Fortunately, the companion piece is a yellow tabby, sono changes need to be made to that. I'm glad--whew!
24 August 2011
The day that rocked our world (and not in a good way)
I am sure most of us have heard of the earthquake that hit the East Coast yesterday. Designer Sue Hillis lives not far from the epicenter and shared, via 123stitch, her experience.
I was at my desk at work a little before 2. Suddenly there was this "growl"--not quite a rumble, but a growl, and the room shook. It wasn't like you see in the movies, more like a rocking, rolling, skipping motion. The best I can describe it as is when you hit a really rough patch of torn-up street and your car shakes and shimmies. Only our ground here in Maryland is supposed to stay put. And it didn't. It moved my chair, with my big butt in it across my cubicle. My other co-worker came busting out of the break room, asking if we'd felt that.
It's funny how the mind works. My co-worker thought the construction workers dropped something on the roof. I figured there was an accident on the highway, which is less than half a mile away. Because . . . our ground is supposed to stay put. We did not assume it was a terrorist attack, despite how close we are to DC; for the ground to shake like that, it would have had to have been a HECK of an attack, and it looked OK outside. We will assume anything but the obvious.
Because our ground . . . does not move like that. It does not growl. It does not shake for 15 seconds.
And that was when the unease kicked in. I tried to call my MIL, who is baby-sitting our niece and nephews this week, and couldn't get through. I got a hold of Left-brain, who, of course, thought I was kidding. He didn't feel it. Neither did the co-worker who was out for a walk. But we all left the office when we saw the government employees leaving. We stood out there for 5 minutes, then came back in. I called my mom; she said she was OK, that they were out to lunch when it occurred. My dad apparently thought it was the restaurant manager playing a trick on them, til he saw my mom's face. In a way I'm glad they were sitting down when it happened; my dad uses a walker and it was pretty strong.
And that was the point when the police officer told us to evacuate the building. I started panicking that my co-workers would leave me, but they stayed. My boss sent us home for the rest of the day. Apparently they were concerned about aftershocks and wanted to check the building. I got home, couldn't hear Beazer, and got worried that something had fallen over in the garage and hurt him. When I opened the door, though, he gave me a "What are YOU doing home?" look, but he was pretty clingy the rest of the afternoon. I don't know if it was the earthquake or the fact that I had an open container of peanuts, and he loves them, but he wouldn't leave my side til his daddy got home. I was jittery for a while, with an unpleasant feeling, like something had been shaken up inside me. I guess it was my sense of well-being that took a hit. I feel better today.
Everyone seems to be alright. There was some damage in Baltimore. I am heartsick at the knowledge that the National Cathedral was damaged. I was lucky enough to attend services there 4 years ago, and it was the most beautiful, reverential place; I felt the presence of a higher power in the Cathedral, and I feel so blessed to have it in my diocese. I actually started crying a bit to think that it was damaged, after all those years of work, but I am trying to focus on the blessing that no one was hurt. Stone can be recut to patch a hole in a building; there is nothing to hide the hole left by a life taken.
They are saying it was a 5.9 earthquake. I hope I never experience a worse one. I'm sure people out West think we're just over-reacting, but I would rather do a hurricane than to be shaken. Though, not to be too "ha-ha" about it, but we have one of those coming through this weekend as well. Oh, well. This is life.
I was at my desk at work a little before 2. Suddenly there was this "growl"--not quite a rumble, but a growl, and the room shook. It wasn't like you see in the movies, more like a rocking, rolling, skipping motion. The best I can describe it as is when you hit a really rough patch of torn-up street and your car shakes and shimmies. Only our ground here in Maryland is supposed to stay put. And it didn't. It moved my chair, with my big butt in it across my cubicle. My other co-worker came busting out of the break room, asking if we'd felt that.
It's funny how the mind works. My co-worker thought the construction workers dropped something on the roof. I figured there was an accident on the highway, which is less than half a mile away. Because . . . our ground is supposed to stay put. We did not assume it was a terrorist attack, despite how close we are to DC; for the ground to shake like that, it would have had to have been a HECK of an attack, and it looked OK outside. We will assume anything but the obvious.
Because our ground . . . does not move like that. It does not growl. It does not shake for 15 seconds.
And that was when the unease kicked in. I tried to call my MIL, who is baby-sitting our niece and nephews this week, and couldn't get through. I got a hold of Left-brain, who, of course, thought I was kidding. He didn't feel it. Neither did the co-worker who was out for a walk. But we all left the office when we saw the government employees leaving. We stood out there for 5 minutes, then came back in. I called my mom; she said she was OK, that they were out to lunch when it occurred. My dad apparently thought it was the restaurant manager playing a trick on them, til he saw my mom's face. In a way I'm glad they were sitting down when it happened; my dad uses a walker and it was pretty strong.
And that was the point when the police officer told us to evacuate the building. I started panicking that my co-workers would leave me, but they stayed. My boss sent us home for the rest of the day. Apparently they were concerned about aftershocks and wanted to check the building. I got home, couldn't hear Beazer, and got worried that something had fallen over in the garage and hurt him. When I opened the door, though, he gave me a "What are YOU doing home?" look, but he was pretty clingy the rest of the afternoon. I don't know if it was the earthquake or the fact that I had an open container of peanuts, and he loves them, but he wouldn't leave my side til his daddy got home. I was jittery for a while, with an unpleasant feeling, like something had been shaken up inside me. I guess it was my sense of well-being that took a hit. I feel better today.
Everyone seems to be alright. There was some damage in Baltimore. I am heartsick at the knowledge that the National Cathedral was damaged. I was lucky enough to attend services there 4 years ago, and it was the most beautiful, reverential place; I felt the presence of a higher power in the Cathedral, and I feel so blessed to have it in my diocese. I actually started crying a bit to think that it was damaged, after all those years of work, but I am trying to focus on the blessing that no one was hurt. Stone can be recut to patch a hole in a building; there is nothing to hide the hole left by a life taken.
They are saying it was a 5.9 earthquake. I hope I never experience a worse one. I'm sure people out West think we're just over-reacting, but I would rather do a hurricane than to be shaken. Though, not to be too "ha-ha" about it, but we have one of those coming through this weekend as well. Oh, well. This is life.
23 August 2011
The best-laid plans
Thank you for all your supportive comments on this sorting party. I'm trying really hard to make positive changes and this is a good bit of them.
I came home last night and went pretty much right to work in the garage. Left-brain started cooking dinner. We got an electric skillet as a wedding gift, and, even though he didn't like it at first, since he couldn't figure out why we needed such an item (I, on the other hand, couldn't figure out how he'd gotten to the age of 41 and NOT used it, but then again, he doesn't come from the Crisco school of cooking like I did, LOL), he has really taken to it. We eat a lot of bacon now, because "it cooks so quick in this." He had the windows open, since it was a gorgeous late-summer day here in Crazyville, and it was kind of cute to sit on the front steps, hear him chatting to the dog and smell bacon wafting out.
I went through more boxes last night. I condensed two book boxes, found my old journals, read the one that I was using around 9/11 for a while and found myself remembering that time. I went through two bags of old bills, and shredded those, and of course, found stash stuffed everywhere. Let me tell you, that is getting annoying. But 2 boxes are off "the pile", a bag of clothes is about ready to go (I just need to wash it to make sure it's nice for whoever gets it), and my books are getting together.
The problem started when I tried to close the garage door. It wouldn't close. There was nothing blocking it. Apparently, when I pulled boxes out, I committed the cardinal sin of touching the cruddily-rigged wires and they came loose. Left-brain fixed it, because I'm not electrically-inclined (and I get frustrated easily), and he was not happy. The longer we're in this house, the more corners we find someone cut at some point prior to Left-brain buying it. There is a smidge of a pipe coming out of a wall, the doors onto the deck look like someone threw acid on them, or had a dog with talons who scratched it, someone filled holes in the banister with spackle instead of replacing them properly--spackled banister doesn't work terribly well, now this.
We got it back together, with a bit of humor still intact, and I decided I'm not working on that end this evening. I would be better served working on the end closest to the back of the room.
I started a small project, since I need a little break from CItA, and it was something I could take to the theatre to work on. It's a cute little design with a dog on it and a little poem. I'll post it when it's a little closer to being finished. I'm enjoying it; I'm reworking the dog to look more like Beazer and we'll have it framed with a photo of him, probably one of his more pathetic-looking pictures.
I didn't mention it, but I had to make the hard decision, again, this summer to not enter anything in the fair. I couldn't logistically make it happen, since I didn't want to run around, getting things framed cheaply, last minute, since that was the direction I seemed to be heading in, and there was no way to get it to the fairgrounds. I work halfway across the state from the state fairgrounds, and I don't have the leave to just roll up there. Normally my mom would have taken it if I couldn't, but the transmission in her car died, and she's been driving my brother's Jeep, and I don't want her out doing for me in a borrowed vehicle. It was not an easy choice for me to make. I apologize to those of you who wanted to see me enter. I feel like I let everyone down, but it fires my commitment. I know that I need to work on getting one piece a month framed; I think I can afford that, and I won't be so hassled at the last moment. And I need to work on becoming less afraid to frame on my own. I just need to sit down with a good tutorial, and a little confidence. I can do it.
I came home last night and went pretty much right to work in the garage. Left-brain started cooking dinner. We got an electric skillet as a wedding gift, and, even though he didn't like it at first, since he couldn't figure out why we needed such an item (I, on the other hand, couldn't figure out how he'd gotten to the age of 41 and NOT used it, but then again, he doesn't come from the Crisco school of cooking like I did, LOL), he has really taken to it. We eat a lot of bacon now, because "it cooks so quick in this." He had the windows open, since it was a gorgeous late-summer day here in Crazyville, and it was kind of cute to sit on the front steps, hear him chatting to the dog and smell bacon wafting out.
I went through more boxes last night. I condensed two book boxes, found my old journals, read the one that I was using around 9/11 for a while and found myself remembering that time. I went through two bags of old bills, and shredded those, and of course, found stash stuffed everywhere. Let me tell you, that is getting annoying. But 2 boxes are off "the pile", a bag of clothes is about ready to go (I just need to wash it to make sure it's nice for whoever gets it), and my books are getting together.
The problem started when I tried to close the garage door. It wouldn't close. There was nothing blocking it. Apparently, when I pulled boxes out, I committed the cardinal sin of touching the cruddily-rigged wires and they came loose. Left-brain fixed it, because I'm not electrically-inclined (and I get frustrated easily), and he was not happy. The longer we're in this house, the more corners we find someone cut at some point prior to Left-brain buying it. There is a smidge of a pipe coming out of a wall, the doors onto the deck look like someone threw acid on them, or had a dog with talons who scratched it, someone filled holes in the banister with spackle instead of replacing them properly--spackled banister doesn't work terribly well, now this.
We got it back together, with a bit of humor still intact, and I decided I'm not working on that end this evening. I would be better served working on the end closest to the back of the room.
I started a small project, since I need a little break from CItA, and it was something I could take to the theatre to work on. It's a cute little design with a dog on it and a little poem. I'll post it when it's a little closer to being finished. I'm enjoying it; I'm reworking the dog to look more like Beazer and we'll have it framed with a photo of him, probably one of his more pathetic-looking pictures.
I didn't mention it, but I had to make the hard decision, again, this summer to not enter anything in the fair. I couldn't logistically make it happen, since I didn't want to run around, getting things framed cheaply, last minute, since that was the direction I seemed to be heading in, and there was no way to get it to the fairgrounds. I work halfway across the state from the state fairgrounds, and I don't have the leave to just roll up there. Normally my mom would have taken it if I couldn't, but the transmission in her car died, and she's been driving my brother's Jeep, and I don't want her out doing for me in a borrowed vehicle. It was not an easy choice for me to make. I apologize to those of you who wanted to see me enter. I feel like I let everyone down, but it fires my commitment. I know that I need to work on getting one piece a month framed; I think I can afford that, and I won't be so hassled at the last moment. And I need to work on becoming less afraid to frame on my own. I just need to sit down with a good tutorial, and a little confidence. I can do it.
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