Small steps that will lead to big changes. That’s the plan anyway…..
Buckaroo Cowgirl, Abe Lincoln and Andy Warhol….. and……
A little hen. Oh the humanity!
It’s already Sunday night, what happened to my weekend? I’ll tell you…. we spent most of Saturday fixing our washing machine. It takes both of us because it’s approximately 42 tons and the hoses are difficult to reach. But fix it we did…. and then of course there was the afternoon football game, a veritable stand-off in this house- I busy myself with sewing and cleaning and wondering how on earth I arrived at a point in my life where sports are on – in my house – with an apparent sports fan shouting at the television.
We also managed to figure out our Halloween costumes…. this is a big deal for me because I’m kind of like the Scrooge of Halloween. Sometimes I think it’s because I grew up in Detroit, home of Devil’s Night. Halloween was a HUGE deal in my hometown, bigger than anything except Christmas, and I do remember loving the treating part. But it was also a holiday of major tricking and mischief and getting in trouble was not really my scene (not to mention the news coverage the next day of burning buildings). I LOVE horror movies and the spooky-season programming on TV, but costumes and stuff are just too much trouble. I’ll pass out candy if I’m home, but I’m not really one to dress up or take it to a really theatric level. [Note to self: maybe I'm not really a scrooge, maybe I'm just lazy?] My nephews and niece always think up their own costume concepts and they picked some winners this year: Fin will be Abe Lincoln (I made his bow tie because Jules could only find clip-on bow ties, totally not period-appropriate!), Milo is going as Andy Warhol, and the Little Darling will be a cowgirl- complete with red boots that I’m sure Julie will not be able to remove for another 3 or 4 months…. Julie is psyched because each one is a manageable concept without me there to help her (no store-bought costumes allowed for this family), as opposed to last year when Milo was a blue jay. That’s right… a homemade blue jay.
Nothing like an entire afternoon of Flickr outtage to snap your priorities into shape. I realize those of you in the Eastern Hemisphere may have slept through it, but let me tell you: it was scary. I felt so isolated and alone…. cut off…. from both my ’stuff’ and other peoples’ ’stuff’. Hold me.
The changing seasons means every morning as I quietly sip my tea and watch the news (sigh)… I am greeted by the sun. It comes up over the Zakim Bridge, and tentatively fills my loft in an orange glow. I’m looking at you western Europe!
I’ve been enjoying the shift in seasons. Summer in Boston never really came on strong this year, much to my delight, but now it seems the trend is continuing with the premature arrival of winter. I love winter, but I feel strongly that it should not commence prior to Halloween. Right? And as the fat, fluffy flakes fell today I couldn’t help but think about the long spans of darkness ahead, when I’ve already been bogged down in mental darkness.
Thank goodness for friends near and far (in this case, far)! A thoughtful gift, perfectly timed to lift my spirits. One of those incredible Internet moments when someone thousands of miles away seems right next door, at least in my heart she is.
The new serger is working- I am up and running! I practiced a few stitches and made a few small items…the first thing I made was a simple pair of jammie bottoms for Flo. And then I made matching pairs for the boys. It’s definitely something to get used to – a machine with knives right next to my finger tips (!) as well as having to use two separate machines to make something (I need my regular machine for hems). But it is So. Much. Fun!
Making the kimono top takes much less time, because I don’t have to treat every seam twice. And the finished product is nice and flat without any bulky intersections.
Incidentally – a great pick-me-up when I’m down: A visit from my Mom and Sister! It started with the afternoon off work, a beautiful day, and Neko Case blaring with the windows down & sunroof open on my way to the airport. Wheee! It was a perfect weekend to celebrate my Mom’s birthday. I also managed to get a few more clothing requests out of my sister, one of which is this little long-sleeved version of the kimono top. I doubled the length of the short sleeves in the pattern, and added another 1/2″ for the elastic cuff. The fabric is Deer Valley by Joel Dewberry from Westminster Fibers, and both the fabric pattern and colors are 100% Flo.
Thank you all for your comments and thoughts. So many ideas to help me dig deep. I feel the same way that many of you have described, and I can’t seem to get my momentum up off the ground. I find myself going through the motions of life, but at the end of each day I go to bed feeling empty of accomplishments and full of anxiety. I think much of this is due to the general climate of things right now.
But I can’t dwell on the negative. Otherwise it’s a slippery slope to a deep, dark place. I need to write out everything that’s in my mind, flush it out, to see it all in one place. I have so many ideas for new designs, new patterns, even new formatting for patterns…..and yet the Kimono Wrap Dress pattern is still not written. Just in time to turn this attitude around, my Mom and Julie are visiting tomorrow- can’t wait! Maybe it will help to talk about all the ideas, maybe that’s part of it. Christina hit on something poignant, about isolating oneself. I do this. As a classic introvert, I might even take this to a whole new level. Now that the heat of summer has passed, it might be a good time to make a point of walking in to town in the evenings, and just look around….. so I remember there’s an entire world around me.
I am asking… I really need to know… when you are running on fumes, or blue, or down and out, where do you find your inspiration? Is it a poem, or a phrase? Is it something simple or is it something complex, like religion? What steels you to carry on when nothing is making sense?
Me, I’ve always loved humor and laughter. I laugh a lot. But not too much is funny right now, and I need to get my mojo back. So spill it, leave me comment and tell something (a phrase, a book, a poem, a story) that gives you strength and inspiration. I thank you already!
