WEIRD DAY

 

Yesterday was decidedly...odd. I was up early and thought it might be one of those lovely productive days, but the wheels came off the bus when I upchucked my breakfast and then ended up back in the big girl sleigh bed with what felt like the flu.

Then, I woke up for what I thought would be a nice quiet lovely productive evening, but I spent it fretting myself into a panic attack instead because my phone died and no matter what I did, I could not revive it. I was particularly nervous, because Rich was over on campus and I was left to my own devices and had no way to call or text.

So I calmed myself down and decided to watch a movie and stitch to take my mind off of things, and selected a rather unfortunate film given my earlier tummy troubles, a dead phone, and being left to my own devices.

Note to self: Instead of assuming that a movie called The Menu starring Ralph Finnes is going to be about a chef...READ THE DESCRIPTION.

Needless to say, by the time the damn movie was over and I had upchucked the scrambled eggs I had made for dinner and then cried like a three-year old who lost her cuddles, I was just...spent...from the drama of it all and headed to bed.

But I did manage to finish a section on Spring Medley so that I can go to Guild next Saturday and be right on track.

So I've got THAT going for me.

I did manage to fix my phone without having to go to the phone place. You push the volume up button, the volume down button, and then hold the on/off button and...viola'. You're now an apple Genius and can get your polo shirt and stand at the apple Genius bar.

Time for a shower, and then some toast, I think. In terms of stitching, I think I might play in my WiP basket to see what strikes my fancy.

Happy Futzingday, Dearies! I hope your Tuesday was not as fraught as mine! What's blowing your skirt up today? Come tell me all about it!

TUESDAY MORNING...HEINEY CRACK OF DAWN

I just couldn't stay asleep, which means I must have finished my big girl sleigh bed time early today! Oh well, guess it's back to Spring Medley so I can be ready for the next lesson at Guild in September!

Happy Tuesday!
 

A LITTLE MONDAY FEE NEE....

 

I JUST COULDN'T HELP MYSELF

 

GO IRISH!

 

ITCHIN' FOR FALL STITCHIN'

 

I promised myself that I would stick with WiPs for the rest of August and not start Fall stitching until September, but it's a cloudy Friday and I'm getting a little twitchy!

PRIDE GOETH BEFORE THE FROG

 

I snapped the pic and posted it, and at the exact moment I was thinking "Gee, I really like what I'm doing with the colors here", I spotted a mistake.

Phooey.

The center of the little quilt block should be Fuchsia...not green.

(That'll teach me to get too big for my stitchy britches.)

Oh, Dearies...it's just beastly out there in Hoosierville at the moment, and I find myself sitting here in the cool confines of CS2 forever grateful that I am not having to be out in it. I honestly don't know what I would do if I had to be an actual person sometimes.

We are supposed to meet friends for dinner, though, so I guess I'll need to prepare myself to lumber from apartment to car to restaurant and back again, but I promise to be careful, hydrate appropriately, and make a good healthy choice from the menu.

Take care of yourself today, do something wonderful, and come tell me all about it!

TIMES SURE HAVE CHANGED

 

These little robots deliver food over on campus (at Notre Dame). I find them pretty hilarious, but am very grateful we didn't have this as an option. I spent entirely too much of my spending money on food services in my dorm, and I would have tripled in size (rather than just doubled like I did)!

But I would imagine that the faculty and staff love them, especially on a beastly hot and humid day like today!

Happy Futzingday, Dearies! Stay cool and do something fun today!

AN EVERY DAY SWEET LITTLE FEE FEE

 Every Day Things

Heart In Hand

(Kit came complete with chart, fabric, threads, and ric rak for finishing.)

(This was part of a prize package that I won by participating in Ms Emily's Duck Derby.)

EVERY DAY SWEET LITTLE THINGS

IN WHICH WE HEAD TO THE POOL

I suspect that a good portion of the upcoming week will be spent in the water while wearing sunscreen and a hat, Dearies. As much as I would love to take to the big girl sleigh bed for the duration, my Jersey Boy reminds me that fresh air and sunshine, when taken in small doses, are both very good for one's general disposition.

Phooey.

I would prefer to stay inside the cool confines and stitch, to be honest. I am enjoying the little cross stitch piece I have been playing with, despite some un-stitching last night:

As you can see, the words on the left there are misplaced. I started them with the "e" in "little" off of the wrong hump of the "m", so out they came and the gap was closed in short order. No big deal...just enough frogging to keep me humble, I suppose!

As soon as I finish my second cup of damn good and solve the Sunday puzzles I'm going to thread up and see what fun develops. I hope your very own Sunday is lovely and cool and stitchy and calm. What's on your q-snaps today?

SATURDAY SPINSTER BLISS

 

My Jersey Boy is doing his thing, and I'm doing mine...bingeing a little TeeVee while stitching a little cross stitch. I'm happily ensconced in my weekend mode, Dearies, and enjoying every minute of it! Here's hoping that your weekend is bringing you bliss! Cheers!

BLESS ME FATHER, FOR I HAVE SINNED. IN WHICH THE SPINSTER HAS UNPURE THOUGHTS ABOUT A BOY.

 

THE BEST FEE NEE YET!

Dearies, I had the busiest week ever this week past, and I am happy to report that I survived it, enjoyed it, and did every single thing on my calendar without too much drama. I'm a bit on the tired side, so today I'm going to unplug, thread up, and enjoy an afternoon nap with my face in the sun!

Happy Weekend to one and all!

BEAD BREAK

 I finished the last segment required for the beaded star project moments ago! We'll learn how to assemble them at our next meeting, which will be in September, so for now I'm going to tuck bead things away and get back to needle and thread.

But first, we're heading to a Buddy Guy concert tonight, and then tomorrow we'll be shopping for materials for the pilot class, so my eyes and fingers are going to get a little rest.

I'm happy to report that this weekend and next week will be decidedly less frantic and much quieter! As much as I have enjoyed myself this week, I am a bit spent in the energy department. 

Time to re-charge!

I GUESS YOU REALLY CAN TEACH AN OLD SPINSTER NEW TRICKS AFTER ALL!

Oh, what fun we had last night at our EGA meeting! Our program/project for the evening was to learn how to bead the peyote stitch to make a little star ornament. (If you are interested in this project, the designer is Creative Angle Crafting. Email: creativeangleframing@gmail.com).

I confess...the night did not start well, and the first few rounds of me putting beads on string looked like something Stewey would have coughed up on the rug. I felt like I was wearing oven mits and that my hands were suddenly four times too big, and I couldn't see, and I was holding my breath, and I wanted to chuck the entire box right into the Old National Bank conference room trash bin.

But then something magical happened.

Those silly little beads started forming a pattern. And they started "locking" in place. And before I knew it, I was well on my way to having the first (of five) little segments completed!

So here we are on the morning after, and I actually got out of the big girl sleigh bed at 6:45 IN THE MORNING so I could play with my beads a little bit more before starting the day's shenanagins. 

What, I ask you, has come over me?!

If you've been my Dearie Friend for any length of time on this here blog, you know that I am absolutely positively completely and fully allergic to change. And new things. And leaving the house. And trying something that might possibly have the risk of failure. (Remember how my Dear Dad gave me the damn Who Moved My Cheese book and told me to chill and open myself to hew things without fear?)

Well, they're moving my cheese all over the damn place, and although I feel slightly disoriented and a bit overwhelmed, I have to say...

Give yourself permission to sit right down with something new and try. I told myself when I bellied up to the table last night that I might end up with a jumbled mess, and beading might not be "my thing" and I might end up sticking it all into a stash exchange someplace, but my dollar investment was minimal (under twenty bucks for the pattern, a few tubes of beads, some string, and a cheap little bead mat)...but that the fun I had while doing it was priceless.

Happy Futzingday, Dearies! I'm going to re-load my damn good, get the stack of newspapers read, and play the day away! I hope your day is exactly how you'd love it to be! Come tell me all about it!

MONDAY

 

I've either lost my mind completely, or have finally figured everything out, Dearies.

My morning started at the library with an EGA South Bend monthly morning meeting. Because I'm supposed to write the newsletter, I have to sit up like a big girl in my chair and pay attention, and today there was a lot of information to absorb, process, and ponder.

I wrote things down...I really did...but when I looked at my notes a few moments ago my tiny little brain said "Um. Huh?" and I had to try to figure out what the heck "Check with so and so about whatchamacallit on the date that whoosie whatsits wants to do that thingamajig".

So I will either be entirely ahead of the game and very organized for upcoming events, or I'll be the one caught in my pajamas on the wrong day and time with the wrong project at the wrong place.

Then it was back here to CS2 adjacent, where we met to start a pilot beading project. If you're not familiar with the whole piloting thing....a teacher develops a class that they'd like to teach, and they give the instructions to a group of volunteers to edit, correct, critique, and try before launching it as an official class. 

In this case, the four of us consist of three people who know what they're doing and are capable of reading and following directions, and...me. I'm not saying I'm completely inept, but when I used the powder room a few minutes ago, beads fell out of my bra.

Sigh.

Now, I'm desperately trying to breathe, re-boot, eat a healthy snack, get rid of a massive headache, visit with my Jersey Boy, and find shoes for the third and final installment of this little roller coaster of Monday Stitchy Love and get myself over to Elkhart for an EGA Elkhart meeting during which we will complete our crazy quilt project.

Crazy.

How apropos.

That's my Monday! If you repeat this, I'll deny it, but I'm loving every single second of it. Yes, my brains feel like they're going to come spilling out of my ears, and I'm completely over my limit for polite social interaction for the day, but oh....what fun!

So here's to Monday fun in whatever form it comes! What was your Monday fun? Come tell me all about it!

IN WHICH OUR SPINSTER FEELS DECIDEDLY...FRITZY

Hello, Dearies, and a Happy Sunday to you and yours!

Forgive me, please. I am a bit frazzled, overwhelmed, overtired, overextended, overbusy, and generally on the verge of fritzing out. 

I suspect that it's a combination of factors, but my head is clanging like a bell, my to do list is as long as my arm, and the upcoming week's calendar of activities is PACKED with all kinds of things.

But you know what?

It's simply WONDERFUL that not one of the things scheduled or written down or on the "Oh my gosh, I have to do this" list involves dialysis!

WooHoo!

Today I've scurried to and fro, tidying up and organizing, doing laundry, packing a Guild bag, tidying my stitchy baskets, and emptying the last bit of Donaldson luggage. I also gots my pills together for the week, gave myself my shot, tidied the kitchen, futzed with a newsletter, and got all of the bath towels washed, dried, folded, and put away.

Not bad for a lazy Sunday!

I've been hankering for a bit of cross stitch, but none of my WiPs blew my skirt up, so I decided to play with this:

I made a small contribution to the Duck Races organized by Miss Emily of Eclectic Possessions, and I won one of the prize packages! There were several fantastic charts and other goodies in the package, and this little gem came complete as a full kit! It appears that it originated from The Silver Needle, and I am just tickled to give it some play time this afternoon!

Tomorrow I have THREE different Guild-related events...two meetings and a get-together in my apartment clubhouse to work on a pilot project, and then...whoosh...the rest of the week is off and running with more Guild things, a Notre Dame Club football preview, a Buddy Guy concert, and then a little shopping excursion for supplies for the pilot class.

Can you believe it? I'm actually going to have to wake up, get dressed, leave CS2, and actually interact with other human peoples EVERY SINGLE DAY this week! 

I'm still making pretty good progress on my Spring Medley, but need to set it aside until a thread order arrives. I knew I was going to run out of the FyreWerks, so I ordered more online and am hoping to receive it this week.

See that block in the upper left corner? That's where the FyreWerks goes. 

I suppose that I had better scoot and finish the evening. Rich will be home from the golfing place in a bit, and I want to be situated so that I can enjoy some TeeVee time and stitching with him before shut-eye!

How was your very own weekend? Did you do something fun, happy, and stitchy! Come tell me all about it!

A LITTLE FRIDAY NIGHT STITCHING

 Nancy's Needle

Spring Medley

After labwork, breakfast, errands, a nap, and a lovely dinner, I settled in with my ANG project and stitched some flowers. We meet tomorrow morning, and I'm willing to bet that my Guild Dearies have completed a lot more than I have! 

ONE MORE FEE NEE!

 

THE DONALDSON REPORT, BY THE SPINSTER STITCHER HER VERY SELF

Dearies, I arrived home yesterday afternoon and am happy to report that the Donaldson Effect is still providing me with blissful joy and peace. There's just something about four days of stitching with and laughing with and visiting with and enjoying the company of extraordinary people.

I had two finishes! The first is Come Tarry by Shepherd's Bush:

 I had completed everything but filling in that last hill, so I got to it on Friday afternoon and then added all of the little buttons and her little braid and bow and it was FeeNee!

On Saturday, I decided to play with Baked Alaska from Glendon Place. I had finished all of the stitching quite some time ago, but had never added the beads.

So I did:

I stayed up late and was pretty bleary-eyed by the time I stumbled back to my room, but the finished result was worth it! FeeNee Deaux!

The final project I played with was:

All of the stitching is now complete on this one, but I'm pondering some heavy beading. Inspiration struck to do so when I realized that I had a ton of beads left over from Baked Alaska, and they just happen to be the perfect colors and size!

That canvas is from Kirk & Bradley, by the way.

Today I'm going to try to get my little wits about me and unpack and tidy up my toys. I kinda dumped everything inside the door in a heap, so now it's time to put things right and get organized.

Happy, happy Futzingday to one and all! Come tell me all about your neck of the woods. What's blowing your skirt up today?

SPINSTER STITCHER DONALDSON BLISS

 

 

DONALDSON...HERE WE COME!

 

I am sooooo excited to be able to return to the Sit and Stitch this weekend down in Donaldson, Indiana! This is a retreat that has been in existence for many years. I was lucky enough to go several years ago, but haven't been back in a while. It's held at the Lindenwood Retreat and Conference Center at Ancilla College, and we stay in what I think was a dorm or a convent at one point. It's four days of nothing but stitchy/crafty love and the opportunity to drink in the inspiration and amazing spirit of some incredible women.

So Yours Truly is going to buckle down and get things done today and tomorrow so that I can be fully prepared to leave bright and early Friday morning! Baseball tonight with the Notre Dame Club and then tomorrow I see The Bean Team to have a check-in and update on how I'm behaving myself. I'm down twenty pounds since last visit, and have been working hard to keep on track, so hopefully I will have a good report for you!

Cheers, Dearies! Come tell me all about shenanagins in your neck of the woods!