GOOD MORNING

 

A BLAST FROM THE PAST...2008 TO BE PRECISE

 

MONDAY MONDAY, BUT FIRST A BRIEF MESSAGE FROM MASTER STEWEY ANGUS WILLOWSWAMP HIS VERY LITTLE SELF

Dear President Obama:
I'd like to apologize to you and all of the passengers aboard Air Force One on behalf of my mother. When she heard the roar of the engines overhead, she ran out into the driveway and started waving to you like a crazy person. This display was sadly accompanied by her unfortunate wardrobe choice...a pair of twenty year old pajamas and a mismatched set of tube socks. I watched in horror as my old lady jumped up and down without a bra on, thus causing her to black both of her eyes. (I applied cold compresses and assured her that the resulting "shiners" would be a badge of honor.) She explained to me that this was indeed a non-partisan jumping up and down, since she did the very same thing a few years ago when President George W. Bush flew overhead. So, please forgive her, Mr. President for ruining what I am sure was a lovely pre-landing luncheon. She's a good person. Really. She is. It's just that she slips out of her invisible fence collar every now and then and I find myself having to account for it later.
Your friend,
Stewey


So I did a little stitching this weekend, but when I snapped the progress pics today I was disappointed at how little I actually accomplished. It felt like I would have more to show you, but alas, I do not. So I suppose this will have to suffice:

I also got the hankering to do a painted canvas, so I kitted this one:

I've learned a very important fact about myself. I always thought that I was completely incapable of stitching painted canvases. Turns out that I'm not incapable, I just need a little help picking stitches. So I have promised myself that I will work on some of the lovely canvases I have up there in the studio, but that I'll do so with the help of a stitch guide. (I justify this by the rationalization that we can't all be experts at everything, can we?) So my hope is that I will be able to incorporate a few more painted canvases into my half-assed rotation system (that changes daily, by the way), so stay tuned.

I'll leave you with a picture of what I assume to be a bird's egg? Stewey stumbled across it when we stepped outside to get the mail today. At first I thought it was one of those candy-coated malt ball thingies that you get around Easter time, but when I reached for it, Stewey promptly smacked my hand away and proceeded to protect the damn thing as if he had laid it himself. Damn dog.

FRIDAY

 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, STEWEY. I MISS YOU.

 

BLOOMING BUNNY FEE NEE...FINALLY!

I feel like it took me forever to finish him, but at last, the Blooming Bunny is complete! I enjoyed both he and the Spring Bird immensely:

 I think they would look swell in white frames, but they need to sit in the Fuppy box for a bit while I replenish my stitchy account.  I'm sure that once I do, there will be lots of options out there!

Happy Monday, Dearies!

IN WHICH YOUR INTREPID HEROINE TRIES NEW THINGS...

 Hello, Dearies.

It's an absolutely beautiful Saturday morning, and I am enjoying my second/medicinal cup of damn good while listening to the neighbor's wind chimes tinkle in the breeze. It's just cool enough that I have my trusty blanket, but warm enough that they've opened the complex pool earlier than expected. (It's supposed to be 86 on Thursday...yikes!)

So it would appear that I have fallen down yet another rabbit hole, only this time, it seems like this one might actually be good for me, as opposed to some of the million others that you've all witnessed over the years.

Have you ever heard of Morning Pages? 

Apparently, there is a wonderful book out there by someone called Julia Cameron that I believe is titled The Artist's Way...don't quote me on these particulars, but if you're a devotee, then by all means, come correct me. 

The gist (from what I gathered during my totally half-assed quick research), is that you write in a journal first thing in the morning to dump all of the clutter out of your brain. I think you are supposed to commit to three pages of longhand stream of consciousness, and I'm sure there's more to it, but here's what I've adapted to my own little world:

Every morning (or, in my case, afternoon) when I get up and pour that first cup, I sit down with my little purple book (just a blank journal from the amazons) and my pen (a delightful find...did you know they make disposable fountain pens now?!), and I sit at the kitchen table and write.

I don't think. I don't fret or organize or edit or do anything, really, that would make these pages at all understandable. Heck...half the time they aren't even legible (because I have the handwriting of a serial killer and my hands are terribly sore most mornings from diamond painting or stitching the night before), but at the end of my scribbles I somehow feel...better.

In addition to the Morning Pages, I have developed the habit of staying OFF of the phone and the ipad and the TeeVee almost the entire day. I read or sleep or stitch or play with paper or diamond paint instead. No news, no doomscrolling, no Insta this or FaceBook that to distract me into tears or hopelessness. I just blissfully go about my day doing my futzing and puttering and whatnot without engaging with the world in any meaningful way until I'm ready.

Of course, this has all been super easy to do while Rich is visiting his mom in New Jersey. My old spinstering habits kicked in hard this time, and I am happy to report that aside from having my toes tended to, I have not left the friendly confines of CS2 in over a week and a half.

Aaaahhhh...quiet and peace.

When Rich returns next week, I am going to try to maintain my little rituals. We re-did our little balcony, so maybe I will take advantage of a few minutes out there with my purple book and damn good. Or maybe I'll actually leave the house and head to campus or the library every now and then?

Doesn't matter. All I know is that this un-plugging has done wonders for my state of mind, and very very soon I hope it translates into the rest of me. My guts are still completely out of whack, and some of these test results are giving me no end of panic, but I finally think I've decided to let the professionals stress about it...I just don't have the bandwidth for it right now.

Today I'm going to finish this darn bunny if it kills me. Of course, I ran out of the Colour & Cotton thread that I was using, so I've had to switch to another one that I think comes close for the last tiny little bit of his face. Once that's done, all I need to do is add the ground shadows beneath his feet (paws?), and this lovely little thing will FINALLY be done.

I have absolutely not one clue as to what I will play with next, but methinks there might be a good long rummage through my WiP baskets in the near future. Stay tuned for that!

I've made really good progress on the enormous diamond painting, and before I know it, it might be time to look for another in the basket. I am on a strict no-buy policy, since I promised myself when I started this new hobby that I would  NOT...UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES...amass a huge pile of canvases in a stash that would taunt me to my end of days.

And finally...my reading life. Oh, dear John Irving, how I love you so! I read Owen Meany for the first time right after college, and devoured every single John Irving novel that I could get my hands on. I've always said that he is my favorite author, and that one of these years I was going to have a "John Irving Summer" and read his entire catalogue back to back to back, but I never have. I do like the idea of spacing them out a bit, because at this point there are so many other great things I want to read and re-read. I just finished Madame Bovary, and am thrilled that I seem to have found my reading bug again after so many years of half-heartedly skimming through a page here or a page there of whatever library book was next to the big girl sleigh bed. This time, I'm going in awake and doing more close-reading...somewhat like the days of yore when I read and retained rather than read to simply fall asleep.

Well, it looks like my second cup is finished, Dearies, so it's time to get on with it, Before I settle in with my stitching, I want to attempt to do at least one chore. I have a full list of eighteen tasks to be completed, but so far all I've managed to do is stick my tongue out at it and have more damn good. Seeing how it's Saturday, and the traditional day of household crap (at least it always was for me), I might as well do a thing or two.

So Happy Saturday...Happy Weekend, and most especially Happy Mother's Day to all of those who observe and celebrate. I hope that your little corner of the world is swell and exactly how you want and need it to be.  Come tell me all about it!

TUESDAY PLAN

 

SLEEPY SLEEPY SPINSTER

 

TINY ITTY BITTY BIT OF PROGRESS

 

A FINISH AND A START...AND A LITTLE BIT OF PROGRESS

First a finish:

And a new start (yes...she's a BIG girl):

And a tiny bit of progress on Blooming Bunny:

(Note to self...start with the head next time. Otherwise, poor BB looks like the chocolate bunnies from when I was a kid and always started by biting off their poor little heads! 😲)

Quiet day today, Dearies.  I hope you are all well and safe and happy...come tell me all about it!

MEANWHILE...ON EASTER NIGHT

 

 

TUESDAY

Thank you for all of the lovey birthday wishes, Dearies! I'm happy to report that I turned 59 with dignity and very little fanfare. There were surprise gifts of flowers and beautiful cards, as well as a re-stock of my berries and pineapple for my morning cottage cheese/fruit plate.

I don't know if I feel any older, but I do know that I have a very long list of things I'd like to do in the next year to get me ready for 60. Nothing too radical, mind you. Probably a lot of the same, but maybe with a little more enthusiasm.

I bought a few little things for myself on the amazon, but nothing too crazy. The highlight of the package was a new Yankee Candle, but in the spirit of keeping me slightly off-center, it arrived with a bit of an attitude problem.

Never fear...one call to the customer service, and a new one is on its way to me.

Last night, I did manage to finish the Stained Glass Bunny diamond painting. If I get things done around here in the next few days I might try to find a simple little frame for him so I can prop him on the table and call it Easter.

Today will be dedicated to stitching, and I hope to make more progress on the Blooming Bunny.

 That's all I have for now. I thank you again for thinking of me yesterday! I am so grateful to be part of this thing of ours! WooHoo!

 

ZEE BIRD...SHE EESE LONELEEE

I just spent a lovely few minutes in the cube room studio kitting up the Blooming Bunny companion to the Spring Songbird that I finished yesterday. Same deal...stitching this on 28ct Colour & Cotton lugana in Granny Smith, and all Colour & Cotton threads substituted for DMC (*).

And because I just can't leave well enough alone when it comes to bunnies...I'm almost finished with a cute little stained glass version (diamond painting) that I might just pop into a frame for a seasonal decoration this year.

Finally, my salad from last night. Mixed greens and veg with a grilled chicken breast on top, lots of black pepper and everything bagel seasoning with bleu cheese dressing because the chicken was flavored with buffalo marinade.

We're looking forward to the weekend, Dearies! My Lovies from Lima are coming over for the NotreDame Blue Gold Game (football Spring scrimmage), and then there's Palm Sunday Mass, brunch at Tippecanoe Place (the Studebaker Mansion), and then on Monday I turn the big bad 59 years of age...no longer allowed to act like a toddler, but not old enough to be the boss of everything.

Happy Thursday! Come tell me all about your little corner of the world!

(*) It's only taken me nineteen years, but I finally found a way to pick threads. I use my DMC color chart and find the designated color that is called for, and then I pick through my threads to find ones that are generally close to it. Sometimes I get right on the mark, and other times I go rogue...all depends on my choice of fabric.
 

ZEE BIRD...SHE EEESE FEENIE!

 

DIAMOND PAINTING, STITCHING, AND PILLOW FIGHTING....OH MY!

 

As I live and breathe, Dearies....if you would have told me that one day I would watch the Professional Pillow Fighting Championship on the TeeVee while stitching and then diamond painting, I would have told you that you were nuts.

Progress continues on the Spring Songbird, and I hope to complete him in the next day or so. Such a delightful stitch, and I might have accidentally picked up the coordinating bunny pattern as well to start once the bird takes flight. 😬

The diamond painting was another amazon impulse purchase....this one was about four bucks, I think, but the end result and the hours of peace it gave me go well beyond that.  As with stitching, I enjoy the process of creating these rather than stress over a final finish, so I'll just pop this into a portfolio with all of the other ones I've finished and move on to the next.

Early morning appointment for me today, so I'm looking forward to spending the rest of the day with needle and thread!

Happy Monday! I hope your week is off to a roaring start!

 

I LOVE IT WHEN A LESSON COMES OUT OF IT

One of the things I've learned during this little for-ay into diamond painting is PREPARATION IS KEY. 

I watched a lot of the YouTube when I started doing DP, and two terms I learned were "kit up" and "kit down". (Or words similar to that effect.)  It means exactly what you'd think...before playing with a new piece, you have to take the time to organize all of the parts so that you have them readily at hand.

In DP,  you need to un-bag all of the little bits and label the colors so that you can easily select the one you need at the right time.

I've translated this into my stitchy life, and I find that it's yielding great results. By taking the time to set up my threads, I can enjoying stitching more by just selecting the one that I need. My Bitsy Bob (the thingie you see in the bottom pic with the threads in circles on it), makes things super organized and tidy.

I like that.

So, Dearies...I'm ready to start stitching for the day, and after dinner (a salad with grilled salmon on top), I'm going to see if I can finish my DP.

Happy Weekend! Do something that blows your skirt up and come tell me all about it!

GOODNESS, GRACIOUS!

We've had an interesting few days, Dearies!  Sunday brought us massive storms with devastating winds and quite a bit of destruction.  I can honestly say that there was a moment there when I honestly thought we were gonners.

The lights were out for about four hours, but like any good stitcher, I was prepared.

I think I've confused everybody with all of this diamond painting business. Imagine a cross stitch chart printed on a canvas and then covered in a light layer of stickyness.

And the symbols correspond to different colored "drills", or little pieces of acrylic (either round or square) that you attach to the canvas with a pointy-ended pen that you've put a little bit of putty or wax or sticky dots on to hold them.

Believe it or not, oftentimes the color numbers of the drills are actual DMC numbers, so there is something that feels very familiar about this!

The thing I'm enjoying about diamond painting is that a) it's something new and different and b) so far I've managed to just keep things very very simple, uncomplicated, and affordable. I figured out a very good system and have stuck with it, haven't gone crazy amassing a huge stash, and the time I spend doing this new craft has been stress free!

 On the stitching front, I am just LOVING this little bird. The chart is in the etsy: nathnolu. Please note, though that I am not following the colorway on the chart...I am using Colour & Cotton fabric and threads from my stash.

 

Dearies, I have a kinda sorta update on my ick-ness. It appears that the thyroid was causing all of those scary symptoms that kept sending me to the ER thinking I was dying. As for everything else, my liver, pancreas, and gall bladder all seem to be on the fritz. Oddly enough, I scored an S0 on the liver fatty scale, but an F3 on the liver scarring (cirrhosis) scale, which is severe. The gallbladder needs to come out, but if we can get the symptoms under control, postponing that would be preferable to undergoing surgery at this point, and the pancreas is problematic and susceptible to pancreatitis because of my kidney meds. 

BUT!

With proper meds and a massive lifestyle change (in effect since March 5), I should be able to get things a bit back in whack to the point that I will start to feel better. Fatigue and the screaming mimi's are the biggest issues I have, as well as protecting my BellyBean, but eventually all will be well once again.

Thank you for your prayers and notes and happy thoughts and wonderful cards in the mail (looking at you Robin!). Time for me to just pull up my socks and trust that the plan is good and I finally have docs in place to keep an eye on things.

If you're in the path of these darn storms again today (as we are), please don't be afraid, but stay safe and prepared! Then, when they're all over, please check in and come tell us all about your corner of the world today!

BIRD BRAIN