Monday, June 1, 2009
Sunday, May 31, 2009
It is finished.
Finally. I've been working on this afghan for months (obviously not non-stop!) and I finally finished it. It is for a friend at work, and she had her baby 6 weeks early. I have felt so badly that I haven't had a gift ready for her! She has been in to work a couple of times for meetings, and I know she will be in this coming Wednesday, so I was determined to finish it. So here it is!
It is a basket weave pattern from an older Leisure Arts leaflet entitled "Snuggle-Up Baby Afghans." I have made one other pattern from this booklet, I think.
If I had made it according to the pattern directions it was going to end up huge, really too big, so I made it a bit smaller. I was a bit disappointed that it wasn't quite as soft as I would have liked after I had washed it, but it did come out nicely (if I do say so myself). Now I'm looking for other projects, even though I already have a few in progress! :-)
Off to Girl Scouts. My little bug is flying up from Brownies to Juniors! A big evening!
It is a basket weave pattern from an older Leisure Arts leaflet entitled "Snuggle-Up Baby Afghans." I have made one other pattern from this booklet, I think.
If I had made it according to the pattern directions it was going to end up huge, really too big, so I made it a bit smaller. I was a bit disappointed that it wasn't quite as soft as I would have liked after I had washed it, but it did come out nicely (if I do say so myself). Now I'm looking for other projects, even though I already have a few in progress! :-)
Off to Girl Scouts. My little bug is flying up from Brownies to Juniors! A big evening!
Saturday, May 30, 2009
I think I have a problem.
It's a bag problem. No, I don't mean big. I mean Bag.
I love bags. I like big ones and small ones, long straps and short, with pockets and without. I love looking at bags and wondering what I would use them for, and buying them even if I don't have a particular purpose in mind.
I like making bags. I have been known to spend days and hours on a bag, only to use it for a couple of short weeks. I just bought a pattern for another bag that I really like, and need to order a couple of 'notions,' as we sewists call them, in order to finish it, and I'm not even sure I will like it once it is finished.
I've been known to buy a bag, use it once or twice and then never use it again, but still, I keep it! I still like it, I just don't have a current use for it!
I have bags for knitting, bags for crochet, a bag for each little project. I have bags with all the embroidery floss from when I used to do counted cross stitch, and I have bags with kits for projects I haven't even started yet.
I have bags of yarn, and bags with all the bits and bobs that go along with yarn crafts. I even have a big bag full of other bags!
I just love them. I don't know what it is. I don't change my purse with great frequency (I've been carrying the same Coach knock off from Target for several months as my every day purse), and I even carry the same bag to work every day, but I love having the bags around me. One of my favorite bags I don't even carry that much because the straps aren't long enough to carry over my shoulder and I know I would get tired of just having to hold it in my hand all the time. But it is perfect for a current knitting or crochet project, and if I need to I can throw a couple other items into it for whatever we're up to on a particular day.
I bought another bag at LL Bean the other day. I couldn't resist. I didn't have boat and tote bag in that size, and I thought it might be handy. Plus it was 50% off! It was one of those personalized bags that they charge less for because you have to use a seam ripper to get the monogram off. But who cares! It was $5 for a boat and tote bag! Who could resist!
I wonder where this bag fetish comes from. I'm pretty sure my mom and dad had plenty of bags should I have needed one while I was growing up. I'm pretty sure I wasn't bag-deprived as a child. Is it because I was sometimes forced to wear bread bags on my feet with winter boots as a kid? Probably not. I don't feel scarred from that experience. So what is the deal?!
Perhaps I'll never know. Perhaps I shall just keep collecting bags for reasons unknown until I am too old or decrepit to do so anymore. I don't think my little habit is harmful to anyone, except perhaps my wallet (which is not really a bag, but I love wallets, too!!). I don't think I'm hurting anyone with my bags, and they frequently come in handy (though one did cause a major mix up with my brother at camp last summer, but that is another story). So I guess I won't worry too much about it.
But if you every hear of a 12 step program for bag lovers, let me know.
I love bags. I like big ones and small ones, long straps and short, with pockets and without. I love looking at bags and wondering what I would use them for, and buying them even if I don't have a particular purpose in mind.
I like making bags. I have been known to spend days and hours on a bag, only to use it for a couple of short weeks. I just bought a pattern for another bag that I really like, and need to order a couple of 'notions,' as we sewists call them, in order to finish it, and I'm not even sure I will like it once it is finished.
I've been known to buy a bag, use it once or twice and then never use it again, but still, I keep it! I still like it, I just don't have a current use for it!
I have bags for knitting, bags for crochet, a bag for each little project. I have bags with all the embroidery floss from when I used to do counted cross stitch, and I have bags with kits for projects I haven't even started yet.
I have bags of yarn, and bags with all the bits and bobs that go along with yarn crafts. I even have a big bag full of other bags!
I just love them. I don't know what it is. I don't change my purse with great frequency (I've been carrying the same Coach knock off from Target for several months as my every day purse), and I even carry the same bag to work every day, but I love having the bags around me. One of my favorite bags I don't even carry that much because the straps aren't long enough to carry over my shoulder and I know I would get tired of just having to hold it in my hand all the time. But it is perfect for a current knitting or crochet project, and if I need to I can throw a couple other items into it for whatever we're up to on a particular day.
I bought another bag at LL Bean the other day. I couldn't resist. I didn't have boat and tote bag in that size, and I thought it might be handy. Plus it was 50% off! It was one of those personalized bags that they charge less for because you have to use a seam ripper to get the monogram off. But who cares! It was $5 for a boat and tote bag! Who could resist!
I wonder where this bag fetish comes from. I'm pretty sure my mom and dad had plenty of bags should I have needed one while I was growing up. I'm pretty sure I wasn't bag-deprived as a child. Is it because I was sometimes forced to wear bread bags on my feet with winter boots as a kid? Probably not. I don't feel scarred from that experience. So what is the deal?!
Perhaps I'll never know. Perhaps I shall just keep collecting bags for reasons unknown until I am too old or decrepit to do so anymore. I don't think my little habit is harmful to anyone, except perhaps my wallet (which is not really a bag, but I love wallets, too!!). I don't think I'm hurting anyone with my bags, and they frequently come in handy (though one did cause a major mix up with my brother at camp last summer, but that is another story). So I guess I won't worry too much about it.
But if you every hear of a 12 step program for bag lovers, let me know.
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Guilty Pleasures
Dear Julia,
I have this little confession. It's about a place on the internet I visit almost every day. I am nearly compulsive about it. I have told very few people that I go there, and still wonder whether it changed their opinion of me.
To make it worse, I have introduced my children to the website, as well. They love it, but isn't it true that children often love things that aren't good for them? I hope I have not scarred them for life.
Shall I tell you? Should I feel guilty if you go there and you love it to? If you begin to be compulsive about checking each day as well?
I shall take that chance. I cannot resist. Every addict has to try to share her love with someone else. Here it is: I Can Has Cheezburger.
Yes, I know, I know!!! The mutilation of the English language! The bad jokes! It is like a train wreck, Julia! I cannot stop looking! The pictures, well, those are bad enough, but the videos! Oh, the horror!
I'm sorry, I'm sorry I tempted you to look. I'm sorry I shared my shame with you. Forgive me.
Please, forgive me.
Love,
Lynn
I have this little confession. It's about a place on the internet I visit almost every day. I am nearly compulsive about it. I have told very few people that I go there, and still wonder whether it changed their opinion of me.
To make it worse, I have introduced my children to the website, as well. They love it, but isn't it true that children often love things that aren't good for them? I hope I have not scarred them for life.
Shall I tell you? Should I feel guilty if you go there and you love it to? If you begin to be compulsive about checking each day as well?
I shall take that chance. I cannot resist. Every addict has to try to share her love with someone else. Here it is: I Can Has Cheezburger.
Yes, I know, I know!!! The mutilation of the English language! The bad jokes! It is like a train wreck, Julia! I cannot stop looking! The pictures, well, those are bad enough, but the videos! Oh, the horror!
I'm sorry, I'm sorry I tempted you to look. I'm sorry I shared my shame with you. Forgive me.
Please, forgive me.
Love,
Lynn
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Fitting Frustration
Dear Julia,
What is it about whoever designs affordable clothes? Why do they not understand that women have hips AND they have waists? Why do all the pants I try on have waists as big as the hips?
I went out today in a pretty much futile attempt to find some new capris (see a previous post for the sad story of my favorite capris). I tried on lots, but really, none fit. I bought one pair, but even those don't fit all that well. They fit about as well as the Unfortunate Pair, and they were actually bought at the same store, so I figured I might as well get them. They will at least provide something different to wear to work. I shall make every attempt to keep this pair from meeting the sad fate of the Unfortunate ones.
At one of the stores, the one I used to work at, they have these nifty little labels for the length of bottoms - capris, bermudas, shorts. The one thing they didn't have a label for was one called the 'skippers'. What are skippers, you ask? They are what I would call pedal pushers. I guess that name is too passe, so someone decided to come up with some cutesy name for them. Skippers. Huh.
I've gotten lots done on that afghan I'm working on, and hope to get more done tomorrow. :-)
Love,
Lynn
What is it about whoever designs affordable clothes? Why do they not understand that women have hips AND they have waists? Why do all the pants I try on have waists as big as the hips?
I went out today in a pretty much futile attempt to find some new capris (see a previous post for the sad story of my favorite capris). I tried on lots, but really, none fit. I bought one pair, but even those don't fit all that well. They fit about as well as the Unfortunate Pair, and they were actually bought at the same store, so I figured I might as well get them. They will at least provide something different to wear to work. I shall make every attempt to keep this pair from meeting the sad fate of the Unfortunate ones.
At one of the stores, the one I used to work at, they have these nifty little labels for the length of bottoms - capris, bermudas, shorts. The one thing they didn't have a label for was one called the 'skippers'. What are skippers, you ask? They are what I would call pedal pushers. I guess that name is too passe, so someone decided to come up with some cutesy name for them. Skippers. Huh.
I've gotten lots done on that afghan I'm working on, and hope to get more done tomorrow. :-)
Love,
Lynn
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Productivity
Dear Julia,
I'm not sure if productivity would have been a word you would ever have used, but it is used commonly now. For me, it means that I got a lot of little things done in a day, or that I got quite a bit finished on a long project.
Today was a day when I got a great deal accomplished (finally!). I feel as though it has been years since I had a day like today. My energy was high, my focus was good, and I felt able to finally follow through on things.
First of all I tackled the huge pile of laundry that has accumulated in my basement. Last weekend when we were cleaning up for a showing of the house, we tried to neaten up any of the laundry that wasn't done yet (mainly because we knew we wouldn't have any time to put all that laundry away if it was clean!), and left it at that. I got several loads finished and three loads folded. Put away, you ask? No, most of it is not actually put away, but I will put my pile away tonight and the other members of my family will have to put away their own!
Next I washed the dishes, cleaned off the counters, and put all the items from our "showing box" that has been sitting on the counter all week. What is a showing box, you ask? For us it means a box that we bring out when we have a showing, into which we stuff anything that normally resides on the counter next to the phone, any current mail, any papers that usually hang on the side of our refrigerator. This box is then put away with some of the other boxes we have previously packed. After the showing we then take the box out and put the items back where they belong - or at least sort the items that had not been sorted (opening mail, that kind of thing). I did a good purge of the items that had been hanging on the fridge, and went through all the mail. That felt good. I also cleaned off the kitchen table.
After lunch Hubby and the kids and I went for a little drive in the car he was thinking of buying. We stopped and had ice cream. :-) The day was much cooler than we had expected, but it seemed an appropriate thing to do on this traditional first weekend of summer. And the ice cream was very good!
While Hubby was gone making the decision about his car, I got a new lamp! Well, actually I didn't buy a new lamp, but I did spray paint an old one to make it look new! It was an old brass type lamp that we have had since we got married 15 years ago, which my mother-in-law bought for us at a garage sale. It has been a useful lamp for many years, but it has never been particularly attractive. I had a brainstorm the other night while watching yet another episode of "Get It Sold" on HGTV, and realized all I needed was a can of black spray paint! I got the paint weeks ago, but that energy burst today was what I have been waiting for. I must say, it looks rather good. Almost like a wrought iron lamp. I am pleased.
While each coat of the paint dried, I weeded in my garden. Yes! I did. I know I'm always saying I'm going to weed, that it needs to be weeded, and that I hardly ever get around to it. Usually it is a case of horrible black flies or extreme heat that keeps me from the flower garden, but today it was lovely weather with just enough wind to keep the black flies away. Lovely! I didn't finish it all, but I got quite a bit of it done.
Plus! Yes, there is more! I worked on the baby blanket I am crocheting for quite awhile, too! I still have a long way to go, but I am more than half way done. I am determined!
So, Julia, all in all, it was a very productive day!
Love,
Lynn
I'm not sure if productivity would have been a word you would ever have used, but it is used commonly now. For me, it means that I got a lot of little things done in a day, or that I got quite a bit finished on a long project.
Today was a day when I got a great deal accomplished (finally!). I feel as though it has been years since I had a day like today. My energy was high, my focus was good, and I felt able to finally follow through on things.
First of all I tackled the huge pile of laundry that has accumulated in my basement. Last weekend when we were cleaning up for a showing of the house, we tried to neaten up any of the laundry that wasn't done yet (mainly because we knew we wouldn't have any time to put all that laundry away if it was clean!), and left it at that. I got several loads finished and three loads folded. Put away, you ask? No, most of it is not actually put away, but I will put my pile away tonight and the other members of my family will have to put away their own!
Next I washed the dishes, cleaned off the counters, and put all the items from our "showing box" that has been sitting on the counter all week. What is a showing box, you ask? For us it means a box that we bring out when we have a showing, into which we stuff anything that normally resides on the counter next to the phone, any current mail, any papers that usually hang on the side of our refrigerator. This box is then put away with some of the other boxes we have previously packed. After the showing we then take the box out and put the items back where they belong - or at least sort the items that had not been sorted (opening mail, that kind of thing). I did a good purge of the items that had been hanging on the fridge, and went through all the mail. That felt good. I also cleaned off the kitchen table.
After lunch Hubby and the kids and I went for a little drive in the car he was thinking of buying. We stopped and had ice cream. :-) The day was much cooler than we had expected, but it seemed an appropriate thing to do on this traditional first weekend of summer. And the ice cream was very good!
While Hubby was gone making the decision about his car, I got a new lamp! Well, actually I didn't buy a new lamp, but I did spray paint an old one to make it look new! It was an old brass type lamp that we have had since we got married 15 years ago, which my mother-in-law bought for us at a garage sale. It has been a useful lamp for many years, but it has never been particularly attractive. I had a brainstorm the other night while watching yet another episode of "Get It Sold" on HGTV, and realized all I needed was a can of black spray paint! I got the paint weeks ago, but that energy burst today was what I have been waiting for. I must say, it looks rather good. Almost like a wrought iron lamp. I am pleased.
While each coat of the paint dried, I weeded in my garden. Yes! I did. I know I'm always saying I'm going to weed, that it needs to be weeded, and that I hardly ever get around to it. Usually it is a case of horrible black flies or extreme heat that keeps me from the flower garden, but today it was lovely weather with just enough wind to keep the black flies away. Lovely! I didn't finish it all, but I got quite a bit of it done.
Plus! Yes, there is more! I worked on the baby blanket I am crocheting for quite awhile, too! I still have a long way to go, but I am more than half way done. I am determined!
So, Julia, all in all, it was a very productive day!
Love,
Lynn
Dear Julia,
Dear Julia,
It has been so long since I've talked to you! I'm not sure if you will even remember me. Do you remember those days when it was just the two of us, you and I? You wore a cloak, almost always (there has always been something so evocative about that word for me, cloak). I've been wracking my brain for the last couple of days to remember your last name. Forgive me. I know it will come to me in a day or two.
I thought maybe writing to you would be a good way to blog. I can share my days, my silly stories, my joys and ideas. If you will let me. Would that be permissible? I hope so.
Love,
Lynn
It has been so long since I've talked to you! I'm not sure if you will even remember me. Do you remember those days when it was just the two of us, you and I? You wore a cloak, almost always (there has always been something so evocative about that word for me, cloak). I've been wracking my brain for the last couple of days to remember your last name. Forgive me. I know it will come to me in a day or two.
I thought maybe writing to you would be a good way to blog. I can share my days, my silly stories, my joys and ideas. If you will let me. Would that be permissible? I hope so.
Love,
Lynn
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