No Resolutions

Are your New Year's Resolutions still intact?  We make them every year---and usually they are broken before February.  There's the "I will lose weight" resolution which may include the "I will have better eating habits" resolution.  Then there's the ones that go along with being more organized, having it all together, followed by the ones that include attitudes---like I will be more kind, complain less, have more patience, etc, etc.  There are many many different ones.   The trouble with "resolutions" is that once they are broken we tend to say "Well, there it goes, I'm done" and quit trying.  Resolutions work as long as you keep them. They require a certain "perfection", if you will.  Unfortunately, we are fallen human beings and we make mistakes and cannot do anything perfectly.  That belongs to God alone.  So when we make resolutions we are setting ourselves up for failure---and the sense of worthlessness and discouragement that goes with it.  Why do we do this?  I know why we do. We really want to improve ourselves and a fresh new year seems like the perfect time to "start over".  So year after year we make these resolutions, and year after year we err and give up, and year after year come December 31st we start all over again.  Well this year I decided to do something different--or maybe I should say I decided to try a different perspective.  Perspective can really change things!  I decided this year to reach for goals instead of resolving anything.  Goals are meant to be reached over time.  They don't happen overnight. You set a goal and then form some kind of plan to reach that goal---though even the plan may have to change and evolve as you go along. You also know that along the way you might mess up.  But that's ok.  Just leave the goal in place and keep reaching for it.  With a goal, nothing gets "broken".  Even when the progress seems miniscule, with a goal you just keep plodding toward it.  You can set a goal for anything--just like the resolutions.  But I think setting a goal allows you to keep going forward---which is really what we want anyway, right?  Think of going on a hike up a mountain.  Your goal is the summit, always the summit.  But along the way maybe you see something beautiful off to the side of the trail (and you must go photograph it, like me!), or perhaps you didn't see the signs, and you find yourself on a secondary trail.  You don't say "Well that's it!  I didn't stay on the main trail so I'm going back home."  No!  You find the main trail again and head on forward toward the summit.  Resolutions and goals are like that.  Resolutions send you back home, back to square one to start over, whereas goals allow you to pick up again and keep going forward.  Isn't that so much better?  So here I am with my goals.  Knowing me, my progress will be slow.  But I hope to keep on moving forward, so that when December of 2014 arrives I can move my goal posts forward to set new ones.  What do you have?  Resolutions that hold you back, or goals that move you forward?  =)

Wordless Wednesday.........I Mean Thursday

I forgot.  Really, I did!  I know, it happens so rarely that you would not have expected it.  Better write it on the calendar.  =)  I forgot to post last night.  I was trying to cram a project into the small window I have between work and bedtime and I forgot my post until I had shut everything down.  I may have even been in bed when I thought of it.  Bedtime is when you will think of everything you forgot during the day!  At least that's the way it seems with me.  Anyway.  Since I'm still tired and since I have to work on my day off tomorrow, I will let yesterday's post suffice for today too.

So here is Wordless Wednesday, on Thursday:

Moody thing ain't she?  =)  But oh, so beautiful.....

So after last night's post I got to thinking that I may have sounded a bit like a "yarn snob"!  I just want to clarify that I am in no way above using acrylic yarn!  In fact, most of what I have crocheted in my life to this point has been made with acrylic yarn---with the exception of the cotton doilies and dischcloths I've made.  So please don't think I was "dissing" acrylic.  It has it's place in usefulness, and it's inexpensive, making it the go-to choice for most of us for every day life.  What I was trying to say is that, for me, acrylic yarn does not have the same "heirloom" quality that wool and silk do, especially when you get into the hand-crafted stuff.  You do not buy hand-crafted acrylic!  =)  And heirloom quality handmade is what I've gotten excited about lately.  Ok, I'm done.

In other news........there is none.  I'm just too tired to post more tonight.  Recent events have squashed my 8 day plan into 4, so I'm having to rework the plan.  So tonight I'm eating my fried fish and trying to relax and calm myself and not get overwhelmed......I think I'll just sit by the Christmas tree for a while. (yes, it's still up!)  Night all!

Yarn

This past Saturday I received my first ever order of silk and silk blend yarns.  Can I just say Yummy?  They are so beautiful, both to the eye and to the touch.  See?

The first picture is the pure mulberry silk.  Can you see in the picture how it has a sheen to it?  It is smooth and "silky" (how strange! lol), doesn't have the furry "hair" to it like regular yarn does.  It's color is a pale dusty pink color---"blush" maybe?  I can't wait to make a shawl out of this stuff.  I can imagine it will have the most wonderful drape and fluidity to it.  Very elegant. 

The next 2 pictures are both a wool and silk blend---merino wool to be precise.  The texture is like what you think of yarn being, but very soft and with a touch of "silk" (again, how odd! lol).  The colors didn't come out quite right in the photos.  The purple is darker in real life---more of a dark plum, and the "red" is actually much more like red wine.  Both are luscious!  Pieces made from this yarn should be very snuggly and warm.  Again, I can't wait to put it to use!

I've become obsessed with natural fiber yarns of late.  They are much more expensive than acrylic, but they also say "Artisan" in a way that acrylic never can.  Especially when you get into the hand-spun and hand-dyed category.  I guess I'm an Artisan wannabe.  I don't want to just "do crafts".  I want to make beautiful and useful things out of fine materials.  Things that could be placed in the "heirloom" or "fine" category.  Using fine materials in what one creates are what make handmade items worth their time and effort. You spend all that time crocheting or knitting something, you want that item to be gorgeous---and valuable---when you are done.  At least I do.  Anyway, back to the yarn.  Hand-dyed wool and silk yarns (and other natural fibers too) are so beautiful!  When looking at them online I have to wipe the drool from my computer continuously! lol  So many colors and combinations of fiber to choose from.  Will it be 100% wool or silk, or wool/silk, wool/cashmere, wool/cashmere/silk, linen, cotton, linen/cotton, angora, camel, alpaca, mohair, etc, etc.  And the colors.  Oooooo!  The combinations and variations are endless, the depth of color striking.  And, if the yarn is hand-dyed or hand-painted, your pieces will be truly one-of-a-kind since no two batches of yarn will be exactly the same.  Fine and unique---qualities that make valuable heirlooms.  =) So these days I dream in hand-colored, natural fiber yarn.  The yarn I just bought is still in the commercially produced category, but I'm getting there!  One of these days I will crochet in hand-dyed silk!  What color shall I do first........Hmmm.  That is what is keeping me awake at night.  =)

Olfactory Joy

Coffee....Is there any more wonderful smell in the world than freshly brewed coffee?  I was thinking about this yesterday morning early after I went through the drive-thru at McDonalds.  I had to sit for a minute at the open window while they got my coffee ready, and the smell was heavenly.  I could have sat there for half an hour just sniffing.  I'm quite sure this would have been frowned upon though, so I had to sniff hard for just a minute.  =)  That started me on this train of thought about my favorite smells---aromas, maybe I should say.  I think that if I had to pick just one favorite, coffee would be right there at the top.  Now I like the smell of an apple pie in the oven or spaghetti sauce on the stove or fresh cut onions on the cutting board, etc.  The list could go on and on. There are many captivating scents in our world.  But coffee?  That's in a class all by itself.  I love the smell of the beans in the bag, the grounds in the can,  the brewing in the pot, the steaming in the cup. Doesn't matter.  I love it all.  It's an instant intoxication, a cozy comfort, a peaceful pleasure.  The smell of coffee is what helps pull me out of bed in the "o'dark thirty" hours of the morning.  When it's dark and cold and I have to pull myself out of my snug warm bed and get ready for work, the smell of coffee is comforting somehow.  It's like a friend.  =)  Yes, I know, I need a life! lol  Actually it was coffee that helped me get used to getting up in the mornings after a career that had been mostly evenings and nights.  I'd set the coffee pot to brew so that it would be done just about the time the alarm went off.  Then when I'd wake up feeling yucky and tired, the coffee smell would be there to give me strength to get out of bed.  (Not wanting to waste the coffee helped too!)  So you see, coffee really does have magical powers.  =) But I digress.  Back to smells.  It's interesting to me too that coffee smells wonderful no matter what kind is brewing.  Starbucks, Dunkin', Maxwell House, dark, light, medium........No matter, it all smells wonderful.  There are coffees that I don't enjoy drinking very much: some too weak, some too light, some not hot enough.  But the smell?   Mmmmmm-mmm.  The smell is universally amazing.  I have yet to meet one I didn't like.  So yes, I have put Coffee at the very top of my Favorite Smells In The Universe list.  Next time you wander by a newly opened container or a freshly brewed pot, take a big whiff and see if your nasal passages don't dance.  Try it!  You'll find it is pure, unadulterated Olfactory Joy.  =)

The Painted Sky

It happened as I was driving along Interstate 85 this evening.  Just going over Falls Lake I noticed the horizon starting to tinge pink and purple as the sun dropped low.  I thought how pretty it was and wished, as usual, that I had my camera.  I don't know when I'm going to learn to throw that little thing in my bag when I go out.  That's why I have a little camera---to have something more portable.  Anyway, I didn't have it with me.  Not that there was any place at that moment to stop and take pictures anyway.  It's not the best move to stop on an interstate bridge and get out to take a few photos! Not to mention you would probably get a ticket---if you survived! lol  So I kept driving East, snatching glances in my mirror and over my shoulder, wishing I had someone else to do the driving so I could look.  A few miles later, though, was where it got really amazing.  Suddenly the sky had taken on an orange glow.  Not just down near the horizon either!  The sky was full of puffy clouds left over from the rain storms that had blown through earlier in the day.  In fact it was still raining off and on.  So the orange glow from the horizon spread upwards until it seemed like the entire Western sky was glowing.  As if a huge fire was burning---one big enough to light up the sky.  And still, down along the horizon were the purples from earlier.  Against it all were the silhouettes of all the trees--black against all that light.  It was Incredible! It has been a while since I saw such a spectacular sunset.  I could hardly keep driving.  I wanted so badly to get off the road and just gaze.  Well, what I really wanted to do was get off the road and get a camera in my hands and hold the shutter button down on "continuous"!  =)  Finally my exit came up.  As I drove off the highway I noticed the exit ramp had a nice wide shoulder---just what I needed!  I couldn't take it anymore.  I could NOT keep driving and leave that amazing sunset un-enjoyed.  So I pulled off, rolled down my window and just sat their looking back.  And then, another beauty:  In the East, a rainbow!  There must have been just enough light at the right angle through the rain.  So I sat between the fire in the West and the colors in the East---rather like watching a natural color guard.  It was food for the soul.  I wish you could have seen it.  I kept thinking I should go, but I couldn't.  It was too beautiful.  It was that kind of beauty that really leaves you speechless---or I should say "wordless".  You can try to tell about it, but the right words just aren't available.   After a few minutes the rainbow was gone and the color was beginning to fade, so I tore myself away---albeit with a few parting glances back.  Incredible. Magnificent. Awesome.  I'm glad I was there to see it.  I wish you could have seen it.  I wish I'd had my camera.........=) 

A Very Southern Lunch

Ooh did you miss out today!  We had us a Southern lunch at work.  What was it?  Well hang on a minute and I'll get right down to the details!  It all started several weeks ago when I mentioned to one of my co-workers that I wish she would make me some good old beans.  I mean beans made the way True Southerners make 'em.  We Yankees don't know the first thing about beans really.  Oh sure, we dump a few kidney beans in our chili--maybe.  Some don't even do that.  Growing up, about the only time we had beans (besides green beans) was when we had chili.  As an adult I went to live with my grandparents for a while and they introduced me to beans with ham.  Grandpa loved them.  Every time we had ham you could just count on him saying "Mama, we need us a mess of beans."  And being the good wife that she was, she would get out the old pot and simmer up a 'mess' of them.  I came to love them as much as he did, and would rejoice when he'd ask Grandma for them.  So one of the things I love about living in the South is the beans.  Southern people know their beans and do they ever know how to cook 'em!  Ooo-eee!  You talk about good eatin'!  I don't care whether they are green beans, limas, pintos, navy or great northern, they're all good here!  Anyway, I told her I wanted some beans.  And, as with a lot of things in conversation, it went on by.  So Wednesday I asked her, "Phyllis, when are you going to make me some beans?"  To my joy and delight she said she would bring some on Friday (today).  I told her I would bring some cornbread---if they didn't mind Yankee cornbread.  You laugh, but it's true!  In our house growing up about the only time we had cornbread was with chili (same as with the beans).  Here in the South, cornbread is a must, with many dishes.  And again, they know how to make it. Southern women (and I suppose some men too! lol) whip up that cornbread in all shapes and sizes.  They put jalapenos, bacon grease, or fatback in it.  They fry it, bake it in skillets, pans and muffin tins.  And when it's done they put butter or honey or beans on it!  They do.it.up!  And I doubt many of them use a recipe.  Why would they?  They've been making it since they were 2 months old! lol  They would probably just shake their heads at me for having to ask Betty for help! So when I offered to make cornbread I thought it only fair that I remind them of my Yankee heritage.  They assured me that it would be fine as long as it looked like cake! lol  Lunch snowballed from there.  By the time we sat down today we had fried chicken, cooked greens & turnips (greens are another thing that Southern folk know how to cook!), a big pot of pinto beans (that had been simmering all day on our portable burner in the break room.  "You might be a redneck if....."---that's us for sure!  Every time you opened the door to the treatment room the smell of beans and smoked turkey came wafting in.  Drove the patients crazy!  They'll probably all have beans this weekend because of us! lol), corn bread and iced tea.  Talk about a taste of the South!  And it was soooo good!  Yesterday I kept thinking about those beans to go along with the cornbread I was making.  I couldn't wait.  And they were just as good as I imagined they would be.  Skins all split and soft (but not too mushy), swimming around in savory juices.  Man oh man! I put those beans right on top of my cornbread and ate till I was full as a tick (as they say here)!  Everything was all good, but those beans were my favorite. Mmmmmm!  So next time you are near the corner of Lewis and Industry, stop on in.  You might just find yourself a very Southern lunch.  (And if we've been greedy and eaten it all, well......there's always George's across the street.)  =)

Homemaking (Vent!!)

I'm tired of something.  Well, if you want to know I'm tired of lots of things.  But for this post I'm tired of this one thing:  I'm tired of mothers being belittled for choosing to stay home to raise their children and run their home.  Why exactly would you belittle someone for this?  I think maybe it stems from jealousy.  Women who want to stay home, but cannot are jealous of those who choose that.  I'm not sure.  I hate to hear it though.  Almost every day I wish I could stay at home and make my home.  Sure, I'm the only one here right now, but I still wish it.  I am happiest when I am home creating something.  People ask what I would do if I didn't work.  Do you have all day?  I would grow food and flowers, I would can fruit and veggies and jam and sauces, I would make soap and cheese, I would sew, I would cook my way through cookbooks, I would craft more, (including put more inventory in my shop), and  I would decorate my house for the seasons appropriately (instead of leaving the St Patrick's Day decoration on the door all year, like I did this past year. No lie!  Put up after Valentine's Day 2013, still on there today. Laugh away!  It would be funny if it weren't so sad! lol).  That is just my starting list.  I don't even have a family and I want to stay home, so why shouldn't a woman in her right mind want to stay home and raise her children and run her home??  I know there are many many women who wish they could do this, but cannot.  There are others who could do this and choose not to.  But there are women who have this choice available and actually choose to do it.  And just this week I listened to someone essentially say a cousin of hers was wasting her life and her college education by staying home.  Makes me mad!!  Personally, I think it's grand.  I don't know this woman, but apparently she is turning into quite the old-fashioned homemaker: homeschooling, venturing into canning and soapmaking, etc.  I want to applaud her and tell her "You go for it, girl!"  And I'm just a wee bit jealous that she has this opportunity.  =)  Please don't think I am criticizing anyone when I say this, but I think we would be a whole lot better off if we had more homemaking going on these days.  We have lost something by us women not caring for/taking pride in our homes.  Women are the center of the family/home and when we don't take that job seriously our entire culture is affected.  I really believe that.  Look around.  Again, I am not criticizing whatever has been your choice.  These are my opinions here.  But when you meet someone who has chosen to be a homemaker and works hard at it, please don't hate.  Homemaking is an important career!
Ok, I'm done.  For now.  =)

Thankfully the icy grip could not last long here in the South--well, here in the NC Piedmont anyway.  We reached the much more seasonable tempurature of 40 or so.  Felt so nice!  I don't know how we are going to stand ourselves when we get up into the mid to upper 60s on the weekend!  We'll probably roast! lol  Very strange weather indeed.  I don't like the cold part so much, but the warm?  I'll take it!!  However, for those of you who are still locked tight in the grip of Old Man Winter, here's a little "Calgon" to take you away......=)

Cold and Shoes

So here's where the challenge starts to happen.  When the time between work and bed is not nearly enough for all that I want to do.  When the blog gets pushed to the back burner because there are other more pressing things to do.  But then I feel disappointed because I really like blogging.  Then I begin to feel the frustration of living by the clock---specifically the time clock at work.  Work dictates so much in my life and doesn't leave me time for the creative side of me.  *sigh*  Such is life I guess.  But I said I was going to blog, so I am going to blog something by hook or by crook! lol 

It was cold here today!!  I had to look at the map to make sure I was still in North Carolina and had not somehow been transported to more Northern lands!  Brrr!  Now I know, those of you who are hale and hearty Northerners shaking your heads.  It was 20 here today and for some of you that number is nearly toasty!  I know!  I have thin blood, what can I tell you!  But for this part of the world 20 is cold!  Shiver me timbers!  But the good news is that it will be back in the 60s just in time for the weekend (my weekend OFF, I might add!), so life is good.  I must remember to go check the fuel gauge tomorrow though.  Running out of fuel at this point is not my idea of fun and excitement.  =)

In other news, I got new shoes!  Nursing shoes I mean.  Now that might not mean much to you, but to anyone who lives on their feet, new shoes are hugely important.  I have been wearing the same ol 2 pair of sneakers for going on a year now.  Too long.  Even expensive sneakers break down after about six months of carrying around this carcase of mine!  I have been meaning to order, etc, etc, blah, blah, blah.  You know how it is.  But in the meantime my feet and legs hurt by days end and cramped in the night!  Finally, I got myself in gear and ordered some new ones (on sale too!), and then waited impatiently for them to get here.  Yes, impatiently.  Patience is not one of my virtues.  Unfortunately.  Life would go a whole lot smoother if it was! Anyway, last evening I was bemoaning not yet having the new shoes and my feet hurt---the whole nine yards.  But then a miracle occurred and UPS brought the shoes!  There was the moment of bated breath when I slipped them on, hoping like anything they would fit.  They did!!  They feel wonderful!!  (This time I went back to Sanita for a pair of clogs instead of sneakers.)  I nearly danced for joy!  So off I went to work this morning in my sparkling new shoes---although I did have a moment of pause wondering if I really should wear my backless clogs over the old sneakers on the coldest morning of the year! =)  But my feet argued loudly for the new shoes---and won, too.  Of course there were the usual tender spots that come with being on your feet all day in new shoes, but at least I didn't come dragging home with my legs and feet so worn out I didn't feel like I could get out of the car.  Yay for that!!  It really is amazing what the right shoes will do for a body.   Good shoes make a huge difference in how I feel at the end of the day.  I think I may just order another pair.  =)

Now I'm off to bed after scrounging up something for dinner.  I think it may be cereal.  Again.  =)  Ya'll stay warm!!!

I'm trying to challenge myself with this here blog. I'm going to try to post something every day between now and when I go on vacation the 23rd.  I won't be able to post every day then because my parents don't have internet service.  How sad! (Insert sarcasm here) Actually that's a good thing because, if I do manage to post every day between now and then, I'll be worn to a frazzle and will need a break! lol! So here goes. Be forewarned! Some days might not make sense (nothing unusual about that, I know!), and others may be no more than a little drool on the keyboard, but it will be something! I have to challenge myself like this or I'll just sink right back into my old lazy ways....

So this is my post for today. Sorry if you came expecting something pithy. I'm too tired for that or anything else. Tonight is one of those drool on the keyboard nights! lol I'd go to bed right now (530 pm), but that would be a bit excessive. So I'll make myself stay up by punishing myself with Pinterest or some such thing until it gets a little later! =) See ya tomorrow! Stay warm!

A Fresh Scratchpad

Well here we are.  5 days into a new year and I have yet to post.  Shocking, I know!  My OCD is screaming at me that I really should have posted on the 1st if I was going to start this blog year right.  Being a little on the OCD side can be annoying at times.  Doing things like a first post of the year on the 3rd for example just rubs my fur the wrong way! lol  Today is the 5th, which is better.  Stop laughing!  It really is better!  That's ok.  When you do something strange, I'll snicker to my heart's content. So anyway, here we are.  A New Year, a blank slate, a blank book---whatever you like to call it.  For me, it's a New Scratchpad.  Why? Well you know that blank notepad/book you keep on your desk or counter or table where you scratch out your lists and ideas and goals.  Most everyone has one somewhere.  It's all clean and empty when you start, but then pretty soon this or that is scratched off because other ideas came along, or another list was made that out ranks the old one, or (once in awhile) something gets accomplished, so you scratch it off and write in something new.  Before too long it's a little dog-eared and smudged, but you keep on writing and scratching and rewriting until you use it all and it's time to get another one.  I love getting a new scratchpad!  So fresh and clean!  My life is a bit like that from year to year.  Some people write nice neat books, all organized and lovely.  And when the end of the year they can tuck it away with all the other past ones and pull out the fresh one.  I wish I was like that!  Every year, it seems, I decide I am going to be more organized.  Very firmly, too!  But soon I'm always back to the scratch pad, rewriting, scratching out, even ripping out a few pages! lol  I'm not in any way criticizing those people who have it all together.  No way!  I wish I could be more like that all the time!  I just have yet to accomplish it!  =s So here I am with my New Scratchpad---which already has a few lists in it---that already need rewritten to include a few more things.  =)   If you have a blank book I hope this one is the best you've ever written.  And if you have a new scratchpad (like me!), I hope you realize more dreams and goals than ever before.  Happy New Year everyone!