Happy New Year!

Hello, dear friends,
Traditionally, this time seems to be the period of "coming off" the Christmas shopping craze, drawing year-end conclusions and drawing out goals for the New Year.
For me, this season has been a non-traditional one. For starters, I decided not to put up a tree this year. With Joe working every day  - except Christmas - it seems that, no sooner we get it set up and decorated, it's going to be time to take it down.
Then - presents. Every year I tell myself that I am not going to go crazy shopping for gifts, and yet every time at Christmas I get swept up and carried off into the crazy shopping spree. I don't enjoy the shopping. I feel rushed and over-spent. The crowds of shoppers in every store always make me anxious... As a result, when Christmas morning comes, I feel stressed, spent and tired. I just want it to be over.
This year - non-traditionally - I exercised self-control. Each member of my family got one gift and one gift card. I set limits and I stuck to them. After all, if Christmas is the season of love and giving, then let's finally find out what love and giving is all about - without the heavy gift boxes and the heaps of trashed up wrapping paper to boot!
I am satisfied to conclude that my exercise paid off in spades. For, although we did not have a flashy Christmas - and the kids even mentioned that "it was not a real Christmas this year" - this season was the sanest I have felt in years. Not excited, not exalted, - but calmer than usual, and, above all, sane. Sanity is the best gift I got from the Powers That Be this Christmas (Yule, Solstice) season... and I appreciate it more than it shows on the outside.

"Merry Christmas"
Design by Nancy Turner

With sanity by my side (like a loyal friend and sidekick) I noticed that I do, in fact, have a social life! Letters, Christmas cards - and even one "care envelope" - found their way to my house from friends all over the world.. We have been corresponding through the year(s) - and they have not forgotten me. I was - and still am - overwhelmed with attention. Thank you.... This is the second gift of the season that I am grateful more than I can ever express - connection, not being forgot by my friends...

Here, I have to apologize for my behavior. I myself am lousy at writing Christmas cards - or any other cards, for that matter. All I can say is - thank you, my friends! You made my holiday season complete.

New Year was celebrated in the same spirit as Christmas - no excess. I did not worry about the house being clean, or "special" dishes to cook. There is a belief I was raised with that says the way you meet the New Year is the way you are going to spend it. So, there has to be good food in the house - something everyone likes. Every family member has to have money in their pocket (purse, wallet) - at least one dollar so they don't go into the New Year broke. The trash has to be taken out (well, that was me more than the tradition here), and there has to be good mood, good spirit among family and friends that gather.

All the essentials were taken care of - well, almost all of them... Who would have thought that it's the last and most important ingredient - the good mood and spirit - was the most difficult... Just six hours before midnight, Joe told me that his sister had two heart attacks in one day. She was in the hospital by the time he found out, in stable condition, but the news, of course, shook him up....
It seems like every year, right around Christmas, something bad happened in our family. Year after year, I keep hearing Joe's story about his father dying on Christmas morning - so in part Christmas seemed like a day of mourning to me, rather than celebration. I was respectful. I understood - or at least I thought I did. My own family, the one I came from, lives thousands of miles away, so if anything should happen, I am lucky to find out about it days or sometimes weeks later, by email. Grief is no foreigner to me, either. But I try not to dwell on it. At times I can't help it, and tears come without warning, and I wipe them off, and try to go on with what I am doing. I know that grief has to run its course, and at the end of that course is acceptance, which is necessary for all of us still living to keep living. If I fell down on the floor heartbroken and crying every time I thought of my grandmother who passed away some eight years ago, I would not be able to do anything else but weep. But I don't want to weep. I want to live. I want to feel calm, comfortable, and - what gives? - even happy some day.  I don't get enough of these emotions throughout the year as it is. So, when something bad happened on New Years this time, I... did not want to hear about it. After hearing the facts - heart attack, hospital, stable condition, daughter is with her, and nothing need be done - I wanted to go on with meeting my New Year. Was that selfish of me? Of course it was. But good feelings have been in short supply this past year, and I wanted  - nay, determined to! - meet the New Year as close to happy as possible.

After dinner, a friend stopped by. We drank Martinelli's (the girls and friend), beer (me) and champagne (Joe and me)... We played chess - or,rather, joked around and made faces while moving the pieces around. We laughed and we talked - about everything and about nothing, with no particular topic in mind. Rita, my oldest daughter, made me laugh. She does have sharp sense of humor and a talent for telling stories. She wants to be an actress, but thinks that she's too shy to do it "for reals". I hope she can achieve her dream some day not too long from now. Vera told stories about school, horrible substitutes and detention horrors. She can be very descriptive and insightful. I can see a young writer developing.

Today, thinking about last night's "quiet party" of ours, I feel (once again) tears welling in my eyes. But they are happy tears, brought on by happy memories. And that is the best way to meet the New Year.. so that there will be more to remember in the years to come.

Happy New Year!

Happy 4th of July!

My dear friends,
Happy Independence Day!

Design by Nancy Turner

I hope you have a wonderful time with your family and friends. Originally, I had big plans about cooking- and eating, but my DH has to work all day, so- instead I will just go to the gym, then stitch and cook dinner. Oh, and hide my cats away from the fireworks.

Still, even with my children away (girls are visiting family) and having to work, it's a special day. A day when the colonies decided to do "their own thing" and declared their independence from England. Ever since I came here - about 20 years ago - I felt that doing one's own thing is the main theme, the corner stone of this society. Becoming independent and making one's own decisions, becoming an adult is what the colonists have done as a country, and now perhaps it's their spirit that calls each one of us to do the same thing - on an individual level.

So, barbecues and fireworks aside, today I will be thinking about - what it means to be independent.

Have a wonderful holiday! 

A Christmas Finish!

Do you remember my "first experience" post about a Christmas design and hand dyed threads? 

Here is the finished ornament! 

"Woodland Dreams" by Blue Ribbon Designs
Just Cross Stitch Magazine, Christmas Issue

To finish it, I used red felt for the backing, rickrack "gingerbread" trim and a two buttons from my "hard-earned" Nancy Turner collection/ stash, and - a needle and some red (cranberry) thread... This year's ornament was sewn entirely by hand, - no sewing machine, no glue, no staples... Even if I say so myself - I think it turned out better than ever. I am proud! 

Not not sure whether this year's ornament is just smaller than the previous ones, or perhaps I found the right amount of stuffing to put in. Compared to it my last year's ornaments look like miniature overstuffed pillows... 

Then again, maybe I am just getting better at it. 

MERRY CHRISTMAS! 

Happy New Year!

Hello, my dear friends,
Happy New Year to you!  May the new year bring joy, health, solutions to all life's problems... and may all your WIPs be finished! (One can dream, can't one?)

Every year, I make an ornament for the Christmas Tree. Usually, I do not get it finished until some time in January. This time, however, I finished right before Christmas - and not just one, but five of them! Here is one of my favorites - the Snowman!

It took some adjusting to make sure he did not look like an old lady in a lacy bonnet with all that trim around him....

                     Finishing these took a battle with the sewing machine and a glue gun...

 

Oh Christmas Tree... 

Happy New Year! 

Love and Luck to All!

That was my thought when I was stitching this new biscornu designed by Olga Maxden. The whole process took me roughly six days, from stitching out the hearts to attaching the beads to putting it all together. And I loved every minute of it.

In addition to that, when I am not thinking of love, luck and stitching biscornus, I crochet. Right now I am working on a humongous soft blanket. Every Saturday  - well, almost every Saturday - I go to the crochet group at our local Beverly's store and enjoy the company of many ladies with the same interest as mine.... as well as birthdays, baby showers, life stories, and everything that comes with sitting in a large group of women for three hours straight. Surprisingly for myself, I do not mind.

One Saturday, though, I had to miss this "gathering of minds" for one simple and sad reason: I lost my crochet hook. Now when I say "I lost" I really want to say "It was stolen", but I don't have any real proof of that, except for conviction in my head. Who were the culprits? I will tell you, if you promise not to laugh. They were Nargles!

Nargles, according to the Online Urban Dictionary,  are creatures that "are known to live in mistletoe, and they are quite the little thieves." I did not believe in them at first, but the recent disappearances and subsequent "returns" of my favorite items made me change my mind.

Let's see... About a year ago, I purchased a Celtic Autumn chart in Solvang, brought it home, and put it in my drawer to be started at a later time. When that "later time" came, I opened the drawer and could not find it there... I searched my entire office, questioned my children and my husband, but, alas, the chart was nowhere to be found.

Disappointed and sad, I gave up on finding it. Then, about a month ago, something told me to look in that same drawer again, and there it was, my chart, neatly folded and with conversion printouts, just as I left it, in the exactly same place. I was overjoyed.

The next two thing to disappear was my embroidery scissors. Taught by the chart experience, I did not immediately rush to the store for the new pair, but decided instead to wait. It took those scissors a week to reappear... right next to my armchair. Finally, my crochet hook disappeared under unknown circumstances, and reappeared today in my office, right in the middle of the carpet floor. How else can all this be explained? Nargles, of course!

I am sure that, after reading this post, you will immediately start believing in nargles too. But even if you are not totally convinced, or if, even worse, while reading these words you shake your head and mumble to yourself something about a "looney, batty cat lady" who lost her mind or memory... well, that is, of course, your choice. May I just leave you with one thought: there are lots of creatures in this world, some visible, some not, some believed to be purely imaginary. But just because you have never seen something, does not mean it does not exist. And if something exists in my head, does not mean it is not real.

 With that, I wish Love and Luck to All! 

(Note: to qualify for a wish, belief in nargles is not required).

New Year starts with...

My new year has started with a hope for a job, followed by a sudden drop of disappointment. At the last moment, the client cancelled the assignment. And I was all ready to go!
I suppose that is the down side of working temporary assignments: anything can change at any moment. So, I am back to my life: stitching, crochet and housework. I will just have to remember that... anything can change at any moment!
As for the stitching, at the end of December I finished a small Thanksgiving ornament, but never had a chance to take a picture. Here it is.

Happy Thanksgiving!

 The cross stitch design is by Joann Elliott, stitched on 14-ct Fiddler's Cloth. Originally, it was meant to be a card, but the ornament seemed more interesting. I am thinking of making the whole series - Independence Day, Halloween, Christmas, and Easter.

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas to all! My holiday mood is running late this year, so instead of words let the pictures tell the story....

The Advent calendar - stitched some time ago and  - finally - framed in felt with the help of my daughter Rita.

A Star - Christmas decoration, one of several, on our tree. When on his first Christmas my son, then nine months old, dropped and broke his first glass ornament, I realized that glass decorations were not in our future for a while. Without unbreakable ornaments, the only other option was - hand-made decorations. The first year, my tree was decorated with pompoms made out of wool. Over time, I collected more hand-made items.  By the way, for anyone who asks about a strangely bent corner  - this star is not ripped or damaged, it's "vintage"... That's right, vintage.

Another decoration - Santa Claus begging for work... Funny and, given the current job situation, quite contemporary.

Vera made this doll from construction paper.

Merry Christmas!

Pre-Valentine's Day Thinking

As I was thinking about where to go for Valentine's Day dinner with my husband, I decided to look online for ideas. Right there on MSN there was an article about "where to take your man for Valentine." I read it, and... wow, what a load of claptrap! As open-minded as I try to be, I don't believe a trip to the Strip Club would set for a prelude to a romantic evening. But, perhaps it's just me.
Then, there was the "Naked Lunch".... Hehehe.... I wish my husband and I could take that long of a lunch in the afternoon... Come on, writers, who did you write this for? High School Students? Most people have to work for living, and I know their schedule has 1 hour lunch - maximum... So - nice idea, but no thanks. This will have to wait till retirement - hopefully, my husband will still be willing to look at me naked then...
Then, there's the casino... Great idea in general, if only the holiday did not fall on Thursday - again, most people have to work the next day!
Anyway, after looking at all these ... "special" ideas, I think we will be going to a restaurant after all. Yes, plain old-fashined dinner and maybe a movie - if time permits. I think my husband will be happy to go to some specialty place, not your regular Olive Garden or Denny's. He likes Japanese food, and, in fact, he made me fond of it too. So, we'll most likely end up in a Sashimi Bar or at the small Japanese place - it should be quiet tomorrow, in spite of all the holiday mess...
And - for those who are reading this post - don't get your ideas from online articles; I am starting to think it's the worst place to go for... anything, really.
Have a Happy Valentine's Day. It's a day to remember why you are together.

Family celebrations

Today is my youngest daughter's birthday, she turned five years old. In celebration of this significant event, we decided to go to Solvang. Solvang is a touristy place that started as a Danish village. We were planning to leave the house by about noon, then spend three or so hours there, and then come back into town for the pizza party. However, we got held up, because we were helping one of our good friends, and we ended up leaving just after one o'clock....
We stopped at the coffee shop, and then walked around town. This place is bright and colorful, it's designed to look like an Old Town, with all kinds of bakeries, restaurants, craft, linen, and toy shops. My daughter picked out her present - a Pink Panther doll, - while I stood drooling over Madame Alexander Wizard of Oz collection. Some day, when I retire and have a lot of money (dream on), I will have a doll collection like that... May be... or not. In fact, I wondered what it would be like to live in the town like Solvang - full time?
First of all, this town is pretty expensive: a cup of coffee - just a regular joe - is 2 to 3 dollars. So, obviously, one would have to have plenty of money to enjoy the perks of the place. But then - what are the perks?
Sure, there are some nice restaurants on the strip, they all look like pictures from Andersen's storybook. Not all of them taste authentic, however, - their Liverwurst may have been purchased from the local Safeway/Vons store... We don't know for sure. Then, there are all of 50 stores - maximum - on the strip - and half of them are gift shops. I personally would get tired of looking at fancy "gift" things with no particular purpose if I had to do it every day. And finally, I think I would get tired of the concept of the land "where every day is a holiday." Too bright. Too shiny. Too shallow.
It was a holiday trip for my daughter, though, and she enjoyed it; that was all that mattered. In the long run, however, I was happy to get home - to the land of "every day is a work day, and sometimes you get a break."