So Glad I Wasn't Alive in the 1880's

I finally got Chris interested in an idea for Halloween costumes. If I'm going to make something decent, I have to start about a month ago. Unfortunately, the pattern he decided he likes is this. Not bad until you consider that puts me in the position of having to make myself something witha bustle. I've already got enough of a natural bustle, I shudder to think what I'm going to have to do now. I'm looking at this (the full length dress, not the saloon girl versions). It's the only thing I've seen that I think I can handle both in terms of construction and self confidence. Of course, the don't make that pattern big enough to fit me, so it will probably end up being a combination of that pattern and a couple plus size formal patterns I already have.

The good point is that I get to add some tatting into whatever I do! Period appropriate and all that good stuff :) I'll have to make myself a choker with some of the velvet ribbon. Sigh, as if I need one more project on my growing to-do list. The madness never ends.

Conversations with my Body

I have found myself talking to myself more often these days. It's not a matter of going stir crazy anymore. I've begun to bargain with myself. I've always done this on some level. When your body begins to break down and betray you little by little, you start to see it as a foreign entity. You separate yourself from the traitor. My mind still works fairly well but my body doesn't seem to be working with the same operating system.

I remember back in high school having to go up or down a flight of stairs to get to every class. I used to charge up the first five or so and get progressively slower eventually mentally pleading with my sluggish limbs to carry me up the last two or three stairs so I wouldn't be late to class. It seemed like the end of the world looking up that flight of steps. Boy, those were the days.

Now I'm verbally pleading, begging, and threatening my body to get me up the four stairs at the front of the house so I can get inside where the temperature is more moderate, where the bathroom, bed, computer, etc are. It seems a million years ago that it wasn't really so bad until the sixth or seventh chair. Now my downfall is the third.

There was a time when I could get up from the ground. At least, I think there was. Now when I fall, I have to wait for Chris to get home and help me up or scoot on my behind to the bed and hope I can roll over onto my knees so I can sort of flop up and pull myself up with the sheets. Straightening from a sitting position is nearly impossible sometimes. It just feels like I'm losing the fight by inches.

I suppose this sounds like a pity party, but that's not my intention. I'm honestly just trying to preserve a piece of my current experience to look back on someday when I've lost a few more precious inches. I suppose the best way to explain is to say that there was a time when I could run, when I could sit on the floor and get back up again. I know there was, but I don't remember what it was like. I'm hoping that someday I can look back at this post and say to myself "Look, it's a struggle, but it's always been that way."

I may have a traitor for a body, but at least I'm fighting back, even if it's just verbal threats.

Work In Progress

I'm still on the fence over whether or not I like tatting onto velvet ribbon. The result is attractive, but the ribbon likes to warp at the edges. I think the one thing I am sure of is that I have to do an edging on both sides to even it out. Anyway, here are some sneak peeks of my experiment:

The pictures aren't the best, but I was just trying to take a couple quick snapshots to share my progress. I tried something else a little different with this piece. The edging on both sides are variations of the same pattern. The rings are the same size with the same number of double stitches, but on one side, I put lots of picots to make it look frillier while the opposite side has just one center picot on the big rings with a bead to give it a more stream-lined look. Not entirely sure I'm in love with the way this plan is working either. The farther I get on it, though, the more I think I like it.

And, of course, I still have no idea what I'm going to name it when it's done.

You Know You're a Theatre Geek When . . .

Someone says "Money, money" and suddenly Joel Grey and Liza Minnelli are doing a number in your head

Gotta Love the Internet!

My best friend from childhood found me on Facebook and I feel like I've gotten a piece of my childhood and myself back. It's hard to explain what that means. I guess that when you've lost as many people as I have in my life, you start to feel like no one remembers who you were once upon a time. Does that make sense? Between moving around, changing schools, changing family situations, I don't have many ties to who I was when I was very young.

Besides, do you ever forget your first best friend? I don't think you do. That's a very strong bond. I'm so excited I think I might burst! It's nice to reconnect with someone you cared and still care about and to know that you haven't been forgotten either. You can tell I'm excited because I'm babbling even in print! Now I'm going to stop babbling and go work on productive things for church puppet team. Oh, and breakfast, there should be breakfast. Food is good.

Happy Birthday, Babydoll!

We finished! Through the combined efforts of my in-laws, my usually working sewing machine, and myself, we finished my hubby's birthday present in time for his birthday today! Meet Hugh:

Chris has been saying for a while that he wanted a puppet of his own. He had an idea to have a newscaster who could do the between portions of the church puppet programs and even have a few skits of his own. We have a few skit ideas in mind, but nothing fleshed out yet.

Well, I grilled him for a little while to get an idea of exactly what he was thinking of and teamed up with my father-in-law who knows how to make puppets and leads the puppet team. The sewing was done by me, and he put it together.

Chris was thrilled with his present and Hugh was happy to have a life and purpose.

I Need More Hours In the Day! Someone Get On That Please!

Today, I was very good. I did not allow World of Warcraft to steal my time away from me. Yes, it was patch day and the servers were down, but I didn't even know that. I was a very good girl. I didn't touch the computer until a few minutes ago. All day. No email, no shop, no WoW, nothing. I was productive.

I spent the morning tatting a special order Ninja Temptress choker and it's more than half done. I even spent an hour sitting out on the back porch soaking up a little sun. (Just a little, still sporting my normal pasty look.) Hubby and I went out to dinner and I continued tatting while he played WoW when we got home. See, I'm a good girl. Do I get a cookie?

Tomorrow, while I might not have quite as much self control, I'm hoping to finish the choker and maybe get a little more work done on hubby's birthday present. I have about a week to finish. I'd tell all about it, but with my luck, this would be the one time he'd actually read my blog and ruin everything. Don't worry, I'll tell all about it next week when it's finished and given to him. I'll take pictures, too.

So now the question is whether or not I can go to sleep tonight without hopping on WoW. . .