Super Tuesday

This has been a very ... interesting week and it's only Tuesday!  Yesterday was a bizarre day at work.  It was a day for things that never happen, happening.  Luckily they were small things and nothing critical - just annoying.  I will be happy when this week is over. Not to wish my life away, but just so I can get this crazy week done and over.

Last night I gave a crochet lesson to a beginner.  I was nervous about it because as many times as I have talked about crocheting I haven't really been a "teacher" of crochet.  All the way home I was talking to myself about what to say.  I don't think I did a great job, but my student seemed to think so.  I sent her home with 3 balls of yarn and a hook and the ability to chain stitch and do a single crochet.  Next time we'll do HDC and DC.  It's all about tension and rhthym, don't you think? 

I wish I could crochet all day long. 

Farmhouse Porch Chat #78

 

Another Farmhouse Porch Chat with the gang over at Everyday Rurality!  Go check them out for some great conversation and fun!

  Questions

1. Have you ever been on a boat? (Motor boat, sail boat, cruise ship, ark, or Good Ship Lollipop)
2. Do you need an alarm to wake up in the morning, or do you wake up naturally? If you have an alarm, tell us what type.
3. Have you ever had a yard sale?
4. Do you like kitchen gadgets? What are some of your favorite?
5. Do you read labels at the grocery store?

1.  I have been on a few boats.  Out on the water isn't my favorite place to be although it can be fun and relaxing.  My favorite memories of boating is on trips to Lake Havasu.  Our friends have a small boat and we could zip across the lake into the channel or into the cove for a day of fun!

2.  After so many years in the military and waking up early I have an internal alarm.  I don't need one, but I set my iPhone just in case I oversleep.  Right now the alarm plays the song "5-1-5-0" by Dierks Bentley.  :)

3.  We have had a couple of garage sales and I find them really annoying.  I am not good at dealing with "customers" because they want something for nothing.  The last one we had in CA I put out a set of dishes I no longer used.  It was a complete set, stacked nicely in a box and I think it was marked $15.  A lady actually asked me if I had the set in a different color.  Uhm, hello?  This is a yard sale, not Pier 1.  Then she decided since I only had it in the one color I should sell it for $5.  Needless to say she left without the dishes.

4.  I do not care for kitchen gadgets.  I'm not big on cooking anything other than ordinary dishes for me and DH.  We are simple people and don't need fancy gadgets. 

5.  I very rarely do. 



Farmhouse Porch Chat #77

Howdy!  I'm participating in Everyday Rurality's Farmhouse Porch Chat #77.  Visit everyone over there! 



Here are the questions and my answers!

QUESTIONS

1.Do you eat eggs? What is your favorite way to serve them?

I love eggs.  I love them overmedium.  NO icky runny stuff please!!  I also like them scrambled with cheese.  Me and DH love to make breakfast burritoes with scrambled eggs. 

2.Do you have a favorite item that you really like having around? (a pillow, a chair, a sweater, a teddy bear, etc.)

I'm going to say my yarn.  I find great comfort when I can see it.  A work in progress is never far from my reach.

3.Is most of the furniture in your home dark wood, light wood, painted, lacquered, or distressed?

I'd say medium wood finish.  Nothing matches completely.  We have some light oak pieces and then we have some medium darker pieces. 

4.Please fill in the rest of this sentence. "I could write a book about____________."

I could write a book about a love story...  Still working on it!

5.If money and calendar/family obligations weren't an issue, would you prefer to spend next weekend at a Bed and Breakfast, a posh hotel, a cabin in the woods, or on a sailboat on a calm body of water? I guess the last thing, the sailboat, would have to be someplace warm. :) (It's 30+ degrees here.)

A cabin in the woods.  I love the idea of looking out and seeing nothing but nature.  No cars driving past, no car horns, maybe not even seeing another person.  I wouldn't even mind no technology. 

Yarn ball heaven

So as planned I did indeed reorganize the craft room.  The DH was kind enough to purchase and put together some neat shelving that make fine bins.  The wood is laquered so as not to snag and one of them is bright white, which really looks great when filled with bright, colorful yarn.  I am quite pleased with the results in more ways than one.  I knew I could consolidate quite a bit of yarn because it had been a while since my last reorg and I also knew I could make balls out of some of the skeins due to their size.  Now, I know it's nuts but I LOVE to roll yarn.  If I could get paid to do it I would do it 10 hours a day.  No joke - I love it.  I have so many yarn balls now!  I absolutely love it.  I am going to take a pic this evening of them and share because I know you won't believe how many I have. 

I finished up the Ocean Blue Signature afghan and it's posted on Etsy.  I started another based on the colors I have in my stash and decided to go with a Spring theme - using pale yellow, spring green and a kelly green.  So far it's working up fast and really nice. 

Yesterday a cousin of mine asked if I would consider making her a poncho.  She sent me the pics and it's really a nice poncho. Come to find out it belongs to a friend of hers who got it from her MIL - who happens to be a Native American with tons of talent.  Gulp.  I'm not sure I can duplicate this gorgeous poncho to my cousin's liking.  I will try and get the pics and post so you guys can take a look. 

It's supposed to get super cold today and tonight.  The girls will be blanketed and tucked into their stalls for sure.  I know they are not as cold as I believe them to be, but putting the blankets on makes me sleep better at night. 

We have a new Craft Club member!  That makes officially 6 now.  The next meeting is at my house on Feb 17th.  I'm excited to get together with my fellow crafters! 

Well I hope everyone has a marvelous week!

Craft Room Makeover

This weekend I am reorganizing my craft room.  Not really a room because it doesn't have a door and four walls.  It's the formal living room area of our house - which is never used.  Our family room (right off the kitchen) is the location for all things "living" so when we moved in we decided I would have that area and the DH would have the 3rd room for his train/man cave.  He needs a door because we are certain one of our cats will find it necessary to carry off his train "stuff".  Anyway, for some time now we have been talking about our lack of bookshelves and my yarn is currently occupying two of our bookshelves.  So we are buying bins and I will commence to go through my stash.  Saturday morning is the target time frame.  The sooner I get started the better.  I'm anxious to get started.  It's a great way to take inventory of exactly what I do have and who doesn't like a freshly organized area?

Couple of things that have been making me a little crazy lately I just have to get off my chest. 

1.  Who cares about the Kardashians?  I cannot believe she got famous from a video.  I mean, really?  And now it seems like all of Hollywood is ga-ga over the whole darn family.  She's pregnant, but not by her still husband.  She has zero talent - none of them have any talent.  Yet they are LOADED.  Really?  I need to let go of stuff like this because it's just nonsense, but to me it shows how screwed up our society really is.

2.  I'm ready to declare a new political affiliation. 

Okay.  I feel much better now.  Hope you all have a marvelous Friday!!!!  Let's give it hell!!!

Trickle down effect

I have always thought it was my DH that set the tone for the household.  Because I am a Libra my sole purpose in life is basically about harmony and balance.  As long as everyone else is happy then I can be happy.  I am a true Libra.  I strive for this balance in EVERYTHING I do - it even reflects in the crochet items I make.  At least it feels that way to me.

Yesterday I realized that my DH actually feeds off of my attitude.  Imagine my surprise!  Because I have been feeling down lately about my work and not feeling very much reward or satisfaction it has trickled down to him.  He began to feel badly about me driving to work every day and being the sole bread winner in the family.  He thought perhaps it was beginning to become a chore with my long commute.  He was worried I would get burnt out.  My first thought was, "How sweet!"  And then I thought, "How terrible of me to be negative when I try so hard to be positive!" 

So I am changing my tune and attitude.  I have many, many things to be thankful and grateful for.  So my work isn't EXACTLY how I'd like it to be.  Maybe it's up to me to shape that role into something I find more rewarding.  I have a great job and I work with some wonderful people.  I get paid a good wage and really, what more can a girl ask for?  Sure, it would be great to be able to crochet for a living, but that's not what Fate had in store for me.  I know God has a plan and I need to let that play out. 

Trickle down effect...  This morning my DH was in a better mood and his emails were considerably more lighthearted knowing I am "okay".  Trickle down effect...

The sun don't shine on a moonshine still

That's one of my favorite lines of all time.  How revealing and secretive all at the same time, right?  It's a line from a bluegrass song called Good Corn Liquor by The Steeldrivers.  If you're a bluegrass fan (or even if you aren't) you should check it out.

So driving in to work this morning I was trying to get my second wind.  I have been feeling like things aren't right with me and I am trying to fix them.  Or fix me.  I can't figure out which at the moment isn't right...  I had my iPod on and this song came on.  Every time I hear it I get a little daring.  That wild hair stands straight up and all I can think about is being more alive than whatever I am doing right now.  It doesn't necessarily mean I'm going to break any laws.  Then again it doesn't mean I won't either.  It's just this feeling I get deep down - wanting everything life has to offer.

Tonight is "hotel" night for me.  After work I am going to use the fitness center here at work to walk on the treadmill.  It's difficult to want to do too much, but I know realistically I need to start slow.  So my goal today is to walk 1 mile on the treadmill.  That doesn't sound like much but it's a start and I shall work up from there.  My goal is to do the same in the morning at the hotel's fitness center - walk for 1 mile.  Then I will shower and come to work.  My goal is to do that for one month - walking 2x a week on a treadmill.  Depending on how I feel next week I will increase the distance. 

I hope you all have a wonderful Tuesday! 

Farmhouse Porch Chat #76

Here are the questions for today's chat, brought to you by Everyday Rurality.

 QUESTIONS

1. What was your favorite game as a child?
2. Have you ever had your own business? (home business, a shop, Etsy, lemon-aid stand, etc)
3. How's your spelling?
4. How are you about going to the dentist?
5. Do you enjoy board games?

1.  Depends on how old...  When I was younger (5) I loved pretending to be a horse.  As I got older I loved kickball with the neighbor kids. 

2.  I have a shop on Etsy now.  It's the only business I have owned.  I would love to eventually open a shop.  Time will tell.

3.  I'm rather anal about spelling....  It annoys me when things aren't correct.

4.  I love the dentist.  I actually fall asleep in the chair.  Wierd, I know.

5.  I love board games.  We used to have 24 hour Monopoly game days with our 3 kids growing up.  During that time you could eat whatever was in the house and sleep where you wanted.  If you were out quick you could watch TV while the game finished out.  Then we'd start up another for a full 24 hours.  It was a lot of fun and something the kids remember to this day.  Now I love the game Apples to Apples. 

Wake up

There are times during the day when I wonder who I am kidding about my skillset.  Honestly; is there anything I know anything about?  I am beginning to think not.  Have you wanted so badly to be "that" person everyone goes to for insight and answers?  The last time I felt like that was in the job I had prior to moving.  Everyone came to me because the work I did was something I owned.  It was my creation and I was involved in it's every detail.  I knew why something existed and where to find it. 

Here, not so much.  I just do not have a grasp as to our mission and goals.  Actually, that's not correct.  The real truth is I don't feel invested in either.  Or perhaps the real issue is interest. It's just not very interesting to me.  Everyone else's emails are so enlightening and "smart".  Mine are generic and brief.  Don't get me wrong - I do my job and I do it very well.  But there is just that spark that is missing.  I think much of it had to do with my connection to the Marines in that job.  It was a job I felt like was important. 

Oops, I did it again...

I just can't seem to find my way to this darn computer when I am home.  I had such good intentions of posting every day that I have been off.  No such luck. 

I have enjoyed my time off though.  I have crocheted quite a bit and am about 2/3's finished with a scrap throw.  I tried to upload a pic of it for you but for some reason it's not working....  Maybe next time.  It's "okay" - although everyone that sees it seems to love it.  Funny how that works sometimes.

The snow is melting and that makes things quite messy, but I honestly don't mind.  It's funny to look out over our property at the areas where the snow is untouched.  We are not expecting any snow or rain for the next week and temps might actually reach the mid 40's.  That would be a warm up for sure considering we've barely made it into the 30's. 

We have started a craft club!  Some of my friends from high school on FB have been chatting about getting together to crochet and we finally made the first "meeting".  We decided not to limit it to just crocheters so are calling it a craft club!  I'm excited!  The first meetup is the 13th.

I have also made the decision to enter a crocheted item to the County Fair this year.  I need to get the rules and find out where I can fit something I make in.  From the entries last year I think it's obvious there are only a few ladies that submit work. I plan on shaking things up a bit this year with my entry(s).  :)

Okay, off to muck stalls and then do some post Christmas organizing!  Enjoy your day!!!