In Which I Find Myself Falling Off the Back of Santa’s Sleigh

Those who know me well know that I do not approve of stress over Christmas.  Any given Christmas I do only those things that make sense for that year.  If the thought of finding the time to get and decorate a tree makes my jaw clench, then I don’t have one.  If I don’t have time to make the lovely handmade cards I usually make, I send e-cards instead.  None of this makes me sad or unhappy.  I can be perfectly content to have Christmas with a hot toddy and some knitting just as much as I love to spend it with  lots of people and food and chaos.

Because we aren’t guaranteed a perfect Christmas every time and trying to create one frequently doesn’t.  Letting it just be whatever it turns out to be is more likely to get me a little peace on earth and if it doesn’t then I’ll have a great story to tell.

I like to pretend my non attachment to Christmas Perfection keeps me saner than my fellows who are busy searching the crowded mall for this year’s in toy and trying to get their 2 yr old interested in building a gingerbread house.

What I do like to do is plan.  That’s because I’m a planner.  I love to make lists.  Plus it helps me avoid the mall between Thanksgiving and Christmas. I even have an Excel program set up to track my Christmas projects.  I carefully assess my situation in early Fall and  make my decisions then.  How much can I spend?  Who is getting the handmade scarf and who will get a purchased trinket?  Do I want to redo my door wreath this year?  When do I need to mail gifts?  Am I mailing gifts?

So this year it looked like I was going to be unemployed from mid December to the beginning of January.  In spite of the budgetary concerns, I was actually pleased about this.  I made plans to have a craft day with my granddaughter.  I would do some of the projects piling up on my worktable.   I would also have time to begin editing my novel and write a short story for my alumni literary publication.  I would have time to do all the fun parts of Christmas at a relaxed pace.

Guess what?  I’ve been offered work I can’t afford to turn down. What with work, holiday parties, and  other Christmas stuff, suddenly every day, evening and weekend is full.  My low key, low stress version has been replaced with the Santa’s wild ride version.

I can’t really pride myself on my non attachment this year either.  Because it turns out my attachment isn’t to the perfect Christmas; it’s to not stressing over the perfect Christmas.   Might as well let go of that one right now ’cause Santa’s taking a hard turn to the left and there’s deep snow below.  Hang On!

I was having a cup o’ joe at the Waffle House. I had just finished my novel at 3 am that morning and was contemplating a slice of pie, when…

I think that’s going to be the beginning of my next novel.  I say next because:

I did it.  I wrote 51033 words in 28 days, finishing 2 days early.  I did it in spite of dress rehearsals at the opera and Thanksgiving and unruly cats and a play date with my granddaughter and Christmas knitting.

While it turned out to be easier than I thought it would be, I could not have done it without the support group  for NaNoWriMo on Ravelry.  I want to thank them all and if you are still writing, keep going.  The end is in sight.

If you are now wondering “will I get to read it?”  the answer is not until it has been seriously edited and maybe not then either.  Because it’s easier than you think to write a novel but writing a novel that is worth reading and won’t embarrass the !@#$% out of me is a lot harder.

Happy Thanksgiving

May we always have something to be grateful for,

even if it’s weird.

Hope you have as much Thanksgiving as you can hold,

and don’t forget to thank the cook!

Word count:  42730

Left to go:  7270

Personal Archeology

In college I decorated my apartment with found objects- fruit crates left on the curb outside the Chinese grocery, driftwood and barnacled rocks from the beach, old bottles from the trash and the occasional student art project donated by friends.

Occasionally I actually made something to display as art.  Usually junking it a couple of years later because it never seemed really good enough. Sometimes it really wasn’t and turned bedraggled and dusty and embarrassing before I found something to replace it with.

In the last couple of years, I’ve managed to purge the last bits of my hippie past and the later “better” stuff too.  Paring down.

But I’ve wanted for a while to find a big piece of art work for my living room.  Last year I found a print I liked, but it doesn’t really fill the space as well as I would like.  I can’t afford to buy a canvas as big enough to fill the space, either, even if I had a suitable place to actually paint something.  Like an apartment with more than one window that opens and no inquisitive cats.

But sometimes life comes along and hands you exactly what you need.  Sometimes it’s something you never thought you’d see again.   Like these:

3 of these on the wall will fill the space nicely.

Where did they come from you ask?  Well I made them 25+ years ago for a corporate event.  They have been stored all this time in a warehouse- property of the company that produced the event and hired me to make them.  The company dissolved some time ago and the former owner decided it was now time to purge.

They will probably get dusty. In the future, they may even be embarrassing.  But for now they will do just fine.

Word Count:  30073

Left to go:  19927

I have passed the hump and headed toward the finish but it would sure be a lot easier if I didn’t have a cat on my lap digging her claws into my thigh.

Flying By

Just a quicky to keep everyone up to date.

I am still doing NaNoWriMo but because of dress rehearsals last week I am very behind and need to spend the weekend writing, writing and more writing with a couple of short breaks for knitting and life maintence.

Last weekend I traveled to the Whole Nine Yarns in Woodstock Georgia and used the gift card I won in the shop hop for this:

Dream in Color Smooshy, colorway:  Flamingo Pie.  Actually the colors of an Autumn sunset.  I got a couple of other items which will have to remain a secret for now.  It is on display in my living room because it is too beautiful to put away.

Then for my birthday clever and generous Jane gave me this:

Two skeins of Lorna’s Laces Shepherd Sock, color Gold Hill.  She put it into one of her fun project bags made of a cute kitty print.  I am considering, just considering mind you, knitting socks from it.

Then the lovely and talented blogless Diana made me an incredible and beautiful lace shawl I haven’t had a chance to photograph yet.

I have finished a Christmas gift hat, cast on for a charity scarf using some leftover Patton’s Classic, am now over half way thru the Habu Scarf and in about the same place with the Merlot scarf.

Now, must go write some more.

Word Count:  20557

Left to go:  29443

 

 

On This Day in History

I am 60.

How did this happen?

I used to imagine myself at 30.  I thought I’d live in a suburban ranch style and drive a station wagon to pick up kids from choir practice and little league.  I thought I would make my husband cocktails when he came home from work and dress for dinner- like Donna Reed and the mom on Father Knows Best.

Life, though, has a way of working out in really unexpected ways.  Thank God- I probably would have become a suicidal alcoholic pill popping (suburban) momma if I had continued down that path.

Ok, ok, I confess I did have a station wagon for a while but only because it was what I could afford that had enough cargo space to haul everything I needed for my work.  No team sports were involved.

I also could see myself at 50.  Heading in to the millenium wearing a shapeless house frock and a head scarf like my grandmother.  That didn’t happen either.  I believe I had a red velvet shirt and black jeans on for that occasion.  Because I grew up wearing jeans and I’ll probably still be wearing them if and when I turn 90.

Here I also need to confess that I have worn shapeless dresses- but only in those eras when everyone did.  You can stop with the “and if your friends jumped off a cliff ” routine now.

I didn’t really ever picture myself 60 so this is really is a new experience.  It’s true too that while I know I’m not quite the same person I was at 20- I still feel like that person.  I’m still me.   Except when I have to get up from sitting on the floor and maybe first thing in the morning- I’m a little creaky then.  Well, and maybe  when I look in the mirror too.

Word Count:  10381

39619 to go

Reality: down for the count

What made you think you could do this?  Are you insane?

Well, I just decided I needed to do it.  I just really, really want to and if I don’t do it sometime I’ll never do it.

Needed to do it?  What about needing to get the show ready for dress rehearsals next week and dealing with your car tag and Christmas Knitting and OMG DRESS REHEARSALS  and do you know where your Christmas knitting is….  Did you have to NEED to do this now.

Well this is when NaNoWriMo is, November.  A lot of other stuff happens in November, I know but it’s not like I haven’t learned how to put my life on hold for productions.

So just how is this extravaganza going anyway?

I don’t know.  It’s all over the place.  I can’t connect the scenes up and I have whole pages of stuff that doesn’t belong.  Last night I added a ghost and a dog.  I think that might be helping.

And you think this is progress?

Well everyone who has done this before says its gets more coherent as you go and the stuff that doesn’t fit can be edited out in the rewrite.

Rewrite?  You mean there’s more?  You aren’t just going to start a bonfire with the manuscript and sacrifice it to the Gods of bad writing?

I sure hope not.

Well count me out of this.  I need to go collect some firewood.  While you’re busy I’ll just worry about the dust bunnies under the table and whether or not you paid the power bill, OK?  Just get some sleep will ya- all this is hurting my head.

Watch that attitude,  missy. I can always write you in to the book and I don’t have to be nice.

Current word count: 6098

43902 to go.

Skipping Forward

I’m feeling particularly lucky.

I won $2 in the lottery.

I used the money to get 2 new numbers and didn’t win anything.

I also won a gift certificate in the Local Shop Hop.   Whoopee!  That almost makes up for not getting to go to SAFF.

The store I won it from is about an hour away.  I won’t have time to claim it until after the next show at the opera opens.  Now I know why people say winning the lottery is stressful.

I’m feeling so optimistic that I have signed up to eat something bigger than my head to write a 50000 word novel in 30 days.  During the month of November to be exact.  November when I have dress rehearsals at the opera, a monumental birthday, Thanksgiving and necessity of traveling to acquire yarn.  That’s right.  I’m going to attempt National Novel Writing Month.   I have officially lost my mind and if you see me wandering around Decatur muttering to myself just chalk up it to a plot development crisis and be gentle.

I don’t know yet what this is going to do to the blog and my knitting time.  Last year I obsessively posted to the blog every day in November as part of another absurd challenge and had trouble stopping in December.  I’m hoping the same euphoria will not only carry me thru 50000 words but my Christmas knitting too.

Meanwhile, this week I’m pre writing a few blog entries to post later in the month.  Just in case I can’t come with an additional 300 words a week to keep everyone entertained and updated.  Plus it will make me write everyday so by the time I actually have to start the book I will have locked myself into the routine.  I hope.

When the Great Pumpkin gets here…

It’s pumpkin weather!  and they’re everywhere!

I was thrilled to see this:

I’m a little confused by the “dress for the event info”.  It makes me wonder why a pumpkin carving contest would be black tie?  Then I start imagining Fred Astaire in his tails dancing with a pumpkin on his head.

No Fred or Ginger but lots of little ones amid the pumpkins:

And even at the Botanical Garden where I went to see the Henry Moore exhibit:

Pumpkin Topiaries!  I want one.  I want to cover my Thanksgiving table with mini versions.

The sculptures were incredible.  I am so glad I live in a place where this is available.  I can’t imagine how they moved so many huge pieces here.  This one in particular is so big it dwarfs the man in front of it.

Right along with these classic modern works by an icon of the art world the Botanical Gardens also has…

ScareCrows!  This particular one was made by my granddaughter’s class at school.  Too Gorgeous.

Wait… I Need a Jacket???

There was no warning.  One day I was wondering if I should turn the air conditioning back on and the next I was pulling hoodies and scarves  out of the forgotten dark corners of my closet.  I thought it was never going to stop raining.  I thought it was going to be warm and muggy for the rest of my life.  I thought that global climate change meant Atlanta was now going to have a monsoon season like the tropics.  Followed by the dry water restriction season.  I was contemplating the purchase of bright colored plastic boots.  I was wondering how long it would be before I needed to trade my car in for a boat.

I am not ready.  My sweaters are still bagged up.  Wooly scarves and hats are in plastic bins with the silk wraps and evening bags I want to have a use for but don’t really.  I need to turn out the closets.  Put away the linen pants and find my coat.

I’m not ready to turn my heat on and until the cats start trying to sleep under me, I’m not going to.  Take that Mother Nature.  Take that Gas Company. I currently have on a fleece hoodie and a scarf- if I’d ever knitted myself a pair of fingerless mitts- I’d have those on too.

OK, so I really like Fall.  It’s my favorite season.  I just expected it to arrive the way it usually does- with some crisp air, lots of sunny days,  and a riot of colored leaves.  It’s still green, it’s still mostly cloudy, it’s just !@#$%^ cold.

Of course Fall here means that  knitters thoughts turn to SAFF (Southeastern Animal Fiber Fair).  I won’t be going this year- too much work, not enough wherewithall.  But I can tell some of my Friday night group are starting to get excited:

Famous Steve (he of SAFF sheep hat fame) modeling a cowl on his head.

Since I can’t go I have pulled out some Knitting Notions Merino Sport- which I bought at SAFF 2007- as a reminder that I have beautiful yarn waiting to be knit.  I’ve cast on for a scarf using a stitch pattern I found in a book from the library:

It just happens to be my favorite color.  I’d name it after my new favorite red wine but Montepulciano is a mouthful- so I am calling it Merlot.