I’m working on managing my feelings of relief and joy at the change in my government at noon today. SUCH A LOT of feelings here. And also trying to figure out what I want to do for Lee’s yearly challenge. So many choices for the future. Nothing but good times ahead.
What are you working on? Future plans, now that we have a future again?
I’ve been working on quilting. I’ve got a number of tops that I’ve put together over the years and it’s time to get at least a couple of them done. This cactus flower was one I put together as a mystery quilt-along last May. I pulled fabrics from my stash, and I was very pleased with the results. This week, I got the quilting finished and the binding put on. All it needs now is a label.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CKQ5H01B5qC/
I’ve also been working on a quilt I started over 15 years ago with the intention of giving it to my aunt. She just celebrated her 90th birthday, so I pulled it out to get it completed. As I’ve been working, I’ve been seeing the flaws. My borders were not measured correctly. I’ve been making small corrections as I go – and I’m probably too far along to fix it – but I really should have just taken all the borders off, remeasured and reattached them. I’d feel much better about it. But, as I said, I’m too far along the path of fudging this, and if I can get it done, my aunt will love it.
Other than that – work/work takes up most of my time. In the evenings, I’ve been trying to pull out the mosaic crochet and put a couple of rows on. Fun fact – my sleep and activity tracking ring really likes it when I crochet. I get all kinds of brownie points for “activity”. For Lee’s challenge, I’m thinking I should take the box of squares I made (and blocked) last February and start linking them together. If I did a couple a day, I might have a finished blanket by the end of the month.
I am so doing this yearly challenge! Can’t wait for February now.
I know exactly what I want to do. I am going to do a drawing a day of fruits or flowers in coloured pencils.
My godmother just before she died last year directed her husband to get a present for my birthday. He got some lovely thin notebooks with beautiful paper and sent them to me after she died. I have been wondering what to do with them ever since. Now, I know!
I am literally working from home. But it’s time for a walk in Storm Christoph before the business of the afternoon really gets going.
I switched Italian classes (same level, different class day) and my last class was waaay behind, so today and tomorrow are crunch time to try to catch up in homework. I’m glad though. I think this class will be a better fit for a couple of reasons and one of them was the the other class was moving too slowly. So that won’t be a problem anymore.
I fiddled around with my fanfic the other day and made some progress that I’m happy with even though it has to go on the back burner for a while.
I am also inspired by Lee’s daily February 2021 challenge. I think I’m going to write a one hundred word drabble (technically, they’re always supposed to be 100 words, but the meaning has drifted) every day. Not polished. Just something rough. And maybe I’ll revisit them later if I want. There’s lots of character combinations and fandoms I feel mildly intrigued by but not enough to commit to doing a larger project. This will be a way for me to play in these worlds. I’ve already got a bunch of little prompts jotted down for myself.
I don’t know if we’ll live stream the inauguration, but there are definite plans to pop open the champagne at 12:01 here. We even had some schadenfreude pie for breakfast with our coffee.
https://whatever.scalzi.com/2006/09/26/how-to-make-a-schadenfreude-pie/
Although as I told my husband, I think everything is too mingled with sadness at all the tragedy Tr*mp has wrought to feel true schadenfreude (not the I’m therapist or a philologist). Maybe this is a little bit more like weltschmerz mingled with cautious relief.
OMG I had completely forgotten about that post/pie! (I’ve been a fairly regular Scalzi reader since… well before this pie recipe, lol) Thank you for the reminder. 🙂
Am now plotting to make said pie. Yum!
Stole this for FB. Thank-you.
Shared to my FB group!
I am planning my plan. Weirdly resistant to finishing my vision board.
See sarahv_yoga on Instagram for the rainbow painted based of the vision board.
Also the salmon en croute and the cinnamon puffs from Jamie Oliver and Gennaro Contaldo respectively. The latter was a bit of a fail. The outside is edible, the middle is undercooked. Lol.
I think I liked last week’s chicken and mushroom more than this week’s salmon and spinach.
I’m also doing a Coursera course from University Cape Town on Disability Inclusion in Education. So far, so interesting. A lot is knowledge I know, but it’s a good refresher. Only I’m on week 2 and there isn’t a person of colour presenter yet, and it took the Northern Irish guest prof to mention it in explaining why he was presenting on “What is Inclusive Education.”
Sigh.
As a palate cleanser have some music that I’ve had on because of its energy https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B7dAPZ8Qu0Q
I can tell I’m going to love that video, thank you!
My son works at the University of Capt Town and my daughter-in-law is studying to be a lawyer there. Small world.
Yeah it’s a lovely place. I still prefer my province tho’. It’s to do with our lack of gale force winds! Hahaha.
Yes, he tells me about the wind. This fall we’re going back for a visit and I get to meet a friend in Pretoria. Such a beautiful country.
I send out a selection of music every day, for friends and musical colleagues. I started it to keep my church choir company since we could not meet. Usually it’s just the link, with the artists’ information. I had thought about what I would choose for today for a long time. but took a while to work out my feelings:
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Today I’m at a loss to choose the appropriate music. I am unapologetically gloating about the departure and the pending troubles of Donald Trump. I am relieved and excited at the thought of an honest, experienced, and empathetic leader, and our first female, Black, and Asian VP. I am angry and bitter at so much needless suffering through this year, and the deaths that lie ahead of us before more vaccines are produced and vaccinations are available, then distributed. And of course, we have plenty of other big fish to fry.
I’m not much for marching bands, so no Sousa. If I post the Hallelujah Chorus, it implies that God reigns today, but wasn’t in the office for much of the last four years. It implies that I think God loves me more than he loves Donald Trump, and I don’t think that. If I post one of the excellent musical parodies I’ve seen, I give more head space to someone that I want right out of my mind. That would have been fine yesterday, but today is about the future.
Instead, I have chosen to repeat a video from this October, Amazing Grace, performed by Wynton Marsalis at Federal Hall: Dedication to the Cause of Democracy. (5:45)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GN09R2ryJ7o&t=10s
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That being shared, my plan for the #DailyFeb2021 is to paint or draw something every day. And learn how to post it to Instagram, darn it!
Well, that made me tear up. Thanks for the link and the story of how you chose it.
I’ve been making vegetarian dishes for my daughter and found they agree with me. I’ve been cutting carbs and sugar, doing dry January (no wine) and have dropped a few pounds. Yay!
Jenny, you have often said how much you like bok choy, so I tried it. Thank you, thank you! Yum! Made mine with ginger and sesame. My daughter and I could not believe we’d never tried it before. Yesterday I bought more. And some chow mein noodles. Guess what’s for dinner?
It’s so beautiful, too. Those greens are gorgeous.
Today I’m hemming some curtains for a friend (horrible fabric that can’t be ironed or pinned; ugh) while I listen to the inauguration.
In terms of planning ahead, I’ve been finishing piecing some small quilt tops, and instead of quilting them, I put them aside to work on during #DailyFeb21. (Okay, I probably wouldn’t have finished them anyway.) The plan for February, like last year, is just to commit to working on finishing projects for fifteen minutes a day (although I almost always end up spending more time on them than that).
I’ve just finished the most boring bit of my proof-reading job – the notes – and have begun the main text, which is interesting so far. I’m not managing to get anything more than the day job done, plus a daily walk (though I skived off today, since it’s been pouring). All the other things are weighing on me a bit.
I’m planning to sort my thousands of unedited photographs again this February, focusing on landscapes this year – I’ve got three years’ worth to go through.
I am NOT working today, as I took the day off to enjoy the moment (and hope nothing else goes wrong).
Well, I’m knitting, but that’s usual.
I absolutely loved Jill Biden’s coat yesterday and was thinking of trying to make my own, except I actually made a similar one and finished it Monday 😛
Happy Wednesday. Be well.
I feel hopeful for the first time in months. I’m approved for the Covid vaccine, we have a new, experienced, SANE president, and the sun is out! I feel like making plans, so I’ll start doing so again. (Just existed during the self-imposed quarantine.) I’ll make banana bread, then tackle my paperwork. And think about a February plan. Yeah!
Tomorrow I turn 60. Oy. Better than dead, I guess. 🙂 My plans are all about finding stable, well-paying work, getting healthy, and creating: writing, art, crocheting …. I’ve lost so much weight in the past 9 months or so, but not in a good way. I just kind of stop eating much. Not because of trying to lose weight but. because I’ve been so damned anxious and stressed; that’s when food just doesn’t appeal. So part of becoming healthy means eating healthy and getting exercise to regain muscle.
I’m 66; young enough to still enjoy the ‘senior citizen’s discount”. Nothing but good times ahead.
60 isn’t so bad. It feels a lot like 59 🙂
Hopefully you will feel less stressed and more healthy moving forward.
Happy birthday!
I feel hopeful that today marks the start of the (admittedly expected to be long) return to some kind of normality. It may well be a *new* normality, but the sooner we start, the sooner we get there.
I posted a photo of my completed-today Little Red Truck tree skirt on Instagram. Since I only started it on 30th Dec I think this is the quickest quilting project I have ever done! And I’m calling it an early finish for Christmas 2021… 🙂 Link below
https://www.instagram.com/p/CKRUtUZnsaC/
I hope everyone is having a good day 🙂
This morning because I was busy I thought I heard from the news cast one of the commentators say that the next four years could be boring. I said to myself, I’ll take I’ll take it.
Mike Pence should be commended for stepping up to the plate. Also most surprised and delighted to see Eugene Goodman in attendance at the Inaugural. He is the Capital policeman who drew some of the mob away from the Senate corridor.
And he’s been promoted to acting deputy Sergeant at Arms for Congress!
What a befitting name ;o)
The 100 day Project that never ended is ending tomorrow! With a total of 366 objects, I didn’t miss a single day, in part because a pandemic held us all close to home and I have found I am less ambitious about making things when I am travelling. https://www.instagram.com/p/CKRhGBsBXMr/
What is funny is that I am starting another 100 day project, this one to finish in an actual 100 days, on Jan 22, to echo Biden’s first 100 days in office. Same size, same general techniques, working towards a more encouraged palette!
A wonderful friend who did not give up on me after I stopped communicating with everyone this year called me today and we had a delightful chat. That, and the link that explains the annual challenge inspired me to join in this year. I resolve to contact a different person every week to reestablish contact and let them know that I haven’t forgotten them or succumbed to my depression. I know that the point of the goal is daily progress, and I probably owe enough people to write one every day, but I don’t think that is a realistic goal. But if I make a weekly chart and mount it next to a list of all the people I miss, I think I can make some real progress. I even bought myself a new card as inspiration. It is a drawing of a piece of layer cake on a plate. Underneath it says: I NEED A HERO. He doesn’t have to be fast. He doesn’t have to be strong. But he does need to bring me cake
This February, greeting cards will be cake.
What a great approach to #DailyFeb21!
Today is a good day.
I have been working on cleaning out my father’s house. It’s going to take a while, but I can see headway. He is a procrastinating hoarder who had anxiety if we ever tried to get rid of anything in front of him. So far, I have been going over without him and donating my own stuff.
He went to the hospital with congestive heart failure and covid a while back and is staying with me and my partner for the time being. Pray for our patience.
I will have to think of something for the February challenge. Drawing probably, as I can do that in front of the TV after work or in bed. But I would like to have a theme… Must consider.
Having done this for a pair of hoarders and misplaced the family photo album in the process, I commend you. Anything you can do when things are relatively quiet, will help later. Although it sounds like your hands are already full.
Maybe you should make this your February challenge.
Jenny, thanks for the heads up on #DailyFeb2021. I’m going to do a cross-stitch picture called the Mother’s Tree for my daughter-in-law. It traces the women in the family. I haven’t cross-stitched in years so this will be perfect.
As for work, I’m packing for a move. Arrgh!
I will make work plans after I finish collapsing in relief and gratitude. (Yes I know the work is just beginning, not ending, but today is a victory we nearly didn’t get, so.)
I didn’t watch the inauguration, but I did send this to my brother in France. https://youtube.com/watch?v=UzXBVkWASI4
I was not able to breathe properly today until Joe Biden was in the White House, so have done nothing. Welcome back to the world America, especially the Paris Agreement. We missed you!
Hi Jenny!
Breathing a sigh of relief today. Political views aside, I simply couldn’t stand the outgoing President even before he started campaigning. I watched the entire inauguration while working from home (thank goodness for that capability).
My writing took a backseat about two years ago for a number of reasons. My creative efforts for the last 18 months have been focused on needle felting. Of all the crafts I’ve done over the years this one is my favorite! Last night I finished felting two miniature dachshund ornaments. Another to make tonight – a Cavalier King Charles spaniel. All three are for one of the McDaniel ladies from our program. Five of us still keep in contact & share ideas.
So happy that the Biden/Harris administration is in!
‘Celebrated’ by taking part in our first Board of Election meeting of the year.
Celebrating by having Ben & Jerry’s Americone Dream ice cream for dessert.
I can’t decide if I’m happy or simply relieved. Being part of the loyal opposition this time has been EXHAUSTING.
I did very little work today and justified watching all the inauguration things by thinking it is to see where Biden is leaning on policy.
But really I was teary and happy and relieved.
I can’t believe how smoothly it went. And Amanda Gorman managed to enraptured the entire CNN team. They probably gave her twice as long an interview as anyone else and then spent three times as much time talking about how great she is. Yay poetry.
I loved that poem.
And besides Amanda Gorman, if you like poems like that, have a look at these young winners of a contest of the Academy of American Poets:
https://poets.org/us-presidential-inauguration-academy-three-students-inaugural?mc_cid=a80d7b45b3&mc_eid=d8978312cd
All three of them are lovely.
I gave myself permission not to work yesterday (although I did do some promotional stuff for Furbidden Fatality) and just watched the Inauguration. I know there is a lot of work to go and getting rid of one major roadblock isn’t going to remove them all. But I gave myself one day to just embrace the joy and relief and be proud of being an American again.
Today I go to the day job and get back to writing. I have a book due April 1st and the first in a new series coming out Feb 23rd, so way more promo than usual at the same time. There will be no shortage of work to do here either.
I am job hunting again as my position has been eliminated as of June. I’m only 60 and I can’t retire. I was a grasshopper for most of my life and worked at jobs with no retirement and didn’t save.
I’m battling my feelings of being unappreciated. Surely they could have found a way to keep me if they valued my work.
Cranky, cranky, cranky – but happy to have a new president and especially excited for a female VP.