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Why is the dining room project (to clear off the table or at least clear it back to beading only) (and to clear off the floors and clean the room) so daunting. I am doing everything but that project, even though I said that I would do it first thing after church. Instead, I've made a batch of black beans and a batch of my brown/wild rice, talked to a friend on the phone, gone through Steve's discard paper pile (I'm trying to get him to tackle another pile or area each day.) and recycled and shredded where appropriate, checked and responded to emails, caught up in 12 Scrabble games, called a Craigslist responder, and now saw that I kind of want to do my hall closet thing. Which I will do, then I will start on the dining room with before and after pictures. I also took a picture of the skirt I finished a few days ago (that's it at the top of this post). I wore it to church, but didn't actually go to church, dropped Peter off for Sunday School, flew to Walgreens and Trader Joes, (those bags are still in the foyer, guess I'd better do them first first), came back to church, went to community center and chatted with friends, dropped off ceramic discard chochkees to Michelle so that her friend who does mosiacs can take them to the mosaic school, returned Life and Shine A Light to the library, and also read a little. So, don't be so hard on myself, right? It seems like I've done a lot today. Maybe instead of "it's already 2:30, I need to say "look at all I did before 2:30." OK, I really came up here to post our white GE stovetop and oven on Craigslist, because Steve installed the new stainless steel ones yesterday. They do look good. It's a nice treat to have new. New to us, not really new. Whew. OK, Craigslist post, Put Away Groceries, Hall Closet with photos, Dining Room.
With sew, more Craigslist postings, and read the Sunday paper still on the list.
Shine A Light - I just finished watching this documentary (rockumentary, if you will) about a Rolling Stones benefit concert at the Beacon Theater in New York City a few years ago. It was made by Martin Scorcese, and although it is mainly a great concert movie, it shows a bit of the back story with Scorcese trying to plan his movie, the Stones waiting until the last minute to make any decisions, a before show Meet and Greet (which Keith talks about in his book), an introduction to the Rolling Stones by Bill Clinton, who attended the concert (it was to raise money for the Clinton Foundation), and clips from years past showing interviews with the band members in their younger days. My favorite clip was one where Mick was asked if he thought he'd still be singing at 60. He answers the question, then cut to Mick on stage now, just the ball of constantly moving energy that he is in concert. If you're a fan, there's nothing not to like here.
Life by Keith Richards - I loved reading Keith's stories. Keith Richards is one of the original Rolling Stones, and in this memoir, he tells all as he remembers it. It's got everything a Rock and Roll memoir needs to have....sex, drugs and rock and roll! This guy marches to his own guitar, and he is engaging and endearing. I liked it even better than Just Kids. He was born in London during World War II, and has had a fascinating and wild life. He's a bright and thoughtful writer, and his voice comes through loud and clear. His love of music, guitars, his family and friends have shaped his life more than anything. When I was half way through the book last week, Peter's track coach and I happened to exchange a couple of emails, and he mentioned that as long as I was in Keith mode, (his words) I might enjoy a tongue in cheek interview written for Slate by one of his friends. The interview is with Mick Jagger, and supposedly gives Mick's reaction to Keith's book. So I recommend reading half the book, then reading the mock interview, then finishing the book. Now, if you're squeamish, don't like the Rolling Stones, blues, guitar, rock memoirs, drugs, alcohol, wild behavior, people who follow their own beat, then this might not be the read for you. But if all of that is intriguing, and you can't wait to get to youtube to listen to Keith playing and singing his songs, then here you are....Enjoy.
On another note, I subbed yesterday, then my friend Sheila came over for a long overdue visit, chat, and catch up. It's really nice to have friends who knew you when. We always laugh, and we sometimes tell the same stories, and it's always cathartic and very relaxing. We're indulgent of each other and nurture our friendship in our own way, which means sometimes a couple of years go by between visits. We live in the same metropolitan area, only an hour apart, but we each keep busy, and we each maintain busy schedules and busy amounts of personal downtime. So that's how the years go by. We read different books, but we're both avid readers, we have varied interests, but we throw ourselves into our interests. We have sometimes nutty families, but we love our families and keep them in our lives. There's nothing more dear than a precious friend.
Although I sewed and did some catching up at my upstairs desk (which, once again is really messy) I didn't accomplish nearly as much as I'd wanted to. I still have a few hours, but it's dark now, and once it gets dark it's like there's a wall that prevents me from being productive. It's great that I'm almost finished with a beautiful skirt. The fabric came from the downtown Vogue Fabrics some years ago. It's a black wool with a 5 inch band of black/white/grey. I made the skirt mid-calf length with that band at the bottom, and it looks good. So yeah. I just have to do some pressing, some hand finishing and hem it, and I'll post a picture.
Now I'm going to finish the pressing on the skirt, get the hand sewing ready so that I can do it tomorrow at bead group, look for fabric with which to recover the kitchen counter stools, go downstairs, get a load of laundry in, figure out something to eat for dinner, read the paper, read the mail, make sure the kitchen is in pristine shape, and then will I have time to do anything in the dining room? I honestly don't know. None of this sounds fun. After dark. I'm all caught up on my Scrabble games for the moment, so there's no imminent escape there. OK, Dianne, just get going!
The Cheez-It box is my new Facebook profile picture.
Up and down the stairs, down and up the stairs, where are my glasses?
On Friday I spent the entire day getting my kitchen back. It had been taken over by paper, paper, more paper, and general mess. Let's just keep this short and sweet:
Here's my desk BEFORE:
Here's my desk AFTER:
Here's the Peninsula BEFORE:
I had done some pre-clearing in the peninsula area because it had been covered with Steve's papers, and before I could do a thing, he had to move them. This AFTER picture isn't perfect. On the windowsill are homemade thank you notes from my two nieces with special drawings just for me. I'll enjoy those for a few days then put them away. Also there is an extra pan on the stove. I made Butternut Squash soup (yum) for the cold day. The tea kettle is permanent. I love that thing. To me it's art. I'm not big on the fish tank, but Steve loves it. If Steve sees an empty surface or space, he thinks it's his duty and right to fill it up. With anything.
Here's the Peninsula AFTER:
Here's the Workspace Corner BEFORE:
Every morning I find the workspace corner uncleared. This particular mess is my own, though. The Lazy Susan cabinet door has been off its hinges for months now. I've asked Steve to repair it so many times I've lost count. I've asked him nicely, not so nicely, bitchily, more bitchily than that, and then I tried nicely again. I've had the door in the other room and left it open for a couple of months, and I've put the hinges right inside the cabinet where he can see them. He claims he can't do the job without calling a help line, so therefore can only do the job Monday through Friday during business hours. And that he doesn't know where the piece of paper with the phone number is. This is all my fault, too. (according to Steve)(Whoa, that's putting my heart you know where!)
Look who's wearing her cherries house jacket! By the way, Steve broke another tea pot. He always breaks the white or black or black and white ones that I buy, and this 25 year old yellow one from Mexico comes back into play. It's indestructible. Here's a gift idea for us. "We" need a new teapot, black, white or an approved-by-me black and white one that will match our kitchen. It also has to be large. Steve makes gallons of tea every single day.
Here's the Workspace Corner AFTER: 
Last but not least, here's what I see when I walk into the kitchen: YEA!
It's so easy to take care of a room with cleared off surfaces. It stays cleaner, and gets cleaned more often. And it helps your mind to be clear. It helps you to think. It keeps you calm. Clear surfaces are one of my favorite things. I'm actually inspired to change out the fabric on the counter stools, now. I think I'll go find some fabric and the staple gun and get going on that in the next day or so. Stay tuned for another BEFORE and AFTER project here at HHOHS!
Ok, so here's the plan: I'll sew every day in January, and try to get some stuff selling too. There's a little more than a week left, and I've missed two days, so I'll also sew on February 1st and 2nd. I did straighten up and clear out the entire kitchen on Friday, so I'll tweak it a bit, and post those before and after pics later today. Today I'm going to play my Scrabble games for a few minutes here, then get to work on the Dining Room. The whole thing, not only the table. The goal is for Peter and I to complete all of our thank you notes. TODAY. Then in February, I'll sell and sell and get to my upstairs office sewing room and guest room which are filled with the detrius of the sewing every day thing. Since there never seems to be a place to put things away, they don't get put away. Now that so much fabric is out of the closet in the guest room, there might be some room to actually make it work better going forward.
Yesterday, I sewed the red white and blue fleece throw that was a gift for Linda's au pair who became a U.S. Citizen. We had a great time at her party, and she was glowing. I hope she likes the throw! I added white satin finish blanket binding around the edges to fancy it up a bit. It will keep her nice and warm during cold Chicago winters. I like a little red white and blue in January!
Easy A - I give this great little movie an A on all counts. After renting it a couple of days ago and falling asleep in the chair in the first 2 minutes a couple of nights ago, I decided to really watch it last night. And loved it. It's about a high school girl who accidentally changes her reputation. It's the 2000s version of an 80s high school movie, and it's super sweet and not too slick without being sappy. For added spice, there's a little Hester Prynne theme, too. I had to read The Scarlett Letter in Derderian's senior english class at Fordson. I hated/loved that class. I'd be up until 4 in the morning, writing papers on my bed in the dim lamplight. Because I put it off until 3. Then it would be too late, I was close to an all nighter, and I had to write something. That was the first class in years where I had to get an A, and nothing was going to stand in my way. It wasn't an Easy A, but I did get the A.
Today I'm going to reclaim my kitchen counters. Anyone who really knows me, knows that I like totally cleared off surfaces, especially in the kitchen. Right now they are covered with papers, probably some breakfast dishes, projects, Peter's first semester papers, and little junks that Steve puts there because he doesn't care about surfaces. He doesn't think about it, but someone put him on this earth to cover surfaces with paper and detrius. (I know it's detritus - I think we've been through this before - I might need a detrius category for the blog). It's 0 out, so I'm not going anywhere. I'll take before and after pictures and post them after I'm successful in my endeavor. I'm giving myself 2 hours for this project. Here I go....
I love all the parts of sewing. I love wandering through fabric stores, feeling all the fabric and gorging my eyes on all the colors and textures, I love going through pattern books, and opening up a new pattern. I love pinning on the pattern tissue, cutting out the fabric, unpinning the tissue and sewing the pieces of fabric together. I love the sewing machine and serger. I love the hum they make when you have to make a long seam. January is sew everyday month for me, and I've sewn every day except for 2. Here's what's been keeping me busy:The purple nightgown is finished. 
If you recall, I'd cut it out a week ago, so one night I decided to sew on it, and finished it that night! I changed the yolk to an open style lined with white trim, rather than the buttons. I also sewed on the yolk without inserting said trim first, and rather than take it all apart, I just topstitched the trim onto the seam.
I think it looks great, and can't wait to wear it.
Then I worked on the cherries jacket. 
I didn't have quite enough ric rac to complete it, and just have to trim the bottom with the ric rac I bought the other day, and it will be ready to wear.
I love the big red button at the top, too.
Last but not least I made my first Vogue pattern! I wore it last night to movie night, and it kept me toasty warm. It's a longer hooded jacket of blue fleece with off white pockets and hood trim and embellished with butterflies. I have one more butterfly to add onto the back, and it will be good to go. 
So tonight's work is cut out for me. Finish the ric rac on the cherries jacket, add another butterfly to the blue jacket, and start the red white and blue fleece throw which will be a gift for my friend Linda's au pair, who has just become a U.S. citizen. There's a red white and blue party for her on Saturday at Linda's house. How perfect is this?
Scott Pilgrim vs. The World - Last night was movie night at Kelly's house, and we watched this Michael Cera movie, which is part band boy angst, part asian fighter movie, part video game coming out of the game and into a movie movie, and part we've got the latest coolest actors here movie. And it was good too! Our pilgrim, Scott, has been hanging with a younger "woman" until he falls for a mysterious American at a party. In order to be with Ramona, (the American) he has to fight and defeat her past boyfriends. There is a little too much, and a little too prolonged of the fighting, like those asian fighter movies, but otherwise, the story carries this along. So yeah, if you want something different, a stretch, if you will, this might hold your attention. It was designed to hold the attention of the gamers, so the pacing and special effects are along those lines.
Black Mamba Boy by Nadifa Mohamed - Another one! I'm just back from northern Africa and the 1930s and 40s. Jama is one of the most endearing characters I've encountered in a long time. His story is engrossing and unique. It will set your heart pounding, and your hopes hoping. Nadifa Mohamed is a wonderful author, and I can't wait for her to write more books. I'll be the first in line to read them.
Inception - Peter saw this the first week that it came out, but was less than enthusiastic. I was sure I'd like it if for no other reason than the auspicious reviews. Last night Steve and I watched, and Steve liked, and I fell asleep and am not sure what exactly happened. The scenes were either real or dreams. Does anyone know which was which? I just couldn't get into this one.
Spend your time reading Black Mamba Boy instead! After dozing and waking for a couple of hours of Inception, I went to bed and read Black Mamba Boy for half and hour - all awake, no problem!
The Book of Eli - We had a family movie night last night, and Peter joined us in watching Denzel Washington. Denzel plays Eli, a wanderer heading west 30 years after a "flash" destroyed civilization. I don't want to give too much away; we all loved the movie; Peter is still thinking about and processing it. He doesn't watch many movies since he's in his own movies playing video games. I told him this one might be sort of like the landscape and story in Fallout, so he decided to give it a try. There's an of an obscure cast of great supporting actors. It's a story to make you think.
The Last Station - I rented this one from the library when Inception wasn't in, and Steve and I watched it the night before last. It's a good enough movie, although for me it could have waited until it was free to watch. If it's a true story then we learned something about Leo Tolstoy, author of War and Peace and Anna Karenenna. (Neither of which this avid reader has ever read - started War and Peace years ago and gave up early). Maybe I'll try Anna one of these days. ANYWAY. The movie is about Tolstoy's last years, trying to live a quiet country life while espousing a Tolstoian way of living - passive resistance. His wife isn't into it, though, and she's a bit excitable which really goes against that hope for a quiet and peaceful life. There's another love story in there, and some watchable characters. If you're a Tolstoy lover you'll probably enjoy this more than I did.
Lark & Termite by Jayne Anne Phillips - This was really good. It takes place in Korea in the early 1950s and then in West Virgina in the late 1950s. I enjoyed it for the story and the characters, especially Lark, Noreen and Lola. Others (especially book-clubbers who look for stuff) will enjoy it for all the symbolism, "coincidence" and common themes. It's a great read, with many mysteries and questions woven into the story to keep you reading. They come together in many different ways to please and satisfy the reader.
In the meantime, it's been a crazy week. I sewed every day except for yesterday when there just wasn't a minute to do so. My cherries fleece jacket is finished, button and all, and I'm about to cut out a blue fleece with hood per a Vogue pattern I've owned for ages. This will be my first Vogue pattern, so we'll see how it goes. I also have every intention of starting the next nightgown. A few things have gone out of my closet; next do I put them on Craigslist or save them for my garage sale? Oh, so much to do, and so little time once again. I also bought a new (new to me) Expedite bookcase for my bedroom. I'll take pictures and post before and after photos if it stores things as beautifully as I think it will. Yea! This will be progress. Here goes.....
It's so sad that my font is back to black! It's because I have so much crap piled up on my closet shelves that I never switched officially from summer to winter on the shelves or with the shoes on the floor that I'm not going to show. Here's the dirty little secret:
I'm going downstairs to eat now. It's 2:10. My plan is to read the paper and eat and be done by 2:30. Back upstairs to spend 1 hour in that closet. And to get rid of 20 of those items. Out of there. I don't know where they'll go, but I'll try to get things out that I never wear. Maybe they will go into the back bedroom closet in the space where the fabric was! I hope not. At 3:30, I want to be immersed in fleece embellishing.
OK, I went downstairs, had a quesadilla with swiss cheese/mayo/pine nuts, read the paper, and was only 15 minutes behind schedule. Came upstairs, put on my iTunes full volume in the office, and emptied the shelves:
This is not easy for me. However, I do have 12 items going out. I hope permanently, but then I think....I could use this cotton as a lining for one of those sweater purses I plan to make. And I don't like the lining in the one I have, I could change it out. Will I, though? Especially since I have real lining fabric in the stash. ANYWAY, it's 3:40, I'm 10 minutes behind schedule, and half the job is complete:
To me this is still a messy looking closet. There are way too many tee shirts. Going all the way back to college daze. Maybe one of these days I'll make a plan for how to part with them. They are nothing special. Almost all 50/50 cotton and pretty beat up. I wish my nieces would come and think they are cool and wear them. You know that's not going to happen, though. I showed them to Peter one day. No go. Maybe I'll pull them out one day, take pictures of them one by one, and post the pictures here with the story behind the shirt. These stories will not be interesting, but then maybe I could part with the tee shirts. OK, now it's almost 10 to 4 so I'm 20 minutes behind schedule and there is another section to go. Here goes. I hope I can find 8 more things to give away.
It's now 4:35, an hour and five minutes past my deadline. However, the second part of my closet project is complete:
This is going to feel so great when I need something on those shelves. I think I'll work on the floor tomorrow. Right now I'm going to use the waning light to look at all my fleece patterns and fleece and get going on the fleece jacket.
For me there is nothing like order. Order from chaos might be good for some, but I like constant order. I'm really trying to get there again.
Purple in honor of the purple flowery nightgown I just cut out. It feels good to have it ready to sew. I also tried on a number of tops that I bought at Macy's yesterday with gift cards and a little cash thrown in. And I want to do some desk work today and also start on a fleece house jacket: Cut it out and start embellishing the pattern pieces before sewing it together. I'd love to keep all the tops, but that entails emptying out my closet of some things I don't wear anymore and that don't get to take up precious space in there anymore. Can this really be done? On a Saturday morning? Oops, it's almost 2 O'Clock! On a Saturday afternoon? Oh no. So much to do, so little daylight. I have found time to play in a number of my Scrabble games. Claudia seems to be playing this afternoon; the others were catch up.
Hurry, Dianne!
Sarah Palin's Alaska - We watched the one about Tod passing his Salmon fishing business to Trac last night. Sarah and her gang are just taking taking taking from nature. How much fish do these seas have? Is it really limitless? Does anyone care?
Not to mention the part about killing living beings. Some of the fish got away, and I was so happy. She's all into her family which is a good thing, but I don't know how she had time to read a thing on that 4th of July weekend at her in-law's house. I don't see this woman as a politician or leader. Especially of the greatest country in the free world! Notice I didn't put this review in my post title. Couldn't do it. Not because I wouldn't want anyone to know I watched, but because I wouldn't put her name in a title! Her little daughter Piper was my favorite. I hope that girl grows up into a democrat. So far she's the presidential material in that family.
I'm Still Here - This wasn't the Joaquin Phoenix dvd, but rather a dvd about teenagers who wrote diaries during the holocaust. This was produced by MTV, and follows the writings of each teenager, showing pictures where available, and reading the words which were written during their experiences. It's very moving and real.
Then co-incidentally, I was watching Family Jewels, and Gene Simmons and Shannon traveled to Amsterdam where a young boy interviewed Gene and took them to the Anne Frank Museum. Gene's mother had been in a concentration camp, and he had never spoken about it, so that show was very moving as well.
In the meantime, I made great progress with the piles of stuff on the floors of my house today. I also took down the two small Christmas trees, put a bunch of stuff on Craigslist, made a Pacific Cloth holder for GC's grandmother's silver lidded soup tureen, and generally made things look a little better around here.
Now I have every intention of working on my nightgown. At last. I can't believe that I put it off all day. The thing I'm putting off is attaching the lace to the yolk, gathering the gown, and sewing it all together.
Somewhere - I saw Sophia Coppola's latest movie yesterday, after skimming a good review and seeing some pretty trailers. Oops. It was somehow not a bad movie, but it never had a story or purpose, and is just a series of pretty scenes of the actors interacting. My friend Susan didn't know what she saw, either, and not wanting to miss anything, said that she'd read some reviews when she got home. Which is what I just did. Essentially, the reviews say that this is a minimalist, modernist movie about a time in the life. In this case it's the time in the life of an actor, Johnny Marco, and some time he spent with his 11 year old daughter. This is a perfect late night, romance channel movie for when you can't sleep. It will put you right out!
I did work on sewing my nightgown yesterday by making the buttonholes
on the yolk. Here's a picture of the lace trim at the neckline. 
It turned out beautifully Today I plan to finish it and cut out another nightgown as well as cut out a fleece house jacket. Yea!
The barest minimum is happening with getting the house together - it's the worst it's ever been. The worst. Really the worst. So bad that I don't know where to start to feel the least bit of accomplishment or pleasure from it.
But my reaction today is to be OK with that. Slowly I'll get this done.
The Jewel of St. Petersburg by Kate Furnivall - I just finished the last of my vacation reads, and I think it is a cleverly disguised romance novel. If you're into romance novels as a genre, then here you go; I think you'll enjoy this one. I liked the setting of the early 1900s leading up to the Russian Revolution. The main character, Valentina (I love that name, too) is spunky and clever. I think I read The Red Scarf by this author, and might have liked it a bit better.
I'm thinking of separating out some of my book reviews into an additional category that will include only the book review posts of those books I've really loved reading. The ones you wish wouldn't end. The ones you couldn't put down because you had to know what would happen. The ones that still give you a start when you hear the title years later. The ones that you might read again someday because you couldn't get enough. The downside is that a number of good books that don't quite reach the heights might be forgotten. Hmmm.
As for my Resolution to sew every day in January....Let's see.....I cut out the fabric on the first, didn't sew at all on the second, made good progress on the third, and today's the fourth. I could finish this nightgown today if I choose buttons, make the buttonholes, attach the yolk to the body of the gown, finish the sleeves and hem.
BUT I'm out the door to see a movie first, so we'll see....If I can get back to the nightgown before dusk, I'll be fine. I need the light to choose the buttons.
The Company of Heaven Stories from Haiti by Marilene Phipps-Kettlewell - I do love short stories, and these were no exception. The characters in the stories appear throughout the book from different perspectives. These stories center around the family of an eccentric judge and his home across the river from a settlement of poor people. The themes are family, the quirkiness of people, nature, different types of love and island life. Some of the stories are more short essays and choruses. The one about daughters is wonderful, and the one called the Third Eye is about loss. My favorite line from the book is "I am full with empty".
The Sonderberg Case by Elie Wiesel - Reading Elie Wiesel is easy on the surface, yet it's challenging underneath the words. I think he is the preeminent philosopher/author of our lifetime. This is the story of a critic, his father, his grandfather, his wife, a trial, a defendant, and values. Wiesel asks questions of his characters and therefore his readers....his writings are about a story but about ideas. He makes the reader think as well as read.
Look! I've cut out the pattern pieces of the nightgown and it's time to sew, except I'm starving and the sewing machines are blocked by stuff. I'm going to see if there is a newspaper outside and have a little couscous. I also unpacked my suitcase which isn't saying too much in the overall scheme of needed unpacking around here. Still it's better than nothing. And I'm playing Scrabble. Claudia and Marie are playing and they're tough but I'm holding my own. I've won 70 games so far, on my way to 100. My poor little brain!
When downstairs I'm going to find the two books I finished on vacation and review those, too. That's the one thing about blogging....since the freshest material is at the top, you've got to start at the bottom to be chronological. I'm not going to think about that though, because if I've already written those reviews, then you've already read them.
I love fabric. This is a flannel that I bought ages ago I don't remember where. My new year's resolution is to sew through my fabric stash and get rid of all the old stuff that's holding me back. To that end, I've already posted my old cutting cardboard on Freecycle and am using my new one starting now, all the time. I'm going to make a Lanz style nightgown with my trusty Butterick Pattern. Flannel and fleece take up a LOT of space, so a few nightgowns and fleece house jackets (I need a catchy name for these) will give me a quick start to my goal. I don't know whether I'll be wearing the nightgown tonight, but maybe I'll try. Tomorrow night for sure.It's another New Year's Day, and my resolution for the day is to sew and unpack. We arrived home from Florida last night, unpacked the car, cleaned up and went to Valerie's for New Year's Eve where we had a great fun time. I love seeing the new year in with our friends. It's a happy and relaxed way to begin. I forgot to take pictures, though, so here are a few from Naples with my mother and her husband, whom we affectionately refer to as G.C. (btw Mother started the GC thing).
On the road yesterday, with nothing but my thoughts for company, I pondered Her Heart On Her Sleeve and whether to go deeper. I just don't know. I think the question is to what end? OK, here I go to sew! Happy New Year!
