My Recent Doings

Hi folks!!! I've been busy. I had one day or two where I was sick. UGH!!! I had vertigo ALL DAY Sunday and Monday, so I totally missed football. All of it. And then, finally, I got to go over to mom's house and watch the Bengals Steelers game. I rooted for my beloved Bengals, who lost, but I wasn't too upset that they lost. Especially with what happened to one of my fave linebackers, Ryan Shazier. He's an excellent football player, and gets very little credit for what he does. So in a way, I'm glad his team won. They haven't given a prognosis for him yet, and I'm praying he'll be able to walk again. So far, they've only said that the doctors did surgery for his spinal injury. So hopefully, he'll recover at least enough to lead a fairly normal life. If you can, say a prayer or send a good thought his way. He can use all the help he can get right now!!!

It's also another Sunday past, and I missed football again. I'm not sure what's up with me. I'm kind of depressed, but I always am around the holidays. I've felt blah and icky for a couple of weeks now. I'm playing more, and stitching less. I've been thinking of my dad a lot, too. His birthday is Oct 21st, and he died Dec 21st, so in between the two, I always feel depressed. And I always wake up the day after Christmas and am fine. Kind of sucks for Nov and Dec though.

Saturday night (this Saturday night, not last), I ended up taking my friend Paul up to the ER. He hurt his back, and it was spasming. It was terrible. All the way up, every time we hit a pothole, he would jerk and groan. I felt TERRIBLE for him. Even tight turns were painful. But at the hospital, they gave him a shot of some kind of muscle relaxer, and it did a GREAT job for him. He was laughing and joking the whole way home. He insisted we stop and get food, so we stopped at Waffle House and ate. Then I took him home. We weren't gone for too long. I left a bit before ten thirty, maybe between ten fifteen and ten thirty, and I got home a little after three. As far as I know, we were the only patients there. So they did some things to determine what caused the spasms, and gave him a shot, and a couple of prescriptions. I haven't talked to him since I dropped him off. I called today, but got his voicemail. So if you can, say a prayer or send a good thought.

And lastly, I have a couple of pics to show. I've finished two Christmas projects in the last few weeks, one for my 12 year old neighbor, Elijah, and one for my mom. His is the Assassin's Creed Black Flag logo, and hers is the snowlady. Both were fun to work on. His gave me some trouble. It was hard for me to keep track of how many rows I'd done, so it was a nightmare in that way. But I love the color, and so that made it fun. Here they are:

The other gifts I have for Christmas, I've already shown. Paul is getting one, and my sis in law, Amy, is getting the other. I'm all done with my Christmas stitching already, so I'm working on something else for a bit, before I go back to my rotation.

And something else happened last week that I'm very happy about. I somehow (don't ASK me how, as I have NO IDEA) managed to break my glasses. I ordered a new pair on November 24th, and then waited FOREVER for them to be delivered. They got here on Monday, December 4th. So I hardly stitched at ALL during that time period. I finally got them, and had vertigo Monday, so I didn't stitch at all. Tuesday, I got about half an hour in. The new glasses are the same as my old glasses were (3.25), but I wasn't used to that anymore. So it was hard to get used to. Now I can stitch for about an hour before my eyes get wonky, which is progress. And I'm happy about it. Here's a pic of them. They're really colorful in the light, and then in low light, they just look grey, or maybe dark green. (Probably dark green, considering they ARE sage.) They're so pretty!!!

And lastly, here's what I'm working on now. I'm using my time between now and Christmas to work on something fun and cute. It's a SAL done by Durene Jones, who I think is a wonderful designer. It's called the Under the Sea SAL. So far, there are lots of cute little things in it. Here's where I was before starting part eight.As you can see, there's a shark, an octopus, a submarine (which my pal Paul told me repeatedly was done wrong because it wasn't yellow), lots of fish, and a mermaid. (Among other things, lol.) This month's part is a manta ray, I think. It doesn't have a stinger, so it can't be a stingray. My friend Angel found me pics, and it looks like our ray is an Atlantic Manta Ray. I've gotten almost all the stitching done on my Manta Ray. I've got a few stitches left to do. They're all oxygen bubbles. And then I'll be ready to start BSing this part of the project. The BS is wonderful. In every part, it just makes the details POP!!! Here's my part eight, the Manta Ray. (I just took this pic, so it's exactly where I am. Usually, I use the last pic I took of something, but I didn't have one from recently for this project. So I had to take one.)

So that's where I am today, folks. Not really feeling good, but not feeling horrible either. Just kind of blah. Now I'm off to stitch some, and hopefully get lots done. Catch ya later!!!

Hey, y'all. I woke up early this am, so I'm working on another blog. This one is going to be mostly about Yes Dear, since I've hardly talked about her at all. She is still with me, thank God. (And that has been in question a couple of times lately, so... I'm really grateful she is still with me. And she is back to her normal, bossy, rules the roost self. Which I'm also grateful for.) But first, I want to tell you a little more about my brother. He's a great guy. I just love him to death. Sometimes, though, he drives me NUTS. This past spring, he decided he didn't LIKE my bedroom furniture. So I had to have new. Nothing else would do. Since I can't afford bedroom furniture, he paid for it. So I got a bedroom set. (It's the first time I've ever had matching bedroom furniture. So it was strange.) I did get to pick it out. So I picked out a sleigh bed, and the matching dressers etc. There's a chest of drawers, a dresser with a mirror, a nightstand, and the bed, with underbed storage. It has six drawers underneath, and they're pretty big. A LOT of my stash is now stored under the bed. And I have other stash in the chest of drawers. And towels and sheets and my CPAP supplies are in a drawer too. The rest of the drawers are filled with clothes. And other assorted things. There are a couple of teeny drawers, and one of them has knicknacks, and one has my hand brace and the attendant hand socks. For just in case. He also got me a new desk, and then was mad at my mom for picking out one that had to be put together. We found it at Staples. It had a sale card on it, for fifty dollars off. But the sale was from last week. So, since she wanted the fifty dollars off, she bought it. She put it on her credit card. And then, it was delivered, and he paid her back for it. But I got to put it together. David did tighten the cams for me, which ticked me off. (Apparently, his hands are much stronger than mine. I turned the air a little bit blue about that, lol.) So here are pics of the bedroom set and the desk. I'm gonna put them side by side, if I can. (That may take some research, lol.)

As you can see, it's a sleigh bed, which I really like. I've liked sleigh beds for as long as I can remember. I asked for a firm mattress, as they picked it out and bought it. (My brother and sis in law did.) It's VERY comfy, and so I'm really happy with it. I was NOT happy about getting the mattress on FRIDAY, when my old furniture was picked up on MONDAY. I had to sleep on the sofa bed for five days. Sunday through Thursday. And boy, it was NOT comfy. It's also louder in the living room since we're so close to the street. So I had a hard time that week. But it was totally worth it. And now, I won't have to go through that ever again, I hope. Anyways, YD had to be in the pic I took yesterday, of the bed all made up with my fave sheets on it. (She always has to be the center of attention, ya know, lol.) So that's my new bedroom.

And now on to Yes Dear, since I segued so nicely. She has had a rough year this year. She had to go into the ER in April. I'm not sure of the exact date, but it was a couple of days after I got back from Columbus. I spent some time with my bestie, Julie. And she showed me how to do a simple beading stitch, Square Stitch. I was using Fire Line, which is a kind of fishing thread. And I was having fun with it. Until I got it home. I unpacked it the day after I got home, cause I got home so late. And I worked for a bit, and then put it aside to stitch. I had to go in the bedroom for something. So I left my newly threaded beading needle on the desk with my stitching. And Yes Dear came in and stood on the bed, chewing wildly on SOMETHING. So I picked her up, and BOTH ends of the beading thread were stitching out of her mouth. So I cut them, took her over to mom's, borrowed her credit card, and took her to the ER. (Mom told me repeatedly that YD would never have eaten the needle, and she wasn't that dumb. I insisted she WAS that dumb. Finally, she said it would be a waste, but go get X-rays to calm my mind.) So I took her out to the ER, with her howling in her carrier all the way. They did the X-rays, and yes, indeed, she HAD eaten the needle. They did surgery that night to remove it. Here's a pic of her a bit after her surgery, right after she woke up, and when she was still pretty dopy. You can see how her eyes are dialated, so she was still pretty loopy.I brought her home, and had to give her an antibiotic for five days, twice a day, which was absolutely MISERABLE. She HATES to take any kind of medication. Fights me to hell and back. She was supposed to get pain meds, but I gave them to her for a day, and then stopped. She wasn't hiding or anything, so I didn't figure she was feeling bad. I checked for redness around the incision everyday by giving her a chest rub. She came out of it with flying colors. Then Socks came. Socks was Paul's cat. She was about a year and a half when he had to move out. (His roommate used all the rent money he gave her for drugs, and then disappeared.) So he had to move out. And he couldn't take Socks with him. So we took her in to find her a home. To give you an idea of how much Yes Dear DETESTED having Socks in the house, here's a pic of YD looking at Socks. (If looks could kill, Socks would be six feet under, lol.)Anyways, until we found Socks a home, Yes Dear lived in the bedroom, and Socks in the living room and kitchen. Yes Dear cried a lot, and I kept going back to sit with her in the bedroom. Which meant not as much computer time. So that kind of sucked. But we did finally get Socks out of here. Then Yes Dear had a normal 12 hours, before she started hiding in a cubby on my desk. I thought it was watchfulness that she thought Socks was gonna come back, and then she stopped using the litterbox. I immediately took her to the vet. She had lost some weight, which she can't afford to do. They did bloodwork, and tried to get a urine sample, but no dice. So the vet said (which I expected) that it was probably a UTI or kidney infection. They gave her a stiff shot of antibiotics, and an injection of subcutaneous fluids. She looked like a linebacker when I brought her home. All the fluid was right up around her shoulders. Here's a pic.In the photo, you can see that her shoulder area is HUGE. And she had a lump on both sides for about six hours, and then you could hardly tell anymore. It absorbed quickly, which tells me she WAS dehydrated, and needed the fluids. I still feel bad that I didn't connect the hiding behavior with being sick, but she's much better now, so I guess it's okay. And then, a week later, the day after I gave her her flea meds (thanks Socks), she had a seizure. So again we went to the ER. They put her on seizure watch, and told me to go home for 12 hours. I got a few hours of sleep, and then went back the next day to pick her up. She hasn't had another once since, and the vet thinks it was the flea meds. (She was supposed to have another dose on the 19th, but no way am I giving it to her.) I was scared they were gonna say epilepsy, or daily meds. Since she hates them so much, I resolved that if that was the solution, I would have her put down. No way was I gonna make her miserable for two hours a day every day. She hates meds, and she hides from me when I go into the bathroom (where I usually give them to her. She won't come near me for hours afterwards, and never comes in the bathroom to get treats anymore). So I'm really glad she's doing so much better. She's currently sleeping on the couch. Once again, I'm calling her poodle paws. This time plural, cause they shaved BOTH front feet for the IV. Here's a pic of them, right after we got home from the ER.

So now that you're all updated on THAT mess, I'll post an actual STITCHY pic, lol. I posted a pic of Elijah's little project last week, or maybe it was Sunday. I'm not sure now. It's the Assassin's Creed Black Flag logo, done in a beautiful shade of dark purple. The thread is a Weeks Dye Works thread called Purple Majesty. I picked a dark purple, since that's more MANLY. I forgot to say last time, the fabby is white. I couldn't afford a piece of hand dyed, so I just used what I had in my stash for it. This past weekend was IHSW, which stands for International Hermit and Stitch Weekend. Basically, the idea is to stay home and stitch to your heart's content. However, this is my first one in a while, and I made the mistake of starting a really good book on Friday. Then another on Sunday. So I didn't get much stitching in. Here's a pic of where I was at the end of the weekend.Needleminder is Freddy Kreuger (very appropriate for me) from Gina's Unique Needleminders on Facebook.

That's all I've got for today, folks. Hope y'all have a great day (it's now eight am, yikes) and a good rest of your week. I've gotta run some errands today (one to the post office too, for a chart I sold), and then I'll be home sweet home for the rest of the day. Hopefully, it'll be a good one, for everyone. Later!!!

Okay, this time with pics

Hi folks. I've been looking at some of your blogs, and leaving some comments. It's hard to remember who's who anymore, lol. It's been too long of a time since I blogged and read blogs. Some of you, I've found on Facebook, and I'm happy about that. The rest of you, I need to reconnect with. So I'm gonna do some of that this next week, if I can.

I've been stitching away the last couple of days. I'm making a Christmas pressie for my 12 year old neighbor, Elijah. He's a huge video game fan, and so I'm making him the logo from Assassin's Creed Black Flag. I'm using a dark purple, cause it's his fave color. The thread is Weeks Dye Works Purple Majesty. So far, it's looking great. Here are a couple of pics. This first pic is of the last time I had it off the Q. It's been really easy since it's monochromatic. And here is the other piccy, of what I've done since I took the last off the Q pic. (I did take it off one other time, but I didn't take a pic as there hadn't been a huge amount of progres.) I'm hoping he'll really like it, and I think mom and I are gonna make it into a pillow for him. So I need to dig out my backing fabbies, and see if a fat quarter is big enough to do the backing with. I'm hoping.

And the next pressie up is all finished. It's for my friend Paul, who I mentioned before. He and I have had several discussions about horror movies. He's more a fan of the older horror movies, the classics. So I foung the following piece to do for him. The monsters in it are obvious to me, but I'll list them off for those who don't know. From left to right, they are: The Mummy, The Wolfman/Werewolf, Dracula, Frankenstein, The Bride of Frankenstein, The Blob, and last, (but certainly not least), The Invisible Man. This was SUCH a fun stitch. Here's my finished product. (I did do some Backstitching that wasn't called for, as Dracula's fangs were a little too light, and blended in with his face.) I've also got one of these little guys picked out for me. I saw someone else's version of it, and I loved it. So I saved the pic, so I could copy her verbiage. It's the children's jump rope song from Nightmare on Elm Street. The words are: One Two Freddy's coming for you, Three Four, better lock your door, Five Six grab your crucifix, Seven Eight, better stay up late, Nine Ten Never sleep again. It's VERY creepy in the movie. The actual verse is something else, and I don't like it. So if I DO a verse, I'm gonna have to do the song. The monsters in this one are, from left to right: Leatherface (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre), Jason Voorhees (Friday the Thirteenth 2-10), Freddy Kreuger (Nightmare on Elm Street 1-Wes Craven's New Nightmare), Jigsaw (Saw 1-4), Hannible Lecter (Silence of the Lambs etc...), and Michael Meyers (Halloween various). And here's her pic:

And this one is my sis in law's pressie. It requires some explanation, though. I did a subversive stitch for my brother. This was, oh, about six or seven years ago. A friend did up the chart. In the corners and under the words are the prettiest pink roses and green vines with leaves you've ever seen. In the center, it says, "Fuck You." This is my brother's fave phrase when dealing with jerks. If you're good to him, he's AWESOME. He will literally do almost anything for you, unless it's illegal. If you treat him like crap, he'll be the worst enemy you've ever had. So it was pretty appropriate. Anyways, I told my sister in law about it, and he showed it to her. She was excited. I want one, I want one... So I finally found something that speaks to me of my sister in law. She's awesome, but she'll find this hilarious. It says, "I'm not always a BITCH. Just kidding. Go Fuck Yourself." The last line doesn't show up too well in this pic, so I think I need to take another one soon. But here she is, in the BLUE colorway. (I'd like to do it again in the green and keep it for myself.)

And now for two progress piccys. I have two SALs in progress, sort of. The first one is the Under the Sea SAL, but Durene Jones. It's the cutest thing. It has all kinds of sea creatures, and even some humans doing sea things. Here are the lastest pics. I took one when I had it off the Q to move from part six to part seven. So it has the first six parts on it. It's THIS photo: And then this pic is of part seven. It's the mermaid, as you can see. She's very pretty. I'm so glad she doesn't really have eyes. It would have been really hard to do such small eyes, and I don't think I would have liked them. Although it makes me laugh that she's wearing makeup in the water, lol. (Look at those EYELASHES. Makes me sooooooo jealous, lol.) Anyways, here she is in all her beautiful glory.

And the last pic for this time is my OTHER SAL. This is the Birthstone Dragons SAL. I have to pull out the ENTIRE border except for about six inches of the top or something like that, and put it back in. I made a mistake, and thought I corrected for it, but I didn't. So now I have to pull the whole darned thing out. I'm so disgusted with myself over it, it's been languishing. I haven't touched it since summer, and don't even have a whole dragon done. (Luckily, I can redo the border AROUND the dragon that is almost done, so I don't have to pull all of that out. Yay for that. SOMETHING will stay.) Here it is. I've chosen to do the border in black instead of the gold you're supposed to do it in. I think it'll look better on the fabby I've chosen to use, a hand dyed fabby from Jo's Fabrics and Such on Facebook. She's done some WONDERFUL fabrics for me. So here it is, in all its messed up glory.

Okay, that's all the photos for today. I'll have some more later this week, along with some tales of what Yes Dear has been up to. (Mainly, costing me lots of money, lol. But she's sooooooooooo worth it!!!) Hope you're all having a great day, and I look forward to hearing from you!

Hi Everyone!!!

Hi folks. Long time no see. This is just a short entry to catch you up with where I'm at, and kind of get myself back into the habit. I haven't blogged in absolutely FOREVER, mostly because I was so busy at first, and then... Well, I just forgot.

Anyways, I've been stitching up a storm lately. I was doing VERY well in school when the Financial Aid department pulled my financial aid. I was having problems in my program, and needing a lot of help. Help an employer wouldn't have been willing to give me. So I tried to switch programs, but... I was switching TRACKS within the same major instead of switching MAJORS. So they said I would take too long to graduate, and dumped me out of school. I was NOT a happy camper.

So here I am, doing my old stuff again. And I had to look at something on blogspot and realized, I haven't blogged in YEARS. I'm working on some stitching for Christmas, and have several things done. I have a project for my sis in law, and one for a new friend of mine, Paul. He's like the big brother I never had. We talk on the phone almost daily, so we're pretty close. He likes to tease me, lol. He has a nickname for me, and ones for all my friends, that are VERY rude, lol. So I'm keeping busy playing, and reading, and stitching. Same thing as I used to be doing before school, basically.

So now I'm writing this to give you a short update, and I'm thinking this is enough for now. Next time I blog, I'll show some pics too, of my recent finishes, and some other stuff I'm working on. I also want to get back into the IHSW thing, as I'd forgotten about that too, until recently. And I've decided I'm doing a full Maynia next year. I'm in the group on Facebook, and it's gonna be so fun. I did a modified Maynia this year, and am doing the full fifteen next year. I've already got my projects picked out, so I'm raring to go.

I'll try to write more often, as I want to get to know y'all again. It was always fun to read blogs, and see people's pics. So we'll see how much time I have for it as things progress. For now, I hope you're all having a great night/day wherever you are. Happy Stitching!!!