Chris & Amelia's Halloween Party

To the far right, the man I married on Oct. 29, 1971.



Amelia, Chris, & Rachel - The Carver and Victims - from "Nip & Tuck," which I've never watched, but which sounds Creepy.



Cowboy Crystal, Jen the Pregnant Bride, & Little Chris St. Pierre as Geisha.

Amelia directing Brodie (Elvis), L.J. (Superman), and Jezza. Amelia changing Jezza from Snow White to an ... Angel. L.J. couldn't wear his Elvis costume because Brodie was wearing "The King" costume.

I have more pictures, but having trouble loading. Anyway, Fee and I had a
Very Special Anniversary, but were home by 9:30! We left before several
of the guests arrived, but I did get pictures of Kyle, Kevin, Schontz and Tori,
Chico and Rebecca, and Todd.

Well...maybe

You will sink in a mire. You like to think you're
normal, but deep down you really just want to
strip off your clothes and roll around in
chicken fat.

What horrible Edward Gorey Death will you die?
brought to you by

On another macabre topic, Amelia forgave me and "reissued" the
invitation tho her party after seeing my latest flattering comments
about Jezza Belle and L. J. So - we didn't actually have to crash the party.

It really was our 34th anniversary, so I wore my wedding dress
(a bit yellow and wrinkled - a la Miss Havisham), but added a bit
of interest with an artfully placed towel. Fee wore classic hippy
garb - to represent our misspent youth.

Pictures tomorrow.

Party Crashers?

Amelia and Chris are having a Halloween party tonight. Fee and I were not invited. In fact, Amelia said the only way I could come was if I wore a dom-in-a-trix costume!! I looked up dominatrix. . .guess I won't be going. Cruel blow, Amelia; this is our 34th anniversary, and you won't let your parents come to your Halloween party??

Who would have imagined that she would hold a grudge over such trivial remarks about her dog? Chris doesn't hold a grudge; he didn't take my remarks seriously. God knows, I've tried to make amends, but she isn't having any of it.

But look - another view of Snow White! How cute! Doesn't she look sweet? And L.J.! The very image of Elvis. He could probably get a job as an Elvis Impersonator!

Could dogs get any more adorable than these two? I'm serious! These are just the most talented, attractive dogs around!

Enough groveling. I'm going to that party. I have a costume. Remember Miss Havisham?

what to do ...?edited version

this is a piece I started back in the summer and left on my design board for months before taking everything down to revamp the room. I'm not at all happy with it. Much of this is just pinned on as possible embellishment: orange beads in lower left, fabric beads in middle section, lime green rat tail, deep orange embroidery thread, a piece of fabric with lime green, a needle felted piece with lime green and orange, etc. I need some direction. At this point, I'm not at all happy with it. The orange and blue seemed to call for some zip, and I tried introducing the lime green, but the flaws may be deeper than just color.
Should I continue to work on this piece or abandon it? Should I consider chopping up and incorporating into a new piece or pieces? I confess, whatever vision I initially had for this evaporated months ago, and I feel completely stymied. Nothing really seems to work here, and I have to wonder, " What was I THINKING?"

I've gotten some great suggestions on this. Unfortunately, this was my first attempt at fusing, and I fused the background as I went, so adjustments will be a bit more difficult; however, keeping the comments in mind (and I agree with Mary's and Cathy's comments about the orange strip and Liz's about the orientation) - I'm trying to look at it with "fresh eyes" as Gabrielle advised.

Of book lists and sewing room makeovers

Jen at Dreamscraps , Karen , Deb L. , Lisa , and Val have all responded to DebR's personal book list challenge. It has been interesting to see what books and/or authors are in common and to jot down titles and authors to look for. Who have I missed? I'm sure I've looked at more lists. I'M SO CONFUSED! I don't know where I've been...lost in cyberspace, no longer able to remember which blogs I've visited.

On books... have recently finished With No One As Witness by Elizabeth George and The Reading Group by Elizabeth Noble. In The Reading Group, I liked the inclusion of the books they were reading, and the various characters' take on the books even though it was a very small part of the novel.


It has also been fun to visit the various sewing rooms in need of help, whose owners have posted "before" pictures in response to Juliane's challenge. However, I'll have to wait to list some of those until I get my bearings, find my compass, or follow bread crumbs to get out of this maze. A map would be nice~

Ooops!

Amelia did find the pictures of L.J. and Jezza. I received a terse phone call that said she wanted to warn me about the comment she left on that blog entry. "How sharper than a serpent's tooth" is the tongue of a daughter whose dog has been maligned. I was most interested in the fact that L.J. was not supposed to be a super hero, but Elvis, and that neither dog is wearing a hat, but wigs. Having been advised that I am no longer on Jezza's Christmas list, I'm reminded of past gifts...usually deposits of bodily fluids, so perhaps I'll come out ahead... :)

And now, I've got an anonymous comment chastising my inconsiderate remarks. Mea Culpa!

Finally fall

I made this a couple of weeks ago, and finally, we are having days that seem fall-like.

Nappy Nalloween!

When I bought this, I read: Halloween. One day, it dawned on me that my mind had corrected the error without even noting that an error had occurred. Now, it makes me laugh whenever I look at it. Somehow the N stands out more in this photograph than it does in real life.

Also in the spirit of Nalloween, the following pictures are of Amelia and Chris's poor dogs dressed as Snow White and some kind of Super Dog. Most pictures of pets in costume are kind of cute, but these - well, frightening is more accurate. L.J. looks a bit angry (or disgusted) for a super hero, and Jezza Belle looks a bit like the Ugly Duckling pretending to be a swan, don't you think. I'm hoping Amelia doesn't read this entry as she is rather sensitive about her baby.

another postcard in the mail!

Yesterday's mail brought this terrific postcard from Karen . I love the texture and shine! Also interesting - in light of current discussions of books and authors - on the back, Karen writes that she is listening to a tape of Toni Morrison, her favorite author, reading her latest novel.

Personal Book List

I've not put these in order of importance or literary value. I've just jotted down books that came to mind. Some are no doubt out of print. Some are from my childhood library of favorites.
I've read and loved the classics, but this jumble of books is simply for entertainment and the escape they provide.

Like DebR, I like books that are character driven and when I find a series with characters I enjoy, I read as many as possible. For the next several weeks, books that should be on my personal list of favorites (for whatever reason and at whatever stage of my life) will probably keep popping into my mind, but for now here are some of my favorite books/authors.

All Creatures Great and Small

All Things Bright and Beautiful and

All Things Wise and Wonderful - James Herriot

John Lescroart - kind of a Law and Order in novel form; there are 13 books in this series
and I've enjoyed the 6 or so that I've read

The Devil in Music and all of Kate Ross's Julian Kestrel mysteries

Elizabeth George

Robert Ludlum

Tolkein's The Lord of the Rings

Robin Hobbs - Fantasy - The Farseer Trilogy, The Liveship Traders Trilogy, The Tawny Man Trilogy (all 9 books are related, but each trilogy stands on its own)

John Dunning - Cliff Janeway mystery series; ex-cop turns "bookman" and rare book dealer

Bone Mountain - Eliot Pattison (this is the first in the series of mysteries set in the
mountains of Tibet; I've liked all of them)

The Art of the Essay - Phillip Lopate

Live Bait - P.J. Tracy

Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil - John Berendt

To Kill a Mocking Bird - Harper Lee

Mila 18 - Leon Uris

Cheaper by the Dozen - Frank Gilbreth, Jr.

Anne of Green Gables and

Anne of Windy Poplars - L.M. Montgomery

The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett

Eloise - Kay Thompson

Jubilee Trail - Gwen Bristow

Animal Dreams and

Prodigal Summer - Barbara Kingsolver

Bel Canto - Ann Patchett

The Samurai's Garden - Gail Tsukiyama

Steppenwolf - Hermann Hesse

Isabel's Daughter - and

Bread Alone Judith Ryan Hendricks

Peace Like a River - Leif Enger

Brief Gaudy Hour - Margaret Campbell Barnes

Campbell's Kingdom - Hammond Innes

Never Let Me Go - Kazuo Tshiguro

The Moonstone and

Woman in White - Wilkie Collins

Cold Mountain - Charles Frasier

Debra's review of the Times 100 Best Novels List since 1923 has created some discussion in several blogs. I've read only 25 of the books, have not been interested in quite a few, and have never even heard of several. Even the ones I enjoyed surprise me by being on the "best" list. Are many of them on the list because they were innovative? Because they broke some kind of barrier? Are my reading tastes so vastly different from those critics who determine these lists? I suspect all of the above are true.

On this list , I've read 51. On this one I've read 47 (although on some anthologies, I may have skipped or skimmed a poem or two).

I see a few novels that made all 3 lists that I've never read, and I may look into that. Howevah, that will only happen in between the mystery, fantasy, and science fiction I now use for escape and entertainment.

On the Times list (from 1923 - present), the real question may be if anyone will read them 10, 20, 30 years down the road.

And from Burnside Cottage

South Dell, Isle of Lewis, Outer Hebrides comes this charming "Experiment 4" bringing a bit of Scottish brogue. (Doesn't this remind you of Emily's address in Our Town?)

This marvelous "experiment" comes from Frances, who lives here . I especially like the bit of text she includes.

The mail has been so much fun - looking for the creative endeavors of so many different people.

A Little Taste of Cornwall

The coastline of Cornwall provided inspiration for Val and this is "Rock Pools #9" - a delightful pair of fish. "By Pol, Tre, and Pen shall ye know all Cornish men" is a phrase I discovered years and years ago from some novel, and I love seeing the prefixes in both surnames and place names. Val lives on Polmennor Road in Cornwall.

According to wikipedia, "Tre means a settlement or homestead; Pol, a pond, lake or well; and Pen, a hill or headland."

I received this card just before I moved everything out of my studio - Debra's influence: "... I looked around my current space, which I refer to as My Studio. It is not the spare bedroom. I repeat. It is My Studio" - and recovered it today so I can post it. Sorry Val, for delaying, but the card is wonderful and so are all the associations of Cornwall.

Well, here is the spare bedroom with all the stuff I moved out of the sewing room.

These are not exactly "before" pictures because they were just moved into this room for temporary storage. The difficulty in getting it all back into the original space is evident.

Sewing Room Suggestions?

I'm giving trim a second coat and making final touch ups now. I actually still need to remove shelf in closet before I can finish in there. Everything in dribs and drabs. This little step forward leads me to realize that there are other tiny items I missed. Thought all the nail holes had been discovered and taken care of, but no, found a couple more.

What ideas or suggestions can you give me about what you love in your own sewing nests? Or what you wish you had? Or how to do things cheaply?

I want insulation boards for design wall, I think.

What about sewing tables? Storage? Will everything that was removed from the room be able to find a place? Hmmmm...really doubtful. What is essential? What can be culled?

More questions than answers.

Barbie Dolls: cultural icons

I've been thinking about the following poem for some time now. The name of the poet was lost in the myriad mazes of my mind, and I was unable to locate the poem in the perverse labyrinths of my belongings - although, I know I have a copy because I used it in certain classes to shock students into thinking. Today, as often happens, the Gods of Coincidence and Serendipity smiled on me, and as I was reading something else, I saw the name of the poet - Marge Piercy. Online research turned up a copy immediately (who knows when I'll find it in the pit of a filing cabinet). It is not a pretty poem, but I'm glad I located a copy because there was an incident that made me think about it a month or so ago, and the words are so scaldingly appropriate.

Barbie Doll

This girlchild was born as usual
and presented dolls that did pee-pee
and miniature GE stoves and irons
and wee lipsticks the color of cherry candy.
Then in the magic of puberty, a classmate said:
You have a great big nose and fat legs.

She was healthy, tested intelligent,
possessed strong arms and back,
abundant sexual drive and manual dexterity.
She went to and fro apologizing.
Everyone saw a fat nose on thick legs.

She was advised to play coy,
exhorted to come on hearty,
exercise, diet, smile and wheedle.
Her good nature wore outlike a fan belt.
So she cut off her nose and her legs
and offered them up.

In the casket displayed on satin she lay
with the undertaker's cosmetics painted on,
a turned-up putty nose,
dressed in a pink and white nightie.
Doesn't she look pretty? everyone said.

Consummation at last.
To every woman a happy ending.

Marge Piercy

"New and Improved"

It has been quite a while since I've had the time and energy to post. Fee seems to have been able to correct most of the computer problems that have slowed things down to the point that I couldn't bear to sit down and wait for anything to load.

Of course, a host of other things have been keeping me busy as well and a fair (UNDERSTATEMENT) of time has gone into clearing out the sewing room and getting ready to paint.

Painting is almost finished now, although I still have some spots to touch up. Trim paint is in progress, as is the installation of hardwood floors by my favorite handyman. He does what he can in the time he can spare...and I am appropriately grateful for his services. (Thank you, dear.)

So the progress may not be as rapid as I'd like (think: magic wand and "presto change-o"), but by the time winter gets here, my sewing room will be a cheery, re-organized space that will defeat the dreary, depressing days of grey skies, rain, and cold.

The new paint color is called "winter evening" and has a faint peach tint. It will sure brighten things up in my tiny sewing room. This was Amelia's room until she left for college. She now has her own home that she and Chris have done a wonderful job on. 

Daughter Amelia painted this "blue dog" on her wall about 15 years ago. All of the other things have been painted over at various times, but this one, we always painted around. 

Slow as molasses...

My computer is still running at the speed of cold molasses and is driving me crazy!

I added names to the "I Dream of Africa" pin swap entry. Thanks to Karen, Tish, and Ginger.

Almost finished with the quiltlet with too-damn-many pieces. And that particular experience will never happen again. I'm pretty good with tedious, but this was worse than tedious. Since I might use this for a swap there will not be a picture until I finish the other possibility and decide which one would work best.

I'm also late doing a photo for Simple Still Life - and, uh, maybe I'd better get busy on that if I want to participate. Have been looking at photos on other blogs and obviously I'm running behind. Of course, that is literally how I feel about so many things lately: a vehicle is speeding away while I run behind about as quickly as my computer operates right now -
m o l a s s e s.