This and That

Sassalynne has some lovely new offerings -

just one example


I love Sassalynne's pearl cotton--beautiful to look at and lovely to use.

I also like the Coton a Broder and Danish Flower Threads (which are very fine) from Hedgehog Handworks; I've used some of their linen threads which come in soft colors, but they are stiffer, less flexible threads.

Daughter Amelia has been planning parties for a while now.

Love this cake!  This was the farm party for the twins Elizabeth and Blanton, Amelia's Godchildren.



One of the tables from Megan's shower--


The garage door stuck again, and I had to call them (again) to come fix it.  This time they replaced the pin that kept working loose with one about twice as long.  That should do it!

Monday Musings

Work on the boro jacket continues.  Patch after patch.  No one would recognize Fee's shirt now that the collar and cuffs have been removed, sleeves shortened, neckline altered, and length cut off.

I wish I'd had more blue scraps.  It began to be a bit of a problem finding a way to keep from repeating the same fabrics too close to each other.  Still not finished, but with the front all patched, I can get a better idea of how it will look.

The milkweed is producing flowers again.  Just when I thought they were completely through for the summer and collected seeds for next year, more buds arrived.

Scattered crepe myrtle "confetti" nestle in shrubs and ground cover; makes it look as if the shrubs and ground cover are blooming.   I've long neglected some serious trimming of the ground cover which will soon take over the patio, if I don't do something about it.

Fee and I had planned to take a short trip this month, but as often happens, work has interfered.  We will be heading to Baton Rouge later this month for Max's birthday, and hopefully, we can schedule a little side venture at that time.

The white on white has received no attention in quite some time.  Maybe when (and if) I finish the jeogori style boro jacket, I will return to the white on white.

Have a good week!

Inspiration

I love this!  Inspiring doesn't cover all the emotions this remarkable man evokes.

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An interesting article about photoshopped images of girls in Seventeen Magazine and an eighth grade girl's mission to change the practice.  Way to go, Julia Bluhm.  (found via Read in a Single Sitting)
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Work on the boro jacket continues.  It has proven more time-consuming than I initially imagined.  I've worked all day on it several days.  It doesn't require much thought, and I can watch television while sewing, but is taking MUCH longer than expected to finish.

During breaks from stitching, I do chores.  All the mundane parts of life.  I set the timer for various chores and when the timer goes off, I reward myself by going up to the studio for another couple of hours.

During shorter breaks, I sit outside and read in 5-10 minute segments.  Right now, I'm reading The Secret Lives of Codebreakers: The Men and Women Who Cracked the Enigma Code at Bletchley Park.

It is an engrossing read, not at all dry or difficult.  The bits about Alan Turing are so funny; it is tragic that his life was so short and that he received such shameful treatment after the war because he was homosexual. In 2009, the British Government issued a public apology for "the appalling way he was treated."  A brilliant and eccentric man, Turing's work laid the foundation for modern computers and helped shorten the war.

But Turing is only a part of the fascinating story of Bletchley Park; Sinclair McKay has done a brilliant job in painting a picture of the unsung heroes who spent the war doing highly secret work.  The entire story of Bletchley Park is inspiring.

The book is due out in September, and I'll post a full review on my book blog closer to the publication date.
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Looks as if this summer is going to be as hot and dry as last summer.  I'm prepared to lose plants, especially those that weren't well established.

HI HO-- time to do the laundry!

What a Woman!

You may remember Aimee Mullins as the woman with cheetah legs.  Born without fibula, her legs were amputated when she was a year old.  Nevertheless, this amazing woman went on to play sports, become a model, and an actress.

This amazing TED talk will inspire you.
Remember grey cat when he was fat and sassy? He has continued to visit, but over the last couple of months, he has gotten skinnier and skinnier.  I began feeding him, and at first, he would run off the moment he saw me, but if Edgar got out, he would follow Edgar around like a puppy. Now, he comes semi-regularly, eats, and lies down within a few feet of me when I'm sitting outside.  If I get up, he takes off.  He won't let me get close, but he has certainly gotten over his initial fear.  Sometimes at night, I hear him outside the window.  Like Lucy cat, he is very vocal.  He is painfully skinny and doesn't come to eat every day.

Hot

The heat and drought are already taking their toll on the garden.  Crepe Myrtles, however, laugh at these conditions.

 And leave their confetti-like blooms scattered in the pine straw.

A new favorite garden blog:  In the Garden.
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At Megan's baby shower, in various conversations with my sisters-in-law (both adaptive PE teachers, although one retired last year) and my cousin, we found ourselves  discussing the benefits of exercise.  Schools have cut PE programs to concentrate on improving test scores (another dubious goal to my mind--all the emphasis on preparing for standardized tests), but with the growing evidence that exercise benefits concentration, focus, alertness, and brain activity--it seems that once again efforts at improvement have gone awry by eliminating PE.

For the last several years, more and more evidence from studies on physical exercise and brain activity have linked fitness and learning.  The discussions yesterday reminded me of the Naperville High School program that I think I posted about a year or so ago.

This following video is from a PBS program (you can skip the first minute or so to get to the good part):



Highlights:

• obesity rates among young Americans are nearly 4 times as high as in the 1960's
• only 2% of American high schools provide daily PE
• the key is to get heart rates up right before most difficult classes
• exercise promotes the growth of new brain cells
• stimulating brain cells to grow and connect--perfect environment for learning
• even 20 minutes of walking before a test raised test scores
• it isn't simply gym time that works; it is fitness based PE 

My cousin and I also talked about how many kids spend their summers in front of the television, on smart phones, IPads, and computers instead of playing outside, riding bikes, and swimming.

I love all the new technology which can be used in wonderful, exciting, and inspirational ways, but as with most things, we can abuse the technology and neglect other really useful and joyful activities.

Retreating from the world of physical and social activities is a mistake (and a problem for me as I have social anxiety), but the best of all worlds can combine the physical, social, and technological opportunities available to us.

Technology can stimulate, inspire, and provide useful information.  I love my computer; still...there really is and should be more to life.
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Working on the other side of the jacket, now.  Well, actually, I move around quite a bit on the jacket, from one side to the other and from front to back.  If a patch won't fit in where I'm working, I just find a place for it.

And So He Grows

Wee Jack now weighs 3 lbs., 3 oz.

From this




To this



Almost two handfuls!  And Megan and Drew now get to hold him for 30 minutes twice a day!

Yesterday was the baby shower, and of course, I left my camera on the table again, so I will have to hijack pictures from Amelia.  Wee Jack will be in sartorial splendor when he gets big enough to wear newborn clothes, and boy, the clothes for little boys are so much cuter now.
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Work on the boro jacket continues.

I really need to get back to the white on white project, but for some reason, when I go upstairs, I pick up this to work on.  At least I am working again.

Hope everyone is having a great weekend!