When did I post last?

I can't remember. I guess I'll have to look it up.

What's been going on since then?  Mostly Covid  😓 and Covid-related sewing, like masks, although I've not gotten too far along with those.  I have fabric for about 1000, but motivation to just pet the fabric.  (I have some REALLY good fabric!)

I haven't seen my kids since last Thanksgiving, haven't seen my smocking pals since June, except for one lunch meeting with my chapter VP last month; masked and distanced. 

I lost my best buddy, Kali, 2 weeks ago to Feline Squamous Cell Carcinoma.  She was diagnosed in early September, and gone in November.  I miss her.  

The Christmas dresses I started for my +2 nieces are still in bits up in the sewing room.  I have a week to finish them for this year!  There's pleeeenty of time, right?  I'm also still working on a silk reticule, a lace baby bonnet, a christening gown that was for a baby born 18 month ago who got cheated out of his baptism by The Plague but is now expecting a sibling, so there are now TWO garments to make.  The older one will get a button-on suit rather than a gown, as he's likely to be 2 years old by the time they can schedule a ceremony.  I'm guessing it will be a double-do, so the baby will get a gown.  I'm really hoping we don't have to wait til these kids are 7 and 5 to get them baptized!

If I have readers, I hope you are well and chugging along during the restrictions without a lot of problems.  

-K

  

Oh, hai

 It's been about a million days since I last posted. 

In that time I have :

   pulled out the weeds from the area formerly known as the raised beds

   done same with 3/4 of the planting bed on the west side of the house.  The remaining bit isgoing to be a while longer, as it is infested with poison ivy. Once the Roundup takes care of that bit ofgrowth, I can get rid of the rest of whatever is out there. (I think it's goldenrod).  I've been making a list of bulbs and perennials I want to put in to take the place of the poison ivy and crown vetch that tend to overwhelm the area. 

I've collected about 7 yards of various fabrics intended to become masks, but haven't gotten far with making them.  I did complete 12 earlier on in the pandemic, but they're lined with flannel as per the request of local law enforcement and I find them quite uncomfortable.  There is some nice white cotton muslin in the sewing room ready to be made in to linings now. 

  I just need to make it up to the sewing room and actually, like...sew.  The room is still a certifiable hoarder zone, which makes it unappealing.  I've done some work, organizing magazines and weeding out duplicates and projects that I'm never going to actually get around to making.  That's been a bit of a help.  

  I'm finding it hard to cope with the fact that it's September, when it seems like this self-quarantine/isolation/social distancing has been going on for decades.  

Yep. That's pretty much the whole past few months.  Oh- I decided to let my hair grow out to its natual color of gray.  I applied a pale blonde that included a color-stripper to make the regrowth line a bit less drastic, and so far I'm okay with the change.  At some point I'll go in to a salon and have them do a better job of stripping the rest of the color and applying a silver toner but I'm not in a rush since the only people who see me are my husband (who likes it the way it is), my trainer, and the occasional waitress or cashier.  

here's hoping for a lovely Labor Day weekend for all, with no riots and no Corona spikes. 

warning: first world problem alert

I have acrylic nails. I don't have them because they look pretty, although that is definitely not an unwelcome side benefit: I have them because my natural nails are thin, delaminate, and rip to down below the quick, which hurts and can make things like sewing, doing dishes, and even getting dressed difficult. I had to postpone my most recent appointment because of schedule conflicts, and was about to head in when the salons were told to close.

It's now been almost 2 months since I last had them done. They're far too long to be sensible. I filed them down, but they're still too long, and I can't get them into a useful shape. They slide off the keyboard when I try to type! They're starting to lift away from the natural nail ( 6 weeks is an amazing amount of time for one fill to last, so I'm not. complaining about that! My tech is good!) and that allows water to get in there, which encourages fungus, aka "the greenies", and my long hair gets stuck between the layers.

Seriously, COVID. Fuck off so I can go get my nails done.

Also- I am running out of Southern Comfort and the online ordering slots disappear as fast as toilet paper.

I purchased a waffle iron on my last trip to Target for cat litter and other necessities (the waffle iron was not a necessity) and it doesn't make waffles. It makes dimpled pancakes. Target is not accepting returns or exchanges right now because of The Plague COVID.

As I said, it's all first world problems, because we're healthy(ish) and have enough to eat and enough toilet paper; the hubby has worked at home for the past nine years, so we've gotten (mostly) past that point of another person around the house being annoyingly different.

I will still be very glad when I can get my nails done again. [ I may wind up soaking off the current acrylic and making do with dip nails for the duration. I can do that myself assuming my base coat hasn't solidified. It won't look great, and it wont last long per application, but at least I'll be able to use my hands. ]

On the good news front, the power company is replacing telephone poles in our neighborhood. My hubby went to talk to a crew boss and they've arranged to not only replace the pole, but to MOVE IT two feet into our property line so it no longer blocks our egress from the garage in one direction or sits inside the roadway. I guess the previous owners wouldn't grant an easement; I think there may have been a hedge there. (previous building was razed and our house built new, so a totally different lot arrangement.

Whew. I feel better.

COVID-19 Social Distancing, Day....something bigger than 8

Well, my friends, how are you managing the daily grind of self isolation?  Are you filling the days with sewing and baking fresh bread, or are you staring at your stash and wondering when the fabric stores are going to open again? 

I have baked some bread, once I was finally able to find some flour in the store.  Alas, my stash is untouched, although I do have plans to make some masks, both for my husband and me, for my daughter-in-law, and for some local clinics that have requested them.  My DiL manages a meal program for kids in need and so has to be among People for some portion of each week as they pack up the week's meals.  This used to be just for weekends, to fill in for the days kids didn't get meals at school, but with the school closings, they are now providing breakfast and lunch foods for 7 days.   My plan is to make enough masks for every volunteer to have one while packing, which can then be laundered and ready for the next packing day. 
 

The husband has a remote-work job, and has had for a few years now, so working from home is pretty much his normal.  The main change for me is that I can't go out and cruise the fabric stores or The Container Store, so I'm a bit more stir-crazy than he is.  Oh; we've also furloughed our cleaning ladies (with pay) so I'm having to fight my fibro symptoms to keep up with the dust bunnies. 
   I wonder where the vacuum cleaner is?
He and I have also been binge-watching some older TV series.  We finished Midsomer Murders up to the current releases and switched to New Tricks last week.  Finished that last night.  I might need to convince him to re-watch the Miss Fisher Murders with me again.