tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21293924156805746952024-03-05T01:27:03.353-06:00All Cheese DinnerI write about food, writing, music, books, teaching, and, of course, life with a little girl.
Not usually in that order.mekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17917552705258680396noreply@blogger.comBlogger323125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129392415680574695.post-28927405067416681682013-06-14T21:32:00.001-05:002013-06-14T21:32:28.808-05:00Change of venueNow making my home over at http://writecraftthink.blogspot.com/mekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17917552705258680396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129392415680574695.post-75775729029834167192013-06-11T10:35:00.001-05:002013-06-11T10:35:27.343-05:00SabbaticalClearly, I have already been on sabbatical from the blog for a while. And it will continue a while longer. It's time to shift voices, it feels like, and I'm listening to myself on this one.mekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17917552705258680396noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129392415680574695.post-69838431145195725552012-11-13T20:36:00.002-06:002012-11-13T20:36:25.637-06:00Dear Tomten,I think you are a little creepy, frankly, but I'm willing to overlook that. You see, some people (my mother, my imagination), think you might be living in the attic space of the house. After all, why else would the third floor, that long, single, slant-roofed room above me - why else would it have those little, little doors?<br />
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Oh, I know. There's storage space there, right? Yes. We have some boxes of holiday ornaments behind one of the doors. And some other random boxes behind another. Books in most. I fear that you, like a spiteful brownie, might decide to ruin the books.<br />
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Worse, I fear you might, like your Scandinavian kinsman we read about some evenings, you might decide to tiptoe through our house as we sleep. So, I keep things stacked in front of the little doors. But, I've been thinking it might be worth the creepy creeping if, during your nighttime ramblings around the house, you made some cookies.<br />
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Chocolate chip, ginger, peanut butter, molasses, your choice. Though I would be especially grateful for those little chocolate pillow cookies my grandma used to make. Cocoa drops. With icing would be lovely, but perhaps too much extra trouble.<br />
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Anyway. Just a thought.mekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17917552705258680396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129392415680574695.post-24871838666073642572012-10-25T22:50:00.000-05:002012-10-25T22:50:18.102-05:00A List: 10/24/12I want to knit some socks and wear them with a beautiful pair of clogs.<br />
I want to make more art - journaling? trading cards? Start small.<br />
Time to re-instate Curry Night. Cooking curry, eating curry, makes me happy. Do more often.<br />
Remember when you used to take pictures?<br />
Read more. Web surf less.<br />
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Eight days until NaNo. Get ready.<br />
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<br />mekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17917552705258680396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129392415680574695.post-52266296406879131672012-04-13T16:51:00.000-05:002012-04-13T16:51:19.380-05:00April?I'm committing myself to ScriptFrenzy this month (so proud of myself for still being on track here near the end of week two!), but I don't want to let all of April go by without a post. So, here's one courtesy of my own little craft-companion!<br />
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The first photo is a drawing Cora made as a pattern for a quilt. Then I asked her to make a list of all the design elements in her pattern and what kind of fabric she would want to use for that item/shape. Then, there was a lot of sorting through my fabric bins, talking about color/texture/shape interactions, and through a combination of seaming, fusible applique, and stitching, we arrived at the last photo.<br />
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For the parts that are fused, I had Cora draw the shapes on the fusible and, after I cut them out, she positioned them on the fabric. Then I pressed them in place. It was an excellent collaborative experience, completely led by her own vision.<br />
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For example, after looking through the fabric she found a piece of fabric featuring cat heads - she pulled it out and said, "This will be perfect for a cloud!" I wasn't so sure, but it was her design, so we went with it. Turns out she was right. That is one awesome cloud. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGOkIs5EGNMqAZ6SZe8C33KtHQS-MT507N7uNMlZNjWfjtPGzLv2CV4mI4LWeJwKpvjim0NLmtggA7V6yhSjBqV5w30cFLAv3-Makya4mXg9_RHgN0cH0vu4dXslXxC5jzrEYG8DGF5W1X/s1600/033112+coras+quilt+top.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGOkIs5EGNMqAZ6SZe8C33KtHQS-MT507N7uNMlZNjWfjtPGzLv2CV4mI4LWeJwKpvjim0NLmtggA7V6yhSjBqV5w30cFLAv3-Makya4mXg9_RHgN0cH0vu4dXslXxC5jzrEYG8DGF5W1X/s320/033112+coras+quilt+top.jpg" width="216" /></a></div>mekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17917552705258680396noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129392415680574695.post-47938557768496854302012-03-22T15:02:00.000-05:002012-03-22T15:02:51.556-05:00Photo fun<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRqPTMu3I3yYqQKzEhpdl3WcBvavzY77lKuzB8qtinLFXVXkaPVifkaCE6EmYt3ffJHTTkHBxRe61kA4ouKSNuoC6WKzuHabWqe1-15ix0GzKSS4H2E72G4EjejeNGLISJpQ0HTk9VVf1J/s1600/032212+cora+feeling+better+redux.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="216" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRqPTMu3I3yYqQKzEhpdl3WcBvavzY77lKuzB8qtinLFXVXkaPVifkaCE6EmYt3ffJHTTkHBxRe61kA4ouKSNuoC6WKzuHabWqe1-15ix0GzKSS4H2E72G4EjejeNGLISJpQ0HTk9VVf1J/s320/032212+cora+feeling+better+redux.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">I'm enjoying playing with Pixlr these days.</div>mekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17917552705258680396noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129392415680574695.post-16377595943113715202012-03-20T08:59:00.000-05:002012-03-20T08:59:50.945-05:00Hello Spring!This year Cora decided to ring in the spring with a fever. Because she is so rarely sick, it was very strange to spend a day with her while she just curled on the couch watching PBS and listening to stories. Not much moving around yesterday.<br />
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Today I can tell she is on the mend, because she is her usual squirrelly self. She's still watching PBS, but also writing a letter to the tooth fairy, coloring, reading some of her library books, and being much more chatty than yesterday.<br />
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I've missed two days of work to tend to her, to make her homemade chicken soup, and to do a little handsewing while I sat beside her. It wasn't the start to the week that I had planned, but it has been pleasant in its own way and, coming off a more hectic than usual end of week/weekend, not entirely unpleasant.<br />
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Now we wait to see if the fever jumps to another family member, or if it really is done with us. In the meantime, it is good to see this smile back (at least until that VERY loose tooth comes out!)<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbqkDz9CdOSrarI955xVYcHg0GQri2Y3QnM4was5TJruVoBJrtpChLR3VHcWuvh-C_FXiix3jcPQ1ViWEhzhLmqpXGmeXSNLhtzjfB-nm9UJ2zOHhERoBZ6aRLfdknxxbhZrU7BN8zFAnX/s1600/021212+cora+smile.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="216" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbqkDz9CdOSrarI955xVYcHg0GQri2Y3QnM4was5TJruVoBJrtpChLR3VHcWuvh-C_FXiix3jcPQ1ViWEhzhLmqpXGmeXSNLhtzjfB-nm9UJ2zOHhERoBZ6aRLfdknxxbhZrU7BN8zFAnX/s320/021212+cora+smile.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>mekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17917552705258680396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129392415680574695.post-53305074020681657132012-02-29T08:59:00.000-06:002012-02-29T08:59:51.217-06:00Leap DayI should thank February 2012 for tacking on an extra day so that I could post a second time in February. What was up with this month? Although I've sat down at the computer every day to check email, run through Facebook, and do some editing work, I haven't felt like writing. Which is a disappointment to me.<br />
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On the other hand, I have been sewing a lot, pursuing quilt ideas and color combinations in a more focused way, and that has been rewarding.<br />
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I've done some mild planning on a class I might be teaching in the fall - but I'm leery of putting too much energy into it until I know for sure the class will go. A lot of things are like that right now - waiting to see if something will or won't happen, will or won't work out.<br />
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Waiting is not my strong point.<br />
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But here it is Leap Day, and I completely forgot to give it the minor holiday attention it apparently now deserves (?). Instead, Cora and I have been too focused on the fact that March 2nd, Friday, is Dr. Seuss's birthday. She tells me that her class is studying Dr. Seuss at school the past couple weeks. Yesterday she wore her Cat in the Hat shirt. She tells me she has decided to wear it until they stop studying Dr. Seuss. While her teacher is used to seeing her wear the same outfit twice in a row, I'm not sure what she would think of a week of the same shirt. I am hoping we can peel it off her little body and wash it at some point.<br />
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She already has planned what she will wear for Dr. Seuss's birthday. It includes, of course, the shirt.mekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17917552705258680396noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129392415680574695.post-64530894205356846662012-02-01T09:29:00.001-06:002012-02-01T09:30:11.695-06:00What the kids are watching these daysLast night Cora and I were watching TV - she has been adamant about watching House of Anubis on Nick. It seems to be a kind of Dark Shadows for middle schoolers (putting her far below the demographic) - very convoluted plot lines involving kids at a British boarding school and ancient Egyptian curses, myths, and symbology. Frankly, I didn't think she was really following it. But then I asked a question, and she unfurled the whole plot, and while she didn't understand all of it, she had all the plot points nailed in place and even some good insights into character motivation. Huh.<br />
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And then a commercial for the latest Twilight saga DVD came on. We see Jacob saying "I know what I have to do." Next clip he is running, shirtless, through the woods.<br />
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Cora: "Really? That's what he had to do? Take off his shirt and go running?" Then, a moment later: "Can I have that movie when I'm 12?"<br />
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Yes. Yes you can. Right after we watch every episode of Buffy.mekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17917552705258680396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129392415680574695.post-6497465150207242232012-01-21T18:46:00.000-06:002012-01-21T18:46:25.295-06:00Winter is Winter, as it turns outYes, we had a lovely reprieve in December and early January, as temperatures soared in the high 30s and the snow stayed away.<br />
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Yes, I know we need snow and ice and cold and even disgusting gray slush to maintain the natural order.<br />
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And yet...well, this picture from January 2011 still best expresses my feelings towards the Midwest winter.<br />
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(I'm not sure which expression I love more - Cora's SnowZombie face, or Trout's apparent protest to having to wear a headband.)mekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17917552705258680396noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129392415680574695.post-61397003908234916072012-01-08T22:51:00.000-06:002012-01-08T22:51:08.847-06:00OnwardThe Christmas season went by fast, for the most part. As usual, there were things I meant to bake that I never did. Cards, such as they were, did not go out as early as hoped for. Fewer things were handmade than I intended. Looking back I see that I did a terrific job of managing Cora's expectations, and a really lousy job with my own. Looking farther back I see that as a theme of the past two years. Will 2012 be different? We shall see.<br />
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I believe the common approach to the new year is to square up the previous years resolutions. I did part of this for publication elsewhere, but here's the brief assessment, with the goal followed by the result:<br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: blue;">Dye sock yarn with Kool-Aid. Knit socks.</span> – dyed worsted yarn instead, gave for Christmas presents<o:p></o:p><span style="color: blue;">, <span style="color: black;">kept some for myself for a new hat.</span> One new recipe a week. 52 recipes</span>. – probably accomplished this one – didn’t track well though; when I got to the end of March and had already tried 21 new recipes, I stopped listing them.<o:p></o:p><span style="color: blue;"> Write more. Publish more.</span> – wrote little, published one poem (frankly, only submitted to 12 publications over the whole year), but also several essays for the Simple, Good, and Tasty web site and blog posts.<span style="color: blue;"> Make cards. Send birthday cards.</span> – total fail <span style="color: blue;">Read more. 60 books.</span> – read maybe 20 books ( for adults) in 2011, but dozens of articles and magazines, plus many, many, many picture books. My all time reading record is about 120 books in one year, so 60 seemed a reasonable goal. <span style="color: blue;">Make a quilt, start to finish.</span> – yes! four new tops completed, one completed, though technically quilted by someone else, but it was finished and under the tree for Cora this year. <span style="color: blue;">Finish four unfinished projects. 1 per season.</span> – an abandoned scarf became an earwarmer, I had two old quilt tops quilted, and I finished the tree skirt I started eight years ago. </span><span style="font-family: "Maiandra GD","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Journal. At least a list. At least 5x/week.</span><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> – total fail, even if I stretch to counting blogging as journaling. Can only claim victory if a Facebook status update counts as a journal entry!</span></span><br />
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The goals for 2012 are very similar. I still hope to send birthday cards (something I have not managed since Cora was born, but that was nearly six years ago and I really think it now makes a poor excuse). I hope to read more than last year. I'm sticking with the same cooking goal and also hope to finish some unfinished projects. I have a collection of batik fabric I have never cut into. This is the year. I hope to write more - and to finally finish NaNoWriMo - and to send writing out more often.<br />
<span style="font-family: "Maiandra GD","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
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I would like 2012 to be kind to me. I hope to find this year more sustaining. I hope to leave a lot of the sadness I've been collecting behind. Or at least get the scales to tip in the other direction more often.mekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17917552705258680396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129392415680574695.post-17541281084704641862011-12-03T18:44:00.000-06:002011-12-03T18:44:29.356-06:00An artistCora and I have been making things. Fun things. Cool things. She has an amazing hunger for arts and crafts and baking - where does she get that? *ahem*<br />
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She's at her little art table now, with paper, scissors, watercolors, google eyes, a very large bottle of glue, glitter glue, ribbon, colorful duct tape, foam stickers and playdough. Earlier, she cut out snowflakes. Then she made me a playdough sculpture with red duct tape and a sparkly foam heat. Before that it was a craft with fabric and fabric markers.<br />
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She's standing up, mostly, only sitting down for certain parts of her work. She found last year's one-piece pajamas and they barely fit her, but she is wearing them. Purple with silver flowers. A t-shirt underneath. A ponytail leftover from ballet this morning. She does something on her page - paints something or glues on a google eye or rubs some glitter glue over something - pauses and looks at what she's done, then surveys her table to see what else she has to work with. She makes a decision about what comes next. She works slowly and intently. She knows exactly what she is doing. <br />
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I do not have anywhere near enough craft supplies for this girl. We have a pink crate that we keep everything in, and she can easily deplete it in a weekend. I love this of course, but also am still figuring out what to do with it all, how long to keep creations for, which craft supplies are worth keeping a larger stash of, and most of all what I might do to a) find more space for her supplies and b) find a way to keep up with her supply consumption!<br />
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But I love seeing her serious face as she does her art, as she puts it. The way she is clearly thinking about the aesthetics of her creation, considering options, pursuing an inner vision. She gets frustrated sometimes when the finished product doesn't match that inner vision - haven't we all be there before? We talk a lot about frustration being a part of the process, a part of being an artist, something that you learn from and use to spur yourself on, not something to spend time feeling bad about or saying mean things to yourself about. <br />
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She says she wants to be an artist. I say she already is one.mekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17917552705258680396noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129392415680574695.post-48621838368057479142011-11-29T22:07:00.000-06:002011-11-29T22:07:08.362-06:00A new milestoneI've read about this moment on other blogs, but it came sooner than I expected it would: Cora asked me not to write about something she said - not on Facebook or anywhere on the computer, she specified. She knew she had said something funny - she meant it to be funny - but she said she would be embarrassed if anyone other than me and her dad knew about it.<br />
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However, she gave me full permission to share her idea that we make our family Advent wreath out of teeth. Which, she is sure, is what the Tooth Fairy does.<br />
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She also is hoping to spread the word about next weekend being Eat New Foods weekend. They don't have to be entirely new; a new preparation will also fit the bill. For example, as I have never served poached eggs, they would count as a new food. They are, in fact, first on her list of foods we should eat. New Foods weekend will be a challenge for us - we are at a disadvantage geographically, for one thing. And while it would make it easier if we included the vast realm of foods we have never served by choice (cheese in a can, shelf-ready bacon, frozen breakfast pastries...), I am not prepared to open that can of worms. (By coincidence, something else we have never eaten.)mekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17917552705258680396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129392415680574695.post-46496737042204133122011-11-18T12:02:00.000-06:002011-11-18T12:02:22.796-06:00A sample list of projectsRecently, I pawed through all my fabric, looking for two things: neutrals and an advent calendar kit I bought about two years ago. Found some of one, not a sign of the other. Which means I put the kit somewhere "safe" and/or "easy to remember". Ha! <br />
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In the process, I found a number of projects I really should finish. I thought it might be fun to list them. I reserve the right to make this a partial list so as not to scare anyone. Including myself.<br />
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I couldn't have made this list, or even looked through all that, anytime in the last several months. It would have been too hard, because I wouldn't have had any time to devote to anything. Now, though, I am making some space in my schedule so that I can do things like this again. Because, as you think I might be able to remember, few things make me as happy as making something.<br />
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Cora's sweater - 1-1/2 arms to go!<br />
Knit market bag - handles needed<br />
Cowl - yeah, maybe 1/4 done? But it's for me, so there's no time pressure<br />
Noro socks - same as above.<br />
Christmas quilt from an old block exchange (how old? I was still stitching by hand) - need two new blocks and then I can, you know, put the top together and so forth<br />
Couple small quilt tops that need to be made into actual quilts<br />
and a couple more quilt projects still in the works at various stages<br />
<br />
Despite all those, and the secret ones, I would still really like to find that kit!mekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17917552705258680396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129392415680574695.post-22060161614916234182011-11-16T20:38:00.000-06:002011-11-16T20:38:32.017-06:00What?!Monday, someone said something to me that both simultaneously filled me with excitement and panic: "Christmas is only about five weeks away."<br />
<br />
I should have known, given the uptick in commercials devoted to toys and electric shavers and diamond jewelry (only one category in that list is of any interest to anyone at my house - can you guess which one?). But immediately my mind was swirling with ideas and questions about baking and making and matching nice gifts to nice people.<br />
<br />
Now it is Wednesday night. I have an excellent start on a battery of lists. That always makes me feel like I am really accomplishing something! I also finally located the box full of felt cut-outs for our tree skirt. For about eight years it has gone unadorned, but I swear that this year it will have some trees, stars, deer, birds, and rabbits on it!mekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17917552705258680396noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129392415680574695.post-84403669803959205942011-11-08T22:15:00.000-06:002011-11-08T22:15:53.815-06:00Suspicions1. My days must contain fewer hours than the days of some other people.<br />
2. Our babysitter thinks all we ever eat is mac and cheese.<br />
3. My sewing machine is secretly trying to commit suicide by getting me to kill it (you know, like on the cop shows when the bank robber won't put his gun down and makes the officers shoot him because he just doesn't believe he has any other choice).<br />
4. There are at least four different ways in which I cannot afford to continue with this back-to-school idea.<br />
5. The Universe is relieved I am finally picking up its messages.mekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17917552705258680396noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129392415680574695.post-8938190590989892232011-10-23T14:58:00.000-05:002011-10-23T14:58:45.025-05:00Dreams...Twice in the last week I've dreamed about making a quilt.<br />
<br />
The first dream concerned a quilt with a traditional star block done in Kansas Troubles-like fabrics (not a type of fabric I typically work with!).<br />
<br />
The second was about having a stack of really colorful fabrics and needing to make an applique quilt of some kind. Just as I settled on butterflies and started drafting my pattern, I woke up.<br />
<br />
Is it a coincidence that I have in my sewing machine upstairs a half-done quilt and have been saying for days and days, "I'd like to have a chance to sew today"? That since starting to work at the local quilt shop I nearly constantly have fabrics and designs and colors and ideas dancing in my brain?<br />
<br />
Surely not!mekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17917552705258680396noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129392415680574695.post-52218616341109777652011-10-19T09:28:00.000-05:002011-10-19T09:28:54.000-05:00Nothing ventured, nothing gained; Or, heaping high the plate and hoping for the best<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR5kwE0Bg_sfDlFisy7hw9JsR0I2rP5BKDyMlBde5Hn5hTHMYqpIRD3osAiYryfMtZcTY2mrF43ISCBsqUokbRNTYoqEKpHc4GPARyDYb7Tz16jcqPvtL0RkFSeqXML517Cdxvn-paBWm1/s1600/Participant_120_100_white.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR5kwE0Bg_sfDlFisy7hw9JsR0I2rP5BKDyMlBde5Hn5hTHMYqpIRD3osAiYryfMtZcTY2mrF43ISCBsqUokbRNTYoqEKpHc4GPARyDYb7Tz16jcqPvtL0RkFSeqXML517Cdxvn-paBWm1/s1600/Participant_120_100_white.png" /></a></div><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
NaNoWriMo 2011 starts in just over 12 days. While it is true I completely flamed out in 2010 and never wrote beyond week two (I blame the moving), and it is also true that my participation in Camp NaNoWriMo this past August was largely an imaginary endeavor, the third truth is that I for sure will not write anything if I don't sign up at all. At this point I would rather take the hit to my pride and admit I didn't finish my 50,000 words than not attempt it at all. <br />
<br />
So, put the coffee on and warm up the laptop. I'll be doing NaNoWriMo again this year. <br />
<br />
(And put some beer in the fridge, too, okay?)mekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17917552705258680396noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129392415680574695.post-13408750612463214752011-09-29T14:29:00.000-05:002011-09-29T14:29:27.906-05:00The trouble with the buffetI talked with my mom on the phone this morning, trying to sort through the difficult choices and dilemmas that life has been sending my way lately, and she said that maybe the Universe is sending me a buffet of choices so that I can better understand what I really like to do.<br />
<br />
I can see the wisdom in this. But I still kind of wish I had a continental breakfast menu and was choosing between the bagel and the sweet roll.<br />
<br />
Of course, sometimes a buffet is not as broad a choice as it seems. A seafood buffet, for example, would still probably only be offering me two choices that I would be interested in. Or, you know, sometimes you look at the buffet and wonder how long that food has been sitting there.<br />
<br />
Don't you love how the further you extend the metaphor, the more ridiculous it becomes?<br />
<br />
I remember when Cora was around three years old and, faced with two choices and wanting neither, she would cry, "These are NOT my options!"mekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17917552705258680396noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129392415680574695.post-91795729156352886172011-09-19T21:06:00.000-05:002011-09-19T21:06:29.837-05:00Possibly both waving and drowningWhen things get very busy, I start to feel a little panicky. A little like the walls are closing in and all my chances to do anything important to me are fast vanishing.<br />
<br />
Maybe it's the two part-time jobs, the part-time going to school, the full-time mothering and wife-ing and general holding-the-homestead-togethering, combined with having a kid who is in school full time for the first time in her life.<br />
<br />
She comes home and she wants to spend time with us. She has an agenda for us, an imaginary play game that she cares very much about playing. After being on my feet for a full day of work, then taking care of emails and work for online clients, bolting down a dinner, I do still want to have the energy to be Ms. Flower the art teacher for a 20 minute bout of coloring.<br />
<br />
But I also want to take a nap. To lie down and stare at the ceiling. To read a grown up book. To knit for a little or do some sewing or maybe even catch my mental breath enough to try to write something worthwhile.mekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17917552705258680396noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129392415680574695.post-38687056000342413542011-09-07T09:26:00.000-05:002011-09-07T09:26:42.679-05:00In the classroomIt is strange to be in the classroom as a student again. It is strange in two ways. First, of course, I am now more used to being on the other side of the teacher's desk. Second, and more strangely, it feels pretty natural - maybe not so surprising. I did, after all, spend 19 years as a student and only 8 as a teacher.<br />
<br />
Some things are the same as they were for much of my scholastic career. I can't believe other people aren't doing the reading, don't bring their books to class, and never have anything to say when the professor asks a question. I get impatient for the teacher to move on to the next point; I wish the pace would either pick up or else that there would be more opportunities to move the conversation deeper.<br />
<br />
I'm taking two classes. One is Introduction to Education (taught by a graduate teaching assistant - he has a lot of experience with elementary and high school teaching, but not much at all with college students, and he often puts himself in a position to have that lack of experience taken advantage of) and the other is Education of the Exceptional Student. Good material, interesting, but we're really just hovering on the surface.<br />
<br />
I'm not really the type of student who likes to hang out on the surface. When it seems clear that that is where we are staying, I have a tendency to tune out and read ahead. This has its pros and cons. Luckily, I have 19 years of experience with the pros and cons.mekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17917552705258680396noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129392415680574695.post-21338399491115774352011-08-26T10:27:00.000-05:002011-08-26T10:27:40.876-05:00Something completely different, indeedIt has been a month since I last posted. A strange month. Cora's time in daycare ended and she had a month of real summer break before starting kindergarten this week. I decided to go back to school to earn another degree in what I am thinking of as my personal Start a New Career Initiative (since I've been unable to find a position in my former career, which breaks my heart), and in the last month I applied, was accepted, registered for classes, bought textbooks (yep, they are still expensive), and started classes.<br />
<br />
And I'm still looking for a job to bring in some sort of income, too (believe me, I see the irony of going back to school and thus spending more money at the same time). But, finally there has been some promising development on that front.<br />
<br />
Of course, the real story is that we have a school-ager in the house now! Chances are that very soon a typical weekday night will find Chris doing his prep and grading while Cora and I do homework.<br />
<br />
Crazy!mekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17917552705258680396noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129392415680574695.post-24329689441239819242011-07-26T22:59:00.000-05:002011-07-26T22:59:28.539-05:00Report on Girl WeekGirl Week was good. It was beastly hot and humid, but the girl and I do know how to be on our own. Our days were busy with daycare, swimming lessons, VBS for her, and sweltering and running errands for me. On Friday, we had nothing going on. I'd planned some errands I thought would be fun: visiting our community garden plot, going to the library, the butcher, picking up a few groceries to make a good welcome-home dinner for Daddy.<br />
<br />
She wanted nothing to do with my plan. She didn't want to get dressed. She didn't want to leave the house. She didn't want to do anything but watch some PBS shows, watch a DVD, play by herself in her room, and do some puzzles and coloring. I was very frustrated, but at the same time recognized that none of our errands were truly necessary.<br />
<br />
It was, finally, a beautiful day, a perfect temperature for me, sunny, nice breeze, no rain coming, and I was really looking forward to being outside (a rather rare thing in the height of summer). But, she needed to stay in, and so we did, and we still had a nice day. Just the two of us.mekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17917552705258680396noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129392415680574695.post-17967763213665815092011-07-17T11:12:00.000-05:002011-07-17T11:12:51.042-05:00Girl Week / Heat & Humidity WeekCora and I begin Girl Week this week, a week I thought would be filled with fun summery activities, but which may in fact be filled with basic tropical jungle survival skills. Who knew northeastern North Dakota could reach a heat index of 110 with humidity to match?<br />
<br />
NOT ME.<br />
<br />
Well, we are starting with sitting with some DVDs and ice water and thinking of meals that require no cooking that we both will like and won't be embarrassed to admitting eating (i.e. no ice cream for lunch).<br />
<br />
How will Girl Week turn out? Which of the photos below will end up as our representative image? I'll let you know. <br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitzsRVP0ADNs_zc1Yq1_uqxwdKHlK__k4bKA2epYNNlusoG1dxZmhHu7xDtj-CAM7bQZ8gyD6MZT4GPNpiRdAIiQRejfFa3MatBXvU2ppn7TrMO0JIncJdvcxdDD_DfBxqFVSZjgeQM0bP/s1600/061011+really+happy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="216" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitzsRVP0ADNs_zc1Yq1_uqxwdKHlK__k4bKA2epYNNlusoG1dxZmhHu7xDtj-CAM7bQZ8gyD6MZT4GPNpiRdAIiQRejfFa3MatBXvU2ppn7TrMO0JIncJdvcxdDD_DfBxqFVSZjgeQM0bP/s320/061011+really+happy.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNafOA84U-OxmODEq9woKRJmQ7oo_M9vttUWH9LUUsAa6P4QW-sCv8fnYWVEZm-Oh_jMEgkfRM5QEEpixCUoan9fmmwBOzsscciDWwz5y-SIhn1AMpwWNztE1BwVafL9QhZwlnRmJiX8Bf/s1600/061011+pouter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="216" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNafOA84U-OxmODEq9woKRJmQ7oo_M9vttUWH9LUUsAa6P4QW-sCv8fnYWVEZm-Oh_jMEgkfRM5QEEpixCUoan9fmmwBOzsscciDWwz5y-SIhn1AMpwWNztE1BwVafL9QhZwlnRmJiX8Bf/s320/061011+pouter.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>mekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17917552705258680396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2129392415680574695.post-6248017470336956512011-06-23T08:43:00.000-05:002011-06-23T08:43:36.966-05:00Yes, I knit a dog.A while ago a friend gave me a copy of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Knit-Your-Own-Easy---Follow/dp/1579128742/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1308835383&sr=1-1">Knit Your own Dog</a>, a book I really wanted. of course, the moment it arrived there was someone else who was very interested in it. Cora looked at every page, but really there was no contest. She wanted a poodle. And she wanted it to be pink. Pink and white. With specific directions about which parts should be which colors. I read through the directions, tried to visualize them all, and it turned out it was possible to do it the way she requested. <br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTTznd4DgKPNjA-M7xIVC6ReTW2zy5Bmy4trmfajgT8EJvQ_k4EuPo6G5CDVBoiDNeR-9Qx4MNivLWNunlTYQqM0CSQWnxN9Om-_k-wntlYXAzvMjeB-fINbpgfNsD2nQZWzMvbOu6XliL/s1600/062211+knit+dog+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="216" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTTznd4DgKPNjA-M7xIVC6ReTW2zy5Bmy4trmfajgT8EJvQ_k4EuPo6G5CDVBoiDNeR-9Qx4MNivLWNunlTYQqM0CSQWnxN9Om-_k-wntlYXAzvMjeB-fINbpgfNsD2nQZWzMvbOu6XliL/s320/062211+knit+dog+3.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I do like her expression.</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
A few weeks later we trekked down to Fargo (where the yarn stores are) and I bought the yarn - a pink boucle and some white Cascade. And I was ready to begin! One of the first things I discovered is that boucle yarn and I are not tempramentally suited to each other. Then, at the point where the two sides of the body are joined up to make the neck and head, I forgot one of my own cardinal rules of knitting: Just Trust the Directions. I thought the directions were wrong. I thought I had it figured out how it should go.<br />
<br />
Oh, I was so wrong.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW20ZiTFU6L5h7DtRCL_J1Mrshs6rVkr0-q3QXncQ_8oc3Olh8uN6bYmqH9BMV_CGIE1JavqRUMbZX64ajvRQq0_o1biFtKLuIwVd8UtLkkG_eaQOixtbggmI_V-NS4bkfEIPxafmjA8eh/s1600/062211+knit+dog+4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="216" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW20ZiTFU6L5h7DtRCL_J1Mrshs6rVkr0-q3QXncQ_8oc3Olh8uN6bYmqH9BMV_CGIE1JavqRUMbZX64ajvRQq0_o1biFtKLuIwVd8UtLkkG_eaQOixtbggmI_V-NS4bkfEIPxafmjA8eh/s320/062211+knit+dog+4.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Does she stand at a jaunty angle because she has great confidence?<br />
Or because I might have made some mistakes?</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
To fix my mistake, once I realized it, would have meant ripping out 10 rows of boucle madness. I set the dog aside for two months. Last week Cora asked about her poodle; she knew I had started it. So, two days ago I took another look at it, decided how I would "fix" my mistake without ripping things out. It meant having the "wrong" side of the stockinette stitch facing out on the belly, but I decided I could live with that. I knit the head, learning and using the loopy stitch, which was fun, and then last night I stitched the whole dog together and stuffed it.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvzPOkiuIK18QThoyQubjb24bc2CjCx3v4-3NAec6N0-KTFCbrNAwiAebcAb_B2grRq6p3T9mmLUtyACMu00syFvbdzGSo98lDCtt09YcuFomv-k1MJGd6ie8Jl0UriPg4gsFSujXmnLIV/s1600/062211+knit+dog+6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="216" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvzPOkiuIK18QThoyQubjb24bc2CjCx3v4-3NAec6N0-KTFCbrNAwiAebcAb_B2grRq6p3T9mmLUtyACMu00syFvbdzGSo98lDCtt09YcuFomv-k1MJGd6ie8Jl0UriPg4gsFSujXmnLIV/s320/062211+knit+dog+6.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pippsi's good side.</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
I propped her up (there was never any question of the dog's gender, given who would name and own her) on the kitchen island, took some photos, and left her standing right where Cora's cereal bowl normally sits.<br />
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7c3kNsUUTFBdKroB7Jv4rdo09FjztxW8V4jNd-FTDlrKRbf-s3vsmwkuQqc2D2YKO7yE6ANFQNZ6Ze-Elums9SWnimWEeOeN95wTQs6YWSkHcvKo9zwvZ92Q2EmTzjvwRbsvoXluTQhRf/s1600/062311+cora+and+dog+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="216" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7c3kNsUUTFBdKroB7Jv4rdo09FjztxW8V4jNd-FTDlrKRbf-s3vsmwkuQqc2D2YKO7yE6ANFQNZ6Ze-Elums9SWnimWEeOeN95wTQs6YWSkHcvKo9zwvZ92Q2EmTzjvwRbsvoXluTQhRf/s320/062311+cora+and+dog+1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Happy with her dog!</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
This morning, Cora got up, dressed, went out to the kitchen, and then the squeals of joy commenced. She named the dog Pippsi, which I think suits her quite nicely.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbVF74XjLcWl85AbPQhsoswBPD7pZdW_LLUwkM1fpcKj10PJPvPzj17Gqzwy7yvydvTjZdUnVT3vfT-SUC4Ny2nEW4dbz4CA7UwtLUBt_aLLf2bAYJ817ETOjIanICouZUsvZKmGFj-vPt/s1600/062311+cora+and+dog+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="216" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbVF74XjLcWl85AbPQhsoswBPD7pZdW_LLUwkM1fpcKj10PJPvPzj17Gqzwy7yvydvTjZdUnVT3vfT-SUC4Ny2nEW4dbz4CA7UwtLUBt_aLLf2bAYJ817ETOjIanICouZUsvZKmGFj-vPt/s320/062311+cora+and+dog+3.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cora and Pippsi making faces.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>mekhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17917552705258680396noreply@blogger.com3