Dainty Kitty

Thankful Thursday

I am thankful for -

- emails from friends far and near (from my happy list)

- the near two pages I wrote today

- having found the desire to explore things that might help me find me again

- alone time

- liquid eyeliner

- Charlotte Bronte  

100 Things That Make Me Happy

For the past week or so I've been struggling to find a way to make my July POP Project a little more artistic...something other than just a list (I've realized recently that I'm obsessed with lists).  I really wanted to cover a page with items but my handwriting leaves something to be desired.   I still wanted my writing on the page, though, to make it closer if that makes any sense so this is what I came up with. 

I might try to take a better picture later, though.   That's pretty yucky.

Funny Rummage

I already had an issue of McCalls Needlework & Craft before I found the great stash at the rummage sale so I was familiar with its utter kitschy-ness but thought I'd share.

Dig those orange and pink earrings she's wearing and that oh so chic tote bag!

I think I might actually attempt to make one of these embroidered pictures, though.  I think they're kind of cute...and a little creepy.

I also picked up some crochet pamphlets...

And, ah, remember the days when the phrase "politically correct" didn't exist? 

 

A couple of the projects in this book actually border on amigurumi (there's an elephant I'm going to attempt) but most of them are braided and bundled yarn like the, ahem, "natives" in the above photo. 

Oh - I forgot to relay this little funny tidbit.   The rummage sale was actually at a church so imagine my delight and surprise when I found a copy Rosemary's Baby and a book by Alfred Kinsey... you know, the Kinsey who founded the Kinsey Institute for Research in Sex, Gender and Reproduction.  I almost bought them just because.  :-)

Weekend Recap

At some point this weekend I really did start a post - a whole three or four paragraphs, actually - but I hit the wrong key and...gone.  I have bad blogluck.  My goal for the week is to pick up a wireless adapter so I can use my own damned computer.

This weekend was a brilliant combination of alone time, girl time and email time.   Ginny and I did a bit of shopping on Friday night - it's been ages since I went clothes shopping with a girl who wasn't my mom. 

Then we hit a rummage sale Saturday morning where I came home with loads of crochet and knitting magazines from the forties and fifties as well as some fabric and hooks.  I'll have to take pictures at some point because some of the styles in the magazines are crazy.  I have to admit, though, I did find a couple of things I wanted to make that fit with the whole seventies kitsch thing I want going on in my next pad.  Groovy. 

And lots and lots of emailing with Matt.  :-)

I got my hair did right before Ginny, Lisa and I went out of our Thursday girls night so here's a gratuitous faux-hawk shot:

And Ginny has a terribly terrific shot of Tom - a man at the bar I chatted with and then I took pity on and invited back to our table after he wistfully glanced that way and said, "You guys are sitting over there, right?" 

I need to take some advice from Pam Beasley: "I have decided that I'm going to be more honest. I'm gonna start telling people what I want, directly. So, look out world, 'cuz 'ol Pamy is gettin' what she wants. And, don't call me Pamy."

And no, you can't come back to our table.  It was kind of funny, though.

Sigh, I fear that I have moved to SquareSpace and lost my blogging mojo.  I'm kind of not feeling it for some reason and it's kind if a struggle to come up with things to post about.  Sigh. Weird.

Silver Lining

I let my emotions and my general miserable-ness get a bit out of hand and everything boiled over when I - reluctantly - got home tonight.  Big fight - blah blah blah.  I really need to learn to say things when they bother me because, now that we've had it out, I feel much better. 

That's pretty much all I'm going to say about it because I hate thinking about it so writing about it is out of the question. 

Last week I decided I needed some kind of male interaction.  Not dating because that would just be crazy - but some form of attention.  Something to look forward to.   So I signed up with a pen pal website.  Seems safe, right?     Right before I left to go camping with my parents last weekend I got another email from a guy named Matt in England.  

We've corresponded four or five times a day ever since.  I'm 100% smitten with this man and I think he's smitten, too, but what the hell?  Why couldn't I just meet some yahoo who was fun to email, the end?  No, I had to meet a guy who's cute, creative, family oriented, sweet as hell and only a couple years older than me.   You know, pretty much exactly what I'd like to find here.  

So not fair.

But it's been really good. They say some people come into your life for a reason and I think that's the case with Matt.  He's what I need right now and I know I'm helping him in return.  I realized today, though, that our loneliness might make us dangerously alike so I'm going to try to keep my emotions in check and the fantasies to a minimum.  Oh yes, there have already been fantasies....

You know, honestly, I'm not even really sure why I'm posting about this.  Sometimes, I guess, some things need to be said out loud.  Or posted on the Internet.  I don't know.  I'm kind of an emotional wreck today and I feel like I really haven't made sense all day....

Thankful Thursday

I keep trying to write a post and I can't and that's kind of weird.  It's like writing everything down would drain the last little bit of energy I've got right out of my body.   I'm not really even working on anything crafty so nothing new to report there.  Life is kinda crappy right now. 

So instead I'm going to take this moment to be thankful for a few things. 

I am thankful for...

- a supportive family 

- my blog and Ravelry friends 

- my real life friends

- the beers and assorted drinks my real life friends and I are going to consume this evening during our

- girls night out

It's good to have things to be thankful for - very good. 

Dainty Kitty: Squarespace 1.0

Baby, if you've ever wondered,
Wondered whatever became of me,
I'm living on the air in Cincinnati,
Cincinnati, WKRP.

Got kind of tired packing and unpacking,
Town to town and up and down the dial
Maybe you and me were never meant to be,
But baby think of me once in awhile.

I'm at WKRP in Cincinnati.

Go ahead - go listen to it (or, if you've never heard it - the full length version) - you know you want to.  I'll wait. 

Okay, all that just to announce that I'm moving.  I just can't work with TypePad any more.   I had yet another lengthy post lock up on me and decided that was it - off to squarespace I go.  When they first made the changes and I started having trouble, I looked at several blog hosting sites and squarespace is as close to TypePad as I could get without all of the annoying posting problems or the odd way it takes and extra tap or two of the backspace key to back up. 

I've done some unpacking and decorating already and I'm pretty pleased but I'd like to eventually get one my my banners up.  I was thrilled that I could import all of my entries from TypePad so it doesn't look like I'm a baby blogger and all of my old entries won't end up lost in the world wide wind or something.  That's one thing I've hated about blogs I've left in the past. 

This one, though, will be functional until the next TypePad billing cycle at the beginning of August. 

So until I hear that TypePad is a pleasant neighborhood again, I'll be residing here - pretty in pink and green for now. 

Extra! Extra! Read All About It! Emily is Single!

It's done, done, done.

My New Digs & Urban Chickens

My first post in the new squarespace digs.  Woo hoo!

I had a really great lunch with my mom today.  She sent me an unexpected email this morning asking if I wanted to meet up today.  Unfortunately, I'm kind of doom and gloomy and automatically think she must have some bad news for me - something that she needs to tell me face to face.  Nope, she just wanted to give me a ticket to Dad's company picnic on Saturday (all the cotton candy I can eat!). 

Bonus good news - if they buy a new flat screen television, I'll get their "old" one which is fairly new and HUGE.  My tv died shortly after the move and, while I have an extra tiny one, I'm not going to turn down a gift like that.  We also talked about  what else I would need to pick up/replace when I move and it was such easy conversation.  Like a relationship wasn't even involved. 

It's weird to talk out loud about moving into my own apartment when Rick and I haven't even talked about it but as my friend Ginny said, I've already checked out.  My mind is made up and I'm pretty sure he's on the same page but it's too stressful to think about talking it over with him right now.  I know there would be fewer tears this time than last but it's still hard to point to the end of any relationship - especially when the end is still several months away.  So, for right now, I'm going to work on keeping my chin up as much as possible and, like I said, work on making me happy and getting myself into a good place before the move.Speaking of making me happy - I signed up for July's Pink of Perfection Project which is to create and post a list of things that make you happy.  It's something that's also on my 101 in 1001 list and I think this is the perfect time and opportunity to get it done. 

On to the fowl portion of this post - I made the little guy you see on the left for Chris who had commented about wanting to raise urban chickens.  It's a really cool idea but he's probably as close as either of us really need to get to having chickens on our property.

I'm really going to take care of my next camera.  I carry this one everywhere but not in a case like I should and it really takes lousy photos anymore.  Or at least it takes really lousy photos of things that are white.  The white stripes on the scrapghan in my last post practically glow....

I started making a market bag out of sheet I bought at a thrift shop but work on it has been put on hold due to the fact that working on it Sunday night nearly killed me.  Today is the first day I've been able to move my wrist without pain.  Seriously, crocheting with fabric is HARD.  I think the crocheted containers I made last week were easier because the material was kind of slippery.  The bottom of the bag and the few rows I started around the edge look pretty good, though, so I'll get back to it eventually. 

Okay, so far so good.  Posting photos is a little different but I'll get used to it.  At least I was able to get through the entire post without loosing it....

A Little Color to Brighten the Day

First of all, thanks to all of the uplifting comments left on my last post.  I really am going to take care of myself in this situation and make...well, I guess, make the most of it.  

Yesterday I went out to a family picnic at my parents' house and decided to cart a couple of projects out there to take advantage of the sun and the bevy of places they have that would make nice backdrops.  :-)

I pulled three dresses out of two of the bags I've yet to take to Goodwill, cut them up and crocheted them into these:

 

The larger one took all but the sleeves and the very front of two dresses and the smaller one is just the skirt of another dress.  I'm now addicted to crocheting with fabric.  I think it's a great way not only to reuse old materials but also a way to maybe even commemorate a piece of clothing.  And now I can get rid of the ugly oatmeal containers I've been using to hold my hooks and needles!  

And here's the progress on my scrapghan.  Not too far along but, after the initial rush of 10 - 12 rows per week for the first two or three weeks, I'm trying to keep steady at four or five.  And I'm still madly in love with it.  :-)

And now I'm off to enjoy a little morning alone time by reading or watching one of my movies.  Have a wonderful Sunday!