Good Day, Sunshine...

The Beatles' song came to mind as I looked out the window this morning....sunshine, no clouds...looks like it's going to be a beautiful day.  There are lots of things on my "to do" for these four days off...outdoor cleanup, digging, planting, and indoor painting, purging, and upholstering. 

On another note, and something I'm more inclined to do...I found this online while looking for something else (isn't that always the way??)...

It's a mystery stitchery by Brenda Gervais.  If you don't have a local needlework shop, just Google "Birds of A Feather" mystery stitchery.  You'll find lots of online shops offering this project.  I've been feeling the urge to stitch lately...along with the urge to piece a quilt top.  My friend Michelle (MadRedHare) is doing a block of the month feature on her blog, and I've made two of the four blocks assigned.  She just sent out the next two blocks, so I hope to work on those sometime this weekend.  Just before the first of the year, I decided that I wanted to do an embroidery project...a square a day, just like the projects I've read about on OPB's (other people's blogs).  By the end of January, I had my cloth ready...one inch squares drawn 19 x 19 with four squares at the top for the year.  365 blocks.  By the end of February, I had stitched around the borders of maybe 1/3 of the blocks.  I pick it up in spurts, and I'm hoping that by the end of May I'll have all 365 blocks outlined.  My stitch-a-day plan hasn't worked out so far, but there's no reason (like I have concrete "rules" about much of anything?) I can't run my year from June to June. Sounds like a plan...

Better get to work!

Good Day Sunshine artwork via Deviant Art xbooshbabyx

Something new...

I guess I should have saved this for a Pink Saturday post, but since I've latched on to a 'rogue' internet connection, I thought I'd go ahead and do a Monday post.

I've taken an interest in felting...I can remember many shrunken items throughout my life; sweaters, jackets and the like. Now felting is 'cool.' Way cool, according to the many books and magazines devoted to felting. I'm hoping this little swatch (I need to knit a few more inches on it) will turn into this felted rose pin:

If it turns out okay, I'll add a few more to my items for sale at the upcoming craft show on Saturday the 22nd. In my spare time, I've been making lots of earrings and a few necklaces.

I'll post a picture when I finish my little flower.

Very Random Thoughts

Well, it's 8:30 here, and my mind's buzzing...off to work later in the day, but for now I'd like to maybe accomplish something but I can't quite decide what to work on first...so maybe I'll just keep sitting here drinking coffee (could that have something to do with it??). First thing this morning, I was looking at the calendar...Mardi Gras is just 3 weeks from today. I've never attended the "real deal", but for the past several years a very small group (most times consisting of just 2 of us) have gone to a pretty seedy bar in the not-so-good section of town to hear a really great Zydeco band. There are several performances, and we always hit the early Sunday evening--before Fat Tuesday--"family show." The band is pretty fabulous...we first encountered them at the annual W.C. Handy Blues Fest across the river in Henderson, Kentucky. They play Zydeco Night every year, and 2008 is no exception. They are not playing their usual gig for Mardi Gras in our town this year, so we're just going to have to find something else to do. I tried to post a You-Tube of the band--Chubby Carrier and the Bayou Swamp Band--but couldn't get it right. Zydeco--happy music. Very random...

After I got over my brief moment of disappointment that I would not be going to hear the band in that shabby, very smoky little venue (one of those places you do not wear your coat into for fear that even the drycleaner won't be able to get that smoky smell out), I moved on to what I was going to do next week...sometimes, especially when a Monday holiday is involved, and my work schedule "co-operates" I can "spend" a minimum amount of vacation days to get an entire week off. That's what I'm doing next week...working this entire weekend, and have the remainder of the week off. No really big plans, but I also don't want to fritter away the time as I often do. I'm thinking this would be a great week to finish lots of works in progress---get them out of the way so I can start on new things that have caught my fancy lately.

Masterpiece Theatre---I just really enjoyed Persuasion Sunday evening. As Junie Moon mentioned in her comments the other day, I too scurried around this past weekend to get the chores finished so I could just sit and relax and watch. Everyone I talked to yesterday just said that they had taped or Tivo'd the program and would watch it later. I find that if I tape something, it's highly likely that I won't end up watching it...Masterpiece was my little treat for the weekend.

Think I'll go accomplish something now...