An Offering for Christmas Eve

This time of year is significant for many people. Some recognize the birth of Christ, others the miracle of the lamp oil, still others the solstice and the return of light.
Light is a common theme - the light of the guiding star, light of hope, light of God, light of the sun. So too, the restful darkness that lets us appreciate the light and renew it within ourselves.    
It is also a time to appreciate the light of knowledge. A time to celebrate our ability to light the dark and keep warm in the cold. A time to marvel at our ancestors observing the skies and knowing the changing seasons.
The finest reminder of the light for me is the Christmas Eve broadcast from Apollo 8 in 1968. The crew and their craft represented a coalescing of light - the light of knowledge and ingenuity, the light of bravery and exploration, the light of faith - in God or scientists and engineers.
The account of creation in Genesis, of the creation from darkness was apt-regardless of personal belief - as a major part of the Western canon it influences art even today. And the theme of naming having power and causing things to come into being is a common one in mythology and can be seen in a way in the voyage of Apollo 8 itself.     President Kennedy called for the US to send a man to the surface of the moon and bring him back by the end of the decade. He spoke, millions listened, thousands worked and created and transformed words into actions and things.

So, on Christmas Eve, I wish you all well in the restful dark and the returning light and offer you the reading given by Frank Borman and Jim Lovell and Bill Anders from the depths of space between Earth and Moon on December 24, 1968. 

Happy Holidays, Enjoy Your Balls

Went to my in-laws for Xmas this year. Nice trip, fun to see little kids for Christmas.

We drove home today. We pass a state penitentiary on the way. Tom says we should take Oreo to the penitentiary (because saying mean things to Oreo is one of Tom's hobbies).
I replied that Oreo did his time in the joint and had paid his debt to society. (I adopted him from Animal Control lo these many years ago.)
So Tom says maybe we should take him to talk to the inmates:
"Once, I was in a place like this, just like you..."
And I finished:
"...and then they cut off my balls and gave me to some strange lady."

I don't think Oreo will be pursuing a career as a motivational speaker.

In other news, Tom got me knitting books! Rock!

Xmas Morning

Heeeee!

Most hilarious moment - ripping wrapping paper to see this:

I screamed "WHYYYYYY!!?!?!?" for quite some time after I stopped laughing.  It's a SodaStream, by the way, and should be super awesome.

I also got a scarf and more sock monkey jammies!  Eeee, sock monkeys!!!!

Oreo got a goose toy.  And some other stuff, but he's mostly interested in killing the goose.

And Tom got a new money clip and I got him a starter pack from the Art of Shaving.

Merry Bes-mas!

 

He even has rosy cheeks!

Best wishes and hopes of peaceful joy to everyone!

(Extra thanks to Tom for Photoshopping the image for me because I couldn't figure out how to get GIMP to do it)

Presents!

To the right you can see the product of my hard labor with the sewing machine: a laptop sleeve for Tom's new MacBook Pro. I used the really awesome pattern from Sew Mama Sew with a few modifications. I couldn't find fusible fleece, so I would up using double-sided sewable fusing to stick quilt batting to the appropriate pattern pieces. I used a cigar patterned quilting cotton for the lining and black twill for the exterior.

It's a nice, snug fit and pleasantly soft without being too fluffy.

For the motif on the exterior I found a photograph of a bannerstone, did a basic automated trace of it in Inkscape, printed it out, traced it onto half of a manilla file folder using graphite paper and then cut out the outline using an Xacto blade to make a stencil.

I stuck a good-sized book inside the finished case, put a washcloth over it just in case there was any bleeding from the paint, and then pinned the stencil to the case with a multitude of pins.

Then I used white textile paint and a sponge brush and filled in the stencil and went over it with some pewter textile paint and a smaller sponge brush to get the look of veining in the stone.

I really enjoyed this project and am very happy that Tom likes it and it turned out so well.

The only major snags were the lack of a free arm on my sewing machine, which made stitching around the opening a huge pain and the fact that the basting spray I bought to stick the batting to the lining wound up not having a spray nozzle. I wound up with the double-sided fusible, though, and I think it worked out much better in the end.

For my presents, I got more sock monkey jammies and matching slipper socks (aren't they fabulous?) and one set of double pointed knitting needles with the instruction to buy a set of multiple sizes of my choosing. I went with these from Amazon. This means I'm a step closer to knitting socks!

I also have cash to do something with. I'm considering a new low-end sewing machine with a bit more funcitonality - buttonholes, more stitches, more presser foots, and a free arm. Nothing particularly fancy.

Oreo got some new treats that are supposed to be good for his joints and a rubber squid thing with long felt tentacles.

So, a wonderful Christmas all around.  I hope everyone else had as nice a day!

Oooh, the weather outside is frightful...

(And I accidentally it "Enter" after typing the title, resulting in a blank post...)

Should have grabbed some photos when we were out with Oreo earlier.  We got a few inches of snow yesterday and today has been snow, sleet, and rain.  The sidewalks are a lovely mess.  I broke out theYaktrax and my Ice Grip on the cane for the first time this winter.  I am very grateful for both when I have to be outside when it's slippery.
Poor Oreo may have had negative reinforcement for asking to go out.  I mean, we honestly expect him to walk in stuff that is not only wet, but cold, too?

I have been plugging along on Tom's present.  Oreo has been "helping" by keeping me company on his pillow near the sewing machine.

Progress and a Christmas Announcement

Well, I got all the fabric cut for Tom's Xmas present today.  Then I went to use my spray on adhesive basting spray and discovered that the aerosol can had no nozzle.  And no tube for the nozzle head.  Suckage.
So, Tom kindly took me on an emergency run to Michael's this evening where I acquired replacements for the stupid-ass basting spray that will probably be less annoying to use anyway.
We've also decided we're just going to send everyone their stuff for Little Christmas.  Long live the Irish and the Gregorian calendar.  Anyone who doesn't like it can suck it.  I haven't had a day below "moderate" on the pain scale in at least 10 days and most of the pain has been in my hands (which are sort of vital for crafting).  It's cold.  I'm exhausted.  Tom has a job and other things to do and Oreo has no thumbs.  So, Xmas presents will be late.  So will cards.

:P

I should be doing stuff

Still recuperating from a very busy week and so spent most of the day reading in bed again.  I don't know if it's the weather or tiredness or what but my pain levels are back up too, especially in my hands, which makes working on the Xmas stuff not really happen so much.  And my right hand has been going numb just from holding a paperback book, so I think I'll give it a bit more rest.

Anyway, we did go and get our Xmas tree last night from Home Depot.  I rode around on one of the courtesy scooter thingies because spasms plus pain plus tired plus giant-ass store does not make for a good mix.  This one was nice enough but very slow.  Very reminiscent of the Seinfeld episode when George winds up in the low-speed chase on the scooters.
Our tree is very nice - a Douglas fir this year - and it smells wonderful.  And we found wintergreen plants for sale and scored one.  I was very excited - there's a part in Farmer Boy  about collecting wintergreen berries and leaves to eat and use for flavorings, so extra nerd coolness.  They should do well in our window - the need indirect light which is perfect.

Hard at Work

I've spent most of the day working on Xmas gifts.  I've been carving stamps to use on polymer clay to make pendants and such.  I have a sinking suspicion that most of our Xmas stuff is going to be a bit late this year.  Things are taking a bit longer than I had anticipated, plus I didn't adequately allow for sick-time in my long-range planning.
Anyway, I think I'm done for the day - I have one set of pendants stamped.  Still need to be baked and finished.  But my arms hurt and my hands hurt and my head hurts.  So, done.  So there.  Nah.

I have a busy week ahead too.  Therapy tomorrow.  Dinner Wednesday.  Rheumatology and cog testing follow-up on Thursday.  Dinner on Thursday.  I already want a nap just thinking about it.

Latest Project

I got nearly all the dishes from Thanskgiving and the past few days done today. And I dusted and dust-mopped the apartment. Yay, me!

I also put together a wreath for the front door to replace my autumnal broom.

The first photo is all the supplies put together. The second is the finished product.

It wound up being very simple, but I think I like that - I don't like a whole bunch of junk all over. I do like the ickle birdies, though.

Not sure if I'll put it up tonight or wait a bit.

We're having a guest for dinner this evening, assuming I can stay awake that long. I've been awake since 5:30 this morning. Hopefully this will help me maintain a reasonable schedule so I can do the stupid cognitive testing on Thursday. (And hopefully I didn't just jinx myself by saying that.)

Edit:  Turns out we aren't having a dinner guest, which Tom emailed me about several hours ago, but because of the way Gmail nests messages, I didn't notice.  Which means I spent several hours wearing a bra for no good reason.  Not cool.  :P

Mommy mouse and Baby mouse Amigurumi Crochet Pattern.

Mommy mouse and Baby mouse Amigurumi Crochet Pattern.
Originally uploaded by Handmadekittypics

I love this cute little mousey momma and baby in sling. The little bow on the tail is adorable too. Nice Christmas-y colors, too - for those who celebrate these could be great little decorations or gifts.

Pattern available in Handmadekitty's Etsy shop (check out some other adorable patterns there, too).