Off to a Good Start

On New Year's Day I finished making a big beautiful basket out of scrap variegated yarn (video tutorial here) so I could stow some thrifted skeins of Mandala Ombre and other yarns I want to work with this month.

I also got started on my calendar tote bag project by deconstructing a black canvas tote, pressing it and lining it with batting.

I'm waiting on one last lot of yarn I won last year to be delivered; it seems to be bouncing all over the country. When it finally lands I'll show you the skeins and figure out the value.

In the day job department, my editor approved my initial pitch for this year's big series project, so now I'm working on getting my new delivery schedule approved and thinking about how I want to write up the outlines. I detail all the things I work on in a project before I start it so I know everything in advance. My editor is also super about pointing out any flaws or logic problems, and helping me refine the ideas.

2026 has gotten off to a good start (knocking on wood as I type that) and I'm more optimistic about this month than I was back in December. I hope it continues on this way and I can skip the unpleasantness of last year.

Image credit: the third pic in this post came from the original auction listing at ShopGoodwill.com.

Comments

Stuff

After finding this Caron one pound skein of lovely peach yarn in my thrifted lot I raided my stash for two cakes of Mandala in Pegasus, which matches it perfectly. For practice and hand therapy I'm going to make another Worth Street Afghan with this free pattern , but this time I'll use the yarn that was recommended for it plus the one pound skein. I'm not quite ready to do the vintage/recycled linen quilt I had planned (still a bit too nervous about the idea), so I'm going to use some color therapy and make a quilt from these thrifted green fat quarters. I considered doing another Yellow Brick road patchwork pattern, but I might go with a split rail fence like this one.

Journal Find

This is a page from my 2010 poetry journal. My handwriting isn't the best, so I'll transcribe it: If my heart survives to tell all the secrets kept inside it will be an abalone shell in which the beauty did reside. But I think I will always be lost to the tides that rage in me . . . humbling and polishing . . . I don't write many self-portrait poems, but this one isn't too embarrassing. A bit overly dramatic, but the girl I was eleven years ago went through some tough times. I'm in a much more peaceful place today.

The Numbers

Back in March my diabetes doctor changed my medication and encouraged me to alter my diet and exercise more in order to bring down my A1C, which at the time tested out at a dismal 8.3 (normal is 5.8.) So for the next two months I dealt with the increased meds, stuck to my decidedly grim diet and added a lot more walking to my exercise regime. P.S., it's never fun to be a diabetic, but over the last couple of months I've really tried to keep a good attitude about it. Attitude isn't everything, but it helps a lot when you have to make significant changes while battling a disease like this. Yesterday I performed a home A1C test, and I'm currently at 6.5. That's pretty amazing results, even for me. If I can get it down another half point before I see the doctor in July I'd be over the moon, but I feel like I've already done great. Image credit: Image by Daniele Liberatori from Pixabay

Rayen

Search This Blog