I read: Deadeye Dick

Book number two in 2121, I squeezed in another before the first month was out. A decent start I'd say, considering. This time, I read another favorite, though it was just a favorite author as I haven't read Deadeye Dick before.

I love Kurt Vonnegut's writing style. Conversational yet artful- it sort of reminds me how I am when I try to tell someone a story, which is ass-backward and all over the place. When he does it though, it seems so perfect and well done and exactly how it should be. So I guess not at all how I tell a story...? You get the idea.

Deadeye Dick is, according to that link there, a "chillingly satirical look at the death of innocence. Amid a true Vonnegutian host of horrors—a double murder, a fatal dose of radioactivity, a decapitation, an annihilation of a city by a neutron bomb—Rudy Waltz, aka Deadeye Dick, takes us along on a zany search for absolution and happiness. Here is a tale of crime and punishment that makes us rethink what we believe . . . and who we say we are." 

Basically, Rudy there makes a fatal mistake as a young boy and him and his family pay the price for that for the rest of their lives, all that within the larger context of the eventual destruction of his town and it's inhabitants. 

Aside from the topics outlined in that description above, to me, one of the most interesting ideas he talks about is whether or not you're living your story, or living your epilogue. The idea is, stories are often contrived, made up, made purely to entertain someone else while the epilogue is the bit at the end that's meant to be about how the characters are getting on with their lives, not necessarily for entertainment but for closure. So your epilogue isn't just what happens at the end of your life but what happens when you start living for you, regardless how unexciting that may (or may not I guess) be. Some people start their epilogues early, some may not even have one.  

A lot of Vonnegut novels, while depicting all sorts of misfortunes and horrors mankind inflicts upon itself, leave you with this weird sort of hope, that we could somehow turn it around. Deadeye Dick though... is not one of those novels. There's more what I would call a feeling of semi-content resignation. While this hasn't broken into my top three Vonnegut novels (Breakfast of Champions, Cat's cradle, and Timequake respectively), I'd still recommend it.

I started my next book the same day as I finished this one. Something nonfiction for once, and music related. I'm on a roll!

Star rating: 4/5

2021 book count: 2

Made it: Mesmerizing

I mentioned last time that I had gotten some awesome cross stitching magazines recently and they couldn't have come at a better time. I'd finally finished with a couple February birthday presents, the last gift holdovers after all my holiday season crafting, and now I am at a loss, adrift in an ocean of possible projects. 

I haven't made anything purely for myself for what feels like ages so I was a little overwhelmed- the possibilities are endless and I'm primed to try something new. What I needed at the time though, was a small project to keep myself busy until I made those bigger plans, and I found it in the first issue of XStitch. 

Buy it here!

The first issue's theme is "revolution," (obviously) which they explore using all definitions of the word. What I chose to make involved some basic stitching onto a plastic mesh circle, which I inexplicably had (not really, I'm a craft hoarder), and which I pictured below:

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Since the holes are bigger, my embroidery thread wasn't going to work unless I used all 6 strands. I didn't feel like using up that much of my regular embroidery stash so instead, I used up some of a lone skein of thinnish cotton yarn as well as some embroidery thread that I accidentally bought the wrong size of so I never use it. Definitely the more economical choice, especially for something completely random.

Buy that super awesome pouch HERE by the way. It's the perfect size (9" x 6") for my sewing essentials (needles, scissors, thread conditioner, water soluble markers, etc) to schlepp between projects. Also, they had so many amazing book-related designs that it took me days to decide which one to get. 

Anyhoo, the project just involved essentially stitching backstitch around the circle with a plastic yarn needle (I have these from my brief foray into crocheting and the smallest one worked really well). The above picture is what it looked like when I was finished with the colorful yarn and had just started adding the black. Note that I skipped down a line at the diameter line (per the magazine's pattern) for a little more interesting effect.

Annnnnd the final product! I really like it even though I have no idea what to do with it or why I made it. I think all my gift-making made me forget that really, I just make things for the sake of making things. because I enjoy it and the point is the creation itself. In the end, I threaded a loop of leftover yarn and hung it on the door in my living room. I think it complements my weird knick knacks and books pretty well, maybe I should make one for the other door...

This picture also features a shot of another cross stitch I did a few years ago, based on a quote from the best-because-its-the-most-ridiculous Star Trek movie Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home. I got that pattern from this amazing book (why is that so expensive?! Definitely picked that up several years ago in a small bookstore for normal cover price). Fittingly, I put my Bird-of-Prey next to it, which I found at an antique/junk store, complete/working and still in the box (it makes cool shooty noises!).

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This was a pretty good mind-clearing project and since making that, I bought more plastic grid pieces to use up more of my rogue yarn. Its a fun thing to do when you want to do something, possibly while re-watching some Star Trek movies or something, but also don't want to use your brain too much, its very relaxing. 

I've since gathered supplies to make another, bigger project from the Space edition of the magazine. I don't mean to go on about those magazines by the way, but craft-inspirational magazines plus a pandemic equals me getting jazzed up about stuff like that. I'm sure I'll share the final results of that at some point down the road. 

As for future projects, here's a list of what I'm thinking about tackling:

• Something Lord of the Rings related. I've started making versions of "home sweet home" cross stitch pieces for near my front door (I have "TARDIS sweet TARDIS" and "Enterprise sweet Enterprise" so far) and I think I could make one for the Shire. There's so many LOTR patterns out there though, it's hard to settle on one thing...
• Along the same lines, in the book I mentioned above they have a pattern for Qo'noS sweet Qo'noS.
• I'm almost done a Vonnegut book (to be announced soon) and that reminded me I've wanted to make a sampler based on this quote for ages.
• ...Or maybe this one from one of my favorite Vonnegut books, Cat's Craddle.
• The Litany Against Fear from Dune.

I could go on, but I'll stop there for now. Feel free to offer suggestions!

Christmas in January

My quest to be a regular reader again has been waylaid somewhat by the arrival of one of my Christmas presents from M. Yes, yes it is a month past Christmas but the poor guy failed to take into account how long it would take to send something from the UK. That's alright though because THEY'RE HERE!

I've loved cross stitching for a long time and it's only gotten more enjoyable as I realize how un-grandma I can go with this traditional lady craft. It also gradually dawned on me that I wasn't the only one and the internet has provided a whole community of nontraditional stitchers for me to dive into.

As much as I love scrolling through Reddit subs and cross stitch blogs looking for inspiration, I'm a pretty tactile person so nothing tops having that inspiration physically available, able to flip through whenever I'm feeling a little stuck. During my stitch scrolling I stumbled across Mr X Stitch and his textile art blog and YouTube channel. Not only is the subject matter of the cross stitch, embroidery, etc. usually a bit out of the box, but there's often out-of-the-hoop projects that get me thinking of ways to expand my stitching horizons.

Like I said though, I want that physical copy of something so first I got his book, The Mr X Stitch Guide to Cross Stitch. It's great for beginners and more advanced stitchers alike (I've discovered in my further quests for cross stitch books that that's not an easy thing to do) and I loved it. Imagine my surprise and delight when I discovered that there was a magazine!

I suppose I could've gotten the digital copies and be done with it but that wasn't good enough, I wanted the real deal! I put it off for whatever reason but this Christmas M came through and bought me the first 5 issues. They've been an absolute delight to flip through. The patterns are awesome and often something I'd actually consider making, and the articles aren't just fluff bits to break up a barrage of patterns, they're actually interesting and well written. They treat cross stitch as an art form.

I've only just started reading the third Space issue (obviously the one I'm most excited about) but I'm just so excited about these magazines and how awesome they are that I just had to share. Now though, I'm off to start a million projects at once...

I Read: Wyrd Sisters

 

Part of my new year's ultra vague resolutions was to get back into the swing of reading more. What better way to do it than to revisit some classics I've loved for ages? 

I don't remember how old I was when I discovered Terry Pratchett's Discworld series but I do remember absolutely TEARING through my local library's stash of them. Since I was relying on my library's collection, I don't believe I've read them all but I've slowly been picking them up as I run across them- I'm collecting by publication date (there are other schools of thought as to how to read them) and I only have 6... out of 41.

Pratchett's writing style is so hilarious and easy to read, but they're also so smart and well done that they're anything but fluff. I don't feel bad about buying these books (not that I feel particularly bad about buying books in general) because they're so fun to re-read, I can't see myself getting tired of them. Plus, as I first read many of them when I was younger, I missed a lot of the jokes.

There are 6 character sets Discworld series fall into (see above link), and Wyrd Sisters is in the witches category. In it, a new king is crowned via dubious means and isn't particularly popular, especially with the land itself who can tell the new king hates it. Sensing this, the witches decide to break their "no meddling" rule and... help fate along a bit. Hilarity and sort-of-Shakespeare references ensue. 

I would like to just blanket recommend all of Terry Pratchett's body of work, especially if you're feeling a bit down and/or in a reading rut like I was. They're so engaging and always remind me why I love reading. The witches are a particularly funny group (though my favorites are the ones about the Nightwatch).

I plan on continuing with my "getting back to reading via my favorites" next by treating myself to a new Kurt Vonnegut book I haven't read before...

So we made it to 2021

Ah yes. Here we are at the brink of a new year after the freak show that was 2020. Though we'll need more than a turn of the calendar page to put out this dumpster fire, it's hard not to greet this year with a little more hope than usual, embracing change a little bit more. [I wrote that bit before the stuff in the capitol went down but I'm still remaining hopeful nevertheless]

I'm not especially keen on new years resolutions (I procrastinate enough without waiting for a new year to make changes, strike while the iron's hot I say. Or not, as is usually the case for me) but all things considered, it feels like a good year to make some. And, you know, actually stick to them. I've been mulling it over the past few days and I think I've come up with a definitive list but first, I remembered I did, in fact, give a go last year, back when I thought it was going to be a "normal" year, and it seems right to go over it and see well I did (or didn't do).

2020

1. Plan my wedding.

Well I didn't plan it but I did postpone it. Does that count? In my defense, there was a whole global pandemic thing going on.

2. Better time management - less phone scrolling, more doing.

This year I discovered Reddit so I don't think I achieved this but on the plus side, it encouraged my plant and cross stitch hobbies.

3. Make more things.

I'm not sure how to really measure this, something I apparently failed to think of when I made this goal. How many "making hours" did I put in the year before? This year? Dunno, but I most definitely didn't lose anything in giving this a shot.

4. Exercise.

Hahahahahahahahahahaha

5. Get a new job.

I completed this one with flying colors! Go me!

6. Keep track of the books I've read.

I did not do this but I most definitely want to this year. Despite more time spent at home, I fell into a pretty serious reading slump so if I did keep track, I know I'd be disappointed. Perhaps keeping track will give me the boost I need.

7. Keep track of this blog.

I... wow I actually did this one. 2/7, not too shabby.

I think overall I did pretty well and clearly a few of those goals are going to roll over to this year, though maybe in a modified form. I've done a great deal of self-reflection over the course of the year (who hasn't?) and I think my new list will reflect that. I realized it's not enough to make sweeping goals, it's important to get to the core of why I want to make those goals and plan accordingly (I still can't seem to not make sweeping goals though). And without further ado, here's this list!

Party on, dudes. (shirt found on teepublic.com)

2021

1. Take better care of myself.

The classic new year, new me goal but instead of just saying 'exercise' or 'eat better,' I've worded it like this because, though I do need to do those 2 things for sure (I have a wedding dress that's dangerously close to being a bit too snug), I also have to address the things that keep me on the couch eating comfort food and confront my current coping methods (will getting a donut make me feel better/less anxious about putting off doing that Important Adult Thing, or will, you know, actually doing the Important Adult Thing make me feel better?). My brain has been a big hinderance in this department and not allowing myself to get on a big downward brain-blah spiral (that's definitely the official psychological term) will vastly improve everything else. I haven't been able to stick to an eating better/exercising routine before but this year, by working harder to get my brain on board, I hope to change that.

More seaside bike trips, less couch moping.

2. Get married.

I don't know if this can technically be on the list as a new years resolution but given the circumstances, this may not be so cut-and-dry this year so on the list it goes. I remain hopeful of course but who knows what August 28th, my round-two wedding date, will look like this year. I need to be more on the ball with my planning, ready to be flexible and make tentative/last minute plans because guys- I postponed my wedding once, I am not postponing it a second time.

3. Read more... and keep track.

I've gotten into the biggest reading slump of my life this year, which is weird given the fact that I've been at home far more than normal. Reading got slotted in my brain as Something Not Productive somehow and I'd pass it by for activities deemed more important by whatever arbitrary rules my brain put there that day (see #1). This is a gross affront to Young Ashley who, since she could read, schlepped a book around with her absolutely everywhere just in case she got a chance to read. Keeping track of the books I've read will hopefully help and it'd be nice to look back on once the year's over.

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4. Start the projects I want to start... then follow through.

I'm a dreamer, what can I say. I have a lot of grand schemes, but I also have a propensity for couch sitting. For this resolution, I've combined #'s 2 and 3 of 2020's goal and decided to take a good, hard look at how I spend my time each day. I guess I could've put very specific projects on the list but decide that's no good. If it doesn't work out (which happens of course), then I've failed at my resolution. BUT if I just work toward something every day that makes me proud, no matter the end result, I've succeeded.  

I suppose that sounds like I'm ignoring the second part of the resolution but accepting things aren't working is a different animal than not following through, not finishing them. I often don't start things because my negative brain (again, see #1) insists it won't work out. Giving myself some encouragement with a lot of leeway is how I'm trying to get around it. This year is, hopefully, the year of trying things without the fear of them not working out. 

And there we go. That's it. Four goals. Four fairly vague goals. That goes against pretty much all goal setting advice I know, but that's what's going to work for me. I'm not trying to get stuff done like your average to do list, I'm trying to make positive, lasting life changes and I believe that requires a little flexibility. We'll se how that works out. 

Cheers to 2021!

Home for the Holidays

I've spent the last god knows how long attempting to start of this post with a video I took of my mother's rotating Christmas tree. There clearly is no video, but know that it was glorious, chock-full of super nice blown glass ornaments, and it rotated. This was a new addition to her already impressive Christmas set up. She has a lot of ornaments (like, a lot a lot) but not a lot of space for a big tree so the rotating allows her to display as much as possible. I was impressed. 

Anyway, yeah. I went home to North Carolina for Christmas!

Lots of precautions were taken, making sure we got tested before and after, traveling by car (14 hour drive, ugh) and vastly reducing the places we visited while there to limit exposure but it was SO worth it as I got to be there for my nephew's first Christmas and besides, after this year, it was nice to end it with some family time. 

I mentioned before that I was doing a lot of making for Christmas and this was one of the handmade gifts. My sister is a big Golden Girls fan and had given me this book of Golden Girls cross stitch patterns so of course I had to make her something for Christmas featuring one of her favorite characters.

The thing I'm most proud of though, is this Christmas stocking for M. My whole family has handmade Christmas stockings so I couldn't let M go without one. My mom made the actual stocking using some pre-quilted material and sewed the binding on the cuff- I just did the cross stitch bit.

I couldn't bear to make him a "normal" one which M, of course, greatly appreciated. Nothing says "Happy Holidays" like a large evil robot destroying a neighborhood with his laser beam eyes, right?

I couldn't let that evil go unchecked on such a special day though so on the back I sewed good ol' Saint Nick defeating the robot with his ornament hand grenades. 

It was a fantastic yet all too short trip- we had to get back in time to get tested before returning to work, per regulations. M took it upon himself to drive the entire way back home so I had a lot of chill time (I have a sneaking suspicion that my driving on the way down alarmed him, though I can't imagine why...). My sister got me a JavaSok, one for hot coffee (above) and one for cold. I highly recommend them! ...but maybe not the 7-Eleven coffee. Desperate times and all.

We've been doing a good job keeping busy doing our post-trip quarantine though, partially because my family bought us a Switch! Mike got Zelda Breath of the Wild and I got Super Mario 3D All-Stars and I'm currently working through Super Mario 64. I'm looking into getting Animal Crossing though, and would definitely take more game recommendations! 

For New Years Eve, we set up a Zoom party with our friends. We dressed up, chose a cocktail, chatted and played a party game! It was fun and even though we stayed home, it still felt like a celebration. It was also nice to get dressed up. I took the opportunity to don my beautiful silk metallic embroidered hoari (a jacket meant to be worn over a kimono) which I bought on my trip to Japan, along with a long, excellently swooshy and shiny skirt I recently bought at Uniqlo to really round out my Japanese inspired get up. I mostly think I looked like a fancy witch though, but I'm not mad.

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M took his inspiration from a Mr. Bean t-shirt I got him for Christmas and the Mr. Bean New Years party episode we watched recently (M is a long time fan. He also does a pretty good impression. I definitely picked a winner 😊). He wore this shirt, a bowtie (he didn't want to hide the shirt with a regular tie) and a blazer. And I of course made him a party hat. We were clearly the best dress couple.

Our signature cocktail was The New Englander- a Moxie-based cocktail made with, of course, Moxie, gin, a dash of Worcestershire sauce, and a lime wedge. Moxie is a very polarizing soda- you either love it or hate it. Adding gin and Worcestershire sauce might not sound like it's doing it any favors but I assure you, it's a delicious cocktail and tastes vaguely like NECCO wafers. 

For New Year's Day, I decided to break in my new dutch oven. Isn't she a beaut? I've been wanting one for ages and am glad to have one in this pretty blue. I figured I needed to make something extra special what with it being the first day of the year and all so I made some beef bourguignon, Julia Child's recipe no less.

It took about 3 or so hours all told but it was so worth it. It was a hit, though I don't think you could go wrong with some beef simmered in a bottle of wine for a couple hours. 

Served with a good chunk of garlicky baguette. Luckily this makes ton so we'll be good to go for a while.

Today I gave myself the sad task of taking down all the Christmas decorations. It's nice to have the house back to normal I suppose, but it's always a bittersweet chore. This time, I decided to take a picture of all my ornaments, partially to share but also I'll be interested to see how my collection grows by next Christmas.

They basically fall into 4 categories as shown above- birds, which I love to have hovering around the top of the tree, fill, which is exactly what it sounds like, sentimental, which I got from my parents house a couple years ago, and fun, which are largely space themed but not necessarily on purpose.

A lot of the sentimental ones were given to me by my grandparents, including the small Hallmark nursery rhyme books (they open and close!) which they gave me from 1993 to 1997. Its nice to have those up and read my grandmother's recognizable scrawl on the side of the boxes. 

I'm glad my "fun" category is growing though- if I buy ornaments myself now, they usually fall into that category. A friend of ours was clearing out his Christmas stash and is going to give me some Hallmark Star Trek ship ornaments so it's only going to get better! Aside from those, my goal is to make some for myself next year. I'll have to start early though as I always take on so many projects for other people around the holidays that I never find the time.

Since that was a lot of (kinda sad) work, I intend to get as much done on this No Face cross stitch as possible while lazing on the couch watching murder mysteries. Tomorrow I might do some much needed cleaning... or I'll continue with this. Plenty of time to be productive when vacation is over. Besides, one of my big new years resolutions is to finish what I start so I'm not allowing myself any new projects until this is done.

And lastly, check out my sweet needle minder. It always makes me smile and think of M, my own personal Mr. Bean. That, and I've stopped dropping my needles so much only to find them when I step on them later on...

I hope everyone had a great holiday and has a fantastic new year! It can't be any worse than 2020, right? 

...right?

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