Last night I slept with Squishy, my new best friend- and it was different!
Squishy arrived yesterday afternoon and cuddled with me on the futon, creating this bubble of comfort that actually made me speechless! ( I really couldn’t be bothered to talk and texted @wtl who was there right beside me)
After a short while, I realized I had better move Squishy to its new home in the bedroom, otherwise I would just lie there, getting nothing done!
I found a sheet I had stitched years ago to accommodate camping mats and it slipped right onto Squishy’s long and cushy body. There was concern the Squishy might come between us, but I reassured WTL that would not happen- the bed is big enough for all three of us!
After a couple of movies and relaxing time with WTL, we came to the end of the day, where the anticipation of what awaited me in bed was growing!
Climbing in, and wrapping my arms and legs comfortably around Squishy, I soon felt the shift in my reality to new levels of ecstasy!
Zzzzzzzz
I awoke this morning to note that Squishy had indeed worked itself between WTL and I, a sign that I still might have been somewhat active overnight.
I do believe this is the start of a beautiful friendship!!
You can get your own Swuishy here:
http://www.sears.ca/product/obus-forme-l-shaped-body-pillow/696-000018333-6475?campaign=rr_item_ClickCP_0_1
Every once in a while, I need to look beyond the “hobbies I’ve made into businesses”. This past weekend gave me mulitple opportunities to do this. We’ll call it a long weekend, as things really began on Thursday.
Thursday was kind of a transition into exploring beyond my boundaries – sort of. I don’t often go out on a weeknight. I don’t often go see live bands anymore. Heading out to see Delhi 2 Dublin was really an exploration – honest.
The fact that we are using a D2B song for my Bellywood with Halyma class routine this session, and will tweak it for Bollywood For Fun 2012 usage, is besides the point.
We went out for sushi first to make it more of an adventure and had a blast! Seeing Bellywood students of mine there and attending with some of my BFF troupe mates is again, besides the point.
Friday is date night, for the most part, so it was a quiet evening at home with the hubby – resting up for the next two days of fun. no photos – 🙂
Saturday took me back to exploring my celtic roots. Attending the Ottawa Storytellers encore of the Kymera’s Voice production: The Warrior Queen: Chasing Boudicca was an intimate evening of seeing old friends { who just happen to be previous belly dance students}, hanging with present friends { who just happen to be my BFF troupe mates}, and meeting some new folks who have great stories of their own! I loved the idea of just sitting and listening to these creative folk tell this wonderful story, and I hope to make time in my busy life to do this sort of thing again!
And then came Sunday. Final day of one friend’s 3 day birthday weekend, so it started with brunch as usual but with added folk at all ends of the table! SO Happy Birthday Erika!
And then the next adventure began.
Theruvial Milltall drawn by me.
Once again, with familiar and new faces surrounding me, practically hand-holding me through this afternoon of ethereal adventuring, I embarked on my first AD&D, 2nd ed gaming session in the guise of Theurvial MillTall, the halfling Cleric, created for me by my good buddy, Andrea, who along with her hubby Rob, our DM, were hosting this afternoon of chocolate eating fun!
OMG I have never seen that much Halloween candy consumed over an afternoon! We fortunately also had an amazing selection of healthy veggies, and a fabulous supper, so yay for yummy food, laughter and good energy galore and making my brain hurt from thinking so hard! With one side of the table being totally noobs and the other folks being totally patient, it was a blast. Thanks for your patience folks!
One major victim was our friend’s table – that was uber unfortunate and hopefully won’t be too hard for them to get repaired. Rule # 1: Never have two people lean on the table at the same time. But it was taken in stride, dealt with quickly and the game resumed with careful gusto!
All in all, having great company along the way, I really enjoyed developing some new interests and hope that I can make the time to enjoy them more in the future. I just have to make sure these new hobbies don’t find a way to become new businesses!
I guess I should touch on why I find it important to have other interests, but you folks are all pretty smart right? So you get it already! And this is really just a reminder to me to make sure I stop working all the time, and being such a strong creature of habit! You can choose to pay attention to that advice too, or not, as to whatever works best for you!
Click photo to see more…
Okay, another fabuolus Halloween bash extraordinaire!
Tom and I were part of the costume judge crew and had a great time with Auz and Marianne as we sought out the best of the best to bring them forth on stage and doll out awards for the efforts made.
It’s not easy.
There are a lot of great costumes!
For more pics form other folk, be sure to check the Witches Gathering Flickr group!
This spring/summer sewing season has been another journey in learning for me.
Starting in January 2011 or so, I connected with the lovely ladies at Luxe Bridal as their main Alterations Specialist. I would pop into the store for set appointments with their brides as the dresses arrived, give them a quote and trundle on home to work on the myriad of Eco-TAV, Belly Dancing For Fun, Bellywood with Halyma, Bollywood For Fun stuff on those todo lists or even just relax a bit.
And the clients started to roll in – how cool is that!
And I worked my fingers to the point of knowing it was time to take a break when I would start to accidentally poke myself while pinning clothes, clients, etc. I love sewing – no question there. but geez the heavy season does take it’s toll.
And the brides have all been pretty good – the dresses have on occasion been evil incarnate – or the designers just have no consideration for the end result having to be taken apart again in order to actually fit!
Bah humbug! to nylon thread, tiny machine stitches, and beading lace after it’s sewn onto the dress { this means that when I start to remove lace to access a seam, little beads start dancing all over my studio floor}
Bah humbug to plastic crinolines sewn into the dress and the outside temperature hitting 37 plus a humidex reaching “OMG I am a lobster” degrees. { sorry vegans}.
I also had some amazing moments creating some fabulous dresses – one in particular was a wedding dress that would continue it’s useful life as a performance dress for a local harpist…
Eurika and Halyma - Eurika's new costume by TAV Creations was a joy to make
We also performed a LOT, danced, learned, choreographed, played, and had a blast!
And so…
…the final days of this season’s journey are upon me. I consider September like the New Year – it’s back to school time, back to livable temperatures and time for me to look at all of the fun fall events, projects, classes, clients… AAAAAAA...
holidayHolidayHoliday….
Okay, I am a bit better now.
Tonight= final fitting on the lovely bridesmaid dress connected to the beadwork above. it should go on it’s way by Thrusday – maybe Wednesday.
Tomorrow =I work like a crazy person on a small batch of new products for my favourite Eco-TAV client, Life Without Plastic. You’ll see those online soon. This will probably be a 2-3 day project.
Two more wedding dresses head off this week, and one lovely silk outfits goes home until September, when I will get it back and finish it off.
Almost there…
view from the Visitor's Centre
@wtl and @halymaAt the beach with our canoe, well Tom's Dad's Canoe...
GAH!!!
Unannounced and unexpectedly this afternoon our Internet stopped working. My wonderful husband called Bell and after being bounced around for 30 minutes, he was told that they have decided to do some work on our line.
So without telling me in any way at all- no call, no email, nothing, we will be without Internet access until late Wednesday evening/Thursday.
This is not the end of the world- but it does mean that if you need to reach me for anything immediate, you will need to go ‘old school’ and pick up the phone!
If you can wait, email me And I’ll get back to you Thursday or whenever I get a moment to pop online at the coffee shop or community centre !!
See ya later!!
T/H
Everyone needs an orange spider to be "spinny" for them...
Just back from a supply run, and after trying two other Byward Market places that might have sold twill tape/straight of grain ribbon, I ended up at Richard Robinson school. The Tuck Shop.
There is a funny young man who has been working there for about 5 years, according to his chatter today, and I pop upstairs about once every 4-6 months for some supply that I don’t want to drive all the way out to a fabric store to pick up and especially if the little yarn/sewing place on Nicholas doesn’t have it { I go see her first, small business and all}
And today it was straight of grain tape as I have a slew of under-bustles to create and I have devised my own ribbon system that works pretty well, especially with cotton tape that sticks to itself once tied in a little bow.
As I was leaving the school, I cannot help but count the years since I graduated from the Fashion Designer { 1988] and Couturier [ 1989] courses there. It’s been a while. And over the past few years, I have run into a few of my school mates from those years, some still sewing but many having moved on to other creative adventures – which is all very cool.
Today I was thinking of the day I went in for my first meeting with “Mr. Robinson”, when I was applying to attend the school. I don’t remember the exact day or anything, but it would have been in the spring of 1986, the year I graduated from high school, making me 17 at the time – just barely 17.
My mom and I drove to Ottawa and she came up with me and waited for our allotted appointment time. I told her it was okay for her to stay out in the waiting area while i went in, but “Mr. Robinson” happy invited her to join us. I would have shown him sewing projects and probably some artwork, and I vaguely remember him asking my mom what she thought – kinda odd, but I think he was trying to make me feel comfortable as I would be one of the youngest people in the class. Folks from Ontario did 2 more years than us folk in Quebec at that time, so I would have been starting at 17 with 19 -40 year olds { actually one lovely lady was in her 50s I think}.
So while I don’t remember every specific detail, I do remember the feeling of nervousness, anticipation, but also a confidence – I always felt strong in my sewing capabilities, even at that age. I was making Grad dresses that year for 3 friends…
Anyhoo – if one is going to spend some time on beautiful Friday afternoon reminiscing, it might as well be about something positive, and although there were a lot of stressful times during those 3 years, and the 20ish years since, it’s all good.
Many of you know that I try to get out and get in a walk every morning to start my day. Some of these walks take me along beautiful parkland and waterfront with birds and turtles and squirrels and groundhogs and all sorts of fun natural scenery.
Other days I have errands to run and end up along the concrete and pavement settings with old buildings and new, early morning folk setting up in the Byward Market, still some squirrels and mainly pigeons as my wildlife influence.
This morning was a “city walk” and as I was ambling along Rideau on my way to the 24 hour grocery store, I was travelling behind a woman who was walking as if under the influence… I cannot say for sure that she was, but her twitchy walk, huge sun glasses on a very cloudy morning, and repetitive stroking of her hair seemed to indicate there was a good chance she was. And even if she wasn’t, it got me thinking.
I have never done drugs, so I cannot describe the feelings of being on drugs, but i have consumed alcohol to the point of , well, to a variety of levels and have some awareness of the changes I go through if i have been drinking. Mainly these days I just get tired, which might explain why I become a bit of a mean drunk – or maybe it’s just that I have such a wry wit when sober, but hold back… 🙂 friends are eye rolling right now, I know!
But without any knowledge of actual drug use, I do often feel like my morning walks begin in a stressed out, twitchy stupor, my mind racing through the what-ifs and should-haves of yesterday, jumping back and forth with the must-dos and oh-craps of the coming day. So along I go, trying to let it all settle, while getting my body to move in a symmetrical fashion to counteract the growing asymmetrical musculature I develop through the heavy sewing months.
And sometimes I wonder if this is what it’s like to be on drugs. So much going on so quickly in my little head ! And I do feel twitchy 😀
I know I make the choices to fill my life with creative and exciting activities and obligations. I know that I could say no more often and I am working on that, along with time management and personal limitation awareness.
And my brain continues to bounce around from one thing to another until my ical alarm goes off giving me 15 minute warning to get back to living in the moment, and get ready for what life is bringing next.
Finishing off a week’s end of busy, Tom and I checked out Robert Sawyer at the Mayfair as part of the Ottawa INterntaional Writer’s Festival.
And familiar faces abounded! Nice to have seen Kate, Bob, Rob, Dwight, Miro and Helena!
And when I asked Tom about purchasing the WWW trilogy, I was informed it is already in our audio book collection – awaiting August/Algonquin.
We were staying until the end to chat for a moment as Tom had videotaped the talk on his behalf, and I resignedly mentioned the difficulties of getting an audiobook autographed… And I don’t think Rob realized I would jump on it when he made the suggestion of recording a clip for me! I love my ipod touch!
I don’t want to get my hopes up that winter is gone – I know it’s not! But I can feel the lightness in the air with the time shift and I like it!
LIfe has been bringing me new fun and challenges this year, and while it has taken me some time to get into a groove in the new year, I am starting to hit my stride.
New business opportunity with Luxe Bridal – Madeleine and Lisa are such lovely ladies and are very enthusiastic about what they do, and I am so pleased to be working with them as their “Alterations Specialist”. I AM STILL CREATING ORIGINAL DESIGNS – so be sure to still come see me! But it’s fun to play with others and find new inspiration working on the ready made dresses!
