Happy Holidays

I hope everyone's winter (or summer if you're south of the equator) is going well.
Here are my State Fair entries
The dragon (red ribbon)

And the booties. No ribbon on the booties; wrong category. Except, looking at the categories I can't tell what the right category would be. I've contacted the fair people to elaborate.

I finished my project 365. Now I won't be so 'must take picture today', but I'll still keep my eyes open for picture possibilities.

Dad came to have lunch with on Thanksgiving. We had a lovely, long talk. He showed me the listing for the house he built in 1958. Tiny house, but gorgeous views.

I've made some turtles: see. I'm working on more bracelets.  Here are some I've made.

I finally opened my D&D 5th ed Player's Handbook (aka PHB). It's pretty with a lovely array of images. However, I have one minor caveat; the print used for the index is tiny. On the other hand, it's a good index. I have two greater caveats; no finished or at least partially completed time sheet and the references (as in Chapter 5) refer to chapters and not pages. I mean, great, the rules being referenced are in chapter 5, where in chapter 5? They have good character sheets available on line; including one that's fillable. That's a big plus in my book.

I saw one movie that I did not expect to like, Pitch Perfect. It turned out to be really good; a little predictable plot-wise but I loved the music. The other movie I was glad to catch in the theater; Guardians of the Galaxy. I really enjoyed it.

After the Convention

Want to feel old? Try this little website. It calculates how many days you've been alive, what happened around the time you were born, an historical event that is closer to your birthday than today is, etc. The link takes you to my birthday, but at the bottom you can do your own or someone else's.

Here's the bracelet I finished (in sunlight, so you can almost see the pretty beads). Sorry about the bizarre background.

And have you ever wondered just how far somewhere is, compared to what you know? For example, compared to your hometown, just how big is London? Try comparing the maps and see. 

Palmetto Tat Days was great fun (as usual). I took a Nina Libin class, and made one lovely pair of earrings. I started another set, but the thread tangled awfully. I messed the pig I made in Jane Eborall's class, or at least it looks quite funny. The key turned out well. Dawn taught us some origami as a break from tatting.

I won a cape! And it will go into the auction next year...once I've made some...additions

Pig from Jane's class

Key from an evening session

Earrings from Nina Libin

origami envelope

origami box, closed

Origami box, open

One of scholarship quilts; Flowers and Vines

the dragon & edging I made

My badge, with gifts

teapot edging

flying geese edging

3 weeks until Tat Days

The countdown begins. Less than three weeks until Palmetto Tat Days. I've started planning for my projects. I've reviewed Shuttle brothers alternate thread method (as per Gina Butler's video). They have pictures of the scholarship quilts. Here's the teapot quilt. I think that's the teapot I made on the lower right. Here's the flower and vines quilt; with my dragon and vines edging toward the lower left.

Here's a bracelet I made; although it still needs to be blocked and to have the findings added.

And here's where I noticed I had skipped a join and a ring.

This is after I opened the ring.
















And this is me ready to start tatting again (after retro tatting the ring and chain, with beaded join).

I have almost a dozen bracelets made. At some point, I'll need to grit my teeth and open my Etsy shop.

The camera on my iPad went out. After a few calls to service, they determined it wasn't a software problem. Since it was a manufacturer defect, and I had the insurance, they replaced it. Yay!

My niece has left for college. I wrote a letter to her today. I went to see Mom the first weekend in August. She showed me a picture of her mother's mother, as a young woman. And I could tell, even without Mom telling me, Aunt Dot was a dead ringer for her when she was young.

Other stuff has happened, but of course, I can't remember any of it.

Unseasonably Cool

It's been unseasonably cool the past week or so. The high temperatures have been in the 80s and overnight has often been in the 60s (that's Fahrenheit). See some of cloud and sky pictures I've taken:Trigger warning, there's a picture of a bug after the clouds.

It's also been a bit wet. Last I heard, we're about 4.5" above our normal rainfall for July and more than 6" above normal for the year to date. I guess we won't be worrying about the water table this year.

I found an assassin bug on my leg one day. They eat roaches, etc.

I almost have my pawns for Pathfinder organized. This is how I do it.

Scrapbooking storage case

I start with this scrapbooking storage case. It's nice because it has some very helpful features. 

locking handle

The handle locks closed. The locks slide into place. There are two levels, with the lower one subdivided into several small niches and one big layer for the upper part.

bottom part, just after I opened it

upper shelf, holds the huge pawns and the bases

It's full of pawns

As I mentioned in my last post, I helped run the Pathfinder Society games for Fantasy Gamer Conclave.  Here's my table, all set up for the first game on Saturday. I'm all ready for my players. I ran 3-4 games over the course of the weekend; they were just fights really, not scenarios. But everyone fun and there was roleplaying.

I have been tatting. The rings are Ocean Sunset in Lizbeth 20 with Leafy Greens for the chains. I started out ring and ball then decided I wanted to add a ring 'leaf' to the chains. The picture on the left is me in mid wind from ball to around shuttle to onto my flat shuttle. The picture on the right show the 'leaf'.

Here is a bracelet I made. I need to add findings. 

I ordered threads from Yarnplayer, aka Marilee Rockely. Aren't they pretty. 

This weekend I go see Mom. And on the way back, I'm scheduled to have supper with a friend from high school. She lives in California so I see her every 2-3 years when she's back in the area to visit family.

And someone online showed me this entertaining website picture; group names of fantastic creatures. 

Depression Rears Its Ugly Head

Yes, I've been struggling with depression. Mostly, it's a drain on my energy and enthusiasm. But I'm in the recovery phase where I can do things again. Yay me.

I've started playing Lord of the Rings Online, in preparation for Pathfinder Online coming out. I took part in the Kickstarter so I've prepaid for some playtime. We'll see how much fun I find it once play starts. I am enjoying Lord of the Rings, so if Pathfinder is a disappointment, I have a consolation.

I've just registered for Palmetto Tat Days (I had to deal with paying for car issues before I was certain I had the funds). Here's an image of the possible layout of one of the scholarships quilts. I had a problem with my quilt square. I thought I had a teapot square. I wasn't sure of the due date so I put the teapot I tatted as part of display (in the library where our local group, Triangle Tatters, has our meetings). Where it remained for a month. I got it back after the 'please send in your square' date. And then I found out I had a 'flowers and vines' square. I frantically tried to tat something to fit the theme. In the end, I sent in my tatting and the fabric for the block, with abject apologies.

I enjoyed myself at ConTemporal. But I didn't see the non-gaming schedule until I was at the convention. And I didn't get to spend as much time in the dealer's room as I would have liked (but more than my wallet enjoyed). I did get to meet an online friend in person. I don't think I scared her off.

This weekend is Fantasy Gamers' Conclave. It's a very small con but so much fun. The hosts, Knightly Order of the Fiat Lux, run it to benefit charity; specifically the Autism Society of NC. I will be prepping the intro stuff for walk ins (we get a lot of walk ins). C, R, & I have helped run the Pathfinder games at this con for the past 3 years.

On the tatting front, once I'd finished the stuff for the quilt, I was a little burned out. I wanted to wear lace cuffs with my short sleeves for ConTemporal, but circumstances intervened and I wasn't able to wear a costume. Well, there's next year. I have made a couple edgings and a couple bracelets (don't tell, the bracelets are presents).

No pictures this time, unless I remember to upload them from my iPad. I still don't have a camera.

New Laptop

Not that it is set up yet, but I have it. My Dad and brother sent me birthday money to help me pay for it. C, R, and I went shopping on Monday. We each needed a new laptop so we went shopping together, taking advantage of the sales.

Summertime

Signs of spring: weather forecast includes the pollen count. Signs of summer: it includes the UV Index. And my SPF starts at 30.

I was sick Thursday (details are TMI) so I didn't go to work. And it poured. And poured. And about the time I would have been disembarking the bus, we had a tornado warning. It apparently hit about three miles away. So...yay for being sick?

I've had one free weekend since my last post. May and June are shaping up to be the same way. I went to Maryland Sheep and Wool and had loads of fun. I met up with some other tatters.

Linda, Isdahara, and Charlene

Sights at the festival

Yarn bombs, the back entrance

Yarn bombed tree

Main entrance had both fences yarn bombed

The trip back was.....interesting. I went with Autumn Breeze, as she had some fleeces to get cleaned, her shears sharpened, and some other things for her business. Her Garmin decided to wipe itself blank and then claim it didn't have the memory for US map, not even a partial one (odd geographical division, couldn't just get Southeast). Although it could manage Canada.

Anyway, we were using Siri. We were avoiding DC, and a 6 hour trip took 10 hours. At about 7 pm, we realized we weren't going to be home in time for supper. Autumn Breeze was in the mood for chicken, so we asked for a nearby Popeye's. Hey, there's one only 3 miles away , yay. A little backtracking, and it's supper time. Except. Except, the route took us to an active military base! We explained to the gate guard and, once he checked our IDs he was very understanding. Things have changed, they have restaurants on bases now, like Popeye's. Too bad it was closed.

We had seen a Hardee's on the way, we went looking for it. Siri suddenly didn't like my accent (I was not enquiring about heart disease, no matter what she says). Autumn Breeze asked and Siri said she wasn't available right now. Luckily that was just as we spotted the restaurant. We were only a few hundred feet away. 

After eating, we got back on the road. Siri slept, waking only to give us directions. Except, except I noticed we were in Mebane, way past the turn off to my house. Siri hates me. I am convinced of this.

It's SPRING

And Impossible Astronaut day. Why do I have these hash marks on my hands?

It's the day after Earth Day. And today I remembered my sunblock.

The strap on my purse broke. The thread holding the strap to the purse just gave way. I have some sewing to do tonight, don't I?

I have almost finished the baby booties. I am about halfway through the last row. I'm almost done with another minor Norwegian dragon, too. The first wing is done, I just need to do the 2nd one. I have a teapot to tat and some other odds and ends, for the Palmetto Tat Days charity quilt. I need to email Georgia Seitz and let her know I'm going to be late.

The Pathfinder Dragon's Demand game is going well. We have one or two sessions left. In late May or June, I'll be staring to run Skull andShackles. I've started prep. I've done things like sent an email to prospective players, telling them what to expect and what things are and are not explicitly permitted. I've also started an Obsidian Portal wiki/campaign doc.

Mace West, Atomic-Con, and Gnome-con all went well. I ended up running Race for the Rune Carved Key (for level 3-4) at Atomic-con with 2 days notice. According to the players, I did a good job.

This guy makes one suit a year, and it takes him 3 months to a year to make one

We spent some time sight-seeing in Savannah during Gnome-con. And I discovered that Badger Balm's shake & spray anti-bug does work. And quite well. We had one meal in the Pirate's Tavern and sat at the exact same table as last time. This time I sat with my back to the blocked door. And Chris thinks he can make Artillery Punch, in less than the 10 gallons mandated in the recipe.

My laptop was stolen about a month ago. They broke my car window while it was at a park and ride and took my messenger bag. The bag had my laptop, power cord, iPad cord, journal, and a USB lamp. Plus a bag of dice and my steel skwire forms. My iPad needed an OS update but I didn't have the memory on the iPad to do it. I booted up my old laptop, the one I haven't opened in 3 years.

After a week of updates, updates, and updates, I managed to finally get to the point I could update my Ipad's OS to 7-something. Yay!

Month of Letters, and other matters

From the title, you may have guessed this but..

So far, so good. I've mailed out a letter every day. I've also earned some achievements; first letter, week of letters, Girls Love Mail (send a card to a woman newly diagnosed with breast cancer through the organization Girls Love Mail), and parcel post (I sent the late Christmas present for my niece, must remember to email my brother for confirmation that it arrived).

I've tatted one of Anne B's dragons. I have a picture of it, but it's completely untrimmed. I'm going to trim the loose threads, take another picture, and post that.

I need to locate my baby booties pattern and the appropriate thread. One of my friends is expecting a baby in July.

I have a cold that just won't quit. I've been coughing since Jan 8. I went to the doctor on the 9th and he said it was a cold; nothing to do but palliatives. He quite literally prescribed rest, push fluids, no sudafed, steam, and no whispering. The sinus drainage was giving me voice issues and the sudafed and whispering are both bad for that.

Still playing Pathfinder. R is running Dragon's Demand and we're playing about once a month. It looks like we'll be finished around June.

I did go to a local con, met Mary Robinette Kowal and found out one of my friends went to high school with her. I've been reading her Glamour series and quite enjoying them. The first one is Shades of Milk and Honey. If you like Jane Austen, I recommend them.Got interested in Month of Letters and found out she's behind it.

I've been watching Sherlock and Elementary and Marvel: Agents of Shield and Foyle's War and The Big Bang Theory and The Crazy Ones and Castle and CSI and um, I forget. Thank goodness for DVR.

We watched the movie, Warm Bodies, the other night. It's a little lame, perhaps. But it's funny, and sweet, and even a little romantic. Psst, spoiler: it's Romeo & Juliet with a happy ending.

Mom is recovering pretty well from her broken elbow but she's been having trouble seeing very far since she had her eye surgery (was it cataract? Or something else? I don't remember). At first, her eyesight was better than ever. Now she's having trouble reading road signs.

We had snow a couple weeks ago. That was interesting. It's been a few years since real snow, as opposed to a powder sugar snow, fell around where I live. Thanks to public transport I made it work just fine. I did leave early, to get home before the slush started freezing. It was...interesting enough walking on the road when a car went by on snow. I didn't want to repeat the experience in the dark, on possible ice. They're predicting more snow on Wednesday. We'll see if it amounts to anything.