A Start

Half days is a good place to start.

I went back to work today, feeling pretty good about my decision to start with half days.  And I think it went well.  I actually woke up before my alarm went off, so I was off to a better start than I thought.

About 10am, my lower back started to hurt, along with my abdomen, so I knew a full day wasn’t going to happen; & by 1pm, I was wiped, so I came home.

Wise choice, considering I fell asleep in my chair by 2, and slept till 5.

It continually frustrates me that I’m still getting so tired this quickly, but, I guess, since it’s still only been 3 1/2 weeks since the surgery, it isn’t unexpected.

By 6:30, I felt somewhat recovered from today, so, of course, I decided to push the envelope again, & started trimming the hedges that line one side of my property.

Yep, I’ll pay for that later.

But, fuck it.

They need doing, and I’m the one who’s here, so it’s got to be done.

Tonight, I’ll take a nice, long shower,  try to stretch out the kinks in my back & shoulders the hedge trimmer put there, & take my happy ass to bed a little earlier than normal.

Tomorrow, I’ll have to try to finish trimming, & see how far I can get on raking up the branches before my back gives out.  Yardwork never really seems to end when it’s high summer.

Speaking of which, HAPPY SUMMER SOLSTICE!!

Today was the longest day of the year, & tonight us a full moon… the Strawberry Moon, they call it, since this is when strawberries are going full force. 

And with the moon sliding into Sagittarius,  it’s the perfect time to set new goals, & take those first steps toward reaching them.

So, here I go, taking my first steps toward my new goals.

* Getting my normal life back (whatever normal means at this point).

* New craft projects, & revisiting some old ideas with a fresh perspective.

* Reclaiming who I am, and setting goals of where I want to be next year at this time.

Time to get started.

A Little Horn Tooting

https://www.etsy.com/shop/JustHowImWired

This is the link to my shop on Etsy, where I have some of the art pieces I’ve created.

I’m going to be working on some new things coming up, “fairy garden” style miniatures, which is a new area for me, so I’m excited about that.

Have a gander, browse, enjoy!

Arts and Crafts

Latest additions to my Etsy shop.

Hope

A little hope

OM

I’m going to be working on miniatures next, sculpey stuff, because I got myself some new sculpting tools and I’m dying to play WORK with them!

That’s all for now, but if you want to check out the shop, here’s the link.

https://www.etsy.com/shop/JustHowImWired

Into the Hush

Tonight is Christmas Eve, and I am spending it alone for the first time in my life.

Christmas is not my holiday, so I’m not as upset about this, or lonely, as one might think. It’s truly not that big of a deal, now that I’m in it.

Plus, we celebrated the gift-giving & dinner on my holiday,  Yule, so I did have that holiday experience.  And it was bittersweet… but I had some happiness mixed in with the grief. It balances, to a certain extent.

My children all scattered to celebrate with their other family members, or with friends, my parents are at home, quietly celebrating my Mom’s birthday – which just so happens to be tonight.

I took down the tree tonight, denied the house of its decorations. And that was ok, too.

Funny, but it was actually kind of a relief to turn my house back to normal operating mode.  I even started a load of laundry – completely domestic chores, not holiday -related at all.

And now, I’m showered, in my jammies, & relaxing…knowing that tomorrow will bring me the opportunity to do anything I want.

I can sleep in.
I can stay in my jammies all day, if I so choose.
I can eat when I feel hungry, nap if I feel tired, read, play games, craft.
With the holidays behind me, & no more pending orders in front of me, I can craft simply for the pleasure of it. Make anything that strikes my fancy.
I can sit in the still & the quiet (cut occasionally by the antics of the fur fools -2 cats, a dog & a ferret )

I can go into the hush, & be still.

When does that happen anymore?

Filling My Time

I’ve been posting here quite a bit, recently…at least in comparison to recent months.

But, that’s not all I’ve been working on.

I adopted a ferret.  Name? Vin Wiesel.

Very cute, and eminently sweet, he fits right into the madhouse.

I’ve also been working madly on making Xmas/Yule gifts for friends & family.  I’m still working on some, but here’s a few of the things I’ve got.

Something for my mom, whose birthday is Xmas Eve. This bugger took ForEver.

Bubble bag

A “bubble bag”, meant for holding soap, & being a crocheted loofah…

The flipside colors of another bubble bag.

A jewelry plaque. There are small hooks coming out of the flowers to hold necklaces, bracelets,  rings…

Unfinished Xmas ornament. It’ll be a cowboy hat with a name & year on it when I’m done.

2 more unfinished ornaments. The one on the right will, of course, be a “Sheriff’s badge”, complete with year & name.

And the latest… a cowboy boot that will also get painted, a name & year.

I have a couple more things to make before our family’s early Xmas this year. (Another story for another day)

Oh, plus I have 2 more ceremonies coming up this month, yet. 1 wedding, & 1 commitment ceremony. (The commitment ceremony is for a couple that can’t get legally married due to certain financial reasons – a pension & an ex are involved, so it’s not really a choice for them, but they want to celebrate their commitment anyway.)

Along with doctor’s appointments, wherein I get shuffled, stabbed & stared at intensely…but no definitive answers yet…

But that’s how I’ve been filling my time.
Staying busy, & keeping my nose to the wheel.

Branching Out

Here are some pictures of the newest trees I’ve made.

This one (above) I was going to put in my Etsy shop,  but ended up selling it to my boss.

This next one, I made for myself… but I might end up selling it as well, as my boss has now ordered 3 more!

It’s a little bigger than the first one, & has more little details, like a ghost, hat & broom.

So, now I’m busy creating more.  I might even start making sets of miniatures for my Etsy shop, since the sculpting is so much fun, and I can make multiple items at once. We’ll see once I get this new order filled.  (And I’d better get back to it, since I only have a week to make all 3!)

Now, for the particulars for those who are interested…

1.  The “log” is something I found at Hobby Lobby,  & it’s called “cactus wood”. I stuffed it with craft moss after affixing the trees to it.

2.  The sculpted items (pumpkins, cats, hat) are made from colored Sculpey, a polymer clay that oven bakes in about 10-15 minutes. I love this stuff, and have used it for years!

3.  The ghost is a different type of clay called “Creative Paperclay”. This was my first time working with it, and it’s a very different clay than I’m used to. I’m still not sure how much I like it, but it is very light-weight, and air dries over a day or 2.

4.  The broom I also picked up at Hobby Lobby, in the miniatures department. You can also sometimes find these in the scrapbooking area.

5.  The only things I painted on any of this is the stems on the pumkins, the cats’ eyes, and the face “holes” on the 2nd tree. On the first tree, I tried black Sculpey in the face holes, but didn’t really like the way it turned out.

6.  The trees themselves are aluminum, 20 gauge craft/jewelry wire.  Again, Hobby Lobby. (I spend waaay too much time and money in there, I might need an intervention)

7.  Everything but the trees are glued down with an epoxy called “Goop”. Stinks to high heaven for a while, but I haven’t found anything yet that works as well.

I’m going to keep experimenting, try to figure out how to do trees for each holiday, or at least, each season.

Christmas trees are going to be…interesting….

Back Burner

Life has been complicated,  messy, & anxiety-ridden lately.

Umm… well, it’s always been that way, but it’s been that times about 5 for the last few weeks.

I’ve tacked back on some extra stress flab, & am trying really hard to correct that, watching what I eat, getting outside more to do yardwork, & contemplating working out. (Thinking about it really hard works brain cells, so why can’t it burn calories too? Something doesn’t seem quite right with that)

I just haven’t been much in the mood to write.

I’m sure some of my regulars have noticed a dearth of words here. 

Even the fiction has been virtual- virtually non-existent.  It’s been ages since I posted any flash fiction.

The creativity has been channeling into crafts, instead of the blog.

I’d apologize… but I’m not really sorry.

Take a look at what has been crafted in the last month………..

Made a cat tower out of some old “under-the-bed” drawers & some old carpet sticky squares & rope.

Finished a dresser my dad gave me- I love the raw wood color, so I just put a couple coats of polyurethane spray on it, filled nail holes, & put on the drawer pulls & keyhole covers.

Made a sign for my dad (a belated father’s day gift). Those are the grandson’s handprints at the bottom. He does a lot of woodworking, & has a whole old house filled with his projects, tools, etc.

And, the piece de resistance is…
A nightstand I’ve got about 20 hours of work into, sanding, painting…

After sanding…

Liquid gold paint on the 2 opposing sides…

Branches…

Leaves…
And now…

Updated – Finished the blossoms on the opposite side tonight. Accent colors tomorrow, & it’ll be finished before the weekend!

Cherry blossoms.

Then, I’ll fill in texture & depth colors, and poly – coat it to protect when I’m finished.

Everything else, including blogging much, has gone on the back-burner for now.

But I ain’t dead yet.

Busybusy Crafting Bee

I’m kind of tapped out for words right now; I’ve been really busy working on crafts & getting my house in some semblance of order.

So, I’m going to post some pictures of what I’ve been working on.

Mother’s Day shadow box trees for my mom.

Fairy Swing for the fairy garden my mom is making in her yard. It’s made entirely from woodbine, a pernicious vine I have growing on a trellis on the front of my house.

A dresser my dad gave me. He stripped the old paint, & I filled holes, sanded & sealed it.  Good nuff.

Yet another tree that went into my Etsy shop. I’ve since glued a piece of cork to the bottom to protect whatever surface
it sits on.

One of my favorites so far, this is a cherry tree I made for my nephew’s boss.  I’ll be making another one for myself – SOON!

A small wall hanging I made that I’ve put in the Etsy shop. I love the leaves, they’re almost a teal color, with gold rubbed on. 

And… the piece’ de resistance…
Something special for my dad for Father’s Day.

Yes, this is an old measuring tape

My grandson's handprints

A tiny tree made from reclaimed copper wire

I know this gift is a little late for Father’s Day, but Mom & Dad were out of state for most of June, so I took a little extra time on it. I just put 2 coats of polyurethane on it tonight, & it’s ready to be gifted.  Dad does a lot more woodworking now that he’s retired, so I thought this would be fitting.

Hope you enjoyed seeing what has kept me so busy!

Now, I only have about 6 more projects currently in the works, so I’ll post pics of those as they progress.

G’nite!

Project in Progress

There are a lot of things going on at my house simultaneously, these days.

EldestDaughter is packing, in preparation to move into her own place. Hopefully soon. She’s just waiting on the housing lady to contact her.

Dear Goddess, let it be soon – we’re both getting tired of living with each other.

I’m packing up YoungerDaughter’s room. Moving her stuff into storage, considering she hasn’t lived here all year, & has no plans of ever moving back in. She has been in an apartment with some friends all year, is staying there through the summer for summer school, & has 1 year left of college.

Highly unlikely she’ll ever sleep in the room next to mine again. Why is her stuff still here?

HellifIknow.

I’m working on multiple furniture restoration projects at the moment. *shrug* Why take them on? I need the dresser, and the other 2 projects – a nightstand & a re-covered seat for a vanity table… well, they’re spare time fun.

I’m still working on bonsai trees, and have other art projects I’m going to be experiment  with. 

I made my mom a swing for her fairy garden out of some woodbine (vine-like trellis herpes- it won’t go away, no matter what I do)

*shrug* spare time sitting on my front step. 

And about those trees… here’s some of the latest:

Mother’s Day present for my Mom.

Mother’s Day present for a coworker’s mom.

And here are a couple of the latest to go up in my shop on Etsy – Just How I’m Wired

As you can see, I’m branching out into applying the trees to stones.

So, between one thing and my mother, I’m a little busy.

And yet, I still have time to obsess about shit I can’t change, control, or affect.

Insomnia can suck it.

I’M the project in process.

https://www.etsy.com/shop/JustHowImWired

All Wired Up

Just some things I’ve been working on that’ve kept me busy… I love this.

And there are more ideas boiling in my head… I’m going to be busy for a while yet.