Delbert McClinton - Austin City Limits

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Nineteen years ago. It's hard to believe it has been that long. I had just met Sweetie that July, and we began seriously dating in August. I had spent that summer, among other things, working at the Georgia Shakespeare Festival, and when the season wrapped, all of us costume people met for lunch. I remember the place was call "Lettuce Souprise You." Jeesh.

All the table chatter was about a new TV show coming to town, and how everyone there seemed to be trying to get their fax number out in Los Angeles in order to get hired. Me? I had work, and I just blew the whole hullaballoo off.

Fast forward to a few weeks later, to when I got a phone call from Tracy, the wardrobe mistress from I'll Fly Away, the new television series. Tracy said that she had been calling around Atlanta looking for someone to do stitching for the show, and my name kept coming up as the person she needed to talk to, and would I come and interview for the position?

It was just about this time of year, hot and sweltering, and Sweetie and I had lunch at Moe's and Joe's in Virginia-Highlands, just before I was to go out to the soundstage west of town and meet with the costume designer about the job. Sweetie asked me if I was nervous, and I replied honestly that no, I wasn't nervous a bit. Why should I be?

I got the job and worked for Tom McKinley, the designer, at I'll Fly Away for two seasons, and also on the wrap-up movie filmed after the show was cancelled. Can I say? Sam Waterston was always polite and professional, as were many others in the cast. Not everyone, though. (ahem) Tom recommended me to other designers when they came to work in Atlanta, and therefore, I worked on several movies.

That's where I made my money, and I quit the business when I needed to. Maybe I'll write that story later. Oh, and the movies I worked on? Some cable, some made-for-TV, and mostly straight-to-dvd.

Here I am, nineteen years later, sewing again. Although, trust me, this kite gig will be more than just sewing. Am I nervous? Not one little bit.

Not the Crazy Cat Lady

I am the Crazy Bunny Lady in this town, so when a deceased bunny appeared in my neighbor's yard, I got a call.

No foul play suspected; just another rabbit gone dead and so, I collected the little guy's body, already full of fly spawn, and took it away. I originally thought to burn it, along with bits of cardboard, but then decided to let it rest out back, near the barn. Maybe the chickens could eat the maggots for the protein.

I am sorry to see this little guy dead. But I know that flies and worms and carrion bugs have to eat, too. At least the Killer Kitty is gone, and there are several babies still in the yard - Smoky's legacy.

I have two roosters, and eight hens, along with Omelet whom I think is a hen, and two little chicks. I thought that the roosters would divide the hens amongst themselves, but no! Fried Chicken has asserted himself as King of Them All, and Roostifer has none. F.C. can't keep watch on all of his girls, all of the time, and so Roostifer takes his opportunity to court any and all stray hens.

Sometimes his behavior goes unnoticed, but sometimes not, and so I get the spectacle of one rooster methodically chasing another round and round my house, for minutes at a time. Roostifer is a bloody mess, and not in the English meaning.

My hope is that once Omelet comes of age, that she will be his mate. We shall see.

I looked out into the back yard last night, to check on the chickens. Since last year, they all roost in this aspen/poplar tree that grows maybe twenty feet from my bed. Last night, I saw all of them there save for Henny Penny and her two babes, who nest under the Palatial Summer Bunny Hutch, and Omelet, who was seen in the smaller aspen/poplar tree a short distance away. All by herself.

Roostifer has been run off, and now beds down on the front porch. Alone.

I am almost moved to write a children's story about Omelet, called "A Flock of One," and somehow, she and Roostifer get united and form a new flock and raise a family. That's the idea, free for the taking!

I'm too busy right now, sewing kites and stuff.

Store leftovers safely.

So. The universe is a strange and wonderful beast.

This thing with the sewing, and how everything has led up to having an actual job again, (eek!,) has an even more convoluted beginning than I related earlier.

Back in 1998 or 1999, I took a mental-health step which meant distancing myself from a friend I had had since junior high school. This friend was the reason that I moved back to Indiana from Atlanta, mostly and sort of. In other words, I wouldn't have come here if not for her. It is pointless to cast aspersions upon her or chastise myself now. I merely did what I needed to do for my own sanity, way back then, and not talk to her anymore. For 11 or 12 years.

Then came the glory/curse that is facebook, and I was able to reconnect with my friend, in a safe and gentle manner. My friend who knew me in the way back, who remembers my mom and my dad, who put up with my little brother who is now 42, and who lusted after my second eldest brother on occasion. (Who didn't?) We have both grown older, and we are maybe not wiser, but we are at least more calm these days.

It is through her that I heard about the kite gig. Without her, and without me seeking her out several months ago, I would never have known about Sun Oak Kites.

One never knows what any one connection with another person will produce. I am glad Lorie is my friend again, even though we have yet to meet or talk in person. That will come in time. I mean, 11-12 years of separation will take a while to bridge.

Here There be Dragons.

I have been working away in my studio on pleated draperies for a model train platform. Lots of black polyester blend fabric and yards of velcro. Just finishing the last four of thirteen panels and plan to install them Wednesday evening.

Otherwise, I have been knitting a pair of socks with Regia. Needles are size one and gauge is about 12 stitches per inch; I cast on 100 stitches. I am really loving the stained glass look. I found the pattern graph
here. I believe I will not make the foot in pattern, but maybe all in the pink and red. If I do that, will need to decrease to 72 or so stitches and am mulling over how to do that. I'l probably do the heel in the same ribbing as the tops. Lots of fun, really.



It's hot here but not horrible. High today will be 95º and it is humid. The rest of the week is supposed be better. We have had random showers but a good amount of rain has fallen in my back yard. I'm so glad not to have a barn full of heat-stressed, panting bunnies.

Posted photos from last night's road trip on my other blog, http://backroadsharrisoncounty.blogspot.com

No mingling.

Can I just say? Isn't America's Interstate System just the greatest thing? I mean, really. We can travel quickly throughout our vast country, by car or motorcycle or even by foot, so very easily.

There was a great piece in the New Yorker last year about traveling across Siberia.

Which was not such an easy task. It took six weeks, with no rest stops or diners or service stations. Sometimes the roads themselves were dicey.

This is what makes us such a great country. Thank you, President Eisenhower and Congress for building our Interstate Highways! I mean, really. I can travel by highway from where I live to anywhere in the US. No "Papers please." (Well, maybe Arizona.) (And not Hawaii, by car.)

This freedom is what we are all about. This is what makes us so unusual in the world.

Also? It is America. Speak what ever damn language you want.

Don't get me started.

Yield to cross traffic.

It's funny, sometimes, how things work out.

I go off my Happy Pills and get more energetic and interested in life. I start sewing. I clean up my sewing studio. I open myself up to possibilities. I get one little sewing job, and then a bigger one, and now, it looks as though I have an as-much-sewing-as-I-care-to-do job making kites and windsocks. Of all things.

I visited with Richard, the owner of Sun Oaks Kites today, and apparently, I passed the audition. (Well, duh.) I have a feeling that this could be as much of a job as I want it to be, on down the line, but right now I will be sewing kites on a piecework basis, at home. That's the best part, especially since English, Indiana is just over an hour away from me. Looks like for now, I'll visit their shop once or twice a month, and in-between we will meet in Corydon (only 25 minutes from here.)

I'm excited and interested, and I know I can do the work. It may not be rocket surgery, but baby needs a new pair of shoes, if you get my drift. I need to actually make money, not have a hobby, and this seems to fit.

No Parking No Loitering No Standing

I attended the Friendship Spinners' gathering on Saturday, taking my wheel and spinning my own self, even. Here are a few of the tribe.




I am continuing to feel good and energetic. Sunday and yesterday, I purged the living room. After falling for the third time over the boxes of books in here, and after cursing for several minutes, I received great satisfaction in heaving said boxes out the door and into the front yard. Dagdabbit! Futhermucker! Radgin' Fragdit! It almost felt as good as slamming our heavy wooden inside doors, which I have had occasion to do lately. Like I have told Sweetie, the bitch is back. Yay!

Today I spent cleaning and organizing my studio, and I did it with a cheerful heart. I want to spend a lot more time in there, and I want it to be tidy. I find that I am not having to force myself to do any of this work; rather, I want to do it and do it well.

Have I mentioned to you all how good I am feeling now that I am off the medz?

Henny Penny has two little chicks who are a week old tomorrow. I had hoped for more, but I am just glad she has more than one. After I noticed her brooding four weeks ago, on only one egg, I placed four more underneath her from eggs I had in the fridge. I learned later that this is not a good idea, as the fridge dries them out, but I choset one good one anyway. Henny is being the same great mother to these two that she was to Omelet, who is doing well and hanging out in the back yard. The six older hens are due to start laying at the end of the month. Yay! Egg overdose on the way!

I found a great show from England over on Hulu, starring Stephen Fry as a lawyer in a small seaside town. The show is eponymously called Kingdom, and there are 18 episodes over 3 seasons. I watched the pilot last night, and intend to parcel out and watch an episode every evening or two. It's a sweet delight. Go! Find! Enjoy!

Wavy Gravy, not Old Navy

Here's an interesting post from Cabinet of Wonders.

Thin with water.

Sweetie and I are each creative in our own unique ways.

I just finished this wall in the bathroom. I had seen the basic idea of shredding magazines and white-glueing the strips onto a wall several years ago, and finally did it. It was fun and cheap and didn't take too long. Really perks up our dreary pit stop.




Sweetie on the other hand, gets destructive in creative ways. He set this stump on fire Monday, and it has smoldered since and has slowly been shrinking.




But apparently not fast enough. That's when he got the leaf blower. And a beer. Maybe more than one.




After a fun half hour of that, his arm grew weary, so he again got creative. (I need to submit this to There, I Fixed It.) And no, we're not really supposed to burn open fires like this unless we call the local VFD, which we didn't.







Upshot is that this morning? There is a big-ass blackened crater where a mighty maple tree once lived.

Add cheese.

This is for, who else? Mouse!

The Wrecking Crew

Happy Divorce Day!

Nineteen years ago today, I was on my own for the first time in my life; beholden to no one but myself. I had moved in with my boyfriend straight from my father's house, and we married a year later, in 1976. My divorce was final on July 3, 1991. In 34 years, I had never lived on my own.

I distinctly remember my feelings that day. I was alternately elated, sad, and bereft. I could make my own decisions for the first time, yet I scarcely knew what I thought. I could make my own choices, but I wasn't sure what I liked. I was joyous and scared.

It was as if I had finally started living.

Oh, what a long, strange trip it's been.

War? What is it good for?

Match notches.

I went upstairs last week, looking for a book, but found a bag of blue jean seams instead.




Somewhere online, I thought it was this site, but I can't find it now - anyway, I found a little tutorial on reusing blue jean seams, and so, I made this bath mat. It's about 18" by 24."





Several years ago, I wove this little basket from denim seams, too. It has turned into Sweetie's change keeper.








From the bolt of silk noil, I have created this hippie outfit, loose and comfortable. I drafted a pattern for the pants, but just drew the shape of the tunic onto the fabric.




This coat is also from the silk noil. I like the pocket detail, for which I used linen. I found the pattern in my studio; a friend gifted it to me when I had my store, along with several others in a similar vein. I dyed all of the garments in the washing machine using Jacquard's acid dye.




Next on the clothing agenda will be a long summer dress made from, hmmmm, silk noil, I think.