May 31/09

Yesterday was a rainy, grey day so I rented some movies, downloaded these patterns from the Michaels website and stitched up these bibs as part of my campaign to reduce my stash! No babies in sight for me or any of my friends at the moment, but one never knows!

May 28/09

Nothing too exciting to post about at the moment besides the usual craziness of my life. I have my tickets booked to Mongolia in June and am now trying to finalize all the rest of the details for the trip. There are some personal things that are in great flux for me at the moment. Who knows what the next few months will bring for me!
My next big cross stitch project is going to be QS Iris. I recently repainted my living room with Benjamin Moore's Desert Mauve so a few accessories that used to match Louisbourg Green do not go so well with the new colour, one of them being a mirror with a green leafy designed frame. In its place, I plan to hang the new cross stitch when I finish it in the next 6 months or so. The colours of the threads are so beautiful that I can not wait to start working on it, but I need to finish the Teresa Wentzler bookmarks I started as I have a golden rule to only work on one stitching project at a time.

May 24/09

This stitch was a quick and easy Dimensions kit that my best friend gave me for Christmas. We have commiserated and laughed over many a cup of coffee over the years! I am working on some small projects like this one and some bookmarks as I try to decide what to stitch for my living room. The room has just been repainted and some of the decorations no longer work with the new colour so I was trying to think of a cross stitch picture that could replace the mirror that is hanging in there now. I think that a design called "QS Iris" that I bought from HAED may just do the trick.

May 17/09 Part II

Mom lent me her camera so here is a piccie of the finished stocking!

May 17/09

The lens on my camera is causing me trouble so unfortunately I have no pictures of the stocking I have been stitching for my mother. What a moment that was to put in the last stitch and to be able to think about the next stocking!

I have been doing some reading in the past week or so about the Middle East and Haiti. Jared Cohen has written a compelling book about the youth of the Middle East in a book called "Children of Jihad". Once again, I was struck by how the people he met were "just folks". They want the same things that we do here in Canada and the US: good living conditions, friends, to enjoy life, education and employment and to live life without repression and fear. He looks below the hysteria of media reports and takes the time to really understand the people. "On That Day Everybody Ate" by Margaret Trost follows the journey she made after the death of her husband to find herself and how she founded an organization called What if?. It is haunting to me how children are starving to death on our literal doorstep. Haiti is not that far away from the US and yet unfortunate historical events like the US-led embargo of Haiti after the successful slave revolution have led Haiti to the disaster that is happening there now. The US was still engaged in slavery at the time and did not want Haiti to succeed post revolution because it might have inspired the American slaves.
I just took a look at my Kiva account and I see that I am inching closer towards my goal of having enough loans repaid each month that I can start a new loan. I currently have ten loans on the go and about $15 was repaid this month from five of them so I am $10 shy of starting another loan. My only criticism of Kiva is that I have not been able to find any loans for women who are single parents. Having watched my mom raise a family of four kids with no help of any kind from my dad has given me an inside look at how hard it can be even here in Canada.
So, hopefully my camera will sort itself out or I will remember to borrow my mom's camera to take photos of the completed stocking. I hope that my Canadian readers are enjoying their Victoria Day long weekend!

May 9/09

I was looking for some books on Chapters Indigo a few weeks ago and checked out the cross stitch books to make up the order to $39 to get the free shipping deal. This heart comes from a book called "Stitch Graffiti" by Heather Holland-Daley that caught my eye while ordering from Chapters. She included an alphabet at the back of the book so I decided to add the word "dream". I used her photo as a guideline for the colours as I used up more skeins from my odds and ends box.

Hmmmm.....so I did not accepted to grad school for September. I had applied to some universities to do a Masters in International Development Studies, but was not successful. There has been a little struggle going on in my head these past few months as I grappled with the fact that I may not get accepted (this was before the rejection letters came in the mail) and about whether this is the path I want to follow or not. These thoughts are still there although the figuring out the life plan thing is pushed into the background until I finish the Habitat trip to Mongolia. Who knows where I will end up? I certainly do not!

May 1/09

I finished these ornaments last night. Sorry that the photos are so dark, but it is grey and rainy here and I could not wait to post the photos! The ornaments are double-sided.
Side 1:

Side 2:

They are stitched on 14 count Aida that has silver threads woven into it. The silver gives it a snowy sparkly effect. The threads are from my miscellaneous box so no two ornaments are fully alike because I was playing around with the colours and most times, I only had enough to stitch just one ornament. The designer is Alma Lynne and the designs are from a booklet called "Snow Folks at Home".

April 30/09

Spring has sprung and I wanted to get a picture of this crocus before the deer find it! The crocus is not the first flower to make its appearance in my gardens, but I was too sick the past two weeks to get a photo of the snowdrops who were the first brave little flowers to show themselves this year! Winter has finally let go of us here in Eastern Canada. Mind you, it is only April yet so it could snow again, but I am defiant with my sunglasses and flip flops!

I just heard on the news that a Rotary Group Study Exchange member in Nigeria who was recently kidnapped has been released. I participated in the GSE in 2004 to Adelaide, Australia and had the time of my life! Being a participant renewed my commitment to the Rotary Youth Exchange program which I facilitate within my Rotary club. Getting know other cultures and languages is so very important to bridge the gaps that occur and to build solidarity. So glad to hear that this kidnapping has been resolved.

My Mongolia trip is still ticking along. If anyone is interested in joining me or any of the other teams, check out my link! I am still looking for team members for my team which is stressing me out a little bit, but I have all my digits crossed that it will be achieved.

May 1/09 I am such a dolt. That is a daffodil, not a crocus! Thanks Christine!

Apr 24/09

This picture is the end result of my personal Earth Day project. Last weekend when I was out walking, I was horrified to see three small nearby brooks so choked with garbage. These brooks feed into the huge river and marsh system that surround this town. The marsh is several thousand hectares in size. After a little thought, I decided to remove one bag full of garbage from each brook as my own gesture to recognize the importance of this planet that nurtures and sustains us so this is what I found last night minus the tire that was too full of mud and water for me to drag home, but at least it is no longer in the brook! At first, I was kind of embarrassed to be seen covered in mud and picking garbage as all those cars drove by, but then I decided to be proud of the fact that I at least was doing something about the mess that we are creating. Passersby probably thought that I was nuts, but I feel so much better about the fact that those waterways are just a little less choked with garbage.

Apr 18/09

Whew! My research paper on microfinance has been emailed and the bibliography just went in. My prof very kindly let me send in the bibliography separately because I have been too sick to get things done this past week. Now, I need to focus on my pharmacy education programs before I decide about taking an on-line course that interests me.....

Just as an aside. I have just emailed in the bibliography which I pieced together while hanging out at the Red Whale Cafe because they have a wi-fi connection that I needed to access some of the necessary information. Now, I am sitting here writing this blog entry as I listen to a couple who are on a first date. Eavesdropping is so evil, but it is so delicious! They met on a dating website and she is sitting here giving him every reason to run away screaming as she details all of her "complications". I kind of suspect that this may be a first and last date, but who knows, maybe I have a front row seat to a "happily-ever-after"!

Well, onto burgers on the BBQ and getting the new clothesline up to replace the old one which is falling apart. If I still have enough energy before it gets dark, I may pull on the rubber boots and clean out the garbage in my brook.

April 15/09

Wowza! I did not realize how many ornaments I had stitched in the past few weeks! There are quite a few of them. I still have 3 more blanks sitting in the pile to complete before I start on the back stitching and finishing. My scrap floss box has been reduced enough that it is no longer a struggle to snap the box closed and I have used up a good sized piece of cloth to make these ornaments. Now, if I could just reduce the junk in the rest of the house in such a fun and relaxing manner.

The wreath raffle for Relay for Life is going well. So many customers of my pharmacy have bought tickets and given me lovely compliments on the piece. I am thrilled to share my passion and to raise money to fight cancer!

Tonight has been a "talk on the phone" night. I interviewed another candidate for the Habitat trip to Mongolia and talked with two local friends who are quite keen on the trip as well. The applicants are all so interesting and motivated that I can not wait to meet them all in Ulan Bataar and hang out with them for a couple of weeks. Having those 3 great convos. makes up for how miserable I am feeling with bronchitis at the moment. My throat, lungs and ribs hurt from coughing and expectorating so much. The antibiotics are starting to kick in, but my poor body is running on empty. Oh well, it is just bronchitis and I will be as good as new in a few days.

April 12/09

Happy Easter to everyone! I woke up to see snow on the ground...grumble, grumble. Things could be worse though I suppose. No war, no natural disaster, no man made disaster, just snow.

I am not a particularly churchy kind of person anymore but I always do pause on Easter to think about its significance and importance in the Christian church. The ideals of forgiveness and love are so important to me. I truly am blessed in my life on every level. There are so many good people in my life and who have re-entered my life recently. The love that surrounds me nourishes me and allows me the opportunity to follow my dreams and crazy flights of adventure. This morning while I was doing a reading-out-loud review of my paper on microfinance that is due on Friday, I was also mulling over how to share my good fortune besides the obvious of spending the afternoon with my family as we eat a delicious feed of turkey prepared by my brother. I did not buy any Easter candy treats to share with the family this year so I decided to place two more Kiva loans in place of the treats. I chose a Palestinian family in Hebron because of the ongoing difficulties in that region and a family in Samoa because of a Paul Theroux book I read last fall. In a minute here, I will print out the profiles and share them with my family over dinner.

Now if I could only magically get rid of this nasty bronchitis, things would be even better for me!

Apr 4/09

My snowman ornament project has been coming along nicely. I have 3.5 more to cross stitch before I start the back stitching and assembly. My focus needs to be redirected to the research paper that I am doing on microfinance which is due on April 14th. To that end, I am searching the Internet for criticisms of microfinance institutions like Kiva to round out some of my thoughts before opening up the laptop and writing today. While I was beginning my search, I logged into my Kiva account and realized that I had not donated to any African borrowers when I had started my first round of loans. My initial loan was disbursed to Cambodia, the Dominican Republic, Nicaragua and Lebanon. Recently, enough of the loans were paid back that I could make another loan to a borrower in Pakistan. Today, I added Senegal and Mongolia. So, for US$150 I have hopefully made a difference for seven families around the world. I am well aware of the criticisms of microfinance and its limitations, but I am also well aware that many of these people would not be able to access credit otherwise. Here in Canada, we can so easily access credit cards and lines of credit to keep our households and businesses going when there is a downturn in income. We have social safety nets to catch us when we stumble or need help. So many people in the world do not have these opportunities.

Mar 31/09

Here is a picture of my work in progress. They are from a Jeannette Crew book called "Snow Folks". I am using my scrap thread box to stitch them so each "twin" is slightly different from the other although that may be hard to see in this photo. These designs are quick and easy which is great for my little brain that is exhausted at the end of the day when I fall on the couch and dig out the stitching.

In the meantime, I am working the same number of hours of work, but we have less overlap of pharmacists so my workload is higher because I am usually the only pharmacist on duty. My boss has been trying to help out by covering breaks and lunches so that I can get a few minutes to myself in an 8-hour shift, but some days that does not happen and my only moments of peace are when I hide out in the bathroom! Unfortunately, I think that some anxiety and depression are being triggered so I am trying to take good care of myself to avoid falling into that hole.

At the same time, I am beginning the overhaul of my research paper on microfinance whose final draft is due on April 14th. I was feeling rather blocked and overwhelmed about re-working 20 pages of stuff, but have hit on a technique that seems to work for me. I am writing a short document in a conversational style as if I was explaining over coffee what my paper is about. This style is helping to identify the important bits and the story I want to tell in my paper.

My remaining waking moments have been spent contacting, interviewing and reviewing potential team members for my Habitat for Humanity trip to Mongolia. Things are going well so far and have chatted with some really great people.

I know that I get bored if I do not have several big projects on the go, but I should do more thinking about the scheduling of these things. The paper is due April 14, car inspection is due in April, my Rotary club has a fundraiser on May 2, I leave for Mongolia on June 25, I work full time..........No wonder I am just wanting to curl up in bed and pull the covers over my head.

Mar 27/09

No pictures to post today although I may post some later on the Christmas ornaments I have in progress. My main focus in life at the moment is supposed to be a research paper which is due in a few weeks. The first draft did go in a few weeks ago and it was ripped apart/discussed during Monday's class. I have spent the week digesting the comments, mostly because I did not have time to even open up the document again what with working 7 days in a row since we are short staffed again at work. Family issues have reared their ugly head so time has been spent dealing with those things. On the plus side, my Thursday night curling team won the league last night. My brain has been so out of focus that I did not know we were playing the championship game until friends of mine playing the game beside us told me. I thought that they were pulling my leg until I asked one of the men on my team. You can imagine my surprise when we ended up winning the game and we were named league champions. Life is its usual chaos here in my little corner of the world although I see the sun is shining from vantage point here at a window at the university library.

March 15/09

My stitching has been replaced by all of those notes that Hayes is sleeping on top of. This paper on microfinance and poverty has to be emailed in by Wednesday at 9am, but I have pretty much over-researched and written the bulk of it. Now, I am writing the introduction and the conclusion while fine tuning my arguments and writing style. My problem is editing.....there are so many things that I could write about because this is such a huge topic. Being focused and clear are proving difficult for me.

Mar 4/09

OK, so this is not the straightest photo I have ever taken! I was trying to move the cat out of the way at the same time after having to sweep up the cat litter that gets tracked EVERYWHERE in this house by the 3 furry ones. Anyhow, back to the cross stitch. This kit is a Daydreams one that I bought in Connecticut this summer. It was on mark down because it was missing most of its bits, but I had the cloth for stitching and stitched the design using the picture on the box as the pattern. To clip it all together, I "borrowed" document clips from work and slid them on before unhooking the silver bits that act as levers for the clips. A bit utilitarian, but the clips work and one more thing has been finished in the big pile of stuff in my craft room! I am chipping away at organizing and reducing my cross stitch and craft stash so that it is not completely overwhelming if I ever get accepted to grad school. Packing and moving all of the stuff would be a daunting task, to say the least!

Mar 3/09

Yesterday, I was showing my boss the framed "Wreath of All Seasons" when he made a comment that got me thinking. He was surprised that I had the patience to do cross stitch which got me to thinking about me and my personality and how it can surprise people to find out that someone is a cross stitcher. Then, I got to thinking, well what does a cross stitcher look like so here I am!

Don't mind the fat lip, I bit the inside of my lip yesterday and it is swelling to historic proportions!

Feb 27/09

I just got this one back from the framing shop yesterday. "Wreath of All Seasons" has framed up very nicely and the framer was able to remove the gob of hair dye that fell on the piece one night. It could have been covered by the matte, but he was able to remove it with masking tape! Who knew?!

Now that it is framed, my co-workers and I will be selling raffle tickets on it as part of our fundraising efforts for the Relay for Life in June. I am very excited about this raffle because it should raise a fair bit of money for our team!

Feb 23/09

The back stitching has begun! Back stitching is my favourite part of projects because the piece just seems to come alive under my needle. I have been stitching at night when I need to clear my brain of the research I have been doing on microfinance. My current focus for the research is poverty and the theories surrounding it. The interesting part for me beyond learning all kinds of new information is that I find my self being challenged on all fronts on what I thought poverty and its solutions might be. Well, speaking of research, my boss just called to tell me that the drugstore will open later today because of the 30+ cm of snow that fell overnight so I should take advantage of the time to do some more reading. My driveway is already shoveled (I was out doing that when he called) so now all I have to do is wait for a snow plough to clear the roadway!