Feb 15/09

Happy belated Valentine's Day. My day was so romantic as it started with cleaning up kitty barf and the afternoon was spent at a local cafe drinking coffee and using their free Wi-Fi to do some reading for my university course. Mind you, a friend came to take a break from his studies and he gave me a big hug as he was leaving so it was not a complete romantic dud! Then I ran into my brother and his girlfriend while I was running errands so we chowed down together at Dairy Queen for supper. It was not the Valentine's Day I had thought I would be having this year, but it was the one I had.

I have been putting a few stitches recently into my stocking project instead of running on the treadmill. If I could only find enough time in the day to do everything I love to alongside everything else that has to get done........Magic wand anyone??? Speaking of getting things done, I must get back to my reading on microcredit/microfinance for my research paper. The books are due back at the library tomorrow and I still need to scribble out my research notes from the pages marked with little scraps of paper.

Feb 10/09

Not much stitching going on because I have been busy trying to read and digest 3 books on Muhammad Yunus and his microcredit organization Grameen. I do not understand much about economics and how capital works, but it is a very interesting and long overdue idea to focus on the bottom half of the poor to stimulate economic activity. According to Yunus, Bangladesh should be able to meet its UN Millennium Development Goal of decreasing poverty by 50% by 2015 with its current rate of development. By extending capital through credit in the form of small loans, Grameen has been able to free so many people from the crushing cycle of exorbitant interest rates when they were able to borrow money and to allow them to develop their own economic activity instead of it being a top down activity like so many aid programs.

Well, back to the books. They are on loan from other universities and due back later on this week!

Feb 1/09

Who can resist Winnie the Pooh! Not me, that's for sure! I stitched up this bib from a kit for a new little boy named Carter who is quite adorable I must say. He is just over a month old and we had a lovely visit the other day. I will have to go back soon once this is washed and ironed to give him his welcome-to-the-world present. I also could not resist digging out my pot of honey to pose with the bib. Some day when I finally get around to doing something with the 10 acres of land I own in the country, I would like to try my hand at beekeeping. There is a stand of 20 apple trees there plus I am a bit of a flower growing nut so bee keeping seems like something to try.....some day.

Jan 31/09

One of the magazines I suscribe to is a Canadian feminist magazine called Herizons. In the Winter 2009 issue that arrived this week there is a brilliant essay by Margaret Cho about sexual power. The essay really spoke to me and its meaning to me can be summed up in the last line which reads "I say yes to me." This line has been echoing through my head this week as I deal with the break up mentioned in the entry below. While the essay is about the reasons why she has or has not fully consented to sex, I think that the concluding line is important for everyone in all aspects of our lives. Too often we silence our wishes and desires because it is easier in the face of resistance or to keep the peace. We carry on harbouring resentment because we do not feel like we have been true to ourselves and therefore true to those around us. Last night as I was struggling with not contacting my now ex-boyfriend, I turned to my paper and pen journal to think things through. One of the things that I wrote goes as follows: I love him, but I love me more.

Jan 27/09

My stitching mojo has been sadly lacking in the past few weeks as I dealt with a (short but intense) relationship that suddenly destructed. There was anger, there was heartbreak, there were tears and now I have deleted all of his emails and texts and I am moving on! Nothing major and nothing that does not happen a thousand times a day around the world. We had some really good and interesting times like a fantastic trip to Chicago together in December and then towards the end, we did not. On to the next adventure!

Jan 14/09

This Dimensions kit was one that I picked up in the US this past summer. Friends truly are the family we choose and I have been blessed in my life with some pretty good ones!

I have recently acquired Teresa Wentzler's Christmas Collection from Chapters Indigo. I can not remember the price on the website, but it was a bargain so I could not resist adding just *one* more piece to my collection of her patterns!!

Jan 11/09

I realized the other day that it has been a while since I updated the pictures of the stocking I am stitching for my mother. The Christmas break afforded me alot of stitching time, but classes start tomorrow for me so it is pack away the cross stitch and crack open the books for me!

Jan 5/09

My friend Shelly gave me a gift certificate to Michaels so I rushed right in after Christmas to pick out something cross-stitchy. This kit is so cute that I could not resist! It is a Dimensions Jiffy kit called Tree Frogs Trio. I used some ribbon and matching cotton fabric as well as DMC E987 (Key Lime Splash from Light Effects) to finish the project.

School will be starting next week for me so my stitching has been put to one side as my house is awash in papers that I am preparing for my grad school applications. Man! Deadlines suck! Especially when I make last minute decisions about applying to Masters programs and only have just over a week to get the thing completed and on the desk of the graduate studies office!

Dec 26/08

Some of my gifts are a little late getting into the mail! These little stockings that I purchased in Connecticut this summer will be heading to Norway as soon as I can get to the post office next week! I spent most of Christmas Day stitching while waiting for the turkey to cook because once school starts again in university it will be open lap top, put away embroidery hoop again.

I hope that everyone is having a lovely holiday season and that 2009 brings you all much joy and love.

Dec. 4/08

In case anyone is wondering, I have not fallen off the planet!! Life has been a little busy with my university courses. I have just handed in two papers and am gearing up to write an exam on Saturday and another one on December 11. Then, I am taking a much needed vacation in Chicago! Not much time for stitching, needless to say!

Nov. 9/08

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved, and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders Fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders Fields.

- John McCrae

This poem is one that every Canadian school child learns in elementary school. It was written by a Canadian doctor who died on January 28, 1918 in France. November 11, 2008 is the 90th anniversary of the signing of the armistice that ended the war that was supposed to be the war to end all wars. This Remembrance Day, I will pause to remember those who have served and fallen in the name of my country, those who serve today and those are facing conflict like the civilians in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Afghanistan. I dream one day of a world free from war.

Nov. 1/08

Ah! My favourite beer! I have had a hard time convincing my local liquor store to stock it, but they are carrying it specifically for me after harassing them so many times! I was drinking this last night while trying to stitch. Um, well, yeah. Gave up when the pattern started to waver around.....


The stocking is slowly coming together, a few stitches every day!

Oct 22/08

A little update on the stocking. I stithced a fair bit over the weekend, but have not done much during the week because my evenings have been sucked up with school work. I am working on a presentation about human rights and HIV/AIDS in the Canadian Aboriginal population and a paper on international aid and development and gender.


One of my friends that I met on my Habitat trip to El Salvador in November 2006 came into the Port City on one of the cruise ships last week. Suzy and her mom were here to see the fall colours of the East Coast. We had a wonderful afternoon driving around the countryside and taking in the beautiful colours with a wee stop at one of the local covered bridges. Apparently, it had been a long held dream of Suzy's mom to see the East Coast fall colours so it was a great pleasure for me to show the two of them the beauty of this region.

While I was searching through my research on the paper about development, I was reminded of kiva, an organization that I had heard about last year in my Global Issues class. There are some very interesting projects listed and I decided to spend $25 on 4 different projects to see how it all goes. Heck! I easily spend $100 on a pair of shoes without blinking so I figure that the money could be better put to use to help out 4 small entrepreneurs make their lives a little better.

Oct 11/08

My mom's stocking is coming along nicely. The chart is challenging by times to read because it is hand drawn and in black and white, but the design is worth the trouble! Plus, I keep reminding myself that I am making a huge dent in my thread stash with this project! A few years ago (six or seven), I bought out the overstock that we had at our drugstore from when my boss had dabbled in craft supplies and there were hundreds of skeins that came with the plastic display shelving!I was thinking the other day that I can finally get rid of one of the shelves because there are so few threads left in it, but I am still left with 17 more!


When I was getting out the stocking piece to photograph it, I came across this little scene in my living room. Not sure why she had to clear off the ottoman when there was a perfectly good and empty couch to sleep on right behind the ottoman. The joys of cats!

ETA: I bought the JCS 2008 ornament edition the other day. I have not had the time to read through it in depth, but there were several on the cover that caught my eye. So many beautiful projects to stitch and just not enough time in this lifetime!

Oct 5/08

There has been some progress made on the current stocking project. The camel heads are becoming more defined. Sorry for the fuzzy photo! I did not see the poor quality until after I had uploaded the photo onto my computer. This stocking is for my mother who as I write this should have arrived in Japan for a 3 week trip with her sister. I am SO excited for her because she is finally getting to visit the homeland of her mother. Now, I am sure that the Japan of today in no way resembles the Japan of the 1930s that my grandmother left behind to come to Canada, but there is something magical and profound about getting in touch with one's roots.


My neighbour did a wonderful job of fixing up these two pieces so that I can finally display them. The piece of embroidery on the left is a Fernando Llort inspired piece that I bought on my Habitat build in El Salvador in 2006 and the painting on the left was purchased in the Dominican Republic this year. Aren't they stunning? I just love the colours and I was absolutely amazed at the beauty of the embroidery. The back of the piece is almost as nice as the front!

Sept 28/08

Last night instead of studying, I stitched. Aren't you all glad to see that my priorities are in proper order?! LOL! I just could not concentrate on international affairs because my brain was still virus-addled. Actually, it is kind of funny to say that because on the one hand, I could not concentrate on a topic that I know fairly well and am just reviewing, but I could concentrate on an intricate pattern. Go figure.

So, now I am pondering a team name for my Mongolia trip. I am thinking that "Ensemble" may be a good word because it means together in both English and French and this team will be made up of Americans and Canadians. Now to see what the American co-leader thinks.....

Sept. 27/08

My stitching is moving slowly this week as a virus has decided to make me miserable since Monday. Going to work and university took all of my energy this week and my body grabbed back today as I was out cold for over 12 hours......asleep. Then, I ran a few errands and came home to sleep some more. Now, I am gearing up to do a little review work for a midterm that I have on Thursday in my International Relations class and mulling over the question for the take home exam in my Human Rights class which is due on Oct. 6/08. Just to make things more fun, I am working away at the Habitat for Humanity Mongolia trip and I go to the local high school on Tuesday at noon to recruit for the Rotary Youth Exchange. So much to do, so little time, no time to get sick, but loving every minute of it!

I would just like to take a moment to thank all of my wonderful friends. So many of you have been there through the years with me through thick and thin, in the good times and in the times when my life was a horrendous mess. Recently, things have just all clicked for me and my life is just ticking along in the most fabulous ways. Thanks for sticking it out with me and believing in me and thanks for being there. You know who you are, you know the story and you stuck around. Thanks.

Sept 21/08

While I was trying to decide which big project to tackle next, I dug into my stash of Christmas cards that I bought on sale at Lewiscraft a few years ago. Doing smalls makes me feel like I have accomplished alot, but I do need to get going on some of the larger projects that I have lined up for myself.


After finishing the card, I decided to tackle the next installment of my Christmas stocking project for my family. This one is "We Three Kings" from Cross My Heart. The design struck me as perfect for my mother who is a devout Anglican.


And this is just for fun. This is truly a face that only a cat crazy Mommy could love!

Sept 11/08

The baby quilt has been completed and is now waiting for a turn in the washing machine before being mailed off! School has started so I am uncertain about talking any large projects for the next few months because of a lack of time. My focus may be more on smalls to give away as Christmas gifts.


The remnants of Hurricane Hanna hit this region on Saturday night. My normally docile creek was a raging mass of brown water when I went out on Sunday to see what damage had been done in the neighbourhood. The brook had risen at least 5 feet in less than 12 hours because of all the rain. I did not have any flooding problems, but some of my neighbours had extensive water damage.


This little guy was hanging out on the side of the road on Saturday when I went out to my property in the country to get more wood to burn in my firepit. He sat there for a very long time so I just had to take his picture!

Sept 6/08

Well, I would have had a photo of the finished baby quilt if the kit had had enough floss to finish it! I had even had to use one skein that I had in my stash and that was still not enough so now I will have to wait until Tuesday when I go into the city to buy one more skein to finish it up! Grrrrr! The thing that really irritates me is that I am not a wasteful stitcher so the kit must have been very short on the colour for me to have to go through 2 skeins of DMC to finish it up. The poor cow on the bottom left only has 1 finished leg at the moment.