random thoughts – Day 2,250 (Friday) – a break

We caught a break from the rain. The day started out gray and cloudy, but the weather improved and it was sunny later in the day.

Velvet dance vest,
ready for rework.

The indoor part of the day was spent milling about. There was some reading (The Cactus, by Sarah Haywood) and thinking about alterations needed to a newly acquired dance costume vest. Then, I reviewed some pattern pieces on hand, plucked out about a mile of stitches, and set about altering the piece.

There was trim to be removed and seams to be opened and restitched to take the top in a bit. A neckline modification needed to be drawn on paper, then the fabric cut, and edges hemmed. Fasteners needed to be shifted. More trim needed to be removed.

As the daylight that is so good for ripping stitches dimmed, I set the project aside for the day. It had already consumed more time than I first imagined, but that seems to be the case with all the sewing projects lately.

Part of the problem is I am winging it and learning as I go with most of the alterations. The biggest lesson is that it seems easier to make something from a flat piece of fabric than to alter a completed garment. The big challenge with sewing from scratch is finding a pattern to follow (or making one) and finding appropriate fabric. Also, seamstresses doing alterations deserve every cent they request in payment.

The outdoor part of the day happened around 6 pm when I took a break from the costume project and left the house for the first time in a couple days. I walked to the mailbox, then looped around the neighborhood. It was so quiet. I saw one car traveling on the street, and one other walker. Trees are still blooming, lawns are fresh and green, and the spring yard ornaments and décor are popping up in yards.

random thoughts – Day 2,249 (Thursday) – more rain

The rain continued. It was steady and at times, very heavy, and dampened (ha, ha) my enthusiasm to leave the house. I did not enjoy it. The forecast for tomorrow is “expect light rain.” I will probably not enjoy that, either. I’m thoroughly over it. 

Rainy day cake.

Today, I read. Baked chicken with honey, soy sauce, and ginger. Baked and frosted a cake. Practiced a dance. Worked on the straps for a dance top. Watched the water flow down the driveway. Looked at the back lawn and woods which were vibrant and lush during a lull in the precipitation.

Today’s high temperature was 53 degrees. The bright spot is projected to be Saturday with a high of 74 degrees, followed by Sunday at 81, Monday at 80, and Tuesday at 89. I hope so. I’m counting on it. My sanity depends upon it.

random thoughts – Day 2,248 (Wednesday) – chillin'

At 5:40, the morning brightness nudged me awake. By 6:00 I was out of bed and making coffee. That was possibly the brightest point of the day (in terms of illumination). It wasn't long before it got cloudy and gloomy. It rained (again). It was chilly outside (still). I was inside chilly and grumbling about the heat being on (again). I thought April was the month of showers and mud season but this year May is heavy in the action. Blah, blah, blah. 

Current table mess.

It was a day spent in the house with the exception of one quick trip out to mail a card and pick up some photo test prints for a project. Broccoli and brussels sprouts (current favorite vegetables) were roasted and lunched upon with risotto (current favorite grainy thing).

The dining / sewing table now has a bunch of photos in addition to piles of patterns and boxes of pins. In addition to looking at photos, there was time spent working on dance costumes (still), reviewing videos of the dances in the show, and practicing dances. Blah, blah, blah. 

After the upcoming shows are done, I wonder what I’ll do with all the free time. And where I will fit all the costumes. It will be fun to find out.

random thoughts – Day 2,247 (Tuesday) – time and balance

Another day gone in a blink. My biggest still-unanswered question is, why didn’t the days ever go by this fast when I was working? Maybe I need more stress and chaos to make the days feel longer, because they are disappearing much too quickly in the peace and quiet.

It stands on its own!

There was a bit of personal stress at dance group tonight, and time did stand still a little bit, so I may be on to something. I forgot a chunk of one dance that I practiced just yesterday. Then, I was using a brand-new veil that I will be using in the show’s opening number, and it is much lighter than the veils I’ve been using. Unfortunately, habit kicked in and I was still tossing it like the heavier veil I’m accustomed to, and it went badly, multiple times. It wrapped around my head. I stepped on it, I dropped it. I have a few weeks to practice away the kinks with it.

The 25-yard skirt had its first test run. The sturdy skirt that can literally stand up on its own had a successful debut at practice with no mishaps. It balanced out the scales a little, but couldn't make up for horrible veil work and forgetting a chunk of a dance. In the skirt dance, it was the music CD that had issues and it cut out twice.

random thoughts – Day 2,246 (Monday) – costumes and blinking

The day disappeared. The alarm went off and snooze was tapped. Blink, and suddenly it was 8:00. There was coffee, Wordle, and a shower. The trash was put out. Blink, and suddenly it was 10:30 and I was eating leftover pizza for a late breakfast/early lunch. I blinked. Then it was suppertime. I blinked. Bedtime was approaching. Maybe I need to stop blinking so much. 

After multiple sessions with jewelry pliers, a needle and thread, the attachment of the coin panels onto the black top, which took much longer than expected, was finished. I think. I hope. I’m definitely tired of working on it.

A list was drafted for all the costume parts and accessories for each of my dances in the June show, which will become the packing list for performance day. This year’s costumes are more complicated than last year’s, and there are unresolved issues with the costumes for nearly every dance I am in.

Trees ablaze.

I still need to add new fasteners to a dance bra. Something cool needs to go under the big 25-yard skirt, because when the twirling and skirt flipping is underway, there is a full-blown leg show happening underneath. The costume ideas need to be whittled down and finalized for the duet, which was easier before I had four different ideas for the bottoms. Jewelry for each costume was not even a spark of a thought until the other day, and so far, no ideas have ignited. And then there is the hair. Oy.

Meanwhile, in the midst of the costuming challenges, I committed to a photography exhibit. A couple hours have already been spent reviewing photos in the scope of the show. So far, 100 photos from my main file were segregated. Then those were reviewed and the field was whittled down to 25. The target number of photos for the exhibit is five or six, so there will be another big reduction done tomorrow.

To clear my head, I took a walk to the mailbox. The trees down the street are ablaze in maroon leaves and in one case, flowers, and I’m not sure when it happened. Maybe it was that blinking thing again. It was chillier than I expected, especially on the return leg when it felt like I was walking into a steady breeze. Bonus, being cold made me walk faster and the cardio didn’t kill me. Now I can start working on my personal best time again.

Bee in a blossom.

I was chilly enough that I just wanted to get home, where the heat is still running. Come on Mother Nature, it is mid-May and it can get warmer any time now, please and thank you. 

In the haste to return, I forgot that I also wanted to take a picture of the house from the higher point on the street so the roof shows for the full before and after showcase. I remembered it when I was in the driveway looking at the azalea with the fat bees buzzing around in the blossoms. Maybe next time. The second skylight hasn’t arrived yet, so there isn’t even a target date for the project yet.

random thoughts – Day 2,245 (Sunday) – low-key

To plan for Mother’s Day, Sis and I did what we usually do. We asked Mom what she wanted to do, knowing there was a high likelihood she would say what she usually says, which is that she doesn't really want to do anything. It is my understanding from a very unscientific survey of a small group of mothers with which I am acquainted that it is the sentiment of many mothers that they would just like to stay home in a quiet house and not be bothered. Despite the maternal guidance, Sis and I did what we usually do and made a plan anyway. I guess it’s not that different from when Mom was a younger mother and we were younger kids and we didn’t listen to her then, either. 

We invaded Mom's house for a low-key day. We drank coffee and ate and talked for several hours. My sister had stories of the latest workplace drama which are always funny when she tells them. My niece was in a wedding yesterday and had stories and photos to share. As a mostly antisocial, unemployed, self-directed sweat shop operator/worker with no colleagues, I didn’t really have any good stories to share.

Kiki at the window,
May 10, 2026.

Mom’s windows have a view of her strategically placed backyard bird feeders. Most any spot in her living room has a great view of the antics of the squirrels, chipmunks, birds and a menagerie of wildlife. As we commented on the action of the squirrels outside the window, I suggested we create a news desk and narrate the action like sports announcers or Olympics judges with score cards. “Squirrel number one executed a bold and magnificent leap from the tree towards the allegedly squirrel-proof hanging bird feeder and really stuck the landing. I give it a nine.”

Later, my delightful feline fur baby posed in the window long enough for me to take her picture. It had thundered and rained earlier and the grass was lush and green and the pavement was still wet in places, and she surveyed the yard beyond. She’d probably have more fun looking out back to the woods with all the critters which included a groundhog this morning, but she doesn’t seem to know that area exists.

random thoughts – Day 2,244 (Saturday) – food and work

The gray, rainy morning made it hard to get out of bed. It also washed away any desire to fulfill any of the potential activities for the day. Plant swap the next town over? No, thanks, it’s raining. Steampunk Festival in Waltham? Nope. Requires a drive, and it’s raining. International Gem and Jewelry in Marlborough? No. See above. And so on. There were flashbacks to the year when it rained nearly every weekend in the summer.

Fortifying breakfast.

There may have been no motivation for fun out of the house activities, but in the house there were bright spots. Breakfast was a winner. A fried egg with cheese on an English muffin with a schmear of butter and some apricot preserves really hit the spot, set a cozy tone for the day, and powered me through until suppertime.

Once fortified, the finishing work on the dance top was started. Music played from the laptop (Dark Cello again). The top was tried on for final fit adjustments and a couple seams were adjusted. Narrow elastic was added to the back bottom edge, learned from the stretchy top done a month or so ago. Topstitching was done on all edges to keep the lining from showing, learned from having made the same pattern many moons ago for my first belly dance show in Tennessee. Three sets of small hooks and eyes were added to the inside front edges, and the two decorative filigree clasps on the outer front. And it’s done. It took two shifts – the morning shift got a lot done, but when mistakes and frustration began creeping in it was time to set it aside and do something else.

 

Done!

A break was taken with a trip to the wet world outside. The quest was fruit for a salad for Sunday, and the initial plan was to go to Aldi, and if I didn’t find everything I wanted there, I would go to WalMart. I took a premature turn and ended up at WalMart first. It was crowded, but I found a parking spot and went in, dodging the raindrops.

I breezed through the produce and then checked the craft aisle for a scissor sharpener I saw Friday at another store, didn’t buy, and regretted during the morning sewing session when my scissors were not behaving. No scissor sharpener. I returned to the produce department and got pineapple, mango, and cantaloupe.  I interacted with people in the checkout line, so it wasn’t a totally antisocial day. When I headed back to the car it was raining more assertively than when I went in and the decision to not take an umbrella or even a hat was regretted. A dude in a tiny red car nearly ran me over as he backed out of a parking spot. That was fun. My hands were full so I couldn't even flip off the driver.

At Aldi, I got green grapes and some veggies that I knew would cost less than the prices I saw at WalMart, and then splurged on a gigantic refrigerated five cheese pizza. It was so big, it hung off the edges of my pizza pan. It was a good $5 expenditure and a great supper. For a rainy, crappy day it had some bright spots with good food and the completion of a task. Now it’s time to assess the remaining costume needs and wrap it up. There are other non-dance related projects in the queue that need attention.