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Friday, June 21, 2013

Progress in many things... and still working.


Making progress in the weed garden!  (eventually we will finish chopping down the wild greenery and lay a black tarp over it to kill off what we can).  This will be converted into a container garden area... herbs, etc.  And not a place for yellow jackets and feral cats to hang out.  We're making progress.

Also making progress on the green wall.  It doesn't look like much right now, since there's still a ridiculous amount of honeysuckle.  We'll have to trim that back soon, too.  Anyone want some?  Lord knows we have it to spare!

Our neighbors on the honeysuckle side - we had to borrow their lawn clipping bin this week to get rid of the remains of greenry and the leaves hiding underneath - were so happy that we're keeping up with the green wall.  The house was empty for a couple of years, so it got a little out of hand!  But we're quiet and tidy and try to be good neighbors. 

Also making progress of the next quilt top: Ninja.


These - currently untrimmed - are the four corners of the outer border.  They will be throwing stars.  :)  Because I can.  I should finish the top by the end of the weekend.    It will be all in shades of brown and gold, with bamboo print.  Tonight it will be the thin gold inner border, and then the outer border!  And then I REALLY need to sit and work on quilting instead of piecing!

Progress has also been made on class prep - I made samples for the steps last night, so I'm ready there.  A bit more clean-up and we're all set.  Got fabrics, instructions, and ready to go.

The one area I am slow to make progress in these days is my own personal outlook.  While I generally strive for positivity... sometimes it isn't so easy.  (Duh).  I look at other quilters' work and wonder why I am such a terrible quilter.  (Generally, I know this is not true.  But there are days....).  I have a perfectionist streak in me.  And if I see something in my head, I want it to look like that picture.  Unfortunately, the ADD tends to get in the way of that... and I am never Dis-satisfied with my end projects... I just fall prey to the "why can't I be better??" 

But the truth is... I am getting better.  I am working at my skills, accuracy in measuring, cutting, stitching, etc.  And everything I quilt gives me that much more experience!  So I AM getting better.  That's progress.  It's just slower than I would like.  (Well, OTHER people get better faster!)  There are days that I don't like my inner voice.  It is very critical.  That's a given - most of my friends have the same issue.  We know what it feels like, so there's no need to belabor that point.  (And it's not just about quilting, either.  It's quilting, costuming, writing, etc. etc.  If there's something I do that's creative, there's always someone I know personally who is better than me.). 

I come from a stubborn family.  It's got its benefits, certainly.  My parents today are celebrating their 55th wedding anniversary.  That's a good kind of stubborn!  I earned my stubborn... and it's serving me well in this area.  I am not quitting.  I still write.  I still piece and quilt.  I do things and I improve when I do.  My costumes are - I think - getting better each time.  And the time I spend angsting over the fact that I am not as good as I think I should be is getting less. 

So that's progress. 

PS... "Angsting" is an interesting-looking word.

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