I actually started posting yesterday, and managed to write the following, before falling asleep at the computer:
“I didn’t think this day would ever arrive … boy oh boy it’s been an interesting week. Work has really kept me on my toes this week, and I’ve hardly had time to breathe inbetween shifts 😦
Karma jumped up and bit me last night … I was joking that I would have a migraine starting at 9pm (it was 6.30pm when I was joking), as the one person I detest working with started at 9pm – he drives everyone on the Hotline crazy, and having to work with him up until 2am is seriously insane 😦 Anyway, it was a pretty stressful night with yet more dramas with people stuck at overseas airports … and by the time 9pm came I did indeed have a splitting headache – yep, karma’s a bitch! 😉
Today I’ve felt so grotty I didn’t get out of bed until 6.30pm (I actually woke up at 2pm yikes) – I just lay in bed with the laptop and fixing up my Outlook contacts and RAK Registry information. I finally surfaced to reheat some of the Thai Green Curry I made yesterday, ‘cos my headache was returning … and I still feel like death warmed up. I think it’ll be an early night for me – especially as I have 4 hours overtime at 5pm tomorrow as well (sucker for punishment, I know).
I’ve just managed to take some piccies on the camera of the goodies I received this week – unfortunately it’s night-time so the piccies didn’t come out too great, but they’ll have to do for now.”
So much for seeing much of the day yesterday! While I was in the middle of typing up my post, I fell asleep! Today was as bad, because I woke up again at midnight last night, and couldn’t get back to sleep until almost 5am again hmmm. I surfaced from sleep at noon today, only to doze off again until 2pm, and have the most dreadful headache that just won’t shift 😦 It means I’ve called in to cancel my overtime, which I’m very unhappy about 😦
I also had big plans to join in with the Xmas ornie FAL this weekend, and had my ornies out ready to go … only to realise my batting is in storage, and it’s now too late to pop up the road to buy some more. Oh well, I may sit and cut up the matboard instead in readiness for finishing them off. Mind you, it probably doesn’t make that much sense finishing them yet, while I’m housesitting, as they’ll take up more room in storage in their finished state than if they’re nice and flat and unfinished … hmmm, that’s food for thought!
Anyway, without further ado, as I don’t want to spend much time on the PC as it’s not helping my headache at all, I want to show you the well overdue piccies from my mailbox during the last week.
First up is the most amazing parcel of goodies from my northern twin, Jenna – she really outdid herself this time! Not only did she send my first ever LHN/CC thread pack (which I’ve been dying to try – and the thread colours really don’t show up well in their online advertising – they’re scrummy in real life) … this one is the Blueberries one … but Jenna also sent a hardanger suncatcher she made herself. Isn’t it the most gorgeous, exquisite thing? – and so perfectly stitched. Unfortunately I couldn’t get a really good photo of it in the dark surroundings. Not only that, though, but she also sent a wooden needlecase – how awesome is that too? And it fits perfectly on a keyring, so it will be a case of “have needles, will travel”. Thanks so much again Jenna for your wonderful, perfect gifts – I adore everything, my friend {{hugs}}.
Next up I need to thank Karen for sending along her Moon Watchers chart that she recently stitched. I loved watching this one being stitched, and now it will be getting kitted up ready for a future stitching session of my own. Thanks again Karen for sharing this chart – you’re a real sweetie! How could I resist stitching blue birds?? 😀
Last, but not least, here is a piccie of something I gifted myself compliments of the Bay of Evil … I’ve been avoiding Ebay like the plague since my financial downturn prior to Christmas, but I let myself loose on it again a couple of weeks ago when I needed to buy some Christmas fabric for a prize pool we’re offering over on the Focus on Finishing blog this weekend (Spotlight and other stores here don’t have any in stock until later in the year boohoo). Anyway, these are the pieces I managed to pick up …
For Mum: Llet me know if you want 1/2 of the Snowman one (that’s the one I was telling you about) – and I also bought you one of the green one with stockings etc on the bottom left, and the middle one at the bottom with the wee cardinals on it.
The fabric on the far left is to finally do the backing of Vicki’s cot quilt I found as a UFO recently – I thought the bright colours would make a nice backing, as the colours match the main part of the quilt. Unfortunately there wasn’t enough fabric for sale to fit the entire back, so I might have to find some plain blue to do a border around the edges. I’ll have to wait and see once I’ve put the quilt back together again to see how it all measures up. Although now I’ve gone back to look at the quilt photo, I’m having second thoughts … and think maybe I should buy some plain homespun cotton instead for the backing … oh b*gger …
Rightio, time to put the PC away for the night I think – Mum’s about to phone for a catch-up, so I’ll go and put the heating on and settle down for the night. Not sure if my head will manage a bit of stitching tonight … I always know it’s a bad headache when it stops me from stitching! 😉
Ooh, before I forget, though, this photo is for Mum as well … this is the poster they’ve got of me in the main office – see what I mean when I say it’s almost life size?? I’ve finally got used to seeing it now … only 6 more months left and it’ll hopefully be taken down … phew! If I had $1 for every time I’ve heard “gee, Anne, you’re a STAR!”, I could retire early!! 😉
Above is a photo of the other gifts as well, and I adore them all – another duck for my ever-growing collection (but I’ll never ever have enough LOL) (the little duck was chosen by little Orion – boy, did he choose well!), and a lovely hand-bound book by a bookmaker (Rhonda Niven) in Motueka, Nelson. For those of you who are non-Kiwis, that’s a fantail on the cover … and of course everything is in my absolutely favourite colours (yep, turquoise is definitely my all-time favourite of all the blues). OK, on to the details of the concertina book Vicki made me … here is a scan of the cover:
And the four inside ‘pages’:
Feather Stitching 