Anny Cook's Blog, page 47

Yarning...

 What does one do when the computer is down? Crochet. This is a project I started a little while ago. It's crocheted in one piece with no seams. Every 'square' is a different color and stitch. Just in case you think I quit my projects in the middle...
This is the project I work on when I watch PBS in the evening. That isn't every night, but while I'm watching Doc Martin or Midsomer Murders, it's nice to have something in hand.

What do you do while you watch TV?

anny

Looming

 At the request of a couple friends, here's the loom. It's a Schacht School Loom, purchased from WEBS. For more info, click on WEBS. There's minimal assembly, excellent directions, and all the necessary stuff except for the warp (vertical) and weft (horizontal) threads. I recommend a strong twine for the warp because those are taut. And a soft yarn is suitable for the weft...as long as you don't pull it too tight.
I'm using bits and pieces left over from other projects. I'll probably use the finished tapestries for gifts. Maybe...I'll even run a contest later in the summer. In the meantime, I find the weaving a soothing pasttime.

As a matter of fact, why do you suppose they call it weaving, anyway? Why not looming? Why isn't the finished piece loomed instead of woven? Can you imagine weaving something the size of a blanket or rug on such a low-tech loom?

The more I use the loom, the more I appreciate the workmanship of all the woven pieces I've seen. Perhaps that's the important thing...

anny

Tuesday

Three day weekends don't eliminate Monday...they just delay it. Monday is all about the weekend being over. It's the beginning of that stretch of time when 'stuff' (work, school, appointments) is supposed to be scheduled.

Here in the USA our three day Memorial Day weekend is over and now...we have to face the week. So. It's a rainy, gray Tuesday in Baltimore so dark I need the indoor lights to see what I'm doing. I slept late and feel draggy. Sitting here in front of my computer, yawning and contemplating the things I must accomplish today.

Do you suppose it's better when the sun is shining?

Someone in the upstairs apartment is banging on the floor over my head. I can't decide whether they're assembling a piece of furniture or replacing carpet. No--now it sounds like they're in the apartment next door which would make more sense as that apartment is empty, I think. Hmmmm. Maybe we're going to have new neighbors.

Well, I've noodled around long enough. Time to begin the day. Breakfast, writing, errands, and the other normal stuff of a normal week. Only four days left until the weekend!

anny

Scrabbled

I recently bought a Scrabble game for my computer. Why? Well, two reasons. One--to stimulate my gray cells. I firmly believe we lose what we don't use. Every morning with my coffee, I play a couple games against the computer. Some mornings I do better than others, but it's definitely a super waker-upper.

Reason two--to expand my vocabulary. The computer uses the STRANGEST words. I keep a running list of the ones I don't know and afterward, sometime during the day, I look them up in the dictionary. I'm particularly interested in the words using Q (without a U), X, and Z.

After several days of playing, I've acquired an interesting list of two letter words--some with no vowels--and words that contain the aforementioned letters. And I've discovered it's not just what words you know, but where you place them that counts. I'm sure I was aware of that point before but somewhere along the line I didn't quite grasp the importance of placing a letter where it will count for points in more than one direction.

In playing the game, it's dawned on me I'm failing to use the Scrabble principles in my writing.

1) Some actions are more important than others, though all actions should be worth some points.

2) Some actions will render consequences in more than one direction.

3) Some events may have the potential for further expansion.

4) Sometimes ignorance or failure to see future potential will allow the opponent to win.

5) Ignorance and failure to prepare can kill you.

6) If all else fails, QI or XI can save you...maybe. It's always good to have a secret weapon up your sleeve.

anny

Threads

I have a small table top, low-tech loom. There are other looms far more high tech than mine. And of course, there are no doubt thousands more primitive than mine. But for the textiles I want to produce, the loom I have is sufficient.

I bought it on the internet, but I could have built one with exactly the same technological aspects using sticks from the woods and a handful of small nails. For thousands of years men and women--and children--have used such looms to produce everything from primitive belts to exquisite rugs and blankets.

Weaving on a low-tech loom is a slow process that allows much time for contemplation. Some days I may add two or three rows. Other days, perhaps ten. There's no rush. As with many creative crafts, speed is not of the essence. The entire point of the exercise is the journey.

The colors the weaver chooses, the yarns (or strings or other media) employed all affect the ultimate outcome. In just such a way, weaving mimics life. Our decisions influence our future.

A tapestry is woven from bottom to top. The choices made early on cannot be changed if we reach the midpoint and decide we've made a mistake. No, at that time we must continue on, perhaps making different choices to create a harmonious whole.

The complete piece will most likely contain dark and light threads. Without the dark, our eyes can't really appreciate the light. The more colors we employ, the greater the detail. Two or three color tapestry, even though bright in color, is likely to be monotonous compared to say...a six or eight color piece.

Some days the hunk will stand in my doorway and ask, "How long will this take?"

"As long as required."

Anything worth doing is worth taking the time to do well. I suspect that's one reason so few people enjoy life. We're rushing, rushing, rushing to get to the next thing without really stopping to savor the place we're occupying now. What, you say? Are we to savor the bad, too?

Well, perhaps not savor. But certainly we should pay heed to the events around us, take note of the lessons to be learned, lest we face a second or third time around. After all, we don't really want a tapestry composed only of angry, dark, mournful colors.

When the piece is finished, we will sit back and observe how the dark threads make the light ones look so much brighter. How sadness ultimately gives way to joy. And loneliness is washed away in ripples of friendship and love.

anny   

Good Eats

A friend asked me what my plans were for the weekend... BBQ, maybe? Nah.

I think I must be missing the BBQ gene. When I was a kid (back in the 50's) outdoor eats consisted of cold fried chicken and raw veggies. Or peanut butter sandwiches. Once in a while our family would find a dry wash in the desert, build a little fire and roast hotdogs and marshmallows on straightened wire coat hangers.

Grilling or cooking over a fire was reserved for rough camping--not the backyard. Civilized people ate in the house. If you were entertaining, the whole point was to impress your guests with your cooking skills and gracious table-settings.

Actually, I'm not all that enamored with hamburgers. Or hot dogs. If I'm going to eat a steak or fish, I prefer a nice sit-down in a restaurant. And I'm allergic to chicken...

Now I understand the attraction of a backyard BBQ if you're entertaining a lot of people. I was one of seventeen grandchildren on my dad's side of the family. When we all gathered, there was usually a crowd of about thirty. Of course, it was easier to move the party outdoors. It isn't my preference, though.

During my growing-up years, I had favorite dishes. My stepmother's potato salad. Ambrosia salad. Corn on the cob. Brisket. Home-made yeast rolls. Most of that is no longer on my list of acceptable foods.

Maybe...I'll have a nice piece of salmon and some green beans. Yeah...

Have a peaceful holiday of remembrance.

anny

Cow in My Sidecar

Some days life is...odd. Nothing unfolds according to plan. Weirdness litters our paths. You know--we have a cow in our sidecar.

Such days are NOT catastrophic or disastrous. We've all had those types of days, weeks, even years. No, cow in the sidecar days require something different from us. They require humor and adaptability. They are exactly the days that we have to laugh lest we cry.

I've had many days like this. The Thanksgiving the turkey exploded all over my new kitchen. The morning my young sons decided to build a campfire in their bedroom (after carefully protecting the carpet with a layer of newspapers). The afternoon my toddler daughter decorated her crib and wall with the contents of her diaper after waking very quietly from her nap. The afternoon my granddaughter poured furniture stain on my couch. And the list is endless.

A few people have more cow-in-sidecar days than not. I do. Perhaps my attitude toward life is due to my vast experience with such days. There have been days when I crammed two or three cows in the sidecar and barreled on down the road of life. What else is there to do?

During the last few years I have observed a certain class of people who do NOT deal well with the minor difficulties in life. I suspect these folks don't recognize the terrible monster in their sidecar is really just a cow. They moan and whine and scream about the terror riding with them when in reality the terror is merely a little lagniappe tossed in their life to liven things up. I feel sad for such folks because they never build coping skills to deal with the real demons in life.

How about you? Do you have many cows in your sidecar?

anny

Hooks

Some folks labor under the mistaken impression that series are easy to write. After all, you have the characters--more or less--already roughed out. Characters are not enough. The main difficulty as always is the necessity for a plot.

I have two or three series in the hopper. Since I refuse to tell the same story over...and over...and over...most of them are simmering somewhere on a back burner. At the moment, I'm working on two very different stories, both in the middle of their series.

Part of series work (for me) is re-reading the earlier stories so I don't forget obscure little plot points and details. No one can remember every single detail and you really cannot note everything in your series bible. Yesterday I found myself spending a LOT of time looking up stuff in the earlier books.

One of the things I noted about the other stories was the various hooks. The hook is the bit of the story that grabs the reader (hopefully). And there was the problem. I have no hook.

The thing is...it's hard to have a hook with no plot. The plot is that one or two sentence description of the story. No plot. Hmmmm. I should probably address that, shouldn't I?

Then I might be able to devise a hook.

Back to the drawing board.

anny

Gone

Xenia, Joplin, Granbury, Shawnee, Birmingham, Moore...the list goes on and on. Towns wiped from the map. Lives shattered. Grief and anguish and numbness. Terror and dread for those not found yet.

Can you help? Surely. If not financially or physically, then by offering a prayer, an encouraging word, a compassionate ear to those who need to speak. Hearts are heavy. Devastation is everywhere. Long after the news media have moved on to the next catastrophe, folks will still struggle with the aftermath.

Don't forget them...

anny

Terror from the Sky

Every year, folks lose their property, their lives in storms. Tornadoes frequently strike in the middle of the night with little warning. In their wake, they leave devastation and grief.

Depending on where you live in our country, you may deal with floods, earthquakes, volcanoes, hurricanes, blizzards, drought, wildfires, or tornadoes. Of all of those, the average citizen has the greatest chance of dealing with a tornado.

Some parts of the country are more susceptible than others, but when it gets down to it, if you have the right ingredients in the atmosphere, a tornado could wipe out your town. Unlike a hurricane that's unlikely to strike inland, a tornado dances across the country, terrifying and destroying. Because they often whirl up during the night, you don't see them coming. Folks are sleeping.

All my blessings and prayers to the latest victims in Texas. The grief and destruction will impact their lives long after the news crews and cameras are gone. And life will never ever be the same.

anny