Good afternoon, and welcome to "The Gods Are Bored!" Wowsa, wowsa, wowsa, I'm taking a trip down memory lane! I'm here at the Haterfield Library on one of the desktops. We had a whopper of a storm last night, and it fried our boxy box that gives us internet at home. Nearly fried the tree outside too. An eventful Saturday night!
Equinox has come and gone, and the dark is descending. It's early in a long school year, and our Fearless Leader has proven yet again that he truly is stupidly fearless.
And so I turn to my blankie.
When I was a stripling, my mother had bipolar disorder before there were any effective medications for it. The good ol' home was in turmoil. Whenever I could I escaped to the mountains, to be with my grandparents.
Grandma loved to embroider. She taught me how. I embroidered a jean jacket that is now the (much admired) centerpiece of daughter Fair's wardrobe. And it is indeed "vintage," like its maker.
A few weeks ago I learned that Mr. J's youngest sister is expecting her first tot in January. I went to the craft store (NOT Hobby Lobby) and bought one of those cheesy baby quilts that you cross stitch/embroider. These are made for grannies to craft. The stitches are large and the colors are few. And it's so doggone therapeutic. Takes me away from the computer and, mostly, the telly. I can sit on the front porch with my back to the fuckin ugly McMansions across the street, and I can stitch by the hour, only pausing to swat the clouds of voracious New Jersey mosquitoes.
I'm making a blankie for a tot. It's a huge project. I won't be on here as much talking to y'all, but I'll find time for updates.
In the meantime, here are some of the books I ordered for my classroom and paid for with your generous donations:
1. Dime, by E. R. Frank
2. Tyrell, by Coe Booth
3. Bronxwood, by Coe Booth
4. Boy Toy, by Barry Lyga
5. The Poet X, by Elizabeth Acevedo
6. The Education of Margot Sanchez, by Lilliam Rivera
7. Street Pharm, Snitch, and Takedown, all by Allison Van Diepen
8. Among the Hidden series by Margaret Peterson
9. A Child Called It, by Dave Pelzer
I actually got multiple copies of some of these, because they are the "best seller" books in my classroom. Oh yeah! I forgot! My Bloody Life, by Reymundo Sanchez, about being a Latin King. I'm gonna be really, really careful about who sees that!
Back to my blankie that I'm stitching. I was thinking of embroidering "Resist" on one of the hemlines, but what do you think? Does one really want to encourage a baby to resist? They might take it literally and be a real little blister.
Love to all,
Anne
4 comments:
damn, we had a few thunderclaps and a little rain; nothing like what you experienced.
there's a new hobby lobby near my location; they repurposed an old acme supermarket. NOTHING would get me to go in there; FUCK their "sincerely held beliefs"!
enjoy your blankie project; please to be posting a pix when finished.
I cross-stitched a baby blanket once too! About 30 years ago now. And yes, for being such a small blankie, it took a helluva lot of work! Mine had kiddie toys all around the sides -- a toy train locomotive, a teddy bear, a little red wagon -- that's all I can remember now. It was my proudest cross-stitch achievement, LOL! I don't think I've cross-stitched anything since.
I wonder if I took a photo of it before mailing it off to the baby in question? Surely I would have done that. I must paw through all my old photos to see if I can find one.
I agree with Anne Marie -- please photograph yours when you're done and post it!
I find embroidery relaxing. I find that people don't seem to enjoy embroidered gifts now as much as they did in the past. The bipolar disorder without medication must have been horrible. It's difficult with medication.
Love,
Janie
If you have an extra few bucks, Lost in the Barrens by Farley Mowat is a great multicultural arctic adventure. An easy read and an introduction to a great writer.
the Ol'Buzzard
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