SMART goals 2020

in which our plucky heroine looks back at things accomplished...

Every year for the last seven I have logged each month what progress I make in these quantifiable categories, and I expect to continue this practice as long as life and breath allow; it serves me well. At any time I can look back and see that my time has not been wasted, however much it may feel that way. Would that there was some way to make note of and keep records of less tangible progress, that there was some way to keep track of days when kindness and calmness held fast in the face of difficulty, when my strong stubborness allowed for persistence in the teeth of isolation... For such a rough year as 2020 has been, and it isn't over yet, there were still things made, things repaired and unneeded things discarded... I made it through so far, fixed some of the scarred places in my back story, and have hopefully managed to discard a bit of the useless internal negative commentary. At this point I have no idea what to think about 2021, save continuing to do my best effort at shifting the balance towards goodness, kindness, and creativity... if you are reading these words, huzzah for us, we made it through so far!

SMART goals challenge 2020

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	card for Bera	better light in workroom	bag to Goodwill
2	Awesome Sauce	improve dotted neckline	paper recycling
3	horses blouse	button replaced	bag to Goodwill
4	Wanda ring	attach bench pin	bag to Goodwill
5	charter #1	new turtleneck neckline	paper recycling
6	Barbara mitts	cuff repair	frontyard prunings
7	wool capelet	restrung grey beads	bag to Goodwill
8	wontons	dial tone regained	paper recycling
9	15 valentine prints	bra elastics renewed	metal recycling
10	one pelican head	Arlys circlet	yard waste bin
11	2nd pelican head	An Tir pennant	paper recycling
12	rubakha trim printed	leggings pattern	yard waste bin
13	leggings trim printed	Karla sewing machine	recycle bin
14	black/grey shirt	fig trees planted	dead Bernina
15	10 pattern hangers	new worms for bin	five pounds
16	charter #1	back corner fence	yard waste bin
17	grey leggings	pantry reorganised	yard waste bin
18	candied pomelo peel	corned beef in freezer	pea plants shared
19	blood orange marmalade	repair dainty bag	long grass backyard
20	cara cara marmalade	fruit tree pruning	yard waste bin
21	three drawings	peas planted	recycling bin
22	new ricebag cases	periodontal surgery	apple tree prunings
23	printer/ironing cart	window rainbow	yard waste bin
24	banana breads	some pruning	rotten beams
25	seven masks	motion light	frozen blueberries
26	dried mushrooms	lawn mowed	yard waste bin
27	frozen mushrooms	some more pruning	yard waste bin
28	6 more masks	green onions planted	yard waste bin
29	12 masks	peas protected	recycle bin
30	10 more masks	printer interface	yard waste bin
31	21 more masks	bird netting peas	recycle bin
32	tiny drawings	harvest pea greens	yard waste bin
33	green CYRK lion	harvest sunnie greens	recycle bin
34	35 masks cut out	planted tomato starts	yard waste bin
35	red CYRK lion	started arugula/cilantro	yard waste bin
36	dog blockprint Jade	planted bok choy starts	recycle bin
37	38 masks sewn	harvest pea greens	yard waste bin
38	drawing for Michele	planted kale	recycle bin
39	key lime curd	apple tree pruned	yard waste bin
40	collage	apples thinned	recycle bin
41	strawberry rhubarb	aphids soaped	rotted trim bits
42	lemon curd	peas harvested	old underwindow
43	coin purse	pea plants pulled	dead cold-packs
44	Heather mask	moar peas picked	yard waste bin
45	Kestrel apron	sage pruned	recycle bin
46	floral blouse	some plum pruning	favorite saucepan
47	clothespin bed	cut unruly rose canes	oven door glass
48	2 Barb masks	all the taxes done	yard waste bin
49	micro quilt	pruned grapevine	yard waste bin
50	tiny mattress	removed comfrey	recycle bin
51	orange curd	filled planters	yard waste bin
52	mini mosaic table	transplants in	recycle bin
53	5 Gods block	light bulbs replaced	yard waste bin
54	5½ pints rhubarb sauce	box fan cleaned	recycle bin
55	20 masks for Tullia	box fan cleaned	recycle bin
56	blueberry sauce	rosemary pruned	yard waste bin
57	3 8oz jars bramble syrup	box fan cleaned	yard waste bin
58	turquoise linen pinafore	organise new paint	recycle bin
59	2 more masks	removed oven door	knitting set
60	tiny Nandina	clean bedroom screen	moar cardboard!

overflow SMART goals!!!

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
61	Nandina shoes	clean studio screens	-
62	Nandina overalls	10# plums processed	-
63	grey linen pinafore	felt cover exhaust fan	-
64	deerskin pouch	doors taped closed	-
65	bone needle case	15# plums processed	-
66	3 jars applesauce	some tomatoes dried	-
67	2 jars marmalade	underwindow foam + tape	-
68	3 aprons for Mud Bay	many pears dried	-
69	Kestrel mask	wanda plum pruned	-
70	7 pints of plums	some apple pruning	-
71	2 pints plum syrup	begin plum pruning	-
72	tiny knitting	restring beads	-
73	tiny knitting bowl	4 Gigi shirts	-
74	book cloth	Nandina's nose	-
75	Nandina clothing	worm bin rebedded	-
76	scribal sketchbook	dainties bag patched	-
77	scroll for Countess E	-	-
78	tiny knitting bag	-	-
79	tiny tote bag	-	-
80	Nandina handknit	-	-
81	Nandina sunhat	-	-
82	tiny knitting book	-	-
83	Nandina clothing	-	-
84	tiny basket	-	-
85	another tiny rag doll	-	-
86	Noro cowl	-	-
88	applesauce made	-	-
89	blackberry syrup	-	-
90	Gwen sunhat	-	-
91	dozen EQUITY prints	-	-
92	tiny deer hat	-	-
93	Gwen knit cardigan	-	-
94	Nandina coat	-	-
95	Nandina boots	-	-
96	Nandina felt skirt	-	-
97	Nandina red clogs	-	-
98	8 jars plum sauce	-	-
99	5 plaid dishtowels	-	-
100	2 new aprons	-	-
101	2 floral dishtowels	-	-
102	3 potholders	-	-
103	tiny patchwork	-	-
104	2 Kiki biscornu	-	-
105	2 sample masks	-	-
106	spiral tea towel	-	-
107	new spice rack	-	-
108	10 wire stitch markers	-	-
109	dawnlight partlet	-	-
110	wall caddy	-	-
111	navy mushroom top	-	-
112	-	-	-

SMART goals are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Timely

Friday fragments

in which our plucky heroine can't do it all in one day...

progress was made on the kitchen, but it will take more than one day per room to bring them back to order and beauty. Tomorrow, washing the floor.

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read a good short story : If a Bird Can Be a Ghost by Allison Mills, and put her novel on hold at the library.

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experimental cooking every day, because use what is at hand. I was given an ear of corn. not quite enough for Sister Gigi's Sweet Corn Cakes recipe, so instead... cut Joy of Cooking pancake recipe in half. Use dried buttermilk instead of wet. Use oil instead of melted butter. Toss in a few tablespoons of instant masa instead of cornmeal... the pancakes were almost too delicious

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noticed that it is time to thin the apples on the backyard tree... they are about between dime and nickle size. Really do not want a repeat of last year, when a huge chunk of the tree tore off the trunk because too many apples were too heavy

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Young Heather had suggestions for improving mask construction by reshaping the bottom edge of the origami style mask to better fit the chin. I agree it is a better contour, as it begin to approach the curved front style of mask. She also prefers ear elastics, so an additional mask was stitched up today - they will be here tomorrow with a grocery delivery for me, including the highly desirable package of TP, and Q-tips from Costco...

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Baby plants seem to keep showing up, it would be a good idea to acquire garden soil somehow, and figure out another garden bed or pots to plant them into. I will look into what the cost is to have a cubic yard of garden soil delivered, with the thought to possibly split it with the neighbors

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As additional long-term food stores would be great, and as a way to support the local food systems, I want to acquire a half lamb, or a whole lamb for freezer storage. Have a recommendation of a farm that Liaden was very happy with in the past, and I will contact them... I also want to suss out the farmers market preorder app, for much the same reasons

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~ 100 day creativity challenge - day 14 ~
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This charming little coin purse kit has been sitting on my resource shelf for several years, ever since Danni brought it from China as a gift, when she and her son took an enameling class from me. It was a fun project to sew up, I did my best to follow the illustrations in the directions (since I do not read Chinese), and it will be useful to hold tiny projects for now, until whenever being out in public and shopping is safe again...

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beauty in the time of isolation - reset day 9:

European Black Elder flowers
Sambucus nigra
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May SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	collage	bird netting peas	long grass backyard
2	strawberry rhubarb	harvest pea greens	yard waste bin
3	lemon curd	harvest sunflower greens	recycling bin
4	coin purse	planted tomato starts	-
5	x	started arugula/cilantro	-
6	x	x	-
7	x	x	-
8	x	x	x
9	x	x	x
10	x	x	x
11	x	x	x
12	x	x	x
13	x	x	x
14	x	x	x
15	x	x	x

today's gratitude - Bill called today, and they will be sending down to me some more pantry items, as well as some apples, a few planter pots, and some more assorted plant starts. While I am not central to anybody, I am peripheral to a number of families, enough so that they include me as part of the web of sustenance. Remembering this is and will be a coal of warmth in hard times.

hoping for a turnaround

in which our plucky heroine pokes at some truths...

but not too enthusiastically, because after almost four days, my poor finger is still in bad shape. Hopefully, the Keflex antibiotic capsules I started taking yesterday will help my body deal with what now has been diagnosed as (localised) cellulitis. Just for future reference, here is a photo of what it looked like on Friday, when it was obvious to me both internally and externally that the situation was worsening:

I suspected it was an infection ever since Thursday night when the pain kept me from sleeping. One wouldn't think such a tiny problem would cause so much trouble, but fingertips are one of the most nerve dense areas.

As I mentioned yesterday, before the Age of Antibiotics, which came into common use towards the beginning of the 20th century, this sort of infection could become a death wound, if it began to spread throughout the body. Indeed, last summer I had a Very Serious case of cellulitis (that developed from my surgical site after my appendectomy) that had me in hospital for four days on IV antibiotics.

I do try and remind myself that any humans alive now come from a long line of ancestors who's bodies were good at containing, healing, and surviving infections, because those who couldn't, didn't survive long! Here's hoping that I don't go join my ancestors any time soon, eh?

unhappy finger today: infection outlined with marker for comparison over time
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There are all kinds of things growing here, and some of the trees show signs of there being fruit later on this autumn:

tiny baby quincelet

tiny baby plums

blueberry blossoms
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I found this advice about "pandemic productivity" to be Useful, Kind, and kinda necessary right now. Some of the suggestions in this article are things I already do, that work well for me. YMMV.

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beauty in the time of isolation, day 55:

The miniature lilac next to the front door is blooming right now.

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~ 100 day challenge - day 12 ~
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"Pony Express" - inspiration after paying bills, reuse before recycle, so before taking the envelopes out to the wheelie bin... I made a collage.

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May SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	collage	bird netting peas	-
2	x	x	-
3	x	x	-
4	x	x	-
5	x	x	-
6	x	x	-
7	x	x	-
8	x	x	x
9	x	x	x
10	x	x	x
11	x	x	x
12	x	x	x
13	x	x	x
14	x	x	x
15	x	x	x

today's gratitudes - I was clever enough to plant some fruit trees here. (and continue to do so) which provides some sweetness that lasts throughout the year.

if I had $2000, or what a difference UBI would make

in which our plucky heroine cogitates a bit, on a different world...

Earlier this week the query was raised (in one of the FB group chats I participate in) of what would you do with it, if there was a 2K USD monthly basic income. These are some of my first thoughts on how greatly that would change my life... (Assuming that the 2K would not affect my SS pittance, or my EBT, and that I would still have at least the same minimal Medicaid/Medicare system currently in place, and assuming that it was now safe to be in public (ie we have found a way to coexist with COVID))

First off, increased personal health:
Get a good eye exam, and then get two pairs of glasses with a current prescription (current pair are nine years old).
Have the additional dental work done on my tooth and gum that needs to happen.
Getting the 4x a year maintenance teeth cleanings I should be having.
At least two pairs of new custom orthotics for my shoes (current ones are probably 20 yrs old).
Stretch goal, I would get a massage every other week, for increased bodily function and stress reduction/immune support (when I had arranged my life so this was a part of my schedule, the difference it made in both my well-being and my health was astounding)

Next, food improvements:
Be able to eat fresh fish several times a week.
Build a chicken habitat in the yard that would both keep the chickens safe from predators, and make it easy to have neighbors mind the chickens when I was away. This way I could have backyard hens with all their use as egg providers and garden tillers that entails.
Plant asparagus! (seriously, whyever did I NOT do this when I moved in?!)
Build in accessible raised beds that would allow me to do more gardening.
Buy a small Excalibur food dehydrator.
Acquire better/additional food storage containers.
Increase storage foods, to maintain them at a rotating 3 to 4 month capacity at all times.
Research and acquire both a home water filter, and a bugout water filter.

Housey improvements:
Create a mattress support platform, so I can use my new mattress (which is still in box)
Repair all the holes and damaged bits (wall behind pantry shelves, missing sheetrock, gaps in bathroom walls, etc
Make or commission window-fan arrays.
Better lighting in the two bedrooms
Replace crap electric stove with good gas stove.
Remove remaining crap carpeting and replace with flooring.
Begin insulating house exterior walls, one room at a time.
Check attic insulation and add more as needed.
Paint exterior walls and trim.
Outdoor tool cupboard/mini shed for yard tool storage.
Privacy fencing along alleyway
Get the big ornamental plum trees in the front yard professionally pruned
Get someone to prune the plum thicket in the back yard
Stretch goals: solar panels, water storage and distribution

Life/work goals:
Get bicycle tuned up on an as needed basis
Be able to visit my Aged Parents at least once and preferably twice a year.
Research and install good workshop ventilation.
Travel 2x a month to visit dearloves who do not live nearby
stretch goals: research other local transportation options, IE better bike, electric bike, sport utility bike, motor scooter etc

Generosity goals:
Create at least one artwork every month to donate to, or to auction to raise money for causes I believe in, and find out how to make that happen!
Teach one workshop or more every month to share my skills.
Create beautiful things to give to the people I care about and am connected to.

Save money as needed to facilitate getting what needs done to happen, and to allow for unforeseen disasters, continue to prioritse and shift effort towards desired goals as life unfolds. All of this is predicated on an ongoing dependable income/resource stream that is unrelated to drudge labor.

If/given that the 2K is not timebound, but ongoing/dependable, then as various infrastructure projects are completed, whatever resources were committed to them would eventually be freed up to instead go to generosity goals, such as various forms of world healing projects (ie donations to Heifer project, Seva Foundation, Habitat for Humanity, Kiva loans, etc)

two different kinds of woolgathering

in which our plucky heroine cogitates...

Not going to make resolutions, not going to set goals I have no idea of how to implement. Obviously I do successfully implement life changes, so am going to continue with what is functioning, be open to possible avenues of positive helpful growth, and am going to be kind to myself and others, as best I can.

Even though I feel like I never get anything accomplished, my own SMART* goal logs contradict that. Included in the listings I posted yesterday (109 things made, 63 things fixed, and 55 things discarded) are that in 2018, in addition to all the assorted random projects and preserving, I :

• painted a dozen charters
• created six original scrolls
• sewed eighteen garments for others
• sewed eight garments for me
• made six enameled jewelry pieces

Also, looking at the list for 2018 shows me why I feel like I got nothing accomplished (or rather, where, left to my own devices, that I chose this year to focus on textiles rather than on studiowork - metalwork - enameling) In my mind the metalwork/enameling is my "real" work, the work that allows me to hold my head up, and everything else I do is just trivial. And it is also my metalwork/enameling that I have the least amount of confidence in my ability, where I feel the most "imposter syndrome". Hmmm a lot of tangle there to unpack...

This is one end of one of the tangled strings. Once I gave up on working for others, which never was a good thing, and became self-employed, I had several different activities that were income-generating. Primarily for many years I worked cleaning houses. I did that work until age and pain made it too difficult for me to do the work well, which began with the year I took off for my cancer journey, when I was much too weak to do hard physical work. Housecleaning is steady and reliable work, and pays comparatively well for the time spent, providing one works independently. It is needful but not mentally strenuous, which means that after a days work is done, that there is still a modicum of energy and bandwidth for creativity. What it also is is work that many look down on, and there were years and social circles where I didn't say what I did, just "self employed". Making custom jewelry has no such stigma attached, but to really make a financial success of any sort of custom work one needs entrepreneurial savvy I never yet have figured out. I have managed somehow to cobble together a life, though.

Not sure that I want to poke at this tangle more tonight, I'm tired, and my ankle hurts, and I have physical therapy tomorrow morning.

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So, since it is suddenly much colder here, it seems a very appropriate time to start on my Sólbein Cardigan, which I decided to knit and participate in the Fringe and Friends Steekalong. I am attempting to convert the top down pattern into a bottom up version, since I do most of my knitting while riding public transit, and it is a lot easier to handle smaller chunks than an entire sweater (wish me luck, I’ve never done such a thing to a perfectly functional pattern before!) With three different colors of denim-y blue Lettlopi, my cardigan will hopefully fill a very needful niche in my wardrobe, if all goes well.

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todays gratitude - warm wool, life and limb, roof and walls, good food and clean water, and most of all the family and friends that hold me in their hearts...

a snoozy Sunday

in which our plucky heroine takes a nap...

Yep, after getting up as usual, was about halfway through my to do list and I was overwhelmed with a wave of tiredness and decided to have a little lie-down. Hours later I woke up midafternoon feeling a lot more rested!

Am a bit frustrated with my fabric resources here... I really want to make some loose cotton/lycra knit leggings, and the only fabric I have that is SWAP suitable is the brown rib-knit. Why is there no dark blue? I do have some black, slated for a different project, and some light blue that could be overdyed, but I don't feel like faffing about with dyestuff... maybe I only make one pair of leggings for SWAP? and save making others for when suitable fabric shows up?

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Looking at the list of 2018 goals, there was actually a modicum more progress made than it feels like. I did four original scrolls plus original calligraphy for a charter master. I did go to most of the CMAG meetings. I have primarily switched to water as my everyday beverage, and that combined with other changes has allowed me to lose over twenty pounds. I have added useful garments to my wardrobe that are in steady rotation, and I have worked most of the bugs out of the revised blouse pattern. There is a good start on the new chicken house (1/3 complete).

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Today's gratitude: Three eggs in the chicken house today, and a gift of black-eyed peas yesterday...

Sunday snippets

in which our plucky heroine sneezes a lot...

Saturday was been exhausting and a bit stressful, but so much declutter is happening. Every time we do this, my allergies go off the charts, as old dust and concomitant pollen gets stirred up. We started by putting in a lot of effort in the carport, and took away boxes of old tiles, a bookcase, old planter pots, and removed a bunch of wood scraps. Reorganised the wood that is stored there, with the intention of (over time) getting the space to where is will be useable as an outdoor "room" for projects and teaching, instead of just a substitute for the shed which is not here any more. Then we ate dinner.

After dinner Mindy and I tackled the pantry, and while we are not done with it yet, great progress was made there as well. We removed everything from the shelves, and sorted out all the canned goods to be discarded. I am very ashamed of how much was no longer useable, about a third of the contents need to be either composted or discarded without even opening the jars, because scary. I have been putting off dealing with this area for a long time, because it made me feel so bad. Now everything that is on the shelves is both tidy, edible, and food that I will eat. It is clear what needs to be used, foods are in categories, not random, and there is lots of room for the future canning I plan on doing, and for storing jars.

Six years ago, I rebuilt the pantry area here at Acorn Cottage. The bottom shelf apparently never got its heavy mesh backing and side panels (which keep things on the shelves in the event of earthquake) so this would be an excellent time to remedy that. In the photo here, the panels that cover the fronts of the shelves are, of course, detached right now so that the shelves could be cleaned and contents rearranged. (You can see the bungee loops on the uprights) I am quite pleased with the difference in how it looks now, even though I once again forgot to take a "before" photo. And I am not going to photo the shameful pile of old canned goods to be discarded; I will expiate my sins by having to wash a mortally large number of canning jars!

Going forward, our plucky heroine is am going to think carefully about what actually gets eaten and used for food preparation. I am going to improve the contents of the earthquake shelf. And the delicious home-preserved foods will be used in a timely fashion, and replaced in the proper season.

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January SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	A/C cardigan back	worm bin bedding	bad corduroy
2	12 jars canned pears	restring amber Laurel	paper recycling
3	A/C cardigan fronts	Dad slipper fix	boxes of tiles
4	-	hang envelope holder	old bookcase
5	-	Dad slipper resole	wood scraps
6	x	x	x
7	x	x	x
8	x	x	x
9	x	x	x
10	x	x	x
11	x	x	x
12	x	x	x
13	x	x	x
14	x	x	x
15	x	x	x

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a misty moisty morning...

in which our plucky heroine wakes up to a foggy day...

Welcoming the lifting of the mists to a brighter day, may that be a sign and a signal for the year to come...

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In addition to my previously stated goals and aspirations for the year to come, I am participating in three different year long challenges, all three of which are more about consistency than about difficulty

temperature record artifact

My online pal Cricket asked if anyone on her friends list wanted to join in a year long challenge to record the local temperature in a visual artifact. This is most often done as a knitted or crocheted afghan or scarf, but as I have no need of such, I was initially not inclined to participate. However, on my last bike ride of 2017, I got the brilliant idea to make a strand of beads/etc that is color coded by temperatures ranges. Beads can be made from fabric, in the same way that medieval cloth buttons were made. I certainly have enough fabric, and in the end will have a series of beads color coordinated with my actual wardrobe.

°F	color
under 20	cream
20 - 30	tan
30 - 40	lt grey
40 - 50	lt blue
50 - 60	brown
60 - 70	indigo
70 - 80	dk indigo
80 - 90	dk grey
90 - 100	black
over 100	???

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RTW fast

My online friend Ruthie shared the link to the large online challenge hosted by Goodbye Valentino, a year long ready-to-wear fast. This appealed to me not for the challenge of "not shopping for clothing" which has been part of my lifestyle for a number of years now, but rather for observing what others are doing, and, I will admit, because there is the chance of being randomly selected for some probably awesome prizes, given the sponsors of the challenge

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Historical Sew Monthly

I have never managed to participate in this year challenge before, and, while I am not necessarily planning on doing all the months, I am taking it as some extra encouragement for my "refurbish and replenish my current SCA wardrobe" project. Many of my SCA clothes are either pretty intensely worn, or no longer fit. Many of them are close to 20 years old, and I have better knowledge now about what is theoretically feasible.

This is the challenge for January:
Mend, Reshape, Refashion: Mend or re-shape one of your previously made historical clothing items, or refashion a new one out of something not originally intended as sewing fabric.

I think that I might attempt to re-make my elevation gown. It has some lovely, if not particularly historic surface decoration: foliage embroidery on the cuffs and sleeves, and neckline, and some bands of amber stitched to embroidery. Because it has personal significance to me, I would like to keep these embellishments, and either alter this gown to fit my current shape, or if necessary, make a new one.

If this seems like too great a stretch for a month already begun, I do have some very lightweight linen gauzy curtains, which are intended for a Roman underdress to wear (with the appropriate overdress) at some of the excessively warm summer camping events. This would also both fill a definite SCA wardrobe need, meet the January challenge, and still allow me plenty of time for my needful work and my SWAP sewing.

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Today I am grateful for the lovely gift of a small kit for raised gilding, from my friend Ursul. This will allow me to learn some new scribal arts skills, and is a sign pointing in the direction of "do more", and congruent with my previously mentioned goal of at least three original scrolls in 2018, and also to do some artwork just because...

Fewer loose ends...

in which our plucky heroine considers the future...

My thoughts this year are to first of all find ways to build in ongoing referral to my year goals. I seem to be able to make things, to fix things and even to let go of things, but those activities do not necessarily get me closer to my overall life goals. As I continue to use the SMART goal logging format, which has served me well for several years now, I am going to also check in at the end of each month as to what progress I have made towards improving my life and the world around me...

I have in the past examined how my life is going in an eightfold direction, in an attempt to create more balance.
Last year I chose what seemed to me to be fairly modest goals of improvement. Despite that, I accomplished only a very very few of them. I did make progress on my wardrobe sewing, and am closer to my goal of enough clothing to allow me to do laundry once a week, and that I only need to sew replacements as things wear out (which they do if you have a small wardrobe).

And I did make significant progress on my decluttering, now in the 4th year of effort. My house is finally becoming less visibly cluttered. I am now wanting to start digging into the "inner clutter", the things inside cupboards, and on shelves, what my coach calls Level 2, the things that are not visible, but also not needed or used or loved. I am going to continue my efforts, continue logging my progress and look forward to what a difference it will continue to make. Every time I can easily find what I need, the effort of the last several years seems worthwhile.

But rather than go over all that I didn't manage to do in 2017, I intend to focus on what I hope to do in 2018 -

• finish loose ends -there are an assortment of projects here, that I have promised others I would complete, and for various reasons the projects have languished unfinished. This is going to change, starting on January 1. I am going to finish all the outstanding commitments, working steadily every day. which will clear my head, make me feel more confident, and incidentally make friends and family a lot happier with me

• compliments instead of complaints -  I think that one of my worst habits is complaining. It is a useless and annoying behavior. I do this in stores, when I am annoyed by things. I always apologise to the cashier, but then I do it again the next time. Only about stupid things that the poor cashier can't do anything about. It isn't their fault that the gorram transit system changed over to a crazy paid card system instead of sensible monthly passes, which so annoys me each time I have to go "reload" my transit pass. And there is absolutely nothing I can do to change the situation. So, my plan is to employ several strategies to remember to not complain, and instead to use my interactions to increase the general good by positive comments instead.

• water instead of milk - I am not going to give up dairy; my breakfast museli will still be oats and fruit and nuts and milk, but at other times when I would normally drink milk as a beverage, I am going to drink water instead. My hope is that this change will help with my goal of a lighter and more nimble self by the end of 2018, with hopefully less pain and an increased ability to move about in the world.
  

• food log - my intention is to simply write down what I am going to eat, before I eat it. Hopefully this will encourage me to notice when I am eating, and notice what I am eating, and make good choices about said food inputs. My goal is to get my weight lower than it has been; I would like to be on the other side of 200, where I have not been since prior to my surgery almost six years ago. Now that I have a phone with a brain, I can use the note taking function to do this, and not also have to carry an additional notebook

• sewing goals -  I am going to complete SWAP 2018, and possibly some seasonal 6PAC sewing challenges. This will bring me up to almost all my desired garments. I need one or two more pinafores, four more popovers, four or five more cropped leggings, some rainwear, and possibly some slips/underdresses. I also will work out at least one or maybe two new TNT blouse patterns, and make a nice assortment of woven blouses, using the fabric on hand.

• teach more often - Ideally I can offer to teach something at least once a month, if I don't offer, students will not just magically appear on my doorstep.

• revamp website - I just need to begin this. Instead of talking about it. Figure out what the individual parts of the project are, and make time each month to move forward
  
• housey-improvements - improve the chook habitat, including a new chicken house. Add another raised bed to the yard. Clear out the carport so it can be used as an outdoor room for workshops etc. Paint at least one room inside the house.
  

• self-improvement - continue with exercise and acupuncture, to increase mobility and strength. Take time during the year to make artwork, both for personal enjoyment, and make at least three original charters in service to/for SCA. Attend the Creative Metal Arts Guild meetings every month.
  

that is probably more than enough to get underway...

October goals

in which our plucky heroine looks assiduously ahead...

There are several things I've been trying to change into habits - drinking more water every day, and eating cruciferous veg at least once a day. I intend to continue my efforts with these two, and also add in two small actions to my everyday morning: to write down one thing I am grateful for, and to take time first thing to do a small drawing, as I am participating, in a modest way, in Inktober.

Last month was difficult for a whole lot of reasons both internal and external, and so I am a bit behind where I hope to be for my SMART goals, but am confident that those too will prove to be possible to play catch up in October.

And, finally, my autumn 6PAC sewing may turn out to be less than 6, but if I work through the remainder of the fitting issues on my blouse muslin, I will be able to leap into sewing for me with a lot less limits.

※※※

October SMART goals (x=extra)

#	THINGS MADE	THINGS FIXED	THINGS GONE
1	fig cottage syrup (jam)	repot spider plant	ø
2	ø	ø	ø
3	ø	ø	ø
4	ø	ø	ø
5	ø	ø	ø
6	x	ø	ø
7	x	x	ø
8	x	x	x
9	x	x	x
10	x	x	x
11	x	x	x
12	x	x	x
13	x	x	x
14	x	x	x
15	x	x	x

cloudlight created

cloudlight = a structure to allow electrification of the paper entryway lanterns

I have had this design gradually taking form in my mindseye for a number of years, as a way to add additional ambient light to my poorly-lit living room, ever since our plucky heroine started collecting paper lanterns for the entryway, years ago... Last week, Farbjorn and I worked together to turn the concept into reality:...

A paper pattern, that was initially taped to the ceiling to mark the centers of the lanterns, then had the circumference of the lanterns drawn on each center, then a pleasing shape created to allow for running the cords to the wall. The panel is just under five feet long, and about 2 1/2 feet wide. With undulations. I used up about half a pad of tracing paper to create the pattern, taped together sheet by sheet (annoying but necessary)

Once the design was marked on the 1/4" plywood, Farbjorn used the jigsaw to cut out the stylised cloud shape:

Scraps of 2 x 4 are attached to the ceiling to create a chase between the plywood and the ceiling, to allow space for electrical cords run to each lantern. pretty chuffed that I had almost all the hardware needed for this project here to hand. Little brackets, wood screws, sheetrock screws, and the last of my Big Box of wall anchors.

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initial cloudlight panel, with keyhole openings pierced to allow the lamp fixtures to hang below the panel, while disguising the four cords behind a sculptural design. I had recently bought a chicken waterer kit online, that came with a set of hole saws... have yet to put the waterer together, but the hole saw came in right handy for this project! Rather than try for evenly opaque white paint, I decided that layers of thinned white paint in irregular cloudlike shapes would be more interesting visually.

Revised cloudlight panel with shaped layers of additional painted plywood to add extensions that will help obscure the blocking. Sight angles were not something I truly considered with the original design... I had to redesign my concept and add an additional layer of individual cloud panels, due to an error in blocking placement on my part, which meant that it turned from a one day project to a two day project... with luck, the revised design will look turned out to be even more interesting, or at the very least, like "I meant to do that..."

a closer view of one of the painted second layers of the cloudlight panel...

The revised panel, in situ.

four lamp fixture cordsets were fed through the allocated openings in the panel, here awaiting the return of the paper lanterns. It turned out that the keyhole openings worked well enough at holding the cords in place that no additional anchors were needed in that spot to keep the cords at desired length.

paper lanterns in place, waiting for the power strip to be attached to the wall near the lone outlet, on the other side of the big front window...

and... finally... the cloudlight is illuminated!

Whichever direction you look at it, the contuours change...

This shows *where* in Acorn Cottage the cloudlight is located - exactly as I had imagined. It forms a sculptural light installation between the front door and the living room, thus both defining the entry space, and adding a lot of ambient light to the social area of the house, which was in great need of more light.

The paper diffused light, which is much more lambent than the photos show. Eventually I plan to put a long strand of tiny white fairy lights all round just inside the edge of the plywood panel, but that will have to wait until they go on sale.

workbench Wednesday

in which our plucky heroine has a dream come true...

I have wanted a European style metalworking bench for decades. Instead have made do over the years with assorted thrifted desks, and most recently for the last almost twenty years with a kludged together combination of Ikea IVAR components, which allowed for adjusting the benchtop height to a better level. When Blue Cedar House let me know that they had a source for surplus 3/4" furniture grade plywood, a cunning plan ensued.

My first thought was to use the plywood to greatly stabilise the basic Ivar structure, using it almost like creating a partial torsion box; the plywood skin is much stronger than the thin steel x-frame that usually keeps the IVAR structures from rack and ruin.

Since it doesn't take much surface area to do the job, I had Farbjorn cut a variant on my house decorative motif into the top edge of the back, and mount that panel a little bit lower than the top of the framework, but just high enough that anything on the upper workbench shelf would not roll over the edge and onto the workroom floor. The side panels only cover the benchtop area and partway down the sides, about half of each side panel in total, which adds a significant area that can be now configured for storage without making the bench too heavy to move.

This view makes me all kinds of happy, with all the different complex curves. Right now the workbench is empty of contents, but the corner spots on the upper shelf that usually hold lazy susan turntables are visible in the variable color of the upper shelf. I had created the upper shelf from a standard IVAR shelf when I moved here to Acorn Cottage, as a way to keep more of the small hand tools accessible, and as it works well, saw no reason to change that aspect.

The workbench top, however, was significantly reinforced, gluing and screwing two layers of the plywood to the former benchtop, for a total of just over 2" thick. Since my sabre saw wouldn't be able to cut such a thick chunk, Farbjorn marked out and cut the curve from each layer separately, then attached them together, and finally spent time with a rasp and file making all the curves smoothly align. This thick benchtop has a very solid feel now, and the additional layers bring it up to a good level for me to comfortably rest my arms while working on tiny details. We had to raise the upper shelf one notch to compensate for the increased height.

This style of workbench with a central cutout is more commonly found in the Old World, and not commercially available here. I am not sure how far back in history the concept goes. The basic idea is to have a tall workbench that supports your work and your arms at a useful height to avoid back strain. I found some useful hints about bench ergonomics on this website about the "FrankenBench"

This half circle cutout is close to the shape of a traditional jewelry/metalworking bench. The bench pin to support sawing and filing small pieces will fit neatly in the center of the curve, I plan on a visit to Oregon Leather, for a chunk of hide to make the traditional hanging leather underbench drape that catches anything dropped from the benchtop. The refurbished workbench will make my shop a bit more congruent with the premise of William Morris, I know it to be useful and believe it to be beautiful... plus it will make that aspect of my "going to work" much more pleasant and functional.

goalposts for 2017

... in which our plucky heroine takes an annual look at the distance a year makes...

Last year at this time I wrote: I continue forward at what often feels like a snails pace ... and remembering that four years ago I was waiting for the surgery that would give me a chance to continue being alive...
Almost five years out from my cancer diagnosis, I am still grateful to be here, and never take it for granted. I get frustrated at how slowly it seems that I make any progress as far as the eightfold spokes of my life, and continue to remind self that "incremental progress is still progress..."

#1 vocation/avocation -  I did almost no only a little teaching in 2016, a few leatherworking classes, and some enameling open studio time,  and no major projects. I did create a number of delightful smaller projects, some of which were really pushing my ability beyond what I thought possible. Overall, my career remained stagnant and minimal. I did however, complete over 18 charter paintings, and three original charter masters which brought me great satisfaction even if no renumeration.  In 2017 I will actively seek more teaching opportunities, and will refurbish my neglected website or build a new one. In addition, I will remain open-minded about economic opportunities.

#2 health - (in 2015 I injured my right knee badly) in 2016 my left leg developed achilles tendon bursitis, so my mobility remains compromised, despite valiant efforts on my part to encourage recovery. I do have a pedometer function on my new clever gizmo phone, so have been able to measure walking distance again. With great effort I have lost almost ten pounds. In 2017 I will eat more vegetables, drink more water, continue tracking both walking and weight, and continue water exercise and as many other healing modalities as I can arrange.

#3 personal development/education - In 2016 I did only one thing that was actively educational, in that I took a workshop from Jarl Sir Styrkarr at Egils, on Damasquinado de Oro. I also did a great deal of charter painting, and began to focus some attention on scribal arts, and have begun to learn calligraphy. In 2017 I will strive to remember that I enjoy being a student as much or more than I enjoy teaching, and attempt to find one or more ways to indulge myself with that pleasure. I will complete the original scroll I have committed to produce by Grand Thing.

#4 family/friends - pretty much always this is the part of my life where I could say: keep on with doing well... In 2017 I will do my best to continue being a good friend and family member.

#5 household/environment -  In 2016 I continued decluttering my supplies, tools and materials, as well as household goods, with the goal to reach the end of decluttering, I feel like great progress has been made, that the house is noticeably less cluttered. In 2017 I intend to transition to maintenance and organisation, which will have me reach my actual goal to have the household be a support to my creative endeavors.

#6 romance/personal relationships -  Helplessly hoping, I still wanted a local companion, still had no clue what small steps to take, where to begin, and felt more hopeless than ever... In 2017 I have no idea what I can do to make any changes in this. 

#7 finances - In 2016 my income continued pitiful as my injured legs made movement as well as standing difficult and painful. I did, with help from my online coach, figure out what a liveable income would be, which will hopefully help me set new goals. In 2017 I will strive to increase my income to a more self-sustaining level, assisted by the fact that I am now sixty-two.

#8 fun/recreation - in 2016 I attended some SCA events, hosted a few gatherings here at Acorn Cottage, and enjoyed a three week visit to my east coast family in September. In 2017 I will continue to be active socially, will make a special effort to visit friends outside of the city, and also re-start Crafternoon gatherings once a month.

I would say that overall the eight spoke status report shows a slight but definitely positive trend. "Household/environment" continues to show the most improvement, with the help of my beloved Blue Cedar House pals, and my fabulous online coach. "Fun/recreation" had a few out of town trips that were truly a joy, both SCA camping, and another cross-country train trip to visit my family for most of September.  About the other spokes: career, health, finances, romance/personal relationships...these are aspects of my life that I'd like to pay attention to, but have almost no clue as to what handles to grasp and move to change things.  I shall have to call that progress, even if not as much progress as this impatient girl would like.

Thursday thoughts - on goal setting

in which our plucky heroine looks again towards the beginning of a new year...

My ongoing goal-setting seems to be becoming gradually more realistic, while my personal motto has solidly taken the form of "incremental progress is still progress". I have been using the concept of SMART* goals for the last three years, in combination with this blog as a way of keeping track.

In the last three years I have made significant progress in making things, (mostly for others, but some for myself as well) in assorted mending and repair of my home and surroundings, and in my decluttering of Acorn Cottage... Because this format works for me, I intend to continue using this method of recordkeeping indefinitely. Stay tuned for the Great Big Chart reveal tomorrow, of all that was accomplished in 2016...

My goals for 2017, in no particular order:

• Finally sew enough clothing to meet my personal goal of functional seasonal wardrobes, to end up with a weeksworth of clothing for summertime and layers for the colder seasons. Being an active participant in online sewing challenges like SWAP 2016 and the seasonal 6PACs will help keep me motivated.
• Finish the major decluttering of Acorn Cottage, and organise the supplies, tools, and materials of daily life. I've been gradually working on this project for the last three years, with the goal of having a living space that allows me to focus on vocational and avocational actions instead of on finding lost things
• Teach at least one artisanry* workshop every month. As I will never be able to return to housecleaning as my primary income, moving forward in a different direction of sharing my knowledge and skills with others is my goal
  *enameling, metalwork, stitchery, or handicraft
• Outside the house improvements: improve the chicken habitat here at Acorn Cottage, create yard tool storage, add at least one or more garden beds for vegetable growing, and set up the carport as an outdoor room...
• Finally paint at least one room in the interior of the house other colors than "former owner white" once the weather is warm enough for opening the windows
• Create some personal artwork (possibly suitable for gallery showing), in at least one of the techniques that I enjoy
• Begin finding ways to work towards a more kindly world with justice and options for all people
• Continue to care well for my body, without which none of these goals are possible or relevant!

*SMART =  Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Timely (SMART) goals