5 things to think about at midnight

Once again, I'm borrowing one of Sian's ideas from Blog cos you want to club.

 

Midnight.  It's a multi faceted time isn't it? It can be a glance at your watch while you are at a friend's house which makes you suddenly say: "oh my goodness, look at the time!" Because you've eaten dinner and opened another bottle of wine and are enjoying good conversation in good company and the time has just flown.

Or to can be a quick look at the clock on the bedside table in the dark of the night. With the thought "oh, look at the time, and I'm still awake" and a million things going round in your brain.

 

So here we go, 5 things to think about at midnight.

 

1. It's the first seconds of the new year. Big Ben is chiming, streamers are in the air, people are linking arms to sing Auld Lang Syne, you turn to the person next to you and wish them "happy New Year!" In amongst that moment, I think we are all thinking "what will this new year bring?". There have been midnights like that where I have thought "thank goodness that year is over; that was a tough year. Let's hope this one is better." But thankfully those are outnumbered by those where I have silently given thanks for a year of love and health and friendship, and here's to more of the same.

 

2. It's the first few seconds of Christmas Day, and I have been known to lie in bed trying to recalculate exactly what time I need to get up in order to start cooking the turkey.  What time to par boil the potatoes and when to put the pudding on to steam.  Also hoping that the oven will be large enough for it to fit in bearing in mind we have 14 people for lunch.

 

3. Midnight - when your 17 year old child has just passed their driving test and gone out to friends in the car on their own for the first time.  They promised to be home by 12 and although you went to bed at the normal time there is no way you can sleep before you know they are back safely.  Thoughts of 'where are they?' And 'I'd love to ring them to see where they are but can't as they are driving' going round and round in your head.  Then the flash of headlights through the blinds as a car pulls onto the drive.  A slam of a car door, keys in the front door and a sigh of relief.  They've made it home safely.

 

4. Midnight - the day you are going on holiday. The flight is at 6:00 am, you need to check in at 4:00 am. Taxi is booked for 3:30 am. You've both set your alarm clocks and both set the alarms on your phones. Yet you are still lying there worrying about oversleeping and missing the flight.  No wonder I always sleep so well the first night of my holiday; I've barely slept a wink the night before!

 

5. Midnight - You went to bed at 10.30; you read for a while and turned out the light. You fell into a deep sleep. You wake up and it's still dark. Convinced it must be about 6am you look at the clock. Midnight? It can't just be midnight, surely you've slept for hours? But now you're wide awake. And mentally thinking about shopping lists and things that need to be done next day at work. Or re-running a conversation you've had that's left you concerned, worried or confused.  Thinking about a tough decision you have to make; what are the consequences of various different scenarios?  Realising that you have to put these thoughts on the back burner as there is nothing you can do in the early hours of the morning and things will look different in the morning.  Listening to someone snoring none too quietly next to you and envying them their sleepiness.  Gently nudging them (and sometimes not too gently ...) to change position and stop the snoring so that both of you can get some well earned rest.

 

What things cross your mind at midnight?  Do you have any handy hints on how best to turn off those thoughts so that sleep can take over? 

Always read the small print

It was all going according to plan.  Having been engrossed in the new Patchwork & Quilting magazine I was particularly interested in making the Block of the Month.  The idea would be that after a year I would have 12 issues of the magazine, a whole quilt's worth of blocks and learnt 12 new techniques.  Issue one went reasonably well

I liked the effect it made and learnt how to make "Flying Geese". By the eight one they were almost neat and they did all more or less fit together well.

 

Filled with confidence and enthusiasm, on Sunday I turned my attention to issue two. A paper pieced Origami style tile.  Sounded interesting and I'd never tried that technique before.  It was only the second issue, it surely would be getting more difficult in small increments each month, saving real challenges for the end of the project.   Issue two would only be slightly more difficult than issue one wouldn't it?  Right? Wrong.  Oh my goodness, it involved printing off patterns, holding the fabric on the reverse of the paper and sewing through the top, switching front to back.  Things did not go well.  My vision of a single bed quilt became scaled down to a cushion cover using only issue one's block.  You made this block in quarters and after two, I needed a break. A few days worth of break. I refused to let it beat me and I planned to spend my day off today trying to figure it out again.  Last night I took the magazine up it bed to read some of the articles I hadn't got round to reading before diving into the sewing part at the end.  And what did I see at the bottom of a page in small font?

More advanced quilters.  Advanced? Six months ago I wasn't even a beginner! No wonder I was finding it hard. But after my cooking club lesson this morning which included a glass of prosecco and grand marnier cocktail, and a half glass each of red and white wine to wash down the food I was ready to take on the world, starting one patchwork block at a time.  I got out my fabric and patterns, I re-read the instructions, focused my eyes on stitching straight along the lines and guess what? Ta da!!!!

Turns out all you need to become an advanced patchwork quilter is alcohol.  Secret's out.  What are you waiting for?  Cheers!  Bring on issue three ☺

Simply a Moment in November

The dining room,quite frankly, looks a mess.  The table is strewn with bits of fabric, discarded patterns and colours in an untidy heap at one end.  A selection of squares and rectangles cut and waiting in piles at the other. A box of threads, an elderly pin cushion and a collection of scissors and rotary cutters surround my trusty Riccar sewing machine.  The ironing board is set up in the lounge; funny how I don't mind using it for sewing projects when I dislike using it for the weekly pile of clothes that need attention! 

The double doors to the longe are open and from my vantage point at the dining room table I can see the rugby on the tv.  Words of encouragement and 'advice' are being shouted from the husband resident sports advisor sitting in the armchair.  We are losing.  The All Blacks seem to have had more chances/luck.  Oblivious to the sporting action, the sleepy dog is dozing in her spot on the sofa.  

 

A new project is on the go.  A newly published quilting magazine has a section at the end which gives a Block of the Month.  If I buy it and follow it for a year I will end up with twelve 12" squares to put into a sampler quilt.  I have both of the magazines and no blocks made.  Today I intend to put that right and with no other plans for the afternoon, have sorted through fabric and made a start.  This will be a perfect project to compliment the Friendship Quilt organised by Fiona.  I have new fabrics for those squares, so plenty of off cuts for the magazine project.  

The magazine block is more intricate than I thought, it requires a lot of concentration.  But oh, there is 'Simply a Moment' of satisfaction when it all comes together.

Simply a Moment is a meme organised by Alexa - pop over there and see what others are up to this month. 

 

 

Useful things

Sometimes I get a spooky feeling that someone is reading my mind.  Knowing what I'm thinking even though I've only just thought of it.  How I'm sitting on the sofa realising it's been a week since I last blogged but what have I got to share with my blog friends. Then I notice that Sian  has updated her blog and lo and behold - what to blog about when you've got nothing to blog about! That's more than a coincidence surely?

So now I'm sitting here mulling over what I can share under the heading of

5 Things it is useful to know.

Because we all know useful things, but there must be something obscure that could be shared

For instance.  you've got biro on a white apple laptop or washable wallpaper, or even a handbag.  How would you get it out? Nail varnish remover? No, it'll likely melt the plastic or take the colour out the wallpaper.  Washing liquid? No, won't touch it.  The answer my dear blog friends is a squirt of hairspray.  Unlikely I know but trust me, it works.  I have personal experience on all three counts.  Son's laptop, lounge wallpaper and daughter's Mulberry handbag.  All rescued.

It's also useful to know how to get the bathroom door unlocked from the outside if a) you have accidentally somehow locked it as you closed it whilst you were running a bath and went downstairs to answer a phone call and closed the door to stop the bath loving dog from going in or b) Grandma can't remember how the handle works.  Oh yes, a thin screwdriver (like the ones you get in Christmas crackers) poked into the hole in the handle works a treat. But only if you have the same design of handle that we do obviously!

In our house, it's useful to know that when the dog jumps on your lap, turns to face you, keeps standing on your knees, looking you in the eyes with an unblinking stare, she needs to go out into the garden for an (ahem) comfort break.  This is a very useful thing to know.

It's very useful to know that if you break an egg into a bowl and a bit of shell breaks off and floats around, if you lower a larger bit of shell in there, it will attract the small piece so you can get it out easily instead of chasing it around with a spoon.

It's also useful to know curry stains will come out of a pale shirt if you soak the affected part for a little while in a solution of a little bit of bleach in some hot water.  Neat bleach is a no-no even on white fabric it goes yellow but if you are careful, and keep an eye on things there will be no evidence of your husband's messy eating. 

So that's it.  One blog post written and now the whole of blog land knows that we are a family of messy eaters, careless cooks, who have leaky pens, a desperate dog who also loves a bubble bath and lock their elderly relatives in the bathroom.

This week

This week:

 

 

• I've got both patchwork floor cushions up to the hand finishing stage.
• I discovered that just because a rotary cutter blade isn't sharp enough to cut fabric neatly doesn't mean it doesn't have the capacity to slice a chunk out of your thumb.
• The dog has been a bit confused by the sounds of fireworks going on around the area.  I don't know how to break the news to her that a full on firework display and bonfire party is planned for tonight over at the cricket field practically next to our house.
• I put a large amount of scrapbooking paper and card into a storage box and moved it into the utility room.  My husband expressed how happy he was that there was now a large tidy space in the spare bedroom until ...
• I replaced the space made by the paper tidying with fabric and quilt wadding.
• Whilst entering data for applicants to our school, I realised that some people don't appreciate that naming your child after your favourite Disney fairy isn't necessarily going to be a good idea by the time she is a teenager.  Especially if she does not turn out to be a delicate, pink loving, ballet dancing girl.
• I was horrified to learn that the lady who takes the Fitsteps class was ill and her friend - a crazy Zumba fanatic - was taking the class. 
• I was equally ecstatic when her audio equipment broke after the first routine and we all had to go home early (lucky escape, or what?!)
• My friend's book was published - and on sale in bookshops worldwide.  So very excited for her - it really is proof that dreams do come true.
• I bought some Christmas cards.  That's pretty early for me but why put it off when I knew I was going to be buying them anyway?
• I finished off the quilt square to send to Alexa as part of the Friendship Quilt

It's been a busy old week, and I'm pleased I've finished work, it's now Friday afternoon and the weekend officially starts now!  Have a good weekend everyone!

Storytelling Sunday - November

In the middle of October I shared the story of how I became pen pals with my friend Cindy and this month my precious is a gift she sent me back in the 70s.  I was a keen sewer back then and Cindy sent me this pincushion.

She had picked it up at a craft fair and thought it was fun. I thought it was fun too and I've kept using it all these years. Her hair's a little greyer and thinner nowadays and she's a little faded and worn which just goes to prove that over time pincushions become much like their owners. (Or should that be 'owners become much like their pincushions')

Here she is, modelling the front of the patchwork floor cushion I'm making for my niece's son for Christmas.  I couldn't have done it without her! 

This post is written as part of Sian's Storytelling Sunday. We've only got a couple more chances to share our Precious items, so quickly - pop along to High in The Sky here to see what everyone is sharing this month.

My Month in Numbers - October

"October is crisp days and cool nights, a time to curl up around the dancing flames and sink into a good book."

John Sinor

I couldn't have put it better myself!  Hands up all those who are imagining being curled up in a comfy armchair with a warm blanket around you in your PJs and slippers.  Mug of hot chocolate with marshmallows on a table nearby, a roaring fire in the fireplace, curtains drawn and the muffled sound of the wind swirling round outside? 

Well don't get yourself too comfortable because we need to go out for a drive in my NEW CAR!!!!  Yes, I have a brand new bright red shiny Mini ONE.

I had my last mini for nearly 10 years, I loved it so much I didn't want to part with it but the time had come and now I have a new one to love. 

While we drive around I can tell you that this month we had 4 hours without power at work which resulted in an early end to the day for me at work. Of course I was devastated to have to be at home sewing instead of sitting at my desk,(fortunately my side of town got power back 2 hours before the school side)absoltuely devastated. 

We've only had one birthday this month so it was light on the candle front (no pun intended) 24. 

There was a storm in this area where they were predicting the end of the world ,doom gloom and terror, flash floods and hurricane winds. It was pretty windy for an hour or so and we had a bit of rain but nothing as dramatic as they said it would be. Although I hear via Facebook that some areas about half an hour away had 55 hours with no power.  My daughter was unable to get into London for work for 2 days due to problems on the train lines (this meant she had to work in the local branch office, which did not please her as all her work was sitting on a desk in London.) The reason for 2 full days of no trains? 240 trees blown onto the lines for the Greater Anglian region alone.   On dog walks we noticed 4 trees that had blown over on the pathways around where we live.

Talking of dogs, someone had a wonderful 2 hours in the mobile dog groomers van

At work I have entered the details of 340 girls who want to come to our school next year.  Sadly we only have 180 places so a lot of them will be disappointed. It also means that I have spent hours inputting 160 files of data for nothing.  Let's not dwell on that eh?

500mg per tablet of the antibiotics I was prescribed for sinusitis.  And if Denise is reading this, step away now, it's the antibiotic that you are REALLY allergic to! I'm pretty sure it won't get beyond the firewall of the computer, but we don't want to take any risks do we?

This Month in Numbers project is organized by Julie Kirk, who suggests a Communal Count each month, this month it was

Letters were thin on the ground this month, 27 were directly addressed to me. If we were including junk mail, it would have been higher. 
Now, as to numbers relating to weather, let's head over to the weather app to see what they predicted for us on the Day Of The Big Storm

98% chance of rain?  29mph winds?  Let's get back into that armchair with a good book and the hot chocolate.

See you in November!