New Star Wars tonight! Woo-hoo!

So my toy sewing machine got fixed this morning and the Herculean (for women, would that be Xenaean, now?) task of sewing the lining to the bodice I’m working on, then turning it and topstitching all around it has been drastically reduced. I’d already decided to not sew the ribbon border to the chiffon pieces I have; I’ll glue them instead, so that’s not an issue… but the bodice really had me worried. I still have to come up with a skirt too; I think I’ll stich it to the bottom of the bodice rather than having two seperate pieces. Easier to wear that way, certainly easier to store.

Yes, I have a toy sewing machine. Anything that is that small, has four basic stitches, and whose two speeds are marked by a bunny icon and a turtle icon is officially a toy in my world. It’s like an adult sewing machine version of an Easy-Bake oven, only it’s not pink (thank the gods). I absolutely adore it. It was a gift from my parents about six years ago, and it’s seen mileage, let me tell you! I never sew normal stuff on it; it’s always costumes. Heavy wool for cloaks; tapestry fabric for Renaissance dresses; tough stuff that breaks needles as soon as you get two layers of fabric under the foot, or try to sew down gathers. It’s done some pretty amazing stuff. Two nights ago, it finally conked out. My husband opened it up this morning before he left for work, rooted around, loosened something, and it runs like a charm again. Hurrah!

What am I making? Well, a couple of people I know now own digital cameras, so I’m fairly certain that you’ll see eventually… muah-hah-hah-hah…

I cannot believe I am actually doing this…

Sometimes, the risk you take doesn’t even turn out to be the one you intended to take.

Life is full of twisty turns. Kind of like spaghetti. (Which is only risky on first dates.)

Sigh.

Maybe it’s the editor in me, but I’m very careful with punctuation. I consider it just as important as the words; more so most of the time, since it influences how the words are perceived. At least, it’s supposed to. Most people don’t know how to punctuate properly, let alone read it correctly. (Everyone remember the Shakespeare lesson I gave?)

The title of this web log is

Not Owl’s Court, as in the court belonging to the Owl, singular. Owls’ Court, as in a court of or for Owls. Plural. Many owls.

This is a common mistake made from the very first day people linked to this blog. Here, today, I call for a stop to the insanity and the perpetuation of incorrect punctuation!

Sometimes, just sometimes…

Big risks are worth taking.

Am I so predictable?

RISK.

Pronunciation: ‘risk
Function: noun
Etymology: French risque, from Italian risco
Date: circa 1661
1 : possibility of loss or injury : PERIL
2 : someone or something that creates or suggests a hazard
3 a : the chance of loss or the perils to the subject matter of an insurance contract; also : the degree of probability of such loss b : a person or thing that is a specified hazard to an insurer c : an insurance hazard from a specified cause or source
– risk.less /’ris-kl&s/ adjective
– at risk : exposed to a usually specified danger or loss

Merci, Monsieur Merriam-Webster…

MLG rescued me from a day of pain yesterday and we lunched. It’s good to do this every once in a while, because you get to talk to someone who’s been there, done that, got the same piece of paper you did, looked around and saw that society no longer worked the way all the adults said it would when they told you that of course university was the only way to go because you’d get a job and be set for life.

They lied.

We also talked about getting stuck in a rut, the convincing zombie-like seduction of the status-quo, selling yourself, having tons of knowledge and ability and nowhere obvious to direct it, and taking risks. MLG is one of those people who makes things clear when I talk to him; he’s one of the best sounding boards I know, and he never tells me what to do. (What, never? Well, hardly ever… ;)

He’s also one of the few people I can stand to hear praise from, probably because he never makes it sound like he’s just being nice. When he talks about my accomplishments and talents I can see them for what they are. I need that every once in a while, otherwise I sink into a morass of “I’m useless”. We discussed the need for accomplishment, the drive to produce positive tangible results to assure ourselves that we’re doing something of value, the dread of standing still and not evolving past who we are today. When I’ve spent time talking with MLG, I feel like a human being who should care about herself again. So stand back, world; I have a few things in my life which require rearranging….