Challenge #2

Snowy Pine Pincushion, originally uploaded by apkoski.

This is my entry for the Pincushion Challenge. Dec/Jan challenge was "Winter Wonderland," and I socked out my version of it: a felt snowy pine tree. (There were plenty of examples around here.) I can't wait to see it posted on Flickr with other peoples' interpretations.
Wahoo, I met the challenge! Tack this onto my Tie One On experience points. I'm no longer a Challenge Virgin.
-A

Delurking Me, belated

So last week I found out that 2 or 3 weeks ago was "De-lurking Week." I learned that this typically occurs by" simply" leaving a comment on any given writer's page that you occasionally visit - or even have bookmarked. It can also happen in the grass-roots form - by Blogging about yourself, which is what I'm in the process of doing here. I'm sort of a progressive project person, so my goal is to hit this topic regularly, rather than all in one week. Here's an image of me for starters, which hopefully says a little about me without actually saying anything.
1. I have some weird food loves. I love (love, love, love) the taste of mayonnaise. Also, a peanut butter and pickle sandwich is good. Chocolate covered marshmallows are available for almost every holiday (hearts, trees, pumpkins, eggs -- dry spell between May & Aug).
2. I edit my e-mails... sometimes more than once.
3.

-A

Darwin Awards, Pinball, and other Trivia

Kitty Accessible, originally uploaded by apkoski.

Every evening our little happy furry family crams & wedges ourselves onto the bed for a nice cozy sleep. This morning we awoke to a light dusting, the result of a regular Portland mist combined with abnormal sub-zero temps. Paul caught the 5:53 to Downtown as usual, and I did my normal AM routine consisting of kitchen duty, coffee, and e-mail correspondence. Then I e-mailed my mom to tell her about the impending "snow storm," remembering last week's buildup to a 'Winter Storm,' that left a teeny layer of the white fluffy stuff, and ensuing over-freak-outedness (mostly on the media's part). I scoff.

THEN pandemonium did occur. It snowed buckets (which translates to about 4 inches) between 8-ish and 10-ish. All the major roads were jammed - trucks jackknifed, cars abandoned, people playing bumper cars (*see video), buses getting stuck. Chains/studs were required for driving, since there's no (nearly) plows and salt trucks. THEN it got worse. Local news channels held "Continuous Extended Coverage" for hours into the day, people drove the streets towing their kids on sleds, four-wheeling fools tore up the parks, and hardly anybody shoveled their walks!

It wasn't all pandemonium though. Our tween neighbors and other neighborhood youngsters & dogs got outside and played in the snow throughout the afternoon. Folks reportedly broke out the kayaks & sleds on Mt. Tabor. I got outside and played in the snow! We all got at least part of the day off! And, because there aren't enough trucks to get rid of the snow, we get another (at least) half day off tomorrow. Yahoo!
-A

Found: Favorite Shirt

I never would have believed it. A year and 4 months has passes since I started whining about a new shirt that I couldn't find. Now, this shirt had special significance. For one thing, it was my very my first purchase since we moved to Portland, less food, rent, and gas (which our friendly local federal government was reimbursing us for at the time). It was a guilty buy, as we were reeling a little from not-yet reimbursed moving expenses, and from dropping down to a single income. Saved by a loophole, I had bought the shirt to wear to a job interview.
The shirt was very soft, had elastic in many odd locations, and bore a pleasant but not peasant-y turquoise and blue flower print. It was cute-cute, a ruffly, stretchy, sophisticated thing that was displayed with Easter Sunday in mind. I couldn't remember the last time I'd owned anything so un-tomboyish, and I thought all that elastic made me look pretty good. Anyway, back to the matter at hand.

"Have you seen it?"

I'd ask Paul. Of course not. What man knows the whereabouts of all his wife's clothing? On occasion I pined for the thing, especially when such requisite apparel was appropriate. Then winter came and I forgot about the shirt. Another summer went by (2006), and I thought of the thing a few times, wondering if I could ever bring myself to move on and seek out a worthy replacement. When the fall rolled around again, I was over it. No more super-cute shirt. There will be others; just give it time (not so pretty and not quite right, but others nonetheless).
OK. So then last week Paul put on a sweater that he hasn't worn for a long time (obviously, because...). He didn't even decide to wear it; he was just trying it out, maybe making sure that he still wasn't too fond of the thing. Folded and tucked very neatly in its pocket, hid that very cute shirt. Now I know that I was the one who unscrupulously 'borrowed' the sweater and then placed my favorite shirt in the pocket. The story surrounding it's new temporary home is a mystery to me. My description of finding the shirt would not contain the words overwhelming, bittersweet, or beautiful, but boy was I happy to see it. Yay favorite shirt!
-A

I realize that you see a picture of my arm, mostly -- the whole darn thing can be seen here.

Post Post

Ocracacti, originally uploaded by apkoski.

The other day (as an attempt in procrastination) I posted a small lot of some of my pre-Flickr favorites. Included are pictures from beach & mountains vacations, and from our old home, 'hood, and town.
It's nice to display these b/c I've fallen behind on my scrapbooking (gasp!), so only the C drive has been enjoying the photos. Ah, the convenience of digital photography.

-A

Stockholder

Grandma's Aprons, originally uploaded by apkoski.

For my birthday my grandma mailed me a bunch of her & her mother's old aprons. Earlier last summer I received a box full of my mom's and grandmas' sewing patterns from my sister.
It's a wonderful thing, becoming a family-recognized sewer/crafter, though I haven't exactly made a plan for the collections yet. Do I wear the aprons or preserve their delicate heritage? If not, should I display them somehow? As for the patterns, I'm sifting through and choosing a couple to try. I've already set aside a women's smock pattern (that happens to have a matching 'child' size pattern). Funny, the size I'm cutting out is 12 bigger than the courtesy sizes I purchase at stores. Wow, we (21st century Americans) are huge!
I guess an update will be in order when I get there. Wish me many hours of happy stitching this year!
-A

Fresh

Coasters, originally uploaded by apkoski.

Nothing signifies the advancement of time like an announcement of passing of the president who was in office at my birth. It cries, "you're no spring chicken now!" The last swift kick in the pants I received was back in 1998. I graduated, turned 23, got booted off my parent's insurance plan and donation list, and watched a new year turn over within 2 weeks. Welcome to the cruel, cruel, world, baby. I skated without health insurance for about 6 months until my dad found out and "highly recommended" that I purchase a plan.

Even though last week I read in "Glamour" magazine that 68% of us don't plan to make resolutions for '07 (it's no longer cool, you know), I can't help feeling some renewed direction around this time of year. The spices/cleaning supplies 'Stock Up" list is on the fridge, and I'm formulating a garden & sewing 'to do' agenda in my head. I'm also starting to organize a race training plan, and preparing for the final countdown toward a campus wellness fair (Living in Balance) for which I'm co-organizing.

But that's not all, folks. No, this year is going to be a big one. A "make-or-break," as they say. And not one of those, "This will be the year that I'm going to..." Nope. Something will happen. No "Willpower" needed.

The big deal is that I'm performing thesis research for the next 2 terms, and then planning to graduate in June. Yahoo! That means I have to once again figure out what to do with my life. Please tread lightly on this topic. I'll be sure to tell everyone when I figure it out.
Well, I thought I had a nice list of biggies, but I guess that's it. Happy New Year, everyone!

-A