Not for nothin', but...

...I did get G8 done tonight, a few hours ago.

And -
Happy New Year, everyone!

UPDATE: G8 and stuff

Had a visit from the boy, so it put a bit of a crimp in the day's activities.  But, it's all good, and here's why:

 1) G8 is now only missing three inches. [cue hysterical crying]
 2) Dinner will be tilapia and stir-fried rice
  - tilapia was in the freezer and
  - we won't have to face NYE knuckleheads in the store.
 3) Bank run can wait until Saturday
  - mostly because I don't want to go out for just that.
 4) May still be able to wedge in some work on the new clothes tonight.

Unscheduled drop-ins are few and far between, so it is fun to chat it up for half-an-hour or so.  Plus, I managed to guilt/force him into walking out of here with a little bit of his leftovers.

They never fully move out, do they?

Priorities

Just for today, my priorities are:
 1) Finish that doggone G8
 2) Figure out dinner
 3) Accomplish some simple banking
 4) Work a little more on new clothes for the new job

It's a short list so - totally doable.  In that particular order?  Mmmm-maybe not.

Number one is going to be a bugger.
Number two - salmon, because Karl and I deserve it; it means a trip to the store.
And three?  Since I have to go out for dinner stuff, three is easy-peasy.  Or vise-versa.
Last but not least - hey, as soon as G8 falls into place!  Why am I sitting here?

What are your priorities for the last day of 2015?

It's official

G8 is only missing five inches... unless I get within two feet of the layout board.  Then it's missing anywhere from eight to twelve inches, because I can't stop thinking I find better color pieces - then it becomes a swap-o-rama.

Would someone mind standing behind me with a baseball bat and just giving me a decent thump when I begin to undo my good work.  Please?

Ten inches to go

And they are driving me nuTs!

Yes...

... I am spending too much time and energy swapping inches.

Grrr!

Eighty down

What did you get accomplished today?

A little bit here and there

G8 is over half found.

If there was only better light (it was very grey yesterday, and not much better today) and more table space. Oh, yeah, and I've managed to misplace my 1.5" square ruler, so fussy cutting is a real chore at the moment.  Making headway is quite a kerfuffle without the proper tools.

One final thought:
SO many medium browns.  How is this possible?

Drawing to a close

The blogger challenge is drawing to a close; I wonder how many participants found the adventure to be useful/fun/horrific/easy to take part in.  Personally, I have a lot to say, but will keep my thoughts to myself.

Not only is the blogger challenge drawing to a close, but so is 2015.  No news there, right?

Managed to accomplish a good deal on the postage stamp quilt this year, and have desires to finish at least one more block before the year ends.  It could very well be a reality, so no wincing or scoffing out there. [jabbing an Uncle Sam finger in your direction]  In hindsight, I wish I had begun working on it again much sooner in the year... but I didn't, so no what-ifs or tears.  It's just what it is.

Cleaned out an older portion of my stash and have it boxed, ready to send to a new friend in the UK - when I can finally afford the shipping.  She has said she will reimburse the postage costs, but I am counting nickels and pennies until the new job begins.

Used a bunch of scraps to create little experiments here and there.  Liberating and useful attempts at a new way of piecing, but I am so hyper-focused on the postage stamp quilt, I have a hard time making myself do other things away from it.  OCD much?

Work on the current crazy quilting project continues (you can view the progress at www.madasahatter.blogspot.com if you're interested).

Still too many quilt tops (some with backs, some already sandwiched and languishing in 'the pile'), but it's sort of cool to think I could make/finish a quilt right away - if I had the fortitude to walk away from you-know-who.

Three local quilt shops (that I am aware of) closed this year - two of them just over the past six weeks.  It's a shame.  Would I consider opening one?  Yes.  Yes I would... if it weren't for the red tape and MI taxes, you bet I would.

Are my lights on in the sewing area and burning energy that I am not using?  Yes.  So, if humans must set concrete resolutions for themselves for the new year, then I suppose I can task myself with being better at turning the lights on only when I am ready to head to the 'drawing board' and actually work there.  I guess this is my way of drawing this entry to a close, but I'll be back tomorrow... will you?

Will surprises never cease

Decided to take the day 'off', it being Christmas and all.  And since the views of the blog were negligible, I figured it would be no big deal if I used the time more productively.  Surely I am not the only 'challenge' participant foregoing a post yesterday.

Had a lovely day, hanging with my two sons and Brian's (eldest son) girlfriend.  We went to a late- afternoon showing of "Star Wars: The Awakening,"and then they came back to my house for a pseudo-dinner and presents.  Hobbes was glad to see Bud and Angela, and she sat between them on the chair - until clamboring into Bud's lap to reclaim him.

Climbing back online today revealed an odd spike in readers over the last two days.  Perhaps I should say nothing more often.  Hmmm.

Will work on dishes and amassing G8 today - it's a Christmas present to myself.  I've already finished a load of laundry.  Here's hoping everyone had a lovely celebration, or gathering, or whatever you chose to do, and that you remain, healthy, happy and fulfilled.

This is how I see the world

Everything is in bits of color.

You have to look past the fringes and the other stuff that could get in the way; anything that clouds the vision must be filtered out.

Trust me,
everything
looks better
when you can
see past the extraneous.

Next!

By the way, I did finish G7 last night - worked on it speck by speck, in between doing other things.

I felt like a sparrow all day yesterday; hopping here and there and everywhere - pecking at bits of needful cleaning and then VG.  Hop, hop, hop away for something upstairs... then back to G7.

It makes much more sense to concentrate on one thing at a time and get it accomplished; check it off the list before moving on to something else to start and finish. But of course, my mind (and my heart) are always going to boomerang back to VG.

Well, G8 is now underway - but I need to concentrate on some dirty dishes.  Oofda!

What's...
- on your plate?
- in your heart?
- on your mind?
- top of your agenda?

A little progress

Five, maybe six more inches to go.
I'll know better when I can see it in the daylight - that'll be in eight, maybe nine hours from now.

Then, it's back to the 'shadows.'

19...

...or so.  The total on piecing together G7 stands at nineteen missing inches.  Feels good.

But, it's a little too grey to do much good working on VG today, so cleaning and prepping continues for whomever may come through the door this week.  And maybe a little bit 'o' somethin'-somethin' spent timewise in the reclaimed bedroom, too.

Up with the sun

Hobbes and I lounged in bed until I could no longer remain horizontal, and she could no longer remain awake.

Slipping out of bed, I turned on the lights and went to work.  Somehow, I managed to replace about five of yesterday's inches before making finding another dozen or so.  Hard to believe but G7 hasn't been touched since the eleventh of this month.  How is that even possible!?!?!?  The spiderwebs were thick, let me tell you.

Happily, the light is brilliant this morning, and after having a glass of chocolate milk, I am eagerly heading back down for a little more fun.  Before too much longer, I will need to dash out and take care of something else... so VG will be back on hold.

Admittedly, the time spent straightening and locating buried yardage has proven to be a boon.  The count is 55 pieces strong at the moment, and I am nearing the chance to begin G8.  I don't usually feel excited until I am well past the halfway mark on any block, but I am excited right now.

What slice of happiness are you enjoying today?

A little here; a little there

The day began with some fairly decent light, and I took full advantage (for about an hour) and placed right around fifteen-to-twenty inches onto G7.  Then, it grew dark and I decided: since I most likely would play 'devil's advocate' and end up swapping anything I might find for better results later, give it up before madness sets in.

So I did.

I moved to the empty (not really "empty" so much as 'vacated') bedroom and sanded all that lovely new filler. Sanded and sanded and sanded.  Man, can I make a mess!  Wiped one wall down completely and set to work filling and making smooth the areas I could see with the grey daylight and one light bulb in the overhead light.  The daylight would grow bright and obliging, then clouds would crap on my parade.  The entire morning passed in waves of undulating light.

Time went by like cold molasses until... BLAM!  All of a sudden it was noon!  Spent the better portion of the remainder of the day moving stuff to get to new areas - 'rinse and repeat' - and I ended the day feeling as though I'd got a lot accomplished, but somehow it looks more like I was working in reverse.  Grrrrr.

I'm beginning to think a match would be a better alternative.

Update

Here is a photo of the finished top I began September 2014.

It's a finished top, but not a finished quilt.  Just needed to get this off my mind.  Phew!

Yeah, no.

Not so much.

I did not get one thing quilty in nature played with, finished, progressed on...nada.  I know I said yesterday that I intended to.  I didn't lie, it just didn't happen.

On the plus side: Karl is one happy young man, so I suppose that counts for something.  I asked him, one last time, if there was anything specific he would like for Christmas, to which he responded he would like a ride to Micro Center (computer/nerd heaven, if you've never been to one) so he could get a new graphics card for his computer.

Long story short - we cruised to 'nerd Mecca' where a fairly informed (but indifferent) employee helped explain the difference between what Karl wanted and what was really necessary to make his computer work better.  Of course, it was a bit more money, but it was necessary for the performance of the whole unit.  Sadly, the new processor wasn't totally compatible with the new motherboard, so we had to drive back a second time to purchase a missing piece to the puzzle (a new hard drive).  We could have gotten away with a simple card/cable to make the connection from old-to-new-to-new, but we would have been back in a month or two when one of the old, overworked pieces decided to crap out.

And that's why there is nothing quilt-worthy to show.

Should-a just said: "My dog ate it."

Time out

Just a quick timeout to say thank to Cheryl Sleboda for hosting the challenge which most likely brought you here.

Tomorrow should find something on the ol' blog wall good enough to look at, and not just words, words, words.  Since I've been sitting in a car - or at appointments - for the last three days, there isn't much in the way of groovy new sewing/quilting to crow over.  ut I'm going to try and homebody it tomorrow, if at all possible.  That should give both of us something to enjoy looking at for a change.

What a day

Look ma, no quilting.

The day was bound to be a bust - but we knew that it would be.  Our first tell was the end of yesterday (just about 2AM this morning) colliding like a freight train into today.  I'm big on getting sleep - oh, so big - and I am fairly militant about getting my 'zs', too.  As a matter of fact, I am crazy concerned about the boys not taking advantage of the ol' eight-hour rule, preferring to stay up way too late, online, and then sleeping well past 8AM (make that 10AM... 11AM. You get the idea).

But, Brian is out of the house and on his own now, so he's going to have to bear the brunt of his lifestyle choices on his own.  Karl is my major concern now, and I am hoping to help him regain some stability in the coming months.  My efforts will be helped by my moving up to the main floor and taking the bedroom next to his.  From that vantage point I can keep tabs a little better.  I'll let you know how that works.

The space I am vacating will become MORE SEWING territory - and who can't use more sewing/quilting room?

No.
Seriously.
Is there someone who would turn that prospect down?
- - - - - - - - - - - - -
Holy smokes, did I ever sidetrack this train of thought!  The whole point of this post was to say the day was filled to the brim with Karl-based activities, and that we've survived.  We have no answers to any of our questions.  But we survived - and on a minimum of snoozing hours to boot.
What sort of grade will he get on his final paper for the semester?
Will he be accepted into the MORC program?
Will I fall asleep before 9PM? (most likely)

The answers to those questions will simply have to wait until they present themselves.  For now, I believe I will head into the empty room and sand a little, maybe spackle a tad more, then dust off and plop into a soft chair and nod off.  There is no chance I will be doing any sort of quilty activity tonight; I am plum tuckered out.  But tomorrow has lovely possibilities, since it's the first day of freedom for both Karl and myself.  No shackles, no real big chores, just endless hours of possibilities.  What a day that'll be.

What did you get up to today?

Wow, lots more cleaning

Aaaah, maybe not "cleaning" so much as 'neatening'.  Lots of useful fleshy stuff and shadowy material bits unearthed, with much more identified background loveliness amassed.

Truthfully, it seems to be something of a reclamation binge that I accomplish with infrequent regularity (can that really be a thing - "infrequent regularity"?).  My intentions are also the best of the best.  I always intend to clean up as I go, or get to the end of a color group and clean up then carry on... OR,  get to the end of a row then tidy as much as need be, but it is always forgotten in the excitement of the moment.

"No, no, no," my eager self yells.  "Don't lose momentum. Everything is right here where you left it.   Keep going.  Keep going!  We'll clean up in a bit."

Trouble with that is that, well, er... it never happens.  Eager self is a pretty unrelenting bitch, and we just keep mucking through until the piles of cast-off material begin tumbling over us like tsunami waves on the New Zealand Pacific shoreline.

No, I have only recently adopted the policy of putting Unrelenting Bitch into a headlock at the end of each row; and then throwing her into a closet when the need arises to actually grab a pitchfork to clean out the work area.  See, if you can't find anything you know you saw just 'an hour ago', and
you can't make a spot big enough to use a tiny cutting mat for one inch squares, and
you can't move freely without knocking something over...

So, I guess you know a little of what took place today.

Slightly off topic...but only slightly

I belong to a few groups on facebook - I have limited myself to less than ten on purpose - and the few groups I follow are of the quilting/art variety.  Can't help it if I am filled with class.

As it so happens, my chosen groups (or, the administrators of these groups) are of the sort who fairly well harbor the same sentiments I feel surrounding decorum, information sharing, types of 'posts' from members, etc.

Listen, I am an administrative type; I've worked in the corporate world and in the film industry - and in the many grey areas in between and all around those two fields - and if it's one thing I think I have a handle on it's process and guidelines.  The work world does not function well without some sort of order or process...it doesn't matter what industry it is.  Truth be told, nothing functions without process, not driving your car on the road, buying groceries, mowing your lawn, flying a plane (or taking a flight somewhere).  Whatever.

As for fb groups, it's like this:
When you join a group, take the time to read the group description, and any little 'by-laws' or addendums the person who created that group wants you to know.  It may be a 'pinned' post (that will be the post that is constantly at the top of the timeline), or it may be something the admin posts as a casual reminder from time to time.  Take heed, these are the operating standards for the group.  If it states you should stick to the topic, like quilting or applique', and you want to post images of your Christmas tree or craft items....think twice, and then DON'T post those photos.

A fabric-decoupaged wine bottle is not appropriate fodder for a hand quilting site - neither is a photo of your pet chihuahua wearing handmade elf ears (I don't care if they are hand stitched, and the pet in question is adorable in them).

Think about the audience of that group.  You may receive a few 'aw' comments, and a number of 'likes', but by and large, the greater majority of the members are going to bombard the poor administrator with questions about why those photos are on the timeline.

Seriously, if you feel a need to share your crafts and pets and such, do you really have to be reminded that you have your own fb timeline?  Share those sorts of things with your own set of friends and relatives, please.  You may receive a delicately worded message from the admin asking you to please remove those images and why, before they have to do it; that's not a fun note for an admin to write.  Don't make the admin don a Snidely Whiplash moustache and become the Gestapo - you are going to feel picked on and unwelcome because your photos will vanish.

Don't make it necessary, just play nicely and follow the rules (hate that word), and everything will run like silk ribbon through satin.  Ah.

I was feeling pretty good until daylight showed up

Managed to clean up the table - well, not the entire mess on the table, but more than none at all...so that counts, right?  Sorted, pre-cut, and manhandled yard upon yard of mountainous material.  That activity created a little more elbow room on the work surface, but just barely.

There is still a need for more room.
And more neat.
And more 'taming of the mess' to cull out the color selection that already exists.

It's just, in its present state, you wouldn't know that underneath all of the madness there is a method to it all.

I suppose I know there is a good deal more cleaning that should be done before I can really get back to the piecing.  In all honesty, I am usually mad at myself about one thousand pieces later, when I unearth something I could have used to perfection, and I just didn't find it at the correct time.  I cannot (should not) let laziness and overeagerness stand in the way of doing the best job possible.

Besides, there's an ironing board and a chair I haven't found, yet.  At least, I think there is.

Minor recrimination

Sad to say I futzed with G6 a little more today.  The daylight was so much better, and I was fairly certain I could do better if I could give it one more shot before committing those 100 pieces to their final resting places.  Needless to say I didn't get G6 sewn together, but I did move on to hunting and pecking for the next one hundred inches.

G7 has proven itself to be somewhat more elusive than I thought it would be - but I do have just under one-quarter of the block located and in place, so the day wasn't a total loss.

What have you been working on?

Know when to say "when"

Not entirely satisfied, but maybe that will happen once the pieces are stitched together.

I did end up moving quite a bit around this morning, but didn't get a start at it until nearly noon.  Crazy!  Putzing and searching, fussing and swapping - then re-swapping (not really a word) - it all left me questioning my eyes and my common sense.  But after a good two hours I said to myself, "Self, leave well enough alone.  It's okay just the way it is."

And here we are.

These are the windows to the soul, and I am concerned that I may misrepresent this poor soul.  Anyway, I have a date with a sewing machine - and then later, a sanding pad and a vacuum cleaner.

What are you working on?

I've been playing

I spent the last half hour to forty-five minutes just playing with my stack of fleshy stuff - and even though I will have to wait until there is confirmation in the daylight - I believe I managed to bring the missing inches of G6 down to a blissful 7.5.

I can hear you: "How do you come up with half an inch? You deal in inches...solid inches, Beth.  You either have seven or eight - not seven-point-five."

Yeah, well...there is one spot possibly filled, but it's iffy.  I have the color, but it might need replacing/fine-tuning/rethinking with the morning light. Ya dig?  Hey, just be happy with me that the total has gone from the fourteen/fifteen range to less than ten!  That's reason to celebrate.

No reasons, no excuses

Life, man.
Life has gotten itself all tangled up in my day-to-day, ya know?
All of that stuff which happens in a day that requires coping with.  It's a bummer, man.
I need to floss my life and get the 'stuff' outta the cracks of my life.

Hoping that I can happily create tomorrow.
I miss creation.

G6 still vexes

A day without quiltmaking (or quilting...or chocolate) is like a day without sunshine.

Anyone old enough to remember an old Florida orange growers television ad with Anita Bryant spouting: "A day without orange juice is like a day without sunshine" will be smiling just a teensy bit at the recollection.  That little tagline has morphed over the decades; having been rewritten and bumbled with by folks who think they've been so terribly clever and original, they feel compelled to take credit for the whole premise.  Shame on those unoriginal, plagiaristic knock-off artists.

Without question, it was best put to use by Steve Martin - in my humble opinion.  "A day without sunshine is like, you know, night."  Even Robert Mondavi tried (with a limp shellacking) when attempting to give the domestic wine industry a shot in the arm - "A meal without wine is like a day without sunshine."

Yeah, I dunno about that, wine dude, but I can attest to the whole sunshine-less thing for this quilter. And I apologize most sincerely to all those quilters in Michigan for having such a grey day.  In fact, I totally feel responsible for the funk we find ourselves in over these past couple of days.  The remedy will land on our 'doorstep' come Thursday, and improve dramatically for Friday - I promise.

Until then, here is a little bookmark of sadness; this is where I have been stuck since Sunday night.  I can't wait to get my hands back into my piles of flesh tones.  At this rate, my high-minded goal to get to RowH will not happen on time.  Bummer, man.

Vexed, perplexed, but not Tex-Mex'd.  Here's hoping your goals are being met.

Feelin' groovy

G6 has less than twenty inches missing!
:v)

Time flies

It was this time four years ago I was finishing the piecing on PQ1 (Peace Quilt 1).

One day away from finishing construction of the top, and less than two weeks from the day that I would have it stretched and basted, and ready for quilting.  The FMQ began a few days before Christmas, and I can still remember all of the butterflies, the excitement, and the insecurity I felt all along the way.

Many mornings I would rise to find at least one of the girls curled up within the folds - Cleo and Flop had absolutely no issues claiming quilts for themselves...no matter what state of completion they were in.  If I had any issues with the possibility of them being on a quilt in process, I would take the pains to cloister the piece under a sheet or reams of paper, or fold it and keep it out of reach of my fuzzy people.  But rarely did I keep them from the quilts; they were family, and I love family feedback.  And I rarely received a negative comment from them when it came to my quilts, so naturally they deserved first dibs.

Besides, I can understand how my girls felt about quilts - comfort, love, and warmth all in one neat package.  Quilts and cats are synonymous.

Some of my favorite photos are of the family monkeys hanging out on a quilt - or under a quilt, or thinking about trespassing on some portion of a top in progress.  In fact, the only photo we have of Flop actually smiling is when she was caught chillaxing on my mother's quilt in process.  And the sound of Cleo's Mack-truck-purr still fills my ears, while I imagine her ears peeking over the top of generous folds in the material.

These are thoughts and images I will treasure for all of my days.  Hard to believe it's been four years since I worked on PQ1, but there you have it.

Thanks for walking down Memory Lane with me.  Have a great Sunday. >^..^<  =^..^=

Carry on: Day 5

Outside my windows I see stunningly beautiful sunshine, and it is a key component for getting the colors perfect.  So I hope you will excuse me whilst I revel in it, and don't waste any more sitting at a keyboard.

Update (and photos) later.

Sunrise brings us to: Day 4

Well, ^ that could get old very quickly, but for the moment it gives me a chuckle.

Performing my routine things in a bit of a different order today.  No rhyme or reason for it, I just am.

Went to bed last night having sorted through a little bit of the mountainous mess on my sewing table.  Happily, I managed to locate a lot of usable (and timely) colors.  Even happier to say G6 is over fifty percent there.  But this morning, I looked at the table where I slave over my master, and I saw a huge problem.  The fix is not as simple as I would have myself believe.

Why is it that creating the mess is always so much easier than putting it away?  Okay, maybe not "easier" so much as more fun.  Hmmm...and maybe not "more fun" so much as a transparent component of making a quilt (or anything, really).  It's mindless...except for the thinking part, and fairly spontaneous...except for the whole specific planning and need of a certain specific color thing.  Huh.

See, and I don't even mind the cleaning.  It's cathartic in a way; a grand accomplishment; freeing.  I only mind the time it steals away from the activity of searching for more pieces, and compiling more of the next 100-piece block.  I've tried (in vain) to remain orderly about the whole thing - several times over the course of finding, cutting, and placing 7,300+ inches I have attempted a process of orderliness.  Really!  I have.  But you'd never know it to look at the table at any given moment.

Okay, the table...and the back and arms of two chairs (and the seat of one)...a rolling book cart...and a large Rubbermaid container filled with all of the identified materials that may (or may not) work when their time comes).  I don't need an intervention, I simply need more workspace.  Scout's honor.

Alright, this is me heading back to the sewing hole to clean up the TABLE a bit more...before becoming distracted by forty-five (or so) missing inches.  Yeah, good luck with that.  I wish I felt as compelled to clean in the evening hours only, when the daylight wasn't so empowering.  What a waste.

Upon further review: Day 3+

Clearer heads have prevailed.  I did swap out two inches, but only two inches - and even those were tough decisions.  I can live with it/them, though, because the alternative means never moving on to G6, or G7, or....well, I think you see where this could lead.

So, I've made a promise to myself - a pact, if you will. (Do you want to know what it is?)  It's to do my utmost to get to that very tangible halfway point by the start of the new year.  It's less than ten full blocks away!  Roughly 970 inches away.  I've estimated this may be something I can achieve by mid-February.  End of Feb if things go awry or I get a job.  We'll see.  Keep an eye on it with me, won't you?

Oh, by the way, in all actuality, the count is 969 pieces...but who's counting?

Ugh: Day 3

Once I finished placing the pieces for G5 last night, I had a hard time being totally satisfied with the whole thing. To me it was an utter disappointment in colorwork.  G5 came together like gangbusters for the first fifty pieces or so, but quickly went sour, taking far too long for the final twenty to thirty inches.

Don't get me wrong, I was glad to be done but it wasn't a triumphant feeling.

Perhaps I'll feel more charitable after it's stitched together and in place beside G4 - and under F5.  Golly, I hope that's the case, because right now I am just not a happy quiltmaker.  Let's see what the daylight tells me  (shows me) and go from there.

Onward and, well...onward: Day 2

G4 - in process.  Still needed to stitch the rows together. One 5.5" square to come!

Accept this token of my insanity as the entry du'jour.

Thankfully, I have enough to keep me busy for thirty-one days.

The 'challenge' in this thirty-one day challenge will be in wringing out the words, and them faithfully placing here.  Obviously I have no issue with 'sharing' - it's just the duty-bound feat of making myself sit and do it, when I could be off this chair and in front of George or at the layout wall.

By the way, if you are new to my blah-blah-blah, my machine's name is "George" - and all the parts associated are variations of George (think: George Foreman).

For better or for worse

I am accepting Caron Mosey's challenge to join in
on the "31 Day Blog Writing Challenge"
(at http://muppin.com/wordpress/index.php/).
I figure I haven't anything to lose since I am most often posting an update here anyhow, or at the Crazy Quilting blog - www.bethsmadasahatter.blogspot.com.

My challenge to you readers is to:
let our 'host' know that there truly are folks out there enjoying the extra reading material we bloggers are providing by leaving a comment that can be seen when she peruses the participating blogs.  Can you do that? Will you do that? ?

Day 1 - For better or for worse; in silence and cacophony; whether job seeking or disappointed binge eating; through grey days or deliriously brilliant sunshine, you - my dear readers and delightfully nosey friends - you will benefit from daily ramblings.

Geez.  Now that it will be a daily occurrence (throughout the whole of December only), I suppose this may be extra incentive to accomplish SOMEthing of substance every day from here on out.