For me, golfing is much more enjoyable when I have my camera, a cold Arnold Palmer, and I’m really just along for the ride. The tournament participants seemed quite flustered that their calculated swings were constantly foiled by the wind, but I found the light breeze refreshing. And what a relaxing way to spend one of the last blistering-heat free days before summer really sets in!
Yes, there was jousting, pirates, gypsies, fairies and much feasting…And few things remotely related to the actual Renaissance, in which major developments in science, technology, medicine, mathematics, and art changed the Western world entirely. But sure, let the belly dancers dance, the jesters jest, and the knights ride. I was entertained nonetheless.
And the chance to get so close to these guys was totally worth the blatant historical inaccuracies.
Growing up, I was a picky eater. “Clean” pasta (butter, no sauce) kind of eater. I thought the only yummy vegetables were broccoli, peas, and white potatoes. Nothing else.
In the years since, the hard-to-please 6 year-old began discovering that she likes many kinds of food, that a sniff and a taste were not the end of the world. In fact, I started craving mushrooms, onions, red peppers, and developed a love for ethnic foods that I was afraid to touch as a child. My discovery of delicious vegetables, herbs and whatnot has reawakened as I shop at grocery stores and markets with more variety–more than plain potatoes, cabbage and onions. Curiosity now trumps the fear of tasting something unpleasant.
And good food is beautiful.
Halfway through our vacation in Washington State, and I have only shot 1100 images. And we have yet to visit Seattle. Expectations of rain have been met with fog, and later, sun. And the best is yet to come…
My yarn stash has surpassed the threshold of my patience. There is no reason to bury partially finished works or ones that happened to turn out awful. I have resolved to cease shoving bits of unfinished projects and bags of random colors, mixed in with various tools and scraps, hidden away in scattered places of my home. The time has come for them to no longer burden my storage spaces.
It began with some research (Pinterest). I read a few articles on “How to Organize Your Stash,” in which there are different strategies for sorting and organizing and logging all the types of yarn by color, weight, material etc. Luckily my stash has not grown to fill many closets over twenty five years, like some, so the task took little more than an afternoon.
I got several memory boxes on sale (60% off) and went at it like I was packing a suitcase. Stuff a one or two boxes full of one kind of thing, label them, and move on.
As I went I unraveled the old, the unfinished, the hideous and the undesirable pieces. Then rewound the fibers into new balls, full of potential, and saving any useful scraps for filling.
I also filled a large bag with things I would never use to be given away–buttons, thread and finished hats that have been stuffed in dark places for two or three years. Well, no more! They will find use elsewhere.
Now anything I want to use is within reach, in its own home. I am no longer digging through bins and boxes all over the place trying to find that one thing. I can finally sleep at night.
