A New Year

K. asked for a 2010 Sewing Resolution post and I’ve seen lots and lots of them so far on other blogs.  I had specifically planned to not post any resolutions (a resolution to do so, if you will), but:

RESOLUTION POST

I am not a Resolution kind of girl.  Nor am I a “wow it’s a New Year” kind of girl.  What I am, in fact, is a cynic.  A cynic of the most hard-boiled, long-standing kind.  My own mother says I was the most cynical child she ever met (possibly until she met my oldest child).  I don’t believe things.  I’m not sentimental about things.  I think that in any given situation, most human beings will devolve to the lowest common denominator.   These are fundamental qualities of my internal construction and can not be altered.

I find resolutions not practical, in that I know that I will never keep them so why make them in the first place?  This is based on long hard evidence of my having never kept a resolution in my life (that I can recall anyway).

However, this year I’m feeling especially motivated to make a change.  So what the heck, let’s give it a try.

1) My biggest sewing resolution is the one about losing weight to be able to make nicer clothes.  That is sewing related and (almost) completely sewing motivated so I count that as my First Resolution.

2) Stop Buying Fabric (Mostly) is my Second Resolution.  Actually, I set this goal last year (independent of the whole “resolution” thing of course) and made quite a bit of progress.  This was mostly successful because I literally have nowhere else to stash my stash.  I found that having no where to put the stupid stuff did help me to control buying more.  Plus, even I reach a certain limit where I think “that fabric has sat there for five years, it’s aged enough for Pete’s sake.”  Saying that, if I had an endless warehouse of fabric shelves, I don’t think I would have stopped.  Relevant to Article 1 above, I will be using up a lot of this “gently aged” fabric by the end of the year (Yes.  I WILL.) and so that gives me a goal for thinking I will be able to buy MORE FABRIC.  Yay!  I like a resolution that ultimately ends in getting to ignore it in the first place.

 

That’s it. 

Seriously?  Two resolutions is two more than I normally have and given my track record in keeping resolutions I’ll probably be sorry I made these in the first place.  Because I’m very very motivated (mostly) to accomplish Resolution #1 so I hope I haven’t just jinxed myself.

 

Next Time: something much more interesting.  I have no idea what, but that isn’t a hard promise to keep.

Snow Day

I forgot about this until just now.   We love to do these every year. 

 

It’s been really slow at work this week.   The construction industry is, by my reckoning, officially dead.  Good thing I have random internet papercutting to save me.

Caution: Danger to Those Easily Bored

So here's the thing about being really sick during the holidays: instead of gaining the usual 5 pounds, you actually lose 5 pounds instead! This is totally awesome (other than the unquenchable fevers, unbearable pain and unmitigated wretchedness casting a shadow of darkness across the face of the entire universe-- um. You know, your basic illness).

And so because I'm starting the New Year in a much better place (mass-wise) than I expected, I feel inspired to really really really, no really, make a weight loss effort this year. Now, I will say that I really really really, kind of really, had that very intention last year. But of course, typically, my effort didn't last long. This is due to several factors, but the end result is that I was not successful. I weigh exactly the same as I did this time last year. Hmmph.

What will make this year different, you ask? Well. Realistically? Probably nothing. But I have decided that to spur myself along I am going to post a little tracker thingy here on my blog, much like Sherril's. That way I have some accountability, even if it is illusory and self-imposed. (Apparently accountability to my husband, who is my "diet buddy", is pretty non-motivational. His complete lack of interest in my being skinny or fat- while totally and completely sweet and one of the many reasons he's my husband- is not really a great spur in the direction of weight loss.)

My goal is to lose a pound a week. Aha! Seems so reasonable and easy, doesn't it? It's not. However, if I'm successful it means in less than a year I will have reached my goal weight. Awesomeness.

Why am I telling you all this? Ah, because it's "sewing relevant". Some people tell themselves and each other that they want to lose weight because it's "good for their health". Some people probably even mean it. I am not one of those people. I know it's good for my health, I just don't care.

No, what I'm interested in is entirely more "shallow" than this (although if you want me to explain to you why it's really not shallow at all, I can. I won't, but I can.). Because the truth is, I want to lose that weight so I can make better clothes. It's totally depressing to make myself clothes that I don't want to wear because I don't want to wear anything in the first place. It’s totally ridiculous to hoard fabric that’s “too good to use for fat clothes because I could make something so much cuter if it was a style for five sizes smaller”. This is going to stop. I can tell myself, "Well if it's custom fit, it will look good and you'll want to wear it" but this is just not true. Seriously, there is only so much a custom fit can do. So by June I will be selfishly making my own clothes, cute clothes, clothes that I want to wear or... or else! So there.

Ugh. This could get really really ugly.

All of which is to say, if you happen to be browsing at the side of my blog page and wonder what the heck that slider-bar thing is, that's what it is. And if you happen to notice that it's not sliding the way it should be, feel free to email me pictures of really really cute clothes. I need the motivation.