on hands and rambling

i've been using my hands a lot this week. it's funny how much we take for granted these everyday working parts of ours. i say this because yesterday i trapped my hand in a drawer in such a way i thought i broke it. the middle finger of my left hand to be exact. i was tucking in an errant strand of yarn after stashing a bag of dryer lint into my craft drawer. what? YOU don't collect dryer lint? anyhow...the rollers on said drawer are very smooth. so smooth that the drawer shut practically on its own thus trapping the middle finger of my left hand in its clutches. there was an instant moment where i recognized the pain and stopped breathing. it was a toe-stubbing kind of pain. the kind that makes you suck in everything around and wonder in absolute silence how anything can hurt so freaking much! the kind where once the pain stops you cradle your toe or hand or finger and look at it and wonder how it can still be attached and then you try to move it and the pain hits all over again. it was almost too much. almost. but i applied ice and practiced moving it around and while it hurt worse than a toe-stubbing (why does it hurt so much to toe stub one's toe anyway?), it didn't really appear to be broken and so i went to bed and hoped it got better because it was my left hand and i am a leftie and i kinda like using that hand (never mind the difficulties i had attempting to scoop out some after dinner ice cream...what a fiasco!). all night long as song after song played in my head thanks to a loverly mix i created, i was aware of a great soreness in my hand and so i never really slept, i just dozed and snorted and listened to tunes and dozed and maybe snored a little snore every once in awhile until i woke up in the morning shortly after the mister left for work. i managed to forget all about my sad, sad finger (you know, the middle finger on my left hand) until i went to dry my hands after the morning wash up and managed to TWIST it again as if i'm some sort of super human. it was then i noticed the nice purpley-green-blue bruise that hovered over the knuckle. it still hurts the darned bruised thing and it is taking me a lot longer to do things (you should see me typing this out) but i am grateful that i have two hands that for the most part work.

so, like any good blogger, i took a picture of my hand, the middle finger of my left hand, to share with you the pretty pretty bruise i'm wearing but not until after i made sure to lavish on some lotion because that first shot i took was lotion free and well, that was kinda a scary hand in that shot. so i did my darndest to pretty up the hand and i didn't care that i'm only mostly dressed for the day (it is raining after all and the mister has the car) and no my socks are not unmatching, they are miss-matched and it was as i was taking my oh-so-glamourous hand shot (which reminds me of another story of how i used to tell people i was either a hand model or an earring model when they asked what i did for a living) that along with the sad state and pudginess of my hands i could see a trace amount of silver paint along the right thumb as if i held hands with the Tin-Man. it made me stop and look a little more close at these hands of mine and i thought to myself, pudge and all that these are my hands. they have done so much, and far too little all at the same time. they are soft at times and calloused at others. they hold scars which hold stories and pencil lead (which tell two more stories) and hangnails and teethmarks from the witch-baby. they are strong hands, crafting hands, sewing hands and baking hands. they are hands that attempt things and reattempt things like crochet and ukulele playing. they are hands that doodle and sketch and draw and drum impatiently when i am bored, bored, bored. they are hands that cannot type very well or tie knots very well but they are mine, each dent, bump, soft spot and pudge...mine all mine and sometimes they are the mister's as well as we hold on to each others' through thick and thin wearing our rings with Looney Tunes quotes...

these hands, pudge and all, bruise and all, are pretty good hands. if i do say so myself.

stitching

we've had a bit of rain...all weekend. if i can separate my thoughts from thinking of Japan and its people, i can think of the rain and how i do enjoy it. my thoughts have been troubled and full of grief for all those touched by the earthquake. i wake up in the middle of the night feeling chilled and burrow deep into the covers until i feel warm and i think how grateful i am to make warmth for myself and my heart aches a little more for those who cannot. i awake in the middle of the night or early morning with the familiar itch and tightness of an asthma attack and i think of those who cannot breathe as i gratefully take my inhaler. this is how it is. we move on, and forward, we're either touched or we're not. it isn't a bad thing to move on with your life. it is a necessary thing. moving forward is pretty much the only way to go. time does not stand still, the earth turns, the sun sets and we step forward how we will. what we can do is choose how we move forward. no matter how little or how much we have, we can choose to move forward with purpose and grace, with hope and with sorrow, with compassion and with empathy. we can take baby steps, we can stride, we can soar. we can put more effort into our own personal interactions. we can give. we can go without. we can take a day or two or four to not move forward, to grieve or to wallow but we must also know at some point the covers need to be laundered, the windows opened and the grit from our eyes rinsed away. taking time to absorb, ponder and work through our feelings is moving forward, even when you feel like you are falling backwards.

as long as there is genuine love in your heart, in your soul...genuine love and joy for simple things and grand things...genuine love for yourself and your family, your steps forward will touch others as theirs will touch more and we will find that our love and goodness can indeed be stitched together, creating a quilt of kindness to wrap ourselves with and find warmth.

St. Patrick's Day: Chocolate Dipped Peeps

I'm making chocolate dipped Peeps over at the 'do, check it out!

St. Patrick's Day: Stitch a Rainbow

I'm trying for cheer when I feel anythng but. DIY on scrumdilly-do! Have a go if you please.

Do You Have A Plan?

We a-go-gos live in California, on the coast. We are also pretty close to a nuclear power plant. While we are not exactly on the coast as it is, we're still in an area that can experience tsunamis and ocean surges. As we all keep our attention on the sadness that the people of Japan are experiencing, I hope that anyone who lives in any type of area that is prone to scary elements has an emergency plan.

Be aware of what geological disasters can happen in your area. Educate yourself and be as prepared as possible. There is much you cannot account for but small matters can help. Japan is a nation that has a pretty amazing plan. I cannot even begin to imagine the chaos that is happening there. Take the steps to prepare for what you can and be ready to act when and if you need to.

Hera are a few things to think on:

You and your family members should know what objects are most important to rescue and you should have an out of state contact to call to let them know you are safe and where you are so that they can relay the message to your family. You should have an overnight bag packed with clothes, shoes and prescriptions in your car at all times and it would be a good idea to start stashing away cash for emergencies. A similar backpack withing reach at home is also a good thing. Make sure there are first aid supplies in it as well as a handful of granola bars or other not-as-perishable food item. Don't forget the important documents and if you store all your work on the computer make sure you back it up.

Keep favorite photos in an internet account like flickr, or burn to a cd. Transfer important documents to a flash drive on a regular basis just to be safe. And, as always, make sure you have water. I know bottled water isn't the trend when we are all trying to be environmentally sound but if a disaster such as a tornado or earthquake hits, chances are there won't be available drinking water on hand. We make sure to have at least 5 gallons of water in the casa and another 2 liters in the car.   Most importantly stay safe and stop to help others when/if you can. This is the time when we can all use a helping hand.

And finally, set up a status check four times a year if you can. We all get comfortable and forget to keep things in check, we a-go-gos included.  I haven't backed-up any documents in a very long time, all those granola bars were eaten on our trip  and I think I know where the paperwork is. That said, I think it is time for a checklist.

crafting for craft: truffle party

Go get yer hands dirty! Recipe and fun can be found at craftzine.com.