Still sewing to beat the band

Masks, do I make them? Oh yes, I do. Lots of them. The good news is that this is a self-supporting endeavor, so I'm able to donate quite a few. I'm open to donation, so let me know if you need masks. 

On another note, Anna is having another baby (today, I think?) and I started her baby quilt. It's going to be made of Strawberry Shortcake printed quilt squares that are pieced together with strawberry fabric.

At the end of July, I couldn't sew a single mask. I needed to make a change. So, I got started. I have a long way to go, but I think it's going to be right cute! 

Another thing I've been doing is tie dying fabrics for mask backs. I had 30 yards of a really nice white cotton for the backings. Plus, I was buying all sorts of fabric for backs. So, with a little Rit Dye, some hot water, soap, and salt, boom! Red tie dye. I did black as well, but didn't leave the fabric in long enough, so I have a lovely gray tie dye. And yes, I use this fabric every single day.

And then there was Isias. The storm blew in with rain and wind, and we were ready. We prepped the deck, made sure we had fuel for our (not whole house) generator, and in general, did what we do before hurricanes. 

Nothing blew away and we had few limbs to pick up the next day. The plants are back on the railing now and all the furniture is back where it lives. 

The world continues to go crazy all around and still I sew. My coffee cup that says I sew to stay sane knows me well.

I hope you are remaining safe and finding your way through this pandemic, crazy behavior all over the world, and just the unprecedented weirdness of it all. Pick up needle and thread. You'll be glad you did. 

Letter to my daughter

Understandably, my daughter is having a tough time with this isolation, uncertainty, and potential illness and death all the way around. We Face Timed earlier and I feel like I didn't really address her concerns. So, I wrote her a letter:

"Thoughts :)
Inbox
x
Family
x

Donna Gettings Apperson <dgapperson@gmail.com>
10:02 PM (24 minutes ago)
to Allison

Hi there,

I am not discounting your feelings and totally understand the depression. Truth be told, I'm a little depressed about the uncertainty of it all and what the future may or may not hold. We have no idea where this is going to go. It's your generation's future in the long run, and how you and your friends handle this isolation and awful situation will set the tone for what comes next.

Dad's parents lived through a depression and did it well. Your dad and I have everything we need and no debt. We'll be okay. You have property here if you need it. In two years, all the land belongs to you and your brothers. That smacks of a real future.

I want you to be safe, but not paranoid. I can't do that for you, but with a little time and getting used to the reality of going out rarely, it will be better.

My way to handle things so far has been:

Listen to a variety of music. I've listened to classical one day, country another day, old rock another day, and on and on. It helps to turn the television off and immerse myself in music.

Puzzle books. I haven't done any yet, but I bought some. You know, the ones with the find the difference pictures in them? I've always loved puzzle books, so I have them for when the weather is better and I can sit outside and do some.

Avoiding news shows. I know I need to keep up, but I get sick of hearing about the virus over and over. I can't stand Trump and won't listen to him.

Social media. Twitter is hilarious. I love it when people call me grandma or say OK Boomer :)

Cleaning. I hate to clean, but I have been doing some because I like the result.

To do list. I make one every day. It always includes what I'm going to cook and do.

Cooking. I'm trying some new stuff. The only shopping I'm doing is the online and twice going out. I got the bread maker out and am going to try that in a week or so. No rush.

Exercise. I'm walking and stretching and Winnie's doing her own thing. Amazon has tons of exercise videos, so does You Tube and Hulu. It's a goal of mine to do something every day. I ordered the gym in a bag for stretching and stuff. I have hand weights, but they don't interest me right now. The stretch bands will help because they're a new toy.

Sewing. Totally not sure if I'll ever sell anything again, but I am sewing Halloween bags and stuff for later.

Naps. I love naps. They take 2 hours out of the day just like that.

Trying to avoid panicking.

Blogging or writing.

It's a process. Staying home and worrying sucks. It sucks big time. And I can't make that any nicer sounding than that.

You are like your grandmother - you're a worrier and always have been. That's part of being you. You can't change a lot of that right now, but you can try to make it a touch easier on yourself.

When all else fails, there are drum solos.

Much love,

Mom"

Take care of each other, people.