Month: August 2023

The Last August Poem

Karen

Here’s one for the end of August, titled the same, about not looking to the literal or metaphorical winter ahead (even though it feels like it’s looming).

 

Vespers (End of August)
by Louise Glück

End of August. Heat
like a tent over
John’s garden. And some things
have the nerve to be getting started,
clusters of tomatoes, stands
of late lilies—optimism
of the great stalks—imperial
gold and silver: but why
start anything
so close to the end?
Tomatoes that will never ripen, lilies
winter will kill, that won’t
come back in spring. Or
are you thinking
I spend too much time
looking ahead, like
an old woman wearing
sweaters in summer;
are you saying I can
flourish, having
no hope
of enduring? Blaze of the red cheek, glory
of the open throat, white,
spotted with crimson.

New Career Goal

Karen

Forget becoming a creative director (which I’m ambivalent about anyway)–I want to be a Cat Napper. This go-getter Terry naps for up to 4 hours every day with rescue cats. His path to this goal? “He walked into the sanctuary one day to introduce himself and let them know he would like to brush the cats.” Then he kept falling asleep.

@thatgoodnewsgirl This man’s retirement plan was to become a cat napper. Now he spends every day napping with cats. Terry is the official Cat Grandpa at Safe Haven Pet Sanctuary in Green Bay, Wisconsin. You can find their account here: @Safe Haven Pet Sanctuary 📸 safehavengb #catsoftiktok #catnapper #catnews #goodnews #positivecontent #rescueanimals ♬ original sound – jenn💜 good news & fun stories

As Terry says, “Life is too short, so you should do something fun with cats.”

Tuesday Project Roundup: Lumbar Pack!

Karen

Big sewing achievement unlocked–I made a hiking pack! No, it’s not an ultralight 50L for backpacking, but it’s exactly what I needed: A comfy, colorful little friend for our shorter trips.

 

I love how functional this is–it held just enough water for a 2.5 hour jaunt, it held all our snacks and first aid stuff, and it was so comfy. There are “load lifter” straps that can cinch it up if it’s full so it sits tight and close to your back, and there’s a double foam panel in the back so it keeps it shape.

 

This is the Stitchback Patterns’ “Lumbar Pack”  and it was a beautiful pattern. Everything went together without any sweating and the instructions were super clear and detailed.

  • I had the Ottertex canvas in lime and army green on hand, plus the orange zippers and orange mesh.
  • The orange on the waist straps exterior is HyperD 300 from Ripstop By The Roll (oops I bought new fabric for it after all).
  • The lime green toggles and orange buckles/webbing/grosgrain were from Strapworks.
  • The khaki buckles, webbing, and shock cord plus orange spacer mesh were from Rockywoods.
  • The pattern called for 5mm and 3mm EVA foam and I ended up just buying sheets of craft foam from JoAnn.

Some details: I added a front panel pocket and a key leash; those load lifters that are so cool;  the pocket in the interior for the 5mm foam panel (plus bound interior seams); a zipper pocket in the lid and interior tie loops.

 

Final verdict: I love this. It’s so nice to not have the weight of my Osprey pack dragging on my upper back. I didn’t realize how uncomfortable it was until I made this. (I’ve probably been wearing it badly adjusted for 12 years… )

Plus, having a waist pack means you can just swing it around and access your snacks, no need to stop and unload everything.

Great pattern, great sewing experience, and great usability–the trifecta of sewing unlocked!

I’m Not Saying It

Karen

I’m not saying the F[all]-word until it’s September but…. things are starting to look awfully gold-and-orange up the canyon.

I don’t know what those last orange berries are but they were certainly bright and tempting (heheheh).

Bookbinding In Venice

Karen

I may have dropped both quilting and bookbinding for a quick fling with outdoor gear-making, but I plan to pick both of them back up. I’m even going to take a bookbinding class in September! And then maybe I need to plan a trip to Venice, because I didn’t realize it was the center of printing and binding right after the invention of the printing press:

During the 15th century, printing defined much of Venice’s street life. As explained by Alessandro Marzo Magno in Bound in Venice: The Serene Republic and the Dawn of the Book, the city’s tiny calles (streets) were filled with the workshops of various craftsmen involved in the book industry. People interested in creating books went there to buy loose sets of printed pages, and then took them to binders, illustrators, and goldsmiths to create a volume.

The linked article talks about Paolo Olbi, a 78-year-old traditional binder and one of the last still practicing in Venice. Better get that ticket bought before he retires or the ocean levels take the city.

Wednesday Poem

Karen

Oh, Mary Oliver. “The linen of words” is pretty great but nothing like your pond.

Work
by Mary Oliver

How beautiful
this morning
was Pasture Pond.

It had lain in the dark, all night,
catching the rain

on its broad back.
All day I work
with the linen of words

and the pins of punctuation
all day I hang out
over a desk

grinding my teeth
staring.
Then I sleep.

Then I come out of the house,
even before the sun is up,

and walk back through the pinewoods
to Pasture Pond.

Happy Birthday, Dad

Karen

Happy 76th birthday to the toughest cowboy I know, my dad. How tough is he?

He was hit by a car while riding his bike earlier this year and, from his landing spot on the ground, told the driver, “I’m OK, stop screaming!”

He keeps up the yard, keeps up the house, keeps himself fed, and just keeps going, even though it would all be so much easier with two people.

He endures my desire to talk about feelings at every opportunity, even though it’s often in direct conflict to his desire to only talk about Things That Are Good.

He’s the glue of the family and such an influence on me and my brother and Skyler. If I’m a craftsman, I learned from him. If I take pride in my non-hobby work–even though we need to throw the bosses off our back–I learned it from him. Hell, I learned all the union songs from him, too.

So happy birthday, Dad. We’re love you, we’re glad you’re alive, and remember:

 

Project Weekend

Karen

I spent most of the weekend working on my lumbar pack and, um, getting another package of technical apparel fabrics and kits for waterproof dry bags and stuff sacks. (Meanwhile, the bookbinding supplies I bought last month look at me reproachfully from the corner. No obsession like a new obsession!)

Meanwhile, Toby just sleeps and smiles.

Friday Links

Karen

1. Every word of this headline was designed to appeal to me and I couldn’t click to read it fast enough: Socialist Gym Rats Fought to End Slavery in America.
I mean, these are also the passions burning in my heart!

 

2. We had some more monsoon rain but it stayed hot and oh my god am I not used to humidity. If only I could be a tomato in an ice box:

3. But if it’s fabric for an outdoor project it doesn’t count, right?