The service yesterday was very nice. Ozarque had quite a long discussion over at her place recently about death and dying. I didn’t read all the comments, so I may have missed it, but I don’t recall that anyone talked about planning your funeral. My friend planned hers, and wrote to people asking them if they would do her the favor of reading a particular poem or scripture at her service. She grew up in the Belgian Congo, and had some elements of that culture in her service, and it was very comforting and beautiful. I now think that, along with having a will, we should probably all plan our funerals.
We had the chance to see some old friends, as well. Always nice.
#2 son headed off to film a project for school, #2 daughter and I began planning our writing contest entry for this year (note to self: must read more romances in preparation), #2 daughter gave #1 son a haircut, and then she headed back to the Midwest and I sat down for a quiet evening with my husband while he watched completely incomprehensible Thai soap operas and I read and knitted.
There was a little break when a trio of girls came by to take #1 son out for coffee. The previous evening a pair of boys came to take #2 daughter out for a drink, and I had turned off the Thai soap operas and forced hospitality upon my husband. Last night I left it up to him, and he muted the sound but left it on. Thus it was that when the girls admired the character with white make up and a black organza headdress, we learned that people sporting that look are ghosts. I had never realized.
I completed the jacket which has been sitting around sans buttonholes for all these months, so I have a sewing FO for the week. Photos and details tomorrow, along with a SWAP report, so I’ll say no more about my garment-sewing plans for the moment.
The Sew?I Knit! group has kitchen gear for the sewalong theme this month, and indeed it 
extends to mid-March. My kitchen linens are all pretty shabby, so this is good timing. I am envisioning this group of fabrics doing something patchwork … being potholders, maybe, or something like that. Or the other group of fabrics on the left being an apron.
Not that I have either group of fabrics. It is merely that I received the Keepsake Quilting catalog at the same time as the announcement of the sewalong, and snow showers and leaden skies make sunny floral prints so appealing.
I have a couple of Japanese craft books with many patchwork kitchen things. I think we all know that Japanese craft books attain a level of specificity unheard of in American books, so you will understand that there are not merely potholder patterns there, but also assorted pan handle covers, pen cases and matching phone book covers (and phone covers, too, which are not cell phone cozies but mats to cover the phone sitting on the counter, with matching covered phone book and encased pen handy so that you can take a message after a few minutes of fumbling around in all those covers and cases), special wall holders for various sizes of wooden spoons, and silverware cases.
I will be looking through all my household sewing books this afternoon, and will wait for inspiration to strike.
Wow – I hope we get to see your creations!
And where do you find the Japanese/foreign craft books? I guess I will try the thrift and used book stores here…hmmm
I got a new sewing machine for my birthday because I wanted to learn to sew – I appreciate the hub’s thought BUT I really wanted something a wee bit more basic:::sigh::: My cousin told me if I bring it to NY with me next weekend she will help me….cross your fingers LOL
the inspiration will come to you…
I might remove the dust-covers and intend to put them back on when I’ve finished the book but… they nearly always disappear sometime between removal and bookreading end. I think there is a blackhole for dustcovers just as there is for socks. Somewhere in the universes there must be a couple of corresponding white holes disgorging dustcovers and odd socks forever puzzling the quantum physicists in those universes.
I understand about not reading all the comments — leisure is finite — but want to let you know that there were quite a few comments about the absolute necessity of planning your funeral and leaving (in your Letter of Instructions) all the details about who you want to sing or read what, and so on. A number of people posted accounts of how that had worked in their own families … and how difficult things had been when no plan had been provided; there was at least one account of how things went when the plan that had been provided was ignored. Very instructive.
I like the part about the Thai soap-opera ghosts…. that’s instructive too.