This and That

It wasn’t my intention to take a blog vacation over the last several days, but my mind and heart moved me in that direction anyway.  I firmly believe that these down times are both a healthy and necessary part of the process for me. 

My quilting productivity also slowed, but it didn't stop.  I’ve begun work on this month’s anti ouch pouches for the quilt club. 

Machine work for attaching binding to my twirly ball project is done and it is ready for handwork.  I will be working on one of these two projects tonight during Bonnie Hunter’s Quilt-Cam session.  I had to miss this week’s Tuesday sewing with friends’ day, so I’m very ready for some sewing time tonight.

I’ve also been engaged in a personal struggle.  I don’t qualify as a hoarder, but I do find it difficult to let go of things, especially those with sentimental ties.  I can remember my grandmother, a survivor of the Great Depression, firmly saying she never threw anything away.  She also lived on 300 acres with a barn and several storage sheds, so her home was never cluttered or over crowded.  Even so, I remember my mother and aunt struggling to deal with all the stuff left in her estate.

Last year I embarked on a “get my life in order” effort and made considerable progress much to my satisfaction.  This year I decided to make "enough" my word of the year as I continue addressing the excess in my life.  Whenever I feel my resolve waning, I like to go back and look at posts on the Becoming Minimalist site.  I’ll never be a minimalist, but I respect the underlying philosophy.

The fact that I have lost 30 pounds since October has certainly made it easier to clean out my closet.  Last year's waterline break and subsequent rebuild at the ranch, also forced some decisions.  Most of my “get rid of it” efforts have been donated to local thrift stores.  Our neighborhood does not allow garage sales, but my church’s mission committee has them twice a year.  

This was a car load I delivered to the church this morning: a chair that belonged to a favorite aunt (that’s the really hard kind of thing to part with), a bag of lady’s golf clubs (I just never caught the bug), and another empty golf bag that hubby does not want to keep.  Other items include an old desk lamp and handbags that have gone unused several seasons plus some decorative items that have been gathering dust.  Quilting/sewing related items I no longer want will be donated to the quilt club’s bits and pieces booth at next February’s quilt show.  

It was painful for me to learn that my daughter’s life situation and personal tastes are such that she has no interest in most of what I have.  It took me a while to realize that this is a generational difference that has nothing to do with how much she cares about me.  It also freed me from the responsibility of preserving things for her later use.  For that matter, I think her generation is on to something.  “Things” will certainly take over your life if you let them.  It's so much better to donate or sell them so someone else can enjoy them.  So the battle with the pack rat side of my personality continues; it will always be a part of me.  At least I’m making progress.