Friday, July 31, 2009

knock, knock...

Psssst...is anyone home?  Wow, its dusty in here, there's cobwebs everywhere! There's not really much around here but old cans of spam, old moldy spam at that (and its pretty pathetic when even the spammers give up on your site). Who's job is it to clean around here?

oh...thats right, me...

So, i'm not sure if anyone still checks this thing or not, but I guess I'll sit and tell some stories and see who comes out to listen...

I've had urges to blog from time to time, but I was always in the middle of something, then the thought quickly went away.  I decided last night that I am offiially diagnosing myself with wedding adversion and possibly a bit of adjustment disorder (ya know, there has to be something that the insurance will pay for).  Of course, I didn't realize this until I actually got excited about a wedding - well, technically an anniversary - related project.  I think that not only doing our wedding, but then jumping right into Heather's wedding and then a month later, Dane's wedding was a lot -- not that I regret doing even one second of work for either wedding, it was an honor to be that involved in the marriages of my close friends and family.  However, when I was done, I stepped away from blogging, (reading and writing), crafting, printing wedding photos... If it was creative, it didn't happen.  Taking photos was about the only thing that I still wanted to play with, oh, and

organizing, cleaning, purging, organizing, cleaning, purging, organizing, cleaning, purging

That was all very cathartic. Not 100% organized, mind you, but we'll be packing boxes in 6-10 months or so, and its at a level I can live with for a while at least.  I do have a very nice craft table to work on now, handmade by Adam - not carved out of a tree, he's still in med school!  But he varnished the table top (butcher block countertop from Ikea) and added legs...too bad it wasn't there in its full function when I was doing so many crafts!

I've not accomplished some things that I really should have (thank you cards - I'm horrible!), but there's been so many decisions going on, this year really has been filled, but not really going anywhere at all.  Adam is done with his boards (HALLELUJAH!) and we're trying to talk ourselves into a final, and I do mean final, choice for a specialty (OB/GYN, anyone?) and really hoping with all our might that we'll still be in Memphis for another four years.  If you would have told me two years ago that that phrase would have ever crossed my mind I would have admitted you to the Memphis Mental Health Institute right away. But really, I have the perfect job, we are at least a drivable distance from home, and we know the area and some people here.  It could be worse.  In any case, Memphis or not, we've got our apartment for 6 more months which should take us to March 1 - sixteen days before we find out where we'll be living for the next four years. Then its just a decision of looking for a house in Memphis right away or paying month to month until June when we'll move to, well, wherever.  So, we have had, and still have, a lot to think about and prepare for, but at the same time, there's not really much we can do about it.  Its an odd feeling - to have so much riding on something that you really have no influence over.  So, we'll see.

There are a few things that I want to do, but haven't.  Partly out of fear - start an etsy shop,  photograph a wedding - and partly out of lack of time or money - frame concert posters and wedding photos, make an anniversary album, try some photography projects (i did pull off a couple pretty good fireworks shots on the 4th).  I was just offered a chance to photograph a wedding, actually (thanks, Scarlett!), to which I first said no, then got up the courage to seriously consider it, and while I was waiting for more information, the person found someone she could afford.  Which is fine, weddings deserve professional photographers, not just serious hobbyists and there's a lot I'm lacking in terms of taking on someone's beautiful wedding all alone.  However, if it was me or no one, I would have done it and I know that I could get a decent amount of photos for the couple.  More than anything, it let me realize that it was something that I wanted to do and probably could have done a mostly decent job.  So, it was a good thing in all.

What made me realize I was ready for creativity again? Well, it was the anniversary album that made me notice I was coming out of this post wedding funk.  I saw a handmade album with pages for each year's anniversary to keep sort of a journal and add a couple photos each year.  I almost bought it, I liked the idea of it being handmade.  It wasn't too expensive either.

So, for all you out there who don't do the crafty thing, I'm about to tell you the biggest downfall of all time for a crafter - "That's an awesome idea -- I could make that!! But I'd add this or change that" and before you know it, that little idea becomes a beast that cost 3 times as much as the original item (handmade really does cost more to make than people usually sell it for) and 5 times longer to make than you first intended.  However, you know this on the front end, but then there's nothing that could top the one that's so perfect and now framed neatly in your mind and its that exact design or you'll have nothing at all.  So, this cool album?  After reading the reviews, I found that it had some cheesy prompts in it about things like "our favorite song this year" and such...  Also, the cover was nice, but...

So, to esty I went (because I don't know the first thing about proper book binding, which is the way it should be - remind me of that later when I tell you its something I want to learn to do).  After a few minutes, much quicker than I assumed, here is the fruit of my efforts:  http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5744911

And now for the real work...I like the horizontal books, with the open spine, in the spring green bookcloth, with the criss crossed ribbon binding, approximately 100 pages, with the rough edges, and a photo of me and adam stitched to the front with possibly our names and wedding date printed next to the photo....I'll send to her the ribbon we used for the wedding (b&w stripe) along with some of the paper we used for our envelope liners to place on the inside of the covers. oh yeah, throw in one of those matching cases to store it in - I can't have my lovely getting dusty during the year between our anniversaries...

But it doesn't stop there...oh no!  So, when it comes to me, all perfect and beautiful, well, the pages are blank... and one has to understand which pages belong to which anniversaries, right?  So, out comes the Gocco, to which I'll print on every other page or so a number along with "anniversary" to which will correspond to each year of our marriage.  Maybe a small something or other for decoration, but that'll take some designing.

So, now....finally, its ready to be lovingly filled with memories and thoughts of the celebration of each passing year (just wait until the kids come, they each will need their own books, too.  Matching in style if at all possible). Done, right?  Weeeeellll, the Gocco really isn't made to print just once or you've wasted a lot of materials.  So, while its out, there's bound to be other uses for it!  See?!?!?  See what goes through my head?  Its a wicked, exhausting, expensive, time consuming, mind consuming process.... and it happens quick!  All those ideas came in about 5 minutes after finding that website. Wow, all of a sudden being a social worker doesn't seem so exhausting after all!

Anyway, I've rambled enough, we'll see how this blog thing goes now that I have a renewed creative energy.  I hope that there are a few people still hanging around the rafters :)  Have a lovely evening!

4 comments:

  1. Good luck Mo! Those sound like wonderful ideas!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Yay!! Marriah is back! I'll definitely be here reading! Sounds like you've got lots of wonderful ideas, as always! :-)

    ReplyDelete
  3. I LOVE this idea!!! Oh and I am also very glad you are back in the land of the living when it comes to bloging. I missed you BUNCHES!!!

    ReplyDelete
  4. flcib2 hzhaqqmzbcrj, [url=http://xxtyppxlnubd.com/]xxtyppxlnubd[/url], [link=http://xjwuddkjqgxn.com/]xjwuddkjqgxn[/link], http://zvqubcinzoum.com/

    ReplyDelete