Saturday Morning Blather

As you may have guessed, most of this week I spent stationed in front of the television with the radio close by, trying to gather any and all information about the Christchurch earthquake on Tuesday.  I am a news junkie most of the time, (I inherited it from both my parents,) but I have never experienced such a big disaster so near me.  Everybody I know personally are safe and in some cases out of the region, but I have not heard of anyone whose homes did not suffer.  Worse, I have friends whose family members were injured and our thoughts are with them especially. 

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The news coverage kept me in the living room, and I was able to hem and finish my 18 cashmere and 4 alpaca scarves, rather than fluttering away to start more projects.

I finished labeling and tagging around 11PM on Thursday, (so no time for feel good pics,) but was able to deliver the cashmeres on Friday to the Red and The Suter.  Jay at the Red very much liked the Log Cabin pieces, and when I told her I was thinking of more in perhaps navies and teals, she challenged me to teal-and-burnt-orange based on the bottom center painting in Red's current exhibition.  It's an unexpected piece, one I want to revisit, but the top far right piece was my instant favorite. Two of my scarves are on their way to my friends, both named Joan.  

I'm still so unsure about the alpaca scarves and they ended up coming home with me. I haven't photographed them and I need to sit/sleep on these a bit, and they need to spend time under my couch a bit.  

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One of the things troubling Ben and me for months has been whether to have another trip to Japan this year.  Financially, this is so the wrong thing, but for the first time in our 16 years we've been here, my dad asks me every time I phone home if we're planning a trip soon.  This is uncharacteristic of him, and we wonder if he knows something we don't.

At long last we decided to go, and yesterday we bought tickets at a good price, (but not exactly "cheap" fares as they have more restrictions about dates, etc., and we've never found one that suits us.)  Let's just say I need to sell 19 cashmere scarves to cover my ticket.  Plus I had a small filling in my tooth fixed yesterday; three cashmere scarves there.   

I have never been this hard up monetarily in my adult life, and on the one hand I feel dispirited rather than worried.  On the other hand, I feel strangely elated and cleansed, because I no longer have the burden of worrying and what's left is to save where I can and work to generate income.  And I am fortunate I have all my equipment and yarns so I have the means to try to generate products that can potentially generate income.   

Of course because Ben has a day job, we don't have to worry about our living as long as we cut back on non-essentials, and I know this is absolute luxury for a weaver.  But the cost of this trip may have been the kick in the head I needed for some years; I don't worry about book sales, yarn sales, or tiny everyday luxuries any more and I like how this feels.

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The planning for the New Zealand Creative Fibre 2012 is going ahead and the latest report indicated much of Internet-related aspects (my turf) will go live before I leave for Japan. So, there's some work to be done there.

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I wonder if anyone can help me.  Ever since the earthquake, I can't get rid of the smell of  smoke/cinder. I had Ben check everywhere, during the day and at night, and there is nothing around the house that's burning and no neighbors have been barbecuing.  I'm sure it's psychosomatic. I didn't smell it in town yesterday.  One burn ointment with a strong smell has been the only thing that works.  I feel like I'm forever walking by a house ruined by fire.  Have you heard of anything like this?

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Good post title for what I've been doing often on Saturdays, don't you think?