crafttastic.

if this fuzzy picture of this fuzzy buddy isn't proof enough of my mental state, then the fact that my baby boy is sitting in front of the laptop searching craigslist for jobs for mommy should be. i spent the entire day yesterday doing the resume thing. i feel good about it, but i also feel like there aren't enough hours in the day to send out as many as i would like to. i also haven't heard from anyone yet. that's frustrating too.
i shouldn't be surprised though. the economy is what it is. i just wish i had something concrete to grasp as my next step. *breathe* i'm an optimist. i can do it.
an interesting effect of this unbelievably stressful venture is that my creativity has been kicked into high gear. all i can think about are projects i want to do and try and make and sell on my etsy store. oh yes, that ole etsy store that i have had on hiatus for nearly the entire year. it still exists. i spent about an hour or so yesterday looking through all my how-to's at the nest. i've found a craft (a what?! that's right, a craft) that i'm interested in learning. as creative as i am, i've never really been crafty. i paint folky art sometimes, make odd jewelry on occassion, write poetry and short stories and decorate like a fiend; but i'm not crafty per se. lately, though i've been really intrigued to learn how to needle felt.
okay so here's something weird about me. i love beautiful things. i admire crafty people. knitters, potters, quilters, stain-glass makers etc. my mind often wanders down very crafty roads. i, however have never found anything crafty that hearkens to my pragmatic side enough to inspire me to try it. my mom makes beautiful brightly-coloured quilts. quilts are practical! i love that. but i'll be damned if i can sit still long enough to plan out and make a quilt.
i have several gal pals that knit and crochet. practical as well. i get hats and scarves as gifts. again, that's something, come the apocolypse that will benefit people. just like the quilts.
okay, then there's me. i write. i sometimes paint. i take broken jewelry and piece it together in weird ways. and while yes, a written documentation of the apocolypse could come in handy for future generations... in theory, it isn't really something that can keep you warm at night.
all of this to say, needle felting has recently begun to greatly appeal to me. i don't know why because it isn't practical. it's just kind of neato. there is something comforting about felt to me and all the funny things you can make with it are interesting. oh but i digress.
back to my practical side. i do want to relearn how to can fresh fruits and veggies again. i haven't done it in about 15 years since i was in an unbelievably hot kitchen in north carolina with my mee-maw standing over a giant pot of scalding water and mason jars filled with homegrown green beans. sounds awful, but it was wonderful. i have chutneys and jams and tomatos and beans and all kinds of delicious recipes to enjoy this winter buzzing around in my head. it's the perfect combination of creative and pragmatic. something that will benefit someone but is also aesthetically pleasing and/or an epicurean delight.
so there. those are the two things that are swirling in my mind in creative ways since being inundated with the outrageously stressful task of finding a new job.
heh. it's a long one today, eh? enjoy your tuesday, lovies!
adieu for now,
~lu