Miscellany of a Cheshire Cat

More comics at: The Chronicles of Monster Cat

tags: cats, comics, falstaff, flashback, laundry, monster cat, silly, tennyson

We’re leaving in 12 hours or less. :)

This year, the manic sewing marathon yielded:

• 3 Pairs of Fop Pants
• 2 Viking Aprons
• 1 Green linen under dress
• Several repairs
• and a crazy project that took longer but was less stressful than expected

Not bad. I was afraid I wouldn’t finish any of the sewing for myself but some did get done. The sewing day yesterday was very productive. The Fop did all the packing of the truck and trailer while I sewed today. And this evening. And now I’m done. And I packed almost all my stuff today which was rather insane as well. Pennsic packing was rather last-minute this year… We have remembered something we meant to buy (and bought it! Super-sized ziplock bags FTW!) and also remembered what we forgot to pack (and bath stuff is now on the list to pack) so hopefully we have remembered everything else.

Tomorrow morning, I’m going to be a good little viking and raid Starbucks before the Fop wakes up.

Then, we drive, drive, drive! YAY! Hopefully it won’t be too hot when we set up camp tomorrow evening!

Have a fun time while we’re gone! See some of you really soon! YAY!

tags: packing, pennsic, projects, sca, sewing, travel

More comics at: The Chronicles of Monster Cat

tags: cats, comics, monster cat, sewing, silly, suspicious, tennyson

More comics at: The Chronicles of Monster Cat

tags: cats, comics, gravity, monster cat, silly, tennyson

I think we’re on the 7th wave of thunderstorm blowing through here. This is awesome. The house is still bloody hot, but it has cooled down considerably outside. Sadly, the storms kept elzregina from coming up to take away basil, but the rain will mean I’ll have twice as much basil for her by the time she does come by. This all started here a little after 4 pm. It’s been storming on and off for 8 hours. What an awesome day! (…I should go check the basement before I got to bed…)

Much sewing has been achieved today. I somehow ended up making the apron dresses slightly too big in the bust (how does that happen???) and need to nip them in just a teensy bit. I may cheat and take a dart out of the top of the back panel… but really I should take it out of the sides under the arms. It’s probably an inch to an inch and a half that needs to be taken out. Pesky self-measurements. Unfortunately, I already finished the top seams so I’ll need to do a little bit of extra seam-ripping to do whatever I end up doing. The hems are done too. Other than the small measurement issue, I’m quite pleased with how they’re coming out!! Hurray!!!

I spent some quality time with the Goddess of Irons tonight too… I love my Rowenta iron. She sure uses up water quickly making steam too!

Of course, I’m starting to get the “not enough time” jitters. I haven’t really started any packing. Our garb isn’t even all on the same floor for sorting and inspection. I do have running lists of “things to buy” and “things to remember to pack”. I also have packed for Pennsic *mumble* times before so I suspect I can survive. I’m just twitchy and tired and blogging instead of sleeping because my brain is trying to convince me to keep sewing even though my eyes have already said, “No way!” to more sewing tonight.

What’s really excellent is that I’m excited about Pennsic! No pre-Pennsic blahs for the first time in several years!

tags: goddess of irons, packing, pennsic, sca, sewing, thunderstorms, weather

That’s right… I can even make blurry photos into Monster Cat.

Mr. Paw does keep giving me this “I’m going to stare at you until you fall under my power” look. I think perhaps if he were a little less easily distracted he might actually win that game. Scary thought, right? Poor kitty has been denied his inalienable feline rights for years: no tuna and no wet food.

And yet, somehow, he soldiers on.

More comics at: The Chronicles of Monster Cat

tags: cats, comics, monster cat, silly, tennyson

Technically, today was cooler than the past few days. Technically. I’m not actually sure I believe it, but maybe it’s the heat catching up with me. I am more than ready to be on vacation. Seriously. I have dealt with double my quota of stupid people today. Stupid people and heat make me cranky all by themselves… together, monster-cranky.

So here is a pretty flower from my garden. It makes me less cranky. Sleep, sleep will be nice for reducing the cranky too I think. I love sleep. Yay sleep. Good night!

tags: flowers, heat, photographs, photography, roses, stupid people, weather

• 2 packed cups of basil leaves = a lot of basil
• And yet 2 cups are not really enough to make a dent in my basil patch
• Despite being packed into a growing space much too small for the volume of plants, at least 2 types of hot peppers already making appearances in the garden as well
• Self-watering beds still need to be watered (there’s a reservoir system that needs replenishing… both went dry with the heat this weekend… oops… but they appear to have recovered completely from being parched since I watered them at lunchtime)
• The rosemary seems to have not noticed the little drought, yet…
• It’s also bloody hot here again today
• My hands may smell permanently of basil - oh darn?
• In indoor garden news, my kumquat is producing fruit - still green, but definitely fruit

tags: basil, gardening, heat, hot peppers, kumquat., plants, weather

Monday’s applicant is another cat from Maine, Fred, whom I affectionately call “Peanut Butter Face.” He’s a dear, sweet, playful cat. He’d make an excellent sidekick too… if the commute from Maine weren’t so long.

More comics at: The Chronicles of Monster Cat

tags: cats, comics, monster cat, silly, tennyson

Hot days like these call for polar bears.

I borrowed slyppi’s shopping karma today, sort of in exchange for some zen I loaned her earlier in the week. I had extraordinary good luck at Kohl’s and Fashion Bug. I ended up with a dress for the wedding next Saturday without too much trauma! I also found 2 fabulous tops for work, 2 casual tops and 2 piratey tops (one is even pink to help me embrace my “pirate chickness” - I even have a flag). Finally, I snagged an awesome dress - black lace over red slinkyness. It wasn’t an awesome dress when I tried it on a few months ago and it was $70. But, at $14 this dress qualifies for awesome status.

I have also achieved a great deal of pleating in the past 36 hours. Stupid Fop pants. They still need buttonholes, but the cuffs and waists are pleated into their appropriate sizes. I hope. Can I mention one more time that I hate pleats? Yes? Good. I hate pleats. A lot. They tweak the little OCD chick in the back of my head and I end up using a zillion pins when I probably shouldn’t have to. There’s probably a better, easier and faster way. In fact, I expect an e-mail from my mother in the morning telling me there is indeed a better, easier and faster way to put in pleats and that I’m a silly goose for not realizing sooner.

I also finally got around to doing a mock-up of a Viking apron dress. I’ll be having Gertrude help me tomorrow with cutting the hem right. Then I’ll rip it apart and cut one or two out of real fabric. The apron dress does not involve any pleats. I’m excited by this. I’d rather do dags than pleats. The apron dress doesn’t involve dags either, it’s okay. I have a ridiculous list of things I’d like to get sewn for Pennsic. I think if I get a quarter of it done, I’ll be doing well.

This weekend has been stupidly hot. I hope all the folks at EKWC are drinking their water. Well, at this hour they’re probably drinking something else, but I hope they drank their water all day! I have been chugging ice water today. I was reminded earlier why I don’t usually drink ice water - I drank 2 big glasses very quickly. Ugh. Oops. I’m glad I could spend the day being productive in air conditioning. I am a wimp when it comes to heat. I skipped war camp this weekend in the interest of not starting Pennsic already cranky about heat. I’d be fine with a cold Pennsic this year - days in the mid-70s, nights in the low 60s or 50s… Yeah, that would be lovely.

Right, now it’s time to go to bed, but not to sleep… I haven’t finished Jhegaala yet.

tags: clothing, garb, heat, pennsic, sales, sca, sewing, shopping, weather