Shawn L. Bird

Original poetry, commentary, and fiction. All copyrights reserved.

practice November 29, 2011

Filed under: OUTLANDERishness,Pondering,Reading — Shawn L. Bird @ 2:04 am
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“forgiveness is not a single act, but a matter of constant practice”

Diana Gabaldon in Drums of Autumn

Forgiveness is something that requires practice because it’s not that easy to do.  There are things that get under your skin and you want to hold onto them.  Little injustices.  Petty irritations.  Big betrayals.  Some things are so slight that others don’t know why you’re holding onto them, but we’re stubborn to our own detriment, much of the time.  I’m a bit of an expert in the cutting of a nose to spite a face.

When you can do it though, even for big things, especially for the big things perhaps, it releases a freedom of spirit.  Holding tight to grudges ties a knot in your spirit.  Forgiveness creates the wings to set it free.

 

 

make it work until it is November 28, 2011

Filed under: Grace Awakening,Reading — Shawn L. Bird @ 6:21 pm
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In Becca Fitzpatrick’s Hush, Hush, protagonist Nora has the following conversation with her widowed mother:

“How did you know you were in love with Dad?” I asked, striving to sound casual.  There was  always the chance that discussing Dad would bring on a tearfest , something I hoped to avoid.

Mom settled into the sofa and propped her feet up on the coffee table.  “I didn’t.  Not until we’d been married about a year.”

It wasn’t the answer I expected.  “Then…why did you marry him?”

“Because I thought I was in love.  And when you think you’re in love, you’re willing to stick it out and make it work until it is love.”   (p. 188)

I like the sentiment expressed here.   Attraction may be there in the beginning of a relationship, or it may grow on you, as you learn to appreciate the source of your affection. Sometimes you need to be persuaded of them.  Sometimes they’re apparent to you immediately.  Sometimes the reasons you are initially attracted change with time, and you grow to love and appreciate completely different facets of your beloved’s character.

The key, of course, is focusing on the positive.  If in that first year, all you notice are the irritations, you’re going to be driven apart, rather than blossoming together in love.  A mutual commitment to the relationship is necessary, as well as a desire to develop a strong and loving relationship.  You have to make that choice, and do things to improve the relationship and the commitment.

Love may be powerful and visceral at times, but it is an emotion, and it is therefore volatile.  Sometimes you will be angry, and anger may completely overwhelm any feelings of love that you have.  Some days you will be frustrated, and frustration may completely destroy the respect and affection you feel for your partner.  What do you do then?  That’s when commitment comes in.  When you’re committed to the relationship, anger, frustration and other irritations lose power.  Commitment is the key to making a relationship grow, blossom, and allow it to seed joy, family, and support into your future.

When you give up love dies.   When you’re each committed to being the best for each other, your love is strong enough to transcend time.

Just ask Ben and Grace about that.

 

what if what comes is worse than what is? November 27, 2011

Filed under: Commentary — Shawn L. Bird @ 11:03 pm
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What if the democracy we thought we were serving no longer exists, and the Republic has become the very evil we’ve been fighting to destroy?

PADME AMIDALA

Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith

I wonder if this is kind of what the Occupy Movement is all about? Look at how it worked out in Star Wars. Someone could be pulling strings, and what is the result of over-turning the status quo could be worse than what there is.

 

write what can’t be said November 26, 2011

Filed under: Commentary — Shawn L. Bird @ 9:56 pm
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The role of the writer is not to say what we all can say,

but what we are unable to say.

~Anaïs Nin

 

reminding yourself of who you are November 25, 2011

Filed under: Commentary,Reading,Writing — Shawn L. Bird @ 2:13 pm
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“You can spend a bit of yourself when you give yourself to a character. At the end of a job, you have to remind yourself who and what you are.”

Richard Armitage.

When I’ve been involved in musical productions, it’s always been depressing the first day after the show closes to find yourself again. Those with romantic roles tend to find themselves a little in love with their show paramour for awhile. The rest of the cast tends to wander about dazedly wondering what they’re going to do to fill their days now.

I’ve written previously about this feeling when emerging out of a particularly in depth literary immersion.  I think this is true when you are a writer, as well. When you are wrapped up tightly in your in your alternate world, it can be a difficult transition to return to the mundane realities.

What power has the imagination to fuel such alternate visions, and to put them all into our heads.  We carry our own ‘holodecks’ of possibility.  We can create our own world of romance, joy, and comedy.  We can create our own horror drama.  How important it is to make the best choice, to make our lives the best we can imagine them to be!  If reality doesn’t suit, we can imagine a better life.

 

Echoes November 24, 2011

Filed under: book reviews,Commentary,OUTLANDERishness — Shawn L. Bird @ 6:21 pm
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In my on-going delight over having discovered and devoured Diana Gabaldon last month, I have read the last book in the Outlander series twice this month (I read through most of the series twice since I discovered them. Just because.

I had a bunch of ponderings about Echo in the Bone, and was hoping to spend some quality time on the Outlander Book Club forum. Unfortunately, having Americans involved, they have closed the forum for the Thanksgiving holiday (imagine! shutting down the internet for a holiday!) NOT being an American, I’m not very impressed. I did a search for other discussions and came across this amusing review.  I thought you might be entertained by it as much as I was.

Having shared that, and not being able to play on the forum, I shall have to listen to Voyager and cut out that linen tunic, I guess.

 

kilting continuance November 23, 2011

Filed under: projects — Shawn L. Bird @ 6:22 pm
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The latest report on the kilt making!

1. hem the approximately 8 yards of fabric

2. set the lining

3. pin the pleats according to hubby’s preference

4. press the pleats

5. manipulate the pleats from the fit at the hip to the narrower waist

6. hand stitch the 7-8 yards of hip pleats into position

7. baste pleats onto the lining

8. hand stitch the waist pleats

9. add apron fringe fabric

10. add waistband

11. pull threads to make fringe

12. add buckle closures (2)

13. figure out inner closure…

14.  add hanging loops

15. sigh dramatically as spouse models completed kilt!

At last report, I was anticipating having to re-do the stitching.  After subsequent measuring, I decided that I was just going to leave it.  The measurements are close enough (1/2″ off).  I am not sure whether I am actually going to put in a lining, but if so, I’ll be able to tighten the top two inches of the kilt  with the one inch waistband, I think.

I would be finished, except I determined that the 3 lbs of fabric requires MUCH sturdier buckles and straps that the wimpy pair I’d picked up at the fabric store when I bought my fabric.  I have therefore ordered a sturdier set from a kiltmaker in Scotland.  I will be inserting the straps into the waist band when they arrive, so I’m at a stop.

I am also waiting for a package from http://www.scotweb.co.uk/ that includes a clan buckle, kilt belt, and kilt hose (aka socks).  I have made garters and flashes.  I had very good luck on eBay this week and managed to obtain a lovely sporran with a gorgeous engraved silver cantle.

So!  Things are progressing quite nicely.  Finishing will depend on the mail arriving from the UK, but in my experience, that should mean within the next couple of weeks.  I tend to have UK parcels arrive much sooner than parcels from Eastern Canada or the US for some reason.

While I wait, I’ll be stitching up a linen tunic.   I had to go through several collections before I found the perfect one:  Simplicity 3519.   I like that this one is uni-sex.  It can be used for a variety of costuming purposes.  I will be making B, the one they show in green on the top right of the photo.

 

kilt complications November 21, 2011

Filed under: projects — Shawn L. Bird @ 10:05 pm
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I set out to make a kilt using instructions from the internet.  I wish I’d had photos of every tiny step in the procedure because after hand pleating and ironing and pinning for 7 hours, then hand stitching (using the prescribed tiny felling stitch, even though it looks wrong to me) 31 shaped pleats from hip to waist for 8 hours.

Because today, while trying to figure out exactly how to attach the waistband, I discovered that there should be a couple inches of the waist measurement, (in other words, the narrowest point of all 31 pleats should have been 1.5 inches lower than I have sewn them.

8 hours it took to put in those 31 pleats.

8.

Yeah.

Now I have to study the finished kilt and see if there is a sneaky way of fixing this without having to re-do all of the pleats.  I wish I’d found this out yesterday.  >>sigh<<

It fits absolutely perfectly as it is, which makes it even more irritating to have to raise the waist.  No point whining.

I have stitches to pick out.

 

ironing hell November 20, 2011

Filed under: Commentary — Shawn L. Bird @ 9:50 pm
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I hate ironing. When I first got married, I told my husband that. I buy no-iron clothing. If he wants his clothes ironed, then he has to iron them. Luckily, one of his jobs as a kid was earning cash for ironing his father’s shirts. University professors wore ironed shirts back then. He irons his shirts in front of the TV.

I don’t iron. My clothes either are the kind that don’t wrinkle or they look slightly rumpled.

So what was I thinking when I took on a kilt for a sewing project? 31 pleats (in the final version. There were several more I’d put in that I had to iron out…)

iron, iron,iron, iron,iron, iron, steam, iron, iron,iron, iron,iron, iron, steam, iron, iron,iron, iron,iron, iron, steam, iron, iron,iron, iron,iron, iron, steam, iron, iron,iron, iron,iron, iron, steam, iron, iron,iron, iron,iron, iron, steam, iron, iron,iron, iron,iron, iron, steam, iron, iron,iron, iron,iron, iron, steam,

 

kilt progress November 19, 2011

Filed under: projects — Shawn L. Bird @ 2:27 am
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I don’t think I have ever ironed more in my whole life.

I’m making progress on the kilt.  Today I re-measured for the length, waist and hips, and made the first cut of the fabric,   serged all the edges and then hemmed all 7 metres.

Then began the pleating!  The DH wanted it pleated to the sett, and so it is.  Because he’s a big guy, I went with 1″ pleats.  After all the pleats were done at hip level and below, I shaped the waist edge.  The same edges were brought closer, into about 5/8″.  They were pinned and basted down.

And then the rest of the basting was done, measuring, ironing, and fiddling.  I’ve decided to stop for the night since it’s 2 a.m.  The DH will have to try on what I’ve got, and then I’ll actually get sewing down all those pleats, one at a time.  At last count there were 32 of them, but I think I may have added a couple.

With only pins and basting holding it together, here is the front apron:

Here is the back view. I’m really quite proud of my pleating to the sett.  I think it came out wonderfully.  When it’s sewn down, it should be quite impressive, fitting neatly over the hips!  It’s hard to tell there are any pleats at all, at first glance- but they’re there!  Trust me! (or click on the photo below and ‘control +’ to enlarge it and see for yourself.)

A good evening’s work, I think.  I’m looking forward to the first fitting tomorrow!