Lost files.
Too many things I don't like to do needing attention.
The tractor is out of commission.
And so on. Everything I touch goes haywire.
What really has me torqued is this: I spent a couple of hours last night printing templates for a quilt pattern I am challenged to make before next summer. I bought the book and fabric earlier this year, and decided I'd better get going on it or before I know it, I'd be facing a deadline with nothing to show for it.
It had already been pointed out to me that actual sewing directions are not provided -- just rudimentary diagrams. Not for beginners, I guess. I'm okay with that. I cracked open the book, intending to make some progress. My first thought was, "Why does this book not give rotary cutting directions for these patterns?" I figured I'd get around that little glitch by printing the templates out from the CD provided with the book and measure them. Or just use the templates, seeing as how they'd already be printed out. Oh ... what's up with this?!? Each little template is in a separate file, so must be printed on a separate piece of paper. How handy is that? Not at ALL handy. Okay, so bite the bullet and proceed.
I found it strange that the pieces are drawn in awkward sizes, like 3-13/16" -- is that really necessary? I find it annoying because the rotary cutting rulers are generally marked in 8ths, but NOT 16ths. Tsk! I went ahead and cut out these jerky templates and then carefully cut my fabric pieces, thinking that once I got them cut out it would all go smoothly enough. (Will I never learn?)
When I realized this day was heading South real fast and nothing I could do would remedy that, I decided to work on the quilt blocks cut out last night. (I'll worry about that other stuff tomorrow. Just call me "Scarlet.") But as I started feeling a little smug about getting a good start on this thing, I realized that the blocks were not coming out to the right size. I measured my seams -- they're an accurate 1/4-inch, just like they should be.
The dilemma now is ... do I continue, and just hope against all odds that the blocks will be SOME consistent size that will work out? Should I rip apart the ones I've finished, and make my seams smaller? or do I quit while I'm ahead? (Well ... that's not really possible at this point because I've already cut a lot of my fabric into little pieces that are otherwise useless to me.)
Decisions ... decisions. This whole day has been one big stinkbomb.
And ... here's the real story. We got word that a son of folks we know died unexpectedly and I can't get it out of my mind. Truth is, I can run the hose to water the garden, the lost files will be found, the tractor repaired. I can re-do the quilt blocks. But nothing can fix a hole that big left in our hearts. We keep trying, but the stuff that we do, trying to fill our days, sometimes amounts to nothing more than a stinkbomb day of futility.
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