Onwards and, well, onwards!

[Maegaranthelas]

January 6
Neck Mobility
A few solid hours of tidying and then a few solid hours of knitting xD
Standing Abs day 3, 4, 5, and 6. caught up

I am going to try not to stress too much about exercise this month, since I have a few things going on that will already cause exhaustion.
I will do extra when it feels right, and not push myself too much the rest of the time. Surviving is good enough this month =)

 

[Maegaranthelas]

January 7
Neck Mobility
Standing Abs day 7
Lots of foam rolling because this was a veeeery high pain day.

January 8
Neck Mobility
Standing Abs day 8
Walking twice 15 minutes, and then another 30 later for 30DoC. I didn't realise it was raining and at that point I already had my coat and shoes on so I walked xD
30 Days of Change day 2, 3, and 4!

Turns out exercise is a lot more appealing when your neck isn't messed up xD
I even put on my old gym shoes! It's been ages! I realised after I'd tied the first one that I probably should have checked for spiders first

 

[Lady Celerity]

I even put on my old gym shoes! It's been ages! I realised after I'd tied the first one that I probably should have checked for spiders first

I get little scorpions in the house sometimes and have learned to give my shoes a good shake before putting them on! I hope the damage was minimal (except to the spider).

 

[Maegaranthelas]

My socks seem to have remained spider-free, so lucky me xD
But I really should have checked after so many months of not touching them.
No scorpions up here, er even any insects/athropods that can hurt us.
Most of the spiders here can't even pierce human skin.
It really is the opposite side of the world to Australia

January 9
Neck Mobility
Walking first 30m through the snow, then another hour through the snow ^^
I had a veeeeeery busy day but it was fun, and today I can rest.

 

[TopNotch]

It really is the opposite side of the world to Australia

Is that jealousy I hear? Here, if we see a spider, we just assume it's poisonous because - likelihood.

 

[Maegaranthelas]

More like homesickness @TopNotch
I lived in Aussie a few years as a kid. So I didn't hold much sympathy for the Dutchies afraid of the spiders here... They literally can't hurt you, calm down
I know phobias are irrational though. But spider phobias are so common, even in a place where there just aren't any dangerous ones. It's strange!

 

[Saffity]

I am one who has a very large spider phobia. I know where mine comes from: a big fat hairy one climbing across my face one night. We have pretty big dock spiders in my area of Canada, but compared to Australia, they're babies. My big thing is to not spread my phobia to my kids, so even though I'm screaming and freaking out inside, I do my best to stay calm and collected, and SMASH EVERY SPIDER TO SMITHERINES, but not make them scary.

Though, since our basement reno, we have had some very large house centipedes upstairs that have put our tiny spiders into perspective. Luckily, the kids haven't noticed them since they hang out on the ceiling.

 

[graoumia]

Though, since our basement reno, we have had some very large house centipedes upstairs that have put our tiny spiders into perspective. Luckily, the kids haven't noticed them since they hang out on the ceiling.

i was used to be really scared of spider, and i am still not a huge lover of them now; but compared to centipede i like spiders....

 

[Maegaranthelas]

Aaah yeah giant centipedes are way creepier than spiders to me xD and a friend of mine with arachnophobia is the same, he really doesn't want to give it to his kids so he's very brave and then just complains to us about having to be brave <3

I did have a Huntsman spider (one of the absolutely massive Aussie ones) crawl on the side of the kiddie bath when I was a kid. As soon as it left, I ran inside to go tell mum. And promptly stepped on a bumblebee I think the pain from that counteracted any fear
I might have had of the spider, who just came to look at the bath and left again when it saw me.

Luckily I havent developed an irrational fear of bumblebees

 

[graoumia]

I walked once on a bumblebee, i was so sorry, because he certainly suffered more than me, i was an adult, and should have been carefull. When i was a kid i was afraid to step on ants, i couldn't walk without watching the floor. It was a bit exhausting.

 

[Maegaranthelas]

Ooh, yeah that would be exhausting!
I am very glad ants are strong and clever, and somehow manage to survive almost anything!
I really love bumblebees, despite the childhood accident.
Probably because I understood it wouldn't have stung me if I hadn't accidentally squished it.
Wasps on the other hand are really rude. Sometimes they sting because you're standing a little too close to the bridge where they're trying to... eat the paint?
That was a weird french wasp. Elles sont foues, les guepes!

Today was dedicated to recovering from how busy the rest of the week was!

January 10
Neck Mobility
Standing Abs day 9 and 10
10 Squats & Push-ups

 

[TopNotch]

Aww, huntsman spiders are cute! My dad was a hude arachniphobe. One day there was a huntsman on the wall, the next day I told him it wasn't there any more. He looked at me with great relief and asked, "you got rid of it?" I looked him right in the eye and said, "no."

 

[Maegaranthelas]

January 11
Neck Mobility
Standing Abs day 11
10 Squats & Push-ups

January 12
Neck Mobility
Standing Abs day 12
10 Squats & Push-ups

January 13
Neck Mobility
Walking total about 2 hours

January 14
Neck Mobility
Standing Abs day 13 & 14
3x10 Squats & Push-ups

I kinda failed at updating my log xD
But it was for positive reasons!

Last year I slowly managed to whittle down my inbox to manageable levels of 'unread,' and I love it.
I go through and get rid of the unnecessary stuff most days and get around to the actually important ones sooner.
Plus, if I don't get around to it for a few days it's still a manageable pile instead of

Realising that this 'simple' change actually saves me a significant amount of spoons (and makes me feel like a marginally more functional adult), I came up with a new goal:
I decided to implement "just get it done January" and "finish it February".
I want to make a significant dent in The Pile of unfinished projects, especially the sewing, knitting, and mending piles.
I've noticed that they are taking up bandwidth unnecessarily and making me feel guilty (even though I am often the only one who even knows about the project).
Excitement about a new project is sometimes driven out by The Pile, and even the joy of making the thing can get overtaken by the lurking unfinished work.
Having a few projects on the go is great, and sometimes a project really needs to have a Time Out and Think About What It's Done.
But when you're coming up to 30 things that you kinda still want/need to do, that's a lot of mental space taken over

So this weekend was the start of my new project that is getting through a lot of projects
So far I have fixed two pairs of trousers for my partner and one for me, evaluated two other pairs and decided that they are not fit to be garments any more.
(to be honest, I never want to be that skinny that these would fit, that would be Bad for my body. And they required too much mending to give away).
I also revamped a top that was made for me about 14 years ago but even then was too tight for me to wear comfortably.
It now has lacing over a truly immodest amount of cleavage that will make it perfect for my friends' halloween parties and nowhere else, but it makes me happy
I even cast on a sleeve for a knitting project that has been haunting me pretty much since I started knitting!
That was one hecking productive weekend.

Yesterday I was planning on moving forward with the Big Project that's been on my mind, but I had an unexpected possibility of hosting a lovely friend, so I put all my energy into that instead. Today I have been incredibly tired but it was so worth it! And as I sat on my bed resting and recovering I also got in a lot of hours of hand-sewing

And then, just before giving up for the night, I thought "hey, let's give that exercise stuff a go!" And it went well

Now I will be good and go to sleep and not stay up to read all the notifications first because that will take a while

 

[Syrius]

I decided to implement "just get it done January" and "finish it February".
I want to make a significant dent in The Pile of unfinished projects, especially the sewing, knitting, and mending piles.

I love this idea. I was just having a similar talk with myself about all the WIPs laying around my house.

 

[Maegaranthelas]

I would love more crafting company
I found it really helps to actually write down what I need to do for each project/item.
Or if I don't know yet, make figuring that out one of my tasks.
Speaking of which, I need to go figure that out for a new thing, because I just finished a nightgown experiment I started pretty close to the start of my sewing journey
I have no idea how long this thing will last before falling apart (quite fragile fabric!) but I finished it all by hand in the spirit of how I started it, and it does feel very nice to wear.

What shall I tackle next? I think either the waistcoat for which I stupidly used the mock-up as a lining even though they clearly were no longer the same pattern (2 years languishing)
or the dress from a very silly fabric that ended up being more stretchy than anticipated and therefore looking very off in the bust area (1 year of utter frustration at the thing)
or finally fix the dress that has actually been in my living room for ages and is partly through being fixed

 

[FlowersandPetals]

I’m a crafter as well. We should make T-shirts

 

[Syrius]

Off the top of my head, I can think of two needlepoints needing blocking and framing (I'll have to go find someone to help me with that part), two Christmas stockings that need top stitching and French knots, and cross stitch pattern that needs like 100 more stitches and then all the top stitching as well. I have a partially made dress (that I have no idea if it would even fit me anymore). I am sure that if I looked around my craft room, I would find all the things that I said I could fix.

Totally should make shirts.

 

[Lady Celerity]

I’m a crafter as well. We should make T-shirts

Tie dye!!!!

 

[TopNotch]

Once upon a time, I actually hand-smocked a hat for my younger daughter. Kind of like this but in smaller squares:

She was so happy with it because it was pink and she loved pink (and I was chuffed because I'd never done anything like that before). First day she wore it, she lost it. Won't catch me doing something like that again! Fortunately now that they're teenagers, they just buy black stuff from the charity shops.

 

[FlowersandPetals]

Tie dye!!!!

Yes!

 

[Maegaranthelas]

Haha, charity-shop-goth is a natural state for teenagers, so many of us went in that direction xD
I love how many of us are crafty people! And yes, I do suspect I will at some point want to get into dyeing, whether with natural plant dies or just full tie-dye xD
I would need to experiment with it first of course, but I can see myself knitting a cabled jumper in natural wool and then just tie-dyeing that


January 15
Neck Mobility
Standing Abs day 15
10 Squats & Push-ups
Walking 30m

January 16
Neck Mobility
Standing Abs day 16
10 Squats & Push-ups

I'll admit I've not been actually looking at which exercises I need to do for Standing abs every day, I often just do both of them

I'm making nice progress on the languishing jumper, the first sleeve is a good 20cm already!
I did also try on the silly dress and determine just how much work it still needs (a lot!).
Trying not to let it get me down, the point is to make progress with it so it doesn't live forever on The Pile.
I 'finished' the nightgown but it will definitely need some more done to it to not fall apart if I actually wear it in bed and, I don't know, turn around in my sleep
I guess it has moved from WiP to Mend, but it is at least much less neglected than it was!

My brain is being a bit blah today due to fatigue, so I might cast on a scarf I was hoping to get started on this month.
I could do with the New Project Buzz, I think =)

 

[Maegaranthelas]

January 17
Neck Mobility
Standing Abs day 17 (both again, didn't want to slow myself down by looking it up xD)
Walking 30m (Cold! Not Canada cold, but hovering around freezing with incredible humidity. Very grateful I made this coat from a warm fabric!)
30 Days of Change day 5 and 6
1 Minute Plank Challenge day 1 (3rd step, 2 sets)
10 Squats & Push-ups

I managed to resist the call of a new project, and instead took apart the waistcoat!
The lining can just go in the scraps pile, but the outside will probably be fine with a little alteration =)
Just needs a much better lining, and I think I might actually line the fronts and back separately and then sew them together all at once
I also wrote down what I will need to do for the skirt. Basically everything xD But it's good to have the list.

To get my brain to stop begging for a new project, I just did more exercise xD
I started the 1-minute plank challenge. It's mostly going to be on the stairs, as I noticed that my shoulder stability is far behind on my strength
I can hold an elbow plank a little while or do kneeling push-ups, but I always seem to mess up my shoulders with them.
So I figured I should reduce the load and keep moving gently for the entire minute to hopefully build up some stability instead of bricking them again xD

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

Not Canada cold,

but hovering around freezing with incredible humidity.

The humidity definitely makes a difference! (At least that's my excuse for why I'm such a wimp about the cold here when I live in the southernmost part of Canada. Other parts of Canada definitely get colder. But it's a damp cold down here.)

 

[NancyTree]

In my new town there's this shop where they sell all sorts of yarn, all colors, and it shows from the street. Everytime I walk by, I want to go in and buy myself a new project. But I resist, if I finish my latest project, crocheting a stuffed animal, then I may buy something new. It's waiting already for 3 years to be finished

 

[TopNotch]

can hold an elbow plank a little while or do kneeling push-ups, but I always seem to mess up my shoulders with them

Be sure to keep your elbows/hands under your shoulders. If your hands are higher, then you'll be putting more strain on your shoulders. Elbow planks make this a little easier to check and it's also easier to shift your body forward that bit if you notice you've fallen back. Also make sure your shoulders are down, not shrugged at all (as in, towards your ears). When in a plank position, don't sink into your shoulders; try instead to push that upper back upward.

 

[Maegaranthelas]

@Laura Rainbow Dragon I've learned from The Arrogant Worms that 'a dry cold' is better

@NancyTree oof, you are very strong to have resisted the siren call of the yarn shop! I am also trying to resist the urge to buy more until I have some of my backlog sorted

@TopNotch my issue is that I my shoulders are my laxest joint, and I don't really know where the neutral position for them is. Ive spent years doing plans with my arms too high because that way at least they wouldn't be pressed out of the sockets. I don't think I made much progress but at least it didn't hurt. Now in trying to correct that I think I might have had my arms too low instead for all my kneeling push-ups, and possibly just don't have enough strength in the actually relevant muscles
I probably need to go all the way back to basics and just figure out what trajectory my arms are even supposed to move in. But it's hard when they're frequently just slightly misaligned because tight muscles are pulling them off-centre

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

@Laura Rainbow Dragon I've learned from The Arrogant Worms that 'a dry cold' is better

The Worms got their start at my Alma Mater. (While I was there, no less. Although I did not meet them in person until many years later.) And they've toured across Canada. So yeah, they would know.

 

[Maegaranthelas]

January 18
Neck Mobility
Standing Abs day 18
30 Days of Change day 7
1 Minute Plank Challenge day 2
10 Squats & Push-ups

January 19
Neck Mobility
Standing Abs day 19
30 Days of Change day 8 & 9
1 Minute Plank Challenge day 3 (2 sets)
10 Squats & Push-ups

Managed to make progress on my main project this weekend, I have actually done all the complicated pattern drafting bits, and almost all the cutting.
I also hemmed the edges of one of the offcuts from my nightgown by hand, and now have a wonderfully soft pale ice blue bandana!
The sleeve knitting is also still progressing well, and I even managed to read a chapter in a book I've been wanting to reread for years.
I've been very tired and at times felt like I wasn't getting anywhere this weekend, but looking back on it, I've actually done so much!

 

[Maegaranthelas]

January 20
Neck Mobility
Standing Abs day 20
30 Days of Change day 10
1 Minute Plank Challenge day 4
10 Squats & Push-ups
Walking 30m

very busy day, but got some knitting in =)