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The end of the 2012 Circle project. I'm off to a party, where, with luck, I will give away the rest of them, plus a couple in the mail.

A very happy new year to every one –

Lee

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Holidays and family and weather, Oh My!

Aerin was named Christmas Czar this year. Her decree was that everything should have to do with books, if it wasn't a book. So it became Bookmas.

It was a huge success. The kids agreed to get out of bed before noon, and Alice actually woke up on her own at 9. We sat around visiting and laughing while Aerin woke up some. We handed eachother piles and piles of books. Things we wanted someone else to read we got from the library and wrapped. Some books we bought – technical things (origami, data presentation, Turing biographies) and beloved books we had to have copies of. 

After we opened things, silence descended on the living room. An hour later, someone looked up and complimented Aerin "Bookmas! huge success!" and we all went back to reading again.

May your day be as successful as necessary, and peaceful and bright.

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I think this is my favorite of the last few days.

I've been spending a lot of time at school, talking to the student directors for the Shorts Festival (mostly one acts, some scenes) coming up a week after we get back from vacation. Mostly I want to know if they have any complicated things happening onstage that they haven't figured out how to do yet. As a direct result of talking to people four times as much as I'm used to, I have to spend more time on the couch decompressing after being cheerful and polite. Handwork is good for decompressing, but I seem to have run out of words to say about any of these pieces.

I did say, out loud today, I was pleased there are only 10 circles left to make.

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tiny circles on circles in a circle

just a little distracted

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I think I caught the textures well!

The neighbors are celebrating St. Lucia's day with sweet things, astonishing mulled wine and what seems to be 57 kinds of cookies. Oh, and Eva-Q gets to wear a crown with lit candles and Chester comes after with a hat, wand and platter of bread with more candles. And we sing, in English and Italian, about meeting Santa Lucia by moonlight. Which remains deeply mysterious to me. But I really like the candles. And the cookies.

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A new thing is tugging on me.

Also I rode a horse today! Kaboose and I did 20 minutes walking and trotting. She was not limping, my back didn't hurt, and neither of us freaked out. And! I didn't fall off. If I'm not hobbling tomorrow then it looks like I can start riding again, a thought that fills me with pleasure.

Two circles are on flickr, if you click on the barn above –

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There is a very sheer circle in the center. I had to mess with the photo so it was almost visible.

I am recuperating from two days on my feet at the craft fair. I managed laundry and shopping today, but mostly I want to sit down and be stupid in a corner.

Yesterday's circle is on Flickr, as are better photos of Dec 7 and 8. I took their portraits with my cell phone because I'd left my real phone at the show…

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I talked to more nice people today than I did all week – craft fairs are good for that. I'm lucky in my neighbors, and lucky with my customers.

I will be there again tomorrow too, all day. I hope my voice holds out.

The circles for yesterday and today are stitched using pleating patterns and techniques I found in a beautiful book called Shadowfolds. I got it out of the library, but I might have to own a copy. I like it a lot.