I surveyed what is left of my gardens this morning and became angry that the rains pulverized my peony patch and all the other flowers trying to bloom. All that beauty wiped out; gone.....stealing their limited lifespan and cheating me of those few weeks of gardening reward. Flower heads pounded into the ground by the force of driving rain, lying in ruin as if they didn't have the right to exist. For a few short moments I felt bitter but that was replaced with shame as I remembered what's happening elsewhere in the world.
Everywhere you look there seems to be weather related devastation. Mud slides, floods, hurricanes and fires, maybe the latter is set by the carelessness of humans but then fed by the wind and vegetation. Bad weather seems to be running rampart across the globe. Every morning I leave for work burdened with a heavy heart after being inundated by the news on every station. It makes you weary of owning real estate as you see the billions worth of property damage. I think it wise for everyone to devise a disaster plan as you can be hit from any direction, sky, land or sea at any time and it seems the more prepared you are the easier it is to land back on your feet.
I sit watching TV wondering what I would grab in an emergency situation. All the memories one accumulates, your documented past and that of previous generations can all be wiped out in a heart beat. Maybe I should have a plan, store precious memories in an easily accessible area protected by waterproof Rubbermaid or fire resistant steel. Things you can never replace like childhood photos, artwork of children, pictures of parents and grandparents, wedding pictures and certificate, documents of importance.
I wonder how people rebuild. They must be made of stronger stuff than me or maybe you gear down to survival mode and grow stronger? As long as we endure it's easy to say the loss is only stuff, but that stuff is our past, proof that we existed to future generations. And yes, we have it all locked safe in our memory banks as long as we walk this planet, but there is nothing tangible to pass down to our children when they ask about their family tree.
This world needs a day of rest from all the devastation. A day for everyone to catch their collective breath. A day without tragedy and destruction from the force of nature stomping across their life. I'm not sure if the world is more worse for wear than usual or if television is delivering it to our living rooms on a larger scale. Maybe ignorance was bliss, not knowing made it easier to go about your day as if the world is warm and fuzzy for all. My daughter-in-law had to leave her home in Calgary and won't get back for another week. Actually knowing someone going through this disaster makes it more real. She's one of the lucky ones, her condo is on a higher floor so her personal effects will be intact when she finally makes it back home. So many others won't be as lucky........
*************************************************************************************************************************
Everywhere you look there seems to be weather related devastation. Mud slides, floods, hurricanes and fires, maybe the latter is set by the carelessness of humans but then fed by the wind and vegetation. Bad weather seems to be running rampart across the globe. Every morning I leave for work burdened with a heavy heart after being inundated by the news on every station. It makes you weary of owning real estate as you see the billions worth of property damage. I think it wise for everyone to devise a disaster plan as you can be hit from any direction, sky, land or sea at any time and it seems the more prepared you are the easier it is to land back on your feet.
I sit watching TV wondering what I would grab in an emergency situation. All the memories one accumulates, your documented past and that of previous generations can all be wiped out in a heart beat. Maybe I should have a plan, store precious memories in an easily accessible area protected by waterproof Rubbermaid or fire resistant steel. Things you can never replace like childhood photos, artwork of children, pictures of parents and grandparents, wedding pictures and certificate, documents of importance.
I wonder how people rebuild. They must be made of stronger stuff than me or maybe you gear down to survival mode and grow stronger? As long as we endure it's easy to say the loss is only stuff, but that stuff is our past, proof that we existed to future generations. And yes, we have it all locked safe in our memory banks as long as we walk this planet, but there is nothing tangible to pass down to our children when they ask about their family tree.
This world needs a day of rest from all the devastation. A day for everyone to catch their collective breath. A day without tragedy and destruction from the force of nature stomping across their life. I'm not sure if the world is more worse for wear than usual or if television is delivering it to our living rooms on a larger scale. Maybe ignorance was bliss, not knowing made it easier to go about your day as if the world is warm and fuzzy for all. My daughter-in-law had to leave her home in Calgary and won't get back for another week. Actually knowing someone going through this disaster makes it more real. She's one of the lucky ones, her condo is on a higher floor so her personal effects will be intact when she finally makes it back home. So many others won't be as lucky........
*************************************************************************************************************************
Lorrie's Table Runner
Lorrie asked me to design a table runner with pineapples as a gift for her daughter. So I used the dimensions provided and came up with a pattern reminiscent of an old fashioned rug. Traditional elements of scrolls, twigs, and leaves paired with the ageless appeal of the pineapple, commonly refereed to as the international symbol of welcome, will mean all eyes will be focused on the table, not on the food!
I left the center area uncluttered to display a bouquet of flowers or candelabra without covering design elements. It always seems a shame to concentrate motifs in the center of a design when they might be hidden from sight, so I opted to put the focus on the two ends. This rug is also large enough for a narrow hall runner or along the bottom of a bed, a flashback from the past when one made bed rugs.
Lorrie has hooked several of my designs and uses yarn as her medium. The burnt orange leaves are one of our spot dyed yarns giving the maple leaf a bit of life whereas a solid colour would have made it flat and less interesting. Done in an autumn palette and cream background the piece is very earthy in its feel.
I don't know much about yarn hooking but I do know that a 4 oz skein of 2 ply yarn will cover about a square foot of area so I am able to colour plan and dye for projects when requested to do so. I'm not a big fan of yarn myself but I can appreciate its fine appearance after seeing a lot of Chetticamp pieces in local craft shops. I did try hooking with yarn once so I'm basing my opinion on experience but for some reason my hook liked to snag the fuzz and pull out the entire hooked row. I work quickly and anything that slows me down is immediately corrected and after pulling out several rows of hooked area I decided wool fabric was less frustrating. Now if yarn was the only wool available I would be happy to use it but because we are spoiled with what seems like an unlimited supply of woven fabric, I'll stick to it until the sources dry up!
I left the center area uncluttered to display a bouquet of flowers or candelabra without covering design elements. It always seems a shame to concentrate motifs in the center of a design when they might be hidden from sight, so I opted to put the focus on the two ends. This rug is also large enough for a narrow hall runner or along the bottom of a bed, a flashback from the past when one made bed rugs.
Lorrie has hooked several of my designs and uses yarn as her medium. The burnt orange leaves are one of our spot dyed yarns giving the maple leaf a bit of life whereas a solid colour would have made it flat and less interesting. Done in an autumn palette and cream background the piece is very earthy in its feel.
I don't know much about yarn hooking but I do know that a 4 oz skein of 2 ply yarn will cover about a square foot of area so I am able to colour plan and dye for projects when requested to do so. I'm not a big fan of yarn myself but I can appreciate its fine appearance after seeing a lot of Chetticamp pieces in local craft shops. I did try hooking with yarn once so I'm basing my opinion on experience but for some reason my hook liked to snag the fuzz and pull out the entire hooked row. I work quickly and anything that slows me down is immediately corrected and after pulling out several rows of hooked area I decided wool fabric was less frustrating. Now if yarn was the only wool available I would be happy to use it but because we are spoiled with what seems like an unlimited supply of woven fabric, I'll stick to it until the sources dry up!
Pattern size 18 1/2" x 60"
This pattern can be viewed on my New Designs page of the website.....click the link:
http://www.encompassingdesigns.com/new-designs.html
http://www.encompassingdesigns.com/new-designs.html
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