The news here in New York City, more specifically Manhattan, is that non-essential shops, restaurants, etc will continue to be in lockdown. Tell that to the Irish Pub less than a block away that is a thriving hive of activity, selling burgers and free shots to any who “need” it. As we were hit harder than anywhere else, this means that for some of us, we have been doing the whole #stayhomestaysafe thing since the end of February. Hence the Irish Pub giving out shots and being deemed “essential”. Which, I’d like to just say here, is both funny and kind of tragic at the same time.
The pub, a hub of activity.
The good news is the gym remains shut, and therefore I do not have to wake up at 6:00am and think – should I go workout or remain in bed staring at the ceiling wishing I could go back to sleep, knowing I won’t be able to, and then going, begrudgingly, at 6:30 or even 7:00 to the gym anyway, having spent the last hour facilitating between whether I should or shouldn’t go, thereby losing not just an hour of my time to the gym, but more like two hours, which really starts to piss me off.
The bad news is I’m at an age when going to the gym and getting exercise really shouldn’t be optional, and is therefore “essential,” but since I feel like I’m still in my late 20’s, I forget. Maybe I should get that drug made from jelly fish that’s supposed to help with memory loss… And then there’s the emerging new fad – running. Not running on a treadmill, but actually running outside. For those younger than 40 this will strike you as “new,” for the rest of us this is one of those – oh right, I remember running when I was in my 20’s, when everyone wore those nylon running shorts that looked like two petals overlapping and when you ran they’d kind of flap. For many of us it wasn’t attractive then and still isn’t now, though I hear that running attire has vastly improved, except I wouldn’t know firsthand as I have zero intention of going for a run down the still-sort-of-empty streets of Manhattan.
Anyway running is more a re-emergence much like culottes or what we called in the 60’s petal pushers, but that are now referred to as capris. Amazing how a new name and a little marketing can make any old thing seem new and tantalizing. (This was less a regression and more a tangent, but really what does it matter? It’s not like you have anywhere to go or anything else to do, right?) The point is, running has become a ‘thing’ again. Or so I’m being told. One of my girl friends runs now daily, though she insists she doesn’t run as much as she jogs or, as another friend of mine called it, a slow slog. Later I learned that she had actually said “a slow jog” but I mis-heard it as “slow slog,” which I like better. AND it made me reconsider my whole – You won’t catch me running unless it’s away from something or someone and I’m in grave danger of being physically injured. I even caught myself thinking – I could do a “slow slog”… tomorrow. Clearly I need the magical elixir that only a jelly fish can provide. Which, by the way, whaaaaaaaaaaaat?????? Who knew jelly fish had these super powers, let alone magical ones and how does whatever they have, have anything to do with memory and memory loss? I cannot be the only one asking these questions. Or am I?
Don’t answer that.
So another few weeks or maybe months of #stayhome, making the whole #staysafe part of the hashtag questionable, because really, who is “safe” when you’ve been cooped up inside for going on three months or more? Or do we need to redefine the word “safe”?
Regardless, I have some stitching to do and another couple YouTube videos to record, edit and post.
Don’t forget to #stayhome and do your best to #Staysafe and if you’re feeling really adventurous go for a slow slog.
This is the title of my latest YouTube video where I talk about how easy it is to talk oneself out of creating something new. Ever had the experience of thinking – “I’m going to design something new, I don’t know what yet, but something!” and then you sit down and suddenly you’re thinking about all the laundry that needs to be washed, the floors that need mopping, the faucet that should be looked at, the emails that need answering, suddenly, even your taxes seem like a good idea? Yeah… I know. Crazy. I’ve been designing or creating something, in some medium, my entire adult life and yet, this still happens to me (ok, I totally exaggerated about the bit about how I consider doing my taxes instead of creating. That hasn’t happened yet, but all the other things I’ve contemplated, I swear.) I’ve learned a few things over the years, and I discuss a couple of them in my video.
When I wasn’t taping and editing that video, I was trying to figure out how to make an Instagram Story. For anyone younger than 50 reading this – I know, I know, but I didn’t grow up with this stuff and it can seem pretty daunting. However there’s hope, even for me. Below is my very, first Instagram Story that I posted yesterday afternoon with a lot of guidance and help from my friend and chef extraordinaire Vikki, @Chefvikkik. Thank you Vikki! ❤️
My mother is a wonderful source of humor and joy, particularly during this pandemic when she’s taken to sending us (her children) videos, photographs and sometimes text of things other people have created. Here’s one of them – this one is from Daniel Emmet singing his version of Nessun Dorma. Wonderful!
And then there’s this from Taavi Metsma coming up with a great new exercise routine, which I won’t be able to do because we don’t have that many spare rolls of T.P. in our house. He’s clearly flaunting his stash, making the saying “compare and despair” all the more real and distressing!
For seven days I did not step foot outside our loft. Since the pandemic became known as such, I have ventured out only occasionally. So it shouldn’t come as any surprise that I tested negative to having COVID19 antibodies, and yet, weirdly I was. And perhaps even odder, I felt both relieved and disappointed simultaneously. Disappointed because knowing that I’d been exposed, and weathered it, would have given me some degree of comfort, but now, knowing that I have not, makes me even more inclined to continue my #stayhomestaysafe poster girl endeavors.
Looking south to the Freedom Tower on a beautiful day in Manhattan
Of course there’s always the possibility that the vile of blood I gave was switched mistakenly with someone else’s or the test itself could have given a false negative or… But if I’m being reasonable, chances are I have not been infected. Which is a little surprising considering that I live in New York City, with a population of over 8.5 million people, making each and every one of us likely super spreaders simply by going about our daily routine. A routine that might include, depending upon how active we are, all, or at least a few, of the following: gym, errands such as the post office, grocery shopping, work related meetings, entertainment related outings such as a Broadway show, dance performance, music concert, museum, art gallery, walking the High Line, having dinner with friends or any number of other things one might do in this vibrant, beautiful city I call home.
Looking north to the Empire State Building last Sunday
Everywhere one looks, spring is on full display, inspiring me to think of designs and stitches and colors and shapes.
The beauty of our world continues even as this pandemic rages on. And so does the artistry and creative expression of our fellow humans. My mother sent this to me the other day… Evidently a librarian arranged these books to be read from left to right.
And here are a few of my latest circles that I have been designing, using Sue Spargo’s #Instastitchwithsue project as inspiration for a wool applique 1″ circle and the stitches and threads that embellish it. As Sue will be removing her videos from instagram once the 90 days are over, I have been using my videos to explore threads, stitches and the creative process.
I know today’s Thursday because I post a new blog Tuesdays and Thursdays, and also because I have my glasses on and my iWatch conveniently tells me that it’s Thu April 23rd. I also now know that it’s cloudy outside, and at this moment 42℉. Of course, one is putting a great deal of faith in one’s iWatch if you trust all of this, because personally, I’ve gone outside, wearing the appropriate clothing for 42℉ weather, only to find I’m way under or over dressed, and that it doesn’t feel like 42℉ at all, but instead much more like 50℉ or, conversely, 30℉.
One morning I woke up and my iWatch helpfully told me the weather was “Unusually sensitive”, which I thought bizarre and had me in search of a magnifying glass just to make sure my eyesight hadn’t suddenly gotten much, much worse. I then wondered if my iWatch was commenting on my emotional well being. That idea was so creepy, I felt compelled to google: “my iWatch is telling me the weather is “unusually sensitive” what does that mean?” as one does, and I learned that this was referring to the air quality. I felt a bit foolish then as that actually made sense, sort of, but still it felt weirdly prophetic and throughout the day I was on high alert for anything or anyone that/who might cause me to feel “unusually sensitive”. Thankfully, I made it through that day and am still here to tell all of you.
All of this reinforced my feelings that my iWatch was not an entirely reliable narrator. However, I do trust it to tell me what day it is. So today is “Thu” and it is, in fact, the 23rd. Who knows what month it is, my iWatch neglects to give me that information. And anyway this confusion is all a result of the current pandemic we find ourselves bit players in. Each day melds seamlessly into the next; the months are beginning to bleed into each other as well. Oh come on, I am not the only one out there feeling this way!
They need to add a calendar to this sign so people know whether it’s Mon. Wed. or Fri. and while we’re at it – “knock if mask is needed” seems, on the surface, to be such a lovely and generous idea, but who knows where that mask has been?! Am I the only one concerned?
I tell you all of this because I have been doing YouTube videos on Sue Spargo’s #InstaStitchWithSue 90-day project and, as each day rings in a new circle, I do my best to keep track of which circle I’m recording on which day. In an attempt to speed up my taping process, I sometimes try to tape the intro to several days all on the same day, which I then edit and post on the correct day. If you’re confused right now, you can only imagine how confused I am. It doesn’t help that I’m not quite caught up, and every now and again I drift from Sue’s beautiful design and use her stitches as inspiration to do my own thing. So I decided to talk about that process yesterday I mean today in my video, which I am helpfully leaving below. You’re welcome.
In addition to all of this, I am also making my way through Sue Spargo’s Creative Stitching book and posting videos covering each of the stitches she features in that book, but stitched left handed, which you might not think makes much of a difference, but I can tell you, it kind of does! This was my original concept for my channel in the first place.
My attempt to keep what stitch I’m recording and posting on which day and the ensuing mess that all of this “organizing” is creating. My mind does not think in organized ways. This is something I’ve come to realize, appreciate and accept.
I have to go now, because I only have a limited time to tape while it’s still quiet and before everyone starts getting up, including the two construction sites that are both using jack hammers on either side of us. We live in New York City after all. There’s construction going on all the time, even during this pandemic.
Stay safe, stay home, wash your hands, wear a mask, not necessarily in that order.
During this time of quarantine, particularly in New York City where most of us do not have a back yard we can wander or just sit in, to get a little fresh air, doing something that connects us, feels less like a luxury and more like a necessity. A connection to our planet, to one another, things once taken for granted are what call out during this time of forced isolation.
My mother sent me a video from an unknown source that uses works of art to underscore what we are currently going through and what many are feeling.
A man in Barcelona plays John Lennon’s Imagine from his balcony, courtesy of YouTube.
In Florence Maurizio Marchini serenades his city
Art – the ways in which we express the wonder and beauty of life through our emotions, creativity and talents is how we connect to each other, to ourselves, and to this world.
I haven’t stepped foot out of our house since Saturday, but I have had hundreds of interactions with people from all over the world, which is both amazing and delightful. Community. During a period when we cannot actually be with our friends and extended family, connecting over common interests is all the more desirable.
Recent comments