Depression and Crafting

I say to my friend Kristie, I am not sleeping well and am so tired that I haven't done any thing in the way of crafts.  Add to that I am getting a little depressed.  Kristie says well no wonder you're depressed you haven't done any crafting. 

It's pretty obvious what the problem is but what is the solution.  When I get depressed I don't want to do anything.  I just lay around and sleep and eat bad things like chocolate chip cookies and potato chips and candy.  Which is especially bad since I weigh over 300 pounds.  I don't feel inspired or creative and current projects just bring me down.   How do you make yourself do something when you don't have the energy to do the things you love?

I am working on my kids to get the house in shape.  I am hoping that this afternoon I when I get home I can get the Studio straightened up.  Part of the problem is the clutter.  I am a lousy house keeper and when I get home I don't want to clean.  With the kids all being teenagers it shouldn't get as messy as it does.  We all need to establish new habits and start putting things away and stop procrastinating.

Things should be backing off at work this week.  I should be able to get more sleep.  I am trying to eat better.  More non starchy veggies and salad, less starches, and less desserts.  Plus I am going to try and work on something every night. 

On Saturday, when my depression, was the worse I did about 1/2 of a chevron strip.  Sunday, I did 1 and 1/2 strips plus knitted 4 rows on a shawl.  I definitely feel better.  I have 13 strips done on my chevron quilt and am about 1/3 of the way through the 14th.  I have decided that 15 or 16 strips will be it.  I will find something else to do with the left over 2x4 pieces of fabric.  I am running out of some of the different prints and the lack of variety is making the strips less appealing.  I can come up with something creative for the remaining strips I am sure.

I have two or three projects to finish.  I am going to try free motion quilting on my bronchitis quilt and I still need to bind the full size quilt.  Plus there are others I just need to work on.  I have too many projects left undone to waste time being depressed.  I guess I will just have to force myself to get busy.  I know I will feel better once I do.

Spring Malaise? Or Just Plain Tired?

I am beginning to think there is an energy monster out there who is draining the energy from my family.  Lately all we want to do is sleep.  Now I understand that pollen counts have been high but lately they are only in the moderate range. Of course school is winding down and finals are coming up but there is 2 more weeks before finals start.  I am still putting in long hours but have been able to cut back a bit.  So Why, Why is my whole family so tired?  Maybe it is just a spring malaise. 

When we lived in Utah, spring was invigorating.  We had been cold and gloomy for so long that sunshine and warmer temperatures were a welcome change.  But here in the south it never gets very gloomy nor very cold.  Spring is the harbinger of a hot muggy summer.  It just may be the thought of the hot humid weather that has us exhausted.  Who knows?  What I do know is that none of us is sleeping very well and we all are constantly tired.

Once again my time has not been my own.  I did work in the garden a little this past week.  As well as take care of other things. We had the missionaries over to the house for dinner on Thursday, which is always nice.  I have not done much in the way of crafting though.  And that is not good.  I have developed a sort of apathy towards everything. 

My husband and daughter did pick up some Magic Glos for me on Friday.  I actually have all I need to start playing with making resin pendants.  Maybe we (Tatianna and I) will try it later this week.

I am about finished with another chevron strip on my quilt project, which is kind of sad.  I was doing 4-5 a week when I first started it. But now I am down to maybe 1 a week.  I bought a couple of quilt pounce pads so I can mark the bronchitis quilt once I get the borders on it.  I am thinking I will try free motion quilting it on my new machine.  I have gotten the fabric, for binding the full sized tied quilt, washed and am going to get it ironed this afternoon.  I may even cut it.

Of course I took a nap after church so I am somewhat awake, but I still want to sleep.  I don't dare though because I definitely won't sleep tonight if I do.  So I better get myself busy doing something. 

The Working Mom, Time Constraints, Money and UFPS (unfinshed projects)

I have been a mom for 29 years and I have almost always been a working Mom. In fact out 29 years I've only been a stay at home mom 7 of them.  When I had my first child, I was in college and we all know that school is a full time job.  When I got married 5 years later,(to a man with 2 children) I was able to stay at home for a year and had another child.  I had more Time to craft but no Money.  Isn't that the way it always goes, Time but no Money or Money but no Time.  Anyway, I ended up going back to work while my husband was in college (and had 3 more children), so a little Money but no Time. Then I was a stay at home Mom for six years (had out last child).  Plenty of Time but definitely no Money.  Back to work for a company that was supposedly part time, Time and Money?  Alas No, It became full time.  But my schedule was somewhat flexible and I was able to work with the 4H program and did teach some craft classes for them. Then we moved again. This last move placed me in Southern Georgia, with a full time job that isn't flexible and has a 1 hr commute each way.

I am short handed at work and so I putting in long hours.  10 - 14 hours a day plus the 2 hour round trip commute.  I may loose my craft fiend status but I have to admit that by the time I got home these past 2 weeks the last thing I could have been was creative.  I haven't really worked on much of anything.  I did get another strip of my chevron quilt done but that was about it.  Now don't get me wrong I really did want to be creative just didn't have any energy to be creative.

I did get some inspiration on Saturday though.  I slept in until almost 8:30am (4 hours later than I had been getting up) but got up in time to watch Fons and Porter Love of Quilting.  I love the show. Sometimes I learn a lot but other times it is a way to waste time. This episode was Binding Boot Camp.  I am not a great quilter (or even good), but I do love to quilt though and so I have more than one UFP.  One in particular is driving my daughter nuts.  It is a full size quilt that only needs to be bound.  It has been waiting for almost a year to be finished. Since I struggle with binding, I put it off. 
In this episode of Fons and Porter's Love of Quilting:

1. I learned that binding does not have to be cut on the bias 
2. I learned that 2 1/2 inch strips are wide enough for thick batting.
3. I learned how to figure out how many strips to cut.
4. I learned that to get really nice mitered corners you need to take the quilt out and move it.  (this is one area I really struggled with)
5. I learned to trim the edges after sewing the binding to the top.
6. I learned that experts (Liz Porter and Maryanne Fons) didn't stitch in the ditch to finish the other side but actually did it by hand because it gives you a nicer finish.  (I thought I was inept because I couldn't get it to look right)
7. And last but Not least I learned how to end the binding properly. 

I am hoping to get to work on the binding for the quilt this week.  I feel much more encouraged after watching that single episode.  I would have started it yesterday but spent the day at my husband's company picnic and then we started planting the garden (larger than most people's yards but hey I married a farm boy) Today we had church and then a hospital tower dedication.   Then it is back to working on the garden.  I am hoping to do some work on the quilt tomorrow.  If I can find the time.