Us

Day 1: With my blog entering its 16th year of daily publication, it seemed appropriate to "go personal" today, so in order of precedence, here's the whole family, all of it, complete and total. It ain't much, but it's rich in love, and that's what matters. The Center of the Universe had no intention of waking up the rest of the way, nor was he any too happy with flash photography which, in all honestly, isn't on my list of favourite shooting modes either. As for the coming year, I'm going to do my best to keep up the regular posting schedule, but at this point, I make no guarantees. I don't get out nearly as much as I used to, a matter which Merry thinks is a better arrangement anyway. Time spent with loved ones is a precious commodity, and generally, we don't understand its true value until we're in our later years.

Mexican Sour Gherkin

Day 282: There are several reasons for my daily posts. The first, of course, is to educate. Another is to make science less terrifying to those who flunked it in junior high school, and yet another is to encourage my readers to take up new handcrafts. These considerations fall within the definition of "outreach," i.e., in some way connecting my readers to a broader world. However, many of my images and descriptions also serve as a phenological journal, allowing me to look back to see when a particular plant emerged or was in bloom. Thus it is that today I am recording the development of several minute yellow flowers and the promise of a nice crop of Mexican Sour Gherkins which, at maturity, will look like miniature watermelons, pale green with dark green stripes. Their diameter will not exceed one inch. Almost seedless and slightly tart (hence the name), they are in fact a cucumber and can be eaten straight off the vine. The plants prefer to climb, so I have been training the tendrils on coarse garden string and a tomato cage, and the tips of some of the stems have already gone over the top. It is drought-tolerant once established and, growers are cautioned, "bears heavily all season." I'm looking forward to bite-sized cukes among the other unusual vegs and fruits in my garden.

Dresden Plate Blackwork

Day 85: Occasionally, there are times when nothing seems to work according to plan with respect to my daily posts, and for reasons I am at a loss to explain. It might be that I "slept crooked" or "got up on the wrong side of the bed" even though to do so literally would flatten my nose against a bookcase. My photographic "eye" will be off, compositions unbalanced; my physical eye likewise, focus an unattainable object. On those days, I often arrive at evening in a critical state: "What am I going to do for a blog shot?" In desperation, I cast about for anything within the confines of the house which (a) I haven't photographed in a while and (b) has the makings of a story in its depiction, whether related to the subject or not. More the woe on my part if my literary skills also turn turtle, as the saying goes.

Blackwork thus becomes topic du jour. The piece currently in progress is based on the classic Dresden Plate quilt pattern. In this particular execution, every fourth segment is done in a "shaded" style, stitchery more dense toward the center of the plate, fading out to the basic stitch elements toward the outer edge. In designing blackwork stitches, the artist starts with a basic form which allows for repetition within a given space. If a shaded look is desired, additional stitches are added. Note the sections at one o'clock and five o'clock.

Winter weather has kept me from working on this piece for the last two weeks. Cold weather turns my fingertips to sandpaper, and often as not, I pull the thread out of the needle before it can pass through the canvas. Using hand lotion is out of the question because it would carry to the cotton. Gloves (even thin nitrile) are not an option. I'm crocheting with worsted instead. Winter is almost the only time I work with heavy fibers.