Yesterday was highlighted with a sudden and strong downpour during the storm. It was nicely timed as I had just finished up doing some yoga and felt rather refreshed in my soul. As I finished my short session, I saw the clouds approaching from across the bay, and then the skies just opened. It was by far the closest thing I have gotten to a good old Illinois thunderstorm since we left the state. I took a picture of the shrouded city skyline:



Here is the view of the skyline today:



What a difference a day makes. I spent the rest of the day cleaning up from the flurry of weekend activity and making dinner. I also got around to working a bit on a personal velvet wreath. I have made one of these for my mother, sister, and sister-in-law, but I have never gotten to make the one I wanted for myself. Now is the time I guess. I have quite a few of the leaves cut out and also on their wires, but there are still a few colors that need to be pressed and then cut out. Perhaps I will work a bit on that today if there is time. I am determined to get one of the gifts that is partially cut out fully cut out and mostly sewn up today. I know that was the goal yesterday, but there was more cleaning to do around the house than I expected. I am also going to try to pick up the harp and learn to play it again. This has been a multi year struggle, and I would like to kick the quitting train. I am resolving to watching less news in the afternoons and do more things that are good for my soul, mainly yoga, dance, harping, and reading. I hope to stick to the new plan. Well I am off to try to rouse the 770 into playing my station again. It has become difficult again as of late. Hopefully I can convince it to connect to the network, so I can groove away on this holiday sewing!

Yesterday I was really unfocused. Today is also shaping up to be the same. I cannot seem to stay on one task and see it through to completion lately. I was hoping to get things more on track today, but I fear it is going down the same road. I did get my desk in order and also plowed through the three months of personal checkbook balancing that needed to be addressed. The desk, I am happy to report, is wonderfully clean now, and the books balanced on the first go. From there things just degraded. I wanted to get some new items ready for photographing this morning and uploading to the shop, but I could not stay on task. I debated making a pie. I debated working on the belt. I picked up a pair of pants and stitched for a bit. I then focused in on some Christmas stuff for family and pattern copying for their gifts. (I am a chronic copier of patterns rather than cutting them out of the paper. I like to have copies rather than have to buy the pattern over again if there is a cutting problem.) Then I went back to the pants and debating pie. Then I decided to get on line and attend the SF Etsy team chat. Then I researched a discontinued pancake mix for my parents.

I was literally all over the place. Seeing as it is noon now, and I have not a lot to show for the day, I think today may wind up the same way. I think the pie has to be made. Who can say no to chocolate pie? Then I am going to focus in on the pants that I have been trying to work on for forever and finish them. Preliminary pictures perhaps for tomorrow's posting. Then I want to work on a pair of repair pants for a Belegarth friend. He needed me to fix some patchwork pants that keep ripping apart. I hope the serger can fix that up. If there is time, then it is off to work on the red work tins. The embroidery for them is gorgeous; they just need to get finished.

Those are the goals. Hopefully I can make them! Hey what is that shiny thing?!