What a Week

It's hard to believe so much can happen in just 4 days. Today is Friday, which is awesome, but all the days kind of operate on equal footing in my life. Friday just means that I have 2 days that my husband will be home to equally endure my pain!

So the week started off with a bang. I launched my quilting business at prices I could have only imagined paying before I spent my kids' inheritance to buy a longarm. In under 24 hours I had about a dozen people commit me about 20 quilts to quilt in the next 2 months. I was flabergasted so many people were out there. There were more I had to turn away on account of needing to also do my own Christmas gifts in that period. Now I think that is in jeopardy. Hello Target & the mall!

Monday I gave an exam to my sometimes remedial Thermo students too. I actually have a dozen or so that are spectacular students, another 4-5 that will pass and another dozen that could pass as vegetables. They are not the ones you want designing the next space station, trust me. The exam blew even the good students away. It makes me hate facing them when morale is failing. Today they get back the scores and they are awful. With another exam looming on the horizon, I need a definite pick me up for the class. Heck, I need that.

On Tuesday I learned that my inlaws have the Swine. Joyous. Just joyous. They estimated getting it the previous Tuesday, TWO days after we visited them for a day. That's all I need is to have a houseful of swine flu sick kids. I cannot even get my freakin pediatrician to give my daughter a regular flu shot!

Wednesday came and brought me a cold. Or what I hoped was only a cold. My head hurt, I was tired, I felt yucky. My mojo was draining. Many of you know I have cats. I have (or now "had") one that is beautiful long haired orange. Henry's the sweetest disposition animal and totally reminds me of 2 other cats I have had that look just like him. I think that is why I got him at the shelter 1-1/2 yrs ago. He turned out to be diabetic requiring 2x shots. He needs special food at the tune of $30 per month. And over the last few months he's had more "accidents" on the floor than I can count. I really don't think that they are accidents. I think he's wicked lazy. He's completely ruined the hardwood floor in our kitchen. Well, yesterday I did the unthinkable and I took him back to the shelter, crying the entire way. We have no idea how old he is or how long we'll have him pooping on the floor. I just hit my breaking point. And to make matters worse, one of my other cats is missing. She ran away Wednesday. She never ventures far, but to date has spent 2 nights outside in sub freezing temps. It's not looking good. I'm sad and stressed.

So there it is, not pretty, not fun, and the reason my creative mojo is zapped. Before when I got stressed, I could piece quilts with the best of them to work through the stress. Quilting them is different. It takes a strong inner calm place to be creative. Maybe I should take up yoga!

Guess I'll go conquer a binding. Here's a few peeks at quilts I finished up this week... here, here and here. (Sorry, I'm making the reader double click for anything to see today!) I'm not sure there's another 9-patch quilt in my future, but the others were fun to make.