Taking a Time Out

My unofficial new year's resolution for 2008 was to make this year all about me. That's right. I'm putting me in the spotlight. Selfish as that sounds, it's been a good decision. 2007 was all about everybody else around us. Before we were half way through the summer, I was exhausted just thinking about stuff that needed to be done or attended to. My to-do list was a cesspool dripping over my head. Plus I had a rather sick feeling in the back of my mind that I had accomplished nothing that I wanted to do for myself.

So I protested.
Then I boycotted.

And now, I've said no.
To everything.

For the first time in my life, I'm not "all of the above". I'm not working more than one job. I'm not volunteering. I'm not organizing. I'm not going here, there and every where because someone asked me to. For the first time, I'm not being pulled in three different directions. I can relax without feeling guilty. I can take a day off and actually HAVE a day off and not think about work! For once, I don't have to fit myself into my schedule.

Clean plate for 2008.
Nice, it even rhymes.

Last month, I finished a knitting project that was for me. This is the first time I've made something for myself. Everything else I've knitted has been gifted to someone else. How insane is that? My entire stash of yarn is not technically for me. For every project I have in mind, I've already mentally assigned a recipient to it. Ironically, it took me two weeks of planning before I could decide on a knitting project for myself. Who knew it would be that hard? Or that much fun? I didn't. Now I'm halfway through my second knitting project for moi.

Next, I finally opened up the box on my new sewing machine. That only took two years. I love learning new skills. I love new hobbies even more. Instead of talking and dreaming about "some day", I decided that "some day" was going to be "today". I signed up for the introductory course at the Love Sewing Studio :: here ::

Other classes I'm eyeing for the not to distant future:

Hand-dying Yarn at Lettuce Knit :: here ::
Quilting classes at the Workshop :: here ::
Silk Screening classes at Peach Beserck :: here ::
Fabric Printing with ColourVie :: here ::
Clay workshops at the Gardiner Museum :: here ::

There's also weaving (I can just picture R's face when I bring home a ginormous floor loom into our condo), cello lessons, spinning (as in spinning yarn, not sweating over a bicycle), bookbinding, scrapbooking and any other project that plots itself into my brain.

Toronto is a hotspot for artisans and crafters. There are so many people out there willing to teach. And so, while I'm not technically busy running around charged with half a dozen commitments. I am busy these days.

Learning. Doing. Making. Thinking. Dreaming.

With myself.