Why We Go On Journeys......
My kids can barely contain their excitement. Nick is grinning and so am I. There is something so magical about setting out on a new adventure into the unknown. Dragon Dreams will be closed from July 29th until August 15th. I tried to find someone here to train to cover things, but explaining everything and finding someone I trust to allow into my home and into the business was just a bit too tricky. That is one of the major drawbacks of being your own boss and being the company in general. If you want to get away, it has to come to a halt. Luckily, stitchers can still get stuff through my distributors and shops that already have product.... but it is a bit of a worry.
Getting ready for an adventure made me think about why we go on journeys in the first place. Sometimes, the journeys take us across miles or oceans, and sometimes they are just emotional or intuitive leaps, but the process of breaking out of the pattern you’ve gotten into is the same. Journeys give us the chance to see and explore new things... get a broader picture... think outside the box.... and they capture some of the wonder and excitement that we too willingly seem to set aside as adults. I really learn a lot from my children in that department.
I am also really looking forward to getting away for just over 2 weeks. That’s something that I haven’t done in 9 years, since I went freelance. Every other time I went away, I found ways of checking in by e-mail, phone , fax etc. to make sure that I didn’t miss anything important. The only thing I really learned those times was that I didn’t really let myself get away completely. Letting go of control is scary, but it can also be refreshing. This time I am determined to just get away and enjoy spending time with family. I am sure it will recharge my batteries deep down inside!!
Here’s to adventure!!!!!
Wednesday, July 28, 2004
Monday, July 26, 2004
Surfacing At Last...
It’s not quite 1 am here... and since this is an EARLY night for me compared to some of the nights this past week, I thought I would blog before bed. The highlight of today was singing “Seek Ye First” with Nick, Erin and Bethany as a family anthem in church. I’ve loved singing in parts ever since Dad first taught me Tenor harmony on car trips. Erin sang a solo verse and then they held the melody line for my alto and soprano decant variations. Bethany had decided that next time SHE wants a verse of her own, so I guess my worries about her getting stage fright were all for naught! This was a nice smile after all the chaos since last Sunday. It’s been a grueling week for both Nick and I physically, but also one of great achievements. Never give two Type A personalities challenges to overcome... it puts us into overdrive!!!
We knew that if we wanted to have a new deck to replace the one that was rotting, that Nick would be doing it himself under the guidance, supervision and expert craftsmanship of our next-door neighbour, Fred.... but the reality of building a deck in 2 days of cloud and drizzle followed by one of scorching heat, coupled with a new cordless drill that turned out to be defective and a wife with her own production issues turned out to make the first 3 days of this past week a bit more stressful than we’d anticipated!! Thanks to Nick’s incredible efforts and Fred’s help, we now have a wonderful two level deck that has had everyone peeking over fences to oooh and ahhh. We even coaxed two other Canadian cross stitch designers, Lee Fraser of Stitchable Expressions here in town and the visiting Joanne Gatenby of X’s & Oh’s (along with her husband Bill) over for some dessert on the new deck. It was a great time for fellowship and giggles at the thought of us three “millionaires” (‘cause all designers are just ROLLING in cash according to those who share our charts illegally!) enjoying the chance to talk shop and vent together. I needed that night off from what has been going on.
I’ve been painting furiously for almost 2 weeks now and am just putting the finishing touches on the last two canvases so that all of those can ship out tomorrow night. Painting with a deadline has been hard... but having canvas arrive 2 weeks later than I’d been promised, after already arranging a second, smaller shipment to Mum’s while I was up there on vacation, certainly made things MUCH harder. I was at the point where I was about to buy the canvas RETAIL from our local store when the “missing” canvas finally showed up. I’m still trying to get to the bottom of why the date on the mailing label is 13 days later than I’d been assured that it was mailed.... It irks me to know that I will have to ship two of my parcels by courier instead of regular post to meet special deadlines because of someone else.
I honestly don’t think I would push myself to such limits for anyone else. One of the reasons that I haven’t blogged much is that by the time I pry my paintbrushes out of my hands around 2 am, I’m not really in the mood to type or click a mouse. I certainly don’t have a staff of little helpers or hirelings to work through the night like Debbie Travis does!! Some of the canvases didn’t have to go out right away, but it was easier to paint them at the same time and ship them early. On Thursday, I am shutting down Dragon Dreams for a holiday with my family and won’t be near a computer, paintbrush or e-mail for 2 weeks. I’m not sure I will be able to blog either... so don’t worry if the Musings are pretty silent from the 29th to the 13th!
Yawn! That’s about all this dragon can handle for tonight. I just wanted to let everyone know I was still breathing!
It’s not quite 1 am here... and since this is an EARLY night for me compared to some of the nights this past week, I thought I would blog before bed. The highlight of today was singing “Seek Ye First” with Nick, Erin and Bethany as a family anthem in church. I’ve loved singing in parts ever since Dad first taught me Tenor harmony on car trips. Erin sang a solo verse and then they held the melody line for my alto and soprano decant variations. Bethany had decided that next time SHE wants a verse of her own, so I guess my worries about her getting stage fright were all for naught! This was a nice smile after all the chaos since last Sunday. It’s been a grueling week for both Nick and I physically, but also one of great achievements. Never give two Type A personalities challenges to overcome... it puts us into overdrive!!!
We knew that if we wanted to have a new deck to replace the one that was rotting, that Nick would be doing it himself under the guidance, supervision and expert craftsmanship of our next-door neighbour, Fred.... but the reality of building a deck in 2 days of cloud and drizzle followed by one of scorching heat, coupled with a new cordless drill that turned out to be defective and a wife with her own production issues turned out to make the first 3 days of this past week a bit more stressful than we’d anticipated!! Thanks to Nick’s incredible efforts and Fred’s help, we now have a wonderful two level deck that has had everyone peeking over fences to oooh and ahhh. We even coaxed two other Canadian cross stitch designers, Lee Fraser of Stitchable Expressions here in town and the visiting Joanne Gatenby of X’s & Oh’s (along with her husband Bill) over for some dessert on the new deck. It was a great time for fellowship and giggles at the thought of us three “millionaires” (‘cause all designers are just ROLLING in cash according to those who share our charts illegally!) enjoying the chance to talk shop and vent together. I needed that night off from what has been going on.
I’ve been painting furiously for almost 2 weeks now and am just putting the finishing touches on the last two canvases so that all of those can ship out tomorrow night. Painting with a deadline has been hard... but having canvas arrive 2 weeks later than I’d been promised, after already arranging a second, smaller shipment to Mum’s while I was up there on vacation, certainly made things MUCH harder. I was at the point where I was about to buy the canvas RETAIL from our local store when the “missing” canvas finally showed up. I’m still trying to get to the bottom of why the date on the mailing label is 13 days later than I’d been assured that it was mailed.... It irks me to know that I will have to ship two of my parcels by courier instead of regular post to meet special deadlines because of someone else.
I honestly don’t think I would push myself to such limits for anyone else. One of the reasons that I haven’t blogged much is that by the time I pry my paintbrushes out of my hands around 2 am, I’m not really in the mood to type or click a mouse. I certainly don’t have a staff of little helpers or hirelings to work through the night like Debbie Travis does!! Some of the canvases didn’t have to go out right away, but it was easier to paint them at the same time and ship them early. On Thursday, I am shutting down Dragon Dreams for a holiday with my family and won’t be near a computer, paintbrush or e-mail for 2 weeks. I’m not sure I will be able to blog either... so don’t worry if the Musings are pretty silent from the 29th to the 13th!
Yawn! That’s about all this dragon can handle for tonight. I just wanted to let everyone know I was still breathing!
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