Red Cedar
More apocalypse, less angst
Going grey (one year later).
I like this picture, taken last month at a fundraising dinner in support of Opt sexual health services. Even with grey hair, pigtails really do take the years off!
Although you can see that there is still brown dye at the tips of my ‘do, I have recently realized that the grow-out process is almost finished! Not only is the dye mostly gone, but my hair is back at the length it was when I started the process a year ago. Early on my hairdresser cut of four inches to stimulate the process, but recently we’ve been just trimming and I’m finally digging the length again.
The process of going grey at thirty-eight has been an interesting one – and although I still worry (I really do) that people are going to mistake me for twenty years older – I’m not sorry at all that I’ve done it. No more chemicals, no more fussing every four weeks, no more hiding the fact that women go grey at all different times in their life and can look good doing so!
What’s been most interesting to me is the overwhelmingly positive response from women and men – even strangers – to the new hair. With the dye mostly out it now ringlets at the bottom naturally, and the variation in colour from dark brown to silver gives the appearance of streaks in the right light. Even though grey hair is coarser, without the continual chemical assault, it is not nearly as dry and damaged – especially if I treat it right. I am of course always nervous about the pouffy dry look that grey hair can have, which happens to me only the day after I wash it and only if I don’t blow-dry it.
It’s definitely different – and I do realize that letting it grow out is part of being “aged” in our society – that I don’t look as young as I would with a dye-job. But do I need to? Do I need to look twenty-five even though I’m pushing forty? I don’t think so. I don’t think I have to make my life about being “attractive” in the most superficial ways to strangers. This doesn’t mean I don’t want to look good, and yes I do realize that the more attractive we are the better we get treated in society. But I don’t to have to compromise my health, the environment, or my sanity in order to get there.
As it is, I think I do okay with what I’ve got. And besides that I like the life I’m giving. Going grey feels like an alignment of what I believe with what I project in a way that’s healthy and not self-hating. So hooray for grey!
Interlude before travel.
I spent my morning updating union memberships, contacting people and fowarding on cards to be signed and returned in my absence. It’s the kind of thing I do before going on holidays – tidy-up tasks – getting myself set-up for moving ahead on my return. I was a horrible insomniac last night as well – so simple busy tasks are a lot easier for me today than anything which requires a lot of concentration.
At the moment I’m blocking out the office sounds with some John Zorn (Book of Angels Volume 10, Lucifer) which is some sort of dreamy klezmer-inspired jazz. It’s been awhile since I’ve turned to anything out of this Zorn masterwork, but when it happens I am as intrigued as pleased. It’s incredible stuff really, and even seventeen volumes later I can’t say that there is one album that reminds me of any other except in that they tie together similar klezmer/jazz/prog-rock themes, scales and harmonies.
Apparently there are five more releases into this series expected by the end of 2012, bringing the Masada Book Two series to a total of twenty-two volumes. Zorn is nothing if not prolific: he wrote a hundred songs a month at the start of this project which features his compositions performed by a variety of incredible performers. When I first wrote about this series way back in 2007, I had no idea any composer could sustain across this many albums – and I am really very happy to discover that it’s not over yet.
I have much to be done before I leave Thursday, and no energy within me to do it. Be done. Be done I say.
A summer get-away.
Despite the weather, we are heading out on our first summer family get-away this week. Lincoln City, Oregon here we come!
(By way of explanation – my parents rent a condo in Lincoln City for a month every year because they love the Oregon Coast and this year they rented a house and invited us to come down for a week.)
We have decided that instead of driving the 10 hours (most of it on the I-5 in traffic) we are going to Amtrak to Portland and then rent a car to drive out to the coast. This makes for the same length of travel time – 10 hours, but I only have to drive for two of them. Which makes for less travel stress; I am looking forward to the journey as much as the arrival for a change.
Because we have an impending journey, I have focused the last few days of sewing on an overnight bag that I have had on the project pile since February. An Amy Butler bag pattern (Cosmo) made from Amy Butler Fabrics – I can truly say this is the nicest bag I have made for myself. Two outside pockets, four inside pockets – this will be my computer/book/craft bag for the upcoming trip. It really does have enough room for a weekender – which means I can now get rid of my overnight bag with the shredded lining.
Funny thing about this project – when I bought the fabric for it in February I was completely daunted and unsure about my ability to succeed. Just a few months later I’ve learned that any pattern can be followed with enough patience. This bag took about seven hours to construct – most of that time in the cutting and interfacing stage – and I’m pretty sure I could cut that time down by an hour now that I’ve done it once.
So satisfying to start out on a journey with a brand-new bag 🙂
In the garden mid-June.
Just a brief post this morning to herald the return of more garden-friendly weather! In the last two weeks things have really picked up around here and the veggie beds are finally getting it together despite the slow start in the spring. Right now:
- Everything that I planted early – oriental greens, radish, turnips – has bolted. This is the hazard of early planting in a cold year – particularly when temperatures go from cold to really warm overnight. This weekend I will be pulling out the failed greens and replanting.
- My tomato and tomatillo plants are now in the ground.
- My pole, bush and runner beans have germinated nicely.
- My summer squashes are also peeking out of the soil.
- All other seed is taking quickly at the moment – I’ve got beets, spinach, carrots and fennel all coming up in fits. My peas are really behind this year. It’s june and barely a flower!
- Gooseberries are present on the gooseberry bush, blueberries appear to be taking shape, and the raspberries are doing something.
I’m putting a lot more seeds in this weekend – both at home and my community plot. Oh – and starting my brussels sprout starts to go in for July – it really is that time already! Hopefully we get a long summer into fall!
Girl with a new dress on.
So here it is – the dress with many mishaps:
Made with Burda Pattern #7659 and $20 worth of fabric (quilting cotton) – this is my first ever attempt at making a dress for myself. After making it in the wrong size (too big by a long shot) I took in the side seams by an inch on each and had to put darts in the back to stop it from bunching up.
On this project I learned the following things:
- Pleats – how to make them and that they add a lot of extra volume on the front.
- Putting in a zipper – and the fact that it is possible to put a sewing machine needle through your finger when the zipper foot is attached.
- Darts – not best hastily done after trying a dress on ten times in a night.
In any case, this is not the most flattering cut to me, but the dress did turn out pretty damned adorable and I’m looking forward to it as a house/yard dress for the summer. I am also totally thrilled to have made a dress that involved so many different elements (yoke, interfacing, pleats, zipper, darts) and had it basically come out right. That’s pretty cool and I am looking forward to making my next dress which will happen soon (I’ve got fabric for a couple of skirts that will likely get made next).
Here is the back view:
Red Cedar 