Tuesday, May 20, 2008

enjoying the process

Today, I did 2 things that you can see in this photo:


Yes, I voted. I was mainly voting for the local elections, particularly for mayor. One of the candidates had been on the city commission last year and worked to lower the occupational tax. That's probably the #1 thing a local government can do to help small businesses, so I wanted to support him in his run for mayor of Bowling Green.

The second thing in the picture, is a glimpse at my new haircut. It's nothing drastic, but I was so close to having bangs cut today...but then chickened out. My 10 year high school reunion is next month and so now's not the time to be trying out a new 'do.

I bet you're wondering what's inside this box:
This is the box I take on the road with me when I'm traveling throughout the week so I can work on my quilt. Let me tell you, I'm making progress.

I'm a very results-oriented person in my day-to-day life. I am impatient and tend to only focus on the activities that lend results. For instance, in my sales job, if paperwork gets in the way of sales for my reps, I'm likely to remove that obstacle for them by doing it myself, so that they can focus on working in the field to the maximum.

So, by hand-sewing this quilt, I'm having to re-train my mind to enjoy the process, rather than the result. (which, I'm sure I will like the result, but there's no reason I can't enjoy the process of sewing the thing!) Anyway, this is a real struggle for me, but I'm working on it.


One ring complete, 11 to go.

10 comments:

Davinie Fiero said...

Did I just read that you are hand sewing this whole quilt !!!!!!!!!!
YOu never cease to amaze!

Sharyn said...

oooh! Very very cool! I love quilts with many patterns and good for you sewing it by hand! Love it!

liz mataraza said...

love the patterns you chose for the quilt! very nice work. i wish, i wish i could do that! (well, i wish i had the patience to do that!)

Anonymous said...

April - this is a good exercise for you it sounds like! It will prepare you for remembering that when your future 3 or 4 year old comes home from preschool with a blob of paint covering their entire sheet of paper that he/she had so much fun mixing paint, exploring texture, and moving the paintbrush - enjoying the process - that the product/result in the end didn't matter (and it will have been much more fun than making that paper bag monkey puppet that looked just like everyone else's) - lol can you tell I'm an early childhood person! Really, teaching my teachers that children (and adults) need to learn/enjoy the process rather than worry about a great looking product was a tough lesson for many.

Anonymous said...

Hi April!
Is this by any chance going to be a wedding ring quilt? I used to quilt (about 10 years ago) but had to quit because of back problems. It was either quilting or scrapping, and I can't give up scrapping. The 2 are a lot alike though. My favorite part of quilting was choosing fabrics and then watching them come together, just like my fav. part of scrapping is the colors. I still do log cabin baby quilts as gifts though! It's my favorite pattern.
Anyway, it looks lovely. Post your progress...I'd love to peek at the end result!
Kim (scrappy-kat)

joanne (spagirl) said...

hi april! gorgeous quilt!! yes, keep us updated on your progress... would love to see!
thanks for wishing my friend a happy b-day!!
i cannot wait for reveal night! i have to have that bird stamp!!

mom2ee said...

April
Love the sneak of the hair cut, will it be revealed on the 27th as well? And the quilt is to die for, I for one am simply in awe that you are hand sewing the quilt. What a labor of love.

Denise said...

Love the circle pattern and the fabrics you are using. I am an impatient person, so I know how hard enjoying the process can be. I applaud you for working on the process. Enjoy and keep us updated on your progress!

Denise said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Alex Hardy said...

that quilt looks just FAB so far April!
i love the bits you are using ... so pretty!