Recently in Project ADD Category

Okay, so my sidebar links are gone, as some of you may have noticed.  I'm seriously loving Movable Type, but the one thing it doesn't have is a built-in widget for sidebar links.  Very strange.  When Super Husband gets home later, I'm going to get him to help me install a possible plugin to fix that.  Fingers crossed, and stuff.

On another note, I've decided I have three distinct personalities.  There's the personality that runs things, let's call it the Mother Brain, my crafting/artistic/slightly insane personality, and my gaming girl/ADD-filled/very insane personality.  Mother Brain is often lazy and let's the other two run the show in one form or another.

At some point during the Little Rock gaming convention we went to, my gamer girl personality used it as a catalyst to hit my crafter personality in the head, gag and bind her, and throw her in a closet somewhere.  It's the only explanation I've got for being boring on the project side.

See, those two personalities haven't figured out how to live in harmony, yet.  They are in a constant struggle to maintain control.  It's a rare thing that I can work on artistic projects and still game and vice-versa.  Normally, this isn't a big deal, but I think my gamer girl personality has been working out, for she is righteously strong and is refusing to let go.  This is a problem as I have a lot of projects to work on.

Thankfully, although Mother Brain is lazy, Mother Brain recognizes what must be done and has been slowly been reclaiming control, or at least giving the crafter personality a boost.  They will gang up on the gamer girl personality and get things back in line, especially since my gamer girl side has extreme ADD.

Now, somehow, I'm going to have to figure out a way to get these personalities to work together because, see, with all the conventions we're going to this year, there is a very real possibility the gamer girl personality will regain control and interrupt things.  I do not wish to have projects linger, but, on the other hand, I do not wish to give up gaming.

Maybe I need to create a personality who can mediate?

Or maybe, I should get some professional help, take some powerful drugs, and just drool in the corner.

I don't think anyone would really be surprised if that happened.





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Sometimes, I think it would be just easier to be stark, raving looney.  No one would really be surprised by anything I do.

Let's see: The mask is done and given to it's rightful owner.  There is need for some correction, but we'll get to that.  (Damn polyurethane.) I'm nearly done with one piece of embroidery and the other will not take long, so they will be put in the mail soon. I've got two dragons to do, but they sort of work themselves. And, one Ball of Bun, which is a whole day of work. So, here it is...the moment...the moment I can look at my paper mache table (which is our kitchen table, but the hubby doesn't give me grief about it) and can honestly smile that knowing smile of someone who can start a new project. "But, you have all those others!" you might shout. Not that you will because many of you who visit here have the same problem of not enough time in the day to satisfy the Monster of Creation. We all have one.  You have to sacrifice at least one pound of creative service a day to it or it gets very growly and wants to chew on your ears. Mine, poor dear, was hiding in a closet, locked in a box for a very long time. In the beginning, it was running free.  Running in circles mostly, but really only until it found a direction.  But, then, a change, a move made it a little more wary.  It found itself a little less accepted.  When it did attempt to crawl out and shine, it was frowned at, told it wasn't good enough, and forced into a little box.  Sometimes, it would peek out of the box, but there would be the same coldness.  It would shiver and duck back into the box.  Eventually, the box went into a very deep, very dark closet... Many years later, I found the little box, and opened it, and the Monster of Creation blinked at me in the light but was a little too nervous to come out just yet and sought out a shadowy corner of the box... It took a lot of months to coax it out.  But, after using soothing music, a few happy comments, a few carrots and the odd cupcake, the once shy, huddling thing has decided it no longer needs to be afraid and is currently jumping up and down on my head. The problem with that is it's had a lot of pent up energy, meaning,  it's a little hyper-active.  This is probably the source of my Project ADD.  My Monster of Creation is just so excited all the time that it flits from one project to the next.  I think it feels like it doesn't have enough time left in life to do everything it wants to do. Silly monster. I often lose to it.  It's hard to say no to it when it's suffered so.  As this blog post has been written over the weekend, a new paper mache project has surfaced.  A new mask based on a nightmare I had.  The good thing about it is that it's not needing to be finished Now.  It can develop as the Monster sees fit.  That's rather nice. And, oh yes, it's going in the Halloween pile.  Oh, a new jack o'lantern will be started, too.  Also, Scratch.  Scratch is a creature that has been in the works for years.  I can never get his skeleton right... Halloween is months away. Good time to start all of these new ideas.  No rush.  No stress.  And, besides, every time I start a new Halloween project I tend to stand in the kitchen and cackle like a mad scientist.  (No, that is not an exagerration.  Ask the hubby.) It's a good feeling seeing your evil plans coming to fruition. The next Halloween party has a Zombie Apocolypse theme.  By the gods, I will have the crawling zombie torso and the squirming zombie head on a plaque... I think when I get this way, my Monster of Creation hops up and down happily wringing its hands because other than crochet, Halloween stuff is the only time it gets really excited. I just had a thought, though.  I think I need to give my little Monster of Creation a form.  No one else can see him, of course.  All of our Monsters are very personal, but I think some times they wouldn't mind people knowing they're there and what they look like.  I'm betting mine would hope I would make him fiercer than he is, but we'll have to see on that one. In fact, I challenge everyone to show off their Monsters of Creation.  I've seen what you guys can do.  This challenge is a walk in the park. That is, of course, if you can get the little boogers to sit still long enough to copy them... Wouldn't hurt to give them a name either.  I never really had a name for mine before.  He was always just my little monster.  Have to give him a name... ________________ There are times I wonder if my monster shouldn't be on some medication to try to focus its energies, but you know, that would be stupid.  Mosters of Creation are meant to be wild, untamed, and annoyingly everywhere.  It's their nature.  I don't think I'll mess with that.

The Mardi Gras mask is in its second stage of drying. February seriously got away from me, but I am determined to meet my deadline.  It's not an overly difficult mask, just in need of some purgurtory time in the oven. I have to pay some serious attention to my project list, which I wrote specifically to prevent this kind of project crunch. If anyone else has made such a thing work, please instruct me. Anyway, I thought I'd at least post a couple of pics as I have some ongoing background projects that get attention when things are drying, the hooks are resting, or I'm trying to prevent total project ADD. Right now, the main project that hovers in the background is a set of sweet bags that I'm trying to complete as an SCA project.  They're gifts for the royals from the embroidery guild.  Each king and queen will receive embroidery bags.  The queens get red roses; the kings get golden crowns. I only took on two of the bags, one for each, only because I'm slow as Christmas to embroider, and I have so many other projects going on.  (However, if there is a dropping of the ball with embroidery works in the guild like we did last Gulf Wars, there will be some serious reckoning.  I might not be the head of the guild, but I have had it up to my forehead with people in this society not communicating when they can't get something done.  It's a teeth-grinding pet peeve.) Anyway, right now, I'm working on the red rose. For some reason, I decided to learn some new stitches along the way, so it's sort of become a strange sampler. The green is all in split stitch.  The middle petals are in satin stitch.  The rest I'm working in chain stitch. Don't ask me why I decided to do that.  Insanity is the only excuse I have. Either way, I think it's coming out rather nicely nonetheless. The only other thing I have to post is the possible colors for the OWOH Wee Dragon. She requested a spiraled deep forest green and black. I currently have what I consider a deep forest green.  But, one person's deep forest green might be another person's "Oh my god, what were you thinking?!" So, I emailed her and asked. Still, this photo is the closest I could get to what the actual green looks like in person.  The rest seemed to washed out.  (I swear I'm a better photographer in the Great Outdoors.) I hope she likes it. Of course, there are other projects.  There are always others.  I like to pretend I have a grip on things. And, I do. Most of the time. I know I'm not alone here.  What do we of the Want To Spend Free Time Doing Projects fiber do?  We want to give up eating but there's that whole starving thing.  In this current economy, most of us can't give up our day jobs.  I feel like some half-crazed mad scientist cackling at the next crazy idea to make this work.  Oh, yes, just give me some paper mache, a few skeins of yarn, and some electricity, and by God, they'll never say I'm mad again... Sleep. We don't really need that, right? ____________________ Changing careers has been the most amazing boost to my creativity.  I'm not sure that's a good thing.  I'm thinking after so many years of sitting locked in a cage, my creativity has become this monster unleashed that has demanded I either scratch its ears to keep it happy or risk wondering why people are asking where the neighbors went. Creativity is a cruel master.

I wasn't as productive as I would have wanted tonight, but considering I've been pushing my productivity for the last few weeks to its very limits of ADD, I'm not surprised I shut down tonight. Yes, ADD. I have project ADD. I have this tendency to get really into a project, and when it nears completion...move on to the next one. I know there are people who suffer this beyond my blog borders. I've met some of you. You can't deny it. You know that things are going well. The current project is progressing. You will finish it and more because people are demanding it. But, oh, look! A duck! Yeah, don't try to deny it. You've all had those moments when you're working on something you "must finish" and then something you "must try" clouds your vision and threatens to take you into the world of "something more interesting." And, it's a serious tease because you know the thing you are working on is seriously interesting, but the little bumps in the creative road make it less interesting than starting something new. Don't look at me like that because I know you understand what I'm talking about.

Now, luckily, I feel my project ADD isn't in its truest form tonight. I worked on a previous project in lieu of the ones loooming. Granted, that's not the best excuse, but it isn't the death knell on my projects. Apparently, I needed a break from crochet to work on my sketch of a zombie girl scout.

It's not even close to being done, but, hey, I figured I'd give you guys something to giggle at. (One of these days it will be gross and disturbing...or disturbingly funny...I think I prefer disturbingly funny...) _______________________ Here's a fun game a friend of ours made up to keep his children interested at dinner, no matter where it was. Look around the room, and ask yourself the question, "What would I use to defend myself if the Zombie Apocalypse came?"In your current room, would you survive?