Sometime last winter, or maybe early spring, the Victoria Public Library held a sale of old periodicals. I went in looking for some old style magazines, maybe some fashion or home magazines from the 30’s or 40’s, for inspiration. There wasn’t much of what I went looking for, but there was plenty of stuff we weren’t looking for, like these old Popular Science magazines from the 20’s and 30’s. Gary and I scooped up armloads of them and made two trips to the car. They are an amazing slice of life, just packed with articles and illustrations on what were the innovations of the day, all written up with that sense of the wonder of technology. Some of the covers are gorgeous. There are certain years where they did these beautiful richly colored poster-like covers, illustrations of planes, cars, and crazy inventions. Usually some kind of vehicle going fast or flying.

So, I’m pretending I’m just here, digging out this cover illustration, just because I really wanted to share something I found. And I do, but really, I’m just covering up for my total and utter lack of any projects. I can barely remember the last thing I made. Its receding in my mind like some train passing into the distance. Its getting so bad that sometimes I’m tempted to “fake” my blog. I’ll start thinking, hmmm, maybe I can pull out one of those collages from last spring and it will look like I’m making things . . . I know, I know, faking it is the opposite of what a crafting blog should be. But its just depressing not to ever have anything to show. Maybe the experiment isn’t working.

My whole motivation for this project — the blog — is to help me make crafting and making art a priority, to help me make time for it. The blog medium attracts me because its all about incremental progress. I don’t have to do everything at once, make everything now, learn all those skills and techniques now. I just have to do a little every day. Maybe not even every day, but the idea is just to keep taking steps. Because I’ll never do it by just thinking about it. And maybe in a year, in two years, I’ll be able to look back and see all the distance I’ve covered. Stitch by stitch by stitch.

I knew when I started this blog that I didn’t want to let it take away from my priorities. Time that I might have spent at my work table. Time that I would take out for friends and family. I’m not ready to bail out completely just yet. I’ve met some wonderful people here in Victoria through the blogging community, and I think its a great way for people with shared interests to find each other and network (in the real world as well as online). I’ve gotten a lot out of the craft blogging community and I still want to participate.

I’m forever amazed by people who manage to work, and have kids, and make things, and write about them on their blogs. I just don’t know how that is possible. Three out of four of those things seems like one or two too many. I’m think I just have to accept that for at least another couple of weeks, while work is in its busiest stretch, I’ll be keeping a pretty low profile around here. If I have extra time, I will try to spend it off the computer and at my work table, or grabbing a few extra minutes outside with a sketchbook. I’ll start a knitting project I can work on during bus rides and when I get home late. (The other day I saw a woman knitting while walking her dog; an option I hadn’t considered.) I’ll make jam, cook dinners, and have the neighbors over for a glass of wine. I’ll work in the garden in the evening while Sam watches for rabbits. I’ll try to notice September.