Dolls

As I think most of you know I've always made elemental figures or femmes. When I first started making them I also dabbled in making art dolls from cloth, paper, wood you name it.
This rather went by the wayside once I took up spinning and dropped paper arts but I have a fancy to start again.
I've been thinking of dipping my toe in the doll making waters for a week or three and as I have lots of stuff that would be suitable I'm thinking of just doing it and seeing what happens. I think the Imbolc creativity magic of Brigid is rubbing off on me.
I don't really know what I want to do (or indeed why) but who knows where the muse will take us?
I used to subscribe to Art Doll Quarterly when it first began and have put out a plea for anyone who has some taking space up to maybe pass them on to me. Not because I want to copy but I want to immerse myself in figure inspiration to help the starting .
Am I silly? Maybe but you know I don't care the dolls are calling:)

Another day today

 I woke this morning with the determination to be normal or as near normal as passes for it these days. No sense worrying over things I can't control and as Blue Witch so aptly put it PMA can overcome PSA

So normal here we go. After all  we are on the eve of Imbolc, a new turn on the wheel and new beginnings and new growth. So listen to yourself Amber and follow your beliefs.

 We had a couple of days away last week. We were supposed to go to York before Yule but my health stopped that. Mr Mog has never been and it is around 22 years since I did so an adventure for us both.

 You can probably guess our first port of call looking at the pictures.

 Mr Mog is quite keen on railways especially the steam persuasion so this seemed the perfect place to start our visit. Despite lots of sitting down(me) we only covered a small part of it and would love to go back sometime to see more.

 York itself is full of stunning buildings and parts of buildings. So much to see and enjoy. We didn't go in the Minster partly because I'm not Christian so it holds no interest from a religious point of view but also they charge you. £15 if you wanted to do all of it, that is each. Whatever happened to following the Bible's precepts and the story of Jesus and the money changers? Jesus drove them out of the temple and accused them of turning the church into a den of thieves. Yes I am all for donating to the upkeep of ancient buildings but voluntarily.

 I loved the images above shops and doorways such as this.

 I did take a couple of pictures of the Minster as you can see but that was enough for me to be honest. I really wanted to mooch around the city at will and not feel obligated to go into places.

 Although the name of this shop almost dragged me in, I did succumb to the next.

 Just look, isn't it so OTT? But really friendly staff. I think Mr Mog and I stayed in there for over half an hour chatting. It was another example of connections also as we had quite a few mutual acquaintances in common. The shop was filled with books, incense and all the usual occult shop items. Not that that is a bad thing . I purchased some hand made incense from them. I usually make my own but now and again it is good to try another, especially if it is just a general house incense with no purpose in mind.

 A veritable treasure trove of your magic shop items.

 Then this of course has a magic all its own, there are 2 Bettys in York both of which were full despite the time of year.

 There were creatures watching us from all parts of the city.

 Some simply stunning like this statue

 Then from one extreme to the other this in the Ness shop:)

 Same shop

 Didn't know if this would come out as the ginger cat moved all the time and I just did my usual click and go. I am really pleased with the picture.

 This beauty was in the Newgate coffee shop where we had a sandwich both days and people watched.

 This pile of stuff was on a market stall in Newgate market. She sold lots of different yarns and this was on the end of the stall. I couldn't understand why they would laugh when I asked if I could take a picture of the pile of stuff:)

 But wasn't it colourful? Newgate market is on the end of the famous Shambles and they had a yarn shop. Well we had to go in and say hello didn't we? Can you see the funky needle felted sheep along the middle of the window?

There were 2 other yarn shops and I meant to take pictures but didn't. Poppys full of colour and lots of different yarns and my favourite
Grace and Jacob.
This didn't only have yarn but fibre and fabric. The yarn and fibre dyed by the owner who is also a felt maker. We both indulged there. Mr Mog got some alpaca and camel  undyed and I bought some Gothic purple black merino silk for friends.
Didn't do much else but it was enough for us and we enjoyed it.

Next post going back to my roots, or making cloth art dolls again hopefully.

Today

Half an hour early to hospital as roads were clear. We have to go early to ensure we don't get stuck in traffic. Appointments running an hour late which didn't help. Seeing people going in after our arrival and our appointment time .
Asked nurse when would it be us and was told sorry you should have gone in.
Eventually called and instead of normal consultant and 1 nurse there were 2 nurses, consultant and senior urology nurse.
Made us both wonder what was going on.
PSA is up 20% so scans called for. Waiting for appointments for them.
 Next appointment in 6 weeks for results then decisions depending on spread through bones.
1 hormone stopped and 1 injected hormone continued.
Details of drug trials being sent for our perusal.
Always astounds me that many people have prostate cancer with scores hundreds higher than Mr Mogs and yet they are ok. Apparently it is where the cells are in which part of the prostate that is the problem hence Mr Mogs score is actually low but not if you see what I mean.
We came home and Mr Mog has been working on his train layout as the sun is shining although it is extremely cold here.

Next post will be cheery as it is almost time for the 7th annual silent poetry reading for Brigid. I'm taking part. Are you?

Rituals

Whatever path we follow we all have rituals. They may be something simple such as the morning routine of get up, shower etc.
They may be complex magical rituals involving hours of preparation.
They may just be a necessary thing on a traumatic day

I have always taken socks to knit to Mr Mogs hospital appointments. I started when he first had radiotherapy and have continued through the years of checkups. It doesn't feel right not to have a sock on The needles.
I always felt that the continuing good news was helped by my maintaining a ritual sock knit.
Tomorrows appointment is a little (a lot) more traumatic than usual.
If the psa has risen at all then a decision needs to be made regarding mri scans, bone scans and the like.
Then if those results confirm the psa score a decision on chemo. All a little if and if but I prefer that. It isn't cut and dried there is hope and there is positive thinking.

Part of that positive thinking involves this little ritual of sock on needles.
An easy enough ritual for a person to carry out
No?

All positive thoughts welcomed please as always

Writings

I wanted to write about writing today.

I have not done my Morning pages for quite a while now, long before Christmas. I always used to do 3 pages of writing before I got up in a morning. It helped to get rid of the dross in my head and free my mind for creativity. I'm not sure why I stopped. I suspect a combination of pain, worries over Mr Mog and other stuff going on. Who knows why you stop a practice?

 

In the past I haven't sweated too much over missing a day or two, after all it is no good doing something if the time isn't right.

But I realised 2 days ago that I missed it. I missed that meditational aspect of writing anything that came into my head.

 I suspect some of my reluctance came from the dark mornings, putting off doing something because it is dark. It hasn't helped me any. My head gets full of stuff and there is no room for creativity and beauty.

 The muse prefers it if you concentrate when she calls. I know that I always feel better when I have done my pages. The knitting and spinning are other forms of creativity but the forming of words and sentences has always been my first love.

 I want to recapture some of the journalling joy. The joy of the written word, the poetry of sentences. The outpourings from the poetic side of my brain.

 It is still there, it has just been hibernating for winter's dark withdrawal time. A chance to sleep and recoup energies and inspiration ready for the first bud.

 The first snowdrop dancing in the dark wet soil. A reflection of the moon's pale splendour here in the earth.

 Solitary ones spotted at first, then whole clumps dancing in the wind. A beacon of hope and of summer warmth to come.

 Then as other flowers show their heads the snowdrops retreat into the ground to be nurtured through spring,summer and autumn ready to begin their dance as winter returns once more.

 I hope my returning muse is like the snowdrops, a little to begin with then pages full of joy and inspiration.

 Imbolc is just around the corner now and I can't wait. I don't want to wish my days away but I want this turn of the wheel. I want it to bring good things, a staying of the disease for Mr Mog. A chance to enjoy  many more days together in the returning sun and light.

I have started back on my studying also. My tarot cards are out once more and not just the daily card I always chose from my Wild Spirit pack but a new tarot. One sent for Yule, a gift from my friend Pixie.
The Gaian Tarot by Joanna Colbert.
Pixie and I had spoken about this a long while ago when Joanna first started to create the pack. Both taken with the imagery and both thinking of purchasing it when it was no longer a limited edition pack but a more accessible one.
To be honest I had forgotten but Pixie hadn't. It was such a surprise to open my Yule gift and find this . I have only nibbled at the edges but intend to work with the cards and see what comes of it.
I've also been delving in the library by my chair and pulled out other books, colour healing, numerology to name but 2. No idea why again but why not?
No preconceived ideas just going where the Goddess takes me.

A follow up

BW those are not teal Hotter. I painted them myself with various colours of lumiere paints and in real life more of a sea green/turquoise. They do have quite a few navy shoes in at the moment?  Plus if you go to an outlet store such as the ones in Gretna and Morecambe they can be purchased for around £30. If the colour isn't you you can always paint them with acrylics as I have done.The colour stays on with the lumeires and they polish beautifully with a clear shoe cream. There is also the added advantage that you can always change the colour at a later date. None of mine were anything like the colours they are now.
Ashling, good to see you comment. The link to the Cyberslam poetry is here
cyberslam poetry for brigid
Today is a day of promise. A day for creativity I think. Will it be writing, knitting, spinning or something else?
Who knows ? I await the Muse

Colour me a rainbow

Sometimes we need a little more colour in our lives. It helps to counter the darkness of the days at this time of year. I don't know what it is like with you but the past 7 weeks  we have had around 4 days of sunshine and no rain. The rest of the time it has rained at least part of each day.

 So I thought you might like to see some of the colour I've been surrounding myself with. 2 shawls done in lace weight mohair, kid merino from Crystal palace to be exact. Both also beaded another new technique for me and one I found extremely difficult with my joint problems. I do like the finished shawls though and they are so light it is unbelievable. They also fit through my wedding ring:)
The next ones may seem a little odd.
I have lots of trouble getting shoes to fit with my joint problems ,again.  One of my legs and foot is extremely swollen all the times and normal she's are difficult to find. That is one of the reasons I have my rainbow boots. But look what I found in Hotter, shoes that fit and are extremely comfortable. I purchased several pairs as I had vouchers from family which helped with the cost. The last Hotter shoes I had finally wore out after around 13 years so if these are anything like it will be money well spent. I can't tell you how fantastic it is to have comfortable shoes that even look good. They weren't these colours when I purchase them though.
I thought a coat of lumiere paints would brighten them up and they have.

 What do you think?

 Is this a BW blue do you think?

 I wasn't too sure so did a couple of pictures of this pair to check it out.

I can very rarely have shoes with straps with my fat leg and foot so I feel like a child in a sweetshop wearing these.

Wouldn't you?

So what else has been going on chez Moggies?

Mr Mog has been busy constructing his model railway and it looks good. We now have a timber yard on there and coal place. I think he actually prefers the landscaping and the building to running trains and why not?

We are going to York next week and one of the first places to visit will be the National Rail Museum. Mr Mog has never been to York despite being a bus /coach driver so a first for him. We were supposed to be going before Yule but had to cancel due to the virus I had.  I haven't been in 20 odd years but hope it is as good as it used to be. If anyone has any suggestions of places to visit please do let me know.

The week after next is the decision time oncology appointment. If Mr Mog's PSA is up again then they want to do a bone scan/mri etc to see where it is and if it has spread any more. If it has then chemo awaits. As you can imagine we are both working on positive energy that the PSA hasn't risen and that he can stay on the present 2 sets of medication. All positive energy received gratefully.

It is getting time to do a ritual cleanse of the house and boundaries, brushing away all negative energies and making space for positive spring energy to find its way here. Checked I have sufficient frankincense and lemon for the job. I will do it shortly before Imbolc then the new awakening seeds of creativity have somewhere to grow. I've already seen my first snowdrops, really early this year. Normally I have to scout around trying to see them for Imbolc itself, not this year they are all coming up already.

There is something truly magical and encouraging about snowdrops . Year after year they work their way to the surface through the worst of winter and shine like a beacon of hope .

And it is almost time for this,  

Annual Cyberspace Poetry Slam for Brigid

 will you be participating? I will again and I love following all the links to  poems in honour of Brigid.

Today had mostly been....

Today has mostly been waiting in for parcels to be collected and visitors to turn up.
I was going to put up pictures of my latest shawls but blogger doesn't want to play. It may be coming up time to move my blog elsewhere in the new year and suggestions of web hosts would be much appreciated.

So the parcels:-
Firstly a printer going back to amazon. Supposedly wireless but doesn't like to be so. It is a few months old but I don't print much so it was only the past few days that I realised printer plus iMac were not a happy couple on either wireless or cable.
After several goes at fix rounds I have given up and back it goes.
The second thing going back to the same place is a Roberts cd player. Mr Mog rather fancied a cd player as we haven't had one in quite a while. We tended to use the iPod or put CDs through the tv. The only problem with that is that you have a blue screen whilst playing. He did his research and decided on a Roberts . Seemed ok after first few plays where it ate the cd and wouldn't let it go for a while. Then this Yule Mr Mog was playing a favourite cd, medicine dance by Stairway, and it would not eject at all. We tried turning it off, unplugging, you name it we tried it. I looked on the Internet and someone suggested turning it upside down,that didnt work either. Because the cd goes in a slot there was no way to get it out . Back it goes and mr Mog is going for a cheap top loader player. Fortunately amazon are very good at refunds or replacements and that is one of the reasons we use them.
There was a third parcel awaiting collection.
Mr Mog ordered me a schacht matchless spinning wheel for Yule . Schacht changed the design of the wheel construction so there was some delay in it's arrival. It seemed it wouldn't be here until end of January as they wanted to get the new design sorted. The wheel actually arrived just a couple of days before Christmas and looked good. Mr Mog set it up and we had a go spinning some bfl. That seemed ok but as soon as I started to spin a merino silk mix it keep throwing off the drive band. We tried all sorts of things to make it work, even rang the production team in USA . Their suggestion? Sand the bobbins, sand the groove on the wheel. Now I don't know about you but this was a new wheel, would you want to get sandpaper to it? I didn't. The dealer we got it from offered to replace it and we said we would keep til after Christmas and try again with it. Mr Mog put it all back together and we tried again. It still wouldn't keep the drive band on.
On close inspection to use the wheel in double drive , which is my preferred spin mode, the band and bobbin don't line up correctly. I think scotch tension would be fine but that isn't what I want to use. I don't want another as I think it will be the same problem so that too went back today.
We were also supposed to get visitors on their way home from Cumbria, they haven't arrived .

But the day hasn't been wasted I have been spinning bright coloured fluff.
Today is the anniversary Of the death of Mr Mogs aunt, the one he as very close to, as was I,we have had a candle lit all day in her memory. She is often in our thoughts and we miss her very much.

I have been knitting beads and fine yarn, both new to me methods. The shawl I finished weighed just 31 gms without the beads and is still light as a feather with beads on.