Changes Must Be Made

It's the beginning of a new year and in order for it to be an improvement over the worst year of my life (2014) major changes must be made.

I found last year that even though sewing was a great release from the constant stress and/or malaise I was experiencing the final result was not satisfying. First there was the fact that sewing time was hard won and projects took a long time whether I was motivated to finish them or not.

Then the knowledge that I would have no occasion to wear these clothes or my other past handmade garments was depressing. I have no social life here and no time to cultivate one with my inconsistent retail hours. I just worked seven 8-hour days in a row! I don't know for sure but that is something I know would never have happened in any office job I've ever had without a conversation happening between employer and employee first, right?

Sewing was the least that I could do to calm myself down when work conflicts or arguments with my father occurred.

Therefore, I doubt there will be much sewing in the future as I try to secure a new more "healthy for me" job/life. I need to pursue an office job where I can use my hard-won skills, experience, and again feel intelligent and accomplished.

I will be reading from a more selective list of blogs that correspond more directly to my own style since keeping up with the 80+ Bloglovin' group I currently read has become another wildly successful procrastination tool. Also, my love of Internet TV will need to decrease. My consumption is crazy, especially when it concerns British programs.

I do have a huge fear, as sewing has been my only joy (however compromised) that I have, I am scared what might become of me without it.

I don't want to get used to this lifestyle any more than I already have. I heard someone say that "the life you are living now is the life you deserve". Hell no! This is the life my emotionally broken-down self started to think was all I was worth, which is not the same thing at all. My life has been so much better than this and I HAVE to believe it will be that again.

Mission: Accomplished!

While I've been away from the blog, I have tried numerous T-shirt muslins, contemplated making pants, been busy with two jobs, trying to build an actual social life, and oh, by the way, this happened...

B.A.- Art History 2012

Virginia Commonwealth University

Whew!

I feel a weight lifted off my shoulders but then the next day and then the next week happened. The combination of all that work, the anticipation, the fear of failure, and all the money spent is over in the time it takes you to walk across a stage in the Richmond Convention Center to receive a rolled-up sheet of blank paper.

Now, of course, I DO NOT regret the experience but I do regret the time and expense that went into this protracted 20+ year journey. If there is anything I can impart to college-age teenagers thinking about college is to finish it when you first get that chance. It only becomes harder to accomplish and more expensive to afford the longer you take. Take the opportunity before 1) you have to pay rent, 2) you parents are no longer willing to pay, and 3) you have to hold down a full-time job at the same time. Trust me.

Too many things going on...

Just a quick note to say that I am no longer contributing to Design Talk at 2modern. With work, school, and just plain trying to get my life together, I couldn't keep up with the deadlines. Hopefully, one day I will not only be able to bring SHELTER where I want it to be but also to contribute to other cool blogs like Design Talk.

Thank you 2modern for giving me the chance!