It’s not necessarily a bad thing, but I’m not really going to talk about it until I know what’s going on a little more, but I’ll give you a little hint:

It probably has something to do with my SIP.  (Senior Individualized Project, for those who don’t know.)

So, in order to avoid that, I’ve been looking at Free Spirit fabrics online.  I remembered how much I like some of the freshcut collection by Heather Bailey.

I also really like some of the Heather Ross Mendocino collection with the octopi, etc.

Finally, go here and click on Children’s Clothing.  Moom can tell you that I would have LOVED that pink smock dress.  Color and style aside,  I want to put those birds on everything I own, although at this point I just want the brown one in  an adult fit.  P.S. It has POCKETS.  I love pockets.

So, I have a lot of projects I need to show.  Like, a lot a lot.  At the moment I have very few on my camera, but I’ll work on amending that.  Maybe later today, maybe tomorrow?  For now I have these:

I’m ready to have curtains instead of blinds, thank you. I guess I’d better go work on my reading if I ever want to have a life.

*Exploding in the sense of “I’m going to be really busy”.

 

Aissatou

 

I could sit in the tailor’s shop all day and watch people sew. I can’t say my hands don’t ache to steal a machine while I’m at it, but it’s nothing a good knitting project can’t fix.

It is a very good thing that I have this happy power, or I’d never pass my ICRP…

I haven’t been doing anything terribly interesting lately, which ought to explain the lack of postage. Unless you count the interesting headaches and upper spinal aches* I’ve been having, which if they insist on becoming anymore interesting will be taking an extremely interesting trip to the doctor. Oh what fun.

I did get my clothes back from the tailor with only a small amount of Playing Chicken, however they are not exactly as I imagined them to be. I anticipated this, but I’m still a little disappointed. The top of the two piece outfit is far too loose, and the dress…

This is what my mother had to say about the dress: “You should not spend any more money at the tailors here. You should buy fabric and take it back with you, and make things there because this is a pretty fabric, and look!! Look what he made with it!!”

Mind you, this was said all said in rapid French. Perhaps if I get brave I’ll take a picture of the devastation. Thank goodness I have a fair quantity left.

Tomorrow is Tabaski. I’m going to hide in my house until the sheep slaughter is finished, and then I’ll be celebrating with one of my friends as my family is Christian.

Happy holidays!!

* The spine is just when I walk.

I don’t know when I made the rash decision not to bring any shawls to Sénégal with me, but I would dearly love to go back in time and kick myself.  They would be perfect for evening knitting here.

I suppose that two good things come out of this. Firstly, I guess I’ll be forced to go to the fabric market and bargain for some nice pashminas.  Oh, darn. Secondly I’ll have to hurry up and knit some new ones.  After all, I did bring laceweight!! (Still don’t want to talk about the stash, even while there’s a little thing called the Atlantic Ocean that currently comes between us. Stash is to knitters as malaria is to mosquitos? Hey, at least we *like* stash.)
Not that we were speaking of tailors, but speaking of tailors mine promised me my clothes for Friday and as of today they’re still not finished.  Sénégalese culture is much more relaxed about time than American, so-while frustrating-this is not unusual or problematic.  If I weren’t taking it in a slightly American fashion, the whole process would be quite fun.  We knew in advance that our things would not be ready, so we decided to fight back in advance.

Armed with a clever white lie* about how we were planning to travel this weekend, we went back four days in advance to move him along a bit.  “Yes, yes, Friday, it’s sure”.  Right.

Two trips Friday, two Saturday and two today have really made no dent.

The next step??  I’m enlisting my mother.  Don’t mess with me.
* White lies are very acceptable in Sénégalese culture.  You use them to ensure that you don’t hurt someone’s feelings by your actions, or by revealing a truth you are aware of that would hurt them.  We decided-at my host mother’s suggestion-that this was a good time to use one. Hey, if he’s going to white lie about the date of completion… It’s kind of like a complicated form of bargaining.

The weather did cool down after my little outburst, although mostly at night.  I’ve pulled out the long pajama pants and a sheet, and I close all of my windows.  I even wore jeans when we went out last night!!  Despite that, it’s pretty hot today.

This morning when I left my house, my friend followed me down the street for about ten yards.  It was pretty funny.  I was relieved to see him because the other day, there was a dog chasing a chicken with much squawking and fluttering.  I was fearful that it was my ruffled friend, but he’s just fine.

Also, I took some fabric to the tailor last week.  I am waiting for a dress made from this fabric, and a two-piece outfit made from a solid, bright blue cotton.  The shawl is commencing, and I have found someone who is going to show me how to upload photos at the cybercafé!!

I forgot to take pictures of the pictures I drew for the tailor, but I should have them back around the 14th.  Things are a little backed up because the muslim holiday Tabaski is approaching along with Christmas, and everyone is going to the tailor.  If only I had a machine here…

People keep telling me that it’s going to get cold here.  And I believe them.  I really really do.  I’ve even been cold once or twice, although only at night.

The problem is that my nose and scalp do not believe this whole “cold” scandal.  They’re still feeling all that sun.  My nose is a rather obnoxious shade of pink, making me resemble The Sneak.  ( ;D )

My head doesn’t believe it either.  I’m feeling just as tired and lazy as ever.  Walking five blocks makes me exhausted because it’s “too hot”.  I almost fell asleep in class about seven times today, although if I’m honest that probably has as much to do with our professor as it does with the environment.

We do have methods of counteracting the heat and exhaustion.  We either go to the pool, or to the ocean where we tread water.  We usually go with the former, particularly as my friend stepped on a sea urchin yesterday.  Not fun.

Still, I’m ready for the temperature to drop…down to 75.  Ish.  Have I mentioned that I miss snow??

In other news, I still knit.  Really-really.  I still don’t have pictures, but I do knit.  In face last week I started a shawl made from gift yarn.  Thanks to Anne!!  I’m not sure I managed to post about it before I left the states.  The yarn is a fuschia laceweight, and I am using the Azalea pattern from The Second Book of Modern Lace Knitting.

I’m pretty sure it’s a lot easier to transfer pictures than I think it is, but on the other hand I don’t have incentive to sit in cybercafés with creepy men all day.  Just imagine it for now.

I’m going to bed early tonight, and tomorrow I’m making a trip to the tailor for..uh…my new fabr-I mean-what’s that?? What are you talking about!! I would never buy “fabric”.  Get your head on straight…