ONLY practice makes perfect!

YES—I know I should shut my computers down once a week. I should attempt to do that on Saturday night and boot everything up on Sunday morning. It also helps that if you send an email with pictures to yourself, you actually touch SEND! Oh, I don't know how often I've done that. I "send" an email and wait for it to arrive, except it doesn't. Then I decide to resend it, only to find the draft on my phone. FARCE! 

Today stretches ahead of me with NO commitments. Yes, there is a Virtual Retreat today, but technically, I can just sit and listen - I don't have to have anything prepared. I even languished in bed this morning without bouncing out, knowing I had some spare time. 

But then I got up and accomplished two things, which is good! 

As soon as I finished my calls yesterday, I hopped in the car as I needed to do some shopping, and it was too far to walk. I could have taken my bike but had no time to pump up the tires. I see that the share bikes are back on the street! They were put back out a couple of days ago! It probably happened on the first day of spring. 

The shared bikes are back

I had to zip to Fabricland to get some buttons, and after much searching through the racks, I bought various colors. Let's hope they will work for my project, which I made decent progress on last night. So, all is good, but I must keep pushing as the clock is ticking! 

My new button collection

They had this rack of Canada-themed items at the cash, and I was so tempted to get some of the mini red pompoms. They also had them in white. I was in a bit of a hurry, and there were people at the cutting table, so I left them in the store. Darn - I should have got them! I may have some here, so I should look in my stash first; if not, I can go back. 

Trims in red and white

But look at all that beautiful trim! Doesn't that look yummy and make you want to embellish something? Hmmm -- what can I make? 

I also stopped at the sports store to find some small weights for DH as he continues his rehabilitation for his shoulder. I could also use them as I try to loosen up and strengthen those shoulders. I also bought a set of massage balls. I forgot to take a picture, but you use them like pressure points on those tight muscles. The cashier said they were "final sale" when she rang up my purchase. I asked why, and she said because they were $2.88. Why were they marked down? No idea, but I didn't say no. 

They work really well - painful, of course, and you can make the pain more or less intense. A good way to pass 30 seconds while waiting for something to happen. I can hardly wait to continue using those and hope it makes a difference. I am fortunate that the pain in the tight shoulders is only noticeable during a massage! 

On my way home, I decided to treat myself to a Tim's. It's Roll up the Rim season. Yesterday or today is the final day for the spring session. Can you believe this was my FIRST stop at Tim's in many weeks? I'm cured, and I almost talked myself out of stopping on the way home. My preferred treats in the house are much cheaper since they come from the grocery store. I did not need the calories from the white hot chocolate, but having a rare one is fine. 

However, I did NOT win anything on my one and only spin for Roll up the Rim. 

My spin on the app

As I was making my tea yesterday, this was the quote I got. Hmmm -- what exactly does this mean? I think this is what everyone else thinks! But I will be as selfish as possible with my time for the next few months. I have work, meetings, and Zoom calls, but I also want some time for ME. February and March were too time-intensive! 

Quote from my tea

And seriously? What is Murphy doing? DH thought she was stuck. No, she's not stuck. She's just a goof. I swear the herons are around, but I'm unsure if it was in our backyard or next door. Murphy would have barked if it was in our yard, but she was whining. We must pay attention to her - I do not want the heron picking my few remaining fish out of the pond for lunch! 

MOM -just checking my reflection! 

Now, here's a thought that bothers me. I often hear people say that they dislike something - like when teaching and I give them an assignment and bless their hearts, some of them do the task, but they dislike it even though the results are beautiful. OK - so explain why you dislike that. Well, they got through it with the instructions, but not sure they could do it without the instructions again. 

Seriously? When I first learned to quilt and needed to make the final join for the binding, I swear I had to refer to my notes for two years before I got the hang of it. I'm learning machine embroidery software and constantly referring to the User's Guide or online resources. 

And what do we tell our kids when they learn a new skill. You have to practice! Unless you are super gifted, and that's usually only in one area, we have to practice. Remember the 10,000-hour rule? That's what practice is called. 

So whether you are learning to weld, put a binding on a quilt, figure skate, or, god forbid - learn to swim, which I never learned, we can't expect perfection the first time around. We will be frustrated and sputtering water out of our mouths and noses, but we can't just expect to jump in the deep end and successfully swim to the other side. It is not until we practice and perfect the technique by tweaking and learning the ins and outs, the tips and tricks, that we become proficient at something. 

If you are learning something, GIVE YOURSELF A BREAK! It's not bad to refer to the manual or the instructions as often as needed to learn. And learning is also knowing that if you need something, you know where to go and get those instructions. We can NOT expect our brain to remember everything. Mine certainly doesn't! 

I've got a morning of paperwork to catch up on, including some writing, and then the afternoon is mine to spend with friends on the Virtual Retreat. I'm giddy! 

Here's the link if you want to stop by. We've had many interesting conversations about many things, and we keep it clean and welcoming. 

Sunday - March 23 - Starts at Noon

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81073536036?pwd=uxRqMnK1aSKrmrcSO78w8QQs5g44eA.1

Meeting ID: 810 7353 6036
Passcode: 596838

Have a super day!!!

Ciao!!