Category Archives: crafting

Warm Fuzzies

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prayer shawlsWe have a lot of book groups and girlfriend posses through our shop, but on Monday past the women of Hiltons Methodist Church came bearing gifts.

Prayer shawls, and chemo hats and scarves for the community. Made with love and prayers for healing, and yarn in pretty, bright colors.

It was frighteningly easy to get those distributed. Jack and I immediately set aside some for cancer fighters we knew: an elegant executive approaching retirement coping with breast cancer; a buoyant cat rescuer who lets nothing get her down, including chemo; a young mom facing killer lymphoma; one of my most feminine ever friends, a healthy-eating, beautiful, petite woman who has that rare kind of cancer prevalent in men of African descent; and a 12-year-old boy (who got the camouflage lap blanket).

The rest we gave to my friend Leigh Anne – herself fighting cancer, and the director of our local cancer center – to bless those who might have less family and friends around them when they need a warm fuzzy moment.

Of all the things Little Bookstore has done, this might be the nicest: that people bring to our community gifts of love from theirs. When I put out an appeal last summer for postcards, so the Quakers doing prison visits could send them to guys in the federal penitentiary, y’all sent 400 cards, plus the nicest notes, and even sheets of stamps. When my friend and I stared making “spay and neuter afghans” to pay for the cats of Wise County being rendered non-reproductive, people on the West and East coasts and many places in between bought them.

And when I’ve blogged about friends in need–Sue’s bookstore in Wisconsin, the stealing of Elissa’s dog rescue raffle money–responses have been practical, and sweet, and positive. Sure there’s stuff that goes wrong with the world, but while there are women knitting prayer shawls filled with love, how bad can it be?

Stay warm, y’all.

All I Want is to Crochet this Chicken, OK?

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chickensWe’ve all had ’em – those days when it seems like brushing your hair is too much effort. When all you want in the world is to sit quietly in the corner with Netflix and a skein of yarn, crocheting a chicken.

This morning I ordered 12 patterns off Etsy (thanks for the gift card, dear) and sat contemplating the delights of a cat scarf versus a chicken trivet. Chicken won. Scarf is next.

Because when you don’t have books (see last post about Between Books Blue Funk) you still have yarn. And sometimes, that’s enough. I’m between books and I’ve hit rough water in my current writing project. Tomorrow, I’ll get back to writing. Today’s it’s just me, two cones of 100% cotton thread, and an I-hook.

Sure, I’m getting the three loads of laundry done between circular rows. We have to do laundry on Sundays and Mondays because the bookstore is closed then and we don’t own a dryer. We always check REAAAAAAALLLY carefully for errant foundational garments on the rungs of the mystery room chairs, before reopening Tuesday. People point at what they don’t understand. You’d think they’d never seen a size XL thong before.

But what I’m really doing is recharging. Sometimes your brain, like good farmland, needs to go fallow for a day. Leftover pizza for lunch, Chef Kelley’s bowls of good soup for supper, and me and the chicken are gettin’ on like a house afire.

Go by, mad world.

If you want to order the chicken pattern, it’s from Ken-Sarah Moss on Facebook. Here’s the link to her ETSY site. https://www.etsy.com/listing/158723591/crochet-pattern-for-the-swanky-chicken?ref=shop_home_active Only costs $3.50 and is quite fun to work up. No, I don’t get a commission – don’t even know the lady! But I’m having fun dating her chicken. Sometimes, ya gotta smooth those ruffled feathers, y’know?