Feeling rather bored and restless. Not because there is nothing to do, but because I don't want to do the things that need doing, yet I feel guilty if I'm doing something else when other, more important things loom. And I'm trying to actually finish projects instead of leaving a bunch of things half-done!
I did finish reading a couple of library books on Urban Legends, both of which were written before the internet became popular. In some ways, that makes them even more interesting, because the collection methodology was so different before the internet became mainstream. Now I just need to peruse the book on Japanese pilgrimages and take some serious notes from that inter-library loan book on Japanese printing pre-1868 for my Queen's Prize Project. Found another book on emaki scrolls that I'm going to need to order. I'm debating buying it because it's not too expensive, but then again, money is tight right now. :-P
Books, why must you tempt me so?!
I'm going to need to start doing some physical experiments with the washi (paper) that I want to use regarding calligraphy. I thought very hard about writing the poems in Japanese (I've done a few Japanese-language tanka), but on thinking about it, I realized that my Japanese just isn't up to par yet, and besides, to be really accurate, I'd need to use Classical Japanese, with which I'm only vaguely familiar. So the poems will be written in English (although I may throw in the Japanese ones to mess with the judges--haha, I'm so mean!) and I need to determine whether I can callig on washi with a pen or if I need to use a brush, which will require me working out a new script.
And then there's the bookbinding. *cringes* Big learning curve there. Honestly some of the stuff I've been reading proves that the Japanese were using woodblock prints since about the 8th century, so for a moment I thought about trying that out, but then I remembered that I have never carved wood and don't know the first thing about it. Plus, poetry collections were usually handwritten. Woodblock prints were often used for Buddhist texts. Maybe next year, I'll dig up some Buddhist texts and learn to carve wood? Wait, Maria, stay in the Now...
I want to sewwww!!! I was looking at ![[info]](http://stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small}
gurdymonkey's Kosode Made Simple page (nice updates since the last time I visited, btw. Thanks for clarifying that collar thing!) and starting to feel inspired. The event in Cedar Rapids is a little over a month from now and if I got started right away, I could probably manage both aota's Mongolian and an autumn-colored kosode/uchikake by then. (My current ensemble is in pink and yellow, which are more winter/early spring colors.) But can I really get all that done by then? Am I taking on too much? Will I ever get my housework done?
Wait. Do I ever get my housework done?
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