The Stitch Book: Week 11 (March 10-16)

I'm having one of those weeks where everything and everyone annoys me. It started out pretty well; I baked for my mom's party and hung out with her and the Irish Catholic ladies while they had their brunch and meeting. Keely has decided sleeping on my legs is the best way to show affection. I made really delicious lemon curd. 

But then people just started to people too much and I wanted to punch someone. Thankfully, I selected this week's theme and have been able to channel some of my annoyance into embroidering. I picked words and phrases that I like, most of which have to do with people being annoying or trying to get out of talking to someone. This week fit my mood perfectly. I worked through being annoyed to get to today's saying, which is all about daydreaming and pondering.

Here's this week's piece:

March 10 - "Backpfeifengesicht" is a German swear word that basically means "someone whose face makes you want to punch him." I don't advocate violence, but I love this word. You can hear how to say it here.

March 11 - I grew up in the South and this is a wonderful saying a neighbor of ours in Alabama used to say all the time. It's a great way to end a telephone call you don't want to be on or get out of one of those conversations with a neighbor you didn't plan on when you went to take out the garbage. I really need to start saying this to people in real life.

March 12 - This is a Norwegian phrase (oppe og ikke gråter) that translates into "up and not crying." It's not really used that often anymore, but the internet has embraced it as a perfectly good way to respond in the current world we live in. You can hear it pronounced here. 

March 13 - "Stop climbing on my head" is an Arabic idiom that translates to "stop annoying me."  

March 14 - Latibulate was a word commonly used in the 17th century. It means "to hide in a corner in an attempt to escape reality."

March 15 - A debrouillard is a French word used to describe someone who is resourceful and works with what they have. Basically, it's someone who can make it work.

March 16 - I saved the best for last. This is a Spanish idiom (Pensando en la inmortalidad del cangrejo) that refers to a person who's daydreaming or letting one's mind wander. It's such a wonderful saying and a lovely way to close out the week. There are other versions of this saying in other languages; I'm partial to the Polish version: myśleć o niebieskich migdałach (thinking about blue almonds).

Week 11

Weeks 1-11

Week 12's color: elephant

Go out and buy these two books!

No really, you should go out and buy these two books. One of my favorite Japanese words is tsundoku, which means " the art of buying books and never reading them. I buy books all the time and I have a Kindle. I love reading and usually am reading at least two books at one time (I'm at three right now). I also have many piles of books around my house and it's very possible some of them will never be read. I won't get rid of them, but they won't be read.

From my September 2021 piece

I started two new books this week, Little Girl Blue and If You Can't Take the Heat. Little Girl Blue is Randy L. Schmidt's biography of musician Karen Carpenter. I love Karen Carpenter. She was such a talented performer and seemed like such a beautiful soul. Her life ended way too soon. Schmidt's book is one of the first to be written without "interference" from the living members of the Carpenter family. I'm not too far into the book, but it's really good so far.

I've been waiting for Geraldine DeRuiter's second book since I finished the first one. DeRuiter is a food writer, probably best known for her James Beard award winning essay about her experience making the cinnamon roll recipe that Mario Batali inexplicably included in his apology letter when he was facing sexual harassment and abuse charges. Her blog is wonderful and I enjoyed her first book, All Over the Place. I love the new book so much. Her writing is so personal and relatable. Each time I think, "well, she got me so good in that chapter, the next one won't be that emotional for me," she gets me again. I'm still thinking about her feelings about her mom's mortality (Geraldine, why are you in my brain?) and her reflections on choosing not to have children. I could have read this book in one sitting, but I'm savoring it across several days. 

Also, and I say this so seriously, the NYT piece on the book and the people who were responsible for the image that accompanied it, can fuck all the way off. I'm not linking to it here, but I wish them nothing but terrible meals for the rest of their lives. Criticism is fine, but personal attacks are unnecessary. 

Why is my bookmark the cutest thing ever?