Joining in and other things

Here's what I should be doing--






My sister and BIL's stockings. My sister go the "fiddly bits" done and now it's my turn. In case you've looked closely at how much is left to do on the tree/Santa stocking (the sister's) you can probably guess that that one won't be ready for 2009. The BIL's might. I have to do the top and order the fabric for the finishing. That might work out. Cross your fingers!

What I have been obsessed with instead:


the belt.... I'm actually more done than this, but I haven't uploaded those pics. I have become completely obsessed with this. It apparently has the perfect balance of color changes and color blocks so nothing ever gets too tedious. I like that in a canvas! I like it a lot!
Oh and I got needlepoint startitis and bought and started this:

I rationalized this as my trip to NYC momento. The ability to rationalize stash and starts is a talent all stitchers should have.... right?

I've even done some xs instead of working on the stockings --
Beatrix Potter got some time--


in case you were wondering, that's a lot of beads in that there flower....


Because I got xs startitis one afternoon, I began work on Ursula Michaels We the People--



Now, about the joining -- which is kinda like startitis, just not with needles. I am joining Vickie's 10 Book Challenge! The idea is that you make a list of 10 books you want to read by the end of the year. You don't have to stick to the list, but it gives you some place to aim. I mean, you know me. I'm even more of a "mood reader" than I am a "mood stitcher." One of my happiest moments is finishing a book because what I do next is pull down a whole bunch of books I think I want/need to read and surround myself with them on the bed. Then I start picking them up one by one and reading the beginning. When I get to the one I am reluctant to put down, that's the winner. This kind of joy-in-choosing pattern does no bode well for lists (witness the fact that what's it been? 2 years that there's been a reminder on the side bar of this blog that I want to read Smilla's Sense of Snow? lol).

Anyway, I'm joining. I was wanting too sign up even before our friend, Shelleen chided me for not talking about reading even though I torture you all with pictures of authors at scifi cons. But I might not have gotten around to formalizing the joining if it weren't for Shelleen's prodding -- thanks, Social Butterfly!

So here goes. My "list:" [in no particular order and, because I'm me, in pictures]

1. Sharyn McCrumb's St. Dale
2. Marilyn Robinson's award-winning Gilead (Afterall, I should read something that won something other than a Hugo occasionally. lol)

3. Sean McMullen's Souls in the Great Machine
4. James White's The Watch Below

5. the anthology Mean Streets (how can I resist Simon R. Green and Jim Butcher in one volume?!)
6. Barbara Hambly's Redfield

7. the anthology Enchantment Place (I love short stories.)
8. the anthology The Wizards of Odd

9. Zakour and Ganems' The Plutonium Blonde
10. Simon R. Green's Nightside -- the first is Something from the Nightside which I have already read, but I should probably re-read to get started on the 6-10 subsequent volumes (yeah, I'm behind.)

10.1. the anthology Night's Edge Charlaine and Barbara Hambly vampire stories, yeah, I could like that!
10.2 George R.R. Martin's Wildcards

10.3 Florence's The Perfect Machine
10.4 Rolt's Victorian Engineering

10.5 an old fav -- Steve Perry's The Man Who Never Missed -- a re-read so I can get on to the other volumes in the series.
10.6 Yarbro's -- A Flame in Byzantium or any of the many St. Germain's I haven't gotten to.

10.7 Vaughn's Kitty and the Midnight Hour
10.8 the anthology Space, Inc (did I mention I really, really Love short stories?)

Lest you think I'm spoiled for choice:

there's the McDevitt and McKillip collections

and the Shinn collection
And still, those are the merely the snowball on the tip of the iceberg. Heck maybe I'll actually read Smilla's! lol

Here's to finishing.... SOMETHING!