Misleading Assumptions

print for sale at art.com

Take a close look at the picture and make a stab at guessing what it is of.

When I first saw a thumbnail of it in an ad on a website, I thought it looked like a piece of a painting from the era of Michelangelo and the partial title that accompanied it reinforced that assumption: "Close view of the Mantle of...."

Oh, yes, sure. I bet it's a detail of the mantle of an angel or Mary in one of the Assumptions of Mary paintings.

Boy was I fooled.

I'm going to make you click on it to go see it's full title. I downloaded it to use in my jigsaw puzzle game. Then decided to use it also to head this post.

Because it seems to be the theme of the day for me to discover misleading assumptions.

I've been operating on one for the last several weeks that caused me to put a lot of other things on the back burner that I probably wouldn't have; probably shouldn't have. And now I'm waaaay behind in a plethora of other projects and commitments and the one I was preparing for this Saturday isn't happening.

I'm speaking of the citywide yardsale that I thought I've been preparing my crocheted bookmarks for. When Ed told me of the librarian's suggestion that I might set up a table at the library that day while the Friends of the Library were putting on their book sale, it sounded more like an offer not just a suggestion that I check with the Friends of the Library. Tell the truth, I thought it didn't sound kosher when I first heard it. We're talking county and city property so how likely is it that any regular citizen would be allowed, let alone encouraged to sell items for their own profit. Turns out my first thought was correct.

In a way I'm relieved as I wasn't looking forward to sitting out in public for hours and making small talk and 'showing off' my stuff. Instead I'm going to donate some of the bookmarks to Friends of the Library to offer during the book sale. So whatever they can make off them will go towards buying books for the library.

Meanwhile, I've got some 180 bookmarks (tho all but 40 some are still naked) now but am behind on everything else. Not just library books and DVD either but those are the things that cause me the most anxiety since the due dates are less forgiving then other more loosely scheduled things. I've got a dozen books coming due in the next three weeks, more than half of them hard to get back. And between our two cards we have 12 DVD due in the next week. Most with long queues waiting behind us. Like Avatar, Australia, Hurt Locker, Lovely Bones, New Moon, Dr Who Series 3, and Michael Moore's Capitalism: a Love Story.

And no, I did not finish that book due today that I started yesterday: The Anthologist by Nicholson Baker. Almost. 60 some pages to go. I won't owe a fine if I get it in the drop box before the library opens Monday. But I didn't want to take advantage of that this time because I have three more books due on Monday!!! Plus four DVD.

Among the neglected tasks this past few weeks was getting the book reviews done for the books that I finished before the books had to go back to the library.

The Anthologist's protagonist is a writer who isn't writing. Which is rubbing it in my own face a bit hard.

Besides pushing to finish several books and movies this weekend I will also be packing for a three day out of town trip. Well saying 'out of town' is a bit misleading. It's only across the valley to the driveway of Ed's brother's place where we will be staying in their camper and Ed's folks in the house while the bathroom here is being remodeled. Completely new fixtures and flooring. The floor is rotting out from under us in there. The toilet is tipping so far to the side the tissue box won't stay on the tank. There are holes in the floor next to the tub, between the tub and toilet.

The work starts Monday and is supposed to be done by Wednesday afternoon. The water will be off here with no bathroom facilities at all hence our invite to stay at Ed's brother's place.

Ed has cautioned me several times to take it easy in packing. It is only two nights and one full day with part days bracketing it. Besides, he says, he can always drop by and pick up something I discover I need.

Just the thought of packing for this event has had me in a dither for two weeks now. I keep going back and forth and round in circles on what I should take and what I should leave behind. I can't imagine being without my crochet while being in a social situation but when I try to settle on a limited number of balls of thread to take with me I can't settle on a number let alone the colors.

But taking all of them would be twice the volume of the clothes I need. And really to take them at all I'd want to take the wardrobe makings--the beads, ribbons, buttons etc. So after dithering over this for a time I keep coming to the conclusion that I should just leave it all behind and take a three day break from the hook. That lasts for about five seconds.

There are alternatives. I could switch to a craft that doesn't entail so much paraphernalia. Like sewing the backing on those tri-panel book covers. Everything I need for that project takes up less space than a large book. Plus one of the issues keeping me from getting it done is not having a place with enough space and light to spread out the cloth to measure and cut it. That shouldn't be a problem at my BILs home with their big dining room table under a good light.

Or I could just play games on my netbook while in the house with the family and read, write and watch DVD on my netbook while out in the camper.

Of course my niece will be there to visit with and watch movies with but she has school and drama club so our one-on-one time will be limited.

Don't even get me started on books. I should select one of the really long novels and leave everything else behind. But will I?

Me packing for a trip has become a family joke.