On My Mind On Friday Morning

Lately there have been some interesting animal articles. this “pale” penguin is so cute! It It looks like he took off his tuxedo! Unfortunately this coloring means a harder life for the little pen.

Check out these glow in the dark sharks!

There are a lot of crabs out there.

It’s hard to believe that the Fukushima nuclear plant radiation event happened 10 years ago now, let alone that someone stayed behind to care for the animals left by the devastation.

This is not about animals, but also quite interesting. And no one can convince me of the science behind this. Obviously that is magic.

Best Nine 2020

I love to see my Best Nine every year! I use my instagram to look back at my life as well as be a pretty social media tool. In 2020, I didn’t insta as much as past years.

I really love to look back at my best nine for each year; they are not always what I was expecting! It’s also interesting how the photos end up being organized. Look at 2019, the whole middle row is rainbows!! Here are my best nine from past years:

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

I didn’t realize before making this post, but I started this practive the year we moved to Asbury Park. Looking back at it now, it’s really interesting to see the progression of moving to the beach!

Do you make a best nine? What memories does it conjure this year?

On My Mind On Friday Morning

Seeing these pics of fireflies makes me long Summer.
Speaking of the Spring and Summer, I’m excited to go on a mushroom walk when the weather is right. I love mushrooms, but can’t eat them, so my walk is only to observe. Here is a rather long article, with some pearls of knowledge.
I loved this little video about making a dress out of mangoes to highlight food waste.
I’ve moved on to another Miss Marple book on tape. I don’t love the narrator as much as the first two, but it’s still good.
Are my cats my familiars?

Video | Fall Capsule Wardrobe Flip Through | Fall 2020 Capsule Wardrobe | Thrifted Slow Fashion Wardrobe | Zero Waste Wardrobe

Hi, I’m Mo.
Thanks for joining me today! I post videos on Mondays and Fridays.
Here is (most of) my Fall 2020 capsule wardrobe. My capsules usually consist of about 50 items give or take. I don’t count sleepwear, underwear, or outerwear in my capsule. I didn’t include a few items that were in the wash or what I was currently wearing in this video. All my capsules are slow fashion, thrifted, and zero waste.

More about this capsule here: http://www.madcatquilts.com/blog/2020/9/25/mad-cat-capsule-fall-2020-oct-nov-dec

Do you keep a capsule wardrobe? would you like to see more videos about my capsule wardrobe or about them in general?

Cats in this video: Flounder

Original music by audionightlight. https://soundcloud.com/anlight/tracks

Blog: http://www.madcatquilts.com/blog
Instagram: http://instagram.com/madcat1
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/120401161-ana-mo-shoshin

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Something Nice

Irving, Martin and the Skeleton

On My Mind On Friday Morning

Happy to report, the ghost is out!
This was a very interesting look at the contrast between American and British cop shows, the latter of which I am a big fan. Some obvious differences are noted (lack of guns, remote locations), but it also gets into more subtle differences.
I also really enjoyed this article detailing the 100 most influential cartoon sequences of all time. I feel like I’ve only seen less than half of them.
I’ve been listening to Agatha Christie’s Murder at the Vicarage read by Richard E Grant and it’s amazing!
Last week we met this fellow, we are calling him Martin for now. He appears in our yard and yells at us until we feed or pet him.

On My Mind On Friday Morning

I love weird, interesting or odd buildings! If you’re looking for some animal themed buildings to visit, here’s a good list. Although one of these is in NJ, I have never been to any. I got really close to the Duck on long Island a few times, but I could never find it. Maybe it’s time for a road trip?
I want to try a few of these one pot vegetarian meals soon!
More studies to confirm that cat’s blink to say hello. My personal advice when meeting a new or standoffish cat is to make eye contact, slow blink and with eyes closed, turn your head away from the cat.
This was a sweet little reading interview with Neil Gaiman. I’ll have to check out a few of the books he mentioned.
There’s a plant shop by my house that is home to two fluffy cats! I got to meet one a little more closely the other day!

New (Very Old) WIP

My plan for quilting for the rest of 2020 is to get at least two finishes per month. One of the things that I did upon returning to quilting was to see what quilts I have that are not finished. There are a lot of them.

My next WIP, the “new” quilt I’m working on, is very old! This quilt was started sometime in 2009, I believe. It’s ready for a finish! Irving is turning out to be quite a quilt cat and he is ready to help!

Linking up with Kathy’s Slow Sunday Stitching to get some inspiration and get moving on this very old WIP.

On My Mind On Friday Morning

Another photolog of deserted places.
Fascinating article about the history of separating a boys and girl clothes and toys section in stores.
I’ve gotten out of the habit of eating salads. Maybe this list of dressings to try might help?
I really like the idea of giving kids tools, not toys. I wonder if adults should have the same or the opposite?
What do you think about this list of the 10 best talking cats? I think I would add Ysma from The Emperor’s New Groove.

Three Habits I love and Two for October

A few months ago I shared some habits I want to build in the rest of 2018. This week I want to start documenting the habits I'm working on for October. 

Working on building new habits isn't the funnest activity. It can be frustrating and I sometimes forget why I'm even bothering. So before getting into the habit I hope to make, I want to share some of my favorites habits I already have. 

Making The Bed
I don’t make hospital corners, I don’t change the sheets every day, I don’t buy expensive sets, pillows, or have a fancy mattress. But I love to make the bed! making the bed every day makes me feel like I have done something that day (even if I haven’t).

Cat Naps
While we are talking about beds, let’s talk about naps. I try to take a nap several times a week, if not once a day. I like a nap of course more importantly, I need the bonding time with my babies. I used to think that this wasn’t so important, but it has become a vital part of my self care.

Walking to Work
Walking in general is an activity that I have come to realize is very important to my mental health and over all well being. I wish that I took many long walks, and I used to. But lately, I have settled for just walking to work. Not only do I get a walk in, it takes about 20-25 minutes to get to work, but I get a few moments to prepare from my day ahead.

I plan to continue these habits, hopefully for a long time. But this month, and especially before the cold weather sets in, I want to make some new habits, too. Here’s what I want to work on:

Stretching
This is one habit I have wanted to incorporate for long time. I’m hoping this month I can cement doing daily stretches every day. I plan to start small but I’d like to eventually try a yoga class or something like that.

Dish Free Sink
I actually really like to do dishes. But I am guilty of often not doing them right away. It doesn’t help that we have a small space to dry them. But ever since we got a on tap filter, I have been wanting and trying to keep the sink dish free most of the time.

What are some habits you’ve recently adopted or wish to?

January in Review

January creeped by with cold weather and snow storms, warm days and catfights, little time for relaxing and less time for creative work. The first 12th of the year may have been tough, but we were thankful for the lessons it brought.

Despite bitter cold, we saw some #watchercats around the neighborhood. Some walks were had, and we even made it to a freezing beach once or twice.

We were able to visit friends and family, stay warm with our favorite meals and cozy cocktails, spend time with sleeping cats and snake like cats, tried to eat healthy and nourish ourselves and those around us. 

Here are some things I learned, or relearened in January
- I have seasonal depression and it effects everything I do in cold months. 
- I need to not be so hard on myself about that fact.
- Kittens are a lot of work and street kittens even more so!

I wouldn't say January went fast, but boy did it go! What do you have in store, February?

Working Cats

One of my goals in 2018 is to read more. See other books I've read or listened to here.

When I saw Working Cats by Terry Deroy Gruber in one of my favorite used book shops in Brooklyn, I couldn't resist. 

This book was published in 1979, the year I was born! It's full of photos of cats "working" in various places, or on the street. It features really awesome photos of these cats and a quote from a human working along side them. I got this booked but I put off actually reading it for a long time. Some of the stories are sweet, some heartbreaking.  But I know that this coffee table style book will be one that I will cherish and have for a long time. I would highly recommend this book for cat lovers, those who love vintage photos and people who love coffee table books! 

Best Nine 2017

I started finding my Best Nine on Instagram last year and I love it!! Instagram is really the only social media I participate in (besides this blog, of course!). I try hard to curate my feed and this year, I ended up starting two new instas. I now have a quilting insta (link above) and one for our new kitty, Irving. I did this bc I want my personal instagram to look a certain way, and it could easily get filled with only my cats and projects. 

These are my Best Nine for 2017:

I think the above collage is a good representation of my aesthetic style and of my lifestyle. 

Below are my Best Nine from the last two years. As you can see, my feed is still mostly cats. 

2016

2015

It's interesting to look back and see the natural color themes of each year. It seems that since moving to the beach my palate has become more neutral and washed out. I don't really try to follow a color theme, but I do use a few favorite themes/filters. I notice that I naturally have "color runs" on my feed, where, over a few days, I tend to snap pics of like colored scenes. I guess this depends on my moods's eye. Does this happen to anyone else?

Who else loves Best Nine? 

WIP 11/15/17

Tom has been sitting by the heater, which means it's time finish Tom's Mat. 

YOTS2017 / Starting New

There is a pheonomonon in quilting, I'm sure you sewists know it, in which it is far easier to start a new project than to finish an old one. 

No matter how in love with a WIP I am, there comes a time in the project when starting something new becomes too appealing to resist. I love every part of quilt making, but starting something new is extra special. 

Starting a new work isn't bad, in fact for Year of The Stash, it's quite good!! For me, it means more stash is getting used. But if the abandoned semi-finished project still lingers in your home, is it still stash? I think for a project to be truly complete it must be used and useful. So while starting new isn't bad, it does drag out the finishes and that's not good.  

It's been a few months since my last update and I can't quite recall if anything new has come into my stash. Since there is nothing I can remember, I'm calling it zero! Here's what my stash report looks like this month:
Fabric Added Since Last Update: Approximately 0
Fabric Added Year to Date: Approximately 23.25
Fabric Used Since Last Update: Approximately 2 yd
Fabric Used Year to Date: Approximately 12.5 yd

What are your thoughts on starting a new project before finishing the old one? I know many quilters are like little butterflies, flitting from one project to the next with ease and grace. Are there any true blue one-project-at-a-time people out there? How does it effect your stash?

Whale Teeth Mini - A Finished Mini Quilt

Back when I made my last two minis, I pulled out an old block that I had made years ago. I think I recall that this block was made, just for something to make out of precut scrapes I had. Since I was in mini mode, I slapped a backing on and got to quilting. 

Whale Teeth Mini (thanks for the name @crimsonrobot!) measures approximately 11 1/2" x 12" and uses a scrap of a shirt as backing (thanks @internettrevor!). The batting is also scraps and it was quilted with green and blue cotton thread. 

What does everyone do with their mini quilts?

WIP 4/9/17

We're off on an adventure today, and I hope to do some slow stitching in the car. 

Tom is staying home and guarding the quilts.