Projects Update

Knitting: I’m currently working on two projects. One is fingerless gloves for my best friend and let me tell you thats ridiculously hard because I’m using four needles and they are 4 inches each. The stitches are tiny, almost  comically so. I’m also making cutlery holders for my mom for Christmas. I’m making four, one for each member of the family. This involved learning how to make holes on purpose which I was very good at doing by accident. I finished one. It looks clumsy but that can be my brothers.

ASL: I feel like I’ve stagnated in ASL but I decided to let go of doing grammar for now and go back to learning vocabulary words and doing more every day. Recently I’ve been better at retaining the information. Among the words I just learned are: college, comfortable, compare, boost, grow up, guide, dust, orange, spring, Australia, and winter. 

Piano: I want to feature more artists and bands so in the upcoming weeks I have plans to feature Lady Gaga, Kelly Clarkson and Katy Perry. If I can scrounge up the sheet music I also want to do Pink, Chappell Roan (I have no sheet music from her so I’ll have to find some), and maybe even Taylor Swift again (for the third time). It’s hard learning so many songs practically on the fly and I also have to transpose many of them. Then I have to contend with my voice which usually doesn’t cooperate. Sometimes it gets gravelly for no damn reason. Other times it sounds strained. You’d think I’d spend all day yodeling.

Brainteasers: I’ve been keeping my mind sharp by doing “mental floss” (a type of puzzle I absolutely love but don’t really know the name for) and “crosswords”. My brother and my mom both do crosswords and they are miles ahead of me but even though I’m doing the easiest crosswords (the Monday ones) I found I am pretty good with the longest ones like “alcohol at a party for one” (the answer is “social lubricant”) or “inverted feat” (“standing on one’s head”).

Reading: Ever since my awesome ass cousins Kathy and Bob sent me a book journal from Etsy, I’ve been tracking my reading and taking it very seriously, especially since I am also now in a book club of my own creation. I recently finished Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton (genius), The Green Mile by Stephen King (proof he can write beyond horror) Bad Feminist by Roxane Gay (didn’t agree with everything but it was an interesting read). Now I’m reading Admissions (which is giving me flashbacks to the way too stressful college process. Seriously some things need to change or those poor kids are going to have nervous breakdowns), Love Walked In (about a woman who falls for a mysterious man  who walked into her cafe and then falls even more deeper for the kid he’s been hiding from her), and Lovely Dark Deep, a collection of short stories by Joyce Carol Oates, so good it’s semi addicting.

Writing: So here is the news I wanted to share. In January I am going to start piecing together my next book. It’s going to be divided into three parts: personal essays, poetry, and book reviews. I am more proud of this collection than any I’ve compiled before especially the poetry. I’ve been trying to read a variety of genres and authors for the book reviews. I also would like to note that the personal essays are not merely essays, they are letters. I change the names of all the recipients to protect privacy but they are people who have left marks on me, so slight even they may be surprised. These letters are not all letters or retribution (though some are) but also letters of apology or gratitude. They include friends from elementary school, teachers from high school and one night stands in college. I’m working very hard to make this book the best one yet. Because that is the book my readers deserve.