Adventures in the Mouse House

Putting them out there in the hope that I care enough not to humiliate myself and totally fail.


1. Fitness & Weight Loss
As we all know, I've been pretty down about my weight, especially since I haven't been able to exercise enough to keep up with the huge amount that I've been eating thanks to the side effects of my magic sleeping drugs. (Combination of getting viruses and the fact that it's been too dark, cold and wet to go outside since November).

I weighed myself about 5 weeks ago. You know all those jokes I make about having doubled in size? Not that far off, actually. I may or may not have lost 2 kg in 2 weeks after that (my bathroom scale - not a precision instrument)[1]. Then I got sick and it all went to hell and I haven't gone near a scale since.

So, in an effort to motivate myself, I have resolved not to buy any more clothes (including charity shops and shoes) until I've lost at least 10 kg. I'd like to lose about 15.

Yoga is nice, but I need to do more. In theory I have the exercise bike at home, but I always manage to put off using it till next thing I know I'm in bed. So I'm sucking it up and joining the Council-run gym that's more or less on my way home from work this week. With my NHS employee discount, it's cheap enough that if I can only manage to use it for 15 minutes twice a week that's OK.

I'm going to keep going to my local yoga class on Mondays because I really enjoy it.

[1] I do have access to precision scales at work but a) that way madness lies and b) I'd have to get one of the professionals to help me work them and that would be pretty embarrassing.

2. Making costumes for Convergence
Yes, I should have started in Feb., but see above. I'm running with Miriam's suggestion of using gingham (the Internets tell me black & purple doesn't exist yet I keep seeing items in shops in such a combination. Never mind, I have a washing machine & can purchase dye). Gingham is not known for its stretchy qualities (if anyone out there sees any that does, that would make my year!) so I do need to wait till I'm closer to the size I'll be when we go. Yet not leave it till the last minute - should be interesting.

I do, however, have lots of ideas for a mad prospector outfit for the steampunk night, and I could start on making the coat for that soon, as my shoulder size isn't going to change much.

3. Er - don't you think that's enough for now?

Last weekend I finally fixed my sewing machine. I haven't used it in years because it started breaking needles a few years ago when I was much less well than I am now, and I just couldn't figure it out.

I'd got it sort of working before we went to Canada and made Jason half a shirt for Convergence/Pig Roast which I had to give up on before the Pig Roast. I've finished the shirt and started on a dress for myself for Convergence.

I'd be more impressed that I finally got it working properly, except that the last step, the bit that I just couldn't do, was the sewing machine equivalent of is it plugged in and turned on? (It needed oiling. That's the first thing you check, not when all else fails).

On top of leaving it till the last minute, I've never made anything that has to fit and doesn't stretch before, so there's some learning curve joining the serious time constraints.