Stigmas and Silver Ribbons

Everybody is talking about this post by The Bloggess from last night.  If you haven't read it yet, you really, REALLY should.

When depression sufferers fight, recover and go into remission we seldom even know, simply because so many suffer in the dark…ashamed to admit something they see as a personal weakness…afraid that people will worry, and more afraid that they won’t.  We find ourselves unable to do anything but cling to the couch and force ourselves to breathe.

The simple fact that those of us that suffer from depression, or that love someone who does, are ashamed of it - that's unfortunately a heartrendingly true statement.  It's such a stigma, something that gets downplayed or openly mocked by so many people; even by those who have it.  And it's not just depression, but the whole litany of mental disorders - see, just saying "mental disorders" makes you automatically think "the crazies," doesn't it?  It's blatantly obvious that the common mindset about these diseases needs to change.

I hopped on teh Googles to see what sort of organizations are out there for education and support.  Here's what I've found, and wanted to share:

Silver Ribbon Coalition - An effort to promote awareness of brain disorders through the silver ribbon symbol.  They talk about how the red ribbon campaign for HIV/AIDS helped reduce the stigma hanging over that disease, and how the silver ribbon campaign hoped to do the same for brain disorders - and while they tout their success, obviously more needs to be done.  Their shop has some nice things.

No Kidding, Me Too! - Founded by Joe Pantoliano, NKM2 wants to make brain disease a common conversation through the media and entertainment industries.  Their board member list includes Robert Downey, Jr., Samuel L. Jackson, and a ton of other names whose voices would definitely lend credibility to the cause.  Their LifeLinks bracelets are pretty cool too.

NoStigmas - The post by The Bloggess proves the goal of NoStigmas - that by sharing our stories, we share hope.  Just knowing that we aren't alone in our struggles gives inspiration to others, and educates as well.

To Write Love on Her Arms - TWLOHA is probably the best known of the groups dedicated to this cause.  Their shirts can be seen on hipsters nationwide, they host concerts and events to raise awareness for teen depression and suicide prevention, and they recently won a $1 million grant from Chase based on Facebook votes.  The popularity of TWLOHA is inspiring, yet sometimes I wonder if the true message of the group gets lost.

It's taken some harsh realities for my mindset to change - I'm hoping that it doesn't take such unpleasant circumstances for others to change, too.  So show support, educate others, and let's destroy the stigmas.

Kiddie Stuff

(I figure the best thing to do is just keep on going like there wasn't any hiatus in writing at all.  Nope, nothing to see here...)

When I was a kid, our family Christmases were HUGE.  At the time, they didn't seem like anything unusual - 20-30 people at our place for the holidays was par for the course.  My sister and her family would come over from Seattle and stay for a few days, and my three brothers and their families were all local so they'd drive out on Christmas day for dinner.  It was chaotic, messy, and fun, but most of all it was our tradition.

There were a few years where the kids outnumbered the adults, so we did two Christmas trees - the pretty, sparkly, white-lighted formal one in the living room, and the kids' tree in the kitchen with the beaded fake candy garland, the felt and plastic toy ornaments, and gaudy multicolored lights.   I loved the formal tree, "Mom's tree" as Dad would call it, with her angels and crystal icicles and collectible glass ornaments.  She'd put velvet bows and gold garland on it, and it just shone and sparkled like one big neon "DO NOT TOUCH" sign.  The kids' tree, however, was right in the middle of the traffic zone in the kitchen - there was nothing breakable or fragile about it.  It was a rough-and-tumble tree, meant to be bumped and prodded and dug around under with abandon.  It wasn't pretty, and it was awesome to us kids that we had our very own tree.  But the sheer beauty of Mom's tree was captivating in a way that the kids' tree just couldn't hold a candle to.

 So you'd think that, as an adult, my taste in Christmas decor would run along the lines of my Mom's - sparkly, pretty, a bit more formal.  But when I look at my tree now I see that kids' tree.  I have the original candy garland, the wooden beads, and a lot of the kids' ornaments that we hung on the old tree.  B has contributed all of his ornaments that he made or had from his childhood.  Almost all of the new decorations that we've acquired follow this theme too - Beaker from The Muppets (he meeps "Ode to Joy" when you hit a button!), a GI Joe action figure, Strawberry Shortcake, Mr Potatohead, snowmen and S'moremen and felt Pac-Men and penguins.  I did go a little bit the other direction when I bought glass icicles and red velvet bows, but I think there's only three glass balls on the entire thing.  When you look at the tree, you definitely see the childhood memories of two 30-something-adults reflected there.  And I love it.

Inventory

I started thinking this morning about all the crafty projects I have that I'm either in the middle of, or that I have the stuff for but haven't started yet.

Crochet - I have a lot more yarn than I thought.  I got this great teal wool blend that I want to make a cardigan out of, and I have the supplies to make my cupcake hats and acorn hats, plus some leftovers from previous projects.  In fact I just started a pair of socks tonight using this fuzzy yarn that was originally going to be a blanket.  I also have been saving plastic bags from World Market to make "plarn" water bottle carriers out of.  But the good news is, I did manage to finish a project that had been languishing in my bag for about 7 months!

Quilt - My new bed quilt project is spread out on my work table, being pieced together a bit at a time.  I'm not in a hurry to finish it, since we won't use it until next summer, but since I don't know how long it will take to have it quilted, I should probably get on it.  I also have a box of t-shirts and sweatshirts that will be made into a cozy throw at some point too.  And lastly I have some leftover blocks from my pink quilt that I need to turn into shams or throw pillows.

Sewing - I have all the fabric and pattern to make an adorable messenger bag with an appliqued owl on it... sitting in one of my storage bins.  I also have a stack of dog food bags (the kind made of woven plastic) that I'm going to make into grocery bags,  leftover lampshade fabric and batting that I'm going to turn into a cat bed, and all sorts of other leftover fabric that I'm saving for... something.

Glass painting - I don't have any projects started, but I still have all the materials ready in case something comes up.  Same with batik stuff.

Beading - I bought some cool pendants on clearance, and have plans to make some things to add to my Etsy shop in time for Christmas... I just can't find the motivation right now to squint my way through the projects.

Cross stitch - I have a huge tote bag FULL of unfinished cross stitch projects, including a wedding announcement for my best friend who was married I forget how many YEARS ago now, but maybe I'll get this thing done for their 20th or 30th or 50th anniversary... There's also a Christmas stocking, a wall hanging of the Footprints poem, a baby announcement that I can't even remember who it was originally for, and maybe 2 or 3 other things that haven't even been started yet but I have the kits for them.

One good thing about having so many projects is when I get tired of it, or my hands/eyes get worn out, or when I'm on a TV marathon, or traveling, I can set down the boring/eyestraining/callous-forming/attention-stealing project and pick up one that's more interesting/uses-different-muscles/can-do-while-watching-the-tube.  So it's fun.  It just takes a bit of space to store it all.

Another good thing about being a Crafter-of-All-Trades is being able to come up with good gift ideas.  This list doesn't even include the things I'm making as gifts for other people, which I can't talk about here or I'd ruin the surprise, but know that there are a FEW of them.  Also if anybody wants something made for themselves or someone else, you know who to ask.  :-)

Up for a challenge..

The pattern (with some rows added to make it Queen size)

The fabric scheme, which matches the duvet my mom made

Getting a running start!

And, of course, my "Assistant."

The HELL.

I can't believe I forgot to post the end result of the kitchen repair fiasco.  The maintenance guys, whose praises I was singing, totally failed.  Sure the drain line got fixed, but when it came to patching the walls & repairing the cabinet they punched a hole through, well, let's just say a monkey could have done a better job.  Two weeks and a new set of maintenance guys later, the wall was fixed properly, and I got the blue paint up.  I did wind up using the Behr ultimate fancy whatever stuff with the primer in it, and it only took two coats, but lordy did that black & white monstrosity cover a multitude of sins.  Now every crack, bump, and uneven spot in the plaster sticks out like a sore thumb, but at least it's a pretty sore thumb.

We're still not sure if we're going to paint the living room.  We got our bookshelves arranged and art on the walls, and if you keep your eye-line pointed somewhat down it's really not that bad.  The palm trees are still ugly, but they're ignorable.  We've really just lost interest in trying to make this house better.  Which is sad, but really isn't that how renting is supposed to be?  I can't even bring myself to garden.

Beyond the kitchen, I survived another adventure - flying to Seattle, picking up a 10-foot moving truck, loading up furniture and stuff that my sister had been storing for me for the past 10 years, and driving back to Ohio with Mom following in her car.  o.O  It really wasn't all that bad though, and we made it in one piece with Mom only getting lost once (and that was the last HOUR of the trip, when trying to get off the Turnpike to get to the house!).  She's staying in the apartment at the in-law's house for the rest of the summer, and it's been fun having someone to shop and craft and generally rat around with.  Of course it's so much better because she's not staying at MY house - and she agrees with me on that too so I can get away with saying it!  :-)

Work is... meh.  There might be something happening at the bookstore for me, and the work-at-home job is still waiting on further negotiations, so it's the whole "up in the air" thing happening all over again.  Which is really getting old. 

Other than the "life update" I don't have much else to talk about I'm afraid.  But Mom and I are going shopping for fabric today - I'm starting a big quilt project, so I'll share all of that.

Welcome to my (boring, insignificant) world!