Gone

Dad died last monday night.
That's a stark sentence to write. It's a stark thing to say over and over in all the phone calls that had to be made. I know this isn't anything new. People do this all the time. But now it's my turn. and I hate it, and I don't, and I don't really know what.
I'm keeping busy. I've tried to go, and do, and be around people every day for the last week. It helps.
I got a new tattoo Saturday, for dad. He'd hate it, and that makes it even better in a way. I told him I was going to do the last time I was in Memphis. He shuddered, and then said that I was an adult and I could do whatever I wanted. Then he shuddered again. He was obsessed with the fleur di lis. He had key chains, ties, thumb tacks, pillows, sheets, soaps, and even toilet paper with fleur di lis patterns. So... I thought it was appropriate.
I'm doing... ok. Some moment's I'm just fine and others I'm a wreck. That's to be expected too. The worst moments are when I forget for a second. Remembering is a lot like hell. But I'm glad he doesn't hurt anymore and I'm glad he wasn't stuck in bed during a long, slow dying. And he kept his sense of humor. He turned to look at me that night and said, "I'm dying."
"I know," I said.
He looked at me again, "No, I mean right now." It was the sort of twisted humor that we shared. Even the nurse got in on it. That helped a little. That he could laugh about it right at the end.
A while back, right after we found out that we hadn't beaten the cancer he said to me that "if 80% of people make it then someone has to be in the 20% and why not me? But if whoever I'm giving up my place for doesn't end hunger, or cure AIDS, or save children then we're going to have a long talk when they get to Heaven." I gotta say... that's fair. Whoever you are... do some good ok? He deserves it.

Traveling Paper Cranes

The cranes have started out. I've added India to my list of places that I hope to get pictures from My contact there is super busy though, so we'll see if she can fit it into her schedule.
In the meantime, here are the first two pictures...
Laura with a crane at the Jack Daniels distillery in Lynchburg, Tennessee

Next, we've got one of the cranes relaxing with the Peabody Ducks in Memphis, Tennessee. This picture was taken during brunch with the whole family before Dad's ceremony at Millington. I got another picture, but the brown duck was diving for food so we got a great picture of her little ducky bum.

The Arthur Glassman Appreciation Day went really well. All three of Dad's siblings made it. In order, the siblings are: Herby (78), Graham (75), Francis (70), and Dad (62). Graham lives in North Carolina with his wife Margaret. Herby and his wife Marlene, and Francis and her partner Shirley all live near Atlanta. So everyone had long drives to come up and see us. My Mom's friend Kate also came to be with us. That much family was exciting, but also tiring. There was so much to catch up on.

(Graham & Dad at the Peabody)

(Daddy & Francis at the Peabody)

Memphis

Quick crane update. We are at 437 cranes!!!
My traveling Paper Crane Project is doing well. I've got cranes on their way to several states, the Virgin Islands, Equador, and Paris. I've got some of the smaller cranes sprayed down with a clear sealant and I'm going to try to get a few pairs of earrings made this weekend.
I'm in Memphis with Dad for the weekend. Dad worked as the administartor of a nursing home up here for ten years. On Sunday, his bosses are dedicating a wing of the building to him. All three of his siblings are coming in for it as well as lots of friends.
I'll post lots of pictures Sunday night or Monday when I get back home.

Birthdays & Travel Plans

So, I haven't caught up in a while because I've been at Dad's house in Memphis for his 62nd birthday party. He doesn't have wifi and I love this blog, but I'm not updating it from my phone.
The current crane count is 412! This is so awesome. It's so awesome that I've come up with a new idea. I want to expand. To build upon our success! I want the cranes to travel to all 50 states! If you've already got cranes then take a picture with a) a recognizable landmark or b) a roadsign or c) something that typifies the state and email it to me, post it on my facebook wall, or tweet it with my twitter id in it(medusasmirror).
So far; AL, MA and SC are all accounted for, but I'd love to get multiple pictures from each state so don't hesitate to participate just because you're in a state that's already claimed. And if you've got friends or relatives in unclaimed states get the on board too! I'm going to need lots of help on this one.
I'll write more about the weekend with dad later.

348 baby!

So, as of today, thanks to one of Dad's AMAZING neighbors, we have 348 sponsored cranes. I've started folding them and I hope to drop them off this weekend when I'm in Memphis. One of my friends got some extra cranes today for her pre-school classroom. Totally awesome idea.
I've been thinking about projects. There are definitely going to be some crane mobiles and some crane earrings. I've had a request for miniature bottled cranes, so I'm thinking pendants with those. I need to go find some spray polyurethane to coat all the jewelry cranes so that they will hold up a little better. I also want to try some experiments... maybe a felt crane? or a plush crane? I'll have to try it and see what works.

I sent Dad a picture of my Halloween costume for today (Little Red Riding Hood). He thought I looked cute. He's lost some more weight, but he seemed in good spirits. My aunt was visiting this weekend. They talked about a bunch of stuff this weekend. He told me, "Sweetie, I was shocked, but apparently you and I aren't the only ones with issues from childhood. Who knew?" I'm headed up there Thursday night for his birthday, which is on Saturday.
I'll post lots of project pictures as they start rolling out.

Wow, you guys ROCK!!!

So, as of 12:55 a.m. today I am at 260 sponsored cranes.
Let me say that number again... 260!!!!
This is less than 48 hours after the project went live. I am blown away by how kind and generous everyone is being. Thank you!

So far, I've actually gotten 108 of them folded. I'm trying to stay pretty on top of things. I've got some ideas for projects to do with cranes that stay with me. Some of the first cranes to go off to their new home took flight (via the USPS) to Massachusetts today. Another tiny army of cranes will get picked up on Saturday. Remember to let me know if you want your cranes or if you want to leave them with me.


Here's a peek at some of the origami paper I'm using right now...

This paper was sent to me by a friend teaching in Japan. As far as I can tell it looks like most of it was screen printed or block printed. Some of the pieces are very textured. It's pretty cool stuff. So far I've used about a third of what's actually in the box. I've got a few random collections of "real" origami paper before I'll have to get creative. I figure around the 500 crane mark anything goes!

So kind

Ok, you guys are being amazingly kind! I've got 30 cranes so far tonight. Here is a picture of the first 25 cranes:

The background on my laptop, if anyone is interested, is a 1930's style Catwoman drawn by Ted Nafieh, who is awesome. I've got 3 pieces of his art at home.
The last 5 cranes of the night are thanks to Melissa, whose fashion designs you MUST check out. She's amazing.

Step One

Ok, the first 5 cranes are folded! Only 995 to go to reach my goal!

The Paper Crane Project

So, my dad is sick. He's got terminal cancer. Sucks, but he's been amazing. So, in an effort to start raising money to cover the upcoming expenses I've started The Paper Crane Project. Building off the idea that if you fold a thousand paper cranes you will be granted one wish I'm working toward a thousand cranes to help my dad live the rest of his life with grace and dignity.

People can sponsor cranes if they'd like to and I'm going to track my progress here. I just posted today and already I've gotten a donation from a wonderful friend from high school! So I've got 5 cranes to make this afternoon! If anyone wants their cranes I'm happy to send them, or I'll keep them and do something awesome. Possibly a paper crane chandelier that I can sell in my etsy shop later to help dad more. That would be pretty awesome.
I'll post some pictures of the first 5 cranes in a bit.

Steampunk

So, I thought I'd jump in on the Bookkeeper's Steampunk Challenge and try to find more steampunk books to read myself and share some recommendations of my own.

With that in mind, here is a short review I wrote back in July on the Little Professor page

The Affinity Bridge by George Mann

I'm not sure if anyone noticed, but this book is BRILLIANT! The female character is sympathetic, the male character is flawed, but in an understandable way. There are shades of Alan Moore's "From Hell" lurking about creating dark, atmospheric pockets. The zombies are spine chilling and extraordinarily well conceived. I cannot wait for the next book. Literally. I can't wait. I may explode. (In point of fact, I special ordered it from England as it was released there over six months before it came out in the US). It could happen. So, just wanted to point all that out. I'll try to be sane again now.

The book centers around Sir Maurice Newbury, and investigator for the Crown, and his new assistant, Miss Veronica Hobbes. There are automatons, dirigibles, and even zombies! An horrific dirigible crash along with several other well protected incidents have started to throw doubt on the reliability of the automatons. After all, who wants a clockwork butler that might strangle your guests at any moment? Sir Maurice and his unexpectedly feminine assistant have to get to the bottom of the mystery before any more tragedies occur.

bustle

as geeks so often do, this year I am making the pilgrimage to Dragoncon! I've decided on a steampunk costume. Therefore, I needed a bustle! So, I found a handy-dandy tutorial over on threadbanger and got to work.


Here is my bustle in construction


A spool of electrical wire, florists wire, and some ribbon and i'm all set!

Then I made a ruched overskirt to lay over the bustle out of a size 2 prom dress I found at the thrift store


my favorite part is that the dress had a pocket, which is now right on top of my bustle. I can tuck fans, programs, mints, whatever I need, right on top of the bustle!

Upcycling

I come up with crazy projects. It's a thing that I do. My biggest ongoing project is the endless scarf. It has its own (rarely updated) blog. My newest plan is to go a year without buying any new clothes. By which I mean clothes for which I am the original owner. The exceptions are a) my bridesmaid's dress for 'Liss's wedding in December and b) my costumes for the movie we're making. Other than that I can get things used clothes off ebay or from the thrift store, and I can make my own.
My first project is repairing a skirt that I've had since high school. The elastic wore out and there are several rips. All I'm doing is sewing it on top of a black cotton skirt that also has some holes. I'm sewing it on about 4 inches below the waistband of the cotton skirt so that it hangs a little longer.