sixteen hour day

That was how my yesterday came out. Well, with a couple hours break in the middle, during which I wrote part of my first exam of the summer (to be given Monday; I will need to be sure to have the Boxed Raglan cast on by that time). And about an hour in the afternoon during which I practiced piano (yes, darn it, I am keeping up with it - and actually some days it's kind of a relief to be able just to play, without looking forward to being "graded" on it. And yes, my teacher was the most gentle "grader" possible and was cognizant of the fact that I was far, far harder on myself than she ever would be - but still, it's nice to be able to throw a piece aside if you're having a bad day with it and say "I don't have to stress over this today, I can come back to it tomorrow and see how it goes.")

Last night was the last meeting (well, for the summer) of CWF. I'm the new president or maybe it's co president. I can't tell. (I guess I'm the head president because the person serving with me told me to call her if I'd ever be absent. Oh well). Again, as always, there was talk of the low attendance we have. In the most recent newsletter, both the interim pastor and the woman who is in charge of the outreach teams wrote letters about their concerns over low attendance - we have a small but decent number of members, but a lot of people don't attend regularly. Now, in some cases, it's because they have careers that take them out of town for extended stretches, or they have kids involved with sports (and when did sports take over Sunday as well as weekday afternoons and Saturdays? I don't really approve of that*). Or there are people with health issues who might not have the energy or strength to get there.

But it is disheartening to see a small congregation every week, and it must be disheartening especially for the pastor, to work hard over something and have a figurative handful to hear it.

At least this week there were a lot more - almost double the week before. So I guess the letter worked.

One thing that was suggested, and I think might help, is doing once-a-month small meals after church - nothing elaborate, maybe just salad and sandwiches, but to give people time to hang out with each other and enjoy each other's company. And as one of the women said: even if the first few months have low attendance we need to keep with it and it will grow.

I admit, when I saw the "increasing attendance" agenda item I cringed a little; at one time there was a program afoot to push all of us regular attendees to call and "encourage" (I would say, "hound") the non-attendees into coming. And I guess if that ever comes up I just need to gather my courage and say, "I am NOT comfortable talking on the phone, not even with people I know, when it involves doing something like that. Please give me some other task." Because when people say they don't like speaking publicly, people accept that. Or when people say they're not good with children, people accept that. I don't know why they wouldn't accept my "I don't phone well". Because I really don't, and part of that is that I would find it really annoying and intrusive to have someone calling ME and asking me to do something. Granted, perhaps some people who don't attend would love to have a personal call and would respond to it - but I wouldn't. I don't like being told what to do or even asked to do something because I am plenty good at "shoulding" on myself.

Also, to me, it feels like I'm being punished for being a regular attendee by being given the extra duty of trying to round up some of the non-attending people. I don't think it's fair to "punish" (and yes, I know it's not really a punishment but it feels like it to me) responsible people by giving them more work. That's how you turn responsible people into slackers, or at least into responsible people who have a certain level of resentment.

But I'm on board with monthly meals. Even if I might have to pick and choose some months or maybe eat very little and supplement at home (because of both the blasted sodium thing and also because of my few weird food intolerances). That might actually help get people in. And I always like having the opportunity to cook for people, if my time allows.

(*When I was a kid, even living in an area of the country where "church" was less a part of the community than here, Sundays were left free. Of course, also, my parents told my brother and me we could pick one sport and one "cultural" activity (like piano) to participate in, and that was IT. Yes, I get the idea of "mo' extracurriculars, mo' college acceptances" but I think there's a point where kids get stretched beyond a limit. One reason we essentially have no Youth Group any more is because the kids of the age for it now are so tied up in other stuff)

***

I COULD go out in the field this afternoon. I was planning to - I have everything I need in my car, I even washed my boot socks (they didn't quite get dry as I forgot until this very morning they needed washing - I need to get more boot socks). I really don't WANT to but since it's stopped raining I probably will once my office hours end. Maybe it will rain again closer to 1 pm. I don't know. (If I do go, it will be to set up the traps, which will mean I will be getting done around 6 pm. Sigh.)

(That's adulthood: doing things you would really rather not do, even when you feel you are deserving of time off, because you know you should do them). 

***

I have picked away at craft things. I've sewn up the first three columns of the "Hideaway" quilt (it uses so many of the fabrics from that line that I guess I will call it that. It's going to be very cute.

I did also break down and order the ticket-print fabric for the back of the wonky four-patch. Now I have to decide - is it going to be a hand-quilted one (just doing 1/4" or so away from each seam) or am I going to take it to be machine quilted? I almost want to hand-quilt it, but that will require me to finish the quilt in the frame some time, which isn't getting very done....

I did successfully swatch for the Boxed Raglan the other night. I did something I rarely do - after swatching, I actually bound off the swatch and kept it. Usually I unravel them and use the yarn to start the sweater. (I know, some knitters say you should wash and block the swatch like you are going to do with the sweater but I never do that). I don't know why I did - perhaps because it was kind of pretty (it's big enough that I could sew it up into a glasses case if I wanted to). I do know what I would have done with it were I still six years old: "critter blanket" for one of my stuffed animals. (The first "quilt" I ever made was a small one that I used as a "critter blanket"). 

I suppose if I kept enough swatches of roughly comparable weight (and of feltable wool), I could sew them together into a real "critter blanket" and felt it and send it off to one of the many groups that helps animals in shelters and such.

(Though I will admit I took this swatch and wrapped it around my DJ PON-3 as a capelike garment. There's still a six year old somewhere deep inside me.)