The Sand in Your Shoes

When Frugaldad was a missionary in Germany, the wife of the mission president gave a talk once at a meeting and one of the things she said was to the effect of "When something needs to be done, it's not the boulders in your path, it's the sand in your shoes that keeps you from doing it."

I find this to be all too true. There's always something small (or not so small) that keeps me from getting a project done. Past examples:

I can't plant the early spring garden because I haven't weeded yet.
I can't bake bread because I haven't washed the mixer bowl from making those cookies.
I can't sew diapers because I haven't cut them out yet.
I can't cut out the diapers during naptime because the table still has lunch dishes on it.
I can't get started knitting that soaker because the needles are backordered.
I can't blog about that because I haven't downloaded the pictures from the camera yet.

and the list goes on!

Some of the most recent sand in my shoes was actually some charity sewing. The stake Relief Society held a daytime sewing day to help prepare for the stake Enrichment activity held before the General Women's Broadcast. The day was to prepare stuff for the actual Enrichment meeting so the women could finish that day. The day before I had been really sick so the house was in pretty poor shape. I knew I couldn't spend much time there, let alone take a sewing machine or a serger. Frugalgirl2 had swimming lessons right in the middle of the designated sewing day, and since our swimming lessons were right next to the church, I hopped on over to see if there was anything I could help with in twenty minutes. There had been a big turn-out, so I wasn't really needed, but I asked the stake RS president if there was anything I could take home to work on. She was so glad to hand me a big trash bag full of fabric to make tote bags out of. The bags would be filled with a blanket (and maybe something else, I don't actually know the details) and given to children who had to be removed from their homes. The bags are going to be in the trunks of the county sheriff's deputies.

The only catch (this is the sand part) was in order to sew them, I had to cut a 3-inch strip off each rectangle of fabric to use as a handle. Well, I knew it wouldn't take me that long, but every time I thought I should get started, I figured my time was better used elsewhere, like cleaning the house for my sister's visit, or folding laundry, etc. And my kids were off track, so when they were home it was hard to start any sort of project. When my sister finally left, I knew I had to get them done because the "deadline" I had been given was coming up in less than 2 weeks. One afternoon I finally did it. It took me about 15 minutes. Then I started sewing the bags and found they took me about 15 minutes each to sew. No problem, right? Well, I had fabric for 30 bags. That come up to almost 8 hours of sewing. But I pressed on (no fabric pun intended).

The deadline of September 1 came and went, (15 bags done, 15 to go) but I had talked with the RS at church and she knew I'd get them done in time (by Sept 23). Last Friday I was serging the side seam of the 24th bag and the fabric jammed in the blade and one of the loopers, plus it bent the right needle. I got the fabric out, replaced the needle and when I continued to sew, the machine made a funny noise and the seam seemed like the tension was off, but I did the last 2 seams anyway. Upon close investigation and re-threading, I discovered that the looper was hitting
the needles. I replaced the left needle. Still hitting the looper. Then I started cleaning the lint off the sewing table around the serger and I found a little metal piece. It broke off during the fabric jam, I suppose. I called and chatted with the RS president and she only needed 20 bags, not 30, so I don't have to find a way to get the last 6 finished, luckily. But I do get to take my serger in for repairs. It will take a week, says the repair shop.

Now I at least have a valid excuse for not getting any sewing done.