I'm gonna wash that dye right off of my fingernails . . . . .

Yesterday I finished the last of the pew drapes ordered by my brother's parish -- 40 in all. Hurray!!!!

What a relief! It took all summer to get these finished, what with work and health problems and more work. I don't even want to see this fabric again for a loooooong time. . . . . well, at least outside of work. ;P

The pile may not be very tall, but it weighs a ton -- it took 7 1/2 yards of drapery weight suedecloth, four rolls of stabilizer, and three spools of embroidery thread. And the dye kept crocking off the back onto my clothes and hands. My fingernails have been pinkish for weeks!

Tomorrow my brother will pick them up (and even more importantly, pay me!!!), and then I can concentrate on getting the dye off my hands, my fingernails, my machines, my iron, my tools . . . . . . . . . . .

If I ever work with this stuff again I should be certified.

Update: no money yet, but soon. :o( My brother had to submit the invoice to the parish board.

It's bedtime -- someone turn off the blankety-blank light!

I can sleep with the light on if I have to, but I'd really rather not. My mother, on the other hand, likes to go to sleep with the lamp on, especially if she's sick. And she turns the bathroom light on in the middle of the night, instead of relying on the nightlight.

Personally, I like my room to be almost pitch black when I go to bed. I keep my door open a few inches (I can't stand having it closed at night), and the dim glow from the bathroom nightlight twenty feet down the hall is all I can bear. All three windows have room-darkening shades, which don't always suffice when my neighbor has the kitchen light on all night (what the heck is she doing in there at two in the morning, hmm?)

A few years ago I bought a clock with big green numbers so my near-sighted self could read the clock in the middle of the night. It wasn't the best choice I could have made. Yes, I can tell the time at 3:00 a.m., but those green lights give off about a hundred times more light than the red ones. It's so bright I can do shadow puppets on the wall. :o( For the last 5? 6? years, I've put a triple-folded piece of paper over the clockface every night so I can get to sleep.

When I do end up having to sleep with the light on, I tend to turn away to face the wall if possible. Failing that, I pull the covers over my head, making sure to create an airway that I can see out of (yeah, I know it's for air, not sight. So sue me.).

So, what's your opinion on the subject?

P.S. Don't forget to turn out the light!