Monday, February 20, 2012
So many of you are suffering through cold weather, no mail and closed banks today for President's Day and I am basking in the flower and sun-filled patio
of the B&B we are staying at this week in Ajijic, Jalisco Mexico. From here we could here a parade pass by; a preamble to Mardi Gras, I suppose. It was a little strange to hear a celebratory parade at noon on a Monday work day, but stranger things have happened here in Mexico!
We arrived last Thursday and so far it has been a nice relaxing pace. Our B&B is filled with 9 other very nice couples many from various parts of Canada, so the conversation at breakfast is always lively. Yesterday the main plaza in our little town was also very lively with Mardi Gras doings. We went to a parade
where among other things, people dress in devilish masks and through white flour on the heads of unwitting observers.
Others who follow along later also throw confetti.
What is the significance, you ask? The "bad devils" are throwing flour and then the "good devils" counteract it with confetti! As the only foreigners in the group where we stood, I wondered if we would fall victim to being covered in flour. We were spared, but a young man who was standing right next to us got a good dose and it wasn't just a sprinkle but the devil mashed it right into his hair!
Our days waffle between taking walks to see the sights
, walking to find a meal and crochet and books to read. The sun is very intense here at 5,000 feet altitude, so we have to take care to cover in sun tan lotion and pace ourselves!Deciding what to bring along, crochet-wise, is always a challenge.This year I brought along quite a few bead-crochet projects. The beads travel compactly and it is one of my favorite types of crochet. I also brought along a WIP (work in progress)which has been hibernating since I started it here last year! It is a heart pillow top with very poorly written instructions. It just wasn't looking right and got thrown into the frustration pile. Determined to finish it in a, perhaps, more relaxed and non-pressure atmosphere, I am proud to say that it is finished! I will have to "finish-finish" it when I return home as far as making the fabric pillow goes, but that is a piece of cake! The crochet is done and this is what it looks like:
Another strange project i brought along is a booklet of Barbie Doll clothes. "Strange" I say because I never allowed my daughters to have Barbie dolls when they were growing up. I fell into that category of feminists who just didn't see the need for flaunting the female figure at that young age. However, I picked up this booklet at my CGOA chapter pattern exchange and now appreciate the projects as a pattern reading challenge. I have started with the "party dress" which has an abundance of ruffles and is quite interesting in its construction. It's turning out to be just a "3-night project" and next on this list will be the wedding dress which is quite elaborate. If someday my granddaughter decides she wants to play with Barbies, I will be prepared with a couple of interesting outfits!
My International Free Form Crochet Guild (IFFCG) Challenge project for 2012 is due March, so I brought that in progress to hopefully get finished too. It will be somewhat of an International project his year sinceI will have to buy fabric here in order to finish it. Wish me luck!
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