Squishy Parcel

It is always fun when you get a parcel in the mail, and you know exactly what it is. We have a nice postman and always has a big smile on his face when he knocks on our door and hands us a parcel. It is always nice when we get a chance to say hi to him because we don’t get a lot of mail or parcels, so it is a treat. 

This parcel is something that I ordered during a sale, and I have been trying to wait patiently for it to arrive. Of course, I have been tracking the parcel since I got the notification that it had been shipped, and it finally said the expected delivery was “today”. It is going to be nice to open the bag and see what is instead. I know that I am going to be busy after the bag arrives, but it is always nice to see what is inside the bag.

The parcel is from Arcane Fibre Works and they are a Canadian yarn dyer, and I have loved their yarn since I got my first package from them. I started purchasing from them just after I heard about them on Facebook as I was looking at where I could purchase some nice fingering weight yarn, and it was available from within Canada. 

Now, getting this yarn also means that I am going to have to figure out another shawl that I am going to knit with it, and I am looking forward to doing that in the next little while. I do have lots of fingering yarn that does need my attention but getting some more to add to my inventory makes me feel good.

It is always a lot of fun when I get this bag and again today when this bag parcel arrived our postman knocked on the door with a huge smile on his face when I opened the door and got my parcel. Here are some pictures of what I received today.

Here are the colours that I got this time

Turquoise Treasures

Beaches Be Crazy

Stormy Seas

Being able to spend some time figuring out the next project or so is going to be a lot of fun and I hope to be able to get that done soon so that I can start working on one of these projects. It is always nice to receive a squishy parcel and now the next part of the fun begins as I decided what project comes first and then what yarn I will use.

Read reviews don't just look at the star rating

 Recently I purchased a product through Amazon, and I ended up returning it as it didn’t meet my needs at all. I purchased one of those watches that will monitor your sleep, count your steps, answer calls and a bunch of other things. I took a chance on a watch that was a very reasonable price. I received the watch and immediately charged it and then started to wear it as I am someone that does track my steps because it helps keep me moving and motivated.

I wore my new watch, and we went for a walk-through Ikea as it was a place I knew roughly how many steps I would get while doing that walk. It was interesting to see the outcome of this walk once we sat down to grab a hot dog for lunch. My step count was in the lower 800 steps while my husband was around 3,200 steps. The 3,200-step number is roughly when I normally get when walking around Ikea because of course we have to look at things and not just stay on the path. Seeing just 800 steps told me there was something wrong. We then did some other walking that day and I finally got to around 1,500 steps while my husband was over 5,000 steps. Yes, there was a problem with the watch, but I decided to try it a couple more days to see if things changed.

The result was the step count was way off, and I decided to return the item because it wasn’t working as it should. I also had made sure that I had entered all the information that could possibly affect the measurement of my step count. I have been wearing a tracking device since around 2014, so I understand what is needed to accurately track my steps. The return process was very easy, and the refund came quickly which also made me happy. I decided to do a review of the product on Amazon because I wanted people to know that the watch out that the watch might not be right for everyone. The review I left was a 1-star review and said my honest opinion about the watch. I thought it was over but found out differently.

About a month after purchasing and returning the watch and posting a review I received an email from the company, and they offered to send me a replace watch and attached the information on how to get the watch to correctly count your steps. The funny thing is this is the first thing I checked when the step count was wrong. So, I figured I would accept the new watch and at least then I would have a spare and one that I could wear when I didn’t want to damage my new watch that I purchased by a known brand.

I provided them my order number and mailing address and figured everything was going to be done. Well, I finally get an email that says that my new watch is going to be on the way shortly. What I didn’t like was the next part of the message and it reads:

“1.We have successfully registered a new watch for you. Once the logistics tracking number is successfully created for you, we will send it to you as soon as possible.

2.In addition, we sincerely ask you to re-share the review for us. You don't need to change the content, just change the star rating to five stars. If you are bothered by this, you can also delete the review directly. If you are willing to help us, we will be very grateful to you, and we are happy to send you two free bands. Please tell us the band code you want . Thanks.”

When I saw the just change the star rating to five stars, I know there was something extremely wrong with this. I then started looking at a bunch of the other reviews for this same watch and I saw that quite a few people had changed the start rating to five starts with the headings like these

• Not Great

• Product doesn’t last

• Poorly made

• Changed my review

All of these are for now 5-star reviews and all of them said that customer service was great, and a replacement was offered. It is amazing that replacement products have to be offered to so many people and the heading of the review doesn’t match the initial wording of the review.

I have left my review as it because I wanted to give an honest review and I have also told the company that they can keep their product.

So here is my word of warning when you are looking at a product that the price seems maybe a little lower than you expected. Sure, there may be a lot of 5-star reviews but go through and look at the heading of the reviews as well as what some people have said as you could learn a lot. Asking something to change their rating from a lower star rating to a 5-star rating is just trying to track potential customers that the product it better than it might be.

What is a stitch-along

 For people that do cross stitch there is a term that we use to explain a project that people are going to be working on at the same time and it is called a stitch-along, or as some people call it a start-along. When people are talking about doing one of these, they may refer to it as a SAL.

There are so many different stitch-along and it just depends on what you want to do. 

Mystery stitch-along 

There is mystery stitch-along where you will receive a piece of the pattern at a specific time, and you can work on that section and then have to wait until the next section is released. This can be a lot of fun, but you have to be willing to work on a project and not know what the final piece is going to look like until the final section of the pattern is released. This can be a lot of fun, but you have to be willing to not know what the piece will look like and sometimes these projects will be a 12-month project.

Specific pattern stitch-along

This one is an easy one to understand because you are given a specific pattern to work on and it can be divided into sections, but you know the pattern before you ever start the stitch along. There are designers that will do this, and they will give you the entire pattern all at once and the pattern is divided into sections so you can either stitch it following the sections or you can stitch it your own way it doesn’t matter.

Specific designer stitch-along

This one is you can pick any pattern from a specific designer, and everyone starts their pattern at a specific time, and it is just a way to motivate each other to get work completed on the design. This can be a lot of fun when people are posting which pattern they are working on as well as where they started the piece.

The idea behind a stitch-along is to help motivate you to work on a piece and try and get it done within a specific time people. The reason why some people call it a start-along is because in some cases if you have a lot of projects on the go you will start the stitch-along but you end up working on a bunch of other projects and the stitch-along piece doesn’t get finished in a timely manner.

For me it is interesting to figure out which stitch-alongs that I want to participate in. I have done most of the different stitch-alongs that I have listed, and it has been fun. I have done both the stitch-along and the start-along because things just got in the way of me finishing a project when it was the stitch along. I recently finished a 2019 Mystery Stitch-Along so what started as a stitch-along turned into a start-along but I at least got it finished. 

A stitch-along can be a lot of fun if you don’t put too much pressure on yourself. If you can’t keep up with the project that is fine because cross stitching is supposed to be for enjoyment so why stress about keeping up with something. 

Managing all the demands on your time

For most people there are always a lot of demands on your time, either it’s work, personal life, or a combination of the two things which can get a little overwhelming sometimes and making sure that you know how to manage the demands can make a big difference. Sometimes it may feel like you don’t have a minute to think because someone is always asking for a bit of your time.

Now that a lot of people are working remotely at least some of the time for work that can also impact how people see your time because you aren’t in the office 5 days a week. I know for someone that works remotely all the time there have been times when family figures that we don’t work, and we could just drop everything and help with an issue. Well working remotely means that you still have deadlines and meetings that you must attend. Sure, there are times when you can shift your work schedule a little bit, but it cannot be all the time.

Having a mobile device also means that both work, family and friends figure you are available to response to their questions no matter what time it is. The one good thing about mobile devices is you an put them on silent when you need the time to focus on something and in the evenings, you can put them on “do not disturb” so you don’t get those messages in the middle of the night from someone that just had a great idea that they wanted to share.

Being able to set priorities and manage them can be a challenge because when you are working remotely people don’t understand or see what you are working on which can sometimes be hard. Something that I have found that works well for us is to put things on our calendar and that shows people that we are busy doing something. Sure, you cannot put everything on your calendar but putting blocks of time when you are busy can help quite a bit.

Knowing how to manage the demands on your time is very important to ensure that you can continue to get everything done that you want to do but not feel overwhelmed. For me I know that I have a planner that I put things in, so I know what I need to do, and I also make sure that important items are on the calendar so that they are not forgotten and that there is time set aside to get those items done.

How do you manage the demands on your time, and does it work for you?

Using different pens

For someone like me trying out different pen types is a lot of fun and something that I do enjoy doing. I don’t do a lot of writing daily, but I do make notes in my planner and sometimes can write an entire blog or notes in my notebook that I normally have with me. Now being a lefty does have some challenges when it comes to some pens, but I think I have overcome some of those.

Here are some of the pens that I have used or am using and what I think of them.

• Pentel. R.S.V.P. (fine) – I have used this type of pen for several years but what I don’t like about it is even through it says fine it isn’t as fine a point as I would like. When you find the definition of that pen it says that fine is .7mm so not as fine as I thought it would be. (Staples)

• Uni-ball Signo DX (0.28mm) – here is a pen that I found, and I must admit that it is one of the pens that I love using. It is a nice fine tip and for someone that writes a lot they fit my needs. These pens are very enjoyable to write with especially if you write small like I do. Oomomo carries these pens, and they are reasonable and do last quite a while.

• Flex office (.38mm) – this is another pen that I use very frequently because it is a pen that writes smoothly, and it also have a nice fine tip. I have gone through several of these and thank goodness Oomomo carries these as I do go and pick them up on a regular basis, so I am never out of pens.

• Zebra Fountain Pen – (fine) – this is a disposable fountain pen and the fine comes in .5mm and .6mm and I have used it for a while, and it does write nicely but again being a disposable fountain pen they are a little pricey but at least they are a great way to find out if fountain pens will work for you. (Staples)

• Hongdian 2861 Stainless Stell Fountain Pen Extra Fine Nib – this is a recent addition to my pen collection as I wanted to try out fountain pens. This pen has a nice extra fine nib, and I have been enjoying using it for making various notes. The one thing that you have to be aware of is that you are going to have to load ink into the pen and that get a little messy if you are not careful. You can purchase ink cartridges for this pen. This pen now holds my turquoise ink, and I have been enjoying using it. (Amazon)

• Nicpro Fountain Pen .38mm Extra Fine Nib – this is another fountain pen that I added to my collection, and I have loved how it writes. This pen is a little heavier than some pens but that doesn’t bother me at all. Again, the precaution is you are going to have to load ink into the pen as it doesn’t come with ink cartridges, but you can purchase those. This pen now holds my black ink, and I have been also enjoying using it. (Amazon)

• Hongdian Dark Blue Forest Fountain Pen Extra Fine Nib .38 – here is another fountain pen that I have added to the collection and again whet the extra fine nib it is enjoyable to use and something that has been sitting on my desk and gets used quite often. This pen works with either bottled ink or cartridges, but I am using bottled ink, and this pen holds my teal ink currently. (Amazon)

Fountain Pens

 I just recently starting using fountain pens and I must admit that I have been really enjoying using them. I don’t think I would travel with them given I would have to ensure that I have enough ink with me. Being a lefty I was a little concerned about working with a fountain pen and would I smudge my writing, but I haven’t so far which makes me happy. I have only bought the standard fountain pens designed for “right-handed” people, but they have been working fine for me. I would like to see what the difference between a “left-handed" fountain pen and the ones that I own just to see if there really is any difference in how the pen writes.

Summary 

Yes, I do enjoy trying out different pens and seeing what they are like for me. Of course, everyone is different in what they like in a pen so these comments about the pens are just my opinion, and they might be entirely different that what you think. When you find a pen that you enjoy using make sure that you have a couple of them available because you never know when a specific type of pen will be discontinued or hard to find.

Edit: Since writing this blog, I was able to ask a pen shop about the different between the left-handed pens and right-handed pens and the difference is the angel of the nib. This only works for the medium nib so if you are someone like me that likes the 'extra-fine nib' you will not get any difference because as per this gentleman "the nib is just scratchy no matter what."

Where is the entrance

This month we decided to go to the Toronto Home Show, and we figured taking the TTC would be a good idea. Well, that turned out to be a challenge on its own. The Toronto Home Show was at the Enercare Centre which is located within the CNE grounds.

I decided to look up how to get to the Enercare Centre from where we live, and I used the TTC planner and immediately ran into an issue because this location was not available to be found on the APP. So, this is the first challenge that we had to deal with but given it is within the CNE grounds it shouldn’t be too much of an issue or that is what we thought.

Getting to the CNE grounds is normally pretty easy if you are on the TTC but this was a challenge that we were not prepared to deal with. Our first challenge was we decided to take the subway to Union Station because normally there is a streetcar that goes directly from there to the CNE grounds. Well, this proved to be wrong because there was construction on the route as they were replacing tracks and watermains so that impacted the route. We could take the streetcar part of the way but then had to transfer to a bus for the rest of the route. The issue with this was the location of the bus was not clearly identified so that was frustrating. The bus was not in the same location as the streetcar so that was the first frustration. 

We finally figured out the location of the bus and we were on the way to the Enercare Centre and that should have been easy, but it turned out to be a challenge again. There are two stops within the CNE grounds and there is no identification which stop is for what location so we decided to go to the loop because that is where we thought we should be going. The first stop is Manitoba Ave and you have no idea where that really is, so you don’t know if that is the stop you need or not so you just continue to the TTC loop. 

We finally reached the TTC loop within the CNE grounds and figured it would be easy to get to the Enercare Centre from there given the number of signs that said, “Home Show this way”. It was this way but at one point we got to a location that there was a door to the Enercare Centre so we figured we would be able to enter but discovered it was locked. It ended up that the entrance that we need was way around the front of the Enercare Centre.

What we finally discovered was we should have got off at Manitoba Ave. as it would have been a lot closer to the building but there was no way to find this out until you have walked all the way around from the TTC loop. When we left the show, we walked over to Manitoba Ave instead of back to the TTC loop to get the bus. Something that the show should have had was how to get to the location especially when taking the TTC, this would have made it a lot easier for people getting to the show. So what we have learned from this experience is to look at the total route that you are taking and see if there is a stop a little closer to your final destination.

Listen to what someone is saying

Recently we were trying to plan a get together with a friend and it was a challenge because they didn’t hear that given food allergy’s locations were very limited. We nicely explain why their first location wouldn’t work and gave an option. They then same back with an option of a location that yes, was close to where we lived, but wasn’t some where that we went. This specific location was a location where I had a severe allergic reaction so no, I don’t want to go there.

Their explanation for the location was it was close to where we live so that is why he thought it was where we could eat. In a lot of instances, we don’t eat near to home because it is easier and safer to eat at home then eat at a restaurant that is local. The other thing that we have found is that eating at a chain restaurant to so many times safer than eating at an independent restaurant because the chain has strict rules that they need to follow.

The first location that the person thought about going was a location that they never had been before but thought it was a good place. Maybe part of it is because of the prices on the menu that was posted online. How current is the menu that is posted on the website especially when there is no date on the menu or even a copyright date on the website.  We did some research on the location and explained why it wasn’t such a good location given there was an open kitchen that could be very risky given someone with a shellfish allergy. The response we got was “Thank you for the in-depth research. I can appreciate the work to do this level of research! How about something closer that you may have been to” 

The interesting part of this is we had already told them a location that has been safe to go to for the past few years which wasn’t that far away. They immediately suggested a location without really thinking about the location we had recommended. It can be extremely frustrating when trying to explain to someone that we had told you a location we thought was safe so why are you continuing to think of other locations. The location that they recommended was a location that I had a severe allergic reaction at quite a few years ago. Yes, the location name has changed but is it still the same owner or safe and do they still deal with things the same way, that I am not certain, and I don’t want to find out by having an allergic reaction again.

When someone has a severe food allergy you need to listen to what they are saying and not immediately continue to recommend locations that you want to go to. Maybe what you are showing is that you don’t understand about allergies, or you don’t seem to care. I know a lot of people care about someone with food allergies but this individual even after multiple times explaining to them the issue just didn’t seem to get it.

If you know someone that has severe food allergies it is very important that you listen to what they are saying. Them saying locations that they feel safe eating at is something that you have to understand. Maybe it isn’t a place that you would at first want to go to but remember if you want to see that person you have to make some compromises. Listening to what they are saying needs to be considered if you want them to be safe when you get together.

Feeling like you are standing still

 Something that I have noticed in the last little while is how fast so many vehicles go on the highway when there isn't a lot of traffic. It can be amazing to be driving just over the signed speed limit and other vehicles are passing you as if you are standing still.

Recently during one of our drives when traffic wasn't too busy it was amazing to see how fast vehicles were going when they passed us. Yes, we were going just over the signed speed limit, but cars were passing us at least 20 – 40 km/h over what we were doing. There was even one vehicle that would have had their car impounded if they have of been caught doing the speed they were doing.

The posted speed limit is the speed that should be driven to be safe on a given stretch of road or highway. The posted speed limit isn't the minimum speed you should be going, and the idea is to see much faster you can go without having an issue.

In Ontario, if you are going between 16 and 29 km/h over the speed limit, you will get ticketed and also get 3 points added to your driving record. Going between 30 – 49 km/h over the speed limit is also a minor infraction and will get 4 points added to your driving record. Now if you are going 50 km/h or more over the speed limit this can result in the following:
•    A 7-day suspension of your driver's license
•    Impoundment of your car
•    Up to $10,000 in fines
•    Up to 2 years of suspended license
•    6 points added to your driving record
•    Possible jail time.

The fine and number of points that are added to your driving record will vary depending on which province or state you are driving in, so you have to be away of what the penalties can be if you want to see how fast you can go. In Ontario, if you get more than 15 demerit points on your driver’s license, that can result in your license getting suspended. There are a number of reasons why demerit points are given, not just speeding. Now if you receive between 6–8 points you will get a warning letter and then between 9 – 14 points a second warning letter will be sent. Now if you receive 15+ demerit points the license is suspended for 30 days. Now demerit points remain on a person's driver’s license for 2 years from the day they are issues, so you need to be away of that.

It is extremely important to be away of the laws of the road where ever you are driving because it can depend on the fine and even how many demerit points are added to your driver's license. So next time when you think it's a great idea to see how fast you can go over the limit remember if you are caught or cause an accident you may be in for a big surprise. For us, I would rather feel like we are standing still and let all of those other vehicles drive crazy because at least we know we are standing within the legal speed limit.

Going the extra step

 We do stay in hotels sometimes and it is nice when you are recognized as a valued guest and in our case a member of the chain’s loyalty club. In a lot of cases when we are staying at the hotel, we will receive bottle water or something else as a preferred member. It is nice when the chain does this little bit extra.

This last stay that we did was a return trip to a hotel that we have enjoyed staying at. It is not a large hotel (5 floors) but it is very well kept and the staff have all been very friendly and helpful. This time when we arrived and were checking in, we were welcomed back and also welcomed as a member of the loyalty program. What was different this time was we received a different gift as were we a returning guest to this location. The front desk person went to the back and returned with a bag that had a hand written note on the bag that said “Welcome back" and inside the bag as a bottle of water, a small package of two bite brownies and a bag of potato chips. Yes, this was a lot different than we normally receive and it was nice and not expected.

Being recognized as a loyalty club member is always nice and even getting a bottle of water is always welcomed. Being recognized as a returning guest to this specific location was very special. It doesn't take a lot of effort for a hotel to make a difference in how they are viewed. Having staff that are friendly also makes a big difference on how hotel is viewed and recommended. I know that I have told a few people about this specific location because of how we have been treated in the past. 

For a hotel to go the extra step to make sure that guests feel comfortable and welcomed does go a long way in ensuring that people will return to a specific location again. I know that we will be returning to this location in the future because it is a nice escape from home and also a nice spot where we can relax. This last trip there was a hockey team also staying at the hotel while we were there but you wouldn't have guessed it because the team was very quiet.

So if you stay at a specific hotel chain and are recognized for being a loyalty club member, it shows that the chain cares. When a specific location does that little bit extra make sure that when you do the review of your stay you mention that because it shows the chain that people appreciate the little things even if it isn't something they always do. 

 

Spending time with family

It is always important to spend time with family, and it can vary how that is achieved. Something that happened thanks to the pandemic is families figured out various ways to spend time together. Spending time together doesn't just have to be in person, it can now be through various virtual get-togethers. It can be nice to be able to spend time together when people are living in different parts of the country or even the world.

During the pandemic when people couldn't travel what we did was on Christmas Eve was we did a virtual get-together, and it involved people in 8 different locations, and it was nice. It meant that everyone could visit with each other and also not have to travel. In our case, 7 of the locations were in Canada (two provinces) and one group over in Prague. It was nice to be able to celebrate and spend that bit of time together.

Other example of spending time together through social media is my husband's family started doing a chat once a month and that was 7 people being able to chat for some time and that was 3 difference provinces. It was always nice when they were able to do this, and this has continued since the pandemic.

Sure, it is nice to see family in person when it is possible, but there are times when distance doesn't make it possible. Finding various ways to visit with family is so important nowadays given the distances between family. What I have noticed is more and more people are using various virtual techniques to visit with family on a regular basis. It does mean that when you have the opportunity to spend time together in person, that time is valued.

Spending time together even if it is virtually is still spending some time catching up and sharing different things.  So next time when you think that the distance is too far to travel to visit someone maybe try and set up a virtual chat, it can make a big difference.

Writing goals

I think the ones of us that do quite a bit of writing normally have some goals that they want to meet. It can be the number of words a day or the number of pages, it doesn’t matter but it can also become something that can affect how you write and what you write. Having writing goals can help you stay focused, but it can also impact you emotionally if you aren’t having a good writing day.

Recently I had been having some really good writing days and was seeing an average number of words that was making me extremely happy and then I had a day that just wasn’t quite as good as the previous days, and it started to bother me. Yes, I was still writing, and I should have been happy with the number of words that I achieved but it started to upset me. What I didn’t see was that the number of words that I had been writing was a lot higher than I have written most months since 2018. It did bother me when I looked at just the month of January and saw that the average was going to come down a little bit, but I forgot that just being able to spend the time what I did writing should be what makes me happy.

Setting writing goals sure can help you move things forward but when you have some exceptional writing days you have to remember to think about them as exceptional days and be happy about them. After doing some thinking after getting frustrated with what was still a good writing total, I started to look back at the number of words that I had averaged through all the months I have tracked my writing and how much I had been writing at the beginning of January was extremely high.

What I did end up doing was adjusting my writing goal a little bit and figured that I should be happy with an average that is a little lower because that is making sure that I can get the writing done that I want to do. Also, if I don’t reach this new average, I am also going to be ok with what I am able to accomplish because I am still writing each day and that is part of what is important to me. Sure, I would love to see an average like I was achieving in early 2018 and late 2017, but I also have to accept that times have changed and the how I write has also changed.  

Setting writing goals that are pushing you too hard can impact what you are writing and how you are writing, and you have to remember that. Maybe, seeing a high writing total would be nice but are you just putting word onto paper to see that total or are you writing with a focus and understanding that words are just what is important is how the thoughts and ideas are coming out.

Getting organized

 For a lot of us, the change of the calendar from one year to another results in us trying to get organized again. For some people it can be a large change in how organization work, and for others it can just be doing that bit of cleaning that you have been putting off. For businesses, it is also a time, especially If it is also their year-end, a time to get all those old files moved and new files set up.

It is always interesting when you look at some stores in the New Year and what is available, storage boxes, file folders, etc. because these companies know what people are going to be wanting to do. I know that sometimes right after Christmas all the various storage boxes are in the stores and available knowing that a lot of people are going to be grabbing those up to start that yearly organization routine.

For businesses with year-end there are a lot of different things that need to get done from setting up the new files and moving the old files, but there are also those once-a-year things that need to be completed and remembering how to do each of them can be a challenge. It can be a challenge to remember everything that needs to be completed, but that is when some good documentation comes in handy to help you get those things done on a timely basis.

Getting organized either at work or in your personal life can be a challenge and of course there are going to be things that will probably be missed but starting the year off right does make a difference. For us, in the past year I decided to set up all the standard files that I use on the computer each year for our business, what this means is that when it’s time to start the new year of financial records I just have to copy one folder and change the year, and the files are ready. Having a lot of the various standard files set up and just be able to copy them to a new folder does make getting things started so much easier.

Working on getting organized can be a challenge no matter what it is, but especially at the beginning of the year it can feel a little overwhelming, and we need to take just one step at a time and see how things go. I hope you can get everything organized the way you want it but don’t rush or get stressed because it is a process that takes some time to get done.

Cross stitch challenges

 As the new year has come and go, I am going to talk about challenges and why some of them work and some of them just don’t work. I am a crafter and there are a lot of different challenges that you can participate in and some of them are really good, and others may not work for you, and you have to make the decision.

In the past I did try and do a lot of the different challenges however I would start them at the beginning of the year because they sounded good, and I thought they would help my stitching only for me to discover that having such a routine didn’t work so well for me. It is nice that some of these challenges work for some people, and we have to understand that everyone is not exactly the same.

Now here are some of the challenges that I have found, and I will let you know my thoughts about them, and please remember this is just my own opinion.

Stitch to the Moon – let’s strive to stitch our way to the moon. The distance is 238,900 miles and 1 mile = 1 full cross stitch.

•    In this challenge you pick your full coverage projects, and you try and stitch 238,900 stitches/miles by the end of the year. For some people, it might be doable, but that would mean at least 654 stitches every day to achieve that goal. Sure, I probably have that many stitches to do on my full coverage projects, but I know that I couldn’t stitch that many stitches in a year given other obligations.

Focus on a finish – the overall goal of this challenge is to pick a project that you want to finish and focus on it over the next 12 months.

•    Here is a challenge that does start to look doable if I could stay focused and just work on one of my full coverages at a time. My smallest full coverage piece that I have on the go still has just over 28,000 stitches left to do, so that is 2,400 stitches a month to get it done.

25 in 25 – the goal for this challenge is to pick a project and stitch 25,000 stitches on it by the end of the year.

•    Again, this is a challenge that I look at and say if I could just work on one full coverage at a time, I might be able to stitch that much, but again it is just over 2,000 stitches a month on that piece. I might be able to do this if I said

Stitch from stash – the goal of this challenge is to set a budget for your spending (no more than $25 a month) through one half of the year, and that is all you can spend. You can earn money to spend by finishing things, as there is credit for getting things finished.

•    I did participate in this challenge for a couple of years, and I did find that it helped me from just buying patterns, fabric etc. even through I had lots of stuff already in my stash. It was nice to give myself a budget, and it helped me to think about did I really want or need something before I just quickly bought it.

•    What I didn’t like about how some people did the challenge was they would work on a project really hard to almost a finish and would then do a large finish just at the beginning of the half year so that they always had a large amount they could spend. Sure, it was they own money that they were spending, but I know people started to complain but of how people started the time, and it didn’t help motivate others. You are also only going to get a small credit for something that you finished, and it is based on the size of the finish.

WIPGO – the idea behind this challenge is you select either 24 or 25 projects that you want to work on during the year and place them on what looks like a bingo card. You can also set the goal that you want to achieve on each of these projects, so it is up to you how you really work on it. Just before the beginning of each month, two numbers are randomly chosen, and the idea is for you to work on the projects and goals that were chosen. Now for a lot of people they will choose 24 projects so that the number 13 is considered a free space. If you happen to have 25 projects, the month that number 13 is called, you are going to have three projects to work on. The basic idea behind this is to work on moving projects that you selected forward.

•    I wasn’t sure if I was going to do WIPGO in 2025 as I have never done it, but I decided to try and see how I do on it. I selected 4 projects that I want to focus on and each time the project is called I am going to stitch 500 stitches in the piece. I think this is something that is doable given I have 4 large projects that I want to work on in 2025. So, the first two numbers were chosen and now in January I have to add 1,000-stitches to one project because that is how the numbers happen to fall. Now to see how it goes for the rest of the year.

As you can see, I have just shown a few of the cross stitch challenges that are out there for people to try and use to move specially large projects forward. I didn’t even look at all the different stitch alongs that are happening because that is something else that you can do.

Something that is important to remember when it comes to your cross stitch, or any craft, is that it is supposed to be something you enjoy doing. Some challenges because more of a job, and that is when the craft isn’t a craft anymore. So, when you think about participating in any type of challenge that involves something that is supposed to be enjoyable, make sure that the joy remains. We will now see how I do in 2025 trying a different challenge because it just might help me move four projects forward some.

Niagara Falls in the winter

 If you are thinking about travelling to Niagara Falls, Ontario in the winter, there are a few things that you should take into consideration when planning your trip. Niagara Falls, Ontario in the winter is so different from what it is like in the summer. Here are some things that you will need to know:

1.    Weather – the weather in Niagara Falls can change pretty quickly in the winter, as it can get quite a bit of snow in a very short amount of time. This area can get snow squalls, and you will also find that there is a wind-chill that you are going to have to take into consideration. If you are going to want to see the actual falls during the winter, be prepared to get wet from the mist, and it is going to be very cold.

2.    Attractions – if there are specific attractions you want to see, make sure you check to see if they are open all year round or just at specific times. Also, if they are open all year round, make sure you check the hours because that will certainly be different from the summer hours. Another thing to check is if the attractions are only open on specific days in the winter because the number of visitors is way down compared to the summer.

3.    Restaurants – if there are certain restaurants that you enjoy going to make sure that you have checked their hours and even check what days they are open because some will only be open during part of the week, usually Thursday – Sunday, when there are more visitors.

4.    Hotels – this one is to check for deals that you can possibly find because the prices of hotel rooms will be considerably cheaper during the winter than in the summer. Also, if you can travel during the week, the prices will be cheaper than weekends rates as well. If you are driving and will be parking a vehicle, make sure that you check the price of parking at the hotel because that can really vary. Some hotels may charge you $20 a night during the winter, and other's may cost you $80 a night even in the winter.

5.    Parking – if you are just visiting for a day, make sure you check around to see the price of parking because it can vary. Parking right at the Falls is going to be more expensive than if you decide to park a little further away and do a bit of walking.

Going to Niagara Falls in the winter can be very enjoyable, but you just need to be prepared for things being different than they are when there are more tourists visiting. So, if you are considering a visit to Niagara Falls in the winter, make sure you do your homework first to ensure that you get the experience that you want out of the trip.

Television stations in hotels

Have you noticed that there are hotels even in Canada that don't have any of the Canadian sports networks available? You would think that even if the hotel chain is an American chain, that they would consider that Canadians would like to enjoy sports like they do.

Recently we were in Niagara Falls and I decided that it would be nice to watch a hockey game that was going to be televised on Sportsnet. Well, I turned on the television and scrolled through all the available challenges, and what I discovered was there weren't any Sportsnet available at all. It can be disappointing when you want to watch something, and it isn't available. This hasn't just happened in Niagara Falls, it has happened in St Jacob’s as well as Belleville.

I have written a number of emails and reviews about this being something that needs to be considered because there are a lot of sports fans that travel and watching sports in the evening is something that a lot of them would want to do. Yes, I might be able to find a local restaurant or bar that is broadcasting the sports that I want to watch, but there are times that relaxing in my room and watching sports is a lot more enjoyable.

Being a sports fan and travelling, at least here in Ontario can be a challenge to watch the sports that I want to watch. What this is showing me that investing in a streaming channel that does the sports broadcasts is something that I am going to have to look into. The streaming channel would work at home, and it would also work when we are travelling, so maybe to get around hotels that don't think sports fans travel we will get the streaming channel.

Welcome to 2025

 It is hard to believe that we are a week into 2025 when I am putting this post up. This year I am going to try and continue to have blogs posted on a Tuesday, so that means that I am going to have to work on getting some blogs written. Being able to have a post up on a regular basis, makes me happy because it shows I have been able to get the ideas out of my head.

I am not certain what the topics are going to be in 2025, but I would like to try and post some about some of the crafts that I do as well as maybe some other topics. I do have some ideas about some travel blogs as well as some other things, so I will just need to work on figuring out how to get everything written. The list of blogs ideas is rather long list that I just need to write, so I just need to sit and get some of them written.

I am going into this year just like I did in 2024 and that is not having a list of blogs that I want to write in a certain order. Not only that, but I enjoy writing the blogs that I feel like writing, and then I can schedule it to post when I want it to post. Sometimes these blogs get rescheduled for something else if I think it would be better at a different time, or a current topic gets a blog.

I hope that you will enjoy what I am going to be writing about in 2025. The list of ideas is long, and it keeps changing based on everything that is going on around me. So, now that the calendar has changed, and we have started a new year, I hope to get lots of blogs written and posted.