And . . . moving right along. So, what do you think? The red really makes a difference, doesn't it? It adds a little zing to the design. The redbird is going to be sitting on top of a snowman, so maybe he will be the next motif I work on. I must admit, that I am Very Ready to see winter turn to spring, and while I am enjoying my daily stitching very much, I am ready for the spring design as well. The red is great, but it just makes me think of Christmas. So maybe this will be incentive for me to really move along and try and finish this as soon as I can. And then jump into the spring design--greens, blues, maybe even yellow . . .
Drum roll please! A little fanfare, some streamers thrown out of windows of tall buildings and maybe even a parade. Finally, I have gotten one of my subscription books from NYRB! The February selection arrived over the weekend. January has been declared lost in the mail and I have been told a replacement has been mailed out to me (I wonder if it will include the freebie book?--I guess beggars can't be choosers and at this point I will just be happy to get the book). What a rocky start. If I decide to subscribe again next year, I will be renewing much, much, much earlier than I did last time around.
So, February's book is a memoir, parts of which "read more delightfully than fiction" according to one of the blurbs on the back cover. More Was Lost: A Memoir by Eleanor Perényi will be dropped in the bookbag this week. I have just barely started reading, but it promises to be quite entertaining.
"Best known for her classic book Green Thoughts: A Writer in the Garden, Eleanor Perényi led a worldly life before settling down in Connecticut. More Was Lost is a memoir of her youth abroad, written in the early days of World War II, after her return to the United States. In 1937, at the age of nineteen, Perényi falls in love with a poor Hungarian baron and in short order acquires both a title and a struggling country estate at the edge of the Carpathians. She throws herself into this life with zeal, learning Hungarian and observing the invisible order of the Czech rule, the resentment of the native Ruthenians, and the haughtiness of the dispossessed Hungarians. In the midst of massive political upheaval, Perényi and her husband remain steadfast in their dedication to their new life, an alliance that will soon be tested by the war. With old-fashioned frankness and wit, Perényi recounts this poignant tale of how much was gained and how much more was lost."
I don't really have many goals for this year, but I did want to try and keep up with my NYRB subscription this year. I'll have some serious catching up when the January book arrives. Nothing like a few obstacles thrown in my way to test my perseverance, eh?!