Acknowledging Reality

Over the weekend, when I made this:

But what I really had in mind was this:

Same thing, just with longer stems. The yellow one hangs from a necklace; while the other-coloured ones hang off each other.

I had hoped to have enough of them to form an actual something (as in: necklace or more likely, bracelet) by this evening, as today is the submission deadline for a show to which I'd intended to submit teaching proposals, and I'd need enough for a convincing photo, but that's all I have so far, so there was a little voice jumping up and down trying to get me to hurry up and stitch already so that I could get my proposals in by midnight.

I decided not to.

I just started a new job (a few months ago) and haven't had time to accrue vacation time, though I'm replete with plans for time off, to whit:

• Puget Sound Bead Festival in July
• SOAR in October
• Family vacation at the end of the year (Big. Far away)

And that assumes I don't take my usual birthday vacation day, I don't get sick, neither of the kids gets sick enough for me to have to take time off work, and my house doesn't have a disaster of sufficient magnitude to require my presence during work hours.

Not a lot of wiggle room, and so I have to be a grown up (sort of) and admit to myself that no, in fact, I can't do everything, even though I really do want to try.

Reality.

It's a bitch sometimes.

But I did have fun teaching this evening.