Facemasks, Rollercoaster and Life in General

I always joked that I have the loneliest job in the world, which now turns out to be a blessing. I am working on my projects like I normally do -for me, not much has changed. Perhaps the amount of quilting fabric laying around might seem like a disturbance at a place that normally works only with heavy fabrics and leathers.

I don’t know why I ever bought all the quilting materials, perhaps it’s because I love textiles. Deep down I knew I would never quilt. Just like the baker doesn’t want to bake another cake in his private time, I won’t ever sew for FUN.

Now all the supplies come in handy. I have sewed hundreds of facemasks and continue to do so. The first ones were copied from YouTube tutorials but of course, I had to alter them and put my personal touch on it. I couldn’t help but had to develop my own pattern -and pet my ego by doing so.

Now I am sewing two different kinds of facemasks. One for the healthcare workers, the other for the rest of us.

While I still have enough fabric, I run out of other materials,  needed more -much more. Hundreds of yards of the thin elastic band, metal for the nosepieces, more filters for the middle layer. Most of it is on backorder these days, even Amazon can’t deliver as promised -which makes me happy. I am distancing myself from Amazon step by step, the divorce will be final after this all will be over.

I found overpriced supplies nationwide and ordered a lot. So far I have been giving away the masks for free, but allowed material donations. The donation jar filled up nicely when a neighbor ordered 30 masks for his employees, and he put $200 in. It went straight to eBay, staying on top of the supply chain is crucial right now.

I expected my phone to be quiet, but it isn’t. Most of my clients are working from home these days, we meet differently, have phone sessions instead of a coffee meeting. I am busy and I am grateful.

Last year our little boat got rocked hard, this year we are recovering from my husband’s surgeries and recoup financially. While many are sitting at home these days and can’t pay their bills, we have started to fill our small nest egg back up. Workman’s comp checks arrive bi-weekly, much higher than expected, my income hasn’t changed. We are so fortunate!

Seven weeks after his shoulder surgery, my husband finally had the sling off, and the last days he could sleep in his own bed. He is not allowed to lift more weight than a coffee cup or a scissor -which made me change his daily exercise routine. I promoted him to be my elastic cutter, and, with the consent of his physical therapist, he is cutting 7-inch long elastic pieces in snail speed.

Life can change in the blink of an eye. It just did! Life is a rollercoaster!