A Long Week

I quit smoking in this last week.

Quitting smoking is interesting because although you know intellectually that it is a smart and healthy thing to do, your brain is constantly repeating a refrain of, "Why are you hurting me? Why are you hurting me? Why are you hurting me?" You KNOW that you're doing the exact opposite, but your brain is being held hostage by its dependency on nicotine and lying to you. The problem is that it feels like it's telling the truth. And then to make it all worse you're fresh out of dopamine whilst your brain rebuilds pathways and everything seems horrible and you're full-on diving into the pit of despair every second thought. Well, when the cravings hit bad like that I pound the pavement. There's evidence that physical exercise can reduce cravings. I've found that for me it can pretty much eliminate them entirely. Granted, every time I want a cigarette it isn't feasible to go run for an hour, but for now it works. I guess I'm just lucky that cravings don't seem to hit me at work.

I didn't meet my Stormwind goals because of all the biking and walking and running I've been doing. I think it's an okay trade-off though.

Stormwind Map last time:

Stormwind Map now:

Poor Stormwind has developed vertical lines and it doesn't seem to matter how much of a sawtooth edge I leave on the columns. I guess my stitching style on this one makes for too many horizontal floats that make clearer distinctions. I honestly don't think it will be that bad on the finished piece once it is taut (it's really rather exaggerated in the photo because that's where my Q-Snap was), but it's still something I'd rather avoid. To that end, I've been trying to switch up the way I stitch it, but everything I've tried drains all enjoyment out of the process and makes it feel like work. Bleh.

I'll figure it out eventually.

Wanderer's Cove, on the other hand, has been an absolute joy. I've been doing a kind of cross country stitching and parking hybrid. Why I love it for Wanderer's Cove but get lost and make zillions of mistakes when I try that on Stormwind is a mystery. Stitch count maybe? Boo on 2x1 on 20 count? 1x1 28 count or bust?

Wanderer's Cove last time:

Wanderer's Cove now:

I loves it. I do. A lot.