1.23.2012

it's just a phase



i made a flow chart.  kinda.

so yeah, i've been thinking my creativity is directly linked to my uterus.  peeps of the female persuasion, do you find this to be true?  during the ovulatory phase, i'm literally going full blast.  that's right about now.  been sewing up a storm against kenny's will.   stand back, citizens.  my body has decided if it's not making babies, it's sure as hell making clothing.  oh, i have so much to show you!  to wit:  one skirt!  two tops!  THREE DRESSES!  all patiently waiting for the move and a sunny backyard!

it's rocking in kalkatroona.  but i know the end of the luteal phase is coming, when hormones give the order to commence preparations for le Time Of The Month.  during those days, i'll pick up fabrics and match them with patterns, disgusted at my pairings, or try to drape something that quickly becomes a miserable mess, or hell, maybe just attempt a tracing, but none of these suddenly rocky paths will lead to mecca.  my brain comes back when the cycle begins again.  i guess it's really about three days out of the month where i'm sunk (and this is not my actual period, it's the time just before it; my period ROCKS, y'all, i want to shout it from the rooftops).

luckily, during this particular post ovulatory meltdown i'll be on a plane and then unpacking, so no botched projects for me this month.

what about you?  does yo pre-flow slow yo roll?

74 comments:

  1. I'm with you on this. I'm rocking a baby quilt right now but know in a few week's time I'll be staring at my fabric as though I'd never sewn a stitch in my life. Oh, and there should be a similar chart for pregnancy: no creativity in the first trimester, then a creative tornado blows through in the second and third trimesters (though not as much gets done in the third due to mega belly and extreme fatigue).

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  2. I whole heartedly agree with your chart. I'm right in that uptight slump right now and can't wait to be out. I may just force myself to sew something anyway.

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  3. Ahahahaha, fantastic!! Totally agree here!

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  4. Haha, you forgot the part where you cry yourself to sleep because you'll never be good at anything and you'll probably die suffocated under the crushing weight of your own failure! I LOVE having lady bits!

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    1. I DON'T HAVE THAT PART!!! well, no, i do tend to snap at ruggy.

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  5. I never thought about that!!! Suddenly it all makes perfect SENSE! Now I know why, in favour of steaming that wool I got for a bargain for my Minoru jacket I've been sat around playing Xbox and drinking booze!! (I wonder why my time of the month turns me into a teenage boy? Weird...)

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    1. My time of the month turns me into a raging bitch, so I think you're winning this one, lol.

      Seriously, I am IMPOSSIBLE. I don't want to do anything. Everything is wrong, it's all useless and pointless and dumb. And then it's sad and scary and depressing. AND I get migraines. Sonofabitch! I am a wreck for like two weeks out of the month all told. I just try to stay away from everyone for the most part.

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    2. oh NO, nettie, two weeks?! you ought to put a police line up.

      alexandra, i agree with nettie, xbox and booze wins.

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    3. because the testosterone level rises to force the shedding of the lining.

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  6. It's so funny that you posted this TODAY, because today was what I call "I do EVERYTHING around here" day. The day of the month that I think everyone else is a blazing idiot and no one else does any work. And, by the way, this past weekend was one big creative failure, where everything I tried was a flop, and I draped things on the mannequin over and over and over... and then walked away. Hmmmm... nice to know I'm not alone. :)

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    1. Oh, Kelly we are sisters! I have at least three of these days a month.

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  7. Oh yes, definitely! I find myself despairing that everything is awful and I hate all of my fabric and then BOOM - the next week it's like the muses are working through my fingertips. Ridiculous cycle, but it makes things a little more interesting!

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  8. Now see, I'm having the opposite problem! Found out before Christmas we're having another baby (#3!) and now I can't get motivated to do ANYTHING. I guess it's either/or for me. Oh well. I'll sew again in August. :)

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    1. EGADS. august?! although, come to think of it, august is a terrific month for birthdays :) congratulations!

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  9. Heh. Interesting. I'll have to pay attention to that. In the interest of scientific medical research. I wonder if someone would let me do a thesis...? ;)

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    1. oh please propose that. read vicki's comment, couldn't you do an offshoot of that?

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  10. Holy Crap. You're like some kind of seer. That flowchart is my sewing life in a beautifully pink circly kinda-way.

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  11. Back before I was a sewing scientist, I was just a plain ol' scientist, and I took a grad class in hormones and behaviour. Guess what? It's a proven phenomenon that women experience a creative and energetic boost at the time of ovulation. Ride the wave, I say, because you'll be lying around staring at your pattern collection with a blank expression in a week or two.

    And I agree with if toys could talk: I remember each time I was knocked up coming home from work and going to bed by 7pm, then after 3 months, I completely scrubbed the whole house with a toothbrush (maybe a slight exaggeration, but you get my drift).

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    1. no, i'm going to take the toothbrush bit literally.

      I KNEW IT. and i knew one of y'all scientists would tell me so! i was also sure i had a phase wrong, but i dropped science just as soon as i could.

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  12. Ok, I get a massive and usually gaudy brainstorm of creativity that results in plaid tafetta cat suits and screams of "I'm too hideous to own pretty things" not being rational enough to notice that my plans were bizarre and not well thought out. My filters are totally turned off for 1 week. I need to be removed from society and my scissors on lockdown!

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  13. hahahaha! you're totally right! just one more thing i can blame on crazy lady hormones...

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  14. heheeh.. i have to pay more attention to see does that have some effect on me.. so far, my time of the month only affects my sweets annihilating ability.. can't wait to see your new creations :)

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  15. Something like that, but I also have a phase of weird migraines with quasi-halucinations after ovulation and then a moment of clear thinking during the clean-up phase. Means that timing a project can be pretty tricky.

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    1. Mokasha, I would walk across hot broken glass for chocolate during that time.

      Sigrid, UGH! I get migraines, too! As well as quasi-halucinations! But I didn't know exactly what to call those, so thanks for articulating it for me!

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    2. girl, you really DO need a safe space. have you ever read The Red Tent?

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    3. I love that book. :)

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  16. **Harrumph** jealous of all these gals experiencing creativity bursts! All that happens to me is I am extra-sweaty :o(

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  17. My womb totally has anti-Reana Louise days... Sometimes I think it’s sabotaging me.

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  18. Wow. This is a truly fascinating possibility. Not that I have a clue when ovulation takes place (thanks, really poorly taught health class!). A soon as I look it up, I'm going to pay attention to see what's what! The only thing I've noticed is that I'm always SUPER productive on Sundays.

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    1. Same here.Friday day, I am all ready to go home and sew. Friday night, I am passed out. Saturday, I just want to watch tv and then Sunday, I am taking on the world.

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    2. i think it might be because we know monday is coming. we're y'all the type that studied/wrote papers/made mini volcanoes the night before it was due, even if you had weeks to prepare?

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    3. Of course! But also it maybe it just takes me that long to unwind...

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  19. Maybe this is why I hate my latest project so much. Can't win em' all, I guess.

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  20. hahaha. But it's all right if my clothes aren't new!
    Outta sight, because my heart is true!

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  21. Haha! Lurve this. I don't do it myself, as far as I can tell (hubs would just tell you I'm equally crazy all the time)... But I love pointing out to him that if he went through even a fraction of the hormonal whoop-ass we do monthly he'd be rocking in a corner.

    Pregnancy, now that's it's own special bucket of crazy...

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    1. again, "pregnancy" is really falling into the "sewing for others" column for me...

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  22. Thankfully, I feel pretty much the same all the time. I hope you love your new place when you get there!

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  23. Has been 20+ years since I entered surgical menopause! I do vaguely remember indulging a marked fondness for red garments when I was ovulating. I DO miss the vivid dreams. I do NOT miss the debilitating pain each month. Life now is good, and full of wonderment. Good luck in your move -- treat it as a Big Adventure and you'll have a better time. Will they at least speak the same language and use the same currency in your new town?

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    1. in a manner of speaking, yes, but there are many who believe the east and west coasts of the US are entirely different planets. i'm going for the embracing vibe this time :)

      wish i had vivid dreams ( but NOT pain!!! i'm over that.)

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  24. i agree that this is fascinating especially since i've been in a making frenzy and it's totally right before my period. now i want to track my cycle + creative cycles and make all my lady friends do it too haha.

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  25. Hormones are crazy things. My cycle is not predictable and I generally don't ovulate so I don't see those predictable ups and downs in myself. My mom claims to be most productive and creative in the week or two prior to her period arriving.

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  26. Maybe I should pay attention to the creativity/ovulation connection. I know EXACTLY when those eggs are making a tasty brekkie, because Mushka gets crazy. Crazy. Doesn't want me to go near Ry. Nutter dog, as if she had a chance. She is cute, though...

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  27. This is fascinating. I completely need to watch myself and see if I have these sorts of cycles for my creativity... I definitely forget how many things are influenced by where I am in the month. Normally I remember somewhere in the middle of having an emotional over-reaction to some minor detail of life, when I realize that I AM in prime PMS-range...

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  28. I must have been in preflo for about a month now, judging from my lack of sewing. But maybe that's just timeflo. I'll pay attention this month if the chemicals boost my wardrobe!

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  29. This is hilarious! Yet so true--who knew hormones could play such a pivotal role in sewing??? loll. I know during certain times of the month I can't seem to create enough--it's like I think it's my last chance to ever sew/knit/whatever, and I stay up too late churning out things and obsessing over the creative process. Then, it goes dead for a week... lol. (While I catch up on sleep and my brain recovers.)

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    1. i've just re-enetered the world from this exact stage, hallelujah!

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  30. You mean you ladies haven't tried mirena? Because with it I haven't gotten ANY periods in the last TWO AND A HALF years (including the time I was actually preggers) - best thing since sliced bread! Never been happier. I'm haven't got bursts of creativity, but then there also aren't any bursts of doldrums. Everything's a nice constant (assuming I get home from work on time).

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    1. Oh no, don't get me started on the horrors I experienced with Mirena. I know every person's body reacts differently to the device and the hormones, but 8 SOLID MONTHS OF PAIN AND HEAVY BLEEDING? Following closely on the heels of pregnancy, childbirth and post-partum recovery, I just couldn't deal with one more attack on my body. I was so relieved when I finally managed to convince a doctor to remove it that I started crying. And I usually only cry when something dies! My 2 cents.
      Glad that not everyone has the same experience as I!

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    2. oh god, i'm scared of the drugs too. those not alcoholic in nature, at least. EEK vicki, but i'm glad it worked for you deborah!

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  31. I love that you love puns as much as I do (hehe. flow chart). I've read that actually women tend to be more creative and intuitive when they're on their periods. I may have read that in a teen magazine so it's entirely possible that that doesn't mean shit haha.

    -Desiree
    Enter the Scandal! Intrigue! Birthday! Giveaway

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    1. ah, teen magazines. who knew they had their facts straight?

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  32. I'm never any good at recognizing patterns in life, even something as simple as monthly cycles of behaviour..my brain just doesn't connect anything to anything else. But it's quite possible.. I will try to pay more attention!

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  33. HA! Now it all makes sense. I sew, I crochet, I make jewellery and I love to cook. But there's only one thing I can make in the days leading up to my period - and that's an unholy mess. I turn into a towering, furious, raging, tearful hormonal harpy from Hell. I think everyone hates me and get some serious conspiracy/paranoia theories going. Then, a couple of days later, all is well and anything - even sewing! - is possible. Flippin' hormones. AND I had a baby last year, everyone including the midwife said 'ooh, you'll get super-creative during the second trimester'. What happened people? I couldn't make a thing. FOR NINE MONTHS!!! Then the baby arrived and I still haven't made anything because as soon as I step in my sewing room she needs her nappy changed/fed/cuddled. Why are babies SO UNREASONABLE? Hey, I might be going through that pre-flow super-grump paranoid phase right now... oh yes.
    ps I love the baby really. No, really I do!

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    1. Well of course you are Lorna, you didn't have a period for almost an entire year! You have a lot of catching up to do PMS-wise. Cut yourself some slack girl! Besides, I've heard you can't return babies once you cut the tags off.

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  34. this is hilarious. I am right there with you though. the ups and downs of being a women are quite crazy. I read to that men think you are the most pretty (we have a "special glow" to us) when we are in the week leading up to our period. Isn't that ironic? Because I certainly feel the most ugly, bloated and usually am covered in zits or chocolate. ha ha.

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    1. they DO. because the caveman in them knows it's primo knock-up time, zits or no!

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  35. Jeez Louise Oona, I just wanted some sewing tips! I've never connected hormones and creativity, but they are such powerful drugs, it wouldn't surprise me!

    Talk about bucket of crazy-my mom said she never felt better than when she was pregnant and with all four babies she redecorated the entire house. WTF?? I had PMS every single day for nine straight months! I guess she didn't pass that gene on to me.

    Seriously, this is really interesting. I'm definitely going to have to ask my girlfriends if they've ever noticed a creative peak during the month. I wonder what happens when you go into menopause?
    ps-love the flow chart!!

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    1. sewing tips?! i only have those rarely. alcohol is available all the time, though.

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  36. I'm good for nothing for about five days before my period. Except bitchin' and despair. Then I have a huge weep and/or rant and and become able to create again once I'm in full flow. I'm 48, the cycle's still cycling, but I'm curious to find out what happens to my creativity once I have crossed to The Other Side (aka the egg-free zone).

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  37. Oona you had me at Uterus.
    We are slaves to our eggs and apparently guys are too. If a guy looks at me too long mid cycle I'm like "Mr. Don't fight it, I'm ovulating it's not your fault."
    My female cousins (and I have a lot of them, bless my family they sure know how to breed) hold me responsible for all their mood swings. Apparently I have uber ovaries.
    I will be paying close attention to my creative spurts this month. Lady you area genius.

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    1. Uber Ovaries. i feel like that should be the name of a collection.

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  38. In Japan they give you time off work if you are having feminine issues. My husband taught in Japan, and the schools he worked at allowed for that. (I'm a little jealous actually, I usually lose about 4 pounds that first 24 hours) Not functioning, just present.

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    1. time off?! TIME OFF?!!! that's like red tent stuff. in the best way, i'd imagine. unless, is it time off because one is taboo?

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i thankya truly for taking the time to comment, i love a good conversation-- and hope you know my thanks are always implied, if not always written!