How To Stall, In 15 Easy Steps

So...Yesterday a certain reporter-who-shall-remain nameless told the world (or at least a handful of people who stopped by Red Shoe Ramblings) that I had a new quilt idea. So I should have some progress to report today, yes? Um...no. What I Did Today:

• I surfed the 'net while drinking coffee.
• I talked to my friend Marge on the phone for a while. We---Johnny and I, Marge and her husband and daughter, and our friends Diane and Jimmy---try to get together for a visit somewhere every year. We're working on plans for this year. Sort of. At least we're talking about working on plans. Ahem.
• I paid bills. Blech, Bah, Ptooey!
• I went to the UPS store to mail some family photos to J's cousin in Missouri.
• I went to lunch, where the server for my table was a red-haired woman named Debbie. We made mutually admiring comments about each other's name and hair. Also the hostess and I made mutually admiring comments about each other's shoes. I had on my JudyJetsons and she had some really rather fabulous lemon-yellow ones. I wish I'd asked her where she got them.
• I spent an obscene amount of money to put gas in the car. Blech, Bah, Ptooey!
• I tried on some clothes. Blech, Bah, Ptooey! (I don't always say B/B/P to trying on clothes, but today everything looked very steaming-pile-of-crappish on me, so...B/B/P!)
• I tried on some shoes. They were lovely. I especially loved the red sandals, with the wide strap high on the instep and the red ring with the little flowers on it around the big toe. The red silk slides with the kitten heel were lovely too. But I resisted. I don't NEED them. Sigh.
• I looked at yarn. I came this close to buying some, but then thought "do I NEED a fuzzy orange-and-purple scarf in April?" (which would be the soonest I would finish it). I reluctantly concluded that the answer was no, so I returned the yarn to the bin and backed away slowly.
• I bought groceries. Blech, Bah, Ptooey!
• I talked to my friend Nancy on the phone for a while.
• I helped J bring his resume up to date, because working with MS Word makes him reallyREALLY crazed and it only makes me SLIGHTLY crazed.
• I went for a walk. That was fun.
• I answered a handful of emails.
• I cooked supper. (yawn)

Where, you might wonder, is the new quilt project on that long, boring list? Totally ignored, that's where. I avoided even looking at the fabric piles on the cutting table all day.

I'm at a stage I get to sometimes in the early phases of a new project where an idea is niggling at the edges of my brain, but I'm not really committed yet. Do I REALLY want to spend some time with this fabric? Or would I rather wash my hair? If I start cutting then it'll suck me in, whether I want to be there or not. And breaking up is hard to do. Maybe I'd rather say "never mind, let's just be friends" NOW, before any fabric is cut and any of my time is spent....possibly wasted. Cuz it's not like I wasted any time today. (shut up)

Does anyone else go through a stage of commitment-phobia with fabric or am I COMPLETELY insane?? (That was a rhetorical question. Really.)

Tomorrow, I'm going to start cutting. I'm stating it here, publicly, so that I'll be embarrassed if I have no progress to report by this time tomorrow night. I'm not promising LOTS of progress....no cottage-with-picket-fence of fabric or anything, but I'll meet the fabric for coffee. We'll talk. Maybe we'll hit it off.

Wish me luck!