My car broke down. Again. Ahh, the joys of only being able to afford old cars! And today is a grey and raining day, so I'm definitely not leaving the house.

My routine gets all out of wack if I can't go out in the morning for coffee (or tea, whatever), spend a little time at the café, getting my thoughts in order, and then - usually - go by the supermarket to get a few things for lunch and diner and stuff. 

If I don't go out in the morning it's like the day doesn't start, you know? It takes me forever to settle down and focus. Even if I try to emulate the routine at home, it's not the same and it doesn't work as well. I feel lost.

I might not have any work to post today. I have a Tealing done, yes, but I still have to make the character sheet that I thought was a great idea to accompany my Tealings. Ok, I still think it was a good idea, I'm just grumpy cause I still have to do it and haven't even begun to think about what to write. And I'm not feeling inspired at all... 

I have many ideas and I'm getting *nothing* done. My executive function is working as well and my car. It just won't start! 

Raisca's 2026 Calendar

Ok, here's my 2026 Calendar!

You can get it as a PDF on my Ko-fi and help me get the budget to buy the Tales of Xillia Remaster!

Last time I gave you a sneak peak. This time I'll show you the whole thing!

 Which one is your favorite? I like November the most, but I'm really happy with all of them!

Purple

The next color in the Color Series is... 

Purple!

Mildred - The Healer

Everyone, meet Mildred, my 5th Tealing!

 

Another week. I can't believe we're halfway through November already. What? 

This feels like and invisible month. You have October and it's Halloween, and then that's over and there's Christmas stuff everywhere (already was before, but even more so as soon as Halloween is over). So it's like we jump from October to December. A very long December, but no November. 

I used to like Christmas when I was a kid. And yeah, sure, I was a kid. But also, you'd only see the first decorations popping up on December 1st. And then slowly grow until we got into full Christmas mode. The goes same for toys for sale and fancy foods and all that. The build up was exciting and then we were in full Christmas mode for about a week and then it was over. It felt like a special season.

Now? Now it's an ordeal. An imposition. It's oppressive. 
By the time December arrives we're already sick and tired of it and there's no room left for the real Christmas spirit to warm our souls. It's has no meaning anymore.
These days the thought of Christmas just makes me cranky. 

And we're still in November! Why am I talking about this?!

Oh, by the way, my calendar is on Ko-fi already! I procrastinated on that for a few days... The fixing of the scans (color correcting and erasing glue spots or stray hairs that shouldn't be there) was so tedious that I didn't have it in me to make the PDFs for another 3 days. Then took yet another day until I finally listed it on Ko-fi. *That* is the part I dislike the most. Putting a price on things? Telling people than I'm *selling* them?? I hate it. Also, coming up with descriptions of the "product". Making it all "proper" and "professional"? I dread the whole process. I'm allergic to marketing.

And yes, I also find it "funny" that I went from complaining about capitalism to immediately letting you know that I'm selling a thing. I hate it, too. 
I don't hate the calendar though! In fact, I'm very happy with it, it's one of my favorites I've ever made, and I've been making them for several years now! I'll be making a whole separate post about it later today.

Bastion - The Inquirer

Meet Bastion, my 4th Tealing!

 

Last week was such a flop, gosh. My energy levels were so low I couldn't do anything. I blame shark week. And the full moon. And the rainy stormy weather. And whatever was in the air. 

I'm back to normal now! In fact, I ended up making my 2026 calendar in two days! I never make it that fast! I suppose it helped a lot that I also took a full afternoon gathering images for it and played around with a layout. So when it came to start working, it was just putting images together in a specific configuration and making an effort to keep it simple. Times 12. 
They're A6 (postcard) size, as usual.

 
Not a great picture, but I scanned them and will be posting on the 1st of every month. I will also have a high-res digital download available on my Ko-fi very soon. 

The blanket and the cross stitch are also coming along. It's fun to register the progress each week and see them growing! 

 

I like this schedule of only posting works on Mondays and do a little recap of the week. 
But it seems I'm not too fond of preparing the images the day before. I still have to do that for today. I was too excited finishing the calendar yesterday! I have to make sure to use the bursts of energy and creativity as they come, cause I know they are fleeting. Still, I should just accept that Monday is the day for it and just go with that flow.

You know what else I've been doing? I got back into Postcrossing! Do you know of it? It's been around for 20 years! I used it many years ago, and now I'm back! It's so fun sending and receiving postcards from all over the world! Receiving physical mail (that isn't just bills) is so exciting! And writing by hand just feels nice. Going to the post office isn't as fun though, especially when you ask for stamps and they don't have any. How ridiculous is that?! 

Anyway...

I've also been thinking of getting on Substack. I've been exploring a bit, but I tend to forget it exists, so that doesn't bode well for me having a posting schedule there, huh? Besides what will I post there? The same I post here? What's the point? ...Maybe the point is being in a platform that people are actively using... 

I *could* try. Post the same there as I post here and see where that leads me. I like Blogger, it feels comfortable - cause I used it back in the old days so it smells of nostalgia - and Substack feels overwhelming - cause I don't know it yet. 

Ok, I've rambled enough. 
(I never know how to finish my posts and it shows) 

This past weekend felt extra long for some reason. 

I never do anything for Halloween, but this year I convinced myself to go out this new coffee/library place in a town nearby, just to hang out a bit, see people, soak in the vibes, you know? 
Guess what, it rained all day and night, so I stayed home. 

And then the weekend went by as always. I still couldn't tell you why it felt longer than usual.

I didn't make any collages this week. I spent at least two days (not in a row) without even turning on the computer. And on the days that I did turn it on, I did nothing more than watch videos on Youtube. Well, and crochet. The blanket has grown a little more!

 

I have also done some cross stitching (it's been a while!). As always, I have to be weird about it. Ahah. 
I'm using thick yarn and a wire (covered in plastic) mesh. 

It's not finished yet. And I regret some color choices, but I learned a thing or two with the experience.

Can't wait to have this finished and start another! The ideal would be to make my own images. I know I can do it, but I'm lacking the drive. Cause that's digital work, and like I said back there, I haven't been feeling it lately. 

I've been gathering materials to make my calendar for next year. Also the way I found stuff for my Color Series too, so hopefully I'll get some work done this week!