I dyed my hair today for the first time in... years, probably. I got a haircut as short as I dared (I'm not comfortable with my scar showing) and decided I wanted to do something more. So, red it was.
On Saturday, Amber and I had the pleasure of attending an elixir-crafting class taught by Michelle. Conveniently, the heat we'd been having broke that day and it was a beautiful morning/afternoon spent on her property, learning about herbs and plants, making an elixir of my own with lemon balm, mint, and ash, and getting to eat her wonderful homemade pickles.
I have strong opinions about pickles. I don't know why; I always have. When I was small I used to eat them as a snack out of the fridge pretty regularly, enough that my family would comment on it. As an adult I've had the pleasure of tracking down homemade and "artisan" pickles at farmers markets and local stores. These were a real treat, though.
It was even chilly enough for me to want my sweater at one point during the afternoon. Now I really feel autumn poking its head in, and not a moment too soon.
I've been writing, making good progress on all the things I didn't mean to be working on and none of the things I meant to. I should take what I can get and be happy with it, I really should. I've also been making mixes for my writing projects. I used to do that pretty heavily but I haven't done it in months, so it's a nice switch-up.
I've got a lead on some silversmithing classes that are insanely inexpensive, but I'm waiting for my weekends to stop being so busy before I sign up - probably late September.
In terms of anxiety, this week has actually been pretty good. There's the usual irrational intrusive thoughts here and there, but I've been beating them off with sticks and meditation and I think it's getting somewhere. Now if I can just keep them off...