Gains and losses

Christmas tends to be a time when new things show up in life, usually in form of presents.
I gave myself a small present already before Christmas, however, in the shape of a mini-machine which I intend to take to workshops, for demonstrations on the stand, and basically just as a backup in case of need. Ever since my old Bernina went up in smoke two years ago and I was then told that there wouldn't be a whole lot of spare parts to get in the future I have been hesitant about what to do, because I don't want to lug the big Bernina around to workshops. So when I saw the offer for a small mechanical elna at 180 Euros I couldn't resist! It arrived by mail.

I do admit, the zebra design is not really my style. But who knows, now that I have much more contact with people from Africa, and really like them, perhaps a bit of zebra in my life is an apt addition!

My husband gave me a new music system for Christmas, which we had first intended for the room where the longarm is positioned. But as this is a much better system than the one I have had in my studio for a long time now, we reconsidered, and put it up in the studio. Unfortunately so far we haven't been able to secure radio reception for my favorite radio station (we don't have cable in the house) and need to fiddle a bit about that. The gain of the new system might mean the loss of a source of information that is not heavily Bavarian-scented, as my favorite station is from outside the Bavarian boundaries. We haven't given up hope yet, though.

The removal of the old system leads to a gain in space in the shelves!

Perhaps a bit of sorting might even increase that effect. If there was time...

And due to mis-assorted thinking on my part we lost a pan and pan-scraper. I managed to turn on the wrong burner when I was trying to make my beloved lemon-ginger-tea and didn't notice for far too long, thinking the strange smell was caused by something burning under the pot.

The pan wasn't exactly new and probably would have needed to be replaced in the near future anyway, and the pan scraper wasn't a special thing either. But I do mourn the loss of the lid, solid and heavy glass. However, after the plastic had melted unter it and with all the black spots on it I just don't want to use it anymore in the process of preparing food that we want to eat. Let's hope this is the only loss of this kind in a while and my absent-mindedness not a serious sign to worry about!