Nov 3, 2014

U potrazi za promenom


Minulih meseci sam bila prilično tiha na blogu. Ako izuzmemo par kratkih postova koje sam napisala u maju i julu, nisam se mnogo bavila Štepalicom, i neko vreme sam osećala veliku grižu savesti zbog toga. No, i pored želje da u kontinuitetu pišem, nisam fizički uspevala da se posvetim blogovanju, pa sam napravila neplaniranu pauzu. I moram priznati da mi je jako prijala!

Tokom februara i marta sam promovisala kroj za Zlata suknju, što me prilično iscrpelo, jer sam svakodnevno pisala po dva članka (po jedan na srpskom i engleskom) sa obimnim instrukcijama za šivenje. Tokom ta dva meseca sam bila toliko uposlena, da sam često radila po 8 sati dnevno na blogu, a potom još jednu smenu radila na dnevnom poslu. Nametnula sam samoj sebi ritam koji sam jedva uspevala da ispratim.

Paralelno s tim, na dnevnom poslu mi je postajalo sve teže i teže, i bilo je dana kada sam se jedva nosila s pritiskom koji sam osećala. Nisam nikako uspevala da se odmorim, i počela sam da vapim za promenom, koja bi mi olakšala život i umanjila stres. Nisam ni slutila da me promena (zapravo, više njih) čeka iza ćoška.

Maziću je, paziću je, i zvaću je Đole


Prvi, krajnje neplaniran, novitet nas je zadesio tokom kratkog puta u Crnu Goru. Išli smo na more početkom maja, ali nas vreme nikako nije poslužilo - bilo je ledeno hladno i padala je kiša, pa smo tražili razonodu obilazeći crnogorsko priobalje. Tokom jednog od izleta, na magistralnom putu smo primetili malu krznenu lopticu, koju smo zamalo pregazili kolima. Zaustavili smo se da pogledamo šta je to, i shvatili da pred nama leži mače staro svega par dana. Bilo je potpuno bespomoćno, musavo i gladno, a mame mačke nije bilo u blizini. Ko zna kako je ovaj mališa završio na putu, i koliko automobila ga je pukom srećom zaobišlo?


U sekundi smo rešili da povedemo sa sobom i zbrinemo malecno mače. Kod veterinara smo se raspitali o tome kako i čime da ga hranimo, svesni da je mala šansa da će preživeti bez majke i majčinog mleka. Međutim, mačence je bilo veliki borac, a mi veoma uporni, pa je brzo raslo i napredovalo. Nazvali smo ga Đole, ubeđeni da je mužjak, da bismo par meseci kasnije shvatili da je zapravo ženka :).


Budući da je bila tako mala kada samo je našli, prvih mesec dana smo imali pune ruke posla oko nje - hranili smo je na svaka dva sata i danju i noću, morala je stalno da bude ušuškana kako joj ne bi bilo hladno. Kada je počela da lunja po stanu, imali smo problem da je spazimo, onako malu, jer se potpuno stopila sa žutim nameštajem i oker parketom.


Đole je porasla u pravu lepoticu. Jako je živahna, razigrana i veoma voli da grize! Sada ima pet meseci i vrlo je pametna. Nikada ranije nisam imala kućnog ljubimca, a sada ne mogu da zamislim dan bez naše riđokose čigre. Đole je, baš kao i ja, raspamećena krojevima, tkaninama i pozamanterijom, pa se u kući redovno vodi bitka oko šivaće mašine.



Beograd - Stokholm


Drugo, opet neplanirano, iznenađenje usledilo je po povratku iz Crne Gore. U to vreme, moj dnevni posao je kulminirao sa zahtevima. Neko vreme sam morala da radim prekovremeno, čak i vikendima, kako bih uspela da ispratim ritam koji se od mene zahtevao. Dodatno me je iscrpljivalo i čudno radno vreme - radila sam od 12 - 20, zbog čega nisam nikako uspevala da organizujem ono malo slobodnog vremena koje sam imala na raspolaganju.


Par puta mi je palo na pamet da potražim novi posao, ali nisam ništa konkretno preduzela po tom pitanju. Ispostavilo se da je posao našao mene - neobičnim spletom okolnosti sam dobila ponudu da pređem u drugu firmu, sa evropskim radnim vremenom i humanijim uslovima rada. Nestrpljivo sam čekala sredinu avgusta, kada je trebalo da zvanično pređem na novo radno mesto.

Odmah po prelasku u novu firmu, otišla sam službeno u Stokholm, gde sam provela dve i po nedelje. Nažalost, nemam ni jednu sliku sa puta na kojoj sam ja, ali uz ovakve razglednice mislim da bi bile suvišne.


Novi posao me preporodio i rešio stresa, pa se nadam da će mi dati dovoljno vremena da se bavim šivenjem i krojevima kako sam i planirala. Ruku na srce, vratila sam se u Beograd pre dva meseca, a do sada nisam ništa pisala, ali trebalo mi je malo vremena da se u potpunosti adaptiram na novi ritam rada. Trenutno mi je najveći izazov postalo slikanje, jer se uporno mimoilazim sa D. koji je u poslednje dve godine moj fotograf. No, naći ću neko rešenje koje neće pokvariti kvalitet slika, jer imam dosta stvari da vam pokažem.

Pored pomenutih, čeka me još nekoliko noviteta, o kojima ću uskoro pisati. Takođe, ostala sam dužna i vama i drugarici da završim haljinu sa čvorom, pa se nadam da ću uskoro i nju moći da vam pokažem. 

Looking for a change


I've been rather quiet last few months. If I don't count several short posts I wrote back in May and June, I haven't blogged much and I've been feeling guilty about it. However, even though I wanted to keep writing, I haven't had the time to actively blog so I made an unplanned break from it. And I must admit I enjoyed it!

During February and March I promoted the Zlata skirt pattern, which exhausted me a lot, as I wrote two articles per day (one in English and the other in Serbian) with detailed sewing instructions. During the two months I was so busy I worked 8 hours a day on the blog, and then worked another shift at my day job. I kept the rhythm I barely could follow.

Along with promoting the pattern, my day job became more and more stressful, and there were days when I would barely handle the pressure. I couldn't get rest and I started striving for a change that would make my life easier and less stressful. I never thought the change (or should I say - few of them) would wait for me around the corner.

I will love it and squeeze it and call it George


The first change came unexpectedly during our short trip to Montenegro. D. and I went to the sea at the beginning of May, but the weather was rather cold and rainy. So, instead of swimming and sunbathing, we spent time sightseeing across the seashore. During one of the excursions we noticed a small furry ball at the highway that we almost run over. We stopped to take a look at it and realized it was a tiny little kitten few days old. It was completely helpless, all dirty and hungry, and it's mom couldn't be found anywhere. Who knows how this little thing ended up on the road and how many cars run by it?


It took us a second to decide to take the kitten with us and take care of it. We informed at the vet's on how to feed it, knowing there was a good chance the kitten would not survive without his mom's milk. However, this little mouse was a great fighter and we were very persistent, so the kitten grew fast. We called it Djole (Serbian equal to Geourge), as we were sure the kitten was male, but few months later we realized it was actually a female :).


Since she was so tiny when we found her, the first few months were busy with feeding her every two hours by day and night. We also had to keep her warm and tucked in all the time. Once she started wondering around the flat, we had a problem spotting her as she blended in with the yellow furniture and the khaki flooring.


Djole grew up into a true beauty. She's very playful and boy she likes to bite! She's six months old now, and she is a smart cat. I've never had a pet before, but now I can't imagine a day without my red-furred whirl. Djole is, like myself, thrilled by patterns, notions and fabrics, and we fight a lot over the sewing machine.



Belgrade - Stockholm


The second surprise came after we came home from Montenegro. At the time, my day job became very stressful. I frequently worked overtime hours, sometimes even during the weekends, trying to keep up with the work demands. I was additionally exhausted by the odd working hours, as I worked from 12AM - 8PM, which made organizing my free time almost impossible.


I did think of changing the job, but I never made a move in that direction. As it turned out, the job found me - I was offered to switch the company which had European working hours and better work conditions. I waited for the mid of August impatiently, as that was the time I officially started working there.

I went to a business trip to Stockholm, Sweden, shortly after I started working, and I stayed there 16 days. Unfortunately I don't have any pictures with me on them, but with such nice landscapes, who needs any other pics?


The new job came as a salvation and I hope it will provide enough time to get back to sewing and pattern drafting. I did  come back from Stockholm two months ago and haven't written anything yet, but it took some time to adapt to a new rhythm. Currently, the greatest challenge is taking photos, as D. and I keep working in opposite shifts, and he has been my photographer in the last two years. But I'll find some solution that will work, as I have a lot of new stuff to show you.

Along with the changes I mentioned, there are some other new things I will talk about soon. Also, I owe you and my friend to finish the knotted dress, so I hope I'll have some new photos to show you soon.