29 March 2007

Cruds-O-Rama...


Ahhhh...the joys of therapy!

In which I opened an interesting door yesterday (which is a nice way of saying that my eyes have been leaking water on their own accord since I got home yesterday evening) Luckily, it being allergy season and all up here, not many people are noticing the swollen eyes and extraordinary amount of sniffing (the stomping of feet...sometimes accompanied by loud sounds of sobbing are freaking some people out though) (ok...I am managing to hold it together at the shop, or at least being quieter, but really, having something to focus on does help quell the tears...and as the afternoon has passed, I have been feeling a little more stable) although, I am happy too, because this is why I gifted myself with therapy in the first place...to find all these areas I need to heal, so that they don't run my life. Nothing like your past rearing it's ugly head and your wounded inner child running the show is there?

Sigh.
(it's amazing what's buried in there isn't it?)


28 March 2007

Tuesday Love...


Hello beautiful Tuesday (ok, it was yesterday, but I don't remember greeting it like that when I rolled out of bed...if I remember correctly, I was medidtating in bed for an hour before I was able to set foot into my own life...but how did I know how it was going to turn out?)

*An amazing load (and I mean LOAD) of clothes in the shop...making me wish I was indeed a small, but perhaps it's better that I'm not, because everything would've ended up in the house, and then what ever would I find to buy during the Phoenix trip?

*The package arrived from Mother Henna, including all these lovely little postcards with the most wonderful henna inspired designs...a huge thank you for that indeed!

*And completely on accident did I stumble upon my favorite song (right now...as I got into a discussion with someone and he remarked, you can't keep changing your favorite song...Oh yeah?) Please click on the link above and listen to it...I'm not totally pleased by the video, as I thought it was more of an oesoteric love song...oh well...here are the words too, if you want to sing along....I have been searching for these words for quite a while now...

what are you thinking of
what are you doing
what do you think you can do
what you are
what you do
looking out at
ripples on the dance floor
what do you mean
is what you get
did you forget to know
what the end is
to begin
clearing
looking out
at ripples on the dance floor

dream machine
did you get
everything you asked for
dream machine
rattlesnake
a charm on the dance floor

love's rage
broken page
electric lights
and glass bone nights
electric lines run
through your minds
distractions with radio contraptions
night glasses
pipe ashes
tick tock
hear the wind lick
the window
ignited
you're invited
grow wings
sprouting from the backbone

dream machine
mister jones
you don't know what you came for
dream machine
rattlesnake
a charm on the dance floor

we are like those two
mirrors
steaming in the rain
we are those two
lovers
holding each other's hands
dream
with me
rattlesnake
a charm on the dance floor

Happy Wednesday love to you all...

27 March 2007

Chocolate and Sympathy...


Alright...not so much sympathy as yesterday was a mighty good day! I just thought it was s witty title...

Enough with the wit...Last evening found me at Ms. Dina's lovely home, after a full fun day for both of us...Dina is having all sorts of exciting things happening in her life right now, and I can't wait to see how it all turns out. I'm holding steady with my life, and took a lovely afternoon walk to celebrate.

As you can see, I dug up this gorgeous box of Choxie I got at Target after Valentine's Day...it occurred to us both at some point this last weekend, that I did indeed have this box stored away somewhere within the recesses of my kitchen...I remembered that I stowed it away when the D-Man was here, because he takes it on as a personal challenge to eat every bit of chocolate I may have in my home, and as I had bought this box of chocolate for Dina, and I...I wasn't ready to give it up to him, for no reason whatsoever...And these chocolates are not only beautiful to look at, but the flavors are over the top: Thai Coconut, Cherries Jubilee, Cardamom, Strawberry Balsamic...and many others. We did only have two a piece as they are quite rich (the same two as a matter of fact) plus, they will last much longer this way...

Tea, chocolate, and good conversation is the perfect way to end a wonderful day...
don't you think?

26 March 2007

The Weekend...In 50 words or less...

...Yeah right.

We all know that's not going to happen. So, you'd better sit down and grab a cuppa...

I added a counter to the sidebar counting down to the exact second, the exciting and much anticipated Phoenix trip I will be embarking on with my dear friend Dina in April. We've been planning this trip since the beginning of the year, and are both just about giddy. We keep planning and replanning exactly what we're going to do, and I actually suggested making a list so we don't miss anything (yeah, like that will happen) This will also be when I get the oh so special giftie that I've promised myself. You see, my birthday also falls on the 16th of April, and although this giftie isn't quite for that, I will be sure to brag plenty...I am actually planning on a little party frock from Anthropologie for myself for said birthday (well...why not? I mean, maybe someone will throw me a party...maybe I will sit around in my dress sipping a drink by myself, whatever the case may be, I will be well dressed!)

And, after a relaxing Saturday, complete with home manicures (in which I used a mood nail polish that is like a mood ring, but really only changes to a different color when I take a bath, but no matter...it is super fun!) Dina and I were off to the last game of the season for the Sundogs...and what a fight...I mean, game it was! I've never seen so many fights. I swear every puck drop the players would be standing there waiting one minute and then the next there would suddenly be a bunch of equipment thrown on the ice and a ton of men punching each other.

Oh yes.
I loved it.

Violent to be sure, but in a fun primal way! Several players were eventually thrown out of the game (we did win 8 - 4) And between all that and a certain gentleman sitting at the end of our row, we were quite occupied for the entire game indeed (wink wink nudge nudge Deenie)


And what a lovely Sunday, starting off with a text message early in the am. from Dina that read:

"coffee's done, kids are asleep are you up?"

to which I replied:

"I can be, I'll be there in 3"



because in all reality, I jumped up...washed the face threw a change of day clothes in the bag, and jumped into the car...yes, in my pj's for a lovely morning and fun day...

Making a huge mess in her living room of papers, glitter, glue and magazines creating fun little boards to help us focus on what we really want in our lives. That way, we can hang them up all about and be reminded in pictures and words, because you know, every little bit helps doesn't it?

Really?







Oh indeed it does...focus focus focus...

This is a ghostly image of Little Miss Pink Tink, also known as Dina's neice, who is quite creative, and well spoken, and written, if I may add both of those, who were, as I left, last night, finishing up yet another board for Ms. Tink to take home with her....

I tell you, there's something super impressive about this younger generation...



And me, well...here are mine:

Three in all, and more to come probably...I mean, certainly!


Prosperity...











Body Image...











...and Relationship



Won't a girl do anything to have an excuse to buy red glitter?




Oh yes indeed!

23 March 2007

A View From...

...My Front Room
(I suppose it may be known as the living room too)


Oh yes my friends, it's the end of another week...one that flew by quite fast in my opinion. Lot's of craftiness, good luck and fun happenings in my life certainly helped the matter...A lovely dinner out with a friend last night, and an evening in watching a bit of a movie. Plus, it did start raining, which I certainly love (as I enjoy our forests and all the critters, and I know they must be holding a special little party in all the wet) But, before it was all cloudy (when I rushed out to water the lawn because it seemed to be sunny) I took these pretty pictures...





Of the springtime tree out front all covered in pink blossoms...I'm really enjoying the way it so nicely coordinates with all my outside decor...how very thoughtful of it!











And, this is just silliness...

I was sitting here watching the cat doze, and realized that if you look super close, you can see a sweet little squirrel that is sitting on that large rock in the distance...it sits there quite a bit actually, but I thought it was so funny because they both seem to be in the exact same position...

snort...

(fine. I need time off)





I will be enjoying my weekend off (my third one...when will the novelty wear off and I will cease to count them I wonder?) playing with my Fisher Price Sesame Street (sorry for the blurriness) My mother just unearthed it from storage, and couldn't bear to get rid of it. I should say not, both my sister and I played with it, and so did Rozzie. I received this toy at Christmas time one year from my grandfather, I remember it vividly! This was also the year that my mother sewed matching flannel nightgowns for both me and my dolls...and then we proceeded to bathe them all and was their clothes, so they could be set out in the living room and wait for Santa. This was also the year that my mother woke up early on Christmas morning and almost had a heart attack as she thought that Santa had actually brought a whole new slew of dolls (tee-hee)

I grew up with a couple of hippy parents, who found a lot of my toys used...maybe it's where I get the thrift mentality? Probably, as I am a firm believer that everything you want is out there (which goes along nicely with quantum physics doesn't it? See what I was learning at such a young age...and from a couple of hippies?) Anyway, I found out from my mother later that my grandfather used to just give her money to get me a gift for Christmas...and I have always felt a little bad about that. I mean, if he really loved me, why wouldn't he go out and get me one himself? Then I realized that he probably really wanted me to get something that I would enjoy, and he knew that my mom would be the best person to buy it for me...you know, cause we spent so much time together? And it would be a great way to supplement all the other gifts I would get...plus, I did actually get to spend quite a bit of time with my grandfather, and that is still one of the greatest gifts he ever gave me...him.

Can you tell me how to get...


21 March 2007

Luck O' The...


Ok, you're right, for a good Irish girl to let the holiday of St. Patrick's Day slip by with nary a mention is a travesty in itself, but to my utter and complete defense (that and I absolutely and totally forgot on that day...I didn't even wear green to garage sales, I mean, isn't it enough that my last name is Irish and I dont' tan?) it was the weekend, and it was the weekend that I needed to rest...so, no, I didn't post...and no, I did not drink any green beer (because I was still ill) and no, I didn't get pinched because I didn't go anywhere that day...and the cat's not Irish (plus, I've noticed she's a little lax about holidays sometimes...and with her allergies kicking in too...she's been a little out of it)


But, that didn't keep the Leprechauns from smiling upon me, and bringing me some luck...I accidentally in my blogtravels, found out about this little contest called One World One Heart. So, I visited a bunch of blogs and signed up for thier give-aways. I was a little bummed too, because it seemed like such a wonderful idea to participate in (on the give-away end of it) but I was a little late, so perhaps next time? Anyway, as I got home last evening, I found a surprising email in my box from 1,000 Faces of Mother Henna telling me I won...This was such an intruguing blog, and I enjoyed perusing the artwork and creativity quite a bit, which of course, led me on some more blogtraveling adventures too numerous to mention here...but rest assured, I am completely recovered and excited to receive this little bit of fun in the mail...

I'm telling you, my life is incredibly amazing and I'm one of the luckiest people I know
(I say it a lot, so it must be true...yes?)






And, if you get a chance...check out this wonderful swap over at Polka Dot Mittens
(not to mention her blog because she's mighty witty!)

Oh Yes...

Yet another hockey game up here in the Northland. This time attending with Ms. Dina, was myself a pre-teen niece of hers and 2 smaller children...who all behaved well enough, even though we left early because we didn't want to push it. On the way home we had to stop for a quick potty break because immediately when we got into the car, it was discovered that 2 of the smaller passengers needed to go..."really bad!"

I believe we won the game, which made Dina turn on the new Gwen Stefani CD to the song "Wind it up" (you know, I must confess here that it doesn't take much these days to convince her to put that song on at all) and inspired us to car dance in the front seat...and made one of the little one's to pull the other one's hair (I'm sure on pure accident and in the throes of total excitement)

The music is turned down:

"...he pulled my bun, and it hurt my head"

"say you're sorry please..."

"I'm sorry."

"Are you OK now?"

"...yes."

"Are you ready to get your groove on again?"

(and this is rather shaky) "...yes."

"That's my girl!"

And, then right back to car dancing...because no one can stop the girl once she gets her groove on, right?

At this moment, I would like to send the wish out to the universe that these kids remember us as not the crazy "old" girls who danced way beyond our times,

but as the cool, hep, graceful, spontaneous, ageless, fun and kicky women we've truly become...

20 March 2007

In which...

I wake up and take another allergy pill before I go to do my taxes, hoping that it will dull the pain of:

  1. Allergies (itchy eyes, runny nose, sneezing)
  2. The possibility of me owing any set amount of money to the federal government, and being taken away to debtors prison
  3. That it will indeed be fun operating heavy machinery (ie. my car and/or my life)

Luckily, the taxes turned out better than I hoped...I made more money this year, but got a bit of a return back...not enough to pay for getting my taxes done, but whatever, although it was better than the guy across from me...his refund was for $1. See, making all those quarterly payments does actually pay off (no matter how painful it is to write those checks at the time)

Then off to the shop to process. Clothes. Lot's of them.

Piles.
Bags.
Boxes.

Oh yes, I am out of hangers, and room on most of the racks, shelves or anyplace else that I can shove, I mean, display this stuff. There are so many wonderful things in right now, if anyone out there is around, please come in and take them off my hands...Please (I could use the hangers) I've actually been reduced to putting the extra clothes in boxes until I can get them all out...it's outrageous (including 2 large boxes from Texas that just came in that I haven't even opened yet) I swear this time of year snuck up on me...it's been a little warmer than usual, and the change of seasons precipitates a spring cleaning frenzy that boggles the mind...even though we usually have more white Easters than Christmases. So, it's been quite chaotic for about the last week now, and sometimes I don't do well in the midst of chaos (although, it's a place where I usually find myself) and I've been a little overwhelmed, and along with everything else...

I have been reminding myself to breathe...just breathe...outloud at points even. Probably to the dismay of some of my customers, but they should really be thanking me because at points it's keeping me from leaping across the counter and running away...

oh dear.
(secrets out)

So, I came home and did what any red-blooded American girl would do instead of totally have a meltdown or heaven forbid...relax...

A skirt a Day...Will keep the Doctor away


But, mainly if it is a skirt with apples on it. Oh yes, this bit of fabric was another score this weekend at JoAnn's (damn that place) and the last words out of my mouth before Dina took the little one to the bathroom were:

"I am going to look at the novelty fabric...DON'T let me buy any!"

The next words out of my mouth as they hunted me down were muttered rather desperately:

" I'm buying this...and you can't stop me"

She agreed that even though everyone has this fabric, she still loved it, and that it would indeed make a lovely skirt (always a supportive friend, although one that does not help me save money...) indulging my immediate fantasy of yet another skirt to add to the rapidly growing collection. Because, you know, I make so many of these, I can just whip them right up now in no time at all.

Not true.
Not even a little bit.

No less than 2 hours passed as I struggled along with the design of this one...I do really like the shape and the way it turned out (instead of the Made by Wendy pattern...I fudged it all up, designed it myself as a Made by Sadira pattern instead) I put a little bit of sweet detailing with some red vintage rick-rack on the waistband (grabbed in desperation from my, "what in heavens name am I'm going to do with all this vintage rick-rack?" pile in the studio) and made a little side tie as well (I really need to learn how to put a zipper in don't I?) I struggled a little bit at the end (isn't that always the way? You're almost done, and the darned machine refuses to cooperate? Spewing bobbin thread all over...) but, managed to persevere till I sewed it all up. Then...as I walked over to the iron one last time, I about killed myself by tripping over a laundry basket that someone so rudely left in the middle of the floor...

My horoscope today said that I was going to have to stop my frantic pace and calm it down, or the universe would do it for me...

So, if any of you were wondering, the universe is a square green and yellow laundry basket that runs under your feet at the most inopportune moment...


18 March 2007

You Can't Keep a Good Woman...

...Down

Ok, I exaggerate a bit. You certainly can. She can indeed rest-up, lay down, put her feet up spend the entire weekend between napping and recuperating...watching terribly romantic movies (I did however, stop myself from The Titanic...I have never seen that movie, and I'm not gonna' start now. Oh yes, I've seen bits and pieces, but I figured it was going to be excruciatingly sad...that the directors would indeed go for that angle, and if I want sad, I can certainly do some remembering about instances in my own life. Not that I ever almost froze in the ocean...but, well, you know)

So, laugh if you will, but this was my recuperating outfit this weekend, all snugly (and yes, that is indeed a cat in the hat tattoo on my ankle...I love it!) perfect for me...Although, I felt a little bit bored. It was really hard for me to just sit and rest...



...So, I did have to jump up and do some things around the house (Is it a family thing that I feel anxious when I rest without achieving, or is it a society thing?) But, never you fear...I did not do anything too taxing (even though when I look outside some of the windows I notice that there are piles of yard clippings, and the need to rake even more...but I did my best not to see that, just look right past and not feel guilty)

So, I reorganized my shoes, and put all the summer ones on the right shelves, and put the winter ones on their own large shelf to await next year.

OK
I like shoes.
I love them.
Very Very much...

My sister calls me the Imelda Marcos of Prescott, and no, I haven't counted how many pairs I have, and if anyone else does,

I. do. not. want. to. know.

I'd rather take bets on how long they'll all stay so nice...I do also store them in colors, shelf 1: black; shelf 2: brown; shelf 3: all other colors (pink, red, green) bottom: tennies and seasonals. Since I do own my own resale store, I want you not to panic...but realize that there are absolutely no pairs in there that I paid full price for...and most of them I bought used, or at used outlets (my shop, thrifts or yard sales) and even then, some of them were brand new...but never full price (plus, I think that styles change so fast, and often even I get sick of things after only wearing them a couple of times...so it does not often pay to buy things retail...and it does make me feel a little guilty to do so) Everything is out there, you just have to look and be patient. And those are purses on the tippy-top shelf...There used to be more vintage leather Coach bags and designer bags, but the more creative I get, the less I keep ones that I don't make myself...it's so much more fun this way...

Which led to the culling of the armoire as well...I love this time of year, because I usually have piles and piles of clothes sitting about the house, because so many people are cleaning out their own wardrobes...and I want new new new too. Things are spilling out of every drawer and all clothing storage areas, and all I can do is walk around and exclaim:

"I have nothing to wear"












...which is a sure sign that I need to take stock and organize...get rid of...and fold up...and take the seasonal stuff down to thier little bins until next year. I am not showing you the pile of jeans off to the side (as I need to try on and get opinions before they go away) and I do have a small pile of "transitional" PJ's...silly, I know, but although it's warm during the day, it still gets a bit cold at night and I need to have kind of warm ones until the heat bakes them off of me...The large baskets are full of clothing that are going to the shop to find new homes...

On Sunday, I did indeed make my way to JoAnn's where I found the most delightful iron-ons (thanks to Dina plus, snagged some more material for another skirt...what is it with this time of year that makes me want to sew and sew skirts?) and promptly had a small melt-down, as none of our coupons were current, and there were so many fun designs, it was hard to choose...and I'm still a little groggy so I had to try to focus a bit...

The first one is a wonderful skull with a crown, and what I really like about this decal, is that it is more like a dye...not an iron on Per-Se, but more like smoky ink because it's a bit transparent in places. I was not expecting that, so it was a little confusing at first, and the paper moved around quite a bit (mostly because I was thinking that it was going to stick to the tank...oops) so the image came out blurry in places, but as it is on ribbed fabric, I really like the effect...this design is on the back of the tank...

So I have wings.


The next one I attempted is a "flocked" iron on...Man was this one challenging, it took a lot of squidging around and pressing and ironing and a little exclamations under my breath...but was well worth it.

The heart is again, in the center of the back (I don't know why...a theme?) and there is also a little flower design on the left down there at the bottom, and the matching one is on the right bottom front. They are olive, so they don't show up really well, but are quite understated and lovely!

Plus, they're all fuzzy...I may have a challenge ahead of me for not rubbing myself while I'm wearing this...perhaps that's why it's better to have the bulk of the design on the back?





These were a great deal, as I believe each package was only $3, and the skull one had 2 separate transfers in it...They also sell cotton tanks for about $4 in really wonderful colors (in case you don't have your own pile at home, like um, I do)

I'm posting this early, as I'm off to do my taxes in the am (wish me luck with that) and won't have a chance to post tomorrow...

I'm off to grill a little dinner for the group right now, and put my feet up for a little while out in the sunshine...listen to some groovy tunes...

And keep on relaxin'

16 March 2007

OK...

So, I am slowly recovering from my health problem (too messy to go into detail in the blog, but lets just say that I spent the day yesterday going between really sad and wanting to cry to really angry...I am a bit of a baby when I get sick, that's where me wanting to be taken care of comes in, the first time I ever had a cold in college, I just layed down on my bed and cried because I wanted my mom. Which is odd in itself because she was a working mom for the latter part of my life at home, and there was never anyone home to take care of me anyway...no matter though)

And there I was, in the shop, trying not to make any unnecessary or extra movements, when the mailman came trotting in to deliver me this package:




From Ms. Capello...I won by leaving a comment on her hilarious blog...which included these lovely two magazines, some fantastic fabric (that I managed not to drool on too much) And this outrageous chocolate bar! Oh man...I owe this girl big time!









She did, in fact, request that whomever won these fabulous magazines rub them all over their naked body...so in the spirit of "apparently I'll do anything for free" here you go~Phew...maybe I should have read them first? And what is the protocol now for me donating these to the local library book sale or lending them to a friend when I get done reading them? Well, I'm sure no one will want to touch them after that picture!

And, another amazing highlight of my day? Right after I received my package from Capello? While I was on the phone with my lovely sister? Who should walk in, but Ms. Velvet Brick herself...


Oh yes, with a jar of home made lemonade for me. She mentioned that she had lemons, and I have been craving lemonade since I read A Faniciful Twists post about lemonade...craving it really badly as a matter of fact...

She set it down on the counter, and I'm afraid I looked at her a little confusedly and proceeded to ask her if I could answer a question for her...and then I looked at the jar of lemonade with the little sweet tag written on it with both my name, and Chickenbells...A little Jar of Sunshine. And it dawned on me exactly who this must be! She is such an amazing person, and we connected instantly and spent quite a bit of time chatting about life. We share some of the same life experiences...and are both quite wise (tee-hee...and silly! I had just divulged a bunch of personal stuff in an email to her not too long ago, and I almost stopped myself from pressing send, because after all...did I really know this person that well? And lo and behold...she not only needed to hear what I wrote, but had her own similar story, and we can now help each other in our own little ways) She said she was worried that I would think that she was a stalker, and since I've never had my own stalker...I told her it was OK!

I'm telling you, this amazing gesture meant so much to me yesterday (and left me a little teary eyed by the genuine thoughtfulness, which meant I immediately called Dina to gush and share, and we are too committed to visiting Ms. Velvet Brick next month for margarita madness and fun during the famed Phoenix trip!) It certainly would have any time, but yesterday was the perfect day. It was such a big reminder that I'm being taken care of, all the time, even if I can't readily see it. I am constantly amazed by this blogging world, but mostly because of these connections that I'm being allowed to make. So...thank you thank you everyone that is so close and so far away too, thank you for all the inspiration and love and thoughtfulness that I am constantly receiving from you, it makes my little world so much bigger and so much more meaningful and joy-filled!



Now...I'm going to go sit on the porch and enjoy a glass of sunshine!
(and maybe read a little bit...and rest)


14 March 2007

Crash and Burn...

Oh my...I'm warning you now...if you do not want to hear me vent, continue on to some other sweet blog, and run far away. Feeling brave?

Then read on...
(you've been warned)

What a day yesterday.

It started well enough, with a lovely visit to the aforementioned therapist, where she confirmed some information sweet Dina and I were working on the other night, that I am indeed moving through change fast (I was under the impression I've been going so s l o w l y)and quite a lot of other wonderful things, wich lulled me into thinking this was going to be a easy day...then off to the bank to make a deposit (which I conveniently forgot I'd done the night before so as not to be late to work, grrr...clue #1 that things may not go smoothly from here on) and then to the shop, where there was actually a line of people waiting for me to open (always makes one feel important)

Then non-stop all day...from random customers coming in, buying/trading/selling and several phone calls from friends and family members...to a couple of old friends I haven't had the chance to connect with for some time in the flesh. It made for a lovely long day...I didn't get out of the shop until an hour after I closed. Yup...I was quite on my way when I was running through the shop to turn out lights so I would not be late to pick up Dina for our little Wednesday night date of chicken wings and hockey...when I went into the clearance room in the back and stumbled into a large pile of clothing. Oh yes...I picked up about 40 items someone so nicely tried on then wadded up and threw on the floor back there (I roll my eyes to keep myself from crying) And then remembered at some time, it was the middle of the month...and the day that I close out all the books, which I now realize will indeed make me need to get up and go to work extra early...sigh

It's that time of year in the shop when the weather changes and everyone is dying for new clothes to fit the current season, and I have not only completely run out of room, but out of hangers as well...I'm buying and pricing and rearranging constantly...I've put out about 400 pieces of clothing in the last two days, and I'm beat.

Dina and I went to wings after a quick run home to feed the cat, and freshen up a tiny bit, where she discovered she'd accidentally left the tickets at home...I ask you, what good is it to have two intuitive girls that are not tapped in? (we were both entirely spaced out at this time of the day) and ran back into town to pick up the tickets then back out to the game. And actually...the team won scoring 5 goals...all in the last bit of the game, so we really didn't miss out on anything. I was so out of it and in pain and nauseous (oh yes...I was horrible company) that I only actually saw them score one goal...

Yes, on top of this day, I'm having some rather uncomfortable heath related issues. I'm not happy. In fact, I feel rather like my body is totally rebelling against me, and I may need to curl up and cry about it a bit. I'm chalking this up to my late nights, and overproductivity lately, plus, my allergies are rearing up a little bit, which makes me feel itchy and sneezy and really tired (even though they are much better since my divorce) Luckily I have Ms. Dina to help out with this or I would be entirely alone. Then, Ms. Tooty kitty jumped up on the bedside table, only to send all the jewelry sprawling all over, and turned around to open the armoire doors and spill all the pants out onto the floor...I'm tired.

Do you ever just wish you had someone to take care of you?

I do.


Why Oh Why...

Is it so hard for me to get to bed before 11 pm lately?

Sometimes I feel like I'm running around like a chicken with my head cut off (ewwww) I feel like I have a list I need to work on, and it's starting to grow by the day (I also feel a little overwhelmed that I have to do it all myself...I know, deep breath) I'm starting to wonder if I'm trying to out run something, something that I'm avoiding in my life...a decision, a feeling, or just feeling things in general? Oh can you tell I'm up early to go to therapy tomorrow (I'm writing this Tues. night in preparation)

I know, I know...

This girl is in therapy? I'm sure you may have guessed this little fact...but if you didn't, I certainly am. It's like a special little gift to myself, part of my process right now...Like I recently said to a friend, if I don't have a process in place I get completely crazy...and while I still visit completely crazy from time to time...I don't have to live there.

Now do I?

Plus, I think that it's keeping me off prescription drugs (then again...sometimes those sound good too) So, maybe I'm preparing the night before...like a test? I was actually telling the group tonight while we were out at sushi...that I am tired of talking about the same things over and over and I don't want to bore my therapist...why do I feel like I must entertain everyone all the time? Maybe I should talk about that...the roles that I play in my life...Oh, I am just exhausted, don't mind me...

Now...on to something more exciting...

I promised you:

Ah yes...the new fabric. And can you believe that JoAnns was having a 30% off sale on all of thier novelty fabric? Oh, I tell you, I love this stuff. I have quite a bit of yardage of each (except for the small remnant of the pink skull one) and I still don't know exactly what I'm going to make out of it.

A quilt?
A bag?
A really weird Day of the Dead outfit?

I am thrilled that they even have this particular fabric (at JoAnns, up here in silly Prescott?) oh the beautiful dressed up and dancing skellingtons! I won't even mention that I ran into a friend there, and we got to talking and she brought up the fact that not too long ago she bought fabric that had panels of Our Lady of Guadalupe...no, I won't mention it at all...

Um...I did actually buy a bit more of the Mexican Fortune deck (using the fabric with the small stars and moons as a liner...and then I'm gonna' quilt the whole thing!) just enough to make a bag for me to carry all my work stuff in...because, I was having huge panic attacks about cutting into the large piece of yardage of this fabric I got the other day (probably another reason I need to be in therapy) So...now, since I don't know exactly what I want to do with all this yummy stuff...I can at least get started on a small project...so I can use a little bit of this beautiful fabric...

Man I'm weird...
(again, I think I would've come to terms with this by now)


13 March 2007

Well...all my little spring daffodils, thank you for all the congratulations, I'll have you know that the soreness is abating a little every day. Which is good because I still have a lot to do outside, and I need to get every little pile in a bag so that it may travel away from my little yard and go wherever it is that it goes...Now is the time I wish I had access to a truck or two...

any ideas?

The weather, like I said, has been lovely...and I believe I read that we were going to set some heat record today...Yikes!


I mean, it's perfect weather for all the skirts I have stashed away (which seems to be a bit more than I remember...tee-he) but sad for the forest and trees, and little critters that need to drink water to survive...only because it's been a little dry here as well (darned drought)

And the Juniper is starting it's yearly pollen/bloom thing, so I've been a little sniffly as well...which is to be expected, as we have no less than three types of Juniper up here in the Northland. The cat also suffers from a little springtime asthma as well...and has been wheezing around the house for the last couple of weeks as well.

Thank you for all the banner love...they are so easy to make. I think it really takes longer to cut out all the little triangles and pin them than anything. You have to laugh though, because I laid everything out on Saturday night, pinned it all up, and carefully carried it back to the studio...where I proceeded to sew it all out carefully, taking each pin out as I went...and was congratulating myself on how fast it was going, and how much I was accomplishing, and how creative I am...

That's when I realized that I had run out of bobbin...halfway through sewing the very first triangle...and they were no longer attached to the rick-rack at all, and I was going to have to start the process all over again...

Oh brother...

12 March 2007

Productivity...

Is an incredibe thing.

The amount of things I actually accomplished this weekend amazed even me. I honestly didn't start out to do much...but, much I did do.

It started rather innocently after yard sale-ing on Saturday with the idea of raking the yard. I haven't been that motivated to do this...for quite some time I realized, as I started in (trying to find the soil under the leaves and pine needles)

My front yard has the most amazing flowerbeds all over, and there were quite a few...um, rather dead and dried up flowers from last year...well, one thing led to another, and I decided to start on the side parts of the yard as well. My little bit of heaven here has a lot of nice trees and plants...and I guess I did not rake last year's pine needles? So...in the spirit of creating my defensible space (for fire season) rake I did.

For Four hours
with nary a break...

...and I still have quite a bit to do. I stopped after 6 large yard bags and my garbage can full...And yes, those piles you see are still there waiting for me to bag them up...as well as 3 more you can't see, and I only did one half of one of the side yards and the entire front.

So, I was a bit sore and tired, but enjoyed myself quite a bit, as I was outside in the beautiful spring weather...uncovering little new plants and flowers, making me quite excited about the upcoming season of planting.

As you can see, I have these wonderful bushes that bloom the most beautiful yellow flowers. They are kind of native to this part of town, they don't smell...but they are lovely! I also am anticipating my yellow Victorian roses, which grow under the pine trees, and I believe were probably taken from cuttings from another part of town...not to mention all the bulbs that pop up, most of which I did not plant. I was at one time really into gardening and planting...but when I moved to this house, I was married still and trying to hold that all together, and just let that part of my life slide quite a bit.

And now, just the thought of doing something about this now is making me quite happy. It takes a lot of time and money though...and I'm not sure if my budget will support it this year, but maybe that will be good, so I can really plan it out rather than doing sporadic planting. With the drought we are experiencing, this needs to be planned out more than I'm used to.

I also unpacked my Easter things and re-did the mantle...although I'm not too happy with the composition...but it will do for now.

I made this little spring time banner for the front of it as well...a little more pastel-ish than the one I made last year for parties, and just perfect for this mantle project. I happened to save some fabric squares from a pile of sample books I bought at last summers sales (for .25 cents...and why I didn't buy all of them? who knows...I think we always get cheap at the wrong times) and sewed the little triangles onto some lavender rick-rack.

I also decided to make this little springtime flag for the outside of the house as well. I love the colors...and especially love that you can certainly see why I'm trying to save money to paint the house this summer as well. Yes...that's quite a bit of peeling paint there in the background.

I also enjoyed no less than 2 afternoon/evening meals outside on the patio...loving every minute of the changing weather (but still a little nervous that we're going to set records for heat tomorrow)

I bought a pile of fabric (which we will not be discussing the monetary value of...just to say that I am now drooling quite a bit, but I will show you that later) and whipped up a dress for Dina on Sunday as well (maybe in celebration of her posting again?!) And got to play quite a bit as well...

Like I said, it was productive. More productive than I've been in quite a while as a matter of fact.

I think I need a weekend to recover from my weekend...

09 March 2007

Goodness...

Thank you for all the compliments:

Capello...My ankles are indeed quite tiny. So are my legs, they always have been no matter what weight I've been, and being of fair skin, they are usually quite white as well. And one little said calf got a bit of a nasty burn yesterday at the shop on my portable heater...because it's a bit cold in there, and I accidentally set my leg down on the dimaond shaped grill of the heater (fun little design, I suppose, but still) ahhh, the smell of burning human flesh...It's odd at best I suppose...Someone once asked me:

"are those your legs, or are you riding on a chicken?"

Dina...I don't think my rack is any bigger than it has been lately.

Perhaps it's the angle of the picture?
Perhaps it's that I'm wearing a tight shirt?

Velvet Brick...I wanted to let you know, that I do indeed have the sock monkey flannel sheets you were referring to the other day. I also have the matching pajamas...

I'm wearing them right now.

Have a good weekend everyone. My plans include whipping the yard into shape and hooking up the soaker hose system so that everything does not die...

You know, since it's getting warm and whatnot...
What are you doing?

08 March 2007

Drum Roll Please...


The skirt...

There, now you can get along with your busy lives, since you've seen my latest creation, and you can rest easy knowing that...

even though I'm not totally fond of the shape of this 100%, I will indeed add it to the stack of wonderful skirts that I treasure (mostly because the lemon pattern is so fabulous) and if I work with this pattern again, I will indeed make it more of an A-line...And, Dina and I worked on the preliminary cutting of her skirt (which will be eerily similar to mine) last night, and we don't want to be too matchy matchy...unless we were going to be bridesmaids...

!
Oh...wouldn't this be a fun pattern to incorporate into your wedding party?!

That is a pale yellow hoodie with a little front pocket, you know, for the sporty look? And, I almost got my pedicured tootsies in there didn't I? I am really wanting to pair this skirt with an orange tee...I don't know why, because there's not actually any orange in the skirt at all. I also wanted a more flashy green, for the bottom stripe, but the pattern once again, didn't totally warrant that either...so this is what it is...

Not that I'm complaining...


07 March 2007

Built By...

...Me!

Well...and the Wendy pattern from Sew U. Today, at the shop, I decided to load up the sewing machine, iron and sewing supplies and haul them down there to make myself a skirt...since I seem to not have any time when I'm home. OK, mostly because I've been so busy lately, and the shop has been well...um, a little s l o w.

So? Why not?

It turned out OK. It was supposed to be an A-line skirt, and I don't think it was quite A enough...and I used the large pattern (thank goodness) and it could have been about and inch bigger. Plus, I had to kind of fudge it a bit because of the lemon pattern, that and I didn't want to put a zipper in the back because I would have had to cut up the back, and I could not figure out how exactly to match the back pieces without losing my mind. So, once again, I will probably be finishing the skirt by safety pinning the side slit together. The darts turned out nice, but I swear that the directions for the waistband were in some other language and it turned out rather off.

Sigh.

I will gladly take a picture and post it tomorrow for you, because I dashed home to take a lovely walk after work, and it's been a little overcast anyway, and there is absolutely no good light left.

Enjoy the suspense...

06 March 2007

Weekend Fabric Love...

I just knew there was a reason I cleared out the studio...


Didn't you?

Oh yes indeedie...I snuck myself into JoAnn's this weekend under the pretense of looking at stencils for all the ephemera projects I have scattered between here and the shop...

A likely story don't you think?

Where Dina, Niko and I wandered around in the fabrics...because well, um you just need to do that in a fabric store...And we came upon this delicious lemony fabric...which I am absolutely dying to make a skirt out of. The green plain fabric is fated to be a large band at the bottom and a little matching waist band at the top...(loving those designs and I keep seeing them at Anthropologie, and there is a part of me that feels a bit...how shall we say...guilty spending the dough on something that I know I can make in a couple of hours for much less)

I will be using a Built By Wendy pattern in the Sew U book...and for all those people who are tired of listening to me gripe about not being able to tailor things to my own body (and for all the skirts I now own with a myriad of different safety-pins strategically in them) you'll all be happy that I am attempting to figure this stuff out (you know...without going to UTI)

And then the score of the day...

This fabric with a large cat on it!

Ok, kidding, but don't you think that Meena has wonderful taste? She just parked her furry butt on this fabric and looked at me like...Ok what you gonna' make me?

Nothing my dear kitty...it's all for me!

I did indeed first see this fabric over at Kandeedo Bandeedo...and swooned quite heavily (yes, I have indeed been known to fall out of my chair amidst the squealing that comes out of my mouth when I covet fabric)

And she got it in a silly place in NY that would only let her get a few yards at a time...girlie, if it's not at your JoAnn's let me know, and I can always send you some down...I got more than 3 yards with some free because the sweet fabric cutter didn't want to interrupt the card design (you just have to love someone for thinking about this don't you? She also noticed the first cut was crooked...and was a bit upset...then when she made her final cut, she opened the entire panel up so that she could get a nice straigt line...whoa boy!) Plus, I always have 40% off coupons for the place...In fact, there is a whole series that I am dying to go back and get...all centered around The Day of The Dead...

And I am just anxious to go back and get them all, because it made me a little weepy to even find them much less leave some there (does fabric effect anyone else this way?) there are 3 more designs, well, actually 2, but in different background colors.

What oh what to make?

I think a bag to carry my work stuff in first of all...all quilted and whatnot...and then?

I was thinking of a quilt...
A baby quilt.

I keep thinking that at some point I will indeed have children (time constraints be darned) and although it was pointed out to me sometime this weekend, by an admirer, that if I make a Day of The Dead baby quilt, I may have to pay for some serious therapy for said children.

Sock monkeys and classic Winnie The Pooh aside...

We must all go to therapy for something,

don't you think?

05 March 2007

The First Weekend...


...that I had off. Yes, the entire weekend, and you know what? It's not so shabby, in fact, I enjoyed it quite a bit!

The party was lovely, all sorts of fun people showed up, and we enjoyed ourselves quite a bit. I think it accomplished it's goal of giving us all a bit of fun diversion from the rest of life. I did lie a bit though, because I certainly did get the camera out...layed it right on the coffee table...took this one lovely picture of the clean living room (and a little bit of the bedroom) waiting for all the guests to show up. Dina even brought her camera, discovered her battery was low, and stated that she would indeed be using my camera to take pictures.

An there the camera sat, all night long.

Alone.
Not being used.

So, here is the one lovely picture
(I'm rolling my eyes)

I had a busy rest of the weekend, running here and there...escaping to and hiking in the woods, with the culmination of a lovely pedicure yesterday afternoon with Ms. Dina. My tootsies are sooo soft. Amazingly soft...trimmed and clean too (OK, my toes weren't that dirty to begin with, but still) I am thinking that I really need to buff those feet at least once a month...

Now, I'm off to tackle my "work-week" with the rest of the population.

And a huge

HAPPY BIRTHDAY
DINA!

02 March 2007

Par-tay...


Oh yes, after careful consideration (that lasted all of about 5 minutes) I decided to throw caution to the wind and move the party to Friday night instead.

Oh yes, that's tonight isn't it?

I've been up since early baking frosted brownies and lemon bars, and doing a quick sweep of the house until I get home from work this evening to do a more thorough cleaning (nothing like cleaning for a party...and having to re-clean is there?) And the reason for the switch of nights for the party?

It's not just that I'm and insane people pleaser, but the D-man is leaving early tomorrow, and from what I've gathered, tonight is actually a better night for most everyone who's coming. It's been a busy...super busy week, and I think a little fun and relaxation and recovering from a hangover (just kidding) would be the nice way to start the weekend (of which I officially have off...thank you very much)

No, I have no plans for my first official weekend, other than Dina's plan to be totally beautiful. We decided it would be a spa weekend, since we can't afford a real spa. I'm not sure how the 4 year old boy will enjoy this, but he's usually up for most things...

I'll be sure to take lot's of pictures and post them sometime this weekend...

Love to all...

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