Beautiful Memories

Sadly, after my laptop crashed earlier this year, I lost all the pics from last Christmas- except one that I have of Gram with her shawl on. I went back to one of my old computer, and with my new Hello Kitty Flash Drive, (thanks Santa!) I transferred a bunch of photos- here's a walk down memory lane....


This has to be the most bizarre thing dad ever had us do- but he took us to Star Shots in the Mall and made us look like respectable little children...OF THE 90'S! When else would you dress up two kids in a bunch of tule, fan shaped earrings and fry their hair so bad it would grow back that way?

I think I must have been 6 or 7 in this picture- and it was the first time I ever wore makeup (Jon Bennet right??) but it was only to cover up the scratches on my face from all of my tomboy activities.
Time jump- me in NY summer 06.
Also Summer 06- right before I almost got asked to leave the Hello Kitty Store in Times Square.





Whitney and I at Southern Rainbow Camp at Ponderosa Pines- that is an awesome swing chair! The theme was safari- and it was during this time, that it became well known in the IORG world, that I was the one obsessed with pink. This is an OLD photo! This was after a Rainbow event where we were supposed to wear all of one color, mine, obviously, was pink. Kendra and Ronni, chose the less embarassing route- blue. Notice the Rainbow Brite shirt that I truly wish I still had!!!

This was after I was appointed GWA in 2005 (for the 2006 year). The Past Grand Worthy Advisors bring you to one of their hotel rooms and give you gifts and basically lay out how your life is going to change in the next 24 hours...I was crying and hyperventilating so much, I think this is the only picture that came out from that point in the night. On my lap is the gorgeous dress bag my grandie (the outgoing GWA) made for me- it's lined with Mickey Mouse fabric and I still have it!

I can't tell you how many years Whitney and I helped out with Lemonade for the Avo Fest- but we were not only good cooks, but quite nice sign makers too...this is in my portfolio. (sarcasm much?)

Circa 2004- Whitney and I foolin' around takin' pictures...before trucker hats were cool.
One of my favorite projects- well, this was before Straight from the Heart!! In 2004/2005 I collected donations for a woman's shelter- that was a soft bunny!

This was just before Sai-Han, Whitney and I saw Rent- afterwards I pointed out the irony that Rent is about many things, but a lot about poverty, and after leaving the theatre, there were homeless people sleeping on the benches around the theatre...hmm. Those are the guys that SHOULD be in the play.Gram in 2005 methinks.


Gram's fave Chimichanga which she pronounced "Shimmy-shanga." Hilarious!Kisses for Grammy!
Gram and Benny! She was his favorite lap to snuggle on!

Look how thrilled he was! Couldn't grin any bigger!
I have always had my own style- clunky shoes and all!
I believe this was Christmas 2004- this was my first year without her, and though I was expecting to be really depressed, my wonderful friends and family kept me so busy with fun stuff I didn't have much time to think about it- until now.

But you know, being a bit sad at this moment is okay- it's part of the healing process. I do miss Gram, and along with it comes my missing of Dianne Marshall and Vickie Diem. I have been able to look and and sort through my pics of Dianne and Vickie, but until now, I avoided any pictures of Gram. 2008 meant that all my fun pictures of them are now keepsakes.

I am just now able to sort through Grammy's stuff- and I am telling myself it's okay to get rid of some of her knicknacks. It's hard, but I am doing it and I'm glad I'm forcing myself to work up the courage. I have tons more pictures of her that I've luckily stumbled across, but I will save those for some other day.

I am putting together my photo albums- finally. So, if you read this and you have photos of me, please email them?? I need more photos that werent' taken by me, because lord knows they don't come out. haha.

Happy Holidays- and have a great 2009!

Review of Love is a Mix Tape and Little Heathens

Yesterday I finished reading "Love is a Mix Tape," and I would recommend it to anyone that remembers making mix tapes for their friends and potential love interests. If the hum of the cassette tape is familiar to you, and you recall rewinding your favorite song a thousand times, or recall wearing bulky and mostly flimsy, headphones before Ear Buds were around, you might enjoy this book. Rob writes about the various mix tapes he had created and the stories behind it. Also, about falling in love with his wife Renee, and what it was like to lose her.

Rob Sheffield is a writer for Rolling Stones magazine and knows a LOT about music- but the fact that many of his tapes include Prince, The Go-Go's and The Cure will tell you what decade his tale takes place in!I'm about halfway though this book- and so far it is a very interesting read. I picked it up at an independent bookstore which is (sob) going out of business today. Farewell Book-Nook! >>sigh<<

Mildred writes about her experience on her Grandparent's farm during the Great Depression. One pair of socks were worn by every kid in the house- when the toe wore through, it was cut down, stitched up and then passed on to the next youngest child. Clothes were worn and remade untill they couldn't be useable, then would be turned into doilies or rags. Sheets were made into bandages when they were no longer useable.

I was a bit enchanted by the thrift of this family- they were very resourceful and knowledgeable about home remedies and self-reliance. At the same time though, a lot of this knowledge didn't pertain to life today. Most of us don't live on a farm, are expected to buy nice clothes (living in cities and suburbs makes us contstantly exposed to the scrutiny of others) and go to the doctor or drug store when we are sick- coming up with home remedies isn't valued as thrifty, but rather, ruthless. In addition, many of us don't have such large families, or have enough property to grow our own fruits and vegetables.

Regardless, it's been a very good read and it reminds me that I need to go outside and plant my cauliflower, broccolli and beets. Yum.

Cause your Friends Don't Dance, and if They Don't Dance Then They're No Friends of Mine!!!

I have had "Safety Dance," stuck in my head for two days now. Since I have implanted it in your head now, I expect you to rock out! If you want to dance to it, go to Playlist.com and look it up, it'll play from your browser, (that's how I roll!)


So I am very happy to inform you that my project- the crocheted Corporate Zombie from the Creepy Cute Crochet book is DONE! I saw this book while browsing the book store back in spring. At the time, I didn't know how to crochet, much less make a zombie. But I found the zombie, along with some other patterns (they have a skeleton!) that I knew would be perfect for some friends of mine. It was then my quest began.

I spent a few afternoons with my Godmom Jan who showed me the moves- I learned how to crochet, double crochet, double half crochet, and then, crochet in the round. I had the tools I needed! She even gave me TONS of yarn, needles, pattern books and even more pointers.

I started out crafting amigurumi (that's a term for a japanese style of doll making with crochet) and made two octopus (how do you pluralize that?)... ....candy corn, and I'm working on stuff for my baby cousins that will get done eventually (I promise!) Then, I turned to the Creepy Book.

I hit a major roadblock when I had to craft the hair. I didn't have the lace loom that the book called for, so I made do with a piece of plastic that used to be the ruler from my planner. Getting the hair off the plastic was a pain, so I put the doll in the craft bin, unfinished for a month.

Then, Dad got me the lace loom and I was finally motivated to finish the project. Now, mind you, this project was intended for my friend's birthday in OCTOBER. Problem was, the book came late, then I had to figure out how to make the darn thing...and by mid-November I was so irritated by the hair, I gave up. I had originally planned to give him this doll with a bottle of Zombie Zinfandel I found at the market, but I had to just give him the wine sans the doll until now. He will get this doll as a Christmas gift.

The doll, which I have named Ed, is posing with my favorite Zombie flick. Mind you, it's the only Zombie movie I will watch. Nevermind it's a funny movie, but it's the only one that doesn't scare the bejessus out of me.


I picked up this cute little doll at my local yarn shop- it was handmade by someone in my town and it was an impulse buy (along with the yarn below I am crafting into a scarf!)
This scarf is made of a soy/wool blend- it is very soft and I love crafting it. My regret is that I did not think of a more creative ribbing pattern, but I was cold and just wanted to start another scarf. My hometown has been rather cold (not in comparison to some places) but I was cold and unprepared- let the knitting commence!

Of course, here are just a few of the dishclothes I crocheted for gifts. I am not overly happy with how they turned out. But I learned a new stitch (dcfp) and it was jolly.

Now it is getting close to Christmas day- most of my crafting is done- except for Dad's afghan which I am still working on...I will post pictures when it's done. Oy.

Save Handmade!

There have been many issues with large corporate owned toy manufacturers, who produce in China and recently, lawmakers have been trying to protect consumers from unsafe toys.

Laws are in effect now that are meant to curb the production of unsafe toys that put regulations and mandatory testing on all toys that will be sold in the U.S. While this is great for large corporations, who produce in China and other countries, and can afford the expensive testing of their products, these regulations also pertain to ANY toy manufacturers. So, if you have seen little wooden trains at your farmer's market, or you know of someone who sews dolls for kids to earn extra income- this affects them too.

Please read this blog and sign the petition. Let's not let corporations get the upper hand and allow small businesses to die out!

http://www.treehuggingfamily.com/help-save-handmade-toys-in-the-usa-sign-the-online-petition/


And while you're at it- Look up stuff at www.Etsy.com

AHHH!!!! >>The angels sing<<

Today is my first real day with no responsibility. I woke up thinking "What is there to do today? Homework, nope....studying...nope...cramming for finals? All done!" Yes my friends, life is good.

I have been reading a LOT lately. I just finished a great book by Eric Nuzum- "The Dead Travel Fast." I scoped it out in my "recent arrivals" section of the library- and wasn't too sure if it was going to be interesting- it was about vampires, and that can either be an interesting read or another opportunity to look like I'm well read and return in the next day to the library without even getting past the first chapter. Luckily, it was a great read!

Eric tries to discover why vampires are so popular, and thus goes through the various ways it has permeated into popular culture by taking a tour of Transylvania, meeting up with self-proclaimed "vampires" at Jillian's (Like Applebees) and dissects the ever popular
Dracula by Bram Stoker. It's more of a hilarious sociological dissection of the vampire culture and is full of really interesting facts about Dracula, Bram Stoker, Transylvania and the real Vlad Dracula (Vlad the Impailer) and of course Buffy the Vampire Slayer.




By understanding the vampire craze instead of being sucked into it, I feel a little less dirty when I delve into the ever-popular Twilight Series. Yes, I am on book two. God help me! It finally arrived and I am done with finals so I can allow myself to sit down and read this massive book. I will be on my couch if you need me.This is the book I plan on reading next, if I don't get sucked into reading the third Twilight Series book. I've requested it from the library- we'll see when it gets here!

As for the "Three Cups of Tea" book- I couldn't get into it. Each semester, a book is chosen as the "campus wide read" and this semester they chose this one. It was a lot of detail in the acquisition of building materials, climbing trips and a lot of stuff that seemed too daunting to read through. Perhaps I'm not patient enough, but nearing halfway through the book, I decided to stop reading when the first school hadn't even been built yet. (Which was the focus of the book I thought).

Oh well- I realize it's a very popular book. It is one of the "hot ones" right now, I've seen it everywhere but I can't get into it.

I'm also going to attempt to read David Sedaris' "Holidays on Ice" before Christmas..wish me luck!

Happy holidays everyone!

Don't Wait, Procrastinate NOW!

(A really bad picture of me, but it was the only one where they held still long enough to take a picture!)

This time of year is always so crazy. It seems that my Christmas card list grows each year, and I always have more and more difficult classes. I got the tree and decorations up, and yesterday the lights went up outside. I couldn't wait a night longer without seeing a little twinkle-action on my street!

I would normally be in classes now, but since it's finals week I don't have anything to turn in or test on until tomorrow and Thursday. So, what does that mean? I have more time to procrastinate on studying and wrapping up those essays. Needless to say, I've mentally checked out on most of the stuff- I understand the material, so, can we just call it a day and give me my grade??

I know, that is not the way college works. This is why I'm on here, putting off the inevitable.

This weekend I'll be seeing my friend Mely who has been studying in Australia will be in Socal. There is a Holiday Rememberance that Hospice puts on, and then after that I have a Holiday Gift Show to try and scrounge up a few extra bucks before the holidays- anyone need any lipstick? Haha...no? I tried.

I am currently crocheting an afghan for Dad. It took 15 balls of yarn- 5 of each color, Chocolate, Dusty Green and some shade of blue in Vanna's Choice. I would take a picture, but alas, that would require me to locate the camera. So enjoy the pictures of the puggies instead!