14,998

So Allison brought it to my notice a few days ago that 15,000 was creeping up on me, and I just checked to see where the matter stood. Apparently my click was 14,998. so who will it be??? Scroll down to see which number you are!

a logo, perhaps?

Maureen and I spent an evening making rubberstamps for our cool new hobby, and then after a little tweaking, I ended up with this...

Perhaps a little more tweaking, it could be logo-worthy? I was thinking of something to put on the inside cover of the journals, and possibly to use on other products as well. When I get famous it would go on my business cards and letterhead, of course.

seriously, though... What are your thoughts on Mama Llama as a business name? ( That's what Kate has called me for years)

I'm thinking something like "Eco-friendly items crafted for you by Mama Llama" or something like that.

I covet your feedback (+/-).

random pix

Each time I let Buddy outside to go potty, the cats take the opportunity to stand at the storm door and gaze at the outside world. They don't really want to be in it, they just like to look at it. They sit on their haunches with their hands on the window, looking for all the world like little meerkats. During the cold spell last week, our storm door was consistently iced up, and the little prints left by their warm paws looked almost like artwork. Once their toes were sufficiently chilled, they'd come hop into my lap and find some of my bare skin to stand on and warm back up.


This is from the side of a box of Annie's mac-n-cheese. I think it is absolutely self-explanatory, and so darn cute and funny that I had to take a picture.

ear wax

In the intereste of health, science, fun, and ... well ok, wierdness, a group of us got together Sunday afternoon for an ear candling-fest. We all were quite skeptical as to what the results might be, but suffice it to say that it really does work. Very well. Even if you fancy yourself a very clean person.


And yes, I think my hearing is a little improved. Kate might disagree, though.

Product Testers Wanted

If you would be interested in testing and critiquing one of my handmade journals, please get in touch with me! I need people who will promise to use them frequently, and then report any problems they may have or suggestions for improvements.
Vist HERE if you're interested!

surprise!!!

Don't you just love getting a surprise in the mail??? My pal Laura has to be the sweetest person I know. Here she is, having surgery and feeling all miserable and yucky, and yet she sends me a present! And what a cool present, too! I've seen these crochet hooks with the lighted tip before, and thought they were just the neatest gizmos ever, especially given my affinity for crocheting in dark places (movie theaters, while playing sardines, etc) She know me pretty well, I'd say. =)

good weekend so far

So I was lieing awake in the wee hours, suffering a dreadful case of the hiccups, and decided that it was close enough to 6 to just go ahead and get up. Not that 6 is a magical number, but maybe it is. It is a relatively respectable hour to rise in most cultures, early enough to get a grip on the day, but I also reasoned with myself that since it's Saturday, I could actually go back to bed around 7 and sleep another hour or so if my brain would have it.

Now given that I'm up and you're not, nor is much of anyone else but the cats, I have nothing to do but blog about what a good weekend I'm having. It started Thursday evening, since there was no school Friday. Sarah came down to spend the night with Kate, and we stayed up til almost 2 watching the made-for-tv version of Stephen King's "The Shining". Good book, terrible movie. We had such a blast making fun of it, and the jokes lasted all of Friday. It was really that bad.

We slept in Friday morning, and had some really great conversations about spiritual stuff and how to get along as parents and kids, and what we all want to do when we grow up. Sarah is really good company, and I've found that when she is here, Kate and I communicate better. Not that we do poorly other times, but just having another angle of an issue is helpful.

We went to Kate's school conference yesterday, and they confirmed our suspicions that Kate is just wonderful in sense of the word. In spite of the fact that she thinks she's constantly behind with no hope of graduating, she really is doing an outstanding job and really accomplishing alot. We had a feeling she would. She is such a good kid. I wish I could have taught her better stress management techniques!

After conferences, we stopped at Hobknobb for a cuppa warm, and visited with my old pal Roy. Roy was one of the first people I met when I started working at McJob, and had a very cynical, open, emo kind of personality that immediately made him interesting. By the way, he's a kid. I just realized I should point that out, before you thought .. you know. yeah. Anyway, he's now a Baristo at Hobknobb, and we discovered that he's had a very good interview in a local paper for his music and art interests. And on top of that, he makes one heck of a dandy Knobs Caramel, easy on the sweet! Trav had a hot chocolate, and Kate and Sarah enjoyed their lattes; peppermint and hazelnut respectively.

On the way home, we stopped at GW on a whim, where I managed to procure a newinthepackage MP3 player, for $2.50.
Let that soak in.
TWO FIFTY.
two dollars and fifty cents.
Sure, it's a generic, but it's a 1 gig shuffle-style, and really, why would I need to carry around more than 500 songs? Any more would start to get heavy.

We had a yummy dinner (blackened tilapia, mac and cheese, and steamed asparagus) and wound up heading for bed around 10. Of course I wanted to try sleeping with the mp3 player (which isn't named yet, incidentally), and I've found that while that might have been a good idea when I was 15, it doesn't work so well at 35. I kept waking up to see which song I was listening to. Eventually, Mippen and Artemis quit their calisthenics for the night and curled up on me for naps; Mippen on my tummy and Artemis nesting on the figure 4. That lasted an hour or so, and here I am now. But the horrible hiccups are gone!

I may try going back to sleep now, but even if I don't it won't ruin the prospects of the day. First I'm going to check in on my pal Warwa, who had a successful surgery and stayed overnight last night. Tahnks for all your nice comments and your prayers for her!
Also, this day is the biweekly library book sale, and I plan to procure some more raw materials to deconstruct and reconstruct. Course, I might have to read them first.

Hope you're having a good weekend, too!

Granny Laura

Today, my really really good friend Laura is having surgery. ( gall-bladder-ectomy)
If you think about it, please drop a prayer for her.

She is probably one of my closest friends, and I think she was actually supposed to have been my mother, but maybe I was switched at birth. But that can't be right, because then I wouldn't have my current family. But her daughters were definitely supposed to be my little sisters. And Kate calls her Granny Laura. So I don't know how our families got seperated. Anyway, she's pretty cool, and she loves coffee and yarn and being a cynical christian. She's really cool.

February 14, 1938

Happy 70th Birthday, DAD!!!

Can you believe this is the only picture of my dad that is already on the computer? But, it's a good one, so we'll use it. Dad was born on February 14th, 1938, and that was so awesome that his birthday got turned into a holiday. That is the reason we now celebrate Valentine's Day.

My dad has been responsible for a lot of really cool things that I've learned over the years, like:

• how properly butcher rabbits,
• how to blow on a blade of grass to make that loud squeaky noise,
• how to figure compound interest,
• The story of Bill, the storytelling cowboy
• how to use a blade of grass to test a fence
• how to plant a garden
• how to tie a slipknot and a square knot
• how to rebuild a carburetor
• how to drywall
• how to load cattle or horses into a trailer without getting smashed
• how to calculate distances, miles per hour, time, and gas mileage all together to assume a very accurate eta, etc
• how not to bake potatoes in the microwave
• how to measure a room or area without a ruler or tape measure
• how to draw a picture of two chain links hooked together
• how to braid
• The story of the two dead boys on the dark and stormy night
• how to keep an accurate health record of any animal
• how to estimate the number of objects in any 3d arrangement
• how to split firewood (i never really got the hang of that, though)
• how to learn from my mistakes (still working on that one)
• how to miter a corner on wood trim
• how to enjoy almost any kind of music, based on who you are with
• how to drive ( still working on that one, too)
• how to tie a tie
• how to recognize a variety of common ailments in cattle
• how to dehorn goats
• how to know when the train is almost over by the sounds it makes
• how to castrate goats (properly, and in a hurry)
• how to milk a goat
• how to draw a diagram of anything
• how to make do with what you have
• how to mix up your cereal before you eat it
• how to pick a good apple, watermelon, or cantaloupe
• how to spell Mississippi and encylclopedia
• how to change a tire
• how to install a valve cover gasket
• how to catch a mouse with a coffee can
• how to locate a wall stud with a hammer
• how to wax a car
• how to stay still during really long talks and services ( you have to twiddle your thumbs and think about stuff)
• the rhyme about Fuzzy Wuzzy, the bear who had no hair
• And lots of other things, too, but this is just the shortlist.
  

Snow Day numero dos

I am just pickled tink that we are having another snow day today! I get another day of hanging out with my really cool kid!

So blogging has just about dried up for me. I can't think of anything at all to write about, other than just 'this is what I did today', and that gets old. But, I still have Katie all day today, so that is very good.

And that's all I've got to say about that.

Maggie for President! or something.

Hey, voters, get your ballot on! Head over to SpayDayUSA and VOTE for my 'neice' Maggie! You vote by putting in your email address, and I have never gotten spammed from this organization. You may get their newsletter, but it's easy to unsubscribe. And if you are willing to put up with one newsletter, you can enjoy the privelege of voting for this little ball of cute! (and my brother's chin)

(And frankly, I like her better than any of the presidential nominees that we could be voting for!)

Deathly Hallows

Ok, so I finished the last Harry Potter book over the weekend, and I'm just now to a point of mentioning it. And even though I've now mentioned it, I still have no idea what to say. Granted, that's partly because Kate is still in the middle of Order of the Phoenix, but even if I didn't want to be a spoiler, there would still be nothing I could actually say. If you've read the books, you understand. If you haven't, I can't convey. I may get slaughtered for saying this, but I think I liked this series even better than the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Granted, there are some themes and substance that I am having a struggle with, but as a story - in my opinion it is unrivaled.

And I entered this story with great suspicion and skepticism. Oh, and trepidation. Don't forget the trepidation.

As a side note, I wouldn't recommend it for everyone. The themes of magic are very strong, and both subtly and obviously seductive. I can not recommend this series for anyone who struggles with any kind of weakness in the areas of the occult, magic, and mysticism. If you've never struggled with any of that, then you just completely won't understand how could be a big deal at all. It's kind of like if a guy is struggling with lustful thoughts, then even watching many commercials can be struggle for him.

Anyway, the story was more than just well-crafted, and I was amazed at how invested I've become in the characters. 'Good' just doesn't say it.

And many many thanks to The Brothers Fanning for the use of their lovely hardcovers

paid blog shortage and the choices we make...

So there's been a shortage of paid blog posts in the last month or so, and on the occasions when there was an opportunity for which I qualified, many times it was not something that I wanted to advertise. (Dating sites, for instance)
Then, in the middle of this dry spell, when I'm just getting desperate, it might seem there is a golden opportunity!!!! And to make it even better, it's not just one of those little $5 posts; this one is a payout of $25!!! And all I have to do is post a video of myself dancing like a chicken and shouting the name of a chain of Mexican style fast food restaurants.

No biggie. Who wouldn't want to do that, right? And post it on their blog? for all the cyberworld to see? It's one thing to do that at a jr high fun night, but another thing completely to do on one's blog. But it's twenty five dollars.

To dance or not to dance. That is the question.

wh- where am i...?

This place seems so familiar... Almost like I've been here before. Perhaps in a dream...

Ok, 'nuff o' that. Sorry I've neglected you, dear blog and dear readers.

So, clearly the "I'm going to blog every single day" plan has not been a good one. How about switching to the "I'm going to blog every single time I feel like it" plan?

WARNING: ABRUPT SUBJECT CHANGE
Today is Fat Tuesday, and although I'm neither Catholic nor animist, I've been to New Orleans once, and therefore choose to observe this auspicious occasion by serving red beans and rice for supper. The beans they are a soakin.
It's doubtful that the red beans and rice that I prepare will hold a candle to the ones I was treated to in Nawlins, but since Travis has never experienced those and he loves beans any old way, I think he'll like it. Tanner, I'm really sorry that you don't like beans. You're a weirdo. If you did like beans, you'd be invited over to partake this evening in commemoration of Fat Tuesday and our lovely experiences in New Orleans. In fact, it crossed my mind to have a reunion of all of us who were part of that mission experience, but again, I think Kate and I were the only ones who liked the beans! So yeah, that wouldn't be much fun for anyone else.

Egads. there is lightning abundant. I must log off. Adieu!