Please Hold While I Connect Your Blog

Okay. I'm sorry.

I keep saying that but truthfully I've had the most busy, chock-full couple of weeks that I'm amazed I can even type at all much less put a coherent sentence together. Even that remains to be seen... check back at the end.

My favoritest bloggers, Mimi Spartypants (no relation) and Allie Brosh of Hyperbole and a Half, often go ages without a post, so I feel okay with it all, but still! I miss talking to the 5 of you!

Let's see. When we last left off, it was 2 days before Thanksgiving. I was happily anticipating TR's return from Nashville, being excited about his house, and trying to plan a respectable outfit in which to meet his dad on Thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving was really nice! TR's dad is sweet and nice and complimentary, making a point to say what nice kid Kid is (and she is - he's obviously also very smart). He came through on his promise to "not be too scary," and for that I'm eternally grateful. What is it about "meeting the parents" though?! It's not like I'm some unestablished teen or something. I'm a grown-ass adult! With a house! And a car! And, ya know, debts and other adult-type stuff! I know how to schmooze, how to rhetorically mold myself to any situation and charm the shit out of people! Or something.

I'm not sure if that makes me a mature adult, but whatever.

Anyway he was nothing but nice, El Rancho was fabulous, the turkey was good, the chef was funny, and I looked like a mom for once. As a bonus prize it's located right near Buffalo Bill's grave, which despite living here for nigh on 7 years I had yet to visit, so even though it was freezing and I was in a dress (I KNOW) we trekked over. It was a beautiful sight, TR bought The Kid a pair of awesome purple beaded earrings, and I got to drive a really awesomely fun road back down the mountain afterward. I got to be in first gear and not touch my gas pedal. Yay mountain driving! (I can name at least 3 people who would have been crapping themselves on that drive, but NOT ME MAN. I live here now.)

TR very sweetly arranged a couple of rooms at the very cool Renaissance hotel, wherein lies a pool. He thought it would be fun for me, the Kid and himself to go and relax, enjoy some squashy Marriott bedding and the hot tub which was so hot I think I actually may have damaged myself for a moment. The Kid enjoyed having a room all to herself, what with the TV and snack bag, and TR & I enjoyed sleeping in. All in all it was a seriously stress-free holiday. And no dishes!

Alas that also means there were no leftovers. Old habits die hard, and it being the season for such things, I had put aside a turkey for emergencies. Turkey emergencies are more common than you might think, and just such a thing arose last week! After a long weekend of helping TR shop for furniture (including a successful trip to acquire a washer and dryer) it was time for some tryptophan. And I made the works... turkey, stuffing (Stovetop OH YES), fresh greenbeans, mashed potatoes. Jarred gravy because I'm lazy and would only ruin a roux.

And I discovered something.

Despite all this fancified turkey-making, with all the brining and basting bags and smoking and deep-frying and Turducken madness (though none of those are bad things, except the Turducken but only because I'm not eating anything where the first syllable is "turd"), the old-fashioned, in a pan, buttered & salted & peppered, basted-every-hour turkey is still the best.

And the dishes were minimal, mainly because despite my laziness I am totally OCD when I cook. I do dishes as I go and use my dishwasher as much as possible, so that by the time the food is done my kitchen is still fairly clean. Work smarter not hard right?

Other than that, things have generally been all about school. I'm almost officially done with my first semester of college, go me! My English teacher loves my work, and I did okay in Math, better than I expected to. That's the last step, actually, a Final Exam full of graphing and factoring of binomials (wish me luck). I'm taking it Monday, and then it's NO SCHOOL for over a month! The new semester doesn't start until January 18. I'm looking forward to the break, because even if I'm only doing 2 classes, it's plenty exhausting.

It's not that the work is all that hard, not that I'm bragging. It just really isn't that tough if you pay attention. It's time consuming, sure, but it's time-consuming for a reason. It's forced studying, something I didn't understand in high school. "So you're saying that if you do the homework and assignments and show up, you'll learn stuff and not have to cram and do better on tests? Oh I see."

The thing that sucked me dry was the constant schedule.

When I wasn't actually doing any work, I was thinking about the next deadline. As the next deadline was approaching, I was thinking about the deadline after that. As each test passed, as each discussion was posted, I was making sure I reminded myself constantly to check the content page, check the discussion board, check the calendar. You're never resting.

So trust me when I say that I'm really looking forward to a month with no reminder for myself other than "make sure you get your books and do your taxes and put in your FASFA and apply for scholarships".

Oh.

Damn.

Well at least I'll be able to read a book! And the Kraft Krazy, though sorely missed for several months, has begun to re-emerge, so I'll be able to work some of that in as well.

I made TR kitchen towels (well, I embellished pre-existing towels anyway) with palm-tree fabric, which he actually put in his kitchen! I call that crafting success. No pictures, I forgot, but if I remember I'll take one of my signature bad camera-phone shots next time I'm over.

I've also made some kid-toys, for two very cute babies and my very cute baby. She was popping through my patterns one day on Evernote (which I love) and fell in love with Mooshy Belly Bunny. It's really for little kids, but sometimes she likes to be a little kid and who am I to deny her? It's one of my favorite things about her, the fact that she's not all "whatevs, I'm a teen". Does it make her seem a little naive sometimes? Maybe. But maybe that's not such a bad thing. She's been through enough crap in her life, and can take care of herself when needed, and that's all I can ask for. I think the world can indulge her occasional need for footie pajamas, hot chocolate, cartoons and stuffed animals.

ANYWAY.

Behold, Mooshy Belly Bunny, hanging out with his friend Lopsided Sun-Like Creature Mit Ribbon (he's very avant-garde).

My attempt with ribbon boy wasn't so professional, but I think his attended audience will not care. The photo is crap of course, he's MUCH brighter, but you get the idea.

Behind him are placemats whose pattern is an amalgam of the original jelly roll place-mat pattern I found last year and started but never finished**, and the amazingly awesome lazy-crafter Godsend that is self-binding backing, as demonstrated in the baby blanket pattern I found but haven't yet used.

** You may remember the tale of the jelly-roll bait-ball. Just a reminder - don't ever wash jelly rolls. Plan a project that doesn't require washing, or accept that your project will look weird when you finally do wash it post-project, because if you pre-wash you will be a sad, sorry panda.

My mitered corners are not, of course, as nice as the original, but I gave myself a break because the binding was so narrow I couldn't really do the box-corner thing successfully. They still came out nicely, and frankly they're kind of folk-arty so it adds to the charm, right?

Of course it does.

See how I didn't photograph the corners? There's a reason.

The picture, of course, does nothing to really demonstrate the bright, fun fabric which, though it made me cry during the hours of untangling and de-threading post-wash, still delight me.

This is them:

I don't know who "Sanae" is but clearly he/she enjoyed the 70s.
Or never actually lived them.
Either way.

Aren't they fun? I had a good time matching the colors up, insomuch as you can match screaming orange with wistful green. It worked.

And though any quilt shop would make this face at me if I tried to pass them off as containing anything resembling good binding work...

... I like them. And I think their recipients will like them too.

Or they'll stick them in a drawer and only take them out when I'm over.

Which is fine.

Happy Friday! Wish me luck on my test!

Halloween Kraft Krazy

It's so good to know I'm not alone.

There are entire websites dedicated to others with the Kraft Krazy, and while normally they restrain themselves to useful things like sweaters and bags and such, sometimes the creativity really shines and you find something so awesome, so truly beyond what you might have thought of yourself, that you can't help but share.

One of my favorites is Craft, because they not only take the time to find really cool stuff, they also don't just stick with known designers. If someone posts a picture of their craft to the Flickr account, they will see it. If they think it's cool, and particularly if you have a website with a tutorial or some such thing, they'll put it up and everyone will get to enjoy, or participate in, your creativity. Cool, right?

Today, since it's only 10 or so days til' Halloween, I figured I'd share some of their latest Halloween finds, because I know not everyone obsessively looks at the blog daily looking for patterns they'll never make but lust after anyway... it's why I have an Evernote account.

I'm enjoying Halloween a little more this year. Last year I wasn't in a great place, very bummed all the time and kind of just... I don't know, out of sorts. I was broke a lot...truly I'm *still* broke a lot but I've evened things out a bit and am *less* broke, and less often. Anybody who thinks money can't buy happiness hasn't ever truly been broke, or had to decide between this or that in any real way. I'm *much* happier when I have enough to buy a couple of pumpkins at Halloween, or the occasional German pancake for my daughter on a Sunday morning, knowing that even though I indulge a few dollars like that there's no worry of not being able to afford gas or groceries, that I'll have to decide how to stretch $50 for 2 weeks of food. (It can be done, but it sucks.) These things may seem insignificant, but they are things that make The Kid's and my world go round, and while I'm not suddenly rolling in dough now, far from it, I do have a little breathing room. A little goes a long way.

Does that make *any* sense at all?

Anyway.

Though we did buy pumpkins this past Sunday, we have yet to carve them, which is okay because I sort of like them sitting on my kitchen table, being orange and Fall-y.

But I digress! Halloween KK ahead!

First, my favorite today... Zombie Barbies!

If only I'd thought of this; can you just imagine a gaggle of these on your front lawn, pushing their way out of the dirt?! Creepy, but funny, and I don't think Barbie would mind too much. It's just a costume after all... right? Anyway, a zombies attack could never really last long. Science proves it!

From creepy to cute we have these little things.

Cute, right? If I had time, and didn't know the pain and agony that making teeny tiny little amigurumi items could bring, I might try it this year, but.... no. Instead I will just admire.

Craft can entail more than fiber and glue, of course, and this is certainly an original:

Uh... yum?

Blood slide candy. Brilliant! And gross! There are actually a lot of grody (yet probably delicious, if you're brave enough to try them) foodstuffs out there, like disturbingly realistic bread organs and bloody brain cupcakes. Me, I like the cuter side of Halloween, like the blood bank cupcakes I made a couple of years ago, or the dead gingerbread men.

I called it "Tasting Day At The Blood Bank". They were only a little gross, filled with raspberry jam so they "bled" when you bit them, but they were more funny than... well... bread hearts. Seriously if you haven't clicked the link up there, do it and tell me that's not severely realistic.

While looking for that picture, I came across the photos of what The Kid made last year. I still love these tiny pumpkins The Kid made, and the detail on the little bag. She's so creative! In fact, I decided to add the pumpkins to the Craft Halloween contest this year. Wish us luck!

Be careful with your Kraft Krazy, though... much like the awful bag I made Elise for her birthday, the items on this page show that just because you CAN do something doesn't mean you SHOULD. Take, for example, the following actual pattern book that somebody really wrote and published.

Enjoy your nightmares of pie and stalkers!

Regretsy, a seriously funny website dedicated to finding the weirdest stuff on Etsy, dug up this gem and asked its followers to make ones of their own, because why not, right? Proving yet again that I'm not alone in my Kraft Krazy, the Regretsy folks ended up with more than they bargained for, which they are now selling in order to donate money to a young boy named Aidan, who's battling Leukemia. Nice, right?!

They're still creepy though.

I will grant you the following.

• These look really hard to make, so props to the skilled knitter who pulled them off.
• They look really warm, something I can certainly get behind, especially as my tolerance for cold gets lower and lower.

However, I say again. Just because you can, doesn't mean you should, unless it's for charity.

Happy Wednesday!

*tap tap tap* Is This Thing On?

I'm not even going to bring up how I was all "I'm going to post daily!".

Obviously my life is way too busy at the moment to get that done successfully, which a) isn't surprising given the amount of stuff I've been attempting lately and b) is kind of a good thing since being bored is bad for you.

So what has been going on, you ask?

Well I'm probably going to forget some stuff, so I'll just start writing and we'll see where we go.

First off, the weekend was full of crafting!

I finished the copper-colored Experimental Space Cowboy vesty-dustery thing, which actually came out pretty well! The Kid was running around in it, making it flare out dramatically and humming the Imperial Death March, which was funny considering it looks more like a Jedi robe than a Sith Lord's getup, but I guess when you think about it, Anakin Skywalker did start out a proper Jedi, right?

Insert nerd cough here. You know the one.... coughnerd!cough

Anyway, assuming you don't look too closely at the seaming, it looks fabulous, and I think out in the desert sun it will really look shiny! And if you know what I mean by that, you get 10 internets and a plastic pony.

Also completed was the satiny/silky Purple Robe of Cairo which is actually more of an indigo, but purple works with my title so let's go with that shall we?

After much pinning...

If you want a nice sleeve you have to work for it!

... and sewing and using the seam-ripper and swearing (only a little bit on those last two), it was done!

This is the robe you were looking for.


Ain't he cute though?

I'd call it a huge success.

Once we'd squared that away, we moved on to the next bit of business...

The fur.

Fake fur can often feel so rough as to be off-putting, but this?

All I can tell you is that it's taking longer than it might normally to bring this second robe into creation, not because of any problems with the fabric but rather because I've carefully scheduled time into the creative process to cuddle with it.

Though easy to work with (surprisingly so), it was seriously messy to cut.

Ever cut fake fur? We had to resort to doing it outside, and it looked like it was snowing! We were smart enough to stand up-wind, but my neighbors were probably wondering what the hell was all over their lawn the next day. I'm exaggerating (SHOCKER) but not that much!
TR & I both inhaled a fair quantity of tiny fur bits despite our best efforts - I'm sure they'll come out eventually, but at the very least we have the most luxuriant lungs ever.

We took a break and had some lovely AJUUA!!!!! (now with extra exclamation points) for dinner with Nova, who came down to visit. I have yet to have a bad meal there, and this was no exception. I even got a margarita out of it (thanks Nov)! Good thing TR was driving because that sucker was STRONG.

Sunday I got back in the groove and lined the pieces of the coat/robe with a super-soft white jersey-knit cotton which, combined with the incredible softness of the fur itself, makes for a weighty, delicious piece of comfort and joy. The Kid and I keep feeling it up, and I actually fell asleep under it Monday night after finishing the lining on the back piece (the biggest part).

As of this very day I have managed to do all the lining and get it to the point of attaching the collar, which runs from one bottom corner to the other. It's pinned and ready to go, but I had to get to sleep at a decent hour last night since this morning started our new routine of getting up at 5:30 (give or take).

It required coffee.

In other, non-crafty news, last night I picked up my school books!

2 books, to be specific. Guess how much they cost!

C'mon, guess. I'll give you a minute. While you think about it, here's a video of a corgi jumping into water because there is nothing like a flying potato dog.

Give up? Well, for the same cost I could contain a Corgi of my very own, power an RV, or buy some awesome shoes.

I can't believe how much these things cost! What a racket.

But you know what? I love my new books (I always loved new books and school supplies) and I can't wait to get started, and anyway I had a grant so it's all good.

Remind me I said that when I'm bitching about how I have no time for anything, mmkay?

So yeah.

I've been busy. I even managed to squeeze in some house-hunting help for TR, not that I've been much help. My advice is more based on my feelings about maintenance than anything else... yard work makes me tremble and a saggy floor makes me nervous. Me, I want to move into a house and only make improvements if I *want* to... not because I have to.

Unfortunately most of those types of homes are unbelievably dull, and he's looking for something a little more interesting than that.

One of the houses fit the bill... older home, nicely kept, fantastic floors, beautiful view, mature fruit trees, gorgeous kitchen (I of course was selfishly imagining myself baking stuff with fresh fruit in that kitchen - this is why I'm no help at all), but it definitely had some what-ifs, in particular a bit of a poo smell in the basement, which makes me think it might sewer backup issues.

Ha! Sewer backup issues... use that word with its other, craftier pronunciation, and it sounds like me about 2 weeks before Christmas!

This is how my brain works. My apologies.

Tonight, after a first-day-of-school photo of my Kid, I'm going to finish up the collar and set in the sleeves and finish the sides and bottom of the robe, plus doing 15 minutes of my new exercise routine and making a nice chicken dinner.

I'm so ambitious... let's take a bet on how much of that actually happens.

Tomorrow... purple furry boots! Hopefully. We were going to line them with leftover soft white jersey but...

I ran out.

6 yards of this stuff and I ran out. HOW?! I have no idea, but I suspect that the "60 inch" width description was a big fat lie.

Instead I think I'll be raiding my old t-shirts and lining with that instead. It won't be seen and should provide a good solid barrier against the rough backing of the purple fur.

At least we know in advance...

WE WILL CUT THIS OUTSIDE.

Happy Wednesday!

I Blame Television

When Allie Brosh posts I just want to bask in her awesomeness, re-reading her posts and giggling madly all the while feeling a disturbing similarity between us like some kind of obsessed stalker.

Today she posted about how her expectations of herself often don't match up with her actual abilities.

I blame the media! But then I often do.

The perfectly executed easy grace we see on TV and in the movies rarely illustrates real life - it is, after all, a series of scenes written by people who wish those scenes to be so - but even knowing that doesn't keep us from hoping that will be how our attempts at greatness turn out.

Dancing, singing in public, heck even losing weight are presented to us as simple tasks any fool can perform!

I'm aware of this to the point where it's almost a handicap... I don't try many new things, or even suggest ideas, because I'm fairly convinced I will look like a dork, over-extend myself to point of deep failure, fall on my ass, and quite possibly offend others.

I can picture myself mambo-ing flawlessly to my favorite Bob Schneider song at a show, but in reality I know I'd just look silly, so I'll probably be standing off the side, or worse... chair dancing.

Me too, Allie. Me too.

I can absolutely see myself getting up on stage at Kick-Ass Karaoke night, belting out some Sheryl Crow, garnering applause and adoration from the audience, but I know that I would probably forget half the lyrics, sound like a dork, and end up slinking back to my table, hoping nobody remembers it EVER.

These are natural fears of inadequacy, of course, and nothing of which I'm ashamed, though I do wish I could practice what I preach and stop thinking everyone's judging me, because it would cause me less anxiety in social situations.

The problem comes when there's *so* much anxiety about not being able to accomplish a task you've set out to do that you start second-guessing things you absolutely know you will be able to pull off with ease.

Like, say...

College?

I mean, it's math and writing. I do both daily. What's to fear?

ANYWAY.

So last night I got almost all the way done with the blue robe, and totally finished the copper experimental garment, which The Kid declared "very space-cowboy" so that's a win in my book.

As long as nobody looks too closely at the seams.

The blue robe is really coming along! I thought I could finish last night but the collar took some doing. It was totally worth it because it looks completely fantastic and professional! I had to give in and go to bed after I started the sleeves, though. I hate doing sleeves! It's just so impossible to get them just right, because there's supposed to be ease and there are curves and so on and so forth... it just takes ages.

And you have to do it TWICE! This is exactly why I fear sock-knitting. I think if I ever manage to take that up I'm going to have to just jump straight into the two-at-a-time circular needle method because otherwise I'm going to have a lot of really expensive, time-consuming cat toy fodder as a result.

Thankfully the Simplicity people seem to know that after all that folding and hemming and lining and arranging, you're going to want to end on easy notes, so the arm and side seams are left for last, as well as the bottom hem. These are basically just long straight bits of stitching, no utching required, and you end up on a very positive note instead of "OMG that was horrible I never want to do this again".

I look forward to doing this with the fur, and the sheepskin too, because although it will take longer, the mistakes will be nearly invisible. I'm vain, I know, but I want the reaction to be "Wow, she MADE that?! You are so lucky to have a ladyfriend of such talent and hotness. I seethe with jealousy at your obviously charmed life." and not "Oh... wow... uh, I know a good store where you can buy something that won't look like a horde of armed monkeys was let loose in a fabric store, but you are so brave and loyal to wear that anyway... at least she's cute and has big boobs!".

It's not that much to ask, is it? :)

Happy Thursday!

Determination

I feel really accomplished!

Last night I managed to get all the pattern pieces cut for the robe, not only from the pattern itself (you sewing folks will know what I mean by that - it can be absolutely back breaking) but from the fabric as well! I even ironed the pattern pieces like you're supposed to. (I often skip this part - don't tell my mom.)

And I finished the hem on the copper experiment! Not the arm holes, though I did get them half-pinned... I just ran out of steam. That'll be done tonight, and hopefully so will most of the robe! It's not the neatest job in the world, but it hides the raw edges so there ya go.

The fabric looks absolutely fantastic, and I think TR will really dig the final result.

Yay for Kraft Krazy!

I have to tell you about my lunch yesterday, though. Our department went out to Braisserie Ten Ten, an absolutely delicious French (well, French-inspired) restaurant in Boulder which I love, just as a pre-Fall kickoff sort of thing.

I had been there once before several years ago with my friend Christine. Working at the University, I see a lot of receipts from professors for places I wouldn't have even thought to try but where they tend to eat on a regular basis, and this was one of those winners!

The food there is unbelievable... and reasonably priced (the most expensive lunch entree was 14.00) which appeals to me greatly of course! I had the Brique Poulet. The menu describes it as "salt and terragon crusted Petaluma Farms chicken" but it is not just roast chicken, trust me.

And the fried fresh green beans we had as an appetizer... oh my friends, you need these in your life! They were a special yesterday, but they really need to be on the menu as long as the beans are in season, in my humble opinion. They were lightly fried in tempura batter with a little bit of pepper. (They were also gone quickly!)

I would have taken pictures, but...

I was eating!

If you're ever in Boulder, I really can't recommend it enough.

Weekend Catchup: Cushy

I mentioned Friday that we'd be scattering the ashes of Colorado Alternadad's wife on Saturday morning, which we did. It was a beautiful day, her daughters were grateful and I...

I had a bad reaction.

I'm not sure if it was the lingering result of holding someone's ashy remains in your hands (and, in fact, getting some on your shoe due to a hole in the plastic bag), or just all the memories of her rapid decline getting stirred up, but I was very down-in-the-dumpy Saturday night. I couldn't sleep... I just kept picturing her pacing back and forth, and later how she looked in the nursing home. The thing that stuck out...

Her dirty hair.

She was such a neat person when she was lucid, and seeing her with dirty hair, not filthy but definitely with that particular smell of being unwashed, kind of made it hit home that she was no longer herself anymore.

Saturday was the last, final, good-and-all end to that misery-laden period, and I'm happy for her and it was a positive thing (she now has a lovely natural rock outcropping out on a hillside in the mountains, her picture laminated and tucked away inside), but at the same time I think I exorcised the last of my sadness for her afterward, and it affected me more than I was expecting it to.

I take comfort knowing she's now a part of this:

Click to see it bigger... it's hard to believe it's a cell phone photo!

That's the view from her memorial. She would love it.

Thankfully I had plenty of distraction Saturday afternoon and evening to help keep my mind off things, although as I have discovered...

I am not a seamstress.

Well, I do alright but I have discovered that while others may be able to wing it, I definitely need a pattern if I'm going to end up with something that passes for not-sewn-by-a-monkey.

This weekend (amongst other things) I made my own pattern, basing it on TR's awesome black wool coat that I love.

"Easy!" thought I. "It's just a bunch of straight lines!"

HA!

The end result isn't *that* bad, but I definitely zigged when I should have zagged in a few spots. I used a large bit of fabric that had been lurking in my fabric stash, one of those shimmery dual-color satiny bits where when it moves it changes color - pretty cool stuff actually. This particular swath is coppery orange with a green undertone, and reminds me of what copper looks like with a light patina.

The shell itself was fairly easy, just a few pieces that I modified slightly to give a more flared effect on the bottom edge. I managed to get one sleeve on before going to meet TR on Sunday for some textile shopping (and can I just tell you it delights me to no end that he likes playing fabric with me?). It fit just okay, but he actually preferred the sleeveless side.

Thank GOD. I so did not want to sew on that other sleeve!

And so now I'm just tweaking it, finishing the raw edges as well as I can, adding a collar that isn't too weird looking... but really I think the color will distract everyone who sees it from the poor hemming job. It's like fashion camouflage!

I also give myself a bit of credit for creating a pattern based on a coat that was already put together... deconstructing a garment to make a pattern is easy, but doing it while it's still constructed?! That takes some...

Well I'd say skill, but I think I'll call it luck.

Sunday was not as productive in the sewing department, since I hadn't slept much Saturday night between the sewing and the ruminating.

The Kid was feeling pretty gross - headache, fatigue, etc. - so she skipped derby practice, but I still had an appointment with Denver Fabrics to attend to with TR, so I headed down to Denver and let her sleep.

We found some absolutely awesome faux fur that is so soft I just want to wrap up in it - it will be a robe - and some equally fantastic faux silk (or who knows - it could be real!) in a deep magenta, it's backing satin a rich blue that will actually be the outside of the other robe I'm making. Flowy and/or warm clothing is nice to have at Burning Man, and I volunteered to get TR set with a couple of pieces for this year.

Next year will be sheepskin. We're going to have to start in January though, I think, because it's going to take AGES! The good news is that The Internet Provides, and I have found many tips and tricks for working with sheepskin that will save me lots of Craft Angst later on.

After picking up an ungodly amount of fabric and notions, we headed to Ted's for an absolutely delicious dinner... a full turkey dinner for me (with all the trimmings) and a fantastic burger for him, plus coke with crushed ice which, as TR put it, was like summer in a glass.

Fabulous!

After dinner we drove around to spy on some houses TR's been eyeballing online. Anyone who's bought a house knows that the pictures on the listings often don't show the true nature of the home or its surroundings, like the adorable 1920's house I was so enamored of until I saw a train track literally runs right down the middle of the street, or the flawless Craftsman home TR found which is right next to a 7-Eleven on a ridiculously busy street.

This was never more true than with the fantastic mid-century modern gem he found... which is surrounded by a deeply horrible neighborhood full of meth labs (one can only assume). One's first home experience shouldn't be fraught with danger and ATF agents.

Not a big fat lie, however, were the couple of houses he found in Arapahoe Acres, an historic district full of houses built between 1949 and 1957. They are all beautiful, and the one he likes could be an unbelievable deal if it's not hiding some sort of fatal flaw.

We watched a lovely sunset while driving around, and discovered another neighborhood that's definitely worth looking into. He's really got a pretty clear idea of what he wants, but the question remains... where to find it?

Back home, The Kid seemed to be feeling better after some food and additional sleep. In fact she slept all night, despite having slept all day! There was no fever, no nausea, nothing at all to demonstrate illness, which means...

GROWTH SPURT.

Help!

Happy Monday/Tuesday Amalgam! :)

Tonight it's me and some satiny blue material and the sewing machine.

Wish me luck with that! I want it to look fantastic.

Wow

I just re-read my post from yesterday, and...

"Wow" just really doesn't accurately describe my insanity.

I do ramble on when I'm brainless!

The good news is, I successfully wore myself out writing that sucker (and sending an unbelievably involved list of info to TR about his coat-to-be), and only had enough sense left to realize that I should not, in fact, be making an hour-long drive to Arvada (and the subsequent return trip).

I barely made it home from work!

So no trivia last night, which was fine - we were the Invisible Bastards!

Given my total exhaustion, I didn't get much else done last night, though I had intended to start working up a pattern for the coat mock-up I'm planning. Given the cost of sheepskin, I don't want to experiment on it, but would rather spend the extra time making multiple sample versions of cheaper material. They won't be wasted efforts, of course; because I'm me, I'm going to make the mock-up as cool as possible!

Anyway, that didn't happen last night. I was sleeping.

Today, The Kid is at her grampa's practicing her skating downstairs, though I hope she'll remember to not practice her baseball slides, but rather stick with practicing her upright skills - that concrete is wreaking havoc on her skates!

Her grampa's two step-daughters are coming in today. Some of you may remember me mentioning that his wife Tanya passed a few months back. It was a blessing! She had suffered with Alzheimer's and serious dementia for over 10 years, and the last couple had been nothing more than her body continuing to breathe and beat its heart. Her mind was long gone, and when she passed we all felt nothing but joy for her, that she was finally free of all that sickness.

We are going to at last put her ashes to rest tomorrow. She loved, in her last lucid years, to go to this one spot up in the mountains - it was the only time I saw her smile and laugh the last few years - and we'll be trekking up there to let her hang out there on a more permanent basis.

It'll be nice to see her daughters, too... they weren't the best at communication while their mom was alive, and I'm unfortunately pretty sure that once this is done we won't hear from them much anymore. I'm glad to have known them, however briefly, and wish them the best in the future! There's no bitterness - as we all know, relationships with parents aren't always what we wish they were, and these girls deserve to move on.

Well, I'm not one to leave you on a downer note (though I really do believe it will be a joyous thing), so here's a video to take you into the weekend... it's about the cutest thing I've seen all week!

Happy Friday!

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

I am soooo wiped out today.

I'm totally fine with it (sometimes being tired is just a price you have to pay for brainstorming and hanging out with your night-owl fella), but because I'm so out of it, you get a lame post!

That's the price *you* have to pay.

I am going to drag myself to trivia tonight. I promised, and our team is short since two of them are on vacation in Fabulous Detroit. Besides, The Kid wants to come with, and she's only got a couple more opportunities to do so before....

HIGH SCHOOL.

Dropping her off yesterday for the retreat, we sat in contemplation of the mammoth beast which is her school in less than 2 weeks.

She's pretty nervous.

I reminded her that she's going with friends, she'll know a whole lot of the Sophomores and Juniors on top of that, and assured her that most of the school is gym (so true - it takes up half the building) so really it won't be *that* confusing, and also reminded her that they give the Freshman a whole day to try their schedules out.

I also told her that I know once she gets into the routine it'll become exactly that, and she'll wonder what she was so nervous about.

Of course I said all that because I'm a supportive mom, but also because...

I'm anxious enough for both of us.

She's really showing her duality - that easily-flipped switch between My Kid and Teenager. Though she had just been having a heart-to-heart in the car, once I handed over the check to the nice lady at the sign-in desk and The Kid spied one of her friends, it was "Bye, Mom" with barely a glance.

I was smiling as I walked away...

Because I know when I pick her up my big, bad, Derby-girl high-schooler is going to squeal like an 8-year-old when I tell her we're going to Arvada for trivia...which is next door to the candy shop.

She may be a BBD-GHSer (that's a mouthful!) but she's still my baby.

After dropping her off yesterday, I took myself home and, rather than be productive and make a shirt, I painted my toenails dark blue, read a book, and watched a really weird (but good!) movie called "Teeth". Click that link right there, but don't say I didn't warn you...

Weird.

TR came by after finishing up his day, and we spent a nice evening coming up with ways to make him look like a polar bear caveman.

The sheepskin coat I'm going to concoct is going to take quite awhile, and so won't be ready for this year's Burn, but I think some of our other ideas are totally do-able on a fast track!

Purple furry boots perhaps - practice for sheepskin later - and I think a silky duster-like coat made to really fan out on the bottom (like Morpheus from The Matrix, but with less despair and misery). He's going to look AWESOME!

Well...

He already does, but you know what I mean.

Okay that was corny. I told you, I'm exhausted! I can't be responsible for the things my brain comes up with when I'm running on empty.

Happy Thursday!

WTF Wednesday: Snow Day!

I'll start with my WTF of the day... why, when it's Spring Break at the University, meaning classes and such aren't affected, did they choose to do a "delayed start" today instead of just taking the day off?

All the school districts are closed due to "treacherous conditions".

So what the hell?!

Anyway.

Look at my new bag!

I'll post some betterish pics later, but check out the palm trees on the liner!

So cute. And very functional.

Thrilling Thursday: Pretties

Lazy post today... I've had lots on my mind (no worries, kids, I'm working my way through it - good advice and support have been invaluable, even when it's just a pat on the back), so I'm a little tapped out this week.

A weekend full of refreshing rest will no doubt perk me right back up. You know me... I'm a perky malcontent, remember? You can't keep me low for long.

Before I offer you some thrilling videos today, I want to show you something I made!

I have so many crafts on the pile - a couple of scarves, a hat, etc etc etc - really why do I always end up scrambling 2 weeks before the holiday? I swear every year I will start in August, and sometimes I even do, but I bargain myself down to December 5th every single time.

Naturally, being in a bit of a rush, I felt it necessary to make The Kid and myself some mittens. They paid off though... we've had frigid weather here just lately, so some woolly mitts really paid off!



Click to embigafy if you'd like to see the details, but don't look too closely, I totally screwed up the pair on the right! The ones on the left are mine, made from a thick wool blend, and were the second pair so the pattern worked out the way it was supposed to. The ones on the right are The Child's, an amalgam of two colorways of marino my aunt gave me for my birthday... the skeins weren't *quite* big enough to cover a whole pair, so I improvised! Unusual, and kinda cute, and The Kid loves em', and thinks the flaws just make them cooler.

(FYI, lest you think me a mean mom, I did let her have her pick. I would have worn the wonky ones.)

The nice thing about the deep freeze, combined with the Colorado sunshine, is that all the ground snow is sticking around for once (whereas it's usually gone in a day or two), while the roadways are clearing, so I get to truly enjoy the beauty of winter without worrying about driving around in dangerous conditions. It's been nice, despite the numb extremities!

And now for your thrilling videos...

First, something cool TR found, as he so often does. It's oddly joyful, or maybe just odd, but either way I can't seem to stop watching! It's lovely, to say the least, and plus - Mary Poppins! You just can't go wrong.



Amazing! The guy who did this is fairly young, and did it in hours. Kids these days, I tell ya.

Here's another neat one he did using Alice In Wonderland.



FAR OUT. I mean, Alice In Wonderland is trippy all on its own, but he really takes it way past far out and into the land of "who slipped me a mickey?!".

Last but not least, here's one from one of my favorite versions of The Secret Garden.



Lovely.

Go check out more of his stuff! I should... I don't know if "warn" is the word, but fore-arm you that the kid has named himself a not-terribly-kid-friendly name...

Although you're all adults, and as such are not new to the internets and have learned by now that link-jumping is going to eventually land you in the realm of "oh god my eyes", I also know that some of you, my fine readers, have school-age kids and goodness knows they love to read over our shoulders.

Have a wonderful day... stay warm!

Thrilling Thursday: Moon Unit

Talk about thrilling...

They found water on the moon! I'm sure you heard about when they bombed the moon, and this is what they were hoping for so go NASA!

What does it mean for us? Probably nothing at all right now, but seriously how cool is that?

Apparently, they didn't just find water, and I have to say I love the "scientific description" by Anthony Colaprete from NASA...

"There's a lot of stuff in there."

I can't wait.



In other thrilling news, my stomach is feeling much better, thanks be to Prilosec. I'm still being cautious of course, but still!

And I finished my Christmas ornament swap... you can see that post here.

Here's what I sent...


Bad photo lighting is bad

The theme was "Enchanted Forest". I think this works!

Happy Thursday... hard to believe Thanksgiving is next week!

F-Word Friday: Finally!

No post yesterday, because of this:



That would be my backyard. That thing in the foreground there is the pile of uninterrupted snow that fell on my patio table.

The Kid suggested sticking a candle in the top and cutting a slice out, but it was also murrfurrin' cold out so...

No.

But yay! Snow day!

The Kid was thrilled, I made French Toast that *almost* rivaled the stuff at Dozens but not quite (since I lack a gas stove and griddle - it really makes a difference), we played with clay and watched dumb horror movies on SciFi (I refuse to use their new spelling because it's stupid), and the cats were all up in our business.

Well, Dea was because she's a noodge.


Please note the fact that the cat is asleep in this picture

The Kid is a sucker... she falls for the "kitty wants a hug" trick every time.

The "Finally" in F-Word Friday today comes from the fact that despite it looking a *lot* like Christmas yesterday, I have at last found my Halloween spirit.

Better late than never!

I may even torture TR by dressing up tomorrow and embarrassing him wherever we go.

And all that spirit is thanks to crafting, as usual.

Now granted, I just made some Candy Corn earrings...


Not as cute as the originals, but did they have cat involvement?

... but The Kid went CUHRAZY.

She made a bag of candy & the cutest pumpkins ever (her own designs) and we had fun making little skull beads which shall be used for *something*, but for now are adorning my little Halloween pile on the living room table, which also includes a candle holder sporting packing tape transfers I did last week.

God but I love the Craft: blog.


Tiggy helped with the size comparison... and please ignore the dust on the table thankyewveddymuch


That's a sucker, a Snickers bar and a giant Pixie Stick in that bag, I'll have you know

We had fun, can you tell?

Last but not least... The Kid's costume.

I give you...

Prom Queen Disaster.



Currently this is blood-free, but that's only because the blood packets are at her friend's house. Don't you just love the streaked mascara? Very dramatic.

Almost as dramatic as this shot:


Please note the Converse

Happy Halloween! Have fun and be safe!

Wonder Why Wednesday - Polling The Masses

Lazy post today... have to leave early for The Child's very first volleyball game, and it's an away game so I have to go way into the country to the school, which looks exactly like her school.

No seriously.


Is it me?

So I've been slaaaavin' away at those bowls and I'm starting to think...

I'm going to have to have different stuff in the Etsy store. I'll just have to. It's boring *me*, imagine how a shopper would feel.

"Oh pretty! Blue bowl!"

"Oh that's neat... another bowl. This one's purple."

"Oh. Wow. Guess what. Only red."

Yeah. You can see it coming.

Maybe I can make bags or something... although they'd end up being pricey. Figure a yard of fabric is $10 (for something nice like they have at the quilt stores), and then labor and making some kind of profit (which is the idea)... they'd have to sell for 20 bucks.

Nobody's going to buy these for 20 bucks.



Sorry for the lack of actual wondering today, although maybe we can consider it a poll...

How much would *you* pay for one of those bags up there? They're lined, have an inner pocket, and range between about 12X15 and 15X15, give or take, depending on the width of the fabric.

No seriously... poll time! I want to see if I should venture into these bags for sale, or stick with things that are cheaper to make, and thus can be sold for less.

Have a lovely Wednesday night - I plan on screaming my head off, cheering on my very cute kid.

Weekend Catchup: Totally Random Photos!

Okay first up... PLUG ALERT! I've got 3 new baskets up (one regular and two teeny tiny), and 8 or 9 in the works.


Don't you want this? I know you do. Or your friend does.

Due to the holiday, and my crappy home connection, I am combining JUST THIS ONCE (well, just this week anyway) my Weekend Catchup and Totally Random Tuesday.

Good thing, because there are tons of photos to be had.

We had a great weekend! I was immersed in watching the live feed of Burning Man, in particular the Burn itself - what an amazing thing that was. The explosions, the fireworks, the art cars all lit up and parading like bizarre peacocks... plus there was a chat room filled with extremely funny people. Funny-amusing and funny-in-the-head, both of which were equally amusing.

Thanks go to Nova & Kelly for letting me hog their laptop Saturday night!

Also, thanks go to Whoever is in charge of keeping Burners safe, as TR called me when he got in range, and is alive and well and only slightly singed around the edges. Not that I was worried, he knows what he's doing, but you know... it's good to get that all-clear.

On the way home Friday I stopped to take a photo of a new piece of art just installed in the middle of the highway. It's solar-powered, and spins. So cool.


I took my life in my hands for this shot... FOR YOU

Sunday night I had my very own playdate with my friend Nova, who brought pork mole-ay (spelled as such as no accent was available, and "pork mole" sounds disgusting if pronounced as displayed) and home-made tortillas courtesy of her hubby. We played Scrabble (tough board!) and talked about past and present, and generally enjoyed a lovely child-free evening.

The important thing here though is that you realize how much money I saved at King Soopers buying some extra groceries for the evening (it was important we have raspberries and ice cream). I saved more than I spent.


My cheap little heart just about burst with glee

On Monday, The Child & I had fun Geocaching after I picked her up from her friend Maddie's 13th birthday party. We took a VERY long walk around Golden Ponds here in Longmont, and it was a gorgeous day so you know I took pictures.


Golden Pond, with Longs Peak and Twin Sisters behind it... such a pretty shot


A bridge down a path - we wandered over to the top of a man-made waterfall for this; trust me the bridge was prettier


This dragonfly was very patient with me

Also, look at this fantastic card The Kid made for the birthday gift!


Why yes I *do* photograph everything on my kitchen table, why do you ask?

The cupcakes come *out*, and each had a message. So cute. As previously discussed, my child is awesome.

I made something for her friend as well, as I usually do for her birthdays (she's gotten a blanket, a couple of bags - I may be broke but I usually have craft supplies lying around). This year she got an upcycled-bluejeans waistband tricked out with snaps and embroidery. She made a point to show me she was wearing it this morning when I dropped Kid off at school, so I think that means it's a hit!


There was squealing

Last but not least, there is new art on the wall. (For more, see the Flickr stream.)

Weekend Catchup: Fire, Pipes and Righteous Knickers

Friday night we last-minute decided to go to Festival On Main, a Longmont street fair The Child and I normally attend but I was dragging my feet about this year. We ended up going thanks to her buddy's prodding. "It's TRADITION!" she shouted.

Of course the tradition is that we all go *together* but they ended up hanging with their friends and I stood there like a dope.

Teenagers.

That's okay, though, it just meant that I could stand and admire the fire dancers whilst eating Indian food. For at least the last 3 years (I say that because that's as long as I've been going, haha) Festival on Main has featured a troop of fire dancers called Burning Hot Lava!! - no website that I can find, but if you click the name you can see photos. (You can see some video here and here, too. Go watch!)

This year they also had a quartet of drums and pipes as accompaniment on a couple of numbers, so you know I was in heaven - fire *and* piping? Yes please!

And did I remember my camera? No I did not. *sigh*

Oh, and guess where the fire dancers were headed the next morning... and if you said "Poughkeepsie, NY" you are incorrect!

Saturday and Sunday were pretty laid back - I made 2 new pairs of knickers, a mock-up of a bag my mom was looking for, got a bunch of errands done - the usual this and that.

What, you don't make underwear in *your* free time?

One was made with an Old Navy Halloween t-shirt with "Transylvania Blood Drive" as the theme... Halloween undies are hard to come by.



The other used my concert t-shirt from the Penn & Teller show I went to with my mom many moons ago, and I *totally* want to send a photo of them to Penn & Teller, because I can almost guarantee nobody else has these.


Bad photo, I know... stupid lighting!

Oh, and The Kid got the Converse sneakers she's been dying to get - two pairs, yet - thanks to her Aunt Melissa, who spoils her rotten.

Lucky girl!

Did YOUR weekend involve bagpipes? I sincerely hope so. But just in case...


Just gives me chills.

Weekend Catchup: Words Fail Me

Okay now you know I don't get political on here, but right now there is something terribly important afoot that affects every last citizen of this country.

There is a *lot* of intentional misinformation being passed around about the Health Care Reform bill, with the majority of that being done by the insurance companies (who stand to lose their large incomes if they can't hold all the cards anymore) and I promise, nobody's going to take your rights with this, or force you to use the plan, or degrade your health care or any of the goofy rumors being perpetrated. All that will happen is that the ungodly portion of the US citizenry that currently can't even get their blood pressure taken will be able to get some basic healthcare.

I promise, that' s all there is to it.

Anything else you've heard... well I can't convince you myself but if you read the bill itself you'll see the truth of the matter. If that's a bit much to digest (it is!), there's a more truncated list of rumors that were recently addressed by President Obama, and you can read it here, but the main points are that most of the bill is centered around reigning in the current practices of the insurance companies.

Hm, I wonder why the insurance companies want this to die?

Please call your local congress-person and senator and ask them to support Health Care Reform. Encourage your friends and neighbors to do it too. They really do listen, and need our support right now.

ANYWAY... off my soapbox.


I love you, Internet

My weekend was...

Hm.

If you could see me now, you'd see me looking into the word-pool, trying to fish out something appropriate - why this involves me tapping a single finger against my chin I don't know, but it does.

Eventful doesn't seem to cut it, though there were some delightful events and I got stuff done.

Interesting is too bland a term to really encompass it.

(tap tap tap)

Ever have something that was impossible to describe without sounding like you just ate a handful of something illicit?

Bad-poetry-inspiring, mood-altering, but all good, don't worry!

Friday night I crashed a bit early after a 2-hour gabfest and getting a small bit of sewing done on some lovely blue fabric (just a hem, but it was a LONG hem). The gabfest is an on-going thing; every time I get on the phone I hit a wormhole and 2 or 3 hours (and an entire battery charge) seem to zip out of existence.


Any excuse for Hanna-Barbera

Saturday morning involved a lot of boring running around in an attempt to be productive. The Child is out of town at the moment, and many years spent with her as the center of my universe have left me - as she has been getting older and, subsequently, her own life - having to learn to entertain myself. Luckily I have some lovely friends who are willing and able to help me out with that. She's been too busy in Oregon checking out whales and driving boats and looking at starfish butts and playing in the Pacific to CALL HER MOTHER, which is as it should be.


Doesn't she look like she's having a BLAST?


You thought I was kidding


Why am I not in this picture? No fair.

The evening was much more fun than my grocery store/laundry/vaccuming-filled day, involving a never-ending thunderstorm (unexpectedly with its own soundtrack), the bitchinest van on the planet, and Connections, which I really wanted to watch more of but didn't because it was like 1AM and I was falling asleep (surest way to put me out - no lights and the television on and an arm around my shoulders).

Seriously, though... the storm was incredible. Colorado weather is funny, especially where I live along the mountains. Because they're so vast and tall and different depending on where you are, they actually *change* the weather on a regular basis. It can be clear and sunny where I am, and snowing an inch an hour 80 miles south. It could be raining buckets on my front lawn and dry as a bone 10 miles east.

The storm on Saturday night was way out on the Eastern Plains, but it was large enough that a quick drive out into the fields (Longmont being a little island of city in the middle of a *lot* of country) brought us an unobstructed view that involved, amongst other things, a huge moon painted orange, only visible for a few minutes before being buried behind giant thunderheads, only to re-emerge an hour or so later, illuminating the tips and tops of what was left behind as the storm headed for points East.

Sunday involved some really, really needed sleeping in, plus I got to flip through this book, generously lent by its owner. I'm not sure if I'll ever get the chance to go myself, but I'd like to once in my life, for the art and creativity of the attendees if nothing else! They do some amazing stuff, and as with many things, photos only go so far.


Wouldn't you love to see this up close, and maybe walk around inside? I bet it smelled good.

Here's hoping you had a weekend that was as fun as mine... Tonight I'm planning on bringing the satin pants into existence. Wish me luck!

I have Kleenex at the ready to mop up my tears...