06.12.2009 Internet Love

One of my many addictions is the internet. After work, I regular go to the internet and check:

* E-mail
* Bloglines
* Facebook
* PerezHilton.com
* Etsy
* Plus anything else I find interesting

Now for the real reason that I love the internet. One of my very best friends in the whole wide world requested to be my Facebook friend. Unfortunately several years ago we lost touch with each other... not that I didn't try. I thought of her often and truly missed our friendship. Then today she requested to be my friend. A wonderful day to find my long lost friend. (FYI, I have searched the internet for years trying to locate my friend with no success).

I have had two additional friends locate me through the internet (Facebook and searches) to reconnect. It is such a wonderful tool to locate long lost friends and family.

06.11.2009 Doll Update

I thought if I posted a periodic update on where I am at with my dolls (considering I have been talking about them for over a year now) that maybe I will get something accomplished. My goal is to get something done this weekend... hopefully it will be at least one complete doll. Really I would like to get much more done.

So far I have three Americana dolls traced and sewn. Plus two paper clay dolls trace and sewn as well as cut out. The Americana dolls are actually Eagles so there is only the body and a set of wings per dol to cut out and that will take like a whole 5 minutes.

The next step after everything is cut out is to stuff each piece. Sounds easy but not so much. Stuffing the dolls just right takes time, patience, and practice. I would say that this is the biggest hurdle right now. Granted the paper clay dolls have a lot of work to go towards the finish line but the stuffing is a big step.

I know how I want the Americana Eagle dolls to look upon completion and I know what one of the paper clay dolls theme is. I am really excited to be getting somewhere on these dolls.

Look for an update this weekend.

06.09.2009 Discoveries

So I have made several "arty" discoveries this past week...

I am a big fan of Rachel Whetzel. She is an amazing paper artist and I have been following her blog for awhile now. Recently she has dabbled in paper clay dolls. I am absolutely amazed and astounded by her fantastic pieces of art. Check out this post on Rachel's blog regarding the fantastic dolls she has been making. Amazing right? How can I make something that fantastic. Let me tell you how. I found on Rachel's blog where she took an online course on paper clay dolls. The class is $40 and is a series of instructional videos showing exactly how to make a paper clay doll of your own plus so much more. Needless to say I am awestruck!

I know I have been talking for too long about making dolls. Really I have good intentions. I have several dolls started but nothing seems to get done. Sorry to say that I haven't really been motivated. Until now. This class called for a very expensive trip to Hobby Lobby to pick up some paper clay as well as a million other things I need to actually complete a doll. (Well that really is a lie considering all I probably needed was the paper clay as I have every other craft supply known to man that would complete a doll). So I am on my way to making a paper clay doll. You know I will post a picture when I finish. And my plans are to make the first doll as a Christmas gift for my mother... so I definitely hope to finish by Chrismas!

In my search online for information on paper clay dolls, I found out here is this wonderful publication called Art Doll Quarterly. I really don't know how I missed out on this one. First of all I am a fiend for magazines. I search the racks at Barnes and Noble for new and different magazines, especially when I have all the current issues of the magazines I routinely read. Secondy, I am a big fan of collectible dolls let along making dolls. So when I discovered ADQ, I rushed out to Barnes and Noble. I picked up this delicious tidbit:

It is a gorgeous publication showcasing some wonderful, unique pieces of art. In the current publication pictured above there is an article on Danita. Danita makes coth dolls and canvas art along with wooden dolls and jewelry and plenty of other things. I love the faces on the dolls and art. Simple but not. Ready the article, I discovered that Danita lives in Juarez. As you know Juarez is the sister city of El Paso where I currently reside. Of course, I immediately commented on Danita's blog telling her that I love her work. This cover shows a couple of items by Danita:

I believe I have hit the jackpot this past week and wonderful arty finds. Like I needed more inspiration on yet another "craft" project. I don't care... I think the paper clay dolls are genius which in turn makes me a genius for attempting to make one. Right?

06.08.2009 Baby

Baby says hi!

06.06.2009 Dog Farts

I know. Dog farts are like the elephant in the room that no one wants to talk about. Well I do. And now. One day I was watching the show "Dogs 101" because it was talking about Boston Terriers. The show mentioned that Bostons are a gassy breed. Did you know that? Well I can testify to that fact. The fact that Pearl is under my desk farting while I am online brought on the subject of this blog post. Again, I know the elephant in the room. But let's face it folks... dogs fart. And it is not nice. At least Pearl's aren't nice. I can't vouch for all dogs, just my own.

Now sometimes Pearl's gas is rather comical. Not the smell. The sound. I love it when one squeeks out and Pearl looks are her butt like "What the hell?" Usually she goes in a circle trying to catch her heinie to figure out what that sound was. Hilarity ensues.

Off to find some air deordorizer. NOW!

05.23.2009 Home

I made it safe and sound to my parent's homestead on Thursday evening. It was a long, long trip. Probably about 11.5 hours total with several pit stops plus a warning ticket from a friendly Department of Public Safety Officer. Pearl did not sleep until about Austin. She was ridiculous. She was tired but could not find a comfortable place to sleep. I have the cutest picture on my cell phone of her and Baby sleeping in the passenger seat. I will post when I get back to El Paso.

Yesterday spent the day of "work"... my old job you know. I didn't do a whole lot. Answered the phone and checked the mail mainly. I did run into town to get my tires rotated as well as a couple of errands. My mom and I saw Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian. It was cute and very enjoyable. Definately a great movies for kids and adults... a nice movie to take the whole family. Grade: B+

Today we haven't done much of anything. My mom and I went to town for lunch and groceries. My aunt and uncle arrived a little while ago and we are now awaiting a dinner of hamburgers to be ready.

Initially my plan was to drive home to El Paso tomorrow so I would have some down time on Monday before returning to work on Tuesday. I really didn't want to drive home on Monday since the trip is so long and exhausting and then go to work on Tuesday. But with my aunt and uncle just getting here this evening, I am thinking of staying here tomorrow instead of driving home. Not that we have anything planned but just to spend a little more time with family.

Pearl is loving being back here. She has the freedom to run all over the place plus playing with all the other dogs. She is definately exhausted at the end of the day and sleeps the night through. Course I am a little mad at Pearl this evening as she rolled in something dead today. I didn't discover this until we took a little drive and she wanted to be right in my face. Nice. If it wasn't something dead, it would have been cow manure. Not a nice aroma either way!

I hope on my return trip to El Paso, I can get through Fredericksburg early enough. I think the peaches are in season and I want to pick some up. I wasn't early enough on my trip down on Thursday and everything was closed. Doesn't Peach Cider sound delish!

05.18.2009 Pearl in Pictures

Bad cell pictures of a bad dog named Pearl.
Pearl getting her nap on.

My new hat that I shall name Pearl.

Pearl lounging on my lap looking up at me while she is on her back. Ridiculous!

05.18.2009 Pearl

So I am getting ready for a road trip home this long holiday weekend. I am taking off from work Thursday and Friday so it really will be a long weekend. As you know it is at least an 11 hour trip one way from El Paso to College Station, Texas. I don't believe I have told the story of Pearl on my last trip home.

My plan was to gas up the night before (as well as load) so all I had to do was take off in the morning. Of course that didn't happen. I went home and planned to gas up when I got something to eat for dinner. Needless to say I didn't go out again once I was home. So that left gassing up in the morning. At the end of my street there is a 7-11 and the cross street is an extremely busy street. I stop at 7-11 and before I even am out of the car (the unfamiliar rental from the last trip), Pearl is out of the car and doesn't know what to do. There are a gabillion smells that need to be smelled. And Pearl does not mind let alone come to me when called. I am chasing her all over the parking lot. Pearl starts chasing cars up the busy street. She is smelling everything. Finally I am at my wits end, my nerves are shot, and I am at the point of tears. With no help of any the strangers staring at me, I was finally able to grab Pearl by her harness. Luckily I had her harness on her. Once I caught her, I became furious. She got a good smack on the heinie and then I felt pretty bad for getting so upset with her. She rode the rest of the trip as well as the return trip with not only her harness but her leash as well. I warned her not to choke herself because I wasn't going to be in any hurry to loosen up her leash. She must have heeded my warning because she didn't get caught up on anything in the car. On the road trip back, she tried her escape routine once again. And that leash was a lifesaver as I was able to step on it as she ran out the car.

After my road trip, I was convinced Pearl and I were making a trip to an obedience school. That hasn't materialized yet but I did take a suggestion from one of my co-workers and invest in a seat belt type thingy. I went to Petsmart this afternoon and bought this thing that hooks to Pearl's harness and to the seatbelt. It will severely restrict her movement in the car. She will be able to move but probably just stay in the backseat. We'll see how this works. As the headrests in the backseat as well as the door lock knobs are chewed up due to Pearl's wild abandonment, limiting her mobility isn't going to do any more harm.

Keep your fingers crossed!

(Picture of Pearl waiting for her Whataburger order this past Sunday morning.)

04.05.2009 Etsy Again!

So I made a deal with myself that I couldn't "shop" any more either online or IRL until I finished making a doll. Well that deal lasted all of let's say a week. Let me tell you what triggered the shopping... the thought of buying a new house. You see there is an Etsy store that I love (yes another one) where the artist paints these wonderful canvases. I have already purchased two paintings from her. I have been eyeballing a third painting for my bathroom. Yes my bathroom. I have a fun shower curtain that has bright orange, pink, and lime green. And I have been searching for something to hang in the bathroom. Not an easy choice to match with those colors or I am extremely picky. Regardless of the reason, I went to her store yesterday and she was having a sale on a few selections. Well a girl had to look. And obviously a girl had to find something on sale that would fit in the bathroom perfectly. That would also be needed in a new house as well. So here is what I bought:

Aren't those colors delish and the painting funky? The colors will go perfectly. I am sure you understand why I had to make this purchase and at a sale price too. Really?

Here are the two other paintings that I purchased from the same store:

The brown poppies was the first piece I purchased. Upon receipt, it was love at first sight!

Now seriously I will really try to stick with the deal I made with myself. No more purchases (outside of meals, groceries, gas, you know the normal stuff that you have to buy) until I complete a doll. Off to get my sew on!

(Two posts in two days is hopefully a sign that I will post more regularly if nothing else but to say I have nothing to post!)

04.04.2009 Update

Let's see what has been going on lately....

I finally got my car back from the repair shop this past Wednesday. It had been in the shop for three whole weeks for repairs from Christmas when the 14-year old kid ran into my parked car. The repairs were supposed to take 5-7 days.... 21 days later. And they didn't even fix the extra repair I requested. The cover of the gear stick is broken and needs replaced... part backordered. Nice.

Texas Ranger has passed away. He is one of the dogs at the warehouse. He had been sick since before I moved, back in October is probably the first time I took him to the vet. He had lost weight and became really lethargic. The vet diagnosed an infection and prescribed antibiotics. He would get better and then get sicker again... this went on for a couple more months. My mom finally took him back to the vet when he really got bad. The vet didn't know if it was cancer or not... or exactly what it was. Blood was drawn, other tests taken. Then while he was at the vet's office for an extended boarding period until things were figured out and he was getting better, he passed away. Needless to say my mom and I were devestated. While Texas Ranger was a trouble maker with the rest of the dogs, he was family. And to top it off, the vet discovered that Texas Ranger didn't have cancer after all just a really bad infection. You would think they could cure the infection versus letting the dog die. Very said indeed.

Work has been going relatively well. I am very insecure in my job and not confident at all. And if you know me, that is not like me at all. I don't know what it is but I am trying to get passed it and master my job. It is a very difficult situation that I find myself in. I don't fear of being let go but it isn't making my job any easier nor more comfortable. Just a weird feeling.

Even with the lack of confidence in my abilities at work, I am considering buying a house. With the housing market what it is and all the incentives, it is hard not to think about buying a house. Course my credit is not the greatest and I have virtually no down payment but I think buying a house is doable... I just want to make sure the mortgage payment is doable. So I took the plunge and viewed four houses today. I liked two of the four and really liked one of the two. It is a three bedroom, two (or rather 1-3/4) bath house with two living areas. A nice big kitchen with plenty of pantry/storage. The house has new carpet/tile and roof. It is an older home and the cabinets and kitchen counters look their age. They are in good condition but you can tell it is an older home. The larger of the living areas also has panelling. I am not a fan of panelling but my realtor knows a guy that can spray the panelling and it will look just like a normal wall. So I am not worried about that. I am going to call a mortgage broker on Monday to see where I stand with financing. Keep your fingers crossed.

I haven't been working on my sewing too much the past couple of weeks. I hope to get something done tomorrow. I have been buying fabric for the dolls but I don't think that can actually be considered progress toward the completion of some dolls.

While my car was in the shop, my rental was a Jeep Commander with satellite radio. Can I say delish? It was a very nice car and the satellite radio came in hand when I drove back home last month. I had to house/pet sit for my parents when they went out of town and Nikki had plans. It was a long weekend considering it is an 11 hour drive one way. I was very happy to see the dogs and especially Sugar. She appeared to be excited to see me... but then she wags her ass at pretty much anything so I don't know if it was evidence or not. I did get stopped on the return trip home to El Paso. I was clocked at doign 83 in an 80 mph zone. Three miles over and I get stopped. Really? Lucky for me the officer decided on a warning. I was extremely grateful.

I am thinking this is all I have to report for now... I know BORING. What can I say, I haven't been up to much lately.

03.21.2009 ETSY Find

As you are aware I am addicted to online shopping and one of my favorite sites is ETSY. This is my latest purchase from the ETSY shop cupcaketree:

Another addiction of mine is cupcake stamps. I probably own close to a dozen for no other reason than I love cupcakes! I bought the Raggedy stamps ideally to use with my dolls (if and when I ever get any done... FYI, I am working on dolls today!!! Believe it or not!)
Anyways, I thought the hand-crafted stamps in this store were supercute and quite entertaining as well as very reasonably priced. I really wanted this set but decided against it (for now....):

All I can say is brilliant!

03.01.2009 Lost my nap!

My friend Aimeslee has sent a passionate plea to me to blog. I do realize it has been quite awhile since I blogged last but I don't really have anything to blog about.

I have taken two stamp/card classes at a local stamp store. The first class was packed and we made birthday cards. They were cute but okay. Plus I sat next to the most annoying person in the class. It was like she was the only stamper on a table of 5. Guess what... you have to share!!! The second class where I sat next to the same lady, we made some St. Patrick's Day projects: two cards and two boxes. Cute, cute, cute. I took some crappy pictures that I will post later. Can't find the cord to hook-up to my computer. And the best part of these classes is that they are only $13 a class. We made 3 cards in the first class and like I said two cards and two mini-boxes in the second class. Totally underpriced classes plus I get 10% off on anything I purchase the day of the class. I cannot wait until they publish a new schedule of classes.

I made a going away card last week for a co-worker. Everyone was so impressed. They haven't really seen my craftiness yet since I have only been there a few months. Well on Friday, one of the guys that I go to work with asked me to make a birthday card for his dad's birthday this next week. I readily agreed especially since his dad has been really sick. But it is kind of hard for me to make a masculine card. And my best friend asked me to make two birthday cards, one for her husband and one for her son. So I sat down and made four birthday cards last night. I think they are fabulous. The two male cards have flowers on them but they are manly colors. I made two funky cards with that new Friendly Forest line by Colorbok at Michael's. I used the squirrels and went off their tag line "Go Nuts" and put "Go Nuts 4 Your Birthday" on the inside. I used the frogs and used the line"Get Froggy For Your Birthday" on the front. I am truly impressed with my cards. Again, I did take some crappy pictures that I will post later.

I did get two more scarves knitted since the last post where I showed off my first scarf. I bought some more funky yarns from Etsy. Of the first batch, I am not so impressed with the yarn made from banana fibers. It pulled apart pretty easily and it knotted all up trying to unravel it. I spent about 5 hours just rolling it up into balls to get it unknotted. The second order of yarn from Etsy came yesterday. I started on a new scarf with one of the yarns. Truly beautiful.

Now to the title of my post. I am a napper. I love to nap and can do it everyday if it was possible. I have been a napper for a long time. In fact I would call myself a professional. However it seems for the past couple of weeks I have lost my nap. Oh I lay down to nap but don't really get to sleep during said nap. Very bothersome. I probably do sleep but not a restful sleep. I am hoping to get my nap back and soon. In the meantime I will be testing my nap often to see if it is back.

Not much planned. I am still planning to move at the end of May. I keep going back and forth regarding renting or buying. Now is the time to buy but I am a little leary with work and life and whatknot.

I am going to start sewing today. I want to sell some dolls. I haven't made any soft dolls in several years but it is a hobby that I adore. I have been stocking up on new patterns, fabric, and other supplies so I need to put them to use. Ideally I want to work a craft show in the fall... so I need to get it together and get sewing. But I will probably list whatever I make online too. So this afternoon I am organizing a little and preparing to make some dolls!

02.03.2009 Crafty

What? I finally got my craft on. You betcha! Here is proof with a crummy photo from my phone. Granted you can't tell the gorgeous green colors of the scarf but I am sure you can use your imagination. Needless to say my craftyness resulted in this fantastic scarf I am modeling for you viewing pleasure. I knitted this scarf in four days. I went to Hobby Lobby on Saturday and finished this tonight. It is about 5 feet long, maybe closer to four. Anyways... I didn't knit in the traditional sense. I have been wanting to learn to knit. Somehow I ended up in the yard section at HobLob and noticed their knitting supplies were 40% off. So I look around and came across this knitting loom. It is just a plastic ring with knobs on it... granted I didn't get the ring but the more elongated rectangular one to make scarves. It is so easy... I am starting on a thinner more fashionable scarf this evening versus a winter/neck-warmer scarf. I am using the leftover yarn on the second scarf... leftover considering I purchased this ginormous skein of yard. And I bought two more skeins of yard from Etsy... more artsy type yarn (if there is such a saying). Yarn made from banana fibers and and some handspun wool yarn from a women's collective in Nepal and very inexpensive as seen here:

Handspun wool.

Banana fibers.

01.22.2009 Angry Whopper

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Um_hineki0o

Why do I love this commercial? The whip and the cattle prod are my favorite parts. I smile every time I see it!

01.19.2009 Etsy

Look at this sweet fabric I just purchased from Etsy. Isn't it adorable? (And expensive). I only got a half yard and it cost as much as a yard of regular fabric would be. It is a Japanese import so that is why it cost a little more. I had to have it... those sweet little deers!

01.16.2009 Nothing New

I haven't posted lately because nothing really new is happening. I did get my furniture and it is lovely. I will post a picture once I have my living room set... which will probably be two thousand and never (as my sister and I like to say). I can't even use my new furniture because my living room is still full of unpacked boxes. I hope to remedy that this weekend, especially with a three day weekend.

And for Kerry, the miracle drug was Zyrtec D (or shall I say the Walgreen's generic equivalent Wal-zyr D.) It is for allergies believe it or not... whodathunkit that I had allergies and not a cold or the flu. Because to be honest I can't tell the difference between a cold or the flu.

And for Joni, I hope to get crafy soon. Maybe not scrapping but something crafty. Again, I need to get my stuff unpacked and organized to attempt to get crafty.

Work is going great. I can't get enough of the great Mexican food here. Looking forward to the weekend.

Oh, I do have one major event to report. So I got the new furniture on Saturday. Pearl broke it in on Monday by chewing on the edge of one of the end tables. Pearl got into so much trouble and new she was in trouble. Poor thing. I was on the computer and she just wanted to hang out. She got a little bored and started to chew as dogs do. And Pearl not only loves to chew but she loves her some wood. I heard her chewing and called for her. Lo and behold, she was chewing on the brand new table. Not a brand new cheap table either. Needless to say that edge will be hidden in the corner until I can figure out how to "fix" it.

Have a great weekend!

01.10.2009 Furniture

I am sitting here killing time waiting for my new living room furniture to be delivered. Finally! After some hassles with the store with ordering and reordering pieces that weren't in stock. Of course I don't have all my crap unpacked yet. I just hope that I have enough space in the living room left to fit what is being delivered. I didn't get much done in the last couple of days because I have been sick. I came home from work early on Thursday and stayed home all day Friday too. Nothing like being in bed all day and can't breathe. Fun! I broke down and went to Walgreens last night to pick up some OTC medicine my sister recommended. Worked almost immediately. Okay it didn't wave a magic wand over my nose and all the mucus disappeared. But I am definately breathing easier and sound much better. Oh I am still sick and am going right back to bed after the delivery guys get here.

01.01.2009 Happy New Year

I hope I started the new year out right... Got up and ready to go pretty early today. Went to Ross (will tell you this story in a second...), Barnes and Noble, and then the laundromat.

Here is where I am hoping I started the year our right. I made a donation to Kiva.org Kiva is an organization that offers loans to enterprising individuals in third world countries. For as little as $25 you can change the lives of many individuals. I have made three $25 loans in the past year. I have been paid back according to the schedule by the individuals who borrowed the money. Granted $25 is just a small part of the loans requested. You would be amazed how far a couple of dollars go in these third world countries. I just think it is a great idea. It takes so little to make such a big impression in someone's life. And the Kiva organization runs on so little funds. The money I have been paid back on the loans, I have donated to the Kiva organization because I think it is such a worthwhile effort. Anyways I hope you are inspired to donate. Not necessarily to Kiva but to something... whether it is time, money, or goods. I know I have so much compared to many that have so little... and I have room to bitch about how bad my life is or when something doesn't go my way. Guess what... I have a job, a warm place to sleep, food to eat, a car to drive, and plenty of clothes. Not to mention all the other things that I think I need to make my life compete.

Now back to my Ross story (to purchase more of the things to make my life complete). I need some drinking glasses and curtain rods. I really didn't feel the need to pay full price when I saw what I wanted at Ross. Well I tried two times in the past couple of weeks to buy these items from Ross. Let me tell you that everyone from Las Cruces, El Paso, and Juarez must have been at Ross the same time I was, on both occasions. The lines to check out snaked through a roped off maze, along the side wall, and along the back wall. I said to myself do I really need to stand in line at least a hour to purchase $30 worth of stuff. The answer was definately NO. Plus you know there is never enough cashiers working the front and the ones that are working aren't in any kind of race to see who can get the most customers out the front door. Knowing I was going to be off today, I made sure to call Ross to see when they opened. I got there right at opening and was the only customer for a good 15-20 minutes. Bliss. I spent an hour in the store and was the only customer at the checkout. Bliss again. By the way, I also purchased the cutest little red skimmer shoes. Cutie patooties!

Happy New Year to each and every one of you. Wishing you good tidings for the new year to you and your family!

12.26.2008 After Christmas Shopping

I had a nice day yesterday for Christmas. It was just me, Baby, and Pearl. I made a wonderful meal and we just hung out at our apartment. The downer of the day is there wasn't shit on TV yesterday. I spent more time changing channels than actually watching anything. And I have movies on demand and couldn't find anything I wanted to watch.

I didn't intend to do any after Christmas shopping today. However, I did venture out. I needed to return a pair of jeans at Catherine's but they didn't have the size I need so that pretty much was a wasted trip. I went to Wal-mart to pick up a few things. The one thing I really, really needed I forgot, a mop. I went to a rubber stamp store that had some neat stuff. Where I hit the jackpot on after Christmas sales was Cracker Barrel. I stopped there for two reasons: 1) I was hungry and ate a late lunch and 2) I know there Christmas stuff is the shit. I bought about 13 ornaments plus a paper machete house for a whole $10. All their Christmas is at 70% off. Folks were in there grabbing ornaments like crazy... and of course I fit right in.

So basically I went out today to run errands to purchase/return stuff I needed. I didn't load up on too much Christmas stuff, just the few things from Cracker Barrel. I feel I had a pretty good day. Now I need to get to cleaning and go to the laundromat later this afternoon.

I hope all of you had a joyous holiday yesterday and a great day out today (if you were the adventurous type)!

12.24.2008 Happy Holidays