You Are Sunny

You are an upbeat, positive person who refuses to get too down in the dumps. You realize that life is short, and you know you're going to try to have as much fun as possible! You try to laugh, play, and love every day. You believe that happiness is a choice. You take your responsibilities seriously, but that doesn't mean you can't enjoy yourself in the process.

Are You Sunny, Cloudy, or Stormy?

Blogthings: We'll Tell You The Truth... Someone Has To!

      

Sensational Haiku Wednesday

Welcome to “Sensational Haiku Wednesday!”

Click here for info and background on this weekly event!

The basics:
Haiku is simple! It is 3 non-rhyming lines of 5, 7, and 5 syllables respectively (a great way to use your fingers!)

This week’s theme is: Paradox

 

Achy, Stiff Body

gym workouts can add to this

eyes stay on the prize!

 

No pain is no gain

Soon I hope to feel better

don't hurt me too much!

 

 

Skill + 1UP – 2KCBWDAY2
Look back over your last year of projects and compare where you are in terms of skill and knowledge of your craft to this time last year. Have you learned any new skills or forms of knitting/crochet (can you crochet cable stitches now where you didn’t even know such things existed last year? Have you recently put a foot in the tiled world of entrelac? Had you even picked up a pair of needles or crochet hook this time last year?.

I'm going to cheat a little bit on this question.  Last February (so 13 months) during the Ravelympics, I made my first beaded project, a beaded shawl - Shoshie.  The second thing I got much more proficient in was colorwork , thanks to doing a bunch of mini-socks designed by Meagheen Ryan.  Right now I am almost done with a project involving needle felting over a fulled item (no pics yet for that)   The last item project is part of the NERDWARS competition.  I think besides getting to know a whole new group of people one of the best aspects, for me, in a competitive environment like Ravelympics or Nerdwars, it the fact that they force me to stretch outside my normal boundaries and learn and try new things.  SOmetimes these things are successful, sometimes not ( you will read about my soft kitty fiasco soon)  but at least I am pushed to try - and in the case of beading discover something new that I really enjoy.



 

A Tale of Two Yarns – 2KCBWDAY1
Part of any fibre enthusiast’s hobby is an appreciation of yarn. Choose two yarns that you have either used, are in your stash or which you yearn after and capture what it is you love or loathe about them.

This is going to be a rather quick post, because  I picked up a stomach virus over the weekend, and it's late, and I'm tired.

I'm not going to single out a favorite yarn, because it will probably be the last one of it's type I've worked with.  I love, love, love, hand dyed sock yarns in deep, rich colors.  Especially deep dark blood reds!  Sock yarn as a category to me is the most versatile category.  Beyond the obvious socks, I make fingerless gloves, hats, scarves, shawls, tea cozies, you can even make lightweight sweaters.  And for heavier items you can double the yarn.  And since socks are meant to be worn in a high wear area, the yarn is durable, much of it is actually machine washable although I can't bring myself to do that.

My least favorite yarn, although I will work with it occasionally when required for the finished object I want is fun fur.  It is a pain in the ass to deal with, for me it always seems to develop tangles, it is really easy to drop a stitch, I'd rather start over than frog or tink with it.  My next least favorite yarn which I swore I would never knit with again is boucle.  i get my needles caught, it tangles, it's hard to frog or tink, and I just don't enjoy it.  Since I am more of a process knitter than a project knitter there really isn't a point in yarn you don't enjoy, since the process is more important that the final project.
 

Knit lunch.

Another of this month's Nerd Wars Challenges is "Don't Hide Your Light Under a Bushel"  This  challenge could be fulfilled two ways. The first is a yarn bombing project- but here in the suburbs of NJ that is considered vandalism.  And it would be a serious shame to have a knit project ripped down and trashed.  The second way is to knit in a public non-knitting place. So the LYS doesn't count.  My friend Grace and I get together for lunch and knitting on a regular basis.  We try for once a week, but sometimes life gets in the way. whenever we do go, people do come up to us (seriously, if you are feeling anti-social and don't want to be approached by people, read a book, knitting attracts comments)  There comments range from Oh my grandmother used to knit, What are your crocheting(when we're knitting and vice versa) The occasional I learned to knit as a kid but haven't done it since,  I wish I could knit (that one is slightly irritating.  I mean at one point I wished I could knit, I then proceeded to LEARN) and the always What are you knitting, That is so pretty, that looks so complicated, did you knit that (whatever you are wearing or is on the chair) an old man once told us he liked to watch us knit because it reminded him of his mom knitting.

So here is Grace and I knitting at a dinner-like place near her house called The Spa (when I told Curt I was meeting her there, he told me not to tell the Angie LOL) We had a wonderful lunch (I had spinach and walnut salad with gorgonzola cheese crumbles and lobster bisque soup) and then broke out the knitting. TO get extra points for my Nerd Wars team I am wearing my Bazinga t-shirt ( I am on the Big Bang Theory team)  The red bag on the table was my Nerd Wars Bag- but it fell over :(

Locking the Dead In

Locking the Dead In

Welcome to the March 24th edition of Thursday Thunks!

Where we make you think a little bit before you blog!

We pick a subject, and your job is to interpret it anyway you want.

Write about it on your blog... simple as that.

Maybe you can interpret it as a picture - we don't care!

Please only leave a link if you have written a Thursday Thunks post.

Don't forget to go visit the other participants' blogs.

Read and comment about all their Thursday Thunks responses!

That's what all this is about after all, isn't it?

We'll have so much fun and become lifelong friends....

The TT questions are brought to you by Berleen, the color of falling snow and the number four thousand eight hundred seventy three..

1. Would you try a dog food flavored jelly bean? What about skunk spray or vomit flavored? No, No, No.  However may I suggest:

2. Are any keys on your keyboard worn off?Not on the laptop- on my last phone there were a couple, but I don't remember which.

3. Why are the lids on coffins nail/locked/sealed? Are we afraid they are going to get out?god I hope not!!!

4. True love. Define it.Curtis.

5. Where is the strangest place you are ever fallen asleep?I guess the hardest to believe is in the 8th row of a George Clinton concert in a community theatre building!  But seriously - I fall asleep at the drop of a hat ( I don't really fall asleep, I more just switch off)  and sleep like I'm in a coma unless there is mocking happening- then I just pop awake.

6. A doctor walks up to you and says "I will change anything you want... big or small... doesn't matter how much it costs, I'll do it for free!". What do you have him fix or change on your body? I want my old boobs back!  they got smaller after I had my daughter!

7. The last picture you took - share it. Well, if it's not something we would probably find in Bud's recent photos. 

 

 

8. Blue or black ink. Your preference?I never, ever, ever use blue or black ink.  Purple and orange are my 2 favorite colors to write with, green, pink work too. 
Uniball is my favorite pen company.  These are my favs:

These are my second choice:

9. You are walking down the sidewalk on a city street and you see a little girl, about 3 or 4 years old, she asks you if you can tie her shoe for her. What do you do? I walk into work every morning, and the guy who was my boss, who still unlocks the door for me, ties my shoes....  seriously.... every morning...  double knots them so they don't become untied after he leaves in the morning.

10. What channel numbers are ABC, NBC, CBS and FOX for you?7,4,2 &5

11. Did/do you have any marriage deal breakers?Well we are assuming the guy was dateable right?   The biggest is the understanding that I am not turning into Mrs. Cleaver, had to both be able to drive a stick shift and agree to never buy an automatic ( cause I have issues driving automatics) , has to get along with my friends (who are mostly guys anyway) and has to make me laugh and be fun to just hang out with.

Sensational Haiku Wednesday

Welcome to “Sensational Haiku Wednesday!”

Click here for info and background on this weekly event!

The basics:
Haiku is simple! It is 3 non-rhyming lines of 5, 7, and 5 syllables respectively (a great way to use your fingers!)

This week’s theme is: Roots

 

Insidious pear,

roots don't crack sidewalks, flowers

springtime misery.

 

 My daughter is sooo allergic to Bradford Pear pollen.  It makes her eyes burn red, nose drip, sneeze, befuddles her brain- and if the pollen gets on her skin so does a hive.  Two weeks before they bloom she starts taking Claritin before bed (Claritin clear is not true with her if she takes it in the morning).

Do you Remember Friday's Post??

After being 78 degrees and sunny on Friday, today was 32 degrees and snowing pretty hard up until 10am.  Of course since I start at 4am- my day is 75% over by the time it quit snowing.  But I had fun- outside, on a forklift- with no treads on the tires, on a uphill ramp, with full skids of topsoil on it.  Seriously, thoug, I find that fun- people think I'm kinda nuts.  But the really twisted thing was the more people griped about it the more fun I had playing in it!

Swap Goodies!!

I was in a St Patrick's Day swap on Ravelry.  I realized I never showed you guys what I got- and I needed a blog idea.  Really cool green sock yarn (my favorite kind of yarn and not just for socks)  a mug cozy, some soak wash for handknits, the coolest little crocheted sheep stitch markers, a felted leaf notions bag and a surprisingly good chocolate bar - dark chocolate covering raspberry/lemon truffle centers with bits of crunchy biscotti.  I usually don't care for raspberry flavored things but it was really surprisingly good!

You Are a Bodily Learner

You learn best by doing, and you have a talent for complicated, physical tasks. You excel at athletics, drama, and fixing things. You would be an excellent Olympic athlete - or a Broadway star!

What's Your Learning Style?

Blogthings: We Have a Quiz for Almost Everything

       

Spring is Sunday- I'm early!!

Welcome to the March 17th edition of Thursday Thunks!

(which we always seem to post on Wednesday)

Where we make you think a little bit before you blog!

We pick a subject, and your job is to interpret it anyway you want.

Write about it on your blog... simple as that.

Maybe you can interpret it as a picture - we don't care!

Please only leave a link if you have written a Thursday Thunks post.

Don't forget to go visit the other participants' blogs.

Read and comment about all their Thursday Thunks responses!

That's what all this is about after all, isn't it?

We'll have so much fun and become lifelong friends....

The TT questions are brought to you by Berleen, the color of melting snow and the number 456..

1. There is a song out there about you... it's on the radio, the video is on tv (just not MTV) and everybody in the world knows this song is about you. Who sings it?That's easy. Brooks & Dunn.

My Maria (From CMT Invitation Only) - Brooks & Dunn - Brooks & Dunn Videos

4. Have you ever sneaked..snuck...snucked...what is the right word? into a movie?  No but I've snuck out..... ;P

3. Déjà vu; meaning "already seen", is the experience of feeling sure that one has already witnessed or experienced a current situation, even though the exact circumstances of the previous encounter are uncertain and were perhaps imagined. Thoughts on what it is? Have you experienced it?   many times.

2. Stick it to me, baby. What is the last bumper sticker you saw and why do you remember it?  The one that says co-exist with different faiths symbols.  Because I wish we could.

 

 

 

10. Ever wonder what fish think about?No.

8. If you could paint President Obama's fingernails any color, what would it be?Paisley

7. Do you have seat covers on your car seats? What do they look like?No, I was going to get Wile E Coyote & Road Runner ( 2 sets so I could just use Wile. ) but when I went back they were sold out and i never saw them again.

6. For the rest of your life you can eat one spice and one spice only (on whatever food you want, of course), what spice do you choose?Cannot live without lots of black pepper.

9. If you could slide down a rainbow, which side would you slide down?the side with the pot of Gold.

5. So a mom is suing her kids' preschool because it failed to prepare the child for the kindergarten entrance exam... did you eat paste in preschool?I didn't go to pre-school.  I also never ate paste.  I did use Japanese sticky rice smeared on the back of a piece of paper to finish a project cause I couldn't find glue.

I think you need to go back to pre-school Ber!  At least the numbering part!!

Sensational Haiku Wednesday

Welcome to “Sensational Haiku Wednesday!”

Click here for info and background on this weekly event!

The basics:
Haiku is simple! It is 3 non-rhyming lines of 5, 7, and 5 syllables respectively (a great way to use your fingers!)

This week’s theme is: Integrity

 

Makes my boss crazy

wont just make reports look good

accuracy counts!

three thousand miles from

my still losing football team

I still cheer them on.

Etsy Privacy Fail!!

For those of you unfamiliar to Etsy.com it is a buying/selling site for handcrafters and artisans to sell their goods online.  I have purchased (probably not quite as literally as my friend Jen) tons of yarn, stitch markers, knit kits, bags, purses, jewelry, shirts, art, (I'm sure more) I did appreciate being able to use pay pal and Etsy, because while receiving goods directly form the artist, I liked having a fallback to go to "just in case"  Feedback can be left on Etsy- and I try to leave as honest a feedback as possible, to help the good artists make future sales, and to give other buyers a heads up if there were difficulties. Feedback of each seller is available to look at before you make a purchasing decision.



Etsy suddenly, AND WITHOUT WARNING TO BUYERS, decided to make public all buyers records.  A buyer can be searched by REAL NAME, and all the purchases the buyers have made are also searchable.  Apparently, this information may even show up on Google!!  I don't want the world to be able to see what I have purchased!  I am not currently looking for a job (but may be in September) but for those people looking for a job (and in this economy that is a lot of people) many employers are using Google and facebook searches, do I want prospective employers to form an impression of me based on my purchases?  Do I want people to know my sex toy preferences?  NOT!

The article about this is here.



The only reason I have not already deleted my account is that I have purchased items not ready to ship yet, and I am waiting to see if that would be overreacting.  At the bottom of the article linked above are directions to change your privacy settings, so only you and the seller in question can see your records.  I have changed both my password and my privacy settings.

Etsy's "reason" is to make their site more like a social networking site.  I am not going to Etsy  to make friends or socialize.  I could go to facebook or any number of networking sited if I wanted to do that.  the only social site I visit or intend to visit is Ravelry, and if they suddenly made public my real name and any purchases I made through their store I would create a new account with not my real name and never make another purchase.

Ok- all you hogwarts fans- I took the quiz

 And you guys lost the bet!! Ha!!  Not slytherin... almost but not!!

Which Hogwarts house will you be sorted into?

Another nerdy challenge answered!

These answered the technical challenge for the month of March which was polytech.  A project that used more than one craft to create the finished project, one of them being a Ravelry craft (knitting, crochet, spinning, weaving?) Ok I don't know the 4th.  And 3 bonus points for a tie in to your team.  I made a barrette, a hairband and a pin, using crocheted flowers with a sewn floral backing, and beaded buttons.  The tie in to my team (Bazinga - for The BigBang Theory) is the episode when Penny needed the boys to help her manufacture the blossoms worn in your hair that she had sold on the internet.

First I crocheted 6 flowers.



Then I cut and sewed the fabric blossoms. (which required purchasing new fabric scissors and pinking shears- since certain people- kept cutting other things with my scissors and dulled them)  Those of you who know me well know that for me to break out a needle and thread- I seriously want the points.



I attached the 2 pieces with a button and 3 beads.  I then covered the back with a round of self stick felt that I also stitched around the edges.



I then attached a pin back to one, a barrette and a hairband.

 

It was sunny on Friday!

It was originally supposed to be rainy, so I took the opportunity to clean up the front garden a bit.  This involved pruning the out of control rose bush/tree.  As far as I know, we haven't pruned it in 8 years and the bush was pretty wild when we got here, so I don't know when if ever it was pruned.  I know it is in the worst possible location for a rose.  Wrong soil, bad direction facing, poor drainage.  I think I improved it some, adding some potting soil (hey it's what I had) which isn't really soil, and miracle grow and mulch, because in the last 2 years it really grew.  One branch reached the second floor windows.

Now as some of you know, the big orange box, eliminated my job in February, so I took another job with them  (hey 5 weeks paid vacation & 6 personal days every year is tough to give up) in the Garden dept.  I spent a lot of time the last half of February taking the online classes they'd make me take anyway starting March 1st ( that way I wasn't stuck taking them for 6-7 hours in a day) One of the classes was on roses, and how to prune the different kind of roses. I'm still not 100% sure which type of rose it is but I have it narrowed down to 2 types that have similar pruning needs.  So armed with this, and my clippers and loppers I headed out.  I really should have taken 2 of the main canes off, but I didn't want to.  I moved my short useless black hook (anything I hang off it touches the ground wtf? ) to try and convince one of the canes that it would rather be there than rubbing another one.  If it doesn't stay, one of the 2 will have to be cut.

I don't have a picture of the before- I can probably find one from before - but here is the after.  It is 6 feet shorter now than when I started.:



The one dead cane in the center needs to be cut with a saw.  It's over 2" in diameter.  Also, I learned something not in the class (well it was sort of - they suggested at the end of class if you help a customer with this to suggest a pair of leather/suede as opposed to fabric garden gloves) I wore no gloves.  The rose fought back.

I looked at the vertical garden box we made last spring and while I am not 100% sure what succulents are supposed to look like through the winter- none of them look dead.  As a matter of fact the 2 red ones on the bottom corners seem to be spreading to the soil below.



Last year I cut the Montauk daisies down to the ground at Christmas time, and they usually start growing back starting in June.  So when I went to cut them down, I noticed that leaves were growing back on the bottom of the stems.  I did NOT learn about this in any of the garden classes.  So I cut the dead stems off above the leaf growth.  So now they look like this:




Mind you - I'M TERRIBLE  at pruning.  My friend Paul says to look at it as giving the plant a haircut.  I see it more like amputating an extremity.  I am working on it.  


I have a lot of bulbs coming up:





And I have a flower!!



 

Don't know if this will be a regular or not yet.

Welcome to Rock 'n Roll Fridays by DJ KathyA! We are like other memes in that we will ask you thirteen questions each and every Friday. But our little "twist" is that each week we will pick a singer, band, era or category and pick thirteen of their songs. Each of our questions will be based on the lyrics. Got it? Great! Let's begin this week's meme!

Today we picked Talking Heads.

1. Psycho Killer “I can’t seem to face up to the facts, I’m tense and nervous and I can’t relax. I can’t sleep cuz my bed’s on fire. Don’t touch me I’m a real live wire…”
What has kept you from a restful night’s sleep recently?  Two things- Curt's snoring and a spring popped in my mattress. flipped it (the mattress) until I get around to buying another.

2. Life During Wartime “This ain’t no party, this ain’t no disco…this ain’t no foolin around. No time for dancing or lovey dovey. I ain’t got time for that now…”
Where was the last nightclub or disco you went to?  Seriously?? I honestly don't remember.  Trying, but don't remember.

3. Take Me To The River “Take me to the river. Dip me in the ocean. Take me to the river washing me down…”
When was the last time you took a dip in the water? I'm assuming you don't mean my shower right?  So i guess last summer.

4. Found A Job “Their show gets high ratings, they think they have a hit. There might be a spin off, but they’re not sure ‘bout that”
What is your favorite TV spin off show of all time? Benson??

5. Once In A Lifetime “And you may ask yourself How do I work this? And you may ask yourself Where is that large automobile? And you may tell yourself This is not my beautiful house! And you may tell yourself This is not my beautiful wife!”
Are you happy with your choices of car, house and spouse/no spouse?Yes, although pretty soon it will be time for a new car and that is always such and ordeal. Especially since GM closed Saturn.  And I am such a pain in the ass about it.  I have sort of accepted that I will probably have to get power windows and locks ( I have control issues and yes keep one of those window breaking things under the seat in Curt's car) But I absolutely refuse to drive an automatic transmission.  And sticks seem to come in baseline 4 cyl engines or high end sports cars.  I'm going to end up in a German car and I don't want to do that, cuase I'd rather American nd I want a car that uses regular gas not premium.

6. This Must Be The Place “Out of all those kinds of people, you got a face with a view. I’m just an animal looking for a home, share the same space for a minute or two…”
Who has a face with a view?  There are a couple slurpable faces out there. But right now the one I most want is Tony!

7. Girlfriend Is Better “I got a girlfriend that’s better than this, and you don’t remember at all. As we get older and stop making sense, You won’t find her waiting long…”
What is the shortest date or relationship you have ever had? 8 minutes?  After hurting my knee skiing and then having to drive home because my then boyidiot couldn't drive a stick, I decided to only date guys who could. You know injuries, migraines,  alcohol any number of reasons I wouldn't want to drive home.  Then found out the next boy idiot only lied to me about being able to drive a stick- he saw someone so thought it was easy.  After that unless the boy idiots had a stick for their own I made them drive mine around the block before we went out.  I think the one guy thought i was kidding - I thought I was very clear.  He failed before the first stop sign, I made him get out, I drove the 300 feet back home, went inside, locked the door, ordered pizza.

8. Swamp “Everyone wants to explode. And when your hands get dirty, nobody knows you at all. Don’t have a window to slip out of . Lights on, nobody home”
Where was the last homeless person you saw and what was he/she doing? Cleaning themselves in  a store's restroom. ( I gave them the 20 dunkin donuts gift card I had)

9. Road To Nowhere “We’re on the road to paradise. Here we go. We’re on a road to nowhere, come on inside. Takin that ride to nowhere, we’ll take that ride”
When was the last time you took a day trip or a road trip? Does going to Philly to pick up the Angie for her week off count?? if yes - then Saturday.

10. And She Was "The word was movin and she was right there with it and she was”
Are you keeping up with the world? What piece of modern technology do you still need to own/use? LaTely, Ive been trying to keep the outside world outside.  I only read the newspaper on Sunday's and don't watch the news.  I occasionally see things on the internet. ( My mom's family is in japan so I have been watching the earthquake news) I don't know what I still need.  I have top of the line video game machines, ipod touch, laptop, galaxy, ipad. smart phone. I don't have a gps, but my phone has 3 different navigation programs- google maps nav is my favorite... Oh I know I want the Nikon digital SLR.  definietly don't need it though,

11. Wild Wild Life Sleepin on the interstate oh oh oh…getting wild wild life. Checkin in and checkin out oh oh oh, I got a wild wild life”
When was the last time you stayed at a motel/hotel and what town were you in?August- Curt was with me so I couldn't crash at my friend's place, and silly me, i thought I should stick around for a day or so when Angie moved into her dorm, in case she needed anything.  I ended up spending 2 days with my friend (Curt left on day 2). That would be in center city Philadelphia

12. Nothing But Flowers “Once there were parking lots, now it’s a peaceful oasis, you got it you got it. Once it was a pizza Hut, now it’s all covered with daisies. I miss the honky tonks, Dairy Queens and 7-11 s…”
What would you miss if nature grew back over malls and concrete?Starbucks

13. Building On Fire “When my love stands next to your love, I can’t define love, when it’s not love…”
Define love. I CAN'T.   Seriously, the problem is the English language.  I LOVE coffee.  I Love football.  I LOVE flooring.  I Love unloading trucks. I LOVE sushi.  I Love my friends.  I LOVE my friend's cat.  I LOVE a few of my friends more/differently.  I LOVE my daughter.  I LOVE my uncle.  I LOVE my cousins. I LOVE my husband.  All of these LOVES are different.  Someone told me once that in the Greek language there were like 20 or 30 words- all different- for different loves. 

Coming soon: Pink Floyd!

Thunks were back!

I wonder if anyone will notice....

Welcome to the March 8th edition of Thursday Thunks!
Where we make you think a little bit before you blog!
We pick a subject, and your job is to interpret it anyway you want.
Write about it on your blog... simple as that.
Maybe you can interpret it as a picture - we don't care!
Please only leave a link if you have written a Thursday Thunks post.
Don't forget to go visit the other participants' blogs.
Read and comment about all their Thursday Thunks responses!
That's what all this is about after all, isn't it?
We'll have so much fun and become lifelong friends....

The TT questions are brought to you by Berleen, the color of my coffee cup and the number of requests I've gotten to bring this damn thing back.

1. Charlie Sheen is an idiot and will probably end up with his own stupid reality show that will get 40 million viewers the first day and then people will fall asleep and quit watching. What person, celebrity or not, would you watch every eppy of a reality show if they were the center of it all?No body.  Even tried thinking of fictional/mythical characters and still - nobody.  I really don't care enough about some stranger to watch a show about their life, putting my own on the back seat.  The closest I come is occasionally watching the Next iron Chef, or the Next Food Network Star or Dancing with the Stars- but I don't even watch all of those episodes.

2. We all pay bills and wish we didn't have to. We all work and wish we could just lay around all day doing nothing. We all have those grown up responsibilities that we wish we could give to an African Elephant. Besides all the things the African Elephant got from you for the day, what is something from your high school years that you miss most of all?That feeling of open possibilities.  That all path's were open and you just had to choose.  Of course that came with the anxiety of making the right choice.

3. Sometimes we want to grow wings and fly. Whats the farthest you've fallen?How high is the peak of a 2-car garage??

4. There is square bread, wheat bread, circle shaped bread, bread with nuts in it, funny named bread. When you open a bread bag, do you twist it when you are done or put the metal tie thingie back on? (And did you know that if you look at that metal tie thingie, it has a day of the week printed on it?) I know the plastic thing has a date- never really examined the metal twisty thing.  I don't like the twisty thing- it's a pain in the ass. If my bread has a plastic thing I try to use it- usually make it about halfway down the loaf before I just make a knot in the plastic.

5. Some spoiled little brat (hey.. my opinion) called 911 on her teacher because he shook his own desk to get the students attention in the class. (I know, right?) Think back... what clever ways did a teacher of yours use to get the attention of the class or a particular student? Well, I know I hated the pop quiz teachers.  My HS physics teacher had an airhorn in his desk.

6. Artwork, pictures, notes, appointments. How many magnets are on your refrigerator?Ugh, your making me get up.. does the timer thing and the bulletin board count??  38.

7. Cats are fluffy, dogs are soft, snakes are leathery, fish are wet. What is an animal that you have held or petted that you don't think many people have had the chance?I actually once faced my biggest phobia (well next to spiders) and pet a baby alligator.  In Florida, because my child who held the damn thing, asked if I were chicken.

8. I'm coming to your house to paint your kitchen. I'm bringing the paint. What color should I not have with me?Hate beige with every fiber of my being.  White is a close second.  Pick a freakin color!

9. Snow falls down, sometimes sideways. It still ends up on the ground. If snowflakes came in all different colors, which color snowflake would fall the fastest?Black- the pollution that made them black would make them less fluffy.

10. We caved... well at least I did. Are you glad Thursday Thunks is back?YES!!!

Sensational Haiku Wednesday

Welcome to “Sensational Haiku Wednesday!”

Click here for info and background on this weekly event!

The basics:
Haiku is simple! It is 3 non-rhyming lines of 5, 7, and 5 syllables respectively (a great way to use your fingers!)

This week’s theme is: Hope

 Ash Wednesday is here,

Lenten time of reflection,

Prepares for Easter.

Give up sweets, chocolate

coffee, alcohol, swearing?

Does that really help?

Time to reflect on

Our lives, our hearts, ready to

Welcome in the Lamb?

Will this 40 days

Be another year wasted?

Or be different?

Your Dominant Thinking Style: Exploring

You thrive on the unknown and unpredictable. Novelty is your middle name. You are a challenger. You tend to challenge common assumptions and beliefs. An expert inventor and problem solver, you approach everything from new angles. You show people how to question their models of the world.

What's Your Thinking Style?

Blogthings: Learn Something Surprising About Yourself

       

Signs of Spring

It's been pouring here since last night.  Serious, heavy drenching rain for over the last 24 hours.  Add to that the fact that it was in the low 50's today and a significant amount of the snow has melted. (Notice I didn't say all) The fact that tonite's lows are in the 20's and tomorrows lows are in the teens we are going to be getting some icing.  

 

I've already been planning out my container garden and my flowers, reserved my extreme hot peppers and heirloom tomato plants.  This year is a bit more adventurous, as I have spent over 20 hours on the computer in on-line training for work.  From last week to Sept 1'st I have a position dealing with Garden Recovery.  Right now it's a lot of fun (the cold everyone else is bitching about doesn't bother me- I  dress for it - I know radical concept- and dressing for it doesn't mean trying to work dressed like the Michelin man) the area is gated off from customers, so it's just dealing with the trucks, setting the beams (one beam was stubborn took 2 f'ing hours) putting in the skids as they come off the trucks.  Anytime I can spend 6-7 hours on a lift truck I'm having fun ( but i do have an inner 8 year old boy).  But sooner or later (hopefully sooner - we were 2 weeks behind when I got out there) we'll be done and customers will be out there.  

So in order to be able to help them, I have to take these classes.  ( I actually scored high enough on 8 of the tests to get a nursery certification)  I've learned a lot that I didn't know, learned why certain things work and others don't work.  I knew what to do before, I didn't know why.  So all this new knowledge has me feeling more adventurous in my garden plans.  As much as I love winter - and even after this winter I still love snow and winter and cold weather - once I start planning my veggies and flowers I am ready for spring to hit.  When I looked outside by the door this afternoon, where the snow had melted in the rain I saw my first signs of spring.

The Angie is home for a few days!

We picked the Angie up from school on Sat morning - as they were closing the dorms at 5pm - unless you had a reason you had to stay (Athletes etc) and made prior arrangements.  We won't go into how her flakey high school friends impacted this plan.  We stopped and had breakfast on the way home.  Then both she and I took naps - she because being ready at 830, put a strain on her waking up before 9am, and me because I didn't get into bed after being out until almost 1am, and then leaving at 630 for Philly.

We woke up at 3pm and headed to Wharton to Hot Rods (see post about my anniversary from last weekend)  to split some Crawfish and Oyster dishes.  She'll be off with her friends Tue & Wed hanging out with her grandfather (causing trouble I'm sure) on Thur. So I won't be seeing her that much, but Curt still thinks we'll have a fight.