Better Late Than Never, Right?

I'm really bad at giving people gifts. It's not that I don't care. I'm just slow. Not only that, but I'm slow in the worst possible way. Here is a picture of the afghan that I made for my friend Nicole's baby. Her baby shower was back in December, I think. I tried to hurry and finish it for the shower, but I couldn't quite get it done in time. I only had one row left to do. I'd only started a few days before, so it wasn't shocking that I wasn't able to get it done. So I gave her the incomplete afghan, but told her I'd finish it soon.... Well 4 months later I finally finished that one row and gave it to her at her birthday party. But I think she liked it.

CRAFTIVITY!!

I've been doing a lot of crafting lately. Well, to put it more accurately, I've been preparing myself to do a lot of crafting lately. Danny got me a sewing machine for Christmas and I took a community sewing class that was great. I can't seem to stop buying patterns and craft books from the 70s. For some reason their crafts were far superior to our crafts today. Let me know if you ever want to make anything. I have lots of sewing, knitting, crocheting patterns. I also have a book about how to make fun bedrooms for your kids. I don't have kids, but it was such a cool book. I couldn't pass it up. There's a bunkbed that has a slide coming down from it!!! And another bunkbed that doesn't have a bed on the bottom, but rather a little art center. So cool. I want them for myself.

Here is a pattern for Halloween costumes for kids. Let me know if you want to borrow it.











Here's a detail of each of the costumes
An astronaut:













An Easter Bunny:













And a Sassy Cheetah:












I can't decide which one I like best. I think I love them all...

Cooking Tip: How to Avoid the Tears

You know how everyone is always trying to put in their 2 cents about how to cut an onion so you won't cry? All of the tips I've heard of and tried so far not only don't work, but they're TOTALLY RIDIC!!! I think my mom says to put a piece of bread under your top lip or something like that.

I thought of this brilliant new one. Swimming goggles. Yes, swimming goggles. It works. Try it! I LOVE cooking and many things I cook involve chopping onions, and since I no longer live with Nikki 6, I have to buck up and chop the onions myself. And I hate it. Or at least I did. Now it doesn't bother me at all. Try it. You'll want to thank me.

My Thoughts on Kirstie Alley

Don't you ever feel sorry for her? The media loves to take pictures of Kirstie Alley looking her absolute worst. I think Kirstie has crossed some sort of threshold that I think paparazzi and gossip mags need to be aware of: She just doesn't care anymore. She's not concerned about looking hot on her way to make a burger run. She'll go out in her sweats any time, any day. You'd think at that the whole thing of stalking celebs and taking unflattering pictures of them to make them look bad would no longer be fun at that point. It's the same principle that causes some people who are being teased to turn the other cheek and not react and it makes the teaser finally give up. I know that Kirstie Alley is hardly in the lime light anymore. Surely this entry would have had its greatest impact a couple years ago during that whole fat actress thing. But the idea is the same. We need to leave people like Kirstie Alley alone and focus our efforts on people like LC, Fergie, and Jennifer Anniston. People who would DIE if anyone saw them in sweats or without make up. Let's make this intrusive, defiling, and creepy game fun again!!! Let's not waste our time bullying the kid who has already graciously accepted his nickname.

Here's to Pisces!

I just wanted to make a little shout out to Pisceans. It's currently your time to shine! I'm not known as a lover of this weakest sign of the zodiac, but I wanted to let all of my Pisces friends to know that I love and support you and that there are no hard feelings. We all know that Pisces are lazy day dreamers, but that doesn't mean they aren't worthwhile people. True, they may not contribute much to society. But there is still something special about them. Pisces bring a sense of mystery and charm into all of our lives. Their dream world is exactly what folk-progrockers envisioned. I think it's good to be exposed to this world. Pisceans make it cool and acceptable to be sensitive. They have the burden of being the sign associated with feet. In fact, Pisceans probably have painful feet right now, even though they are likely vegging on the couch. Being a Gemini it seems unlikely that I would have much of a bond with any of these dreamy fish. But in fact Geminis and Pisces work wonders together when they meet on artistic planes. It's so true! Even though lil toot and I were in school together since jr. high, we didn't become friends until we had art classes together. And Minky and I were stitched together through crotcheting and knitting. Danny H. has filled our house with beautiful works of art, and I think my attending Marsha's MFA show was the kick off of our friendship. My life has been enhanced and beautified thanks to my relationships with these and many other Pisces! Thank you for giving me a chance to love and accept you!!!
(but ps. I have a nephew on the way and he could come out any day now. No offense but I'm hoping he'll stay in till March 21. I LOVE Aries!)

I've Been a Long Time Gone

So I decided to fill everyone in on the changes at our house. Maybe some of you are already familiar with these delightful changes. Maybe some of you will be inspired.
Exhibit A:
This sad girl with her snide cat is Blesh. She's maybe the noteworthy piece of art that we've had in our house for the longest time. She's in our bathroom. I feel bad for her every time I go in there. I can only postulate why she's crying. But I'm pretty sure it has something to do with that cat. And maybe the cat's indifference.



Exhibit B:
Along with the cat theme this is a gold foil cat that dh gave me for my b-day. It used to be central to the cat room in the apartment and he thought it should stay here. This cat is much more pleasant and cheerful than Blesh's cat. I think the 2 cats balance each other out maybe?




Exhibit C:
This is the retarded angel that hung on our Christmas tree last year but is now on our fridge.

Exhibit D:
This is the creepy little doll that DD gave me. I'm not sure why everyone seems to have the idea that they should give me creepy little dolls, but I commend everyone who does because it's the right idea. I seem to be a magnet for things like this. (She's holding an inspirational quote. Let me know if you're interested in knowing what it says.)



Exhibit E:
This is one of our newest additions. This is what dh gave Hoon for her b-day. And now he proudly hangs on our wall. I can't remember the name they gave him. Some sort of vampire g.a. thing.





I hope this was an enjoyable virtual tour of my life and my house. I'm a sporadic blogger. 3 posts in 1 day 3 months ago... 3 posts in 1 day 3 months later. But I'll try to be more regular.

Speaking of Being Focused...

In the past few years I've noticed some major changes in myself as far as focus goes. I compare my experiences in grad school with how I was in regular college and it's pretty amazing. Sad really. As an 18, 19, 20...year old in college I would take a lot of evening classes which were often 3 hour blocks. A lot of these were general ed science, history classes. Some were in large auditoriums with 300+ other students. These classes weren't necessarily exciting, but I remember being able to sit still and stay focused. I was always glad when class was over, but it never seemed too painful. Then I think about grad school. I'm older. I'm studying something I'm very interested in. My classes have all been small and overall engaging. Yet I have a harder time staying focused. Not just in class either. I struggle with staying committed to a number of projects (thesis). Maybe some people think this is silly, and maybe it is. But I attribute it in a lot of ways to my phone. I didn't have a phone in my undergrad years. Most of my friends had cellphones, but I resisted as long as I could. I didn't want this device to own me. But it has. I try not to text in class because I think it's disrespectful. But the second I get bored in a class I reach for my phone. To see what time it is. To see if anyone has texted me. To ask google what the weather will be tomorrow. It doesn't really matter the reason. I'm relieved that I've never wanted to take a laptop to class. I can only imagine. Class lectures would just be some annoying background noise I hear while I'm surfing.

This idea has intrigued me. I could go on and on. I feel so much more impatient than I think I used to. I feel my social skills diminishing... Yesterday I was listening to an old Radiowest podcast (i love d-fab!). It was called the Autumn of the Multitaskers. I highly recommend listening to it if you have the chance. It's an interview with the author of this article: http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200711/multitasking . It's made me want to give away my phone and makes me feel that I'd probably be better off if I wrote out my thesis and then typed the final draft on a typewriter. Seriously. I would have been done months ago!