Penny Lane

♪ ..."As Simple As It Gets..." ♪

2011-03-16T16:19:00.006-04:00

Lots of things going down in PennyLane!

I'm very frazzled lately. I feel as if I have obtained a new level of insanity.

Here are a few updates:

-I've had a lot more traffic over at Songs in my heART blog! Which I love, love, love.

-I had a health scare, which was found to be significantly less worrisome than previously thought.

-I've started a giant scrapbooking project, covering all of my Jimmy Eat World adventures, since 1999. (Mostly how I found them and many, many concerts and travel-up until now)

-I may have a cake order for 200 cupcakes in April (holy wowza)..

-Just found out Jim will be coming back around East Coast in June-looks like I'm heading off to New Jersey for this.

-I found out Anthony Jr. likes to watch sports...

-Finished two amazing novels by Jonathan Safran Foer. He touches my heart every time I pick up his books. Please look him up..you won't regret it ♥

-On reading Hebrew? -I'm halfway there..

-Been filling up my art journal!

-Searched for my lost keys for an hour and a half yesterday, only to find they were in my purse.

-I got one of these, bitches! My life is forever changed.

AND

-Even though I was against it, I actually found a show on the Oprah Winfrey Network that I enjoy watching. It's a documentary series.

Do Ya Love Me?

2011-02-11T10:40:00.010-05:00

In honor of Valentines Day I ask you all:

Who/What do you L♥ve??

Here are a few things that I ♥heart♥

this guy ♥♥♥

and to go along with above...Super excited about my road trip. I love a musical road trip!

My beauty-ful JA 90.

Teen Mom 2. I SO look forward to you every week...

Extra time playing JA. Set aside time each weekend to spend time with him!

My new art journal! Loving it so far!

My Bud ♥♥♥

Cupcakes orders lately! So much easier than Cakes!

AtC Arts :)

Semi-Charmed Kind of Life...

2011-02-08T09:56:00.004-05:00

So I've been M.I.A for awhile. I tried to go back and catch up with all my bloggie buds but I've been missing longer than I originally thought. I'm sorry I have neglected you. It's been hectic in life as of late.

I started taking a class to learn hebrew, had a few cake orders, got about three new/extra duties to do at work, planning an out of state road trip and I am about to begin the process of taking the PRAXIS for special ed teaching certification.

Busy times in Penny Lane. I have managed to read in all of this jumble and I have found that since finishing The Prince of Tides I can not find a decent book to follow up. I have started and stopped more books in the past three weeks than I ever have. Starting to get a little discouraged. Like these:

Lolita-Vladimir Nabokov- (too much of everything)

The Sound and the Fury-William Faulkner (too much repition)

A Thousand Acres-Jane Smiley (too many farming facts, not enough character development)

Mr and Mrs Fitzwilliam Darcy-Sharon Lathan (too much romance)

I can not be pleased right now. I need a book intervention! Please give me words of encouragment/advice bloggie buds!

And now for something completely different:

What do

Slim Jims

Nerds

and this really radical book have in common?

They all have something to do with my current road trip! Jim has kindly hooked me up with some passes to Allentown, PA on Saturday. I'm driving out with Bud Saturday morning.

I'm pretty excited because if you remember correctly, Bud is from Minersville (about an hour out from Allentown). We are going to visit some family/friends of Bud, she's going to show me around, get a cheese steak and then head over to see the man of the hour!

We are driving back same night because the following day I get to see Jim, again, in DC.

I plan on getting hopped up on Dunkin Donuts for the drive home and am currently planning a Road Trip Playlist. I have to soundtrack every element of my life.

I'm sticking to poppy, fast, upbeat, driving music...I've already added Destiny's Child and NSYNC (haha)

Any ideas??

A Question of Creativity..

2011-01-19T10:32:00.003-05:00

Wednesday, 19, January 2011

I have hit a creative stump. I am looking to work on some ATC's. I have some great lyrics in mind but my mind pulls a blank when thinking of how to portray them. I've been craftie shopping, I've listened to music, I've played guitar, Nothing.

I have looked at a few of my readers Art Journals recently. I am always amazed at the random creativity that ends up getting explored in those.
My questions to my Bloggie buds: [if you keep a journal and/or art journal] Do you keep a theme to your art journaling?
How do you get your creativity flowing?
What motivates you to create?

Have You Heard the Good Word??

2011-01-14T10:38:00.005-05:00

14, January 2011

For the record, let it be known that on this fourteenth day of January I entered my fav. coffee stop to pick up a fresh Colombian cup and at check out I notice these:

What say you, public??

I say: Holy Wowzers!

A few things I know and don't know:

I know that I don't celebrate Easter. I actually, can't even tell you what day (or month for that matter) Easter falls on/in.

I do know, however, that Easter is NOT in January. I also know that I can not recall a time when I was able to purchase Easter candy in January. I know that this was an amazing breakfast this morning with my Colombian coffee.

I know that this brightened my day....I also know that this may, sort of , negate my treadmill.

Furthermore, I know that even though I don't celebrate the holiday I have no problem partaking in the purchasing of Christian chocolate eggs filled with sugary goodness.

So for this January surprise, I thank you and I say: Bring on the Peeps!!

Pot of Corn!

2011-01-06T16:49:00.002-05:00

Firstly, let me just say, I love all animals. I will feed anything. I love, love, love squirrels! I try to keep corn in stock for them year round. It's been rather snowy, rainy and messy in Maryland lately so I filled up a little cauldron (a Halloween decoration) with corn and I leave it on my porch. Each morning I go out and spread some food out for my pals. Yesterday evening, upon returning from work/outings I noticed some corn debris scattered around the porch. I assumed one of the squirrels was coming up on the porch to dig in rather than partake in the foods left out in their feeder.

This morning I was running late to work (always) and I was just about to walk outside when I
saw this guy!! (below) I actually walked onto my porch and he remained. I guess he was really hungry or was excited to hit the mother load of foods!!

This put a smile on my face and I hope he keeps coming back!
Hope all of you had an awesome day!

Just a Little Thing..

2011-01-04T09:37:00.004-05:00

4, January 2011
A few ATC's I posted over at songs in my heART! I know some of you are ARTistic..please submit something! I would love to see what you come up with!
When things really get up and running and I get an idea of who is going to be participating I want to give some prompts to help inspire. I was thinking of a little something like this:

Art a song that reminds you of your best friend
Art a song that changed your life
Art a song that summarizes you
ETC.

Anyone have any other prompt ideas? I'm creating a list and any help is appreciated :)

So without further ado, My ATCs

Everyone here knows I love, love,love Jimmy Eat World. These are two from their new album Invented.

Cut
"I'm sorry boy, I'm not cut for this no more"

Little Thing-"..The cab ride you said nothing, just hair all in your face...just a little thing, buried in the other things, burning away from inside, could you be with me tonight?"

songs in my heART....

2011-01-03T10:35:00.002-05:00

I just opened a new site called songs in my heART. This is a place for artists to display their artwork inspired by music. ATC's, paintings, photography-all are welcome. New art and inspirations will be posted as recieved. There are no deadlines and perhaps, an occasional prompt, and other than that you are free to be inspired by the songs in your heART!

If anyone here is interested in participating, please do! It would be radical to have you!

Twenty Six Thousand Pages Later...

2010-12-30T20:15:00.002-05:00

Book Review of 2010

This year I went on several amazing road trips (all involving Jim), got to see some amazing gigs, had a really disappointing birthday/only to be turned into the most amazing birthday, lost a friend (by choice), found out that a true friend is worth 8 of the one I lost, reconnected with someone who wasn't worth my time/energy spent making the connection, felt a little more comfortable being "Me" around everyone, had to watch a dear friend move to another state, found Michael Crichton, learned a lot of history, attended A LOT of weddings and wedding showers, had A LOT of laughs, made a lot of music, listened to a lot of music, made a lot of mixed tapes, had some really great conversations into the night with a lot of really great people and made my target goal of books read for the year.

My Target: 75

Final Tally: 78

Total number of pages read: 26,664

I'm a little overwhelmed I get to start all over with the count. 78 is such a large number, although when thinking about it more I realized that I didn't speed read, I didn't rush, I just read naturally and I naturally happened to devour 78 books. Some amazing, some complete shite. As I gear up for 2011, my queue/list of books "To-Read" is sitting with only four titles. I have a few wonders for 2011.

I wonder what, or who, I will discover this coming year, I wonder if my queue will grow swiftly, I wonder if I should actually try to read a romance novel, just to see, I wonder if I will ever read that damn Dan Brown novel that has been sitting atop my book shelf, and I wonder about all of the wonders of the good reads to come!

My list is hefty so I will not list all 78 books. [If anyone is interested in the actually list let me know and I can email it to you.]

I will, however, give you my list of the BEST books I adventured through in 2010.In random order:

-The Great Gatsby-F. Scott Fitzgerald- I know, I know, it's a classic...but please read this. It's amazing.

-Bloodroot-Amy Greene-Amazing first novel, amazing character development and amazing story filled with twists

-To Kill a Mockingbird-Harper Lee- No need for introductions

-One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest-Ken Kearsy-I remember every second of reading this story. It stuck with me.

-Andromedia Strain-Michael Crichton-My first Crichton novel and the most intense. I heart MC.

-Jurassic Park-MC-The films were always on my top ten fav. movie lists and now the book will be added.

-Of Bees and Mist-Eric Setiawah-Another first novel. I didn't like this novel at first and then I couldn't put it down. One of the very best I read this year.

-Perfect Nightmare-John Saul-The most terrifying horror novel I read this year!

-Lord of the Rings Trilogy-Toilken-No need for introductions :)

-A Tree Grows in Brooklyn-Betty Smith- I will be revisiting this book again in the years to come. Everyone should read this. At least once.

-How To Be Good-Nick Hornby-The start of many other great books I read by Hornby. This one was my favorite

-A Clockwork Orange-Anthony Burgess-Oh how I love thee my little brothers

-Manhunt-James Swanson-The best history book I have ever read. What an amazing researcher and storyteller.

-Gone With the Wind-Margaret Mitchell-Another book I will be revisiting time and time again.

-Full Dark, No Stars-Uncle Stevie-My all time favorite auther, back and more B.A. than ever!

-The End of the Affair-Graham Green-The peferct ending to my journey through books in 2010. Such a beautiful and heart breaking story.

If I had to pick just one to be the BEST book of all year: Gone With The Wind. It just can't be topped.

Out of my total book count only 16 made the absolutely noteworthy list above. There, of course, were other really, really great books, but these were the best! For the flip side of the coin: I don't have a long list of really bad books of 2010 but I do, nevertheless, have a list.

So for the WORST of 2010:

In random order

-Never Let Me Go-Kazuo Ishiguro

-Little Bee-Chris Cleave

-Little Stranger-Sarah Waters

-Cold Mountain-Charles Fraizer

Finally, to end this dreadfully long post I give you my very small queue for the year 2011:-Freakanomics

-Winters Bone

-Mr. Darcys Story

-Austen Land-Shannon Hale [because I can't get enough of Mr. Darcy]

Thank you all for reading if you lasted this long. Thank you for all of your comments this year, thank you for sharing my joys, pains and laughter at Penny Lane and thank you for extending your friendships along side of just bloggie buds. My constant readers are all amazing and have amazing talents to be celebrated and I look forward to sharing with you and reading new and exciting things from all of you in the new year!

ATC The Music

2010-12-29T10:35:00.002-05:00

Some new ATC's. I am going to pull a "Jim" and will not explain any personal meanings behind these. I will say that all photos used in this set were taken by me and I will explain where they were taken or a little background to them.

Last Kiss-TSwift
"Your name, forever the name on my lips"
A pond I hike near..wrote a letter about something that was bothering me and ripped it up. I wanted to try the whole "symbolic-gesture-of-letting-go" bit so I ripped the letter and put it in the pond. Majority of my excercise hikes I always pack my 35 mm so I took a shot of this and felt it fit with the song and the lyric.

Haunted-TSwift
"Something keeps me holding onto nothing"
Took this photo in a hallway of a hotel lobby. It had a creepy look/feel to it. I felt it fit the lyrics. I wrote the chorus of this song over and over on velum in pencil. I think stamped the desired lyric with photo distort ink. Burned edges and added tape because I felt the need.

Enchanted-TSwift
"Please don't be in love with someone else"
I think this turned out to be my favorite. I was at a Jimmy Eat World show. Roaming around. Went up on balcony to take a shot of the crowd. It was humid in the venue so my 35mm lens was fogged. I took the shot and someone near me put their arm up right in my view as I snapped. Not only was the picture fogged but I had an arm in the shot. Of course, shooting old skool 35 it's hard to know if your shot came out. Upon developing I saw this and I still kind of liked it. It had an eerie feeling to it and I always save my duds.
"Enchanted" is stamped on to another picture of a zoomed in chandelier and with photo pen I wrote on the girls wrist the lyric. Behind the photo I used black and white paper with a million daisy's on them. Kind of like the flowers you use to make a wish on. I felt this fit with the song.

Back to December-TSwift
"You gave me roses and I left them there to die"
This photo was taken years ago from an abandoned cemetary I visited. I wrote the lyrics on lined paper, crumpled it, as if it were thrown away and pasted it onto another photo of some roses I zoomed in on. All edges are frayed and inked (thanks to my Phin for tutorial ♥)

A Star is Born!

2010-12-22T10:11:00.003-05:00

Been pretty busy this week! Bud is in L-O-V-E with an Adam Richman of the Travel channel.

She is a loyal viewer of Man V. Food, has Adam pictures everywhere and even has Adams book (thanks to me and the holiday season). She explained to me a few weeks ago that Man V. Food is doing a Food Challenge Contest. Winner gets to eat Din with Adam at your restaurant and Man V Food may use it in an upcoming episode!

Contestants must tape their favorite hometown restaurant and explain to Adam why you love the restaurant and a little about your hometown. Bud was determined to win. Of course, slack sets in. Saturday I get a call from Bud. There are 11 entrees into the Food Contest and they were not anything special. I go to work on piecing things together....I wrote a script and camera directions, collected pictures and presented all of the information to Bud. She was sold immediately.

The restaurant we selected is called Berts 50's Diner! Bud and I love Berts. They have such an awesome atmosphere, amazing food and even more amazing ice cream! After calling and talking to the owners and getting the approval we set off to record some audio for narration, I took some photos of the place and narrowed down the script. We wanted our video to look like an episode of MvF and I think after finishing up the script and some editing it really does!

Yesterday Bud and I went to Berts to tape the introduction, tape a tour (which will be narrated by Bud) and actually order some food to be featured on camera. The owners even agreed to let Bud and I go into the kitchen to tape and describe the Ice Cream Man make her super special ice cream creation!

Today we are in editing mode and it's looking pretty radical! I hope Bud wins, marries Adam and has like a million babies!

Okay, well I hope Bud wins, at least :)

If anyone is interested in checking out the video let me know and I will give you the link privately!

"We Look the Same, We Talk the Same, We Are the Same.."

2010-12-17T11:26:00.003-05:00

I noticed a funny thing yesterday while talking with Bud. Bud and I have adopted each others mannerisms and catch phrases. It's rather funny. I spend all day at work with Bud, we go out from time to time to hang, we usually see each other on the weekends and we talk almost every evening. It's only natural I suppose to pick things up...it's like we live in our own little world with our own manners, rules, regulations and language.

Bud is from a mining town in Pennsylvania. She has an odd way of talking at times. Coming from the southern part of Maryland the word: "Ya'll" is profuse here. I NEVER use this word. Actually, I take the more Italian way in speaking and say things like: "yous". Also, pizza is: "a slice" or "pie", sauce = "gravy", Mom = "Ma". I noticed Bud now saying these terms as well as if she is right at home with them.

Even non-Italian terms..I love animals and whenever I have a stuffy/runny nose I think of pups. Pups have wet noses, naturally. So I will say: "I have a pup nose".

Bud has started using this term as well.

My PA Bud has some weird terms as well: Woods are called "bush", "Bushing" is something I still don't quite understand still to this day, a "bush party", I have been invited to but really am unsure about it, "crick" is a creek, "dungarees or bibs" are a type of jean, and "Cat boots" are the cool shoe to wear. I'm not even kidding with you....

Bud has a rather odd mannerism when asking if I agree with something. The best way to explain this is to give you an example:

If I were saying: "Bud, it was busy at work today, don't you think?"

Bud would say this same phrase this way: "It was busy at work today ain't?

This wording would make me laugh but now I hear it so much I found that after driving home in a snow blizzard yesterday I asked my husband: "It's cold, ain't?"
Last week I almost asked someone who was trying a cupcake of mine: "It's good ain't?"

It just seemed natural and I am finding that I have to catch myself from saying this now.

Has this ever happened to you? Did anyone move to a different state and eventually adopt mannerisms and slang? Or, do any of you have a friend that you spend so much time with you just adopt language from each other?

Crazy, ain't?

*wink*

*title is from She Walks Over Me by Hole

Definition of Stunning

2010-12-15T10:19:00.005-05:00

Why 'Ello!
This is Ezra from Vampire Weekend......

and....

That shirt is STUNNING.

Unlike yesterday, this post has no sarcasm inserted. At all. It's just simply STUNNING.

Definition of Intense

2010-12-14T10:36:00.004-05:00

I sent this to Jim about a month ago and thought it was good enough to share with you. Apparently some random dude in South Carolina wanted Jim's face inked on his calf. Talk about loyalty. [insert sarcasm]. Seems creepy huh?

I'm Still Here...

2010-12-13T10:39:00.003-05:00

I swear I'm alive! Just too busy and I am speechless...without speech!

I am happy to report I achieved and surpassed my goal of reading 75 books this year. I am currently finishing up on book 77! I will be doing a post on my favorites of this year and hopefully you will share your favorites as well!

So here's your hat, what's your hurry?.....I must be going!

Just wanted to say 'ello, hope everyone is doing well and having a stress free holiday season....

Oh, and post this picture of my boys:

Happy Mail From Phins!!

2010-12-03T08:00:00.000-05:00

Friday: 3, December 2010

Thank you!! I love, love, love this :) :)

The Curious Incident of The Chocolate Countdown And The Night-Time....

2010-12-02T09:47:00.005-05:00

Thursday: 2, December 2010

For those of you who work in an office I'm sure you are all too familiar with occasional "misplaced" item from your desk. My co-pilot [office mate] had her phone charger disappear. A month later her earbuds to her ipod were mysteriously gone. After purchasing about six candy bars from another co-worker from a fund raiser she stacked them on her desk, next morning all but two were left standing.

Myself? I am fond of cute post-its. I purchase bright colors, shapes, I bought some hot pink heart post its and left them atop my desk. Next day=gone. I searched every office thinking a co-worker borrowed the stickies to write something down quickly and accidentally walked off with them. No such luck. Hot pink, heart shaped post it's stick out like a sore thumb and they were no where to be found. Recently I had purchased multi-colored felt tip pens for color coding some stuff I am doing in chart auditing. It keeps me sane to color code. The very next day after purchase the pens were missing. Another occasion I purchased a Dunkin Donuts calender with coupons for free coffee and breakfast on each month. One day after displaying it was taken.

I do accounts at work so if my girls turn in money that happens to be over in change I place it in a bin. I've been collecting loose change for the past six years from the girls that have come and gone. If we are ever short I take the money from the bin to even out. Well...someone "borrowed" all of the silver coins out of my bin once. I ended up just depositing the left over pennies and I don't keep anything at my desk any more. I have heard other grunts from my co-workers but no one seems to be able to identify the thief. The speculation is: The Cleaning Crew. Every job I have ever held always seems to blame everything on The Cleaning Crew. So I usually laugh it off and try not to speculate. I have no evidence it's the Cleaning Crew.

Which brings me to this:

Tuesday night is shopping/din night with Bud. We leave work, run errands, do some light shopping, have din and then we just hang out and talk before she has to run to a class (Bud is in junior college). A week before Thanksgiving, while shopping, I came across a Chocolate Surprise Countdown Calender. It was pretty radical. At the beginning of December you begin to open a little card board window on the calender and a chocolate surprise awaits...thus, the countdown to Christmas. Upon first sight I knew that Bud needed this in her life. Right that second. So I purchased it for her and the following day we displayed it on her wall beside her computer at work. It was still shrink wrapped. Remember, this was about two Tuesdays before Thanksgiving so we had a little time before starting the countdown.

That evening, after displaying this Countdown Calender, Bud had to stay at work late. Leaving around 640-7 o'clock, she was the last person in our building. The cleaning folks were arriving as she was leaving. Following morning we arrive at work and what's missing???? THE COUNTDOWN CHOCOLATE SURPRISE CALENDER! [insert one thousand exclamation points here]

I will admit that I was pretty heated when I found out about this. The calender was still in it's package and it was on her desk. I am a huge rule follower and when someone else blatantly breaks rules I am just perplexed. I couldn't imagine being at my work and finding a Countdown Chocolate Surprise Calender sitting nicely on anothers desk, still wrapped up, and just deciding to myself that I will take this off their hands. Why not, right?

We told management but of course my phrase for their reaction is this: "Who gives a f*#k about an oxford comma?" [song from Vampire Weekend about people not really giving a f*#k].

This past Tuesday, while shopping, I had to run by shop that sells the Countdown Chocolate Surprise Calenders so I purchased another one for my Bud. It is 2nd December today so we bravely opened Day one and two, had the chocolate surprises, and displayed the calender in it's original spot.

Bud crafted this note to go along which I am not quite sure I agree with but, hey, enough is enough...

Love is a Mixed Tape..

2010-11-29T14:37:00.003-05:00

I’m a musical zealot. Music is my life. Whether I’m listening to it, making it, learning it, singing it, or thinking it! It’s everywhere to me.
I feel there are two types of musical listeners: The folks that connect with Lyrics and the folks that connect with the Beat. Ever listened to a song and jammed out to it and later found it that the song meaning was actually really sad…you start thinking: Man, I bust a move to that song but it’s actually pretty depressing! When I purchase a new album I will actually take out the liner notes and READ the entire book. I usually have a few picked out that I have already connected with lyrically. Then I take a listen.

Over the Thanksgiving holiday I was asked to create a compilation of music for a friend.
I blue print everything. My whole life is a blue print. Naturally, I blue printed a track listing. This got me thinking…How do you create a mixed cd?

I feel there is a science to the whole Mix Cd process. I start with who I am creating for…What do I want to say to this person via music? Another way to look at this is: What is the theme of this mixture? For example: Are we doing: Best Covers Compilation, What am I Currently Listening, or are we doing a standard Best of [insert band name here]?

I think of all of these items before sitting at my computer to start. I do a free association exercise [pardon my psych major tendencies]…just a mash of things that come to mind, random songs and artists that I know are saying what I want this mixture to say, or fit within a theme. I list as many as I can on paper. I try to get a healthy twenty five picks. Sometimes more. If on an occasion I come up short I will then retreat to iTunes and do a scroll through..thinking of lyrics, meanings, artists and the theme I am projecting to round out my list.

After the rough draft list is selected the second part of the mixture making process comes in. TRACK LISTING ORDER.
Some of my rules:
Number one/a: Start out with a bang! Grab the listeners’ interest…much like all of those English and lit courses I enrolled in for fun. Neil Dwyer always said: “Grab readers’ interest!” You don’t want your listener falling asleep at first listen. I may love lyrics and connect with lyrics first and foremost but a lot of people don’t. People want ear candy. Don’t overwhelm them with some deep lyrics. If you start off bad then chances are the listener may not even give the rest of your hard work a shot. Compilations are a lot of work.

Number two/b: Be sensitive to likes and dislikes. Sometimes I will ask the receiver: What’s your favorite song of all time? Favorite band of all time? Top five songs you are in love with right this second. This is important. If you know a receiver hates country don’t try to slide one on. Again, compiliations are a lot of work and you want your hard work to be appreciated. Don’t force dislikes on a cd..chances are the listener will give up on you!

Number three/c : No same artists back to back. I love, love, love Jimmy Eat World. If you have ever received a mixture from me you will probably find at least one Jim song. Sometimes, if fitting, I will throw two on the mix but they can never be back to back. Again, don’t want to overwhelm the listener or drown them in Jim. Just because I am quite fond of drowning in Jim doesn’t mean everyone will be J

Number four/d: Be selective with slower songs. Unless your theme is Debbie Downer you don’t want to put the only three slow songs on your mix in a row. Spread them out. You need flow.

Number five/e: No advanced listening tracks. Think about the receiver. Think about your choices. For example: I love Frightened Rabbit but I think some of their songs are for advanced users only. Songs that you can only appreciate if you have gotten over that initial hump of newness. I think all bands have these types of songs. Songs that are an acquired taste, as I like to call them. Be careful with these. I tend to not include them. If you are doing a Best of Band and the listener LOVED the mix and comes back for more, then I would include these acquired taste songs.

Number six/f: When your ordering is complete listen through the mix as a dry run. Does it flow? Does is say what you want to say? Does it fulfill it’s purpose? Think of your listener while doing this. Make any changes here. Usually if I make a change I listen through again, I will do about twenty seconds of each song and scroll through the cd. When satisfied BURN.

I have a favorite lyric from almost every song that I like. {that’s A LOT}. While blue printing I will jot down some of these. Find one that fits the message of the mixture. This will be my title for the compilation. I usually draw/deco the outside of the cd and include this title. I also, always, include a tracklisting with name of song, artist name. Sometimes, if the person is VIP [and because I love crafting] I will create a booklet to go with the cd. Include song title, artist, my fav lyric and WHY I selected that particular song to go on the mix. I love the process of things, the blue prints, why people do what they do..probably why I majored in psychology…. If I don’t make a liner book to go with the mixture then I usually throw in a copy of my blue prints for the listener. Just so they can see my process!

Sounds like a lot of work huh? Well, believe me, it is a lot of work!
So how do you create a mixed cd or compilation? Do you have a process? What’s your method behind the madness?

Hand Made Over the Years

2010-11-23T09:00:00.001-05:00

Tuesday
23, November 2010

2005-A Santa Cinnamon Stick

2006-Random wood cut outs painted. I only have this one to show but I also did Reindeer, Santas, Snowflakes and other items Christmas related.

2007-Clothes pin Toy Soilder

2008-Assorted Colored Christmas light bulb Reindeer

2009-Assorted Foam Santas. No two were the same!

2009-Also included home made Christmas card with a snowman ornament in the center you could remove and add to your tree!

2010-The infamous easy North Pole sign post.

2010-Only created three of these special sets for two girls who work for me and one for my Ma, of course.

Hard Work Pays Off!

2010-11-22T09:44:00.004-05:00

Since 2005 I started creating a home made ornament for Christmas each year. These ornaments are mailed out with Christmas cards and given to VIP's. I started the annual project for fun in 2005 and 2006 and then people started to ask about them. By October I would calls inquiring what the ornament would be this year...and most people seemed genuinely excited to receive them. I know I would. I love hand made items and I love Christmas ornaments so to combine these two things = Golden.

Since most seem to enjoy the ornaments I continue to make them each year. I need to create 5o of these ornaments to properly cover all bases. It's like a little sweat shop in my home office!

By this time I am usually finished with the project so they are ready for posting after Thanksgiving. This year I didn't have an idea for the ornament until last week!! Yes, I have been procrastinating. I had an idea stowed away for an easy but cute ornament. As the years have gone on and the list has narrowed I can manage with a total of 40 made. I got straight to work this weekend and I photographed my progress to share:

Firstly: I had to cut out arrow shapes from mini Popsicle sticks using a craft knife. There are many things wrong with this statement.
Number one/a: Craft knives never work properly for me.

Number two/b: Popsicle sticks are very difficult to cut.

Number three/c: I can not be trusted with sharp objects because I am SUPER clumsy

Number four/d: I snapped about four razors in the process of making 40 mini signs. I was starting to think I should wear protective head gear.

Moving right along...curse you mini arrows....A pox on your house!

Finished painted product. Equally as annoying = Writing NORTH POLE in cute font on forty different mini arrows.

Painted sticks.

Marry these two and you get a sign post. Also glued a mini jingle bell for added cuteness.

Add some faux snow and a ribbon and COMPLETE!

Tag them with my sig/date and here is the lot! Ready for posting!

Tomorrow I will post up pictures of my ornaments from 2005 until now!

I'm Pretty Excited!!

2010-11-19T10:04:00.006-05:00

Friday 19, November 2010

Wanna know why??

Number one/a: I woke up and after my hour of getting ready for work I must say I look pretty stinking cute today. My hair is just right. I am perfectly matched in my outfit and I just feel good about myself today.

Number two/b: I purchased my Harry Potter tickets for the 10:50 showing three nights ago. I will be attending with Hubs and an old friend I have not seen in awhile. She introduced me to Harry and once upon a time we got matching tattoos to show our love/loyalty of the Lightening Bolt! Pretty nostalgic that I will be viewing the final film (part one) with her!

Number three/c: It seems like everyday another crisis arises...That involves chunks of money. Leaking shower to under the house, flat tires (times three), new brakes, a whole set of tires for a giant SUV, leaking ceiling, who knows what else will come up. It's one thing after another. Here's the thing: I can still smile about it. Welcome to my life! It's kind of hectic but things just happen at times. Best to just roll with the punches and be grateful for that chunk of time at the end of each day where I get to curl up in my heated blankie with my best cats at my side and read a book! Moments such as these make the hectics worth while.

Number four/d: Thanksgiving this year I may actually enjoy. Usually I dread the running around and exhaustion of Thanksgiving and Xmas. This year we are making our own food....not going anywhere. I would be happy with just some pasta and garlic bread instead of turkey but we are going to attempt our own feast. Simple. Relaxing. No drama. I am in love with this.

Number five/e: I have finished a good bit of my Christmas shopping. I did the bulk of it online but have gone out to stores twice now and my "to-be-wrapped" pile is stacking up! I find that I enjoy the season more if I have less stress and obligation.

Number six/f: I am pretty excited to get started on my ornaments for this year. I have all of the supplies ready to go. I have had no time this week to start them but this weekend is open. I have not done anything artsy in about a month! No crafting, no scrapping, no painting..NOTHING. I am excited to just create.

Number seven/g: I am halfway finished with book 71 for the year! [still waiting on my new Stephen King book to arrive.....] but I am confident I can hit my 75 mark for this year!

Hope everyone has an amazing weekend!

Made to Order..

2010-11-17T09:44:00.003-05:00

This is borderline a coffee rant and a doctor rant. For those who are not aware, I work in accounts/medical coding & billing at a medical office. I love coffee. I love coffee when I come in early morning. I also love half & half in my coffee...and splenda... Apparently everyone else in my office, also, has fallen in love with MY half & half and splenda. I purchase a carton of creamer and I use it once and it's gone. Within days. Gone are the days of just writing your name on the cap to insure safety!

For this reason, I stopped making/drinking coffee at the office. I usually stop on the way at my 711 (oh, thank heaven) and/or McD's-who, in my opinion has the best coffee, ever. Even better than Dunkin and yes, I know, America runs on Dunkin but given the choice, I would run on McD's.

I digress.

This morning I stop at Mcd's for my coffee and go to pick up my tickets from the day prior at each office. Along the way a GI Doctor, who only works at my office once a week, stops me and asks if I made coffee yet? Odd on many levels...

Number one/a: I am carrying in my hand a LARGE Mcd's coffee, therefore, why would I make coffee when I already purchased one?

Number two/b: It was posed in a way that would make you believe that I often make coffee ["have you made any coffee yet?"] I don't make coffee. Perhaps six months ago but not now, not ever.

Number three/c: I see this guy once a week. I barely know him. I didn't even know he drank coffee.

Here's the thing folks. If you wanted coffee just ask me to make some. I like to just get to the point. No foolishness.

So I just reply to GI and say: "Nope, I purchased my own coffee". He gives a snarky laugh and moves on. I continue with my duties and go to my desk. A co-worker comes to me about ten minutes later and asks if I can go make coffee. This co-worker is not a coffee drinker and is not familiar with the brewing properties of coffee. I ask her why.

She explains that GI went into the back and was complaining that no one had made coffee and this is..."Bull shit". Another regular doc also went back to join him in his rant. She tells me they both stood there staring at old coffee from the day before, holding empty cups and the regular Doc explained that he didn't know why someone couldn't make him some fresh coffee and the coffee sitting in the pot was old and that he should put a sign on it reading: Caution.

So here is my co-worker pleading with me to go make coffee for these gents who obviously have time to walk 500 yards to the break area, stand and stare with empty mugs, discuss the bull-shitery of peons not making some fresh coffee and construct a sign of caution for old coffee.

In all of this time and energy didn't one of them stop and think they they could perhaps, dump out the old coffee and quick scoop some new stuff in and brew some new??

I told my co-worker that after I was finished doing a few things I would go back and relieve all tensions of the docs and brew some fresh coffee but after she walked away I remained in my seat on principle. I refuse. The entire situation was just plain redick.

I was hoping they learned their lesson but alas, I heard later that someone [nicer] than I went back and brewed their coffee. They also probably mixed the cream and sugar for them and then spoon fed it to the docs as well. Awwwww.....how sweet.

♪ "You Could Look Through Some Old Photos.."♪

2010-11-16T09:36:00.000-05:00

Went out with Bud a few weekends ago to take some pics. Here are a few from my digital. When I go out I usually bring my 35 mm old skool and digital.

I love my 35mm but I am seriously contemplating getting a manuel zoom digital. Of course I would need some serious cash flow for this as they are insane in price.

Here are a few shots:

Making a List...

2010-11-15T09:21:00.004-05:00

I just wanted to state for the record that I purchased TWO Christmas gifts while at Borders on Friday. I know, I know, I can't believe it either.

Now if I can just get motivated to buy some other stuff. I have not even decided what Christmas ornament to make this year. Usually by this time, I have already started production but I don't even have an idea yet! Time is flying by and I am quite comfortable living in oblivion.

I think after I type this I am going to go online and purchase a few things so I can get out of this Christmas slump. Then after purchase I am going to make a decision on my ornament this year. Hows that??

What's on everyone's Christmas lists this year? Please tell me I am not the only procrastinator here!

Here are a few things I am wishing get thrown under my tree by the Big Guy:
New chucks!

The North Face...I have wanted one of these guys for a few years.

Medal of Honor for XBOX 360

COD-Black Ops. If nothing else, I need this in my life.

♥ ♥ ♥ Jim

2010-11-10T09:00:00.000-05:00

Wednesday

10, November 2010

Happy Happy!!

2010 Gone With The Wind...

2010-11-09T10:02:00.004-05:00

Closing in on my 67th book of the year. I don't like to be intimidated by the classics but staring at a 1,038 paged book taking place during the Civil War made me slightly anxious. I was more worried that I would have a hard time being interested and I hate when I feel as if I have to "plow" through a book. Plowing through a book that has 1,038 pages would really end my year in a bad way. I really wanted to read 75 books this year and this one could end me. I purchased Gone with the Wind in the beginning of 2010 with hopes of reading it but the time had to be just right. I was feeling that the time was now...so I picked it up..

I am pleased to announce that I am currently on page 805 and I love everything about this novel. Of course, I have seen the film several times throughout my life but the book is amazing tenfold.

In the film, I always viewed Scarlett as hateful, concieted and just awful. While reading you get more insight into her mind and as of page 805 I must say she is my total hero right now. She didn't care what anyone thought and her strength and drive started a revolution. Complete bad-assery.

I will be sad to see this big book end but am also excited to end my year with a few of these:

New Stephen King

Four novellas in one book and the reviews and descriptions sound so good I am very excited to dive in. I believe I devoured King's last collection, Just Before Sunset. It seems hit or miss with King and I. Hoping this one is a hit!

Also want to read this:

Johnny Cash = Total Rock Star

Has anyone read Scarlett? I have heard mixed reviews? Is this a good book to kick off 2011?

Catching Up...

2010-11-04T10:17:00.006-04:00

-Had to swim into work this morning. Some serious downpour all day today. Not a big fan of commuting during days such as these. I just want to be wrapped in my heated blanket, reading Gone with The Wind. Which, I have started and LOVE :)

-Hope everyone's Halloween was amazing! I had a lovely Halloween! My party went over very well. I was super busy Friday preparing. Hubs went to an away soccer game/field trip in Northern Virginia to see U of Md play. This means all prep was left up to me. I was riding solo (to quote Jason Durello...or however you spell that mans name). I had to work (of course), drive an hour to the food store, shop, clean my entire house, bake and decorate a cake, get foods cut and ready for serving and then I microwaved a Smart One Baked Ziti, sat on my couch and watched Sex and the City part two all by my lonesome. That last bit made the entire day worth it.

-The party went over very well. Three people cancelled, last minute, but we still had fun. The cake!

-I was trying to catch up on my blog readings today. Really shocked at the amount of disdain about "older" trick or treaters. In the grand scheme of life does this really matter? I don't care how old you are, if you are dressed and wanting some sweets I will give them to you. Halloween is just good fun. With all of the BS in todays world it's good to just have a little fun now and then. With this and last weeks shoe rant on the radio I guess I sit here thinking how thanful I am. I was there once. I was angry about everything that had nothing to do with me. Judging folks for stupid things, but you know what? I wasn't happy with me. I was miserable. I let it go and I feel 126% better for it. I realized that I wouldn't want people to hate on me for stupid shit (sorry for the language) and if someone is hanging out and happy, that's amazing to me. Regardless of their shoes. Life is too short, have some effin' fun while you are here. Childish or not. Cheap shoes or not. Costume or not.

Laugh, play, sing out loud-even if people are around, wear a stupid costume at Halloween, dance, SMILE and get happy with you.

-Monday I attended a show in DC for Frightened Rabbit. Those boys never cease to amaze me.

I had a nice day off on Tuesday. I have been having a hard time sleeping for the past two weeks and I was able to catch up on some sleep and errands that I keep putting off. I had a mountain of work to make up next day, but sometimes it's worth it, just to take a personal day.

Hope everyone had a fun filled and lovely holiday!

Translated By Photo..

2010-10-29T10:27:00.010-04:00

My Wand pen for writing. Authentic Harry wand/pen. My Harry Potter tattoo. [real]

My hand made wand detail!

Hogwarts Crest on my Robes

'Arry Shoes ♥

Harry book sack

The Boy Who Lived

Hedwig, My Wand [handmade] and my wand/pen

My Bud, The Hot Dog. Doing her Hot Dog pose.
p.s. For Breakfast Bud stopped to purchase a Hot Dog. Is this cannibalism??

Hot Dog At Work

Ford's Theatre Treasure! PENNY Ear rings. As soon as I lay eyes on these guys I knew I needed them in my life. I love things related to my name :)

President Lincoln's Box at Ford's

Oh The Thinks I Have Thunk...

2010-10-27T10:08:00.005-04:00

Wednesday, 27, October 2010

A few things on my mind this week, thought I would share!

-While listening to the radio on the way in to work (my ipod died :( RIP) a local radio show discussed women and their obsession with shoes. Don't get me wrong, I love shoes...but I also love cheap..so I rarely buy new shoes. After debates on how much the average woman spends on shoes the subject of women judging other women on their shoes came up. Apparently the entire DC and Maryland areas are full of women going around staring at other women's shoes and smack talking. This is absurd. I can honestly say that when I meet a fellow female in public or in passing I never think to look at their shoes. I really could give a flying what kind of shoes they are wearing. I just found this to be absurd...Anyone do this? And/or heard of this?

-JIM WILL BE RETURNING!! February 13th! Super-de-dooper excited about this!!

-I have a pretty radical opportunity to go to Fords Theatre this week to watch a presentation by James L. Swanson talk about Booth and Lincoln and his new book Bloody Crimes. I have never visited Fords so I am pretty excited to go! Back in my ghost hunting days I got to investigate Dr. Sam Mudd's home. If interested read the report here!

-After much debate Bud and I decided on our Halloween costumes. Bud will be a HOT DOG!! This makes me giggle..

My costume is self made. I purchased a red and yellow polo shirt, I will be wearing a black scrub jacket with the Hogwarts crest on it, black and white converse shoes and a Hogwarts bookbag. [see picture]

I have a hand made wand! My friend who does a bit of wood working took a stick and carved it down, added a clear coat and stain for protection, added a bit of leather at the end for holding and burned a lightening bolt into the bottom of the wood. It's pretty amazing. I will take a picture of it on the day to share! To top my costume off I have a stuffed animal Hedwig who will accompany me to work!

-Attended my final wedding of the year last Saturday. It was interesting, to say the least. I am so very glad to be at my end of weddings for the year!

-I am currently finishing up book 65 for the year. I originally wanted to read 100 books. By August I got held up and changed my goal to something more realistic-75. I am planning to read Gone With the Wind after I finish Man Hunt. Gone with the Wind has about 1048 pages. Can I count this as three books?? This may hinder my goal of 75 but I am curious to read it and looking forward to the journey!

So, What's on your mind??

Tis the Season!

2010-10-21T09:58:00.007-04:00

I remembered my mobile :) Here are a few pictures of my spooky decorations!

"I Open At The Close"

2010-10-20T10:19:00.004-04:00

Just a quick post today.

Firstly,

I decorated my home for Halloween and I took some pictures to show everyone and of course today I forgot my mobile and am unable to load them! Gah...maybe tomorrow.

Here is a sneak peek:

I have narrowed down my costume selection to Jackie O

or Harry Potter.

I know, I know, these are two crazy choices! I am really leaning towards Harry. I have to represent!

Speaking of Harry......................................Is anyone else excited about Deathly Hallows Part One???????

I am currently reading the book [again] to prepare and I keep going back to watch the trailer because it looks so amazing!!

So I Says To Him, I Says....

2010-10-15T10:08:00.005-04:00

Remember yesterday when I told you about the friendly car park attendant who colorfully got on me about my Boston Red Sox magnet?? It has happened again. I can't catch a break this week because of this magnet.

I had to stop and get fuel yesterday at my favorite 711...while waiting for my car to fill up an older gentleman was walking by and eyeing my car. I know that my car is cute..but he was giving it the "eye".

He noticed me noticing him and he says to me, rather sternly: "You a Boston fan?".

Me: "Yes Sir"

Him: "Why?" [insert evil laugh]

Me: "Always have been"

Him: "I've got bad news for ya, You are not going to like me. I'm a Yankees fan".

We both chuckled together and then bonded over our mutual hatred of the Washington Redskins and our mutual love of Peyton Manning.

I love a good sports related smack talk. It's all in good fun!

Happy Friday!!

"Waving To Me From Your Friends Cabriolet..."

2010-10-14T09:55:00.005-04:00

It is with a heavy heart that I announce there were no jazz hands at the Philly show. I repeat: No jazz hands.

On the other hand I had a lovely chat and a big bear hug. *sigh*

I am entirely too lazy to actually load any pictures so you will have to settle with the pics I snapped on my phone for now.

Firstly, I arrived at Philly early. During parking the attendant became severely irritated with my Boston Red Sox license plate cover, car magnet and hat in my back window. I believe he used the colorful phrase: "What the f*ck is that about?". I'm sorry the Phillies suck guy.

Bud and I decided to find a cool spot to have some dinner. Along our way I belive I was asked by six different men for a cigarette. I should have purchased an extra pack just for the occassion. In exchange for a smoke I got directions to this: "really hip little diner with on the cheap with pizza and sandwiches". Called Silk City. Well after walking about a mile we arrived and hip, cheap, pizza and sandwiches it was not my friends! They had collectively 5 things on the menu. Everything was about $9 and up...which is expensive when all you are getting are three tiny perogies and a small pile of onions. By the way, the food was crap. I think I had a few bites and that was that. I just kind of wanted to get out of there by that point.

On the way back to the show I had devised a plan to sneak recording equipment in. A friend on the message board is a professional sound guy and asked if people would be willing to record shows. He shipped me all of this stuff and I felt like a spy for the FBI. I will say this: The band doesn't care if we record...the VENUE has issues with recording.

Firstly, I had to shove this recorder into the bottom of my bag and then during my search at the door I diverted the door man's attention from my purse and made some small talk about how last year my car was vandalized and my GPS was stolen so I had to bring it into the venue with me. He was friendly enough to keep talking to me so he overlooked my equipment :)

When I got in I had to shove a wire through my jacket sleeve and down into my purse and then run the two mic's (which look like headphones) alone side of my glasses. haha. I'm sure I looked interesting. It went over well and I just heard from the sound guy that I was the only one to come through with recording so I am really hoping the show comes out nice! Lots of pressure here.

The band sounded amazing. They were just spot on and put on a really B.A. show! But I kinda knew this going in...or I am kinda biased..

At shows end I headed outside to have some words with the Man. During our chat we were interrupted by a lovely man, called Chuck, who was drinking a Coors Light and decided to free style rap for us for about five minutes. It was pretty intense.

After my chat and serenade by Chuck, Bud and I decided to make the long journey home. It took about 3 and half hours. I loaded up on cheap coffee and listened to 90's boy bands music to keep me wired. All in all...awesome trip ♥

" ♪ You're Just Too Good To Be True..♪"

2010-10-06T09:48:00.004-04:00

I have been M.I.A lately. I have some intense writers block happening. Things are going on but are they interesting enough to blog about? Probably not. I will briefly bring you up to speed on things since one single part of the equation is too boring but the sum of all parts may raise an eyebrow or two :)

-Had a girls night at Penny Lane with Bud. We drank some cheap (really, really cheap) wine and watched 80's films. Bud has never seen the following, (please hold all GASPS until the end of the list) The Goonies, Sixteen Candles, Pretty in Pink, The Breakfast Club, Say Anything, Wizard of Oz..I could go on but I'm embarassed by her actions at this point. Last Friday we had dinner, the wine, some laughs and about an hour and 45 minutes later she was in love with Jake Ryan.

-Read a book on lucid dreaming and how to control your dreams and I tried some experiments with this and failed. Currently reading my very first David Sedaris book. So far, I like.

-I've been working pretty seriously with Bud's cousin from PA-for privacy reasons I will call him Jay. He is looking to move to the area so I wrote his resume and have been setting him up with info on jobs and apartments. He is incredibly radical...but then again, he is related to Bud so why wouldn't he be? Looking forward to seeing him when he comes to visit.

-Thinking about Halloween. This year it is on a Sunday (this makes me think of Jim auto-magically-♪"on a sunday..I thought it through..."♪). I have a big Halloween party every year but people are driving out of the way to attend so Sunday is not going to work. Thinking of celebrating on Saturday but I hate this. It's half assed.

-Also, thinking about what my costume will be for Halloween. Last year I was Alice. I spent about $50 on the costume so I am considering just recycling and using it again. I really wanted to be Frodo but I don't have the whole outfit complete. Any suggestions?

-Planning the big trip to Philly on Monday. Bud and I are driving up and we have taken off work, mapped out a plan and a schedule. Possibilities of meeting up with Bud's sister or with Jay. Looking forward to meeting up with Jim. I seriously think he should serenade me, onstage, with a cover of Can't Take My Eyes Off of You complete with jazz hands....because honestly, who can sing that song without throwing some jazz hands in there?

Any Questions???

Big Winner, Chicken Dinner!

2010-10-01T09:50:00.004-04:00

I love this time of year. It starts to cool down, it's my date of birth season, leaves start to fall and change and look beautiful, you can start to wear that comfy hoodie you love so much and in my area the County Fairs start! I live in what is called "The Tri-County" area so I get to attend THREE fairs!! Last weekend after my DOB festivities Bud and I attended the county fair.

I was slightly gutted because it was humid and 87 degrees outside. This is not proper Fall/Fair weather. I did score some cotton candy so it was onward and upward after that!
Here are some pictures I took along the way!

My DOB gift from Bud. I love, love, love it

Mac The Sack (take a gander at his name tag) I had a laugh over this for quite some time.

Approaching the fair

Where I buy THE coveted cotton candy..*drool*

The Ring Toss!

Bud tossing some rings! She won a stuffed animal and later at another game won two framed pictures of tractors. Yes, that's right, Tractors.

The Ferris Wheel. Bud was riding solo!

2010-10-01T09:50:00.001-04:00

Seven Uses For a Penny

2010-09-27T11:15:00.008-04:00

Found this on front page of Comcast this morning while logging in.
I know what you're thinking, and No, not this Penny:

This one:

1. Curtain Straightener
Make an opening in the bottom hem, slide in a penny or two, and sew the hem back up to keep curtains hanging level and stick-straight.

2. Tread Checker
Insert a penny into a groove of a tire with Lincoln’s head pointing into the tire. If the groove covers part of his head, you’re safe to drive; if the head is in full view, it’s time for new wheels. (The distance between the rim of a penny and Lincoln’s head is 1/16 of an inch?the minimum suggested tread depth.)

3. Table Anchor
If you dine out and the table is unsteady, put a coin under the leg to restore balance.

4. Game Token
Misplaced the thimble? No problem. Sub in a cent.

5. Reader Tip: Makeshift ScrewdriverUse a penny to screw open a toy’s battery pack.

6. Reader Tip: Icebreaker
Hand out pennies at your next gathering and ask each guest to share a story that happened during the year his or her penny was minted. If the coin predates a friend, let the person improvise.

7. Reader Tip: Birdbath Cleaner
To ward off algae, toss in a few pre-1982 coins; the high copper content retards growth.

"I've Got A Bad Feeling About This..."

2010-09-21T09:49:00.005-04:00

Getting kind of nervous about my looming VIP date at Virgin Mobile Fest. I have not heard specific details as of yet. I like to be planned and organized and have a dress rehearsal for everything in my life...so this makes me anxious.

That Taking Back Sunday song keeps playing in my head over and over: "I've gotta bad feeling about this...I've gotta bad feeling about this.."

I had a very eventful weekend. I had a jam session at noon hour with my Bud. It's been awhile since I have played guitar with her so it was fun to just hang out and play.

I went to cinema to see The Town, which I have been looking forward to for awhile. After I specifically set aside several hours to completing a ton of craft/music projects I keep putting off.

-I made a three disc compilation of 90's alternative music for a co-worker, complete with decorated playlist.

-I put together some crafts for my lovely Rabbit. I also made a really radical compilation called "Happy Songs for Crappy Days" ♥
I also created an ATC for him that fits his blog theme and happens to be a song by my favorite band.

-I used my Cricut and cut a little "friend" for my pal Phin Phin. I also made her a compilation called: "Radicalness + Jack White"

-I worked on my Alice in Wonderland Circle Journal. I am 75% finished with the Mad Hatter page. Sneak Peek:

I returned to work to find this,
Early birthday gift number one:

Early birthday gift number two:

*thanks My New Cardio Man....

Fall Love, Love, Love List..

2010-09-15T10:24:00.007-04:00

It's been dull around Penny Lane as of late so I figured I would spread some positivity and list some of the things I love, love, love! Don't forget to share what you currently Love, Love, Love in the comments section!

Things I Love, Love, Love

1. My new wild card catridge for my Cricut machine. I purchased this and the possibilities are endless!

2. Goes hand and hand with number one: making card after card after card!

3. Vincent Chase/Entourage

4. New solo Brandon Flowers tunes

5. Coming home to this little guy waiting for me and getting tons of love and kisses from him. Awww...he misses his momma :)

6. The fact that I only have two weeks until I get to see Jim / Jimmy Eat World! woohoo!

7. A Clockwork Orange. (novel)

Past, Present and Future...

2010-09-13T10:11:00.009-04:00

I attended [ANOTHER] Bridal Shower this weekend. The bride to be was an hour and fifteen minutes late to the party stretching all festivities to about five and a half hours!! Longest shower of my life. I got to sit next to the only child that was attending. People, seriously....Don't bring your childrens to a shower. Any shower. I thought everyone knew this was just bad form but it seems that everything I attend lately there's always one that didn't get the memo.

The theme of the shower was Baseball. The invites were printed on a baseball ticket. All of the hostess girls wore a baseball shirt and they served baseball related foods: hot soft pretzels, hot dogs, popcorn, peanuts..etc. It was actually pretty radical. Only bummer-great weather this weekend in Merry-land and they held it inside! Which was stuffy and hot because it was one of those awkward days were it's not hot enough for AC and not cold enough for heat so it's just stuffy.

I was asked to provide a cake so I created this guy:

I still have two weddings (both out of state), a christening (0ut of state) and three shows (one out of state) in the month of September and October. Busy times. Who ever heard of relaxing on your birthday!!??

Didn't get a chance to work on my Circle Journal this weekend. I did, however, get around to reading the Fall Preview guide of Entertainment Weekly and realized that it's a big season for new tunes coming! Here are a few artists I am really looking forward to checking out!

Jimmy Eat World-Invented-Released 28 September

Brandon Flowers-Flaminto-Released 14 September

Weezer-Hurley-Released 14 September

Darius Rucker-Charleston, SC 1966-Released 12 October

Speak Now-Taylor Swift-Released 26 November

My Chemical Romance-Title TBA-Released November 2010

(Image Not Available)

Anything upcoming you are looking forward to??

Sneak Peek...

2010-09-06T11:02:00.004-04:00

Finally, finally, finally started work on my Alice in Wonderland Theme Circle Journal trade with Phin Phin

Rules are:

-Create 8X8 themed pages based on a selected character.

-No rules per character..free for all

-Create two (one for yourself and one for other journaler to keep)

-At the end of our pages, mail said pages to other for book binding.

I have completed one and 3/4 pages. Here are some sneak peeks :)

Alice-with layover page featuring a keyhold that she is looking through and a key to "open" this page.

Red Queen Page-I have a few more bits to add and it will be complete but I am in need of a craft shop visit. From this peek you can see playing cards have been utilized, as well as homemade paper roses that have been half painted and maybe dripping a little :)

Today is the last day of the long weekend :( I really only accomplished three things on this weekend: Scrapping, attemtping to mend my leaking loo (FAILED) and getting caught up on Entourage. After the last few crazy weekends this was most welcomed! Hope everyones weekends are lovely!

"This Photograph is Proof"

2010-09-01T10:05:00.006-04:00

It's been awhile huh? It's been sort of crazy in Penny Lane as of late. The short of it: Travel, weddings, out of town friends, a new NEEDY cardiologist, a moving friend and a leak in my master loo.

With the new Russian Cardiologist-who has been dubbed, affectionately, "My Man", on account of him following me about and always calling odd meetings to discuss his insane amounts of work that he gives me and issues he is having. He is very high matenience. Usually on my breaks I would write a quick blog to post but I have had no breaks lately!

On the up and up here are few pictures of some things I have been working on and some randoms that are too good to not post. Basically, my life in pictures :)

This is an ATC I did for a friend who recently attended Lilith Fair. She left with a deep respect and admiration for an artist called Butterfly who has a song called Another White Dash. While having a listen I was inspired to create this for her.

My very close friend Russ will be moving to Florida this Friday. I have talked about this move before here. It will be the first time since primary school that we have not lived near each other. On Saturday we had our last "Saturday" together. We did some food shopping, went to lunch and watched a movie. Just hung out. Did I mention Russ and I are rather boring people?
Last week I had my ipod on shuffle and I was driving into work and the song "Our Last Night" by Better Than Ezra came on and the lyrics really made sense then. It fit perfectly. It depicts two old friends who are leaving each other for the first time. Talks about childhood together and how leaving would be hard. A line from the song is: "I was waiting as you drove away the sunlight was falling..You were writing backwards
on a dusty windowpane". I made this ATC to depict that by using a clear paint mixed with a not fully mixed silver and my fingertip to draw the heart. I presented this to Russ along with a mixed cd of some of our fav. songs growing up as a parting gift. The only good thing about this move: He will be living approximately half hour from Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Florida....which means my little dream of visiting HP at Christmas is looking more and more realistic every day.

My co-worker had a birthday and instead of running to a shop to contemplate what the hell to purchase her as a gift for 45 minutes I just made her a little cake.

I found this on my desk yesterday. Made from random scraps about the office. I really don't know what it is but it was weird and sort of funny so I had to post it.

Lastly, there are approximately 25 more days until I get to see this handsome man. Jim will be playing the day after my *cough, cough* 30th birthday. I have a little VIP action going on which is super duper exciting AND three days after this show the new Jimmy Eat World album Invented will be released! Yikes to 30 and Yay to Jim!

*title taken from TBS song.

Have I Told You Lately, That I Love.....The Library?

2010-08-18T10:07:00.003-04:00

Well, I do ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

I am ending my journey through Nick Hornby's works and will soon start [finally] Franny and Zooey. Throughout my reads I often come across a quote that I am keen on. I usually stick a post- it in the page for later recording or I will write it on a sticky and leave it on my desk to later be added to my quote journal. Sometimes, after transferring them into my quote journal, I will put the sticky back into the library book for later finding by a stranger who borrows the same book. My reasoning: Maybe a little something that touched me will touch someone else or make someone smile or just brighten a day.

I will admit, I always secretly hope that in my reading journeys I will find a random post it in my borrowed books. Yesterday I got my hope..well kind of...in another form.

I needed to read my final Nick Hornby novel: High Fidelity. I was also interested in reading Franny and Zooey and my library didn't have either of these titles. I had to order them inner-library and I received notification that yesterday they were both in and waiting for me to pick up. On my way back to my car, after picking up my books, I opened the cover of High Fidelity and peeking out of the inside plastic flap was a receipt of sorts. I recognized it immediately because when you do a self check out my library you get a handy receipt printed that includes your name, a list of what you checked out, the date and the date these items are due. Quite handy to keep you organized and also handy if you need a book mark in a pinch.

So peeking out behind the book jacket was a book receipt for a Mr. A [we will just code name him that] from March of 2008. On 26 of March, Mr. A, who visited a library in another town, checked out High Fidelity, Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason and Burning Bright.

From this receipt I can deduce the following:

number one/a: Mr A. must like English authors and novels, as I do.

number two/b: I have read Hornby and Bridget Jones and loved them both, but have never read/heard of Burning Bright by Tracy Chevalier. I am always looking for a new author or a good book and here was one printed for me in my book jacket.

number three/c: Burning Bright is probably an English novel as well since Mr. A appeared to be on a role.

This morning I researched Burning Bright and it is, indeed, an English novel. I read a lot of suggested novels and am always asking friends, my bloggie buds or entertainment we*kly for suggestions, so in a cosmic way Mr. A made my day by leaving me a suggestion! It's the little things right?

So bloggies, do you have any similar quirks? Ever leave a quote or a good word in a public place? If not I dare you to just try it once before the week is out. Who knows, maybe you will make someone smile or make someones day and that is well worth it!
So go on then, I dare you :)

"Join Us For Our Wedding MINI-BREAK"

2010-08-17T11:38:00.006-04:00

Have I told you that I'm so over this whole wedding business? Well I am.

This weekend is Hubby's brothers wedding. It's going to be an extravaganza.

I don't want to say too much about this but just know that I am the epitome of anger and bitterness at this point.

A few bits I will mention:

I found out that Hubs and I are sitting at the childrens table. With no other immediate family. We are a bit of the black sheep, you think?

Also, just received a formal invitation to "Brunch" the day after the wedding with the bride/groom and the parents. [ I threw this directly into the bin. ]

Firstly, the wedding is on a Sunday. Not taking off on Monday when I have to see you people on Saturday and Sunday. I'm already traveling about two hours for this only to sit with snot nosed brats (sorry this is my childless-ness speaking) and in the midst of drunken fools...why would you really think I want to extend this visit??

I mean, I'm obviously not normal..so tell me people..do normal folks actually WANT to spend an entire weekend with a bridal party? I know that it's etiquette to have a brunch the following day for out of town guests but who actually attends these things? Rephrase: Who actually wants to attend these things? I feel like weddings these days are like mini breaks. You have to take off work, rearrange life, buy new outfits and travel AND you want me to spend three days with you and your family? Get the eff' outta here!!! Maybe it's just me. Probably. I mean I don't think I would really want to spend three days with my own family...much less, yours. :)

Thankfully, Hubby starts teaching that Monday (ooooohhh darn!!) so we will miss the "Brunch" but I am still extremely baffled by the whole idea. I think a large part of this has to do with requirement. This is not one of those with the options to Decline. It's forced. So thoughts on the Brunch? Am I just being a bitch?

ps. Yes, I drew that picture above of the sheeps. Don't make fun of me.

Love and Cat Nip..

2010-08-13T10:36:00.006-04:00

I have a thought provoking question and a funny story today.

Firstly, I was reading an article that was published the Daily Telegraph written by James May. He mentioned his furry love: Fusker. James claims that he doesn't think Fusker loves him or that cats love their owners...read here:

"Before anyone writes in with some cod psychology and any nonsense about me projecting on to a dumb animal, I am well aware that Fusker does not love me. He loves cat food.

The flow of adoration runs in one direction; I spend hours talking to him, even though the only word he might possibly understand is "Fusker", and in return not one sound of any consequence has ever emanated from his witless furry face. He has never passed me a spanner or written any of this column, except for a bit that went fasdfij ffeug djdvbv9821. "

I had a laugh but then I started thinking more about it later when I arrived at my friends home to feed his cats. I'm house sitting for the past two weeks and he has two boys: Chuckie and Shadow. They seem terribly lonely and I feel so horrible leaving them after I scoop and feed them. My hubby, when he is off and I go off to work, states that when I leave in the morning my Anthony will go to the door and look up at the door knob and cry for about half hour.

I know a few of you who read my blog have furry companions. Do you think our animals love us? Do they have the capability to miss us? I certainly love my boys to bits AND I miss them when I am away. Any thoughts?

As for the funny bit of this blog entry:

My younger cat Anthony has worked out the time that I usually arrive home from work. Hubs reports that everyday around the same time Anthony will stop what he is doing, go into the bay window and await my arrival. After I pull in the drive he jumps down and promptly waits at the door for me to enter. I am to give him three smooches and rub his tum and then he follows me around for awhile begging for a pet. I am accustomed to this greeting from Anthony.

Yesterday Husband was out and when I arrived home I noticed Anthony was not in his place in the bay window. I opened the door and he wasn't waiting for me. I did notice that he had gotten into his toy bin and pulled out about fifteen different toys and they were randomly placed all over the floor and littered down the hall. A few items in the family room were knocked over, the coat closet was open with two different shoes pulled out into the hall. Further down the hall my linen closet was also opened.

I went to investigate further and found at the entrance of my bedroom a "Christmas Man". I purchased this Christmas Man while out and about last Christmas season. He is a little stuffed man with a red and green outfit on and located on his tummy there is a pouch where you can insert little questionably looking sacks of cat nip (that are included in packaging). I usually hide this toy from the boys because they tend to go nuts on the cat nip.

Apparently Anthony had found said Christmas Man got a little crazy, made some bad decisions, ripped the toy bin apart and decided to run about and open all of the closets in the house in a drugged up frenzy.

I found him pretty much passed out on my side of the bed. When I turned on the light he simply lifted his head, gave his little half meow half purr and put his head back down as if saying: "I'm spent".

The Adventures of Captain Slow

2010-08-11T10:07:00.003-04:00

I have a really hard time obeying speed traffic laws. I just always feel the need for speed. I guess this translates well into my "non-driving" life. I am always in a rush, always want to finish things quickly and efficiently. Naturally I am usually driving over the speed limit. I've had many citations since the age of 16 for this reason. It's sort of a running joke in my family.

You, bloggie buds, will be the first to know. I have changed. For the past month I have made it my personal goal to only drive the speed limit. At first this was difficult for me...now, it's just right.

How and Why, you ask? Well, in the time period of one week I was pulled over twice.

Thankfully, I got a warning citation on both (which NEVER happens) so after the second time I decided I should quit while I'm ahead.

In my new found fun as a responsible driver I had an almost damaging experience yesterday. I was approximately 7 miles from my work. I was in the "slow" lane. A gentlemen in a giant SUV (I really loathe SUV's..of all sorts) proceeded to basically attempt to drive OVER top me. He was tail gating me like a professional. The passing lane was open. I was slightly irritated. When I reached my exit I merged and he did the same. He followed me into the carpark of my job. There is a long drive here that leads into an open area for parking. He was right on my ass so I accelerated a bit...to 35 mph. Apparently I was ruining this guys life.

Now, I have to digress: I am not an angry person. I may be bitter at times but not angry. I do not shout at people and would never resort to violence or even think of resorting to violence. This silver SUV man angered me so much that I wanted to give him the finger! I am not that kind of girl but yesterday morning I just felt the irresistible urge to tell him to Eff off and then slam on my breaks, exit my car and proceed to kick his tire in protest. Jerk.

Well just as I was about to lift my finger of fury at this man I decided not. I pulled into my spot and decided coffee was a better decision here. Perhaps I was at fault here. I am now dubbed Captain Slow, it is irritating to be stuck behind someone slow...

I exit my car and start to walk into my building. I see the silver, SUV man park and I see him exit his vehicle. He comes into focus. He is a very high top executive for the new company that just bought my company out!! Sweet Pete I am glad I kept my cool. Probably not a good idea to give an executive of your company the finger.

So again, I say: Quit while you're ahead PennyLane...quit while you're ahead.

ps. apologies in advance if anyone is ever caught behind me driving. I am now the picture of good traffic regulations.

A Visual Tour Through My Weekend!

2010-08-09T10:15:00.016-04:00

I had an ART filled weekend with a side of shopping! Here's a little visual tour!

Firstly,
I sarted off with the Art Exhibition episode of Top Gear, where my darling James created this amazing sculpture out of parts of a car. Of course, I can't find a picture of it AND Richard ended up destroying it after all of James hard work. Typical.

After that I indulged in some Toy Stories episdoes-Plasticine and Lego House. Always good for a second time around.

(heart drawn by penny ♥)

After this I did a little shopping. I was on the hunt for a slip on pair of shoes on the cheap. Something for work. I found these..(which I am currently wearing today)

In the children section (It pays to be hobbit sized) I found these cuties.

Plus this all gets better because P@yLess had a Bogo so I got both for $17.00

Next, I purchased some goodies for a care package! My lovely in Derbyshire! I got her some really cute items! I had to throw in some U.S. of A socks because what lovely girl from the United Kingdom wouldn't want to own their very own pair of socks that say: USA???
I also send her lots of Big Red gum as she LOVES it and it is not available for purchase in her hometown. I keep her stocked in this gum snack.

I included an ATC, that I created, of her fav. Fall Out Boy song to go along with her package. Sugar We're Going Down.

I am hoping she will come visit this year. I have not seen her in three years and last time she came around we had a blast.

After shopping I checked the post and what do you know?? New shirt! (currently wearing this as well)

Also recieved a James May sticker with my favourite catch phrase!

After my shopping and recieved goodies I went to work on finishing my [NOW] solo project: The Quote Journal.
Theme: My Favourite Quotes of All Time (I used an Alice theme because she's my fav)

Theme: Love Quotes. Paper was brushed with tea and edges burned and crumpled for texture.

Then I set to work on repainting some canvas for my master bedroom. I love Black and White...anything! Clothes, shoes, bags, painting, photos...I am a black and white girl. Most of my clothes are black and white combos. Both loo's are done in Black and White with b&w photography included. This will explain these:

Lastly, I had a cake order for a friend. He loves/plays Hockey so his girlfriend asked me to do a hockey man in his colours and include his number! She picks it up today for him. I hope he loves it!

Kicking It Old Skool

2010-08-06T10:55:00.002-04:00

I need your thoughts on a matter.
I am the type of person that while out and about if I pass something that seems to be just right for a friend I will purchase it. Granted these items are always under five dollars. Most often it's from the Five Below shop or in a dollar bin.
I ask because I recently sent two little care boxes to a friend who moved out of state. She was having a hard time as of late and I sent her a few little items to cheer her up. I included some artwork (my ATC's) and some music and other cute little items I saw along my travels. She honestly, thought it odd.
To add more color to this picture, I am also a card fanatic. I am constantly stopping at Hallmark and constantly sending little greeting cards to friends to just say: Hey, I think you're amazing/brilliant/radical...pick one. I mean who wouldn't want to go to the mail box and find a greeting card with some positive remarks written in it from someone who cares? That would certainly make my day!

Okay, I realize and am fully aware that I am, in fact, ODD. In my defense, I didn't really think giving someone a small gift is odd.
To continue my defense: I do have a lot of friends that don't live in my area, thanks to the world wide web.
I don't have any children so I can't very well purchase them tiny little gifts.
I like to shop on the cheap.
I like giving things to people that are thoughtful.
Lastly, I believe in treating others as you want to be treated and frankly, I would like to know that people think of me when they see something and smile, or care enough to drop me line old skool-Snail mail.

So bloggie buds, am I missing something here? Am I really odd?

Okay, maybe don't answer that last bit....

A Bit Dramatic..

2010-08-04T10:09:00.006-04:00

I am pretty tired and cranky today so this is a perfect opportunity to complain about a few items:
FIRSTLY,
You can purchase all sorts of International channels. In fact, Comcast offers 15 different Indian channels. They also have a German Channel package available for purchase.
You can not, however, order any other BBC other than BBC America.

Well, how the hell am I supposed to watch James May At The Edge of Space, James May On the Moon or Man Lab???
My daily fix of Captain Slow will now be reduced to re-shows of Top Gear. This is because Toy Stories has just had it's "Finally".
Woe is me.
Someone please cue up the song: "I can't liiiivvveeeee, if living is without you.......I can't liiiiivvveee, I can't giiiivvve anymore.."
*sigh*

(pic taken from BBC homepage. Purple hearts drawn by a very silly pennylane. )

-I am one of those who uses a seperate shampoo and conditioner. Don't you hate it when you are so tired and don't really bother looking at the bottle and you squeeze a generous amount of conditioner on your hair only to realize you meant to be putting shampoo on?? Maybe it's just me. I am super, dooper clumsy and cheap..so at $6-$7.00 per bottle every little bit counts. I did this last night. I mean, what do you do?

-I am going to watching a friends house/pets for about two weeks. I am slightly irritated because his house is out of my way home. Makes my commute longer (already an hour each way) and traffic is always nerve wracking on that end. He left last evening and we called to discuss my duties. He had thrown in: Taking his bins down to be picked up, checking his mail, and deposting a check that he will be recieving.

I will not be paid for this and I am guilted into it because: "I am the only one he knows in this area...everyone else lives too far to tend to his home every evening".
I am too nice.
Dear backbone,
Please grow.
Thank you,
Penny

I need a shirt that states: USE ME.

-Remember the whole attitude adjustment bit I told you I needed? It's not working. I think it has to do with the new phone system installed in my company. There is a phone tree. This simlpy means when our lazy phone ops decide they don't want to answer the phone it will be routed to another person and then another and so on. Well guess what???? I'm number two on the phone tree!! I share an office (closet) with reception and I'm almost admin so I get to be responsible for all missed calls plus the Manager line. My phone never stops now. Mostly because Reception (1)reads all day, (2) Just stares at the phone when it rings.

Yes, ladies, you are meant to ANSWER that when it rings. Not rocket science. In fact, it's the whole point of your job! The only thing you are paid to do is pick up the phone when it sounds.
This attitude adjustment-
yeah, just not working out.

Unfinished Projects...

2010-08-03T10:20:00.006-04:00

I started this amazing project with two friends. We were creating scrapbook pages with our favorite quotes on them. We picked 9 topics and each week we were to meet and exchange our pages. So far we have completed:

Motivational Quotes
Fave Lyrics
Quotes from a Book
Funny Quotes
Love Quotes
Movie Quotes

(Below is a picture of the paper I created for the background of my Movie page)

Below is the completed Movie page. The quotes are written as a movie script: ie:
Forrest stands at the bottom of the staris with both hands on his hips. Below Jenny stares at him...
FORREST: I'm not a smart man but I know what love is..

Behind each quote is an old film negative to give it extra punch!

I have only recieved three of my co-pilots pages-someone forgot one-someone had to cancel-someone was sick..etc, etc.

It's frustrating because the last four meetings have been cancelled. The project was supposed to be finished by now and I am pretty sure it won't be finished at all. All motivation and desire seems to be lost except on my behalf. I put a lot of work into this and I am quite proud of my work. My book displaying our pages has empty slots for my co-hosts pages. What should I do?

Do I take the pages out of my co-hosts? Leave them in up until the moment they quit and then just finish with my own? I'm a libra folks- I need balance and I am growing anxious as I type this-to leave them in and then round the book off with just mine gives me vertigo.

Any ideas?

A Magical Birthday

2010-07-31T08:00:00.002-04:00

Happy Birthday Harry!

Five Songs By Favorite Artist

2010-07-30T10:08:00.003-04:00

Top 5 On Friday

Top 5 songs by one of your favorite artists

This would be Jimmy Eat World.

One: If You Don't, Don't

Two: No Sensitivity

Three: Clarity

Four: Dizzy

Five: Table For Glasses

Ponderings...

2010-07-27T10:16:00.009-04:00

"This life has been a test. If this had been an actual life, you would have received instructions on where to go and what to do. " -Angela Chase-My So-Called Life

Things I have been pondering:

-I watched Reality Bites with a friend over the weekend. He had never seen this movie. Another friend who is considerably younger than I also watched. I personally think that this film is EPIC. Seriously, it sums up all of my feelings associated with graduating college, coming of age and finding out who you really are. It's smart, witty and heart breaking. He was seriously underwhelmed and the younger friend: hated it. Wow folks.

-Why do I keep dreaming of Justin Bieber? I have only heard one song by Bieber. I see his pictures every now and then in magazines but other than that I don't know a thing about him and I'm not a fan at all. I have some crazy dreams because I take Melatonin to help with insomnia and this herbal supplement increases the vividness of your dreams. So for the past three weeks I have randomly been dreaming and Justin Bieber is always involved.

-I have so many things I still want to do in life. Having a child would seriously hinder these things. Sometimes I want a child, other times I just want to purchase a really big 52 inch flat screen telly instead and just hang out without hassle. I feel like time is running out.

-A lot of Mr. Hubs students at school are not aware of Chris Farley. This is so odd to me. He was a staple of the 90's. Are we really getting old? I don't feel old. I don't think I look old. I guess I'm getting there.

-I think my cat Anthony has "people" issues. He doesn't like folks who spend the night. At all. A friend stayed the weekend with me because Mr. Husband was out of town and Anthony just followed this friend around and when we were watching a movie he would sit in front of the friend and just stare. For the entire two hours of film. No, it was more like a glare. Then every time I left the room it was reported that Anthony would hiss at said friend. When I went to sleep instead of curling up next to his Momma, Anthony sat in the hall in front of the guest room door and glared. I made the friend shut the door. I didn't want him to get shanked in the middle of the night by Anthony's claw.

-Why is Matty Bellamy rumored to be dating Kate Hudson. Really Matt? Really?? I can't even look at you right now.

-Putting together a mini break to drive up to Philly, or as I call it: "Killadelphia" in October to see Jimmy Eat World at the Electric Factory. Good times. Always.

-My in-laws claim they want to hang out. They said to pick a date and we would all have dinner together. A crab feast. I'm kind of excited....but only for the crabs. I would endure in-laws for some steamed crabs with Old Bay and vinegar.

-Why are flip flops not an acceptable mode of foot wear for office work? Especially for me. I do maths all day. Behind a desk. With a calculator. I don't talk to patients. I rarely talk to co-workers, I don't even take calls. No one would even see me! It's one hundred and ten degress in Merryland! I need to wear flips to work. At least on Fridays? People wear jeans on Fridays! By people I mean NURSES. Which to me looks really dodgy so why can't a hobbit sized accountant wear some flips, behind the desk?

What are you pondering?

My Journey Through Books in 2010

2010-07-22T10:02:00.007-04:00

I am moving right along in my reading adventures this year. I am approaching my 50th book and every now and then I check in and update you, give recommendations, and ask for suggestions.

Here are a few noteworthy books I have found along the way and, as always, I will tell you how I "found" them.

Little Giant of Aberdeen County-Tiffany Baker: My mother read this book earlier this year and raved about it's storytelling so I borrowed this one to indulge.

Little Giant is told by Truly, a young girl with a "large" birth defect. It follows her from birth, follows her hardships with her father and the favoritism of her beautiful sister and all of the hardships of life. Truly becomes intertwined with her sisters mistakes in life and stuck in a situation where she discovers family secrets and moral issues. This was a quick read. The moral dilemma in the book was one that provided great book club fodder. I don't want to give anything way so I will say no more...only that I enjoyed reading the book and I enjoyed discussing it after it's end even more.

Of Bees and Mist-Eric Setiawan: I was in need of something really good to read and had just come off a really great book so I looked to "If You Like This Book You'll Love This..." link of the website I was utilizing. Of Bees and Mist was listed first.

I had such a love/hate relationship with this book. I found that the narrative was written in an almost sloppy manner. I also have a hard time with the fantasy element. About halfway through the book I gave in. I took the fantastical elements and just tried to use them in a figurative sense. After I came to terms with this I actually enjoyed the book! I thought the story was awesome. It follows Merieda and her family-who house some devastating secrets. Merieda is followed from birth and until she meets the love of her life-Daniel. Merieda marries and lives with Daniels family and the hardships pick up. I thought I had an intense Mother in law. You have not seen/heard anything until you meet Merieda's MIL. This book was a roller coaster with disasters around every corner. If you can stomach lots of imagery and fantasy elements and focus on the story, then you will be satisfied!

A Perfect Nightmare-John Saul: My mother purchased House of Reckoning by same author. I read this book and was slightly impressed. During a library visit I found PN and I thought I would give it a go.

Perfect Nightmare is exactly what it claims to be. A perfect nightmare. It is about a couple with a teenage daughter who need to move. During the showing of their home a serial kidnapper enters and becomes obsessed with the daughter and takes her after hiding in the basement all day after a house showing. The chapters take turns being told from the mother of the child, the serial kidnapper and the daughter. The kidnapper has some crazy motives and the twists and turns and just plain creepiness of this idea was enthralling! I will now be terrified to ever sell my house. I loved this book. Unfortunately I tried a few other Saul books and I wasn't as impressed. Out of four or five I have read by him this was by far the most noteworthy.

I'm Perfect, You're Doomed: Tales From a Jehovah's Witness Upbringing-Kyria Abrahams-I can't remember the origin of this book. I think I read about it in Entertainment Weekly or my mother recommended.

I was immediately curious about this book. I have always been interested in religions. The exclusiveness of them, the judgements upon others, the radicalness, the rules, everything. I am of no religion. I don't believe in organized religion, it's not for me. I take more of a scientific approach on these things-but that is another day and another conversation. When I was young a Jehovah's Witness came to our home and talked with my Grandma and my mother for a long time. Both Grandma and Ma ended up becoming JW's. I attended the Kingdom Hall with them from time to time. I was never forced into the religion. It was always my choice to believe what I wished. They were pretty loyal JW's up until my high school years. I remember at a very young age just kind of finding the whole bit odd and ridiculous. I read a lot of their literature and in college I took tons of philosophy of religion courses to study anything and everything about religions. So naturally, this book appealed to me on a personal level.

The book followed Kyria from childhood until her twenties and discussed her family upbringing in the Kingdom Hall, her radical beliefs and fears and discussed a lot of the doctrine of JW and the way of living. I will say that if you are curious about JW religion and what children think and how things are perceived you should read this. It was interesting to relate to the author on these matters. The problem I had with this book is by mid-book I thought that the author got away from the purpose and just started blaming everything that happened to her in her life on JW. I guess it could stem from this but, to me, it became forced and unbelievable. Like Abrahams just wanted to tie this book up in a pretty bow. So I leave you to make your decision on this one.

Dear Husband-Joyce Carol Oates: Browsing in the library and this book caught my eye because of the vibrant color on the jacket and the title. I read the back and thought I would give it a go.

A collection of short stories. I am a hard core Stephen King fan so I am picky when it comes to short story writers. I have only found one other to master it as well as King-Dan Chaon. So I was taking a chance on Dear Husband. This collection is all about families. Different types of families and different hardships and mostly their abilities to cope after devastation. It was incredibly beautiful and I am very glad I picked it up.

Lord of the Rings-J.R.R Toilken-Always been a HUGE fan of the films and my brother is obsessed with The Hobbit so I decided to give it a chance. Turns out I fell in love. Amazing tale, beautiful story and it touched my soul. This is going on my favorite books of all time list. If you are a fan of the films and have not read these tales please give it a chance. Or if you like tales such as these-give it a shot.

So that's about it. Currently I am reading: A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. I am a little over half way and I love the story. My next novel will be The Hobbit but I had some Q's for all of you:

Has anyone read anything by Nick Hornby? One of my fav. films is About A Boy and I saw the book in library. I also saw: A Long Way Down and am thinking of trying it out.

Also, another favorite book is The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger. Has anyone read Franny and Zooey? I have also added this to my queue of books.

Lastly: What are you currently reading? Any suggestions?

Jim, You Shouldn't Have....

2010-07-20T10:01:00.006-04:00

First and foremost: Date for new Jimmy Eat World was announced! September 28th 2010! Four days after my date of birth ♥ What a gift!

Excited to hear Stop, which was an unreleased Demo from Chase This Light. It was one of my favorites that didn't end up on the album. It is included on Invented, although I heard it was going to sound different than the demo version.

Here is the album art! Taken from JEW site.

In other entertainment news:

I saw Inception over the weekend and I have to tell you, I was blown away! It was brilliant. Leo is one of my favorite actors (Tom Hanks being number one-would make Leo number two). Leo was amazing, as always, but surprisingly I thought that Joseph Gordon Levitt stole the show!!

So I don't want to give anything away, just know, it's complicated and you need to pay close attention to keep up but it's all worth it because it is simply brilliant.

Toy Stories and Choir Rehearsal...

2010-07-16T10:15:00.007-04:00

Looking for something to watch over the summer? I don't watch a lot of television. I mostly Dvr stuff and watch later or early morning when I can't sleep but the programs I do watch are all on summer hiatus. Wanted to share some great televison finds!

Everyone knows, (or should know) that I love me some BBC America.

The other night, while watching Top Gear I saw an advert for a show with James May (who is a co-host of Top Gear). It's called Toy Stories. I quickly set my DVR and watched the first episode last week. It's pretty radical. Firstly, James May-for those who do not know this man- is so freaking smart and I think he could build anything he wanted from scratch. Modern day McGuyver, that one. Basically, this show follows him focusing on a specific toy and creating and completing a challange with that toy. The first episode was about Scalextric cars. Here's a bit from the episode guide: "James builds the biggest Scalextric track in the world, nearly three miles long, on the site of Britain's oldest grand prix track at Brooklands in Surrey. The track will have to go through people's gardens, over ponds and rivers and even negotiate a business park. Who will win the race of the century, the plucky locals or the team of Scalextric experts?"

Last week I watched him create a garden made entirely out of Plasticine and then enter it at the Chelsea Flower Show. It was crazy.

Another great show on BBC is called The Choir. It follows this really, cute-as-a-button choir master-Gareth Malone as he tries to whip a secondary school into shape for the choir olympics in China! Limited time and no training and bad attitudes make for great stuff. Did I mention Gareth is seriously cute-as-a-bunny-rabbit?? ( I think it's the glasses. Boys with glasses are more darling than boys without) Okay, enough about Gareth..if you like Glee, you will probably love The Choir. So check it out!

Anyone else have any new finds??

Penny and Elijah Sittin' in a Tree...Wait a Minute..We Can't Reach the Branches...

2010-07-15T06:00:00.000-04:00

My guest room closet houses all of my "stuff". You know, the crap you can't bring yourself to throw away from "back in the day". Yesterday I had to venture into the closet and find something and I came across a large blue binded book that had

I ♥ ELIJAH

written in black sharpie across the front. I giggled a bit because this was my scrap book from pre-teen years. I was mildly obsessed with Elijah Wood. I filled this scrap book with clippings, photos from everywhere I could get them, love letters and musings about Elijah. I even had an autograph I scored by writing to my pint sized love.

I retained this obsession throughout high school and college. I just knew that one day we would be married. Simply because, I am hobbit sized (five foot) and he only towers like 5'4 (bite sized snack), he wears the coolest black rimmed glasses (like me), listens to rad music, dresses in the coolest geek styled clothes and he smokes cool cigarettes. Made for each other.

Well, I didn't marry Elijah but I still think he's pretty rad. This got me thinking about all of those silly girl-ish crushes you have growing up. Anyone want to share? No worries, no judgement here..Come on...just tell me :) Or post it up on your blog but comment here so I know to check out your post.

Who were your celebrity childhood crushes??

Here are mine:

Firstly, do I really need to mention this man?? Yeah, no...So I will move on.

Remember, I am a child of the 80's so naturally my very first crush was on Donnie Wahlberg, of New Kids on the Block. I had his picture plastered on my bedroom walls. I even had the over sized button/pin of him that I would pin on my jean jacket. I would watch the NKOTB VHS tape of Hanging Tough show and there was this one part in particular that Donnie would pull a lucky girl from the audience and sing "Cover Girl" to her. Man, I was so jealous of that pip squeak that got to go up and be serenaded. *sigh*

Being a child of the 80's, of course I crushed on one of the Corey's. I watched Goonies A LOT and Mouth was my favorite.

High school was Elijah Wood and Ewan Mcgregor...in my high school year book, a few signatures from friends actually say: "Long live Ewan Mcgregor" or mention Elijah in some way :)

Remember: No judgement.

So go on, tell me yours *wink*

Updates and Explanations..

2010-07-14T10:04:00.003-04:00

My blog has really been lacking as of late. I find that if I can't do everything I need/want to do on the internet on my breaks at work then I just never get around to it. I am in front of a computer for 8 hours a day. When I get home and on the weekends I honestly don't even venture near my computer unless it's to sync my ipod.

I am sad to say that I have no good news to announce. I applied, tested and interviewed twice for a job in the school system near my home. This is my second attempt at employment in this establishment. This is also the second time I have taken a full day off of work, stressed out, practice interviewed, had an OCD breakdown, only to find that someone transferred into the job so I was passed over. I had the highest testing score, out of 25 (including the transfer), I had a great interview score (they score everything) AND I know the freakin' head master. (sorry, I've been playing Lego Harry Potter a lot). Government. It all adds up to just getting in and then you're golden. I'm not giving up. I'll keep trying but I will say this. I was BUMMED. Everything just seemed so right about this job. Everything just worked out beautifully. I had been having some very stressful days at work and I had one foot, one leg and half of my torso out the door already so to hear a denial was like a train wreck.

I need a serious attitude adjustment. I need to deal until I can move on.

On the bright side of things I have found Audiobooks. I am not sure what I think of them. I do, however, love the idea of listening to one book while reading another. I've rented a few heavy hitter books that I have tried to read but grew bored, yet still wanted to go back to them.

I also find that an audiobook makes the days at work fly by. It also motivates me to want to go to work because I only listen to them there.

Other than that things are just "going". I hope everyone in bloggy land is on the up and up :)

Momma's Got a Brand New Bag!!

2010-07-08T09:38:00.007-04:00

Exciting new bags that are pefect for the summer season are now available at Blue Bird Crafting!!
Please check out the new stuff as well as browse the old! I can't say enough good things about the shop owner. She is amazing ♥

"I Open at the Close"

2010-06-29T10:16:00.004-04:00

Thanks to everyone that offered a kind word from my bummer post last week. I'm a constant work in progress. It's a fact.

This week I have some exciting stuffs going on in Penny Lane. I have been waiting and looking for the right position to open up in the school system for some time now. Aside from creepy men making off-collar remarks to me I am not happy in my company any longer. It's been a long time building up and boiling over.

I have interviewed once before for a special education position at the school my husband works. A long time county employee, who was overlooked prior, was given the position. There is something in the works currently for a similar position. Last week I went to the Board of Ed to take a test and I was one of 25 people there. There was a mini-interview afterwards. They made me wait and be the very last interviewed. I was slightly peeved at being last called but after I sat down found out why. I was the highest scored in the class. I "blew them away" they said. "Made it look SO easy" they also said.

I don't want to give too much away so I will just say that other things are in the works and maybe/hopefully I will have some good news soon to share.

In completely unrelated, but equally exciting news:

Today is the release date of Lego Harry Potter Years 1-4. I have been waiting for this game for about a year now! Excited to stop by my electronics store and purchase this one tonight!

♪ "I've Stumbled Here, Failed to Make It Mine.." ♪

2010-06-24T20:29:00.003-04:00

I try to keep Penny Lane light and fluffy. You know, life, at times, isn’t so light and fluffy. I’m finding that we, you and I, need to have a heart to heart. Mostly because I am carrying something that I need help to shoulder and I find that Penny Lane always lends a helping hand.

I have not been myself as of late. I have always had a “weight issue”. Join the club right? I have always been plump. I fluctuate, sometimes more and sometimes less. The thing is, I have always felt really crappy about me. I never feel comfortable in my skin. Two years ago I joined Weight Watchers with my best friend and I lost about 42 pounds I still didn’t feel comfortable in me. I looked better, yes, but I guess it really just all starts from within.

Lately, I have been really down about me. I have gained back about 15 of the original 42 lost and I have tried to get back on WW twice. I just end up quitting for one reason or the other. Lately, I don’t want to look in the mirror, I don’t want to go out with friends, I don’t want to meet new friends, I stress and am constantly at war with my mind because I feel like crap about ME. About how I look.

When I do go out, I notice people, of all kinds, going about their business. They look so at peace with themselves. They are comfortable in their own skin and I just wish and think to myself: How do you get there? How does one achieve that? And most importantly, why can’t I?

Today I was speaking to a foreign co-worker and he told me that he was coming to town in August and he thinks I should lose about ten pounds before he gets here. I think he was trying to be funny. I didn’t laugh. I was angry at him. I really don’t think that is proper work place conversation, not to mention, it's none of his business, number one, and number two, it hurt me.

I cried in my work loo and I feel like shit even more.

A few months ago I was reading a fellow bloggie buds blog and it was harshly judging plump folks and the severely overweight. I left no comment because, as a member of plump, I don’t judge. I try to always find the beauty in EVERYONE.

The funny thing is, most times I can’t find it in me.

*lyrics from Plump by Hole

Shower Cake

2010-06-21T11:06:00.001-04:00

yeah, that was interesting....

WTF Weddings and The Law...

2010-06-17T10:10:00.004-04:00

I have two WTF thoughts for you to chew on today.

Firstly: Four Weddings...and Three Bridal showers.....AND Countless Engagement Parties

I am at the age where everyone I know is now deciding to get hitched. I had FIVE weddings this summer. Thankfully, I declined one (which was out of state) but I still have four others (three out of state) all in a matter of four weeks. I am so sick of weddings. I actually hate weddings. I didn't even like my own wedding. It's a big mess. I'm not your traditional female (as a lot of you already know) so I didn't own a countdown to my big day and I didn't want the big song and dance. If others do, good on them, but not for me. I wanted a small gig. People who actually KNEW my hubs and I, who cared about us to be there.

This Saturday I am attending a bridal shower. I have to make the cake and I made the invites to help out. I was required by marital law. Since I purchased all of the cake supplies and invite supplies, plus time spent doing both I decided that a twenty dollar electric wine opener from their registry was gift enough. I already have to purchased them an expensive wedding gift and pay travel and hotel expenses AND take a day off of work to attend their wedding extravaganza.

So yesterday I get home to find ANOTHER Bridal shower invite. Hubs cousin. Out of state. ON A SUNDAY.

Seriously people. A sunday. Some of us work.

My husbands brother is also getting married. Out of state. On a Sunday.

Talked to my Bestie about this sort of thing. I realized, after the engagement party, the bridal shower AND the wedding you have invested THREE gifts for the couple. Plus hotel and travel fare if it's out of state. When does it give?? What are your theories on this? Any suggestions? I am struggling for some ideas here now that I am supposedly required to buy ANOTHER shower gift.

Second: Ignorance.

Yes, I'm going to put this out there because it really just pisses me off. I am sick of hearing about folks who are hit or rough handled by the police on the news. Now before you start fuming, I'm not talking about Rodney King here.. I mean, if you are breaking the law and a police man stops you...and you start pushing and shoving him, throwing rocks at him, and or PUNCH him, I'm sorry but if he knocks you around a bit to get your ass under control then YES....you deserve this.

This morning I got to watch a replay in slow motion of two young girls who were stopped by a policeman and after he asked them politely to stop doing whatever it was they were doing they started screaming in his face, shoved him several times and then a friend jumped in and shoved him in his face. Well, he slapped her and then proceeded to cuff her. I'm sorry people but I think it was justified. Lets not sit around in shock and stare at the instant replay and ask "Why?"

Control yourselves folks and own up to your own responsibilities.

Any WTF thoughts you have to share??

I think I feel a little better now that these thoughts are out in the open...Thanks guys ♥

Five Songs That Remind Me of My Best Friend

2010-06-11T09:53:00.003-04:00

Top 5 On Friday

Top 5 songs that make you think of your best friend.

I am totally going to use more than one friend because I love this weeks topic.

My Bestie is The Mrs over at Trying Our Best. We met back in 1998. Fresh into college, we both got a position in the Financial Aid Department of our college, discovered we shared the birth day and personality quirks and it was love at first sight. It is an odd connection we share, technically we are very alike and actually we are nothing alike. We could go for months without speaking and then randomly decide to call one another and talk for like three hours. It's just how we roll.

So to end my rambles: Five songs that make me think of my best friend:

1. Bright Lights-Matchbox Twenty- Bestie moved to NY :(

2. Faith-George Michael-Both big fans of GM. Both worked at Suncoast and would listen to The Best of GM every, single, working day.

3. Fly-Lenny Kravitz- This was popular for like two summers and in those two summers we spent a lot of time just driving around and getting lost.

4. I Will Wait for You-Hootie & The Blowfish-We both loved Hootie and this song was always one of her favorites.

5. Jennifers Body-Hole-This went on a mixed TAPE that I made for her early on. It meant something then and means something now *wink*

_____________

The other friend is more like a member of my family. Rusty. We have lived just down the street from each other our whole lives-even after four major location moves. Kind of like fate.

I have known him forever and he is still a staple in my daily life.

1. Breakdown-Mariah Carey-R&B hit from high school.

2. MMMBop-Hanson-He probably wouldn't admit this, but we BOTH totally loved this song and that cd when it was released in the 1990's.

3. Tik Tok-Ke$ha- Only because he loathes this song, as I did. Then it kind of grew on me because every time I get in my car it's on the radio. It started as a joke during the loathing stage. Everytime this song comes on the radio I recieve a text message with just this written: TIK TOK ♥

Eventually, we both started to like the song. After intense overplay, we now loathe it but I still get those text messages daily.

4. Baby, Baby-Bieber-Again, another one of those Ke$ha stories. Rusty teases me that I have Bieber Fever. I didn't even know who Bieber was for a long time. A few times while out and about a song has come on and he makes me listen to it. I actually like the beat of Baby, Baby and it will now forever be associated to Rus.

5. It's Your Love-Tim Mcgraw and Faith Hill-This was another huge hit during high school. I took one of those courses as an elective where you have to carry a 5lb baby doll around and plan your wedding and learn how to write a resume, etc. Well we had to marry someone from class and price our wedding and take turns with the fake baby. Of course since Rus and I were/are like peas and carrots I picked him and this was our "fake" wedding song. Funny aside: I hate this song. Never even liked it. It was just the love song hit of that time frame.

Blue Bird Crafting-A MUST!

2010-06-10T10:00:00.005-04:00

Last year I posted pictures of some hand made quilted bags that my Bestie's Ma made for me and a friend. She does such amazing work. I have the priveledge of owning two hand made bags (a spring bag and an all year bag) and a quilt that she made me as a wedding gift. To say I LOVE this woman's work is an understatement. I am so amazed each time I see a new creation from her. She is truly brilliant when it comes to quilting and I am very blessed to own some of her pieces and I must say I adore each of them. After four years of marriage I still use my Wedding quilt, every, single evening and I am currently rocking my all year bag :)

I am very excited to announce that after some planning and cohoots between my Bestie and her Ma she has opened her very own Etsy shop featuring some of her amazing work, at some pretty great prices :)

If you are a lover of handmades and/or bags please go check it out. You won't be sorry!

(click on sign to visit!)

How Did We Come To This?

2010-06-04T08:23:00.000-04:00

Yesterdays post was about my excitement for New and Improved Wilton Courses. I mentioned that my favorite flower was a Calla Lily and Wilton has decided to incorporate a gumpaste Calla in their new Gumpaste course.

While we are on the subject, funny story that wouldn't quite fit in yesterday but deserves further mention:

I do not own a green thumb. Nor hand, nor arm...nothing. I can't grow anything. Since I purchased a home about four years ago I have tried to plant pretty flowers but they always end up never coming out or they do come out and die. Flowers and gardening are not for me.

So one day while shopping at Lowes I came across bulbs for Calla Lily's. They seemed easy enough to deal with. Right? Sure...I bought six of them. I went home and planted them-Three and three on either side of my walk way up to my porch. A year later know what happened??

They bloomed!!!!

I was SO excited!! Plus they were simply gorgeous. They are so clean and classy and just beautiful. I was very proud of myself. The first thing I ever managed to grow happened to be my favorite flower. Also my Ma informed me that the Lily's would return each year and didn't need to be replaced.

Well winter came, the plants died out and eventually a new spring began. My husband went out early spring to clean up the yard and flower beds. Weed and plant a few things. A few days after this I came home to find some new plants sitting on our porch, waiting to be planted. I questioned Hubs.

Hubs: "I bought them to put on both sides of the walkway to the porch".

Me: "Why? I have Calla Lily's planted there, they will come up every year"

Hubs: "Really? I didn't see them?"

Me: "Because they have not bloomed yet silly"

Hubs: "Well when I was weeding I noticed that we had potatoes growing in there so I pulled them out of the ground and threw them in the woods. Isn't that crazy? Potatoes! How did they get there?"

Me: "You idiot. Those are BULBS. Bulbs of Calla Lily's!!"

Oooops. Yes, so I no longer have Calla's in my front yard thanks to my Husband.

Good thing he teaches Maths :)

New and Improved!

2010-06-03T09:00:00.001-04:00

News! I am in the planning process of a huge craft project involving myself, Amber (remember Amber/Ashley??) and her sister Jessica. I am super excited about what we have in works. I will post pictures after I have something completed. Right now it's just blue prints and ideas.

We have a group meeting scheduled to tie up loose ends and get the ball rolling. Also a little shopping field trip to AC Moore. My husband calls this "Old biddy time". I'm not even thirty but I guess I have been an "old biddy" since before high school. ♥

While doing some research on supplies for our project I came across this!

Wilton New and Improved Cake Courses

I immediately begain hyperventilating because you all know how much I heart cake decor. I completed the entire Wilton course process last year and they have a special running at my local craft shop for 50% off for Wilton grads! Plus, I already have just about every tip and tool needed so this time around I wouldn't be spending tons of money on supplies.

They have "New and Improved" Course one. Even though the basic, basics are gone over the first few classes I wouldn't mind going back. Get a refresh, learn some new flowers and ideas such as:

Dimensional Decorating
Pompom Flower,

Filling and Icing a Cupcake (I already know how to do this but I kind of figured it out on my own)
Guidelines for Elementary Cake Design
Ribbon Rose
Guidelines for Decorating Your Cake

The Gumpaste course is also "New and Improved".

Although the only change I noticed was they removed that god awful "Fantasy Flower" and replaced it with my very favorite flower: The Calla Lily.

I don't think I like Gumpaste and fondant enough to retake this course just for the one flower so I am going to teach myself the technique for the Lily.

I have a cake order for a Bridal shower on June 19 that has to be deco'ed with Daisy's. I may incorporate a few Calla Lily's as well.

♪ All Summer Long ♪

2010-06-02T06:18:00.001-04:00

Tuesday Tunes: Week 135
Yesterday was the unofficial start to summer.

What new releases are you looking forward to this summer? Jimmy Eat World. Don't know if it will be out for the summer but it's pretty much the only thing I am looking forward to musically.

What music makes you think of summer? -Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers

-Dion and the Belmonts

-Any 50's and 60's mix...I always play these at Summer BBQ's

-Of All The Gin Joints In All The World-Fall Out Boy

-Anything off of Take This to Your Grave by Fall Out Boy-big soundtrack to the summer I worked Warped Tour with Fall Out Boy

-Always Be-Jimmy Eat World

What's the best song you can think of to play with the top down/or windows down on a hot summer day?

-Clarity, No Sensitivity, Here it Goes, Always Be-Jimmy Eat World

-Graduate or Blinded-Third Eye Blind

-The Twist-Frightened Rabbit

-Anything by Counting Crows

-Lately, Hey Soul Sister-Train

-You're So Last Summer-Taking Back Sunday

-Stokholm Syndrome, Supermassive-Muse

A Little Something to Read..

2010-06-01T09:17:00.001-04:00

A few more reviews of some great books I have found along my journey.

With the Old Breed: At Peleliu and Okinawa by Eugene Sledge

Why I Picked This Book: Recommended by a friend.

My Review: I love to read about history. I also love war memoirs and have read quite a few of them. I can honestly say it is probably one of the BEST war memoirs I have ever read. Sledge paints such a vivid picture and this memoir is written like no other I have read. It is more straight forward, honest and heartbreaking. If you like history or memoirs this will be a good one to pick up.

Othello-William Shakespeare

Why I Picked This Book: I love classics and pick them up as I go along. This one I found for a few bucks in a bin.

My Review: Yes, you read this correctly. Othello. Such an amazing tale of JEALOUSY and what it can do to a persons mind and soul and how far they will let it control them and others.

Bloodroot-Amy Greene

Why I Picked This Book: While reading my weekly porn: Entertainment Weekly, they had a full page review on this NEW author and the wonders of her first novel. I went to purchase it the very next day.

My Review: Bloodroot was a very "southern" book. It tells the tale of three generations of women who live in the Smoky Mountains and their struggle with a horrid history that keeps repeating itself during each woman's life. The book is divided into a few parts that are narrated by a different character. Each character has a "voice". It is written as they would speak and this tone creates a connection with each character. The book is epic and tragic. I couldn't believe this was novel number one for Amy Greene and I can't wait to read more from her.

Next-Michael Crichton

Why I Picked This Book: Simply because I love, love, love MC.

My Review: Although Jurassic Park is my very favorite MC book, Next was pretty intense! It was fast paced, super smart and had that element that I seem to favor in books: Each chapter was written from a different character. Everyone had their own story and they all intertwined in the end. I have recommended this to a few folks and was given "the look" because the subject matter of Next is genetics and DNA. Gene patents and genetic testing. Don't judge folks. If you can keep up it's intense and such a great read!

The Doctors Wife-Elizabeth Brundage

Why I Picked This Book: Read the back while waiting in line at Walmart. It sounded interesting so I purchased it.

My Review: This book wasn't very deep but if you are looking for a quick, no-thinking-necessary read full of scandal then look no further. It is about a Doctor that performs abortions at a free women's clinic and neglects his family, his wife becomes involved in an affair with a man whose wife is a religious freak. Lots of suspense, threats against the clinic and the doctors wife and family and twists and turns. Pretty decent read.

Anyone else care to share a really great read they have found this year??

Happy Reading!

A Memorial Day Thank You

2010-05-28T10:09:00.009-04:00

Memorial Day
We are so very proud and grateful.
THANK YOU.

photos by Penny

On Books and Music ♪

2010-05-26T10:10:00.010-04:00

On Books ♥

In my quest to read as much as I can this year I have a few honorable mentions.

Firstly: The Irresistible Henry House- Lisa Grunwald

About a "House baby" of the 60's. An orphan who grows up in a practice house with five different practice mothers. It's intense how at such an early age having no real connection and being pressured to please each person can really effect a child. This book follows Henry when he is an infant up until his mid-twenties and the horrid results of the practice mothers and practice house.

The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls

Holly smokers. My bestie sent this down from "the big city" (haha New York) for me to read. She claims she read this and thought of me immediately. She meant that in the nicest way possible. I'm still not sure..haha. This book is a memoir of Jeannette and her hardships with her family. A mother who is anything but motherly, a drunk father and poverty and her drive to overcome and change her future so that it didn't resemble her past. I just finishing this one up and believe me, you should check this one out. It's intense.

On Music ♪

Tuesday Tunes: Week 134
Who are your favorites:

Guitarist: Matt Bellamy. I strive to achieve his level of RADness on the guitar.

Drummer: Dominic Howard of Muse. Incredible ♥

Bassist: Rick Burch of Jimmy Eat World. Seriously the coolest, nicest dude you can ever meet.

Vocalist (Male and Female):

Um Helloo....as if you didn't know:

Jim Adkins

and

Patsy Cline.

Whoa...big difference there huh??

Songwriter: Jim Adkins and/or Bono.

Angry Friday Music

2010-05-21T10:04:00.002-04:00

Top 5 On Friday
Top 5 songs that suit the mood you are in right now

Pretty angry. Here we go:

1. Stop-Jimmy Eat World (unreleased demo)

2. Sleep to Dream-Fiona Apple

3. Possiblility-Lykke Li

4. Since You've Been Gone-Kelly Clarkson

5. Violet-Hole

Anthony Jr.

2010-05-21T08:00:00.000-04:00

This is not my Anthony but I found him online and he is too freakin' cute to not share. I would like to get a pure breed British Shorthair like this guy.

Oreo Surprise Cakes!

2010-05-20T08:00:00.000-04:00

I decided to post my Oreo Surprise recipe as well for The Mrs. Recipe Hop. My Oreo Surprise cakes are my most requested item. In fact, just yesterday a few ladies from work began nagging me about bringing some in to share.

So try these out..They are sure to be a hit! They certainly are for my cake customers!

Here's What You Will Need:

This recipe makes 2 dozen cakes.

-one box of chocolate cake mix. Follow directions on box-Mix and blend as directed.

-1 package(s) (8-oz.) cream cheese, softened
-1 cup of sugar
-Large selection of mini Oreo cookies. You probably only need about 48 but I like to garnish mine a little more than your average person. Always goes over well!
-About 2 tubs of cool whip or whipped topping. NO SPRAY whipped cream..this will melt.

Here's What You Do:

-Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line 24 cupcake tins with paper or foil muffin cups.

-Prepare cake batter as directed on package; set aside.
-In a medium bowl, mix cream cheese, egg and sugar until well blended.
-Spoon batter into muffin cups, filling about halfway. Top each with about 1/2 Tbsp. of the cream-cheese mixture and 1 mini cookie. Spoon more cake batter over the tops to cover the cream cheese and cookie.
-Bake 19 to 22 minutes, or until toothpick inserted near center comes out clean.

-MOST IMPORTANT:Let cupcakes cool completely. I would let them sit on a rack for about 45 mintues or more. This is important because if you add the whipped cream topping to even a slightly warm cake it will make the whipped cream watery and it will melt and just make a mooshy mess.

-Frost the cupcakes with whipped topping.

-Garnish the tops with mini oreos. I use two and then I take left overs and crunch them up and sprinkle the bits on top.

In-Law Antidote

2010-05-19T09:35:00.008-04:00

My Bestie, The Mrs., has her recipe hop in full swing right now! I decided to post a recipe for something that is ALWAYS a hit at any party/BBQ/Dinner event that I throw. I mentioned before, I usually host a Fourth of July BBQ, a Halloween party, a pre-Christmas dinner and a New Years Eve party. As well as several BBQ's in between. These are not small gatherings..they normally bring in 12 to 15 folks at a time. The one item that I am constantly asked about and is raved about for weeks after these events is the recipe I am about to give you!

This is rightfully called Bourbon Slush but I have renamed it In-Law Antidote because I tend to partake when the ole in-laws are about. It eases the hypertension I feel building up after the first ten minutes of the visit.

Here's What You Will Need:

-0ne 6 oz can of frozen Orange Juice (ie, Donald Duck, walmart brand etc.)
-one 12 oz can of frozen lemonade
-2 cups of dark (unsweet) tea
-1 cup of sugar
-1 Large can of Pineapple juice
-2 cups (0r more..depending on the severity of your in-laws) of Bourbon
-one 2 liter bottle of Sprite or lemon flavored soda of choice.

Here's What You Do:

-Get a large bowl or pitcher

-Put SEMI-THAWED frozen OJ and Lemonade into pitcher/bowl

-Add 2 cups of tea, the entire can of Pineapple juice and 1 cup of sugar and Stir

-Add 2 cups of Burbon. Stir
-Place pitcher in freezer
After In-Law Antidote has frozen remove from freezer:

-Use ice cream scoop to scoop out the slush into glasses.

-Add a smidge of Sprite to your glass and stir.
Garnish with pineapple, oranges, cherries..whatever you got.

and ENJOY!! (well as much as you can with in-laws afoot..) *wink*

A Jim Music Memoir! ♥

2010-05-18T10:17:00.005-04:00

Tuesday Tunes: Week 133
Let's do something fun.

Take the name of your favorite artist and tell us a bit of yourself using the first letters of the artists/bands name.

Love love love this!!

Jim Adkins is my inspiration

I love creating art..of all mediums

Music is my life

My job is to do maths all day

You know, I have probably seen Forrest Gump, Big and A League of Their Own about a million times. I can quote every line.

Everytime I hear a Jimmy Eat World songon radio I yell: "My Jim!"

A dream of mine is to go to Fenway to see the Sox play.

Tom Hanks is my favorite Actor.

Writes frequently. Music, in a journal or in some form.

On book number 31 for the year. I have already read 30 great books this year.

Reading is my biggest hobby

Love to laugh!

Driving to no where and having great music and great conversation is the coolest thing to do on the weekends.

Recipe Hop Details!

2010-05-17T10:33:00.002-04:00

My Bestie 'The Mrs' over at Trying Our Best is doing a recipe blog hop May 19 thru May 26.

I always do a desert (*cough, cough, cake-lady*) so in order to not disappoint I was thinking of doing a recipe for my Oreo Surprise Cupcakes. These cakes are my most POPULAR. When I am asked to bake something these are always the first request.

In order to be different I decided to also post up a recipe for Bourbon Slush. I am not a drinker. On very rare occasions I will have one or two drinks. I am just not into alcohol. Don't need it to have fun and usually don't ever even think about it. If I host a BBQ or party, which usually happens about four to five times a year I always serve Bourbon Slush. It sounds kind of harsh but actually with all of the yummy ingredients thrown into this drink you don't really taste alcohol and the best part is it is frozen! This frozen treat is always a hit at my BBQ's and I get tons of requests for the recipe.

So if you would like to join in the recipe hop or just want to check mine out then be sure to stop by on the 19th!

Yay Friday!

2010-05-14T09:50:00.004-04:00

Happy Friday! On the menu for the weekend:

Follow up appointment for Johnny Cat on Saturday early morning (Thank you Rusty for the assist), yard sales to hunt craft supplies, Amish market, visit from my parents and hopefully just some rest and relaxation.

Oh yeah, and quite possibly I will be suckered into making 25 Bridal Shower invitations for my in-laws...Pretty sure that's going to happen....but I guess I don't mind. It will be mindless activity.

Top 5 On Friday
Top 5 Theme Songs from either movies or tv

Are we talking instrumental? I guess so...

Number one/a: STAR WARS.

Number two/b: Jurassic Park.

Number three/c: Forrest Gump

Number four/d: Band of Brothers

Number five/e: Schindler's List

Frustrations, Peeves and a Yankees Fan..

2010-05-13T10:46:00.009-04:00

Super frustrated this week. It's just one of those weeks where I wake up each morning and the first thing I ask myself is:
"What's the point?"

I have had a lot of stress lately in my life and I am managing but now it seems as if the little things are starting to add up and I feel like I'm about to lose my mind. So today I figured I would list my grievances that are about to send me over the edge.

Number one/a: Heavy Traffic. I realize I could have it a lot worse. A LOT. I mean, I don't commute to the District. My commute to work is relatively scenic and normal. Only this week it's like someone directed three thousand extra people to drive the exact same route I am driving every day. The traffic is clogged, slow and frustrating. Brake lights every five seconds. Frustration mounting. A normal 45-50 minute commute is taking me about an hour and fifteen all week. Go home people!!

Number two/b: I always bitch about the loo at my job. I know that...but for petes sake!! Every day this week,

Every
Single
Time
I go into the loo someone has messed the seat. I wish I were exaggerating but I'm not. Every time.

Our ratio is like 1:9..Girls being the 9. Who the hell is missing the bowl? Don't boys have a LIFETIME of practice to get this right?? And furthermore, if you do miss why do you feel the need to leave it so I get to clean it?

Number three/c: "It's All About Me". I feel like everyday it's something else to add to my list of mounting tasks and activities. I am so tapped out right now. I don't want to do a single, freakin' thing for someone else again. For at least two weeks. Hey, how about someone do something nice for me?? Right.... Sorry folks. May sound harsh but I seriously need a break.

Number four/d: Seriousness aside, Why would this weeks Glee NOT feature Jesse St. James? He was absent!! I was very sad. Also, why is Glee not letting him have a solo of pure awesomeness. I love Rachel Berry but Bitch, take a seat! Let the man sing one by himself. He's so pretty....

Number five/e: Still doing the back and forth thing with Joe M on facebook. During conversations I found out yesterday that Joe is a......................................................................................................................................

Wait for it...................................

.......wait for it............

A YANKEES FAN!

*GASP* I know!!!! I can't believe it. The shame!

I guess we can't be married on the beach in the twilight

and have three children who are perfectly behaved
and have a little yellow farm house with a white picket fence
and a summer home in St. Barts
and have a maid...to clean both houses.....
and have dinner with the Hanks' every other Sunday
*sigh* Oh well...

Here's to a new week folks!