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  • Silvertree

    Mod post: No wishlist posts in blogs

    By Silvertree

    Please be aware that we do not permit swap-related content on profiles or in blogs. Please post this content only in the For Sale, Swaps, and Wanted forums, or in the Wishlists topic. ~from Swapping 101  Thanks!
    • 5 comments
    • 5,977 views
Filling the Periodic Table
 

Hyperventilating!

In just over 4 hours, I will be a home owner!   The scay part is getting the enormous cashier's check. I've been just staring at my bank account balance all weekend, all of my down payment money is in there, and I've never had so much money all at once.   I'm going to own a house! I'm so excited!
antimony

antimony

4
Is Anybody Out There?
 

Portland, OR

So! I am going to be in Portland for a couple of days for Thanksgiving, and I know there are a few Portlanders out there- if anybody would like to meet up, drop me a PM. I also know it's a busy time and a lot of you might be out of town, so I'm not banking on it or anything- I just thought I would offer. Aaand... I should know what part of Portland, right? But I don't; not for sure. I think Milwaukee. I'll have my car there, and I'm pondering a trip to Powells- anyway, just let me know.
smallvoice

smallvoice

1
Fishnets and Frankincense
 

Moussaka, myrrh and maturity

I made moussaka for dinner tonight and it was yummy. I can't eat lamb unless it's ground up and heavily spiced (I don't like the way it smells), so normally if lamb is served at my house, it's because I'm cooking Greek or Indian. For a white woman in Nebraska, I tend to do better at ethnic than whitebread meat-n-taters-midwestern.   I am re-testing La Petit Mort and I have determined that myrrh is my nemesis. It goes powdery on me every time, damnit! I am also going to try something that has ylang-ylang in a different combination. I've always assumed that I didn't like it, but I'm beginning to think in another blend, it might work. This last order of mine -- 13 and an imp pack -- wasn't one of my greater success stories. I'm glad that I ordered imps and not bottles! But BPAL, when it works, really works. I went to Omaha yesterday to buy some Arcana soap at Magical Omaha, and I picked up some of their scents for a friend. The owner gave me a bunch of Arcana samples, and they don't work on my picky body chemistry. None of them. But like I said, when a BPAL works on me, it's beyond glorious, and I'll take that any day.   I think that men are somewhat predictable creatures, especially the ones in my general age range, probably because I've simply been dealing with them for so long. But younger guys, I don't get them. There's the young guy at work (25 or 26) who very earnestly flirts with me, although we all know he's just a little poonhound. The senator he works for isn't much better, so my friend Ron and I call the young staffer "little dog" and his boss "big dog." Little dog has been emailing me lately, just being friendly and chatty, but his notes read like he's using a thesaurus for every other word. He's trying really hard, it is kind of sweet and I'll give him credit -- he's a bright guy, and I think he likes having a conversation about something more than drinking beer and watching football. I'm good practice for him, because some day he's going to meet a smart woman in his age range who can have conversations about things he talks about when he visits with me. I think he's afraid to show younger women his more intellectual and artistic side, and that's sad.   Then there's a guy who works at the health club I go to; he's the weekend front desk person. I think he's a grad student, so he's early 20-ish. His parents are professors, he's really smart, kind of chunky-but-cute, very friendly. Or, I should say, he was very friendly -- he spent a ton of time talking to me a few weeks ago and was trying to get me to take tai chi at the club. He already does tai chi, but wanted to try a different instructor, since he'd never taken from the guy who teaches at the club. I'd taken a session with this instructor, and while the guy knows his stuff and is very nice, he is almost incomprehensible as a teacher. Anyway, the front desk guy and I got into a big discussion about eastern disciplines and I gave him the name of my yoga teacher and told him to call her if he ever wanted to drop in on one of her classes. I told him I just didn't have time to add a tai chi class to my schedule. All was fine until about two weeks ago -- now he won't look at me, just types in my member number when I give it to him, halfway rolls his eyes at me when I walk through, and acts like it's a relief to see me leave. I want to say, "Pardon me sweetie, but WTF?" All I've ever done was be polite to him and chat with him a little bit. Christ, I'm old enough to be his mother, maybe he figured that out, but there's no need to act so strangely.   But you know, maybe he's nuts, or maybe he now has a girlfriend, so he's rather immaturely blowing off everyone that he used to get attention. It's really sad -- sometimes I think my intentions can be misinterpreted simply because I try to treat people as actual human beings. I work around the legislature and I'm fairly immune to being treated as a cog in the machine, as a means to an end, but there are times when a thank-you would have been nice, and then there are the times when a thank-you or a simple acknowledgement meant everything in the world. So I try to be genuinely cordial and polite to people; that's all. Everyone deserves that much, and it is a goal of every day of my life, although I forget about it entirely too often.   I was telling a friend the other day, I read things that I wrote when I was much younger and think they are alarmingly rational, considering what an interpersonal pinhead I used to be. It would be OK to be physically younger and cuter again, but hell, it's true -- I'd never go back to being younger because never again do I want to be that much of an emotional retard. Nor would I want to return to dealing with younger guys who were even bigger 'tards than me. Not that as people age, they necessarily mature emotionally, but a few do, and damn, they come as a relief.   All of you who are young and self-aware, you're pretty amazing. There's quite a few of you on the forum, showing you are smart about more things than how to smell really, really good.
valentina

valentina

1
Squash Soup
 

yum yum yummy

I got my 13 order yesterday and I'm in heaven!! 13 is such an interesting scent. At first it starts out a bit chocolatey and then the citrus emerges and gives it an aquatic scent. I couldn't stop smelling myself! After completely drying, it became Underpants! This is like a more masculine Underpants ----> Manties! I might have to accidently spill it on that special guy!   Also in the order were Snow-flakes, Snow Maiden and my beloved Loviatar! I'm wearing the latter today and feeling particularly domineering because of it.   Now I just have to wait patiently for my next order of Lick It Again!!!!!!! *fidgets*
jessiesquash

jessiesquash

0
cranberry's Blog
 

filigree_shadow #4 - All reviewed

filigree_shadow #4: Ace of Swords - reviewed The Chariot - reviewed The Devil - reviewed The Emperor - reviewed The Empress - reviewed The Magician- reviewed The Tower - reviewed Euterpe - reviewed   picked this up 11-8-06. I've sniffed most of the tarots already so I should be able to turn this right around.   11-12: yay, all done - this is ready to send on to the next person!
cranberry

cranberry

8
Squash Soup
 

Christmas Order Planning

Damn all the fabulous resurrected scents! Now I'll have to totally reevaluate my order plans.   Before December 1, 2006   Pumpkin Queen (2) Yoki Onna Glasya (not sure about the dragon's blood but taking the chance anyway.) Glitter (i've wanted to try this for awhile now.)   $70.00   Before February 1, 2007   Jacob's Ladder 2006 (sounds divine) Sol Invictus Stardust 2006 (dying to try!) The Penitent Magdalen   $70.00   Holy crap, I'm going to be broke after all of this! I'm trying very hard to ignore Purple Phoenix because it is pretty much guaranteed to not work for me and I'm trying not to buy it anyway. I'm also not counting anything that I fall in love with and need more of because I'm expecting that will happen at least once.
jessiesquash

jessiesquash

0
Welcome to the Flophouse
 

I think we're growing apart.

We're just not communicating anymore. We don't have the same things in common.   Sure, we used to be like two peas in a pod - finishing each other's sentences. We always knew what the other was thinking. But now? We're just not clicking.   First it was Carnival Diabolique. Your words were so pretty, but you scents just didn't add up. Carnival Noir was so dead on - everything I smelled just enhanced the experience. But with CD, we're just not on the same wavelength. Nothing you said made sense.   Then Tavern of Hell - a complete disappointment. This should have been so perfect! But no connection. And Horreur Sympathique is the proverbial nail in the coffin. Fruit? How did we ever see eye to eye?   Sure there have been a few good times. 'I Died For Beauty' - wow. you were so eloquent, it touched my soul. But like all good things, the feeling didn't last.   There's still a chance we can save this. But, I have to be honest, I'm finding myself attracted to others. Others who understand me more. No, really, it's not you - it's me. I'm changing. You were my first - and that will always be special to me. But maybe it's time for us to explore new options.     *Dramatical note: yeah, this sounds like teh drama. I've often watched people make Le grand exit - selling off all their bpal because 'they just don't want to be a part of this'. I ain't selling it - I love what I have! To be honest, the reason for all this is to make me so embarrassed about my dramatic departure that I won't sign back in. I really need to break myself of this addiction that is the forum. I doubt I'll succeed, but hell, it's worth a try. And it's all true, at that..
Kittyflop

Kittyflop

0
Fishnets and Frankincense
 

Very random. Very, very random.

I got my CnS on Friday for my order of 13 and a set of imps. And then the Lunacy/Anniversary update arrived later on that night, and what to do, what to do? Actually, I'm not in as much of a quandary as some people, all of you lucky/unlucky ones who are able to wear a lot of different fragrances. (I say lucky because you get to wear a lot of different things, but it's unlucky for your bank account.) I'm still more jazzed about the new GC scents that showed up in the Halloweenie update, Mania, Horreur Sympathatique and Love Lies Bleeding -- they're in the imp pack. And I've also never tried Misk U, La Petite Mort or Nosferatu, so they're rounding out the six pack o' imps. I just know a GC bottle order is going to emerge from that set of imps.   For the sake of my bank account, and maybe my sanity, I feel rather fortunate that the GC scents seem to be my favorites and LEs don't tempt me that much. Except for the Lupercalia update last year, the LE releases usually don't work that well on me. I'll be interested to see if the release for Valentine's Day LE scents will be as wonderful for me as last year's. (I suppose it makes sense for someone with a forum name of valentina, huh?) And usually by the time that update arrives, I am ready to indulge myself -- it's the dead of winter, holidays are over, I'm in the midst of the legislative session. Ah, fingers crossed.   The election is tomorrow, and it's about time. I'm sure anyone here in the U.S. is probably sick of all the political ads, yard signs and mailings. Tomorrow I meet friends for coffee at noon in a downtown establishment, and it is always nuts downtown over the lunch hour on election day. Usually there's different candidates for some significant political office standing on the corners of the main downtown intersection, their supporters waving signs, whooping it up,and all that nonsense. Actually, it's pretty funny to watch. I remember several years ago, I was walking down the street, and a candidate for U.S. Senate was on the corner. His wife was with him, and I wasn't really paying attention to them until I got relatively close, and I looked up and caught her giving me the most wistful, plaintive look. She looked like she wanted nothing more than to just join me and walk down the street, away from the noise and glad-handing. The life of a political spouse -- you get to be with your mate once in a while, but generally, they're always "on." People dream of being famous, but really, I think it's more of a nightmare than a dream.   And say, you of the female persuasion, do you shave your armpits? A couple of years ago, for whatever reason, I decided to let my pit hair grow unchecked, starting in November. I think I relented and shaved it in late February. By then, I'd tired of it and the novelty had worn off. I had never, ever done that in my life, and I just wanted to see how long it would get. I felt so Euro. And it didn't turn into man-like pit pelts, anyway. But it just seemed a little nasty and sexy to let it grow, since in general I'm a rather groomed creature.   So do any males shave their pits? I have a gay friend who once drove to Denver (about an 8-hour trip), checked into a motel, shaved down his entire body and dyed his brown hair plutonium blonde. Now, WTF? I never did figure out if the shaving/dying project was the reason for the drive, or he decided to do it while he was on his little road trip. I asked him if he enjoyed being a girl, and he said it was entirely too much work.   I bought a Sirius radio car kit and installed it on Saturday, proof that it's so easy that a monkey could do it. I actually felt rather accomplished and it's fun to have even more options of stuff to listen to than what I already have going on in my car. I have the presets all established: two jazz channels, one acoustic singer-songwriter music, one trance/electronica, alternative rock from the 90's, a channel with only Canadian musicians, CNN news, Talk Left (of course, no Faux "fair and balanced for me), and the Met Opera. That is what is fun about satellite radio. And if I don't like anything on the 100+ channels, I shut it off and listen to Bob Schneider, for they don't have an "All Bob" channel yet. Howard Stern, no, I don't listen to him. Nor the comedy channels. On a long roadtrip (maybe to Denver to dye my hair and wax my entire body ), I'd listen to comedy for a change of pace, but generally, music is where it's at.   It's Monday. I don't want to work, but I suppose I should get coffee and consider it.
valentina

valentina

3
Do you have a flag?
 

Making progress...

This evening I was reading articles about clinical trials in the New England Journal of Medicine for a research paper I've been working on. After reading two of them, it suddenly dawned on me that this is the first time in my life I have understood enough about medicine, medical terminology, anatomy, and physiology to even have an idea of what they're talking about in those articles. In the past it's all been way over my head.   Today, I got it.   This has been a good day.
filigree_shadow

filigree_shadow

0
Sourball Ho!
 

Update!

I logged on today thinking there would just be a Lunacy blend and that's all, and there were all these others! I already had my order planned, and since I bought a bottle of 13 I was only going to buy 2 bottles, Quincey Morris and Wilhemina Murray. Now I'm pondering changing that   --Bitter Moon -- the ingredients list reminds me of Chrysanthemum Moon, but with extra flowers. I'll pass --Purple Phoenix -- this one I'm torn about, as some of the ingredients sound great and others (violet, fig, lilac) haven't worked in other blends. But who knows?   What a surprise to see more discontinueds released! I actually squealed a little when I saw Glasya -- this was a frimp in one of my first orders and was discontinued soon after I got into BPAL. It's one of those magical wonders, in that dragon's blood and civet are "yuck" on me, but Glasya is this beautiful dark incense that doesn't morph. I even put some on today to help me decide, and I still can't decide! *grr*   The other DC's were never tried and I'm not jonesing for any particular one, even though Glitter has a loyal following.   Decision time: I'm ordering Quincey Morris and Purple Phoenix. While Mina Murray sounds nice, it's been compared to Alice and Parlement of Foules and I have bottles of those already. I think I'll be happy with my Glasya imp, as I have a bunch of other BPAL-incensey blends that I including Snake Charmer and Mme. Moriarty and Hellion -- those seem to have an extra "oomph" included.
dawndie

dawndie

2
Squash Soup
 

broke but smellin' good

I'm pretty broke right now which leaves me jonesin' for a little retail therapy. Instead of causing further damage to already bruised wallet, I'm going to do a little advanced planning for my next order which will have to include some Christmas gifts...but also a handful of nice things for me!   Pumpkin Queen (I adore pumpkin but Jack hated me and according to reviews, this isn't at all like Jack. I thought I'd give it a try!) Lick It Again (I'm really not a foodie person but this sounds so yummy, I just have to try it! The thought of smelling like a sugary candy cane definitely has it's allure.) Jacob's Ladder 2006 (This sounds perfectly wonderful although I'm not sure if I want to get this now or later. I suppose it will depend upon my budget at order time.) I want something from the GC but I haven't decided which one yet. I was thinking about getting something appropriate for cold weather but I can't decide yet. I'm thinking Sloth, Black Rose or Anubis. My friend Leslie gets an imp pack but I haven't decided if I want to get her a mix of love potions or the Salon set. Because of my budget, I'd have to split up the Salon set between her and someone else. If I did the love potions set I'd probably do; Lucy's Kiss, Whip, Les Petite Mort, Libertine, Les Bijoux, and Snake Oil. It will be fun. I'll be gift-giving and enabling all in one fell swoop. Glorious!   I was also thinking of using imps as random extras with gifts so I'll have to acquire a few for that purpose. Maybe the Wanderlust with different scents for those interested in various places. Actually I have an idea! I should make a spa package for my cousins based on where they like to go. A Kyoto/Neo-Toyko/Kabuki one for my cousin Mindy (who lived in Japan) with some candles and bath stuff along that theme. All cherry blossoms and pink!   I love Christmas planning!
jessiesquash

jessiesquash

0
Fishnets and Frankincense
 

Politics in my state

Since I work around politics, you're going to have to get a bit of it today, but you'll be entertained enough, since I'm not going to go on a rant.   The 3rd Congressional district in my state is basically the western two-thirds of the state, and it can range from typically midwestern farms to very western ranches. (I don't live in that district.) It is also Republican as the day is long, but this guy is running as the Democratic candidate and he might just win. The race is so close that el presidente is actually coming to campain for the Republican candidate this weekend. This district hasn't sent a Democrat to Congress for 40+ years, I believe. There's no incumbent in this race, the retiring Congressman is the ex-football coach. Yes, I'm serious. The major newspaper in the state endorsed the Democrat, something nearly unheard of. This is an entertaining race to observe, and women statewide have been happily watching his commercials. Go to his website and see why: http://www.scottkleeb.com Even though he's a Democrat, he is a Midwestern Demo running in a conservative district, so temper your expectations if you're a blue state Demo.   But I love a good barnburner of a race with a new candidate who is creating excitement and buzz. And I really am talking about it on a political level. A lot of people aren't being so wonkish -- many women talk about him the way I talk about Bob Schneider. I do think he's inordiantely photogenic, although he's not ugly on video. (You can watch his commercials on the website.) And if you look at the photos page, notice all the hysterically giggling women wherever he goes. Some of those women probably haven't squealed like that in years. I think some women have an involuntary physical response to cowboy boots and jeans, worn very, very well. They just can't control themselves. Whatever it takes to get elected, baby! Even if he doesn't win, it's not the last of him. Anyone who can come out of nowhere as a Democrat in a district that usually gives the Republican candidate 80% of the vote isn't going to be held down.   It's stuff like this that makes me remember why I do enjoy politics. And even if you're apolitical, you can just look at the scenery.
valentina

valentina

0
Do you have a flag?
 

Catastrophe in the Tub

I've had a horrible migraine today. I wandered out of bed for a bit here and there, but mostly I've been trying to stay as quiet as possible. However it seemed to be waning around 8:00 or so, so I decided to take a nice warm bath. I figured that since it was a special occasion I'd bust out the expensive bath products and use the last of my LUSH Christmas Kisses bubble bars -- one and a half of them (I have a big tub).   So I crawled in, deployed the bubble bars, and before I knew it the bubbles were arching over my tub in a humongous mound. Light was glinting off the bubbles in every direction, making me feel like I was snowblind. Bubbles, thousands of them, were popping and fizzing in my ears. (Did I mention I have a migraine?) The scent, which I normally love, was WAY too strong for me today. But by then I felt trapped in the tub under all those bubbles, and I didn't want to waste the last of my bubble bars by getting out of the tub, so I forced myself to stay in there until I couldn't take it any more.   When I was ready to get out I had to call my husband to help me because there were still so many bubbles that if I got out I'd have bubbles all over and they'd get on the floor and on my towel. I wanted him to rinse me off with water while I was still standing in the tub so I wouldn't be bubble-covered. He came in, and I looked down because I was embarrassed of the situation and wanted to hide my face, which is when I noticed that the water was cherry red because I had used so much bubble bar. So there I was, already irritated and upset because I'd made my headache worse, when I realized that I probably looked like a giant piece of fruit trapped in a tub-shaped cherry jello mold with whipped-cream-like bubbles everywhere. And I'd just invited my husband in to witness this spectacle.   I told him about the bubbles fizzing and light glinting and how I used too much and now I felt like fruit in a jello mold and I was nearly crying... I'm not sure that he understood what I was talking about but he tried to be very sympathetic and helpful. He was also trying not to laugh while he was rinsing the bubbles and drying me off, but a few giggles escaped. The whole thing must have been quite a sight. This is my first bath ever that was torture the whole time and ended in humiliation. He told me that I shouldn't feel bad since I had a life-long run of successful baths and only one failure so far. Somehow that didn't make it better.
filigree_shadow

filigree_shadow

2
Lucretia's Blog
 

grad school update

So far:   all letters of recommendation packets turned into professors. One professor is done already.   GRE scores were ordered today   transcripts will be ordered via mail tomorrow   SOP started for one school     Everything else on hold until NaNoWriMo is over   My deadlines aren't until January so I'm good still
Lucretia

Lucretia

0
Is Anybody Out There?
 

NaNo!

It's finally time to start! I'll let you know if I get my quota in today.   It's also my sister's birthday. Must remember to call her.
smallvoice

smallvoice

0
Welcome to the Flophouse
 

Crisis of Reason (as opposed to crisis of faith?)

I was raised in a very objective, scientific household. Reason ruled the roost, and we control everything around us. I still am, to this day, a very strong skeptic of anything that is unprovable through the scientific method. Can't see it? Doesn't exist. Astrology, ESP, magick, reiki, and prayer are all outside of my mental comfort zone. However I have always been curious about religions and various occult practices, and find myself drawn to them in some way, despite that. I want to believe, but can't.   Through much of my adult life, but much more strongly in the past year, I have found myself dissatisfied with my life in some way. I know that I crave some kind of spirituality, harmony, meaning in life, what have you. I feel that I want to connect with our natural world on a different level than just what we see on the surface. But, whenever I begin to actually explore anything in that direction, my inner skeptic starts squealing and scares me off. I love the ideas of reiki, tarot or herbal magick, but when I start reading about them, I feel silly. My skeptic won't let me accept that rhyming words and waving herbs around can accomplish anything, or that one herb can be connected to love and another to money, or that certain colors are affiliated with certain planets - because I can't find any logical scientific reasoning to explain it. To the same extent I have trouble believing in prayer, God, or the general idea that can be something other than molecules banging together in the universe. (Please, I mean no offense to those of you who do believe - this is not my whole view, I don't believe it is that simplistic or silly at all, but it's the skeptic voice in my head that I can't shake.)   I know there are people who are able to reconcile science/objective reasoning with their faith. Some very prominent objective scientists are religious, and somehow are able to encompass both into their lives. But I'm having a very hard time with it.   Has anyone out there gone through a similar struggle? How do you reconcile faith and reason? I know this may seem very obvious to many of you, but I'm stuck. I understand that, long ago, television and airplanes and cell phones would have been considered magick, because we just didn't understand the forces that now make them work. So I should be able to believe equally that there are forces, such as plant or human energies, that we simply haven't figured out yet, but are no less real for our lack of understanding. But, that damn voice again, it holds me back from full acceptance.   I am a Virgo, and very much a control freak. I try to control completely how the world perceives me, and I live in constant fear of being wrong, or being weak. I'm one of those who says "I meant to do that!" while picking myself up from the ground after tripping over a rock. I think that where I'm trying to go will require me to relinquish that control. There's a reason that spiritual knowledge is often referred to as 'the mysteries', right? Leap of faith - letting go of what I know and understand. Maybe that's the hurdle I'm at. Just posting this is going way out on limb for me.   Thanks for reading this far, anyone who has.
Kittyflop

Kittyflop

3
Fishnets and Frankincense
 

Ar-OOOO! Werewolves of London! Ar-OOOOOO!

Oh no! Fergus, the soccer hooligan, pushed LaVerna too far. Evidently she's watched too many Charles Bronson vigilante justice movies in her life, for she has utterly no remorse. Judging from his grinning death mask, Fergus was happy that he would be joining Beetlejuice's posse of the undead, and right now he's no doubt trying to get Wyonna Ryder to marry him.     Now everyone turn up Warren Zevon's "Werewolves of London" full-blast, and sing along!
valentina

valentina

2
Is Anybody Out There?
 

Working out

I know I need to work out more. I do. I've seen the wedding photos, and I want to be healthy. I need to be healthy.   Here's the thing. This is week 7 of 12 in the quarter. I have 6 hours logged- which is better than I've done in the past, for sure! But instead of needing 14 hours, I need 25. Here's the other thing: The lab will be open the week of Thanksgiving, but we don't get credit for working out that week. Whahuh?? And I don't think we can work out week 12, though I might be wrong. So I need 19 more hours. I kind of want them done before Thanksgiving... so I'm going to be going in every day this week and working out the full 90 minutes, instead of an hour as I've been doing. (I can only get credit for the first 90 minutes I work out per day.)   So if I work out for 90 minutes for the next 5 days that'll be an additional 7.5 hours, for a total of 13.5 hours. Then, week 8, I'll do all 6 days for another 9 hours will be 22.5... Which means I'll have 2.5 hours for week 9. Bwahaha! It's a pipe dream, to be sure. But it'd be nice to just get it out of the way.
smallvoice

smallvoice

0
Review Round-up!
 

Nuclear Winter

In the bottle: Slushy mint.   On wet: Gorgeous and grassy - like snow melting in a garden full of wild mint.   Drydown: The lovely slush-touched greenery is joined by a light, almost perfumey sweetness - a combination that makes for a fresh, incredibly unique, and downright elegant fragrance.   Overall: Even though I get a little sad when the grassy note fades to make room for that drydown-sweetness, this remains one of my favourite "cold" scents, and easily one of my favourite concept blends. 4.5/5
furygrrl

furygrrl

0
Sourball Ho!
 

In limbo

I've felt strange because nothing's been happening with the job situation. Nothing. I'm there through this week, and then I have no idea. I haven't heard back from my previous job, even after leaving a message last week. I'm not in panic mode, because between the bonus, severance and vacation time I have a few months of money, but I'd much rather save than spend. I'm glad I get to vent here.   Of course, that hasn't stopped us from going to estate sales! We haven't bought much -- an old radio cabinet with the radio removed, very art deco '30s that we want to put records in. DH bought a mini-fridge for the garage for $15. I bought a sewing book by Better Homes & Gardens from 1961 for $1.50. I found a 1950s red record tote to carry 45s -- my mom has a couple (pink? blue?) with the same exact graphics, so I was pretty jazzed to find one full of records and in great condition for $12.50.   My sister's husband and his band blew through town on Thursday. We realized between all the CDs we have, we've never seen him play live. He writes his own stuff and arranges other songs in a jazzy lounge vibe. We had a blast going up to Denton to see him and another jazz band play.
dawndie

dawndie

0
Fishnets and Frankincense
 

Ghouls, mutants and hooligans, oh my!

A few years ago, I decided that it would be fun to make odd papier mache heads for Halloween. My original notion was to make jack-o-latern heads in the style of the old German papier-mache pumpkin heads, but my mind soon went off into stranger things. I made a few almost life-sized heads of individuals, all with their own names and stories. As a friend at work told me: "I'm not sure what I find the most disturbing -- the fact that you made these utterly odd things, or the fact that you developed names and a biographies for each of them."   There's a stuffed dummy in farmer clothing sitting on the front porch at Halloween. Most of the time it has a generic head on it, but when my creations wish to have a body, they get to "head it up." Here they are, along with their stories.   Fred Frankensteer has his name because he's a cross between Fred Flintstone, Frankenstein, and a steer. An actual person was the basis for Frankensteer's creation. Frankensteer is the result of a research project carried out by an insane UNL ag institute scientist. He now lives on a farm and is frequently anxious about his life, but is too dumb to really know what to do about it. For that reason, he fits in well and votes Republican.     LaVerna is the daughter of LaVonne and Vern. She's a waitress at the local greasy spoon and is also Frankensteer's girlfriend. While she has a ring in his nose, she doesn't have his ring on her finger, thus accounting for her rather truculent demeanor. She once set a field of Frankensteer's hay on fire with her cig, but he didn't yell at her, mainly because he was too afraid she'd kick his ass.   El Cockatillo is a famed Mexican wrestler who aquired his name because his mask resembles a Cockatiel. He is also known to shriek madly for no good reason. He was driving through Nebraska on his way to visit family in the U.S., when his transmission blew out next to one of Frankensteer's farm fields. He has remained on the farm ever since, but can't figure out exactly why.   Fergus is a soccer hooligan from Scotland who was sent to Frankensteer's farm courtesy of a U.K. version of the "scared straight" program. It has been unsuccessful. Fergus takes great glee in picking on Frankensteer and then getting the snot beaten out of him by LaVerna and El Cockatillo. He proudly sports his latest shiner, courtesy of LaVerna crushing a beer can on his face.       And from everyone at my house to you, Happy Halloween!
valentina

valentina

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What smells in here?
 

It's getting close

Really looking forward to the Meet Up here next weekend. I did some sorting out downstairs so that my cleaning later in the week will be a breeze. Rob and I also did some yard work. We raked and bags about a billion leaves, we knew what we were getting into when we bought the place. That's the reason she's called Shady Dame.   I wish I had the week off so I didn't have to wait until Thursday to get back to Trader Joe's. I'll get all the bits for the party recipes as well as the stuff to prepare for our weekend meals. It is going to be such fun having TJ's nearby, especially with the holidays rushing in.
Ina Garten Davita

Ina Garten Davita

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A displaced Southern gal
 

A rare church visit

From a posting in Walking the Old Paths many months ago:     I went to my first UU service this morning, and I think it fits.   The Yakima Valley is officially about a third Hispanic (unofficially probably more than that), so Dia de los Muertos is a big thing around here. The service this morning talked a lot about the cycle of life and death, and about the traditions of Dia de los Muertos.   And then La Catrina paid us a visit. Sound familiar?     That's from Beth's description of the Dia de los Muertos scent. I never quite got it before.   La Catrina, as she appeared to us, is the skeleton of a fancy lady dressed up to go to a ball. She came down the aisle wearing a big frilly hat and waving a fan, wearing skeleton gloves and skeletal face paint. She curtsied to us and pulled a few people out of the congregation to dance with her, both men and women, and several couples got up on their own to join the dance as a Spanish ballad played.   When I first arrived at the church, one of the greeters mentioned that it was going to be an unusual service. And it was, and I loved it.   I was raised in the Episcopal church, and I still enjoy their services for the most part, but there are always things that seem wrong. The main thing that got me thinking about the UU church is that the man I plan to marry was raised Muslim, and I really want our family to have a shared spiritual life. He came to midnight Mass with me last Christmas, and while he enjoyed the music, a lot of the service made him very uncomfortable because it just isn't what he believes. I imagine it'd be the same for me if I joined him for Friday prayers. But based on this morning's service, I think we could both be quite happy in UU.   It isn't often that I'm in town on a Sunday morning, but I plan to go back.   Edit 'cause I totally forgot to comment on the music.
Shollin

Shollin

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