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Showing posts from March, 2006

Kelli's New Site

Check it out here ! Her crafty work and thoughtfulness and worldy-good-deeds are sure to inspire you. Check out her lovely new site!

Blues

I have a bit of the blues today. Just too much crap weighing me down. I can't seem to get excited about much of anything right now and I'm feeling bored...which is highly unusual for me. I bought more knitting needles today - #13's for the project tomorrow. I thought I had some previously and therefore did not get any the other day....but I didn't. I got the cheap metal ones as I'm on a budget. Ah well. I'll save the bamboo for my next purchase. Oh how I do love them. Steve's Dad is going to Mayo Clinic on Friday for an appointment. Good news: Mayo kicks ass and is close enough to be referred to from here (about 3 1/2 hours). Bad news: They referred him to Mayo instead of just doing what needed to be done here. Therefore he's losing his just gotten bed at really really nice nursing facility and may not get it back when he comes back to town - all depends on availability. I might be going to Rochester this weekend....all depends on what's happening an
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Did I mention that Beavis is currently working on his novel?

End of the Weekend

What a way to end the weekend. Beavis was just outside for almost an hour which is long for him and he wouldn't come in. Iko came in, no problem (he can be easily bought with treats, heck, both of them can!) Beavis can jump over our neighbors (wooden) fence but not the chain link surrounding the rest of our yard and he usually escapes that way. Well, he wasn't in there yard, he wasn't in the alley, he wasn't under the cedar tree - I couldn't find him anywhere! He wasn't responding to cat calls (ha ha) or me shaking the treats, he just wasn't coming. I was fine and thought - He'll come back. He's too wussy to spend a night out in the cold (currently 34 degrees) but when Steve called I lost it. I told him I couldn't find Beavis and the waterworks started. Immediately I heard the concern in his voice as well and he said he'd be right home. Well, after a minute or two of hysteria (keepittogetherkeepittogetherkeepittogether *bonus points if you

Craft Supplies

Because I can't HELP myself I bought some more supplies today. If I had a digital camera, I would take pictures of them and post them here. But I don't. *3 skeins of super-soft yarn for non-disclosed project *3 skins of purple home-spun yarn for prayer shawl *set of 4 double-pointed bamboo needles for bags *3 boxes of photo squares for scrapbooking *12x12 plastic sheet protectors for scrapbook pages finished last week *Jewel toned 12x12 paper and I think that's it....I could spend SO MUCH MONEY at Michael's it' s not even funny. And it's FRIDAY! whohooooo!

6 months

6 months until our wedding day....EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEK!! :-) I can't wait!!

Apples & Tigers and Burners - oh my!

I am having a HELL of a time with this whole dvd burner situation. I am frustratd. To the point of near break down today. I can't take it any more. Now I have a FINISHED FEATURE FILM, enough money in the bank ( almost !) to replicate dvd's and I can't get the g.d. thing OFF THE COMPUTER? Please...indulge.... I am running DVD Studio Pro 1.5 (dvd authoring software). The video elements were made in FCP 3 and the menus in Photoshop and they were married together in a fabulousness in DVDSP. 1.5 is a very old version...but hey - it's uber expensive and it works (or did) and that's all we had. I am operating on OSX 10.2.1. Yes, I know. Shoot me. I can upgrade to 10.2.8 apparently for free and will do that as soon as I'm at that computer again...but it doesn't really help me. I need a new DVD burner. Preferably external at this point. One that will kick some MAJOR ass and get my film in a pristine format to the replication house. If I buy a new DVD burner (LaCie, I

Weekend Update

Well, I survived a weekend in the woods w/a bunch of scrapbookers. The "cabin" was quite incredible (www.sugarleafretreat.com - the northwoods cabin)....very nice with all the amenities. The work room was spacious & the computer equipment was great. I got a lot of work done. I took 111 pictures and got them all in books except for a few rejects. Plus I finished several layouts from Mexico (last Feb!) so I'm a happy camper. Those people are CRAZY though. I have never been around such an intense group of crafty ladies. It was kind of scary. They stayed up until 4am or later! Not me....I did a lot but I also went to bed at "normal" times and enjoyed watching movies, walking, eating (way too much) & chatting with my sister. On another note - My blog buddy Donna is PG!! Yippeeee! This is fantastic news and I'm so happy for her. The warm fuzzy universe vibes have finally paid off!!!
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Happy St. Patrick's Day!
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This is my new winter jacket! It's Columbia, it's in white and I got a great deal on it (yay - spring clearance!) It's the highest (or lowest) rated for temperature, it has down filling, it's water proof, has a waist gaiter (for when I fall in the snow), lots of interior pockets, zip off hood with faux fur and arm vents. I dig it. Steve doesn't like the white (sorry - only pic in pink) ...I just plan on washing it more often than my last jacket....which I think will be okay. What do you think? I got it for $120 off the original price!!! 

Scrapbookpalooza!

Well, I'm packing right now for a long weekend. Yes, I've agreed to go to a 5 day scrapbook retreat with my sister! Ack! Okay, I'm going tomorrow and coming back Monday because 5 days is too much. 12 hours is too much (which I have done before) so this should be interesting. The retreat is a brand new "cabin" in the northwoods (but south of here) near a place called Cross Lake. It's gorgeous and hardly what I think of when I say cabin. The cabin was built for scrapbookers so there are scrapbooking ammenities - a large work room with large tables, computers, die cut machines, printers that take 12 x 12 paper, massage chair (!), a drive way to the lower level to make unloading easier, etc. We each get our own custom made log bed (16 of us), we split dinner duty (I picked dessert for Saturday - I bought fixin's for ice cream sundaes - yummy and easy! And personal! and ice cream! and I didn't have time to bake this week! :-( But that's okay because it&

Average Day

Well, another day has come and gone. Last night's dinner was a success. The food & wine were enjoyed. The dessert was gobbled up (brought by T) and people were happy & content. Just how I like it. Afterwards we watched home videos that Steve shot for P when he was in Japan in 2001. I love seeing Steve then. He is much handsomer (is that a word?) now that then and seeing him in his pre-30's world gives me an insight to this wonderful sweet incredible man. *sigh* I'm all mushy over him. Today was extremely boring at work. I'm working on a report that makes my eyeballs bleed & my brain melt. It sucks. And makes me fall asleep at my desk (no kidding!) and type really strange emails to friends. It's bizarre. Oh well. After work I visited a friend in the hospital who just had his knee reconstructed and is recovering, then off to the Y for Salsa Cardio - which was canceled because the teacher didn't show up which was HIGHLY annoying because I was sooooo lo

Dinner

First we're having a guest. Then we're not. Then we're having that guest again. Then we're having another guest too. Family. Casual but I'm feeling flustered as I had to stop my Cindy Crawford workout mid-stream to get on the whole cooking thing. Ha. (shut up about Cindy Crawford I didn't have time to go to the Y). Anyhooo...I better go see if things are burning, set the table and pull out a bottle of wine.
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Clearly I would've rather been doing this today.  

Sometimes There's Just Crabby

Eh, It's Monday. It's very wintery out just when I was warming up to the idea of spring yesterday. My feet are cold because my thrift store boots (knee high not winter) have cracked soles. The feet of my tights are wet. I'm sick of worrying about money. I have a negative balance in my checking account right now so I'm hoping a few things don't clear til at least Thursday. I'm sick of living this way! I went to a concert on Saturday (bought drinks, Steve bought tix) and we had Chinese food last night and I feel incredibly guilty. ARGH. Now I have to shovel. Hmph.

Shiny!

Well, I just spent the last 6 hours in the kitchen. Scrubbing, polishing, shining, sweeping, more scrubbing, a little scouring and now sighing a sigh of relief. I cleaned the fridge (desperately needed), both ovens (ditto), the oven racks (double ditto), we pulled out the fridge and Steve so graciously vacuumed the coils (underneath) and cleaned the fan (hmmm, wonder how many years THAT'S been...ick), I cleaned the sinks and mopped the floors and cleaned the drip pans and now my fingers are weary and my hands wrinkly from being in water all day... But my kitchen is SHINY and smiling. :-) And so am I. Tonight we're going to eat at the Hacienda del Sol followed by a guitar concert by Michael Gulezian . Should be a very fun evening!

Wedding Update

Minister - meeting next week Groom's Dinner - dunno, the chef is changing his story about $ so we may be reconsidering the location Flowers - stopped at a florist today who was having a wedding 'show' - hardly a show but they did have some sample bouquets and one was similar to what I was thinking - so that was cool. But MAN are they expensive!! Invitations - can't think about this right now because I searched last night and wanted to cry about how expensive they are. Some pieces of bridal attire - which shall not be mentioned here because Steve reads this sometimes....well, I have found something online that I like but would rather buy in person if I can find it. And I have a gift certificate for the shop in Superior. I think that's it for now. This week was too busy and I'm too beat to think about anything else. HAPPY WEEKEND!

Busy pt 2

Another busy day but not quite as crazy as yesterday. Whew. It sure does make the work day go a lot faster when you actually have a lot of work to do. And I want to snack less, which is great. Sadly I drink less water too which I guess goes to show that when I'm bored I drink a LOT of water. Weird. After work I went grocery shopping and spent far too much money but I don't think I've done a "big shopping" since about mid-Jan so it was time. Time to re-stock meat and cereal and frozen juice etc....I spent too much thought. :-( Did I mention that already? And I freaked out because my zippered pouch where I keep things like - MY LIFE (credit cards, ATM card, driver's license, etc) wasn't in my purse! Gah! Luckily I thought and thought and thought about where it could be and I figured it out -my knitting bag (naturally) (Okay - wtf?). Luckily I had my check book with me. I'd hate to do an hour's worth of shopping just to have to put it all back!!! Toni

busy busy busy

Today was insane. A million projects to do - not enough hours in the day. Not fun projects either. Bah. But I do like it better than being bored. That being said - how 'bout being a *little* busy now and spreading it out? Why does it all have to come in the same week?!!? Ah well, beggars can't be choosers I guess. I worked late (just a 1/2 hour - no biggie) then rushed home, ate a cookie, changed and just barely made it to Salsa Cardio; had a great workout, delivered a "Kinky" CD to the teacher (that's a band, people - get your minds out of the weird gutter) then rushed off to J's to fix a small defect on the Scene Selections menu for the dvd. Then off to the rehab center to visit Steve's Dad - I thought I would time it perfectly with Steve. I talked to him earlier and knew he'd be getting back into town around 8pm. So I get there only to have T tell me that Steve wasn't coming because he just got into town, is tired, etc. Ah well. I spent some ti

Belated Weekend Update or How I avoid doing my taxes

The weekend was good - busy and went to quickly - as usual. Friday night Steve & I went to an art opening at the Artspace gallery here in town. A friend of mine was showing some works with a couple of other guys. It was a fun opening - good art, tons of people to mingle with, munchies and a keg! Whooo. ha. Afterwards there was a part at my friend's studio. It wasn't quite as fun as the gallery just because people mingled less. Oh well. It was a good time. Saturday I accompanied Steve on some inspections. We journeyed way the heck out to "Menagha, MN" which is about 170 miles to the west of here. He only had two to do and I happily knitted and read and generally amused myself and hopefully him a little bit. On the way back we stopped at my aunt & uncle's for a visit. They live in a log home which they built. It started as a one room w/sleeping loft log home that my uncle J built. When my aunt B came along they made some additions and when the two kids arri

Who's it? Me!

I have been tagged by Spuddy Buddy and am happy to comply: Seven Things I Want to Do Before I Die: Hike Machu Picchu Have a Family Figure out my purpose in Life Make a quilt Learn how to play my guitar Make sure that everyone I love knows how much I love them (cheesy but it's my blog so whatever) Visit Seychelles Seven Things I Cannot Do: Hold back tears when I'm sad, angry, embarrassed, upset, happy, etc Run Snowplow on x-country skis Stick to an exercise program Hide my dislike of certain co-workers (I try though - I really really do!!!) Master Flash....ugh (the program, that is) Make a movie that anyone wants to see Seven Things That Attract Me to Blogging: My voyueristic personality (ha ha) The chance to blab away about whatever I want Learning crafty things from crafty people Getting to know people I would never have the chance to in real life My boredom at work (but now I'm blocked from most blogs including my own) The chance to express myself sort

The Loss of a Legend

With a heavy heart tonight I post this link about the death of Hall-of-Famer Kirby Puckett - I grew up watching him & the Twins - most notably in '87 during the World Series season and again in '91. FP - do you remember 'haunting' the nature center in '87 during the world series for Matchbox Children's Theatre? That will always be a good memory in my mind. Kirby suffered a stroke yesterday. He is 20 years younger than Steve's Dad and quite frankly - Steve's Dad is too young to be having a stroke. I will say a prayer tonight for Kirby & his family, and for Steve's Dad too. And this, my 400th post.

Oscar Goodness

I'm wrapped up in Oscar goodness right now and will post some photos later of the snowshoeing we did today and the results of the conversation with my Grandparents and updates on Steve's Dad. In the meantime, I have a vodka cran on the coffee table downstairs with my name on it and ice melting in it. cheers.

The Hard Truth

My folks are going over to my Grandparent's house tonight. My grandparents who are in the 80's and adorable. They live in a "retirement" complex right now but their both "declining' as they say as the years pass and it is getting close to the time for a change. My Grandpa (adorable, did I mention that?) has Parkinson's and "sundowner's" syndrome (not sure if that is real or just what they call it) where he's quite confused in the morning and at night. He does odd things, loses things, can't find the bathroom in their townhouse, etc. My Grandma (also adorable...did I mention that ?) gets frustrated and depressed because they can't go out as much as they used to and it's hard on her running everything, doing most everything these days. Up until a couple of years ago - she'd never even filled the car with gas (ah, it was a different time). There is a "care center" near my parent's house. It is really nice. Ther

This Week

...has been a yucky week. Primarily because of a certain DVD burner who decided to up & quit on Monday, the day that J needed to burn all his dvd's for a grant deadline - which is tomorrow. Ugh. Took the Mac in to The Geek Squad for them to replace said burner, which they did. Unfortunately the burner they replaced it with is not compatible with Macs!!! My thinking is...if they don't know how to do something, perhaps they shouldn't do it at all. So the rest of the week has been scrambling to find someone who can burn a Video TS file and make copies of our two movies so he can submit and hopefully receive a $25k grant! (strings free, btw). Think it is worked out today - at least temporarily - also think that the problem mostly lies in his dvd player which he was testing the dvd's on and not the dvd burner. *sigh* I want him to go back to Best Buy, have them put the old one back in the computer, take the new one and shove it and refund his money. He's driving his