My Life in Review

I've seen this list posted on a few blogs already and I thought it would be fun to reflect upon my life, see what I have done and what I would like to do. Following is how it works and what my life has turned out so far.

Things you’ve already done: bold
Things you want to do: italicize
Things you haven’t done and don’t want to - leave in plain font

1. started your own blog
2. slept under the stars
3. played in a band
4. visited Hawaii
5. watched a meteor shower
6. given more than you can afford to charity
7. been to Disneyworld
8. climbed a mountain
9. held a praying mantis
10. sang a solo
11. bungee jumped
12. visited Paris
13. watched a lightning storm at sea
14. taught yourself an art from scratch
15. adopted a child
16. had food poisoning
17. walked to the top of the statue of liberty
18. grown your own vegetables
19. seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. slept on an overnight train
21. had a pillow fight
22. hitch hiked
23. taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. built a snow fort
25. held a lamb
26. gone skinny dipping
27. run a marathon
28. ridden a gondola in Venice
29. seen a total eclipse
30. watched a sunrise or sunset
31. hit a home run
32. been on a cruise
33. seen Niagara Falls in person
34. visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. seen an Amish community
36. taught yourself a new language
37. had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. seen the leaning tower of Pisa in person
39. gone rock climbing
40. seen Michelangelo’s David in person
41. sung karaoke
42. seen old faithful geyser erupt
43. bought a stranger a meal in a restaurant
44. visited Africa
45. walked on a beach by moonlight
46. been transported in an ambulance
47. had your portrait painted
48. gone deep sea fishing
49. seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. been to the top of the Eiffel tower in Paris (base of tower, not top)
51. gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. kissed in the rain
53. played in the mud
54. gone to a drive-in theater
55. been in a movie
56. visited the Great Wall of China
57. started a business
58. taken a martial arts class
59. visited Russia
60. served at a soup kitchen
61. sold girl scout cookies
62. gone whale watching
63. gotten flowers for no reason
64. donated blood
65. gone sky diving
66. visited a Nazi concentration camp
67. bounced a check
68. flown in a helicopter
69. saved a favorite childhood toy
70. visited the Lincoln memorial
71. eaten caviar
72. pieced a quilt
73. stood in times square
74. toured the Everglades
75. been fired from a job
76. seen the changing of the guard in London
77. broken a bone
78. been on a speeding motorcycle
79. seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. published a book
81. visited the Vatican
82. bought a brand new car
83. walked in Jerusalem
84. had your picture in the newspaper
85. read the entire bible
86. visited the White House
87. killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. had chickenpox
89. saved someone’s life
90. sat on a jury
91. met someone famous
92. joined a book club
93. lost a loved one
94. had a baby
95. seen the Alamo in person
96. taken a road trip
97. been involved in a law suit
98. owned a cell phone
99. been stung by a bee
100. met the love of your life (I have *the boy* and things are still new…what a pressured question!)

There are many things that I have already done but there is even more I would like to do. Travel is one thing. I would love to travel more but my travel plans always fall by the wayside. I do think that #17, #73 and #82 will be fulfilled this year though. At least, that is the plan that currently only exists in the head at the moment. We'll see what happens!

QFRR and Laptop

Well, during my Friday ramblings in my last post, my photos were still on *the boy's* camera and I truly had no energy other than to whine and complain and wonder what cocktail I would order for myself during happy hour. If anyone is at all curious, Ketel One martinis truly helped dull the pain away and put a smile on my face for the rest of the weekend. Woo...love happy hour!

So after the 30th time of me asking *the boy* to send me my pictures already...he finally did. Ugh, that is the last time I have him take a blogging photo. I am reading that stupid camera manual ASAP!! So here is a picture of the section I stitched on Donna's QFRR. Please excuse the unevenness of the photo...the futon cover was all wrinkly underneath. I was a stand-in stitcher for this group when one of their original stitchers went awol. This is the first piece I stitched on and I was "assigned" the devil's horn section which consisted of two large motifs, two small ones and my initials. It was enjoyable except the devil's horns attacked me early on and I had to do a bit of frogging. But I didn't let it get me down! Plus...
I got to be the one to stitch the last section on this piece and send it on to Donna all completed! It's the group's first completed one! I heard she received it today and is very happy!
I have two other QFRRs sitting in the wings and I will begin stitching on Wendy's tonight. I was supposed to start yesterday but I keep getting these blasted migraines that prevent me from doing anything fun so my Sunday was shot and I spent most of the day lying about trying to forget I had a blasted migraine. Oh well...I get to stitch tonight.

Below is a photo of my new laptop (off the retail website). It's definitely not as pretty as an iMac but it cost me $500 less and I get 4GB! Talk about a great deal.

Relieved!

75 minutes and counting until I can go home and start the weekend! This has been a rather difficult week. Work has been stressful and kicking me in the tush everyday and I come home brain-dead and cranky. *The boy* has been getting an earful! The only thing saving my sanity has been quiet evenings filled with stitching, a cocktail and my tv shows. The high points have been staying in during my lunch hour at work and holing myself up to stitch for an hour, finishing the round robin I was currently working on and getting a new laptop! I wish I could have gotten an iMac but I could not justify the extra $600 right now and I got an awesome deal on a PC laptop. My current laptop has been barely functional and I have been using *the boy's* laptop. He's been nice enough to share but he is looking at getting his own space soon (not because we're splitting or anything) which means he'll be taking his laptop with him. I will soon return with photos but in the meantime, I am just so relieved it's Friday and I intend to take full advantage of a fun happy hour this evening! Hope you all have a wonderful weekend!!

To Sew or Not to Sew...

That is the question.

I am having a hard time making a decision. For the last couple of years, I've been eyeing sewing classes...schedule and money never coinciding. It's seems shameful to admit that I am a daughter of a seamstress yet I have no idea how to sew beyond a simple whipstitch or sewing on a button. My mother's 1930's Singer always intimidated me. It seemed like an object for play than one to whip out wonderful fabric creations. My sister gave my mother a new Singer years ago...but my mom is *old school*. She still uses her 1930's Singer with massive iron footpedal as well as her old manual typewriter.

I'd like to *borrow* the newer sewing machine and see if I can enhance my needlework by making bags, bourses, wall hangings, etc. I found a very reasonably priced class at one of the local community colleges and emailed the director of the program to see what would be involved. She replied by saying that the projects would be a knit top, drawstring pants or elastic banded skirt and a lined, reversible vest. I figure that if I can make those items, I can incorporate the skills learned into finishing needlework pieces. The class would be 3 hours long, every Tuesday Evening. This would be on top of my 75 minute yoga class every Monday and Wednesday night so each week would start off very busy with little time to myself the first three days of each week. Thereafter, the week would mellow out and I would just have to juggle my stitching projects, do any potential sewing *homework*, work, parental visit, hang out with *the boy* and schedule *hang out time* with friends. I think it's manageable. I just worry about my time management since I already have so much on my plate.

But I think that if I can gear up over the next two weeks and catch up on my stitching, then I will be ok provided I don't go overboard in signing up for exchanges. I may sign up for one but that's it. What do you guys think?

If I wait until the Fall, I'd still be under the same circumstances since I am trying to keep to a 2 workouts a week plan for the year. I am very tempted to just go ahead and sign up.

To sew or not to sew?

First Finish of 2009!

On Friday, I had my first finish of 2009. Just a small little project I started on Christmas Eve and I had hoped to breeze through in a day or two...but then I got sick. I had wanted to start this on Thanksgiving Day but as the last few months have proved...even the best-laid plans oftentimes get derailed. Here is Tall Turkey by Heart in Hand. It is sold as a small kit so I used the 32 count tobacco belfast included with the kit and used the recommended GAST Threads. I like how he came out and will look into finishing him as a standup pillow soon.
I think I will need to add another resolution/goal to my list...learn how to use my camera and not keep posting awful over-flashed photos. I figure it's about time. I *have* owned my camera for over a year already. It would be nice to use it to it's full (and correct) capacity.

The rest of the weekend was a massive blur and despite it's busyness, I don't have much to share. The pretty christmas tree was taken down and dragged to the curb for recycling. It saddened me greatly...it was so cheery and now I have a big empty spot in my apartment. I found new prescription sunglasses. It's so strange ordering sunglasses in January but I my eye insurance comes due every December. I'll be sure to show you guys my new find. I made a quick trip to NiaH and only came out with a small piece of fabric. Can you believe it?! I go to stitchy heaven and come out with one small little piece of fabric and nothing else...when they're having a sale! I think I'm shopped out...especially in the stash department. Maybe this will be a good run for 2009. I can use my stash and save a bit of money...or pay off debt as the case may be. I did manage to drag *the boy* to a movie over the weekend. A seemingly impossible task at times and we saw Marley and Me. It was a good movie but what a tearjerker! I don't think there was a dry eye in the house at the end. The rest of the weekend was spent trying to get ahead on Donna's Quaker RR. I've made good progress and am working on my last motif! Yay! By week's end, I'll have my happy dance with this and have it posted in the mail.

New Year, New Goals

On NYE, *the boy* asked me what my new years resolution was. I didn't have an answer for him because I just never have been good at keeping a resolution ever. And usually, it is always the same thing. Lose some weight, take some classes, pay off debt and save some money. Here is a year in review. I posted my goals on the blog last year...here they are.

Personal

~Lose the pesky 10-15 pounds I've been talking about losing for the past two years::Lost 5 pounds only to gain them back at Christmastime
~Be diligent about doing my balance ball core exercises on non-workout days::Ummm, no
~Do three workouts a week (yoga covers two of the workouts when it's in session)::Did 1-2 workouts a week up until mid-October due to shoulder and neck issues
~Clean my apartment! Deep cleaning top to bottom with many donations to Goodwill planned::Pretty clean...now that I have a lovely cleaning lady come help me. I need to do more purging and organizing in my closets.
~Be out of debt in 2008!::Ummm, no
~Put myself *out there* in a non-dating social atmosphere (social/new friends groups)::Ugh, so hard. But I have met some wonderful people through the stitching community and I have now (almost) been dating *the boy* for four months.

Stitching

~Sweet Dreams Stocking - Dimensions (Carryover from 2007)::About 1/3 done
~Fairy Moon - Mirabilia::Not Started
~Thanksgiving Fairy - Mirabilia::Not Started
~Titania, Queen of the Fairies - Mirabilia::Not Started
~Halloween House - Lilybet Designs::Started, hate fabric. Must find new fabric for it
~In the Tall Flowers Sampler - Liberty Street Designs::Not Started
~Retro Kitchen Aprons - Needle Treasures::Not Started
+ at least four stitching exchanges::I have done 5 exchanges, made 7 gifts and am participating in one round robin.

So as you can see...I am not good with resolutions whatsoever. I am not disappointed in myself though. 2008 proved to be a very busy year. I had exercise classes most of the year, took a work-related course in the Spring, house-sat for my parents for four months, dated a lot of frogs, found one good guy who makes me laugh and have stitched a lot...just not as much as I would have liked. I do notice that I did not accomplish any of my *me* stitching but I did stitch a lot for other people. I would like to do some *me* stitching this year to aid in my holiday decorating. However, I will try to be reasonable in my 2009 goals/resolutions. So here they are:

2009 Personal Goals

~Lose 10 pounds and keep them off
~Be out of debt in 2009...for reals this time
~Purchase a new laptop
~Maintain workouts...yoga, stretching and walking
~Learn how to sew...enroll in class(es)

2009 Stitching Goals

~Quaker Friendship Round Robin
~Peppermint Twist SAL
~2009 Christmas Challenge - 12 finished ornaments by the end of the year
~Bent Creek Snappers - July through December
~Trick or Treat Fairy -Mirabilia
~Fairy Moon - Mirabilia
~4 exchanges/gifts
~Keep better track of my finished projects for blogging

I don't know if I will accomplish more or if I will accomplish less this year. In the end, the most important thing is to be happy and healthy. I hope that everyone has a happy and healthy new year too.

Happy New Year!!

Wishing everyone in Blogland a very Happy, Healthy and Prosperous New Year!

Post-Christmas

I hope everyone had a lovely Christmas amongst those that make you happy. Christmas Eve and Christmas Day were busy and family filled. Lots of cooking, food, laughs and chatter. I was happy to see my sister and her family and I played catchup with all of them. *The boy* met my sister and her family and they all seemed to get along without any problems so that was good and I was actually able to relax and not worry about where the conversation was going.

The days after Christmas were not so great though. I came down with a bad head cold and have probably gone through two boxes of Kleenex in the process. *The boy* got a different variety of sickness that involved a high fever and stomach issues. I've been whiny...he's been whiny. It's a miracle we're both alive and haven't killed each other! Once my nose issues resolved, I came down with an awful migraine and it's mostly subsided but I can feel it's dull thud in the background. I am hoping that it fully goes away and doesn't make an appearance anytime soon.

So my lovely plans of stitching all weekend were instead filled with sneezing, noseblowing, whining and sleeping. I did start (and almost finish) a little selfish stitching. I just couldn't resist and I started it while at my parents on Christmas Eve. I am hoping to finish it by tomorrow, New Years Day. Perhaps I will have a lovely picture to show tomorrow!

In the meantime, I hope everyone has an enjoyable New Years' Eve and that you merrily ring in the New Year!

Merry Christmas!

Wishing one and all a very merry Christmas! May you have a day filled with joy and wonder.

Weekend Things and Stuff

What a great weekend! *The boy* and I had a funfilled time and I actually started my Monday on a good note. Miracle of miracles! On Friday night, we settled in to watch Semi-Pro with *the boy*. For every 2 Valerie movies, I'll pick out a boy movie off Netflix to share with *the boy*. I really do not understand the Will Farrell draw but whatever. It was an ok movie with a bunch of basketball references I didn't understand or would pick up like 10 minutes later...you know...when the joke is old.

On Saturday, *the boy* and I headed onto Bart for our little city adventure. We avoided the masses by heading through the Financial District and then walking up to North Beach. We grabbed an awesome chinese lunch at Brandy Ho's and walked about the neighborhood running errands. Not too long though because we had to hustle to grab two buses to the Castro Theatre to see Milk. With 15 minutes to spare before the movie was to start, the theatre was packed and we had to climb up to the balcony. I've been to the Castro Theatre tens of times and have never sat up in the balcony but it was very nice and much less crowded. *The boy* was in awe of the old glory of the theatre. I guess I've been there so may times that I now take it for granted but it was funny to see his reaction. The movie was fabulous but very sad considering the subject matter. All the actors did a wonderful job. After the movie, we walked back to Bart to end our journey. Once home, we tucked in to see a Bing Crosby movie called Going My Way. I had never heard of it before but it was very well done and quite funny! We both really enjoyed it.

On Sunday, I told *the boy* I wanted to stay home and stitch. It was supposed to be stormy and I had no desire to be out in the rain. While I stitched, *the boy* went to the grocery store, watched some football, took a nap and made a scrumptious roast chicken dinner. I had such a great day. Before the sun went down, I took this picture of my progress on Donna's Quaker RR. Not much to show but it's progress. I did stitch more after taking this picture and have that bull's horns motif almost done. That was a pesky motif seeing as there were a couple of mistakes in the chart and so I had to do a bit of frogging. With the holiday approaching, I'm not sure how much I'll be able to stitch since I have out-of-town visitors and big family dinners planned but I already have some time slotted for next Saturday to continue on this project. I really love this fabric and dark shade of green!
And after dinner, *the boy* and I tucked into watch Holiday Inn...another Bing Crosby movie. I had never seen it before and it was also quite funny. Not to mention, Bing Crosby's voice is amazing and Fred Astaire can dance like no other! Lots of movie watching this weekend!

This morning, I received an email from Carol telling me she received the birthday package I sent to her. I was so hoping I would time it right and that it would arrive on her birthday but alas, I was a few days late. Here is the pinkeep that I made for her. She told me she really liked it so I am very happy!

Quaker 2008 by Gazette94
32 Count Lakeside Linens Navy Bean
Crescent Colors Belle Soie Blue Lagoon

Carol included some much better pictures of the pinkeep details and extras which you can find on her blog here. I am so happy she liked her birthday surprise! Yay!

Be merry and delight...

Woo! I'm a Winner!

No, I didn't win the lotto but the next best thing is winning a bloggiversary prize. Monique had a giveaway on her blog a few weeks back and I was the lucky winner. I was shocked! I don't ever win anything! I was very eager to see what Monique had in store for me and I was so happy to see her package in the mail on Monday. She included two of her designs, a cut of 32 count belfast which will come in handy for sure and some lovely hand-dyed Dinky Dyes floss. I think it's hysterical that she sent me her *Daydream* design seeing as I ordered a threadholder that looks exactly like that from Monique a few months back! Thanks Monique!
A few weeks ago, I finished Brittercup Kitty with Bird for *the boy's* mom as a Christmas gift to her. Natasha asked that I post a picture once it was framed and here it is in all it's glory. *The boy* did good with picking out the frame. He did it all himself since I don't know what the mom likes or how she decorates. He picked this antiqued gold frame which actually accents the bird charm, yellows and the pale blue of the bird very nicely. I'm very happy with the framing job and I think that the mom will like it very much. At least I hope so!

A Sigh of Relief

Perhaps the week is looking up? I hope so.

We had a wonderful holiday luncheon today complete with caesar salad, fried chicken, bbq ribs, green beans, jambalaya, sinful cookies and a crazy array of other decadent desserts. I cannot eat another bite!! It was all very good and everyone was in a jovial spirit.

I received an email from Silkweaver apologizing for the error in shipment and advising that they are sending me the correct fabric that I ordered. Hallelujah!! And as an apology for the error, they are letting me keep the pinky-mauve fabric they originally sent to me. Now, I'm not a pinky-mauve sort of a girl but I'm sure I can find a project for this fabric sometime in the next 30 years. Thanks goodness for good customer service! I am just so happy that my sparkley orange-y fabric is on its way!

And because of this...I will truly...

Be merry and delight!

O Christmas Tree

Oh Christmas tree, Oh Christmas tree
You fill my heart with music
Oh Christmas tree, Oh Christmas tree
You fill my heart with music
Reminding me on Christmas day
To think of you and then be gay
Oh Christmas tree, Oh Christmas tree

You fill my heart with music

*The boy* took a much better picture of the tree with his fancy schmancy super camera so I am flaunting the "pretty tree" again since I have no stitchy pictures to share. I will soon. I received treats from Monique for being the lucky winner on her bloggiversary drawing! Woo!! I actually won something! But for the time being, delight in my tree and if you look very carefully, you can see my framed Christmas Elf Fairy on display on the lower left of the photo. She made her seasonal appearance too!

Be merry and delight...

Obstacles

The last five days have been very trying. I am cranky and tired. It may exhaust me to rehash it all so I will bullet point my frustrations.

~Whiny sick boys drive me berserk especially when I am sick too but don't have the time or luxury of being sick because there is so much to do! Argh!

~Not having *me* time anymore. I'm not used to this relationship stuff. Not that I'm not happy with *the boy*. I am...totally am! I just need to find my happy median.

~Forgetting my wet laundry at my parents and having my dad put my delicate sweaters in the dryer. I am scared to see what the damage is.

~Being super hormonal because it's you know...that time of the month. Being a girl is just lovely sometimes.

~Whacking my head so hard trying to get into a co-worker's car. Owww! Ugh! It's hard being a tall girl.

~Dealing with all the crazy people who are in spastic holiday mode.

~Standing in line at the Post Office on the "busiest mailing day of the year". Argh! Why didn't I plan things better?!

~Spending 40 minutes talking to AT&T disputing a $7 long distance call on my phone bill because...ummm...I don't even *have* long distance to begin with. Yet, I was told that I must have made the call. If someone can explain to me how someone can make a long distance call when they don't have long distance privileges to begin with..I'll give you the $7 because I am *not* giving it to AT&T. I tried to keep calm, I asked the "supervisor" for his name, he was rude, not helpful and it was an awful customer service experience. This probably wasn't helped by my being hormonal (see above) and I was super upset, talking very sternly to this man while I was at work and I finally "thanked him for nothing", hung up and redialed. On my second attempt, the lady customer service lady was shocked at my story, apologized and credited me $7 because even she couldn't explain how I have a long distance charge when I don't have long distance. She was a gem. Why did it have to take 40 minutes to get things fixed?!?! Virgil from AT&T...you can go take a flying leap. I'll figure out how to write my nasty letter about you.

~I finally broke down and ordered fabric from Silkweaver. Perfect beautiful opalescent orangish fabric for Trick or Treat Fairy waiting for me in the wings. Perfect fabric! I got my shipment in the mail today and they sent me the WRONG fabric!! I was ready to cry. Where is my perfect beautiful solo?! I still have not heard from Silkweaver to tell me how, if even possible, I get the solo I actually ordered instead of this pink, mauvy fabric they sent to me. As my first exposure to Silkweaver, I am not happy...not happy at all. I want my fabric!! :::stomps feet and whines:::

So...ummm...not the best days right now. I need to go on a vacation...or win the lotto...or at least act like an ostrich and stick my head in the sand because I don't think I can take one more bad thing!

And because it is the holiday season, I will end with my normal tag of....be merry and delight! Even though I am not merry or delighting much today.

But...

Be merry and delight... :0)

Home Alone

Last Wednesday, I had an entire evening to myself. It was magical. No *boy*, no class, no computer, no nothing. It was me, the tv and my stitching. I had a goal in mind and I would not go to sleep until I finished my stitching. I stitched and I stitched and I stitched until I was done with the task at hand and I felt relieved...and tired! It was 1230am!! On a weeknight! As I scrambled to put away my supplies, turn off the lights and scurry towards my warm bed, I took in the glow of my pretty Christmas tree. As usual, an overflashed photo but I love sitting in the glow of the twinkling Christmas lights at night.
And Fat Santa made his annual appearance. Everytime I look at him, he makes me smile. He is the perfect decoration for my living room. Red, Christmas-y and whimsical. Hi Fat Santa!
And the fact that I am now blogging on Monday about last Wednesday is a sad fact indeed. A true indication of how behind I am in everything! But the good news is that as of today, I am done with my Christmas shopping and card writing! Yay! The cards are in the mail and I will soon immerse myself with gift wrap, ribbons and gift tags. And I am sure that my QFRR friends will be happy to hear that I finally pulled out one of the round robins to stitch on! Yay! But I did not stitch enough to be photo worthy. Perhaps later on in the week? Hope, hope.

In the meantime, be merry and delight!

Noel

I heard that Marie from the HoE Exchanging group received my Christmas Ornament Exchange package. Yay! I was getting a little worried that it was taking so long to get to the East Coast. Marie sent me a lovely email saying she really liked the ornament and the goodies I sent her. And since Marie can take much better pictures than me, I am *borrowing* the snaps she took of the front and back of the ornament. Following is the front:

And here is the back.

I stitched the Noel Ornament by Les Grilles des Maryse charted in the Gift of Stitching Magazine November issue. It just screamed to me and looked like Marie's taste from what I could gather off her blog. I stitched it on 32 count Lakeside Linens Vintage Light Examplar (my favorite) with Crescent Colors Cupid, which is a beautiful variegated red. I hope to stitch this for myself again one day. This ornament was my first pillow ornament with cording. Cording was a pain in the bum!!! Making the cording = easy. Attaching the cording to the pillow part = lots of swear words. In the end, it was a very good attempt for my first try but as any stitcher, I am uber-critical and not super happy. I know I can do better so I will have to practice. Good thing I signed up for Carol's 2009 Christmas Challenge. Lots of opportunities to practice and have more stitched ornaments for my Christmas Tree next year. It's a good win-win situation. I think Carol still has spots open in the challenge. If you're new to finishing like me, it's a nice environment to learn with no pressure. Go check it out if you want to perfect your skills...

oh yea, back to the exchange. I also included lots of christmas-y goodies for Marie...m&m's, holiday candle, floss, ribbon, gingerbread kitchen towel, holiday cards and notepad. Things I thought would come handy during the holiday season.

Marie, so glad you liked everything!!

That's all for now...be merry and delight!

Post-Thanksgiving

Five days into December and I feel a mess. How in the world did the holiday season sneak up on me?! Usually, by this time of year, all the presents are bought, the tree is up and cards are in the process of being written up. But this year, I'm struggling to find presents and having fights with salespeople, have a tree that won't fit in the tree stand and have no idea where my cards or address book are. How am I such a mess?!

Thanksgiving weekend was nice but stressful. At the last minute, I decided to have *the boy* meet the parents. That was a big deal and I was worried considering the language barrier between my parents and *the boy*. But I think that he and my dad had a good time and there was more than enough food for everyone. The roasted veggies, sweet yams, pumpkin pie, wine and ice cream we brought over were a hit so that made me happy. Round #2 will be at christmastime when *the boy* meets my sister and her family.

I've been feeling out of sorts. The original plan for christmas was that I would fly out to the East Coast to meet *the boy's* family. The plans were on, the plans were off, the plans were on and I placed a hold on a ticket buying more miles to do so, the plans were off and then the plans were maybe back on but lets see and now they are definitely OFF! Ugh! The back and forth was killing me! I am a planner...cannot stand wishy-washy behavior. *The boy* is lucky I didn't smack him! I'm relieved. I want to go to the East Coast and have been dying to go in the winter but I just don't feel ready to spend money I don't really have right now. If I'm making a trip back East, there is loads I want to do...most of it evolving around NY...which is expensive, yet I wouldn't want to deny myself the experience and I would have ponied up the money. So now, I have time to shop, and do cards, and decorate...and breathe. I know *the boy* is bummed that he(we) won't spend the holiday with his family but I am hoping he'll be happy to spend it with my crazy and dysfunctional one.

I haven't been stitching...and it's making me loony. I was on such a good roll but am still stuck on making and finishing off two gifts. Once I'm done with the gifts, I must move onto the round robins. I have two and will be late getting both of them off by the deadline. They all know so it's ok but I just feel like such a slacker for being late. Not to mention all the wonderful projects I have lined up in my head. Since I haven't had time to stitch, I've been sneaking time on the computer at work and buying loads of stash! OMG...must stop the madness! I've talked to *the boy* and we made a deal that I get to go to NiaH for hours tomorrow so I can stitch in peace while he helps friends get ready for a holiday party I will join later. And on Sunday, he can watch football and hang out with the boys so I can stitch some more and watch all the awful shows he apparently hates watching with me. Sounds like a win to me. I must stitch before I lose my mind!! And if I have to deal with another idiot employee at Macy's again anytime soon...I just might!

I hope that everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend and an even better upcoming weekend. I'm hoping to have at least some pictures to include in my next post.

Be merry and delight...

Gobble, Gobble

Wishing and hoping that everyone in blogland has a wonderful and safe Thanksgiving Holiday!!

Christmas Ornament Exchange

On Friday, I received a wonderful package from Mylene! Absolutely love seeing packages in my mailbox instead of bills! This is the second time Mylene has stitched for me for the HoE Exchange Group and she outdid herself again. She stitched up a wonderful little pillow ornament with beading around the edge. Here is a snap of the front of the ornament:
I absolutely love the beading around the edge. I must learn and practice how to do this! And here is a snap of the back where she stitched out *Merry Christmas*
I love this design but I'm not sure who it is by. I think the two shades of green in the tree add real dimension. Here is a photo of the whole exchange with goodies!Sorry for the overflashed photos...hard to get good pictures at night with my little camera. Mylene included a little stitched holiday card with a teddy bear on it, some chocolate, a piece of nice blue "Noel" fabric, a JBW Designs Christmas Tree chart and a package of embellishments. Yay! Thanks Mylene. The ornament will grace my tree this year and all the goodies will be put to good use or eaten! :)

Here Kitty, Kitty!

Recently, *the boy* has been subjected to a lot of "omg, I need time to stitch, I am so behind!* comments. Sometimes, he will sit with me and watch me pull needle through thread and other times, he'll head off to the other room to watch boring news shows. When I was making the floss tag for Claire, he said that he would really like it if I would make something for his mom and he really liked the Brittercup Kitty I stitched up on the tag so I had him pick out a pattern for me to stitch and he chose Brittercup Designs Kitty with Bird. It was a fast stitch and shown below. Not the best photo and the little blue bird is a very pale blue. I am debating whether I should stitch it up in a darker light blue. *The boy* wants to frame it so we'll head off to Aaron Brothers to see if we can find a nice frame for it.

Brittercup Designs Kitty with Bird
28 count Zwiegart Lugana Bisque

suggested WDW threads

That's all for now. The weekend will be filled with ornament finishing and a couple of new starts. All for gifts. I hope everyone has a nice relaxing weekend before the insanity of what is always Thanksgiving!

Tag! I'm It!

Yay! I've been tagged by Natasha to share some information about myself. Hopefully I don't bore you guys to death! Here are the rules ...

Rule #1 ~ Link to the person that tagged you.
Rule #2 ~ Post the rules on your Blog.
Rule #3 ~ Write 6 random things about yourself.
Rule #4 ~ Tag 6 people at the end of your post.
Rule #5 ~ Let each person know that they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their Blog.
Rule #6 ~ Let the tagger know your entry is up.

Factoid #1 ~ I'm 100% Nicaraguan. If there were ever the occasion that I pass you on the street and tell you that, your mouth would drop open in shock. I am pretty tall (for a girl) and incredibly fair and often mistaken for Italian, Greek and Irish most of the time. It works to my advantage. I can eavesdrop with the best of them and surprise people with my spoken Spanish...it's all very funny.

Factoid #2 ~ Even though I am 100% latina...I have no spice tolerance whatsoever. Really! It's gotten better over the years so now I have a little (un poquito) spice tolerance.

Factoid #3 ~ Even though I've taken years of dancing and fitness classes, I'm amazingly clumsy and execute a nasty fall on my bum at least once a year. I should just walk around with a pillow strapped around it to avoid further trauma to bum.

Factoid #4 ~I cannot fully function without caffeine. I love coffee like you wouldn't believe and have been drinking coffee (cafe con leche) since I was six years old! A nonfat hazelnut latte from Peet's is my ultimate favorite!

Factoid #5 ~ I am the youngest child out of three and my two siblings are old enough to be my parents. Yes, we all have the same parents but I was an extreme afterthought...apparently.

Factoid #6 ~ I am one of those rare SF natives. Really...it's a big deal! Everyone who lives around here now are transplants.

And I know it only asked for six random facts but I will do seven because I like odd numbers...

Factoid #7 ~ Besides the fact I like odd numbers, I love cake and think it should be one of those essential food groups that they talk about in grammer school. Things definitely seem more manageable and cheery after a piece of cake and a cup of coffee or tea.

I will not tag anyone to complete this fun little exercise unless they feel up to it. If you would like to, please go ahead and post to your blog and link back to me.

Jetsetter? I Wish!

A couple of weekends ago, I finished the June Square of my Bent Creek Snappers. This square seemed to take me a while to do and was tedious. I think it's because the stitching area is more dense. I do get a kick out of the stamps on the suitcase. They are all for places I've never been too but are on my destination list. New York, London and Rome...here I come...one day!! Here is a close up on the square.
And here is a snap of how the project looks so far. I am half way done! Seems weird to be stuck on July though since we're already in November but I didn't start this project until mid-July so not bad. I think the Snappers will have to be put away in the drawer for the time being. I have too many other stitchy obligations right now and I don't think *July Sings* will be debuted until January.
In other stitchy news, stitching has been slow. I am working on the ornament for the HoE Christmas exchange and after that, I have a couple of gifts lined up. If only I could clone myself. I'd stay home and stitch all day and the clone could go to work! Haha...wouldn't that be wonderful?!

Rest and Relaxation

The week before last, Claire and I spent a wonderful four days away in Mendocino. I had never been to Mendocino before and everyone kept telling me that it was very scenic and beautiful but that the drive was awful. I have no idea what they are talking about! Mind you, I was the passenger on the way up and on the way down and we took the less scenic route to get there. The scenic route is Highway 1 which hugs the coastline. The less scenic route is Highway 128 which goes through the woods, along a winery path and then through a forest of redwoods. Who says that's not scenic?! Plus, there were so many wineries that we had to do a few stops for tasting and acquisition. I came away from this trip with 7 bottles of wine and a new favorite for pinot noir. If anyone finds Toulouse Vineyard Pinot Noir...grab it! It's so yummy and what a strange coincidence that it's owned by a retired Fire Captain from the Bay Area. It truly is a small world! It's still a new winery and their tasting room is non-existent but the staff is very friendly and knowledgeable about wine.

Following are some pictures from the trip. I think the picture below was taken at Navarro Vineyards. Sorry...the wine made my brain fuzzy and I can't totally remember! But Navarro did have lovely grounds and if you look closely, you will notice sheep dozing under the grapevines. Baaaa!!!

Anther snap at Navarro. I love how the line of skinny trees looked in the background.

And here is a snap of the grounds at Goldeneye Winery. Good pinot noir but very pricey and out of my budget...that's for sure! But the grounds were lovely. The autumnal colors of the grapevines look terrific against the deep green on all the pines and other trees. This winery serves their tasting out on their deck with little nibbles of crackers, dried cherries, almonds and bits of cheese. Very nice and classy. I would recommend if only to stop and take in the view.

Ocean, waves and rocks

Ahhh, ocean is much calmer near the bluff. Claire and I actually walked and explored all around the bluff. It was nice. She was adventurous and climbed down these sand stairs to the ocean cove below. I was all scared I'd fall and create more havoc to the bum that I bruised falling down stairs a few weeks ago. I may look graceful...nut I'm not really.

Here's is the view of the downtown area of Mendocino from the bluff we explored.Point Cabrillo Lighthouse. I thought it would be huge! It's very tiny and I have no idea who those folks are that are walking in the foreground.

And the most amazing thing from the trip...this was the view from the deck of our hotel room at sunset. Isn't it amazing?! How in the world did I leave and how soon can I get back?!
This photo completely reminds me of a Hawaii photo except instead of palm trees, it's these. I don't even know what kind of trees they are! Mendocino was fabulously relaxing and the people were *so* friendly. It was so completely different from the hustle and bustle of the city and I relished every moment. I think this will easily be my *go to* destination for a relaxing getaway that is still kind of local and won't bust the bank account...and I must return sooner rather than later.

Goodbye Angelina

August 5, 1981 - October 29, 2008
You will be missed...

My Beautiful City

A couple of weeks ago, *the boy* and I headed into the city to see the North Beach Columbus Day Parade and watch the Blue Angels. My amateur picturetaking did not capture essence the parade or the Blue Angels very well. The parade was interesting but both our tummies were complaining and we went off in search for food and grabbed slices at Golden Boy Pizza. Oh my, talk about yummy pizza! How come I've never been there before?! After finishing our slices, we raced to our viewing spot where we would watch the Blue Angels and here are the snaps I came away with. Below is a snap of the Transamerica Building, Financial District with the Bay Bridge in the background. The day was beautiful with nary a cloud in the sky!
And here is St. Peter and Paul Church in North Beach which sits on the edge of Washington Square. A truly beautiful church which looks even more stunning from the height we were at as you can see the San Francisco Bay with all the little boats out for a sail on a sunny day.
And even more boats out on the bay...and if you look really closely, you'll see Alcatraz to the far right...also known as "The Rock". If you ever take the night tour...it's super creepy being there after sunset.
And to the right is Coit Tower which does in fast look like a fire nozzle. Seems fitting to have this picture considering where I work. You can read more about the history of this tower here. The view from the hill is incredibly picturesque and the murals in the interior of the tower are true works of art.
And the only decent snap I actually captured of the Blue Angels. It's hard taking pictures of jets flying at lightening speed all over the Bay!! But if I got one decent one, I'm happy it's this one. You can see all six jets breaking their formation in a nosedive. Scary, yet amazing and beautiful. I'm glad to have battled the massive crowds to see these talented pilots in action.
And here ends my *show and tell* of a day in my beautiful city. My heart truly belongs to my hometown and I am happy to explore it (and act like a tourist) whatever chance I get!

Giftie for Claire

This past weekend, I went on a relaxing getaway with my dear friend, Claire. She's an October baby too so this was a quasi-birthday getaway as well. I decided to try my hand at making a floss ring tag using the cute kitty from Brittercup Designs. Claire is new to cross stitch and has been dying to have me take her to Needle in a Haystack so she could gt the supplies fort he Trick or Treat Kitty featured in the JCS Halloween Ornament issue. Since it was her birthday, I decided to get the supplies for the project as part of her birthday gift and attach all the threads to the Kitty floss ring tag. Here is the front and back of the floss ring tag to be. It was a quick stitch! On the back I stitched her name with the year and a couple of pink hearts.
Below is the finished product. I was very proud of myself! It was super easy to make thanks to the handy-dandy Crop-o-Dile I bought at Michael's recently. And the best thing is that Claire really liked it and loved her birthday present overall. Yay! That makes me happy!

28 ct. Mushroom Jazlyn
WDW Onyx and Hibiscus
Design: Brittercup Designs Kitty Freebie

May Blooms

As I promised long, long ago, here is a snap of my progress so far with the Bent Creek Snappers. I really enjoy working on this project as the small patterns give me quick gratification and sense of accomplishment. I finished *May Blooms* about a month ago but the picture has been stored on my camera since I no longer seem to have time to work on my computer at night anymore. The May Snapper is one of my favorites. Cute flowers in spring-like flowers! Here it is! Please excuse the icky snap though. I was too lazy to take the piece off the Q-Snaps since they are such a pain to put on as the fabric is super long. I have to tie up the excess fabric with yarn so that it doesn't get in my way while stitching! I've started *June Zooms* and it is slow moving. It's a denser pattern and not really one of my favorites although I like the expression of *June Zooms* and it meaning being a jetsetter. I wish I could be a jetsetter but I guess a girl can only dream...for now. Updated photo will be coming soon...

Giftie for Edgar

I finally dragged out my camera and just brought it to work with me this morning in the hopes that I could be productive in my *show and tell* and I discovered this photo. Wow, I am really behind on blogging!! I made this little quaker pinkeep for Edgar in celebration of his birthday at the beginning of October. Edgar's birthday is 3 days after mine so it was really easy to remember! Edgar likes all things quaker and pinkeeps which he calls pynkeepes so I decided to make him something within that realm. Along with the pinkeep, I included a tin of Altoid licorice mints because I remembered he said he liked licorice candy, as well as a skein of Crescent Colors overdyed floss in Camaoflage. Edgar sent me a nice email and thank you card to let me know how much he liked the giftie and extras. Yay!! Happy Birthday Edgar!

Pinkeep for Edgar
32 ct. Lakeside Linens Vintage Light Examplar
Crescent Colors Belle Soie Moss
Pattern: Gazette94

Busy but Happy

Hmm...I've probably lost the few readers I had since I've become pretty lax about blogging lately. Things have been very busy but I am incredibly happy...and tired. Things with *the boy* are going great! We've been enjoying each others' company and learning more about the other. I've played hooky and gone into the city to have a picnic on the lawn in Washington Square Park. We've gone to see Cake perform live for a Proposition H Benefit. We went to see Weezer at the local University stadium and whereas the surroundings and the crowd seemed strange, the music was steller! And we also saw the Blue Angels and some parts of the Columbus Day Parade in North Beach. He's introduced me to his friends in his old neighborhood and now I feel like I know them...not to mention the "six degrees of separation" moments we keep having. We are having a blast with each other and things would be completely perfect if he could only find a job and an apartment share. This downturn in the economy has thrown a wrench into things but I'm sure things will come together soon.

My stitching has suffered as I expected it would. I am trying to force myself to sit down and work on projects and *the boy* is very encouraging. He tells me I need to work on my projects and gets a kick out of watching me pull needle through thread. But things move slowly in between work, concerts, fun times with *the boy* and other obligations. I have no photos to show. But I promise to have lots to share next week. The only progress I've made is on a floss tag I am making for my friends' birthday. It's my first one and coming along nicely!

My weekend of relaxation has finally come and not a moment too soon! Claire and I are heading to Mendocino tomorrow. I can't wait!! The only things on the agenda are rest, relaxation, walks along the beach, maybe a little wine tasting, a massage, some reading and lots and lots of stitching!! Yay! My goals for the weekend are to get the stitching done for my christmas ornament exchange, a little giftie for *the boy* and June on my Snappers. If I can get that done, I will feel successful...if I get more stitching done, that will be icing on the cake! I also plan on taking a ton of pictures since I've been told Mendocino is incredibly scenic and beautiful.

So upon my return, be ready for stitchy pictures, Blue Angels pictures and scenic Mendocino pictures.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Halloween Exchange to Shay

I heard from Shay (no blog) that she received the HoE Halloween Exchange package I sent to her and that she liked the pinkeep and the goodies. Yay!! Following is a snap of the exchange (thanks to Shay's camera...woo!!) Since I had seen that Shay wasn't too into Halloween designs, I decided to go more traditional and stitched up JBW Designs Pumpkin in GAST Fragrant Cloves. I really liked how it came out and the backing fabric is of different pumpkins. I also included a fat quarter of orange fabby, a Sweet Nothings chart, some pins, a little stuffed pumpkin, some autumnal DMC threads and some chocolate peppermint Altoids. The ghosts in the background are from the Boo!! card I sent to her with my note. I love that card...the ghosts are super cute!!

And here is a close-up of the pinkeep itself. I was very happy to hear that Shay enjoyed it. I had fun putting it all together!

Spooky Exchange from Wendo Jo!

I am slowly catching up on my stitching news. I am very behind and just haven't managed to sit down at my computer and upload my own pictures in the evening so I am borrowing pictures from the folks who are so much more organized than me!

Last week, I received my HoE Halloween Exchange from Wendy Jo. Below is the full exchange she sent me and boy did she spoil me. She stitched up the Homespun elegance design from the recent JCS October 2008 issue and finished it into a pinkeep. This is sitting on my coffee table along with my Halloweenie floss tag from Carol S. Wendy Jo also researched on my wishlist and sent me the CCN Home Sweet Home chart and JBW Designs Autumn Harvest. Yay! Plus, there were some cute Halloween post-its, a couple of skeins of Crescent Colors overdyed floss and a baggie full of candy corn.

Here is a close up of the pinkeep. Very spooky! Thanks Wendy Jo! I loved all of it!

Birthday Surprise from Carol R.!

And as if getting a lovely giftie from Carol S. wasn't a great way to start off birthday festivities, I received a lovely package from Carol R. from the UK!. I was very excited to get that package and I tore into it immedately despite the insanely late hour and the good amount of celebratory cocktails I had that evening. Each thing I pulled out made me smile even wider in happiness and awe. I stole...oh, um...borrowed...the photo of the beautifully stitched and finished pincushion from Carol's blog. Isn't it lovely?! I'm in awe...must study and learn from Carol! She stitched both our names and the year along the perimeter sides of the little "box". I absolutely love it!!
And to make me even giddier and smilier, she included lots of goodies. I will have to update with a photo. There were some lovely swaroski pins and matching beaded scissor fob, some deep blue ribbon that will come in handy, a couple of cute little clips and some of the infamous floss tags that Carol makes herself with my name on one side and fluffy clouds on the other. What makes the floss tags even more special is that Carol told me she had take a picture of the sky from her English garden and that the clouds on the tags are printed from that photo. Wow! They are English clouds! Awesome!

And I must not forget to mention the lovely piecce of linen, backing fabric and very cute birthday card she sent me as well. I was so completely and totally spoiled. Carol, thank you for everything. It made my special day even more special.

Happy Birthday to me indeed! :)

Birthday Giftie from Carol S.

Since I am so completely behind in blogging and sending out my thanks to some very sweet people via the stitchy community, I am now resorting to picture stealing since I just have not had the chance to charge my camera battery and upload photos. I am sure they wont mind since I am seemingly a slacker and they are so "on the ball". I have a great excuse though...birthday festivities and the distraction of my guy's arrival to the Bay Area. Woohoo! It's much better when he is here versus 3,000 miles away.

Sweet Carol S. stitched up this cute and fun little Halloween floss tag and mailed it to me for my birthday! I love it and actually still have it out on my coffee table as Halloween decoration right now. I dug out the few Halloween decorations I have for my apartment over the weekend and felt that it should be displayed for the month of October. It's the first floss tag I've received and am now eager to try my hand at this finish!
Carol let me know that this was a Holly House Designs piece called Halloween Night. Very cute! Never heard of Holly House before... She also included some floss bobbins that will come in very handy. So sweet of her to remember my birthday when I made a passing comment on an exchange deadline falling on the day and how it will be easy for me to remember! Heck, the memory is the first thing to go...or so they say. At least I think that's what they said...

Thanks Carol! :)

Feliz Cumpleanos a Mi

Feliz Cumpleanos a Mi...
I am thirty-three...
I thank dad for good genes...
Happy Birthday to Me!!!!

:)

The Lowdown

Ok, so I'm back from smoggy Southern California and back in my little land of Fog. If I could hug fog, I totally would. I was told that I may be put in the loony bin if I went running around San Francisco trying to hug the fog. I suppose that may be true but considering how many crazies are in San Francisco anyways, I'd probably be ignored and labeled a crazy. No biggie! SoCal was fun and AM posted on her blog here and here about our eating adventures. Sweet Jesus...did we eat! I think I'm still trying to digest over here...one week later! It was nice hanging out with AM and seeing where she lived...finally!

I then had to put fun on the back burner in exchange for business and went to my conference. I was happy to see that the ratio was more like 75% men and 25% women. I was worried I would be one in a handful of girls. It's interesting being at a conference that is more geared towards men. There are a lot of men, there is a ton of food (gah! more food?!?!), sitting in between two guys in a small conference room can be claustraphobic because they take up too much space and there is a ton of drinking going on...after the conference, of course. I managed to take away from the conference which is a plus. It's awful to go to one of these things and them be a complete waste. But after an entire week in Southern California, I was excited to be back home. I wanted my own bed and my own pillow and my laptop and to have the freedom to stitch, watch tv and email when I wanted. Oh, and I missed the fog.

My stitching time has seriously been monopolized and I will be working very hard this week and weekend to get my Halloween exchange and other bits finished so they can go to their new homes. Travelling, housesitting and dating will definitely put some time constraints on anyone's schedule. I'm not complaining much though since I am in *happy dating mode*. This means that I talk to and/or (usually both) email my guy everyday. One of my coworkers said that I sounded like a teenager but if that's the only way you can talk to someone you're interested in, you're willing to chat via phone for hours on end. But I better check my phone bill. I may have overextended on my minutes by now...uh-oh! So things with the guy continue to go well. But it will be even better when he is back on my coast...in 11 days! Yay!

My parents are *finally* (!!!!!) coming back home on Friday. Double yay!! They've been gone 4 months and as much as they drive me bonkers, I miss having them nearby. Plus, no offense or anything, I will be ecstatic to relinquish my housesitting duties. Sheesh...taking care of a house is hard work and I can barely take care of my apartment which is only about one quarter of the size of my parents house. Oh yes, daunting task!

In 8 days, I will be turning one year older. I hate celebrating my birthday because I've been often disappointed on a day that is supposed to be special. So my plan is to go to work and to go to my exercise class and pretend that it's any other day. I already know that my co-workers will throw me a breakfast party which usually means it'll be an *eat all fricking day* party. We know how to eat at work and everyone knows I will eat breakfast no matter what time of day it is. That'll be nice and make it worth being at work on my birthday. Hardly seemed worth taking the day off since it falls on a Wednesday. If it was closer to the weekend, I'd make a deal about it and gone for a little getaway. And I already know that my mom will call me and sing me happy birthday on the phone. But the best part about the whole birthday is that three days later, my guy moves back to SF for good. Belated birthday present in a way...

Blogging will woefully be scarce as I'm still trying to work on gifts and pieces I can't show to you guys yet and will be preoccupied with my parents' arrival and then the arrival of my guy.

We Interrupt Regular Programming...

Oh yea...awful blogger!

It has been a crazy, fun, wonderful week but I'm hesitant to give details for fear of jinxing. I will say that I met a fantastic guy whom I've hit it off with after an exchange of about 100 emails over the last 6 weeks. I have no idea what will happen, if things will work or if/when I will see him again but this is the happiest I've been about dating in the past year and a half.

Of course, my stitching has now suffered but I am only working on exchanges and other bits that I can't show now anyways. I do still need to share a snap of my May Snapper but I keep forgetting to take a picture during the daytime since the light quality is so much better.

I will be leaving today for SoCal to visit with my dear friend, AM. She's lived down there for what, six years and this is my first time visiting her. We have foodie visits, a movie, shopping and chatter planned. It'll be fun! That will be the prelude to a four-day business conference near the happiest place on earth, Disneyland! I am doubtful I will make the trip to the theme park but if the inner child in me starts to throw a tantrum fit, it'll be close enough for me to hop on the shuttle and walk around. I will be sans computer while away so there will be no blogging or catching up on bloggers in the next week. Looks like I have my work cut out for me when I return!

Have a wonderful weekend and start to the week!

Who's Got Time for Blogging?!

Ugh, I've been a terrible blogger. My last real post was over a week ago! I am in awe that time flies by as fast as it does. I don't have much to say really. After my progress and mailing of my QFRR, I decided to do a bit of selfish stitching so I started and finished my May Snapper and will take a picture soon to share. I just started my Halloween exchange piece last night so that will be my focus this week followed by other small bits. Of course, that means that I can't share pictures of the exchange or bits so this site will be photo stingy for a while. Bear with me you guys...I swear I've got cool and pretty things to share! Just not right now.

The Labor Day weekend was a semi-relaxing and semi-productive blur. Lots of relaxing, stitching, shopping, craft organization, housesitting and chores and a perfect North Beach excursion on one of the clearest days in San Francisco this year so far. And of course, on that day, I forgot my camera at home! Gah! How could I let that happen?! I should know that despite living in the city and traversing its streets, it doesn't always look the same. Those slight differences make a huge effect. And seeing the Golden Gate Bridge on one side and the Bay Bridge on the other without a single cloud in the sky definitely makes an impression. Clear blue, cloudless and fogless days in this city are rare and anyone who gets to experience it is a lucky person. Labor Day tourists sure had a great treat this weekend with the weather and stellar picture taking conditions.

Other than that...typical workweek fare. Work, errands, chores, appointments and exercise class. Hardly thrilling. I'm a tad bored. Hopefully something...or someone...will capture my attention soon.

Don't Call Me Princess

More observations from the Boys Club. It's hard working with guys sometimes. Other times, it's the best thing. I like being immersed in the Boys Club. I think it's better than working in an organization full of women. There are women in my office and sometimes, we step on each other's toes but for the most part, we're ok with each other. No major cattyness or soap opera drama. I can't imagine that being the case in an office with more than the 5 women that we have now.

The guys, they call me names...kid, kiddo, sweetheart, dear, darling, girl. I like those names. Maybe because I don't have a boyfriend so I need to get my fill of pet names from somewhere? Hmm....don't know. But yesterday, one of the guys, called me princess and I just about jumped out of my skin. I've never liked the term "princess". I am *not* a princess! I think I don't like it because I relate it to being spoiled and taken care of and that's not me. I've worked since I was 14, I take care of myself and I never ask for help or money unless I'm in complete dire need of it. So I am not a princess. Ick!

If I could find a boy that will call me *sunshine*, I'd smile for days and be over the moon. Why can't I meet that guy?!

Quickie Post

I almost made my deadline. OMG, so close. Only one day late though...not too bad. I had issues trying to decide between 1 strand vs 2 strands of silk for the "Creme de Menthe" and I had to set this aside for a day or so to decide. I decided on 1 strand and boy am I really happy with it. Here is how my QFRR stands for now. I've completed my vine with the year, my "matchy-matchy" initials and a little bunny. Now I will send it off to Wendy so she can stitch her section and pass it round and round. Oh, sounds like such fun! I can't wait to get the next one I stitch on. And for some reason, I can't really figure out whose I get now but I guess that will be a surprise for me from the mailman! I love mail surprises!
Now that I don't have any QFRR obligations for the time being, I will focus on my May Snapper until the weekend. I think the weekend has a NiaH trip in store for me again. I need to get supplies for my Halloween exchange and other tidbits for the next month or so. That will keep me busy and of course means I can't share those details until received by the recipient. So I will try to keep the May Snapper going to at least show some stitchy progress.

But for now, I bid adieu. The very yummy petrole sole risotto I had for dinner is causing major food coma symptoms. I need to lie down and take a nap!