Thursday, June 28, 2007

This is me, jumping on the bandwagon

Again I manage to have a huge gap in my postings...I don't mean to, but here it is almost 2 weeks later...excuses, excuses...I have lots, but they don't really matter. The bottom line is, I just haven't done it. McCloud was fun, I took lots of pics, but honestly, I don't even feel like posting the pics because there are so many to choose and write about, it feels like an overwhelming task. Eek! Someday...onto other things...


Here's something juicy about me (OK, well, maybe not)...I have never read the Harry Potter series. And I was given the first 4 as a Christmas present about 2 years ago. I dunno, just never had the urge. I suppose I have a preconceived notion that I won't like them because they're in the fantasy/science fiction realm, and I just can't get into that genre. I've attempted many times to read Lord of the Rings, can't do it, it is way too painful. It's like my brain can't conjure up the worlds because they're just too weird, nothing makes sense, so I give up. A Wrinkle in Time and the Lion, Witch & the Wardrobe were as far as I could delve into all that. Plus, when big phenomenons like the Harry books or trends come along, I'm never on the breaking wave of them - usually I'm at the tale end. I guess I like to see if they really pan out before I invest time or money into them. Anyway, I've heard that if I can get past the first two, it gets a lot better. I'm ready to see what all the fuss is about - I mean, lots of people I know and respect adore these books and are voraciously rereading them before they get the last one this summer. That is dedication - they wouldn't do that for a lame series, right? I also think that it will be good reading material for the plane; you know, something easy and quick. So here I go with book one, jumping on the Hogwarts bandwagon.


In crafting news, I've been stitching some onesies that are to be baby presents, but as luck would have it, the little guy that was supposed to be born on July 8th, decided to make his appearance yesterday morning in the wee small hours, and I only have one onesie done, one in the works, and a blanket to make. So. I have a little catching up to do on that front. But I learned that I can get one stitched pretty much in one night. My mom called yesterday and said that there was an impromptu baby shower thrown together at her church for this Friday night, and she has a gift card, but was hoping I could stitch her a onesie to go with it (one for a little girl), so could I pretty please do it? I said yes, and this is the result.




I really like how it turned out - so cute! When I was ironing on the transfer, I also prepped another onesie, because its my goal to make a semi-duplicate of whatever I'm currently working on and stash the other away to sell for our church's Holiday Boutique in November, so that way when it rolls around I'll be set and won't have to scramble last minute as much. I'm really curious to see if my goods'll sell, and if people even like them (and of course to raise $ for missions too). I also want to use my spiffy camera and take some pics to decorate the kitchen wall with - I have some ideas that I'm really excited about and can't wait to start! So much to do, so little time...
***BTW*** The Prilosec-like meds have really been helping my stomach, I feel great! Finally 2 days ago I got the results from the blood test. The #'s are alright, it shows that I am anemic (which most likely means the ulcers bled a little), so I have to come back in for another bloodtest. Lucky me! Thanks for all the kind prayers and words.

Thursday, June 14, 2007

Wilderness Survival 101

That's what I call it. To Joe and his family, they call it camping. And that's what we'll be doing this weekend. But they can't fool me. There's no public sinks/showers, or outhouses with the crescent moon on the door. You wanna wash up? Jump in the creek. Need to go to the bathroom? Here's the shovel. Of course, I do have to say that when the girls are along for the trip, they do pull out all the stops, and set up a shower in the trees, and set up a little port a potty for us...but still. They have a serious aversion to campgrounds and all the people in them, and really never go to them.. So they head out to their little Shangri-La up by the base of Mt. Shasta called McCloud. You know you're there when you see a little bar, post office and gas station all rolled into one building. Turn immediately left off the highway, drive around the forest for a ways, then stop. Set up camp, you have arrived. This'll be my second time going. It's all a little shocking to me - I was not brought up to be a camper. My family has a cabin, so that's where we would always head because there was always work to do on it, and my mom loathes camping. She says that its no vacation at all for the woman, and I do see her point. Its a lot of packing/preparing, and then a ton of clean up/ laundry. But, Joe adores it, so I better get used to it, right? Besides, I get totally soft when he talks about doing stuff with our future kids there, and teaching them stuff, and keeping the tradition of going there with his bros up. So really, it's a lost cause.
Of course, McCloud does have its charms...it is very tranquil, and beautiful. At night you hear the creek rushing by, and the stars are awesome to see. And, its just fun to be together. So even though I was a punk when writing the first paragraph, I'm not really dreading the trip. But I am dreading the heat. I saw today that one of the towns up there was at 103 degrees - yuck. And it won't be a restful weekend by any means; I overheard Joe and his brother Jake go over the pros and cons of a day hike, and there's rumored to be a night hike in the works. The boys and Lisa left today to go set up camp and stuff (and they're the real hardcore campers anyway), and I am heading up tomorrow night with Joe's parents after work. Hooray for a 6 hour drive plus weekend Bay Area traffic when we'll be trying to get out of town! Smile!! Then we come home on Sunday, and jump right back into the grind. So, here I am, blogging, when really I should be packing my bag.
It's a little weird without Joe here. It's not like I can't sleep if he's not here, but it is a little strange, all the same. When I got dinner tonight, I just chose something that sounded good to me. Didn't think about quantity or making a complete meal. Trying to combat the blazing heat, I treated myself to cold shrimp with lots of cocktail sauce, corn on the cob, and some lemon gelato for dessert. Yummy! I also had total domination of the TV and computer (a rarity), the alarm won't go off at 4:30am, I don't have to iron him a shirt or pack his lunch...so that's all swell. And I'll definitely enjoy it. But I'll be glad when he's back. I miss him.

Wednesday, June 13, 2007

iPod Lovin'


This is my apple green mini iPod. I use it everyday and love it to bits. When its not in the dock, it's in my purse/car being toted around. Quite awhile ago, Candace made a cozy for her iPod that was awesome, and I tucked away that idea in my head to do at a later time. Every time I would go to make it, something would come up, and it would get put on the back burner. The other night, when Joe was watching something he had DVR'd that I wasn't really into, I grabbed some felt scraps, floss, a needle and went to town. This is the finished result:




The front; please folks, hold your applause till the end.




The back with spiffy initial letter "k"...




And we'll wrap up with the full body shot.

All in all, I'm pretty pleased with how it turned out. Mostly, I was using it as an exercise to practice some different stitches, because on the onsies I find myself using a lot of the split stitch, and that's it. If it was truly heinous, I could pitch it...but I ended up thinking it was pretty darn cute, and wanted to share it. Right now, I'm a real navy girl, and I love the aqua and coral against it - gives it a retro kick that I can't get enough of. Note to self - next time, use a ruler when cutting fabric. Eyeballing it is tough. And also, invest in a white pencil, because free styling your design on dark fabric at night is not the easiest. Having a little guide would be lots easier.


Lately, these two men are dominating the play time on the iPod...


Chris Rice is relatively new to me, and I think he's great. Especially the "Lemonade" song. I find myself humming it throughout the day.



Michael, well, I could listen to him sing the phone book and be enraptured. My mom and I are going to see him in August when he comes into town...till then he croons to me on my commute.
And there you have it. The up-to-date info on me and my iPod.

The D40 Has Landed




And I'm in love.

Friday, June 8, 2007

The American Media Is Driving Me Nuts Right Now

Just a little rant that I don't think the horrendous behavior of a blond heiress who is a twit needs to be the #1 story in the country right now. All day on the radio, Internet and TV have been blow by blow segments and updates as to whether Paris Hilton will or won't go back to jail. To quote Seinfeld and Joe's cousin Jerrod, this is completely asinine. What must we look like to other nations around the world, when this is what we as a country choose to put all our attention on? I can't believe that the media thinks this is good reporting. There are so many other things to be talking about; why not instead of people protesting her being in jail, they protest the presence of Al-Quaida terrorists cells here in their communities that plot to kill Americans (because they really do exist - don't believe me? Talk to your local law enforcement)? Why not honor soldiers and their families in interviews and rallies for them? Does she really deserve all this air-time and attention for breaking the law? Props to the judge who is sticking to his guns and doing what her parents should've done long ago: give her consequences for her actions. I admit that I like reading about the starts and celebrity gossip; when People magazine comes around I gobble it up. But I like the things like knowing where Reese Witherspoon shops, and seeing a picture of Jennifer Aniston walking her dog. I am sick of the constant barrage of Lindsay, Britney and Paris who keep getting lower, and lower, and lower and that the US can be so captivated by worthless people doing worthless things.

Tuesday, June 5, 2007

My Old Nemesis Is Back...

Ulcers. Boo. I dealt with them 8 years ago as a senior in high school. It wasn't fun. It happened smack in the middle of the school year and sidelined me for a good 2 months. I had a bleed-out, was in the ICU for a few days, had fun things done like an endoscopy and getting my stomach pumped. Yea. The consensus was that I had a major allergic reaction to Advil, so since then, I haven't had any Ibuprofen, NSAIDS or Advil. Not wanting to experience any of that again, I've been uber careful about the meds I take and try to be good about the foods I eat too; no more drinking glass after glass of grapefruit juice or pizza with red sauce. I'm not a smoker and only have a margarita once in a great while, so its not like those vices are the culprits. And I've done well since then. Sometimes when I feel upset, or under a lot of pressure, I'll feel a twinge of the old soreness, but nothing a few Tums couldn't help. But, about a week and a half ago for no apparent reason, the old symptoms were back. It was what I have always been dreading might happen - a repeat performance. Heartburn, tightness, just a constant uncomfortableness that wasn't going away. So today I went to the doctor. I figured I gave it a chance to subside, it hadn't, and I didn't want to fool around with it. So after 3 vials of blood drawn, being poked and prodded, here I am, just waitin' to know what they've found. They did give me an Rx for Prilosec, which helps block the production of excess acid in your stomach. Hopefully that does the trick and lets my stomach heal. If not, its off to the specialist for me, and I would be willing to bet that there would be another scope (ugh). So I'm praying that this all blows over. I think the hardest thing for me right now is wanting to know exactly why this was triggered again - I mean, I've steered clear of what was the "known" cause, so what in the world could it be? Is it chronic and something I'll have to be careful of forever? I know that stress can be a contributor too, but that one is tricky. I typically don't go around and think man, I feel stressed today, or I'm so stressed out right now. If someone were to ask me if I feel stressed out, I would probably answer no. Am I busy? Definitely. Is there enough time in the day to get everything done? No. But that's just life, and I don't really see it changing much, so you just have to get in and do it, otherwise it won't get done. Maybe that's not the right attitude to have and by having it make things harder on myself than I need to. Asking for help is not a bad thing and I need to remember that. Because even if I think I'm OK, obviously my body is telling me differently, and its time to reassess some things. I dunno. Guess just wait to see what the doc says and take it from there.