Category Archives: whatnots

Lookee Lookee What I Got!!!

excellent

The faire Ivanhoe handed this to me today! How cool is that?!? Of course I’d like to thank my darling husband, my adorable and feckless two boys, my many bloggie friends, both new and old and of course, life itself for making me the person that I am and giving me the willingness to tell anyone that will listen what’s on my mind. And thank you readers for following right along – feel free to comment from time to time if the mood strikes you 😉

And don’t forget to check out Ivanhoe’s blog. She’s from Prague and now living here in the states. How neat is that??

The Rules: By accepting this Excellent Blog Award, you agree to award it to 10 more people whose blogs you find Excellent Award worthy. You can give it to as many people as you want but please award at least 10. You deserve this! Feel free to award people who have already been awarded.

I humbly and graciously pass along this E for Excellence to the following:

  • Ampersander Bound – she’s a fellow LWLer, a great photographer and is currently keeping me enthralled with her NaBloPoMo March lists.
  • Beyond the Map – her writing will touch your heart its that potent and insightful.
  • Geggie over at So…What Else, What Else, What Else? – hang round this chick long enough and you too will fall head over heels in love with Burts Bees.  And man, her cooking and the way she experiences dining out makes me want to buy her dinner!
  • Sizzle Says – she’s got a great outlook on life and well, let’s face it, who wouldn’t want her as their landlord?
  • Tears in My Coffee – she’s moving on in her life and nearly ready to leave point A for point B.  She’s got some exciting times ahead of her.

I’m going to stop at five (yeah, yeah, I know it says 10).  Most of the blogs I read lately are more business focused, so I don’t want to pass out this award to all of the non-biz blogs I read at once.  I’d like to savor it and share the wealth a bit at a time.  Plus, I’d actually like you guys to stop by and visit with these gals a bit.  They really are some cool chicks.  So I’ll add my next five sometime down the road…when you least expect it! 😉

Waiting for My World to Change

Yesterday I met with one of my local LWL bloggers. I was dying to meet her in person, even though we’d ironed out all the details through mail. You see, she’s an intuitive life coach. This intrigues me to know end.

I’ve always been pretty intuitive. In fact, when I was a little one, I used to know things that no one could ever understood how I knew. For example, I remember once, as a teen, reading a book while my grandmother was on the phone with her niece. My grandmother calls to me, “hey, guess what?” I looked up from my book and said “Aunt P is getting married and wants me to be in the wedding” and went back to my book. The funny thing, this never seemed to shock my family. It’s just who I am, I guess.

Well, meeting with T yesterday was just what I needed. She really confirmed a lot of what was on my mind lately, both about work, and about myself. She picked up on some challenges I’ve been going through (re: family, drama and stalking – not all related) and reminded me that when big stuff like this is happening time after time that there’s some major change in the works. Or as I like to say it, everything happens for a reason. And I’m just woowoo enough to enjoy being able to look back and watch how it plays itself out.

Believe it or not, I’m really looking forward to this next stage. Of course, since talking with her just yesterday, the funky dreams are already starting. It’s okay though, I’ve learned in the past that somewhere, in the middle of those very bizarre dreams (turns out I’m a super hero in training…surprise!), there’s some major teaching going on. Of course, it doesn’t have to make sense to my logical brain, the message gets in deep and before you know it pow, it’s a whole new way to see the world.

I’m telling you, next time it seems like one hellish thing is happening after another and you just want to scream “why me?!?!” Just take a deep breath knowing that you’re not a victim, you’re just in transition and right around the next bend is your new beginning.

Wild Boys Always Shine

They tried to break us
looks like they’ll try again

What the hell is up with the 101 today? I just spent an hour of my life stuck on there, maybe traveling 12 or so miles. Insanity. To make matters worse, you’d start getting up some speed, but without fail, every time you’d hit a bend in the freeway, you’d somehow manage to come to a complete stop.

Of course, right at the 134/101 split, things opened right up. I often wonder where this mysterious traffic disappears to if its no longer in front of you. Really, where does it go to?

It helped that I had a great mix of tunes to occupy my time. Nothing makes traffic more bearable than screaming along to Duran Duran’s Wild Boys. Trust me.

As Our Party Comes to a Close…

Let me do a brief, bulleted post for today.  I’m sure I’ll be back later to post more, but for now, I’m meeting  a future blogger in a bit and I still have to get ready.

  •  First and foremost, the answer to my two truths and a lie from the first party post…
    • I’m great friends with my husband’s last ex-girlfriend – This is actually true.  In fact, I arranged my recent trip to my dad so I’d be back in town to meet up with his ex and her hubs for dinner.  We’ve also been known to vacation with them – three times now.
    • I’ve done phone sex to make a quick buck – I’ve always been told that I have a great voice and give good phone.  When I was in grad school I was so behind on my bills that I needed to make some quick money.  I actually managed to make about $3K in less than a month doing it part-time.  Funny though, you can’t do phone sex FROM the state of CA, but many of the reception & billing offices are out this way.
    • I actually know some people that can take care of that for you (she says in euphemisms) – this is so false it isn’t even funny.  It’s the result of needing a lie badly, and talking about my growing up in Jersey and an upcoming wedding we’ve got.
    • I’ve partied with Bruce Springsteen – totally false.  But I have partied with Paul McCartney (he spilled his drink on me during a very animated conversation) and Carlos Santana – not at the same time  – and a couple of folks in the jazz world.
    • My husband I have invested in my best friend’s haunted, ghostie business – this is true.  We are part-owners of a touring company that also does ghost tours.  How cool is that?!?
    • I’ve had a couple of my amateur photos published – yep, I’ve had two of my photos published for an online tourist magazine for the wine country.  Come to think of it, I might have also had one of my photos published (same company) from my Albuquerque trip as well.  So maybe it was three afterall.  Funny thing about my photos…when I put them up in Flickr, they’re rarely, if ever edited photos.  I sometimes wonder what would happen if I actually tried my hand at editing.  Not that I’m a photographer by any means.
  •  I love that our new garbage can locks.  I came home last night to a bit of a mess, but it was only the ripped plastic bag from the pupster trying to get into the trash to eat the 2 slices of moldy bread.  Woohoo!  This is much better than how it was before.
  • I miss my husband!  Interestingly, we’re talking more while he’s gone this year than any other year (or trip) in the past.  Must be all that lack of intimacy before he left – stupid illness crap!
  • Speaking of whatever it is that I had, I’m much better.  I’m still not 100%, but my breathing is better, there’s little coughing and only slight sinus congestion.  I guess 17 days of meds was enough afterall.
  • I don’t recall if I mentioned it yesterday, but my SEO class rocked.  I’ll also be a featured speaker down in Orange County later this month.  Business is booming – Yay!!
  • My hubs tried to call me yesterday while I was out to dinner with my LWL gals…he got a great raise and a niiice bonus.  Of course, I went online and immediately ordered curtains for the kitchen and the cat’s space (would have been the laundry space, but the landlord said NO to any laundry stuff).

Okay, I’ve got 10 minutes to get out of this place or I’ll be late for my coffee date.  Later y’all and thank you to all my party guests for stopping by.  Please, we can continue the party without any sort of official decries, so feel free to stick around.

Happy Weekending!

Ack!!! My Sidebar is Missing!!!!

Now I’m going to have to check each and every post on the page and find the scallywag that’s messing up my stuff!

I’m off…

ETA: Fixed it! It was my Welcome! Welcome! post. I had a few too many <div> tags floating about.

PS – the toes look spectacular as I’m sure you can imagine. Now, it’s a shower (with enough time to let the curls airdry) and back to the book 😉

Calling All Artists, Designers and Other Creative Artsy Folks

One of the blogs I read is Adventures in Illustrations – she’s relatively new to blogging, but a very creative artist.  She blogs about the ins and outs of etsy business and school.  Speaking of school, she has a project that she needs a little help with.

I’ll let her explain it herself…

I’m still dedicated to this project, but I desperately need your help. If you’re an artist, illustrator, graphic designer, or crafts person (or know someone who is) please please please send me your business cards!!! If you read yesterday’s blog, you’ll know I even have a contest running right now for people who get their cards to be before March 18th.

Some folks have been asking if it’s ok to just e-mail me a digital file of their business card, and the answer is YES!!! It’s totally fine. I just got a professional-grade printer this week, so your cards will print up beautifully on my end. Just send ’em. If you want to go the snail-mail route and need an address, just e-mail me at honeydewstudio{at}gmail and I’ll happily send it to you. You can also send me your digital files at the above e-mail address. 

I don’t comment much over there, so I doubt she even knows who I am.  I’m just a gal trying to help out another gal.  No need to mention any names.  But please, if you can, send her a biz card, or an electronic file of one.  Karma is a good thing 😀

I Have a Lot to Say

But really, I don’t have much of a desire to say it. Today is well, it’s Monday. Monday after we switched the clocks. I couldn’t fall asleep last night and today, I woke up too darn early. So maybe that’s why I don’t really have much of a focus or desire to do much of anything today.

My stomach is grumbling, but I don’t feel like making anything for lunch. Though I heard a commercial for a shamrock shake and damn if that didn’t sound like a grand idea.

I also have to do laundry today. And well, for those of us renters in SoCal, that means I have to lug all my crap to the laundromat. The good thing, I’m able to wash multiple large loads at once. The bad thing, I hate laundry. In fact, I still have two baskets full of clothes from the last two times I’ve done laundry that still need to be put away. And the hubs shirts need to be picked up from the cleaners. I’m so domesticated, I know.

More simple domestications…I still need to figure out what to do about dinner. The hubs leaves tomorrow for SXSW and will be gone for the week – don’t even get me started on the loooong hours he’s been working for these last couple of weeks working up to Southby. In fact, that was going to be a post of it’s own, but blah…no thanks. Any dinner suggestions? I’ll be able to run to the store while the laundry is going so we’ve got time here.

The accountant shot me an email this morning and told me that the disk I gave them with our QB wasn’t working. The gal tried to walk me through it, but since I’m Mac and they’re PC (which I think is the problem right there), there were some challenges. I figured that while I was out that way I’d also stop by Nordstrom to pick up some tinted moisturizer. Um…yeah, I left spending about $50 on new moisturizer, new eyeliner and she tried to sell me on a new facial soap (I talked her into a sample instead). So much for not shopping since having spent all that money on my dad a few weeks back. Oh well, I’m trying.

My desk is still a heaping, pile ‘o mes.  The to-be-shredded papers are driving me crazy.  Maybe I’ll take a picture of this disaster area.  I’m also still sick.  Yeah, this is fun.

And that, I do believe is it. Now I need to start writing up my workshop notes for Wednesday, respond to emails and after lunch-hour, I need to head on over to the dreaded laundromat (too many restaurants and not enough parking over there during lunch-hours). Maybe in the meantime I’ll catch up on my blogs…good lord I have 243 waiting for me in my reader!!!

I’m Tired!

I’m tired of being sick!  Mind you, I feel better.  But I’m still sick.  I still cough.  My coughing still wakes me up at night. I still have all sorts of gross crap floating around inside of me.  My head is still all sickly and floaty.  My ears still completely clog up just driving up the slightest incline.  Two rounds of antibiotics.  Seriously, this is enough all ready.

I’m also tired of not being able to kiss and snuggle with my husband. While it’s been three weeks and he hasn’t yet caught anything, because he has a lot going on at work and SXSW next week, we’re not taking any chances.  But come on, a chaste kiss on the cheek a couple times a day along  with the occasional hand holding just isn’t enough here.  We’re married!  We should get to, I don’t know, act like we’re married.

I told him that once he gets back from SXSW that we will, without a doubt, make up for our lost time.  Regardless of whether he might catch something.  And well, let’s be honest, by then, he’ll probably have caught whatever is going around anyway either on the plane, hanging around all those other people, a band he worked with, or some club he went to.  So by then, I’m off the contagious hook!!  Woohoo!

This is one of those situations where I marvel about how some folks do it.  Hats off to you parents!!  Really, I’m tired and it’s just me, trying to keep him from catching whatever sickness I might have.

*Ding Dong* And the Dog Goes Insane

We just had the strangest visitor at our front door. It’s this lady going door to door from the local cemetery on the other side of the freeway (where quite a few famous movie stars happen to be buried). She wanted to know if we’ve made our hereafter plans. Of course, we need to remember that property values increase (mind you, right now, the whole SoCal housing market is falling about).

IMG_0917.JPG

So that got me thinking, do people buy and sell cemetery plots? So if someone asks them “so what do you do?” do they respond “I’m in real estate. I flip properties“? Which of course also makes me wonder if that might be a good way to get your foot in the real estate business? I mentioned the crazy So-Cal real estate market, right? Of course, the hubs pointed out that his dad used a “broker” to be their plots once his mom passed – and well, he didn’t seem to thrilled about my interest in the flipping market.
Kind of makes you wonder though, I mean eventually, we are going to run out of land here.  Then what happens?  Do we start building sub-divisions on cemeteries? Do we build skyscraper mausoleums?  And why do we insist on putting people in the ground (or in a wall) for the remainder of their physical existence?  Cremation and being tossed into the ocean by a loved one sounds like a much better plan to me.