Rabid Reflections

Parting is such sweet sorrow...truly.

2010-03-15T20:03:00.004-04:00

It's been almost exactly six months since my last post. Yeesh. So much for trying to get back into the swing of things. However, it doesn't look like I'll be returning to this blog again for posting purposes. There's just too much that has changed in regards to blog content and my life in general that renders this blog useless. It was there for a purpose and I am very thankful for all the wonderful people I have met through this avenue. You know who you are. :)

Maybe the blogging world will beckon to me once more in the future? If it does come knocking at my door, then I will answer but I may be unrecognizable for I am a different person now.

Cancel the search party!

2009-09-17T18:45:00.003-04:00

Yep, I'm still alive. :)

I never planned on letting my blog fall by the wayside but there it went, slipping away. If you've been a reader of my blog, you'll know that I had to do some revisions to change the direction my blog was going in. Part of it was my decision, part of it was something I was forced to do to protect myself. That started the lack of posts. After that, my life started getting super busy and I never had enough time in the day to post or even check on my fellow bloggers. :(

I finally had some time today and decided to sit down, dust off the blog and start again. I'm still not sure how often I'll be posting and it will never be like it used to be but it's here. Thanks to all of you who wondered where I was. I missed all of you too! I'm sorry for the things I may have missed in your lives while out of commission. I'll be doing my best to catch up on all the blogs soon. Until then...

Spicy Pumpkin Soup

2009-07-28T01:16:00.003-04:00

There's a guy who calls himself The Sexy Vegan. He makes videos of himself cooking/preparing vegan dishes and he cracks me up. Now that the stores are starting to get Halloween items in and there are less than a 100 days until my favorite holiday, I figured I'd share his Spicy Pumpkin Soup video. Enjoy!

The Sexy Vegan - Episode #7 - Spicy Pumpkin Soup - watch more recipes and videos

I scream. You scream.

2009-07-23T16:18:00.003-04:00

We all scream for ice cream! I was out running errands today and got a craving for the cold confection. Perfect for a warm summer day. I had to go to the grocery store to pick up a few things anyway so off I went. I never keep cold treats in the house and it's been awhile since I actually went down the ice cream aisle. I charged down the aisle past the giant tubs of ice cream and sherbet to get to the section that has the smaller sizes and I about died. Did you know that they make itty bitty servings now?! They even come with their own little spoon! They were only a dollar each and I just had to pick up a couple. I got one Starbucks and one Ben & Jerry's. What you see is what you get for your serving size (pic below). Nutritionally, it's not the best but c'mon, it's ice cream. Not exactly a health food. :)

Be sure to check out Ben & Jerry's Halloween section of their Web site here. You can see their Flavor Graveyard of their "dearly de-pinted", the spooky mansion, pumpkin patch, laboratory, library and more. They really have a ton to look at. In the library, you can read the history of Halloween and there are links to costume and magic shops, real haunts, etc.

Bunny love.

2009-07-22T13:49:00.006-04:00

This post started with just a couple cute bunny pictures. Well, cute is good and all but we need scary and creepy too! Enjoy!

Above pictures courtesy of Cute Overload.
Below pictures courtesy of Photobucket.

Sunday Stealing: The Heretic Meme

2009-07-19T13:18:00.002-04:00

This meme brought to you by:

1. Who was the last person of the opposite sex you laid in a bed with?

We'll call him "J". Gotta' keep this anonymous, ya' know.

2. Where was the last place you went out to eat?

IHOP

3. What was the last alcoholic beverage you consumed?

Cherry vodka with Sprite. Tastes like Kool-Aid!

4. Which do you prefer - eyes or lips?

eyes

5. Medicine, fine arts, or law?

Depends on the day.

6. Best kind of pizza?

Ham, mushrooms and extra cheese.

7. What is in store for your future?

One never knows. At least not until you consult the cards. hee hee

8. Who was the last band you saw live?

I'm not a big concert person but the last event was Gigantour where Megadeath, Lamb of God, Opeth, Arch Enemy and Overkill played.

9. Do you take care of your friends while they are sick?

Depends on how close of a friend they are. I have before.

10. How many songs are on your iPod?

We don't need no stinkin' iPod.

11. Where is the last place you drove to?

Well, that would have to be home, wouldn't it?

12. Where did your last kiss take place?

A friend's house.

13. What were you doing at 11:59 PM on Monday night?

I was at a friend's house. Not the same friend from above question. :)

14. Are you a quitter?

Not usually.

15. Who was the last person you had in your house?

The UPS guy.

15. What do you think about people who party a lot?

Depends on the type of partying.

16. Does talking about sex make you uncomfortable?

Depends on who I'm talking about it with.

17. What was the last CD you purchased?

Cradle of Filth "Godspeed on the Devil's Thunder"

18. What are two bands or singers that you will always love?

Can't say that there are any that I will always love.

19. Which of the seven deadly sins are you guilty of?

Do you really need to ask? :}

20. How is your last ex doing?

Not sure. They are ex's for a reason, ya' know.

Michigan's Otherside

2009-07-16T13:40:00.004-04:00

I've been pretty busy lately so not much time to post here but I thought I'd pop in real quick to let you know that a blog post I wrote got published on a Web site called Michigan's Otherside. If you're interested in the paranormal, check out their site. To see my blog post on their site, click here. Purty cool, huh?

The below info was taken from the Michigan's Otherside Web site. They are symbols you may see while in a cemetery. Thought you fellow graveyard walkers might be interested.

Dove - The dove is a very common animal symbol, mostly because of its Biblical meaning. Usually holding an olive branch which refers to Noah from the Bible. Also a symbol of purity and peace.

Willow Trees - Grief, sorrow and immortality.

Closed book - Many represent the bible but they can also stand for a life completed.

Curtains - Passing into another existence. Protection.

Broken Column - Life cut short and life coming to an end. A very popular symbol in cemeteries in the 19^th century.

Praying Hands - Christian symbol.

Lambs - Innocence. Usually found on the graves of children and babies.

Flowers - Flowers have been used in burial ceremonies since the early days of civilization and before. Flowers have always held a soft spot in people. Their beauty and fragility is a symbol for life and love.

Fingers pointing up - A symbol of the soul rising to heaven.

Hands shaking - Matrimony. Sometimes there is one masculine hand and one feminine hand. Look at the sleeves of the hands. If there is no difference in the sleeves, then the hands are a symbol of being greeted into heaven or saying good-bye from earth.

IHS and IHC - Many times these letters are seen connected with each other. IHS comes from the first three letter of Jesus’ name using the Greek alphabet: Iota, Eta, Sigma. IHC stands for the same thing, but is Roman.

Broken branches - Life cut short.

Tree stumps - Life cut short.

Dead Spider

2009-07-12T16:08:00.003-04:00

I've been window shopping lately and came across another Etsy shop that caters to those of us with spooky tastes. The shop is called Dead Spider - Curios and Dark Art. Here's a preview of what you'll find there. Head on over to check out the rest!

Macabre Magnets - $8.00

Witch Curio Potion Bottle Labels - $7.00

Premium Cauldron Stock Witch Potion Labels - $12.00

Strange deaths.

2009-07-10T15:28:00.003-04:00

Now That's Nifty has done it again. They have a blog post with strange deaths from the last thirty years. Here are just a few entries.

This guy won my heart over...

1981: David Allen Kirwan a 24-year-old attempted to rescue a friend's dog after it fell into Celestine Pool, a hot spring at Yellowstone National Park on July 20, 1981. Despite numerous shouts from bystanders, Kirwan dove headfirst into the pool but was unable to save the dog. After managing to swin back to shore, he was helped out of pool, where his injuries became apparent - the exposure to the 200oF (93oC) water of the hot spring resulted in third-degree burns to 100% of his body and had also blinded him. After being led to the sidewalk, Kirwan reportedly stated: "That was stupid. How bad am I? That was a stupid thing I did." When one of Kirwan's shoes was removed, all of the skin came off with it. He died the next day at a Salt Lake City hospital. Although there have been at least 19 deaths due to scalding at the Yellowstone, this was the only known case where someone died after deliberately jumping into one of the park's hot springs.

I remember seeing a show about this...

1986: Over 1,700 people were killed almost instantly near Lake Nyos in Cameroon when a mass of approximately 100 million cubic metres of carbon dioxide that had collected at the bottom of the lake due to seepage from geothermal sources was suddenly released on August 21, 1986. The gas cloud immediately settled (carbon dioxide is heavier than air) and covered an area of up to 12 miles (20 km) from the lake, killing all oxygen-breathing life almost instantly - although the nearby vegetation, which consumes carbon dioxide and releases oxygen, flourished afterwards.

We all have our wishes...

2001: Bernd-Jürgen Brandes from Germany was voluntarily stabbed repeatedly and then partly eaten by Armin Meiwes (who was later called the Cannibal of Rothenburg). Brandes had answered an internet advertisement by Meiwes looking for someone for this purpose. Brandes explicitly stated in his will that he wished to be killed and eaten.

Untamed Menagerie

2009-07-08T15:58:00.007-04:00

I came across an Etsy shop called Untamed Menagerie a week or so ago and bookmarked a bunch of cool things to show you. Unfortunately, I'm just now getting around to posting and half of what I was going to show you has sold out! Good for them, bad for us. Check out their shop anyway though cuz' they're bound to make more and it's very reasonably priced, in my opinion.

The Intrusion - $18.00

Oktapous - Sold Out

Carpe Noctem - Sold Out

A Lady Ought - Sold Out

Pushin Daisies

2009-07-07T02:58:00.005-04:00

I haven't been on Blogger much lately because life has been so busy! It's 3am on Tuesday (technically it's Monday night for me) and I'm just now eating "lunch"! Craziness, I tell you!

So here's just a quick post on something I've had bookmarked for awhile. It's a mortuary novelty shop called Pushin Daisies. Just what would you find at a mortuary novelty shop, you ask? Well, you would find chocolate caskets, ice cubes in the shape of a skull and crossbones, or a towel with an outline of a dead body. If you really like the skull decorating theme, you can even get the below item. That's right people...clean your throne with style! Enjoy, my morbid friends!

BS, nifty pics, an award and Frankenstitch!

2009-07-03T14:28:00.006-04:00

My past couple blog posts have been about a situation where a fellow blogger won't leave me alone. Well, even after reading my last post, she sent me ANOTHER email. Since she obviously doesn't comprehend what I'm saying on here, I did reply to that email and said that if she tried to contact me through any method ever again, I would report her Blogger name on here. So far, she hasn't tried to contact me but she is still viewing this blog even though she said she wouldn't. I don't get what her fascination is with me, but it's getting old. Enough of her bullshit, it's time I give you guys something fun to read!

I came across a blog the other day called Now That's Nifty. There was a certain post that I just had to share. It's a post with cats dressed up in crazy costumes. Those poor kittehs! Here are a couple of pics. Click here to see more.

The other thing I wanted to mention today was an award that Diane over at Good Mourning, Glory! bestowed upon me. It's the Super Comments Award!

The people that I would like to bestow this award upon are as follows, in no particular order.

Cindy @ Twas The Brillig
Ghoul Friday @ My Ghoul Friday
Chris @ Frog on the Pumpkin
Carrie Mae @ Creepy Cupcakes
PumpkinBrain @ PumpkinBrain
Riverwolf @ IDiosyntocracy

Honorable mention goes to Halloween Spirit @ Orange and Black and Diane since you two already got it. :)

The last thing I have to mention on this post is Frankenstitch. What's that you say? Well, that's a cross-stitch gift that I had made for Diane as a belated b-day gift. She was so thoughtful and decided to send an ATC of it in to A Patchwork Of Flesh, which is a blog dedicated to art featuring Frankenstein. Here's the post on that site with my Frankenstitch and Trinity's drawing (Diane's daughter). Cool, huh? Diane even did a post yesterday on her blog where she mentioned Frankenstitch again. She's definitely giving me link love. :) Thanks, Diane!

To post or not to post...update.

2009-07-01T23:21:00.005-04:00

I've tried to move past this but unfortunately, my dear readers, I must bring this topic up again. In my last post, I made everyone that reads my blog aware of a situation I had been dealing with that involved another Blogger. I included a message to this Blogger because I knew she wouldn't leave my blog alone. Apparently she didn't get the message though because she created yet another fake profile to attempt to leave a long comment on that post. Not only that but she attempted to leave a second comment wanting me to tell her if I got the first comment she left or not because she wasn't sure it went through. SERIOUSLY?!

Then she sent me a text message on my phone tonight. Geesh. Why are you obsessing over this? Do you really have nothing else going on in your life that you need to come visit my blog over and over and harass me? I'm never going to respond to your emails, blog comments or text messages. Just stop. In case I haven't been clear enough, OUR FRIENDSHIP IS OVER.

Did you see the comments other people left on that post? What you're doing isn't normal. Move on. Stop setting up fake profiles to try to contact me. Stop sending me text messages. Stop harassing me! I really don't know how much clearer I can be. If you choose to continue harassing me through any form, I may have to reveal your Blogger identity. Since you are not understanding what I'm saying, I'm hoping that the last sentence I typed will open your eyes. Why would I reveal your Blogger identity? What purpose would this serve? I'm hoping that it gets you to realize that this isn't some game or "experiment" as you called it at one point. Do you really want your readers to know you've done this? Note that I said I would reveal your Blogger identity, not your real identity. Stop before it gets to that point.

To my actual Blogging friends: I have things I'd rather be blogging about but at this point, I feel that this needs to be addressed. I thank all of the readers who left kind comments for me. They were very appreciated! I'm sorry that you have to deal with this when you could be reading cool blog posts. :) I'm sure you understand why I'm addressing this now though. Thank you for your support.

To post or not to post.

2009-06-30T11:29:00.003-04:00

Prepare for a long but important and serious post.

When I started blogging, it was a way for me to talk about things that I couldn't discuss with people in my life. Issues I have with family, friends, personal parts of myself. It was an online diary. A place where I could truly be myself and not be judged. If someone didn't like my blog, they didn't have to read it. Most of my interests, my belief system and who I am is not mainstream. While some people enjoy what I have to talk about, others choose to mock and ridicule and I just don't want to deal with their negative backlash. If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all and leave my blog, please.

You may have noticed that I don't talk much about friends and I've been keeping my blog a bit more on the surface than what I used to. There are many reasons for this. One is that I've come to realize that people I know in real life may visit my blog once in awhile. I wouldn't want them to be hurt by the way I feel about things even though it would be nice to talk to them about it. Unfortunately, I've tried talking to certain people in the past and they didn't want to discuss these things. Most people I know would rather pretend something never happened and move on. I'm the type that wants to talk things out and resolve them as long as both parties are being rational. I've been editing my past blog content to eliminate things that may hurt someone or bother them. I've saved all the info and may open a private blog someday to be able to talk about these things.

About two weeks ago, I had a situation happen with a fellow blogger. I wasn't going to mention it on here because I felt the best way to deal with the situation was to move on and not waste my energy on this negativity. Yesterday, this person decided to start stuff up again and now I feel like I have to address it here.

I won't be saying who it is or what blog is theirs because that's just starting trouble. I will say it's a "she" but that doesn't give anything away because most of my readers are female. Nothing I say in this post will attempt to give away their identity.

This person started out as a friend that I met through the blog world. Eventually we began to communicate through email, postal mail and by phone. After awhile, I realized this was not someone I wanted to be friends with. There were many reasons that I decided this and I won't talk about them here because I don't want to give away this person's identity. I'm not that mean. I had tried to talk to this person and explain some of the things that were bothering me. Unfortunately, they didn't understand where I was coming from and I knew that things would never change. It was at that point that I decided to just end the friendship. I did this through email clearly stating the reasons why I was doing it because I didn't want to end the friendship and not have them know why. I didn't feel that I was harsh but the email I got back shocked me.

She attacked my character, my art/crafts and things about me that I had shared on this blog. She swore, called me names, etc. It was not the response I was expecting. I thought we could handle this like adults but obviously not. Think about personal parts of yourself that you have only shared with a couple people. Now imagine those people mocking what you shared. It's a low blow and not necessary when it has nothing to do with why the friendship ended. I wish I could explain in words how cruel this person was trying to be to me.

I recently did a post on how short life is. I choose to rid myself of negative people/situations whenever it is possible. Life's too short to deal with the bullshit. This is why I wasn't even going to post about the situation at all. Yesterday, this person began posting anonymously on my blog. I had a feeling it was her because of the location that showed up in my Feedjit and she was typically coming from her blog. I responded to her comments cautiously, in case it was her. Then she emailed me last night and I knew for a fact it was her because the email address had her boyfriend's info in it. Plus the "story" that she tried to recreate for this anonymous identity didn't add up. I responded to that email carefully. I received an email back where she confirmed who it really was and then she proceeded to start attacking me again. I really wish I could show you all how horrible the emails were but I won't do that. It's catty and immature and would give away who this is. Needless to say, I have not and will not ever respond to her emails that are of that nature.

A couple weeks ago, when our friendship ended, she had said she would never visit my blog again. Well, I could tell that she was visiting based on Feedjit and then her anonymous postings happened and she also started deleting negative comments that she had left on my blog before. I know that she'll probably read this. If so, I want to say...

Just leave me alone! Please, move on and stop with everything. Stop attacking my character and making me into this person that I'm not. Enough with the lies. Please use your energy on more positive things. There are so many causes in the world that you could be spending your time and energy on. Our friendship is done and you know why so don't try to make it into something it's not. Just stop.

Alexander Jansson

2009-06-27T13:11:00.003-04:00

I've shared some of Alexander Jansson's work before and found a few more pics in my archive that I wanted to share. I find his work to be beautiful, dark and magical.

This piece is titled Dimanche.

Geraldine

Under The Surface

Life is short.

2009-06-25T20:43:00.007-04:00

I was back near my hometown last night. I don't get over there very often and figured I'd swing by the local cemetery to grab a couple pics. My cousin's headstone is in the cemetery I went to.

Ben died sixteen years ago in a car accident at the age of 18. From what I remember (I was 14 years old), the accident happened the week before his high school graduation. His girlfriend was driving them home from school and I believe they were following friends. They were driving on a curvy road and Ben's girlfriend lost control of the car and they went into a corn field. Ben's girlfriend was wearing a seat belt. He wasn't.

There are many images from that accident and the week after that I will never forget. There is one that I will mention here. The local news was doing a story on the accident and one of the pictures they took was of the corn field and school books were scattered around. It was just so sad.

Ben's brother accepted his high school diploma on his behalf. I can't imagine what that must have felt like for him. He was closer to my age. Now that I think about it, he must have relived that moment when he accepted his own diploma years later.

When my cousin was buried, they had one of his senior pictures engraved on the front. I've shared pictures of his headstone and others below.

Please remember to buckle up when you drive. It could be the difference between life and death.

A random headstone pic. I loved the effect at the top of it.

Another random pic.

My cousin's head stone with one of his senior pics etched in.

The poem etched into the back of my cousin's head stone.

To dump or not to dump?

2009-06-23T22:08:00.007-04:00

I was going to do something I've never done...a link dump. I've decided against it though. Instead, I'm going to be giving you gothy/creepy/cool stuff to check out over days instead of throwing it all in one post. Some things just deserve more attention than a link dump. :)

The first find is:

This company specializes in perfume oils and they have some pretty unique options. Below are some of the scents I came across.

June Gloom 2009 - Bright summer flowers, fresh herbs, and a bit of citrus rind dampened by the scent of morning mist and rain.

Pink Plastic Flamingo - Pink sugar-crusted marshmallows, dandelion, and sap.

Blood - Essence of dragon's blood resin, thickened with myrrh and cherry, with a trickle of clove.

Burial - The Dark Side of Earth: deep, brooding forest scents, including juniper and patchouli. The scent of upturned cemetery loam mingling with floral offerings to the dead.

They even have scents based off of Neil Gaiman's work as well as Alice In Wonderland scents. The March Hare smells like "A twisted teatime tart: apricot and sweet clove". Yum!

According to their Web site, they open an actual shop on every full moon. If that falls on a weekday, they open from 7pm to 10pm. Sounds magical, eh? They do tend to joke a bit on their site so not sure if that part is true. This part is true, however...

With the exception of the products that contain honey, their items are vegan. They are all cruelty free. This is the best part, in my opinion.

They do tend to be a bit pricier but that's because you're getting a concentrated oil, they use really good ingredients and don't test on animals.

The second find I have to share is for all you gamers out there. I was closing out of a game the other day and saw this ad. I thought it was fake but when I looked it up online, it was real and pretty freakin' awesome. Check it out...

You can get Mana and Health potions. They're energy shots that are stocked full of vitamins! To get more info on what they're all about, click here. I plan on buying some once I have some moolah to spend.

More cool finds to come soon!

Sunday Stealing: The Finish The Sentence Meme

2009-06-21T16:04:00.009-04:00

This meme brought to you by:

1. I've come to realize that my last kiss... was with a person I will never forget.

2. I am listening to...this beautiful music...

3. I talk... in my head more than I do out loud. Typically I'm the listener in conversations.

4. I love...many things and hate very few.

5. My best friend/s...love me for who I am, not for who they think I should be.

6. My first real kiss...was with a boy who I still see occasionally. I remember putting Dr. Pepper chapstick on before kissing him. Silly, the things that we remember.

7. Love is...complicated, yet so simple at the same time.

8. Marriage is...an arrangement I do not wish to enter into.

9. Somewhere, someone is thinking...how many licks DOES it take to get to the center of a tootsie pop?

10. I'll always...be true to myself and get rid of negativity in my life, if it is within my power.

11. The last time I really cried was because...some people have truly hateful souls. Some people don't care about hurting people/animals and think that they have a "right" to do it because they are better than them. They think by bringing someone/something down that they bring themselves up. It does just the opposite, in my book.

12. My cell phone...kicks ass. It's black with a blue light up LED.

13. When I wake up in the morning...I think about what has to be done that day.

14. Before I go to bed...I put lotion on. I've read that it's best to moisturize at night when your body is resting. Not sure if it's true but I love falling asleep to soothing scents.

15. Right now I am thinking about...having to work tonight. It's hot out!

16. Babies are...fine for other people but not for me!

17. I get on Myspace...when a friend sends me a message. I just don't use it like I used to.

18. Today I...finished reading the latest issue of Gothic Beauty magazine. Great issue, as usual.

19. Tomorrow I will be...well rested cuz' I don't have to work. :)

20. I really want to be...a piano player as well as many other things. One day at a time.

An award and cemetery pics!

2009-06-20T20:35:00.007-04:00

Halloween Spirit over at the Orange and Black blog has awarded me the Gourdqueens Scream Award. What a fabulous looking award it is! Thanks, friend!

According to her post, this particular award is to be shared with anyone whose blog you just love. Whether it's their art, their interests, the things they share, you just simply love to visit their blog.

Some of the people who I list below may have already gotten this award before. I'm trying to pick those that haven't gotten it yet though. If you've gotten this award before and you're on my list, this just means you've been Super Awarded! So without further adieu and in no particular order, I bestow this award on the following bloggers.

Cindy @ Twas The Brillig
Chris @ Frog On The Pumpkin
Diane @ Good Mourning, Glory!
Diane @ Wouldn't You Like To See Something Strange?
Catherine @ Suburban Vampire
Laura @ Laura and Her Favorite Things...

Yes, Diane is listed twice. That's cuz' she has two very different blogs that I like for different reasons. : ) Thanks to all of you for having wonderfully interesting blogs!

Now for a few of the cemetery pics that I took the other night. Enjoy!

UPDATE 6/23/2009: PumpkinBrain awarded me the Gourdqueens Scream Award too! Thanks!

Peace!

2009-06-18T23:51:00.006-04:00

I was out and about today and as I'm driving, I happen to notice a giant peace sign in someone's yard. I was on the phone at the time and had way too much to get done so I went back tonight because I had to take a pic. It's not every day you see something like this! While I had my camera, I decided to grab some other shots. I took some at a local cemetery but those will be on a future post. Enjoy!

There is an ironworkers factory downtown and this is one of the big metal piles in their yard. It was all shiny in the sunset's rays.

Outside of the factory, they have a bunch of metal sculptures.

I don't think I've ever seen one continuous cloud like this?

The anticipation was killing me!

2009-06-16T19:13:00.004-04:00

I've been wanting to share a pic of a recent project I completed for my blogging friend, Diane. It's a belated birthday gift. Really belated! I wanted to keep it a surprise so I refrained from posting a pic here that she would see. : ) Below is what I made for her. I painted the frame silver hoping that was pretty neutral for her decor. Cute, eh? To check out her very sweet blog post about it, visit Diane here.

Check out these cool miniature coke bottles I won from a giveaway! They came all the way from Singapore! I think that's the farthest away I've ever gotten mail from. Very cool. They came from a lady named May who makes the cutest tiny things. To check out her blog, click here. Thanks, May!

Two more awards for my corkboard!

2009-06-15T20:24:00.006-04:00

I got the Makes My Heart Smile award from Cindy @ Twas the Brillig and the Slithy Toves.

She said I made her smile when she saw my crafts. Awww. That makes ME smile. : )

I got the Love Ya award from Eve @ Through Eve's Looking-Glass.

This award is bestowed on to blogs that are exceedingly charming. These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in self-aggrandizement. Please give more attention to these writers.

Thanks to both of you for the awards!

Updated post.

2009-06-13T22:15:00.001-04:00

Just a quick note to say that I updated the bookmarks post with better pics. My camera likes taking outdoor pics better than indoor ones!

It was a learning experience.

2009-06-13T20:10:00.009-04:00

My first craft show wasn't all I hoped it would be. We got there an hour early to set up and we were originally told there would be 75 spots reserved and that the craft show was going to be in one side of the park and a fleamarket on the other side. Then we found out that there were only going to be 35 crafters total. After all was said and done, only 12 spots were filled with crafters and then 3 with fleamarket stuff. It ended up raining half the time so I don't know if people cancelled because of the rain or what.

There was a historic home tour going on during the time of the craft show, which brought in people but most of them had white hair and weren't interested in the kinds of crafts I brought. That may sound bad but it was true. I only had one younger girl come by and she thought the frames were cool but she didn't have any money cuz' she didn't have a job. (She was someone that was there selling fleamarket stuff.)

I had a booth with my cousin and she ended up bringing a ton of garage sale items, which I didn't know about. When we had originally talked about the setup, I was going to bring a card table for my stuff and she was going to have a couple card tables and a long table for her stuff. She said she was going to have one box of garage sale items and that her long table would go lengthwise so that we'd share the front of the booth. When we got there and looked at the setup, she decided to put her long table along the front, which seemed okay at the time because I could put my card table on the side and I figured I'd get traffic from that side and people would see my stuff when they were walking by the front.

She ended up having huge displays on the front table that blocked my stuff pretty much completely. (Pic below.) She had three sides of the booth and two of the sides were along the sidewalk so they got most of the attention. All in all, I had maybe 10 people walk on my side to even see my stuff and a few of those were fellow crafters. Most people that walked by our booth didn't even know I had a side.

A couple hours into it when some people started coming through, I mentioned to my cousin that people couldn't see my stuff and she offered to swap sides with me. Well, the other side had a big tree blocking half of it, so it didn't look like a good option. It was actually so obvious that I wasn't getting people that the crafter next to us came over and suggested that I put a couple things on the front table. After that, my cousin gave me a small bit of room to put two picture frames and a bookmark up front but by that time, our "rush" was over and I was ready to pack it up. When I do a craft show in the future, I'll be sure to stand up for room in the front because that's always the most reliable spot to bring people in.

I ended up selling one frame...to my cousin, which was nice of her. I told her that if she really wanted one, I could make one customized for her but she really liked one of them already made so she bought that. She ended up selling jewelry and a scarf to a couple of her family members that came by and she sold one necklace to a regular customer. The rest of what she sold was books from her garage sale pile and food that she had brought (pop and cookies). I looked around and none of the crafters were doing well. Looks like most of the sales went to the fleamarket items, which I guess I can understand in this economy. Us crafters aren't selling our stuff for dirt cheap because we're factoring in our time, effort, and cost.

There was a guy there selling homemade wooden bowls, etc and it was his first craft show too. We talked for a bit about our experiences and we're both going to try again in September. Since I'll have so much time to prepare, I'm going to come up with a whole smorgasbord of stuff and I'll be damned sure I get a decent display area. : )

So what went wrong? Here's what I think:

Not many crafters so we didn't attract much of a crowd.
They combined crafts and fleamarket stuff, which made the craft value go down.
I didn't get a decent spot to display my product.
The age of the crowd.
The weather. Most people don't go out to craft shows when it's raining.

Now some pics for your viewing enjoyment. : )
The below pic is of my product where you can see that the view from the front was obstructed.

The below fountain was across the street from us. It's such a cute park.

This was a gazebo also across the street on the other side of the park. You can tell the craft show was in a small town!

This was a monument in the middle of the park side that we were in. Behind that is one of the historic homes that was on tour. Normally this home is an adult foster care facility.

UPDATE 6/25/2009: My cousin and I talked about the booth set-up and she ended up giving me some cash back from what I had paid for my portion of the booth. We now know better how to do things for next time!

Rain rain, all the day.

2009-06-12T23:49:00.003-04:00

The forecast for tomorrow was for partly cloudy and a high of 75. Now it's a high of 69 and thunder and rain. The rain is supposed to start around 5am and continue through either noon or 5pm depending on the weather report. Hmm. So it'll be raining while we're setting up, through most of the craft show and maybe even through the end. Lovely. While it will be a good energy boost for me, the outlook of the show isn't looking so good. We shall see!

The bookmarks are done!

2009-06-12T14:58:00.010-04:00

I finished the last bookmark yesterday afternoon. Yay! I put white backs on each of these so you don't see the cross-stitch "junk" and it makes for a nicer product. I only had time to make five but I figure five is a good amount for my first craft show considering I have a lot of other product to sell as well. If they sell like hotcakes, I'll know to make more for the next show. Again, keep in mind that this is a craft show in a conservative small town so everything is cute, not creepy. So that my blog post isn't bogged down with pics, I only gave ya' a couple close-ups. Tell me what ya' think of them! Oh yeah, and wish me luck on the show tomorrow!

Pale Goth Chick + Sunshine = Pink Goth Chick

2009-06-11T16:41:00.007-04:00

We got a new sign at my workplace yesterday. You know, the kind with the big letters that goes out by the road? First, I was sent on a run to get folders to hold each of the letters/numbers. So off I go in my uniform with a big sign on my car (cuz' I'm a delivery driver). Staples was too expensive so I ended up at the dollar store. They didn't have enough of what we needed, of course. I called my manager and she said to try Walmart. I HATE Walmart but I'm not going to defy my manager so in I go. They don't have what we need either. I call my manager and she says to go back to Staples and just buy enough folders so that we're under $20. Alright, mission accomplished and I head back to the restaurant.

I told my manager that I wanted to help hang the letters/numbers up on the sign. I thought it would be fun! Nope. Maybe if we had a decent pole to get them up there but this one suctions and doesn't let go. Pain in the arse. So I proceed to spend the next half hour or so out in the sun getting the sign done. Our uniforms consist of pants, a short sleeve shirt and a hat. My poor pale arms and cheeks were quite pink when I got home that night. In fact, if I poke my arm right now, you can still see a white mark from my finger. Crap. Now I'm gonna' be tan and that just won't work for my goth look, ya' know? : )

On a lighter note...hee hee. I have been working my butt off this week to get things done in time for my craft show. I finished the bookmarks today and will be posting pics tomorrow. I also finished all of my cards. Yay! Now I'd just like to do this for awhile...

Picture courtesy of Cute Overload.

The frames are done!

2009-06-10T00:36:00.009-04:00

Well, I hoped to do this post much earlier tonight but I ended up going out so here it is almost 1am. Better late than never, right? I haven't even made my blog rounds for the day!

So, my picture frames are done. Yay! Keep in mind that these are for a craft show in a very conservative area so they are cute, not creepy. Even though they aren't what I would normally do, I have to admit that I still like them. I mean, I wouldn't make something I didn't like, ya' know? So without further adieu, here they are! The first pic shows a general overview of all of them and then I added a couple close-ups for ya'. There is one that is much larger than the others. That is a cross-stitch that I did and then I put it in a frame, which I had slightly modified. You can still see the hoop rings in the fabric. I'm going to take it out of the frame and iron the crap out of it so hopefully they'll go away. I'm curious to see what you think of them!

On Friday, I'll be posting pics of the bookmarks I made.

Creative people rule!

2009-06-09T17:56:00.007-04:00

I was out and about today running errands and picking up things I need for my craft show this weekend. As I was wandering down an aisle, I came across something so unique that I had to buy it. The person that came up with this idea is one creative genius and should be in charge of all designs going forward. They also had watermelons! In case you can't tell from the pic, the middle of the top comes off and that's where the Kleenex comes out. You can click on the image to make it bigger. (Had to say it cuz' some people don't know that.)

I give props to anyone that comes up with their own ideas. Things that haven't been done before. Creative people rule!

I'll be posting again tonight with finished frame pics!

Apparently I'm a spongy therapist.

2009-06-08T18:07:00.009-04:00

My natural look is angry. I may be in a great mood but apparently I look like I'm scowling. If I had a nickel for each person who has told me to "smile", I'd be a very rich woman. Then I would proceed to wad those nickels up into plastic baggies that I could use to slug said people. :) A ghetto version of brass knuckles. Based on that information, you wouldn't think strangers would talk to me. They do. Grr. I bring a book with me when I have to go to an appointment that's going to be awhile. I'm buried in my book and without fail, someone will interrupt my reading and just start chatting about their day. WTF people?

Not only do strangers talk to me, they share personal information with me. Bizarre. I was sitting at a car dealership years ago (with my book) and this lady moves from across the room to sit next to me and then starts yapping about her kids. Then she starts telling me about her impending divorce. True story. Thirty minutes later my car was done and I got the heck out of there.

I was leaving work one day (my past job) and I ended up walking out with someone that I didn't know. She started talking about the weather and how she didn't have to rake the leaves this weekend (it was fall). I don't know why this person is talking to me but I ask why she doesn't have to rake the leaves this weekend. She tells me that she has breast cancer and her doctor said she had to be careful with how she moves. Why are you telling me this?!

I don't know what it is about me but people just want to spill their guts. It happens ALL THE TIME. I've heard the phrase "I've never told anybody this before" too many times to count. Maybe people sense that I'm an incredibly open-minded individual? Who knows. It's nice when friends want to open up to me though because it helps me to understand them better and can strengthen a friendship.

I honestly don't mind that people want to talk to me like that but it's hard because I just sit there and listen and offer some feedback. They don't care about me or my experiences. I'm just a soundboard. Now granted, I don't typically talk much during conversations anyways and do tend to be a bit secretive but gosh sometimes I get really sick of people that just want to talk about themselves all day! Seriously people, I should get paid for this. Hence the subject line of this post.

On that note...I found this the other day and had to share. Someday, I'm gonna' need to do this one!

Photo courtesy of StitchBitch. What a kickass name!

Here's another Lolcat for your enjoyment. This picture caption is so true! I have woken up with a sore neck/back due to this. Sad but true. : )

Gettin' crafty with it!

2009-06-07T23:51:00.006-04:00

I'm not doing the Sunday Stealing this week cuz' it was all about hate. There are few things I truly hate and many things I really really really don't like. Maybe if the meme was about that, I'd do it. :)

I've been MIA for a couple days because I've just been so gosh darned busy with work and crafts! My first craft show is this Saturday and I've been focusing on getting things done for that. There is still much to do. I had said before that I had hoped to have some pics for you this weekend. Well, I do have progress pics but for reasons I'd rather not discuss, I don't want to show those. They're great pics but I'd rather wait and show you the finished product. As of this minute, I hope to have finished pics of the picture frames posted here on Tuesday and finished pics of the bookmarks on Friday.

So since I'm not giving you those pics, here are a couple other ones. Enjoy!

Before:

Don't you just love the smell of ripe peaches?

After:

Peaches with honey and pumpkin pie spice on top of a spongecake. Yum!

Giveaway winner announced!

2009-06-04T19:12:00.003-04:00

So how many individual socks were in the drawer? Twenty-six! Unfortunately, most of you guessed too high on the sock drawer count. :( However, this was good for the person who DID win. Who won, you ask? Drumroll please...

Chris @ Frog on the Pumpkin

Congrats! Your giveaway and surprise gift will be along shortly. Enjoy!

One more day to enter to win my giveaway!

2009-06-02T22:19:00.007-04:00

For those who haven't guessed, you have until tomorrow night to place your bets. : ) The winner will be announced Thursday morning. If you have no idea what I'm talking about, you can click on the goth dog tag in the upper right part of this page or click here.

For those who have guessed, thanks! Here are some cemetery pics that I've taken in the past, for your viewing pleasure.

Mini castle in a local cemetery. I love this!

In a cemetery near where I used to live in Ohio.

Also from Ohio. This little area was far away from all the other graves. Interesting.

This was taken somewhere in Ohio. I had pulled off the highway to check out a cemetery. There were five of these kinds of statues all in a circle.

The craft has been named and other good news.

2009-06-01T22:50:00.004-04:00

I have been trying to come up with a name for the crafts I do because eventually I may start up an Etsy shop or something like that. Most of the names I've come up with aren't very clever and when I do an Internet search, sure enough, they've been used by others. I came up with one that I thought wouldn't be taken and it was, darn it. It was Hodge Podge Lodge. Cute, eh? Apparently that was also the name of a television show back in the day. I was trying to come up with something that isn't too weird so that it appears to the "normals" but that also reflects my darker personality and some of the darker crafts I may do.

Well, apparently my darker side just can't be covered up because I came up with a name and after searching the Internet, it appears that no one has used this. I have no idea how they haven't because I think it could be an obvious name. As of right now, the name I'm really digging for my crafts is "Crafts from the Crypt". Get it? Perfect, right? My dwelling can be crypt-like and it fits my personality. So none of you better take this because I'll come after you! Muwahaha! Seriously, I'm not joking people. I plan on designing business cards and I'll have a little coffin to keep them in. : )

Obviously this isn't a name that appeals to the normals so I'll be saving this for craft shows that aren't in conservative areas and my online endeavors.

Good news! In a recent post I talked about my segue into crocheting. Apparently I just can't learn stuff like this from books because I watched a two minute YouTube video and tada...I can crochet! Now that there is less than two weeks until my first craft show, I need to focus on the other things that I'm making. I plan on crocheting for the September show though. Yay! I should have some pics of my current crafts by this weekend.

A unique find.

2009-06-01T00:08:00.005-04:00

I've blogged about designer dolls before but tonight I came across someone who makes art dolls. Her name is Lorell Lehman and she is based in Australia. I absolutely love the intricate details on her pieces of art. Take a look at a couple of the pieces from her Web site.

This is Pia. Her eyes are amazing and check out her cute dragon snail!

This is Hattie Cackles. My favorite part is her hat.

Lorell Lehman creates one of a kind creations. Pia has been sold but Hattie is still available according to her Web site. Hattie sells for around $846.00 US dollars. While the dolls are too pricey for my income, they are so unique that I would definitely buy one if my bank account would let me. : )

If you are interested in learning more about this artist or are curious to see what else she has created, please visit her Web site.

Sunday Stealing: The Monkey's Meme

2009-05-31T02:25:00.003-04:00

This meme brought to you by:

1. Name one person who made you smile today:

For confidentiality sake, we'll call him James. (Funny co-worker.)

2. What were you doing at 8am this morning?

One of my favorite hobbies...sleeping.

3. What were you doing 45 minutes ago?

Making the blog rounds.

4. What is your favorite candy bar?

I'm not really a candy person.

5. Have you ever been to a strip club?

No but I'm not against it.

6. What was the last thing you had to drink?

Good ol' H2O.

7. What was the last thing you ate?

Mac n' Cheese from the place I work at.

8. The last sporting event you watched?

In person? Probably hockey. On TV? Probably skateboarding/BMX stuff.

9. Do you go to church every Sunday?

10. Do you prefer Chinese food over pizza?

It really depends on if I'm in the mood for cheese or not.

11. What are you doing tomorrow?

Since I haven't gone to bed yet, I'm going to tell you about my Sunday plans. Hopefully finishing up a craft project and then I have to work.

12. What do you think of when you hear Australia?

That male revue show. I think it's called Thunder Down Under? hee hee

13. Biggest annoyance right now?

My neighbors.

14. Last song listened to?

Some Rob Zombie song. I had a mixed CD in the car on the way home.

15. Do you have a maid service clean your house?

Yes, her name is Dracenea. : )

16. Are you jealous of anyone?

Not anyone in particular.

17. Is anyone jealous of you?

Not that I'm aware of.

18. What do you usually do during the day?

Lately I've been crafting, watching TV, running errands, cruisin' the Net. Oh yeah, laundry and cleaning (see maid service above).

19. Do you hate anyone that you know right now?

Hate is a strong word but I really really really don't like some people.

My dad jokes around that he can take care of things for a fee. Today I told him that I could do it for free. He didn't think I should have joked like that. Who says I was joking?

20. Are you thinking about someone right now?

Many people. I like to multi-task my thoughts.

A quickie!

2009-05-29T23:59:00.004-04:00

Just a real quick post. I mentioned in this post that I really want a Johnsonville t-shirt because their latest slogan is "Sausage is all we do." and well, lately, I've been a bit of a perv. Hence the post title. : ) Bad news kiddies...they emailed me back and they do not make t-shirts. They are thinking of doing a Web store eventually though, so all hope is not lost.

I've talked here about the upcoming craft show I'll be doing with my cousin. I was really hoping that I'd be one of those people that can "learn crochet in a day". Seriously it says that a lot of people can and I consider myself to be a quick learner so I figured I'd pick it up no problem and then be on my way to crocheting cute and creepy animals. Nope. I can't even understand the directions in the Crocheting for Dummies book. So what does that make me? What's worse than a Dummy? My brain hurts.

My cousin can't crochet but she can knit and she came over yesterday so that we could talk about crafting stuff. I showed her where I was stuck in the crochet process and she tried to read the instructions to do it and she couldn't do it either. So the next step is to try to see someone do it on YouTube or something and then maybe I'll pick it up.

So where does that leave me for the craft show? I'm going to be making a bunch of cross-stitch bookmarks cuz' I figured that would be something small that someone may buy. I have twelve unfinished wood picture frames and I'm going to be painting and embellishing those. Plus I may be making some button bracelets. The craft show is two weeks away so I have to work my booty off on those frames this weekend and then I'll be diving into cross-stitch. Wish me luck!

Okay so what started out as a quickie turned into something else. It's because of all that foreplay I had to add to explain myself. hee hee

The life of a delivery driver.

2009-05-29T23:34:00.003-04:00

I had a couple deliveries tonight at work that were worthy of a blog post. We have a "richy-rich" neighborhood in the city I live in. It's right on the water and there are huge houses everywhere with amazing views. Tonight, I had a delivery to one of those houses. I pulled into their cobblestone wrap-around driveway and walked up the stairs to their door. Before I ran the bell, I noticed that there was a video camera. Wow. I've never been to a house with a surveillance system. When the lady opened the door, she was incredibly nice and invited me in. I stood there while she went to get the money and took in all of the fancy decor and huge windows that showed an amazing waterfront view. I wouldn't ever want a big house but I definitely wouldn't complain about that view. Gorgeous!

Another interesting delivery was also out towards the water. As I was driving out there, I looked at their order ticket and the address remarks gave a dock number. Huh? Sure enough, I ended up in the marina with boats galore and drove around until I found the right dock number. When I got out, I had no idea where to go because I didn't see numbers by the slips. A lady came out of the clubhouse and asked if I had a delivery for her. Whew, that always makes it easier when someone flags me down. I followed her down the dock past a long line of boats until I got to hers. I've never delivered to a boat before! Another amazing view, of course.

Hope you enjoyed the peek into part of my work life. : )

Did someone say giveaway? I did!

2009-05-28T00:56:00.009-04:00

It's my first giveaway and I've come up with a little gothy gift from me to you. If you guess correctly, that is. I was talking about my giveaway with my blog buddy, Eve, tonight and we were talking about what "game" I could play with you rather than just pulling a name out of a hat. When she does giveaways, she typically shows a pic of a bunch of items and you have to guess how much is in the container. So here's my guessing game for you:

It's my sock drawer! ha ha It normally doesn't look like this but I've mussed it up for the game. So what are the rules for this giveaway, you ask?

1. You have to guess how many individual socks are in the drawer (not pairs of socks).
2. You must be a follower of this blog.
3. You need to put your answer in this post...not any other.
4. Sorry folks but I'm only going to be shipping the giveaway package within the United States.

The person that follows the rules above and is the closest one to the answer without going over, wins! So what could you win? A drink shaker with a skull on it, Halloween cookie cutters, an Emily the Strange wallet, and I'll be throwing in a surprise gift too!

Winner will be chosen on June 4.

Good luck to all!

I've fallen in the gutter and I can't get up!

2009-05-26T18:47:00.004-04:00

I don't normally do two posts in one day but I had to separate out the topics a bit so here ya' go.

The restaurant business is dirty. Not only physically but mentally as well. For those of you who have been following my blog for a bit, you know that I now work part-time at a pizza place. I worked for the same chain about eight years ago so I knew what I was getting into and was kinda' looking forward to it. Gone are my corporate days of dressing up, minding my P's and Q's and behaving like a proper minion. Now I have a uniform to wear and I only have to watch my behavior around the customers.

I don't smoke myself but almost everyone else that I work with smokes something, if ya' know what I mean. Most people have a foul mouth, including myself. I don't drop the F-Bomb for the most part but a resounding Son-of-a-Bizotch and the occasional Damn-it has rolled off my tongue more than once while cleaning up. We have a sprayer in the back to clean off pans and whatnot and it's so pressurized that you're bound to get pizza sauce or something sprayed up in your face at some point.

Everything sounds dirty too. For example:

-Just one pump of oil and then swirl it around.
-Careful not to squirt it at me.
-Hot pans coming through.
-I got sauce everywhere.
-Who spilled the oil?
-I need more sausage.
-Just poke it and see if it's done.
-How many sticks would you like?
-That one gets extra sauce.
-Make that a meat lovers.

Okay, you get the picture. Some of those may not sound dirty at first but when you're in the gutter already, it's all dirty. Even the subject line of this post sounds a bit dirty to me.

It doesn't help that I'm working with flirty boys either. Apparently it's the uniform because I went to Taco Bell after work one night and the drive through guy commented on my uniform and asked which store I worked at. I told him and then when he brought my order, he said, "I gave you an extra guacamole just to say peace." and then he threw up the peace sign. Hilarious yet bizarre! Peace?

I saw a commercial on TV the other night for Johnsonville. Guess what their new slogan is?

Sausage is all we do.

I so need to get a t-shirt that says that! I actually emailed the company to see if they sell t-shirts like that. : )

I have a confession to make.

2009-05-26T18:22:00.004-04:00

Hi. My name is Dracenea and I'm a fast food-aholic.

{Insert sparse clapping and people saying hello.}

I don't like to cook very often and don't go to the grocery store as much as I should so I tend to go to fast food drive-throughs a bit too often. I've talked before about how McDonald's is the devil due to what they put in their food. My brain knows that fast food is generally not the picture of health but my taste buds are doing the thinking when I pull up to one of these places. My brain kicks in later when I'm on the Web sites looking up the nutrition facts and then my stomach joins in with some angry rumblings about what I just ate.

I'm not a big sweets person but awhile back I had a craving for chocolate and McDonald's had a giant picture of their brownie melts posted by the road so before I knew what happened, I was sitting at home with a brownie melt and coffee. Man it was delicious. It was moist, warm, chocolatey and everything that a brownie should be. Damn you, McDonald's! I shake my fist at thee!

Well, today I was out and about and McDonald's had a sign by the road advertising their brand new Frappe's. What?! I love Frappe's and gosh darn it, I was thirsty! Normally I would pay $4 at Starbucks but hey, there's McDonald's and I know they'll be cheaper so all of a sudden a Mocha Frappe lands in my car with whipped cream and chocolate syrup drizzled all over. Gosh darn it, it's delicious and about a dollar cheaper! I shake my fist at thee again!

Awww!

2009-05-24T15:31:00.005-04:00

I'm not doing today's Sunday Stealing because I try to keep this blog pretty anonymous and there were questions I just didn't want to answer. So instead, I'm giving you some cute pics to look at. Pictures courtesy of Cute Overload.

Puffer Fish

Ocelot

Talapoin Monkey

Crossdressing cat? Plus, a giveaway in the works!

2009-05-23T19:27:00.006-04:00

A few weeks ago, I did a post about Alice in Wonderland dolls. The company that makes them, Pipos, has come out with a second round of dolls with this theme. My buddy, Eve, can correct me if I'm wrong but I thought the Cheshire cat was male? (She's a big fan of Alice related things.) It appears that the Cheshire cat design that I really liked now comes with a girly outfit. Hmm. I understand that some guys like to wear girl clothes but I'm just not a fan of the color pink.

I am a fan of tea though and these little mice are so cute!

Also, not sure if I mentioned it on here yet or not but I am planning on doing a giveaway soon! Right now I'm just debating on what to give away. Look for details soon!

Draceneaology and other updates.

2009-05-23T00:45:00.007-04:00

Heads up that this is going to be an uber long post! But it should be entertaining so stick around. : )

I spent some time today in craft stores checking out materials for the craft show I want to do with my cousin next month that I talked about here. The bad news is that my initial plan has fallen apart. I was thinking about doing mosaic pots and cloth baskets. If I were to do the pots, I would need to put a higher price on them than I was originally thinking due to the cost of materials. I find that craft shows are like garage sales. Meaning that you can't get decent prices on the things you sell at them. The cloth baskets aren't looking very good right now because I can't seem to find the right material and if they don't sell, I don't want a bunch of baskets sitting around that are in fabrics that I normally wouldn't choose. I have to make something that appeals to the "normals" yet is still something I would like, in case it doesn't sell very well.

After wandering around for awhile, I came up with multiple ideas but all seemed to be too costly or time intensive for a craft show. They may be ideas that I could use if I ever start an online business though. So I'm sort of back to square one. I'm good at cross-stitch and can whip out a bunch of small ones in time for the craft show next month but I don't know if they will sell in these economic times. I have thought of an idea but it's something I've never done before and I could completely suck at it. If it works, I think I would make some good money on it. Here's a hint. : )

In one of my posts, I talked about how my new job had me scheduled as the only driver on Tuesday night and I was kinda' nervous. We ended up having a church come in and do a fundraiser that night and our dining room was crazy busy. Thank goodness I didn't have to deal with that! But because of it, there were tons and tons of dishes to be done, which I did have to deal with. Plus we had corporate coming to our store the next day so extra cleaning had to get done that we normally don't do (lights, oven, etc). The night manager ended up letting a cook stay on until close and they called in someone else just to do dishes. He worked on dishes for 3 hours straight if that gives you an idea of how many dishes we had to do. The night manager was really cool and helped me with prep so the night ended up going fairly well and we were out of there around midnight (we closed at 11).

Now you may be wondering what this "Draceneaology" is all about, hmm? Well my buddy Eve borrowed a meme from my buddy Diane where you post your name followed by "ology" and answer the below questions. Here are my answers!

***********FOODOLOGY***************

What is your salad dressing of choice?

ranch

What is your favorite sit-down restaurant?

I haven't eaten in a restaurant in years due to my sensitive tummy but I like most restaurant food to-go. Today I had Chinese. Yum!

What food could you eat every day for two weeks and not get sick of?

I haven't had it in forever but I'm gonna' go with grilled cheese sandwiches!

What are your pizza toppings of choice?

Ham, mushrooms and extra cheese.

What do you like to put on your toast?

Jelly and real butter. I have this fantastic rhubarb jelly right now.

***********TECHNOLOGY***************

How many televisions are in your house?

Two...one in the living room and one in the bedroom. Although I only use the one in the bedroom a few times a year.

What color cell phone do you have?

Black and it lights up blue when I get a call/message.

Do you have an Ipod?

Nope...don't see the point.

***************BIOLOGY******************

Are you right-handed or left-handed?

Left! I think that means I'm a Southpaw or something? I'm ambidextrous with a lot of things though so you wouldn't necessarily know I'm a lefty unless you saw me writing.

Have you ever had anything removed from your body?

Hmm...tonsils and a suspicious freckle.

What is the last heavy item you lifted?

Stacks of pans filled with dough...yesterday. I have a beautiful bruise on one of my arms from all the dough stacks I've been carrying. That'll tell you how heavy they are.

Have you ever been knocked unconscious?

Hmm...I'm gonna' go with "no" on this one cuz' I think they mean literally being knocked out.

************BULLCRAPOLOGY**************

If it were possible, would you want to know the day you were going to die?

Yes, please!

If you could change your name, what would you change it to?

Oooh...Dark Mistress Of The Night. Has a nice ring, yes?

Would you drink an entire bottle of hot sauce for $1000?

Hells no! What's wrong with you?

************DUMBOLOGY******************

How many pairs of flip flops do you own?

Zero! I'm goth for goth's sake.

Last time you had a run-in with the cops?

Hmm...a couple years ago at some holiday gathering? (My uncle is a cop.)

I'm a good girl, people, I don't break any laws EVER. Didn't believe that? Yeah, me neither. I'm just really good at not getting caught.

Last person you talked to?

My cousin.

Last person you hugged?

Vampire Kitini. Yes, he IS a person. Seriously, you don't want to argue this point.

**************FAVORITE-OLOGY****************

Season?

It's a toss-up between spring and fall.

Holiday?

Halloween...duh. Do you read this blog ever? hee hee

Day of the week?

I used to say any day that I didn't work but now that I have a fun job, I'm gonna' go with any day that I don't have to get up early for work. Sleeping is one of my favorite hobbies.

Month?

October

***********CURRENTOLOGY*****************

Missing someone?

Not especially.

Mood?

creative

What are you listening to?

Cradle of Filth

Watching?

Like Eve said in her answers, I'm watching my screen.

Worrying about?

Not making enough $$ at the new job. I hate bills!

***************RANDOMOLOGY*****************

First place you went this morning?

Michael's (craft store)

What's the last movie you saw?

Underworld: Rise of the Lycans (One of my first posts on this blog.)

Do you smile often?

I should say "no" to keep up my gothiness so "no".

Sleeping Alone Tonight?

Nope! I'll have Vampire Kitini and a giant teddy bear and really that's all I need cuz' boys smell and have cooties.

***************OTHER-OLOGY*****************

Do you always answer your phone?

nope

Its four in the morning and you get a text message, who is it?

Depends on the night. Most nights I would really wonder. If it's a bar night, it's probably a friend wondering if I made it home okay. The bar nights have been few and far between lately though. Drinking is expensive!

If you could change your eye color what would it be?

Black...all black. I bought special contacts for that but they hurt my eyeballs so much I can't wear them. : ( BIG waste of $$.

What flavor do you add to your drink at Sonic?

I haven't been to a Sonic since I lived in Ohio and don't remember adding any flavors. Lime comes to mind though now that I think about it.

Do you own a digital camera?

Yep and if you ask Diane, myself or anyone that's seen the pictures, I need a new one!

Have you ever had a pet fish?

A few. Gordo was the last one. He hung on for quite awhile. Even tried to commit suicide once. I got out of the shower and he was laying on the blanket next to the tank. He was a shimmery gray color when I got in the shower and he was dried and black when I got out. I thought he was dead so I went to scoop him up and he started moving! I put him back in the tank and he hung on for another few years. Never regained his original color though. True story.

Favorite Christmas song(s)

N/A...here's another old post.

What's on your wish list for your birthday?

Didn't have one. A wish list, that is.

Can you do push ups?

Yes, but you really don't want to see them. Although I haven't tried since I've been lifting all that dough. I bet they look awesome now!

Can you do a chin up?

Not sure? I don't have anything around the house that I could practice on.

Does the future make you more nervous or excited?

excited

Do you have any saved texts?

Yep but not intentionally. My phone saves them all until I delete them and I just don't make that kind of effort when it comes to phone organization. That's my assistant's job. hee hee

Ever been in a car wreck?

Unfortunately.

Do you have an accent?

When I lived in Ohio, they said I did. I'm pretty sure that's from when I lived up north. Say ya' to da' U.P., eh? ha ha (Insider Michigan joke.)

What is the last song to make you cry?

Can't think of the last one. It's been awhile.

Plans tonight?

Catching up on emails/blogs. I've had a couple of crazy busy days.

Have you ever felt like you hit rock bottom?

yep

Name 3 things you bought yesterday.

Let's see...a lighter for a co-worker, Taco Bell and that's it!

Have you ever been given roses?

A long long time ago in a galaxy far away. They sure were purty though.

Current worry?

Wondering what I'm going to do about next month's craft show.

Current hate right now?

Bills! I'm stuck because I can't get out of my mortgage or my car lease.

Met someone who changed your life?

yep

How will you bring in the New Year?

That's too far away to think about.

What song represents you?

I'm a mutt of multiple songs, like anyone is, but this one is pretty accurate. Plus I found a video of it set to Underworld. Even better!

Name three people who might complete this?

I have no idea!

Would you go back in time if you were given the chance?

It would depend on when and where I'd end up.

Have you ever dated someone longer than a year?

yep

Do you have any tattoos/piercings?

yep

Will you be in a relationship 4 months from now?

Time will tell. As of now, I'd say "no" because I have hang-ups about relationships but you never know when the right one will come along, or so they say.

Does anyone love you?

I think so. It's hard to tell if people mean the words.

Would you be a pirate?

Ahoy, matey!

What songs do you sing in the shower?

I typically don't sing in the shower but occasionally I'll belt out whatever happens to be stuck in my head.

Ever had someone sing to you?

yep

When did you last cry?

A couple months ago when I left a job that I had been at for eight years. I cried because of how horribly I was treated.

Do you like to cuddle?

The last time I cuddled, I enjoyed it but I'm not normally a cuddly type of person. As a friend once said, I'm like a cantaloupe. I have a rough exterior but I'm sweet on the inside.

Have you held hands with anyone today?

nope

Who was the last person you took a picture of?

I have no idea. Does Vampire Kitini count? Most of the time I'm taking pics of my surroundings.

What kind of music did you listen to in elementary school?

oldie's

Do you believe in staying close with your ex's/prospects?

Not usually. They are ex's for a reason.

Are most of the friends in your life new or old?

Brand new and shiny with fully poseable arms!

Do you like pulpy orange juice?

nope

What is something your friends make fun of you for?

My oddness. But then they're really not friends, are they?

Another badass b-day gift from a blogging buddy!

2009-05-19T16:31:00.003-04:00

This gift came from The Frog Queen. She sent me a cool Voodoo doll and a Halloween birthday card. The card made me laugh out loud! Isn't she sweet?

Since we all know my camera pretty much sucks, I went out on my deck to take a pic to see if I could get better picture quality. I think this pic looks better than my indoor ones, yes?

Thanks Frog Queen!

The last of the Lolcats...or is it?

2009-05-18T21:53:00.004-04:00

Here is the last of my Lolcats arsenal...for now. I'm sure there will be more in the future. Enjoy! I'm off to watch the season finale of Paranormal State. If you don't know what that is, you're missing out! Check the right hand side of my blog and you'll see a link to it.

Sunday Stealing: The 29'er Meme

2009-05-17T15:13:00.004-04:00

This meme brought to you by:

1. What bill do you hate paying the most?

I'm going to go with the highest one...my mortgage. Ugh!

2. Where was the last place you had a romantic dinner?

Florentine's (an Italian place)

3. How many colleges did you attend?

Does a technical school count? If so, one.

4. Why did you choose the shirt that you have on right now?

I'm in my PJ's so there really was no thought process.

5. First thought when the alarm went off this morning?

I didn't set an alarm. I don't have to work until 6ish tonight. My first thought waking up was trying to remember what I had to do today.

6. Last thought before going to sleep last night?

I was thinking about how that was the first night in a long time that I went to bed before 2 am. :)

7. What do you miss about being a child?

I miss what I'm sure a lot of people miss...not having the worries/responsibilities that I do now.

8. What errand/chore do you despise?

Vacuuming. My cat and I shed a lot of hair and after I'm done vacuuming, I always have to cut the hair out of the bristles. Pain in my arse.

9. Have you found real love yet?

I'm gonna' say no on this one. I've been in love and had others say they love me but I've never had the "head over heels, I would die for you" type of love.

10. What do you get every time you go into Wal-Mart?

I only go through the living hell that is Walmart for one thing...contact lenses.

11. Do you think marriage is an outdated ritual?

I have so many thoughts when it comes to the topic of marriage but the short answer is no.

12. What famous person would you like to have dinner with?

Gotta' go with Tim Burton on this one. Although it would be him eating and me just watching and babbling away.

13. Ever had to use a fire extinguisher for its intended purpose?

No, thank goodness.

14. Somewhere in California you've never been and would like to go?

It's a tie between San Diego and San Luis Obispo.

15. At this point in your life would you rather start a new career or a new relationship?

career

16. Do you have a “go to” person?

Nope...I'm pretty self-reliant.

17. Are you where you want to be in life?

Location wise, not so much. Other than that, I'm okay.

18. Over the years, what about you do you think has changed the most?

I don't trust people nearly as much. Sometimes that's a good thing though.

19. Looking back at high school were they the best years of your life?

It was the best of times. It was the worst of times.

20. Are there times you still feel like a kid?

Every day!

21. Where was the hang out spot when you were a teenager?

As a younger teenager, it was the rollerskating hall. Later on it was different people's houses.

22. Who do you think impacted your life the most?

I like to call him Jackass.

23. Was there a teacher or authority figure that stood out for you?

Not really.

24. Do you tell stories that start with “when I was your age”?

No way. I ain't that old!

25. What is the scariest thing that has happened to you as an adult?

Probably the time that I was working at a gas station and had a situation where I needed the cops and our panic button was broken.

26. What advice would you give to someone about to get married?

Don't do it! ha ha In all honesty, I probably wouldn't say anything. Just because marriage doesn't appeal to me, doesn't mean that it isn't right for someone else. As I said in question #11, I have many thoughts about this topic.

27. What advice would you give someone starting their first job?

Keep to yourself, while staying friendly, and do your best.

28. If you could go back and change one thing you did, what would it be?

Nothing. There are times that I wonder what would have happened if I had done things differently but the past is the past and whatever you did, gave the outcome you have today and there are always lessons to be learned.

29. If you could go back and change one thing someone else did, what would it be?

Nothing. See answer for above. Even though there are a lot of things that people have done that hurt me, I've learned things from that.

Some craftiness and more Lolcats.

2009-05-16T20:46:00.007-04:00

My cousin is starting to get into crafting and participated in her first craft show today. I went over there to check it out and there was a pretty good turnout. It was really windy so that caused a lot of issues for the crafters. As I was walking around, I stopped at a booth where their tent poles had bent in the wind and the whole thing came down. My cousin had made jewelry, cards, and a couple scarves and she shared a booth with her sister-in-law who had made handbags. It was hard to keep everything pinned down to the table!

I haven't been to a craft show in awhile but not much has changed. There are still a lot of crocheted washcloths and towels, jewelry, and wood crafts. I did see some unique things though. One of them was a tree made out of wire. The lady incorporated wire into necklaces, rings, and brooches too. It was very ornate looking. Sorry I didn't get any pics. Didn't even think to bring my camera.

I am trying to be careful with my money so I didn't buy everything I wanted to. One lady had painted rocks and there was one that had a night scene with a castle. Very cool but for $6, I had to pass. I ended up buying handmade soap that smells like blackberries, a card that my cousin made and a black rope necklace that has a gargoyle holding a marble. My cousin said I should name him so he's Azazel Bob. ha ha

I'm going to be doing a craft show with my cousin either next month or in September. It all depends on when I can get everything together. I've never done a show before and I'm pretty excited. After walking around today, I figured out what wasn't selling, what there was too much of, etc. Plus I don't want to compete with what my cousin makes. So I'm going to be doing mosaic pots. Some will have a flower arrangement, some won't. I'm also going to make cloth baskets. I figured I'll do a couple larger ones and then a bunch of small ones and put little trinkets and/or HBA items in them. I have a small basket in my bathroom for my face masks, cleansers, etc and it works great. I'm also going to do a few small cross-stitch items. Given everything I want to do, I probably won't be ready for the show next month. Who knows though?

Here are some more Lolcats for your enjoyment.

Lolcats from the dark side.

2009-05-15T23:09:00.004-04:00

Some Lolcats for your enjoyment.

Badass b-day gifts bestowed upon me by blogging buddies!

2009-05-14T20:18:00.006-04:00

Say that title three times fast! ha ha A couple of the blogging buddies that I mentioned in my previous post sent me b-day gifts in the mail. Awww!

I got the below items from Diane along with a very sweet letter. They are buttons that you can pin on your coat/shirt/etc. She made them! I saw them in her Etsy shop awhile back and loved them right away so I was shocked and delighted to see them in my very own home! I tried taking a picture of them with my camera but they kept showing up blurry. : ( So I stole the below pic from her Etsy page. Thanks, Diane!

My buddy, Eve, sent me the below items along with a cute Halloween card. Sorry for the poor picture quality! What you see is a wallet, an Asian good luck charm, Chococat nail stickers, and a pile of Frooliemew stickers. I love stickers! Did you know that Chococat and I have the same birthday (May 10)? Thanks, Eve!

My blogging buddies are so sweet and thoughtful!

BFF Award!

2009-05-14T17:34:00.005-04:00

Sorry I haven't been around for a couple days. The new job has been cutting into my blogging time. Darn that need for a paycheck! Apparently I'm doing good at work because they've got me as the only driver next Tuesday night (I think it's Tuesday). Plus it will be just me and a manager for the last few hours of the night. I really hope I don't screw anything up! The driving thing I've got down cuz' I did it before and it wasn't that hard to figure out everything again. The rest of it is all new to me though and there's A LOT to remember. Oh well, I'll just smile and pretend like I know what I'm doing. : )

Okay first things first. That's a funny thing to say isn't it? Of course first things are first. What was I saying? Oh yes, my good blogging friend, Eve, has given me an award!

It's called the "BFF Award", in which BFF stands for Blogging Friends Forever. The rules are to give this award to 3-7 people who you would like to be blogging friends forever with and you need to give a little info on why the award was given to each person. Of course you will want to link to their blog so other people can see their pages and the evidence of their coolness. : ) To see all the wonderful things Eve said about me and her other friends, go here.

I'd like to bestow this award on:

Eve @ For The Love of Goth
This is one cool chick. We've been friends for a few months now on the blogs and via email. She was the first online person that I communicated with through postal mail. It was so exciting to get something in the mail from her and to see the handwriting of the person you "talk" to online all the time. She's a very thoughtful and sweet gal and I know we'd have a blast talking about goth stuff if we ever hung out in real life. She's in my state so you never know! If you want to check out a artsy gothy girl, check out her page(s).

Diane @ Good Mourning, Glory!
Gosh Diane, how long have we been talking? I think I first came across your blog through Eve's. When I saw all your funerary stuff, I suspected we'd get along just fine. :) My suspicions were confirmed when I started following your blog(s) and saw all of your different facets. We definitely have a lot of shared interests. You have such a kind and beautiful soul. I'm sure we'll cross paths in real life someday cuz' you're in my state too! Seriously, what are the odds that both you and Eve live in the same state I do!

Chris @ Frog on the Pumpkin
While I don't have the same friendship with Chris that I do with Eve and Diane, she is someone that I really think kicks arse. She has a great writing style and is always sharing new and interesting things about our love of Halloween related things year-round. She's someone who I would love to meet someday and I think we'd have a wonderful time sipping our drinks and talking about spooky topics or visiting haunts. :)

Oh...my...goodness.

2009-05-12T00:58:00.004-04:00

I went into work at 2:00 pm today to go through orientation. There was another girl going through the same thing but she's going to be a server (I'm going to be a delivery driver/cook). After an hour of filling out paperwork and going over even more paperwork, we were given our uniforms (a shirt and a hat for me). We decided to go try our shirts on to see if they fit and she led the way to the bathroom. We walk in and she starts taking off her shirt. I didn't know there weren't any stalls and once you're in the bathroom, that's it. Awkward! Apparently she isn't shy about stripping in front of strangers so I decided to pretend I wasn't either and changed as well. Very bizarre.

By the time we got out of the bathroom and finished filling out papers, it was 4:00 pm. The employee who was going over everything with us told us that the new server would start tomorrow night but that I was starting tonight. No biggie. I knew that I was probably going to work for a bit tonight. A couple hours went by and then I found out I was working through close. Okay...that's a bit longer than I planned. I got home at midnight!

I haven't been on my feet for that many hours straight in EIGHT YEARS! I've been in cushy corporate jobs. Tonight, I had on brand new shoes and they were too tight on the back of my heels. By the end of the night, I was waddling everywhere just trying not to put too much pressure on my heels. I got home tonight and sure enough my shoes had bit into my heels so bad that they were bleeding! I have no idea when I'm supposed to work next so I have to call over there tomorrow. I did have a ton of fun tonight but I'm kinda' hoping that they don't want me to come in tomorrow cuz' I can't walk!

In summary, today was a very interesting day. I had a ton of fun! I even got a chunk of tips even though I wasn't driving. I had forgotten how different the restaurant business is compared to the corporate world. You can say naughty words! ha ha Couple downfalls: I'll be getting a ton of second-hand smoke cuz' pretty much everyone lights up quite frequently. There are no "breaks". You don't sit down for a break ever. I had a sandwich for brunch before I went in and had brought a banana for later just in case I was working longer. I never even got to eat my banana. I was starving when I left work. This could work to my advantage though. I don't get to eat and I'm moving around all the time and lifting heavy stuff. hee hee

Fire!

2009-05-11T12:56:00.004-04:00

So my birthday yesterday ended up being crazy busy just running errands. I had to get new shoes, pants, and socks for my new job, which I start in about an hour. Yay! Just trying to find the right shoes was a chore because everyone has tons of sandals this time of year. I finally found the right pair at Payless but they didn't have it in my size so I had to travel to the nearest store that had them, which was 30 miles away. It's super hard finding pants for me too because I'm tall and pants that are too short just look silly. I finally had success finding pants too but they were pricey. $55 a pair! Eh, if they fit right, they fit right and I justify the cost that way. Plus I got sweet coupons at that store so it's all good.

While I was out and about, I ended up at a mall that had a Hot Topic so I just had to stop in and see what they had. I ended up buying a Cradle of Filth CD, a Combichrist CD and a Skelanimal necklace (pic below). Had to treat myself, ya' know. When I went to check out, the necklace ended up being only $5 so that was a sweet deal. It was originally $10.

I was at the drive through at Arby's today getting brunch and as I pulled around the corner after ordering, I saw a bunch of smoke in the air. I saw a couple guys across the way that looked like they may have been in construction so I figured it was asphalt dust or something in the air. When I got closer, I saw flames and realized that a car was on fire! Maybe I've seen too many movies or TV but all I could think about was the car exploding and me along with it. No one was behind me in line so I backed up and went to the other side of Arby's and went in for my order. Everyone was watching the car outside. If I had a way to get pictures off of my phone, I would have taken pics for ya'. It looked like it was an engine fire because the whole front end of the car was flaming and melting. Finally the fire department showed up and put it out before the fire spread to the gas tank. The driver of the car was okay.

Alright people, I'm off to check some blogs and then get ready for work. Have a wonderful day, everyone!

Musical Monday ~ What Moves You?

2009-05-11T00:38:00.006-04:00

I've never done a Musical Monday before because a lot of music moves me and I can never pick just one. I've decided to do it today because there's a song in particular that was so moving to me that I had to buy the whole CD. I very rarely buy CD's because usually there are more songs that I don't like than ones I do. I can be a cheap bizotch and I don't like buying a CD for just a couple songs.

So what's this song that I found so great? It's "Hide and Seek" by Imogen Heap. Not only does the song sound cool but the lyrics are pretty great too. Yes, it's a sad love song so if you're feeling down in the dumps about love, close your ears. Or if you like beating yourself up emotionally, turn up the volume. I highly recommend this CD. I bought it a couple years ago and for a long time, it was pretty much the only thing I listened to. The video made for the song isn't my favorite but feel free to browse my blog while listening. : )

Quick note: I would have posted the video from YouTube but the embedding was disabled so I had to use Yahoo. Sorry for the ad that shows before the video!

For more info on Musical Monday and to play along, check out Diane's blog.

Sunday Stealing: The 2 For 1 Meme

2009-05-10T01:11:00.004-04:00

This meme brought to you by:

NOTE: There appeared to be some words missing from some of the questions so I filled in the blanks (in green) with what I thought should have been there.

1. What is on the walls of your room?

I have to assume that they mean bedroom. Well I took everything down when the realtor came through but I did have Night Watcher by Joseph Vargo over my bed (below). Love his work! Then I had a 3D Halloween scene in a black picture frame on the opposite wall.

2. What type of music do you listen to?

Anything but country and jazz.

3. What do you want more than anything right now?

Someone to buy my home!

4. Do you get scared in the dark?

Heck no. I am the goddess Nyx, you know.

5. What's your worst fear?

Ooh I know. Being shot with a drug that makes you paralyzed everywhere except for your eyes. You are completely aware of everything that's going on and can't do shit about it.

6. If you could do anything right now, what would it be?

I'd go someplace warm and swim under the full moon.

7. What’s the most meaningful gift that you’ve received?

I was living up north years ago when I was just a young pup (18). I was in an abusive relationship and working at a bakery. It was a small town so everyone knew everyone's business. One of my regular customers gave me a book for my birthday and wrote a note in the front of it. It said this:

"You are a very special young woman. Out of all bad comes good and growth. Know you are cared about and in my thoughts."

I received that book exactly 10 years ago today.

8. Do you have a crush?

Nope.

9. Who is your favorite celebrity?

Tim Burton - for his creativity and his mind.

10. Could you fall in love with someone that you know must leave?

I have before.

11. Share a favorite quote of yours.

I have so many! Here's one:

"If you are distressed by anything external, the pain is not due to the thing itself, but to your estimate of it; and this you have the power to revoke at any moment."

- Marcus Aurelius Antoninus

12. What’s your weakness?

Every day I say I'm going to do certain things and every night I say that I'll do them tomorrow. When other people rely on me to do something, I'll have it done before you can blink an eye but when I'm the only one affected, I put it off.

13. Do you believe that we all have a soul mate?

I'd like to think so but if that's true, then some people never find theirs.

14. What were you doing before Sunday Stealing?

Watching Stargate Atlantis. There's a link to the show's page on the right side of my blog.

15. What do you get complicated about the most?

I'm guessing this meant conflicted? My answer would be family. Sometimes I'll have a good time with them and good conversations and I'll think that everything is okay and then the next time I see them, they're completely different people and I don't want to have anything to do with them.

16. What turns you off the most from a potential partner?

I have a few things that are pretty high up there. Can't say one turns me off more than another. I don't like men who brag about themselves though. There's a fine line between having good self-esteem and having a giant ego.

17. What is your worst habit?

See answer to #12.

18. When was the last time that you were jealous?

I haven't been truly jealous in many years. I get little faux fits of jealousy when someone talks about something they have that I would like but can't get.

19. Have you ever had a “friend with benefits”?

These questions are kinda' personal! The answer is yes.

20. Do you use sarcasm?

No way! See, I just did right there. : )

21. At the moment, what’s your favorite song?

I don't really do favorites but lately I've been listening to a remix of More Human Than Human by White Zombie. Kick ass song! I went to YouTube to see if I could find it and lo and behold I found part of the song set to The Covenant screenclips. Even better! Great movie, by the way.

22. What is your favorite day of the year?

Halloween!

23. Describe your love life.

Complicated. Yep, that about sums it up.

24. When was your last one night stand?

Seriously? Geesh my personal space is being invaded. Awhile ago.

25. How many past lovers are too many?

If you don't know the number, then that's too many.

Birthday with the parents.

2009-05-09T18:25:00.005-04:00

My dad came over for my birthday last night and it went surprisingly well. He gave me a card with some moolah. He was going to bring a small cake or cupcakes but instead he brought a box of honey buns (not the Little Debbie brand). I don't like them but it was the thought that counts. He wanted me to keep em' but I sent them back with him. I also gave him the almond milk that I bought for the occasion. (He's lactose intolerant.) If any of you out there are lactose or gluten intolerant, almond milk isn't a bad substitute. You will taste almonds but you also get that milk texture.

I saw my mom today for Mother's Day and she really appreciated the gift I made for her. She even made a spot for it on a shelf in the living room. Awww. We spent a few hours just chatting and hanging out and it was really nice. While I was there, she gave me a birthday card and a Dahlietta Louise Dahlia (below). Purty, huh? The card she gave me is on the right and the card I got from my dad is on the left. Her and I are also going to go horseback riding for the other part of my bday gift. I haven't done that in forever and I'm definitely looking forward to it.

So the birthday time with each of my parents was good. Not the nightmare that family time can be sometimes. : )

I got another award!

2009-05-09T00:15:00.008-04:00

"You are an elegant Mother"

el⋅e⋅gant
–adjective

1. tastefully fine or luxurious in dress, style, design, etc.: elegant furnishings.
2. gracefully refined and dignified, as in tastes, habits, or literary style: an elegant young gentleman; an elegant prosodist.
3. graceful in form or movement: an elegant wave of the hand.
4. appropriate to refined taste: a man devoted to elegant pursuits.
5. excellent; fine; superior: an absolutely elegant wine.
6. (of scientific, technical, or mathematical theories, solutions, etc.) gracefully concise and simple; admirably succinct.

This award came from Diane, a purty awesome gal. Thanks, Diane! Check out her blog(s) and I'm sure you'll agree. She was handing out this award to all the mothers out there. I am the mother of a furry fellow whose code name is Vampire Kitini. A picture of the handsome fellow is below. Don't all mothers think that their kid is the cutest? : )

Mr. Kitini wanted to point out that even though his mother has a sucky camera, he still looks adorable. He may sound a bit conceited but that's because everyone that comes over gushes about how beautiful he is. He just can't help his cuteness.

Good news!

2009-05-08T16:37:00.003-04:00

I had my interview a couple hours ago and I got the job! I start on Monday. It's not full-time but that's okay for now. I'm so excited! I worked for this company about eight years ago and loved it. I worked with great people and the job was fun. The only reason I left was because I was working another job at the same time and they were offering me full-time with a good benefit package.

So what is this new job? I'll be a delivery driver/cook at a pizza place. Yes, I know that I'm a year away from turning 30 and working at a pizza place is typically a high school job. Guess what? I don't care! I'll get to cruise around in my car listening to music and when I'm at the store, I'll be a cook, which is a ton of fun.

The people that I've met so far are pretty awesome and my boss is great too. The boss I had when I used to work there still works for the company at a different store and my current boss called her to see if I should be hired and she said no cuz' she wanted me back. ha ha I didn't even think she'd remember me! During my interview today, I was asked if I would consider being in management. I take that as a compliment that they are right away thinking of that for me. Yay me! I know, I'm a nerd.

Mother's Day gift and birthday stuff.

2009-05-07T17:53:00.006-04:00

I always make my mom something for Mother's Day and this year, I picked a cross-stitch pattern. Keep in mind that this is for my mom and we are complete opposites so instead of vampires and gothy stuff, which I would prefer, it's all bright colors and fluffy stuff. : ) Below is the finished product framed and all. You can see it better if you click on the pic. One of these days I need to get a better camera cuz' I would have preferred to take the pic without the flash but without it, every picture comes out with a yellow hue. Bleh.

UPDATE 6/25/2009: I removed a good chunk of this post due to blog content changes.

In "Other" Words and life updates.

2009-05-06T18:27:00.005-04:00

I've got good news and bad news. Ugh. I like to get the bad news out of the way so here goes.

I had, what I considered, a good friend at my old job. We would go out for lunch, take breaks together, talk about stuff that was going on in our personal life, etc. She came over to my house once and I was invited to hers but I ended up canceling due to the awful winters we get here and the bad driving conditions it causes. Then we both got busy and I never ended up visiting her house. We were out shopping on our lunch one day and there was a CD that she was looking for but the store didn't have it. Her birthday was coming up so I scoured the stores around town, found it and bought it for her. We had funny nicknames for each other and everything. We were FRIENDS. When I left my last job, I had called her to let her know (it was her day off). She said that we'd keep in touch and that she felt bad for what happened to me. (I've posted in the past about the crap that went on there.)

I didn't hear from her for about a week so I emailed her to ask what was new. She emailed back and everything seemed okay. After I responded to that email, it took three days to hear back from her. That was my first clue that something was up. At the old job, you were in your email all day so I knew that she had gotten my email and just chosen not to respond. This past Monday, I sent her an email wanting to know what was going on. Finally today, she responded saying that our communications felt forced and that the main thing we had in common was working together. Wow. That completely stunned me. I emailed her back and said that if we were just co-workers, we wouldn't have been hanging out, I wouldn't have bought her a birthday gift, I wouldn't have had her come over, she wouldn't have told me that I was one of her best friends, etc. I told her that she wasn't sounding like the friend I had and that it made me sad and a little angry that our whole friendship was a fraud. I doubt I'll hear from her again but at least I got to the bottom of what was going on and was able to say the things I needed to say.

Now for the good news! I have an interview on Friday afternoon for the job I mentioned here. I really hope this one works out because working there would be so much fun it wouldn't feel like I'm working. That's the best type of job!

Eve over at Through Eve's Looking-Glass has a photo game called In "Other" Words where you post a picture of something that you found interesting/amusing/unique. She prefers that you take the picture and then explain it or say what it means to you. My picture below is part of my living room. I love decorating my home with unique things. When I moved in, there were nails already in the wall that were in the perfect location for my spider web. Sometimes my decorating style can be a bit spooky but I feel right at home. : )

If you want to participate, please visit Eve's blog here and add your info to Mr. Linky.

Dollmore

2009-05-04T02:09:00.007-04:00

As promised, here's another doll artist I found. The pics below are from Dollmore. I love the intricate details on these. Makes them so lifelike!

I've been posting a lot of doll/toy pics recently. It might surprise you to know that I don't own anything like this. These are all works of art that I find beautiful and someday, I might have the money to put into a few designer toys but for now, they're just wonderful to look at. Enjoy!

Ipsae

Black Spider Queen - I want her outfit!

Baikal

Sunday Stealing: The Twenty Firsts Meme

2009-05-03T12:48:00.004-04:00

This meme brought to you by:

First Job: The first paid gig I had was babysitting. The first job where I got taxes taken out was when I worked for a greenhouse.

First Real Job: I guess the first real job would be the one where you got health benefits and what-not so that'd have to be when I started working at a bank.

First Favorite Politician: I really don't like politics because of all the negativity but I did start paying attention to them when Bush was on his way out the door and Obama was coming in so I guess my first favorite politician is Obama.

First Car: A burgundy Bonneville that required frequent stops so that I could put water and antifreeze in to stop it from overheating and you had to literally kick the gas pedal if the car hadn't been run in a couple hours cuz' it would stick. Lovely! I've had new cars ever since then.

First Record/CD: For some reason, I really didn't want to move on from tapes to CD's so the first CD I ever got was Nimrod by Green Day.

First Sport Played: basketball

First Concert: MXPX I was pretty much in love with their stuff and they played locally a lot. Go punk rawk!

First Foreign Country Visited: I've never visited a foreign country. Someday though.

First Favorite TV Show: MacGyver I was so in love with Richard Dean Anderson. Still kinda' am. : ) I swear that man knows the secret to the fountain of youth.

First Favorite Actor: See above.

First Favorite Actress: I don't remember really being impressed with a female actress until recently. I'd have to go with a tie between Amanda Tapping and Rachel Luttrell from the Stargate series.

First Girlfriend/Boyfriend: The first "real" one was Fred.

First Encounter with a Famous Person: I've never met a celebrity but I met one of our news people one time. Does that count?

First Brush With Death: Probably the accident that happened when a guy ran a red light and hit the side of my car. My car got spun around a couple times and I ended up facing the wrong way on the street.

First House/Condo Owned: The one I live in now. Bought it a year ago.

First Film Seen: An American Tail is the first one I remember.

First Favorite Recording Artist: TLC

First Favorite Radio Station: WSNX formerly known as Sunny FM. They were mostly pop and R&B. I've gone through many different musical tastes. Now, I like anything but country and jazz.

First Book I Remember Reading: Probably those silly Dick and Jane books.

First Meme You Answered on Your Blog: Sunday Stealing!

Alice in Wonderland dolls/toys and Life Updates

2009-05-02T21:42:00.005-04:00

Well, I didn't get the job. It would have been nice because the starting pay was good, it was in a field that I'm used to and the benefits were good. But...I would have been spending a lot on gas money due to the commute, the job would have entailed dealing with upset and mean people all day and it was in banking, which I would like to get out of considering this economy. So all in all, it's okay.

Last week, I was picking up something at a shop and the girl at the register and I started talking. Another employee came up and during our conversation, it came out that I used to work at that employer but in another location. They asked what I did there and when I told them, they said that they were hiring and that I was exactly what they're looking for. That was interesting to me because I had been in there not long ago and was told they weren't hiring. Apparently they were but were looking for certain people. I guess my conversation with them was enough to get the ball rolling. I came back the next day and dropped off my app and resume. The employee that I had talked to previously was there and said that she was going to get her manager because she wanted me to meet her. The manager told me that she would run my info, check my record, etc and get back with me in a couple days. I'm really hoping to hear something Monday. I loved working for that company and the people at the shop are super friendly, which is great. So I'm keeping my fingers crossed on this one!

Last night I posted some cool toys and said I'd be back with more today. The detail and emotion that artists can portray on these dolls is pretty amazing. The below pics are from Pipos, a doll shop. I'll be showing another doll maker's creations in a post tomorrow.

Cheshire Cat - I love this version of him!

The White Rabbit

Alice in Wonderland scene

Doesn't the gray rabbit look so sweet?

Toys that utilize brand names.

2009-05-02T01:37:00.008-04:00

I've blogged about cool toys before and came across some more tonight that I just had to share. The following toy designs were created by Sket One. You can check out his bio here.

Munny with a Hershey design:

Dunny with a Heinz design:

MadL with a French's design:

Qee with a Windex design:

Pretty cool, huh?

I'm trying not to post too much on here. I'd like to limit it to one post a day but sometimes you might get two. : ) Tomorrow, I'll be posting some pics of dolls I found along with some life updates.

If you want to see some of the other posts I've done on toys, just head to the right hand side of my blog, scroll down to the Labels section and click on "toys". Enjoy!

My first award!

2009-05-01T19:50:00.002-04:00

Diane over at Good Mourning, Glory! has nominated me for my very first blog award! She picked a pretty special one too. Ain't she the best?

"The blogger who receives this award believes in the Tao of the Zombie Chicken, excellence, grace, and persistence in all situations, even in the midst of a zombie apocalypse. These amazing bloggers regularly produce content so remarkable that their readers would brave a raving pack of zombie chickens just to be able to read their inspiring words. As a recipient of this world-renowned award, you now have the task of passing it on to at least 5 other worthy bloggers. Do not risk the wrath of the zombie chickens by choosing unwisely or not choosing at all..."

I don't need any more wrath coming my way, so I hereby grant the following 5 bloggers this award:

Cindy @ Twas The Brillig And The Slithy Toves...
Carrie Mae @ Creepy Cupcakes
Chris @ Frog On The Pumpkin
Catherine @ Suburban Vampire
Tammy @ Rowdy Kittens

Antiques or just old things.

2009-04-30T01:38:00.006-04:00

Everyone has a different idea of what an antique is. For me, it's something unique that is at least 50 years old. Usually something that is no longer in production. In the below post, I showed some dishes that I got from my grandparents. I wasn't going to do any research on those items tonight but here it is almost 2 am and I've got news to report. : )

Warning: If you don't give a crap about where things come from, you will probably be bored out of your gourd by reading this post. Hopefully you find this stuff interesting and will keep reading.

The first item in the bottom picture was a milk jug that had "Half Pint Liquid" stamped into the glass. I couldn't find any info on it. From what I read, most dairy companies put their name somewhere on the bottle and this one doesn't have a name anywhere. So this will be a mystery.

The second item in the picture looked like a butter dish to me and it had "Crosley Shelvador" stamped into the glass. After doing some digging, I found some cool info. Powel Crosley Jr. was well known for his work in the automotive industry in the early 1900's. By the early 1920's, he had made quite a name for himself by making radios and starting his own broadcast station. In 1930, he began to make refrigerators and other household appliances. One of his refrigerators even had a radio built-in! He was ahead of his time. The picture below shows an ad from 1937 of the radio refrigerator. Crosley actually invented the idea of putting shelves in a refrigerator and no one else could take this idea until the patent ran out in the 50's. The Shelvador refrigerators came with glass dishes and that's where mine came from. Cool, huh? No pun intended. ha ha

It took awhile to dig up info on the third item in the picture. There was a stamp on the bottom of the bowl that said "Hall's Superior Quality Kitchenware Made In U.S.A.". The Hall China Company was established in 1903 and is still active today. After much searching, I was finally able to tell that the bowl has the Yellow Rose decal and it appears to have been made in the 1930's.

The fourth item in the picture is probably the neatest one to me just based on what I found out tonight and the unique look it has. This little green pitcher has the below info stamped into the bottom.

Hand Made by Cornelisons
Since 1845

Cornelison Pottery
Bybee, KY

4-9 is written in the clay over part of the stamp. Looks like someone wrote it with a stick before putting it into the kiln. After doing some digging, I found an article with a very similar pitcher. According to that, the piece dates back to the early 1900's. If you run your fingers inside, you can tell it's handmade. Pretty neat. Apparently this pottery business was actually started in 1809 but sales records didn't begin until 1845. The company is still active today and still makes their pottery in the same location, using the same processes. A video showing how they make pitchers can be found here. And just in case you really want to know more, click here. I've emailed the company to see if they are able to give me more info on the piece I have but I don't know if I'll hear back from them.

I don't think I'll ever find out info on the last item in the picture because there is absolutely nothing stamped onto the teapot. Oh well.

So there you have it folks!

The Crosley ad picture was taken from this site.

UPDATE 5/2/2009: Buzz Cornelison over at Bybee Pottery responded to my email. He said that I had a #49 Syrup Pitcher. The stamp goes back to his grandfather's era and that he had the shop from 1939-1969. Apparently his grandfather seldom used that stamp so that probably adds some value to the pitcher. Buzz's father took over the shop in 1969 and did away with the stamp. Cool info, huh?

Eve's Photo Game

2009-04-29T21:43:00.005-04:00

My friend, Eve, has a photo game called In "Other" Words. Today we had to post a picture of something that we found interesting/amusing/unique. She prefers you post a picture that you took and then explain it or say what it means to you.

This game was pretty easy for me because I was going to post the below pic anyway. : ) A couple days ago, I talked about getting some dishes from my grandparent's house. All of the items below are considered antiques and my grandma said that a few of the items may be worth a chunk of change. I don't plan on cashing them in but I do plan on doing some research to find out where they came from. The item on the far right is the little teapot that Grandma used to serve my cousin and I hot chocolate when we were kids. Cute, huh?

If you choose to participate, please visit Eve's blog here and add your info to Mr. Linky.

I've been tagged!

2009-04-28T23:33:00.003-04:00

Diane over at Good Mourning, Glory! tagged me for a meme. Thanks, Diane! I'm starting to get hooked on these meme things. : )

What is your current obsession?

I had this same question on my Stealing Sunday meme so I'd say the same thing...reading, tea, and the occult. But I'm going to add crafting and Diablo to that.

I went to three different craft stores today looking for my Mother's Day project and settled on a cross-stitch pattern. I always make my mom something for Mother's Day. I better get started on it tomorrow if I want it done by then! I might even post a pic of the finished product. Mind you, it won't be gothy or anything cuz' it's for my mom. We are complete opposites!

I'm sure you've heard of Diablo before but I'm referring to the game. It's the best game EVER. They're going to come out with Diablo 3 and I cannot wait. Yes, I'm a gamer nerd. This is the version I've been playing a lot of since I no longer have the 9-5. : )

I guess the question was "obsession" singular but I just can't limit that to one thing!

What is your weirdest obsession?

Gosh I have a lot that could be considered weird. I guess all the occult/paranormal stuff that I'm interested in would be "weirdest", although it's not to me, obviously.

What are you wearing today?

Well now that it's almost midnight, I'm in my jammies, which consist of purple pj bottoms with stars on them and a blue t-shirt. Doesn't exactly match. : )

When I was out and about today, I wore a black sweatshirt hoodie and dark blue jeans with black shoes. It was a bit chilly around here.

Why is today special?

Thinking of things that happened today that don't normally happen, I would say that today was special because my brother and his girlfriend had their first ultrasound of their first kid together. OMG I'm going to be an aunt. I'm really not a fan of children but I'm happy for them. : ) I was told that if it's a girl, they're naming it after me. What can I say? I took care of my brother A LOT when we were growing up.

What would you like to learn to do?

I would love to learn how to play the piano and how to sew. I can cross-stitch and do embroidery like a mother f***er (AKA I'm really good) but I've never "sewn".

What is the last thing you bought?

I had a craving for nachos so I bought sour cream, shredded cheese, an avocado, and organic chips. I already had the salsa so when I got home, I just had to whip up the homemade guac and lunch was served. Delish!

What are you listening to right now?

What's your favorite weather?

I'd have to go with a storm on a day/night when the weather is in the 70's.

What's your most challenging goal right now?

It's the goal I always have...to constantly better myself.

What do you think about the person who tagged you?

I think she's awesome! I sense that she has a beautiful soul and that's hard to come by.

What's your favorite guilty pleasure?

Again I'm going to have to go with my Sunday Stealing answer. Naughty food...which basically means anything creamy, cheesy or buttery.

Favorite vacation spot?

I don't have a favorite go-to spot but if there is a body of water, I'm so there.

What would you like to have in your hands right now?

A buyer's agreement saying that they want to buy my condo!

What would you like to get rid of?

Family issues! Some days I just want to get in the witness protection program and run away.

If you could go anywhere in the in the world for the next hour, where would you go?

This one was tough cuz' it's only an hour. I'd have to say Dracula's castle.

Which language would you like to learn?

latin

What super power would you like to possess?

I would choose immortality because I think it would be so neat to see how the world changes over time, to see what we create.

What's your favorite thing about the city you live in?

My favorite thing is being so close to Lake Michigan. Tulip Time starts this weekend and it's going to be a mad house! People come from all over. People that don't know how to drive on our Michigan turn arounds. That part I'm not such a fan of. If you're going to be in town, let me know...I'll show ya' around!

What's your favorite piece of clothing in your own closet?

My soft fuzzy black zip-up sweater.

What's your dream job?

To work on a police force.

If you had $150 now what would you do with it?

Probably nothing because I have to watch my pennies due to the "no job" situation. If I was working, then I'd use the money to buy things off of my wish list.

Do you admire anyone's style?

No one in particular but I admire goth/industrial fashions.

Describe your personal style?

Basically anything black or blue. I'm one giant bruise. I wear a lot of comfy slip-on shirts. Not really a fan of buttons.

Who's fashion show would you want tickets to?

I can't think of anyone in particular. If Gothic Beauty magazine put on a fashion show, I'd be interested in seeing that.

Who's closet would you want to raid?

Geesh there are a lot of clothing questions. I'd raid anyone's closet that had goth/rivethead clothes.

What are you most proud of?

My ability to overcome emotional pain.

If you could choose one person who has passed to have lunch with, who would it be and why?

My great-grandpa because I think he had a secret life.

Job update and family stuff.

2009-04-27T13:28:00.010-04:00

I've talked before about trying to find a job in this tough economy. It appears there may be a breakthrough! I got a call last Tuesday from a bank I had applied at a couple weeks ago. They set up a phone interview for Wednesday. During the interview I deviated from a couple of the questions a bit and felt like I was rambling but apparently I did okay because they set up a face to face interview for this morning.

It took me about 45 minutes to get there and when I showed up there were a few big buildings with multiple entrances. I finally found the right area to be, went in and told the guard who I was there to see and then proceeded to wait nervously in the lobby while appearing to be calm, cool and collected. : ) I interviewed with two guys and they did not ask the questions I thought they would. In fact, they asked one question that I've never been asked in an interview. The question was, "Have you ever gone out of your way to help a stranger?" I told them some things I did and then they asked why I did those things. I said that I did them because I would want someone to do that for me. Treat others as you want to be treated yourself. One interviewer looked at the other one and asked if he heard what I said. He said he did and that he was writing it down. Guess that was a good thing? At the end of the interview, I saw one of the guys write "Key" at the top of his note pages. I'm hoping that means that I'm a key contender? Now I'm playing the waiting game and hoping I hear something soon.

I've been meaning to call my grandparents on my dad's side for awhile now. I found out in February that they were getting divorced. They've been married for over 50 years! I knew that their divorce would be final by May 1st and I wanted to see the two of them together at their house before all of this was final. My Grandma called me Friday night from a new number and said that she had already moved out. She invited me over for Sunday dinner yesterday so I went. After we ate, she asked if I wanted to see Grandpa. I did, of course, so she told me to call him and ask him if it was okay that we came by. He didn't mind so her and I went over.

UPDATE 6/25/2009: I have removed the rest of this post due to blog content changes.

Sunday Stealing: The Mud Meme

2009-04-26T00:51:00.006-04:00

This meme brought to you by:

1. What are your current obsessions?

Reading, tea, and the occult.

2. Which item from your wardrobe do you wear most often?

Since I've become unemployed, it's a toss up between jeans and pajamas. : )

3. What's for dinner?

Tonight it was a sandwich and Girl Scout cookies with milk.

4. Last thing you bought?

Shampoo and conditioner.

5. What are you listening to?

Assemblage 23

6. If you were a god/goddess who would you be?

Nyx, of course.

7. Favorite holiday spots?

Anywhere by the water.

8. Reading right now?

Check out the right side of my blog. It'll tell you what I'm currently consuming aka reading/watching.

9. 4 words to describe yourself.

Independent, creative, trustworthy, funny.

10. Guilty pleasure?

Naughty food...which basically means anything creamy, cheesy or buttery.

11. Who or what makes you laugh until you’re weak?

Nobody/nothing is that funny. Seriously, it takes a lot to really get me laughing. I giggle a lot though.

12. Planning to travel to next?

Down south, hopefully!

13. Best thing you ate or drank lately?

Ooh, I'd have to say my caramel frap, no whip, from Starbucks the other day. I just happened to take a picture of it because they made a little face with the caramel syrup. I felt special.

14. When did you last get tipsy?

Last fall on the best night I've had in a long time. Apparently I like wine. And get your mind out of the gutter.

15. Care to share some wisdom?

Oh I've got lots to share but I particularly like this:

I ask only that you keep your minds open and not fear or condemn that which you don't know or fully understand. Life's too short to be bottled up in our own visions of reality without looking up occasionally to see what we're missing.

16. Nicest thing anyone’s ever said to you?

I can't think of anything that really stands out. The nicest thing anyone has ever done for me though was when I left Ohio, my team at work went and got all gothed up and had their picture taken as a surprise for me. They presented me with the framed picture at my going away dinner. This was a big deal because nobody on my team was into goth and they ranged in ages from twenties to sixties. Pretty incredible gift.

Gothic Belly Dancing

2009-04-24T17:21:00.004-04:00

I'm not a belly dancer myself but I think it's a beautiful art. Especially when you can goth it up a bit. : )

Evangeline Ghastly

2009-04-22T00:02:00.005-04:00

I've talked about alternative toys before and thought I mentioned Evangeline Ghastly but after looking back, I never did! Shame on me. She is a gorgeous 19" resin doll with a $425-$500 price tag and if you want to change outfits, be prepared to add another $125 PER OUTFIT. You can buy wigs, shoes, other various clothing items and even additional eyes to change her eye color. Apparently they are coming out with a slightly smaller vinyl version of her next month for around $160...major price drop but still a little costly. She is such a beautiful doll though. Can't wait to see what the vinyl version will look like!

The top picture was taken from WizardUniverse and the below was taken from Acid PopTart's MySpace pictures. Acid PopTart is a contributor for an awesome magazine that I get called Gothic Beauty. They featured Evangeline Ghastly in their last issue.

A bloody good theory.

2009-04-21T18:45:00.005-04:00

I came across an article today on FitSugar that was quite interesting. I always think about why people do what they do and this article talks about why some people may faint or feel faint when they see blood. They say it can be due to a blood-injury phobia.

"The idea is that back in time, when someone was coming at someone else with a sharp stick or rock, a kind of genetic variation allowed certain people to faint in response," explains Tyler C. Ralston, PsyD, a clinical psychologist in Honolulu, who treats people with blood-injury phobias. Warriors who fainted looked dead and were passed over during battle. The blood pressure drop also might have helped those who were wounded avoid bleeding to death. Survivors then passed on the "fainting" gene.

So I'm thinking that if you faint or feel faint around blood, you probably weren't much of a fighter. You needed to play dead to avoid a confrontation. If blood doesn't bother you, then you like to get a little rough. That's just my take on the article.

I'm definitely a fighter, by the way. Bring it.

Sunday Stealing: The 40 Meme

2009-04-19T19:51:00.018-04:00

I never do these things but this one looked like fun! I first came across it at Through Eve's Looking-Glass. Then I saw it on Diane's blog. I really liked how Diane incorporated pictures into hers. For more info on Sunday Stealing and what's going on over there, click here. Gotta' give credit where credit is due. It's just proper blog etiquette, people. : )

1. My uncle once :

...got stabbed in the gut by a friend.

2. Never in my life :

...have I been on an airplane.

3. When I was seventeen :

...I met a boy who changed my life forever and not in a good way.

4. High School was :

...a time of many new experiences.

5. I will never forget :

...my great grandmother's funeral where my younger brother, who was five at the time, started singing "Ding Dong The Wicked Witch Is Dead". We really didn't know her well but the song had the word "dead" and he thought it was fitting.

6. I once met :

...someone who was transgendered. She was my neighbor in Ohio. Very cool lady but I met her too late. I moved back to Michigan the next day. She would have been fun to hang out with. I love people who aren't afraid to be themselves!

7. There’s this girl I know who :

...didn't know what county she lived in. She's lived there most of her life. How do you not know that?!

8. Once, at a bar :

...I had a man who wanted to switch shirts with me. I was wearing an aqua suede shirt and he wore a flannel. Needless to say, I stayed in my shirt. Not sure why he wanted to switch? There were so many answers I could have used for this one but I kept it pretty clean. : )

9. By noon, I’m usually :

...just getting up. Now that I'm jobless, I'm on a whole different schedule.

10. Last night :

...I stayed up until 4am watching Matrix.
11. If only I had :

...someone to buy my condo. Then I could move away. Anyone interested?

12. Next time I go to gym/church :

...it's time to vote. We have a church on every corner here so it's a convenient place to vote, I guess.

13. Susan Boyle :

...is very talented. I blogged about her here.

14. What worries me most :

...is not finding a job before the money runs out.

15. When I turn my head left, I see :

...my neighbors.

16. When I turn my head right, I see :

...a closet.

17. You know I’m lying when :

...I tell you nothing is wrong and look away.

18. What I miss most about the eighties :

...is being carefree. I didn't get much responsibility until the 90's.

19. If I was a character in Shakespeare, I’d be :

...one of the witches in Macbeth. They have cool lines and the costuming would be fun.

20. By this time next year :

...I hope to either be in a job I love while still living here or down south living the life I've dreamed of.

21. A better name for me would be :

...Satan's spawn? No really, I'm more like an angel with horns.

22. I have a hard time understanding :

...why people lie.

23. If I ever go back to school, I’ll :

...care more and get better grades.

24. You know I like you if :

...I don't glare at you.

25. If I ever won an award, the first person I’d thank would be :

...well, it depends on the award.

26. When I compare 80’s rock to 90’s rock :

...I'll say that Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers were awesome in both decades.

27. Take my advice, never :

...mix money with friends/family. This includes co-signing on loans!

28. My ideal breakfast is :

...sausage gravy and biscuits with juice. I have this maybe once a year and it's delish every time.

29. A song I love, but do not own is :

..."Pieces" by Red. I just now found out that they are a Christian band. Oh well, love thy neighbor and all that bullshit, right? : ) You wouldn't know they are Christian because they're not overtly so. If they were, I wouldn't listen to them. It's just not my thing.

30. If you visit my hometown, I suggest :

...you buy some cowboy boots because it's a hick town for sure. Oh, and invest in a good Carhartt. Yeeeeee-hawwww! Oh goodness, get me outta' here!

31. My favorite Beatle is :

...Ringo Starr. Cuz' that's a cool name.

32. Why won’t people :

...just be considerate!

33. If you spend the night at my house :

...you can't get creeped out easily. I have headstones, spiders, ghosts, bats, gargoyles, etc all around. Directions to my home are below.

34. I’d stop my wedding for :

...anything. I don't plan on getting married.

35. The world could do without :

...hate.

36. I’d rather lick the belly of a cockroach than :

...go to the dentist.

37. My favorite blonde is :

...Spike from Buffy The Vampire Slayer/Angel.

38: Paper clips are more useful than :

...popsicle sticks.

39. If I do anything well, it’s :

...my attention to detail. If a mistake needs catching, I'm your gal.

40. And by the way :

...I'm wearing Halloween socks that glow in the dark. Yay!

Note: All photos were courtesy of Photobucket except for the cat with the cross. He was a LolCat.

Job updates.

2009-04-17T18:29:00.004-04:00

I'm feeling a little frustrated and figured I'd just let it all out here. Every single day for the past two weeks I have done something job related whether it be looking for a job or following up on a job application. A couple of the ads I responded to ended up being spam. A couple seemed like they could be legit so I emailed a couple questions to verify and never heard back so I have to assume they were spam.

One place called me on Monday and left a voicemail telling me that they were interested in having me come in for an interview. I called them back later that day and got voicemail. I called and left another voicemail on Tuesday. I still have not heard back.

The Humane Society job didn't work out. They see all of my banking experience and don't give me another look. The last time I applied for a job working with animals was when I was looking for a second job a few years ago and I had interviewed with PetSmart. They told me that I was overqualified. What?! So I get turned down for jobs because I'm overqualified? Crazy!

I've been scouring our local papers for work and either it's a field I have no experience in or they say you have to be bilingual. Personally, I think that's bullshit. I understand we have a lot of Spanish speaking people here in west Michigan (don't know why) but to say that it's a requirement that I have to speak Spanish is ridiculous. You're in fucking AMERICA! I don't go to other countries and expect them to speak my language and change all of their signage for me. Isn't saying that you have to be bilingual discrimination? I took two years Spanish in high school so I know the basics but not enough to be considered bilingual. Ugh, frustrating!

Anytime I go in to a store, I ask if they are hiring and no one is. I found out that one of our local fast food places is hiring and so I put my application in there on Wednesday. So far I haven't heard anything but I'm waiting until Monday before I follow up. I honestly don't care that I used to work in a fancy job that included business cards and paid travel and now I'll most likely be working in a fast food joint. Honestly the fast food job looks like it would be more fun! I'll probably hear crap from my family and friends but oh well. A job is a job.

It's scary that it's taking this long to find a job. I thought for sure I could find a job much quicker.

Fairies!

2009-04-16T14:01:00.007-04:00

I was perusing the blogs this morning and came across a post by Dreamwriter. There's a Web site you can go to get your fairy name and it gives you a little description too. Here's what mine was:

Your fairy is called Feather Goblinglitter

She is a bringer of riches and wealth.

She lives in high places where the clouds meet the earth.

She is only seen in the light of a shooting star.

She wears pale blue like the sky. She has gentle green wings like a butterfly.

By the looks of my bank account, I'm assuming the riches and wealth are not monetary. : )

When you hear the word fairy, what comes to mind? If they did exist, what would they be like? Inquiring minds want to know what you think!

I found the below fairy pic on Photobucket and had to add it here. It fits pretty well with the description, eh?

It's the inside that counts.

2009-04-14T17:15:00.002-04:00

We all know that looks can be deceiving. We live in a shallow world and you never know what you may be missing out on. Check out this amazingly talented woman. Every video of this I found on YouTube had the embedding disabled so I couldn't attach the video here. Click the link and you'll be able to check it out.

Giant bunnies DO exist!

2009-04-11T16:12:00.004-04:00

Years ago, on the night before Easter, I lay in my bed trying to fall asleep. I was probably 10 years old at the time. The Easter bunny was coming to deliver candy and I couldn't wait. Easter candy is so different from all the other candy out there. You've got the chocolate rabbits, the malted eggs, Cadbury eggs, etc. Seriously, it's better than any other kind of candy. Halloween is my favorite holiday but I never got excited over Halloween candy. It's always tootsie rolls, mini candy bars, etc. Nothing with character. Well, I guess candy corn has character but it's not the same as biting into a chocolate covered marshmallowy pink raspberry flavored goodness. You probably think I eat bon-bons all day long. : ) I actually have no candy in the house and don't buy it except for maybe a couple times a year. I don't get a sweet tooth that often and when I do, I typically sip hot chocolate. I figure it's safer to drink the sugar in the open than to be found sitting in a dark closet licking the hollow of a Cadbury egg. Okay, enough of the candy porn.

The real reason for this post was to talk about the time I saw the Easter bunny. I was laying in bed trying to fall asleep and there was a full moon shining into my bedroom. I was on my side with my eyes open (cuz' I was excited for the candy) when I noticed a shadow on the wall. It looked like two long bunny ears but they were standing straight up. Hmm...strange. Then one of the ears bent down and then came back up. I jumped out of bed and over to the window to see what was casting this shadow. There was nothing there. It wasn't my parents trying to be funny because they just wouldn't make that effort. I just think it was bizarre that I saw bunny ears on the night before Easter. And no, it wasn't some sleepy kid imagining things. I saw a bunny dammit. : )

Dear Mr. Bunny, if you're out there,

Would you please bring me some chocolate deliciousness tonight? Pretty please? Cuz' if you don't, I'm going to have to go to the store on Monday when all the sales start and I really would prefer to eat some candy tomorrow.

Sincerely,

Cadbury Licker

I saw this video and had to add it to this post. Cracked me up!

I had to ask.

2009-04-11T15:58:00.003-04:00

The realtor (Bev) and her husband (they're business partners) came by this past Thursday afternoon. They've seen most of the condos in our complex and they said they really liked how I had my furniture set up. Bonus points for creativity...yay! They said it was super clean and looked great but that it wouldn't sell quickly for the price I was asking because there is so much available on the market right now for a lower price. Unfortunately, if my asking price went any lower, I'd be in a short sale situation. My bank said they would only consider a short sale if my home was on the market for 4-6 months without an offer.

As the realtors and I were sitting down going over options, they commented again how nice the place looked. I said that I really tried to make it look good for any buyers that may come through and that I took down a lot of my decorations that most people wouldn't like. Bev asked what I meant and I said that I had a different decorating style. Like there was a big spiderweb on the wall in the living room and a headstone by the door. She about died laughing and said, "I had to ask." I didn't tell them what else I took down. Didn't want them to laugh too hard, ya' know. So needless to say, it would be pointless to list my home right now because even at the lowest price, there's still too much competition and I can't afford to pay a realtor unless it will sell.

I'll continue my job hunt this week and hopefully something will work. From what the realtor said, it looks like it will be 3 years before home values will start going up again.

Job/House updates.

2009-04-08T17:36:00.003-04:00

I've been scouring Craigslist and online newspapers for job opportunities. I'm really hesitant about using Craigslist because of all the spammers out there but I emailed a few of the contacts yesterday anyway just to see. One company responded that the position was filled, which irked me a bit because they should have taken their ad down then. Another company was spam. Another company responded that they were still looking for an employee and I'm pretty excited because it's with the Humane Society. I've always wanted to work with animals and here's my chance. I went to Kinko's today to print out my resume and will be going to their office tomorrow to submit my application. I'm really hoping this works out for me. It's half the pay I was making at my last job and isn't full-time but the opportunity to work there would be priceless.

I updated my resume on Hot Jobs yesterday and when I logged into my email this afternoon, I had an email from a bank saying they saw my resume and wanted me to come in for an interview. (I've been in the financial industry for 8 years.) After doing some research, I found that there was a Web site for the bank and they did have an office in a neighboring city so I decided to call the number the person gave. When I called, she sounded legit and wanted me to come in for an informational interview tomorrow night at their office, which is about 40 minutes away. They were looking to hire full time but she didn't give me much information other than that, which I thought was strange. She said I would find out more tomorrow. I asked who I would be interviewing with and she gave me a couple names. After we hung up, I called the 800 number listed on the bank's Web site to see if I could track down those people to see if they were actual employees. They weren't listed in the directory at all and when I talked to someone at the company, they said they didn't have a directory to look up employees but that she could take my name and address and forward it to my local office for them to get back with me. That sounded fishy. I think I'm going to end up cancelling the interview because something just doesn't seem right. Plus the interview is at 6pm...a little strange for a bank.

While I was at Kinko's today, that realtor that I had called last week called me back. She and her husband (they are a team) are going to come by tomorrow at 3:30pm to check out my condo. She of course said that now is a hard time to sell and was wondering if I could get any relief from the latest stimulus package. I'm pretty sure I can't (cuz' I quit) but I'll check into it.

So tomorrow's going to be a big day...applying at the Humane Society and having a realtor come. Hopefully I'll hear good things! If I do land the job at the Humane Society or somewhere else that I really like, then I'll postpone my move down south, even if the condo sells. Lots to think about.

Frustration and anticipation.

2009-04-07T16:59:00.006-04:00

Two weeks ago I quit my job. I've got a little financial cushion and figured I'd get some little part-time job to cover some of my bills until I can sell my home. Well so far, the job hunt is not going well. I live in one of the states that has been hardest hit by these economic times but thought I could find some crap job somewhere. I really don't need to start panicking until the end of May but so far, it's not looking good.

Last Friday I called up the realtor that sold the home I'm currently in and left her a voicemail saying that I wanted to meet with her to discuss selling. I got a call from her assistant saying that she was out of town and would return my call on Wednesday (tomorrow). That was fine with me because I still had stuff to do around here before I wanted her to come over for an evaluation of the home.

I've done a total spring cleaning of the house, which included standing on a chair on my tippy toes to get to 5 year old dust. Achoo! I have a cathedral ceiling in the living room and I don't think the previous owner ever dusted it so when I finally got up there, the dust literally fell apart it was so old. Yuck. I actually wore a shower cap so I wouldn't get it in my hair. I looked hot! ha ha

I painted scuff marks that the previous owner left on the walls, filled in some dings in the wood window frames, cleaned windows, and bought a new shower curtain liner. I think I'm finally done. Now I don't want to touch anything. : )

I'm really antsy to have the realtor come tomorrow. I wonder what she'll say? Ideally my home would be sold by the end of this month so that I can move down south. The next best thing would be to have my home sold by the end of May. If it's not and I haven't found a job here, I'll be in panic mode.

If my dream does come true and I can sell by the end of this month, then I have a whole new set of obstacles. I'll need to get rid of 90% of my belongings and find a job and a place to live in another state. Wish me luck cuz' I'm going to need it!

At this point, I just want to be done with it and carried away like the piece that Alexander Jansson created titled Nocturnal Mysteries shown below.

Strange fruit.

2009-04-05T19:24:00.004-04:00

I'm always on the lookout for unique things and I happened across this fruit. It's called a Buddha's Hand. I'm thinking this could be used in one of those fruit bouquets. Doesn't the green one look like it could be used for hair? Or you could chop off the "fingers" and make some creepy food display.

Want to make bath time fun again?

2009-04-05T00:40:00.007-04:00

Now get your minds out of the gutter. Oh wait, maybe it's only my mind that went that way. If it was, I do apologize. : ) Came across an Etsy store that I had to share. Below are some of the items you can find there. They are all soaps! According to the seller, you can get ketchup or mustard added to your hotdog and if you cut into one of those chocolate cupcakes, you'll see white cream filling. How cute is that? You can pig out and not gain a pound. That's my kind of treat!

Morbid marketplace.

2009-04-04T14:28:00.003-04:00

For all of you out there with a little morbid side, I've got some products for ya' to check out. When you come home from a hard day and feel like you just want to stab something, now you can. When you need a gift for your local coroner, look no further. Just keep these out of reach of your dog. For that morbid Mr. or Miss that has everything, get them this. Shopping accomplished!

Creative, beautiful, dark, hopeful.

2009-04-02T20:10:00.005-04:00

These are the words I would use to describe how I feel about Alexander Jansson's artwork. I stumbled across it today and found it to be breathtaking. Here is a just a sliver of the wonder within. I will most likely share more in the future as it is too wonderful to keep hidden. The piece on the right is titled Her Only Friend The Moon. The piece below is The Great Deceiver. Enjoy, as I have.

A whimsical retreat.

2009-04-01T19:22:00.006-04:00

I ran across this pic the other day and thought I would share. It's such a whimsical bedroom and I've never seen a bed like that. You know I like unique things. : ) Just ignore the skull over the bed. I don't really see how that fits into the decorating theme?

I have a pounding headache right now and all I want right now is my bed so it seemed fitting to post this pic now. Enjoy!

Another way to bring the outside in.

2009-03-31T12:11:00.005-04:00

I came across this on my Internet travels and thought I would share. I really like this idea but I'm sure Vampire Kitini would like it more, which would cause me to not like the idea nearly as much. : ) The mat currently goes for around $193.00 US dollars so it's a little pricey. I think I paid $10 at Kohl's for my current bath mat. This is a very unique item and I'm all about finding interesting things. Plus it would be fun to dance around and water the moss. hee hee

Who left when you arrived?

2009-03-30T19:24:00.004-04:00

I was making my blog rounds today and Creepy Cupcakes had a cool post that I had to steal. : ) Click on the image below to be brought to a Web site where you enter your date of birth. It tells you who else died on your birthday (various years) and if there were any natural disasters that occurred in your birth year.

138,685 People

Natural disasters in 1980
1. Grand Island, Nebraska tornado outbreak
2. Kalamazoo tornado (K-zoo is an hour away from where I was born. I didn't even know about this until now!)
3. "More Trees Down" derecho (wind storm)
4. eruption of Mount St. Helens
5. United States heat wave
6. western Wisconsin derecho

Tons of people died on my b-day in various years but the only names I recognized were:

1999: Shel Silverstein - American poet & composer
1994: John Wayne Gacy - American serial killer (executed)
1977: Joan Crawford - American actress
1863: Stonewall Jackson - American Confederate general
1818: Paul Revere - American patriot
1774: King Louis XV of France

People who died in 1980:
John Lennon - Shot to death by a mentally ill fan. For those who grew up under a rock, he was in The Beatles. : )
John Bonham - Choked to death on his own vomit after consuming a large amount of alcohol. He was the drummer for Led Zeppelin.

I'm going to making another "death" post sometime this week. Stay tuned.

You're killing them!

2009-03-28T14:33:00.004-04:00

I ran across some cool unique items today. Check out Hanging Harry and Dead Fred. They have other pals but I liked those two the best.

Creepy cool party decoration!

2009-03-28T14:11:00.004-04:00

Here's something for your next dark get-together. They're quite unique and everyone will want to know how you did it. Check out the instructions here. I haven't attempted this project but if I ever do, I'll let you know how it turned out.

Vegetarians are screwed.

2009-03-27T21:40:00.004-04:00

In my previous post, I told you that Twinkies are not vegetarian friendly due to the beef fat that's added. Bleh. There are so many products that you would think are safe for vegetarians but they aren't. One item is McDonald's french fries. This may be one you have heard of before. There was a law suit against McDonald's in 2001 brought on by vegetarians and people of the Hindu faith because of the fact that McDonald's fries contain a beef by-product and the public was not told. People who practice the Hindu faith consider cows sacred and someone had said that eating a cow was like eating their mother.

Prior to 1990, McDonald's cooked their fries in 93% beef tallow (fat) and 7% cottonseed oil for flavor. They switched to cooking their fries in 100% vegetable oil due to society concern over cholesterol. They omitted the fact that when the fries are initially prepared, a beef extract is being added to maintain their beefy flavor. In their disclosures, they put "natural flavoring" as one of the ingredients in their fries. By "natural flavoring", they meant beef fat.

Here was one of McDonald's responses to inquiries about their french fries:

The company uses a miniscule amount of beef flavoring as an ingredient in the raw product and it is not required by law to list it as an ingredient. Instead beef flavoring falls under the term "natural flavors".

According to the FDA, that is perfectly within the guidelines. I'm not going to get started on the FDA but let's just say I trust them as far as I can throw them...and they're a big organization.

So what do the french fry ingredients say now?

Potatoes, vegetable oil (canola oil, hydrogenated soybean oil, natural beef flavor [wheat and milk derivitaves]*), citric acid (preservative), dextrose, sodium acid pyrophosphate (maintain color), salt. Prepared in vegetable oil (may contain one of the following: canola oil, corn oil, soybean oil, hydrogenated soybean oil with TBHQ and citric acid to preserve freshness), dimethylpolysiloxane added as an anti-foaming agent. *Contains: Wheat and milk (Natural beef flavor contains hydrolyzed wheat and hydrolyzed milk as starting ingredients).

The crap that we eat is horrifying. Most of what we taste are chemicals made in a lab. One more thing I want to mention. TBHQ in the ingredients above stands for tert-Butylhydroquinone. Consume enough of it and you'll get stomach tumors, cancer and it can damage your DNA. Read that last sentence again. You know what else alters our DNA? Radiation. So eat enough fries and maybe you'll grow another arm? It's Chernobyl on a smaller scale.

Final note: McDonald's does not use beef products in their french fries in India due to the amount of people that practice the Hindu faith. They also do not use beef products in predominately Muslim areas such as Africa, the Middle East and southeast Asia.

Twinkies are not vegetarian fare.

2009-03-27T17:24:00.003-04:00

So you've decided to become a vegetarian. You're not eating any meat, poultry, seafood, or by-products of animal slaughter. So the occasional Twinkie is okay, right? Wrong! If you look at the ingredients on a package of Twinkies, you'll see numerous items, including some you may not be able to pronunciate. Over 30 of the ingredients are either made in a laboratory or are derivitaves of things like coal tar or petroleum. I'm not making this up people. One of the ingredients you'll see is "vegetable and/or animal shortening". So guess what Twinkie uses? Beef fat. Yep, as you bite into that soft pillow of sweetness, you're eating lard from a slaughtered cow. Um, gross.

Take this job and shove it!

2009-03-25T15:22:00.004-04:00

I quit my job today. Yep, you heard (read) me right. I've been with this company for 8 years and even moved to another state while working for them. I started in a new position last fall and never got proper training. They would have me sit with people to learn some things and the rest I had to ask. Our auditors require that we have documented procedures but the auditors don't know that most of them are outdated. I knew, of course, because I tried to use them to train myself and found out they were inaccurate.

So what exactly led to my actions today? Mainly corporate drama. I had been relying on a couple co-workers to help me out when I had questions and I found out that one of them had been feeding me wrong answers on purpose and the other just wasn't listening to what I was asking. So I got in trouble for doing things wrong. When I explained that I had asked my co-workers for help, I was told that they weren't making these mistakes so basically it was my fault. Nice. In all the jobs I have ever had, this is the first where I got in trouble for mistakes. This is the first job where I've had multiple mistakes and even though the mistakes were being made because I was given incorrect information, my boss wouldn't even listen. She's buddies with the co-worker that was giving me wrong information on purpose so of course she sides with her and not me.

The whole thing reeks of BS. I had all I could stand so I put my documentation together to show that I wasn't making these mistakes on purpose or because I was guessing at how to do things. I met with Human Resources, told my side of the story, handed in my badge, and adios! It's sad that I had been with the company for so long and I don't have another job lined up. My health insurance is due to terminate next Tuesday. This economy is awful so I'm crossing my fingers that I can just find some part-time gig to get me by. My gut tells me that I made the right decision so it's all good. Things will work out in the end, I'm sure. Wish me luck!

I feel like such a rebel. hee hee

When you care enough to send the very best.

2009-03-22T16:15:00.005-04:00

There are some people on this planet who really get under my skin. I wish they'd take a long walk on a short dock. I don't have the right amount of middle fingers needed to show these people just how I feel. Top offenders are as follows (in no particular order):

1. People who go under the speed limit.
2. People who pull out in front of me and I have to slam on my brakes.
3. People who use the 10 and under checkout lane when they have wayyy more than 10 items.
4. People who don't go when the light turns green. If I have to wait more than 3 seconds, you're either getting honked at or a nice hand gesture.
5. People who take a Sunday drive on any day of the week, including Sunday. This technically goes with item #1. If you want to take in the scenery, do it some place where I'm not.
6. People who ask how you're doing but don't really care like at a checkout lane. I know this can be an automatic thing but it's rude when someone asks you how you're doing and you respond with a, "Good, how are you?" and they don't respond.
7. People who blare their music in a quiet area. They're only doing this because they think they're cool. I can assure them that they are not.
8. People who screw up food orders. I said NO BEANS dammit!
9. People who hurt others for their own personal gain.
10. Liars. Nuff said.

For all of those lovely people out there, here's your prize:

If you wish to buy this, click here. If you're one of those people who are on the list above, I'll even put a bow on it. I won't be needing any bows though because people who visit my blog, would never be on that list. : )

Water, water everywhere...

2009-03-21T19:56:00.005-04:00

...and not a drop to drink. This quote taken from Samuel Taylor Coleridge, an English poet from the early 1800's. I'm a big fan of water and want to keep abundant clean water around from many years to come. Tomorrow is World Water Day. A day where we can begin to be more conscientious of our water usage. Below are a few tips on how to conserve and make good use of the water we have. Most are obvious but I included them just in case they're new to you.

1. Shut the water off when you're not using it. For example, when you're brushing your teeth. Only turn the water on when you need to rinse your toothbrush.

2. If you have indoor plants or herbs, set out buckets to collect rainwater and use that instead of tap water to give your plants/herbs a drink. Or if you don't have a place to collect rainwater, for some reason, use what's left in your cup when you have a drink of water that you didn't finish. Don't throw it out...use it!

3. If you've got a leaky faucet/toilet, get it fixed.

4. Spend less time in the shower and use a low-flow showerhead.

5. Watch how much water you're using for washing clothes. If you're not putting a bunch of clothes in the washer, don't select "large load".

All simple things to do!

If you leave near Fort Lupton in Colorado, be careful around your water!

Will we ever learn?

2009-03-21T18:25:00.003-04:00

I talked about what happened with Travis the chimp in this story. Yesterday I came across two other recent situations involving primates. The first story comes from Planetsave.com:

A chimpanzee at Sweden’s Furuvik Zoo has been observed chipping at concrete to create discs to throw at visitors. He even made weapons at night to throw at visitors when the zoo opens in the morning.

While Santino the chimp’s retaliatory ways are amusing, they’ve also impressed scientists who believe this is the first evidence of a non-human animal being capable of making plans for the future.

“It implies that they have a highly developed consciousness, including life-like mental simulations of potential events,” said Mathias Osvath, a scientist who studied Santino for over a decade. “They most probably have an ‘inner world’ like we have when reviewing past episodes of our lives or thinking of days to come. I would guess that they plan much of their everyday behaviour.”

Osvath’s observations are only one of many studies that show that non-human primates are capable of some human-like thought. Another recent study showed baboons are capable of matching pictures and recognizing objects.

Unfortunately for Santino, the zoo didn’t think his stone-throwing ways were very cute. They’ve castrated the 31-year-old chimp, thinking it may lower his hormone levels and make him less aggressive.

The second story comes out of Thailand. Leilit Janchoom and his wife purchased a monkey named Brother Kwan. They bought him so he could climb trees and fetch coconuts for them to sell. Mr. Janchoom did not allow the monkey to rest and would beat him if he refused to climb a tree. It is thought that Brother Kwan eventually snapped and dropped a coconut on Mr. Janchoom's head, killing him on the spot.

Animals are smart, people, and you can't treat them badly or try to make a wild animal your pet because 9 times out of 10, they will get their revenge.

Alternative toys for the rest of us.

2009-03-21T00:53:00.002-04:00

So I'm into the darker side of life, in case you didn't know yet. : ) I have a little wish list of things that I would like to buy someday. Things that I can't find at stores around here in my little conservative part of the planet. I thought I would share some of my finds for those who may be of like mind. Enjoy!

BEGoths dolls : If I were able to purchase any two, they would have to be Angelica Noir and Annabelle Lee.

Teddy Scares : My favorite of these is Sheldon Grogg.

Emily The Strange : In particular, Bad Bootsy.

Gorey Details : They have tons of fun toys. Like Skullboy, Lenore stuff, Furry Bones Bunny, Furry Bones Kitty, and although these aren't really toys, they're still pretty nifty. They even have Coraline dolls.

Who says we ever have to grow up?

Bicarbonate Ostylezene Benzoate

2009-03-21T00:03:00.005-04:00

What is bicarbonate ostylezene benzoate? It's actually a "who" not a "what". It's B.O.B. for short and he's a character in a movie that comes out soon call Monsters vs. Aliens. I hadn't heard anything about this movie until I was at Blockbuster the other day and saw this adorable cyclops stuffed creature that I had to have. I haven't bought a stuffed animal/creature in years but he was just too unique to pass up.

After I adopted B.O.B., I went home that night and had to read up on his character and the movie. Apparently he was created when a genetically altered tomato crossed with a chemically altered ranch-flavored dessert topping. Hmm. He's indestructible, has an insatiable appetite, and no brain. He says what he thinks because he has absolutely no filter, which can be a good thing. It sounds like he saves the day in the movie. Go B.O.B.! Stephen Colbert is the voice of the president and he's got at least one funny line, "Boys, set the terror level at code brown. Cause I need to change my pants." hee hee I'm so mature. See the trailer here:

I happen to think B.O.B. is cuter as the stuffed version so here's my recently adopted fellow.

And here he is with Vampire Kitini enjoying some sunshine. Yes, Vampire Kitini can withstand sunlight. He's just that powerful.

Which Living Dead Doll are you?

2009-03-20T00:43:00.002-04:00

Holy crap my night has gotten away from me! I've had something I wanted to post for a couple nights now but keep running out of time. Maybe tomorrow? For now, I have this:

You Scored as Lilith

You are a vampire, or at least if you were a doll. A word of advice, make sure there are no aspen trees in your backyard. (If there are, chop them down.) Aspen is the legendary wood used for stakes. I hope this advice helps you stay alive - wait - you can't die! You're immortal!

Another senseless killing in the name of God.

2009-03-18T18:23:00.004-04:00

What goes on in the minds of people fascinates me. I came across an item on my local news Web site today and it was so bizarre that I had to know more. The story was about a 26 year old man named Andre Thomas (shown above) who murdered his estranged wife and two kids on March 27, 2004. Why did he do this? He claims that his family was possessed by demons, his estranged wife was acting like a whore and that his 4 year old son was the anti-Christ. The details of how they were murdered are in the article below. Afterwards, he went home, stabbed himself and then went to the police station. Thank goodness he turned himself in...who knows what else he would have done?

On April 2, 2004, while in lock-up, he poked his right eye out because it was God's will. How on earth did no one hear him doing this? I find it hard to imagine he poked his eye and pulled it out of the socket in silence. Can this case get any stranger? You bet...read on.

On March 7, 2005, he was found guilty of murder after just 35 minutes of deliberation. The prosecutors immediately wanted to try for the death penalty and they got it.

On December 9, 2008, he poked out his left eye and ATE IT. I wonder if God told him that just poking out another eye wasn't good enough, you had to eat it too?

From what I understand, he has been diagnosed with schizophrenia and is currently serving time in a psychiatric facility while awaiting an execution date.

This article was written by a lawyer and a paralegal so it has more detail than the other info I've read on this case.

So what do you think? Is he really schizophrenic or was he just putting on a show to try to avoid a harsh punishment?