{{FIVE}} Things for Fun...

5 Things I Am Looking Forward To:

watching pro-cycling on tv (at someone else's house since i don't get the ONE channel that airs it), the day when i come home and the house is COLORFUL and peaceful, finishing this book, vacation in the wild west, the ways the Lord is working in my life and my friends' lives right now...pretty awesome and humbling :)

5 Things I Did Yesterday:
browsed the blogs, made pancakes, sorted through the dissheveled stack of printed-out recipes I've been collecting for the past five years or so (yes! I did it!), watched the horrifying wipeouts on the olympic coverage--gah!, went for a walk with slarty.... And that's pretty much all I did yesterday; five things!

5 Things I Wish I Could do:
(((is this including 'cure cancer' and 'end famine' etc or are we talking .... what? that's the problem with me and these question-answer things. I always need clarification. Of course, that's the problem with me and people, too, hahaha... That's not funny, I guess... Okay, back to the questions)))

stop talking when i should (see above paragraph), keep a straight face when i should, keep in touch by snail mail with my pen-pal(s), be neat, use coupons with sophisticated ease

5 Places I’d Like to Travel To:
charleston, sc, new zealand, japan, nepal, new mexico

5 Cute things I've found online lately:

cool table, the best baby (or grownup) afghan I have ever seen, braided headband tutorial, new lisa leonard necklace,
nice bag

Snow & Redecorating

We are on another snow day (yesssss!). I just love the peaceful mornings moving at my own pace. I am not a morning person but I do love mornings. I just need to creep along at my slug's pace, absorbing coffee, until eleven or so. Then I'm good.



Anyhow, one of the hardware mega-giants is having a paint sale. Now, those of you who know me are probably aware of how I detest the rose-patterned wall paper in my kitchen/dining room/bike shop. Sigh. For seven years I have detested it. Where does the time go? This is way over-due.

The problem is, I have such a hard time deciding what color to go with. If it's taken this long to paint the first time, how long will it take to re-paint??

But the sale..... I have to act fast. The room faces eastish. The so-called experts recommend a warm-toned hue.

source

I've been thinking about this color on some or all the walls of our living room since an impromptu drive to the ocean a couple of Aprils ago. Have you been to the Eastern Shore in April? When the skies are gray, the wisteria blooming in the crowns of the tallest trees, the sand glowing, somehow, the water this color? Well, you should.

source

so, after two days of mulling and slugging around, that's what I got, yo. I know. This is why it's taking seven years. Sigh. The journey, the journey, I'm enjoying the journey.

Me 'n' my furfriend are going out into the snow for a bit, now. Ciao.

Happy Valentines Day!

2010

Oh, hello. So it's a totally anti-climactic New Year. I know it's supposed to be a Big One, new decade and all. Whatever. Perhaps after last years' high drama, this one just couldn't compete. It's the first New Year since Grandpa's passing a couple of weeks ago; I'm sure that's giving our family the ho-hums, with the memorial service looming sometime in the coming days.

Also, I spent the evening at home with Slarty. As in, by ourselves. The neighborhood kids are teenagers now, in skinny jeans, and waaay to cool to ring our doorbell at midnight to wish as a happy one. I had a couple of offers but still opted to stay in. If this happens again--Husbfriend working--I think I will have me own little shindig. (Does 'shindig' mean dance? 'Cuz I don't think we should dance, necessarily. If it means dance, then pretend I said 'soiree'.)

I did, however, sneak off to my friend's salon and get a fabulous new 'do. Those of you who have had to deal with my un-fabulous old 'do, conscientiously avoiding direct eye contact with it--Rejoice! Sorry it's taken so long! So great to have a buddy whom I fully trust with my lackluster locks. Thanks, Karen!

You know how I feel about resolutions...Okay, I'll tell you anyway. Impossible. Reckless. Doomed to failure. Impractical. I feel especially vehement about them, probably, because of all the retro-learning/conditioning I've had to do in the course of my adult (ha!) life. I'm a messy, a schizo, a flake, and ashamed of it no longer. I know that I--and others like me--have to carefully and gradually plan these changes. No such thing as magic. So New Years' resolutions scream, "Bad idea!" at me.

On the other hand, one of the reasons I love January (and I do love January) is because it's such a fresh, clean beginning. (That's what I kind of like about Mondays, too. I know. Hiss. I like House and Castle, too, though.)

So maybe I will make a little list of non-resolutions for 2010. Okay? Okay.

So. We went to Amish Country in Buckeyeland, and there was this shop. Where there was this sign: Supplies for Fairy Gardens. Which look like this:



Mom and I were enchanted. (Not enchanted enough to pay $84, but still.) So she and I spend the next day working on our own. And the day after that hobbling around with sore muscles. Gardening is serious business, folks.

I'll post pics soon.

What I've Been Missing

For several (several) years, we have been in Colorado for the Fourth of July. Now, don't get me wrong. That's been a great--actually, a "zany"--place to be. But there were certain things I missed. I can't go into details, much. There was just a general feeling of missing things with our family and friends.

But I knew I missed the WV Arts and Crafts Fair. We would always go on Sunday (because we're cheap) so we could *maybe* get in for free or reduced price, and find some steals as the exhausted crafter artisans prepared to pack up and head home. Good times.

Since we had to schedule vacation later this year, I was stoked for the Fair. But, gasp! It was shorter this year--no Sunday! I came so close to missing out. (That's another story about me and some wicked angel cake. I won't tell you this story. It involves horrifying gluttony and a humiliating repentance.) But I drove down there myself on the 4th because I could NOT miss it. Who knows when the next time would be?

I had a good time even though I had a cake hangover and was some lonesome. Certain things the same, others different. I bought only food, but I took photos of my phavorites--my best of show, if you will. (Christmas hints!)



These are pendants made from broken china! So neat. Anna's China Jewelry: annaschinajewelry@yahoo.com I really should've zoomed in some but I was being jostled.

Lovely lovely yarns. I must learn to make something other than scarves and assorted squares and rectangles. I have a book from the library on that, but that's tangential, so back to the yarn: Cyndi Bolt Designs: cyndi@cyndibolt.com



This is the quilt that won the show. I'm not generally a multiple-pastel person, but I loved it. I didn't write down the information for this artsy person, but the wvaacf website may list it.


Seriously, someone get me this pottery birdbath for Christmas. I don't even want a stand for it. I just love it resting in among the flowers like this. And a teapot. I want a teapot, too. (All of her pottery can go in the micro, oven, and dishwasher! Wha?!)


Someday when I have a gorgeous home, I picture this somewhere in it. All of their work was...well, have a look at it yourself.

Also of note was Krack's Fiddle Shop. I was pretty sure the cat playing the fiddle was, indeed, the Jake Krack. So I was star-struck because I have this CD. So I just crept around pretending to look at instrumental things I have no idea about while he sat there fiddling and talking to customers. Yep.

And there was a felted wool booth that was totally IT. I think her name is Anne Grimes. Anyone have any more info? Love to have more time to browse her work....

So, Happy Fourth and crafting :)

The West Virginia Writers' Conference

Finished up the WVW Annual Conference yesterday at Cedar Lakes in Ripley. As usual, my brain is bulging with all my new knowledge. Can I be any more inspired? Shoot, no. So many new ideas, new advice, new people. It was a lovely, exhausting--dare I say, super-sweet?--weekend.

Thanks to Granny Sue Holstein's suggestions for Ripley's best restaurants, I found this little gem:




I'm in love. It reminds me of a couple of places I used to work, a couple of people I loved, and a couple of wistful ideas all rolled into one. It's got small-town charm. It's got good, greasy food. And it serves breakfast all day. I love, love, love it. (I'm not sure it loves me, yet. But don't worry. I'll win it over.)