Thursday, September 30, 2010

it's a new day.....









 
a very wet, soggy day
but nevertheless
a good one.
We have a "system" over us. Actually, anybody on the East Coast has it.
all the way down to Cuba
and all the way up North to who knows where
that is drenching us in
wonderful,
wet,
moist,
watery
water!!
The lake is filling up fast,
the ducks and geese are swimming from one end to the other,
smiling,
yes they smile
!!!
the ground is wet and absorbing it all
and the sound of raindrops
on the roof is just
wonderful.
The fact that I had to sleep on the couch last night,
because we have a mystery leak in the sky light,
didn't even bother me!!!
The husband checked to see where it was coming from
but couldn't find a wet spot or see where the drops were coming from
and why my feet were wet,
but it didn't bother me.
After trying to find a way to sleep without my feet "in water"
I just grabbed my pillow and changed sleeping spots.



The cat makes a lot of noise in the quiet of the night!!
She paces and digs in her litter box
she slurps her water and when licking the last morsel out of her feeding dish
she moves the dish across the tile floor.
She sat and stared at me for a while, purring very loudly....
It didn't bother me!!!

My decision to quit trying to fight
Google and Blogger
was the right one.
I did not decide to quit the blogging,
as some of you may have thought,
just the loading of the pages.
It will happen at some point.
I will get the light bulb over the head moment
or the problems THEY are having will be solved
and
one day you will click on the blog and there they will be, in all their glory,
and
 Thank You for the words of encouragement and  the offer of help!!!
That's really nice!!!
So,
today is a day to relish having to stay inside.
We are under a Tornado Watch all day and into the evening
but as long as it stays calm and just plain rain
all will be well.
I went to the store yesterday and got things to make
"Comfort food"
we had the most delicious dinner last night.
(I make a mean meat loaf.....
my kids used to ASK for it
much to the surprise and disgust of their friends)!!!
Apple Pie with ice cream (yuk) for the hubs
and tonight we will have
"goulash"
that I cooked long and slow
 yesterday when I got back.


So, its a day of tidying up and reading and hooking
and watching whatever is on later.
We watched another episode of
Inspector Lewis last night
taped from Sunday
wish I had saved it for today...
but it doesn't bother me
not one bit
no more being bothered by little things.
I'll save it for the
big, important things...
 See Ya,
later
.......

:)




Wednesday, September 29, 2010

I tried, I cried......




I'm fried!!!

I am ending this now and for (maybe) ever!
If and when the problems with
Google and Blogger
are fixed
I will try again to put Tutorial Pages up
...........................................................
until then
...............

!!!!!!!!!!!!!
:)

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

waffle weave stitch tutorial



Waffle weave

this makes a really nice wash cloth
(too bumpy for a doily)
two would make a good hot pad

**************************************************************



make a chain as long as you want
make a dc in the 3rd chain from the hook
and dc across the chain

ch3 and turn the work
2dc in first 2 stitches
1 fpdc in next dc


(a fpdc is made by
yo
put the hook into and behind the dc below
yo and finish the dc )
 
 







2 dc in next 2 dc







ch 3 turn
2 fpdc in first 2 dc
1 plain dc in next stitch
 
 
 
you are doing the opposite of the row below
2 fpdc
1 dc



all the way across

 
 
 
the back looks like this
 

 
 
you'll see the squares of the waffle begin on the front


 
 
keep doing this until your work is as big as you want it
 

 
 
and soon you will have a
WAFFLE
 
but no syrup on this one
unless you've spilled it!!!

I want to make a pillow with this stitch
but I'm afraid if I fall asleep on it
I'll
have
Waffle Cheeks
and
no one needs
Waffle Cheeks!!!

speaking and writing...




properly
 is one of my pet peeves
meaning I don't like it when it isn't  done correctly.
I am not the world's most articulate person
but I damn well try my best
especially when writing
Ms Emma Thompson thinks so too
that people should speak properly
not that
I.......
here let me let her tell you!!!!


She said: "We have to reinvest, I think, in the idea of articulacy as a form of personal human freedom and power."
Ms Thompson added that on a visit to her old school she told pupils not to use slang words such as "likes" and "innit".
"I told them, 'Just don't do it. Because it makes you sound stupid and you're not stupid."

If you want to read the rest it is


 My biggest peeve is people who don't read what they just wrote
 and don't correct the mistakes.
A whole blog post
f'rinstance!!


filled with mistypes
or words that make no sense
obvious spelling mistakes
just make me cringe and my teeth hurt.
I am not talking about those whose language isn't English
I mean English/American/Australian
speakers.
It really detracts from what they are saying
when you sit there and all you see are the mistakes
Sorry,
but it's true
there are spell checkers
and
 just reading over what they wrote might help too.

The excuse usually given is
I type too fast....
or my brain is ahead of my fingers.
so, slow down
it isn't a race to the end
and you don't win if what you took so long to write is a mess!!

(We aren't talking about MY bad habit of not using proper punctuation here on the blog. 
I am fully aware of it and I do it anyway
that's how this blog rolls.)


On a brighter note
(edited......the note is not bright at all.............nothing is working properly and I don't know why so
I have to try again to get the new pages to work so let's just pretend this was never ever mentioned
OK?    OK!!))))))
******
the page is hopefully working now
for the tuts
I got an email from across the pond saying they weren't working
so I went back and fixed the problem
I HOPE
there are still hiccups and glitches and burps with
 logger
.......


apparently

is overloaded
and
it keeps kicking people off
and
the comments don't work all the time
and lots of other
boring, annoying
computer things
that just drive me crazeeeeeeeeee
so hopefully it will all be fixed soon and I won't have to mention it again!!!

OH and remember........


:)

( If all these graphics gave you a big headache.... I apologise
you're not the only one!!!) 

Monday, September 27, 2010

Yeah!!



My brain works.....

blogger isn't working
all sorts of glitches and hiccups and burps
 today
can't find what the problem is
but that isn't unusual
hope they fix it soon
'coz it's
annoying!!!
so it took nearly all day to do
but
it's
done
I have a
 tutorial
page at the top
with a few
"tuts"
now there will be no crochet on the home page
some of my readers
aren't crocheters
and have no interest what so ever

so I strive to please

when I have a tut
there will be mention of it
maybe a photo or six
but
the pattern will be posted in the tut page
tut tut tut
love it!!!
off to work on my waves...


tut to follow soon!!!

toot toot

:)


la langue des oiseaux.....



the language of the birds.....
In Norse mythology, the power to understand the language of the birds was a sign of great wisdom.

The concept is also known from many folk tales (including Welsh, Russian, German, Estonian, Greek, Romany), where usually the protagonist is granted the gift of understanding the language of the birds either by some magical transformation, or as a boon by the king of birds. The birds then inform or warn the hero about some danger or hidden treasure.
(from Wikipedia)


For the past few weeks I have noticed the lack of birds and their calls.
Our garden has been devoid of my little creatures
from whom I get so much pleasure.
the robins, the cardinals, the blue jays

the cat bird that sits on the plant holder
or lamp post
and just stares at me
I mentioned it to the man and he said he had noticed their absense too.
We have had not one visit from the ducks this year.
There is a flock of ducks who live here all the time


and they come up into the yard and walk around like they own the place
leaving signs on the patio that they have been!!!
But not this year.
this is from last Spring  2009
The doves that made their nests in the bushes right outside the house
haven't been around for months.
It has been sad not to have them singing and flying around
and it took weeks of their absense for me to notice.


The bird bath has been kept full
I don't put seed out in the Summer
the Squirrels eat it all and if it gets wet it molds
but they always seem to find something to munch on or worms to pull up out of the ground
but not this year.


But this story has a happy ending
no pictures
because they move too fast
but when I went out a little while ago
they were there
flying around the trees
eating the berries on the Dogwood
sitting in the Blue Spruce
picking at whatever
and
singing
their
little
hearts out


You know why?
You don't have to have the magic
or the power
or be a king
or wizard

the answer is
it's raining!!!!

When I next go to the store
I will bring back a big bag of seed
I will fill the feeders
and put fresh water in the bowls
to let them know they were missed
and I'm happy they are back
here
where they belong!!!!

tweet ---tweet
y'all!!!!

:}


Sunday, September 26, 2010

Sunday 'phone talks...







aren't they the best?!
You call a friend
or she calls you
and the question
are you busy
is asked
and the answer is always
no
(not for you)
and you start the catch-up phase of the talk
who did what
when and to who(m)!!
the little things in a day or a week
cup cakes that were to "die for"!!
and then the real stuff begins
the stuff that sits on your brain
and drives you nuts
and you need to hear it from another point of view
from someone who knows you... knows how you work
you tell each other the truth
the way old friends can and do and should
you listen, you close your eyes and try to "see" what they are telling you
you try to see them as the story unfolds
she listens and says the thing you needed to hear
the thing that makes perfect sense
and you wonder why you didn't see it
and she says
that's why I'm here.....
you laugh you cry
you guffaw like two high school girls and you even get silly
that's what old friends are for
for being
YOU
and
you 
are just enough for
HER
you don't have to impress
or stun her with who you are
you can just
" be"
no pretense
no secrets
just a voice on the other end of the phone
who says things that make you
SEE
and
make you
KNOW
and
you have
AH HA
moments together
that bring you closer
and solve the problems of the ages
and you wonder why you both don't go to a cabin
in the woods and solve all the problems
because let's face it
you are both brilliant.....
should write a book
one day
one year


you listen, you tell, to how hard things are
sometimes
how the family drives you nuts
sometimes literally
to the brink
and you have to fight and fuss
and they don't see what you are trying to do
because they don't get it
and you do
and until they do
you're screwed



you share the past
a past that spans the life times of your children
you  remember things about them that you had forgotten
her "girls"
and
my "boys"
the day my first went to her house and ate black eyed peas
once and never again
the giant cookie she made one day
the size of a pizza pan
and we let them eat it!!!
the way her girls would eat anything
if she told them I had made it
her first gave me the title of
"the best cooker in the world"
which I should get out and dust off one of these days!!!!
the kids....... all "old people" now!!
what does that make us
it makes us
two friends who have shared a life together
some of it close
most of it far
and when the distance gets too much
you pick up the phone
and bring her close
but it is there
and will be forever
the stories will continue
and the laughter
like the trip she and her husband took
across the width of South Dakota
in two days
straight across
there and back
they got to see
" nothing "
twice
and all they were left with was
 the question
why did god create
SD???
(if any of you reading this live there
hey
it's just one woman's opinion!!!)
.....
time well spent
friendship shared
long distance
but she is there
always
at the end of the phone
never too busy
not for you....


You know who you are
:)
and those balloons you let go of
I'll watch out for them
and if I look real hard
I'll see them
I think I already did!!
you keep the ticket in a safe place
and one day the owner will come claim it
I just know it
I just
KNOW


If you have a friend you haven't spoken to in a while
give them a call
they could use a break
 a good cry
or better yet
a girlish guffaw....or two!!!

:} :} :}


Experimenting......



This is the tale of a woman on the edge of computer melt down!!!

:}

I spent a lot of yesterday trying to use my brain.....
for those of you who know me
you know that can be a very frustrating and scary thing to be around
I certainly am not the most patient person on the planet
I am not stupid
I am not dumb
but
BOY
do I act it until I figure out what it is I am trying to do

the man woke up to find me
on the verge of tears
 he knows to step lightly!!
he offers help
is told
NO
I'll figure it out myself
that's how one learns
he leaves
knowing soon
I will be there
ranting and raving about how dumb one human being can be
and does he know
how stupid the woman he married is?
DOES HE???
He offers to help once again
quietly and calmly
asks what the problem is
...
I do not speak computer speak
so he has to try and figure out
what the hell it is I am trying to say!!
He sits
listens
does a few things
doesn't know how to work the blog
I get overprotective
try to be just plain and simple nice
but it's getting more complicated
because
he speaks
computer speak
and
I don't
It isn't very hard to do what I was trying to do
but I make it worse by
well
just
being
me!!
As I watch and tell him where all the pages and buttons to work the blog are
(and for those of you who have a blog
you know how EASY THAT is!!!)
it starts to dawn on me
I start to understand and figure it out
I see the light at the end of
this deep dark tunnel
I dug MYself!!!
 I visit other blogs who have what I want
I look
I study
I DON'T UNDERSTAND
but I go back and try again
and I throw my hands up and walk
......
and the day goes on and I think about it
I also have, on my little feeble  mind a pattern I saw
with no instructions
and I want to know how to do that too
so I think about both at the same time
and "thank gaia"
dinner was simple and a no brainer
or he'd still be waiting to eat!!!
I figured the pattern out
almost
and this morning I sat down and I did what I wanted to do without
having a hissy fit
and it is on the top of the page
and
children, learn from this
terrible example of mine
be patient
with yourself
your spouse
and
BLOGGER!!!
So, if you would like to make a
WAFFLE WEAVE
cloth
click on the TUTORIAL button on the top of the page
HEY!!! even if you DON'T
CLICK ON THE DAMN button anyway
it took blood sweat and tears to get it up there
and I did it
not very gracefully or patiently
I know...
 now all I have to figure out is
HOW TO DO IT AGAIN
!!!!!!!
lol
THE RAVING LUNATIC
in the
roomontheleft
it's safe to come in now
xxx





Friday, September 24, 2010

Friday finds.....



Today I am going to show you some really
"neat" things from other peoples sites.
I roam the Net
hither and yon
and see so many wonderful things
yes from crochet
to paper
to imaginations
gone wild....
to simple stunning sumptuousness's
so I thought I would gather a few together and show you what I see
......henry!!!!
(I say that because if you look under my header photo, at the moment,
you will see how the quote has  ended up)



this is stunning
paper carving.....
go and see!!

I found this link on
the quilling page I visit
"all things paper"..
it's where I get my paper fix!!!
Ann finds and shows us
 all things paper
as her title suggests!!!

Lisa, who lives in the
Woods up North
and blows me away with her
felt work
and
knowledge about all things woodsy
this is hand made
out of re purposed wool items
she made this!!!!!
As I told her the other day
she is giving
Mother Nature a run for her money
love it
want one, want to know how to make one!!!!

this is the work of Ingrid
who recently became a follower
this is the first vignette I saw of hers
blue and white
my favorite!!!
her site is called
I adore her compositions
and strive to do what she does
with her things around the house!!
i have a looooong way to go!!!!



this wonderful little morsel of stitchery
gone organic
is from
her patience and talent
is incredible to me
something else I want
have tried
but failed
sometimes things just "belong" to others
and you must acknowledge that!!!!
and be satisfied.
I am!!!



she works with white clay and uses things around her
to do things like this
simple serene
sumptuous
have one of my own
that I made a long time ago
and when I saw these
WOW!!!!
So one more....

(and I'll save the rest of the treasures for another time)




from Jo
who has a muse called
Mo
Mo is a little so and so
go and see
so you will know

Until the next time
have a wonderfilled
treasure of a day
sit in a favourite chair
with your muse
and
enjoy what you enjoy!!!!

;}

Thursday, September 23, 2010

Cleaning the desk off.....







again!!!

How many times does one clean the desk off?
In this room
at least twice a week
everyday
not often enough!!!
Having a tiny house tends to make it very easy to
junk spaces up
rapidly
very quickly
fast
...
tidy to
zoom
untidy

I try to keep the chaos down to a small roar
but sometimes you just have to
clear the decks and go at it.
Being one
who tends towards
fickleness
and
short attention span
I do
tend to mess the place up rather quickly.



The man in the
roomontheright
has been sorting his mess out this week
he is a keeper of boxes
any shape
colour
purpose
he
s
t
a
c
k
s
 them
up against his wall
 says he may need them
if the contents need to be returned
I can't tell you how many he
folded stapled and mutilated
and then finally
got rid of!!!
then the cupboard needed
sorting
he is tidy,
but limited space makes it difficult to keep things
 from teetering on the edges of the shelves



his book case is bowing in the middle
like big smiley lips
heavy with tomes of all knowing!!
(he reads alot)

I have books
but they don't weigh the shelves down
I prefer lighter reading
!!!!!
:p


Anyway
in the course of his sorting
things found their way into
theroomontheleft...
so now I can keep  books tidily in a holder

the little turbaned guys have a box to live in


see how happy they look!!!!


the pens and pencils and tweezers and awls and pointy things that hurt
are now all back in their place

those gawd awful earrings I made months ago
are on Mr m&m....
he looks happy too!!!
and his tummy is full again

the lazy-susan is cleared and  rotates again!!

I found this sparkly little number
lost and forgotten
but found and remembered


so was the pen I just had to have....
didn't realise he matches the scissors
always an important thing to remember!!!

now when I need some sort of glue
it's in here....
when the man says
do you have glue
any kind of glue
and you show him the box
but he says
no not that kind....
remember that!!


and I found my birds
and put them up with the teeny tiny little pegs I had to have too
used some glue dots,
 you know from the box....I just showed you
to stick them on the wall.

and finally
( I can hear you cheering!!!!!)
this is how my room would look
if I had a room like this
see that clever storage unit under the bed?
Maybe I can convince the man in the
roomontheright
to build me one and then I could make
...
 that gorgeeeeeous blanket on the bed???


we come from
Wild Olive
free download

Life can always use a little
turbaned
thread bobbin
can't it???