Well, It's Friday

Ariel is now an official junior high school student. We went to "graduation", which lasted for about an hour. She got a medal for A/B Honor Roll this past six weeks, and she has a nice certificate that says she has completed elementary school. She and her best friend, Emily, are outside enjoying the pool.

You know how I keep telling you that I'm not stressed? Well, I have this honkin' big fever blister on my mouth that says otherwise. There's nothing like standing up in front of 20 people with a big ole beacon on your face. Luckily the ENT doc gave me some antiviral meds to take and I bought some concealer to kind of tone down the angry magenta color it's sporting.

I'm off to run a couple of errands, then it's back to the creating of kits! Woo hoo! Down the home stretch she goes! Have a great weekend!!!

What Have I Been Dreaming Of?

I've pretty much been dreaming of this stuff, or at least thinking about it --- A LOT! Please take note that I did not say anything about stress. There is still no stress. Stunned and amazed, my family is!
And this is what I would like to do when I come home from seminar. We haven't taken a ride in so long I may loose my Iron Lady status! Hopefully, we will be able to afford a trip this summer.

So today I'm off to see the doctor, then back to some cows in a meadow (you'll see, you'll see). Tomorrow Ariel "graduates" from elementary school. We have been trying to explain to her that this is not as important as graduating from high school, but her teachers are making it a very big deal. *sigh* We are proud of her and of all her accomplishments and will probably take her to lunch. I know she's excited about this, so I'm trying not to burst her little bubble (mean old Mom).

Anyway, I must be off. I'll try to pop back in tomorrow! Have a beadiful day!

Tap Tap, Tapity Tap, Tapity Tap Tap Tap

I am typing away today. I've got one more piece of stitching to finish and type, then I'm putting together all the kits.

Did I mention that the chicken coop and hen house got finished at last? Well, they did. Talk about some happy campers! (and I mean us AND the chickens) I had to take them all into the house the first night. At dusk, they were all huddled in the corner, cheeping for Mama Hen. T-man had to pass them through their little doors and I put each of them on the roost. Then we closed the doors so they would stay in all night. The next morning, we let them out and fed them. We got home after dark Monday and they were all in the house! Smart little buggers, aren't' they? Now they go in each night on their own. They've made it theirs in more ways than I care to describe. But they are happy. And some of them are starting to cluck. My babies are growing up!

Needless to say, today you get another quickie. You do get a quote today, not necessarily an art quote, but it's a good quote:

A hen is only an egg's way of making another egg.
Samuel Butler

Bead it! Now scram!

Got Time For A Quickie??

That's all I have - time for a quickie. There are two more priority projects to finish (as in fringes and photos). Then all that's left is making kits, which is the nasty part of the business, but I'll muddle through as stress free as possible.

I hope you all had a relaxing weekend. Ours was kind of a mixed venue, but yesterday was nice. We sat by the pool and drank piña coladas. Then we floated and drank piña coladas. Very relaxing.

I'm off. Bead happy!

The Art of Contemplation

I've spent the day contemplating, not my belly button, but where I want to take my little business. I'd like for it to be a big business, but the economy might have to change drastically for that to happen, plus I'd like to remain a one person show. I could be content with money for groceries every month. My biggest challenge is that, in order to succeed, I will need to travel. ugh

I'm talking airplanes, airport security, air travel restrictions, airport traffic, flight cancellations, and new fees that pop up over night. Maybe I could take a train? And I'm a girl who likes sleeping in her own bed. I like sleeping in my own house, where the sounds are all familiar. And I must say, I like sleeping next to my husband, even when he hogs the bed. Yes, yes, I'm making excuses. Probably so.

There are also a lot of steps I can take in cyber space to expand my empire. In fact, I've been making a list and it's grown quite extensive. I keep telling myself (and everyone else) that I'll get to it as soon as seminar is finished. Oh my stars, am I going to busy when seminar is finished! Probably just as busy as I am right now. There's the web site that needs things fixed, there are links to add to the blog, the Etsy store needs attention, etc., etc., etc.

So beadlings, today I have contemplated my life with beads and I still don't have the answer to why the sky is blue, other than it is an indication of where to stop mowing. And yes, I am still in the market for a good, used replicator. Bead on!

Lazy Day

I didn't get much sleep last night. We haven't turned the AC on yet, and it took a while for yours truly to cool off enough to sleep at all. Needless to say, it was so hot that I couldn't keep the CPAP on either. So I'm seriously considering not doing much of anything today. Maybe I'll sit on the floor in front of the television and play video games all day. I haven't done that since, well I'm not sure when.

I've been working on a three dimensional piece and was hoping to have the instructions ready for seminar, but I may have to put it away and concentrate on other things right now. It's simple for me to execute it, but I need to be able to put it into clearly understandable words and pictures and I don't think my time will allow for that. So it's on to the next item on the list.

We now have arugula, radishes and tomatoes coming out of the garden daily. T-man is quite pleased. He keeps telling the hens to start laying. I keep telling him that won't do any good.

I hope you are having a day as gorgeous as the one I'm having here. Your art quote for the day:

You don't know how much artists go through to make it look so easy. It's all in the practice.
Lauryn Hill

Monday Musings

For the first time in I don't know how long, I slept through the entire night and I did it with the CPAP on all night, again for the very first time. I truly do not know what to think of this. It may take a few waking hours to wrap my brain around the concept.

I'm trying to finish one last project for seminar, which will be a pattern only. I may kit them later, but if I do so they will be limited edition kits due to the presence of some vintage beads. We'll see how that goes. And I've got an easy one to finish, which will also be a limited edition due to the presence of some Pam beads. She can only work so fast, you know!

What did I do all weekend? Well, I typed and I stitched. I watched some really bad TV while I stitched. I played with the chickens and the kittens, and that's about it. Pretty boring, huh? T-man has almost finished the chickens' new home and he's complaining that their house may be better built than ours. It's made of insulated tin on a pier and beam foundation, secured so that critters can't get my chickens. There is ceramic tile on the floor (some we got free off Craig's list). We had read on the Internet that someone else did this because it made it easier to clean the hen house. It seemed sensible to T-man, so that's what he did. There are windows for air flow, little chicken doors and a full-sized Theresa door. And last, but not least, they have a big yard. And all of this is being done with the capability to expand and add more cluckers in the future. Yes, that is correct, more chickens next year. And we are again discussing goats. There is a reason, and I'm trying to make it rational.

As some of you know, the light of my life, the fire in my heart, the man to whom I pledged my troth is a doomer. Yes, yes, it's true I married a conspiracy theorist who is convinced the end of the world is nearing. In order to survive, we must become self-sufficient and get off the grid.

Okay, I can deal with some of this. I like being self-sufficient. I like having things that make us the money to obtain things that otherwise would not be obtainable. I like the idea of selling eggs, chickens, veggies, herbs, flowers and goat cheese in order to obtain those nifty, needful things. I like the idea of having a windmill so that I don't feel like we are the majority supporter of the electric co-op. These are good things. So I go along with all the other crap that he believes. That's what love is, kids. So I googled some things yesterday on farmlettes, urban homesteading and the like. Some of it was very interesting (I will not mind having a farmlette) and some of it was a bit over the top. Again, this is what constitutes love in my book. I just go with the flow and tell him when I'm tired of listening to it. *sigh*

Well, I've had my first cup of coffee and if I don't move from here to the sofa, I won't get that project finished. Obviously, there is no such thing as beading elves to do it for me. Maybe I should leave brownies out? Nope, that would just draw ants. Anyway, happy beading to you. I hope you have a lovely Monday.