that was Fierce

Last night we had friends over for dinner and so I missed the majority of the season finale of Project Runway. I wasn’t able to really keep up with the season as much as I wanted but through reruns I caught the majority of the episodes. I really enjoy the show, I don’t care for the “reality” bit of it, I like to watch them draw a dress or outfit and then it just amazes me that in a few short hours they have it sewn and put together. Color combos, textures, the works. It’s nothing that I would ever wear, but that doesn’t matter b/c most of the time I don’t think that’s the point.
At the beginning of the season I thought Christian was this little annoyingly full-of-himself guy, and he is. But by mid season I was laughing out loud at his comments and his egotism. “Fierce” is the new word of the day. He can always make me smile b/c I think he’s really a sweet guy, he’s just a bit over the top. Anyway I was excited to hear he made the final three and would have a collection at fashion week along with Jillian. I like her style of clothing more than anyones. Rami also joined the final three. His clothes are very elegant, but I don’t really care for him. I caught the last half hour of the show last night, just enough to see the runway and who won. Based on the judges descriptions I thought for sure Rami had it. But I was very surprised and kinda happy that Christian actually won. The guy was almost speechless! I’m not sure why that made me happy but it did. I would have been thrilled if Jillian had won it too. You can tell all three of them but a lot of thought, time, and a bit of themselves in each piece.
Top Chef starts next week, I also really like to watch people cook. One of my goals for the year that I’m doing fairly well with is to cook more. I’m learning tons from the food network, getting ideas, and learning what spices go well together. I guess I enjoy watching people make things with their hands, whether its food, clothes, or who knows what else.

because I can’t

I think it’s because I can’t bead right now, and thats whats making me want to!  Actually I can bead, but I’m glad that I’m not.  We’ve finished up the majority of the woodwork now.  There are two coats of poly on the hand railing and one on the wood in the kitchen.  The railing needs one more, and the other needs two, but that won’t happen for a while.  The real reason beading’s not happening is that so far this week we’ve both been fighting off colds or the flu or something funky.  Beading while sick or not feeling well is not productive for me.
 
I’m hoping we’ll both be better by the weekend.  We’ve rented a cabin in southern Illinois down at Giant City State park.  We plan to do some hiking in the Shawnee National forest, and then taste some wines at the wine trail down in that area.  I’m really excited to check out the wineries, March is Vintage Art month on the wine trail.  So each winery is displaying art from local artists.  It’s been a while since we’d done anything art related so it will be fun to check that out.  Unfortunately the weather is supposed to be cold, we were hoping for it to reach the 50ies but we’ll be lucky to get 40ies.  But then they also said we’d get snow this week…I’m still waiting.  I think I’m going to stop watching the weather man, I don’t like what they say the majority of the time, and when I do they’re wrong.

Here’s another picture from last June.  It’s of Mom’s clematis, she has several really big beautiful clematis growing up a trellis in the back.  The entire plant is covered in blooms in June.  I’m thinking I might get one for my yard, its too bad they’re awfully spindly looking when they first start out.  I think Mom’s is about 15years old.  I love the center of this flower.  It’s so unique, and when the flower is done, the petals drop and the center kinda spreads out a little into a globe. 

watch kitties

Another busy productive weekend! I was craving the feeling of accomplishment and I got what I wanted. Saturday morning we did a bunch of errands which included the vet, and both kitties being put on medication. Orion is so funny, he doesn’t like it but he’ll deal with it. Mira fights it for about five minutes then she’s all pooped out and gives in. She’s cranky for another five minutes then she’s over it. After the errands we got to work, setting up, sanding, and stripping some woodwork around the railing and in the kitchen area. I’d forgotten how much work wood work is, which is probably why it has been put off for a year. At this point we called it a night and Chris worked on music while I finished our wedding picture album. That only took a year and half, it weighs a ton, but it’s finished.
Yesterday the weather was amazing. Warm right off the bat, and got up to 69 degrees! We opened up every window in the house. It felt so good to listen to the birds, and have fresh air in the house. Until we started staining all the wood! That stunk up the house again. We got a layer of stain on everything, let that dry and put on the first coat of polyurethane. While letting the stain dry we made a screen window to put in the front window. This will let the breeze go right through the house and it lets the kitties play watch kitty. We didn’t even have to lock them up while we worked they were so busy watching everything going on outside. And finally the last thing accomplished Sunday night was I pulled out some beads and made a flower. I think I might be getting ready for greens too…which means I’ll have stuff to show off again soon.
Now the weather is turning cold again, we’re supposed to get a few inches of snow. At least we had one spring day, that way we know spring can’t be too far off.

happy leap day

It’s kinda weird to think that this day didn’t exist last year.  I didn’t have to be at work, watching the clock tick tock until the wonderful hour of 3.  We woke up this morning with another layer or wet snow, this weekend is supposed to get up into the 40ies so that should melt a bunch of whats left.  It’s also good timing b/c we plan to do some of the wood work around the house, and staining can get stinky.  So we should be able to crack the windows a bit and get some fresh air. 

Here’s another flower to help bring happy warm thoughts.  It was taken last June from a flower pot on Mom’s deck.  I like this one, I need to find a way to make a center like this in beads.  Not much bead wise has been going on.  I’m hoping some inspiration will hit me soon, my hands want to keep busy. 

making my own spring

This is my best attempt at bringing a little spring to my life…I dug through my pictures of flowers and will post them here to bring in Spring.  It was fun flipping through all my older pictures.  This was taken early last summer.  Mom and Dad brought me some potted annuals, dahlias, in a cool pot.  This was one of the flowers that did really well.  So pretty. 

Yesterday Chris and I talked about my blahness…what is causing it etc.  I came up with what I posted yesterday, winter blues, and after the big project blahness.  I’m not in the mood to do anything, but I’m craving the satsified feeling of accomplishment.  I really don’t want to feel either, so my flower picture idea is my defense for the winter blues.  And to combat the blahness I decided to work on putting together our Jamaica scrap book.  It is a source of creativity, and needs to get done.  I worked on it the majority of last night and have everything in it from Jamaica.  Now just have to add the pics from the celebration party.  This will hopefully give me the sense of accomplishment and fight off the blahness.  We shall see how it goes.  This weekend we’re planning some more house stuff, stripping and staining some wood.  That’s been a chore I’ve been putting off for close to a year.

In the evenings or between coats of polyurithane I plan of working on some flowers.  Small ones, to get my color juices flowing.  I already have three hand bouquets put together, but they need leaves.  And I’m just not in the mood for greens. 

not much

Not much has been going on to blog about recently. I seem to be in a sorta funk, I think it’s brought on by the persistant dreary days of Feb. I also just finished two fairly large pieces and am experiencing the blahness that occurs after the excitement of finishing. Good news is this morning while shoveling the 3 inches of snow I heard a cardinal singing, it’d been a while since I’d heard one. That has to be a good sign.

eclipse

Last night was a total lunar eclipse, sorta fitting with our two kitties with celestial names.  We remembered it around 9pm and each took a kitty outside to see it.  We didn’t get to see the total eclipse but saw it while it was partial.  It had been years since I’d watched/seen one.  It was very cool, and even more frosty outside so we didn’t stick around to watch it long.  Although I read in the news today that if we had looked at it through some binocculars we could have seen Saturn and the star Regulus which is part of the Leo constalation.  That could have been neat.

Last night we spent a long time at the Vet.  Mira went in for a check up and to start a file at the doc’s.  We discovered she has issues like Orion did, only her’s are permanent.  Mira has a grade II heart murmur, right now that doesnt’ require medication but if it worsens it will.  Also means she might take longer to recover from colds, and may have less energy.  So far she’s doing ok keeping up with Orion.  She also has some worm/mite issues that she’s being treated for, which means Orion also has to be treated for.  It’s a process getting the kitties healthy again, but we did it with Orion and Mira will be so happy once she’s healthy.

Tonight and the weekend should include some much anticipated beading.  I have ideas that are wanting to come out of me.  Tonight is also a big episode of Lost.  Last weeks episode was great…I was so wrapped up when it was over it took me a while to be able to go to sleep.  And Miranda and I finally agreed on something….Sayid cleans up good!  =0)  This weeks episode is supposed to be about Kate, I know from the preview that she and Sawyer tend to hook up when they’re locked in a room together.  But I’ve heard we’re supposed to learn if Kate is preggers and who the future “He” is.  I’m guessing she’s not pregnant, but I don’t really think that the “He” is Sawyer. 

productive

Last weekend was one of those weekends that makes up for all those that we were lazy bums and did nothing!  We did everything over the weekend.  Adopted Mira Saturday morning, and started the getting to know you phases that continued on through the weekend.  Last night was the first night her and Orion were not separated, not sure how much they slept, but they didn’t wake us up.  While the kitties were getting used to each other through a screen door, Chris finished writing his newest song.  And I broke out of my flower funk.  It wasn’t a bad funk, just a little one caused by finishing two large projects and not knowing where to go next.  I’ve made several bangles now, so I have been beading, just not flowers.  Well Saturday I went into the bead room took out some colors that I hadn’t seen in a while and just made small simple flowers.  Then color combos started popping out and I started making more.  I ended up with the petals done for 3 and a half more flowers.  And ideas for two or three more, and the next bigger project growing in my noodle.  It felt good!
Sunday was more getting to know Mira.  I spent part of the day in the spare room with her playing, and then taping the walls to get ready to paint.  I figured might as well since I was in there, I talked to Mira too so she’d get used to my voice.  That evening we watched a movie together. 
We had Monday off for Presidents day and this was the real productive day.  The kitties got to play loose in the house, they play pretty rough, but we’re pretty sure its just play.  The little hissing we had is mostly gone, except when someone play’s a little too rough.  We started the day by doing some shopping and bought a couple small things for the house, which made us think of what we wanted to be working on.  So we decided to hang up some shelves that I got for Christmas.  That wasn’t too bad so then we took down two of the three dividers between the kitchen and the dining room.  They are very retro 70’s themed dividers, and kinda neat.  So I left one up, although Chris really wants it taken down.  Finally we hung up some pictures from Jamaica that had been put to the side.  Those little things made a big difference in the house.  Which made us real excited to do some more.  Not sure how much will get done this weekend b/c I want to spend a bit more time making some flowers.  But maybe I can get something started.
Its not often we have weekends that we accomplish so much, but it sure feels good!

meet Mira

Yesterday we went out to a shelter and met the newest member of the family, Mira.  Pronounced with a hard I. She’s a female and definitely plays the part.  Only a couple months younger than Orion she doesn’t seem the least bit phased by him.  She’s more interested in exploring and claiming territory and all Orion wants to do is play.  He’s already gotten on her nerves a couple times, so for now that are separated by a screen.  They can see each other but have their own space.  She has a very strong personality and tends to already get a bit queenly.  Her chosen spot to nap is the highest spot in the room on top of a blanket looking out the window.  Orion’s normal napping spot is under the couch.  I think we might have our hands full with these two until they figure out how to get along.
In keeping with the celestial theme of names we got the name Mira after watching a show on the History Channel about the Milky Way.  There is a star called Mira A that can be see by the naked eye from earth.  Apparently it is important b/c when viewed in ultra violet light you can see the trail it is leaving behind in its wake.  It’s one of the first stars where scientists can study where it was in the past instead of predicting its future path.

too close to home

It’s never ever a good feeling when you open up a cnn.com and the first thing you see is home.  Last night I opened the page to learn there had been a shooting at Northern ILL University.  Not my home town, not my college, but damn close enough.  I drove through Dekalb regularly when taking Chris home from our college.  Of the kids that went to college that I graduated with the majority either went to community college or Northern.  I know kids that probably sat in that hall at one time, that took a class with that teacher.  Granted they are probably graduated and long gone by now…but thats not my point.  I don’t know what my point is…I don’t know what the point of this disaster is.  What is the lesson to be learned?  What was accomplished?

to escape from reality we’re going to look for a kitten to adopt this weekend.  we want to get Orion a friend to play with.