Various stuff

1. Everybody wrote the Eagles off weeks ago when McNabb got hurt. Hey, I was one of them. I figured they weren't doing too well with him, what are they going to do without him? Yet, they're doing pretty well and I'm hoping they win against Dallas on Christmas. I think this is something that happens a lot in sports. So often, one or two key players on a team get all the glory and the team goes along with it and I think subconsiously put way too much dependence on those few key players, then it goes downhill because one or two people do not make a team. Then something happens to one of those key players and the rest of the team steps us and actually does better without them. Nothing against McNabb, of course, but sometimes I think it takes losing a major player for a while for a team to really come together and play as a team, not as a bunch of people led by one person who they expect to be a miracle worker.

2. The Rosie vs. Trump thing: Frankly, I think they are both obnoxious, loudmouth, hypocritical people. I'd like to put them both in a locked room and see who comes out alive. I haven't liked her for a long time for a few reasons. One reason is that she is completely anti-gun and mouths off about it, which is her right, but she also has armed guards. So, it's OK for her but not the rest of us to protect ourselves. I'm also sick of her attitude of "If you don't like me you're anti-gay!" crap. Lady, I don't care if you're black, white, straight, gay, Christian, Jewish, etc. If you're a jerk, you're a jerk. I'm no fan of Trump, who is obnoxious to people, cheats on women, and sues people to get them out of their homes for his casinos. I remember the big fight when I first moved here from a little lady living in her home that he was trying to force her out of. If I recall, she won the fight. So let them fight it out!

3. Just saw something kinda cool on the news. Two twins in California gave birth an hour apart from each other. One had a girl, one a boy.

Stitching update

I finally added the ribbon and treasures to Crescent Dreams. Now I gotta frame it and wrap it, then stitch it two more times, lol.




My Mermaid of the Pearls is coming along nicely. I'm mostly done with the front side of the graph. I can't wait to finish her and add all the beads! The picture's a little blurry, though.




This is Lanarte's I Shall Wear Purple. It's not my normal thing, but I thought it was cute. I changed the original colors around, though -- how can you have a title like that and use blue instead of purple for the text? I also changed the colors of the flowers and am using mostly overdyeds.

If I get my hands on that little...

Some jackass just called my home as a prank a few minutes ago, about 1:30 in the morning. If I ever get my hands on this little jerk I swear he'd get a thrashing. It's bad enough to be calling people like that, but my grandmother is dying and if I get a phonecall past 9PM that's the first thing I think. Of course, the caller ID helps but this said "blocked call" so I didn't know who it was and thought it could be my parents calling from a different phone.

So, I'm tired as heck but when you get woken up like that your adrenaline kicks in a bit and it's hard to get back to sleep. I hope to soon, though.

I guess I haven't mentioned it here, het. Long story short, Grandma collapsed over Thanksgiving weekend when my sister was visiting. They took her to the hospital and found she has cancer all through her body and she's now in a Hospice. There's nothing they can do but make her as comfortable as possible. We've known that something has been wrong with her for a while, but she's a Christian Scientist so won't go to a doctor and won't tell anybody about her problems -- even though we all ask and try to get her to tell us.

Which brings up another point: I'm so sick of this damn disease taking away the people I care about! I have a stitching friend who is just a little older than me who has been fighting it for a few years. Every time they get rid of it in one place, it ends up someplace else. I lost my other grandmother to ovarian cancer in 1989 and her symptoms were very similar to what's now going on with my other grandmother. My great aunt's breast cancer has come back and she will probably be gone in the next 6 months. She was home with me when I went to my senior prom and helped me get ready for it, as my parents had already left for NY for my sister's college graduation (I went up later). My dad has had a few bouts with prostate cancer, but both times they found it very early through blood test and were able to contain it, but it worries me.

I get so angry when I hear people say that cancer is "practically cured" and it's not that bad. I know that treatments have come a long way and people can survive it longer than they used to, but don't give this "cure" crap. If there's a cure, then why are people still dying? I try not to think to much about it, but at this rate I'm waiting to hear that my mom, my sister, or I have it, as it seems to run in my family.

So, thank you, little jackass, for calling me and getting me all riled up on a Friday night/Saturday morning when all I wanted to do was sleep through the night. Yeah, thanks a lot.

SBQ Catch-up

I'm serial posting, but haven't done these questions for a while.

Do you stitch Christmas ornaments? If so, how many do you stitch each
year and for whom? If not, why not?
Yes. I've started stitching some every year to give to coworkers and friends. I create the designs and use little tuck ornaments from Amy's Cross Stitch Corner. That way I don't have to do any extra finishing and I can stitch a bunch of them in a week. I think I stitch anywhere from 15 to 25 a year, but I don't give them all away for at Christmas. Some of them can go into non-seasonal tucks and be given at any time to hang on doorknobs and such.

How do you secure your thread when you begin a new one? Specifically,
do you or have you ever used a waste knot?
I don't use the waste know usually, but have in the past when I'm working a lot of specialty stitches. It's easier for me to secure the back of the thread that way. I usually use a loop start, but if I'm working with two separate strands I work the floss into already stitched stitches, then start stitching. That way I don't have to hold it on the back for the first few stitches.

Do you have any good internet links to tutorials for your favorite
finishing techniques that you would like to share?
I've seen some, but I haven't used any of them yet because I'm lazy about finishing. Instead, I'll post Ames' website. This is where I get my tuck ornaments, but she has lots of cool stuff for finishing projects -- banners, gift bags, wine bags, bookmarks and more.

Man, I've been a lush lately!

I'm not a big drinker, have a glass of wine now and then but that's it. I think I've had more drinks in the last two days than I've had in the last few months!

We had our big company-wide holiday party last night, and it ws a total blast! When you get us all together -- admin, people running the programs, volunteers, caseworkers, caregivers -- we amount to about 1000 people. Now, we all weren't there but there were a few hundred people there. The party had a 70s theme. We didn't have to dress to the theme but a lot of us did. There were a lot of afro wigs, on light and dark people alike. Since I'm a classic rock fan, I went the other way -- Led Zeppelin t-shirt, jeans, blue eyeshadow, heavy black eyeliner, and the closest to carnation pink frost lipstick I could find. I was the only one dressed like that, and one guy (no idea who it was) came up to me and said, "Man! I love your shirt! I love those guys! Zeppelin is awesome! Maybe we can get them to play some, man!" Hysterical!

So we all were given two drink vouchers for beer or wine. A coworker's friend gave her hers because she didn't drink, and then she gave me one of them. So, I had three glasses of wine with those, plus paid $3 for a fourth. I can't remember the last time I had that much, but I can handle it -- no hangover or anything, went to work this morning with no issues. Of course, I knew I was taking public transportation so it wasn't an issue, and I was traveling with a few other girls in that part of Philly. If I was driving, I may have had one glass of wine at the beginning of the 4-hour party, if any. I'm pretty paranoid about that.

Today we had our department party, and my cool boss paid for our dinner, bowling alley and drinks at Lucky Strike Lanes downtown. I didn't bowl because I physically can't -- throwing it a few times does a number on my hand and it hurts then falls alseep -- but I had a great time hanging out and watching. I had two yummy lime margaritas, too. Funny, wine seems to effect me more than mixed drinks do. We had a Secret Santa with a $2 limit so we had to get creative. I'm so happy to be working in such a great organization and such a great communications department!

Now, I COULD have also attended another party this past Wednesday night, but I didn't because I'm not a big party person and knew I had two in a row already. The earlier party was at the PR firm we've used for our capital campaign PR and creating our new logo, as well as a few other logos for different programs. They said they had a lot of fun, but I'm glad I made the decision not to go. I had an important meeting this morning and one more party added to the week would have made me tired.

That's probably it for most of the holiday parties, as I'll probably be out of town when other ones crop up. I had a lot of fun, though!

They won't die if they don't get the gift of the year!

I really can't believe how crazy some people get in order to get their kids every little gift they DEMAND from their parents! I understand wanting to make your kids happy, but it just gets so out of control every year, and I don't think they appreciate it nearly as much as they would if they didn't ALWAYS get EVERYTHING they wanted.

(Disclaimer: I realize ALL parents don't do this, but, again, we know they're out there.)

I was thinking about this the other day when a friend at work asked me what my most memorable Christmas present was as a kid. I had two, but the first one that came to mind was the big art kit from the Sears catalog. There were three or four sizes, but of course I circled the big one, figuring if I aim high I might get one of the smaller ones. Imagine my surprise when I opened one of my wrapped gifts and there it was! My eyes probably bugged out of my head! I was thrilled, not because I expected to get what I wanted, but because I knew my parents would try to get me something I wanted even if it wasn't the best and the biggest. I knew we didn't have a lot of money.

The other one was when they bought me my high school jacket. Swimming is a varsity sport and I was very proud of myself for having a letter as a freshman, but I had not jacket to show it off. The jackets were $60 and we REALLY had little money at this point. It was our first Christmas in FL, and less than a year before we lost the farm, the house, the rental house, the barns -- everything with the business. At the time we were living off my mom's small wage at the bank (this was 1985) and my dad was trying to sell real estate. So, when I asked for the jacket and my mom said we couldn't afford it, I left it at that. I babysat a little, but I couldn't get hired anywhere because I was 14. Before then I could always earn extra money by doing extra farmwork, and it was tough not having that option. When Christmas came, I opened a box and there was the jacket! Again, I was thrilled because I got something I really wanted but didn't expect, not because I demanded it and threw a tantrum if I didn't get it.

I love Joan Cusack!

I never look specifically for movies that star her, but I'm sitting here watching School of Rock and realized that she cracks me up in every movie I've ever seen her in. I need to go to IMDB and look her up and rent some movies of hers, although I know I've seen quite a few of them. You don't hear much about her but she shows up all the time and is just hysterical!

Christmas Meme

Stolen from Whizgidget's blog:


1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? Depends on the gift and recipient. I prefer wrapping paper but am not good at wrapping odd-shaped presents, and some people have a hard time opening gift wrap if they have arthritis or other health problems. Even if a gift is an odd shape, I will wrap it if it's for a kid -- they love ripping all that paper off.

2. Real tree or artificial? Definitely artificial! I'm allergic to pine.

3. When do you put up the tree? Day after Thanksgiving while I'm avoiding the shoppers.

4. When do you take the tree down? Jan. 6 or the first weekend after Jan. 6.

5. Do you like eggnog? Usually. Depends on how strong it is.

6. Favorite gift received as a child? An art kit. I always circled stuff in the Sears catalog and circled the biggest one. I didn't actually expect it and would have been happy with a small one, but I got it! It had acrylics, oils, brushes, pen & ink, colored pencils, and some kind of waxy crayon-type things. There were papers and charcoal, also.

7. Do you have a nativity scene? A very small one. It's a one piece ceramic nativity of just an arch and the family. I don't have room for a large one, but would like to someday.

8. Hardest person to buy for? Grandma. She has so much stuff that she doesn't really need anything to add to the pile.

9. Easiest person to buy for? Tim.

10. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? A canister of chocolate from a so-called friend. She knew I was working on losing weight and had lost some and was then thinner than her, so she gave me chocolate. I was nice and thanked her, but I knew what was going on. She's the one I sometimes refer to as "The Liar" and this gift was one of the NICE things she did for me, lol!

11. Mail or email Christmas cards? Mail, but email's OK.

12. Favorite Christmas Movie? Christmas Vacation. It doesn't matter that I've seen it a million times, it still makes me laugh.

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? I shop a little here and there and pick things up for people if I think they'd like them. I store them for birthdays, last-minute gifts, Christmas, etc. I also start making little ornaments for some people in the summer.

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? No. I'd get too confused and give it to the person who gave it to me in the first place.

15. Favorite thing to eat and drink at Christmas? My mom's Christmas cookies and milk, tea or hot chocolate. They must be my mom's recipe -- nobody's are better!

16. Clear lights or colored on the tree? I like clear, non-blinking. Tim likes color, blinking. I have white ones on the big tree and colored on his sci-fi tree. Neither blink because it drives me crazy, but when I get a bigger tree for his sci-fi tree I may give in and make the lights blink.

17. Favorite Christmas song? This goes against my childree persona, but I'd have to say "Merry Christmas Little Zachary" by John Denver. It's just a beautiful song.

18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? I prefer to stay home, but when your closest relatives are 6 hours away you sometimes have to travel. I tend to visit my parents every other year and have Christms with Tim's family the other years. His family is just 30 minutes away.

19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeers? Dasher, Prancer, Donner, Blitzen, Comet, Cupid, Vixen, Rudolph. There's at least one I'm missing there. (I can't even remember how many he's supposed to have.)

20. Angel on the tree top or a star? Star. Angels kinda freak Tim out.

21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? Morning.

22. Most annoying thing about this time of year? Rude people. I hate shopping this time of year (thank God for online shopping!) because people are so obnoxious. I can't stand the fighting over the last toy for Precious, and that Precious' life will be over if he or she doesn't get that exact toy. I hate that everybody thinks they are in more of a hurry than everyone else. A little hustle and bustle is one thing, but it's really gotten out of hand.

23. Favorite thing about the Christmas Holidays? Being cozy at home with the cold outside and the trees lit, hanging out with Tim and Smokey watching a movie or stitching on the couch under a blanket.

24. Most Memorable gift? It wasn't for Christmas, but when I first moved here in Oct. 1995 I had very little money. Thanksgiving was coming up and I really didn't know anyone and was planning on just hanging out in my apartment reading -- didn't have a tv, either. One of my good friends I left behind in FL surprised me by getting me train tickets so I could take Amtrak to NY so I could have Thanksgiving with my uncle and grandmother. It was a very thoughtful and unexpected thing for him to do and I've never forgotten it.

25. What's the one thing you seem to never get done at Christmas time? There are always a few cards I don't get out because I can't find new addresses.

Some pictures

After some battery drama (hate it when I buy new batteries that don't work!), I finally got some pictures of my recent stitching.


Here are some ornaments I designed for some ornaments I get from my friend Ames at Amy's Cross Stitch Corner. She has a lot of homemade items into which you just tuck in the design and it's finished! Very handy for stitchers like me who are not so good at finishing off ornaments.






Here's Liberty Sampler from Hester's Needle. Will probably give that to my dad, when finished.




Progress on Why Hoard Gold? from Dragon Dreams. Love the grin!




Mirabilia's Crescent Dreams, just need to add the ribbon and 3 charms.

Got some stitching done over Thanksgiving

Well, I finished one of four Crescent Dreams I'm stitching. A bunch of women I work with got pregnant all at once. ACK! I'm not a big baby shower person, but I like making little things for people I like when they have a kid.

So, I only need to add the ribbon to the first one and it's done. I'll get a picture this weekend. I stitched it on a pretty light blue and white hand-dyed fabric and used the original colors. The next one is going to be green, the one after that will be pink. The fourth one, well, I'm not sure. That baby hasn't been born yet so I have some time ahead of me. I figure I can get a deal from Silkweaver on some nice fabric that can work. They usually have some interesting items in their Odds and Ends section.

I also finished a bunch of little oranament tucks I made for Christmas ornaments for my coworkers. I'll get pictures of them, too. I made more progress on Liberty Sampler, too. This weekend I'm working on Mermaid of the Pearls and/or Angel of the New Dawn for the Mirabilia SAL.

I have more to say, but it's a lot and can wait so that I don't have one very long post. :)