on my way home from work

GOOD MORNING!



things i'm happy for today:

the weather is clearing up - hopefully i wont wake up to rain
i saw a rainbow this morning
atticus seems to be feeling better (no trip to the vet!)
i found a cool feature on my phone that attaches latitude/longitude locations to pictures - the picture above was taken N3 Austin Dr. just FYI.

"cry the beloved country, for the unborn child that is the inheritor of our fear. let him not love the earth too deeply. let him not laugh too gladly when the water runs through his fingers nor stand too silent when the setting sun makes red the veld with fire. let him not be too moved when the birds of his land are singing, nor give too much of his heart to a mountain or a valley. for fear will rob him of all if he gives too much." ~ alan paton, cry the beloved country

just for fun...

i finished my starburst bracelet...



and my first leather purse! (basic pattern courtesy of sewmamasew. flowers courtesy of me.)



"okay, quit your yelling...we all know you exist." ~ eric rowe

ho hum

i'm having a weird week. i think i'm thinking too much...over-analyzing everything.

apparently i'm becoming semi-famous in my apartment complex for my dog biscuits. i gave my neighbor ed the whole bag of carrot cake biscuits that atticus didn't want and he has been giving them to other dog-owners and then telling people i made them. hmm...

i found out this week that the head-head honcho of my work is going to be recognizing several of my coworkers and myself for parts we played in an incident that occured in february. this will be occuring the same day i am flying out to boston for my brothers wedding. i'm kind of glad i have alternate plans though, and i'm completely okay with missing the ceremony. i hate all the attention. and having my picture taken. and wearing my uniform. bah.

i think wednesdays are my socialization day. i already have plans with 3 different people for this coming wednesday. weird.

i ate a lot of starburst at work tonight. i was making a starburst wrapper bracelet, and was determined to eat enough to make one to fit me. well, i got slightly sick of all the sugar, the bracelet still isn't long enough, and i think my thoughts are still racing at about 300 miles per hour. i can't seem to keep one thought in my head very long before the next 12 are getting in the way. i wouldn't mind except that i need to sleep. *sigh*

apparently i have a new neighbor across the hall from me, but i didn't know it because he doesn't slam the door like the old neighbors did. excellent.

my newest good-will obsession is gray stretchy type tshirts from the Gap. for some reason, almost every time i go to goodwill i find another one. i currently own 5 or 6. they're all about the same, but all a tiny little bit different in fit. random.

i watch the office entirely too much. i fit situations from the show into my life. or i relate to it way too often. recently i realized i talk like dwight schrute and say "question" before asking a question. eventually angela martin and i will become one. oi.



enough!

"we dont care, we're switzerland!" ~ k. bates

new things

another sunday night. *sigh* but hey - another weekend roundup!

project 1: cooking

these are officially called carrot cake cookies. they're supposed to be for dogs. i tried one and i could barely choke it down. waaaayyy too much nutmeg. even atticus wants nothing to do with them. *big sigh* oh well. i blame the carrots.



these are fruity biscuits. i figured atticus wouldn't like them, seeing as he has never shown an interest in fruit before, but i had all the ingredients, so, why not? i should probably stop trying to predict attie's behavior, because he LOVES them. weird.



made with blueberries and raspberries and strawberries. pretty yum.

the next...garlic crisps. they're kind of like really thick garlic crackers. not bad. atticus seems to like them.




p.s. i should have offered before, but if anyone is interested in any of the dog biscuit recipes, just ask! i'll send you the recipe and my thoughts on it as well.

project 2: buttercup bag

one thing i have discovered about black linen. its lovely, but it is almost impossible to keep it free of dog hair. seriously, kind of gross.





anyways, this is another buttercup bag. i made one for my sister michelle for christmas. isn't the inside cute?? japanese ant fabric makes me smile.

project 3: notecards

i know i've talked about the blog MADE before, but here's another plug. i was able to combine some thread sketching...

and one of MADE's great ideas, and make quilted notecards!

these are my newest favorite thing to make because i can use all my favorite scraps and it only takes about 2 minutes per card. i whipped out a batch of 6 in no time at all!

and i'm not going to show you all of them because they're going to be a present. shhh....

now i'm determined to make something with leather. i have a great idea, a pattern, and new leather sewing needles. wish me luck!

"i dont want a pot purse!!" ~ k. bates

a dogs life

RIP flexi-comfort 3. you served us well for almost 2 years.



what happened? well, thats a long story, with the main character being atticus. what more can i say?

see here...theres supposed to be a leash coming out of there. the leash is currently housed inside the plastic part, never to be seen again.



atticus is okay with it. after this incident, he got a brand new leash (same one).



see? nothing ever bothers him!!

"martians get exemptions." ~ b.m. 581

the latest

not much new is happening. so far, this is the first week in 2-3 months i haven't had any overtime. *knock on wood* its weird though - i've grown used to the 12 hour days. what do i do with all this extra time?

well, atticus and i sit outside in the wonderful sunshine.

and read.

and play with the neighbor dogs.


(what big teeth you have, atticus!)

he has no shame whatsoever.

i know, lots of atticus entries, but other than the park we haven't done too much else lately.

oh yeah...i bought a dress for my brothers wedding. two actually (the power of goodwill). i'll post pictures eventually and ask you all to vote. anyways, with all the money i saved on a dress, i can buy new shoes to match!!

"thats why i was honking like a walrus." ~ m.segrest

winners and losers

its difficult to take a picture with all three of us. and even harder to cover up the fact that this was taken in the bathroom...



"are you happy now with all the choices you've made?
are there times in life when you know you should have stayed?
will you compromise and then realize the price is too much to pay?
winners and losers, which one will you be today?"
~ social distortion

6 hours

i think atticus has an internal clock. set to 6 hours. apparently he can go for 12 hours without the need to pee while i'm at work (at least i'm assuming because there are no accidents waiting for me when i get home), but when i'm sleeping he can only go for 6. 6 hours, and he's whining. and if not whining, then barking, or jumping on the bed and landing on me. he has no compassion for my double 12 hour shifts either.

6 hours.

and i understand. he wants to go outside. he wants to watch the world go by while sitting in the grass, not by staring out the window.

so, i begrudgingly (word?) wake up. throw on a sweatshirt and a bandana (for my hair). and we take walks. or we sit outside and watch the world go by.

or we go visit atticus's new best friend & my neighbor, ed....

(the steady supply of treats helps this friendship)

and we visit with attie's second best friend, ed's dog, monecca.

who absolutely adores atticus. reminds me of harold and maude.

what a life, atticus! adoring people, and adoring dogs. can't beat it!!

oh, and uh, dad? speaking of things to beat...

:D

"i've neutered almost all the males in my family." ~ m.segrest

jean

3 ways i could be more like my mother

1. she raised 5 kids. and i think we all turned out okay.

in contrast, i can barely raise a dog.

2. we had homecooked meals every night. or maybe 6 nights out of 7, i can't remember.

in contrast, the only reason atticus gets fed on a regular basis is because i scoop his meals out of a bag. i subsist on ham sandwiches and pickles. oh and hot dogs. and lots of macaroni and cheese.

3. my mom is the best money manager around. 5 kids/7 people on one salary. we never wanted for anything.

in contrast, i am just about the exact opposite. i hate budgeting. when i grocery shop i put what i want in the cart (for the most part) with little regards to price.

my mom is in the middle. isn't she gorgeous?

(p.s. i stole this picture from colley)

3 things my mom has taught me

1. just because its used, doesn't mean its bad.

2. laugh. a lot.

3. be happy over simple things.

(picture of a picture = poor quality!)

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY MOM!

I LOVE YOU!!

~ abraham lincoln

weekend snapshots

so, this is one of atticus's favorite things to do - walk on top of ground cover. sometimes he sinks into it, but more often than not hes looking for critters or food. its a little weird.

"celebrated" cinco de mayo with my friend mike. who, ironically, is mexican. cliche?

also, 3 mixed drinks later, i only blew a .017. i knew they were overpriced...

finally pretty enough for the dog park. we're getting fuel here, but its a good example of what atticus does when he sticks his head out of the sunroof. it requires great balance. which he does not have.

we took our friends mike and walker to the park. i think walker looks like a sphynx when he lays down.

when walker is not being a bully, hes actually quite a love bug. he was loving on atticus today.

i also sent my mom her mothers day package. woohoo! i forgot to take pictures of the one thing though. i'm a little annoyed at myself for that.

another week starts tomorrow. my monday and tuesday (for the rest of you that would be friday and saturday) are both 12 hour days. *big sigh*

onwards and upwards!

"a soul more worthy than our own may languish in darkness while a promise which should have been sacred is allowed to fade from our memory." ~ rev robert a watson

awkward

i've been very caught up on this blog lately: smartprettyandawkward.com

first of all, she puts in a quote for each entry. how can you not love that? and each entry gives ideas how to be smarter, prettier, and less awkward. good stuff.

i'm trying to get out of a personal funk. its difficult. what would help would be me leaving my comfort zone. but they call it a comfort zone for a reason. oi.

heres a picture of sarah's birthday bag i sent last week....she hasn't gotten it yet but she admitted she doesn't check the mail all that often. sarah!!

(the inside is as busy as the outside!)

i decided to center my pictures today. i wonder if it looks any better.

the dryer just turned off. or, as i like to call it, my internet timer.

"i'm very talented at peeing on my feet." ~ m.segrest

pretending

atticus pretends to be so cute...

sniffing in the dandelions...

and getting fluff all over his head...

even with other people....

and other dogs...

but I know he's not always cute....

i have 2 bags holding his torn apart bed to prove it!!!!! (sorry no pictures!)

"sometimes i think i'm just on this earth to humor myself." ~ deryk rhodes