Well, do I ever feel like an idiot. You all remember that I've mentioned working at Kentuck Knob? Honest to Pete, I must go to work with blinders on. In my defense, I'm a good bookkeeper. And a good worker. I go to work, focus on my job, make sure my work is accurate and easy to understand, and I go home. Basically, I always try give an honest days work. Some of that is my choice, (I just work best that way) and some if it is because I have so much to do that if I waste time, I'll never finish anyone's work and that won't do. I may have lots of WIP's in stitching, but my work life is much different.

So - I've been working there for these past months, completely without realizing that my employer (and owner of the home), Lady Hayat Palumbo, is an accomplished needlepoint artist and author. Sheesh, her book, A Passion for Needlepoint is in the giftshop for crying out loud! And I never even noticed. It's a very cool book, full of some of her work as well as the work she's collected. I mentioned it briefly in passing today, and she seemed pleased that I had read it, but my curiosity is killing me and I really want to know more about her collection.

I guess it's good to take off the work blinders from time to time....

OK, at the risk of offending anyone who drops by, I have to get this off my chest. I hate golf. Always have and always will. But I especially hate it when it becomes someone's raison d'etre, and causes that someone to neglect his wife (who-by-the-way has really been great to him all week). I'm so burnt up you can probably smell the smoke where you're sitting.

I want to bend every friggin' golf club in his bag. I want to throw all his balls into the woods. Golf balls, I mean.

But since this blog is supposed to be about stitching, I think I'll go to my sewing machine and sew the fingers of all his golf gloves up. Every single finger. Except maybe the middle one so that he can get a nice message from me every time he plays. I'll stitch love notes onto his golf towels. I'll fill his shoes with "lost" needles.

OK, I feel much better now. But I'm still not speaking to him. Without going into long and tedious detail, I'll tell you that this is one time that I really deserve to be mad, and by god, I'm goin' with the feeling.

I worked a tiny bit on my Drawn Thread piece. I think I actually have all of the floss I need, too. I was missing DMC 415. And do you think that over the seven million times I've visited WalMart, JoAnns, or Michaels I could have ever remembered that? No.

Well, I have three blessed hours in the house alone tonight, so off I go. I'm going to get my stitching, put a B-movie in the DVD player, and not answer my phone or door till after 9:30.

I've been lurking over at the Rotation Stitchers board. Wow - some of the projects those folks have going are seriously intricate. And huge. I don't think I could ever hang in there with such difficult projects.

But none the less, I've been playing with the idea of a rotation list. I think I get this burst of enthusiasm every August, as I anticipate the beginning of the school year and some uninterrupted quiet time. Well, except for the phone....and the people that knock at my door....and just walk in my house.

Hmm...I think right now I should close my Quickbooks program, finish this entry, and go stitch on the porch. C-ya!

Maybe it's time to update my sidebar a little. For those of you who may be wondering....No, I'm not sleepy all the time. I think I was sleepy back in June and I just never changed it. And I gave up on the Anita Shreve book a while back. Snore. It was disappointing, because I loved The Pilots Wife and The Weight of Water.

I took DD to camp yesterday for the week. Honestly - I don't know where she gets this camping thing. The idea of spending a week in a tent with all the bugs, noise, animals, and other discomforts is not appealing to me in any which way. And DH's idea of roughing it is checking into a hotel with skimpy towels. Colleen is a mystery to us most of the time. She is very artistic, has a lovely singing voice, and is an even tempered, friendly young lady. She obviously does not belong in this family. Well, she is kind of messy. OK, so some of our genes are showing thru.

I am pitifully (is that a word?) unable to come up with things to write lately. So - - I turned to a prompt again today. I like "In other Words", and here was today's quote:

Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.
-- Leo Buscaglia

Ahh - isn't that amazing? The power that we wield by the smallest comment... It's something that has taken me years to learn, but I'm still not great at it. Here's the thing - I talk to strangers all the time. If they're doing something great or look great or appear interesting, I say so. And most of the time they look at me like I'm insane. And while I really don't care if they think I'm a nutcase or not, I feel like I'm doing something wrong. Usually my comment/compliment earns me a wide-eyed expression, followed by a laugh or a thank you. So I'd really like to avoid that first look on their face that tells me they think I'm off my meds.

Case in point: I was out shopping earlier this spring, looking for dresses to wear on our cruise. I was having an absolutely sucky time of it. I hadn't clothes shopped in ages, meaning I'd avoided all three-way mirrors and so the sight of my butt staring at me in a three-way mirror was HORRIFYING. You know those pictures of the biggest pumpkin at the fair? All I needed was orange underwear. But I digress.... I was having a terrible day, but I went into the dressing room with what I hoped was a butt-diminishing dress, and came across this woman in a long formal dress and she looked stunning in this dress. I did a double take and could NOT pass quietly. So I told her - Wow - That dress looks absolutely perfect on you. And I was met with the look you give a crazy person. So I quickly apologized - didn't mean to intrude, but the dress was so complimentary toward her, and really- - - -I'm not a stalker or anything. And then she laughed and thanked me. (and she bought the dress) And you know what - all of a sudden the size of my rear end didn't matter anymore to me. My day didn't suck any longer.

I guess I don't care if people think I'm nuts. Or maybe they think I'm a busy-body. It's no skin off my teeth, and maybe I've said something to make you smile. You all will just have to deal with me.

Holy Cow, I have exactly 15 minutes this morning to zip out a blog entry! How on earth does this happen that I get so tight with time? (As if it's not my fault at all....)

I had a little stitching time yesterday. And I do mean little. I stitched ONE letter on my DT sampler (seen at the left - still no progress pics because it would seem too pitiful). I stitched the letter "V", then I had to be off to drive various children to various places. But at least I have it out again, so that - as Martha would say - is a good thing. Up until then, I couldn't even find it....

I promised earlier to write a little about the visit I had from my German pen pal....so here goes! My friend Hella and her family were here for an extended weekend during the first week of July. Now, Hella and I have been writing for almost 10 years. And over those years, I've come to know a lovely woman, with great creative talent and with a stick-to-it attitude...meaning that she puts me to shame with all of her finishes! Her quilting and cross-stitch skills are excellent.

So - This was actually Hella's second visit. She and her husband came to our home about 8(?) years ago for a couple of days. We had a nice time back then - I brought Hella to our sewing group, and we did a little shopping. Despite the initial nervousness about actually meeting a pen pal in person, we really enjoyed their visit. But they only stayed two nights and then were anxious to get on with their traveling. And over the years, we had talked about her coming in the summer with her family - so this year it finally happened. Hella and her husband and two of her children came here and swam in the lake during the day and hunted for lightning bugs at night and ate grilled burgers and Kraft dinner with us. How much more American can you get?

We had a great visit - Hella and I escaped away one afternoon to a quilt show in Grantsville MD, and there was a crafters fair going on at the same time, so we wandered around there a little. The quilt show was a little disappointing. I've been there other years and it was much, much smaller than before. Some lovely, well-done quilts to be sure, but not the quantity and variety of past years. I thought the show was put on by an organized group of quilters in Frostburg - maybe they don't exist anymore. Well, anyway, I found a neat little painting on slate at the craft fair - it's a mountainscape, and it says, "If you're lucky enough to live in the mountains...you're lucky enough." My sentiments exactly!

Then on the way home we stopped in Four Seasons Stitchery - a fantastic quilt shop, but with a nice needlework section, also. I found fabric for one of those great fleece no-sew blankets for DD - blue with horses. And Hella found some fabric and magazines she couldn't live without either!

Of course, one of the great things about having a stitching friend come visit is the whole Show and Tell part of the trip. It's actually kind of funny - before they arrived, I was really fussing over my sewing room/office. Partly because it's also our guest room, but mostly because I hate to have a fellow stitcher look at my room and see that it's an ungodly mess of things. I may not BE totally organized, but I sure want to appear that way! So I had spent time straightening and filing and putting away....only to tear it all apart when we started with "Oh, let me show you...." or "Do you have any...."! And did I put it all back neatly? Cripes NO! So poor Hella and her husband found themselves sleeping in a room where charts and fabric fell off shelves, floss stuck to their socks, and needles - well, let's not go there. Hopefully they haven't inadvertently found any...

OK, I'm way, way out of blogging time here, but I'll end my pen pal story by saying that I'm truly blessed to have found such nice people. Both this year and last year I've had great visits with friends from across the world, who I only knew via their letters. Yet somehow we connected on a deeper level over the years and their time here was as comfortable as if they were my sisters. Our initial conversations were always about stitching or quilting, (I'm always a little nervous at first about meeting a pen pal) but as our physical time together went on, our talks drifted to our lives as women. And suddenly the nervousness is gone, and your paper and pencil friend is alive and standing in front of you. It's a very cool thing.

Oh Jeez, my 15 minutes has turned into almost an hour and I have to head to work and I'm still in my pajamas!!

Please forgive my last post.  I thought of deleting it altogether this morning, and maybe I will later, but maybe one of you will read it and know that you're not the only one out there with teen trouble.  The old "misery loves company" adage.

I'm somewhat happy to say that things have been somewhat worked out.  Once my fury dissipated, (and it took longer than usual this time), DH and I sat down with DS and had a frank discussion.  The summer had taken on a pattern of us saying "don't do" and him deciding that our opinion was unfounded (teenage speak=stupid/lame/gay) and him doing it anyway.  No discussion, no bargain, just him in his infinite teen wisdom deciding that he knew best. 

DH and I explained that this will not and can not work.  When we say yes or no or please to something, usually there's room for adult-type discussion.  Ie. Be home by 10.  Can't I stay out till midnight?  No, but between 10 and 11 might be ok.  (it all looks so civilized in print, doesn't it?)  But sometimes you'll want to do something and we'll say no and discussion or not, we're not going to budge.  Not because we want to make your life miserable, but because for one reason or another, we know it's not wise, safe, or smart to do what you've proposed.  And of course you won't see it our way, because you're 15!  Believe it or not, we know more than you do right now.  And you may not understand our stance until you're a parent yourself. 

That sounded reasonable, didn't it?  Well, our 90 seconds of discussion ended with, "Well I still think that if you tell me to do or not do something and it's totally stupid, I'll make my own decision." 

But see, Mom and Dad hold the trump card...... (we just needed to remind ourselves of it)

The drivers license.  And use of the car.

Dear son, if you demonstrate to us over and over that you totally disregard what we say when it comes to issues of safety, responsibility and kindness, then we will not take that gigantic leap of faith that's required to allow you to drive.  So watch your step.  And grow up.  Real adults know that they aren't always the authority on everything.

So that was the crux of the conversation.  Along with some other simple behaviors that we'd like, for instance saying please and thank you, hello and goodbye, goodnight and good morning.  

And things gradually became better.  Not perfect.  But better.  It's amazing that the blow-ups are triggered by the most inconsequential things, and then you have to re-examine your life to see what's really going on.  DS has a million positive things going for him, and we know that.  He's a smart, smart kid.  Excellent student.  Dedicated athlete.  Healthy attitude that steers him away from drugs and alchohol (so far - I've learned never to say never)  So it could be worse.  Much worse. 

And now I had better get to work.  I actually do have some stitching stuff to write about, including a new project and a visit from a stitching pen pal from Germany.  And I'll do that soon.  But I felt awful leaving that last post hanging out there without a follow-up.   

What do you do when you get to the point that you just want to kill your teenager? Or at least get him away from you? When just looking at them makes you want to spit nails.

I have had it to the extreme with my 15 y.o. and this time my resentment/anger is holding on longer than usual. There's just too much to go into in a blog. But I seriously do not like this child at this point in time and I'm happy to give up on all of the parenting things I've learned. All of that "don't give up" and "understanding the teen years" crap. I want to throw my hands up, declare I've done my best, and set him loose. DH and I are just tired - no, make that exhausted - and we need a break. Like a 12 month break. The kind of break a military school would give us.

We try. We seriously try. But discipline means nothing to this kid. His attitude is, Well, if you think I'm rotten now, just wait until you see how I act when you punish me. And there's no "dealing". He'd rather cut off his nose to spite his face. If we say, listen, this is how you can get some privileges back, he digs in his heels and refuses. Would rather act the jag-off and blame his behavior on our discipline than give up his idea that he's completely blameless in our awful situation. Truly. He really believes he doesn't do anything wrong.

Sigh. Hopefully my next post will be brighter.

I get to pick up DD from camp today! Hooray! I've missed the little darlin'. This was her 6th year in Girl Scout camp, and her 4th year at Camp Redwing. It's hard to believe that many years have gone by. I remember her first year. I was driving away near tears. And when I picked her up, she was hard to recognize. Sounds silly after only one week, but it's true. Next year she's talking about going for the summer as a CIT (counselor in training). Just take a knife and stab it in my heart whydoncha.

I hope she has some good photos...

Not much to write about today, so I went to the
Daydreaming on Paper site. My random prompt was "Name a time that you benefited from the kindness of strangers."
Funny, because that happened on our cruise. DS had lost his wallet in St. Thomas. He swore he had left it on the beach blanket before he went kayaking, but it was definately not there. We figured it had been stolen. AND, having the sense of a 15 Y.O., he had brought ALL of his spending money. This kid had cut lawns and worked soccer games all spring and had saved over $250. Gone. Well, we were fussing over this on the beach, and a woman came up behind us and asked if we had lost anything. Evidently, her daughter had been out snorkeling in the bay and had come across this wallet floating in the water. She wasn't there at the moment. Their plan was that she would walk the beach and keep an eye out for someone distressed. She was due back at any time, so her mom said just wait a few minutes.

Well, I told DS not to get his hopes up. When wallets are stolen, the cash gets taken and the wallet gets tossed. He would get his wallet back, but probably not much else. But lo and behold, up comes this dear girl with a very wet, very full wallet. We were astounded. And very, very grateful. Not only because she returned all of the money, but because it was Day One of our vacation and imagine vacationing with a grumpier than usual boy for the rest of the week. These folks were so gracious - wouldn't take a penny. Wouldn't let us buy them a drink. Just truly good people doing the right thing. We need to appreciate people like that in the world.

So - that's my story about the kindness of strangers.

Ok, I said I should be working and here I am still screwing around:


You are the color red. You are the most
controversial of all the colors. You are often
easily angered, but as easily as you got
excited, you come down. When angered, do you
have the tendency to be malicious? Afterwards,
do you end up begging for forgiveness? Maybe.
But you're incredibly generous, and, odd
enough, needy. You love to hate, and
sometimes, you hate to love. This color
describes you as generally edgy. When in a bad
situation, you're pessimistic, and when you're
in a good situation, you're extremely
optimistic. You're painfully tempermental, and
sometimes it hurts the ones you love. But with
an exciting and stimulating attitude, you enjoy
talking to people and being social. But aside
from your bold and outgoing attitude, you're
attention-needing and attention-getting. This
color is associated with lust and desire--and
you are both lust and desirous. You're a
protective person when it comes to the people
you love. You're incredibly sharp-witted and
powerful (not to mention intelligent!).


What color are you? (Amazingly detailed & accurate--with pics!)
brought to you by Quizilla

I can scarcely believe a month has gone by without a blog entry from me. Not a single one. What does that say about my life right now? I'm afraid I know the answer, and it's not a healthy answer. I've been too busy to even gather my thoughts. Not good. Makes for a thought-less person! And it makes people stop reading your blog. I'm probably all alone out here right now...(recognize my attempt for pity??) Seriously, one of the things I like about reading other blogs is that you feel like you get to know them thru regular posts. You feel familiar - and long periods between blogging make you lose that familiarity.

Well anyway, that's enough talk about blogging. It's time to just write!

Stitching? Nope. I honestly haven't had a moment. So the "No Place Like Home" is still sitting idle. We were on vacation over the first week of June, and honest and truly I took it with me and didn't touch it once, except to move it out of a carry bag because it was taking up too much room. I guess it was kind of idiotic to take it along on this type of vacation anyway...

We went on a cruise - all four of us. A great time was had by all, and I'm glad we did it. It was a week of partying and seeing new and wonderful places. And we were so well taken care of while we were there. Stellar service and nice people. There were always activities for the kids and they spent as much time with their new friends as they did with us. Teen dances and teen "hangs" made our evenings very nice!

That being said, it really wasn't a relaxing week, and I guess I missed that part of vacation. See, I just love the beach. We grew up with beach vacations - Stone Harbor, New Jersey to be exact - so it just feels right to me. I love sitting on the beach and hearing the waves. I love watching people play on the beach. I love walking on the beach in the early morning. I love being on the beach late, late in the afternoon when the air is cool and the sand is warm. It'll always be my favorite type of vacation. You guys probably have your favorites, too? Amusement parks? Museum trips? Family visits? Just-get-in-the-car-and-go trips?

Besides vacation, June was a month filled with joys and sorrows. On June 1 I lost a dear friend. My friend Bill died suddenly of a massive heart attack, with no warning and no predisposition. Bill was the president of our homeowners association and he and I had worked closely together over the past 10 years. His death was a huge blow to our community, and an even bigger blow to those of us who knew him well. I still feel tears close to the surface whenever we talk about Bill - I suspect I will for a long time to come.

On the joyful side, I went with DD's Under-14 traveling soccer team to the Chevy Open Tournament at Edinboro College in Erie PA. This was the second time she went, but the first time for me. It was fun, fun, fun! The soccer part of it was awesome. But the between times were just as great. Most of our families all stayed in the same hotel and we had a wonderful time just hanging out together. And these girls - let me tell you, a nicer bunch I'll never find. There was a moment when we were all eating dinner together Saturday night. All the kids were at one table, and all the parents were at another, and I looked over at the girls. They were smiling and laughing and playing cards and talking, and I wished I was able to freeze that moment in time. Do you know what I mean? When you look at something or someone and you know it can't get any better than this? And when you know you'll never pass that way again? Oh - deep soccer thoughts, I know. And by the way, we played well but lost two of three games, so no playoffs for us. But that also meant I had time on Sunday to stop at the Grove City Outlets, where they have a Root Candle outlet and do some serious damage to my Visa...

Other soccer news is that I had copied and pasted my old blog entry about the referee certification to the membership director of PA West Soccer, just to give him a laugh. And lo and behold he published it in their recent newsletter! Friends were calling to congratulate me, and I didn't know what they were talking about. I really didn't remember that I had done that. So that was kind of fun.

Well, my blogging time is about done. It's past 9AM and real work calls. Boo. I hates real work.

I briefly mentioned our storm here last week. Our local weatherman called it a microburst. Last Friday, around 6:30AM we had a heck of a storm - one that rattles your house and makes it rain sideways, if you know what I mean. And it was particularly a problem for us because that's exactly when DS leaves for the school bus. But anyway, it was kind of wild here, and I didn't realize quite how wild until I went for a walk the next day. The other side of the lake experienced a microburst that uprooted trees and caused a lot of damage. Weather is such a fickle thing. On our side of the lake....nothing.

One of the many trees down on Deer Lake Trail 

Such a lame-o blogger I've been. My blog activities have been purely one sided. I've been peeking at everyone else's blogs and not contributing a bit to my own....

Sadly, I feel as if I've had nothing to write about. If not for the occasional writing prompt, I'd be lost.

Stitching - well, it seems as if I get about two hours a week to stitch. Pitiful, isn't it? Tuesday nights, between 8 and 10PM. Tha's it. Something must be done, here. (whine, whine)

Not to be mundane, but we've had some interesting weather blow thru here recently. I'll tell you about it, but I have to go head out the door. Visiting the magistrate's office for the $%^&^&* bad check writers. Grrrr.

What a busy time of the year...Track meets and practices, soccer games and practices, riding lessons, concerts, plays, parades - I can't believe anyone in their right mind would stick Mothers' Day in the middle of all this confusion! I'm kidding of course...

And today is our wedding anniversary. 21 Years. We celebrated last year in Las Vegas, figuring 20 years was a great milestone, and a second honeymoon style trip was in order. This year we celebrated by buying a blender. Soooo, you know what time it is?? Margarita time! I love my new blender. My old one could barely mash a banana. I could do better with a fork. Well, this one is fan-arita-tastic! None the less, I hope kitchen appliances don't become a trend for future anniversaries. I love this one, but....c'mon....

As for stitching, I've finished the Pat Harper Sampler! I'll put a pic in the sidebar once it's all nicely washed and pressed. I started Drawn Thread's "There's No Place Like Home", but man, I'm having an awful time seeing this 32 Ct. sandstone linen. I need some serious lighting and magnification. It's quite a change from the 28ct. I've been looking at for the past few months....

You know, there was a time when I'd scoff at 28 ct. linen. That was back when my eyes were young. I've always been very nearsighted (20:300), but I could stitch on anything. My stash even includes some 40ct linen. Shoulda used that years ago, but who knew how quickly my close vision would go?! Maybe it's just comeuppance. I should have learned never to scoff....Now I know that presbyopia spares no one.

I haven't watched any great TV, or seen any good movies, or read any great books lately. I'm trying to read We Were the Mulvaneys, but it's leaving me cold. If any of you have read this, I'd be glad for some feedback, because I'm about to put it down and move on.

Work is going well on all fronts. It's the little things that make it so pleasant. Small kind words, nice peope, having the columns add up correctly. I'm telling you, this Kentuck Knob job has been a blessing. I enjoy being there. I like the work, and for the most part, the people are terrific. However, then on the days that I do my bookkeeping at home, I appreciate the peace and quiet. I can get a lot of work done in a short time with no distractions and in the comfort of my sweatpants and slippers most of the day. So now I can see all the positives of working at home again. I feel really happy each and every day.

I was a referee for the first time last Saturday. I was given 4 games for - - - (don't get too excited) the 5-6 year old league. AH HA! Don't start laughing yet! It was harder than you may think! Kids that age still play with the "every ball is my ball" mentality, so at any one time 12 children (meaning 24 legs) were surrounding the ball. Just try and see who kicked the ball out of bounds! I was a wreck. Kids were falling and at one point there were so many bodies on the field, I blew the whistle to stop play. You know, when you just KNOW it's wrong. And the coach asked, "What's the call?" My answer was the highly technical, "There are too many kids laying down." OK. I should have said "Dangerous play", but who can think that fast?? I have so much to learn! And did I ever hurt after that! Talk about muscle soreness? I could cry you a river. But I began to feel better by Wednesday. So much so that when Colleen's coach called me to ref a scrimmage game for their team Thursday night, I said yes. It was different - She plays for a U-14 team (girls are 13 and 14 years old), and on a full sized field, with 10 versus 10. It was a great experience. Really - a great opportunity to learn how to ref in a realistic situation, without the pressure of it being a "real" game. And both teams coaches were referees themselves, so they were able to give me some valuable feedback. Even Dave (DH) and John (DS) came down to watch part of the game, which I thought was very sweet of them. John is a good ref - and (despite being a 15y.o. pain in my butt), he's actually very kind and instructive in his comments towards me. Like he really wants me to learn. It's kinda nice.

Well, I think I've rambled on for way too long. You've probably clicked away already! Look for me next week!

Hmmm. Judge Judy or blog? Judge Judy or blog?
See you tomorrow!

I was stuck for writing ideas, so I went to my favorite memes page, where I found the Thursday Threesome:

Onesome: Goodie-- What is your your favorite "goodie" you treat yourself to when you've finished a project or maybe even just survived a long day? Ice cream? ...a long bath? ...a good book?

Well, everyday seems like a long day! So I guess my treat would be some kind of food treat. (No wonder I need to lose weight!) In cold weather, at the end of the day, I love to have a cup of herbal tea (esp raspberry) and some pretzels. In hot weather, I love a cold margarita!

Twosome: Two-- Quick! Two things that make you smile! No thinking, just write!

My kids make me smile most of the time. But bird watching always makes me smile.

Threesome: Shoes-- ...and how about your favorite pair of shoes? You know, the ones you look for an occasion to wear! (Yes, guys that ratty pair of tennis shoes does count...)

I love good sneakers/running shoes. And they need to be kind of new, or else they are too worn out really be effective and comfy.

Well, I guess I'm still stuck. I was thinking that just beginning to write would make all kinds of warm witty comments start to flow, but there must be a log jam in my head. So I think I'll put this off for another day!

Sorry to have skipped out on blogging so much. I've skipped out on stitching, too. I'm thinking that I'll be able to keep up better when Track season is over for the kids. Of course, there's still soccer (playing and officiating), but that's a much smaller time commitment.

But otherwise, life here is going well and I have no complaints. In fact, today was to be my day off from all three jobs AND housework. And I've more or less stuck with that. There are always the various and sundry phone calls to make and to receive, but that's not too bad. So I've been stitching from about 11AM until now (1:30PM), and it's been very nice!

(Sung to the tune of "Happy Birthday to you")

It's April 15
It's April 15
I've done everyone's tax reports
Except for my own.....

Sigh...But isn't it absolutely fantastic that you can file for an extension over the telephone? Or online? I'll tell you, technology makes my life so much easier.

And so much more expensive. I've been admiring gorgeous beaded scissor fobs online. No, not admiring them. I've been lusting after them. If not for the internet, I seriously doubt I'd ever see such a thing out here in the boondocks. And I wanted one. Really, really bad.

This is really DH's fault. I told him weeks before my birthday last month that I wanted a beaded scissor fob. I even bookmarked a site for him and told him to order any of them - I loved them all. I reminded him at least once a week. And he forgot. I got a lamp. Now, I love lamps, but c'mon. So then I decided to make one. And he was warned well ahead of time that it was gonna cost him.

So, after a phone call to a friend who makes jewelry, we decided to go to the Pittsburgh Jewelry and Gem show. What fun! What wonderful beads and pearls and crystals and so on....And the money just flew out of my wallet! And then I had to buy the wire cutter and the pliers and the thing that crunches the little bands - I forget what that's called. Hmmm, you can see how it adds up.

And now I've decided that I need some interesting scissors to go with my not-yet-made scissor fobs. Enter the internet again and sites with so many wonderful scissors you could have one for every finger and toe. Like Edward Scissorhands, but prettier.

I guess it's a good thing I've taken this extra job....Even if my taxes aren't done yet.

Stitching? I'm on the home stretch with the PH sampler. I just need to finish the berries and leaves on two sides of the border, and a tiny bit of backstitching on the lady and kitty, and I'll be done! No new pics lately - I'll snap one when I'm done.

Till next time!

Clearly I must have been out of my mind. (Time for some brief whining and pity-seeking).

To take on a new job at the end of a fiscal quarter AND the end of my new employer's fiscal YEAR....and just when tax time is at its heaviest...And to have to figure out all of the mystifying ways the old bookkeeper made her entries so that I can get their reports done on time... As well as my usual report deadlines for the pharmacies and Deer Lake.

What - did my brain take a vacation two weeks ago???? Was I nuts?

OK, pity party over and time to get back to work.

My Mantra: This will get easier, and it will be fine. This will get easier and it will be fine.