Even a Nerd Can Be a Rebel ....

So today would have been Papa's 91st birthday, and it turned out to be a pretty good day down here.  I was in the mood to make some funny/sarcastic/snarky cards, using some stamps from companies other than Stampin' Up ... blasphemy to my fellow demonstrators, I'm sure.  Then I got started trying to figure out how to organize my "contraband" stamps, and then ended up making cards that were more supportive than snarky, but using products from various companies, including Stampin' Up ... (Is it even normal to come down with ADD at my age?)   Anyway, here they are ... constructive criticism is always welcome!

The insides of the 3 cards with the square outside sentiments 

all have the same inside sentiments, centered based on 

their orientation ...

The insides of the 3 cards with the round outside sentiments 

all have the same inside sentiments, centered based on 

their orientation ...

Anyone Have a Forklift?

Today I decided to work on rearranging a few things in my craft room.  Specifically, I wanted to move one of the desks about 3 inches closer to the wall.  I tried pushing it with all my might.  It wouldn't budge.  So I removed my Big Shot and cutting plates, since they're pretty heavy.  Still wouldn't budge.  I noticed there was some huge wrench thingie under the desk where my feet go, and something I couldn't identify standing up between the wall and the back of the desk behind the drawers.  I got the wrench thingie out -- NO IDEA why it was there or what it could possibly have been used for -- but the only way to get that mystery object out was to get down on the floor and crawl towards the wall.  I did that, and it was a Middle School yearbook from my son.  Again, WHY was that even here in Florida, much less in my crafts room?  Now came the hard part ... getting back up on my feet!  With my bad knees ... Thank Goodness there are no surveillance cameras in here!  It was touch and go, but I finally made it ... of course, I knew I couldn't call for help because I'd left my phone in the other room.  I tried again to push the desk, and of course it didn't budge.  So rather than try removing all the drawers (and put them WHERE?) I just gave up.  Tomorrow is another day, right?

Wednesday's Child is Full of Woe

Not much to report today.  Insomnia was awful last night, so dragged myself through the day.  I DID work on the appearance of this blog today and got some great crafty ideas from watching youtube videos.  Tomorrow will be a better day, right?  Sure hope there's no such thing as a Melatonin overdose! Goodnight!

Baby, It's Cold Outside!

76 degrees and feels like 76 degrees!  Almost makes me wanna put on long pants, a jacket,and SHOES and go outside ... HA HA HA!  Not really ... Woke up this morning to a loud clap of thunder, and between downpours, we DID have some pretty sunshine ... I accomplished nothing today, so I'll post a quick picture and say goodnight ...

Still not sure why this is called a Red-BELLIED Woodpecker, when it's his head that is RED ...

Sunshine on my shoulders makes me sunburned ...

Happy Monday!  Actually, today was a pretty good day.  Woke up (and got up) early after actually getting some sleep last night (thanks to Twila for recommending the Melatonin!)  I was out of milk, so no coffee this morning.  Dozed off before 11, but it was a kitten nap ... (not as long as a cat nap - LOL!)  Had to run a quick errand in town, so I figured I'd pick up some milk and a few other things at the Walmart in town.  Then I got a hankering for a Sam's Club hot dog and 4-berry shake, and decided to skip Walmart and hit Sam's Club instead ... I cruised up and down the aisles of Sam's, seeing what they carry ... when I checked out, they probably thought I was a vegetarian or healthy eater -- bagels, lettuce, cucumbers, tomatoes and the smallest pack of tp -- 36 rolls!  LOL!

I got more exercise cruising up and down the aisles of the warehouse than I have since Michael wiped out my gym! So I figured that hotdog and shake wouldn't hurt --  that lovely, delicious, filling meal only cost $3.13!

So I'll end this post with some pix I took the other day, when Mother Nature snapped me out of a deep funk and reminded me of the beauty all around.  Goodnight!

The Circle of Life

Today has been quite a day!  Not only did I get to talk to BOTH sons and my Granddaughter (THREE separate calls, and Kenzie was part of all 3!), but I finished FOUR new cards, took out the trash, and had a bacon cheeseburger at Shane's with some of my gang ...But the weirdest part led to the name of this post.  The plan was to head to town for a quick errand at 4, then hopefully get back to the beach for dinner by 5.  I had decided not to take my camera, so I activated the alarm system and headed out ... And then, I saw it!  A HUGE bird ... (I was sure it had to be a TURKEY) was standing in the road right by my driveway, circling what appeared to be a critter corpse of some kind.  Just then, a car pulled onto our street.  The nonchalant bird casually walked to the side of the road, the car went into the other lane to avoid the corpse, and the bird went back to the corpse.  At this point, I had to get my camera, so I disarmed the alarm system, fetched the camera, re-set the alarm and tried to figure out what I was seeing ... The big bird was standing on top of the corpse, then viciously ripped into it, tore off a piece of flesh, and started eating.  I tried to get closer to see what was on the menu -- from my distance and angle, I was afraid it could be someone's pet cat or small dog -- and the bird flew off. I moved in and saw the dead animal was a possum, and it wasn't playing -- it was really dead. So I headed for town to run my errand, and the whole time I was driving, I wondered if I should have done something before I left ... like remove the corpse from the road, or chase off the bird.  I felt bad for the possum, but then thought maybe this was the first decent(?) meal the vulture had in ages. And I remembered the song from The Lion King ... The Circle of Life ...

After my errand, I decided to drive by my house on the way to Shanes's -- to see if the bird had finished devouring his dinner, or if some animal lover had moved the corpse off the road (since it might be dark when I returned from MY dinner, and I really didn't want to add insult to injury by running over that poor possum AGAIN ... To my relief, there was no possum in the road, but the bird was strutting around on my property, and the corpse HAD BEEN RELOCATED to my yard!  Not sure if the bird did it himself or if a human did it.  The light was a little better so I tried to get another
picture.  The pictures of the possum were too gruesome, and are being withheld pending notification of next of kin ...

Had a great dinner at Shane's. And, while I had the camera out, I took pix of the cards I made today, which will hopefully end this post on a more positive note ... Goodnight!

Notice I learned how to add pix and go back to properly aligned text!  Woo Hoo!

Fly Me to the Moon?

Well, today is the 50th anniversary of the lunar landing, and I'm happy to say I still remember the excitement.  We were living in a re-modeled cottage at Grandma's Royal Court Motel.  Papa had been retired from the USAF less than 2 years, and he and Mama were helping run the motel.  Grandma had a color tv, which was a BIG DEAL to us.  I don't remember if we did, but it doesn't matter.  I just remember that Chet Huntley and David Brinkley were reporting about the big event, and as a photo enthusiast even back then, I was fascinated when they actually told us (in advance) how to take a picture of the event on the tv screen!  Papa let me use his camera, I set the shutter speed at 1/30th of a second, as instructed, and I got pictures!  They were black and white, but they were LIVE! It was soooo exciting!  I also remember that "something" happened in Chappaquiddick the next day, and there was disgust that the miracle of the lunar landing was overshadowed by that news story ...

Back to today, 50 years later, and I'm "over the moon" because I got to video chat with my adorable granddaughter today.  I'm still a smart phone rookie, and first I had the camera set wrong, so I could see her, but she could only see my view out the back porch.  Mark tried to tell me how to change the camera to "selfie" view (YUCK!) but I pushed the wrong button, and we ended up having to hang up and start over.  The 2nd time was better, and I had this little circle pop up that looked like those goofy pix people post on fb -- with goofy bows or glasses  ...I pushed that, and Kenzie cracked up.  I remember a Minnie Mouse bow, some weird over-sized glasses, and mostly, Kenzie's laugh.  Then her Daddy started morphing her image into all kinds of crazy characters and she couldn't stop laughing at my reactions.  Mark's been teasing me about my age lately, but today when he was trying to explain to Kenzie that Omi didn't know how to video chat because "she's OLD", Kenzie very forcefully looked at him and said "NO, she's NOT!"  So, for the record, if I decide to waste my precious time learning all this silly smart phone technology, I'm only doing it because it makes my Kenzie laugh, and hearing (and seeing) her laugh warms my heart .... and for all the young whippersnappers who roll their eyes at their smart-phone-challenged elders -- I'd love to see YOU take a decent picture of a 1969 tv screen with a manual FILM camera ...

Time to craft...

Follow the Yellow Brick Road, Part 2.

OK, dinner done.  It's pouring rain and the satellite keeps breaking up, making it even harder to watch my Red Sox game.  But they're kinda playing like Little Leaguers tonight, so no sweat.

Today, I got my Stampin' Up order I mentioned in yesterday's post.  I DID use the final unused stamp set, so I followed my own rule. The proof is at the bottom of the post, but only because when I tried to add the photo, then keep typing a new paragraph, it would only print the new paragraph centered under the photo ... so will have to add "learn formatting" to my list of required blogging studies. As far as the card goes, I'm not sure I like the wonky layout ... it's crooked ON PURPOSE, honest!  But I kinda like the little "sunshine" I made ... used the ship steering wheel die from the Sailing Home bundle ... cut it out twice, and staggered it, then added yellow circles and made it glittery with Wink of Stella ...  Well, I've put away the cardstock I got in my order today, put the labels on the new stamps, chopped up some of the new DSP (Designer Series Paper), and tried out my new punches ... time to create now! Hope y'all have a good evening and sleep well! :)

Follow the Yellow Brick Road? Or maybe, just Dorothy on her Blog?

OK, still learning this blogging thing ... my sister asked me to add a "Follow" button, but I haven't found that option in the help menu ... but I DID follow myself, and now there are TWO followers listed ... will see if I can figure out WHO they are... LOL!  Well, I am one of them, and the other is anonymous ...

Microwave beeped ... dinner is ready ... I'll be back ...

"Will you still read me, will you still heed me, when I'm 64?"

OK, I admit it.  I slightly altered a line from the Beatles' "When I'm 64" ... but not because I can't remember the REAL lyrics.  I'm trying something new. A blog.  And I don't have a blueprint on what it is all about, so it will just be about all the eclectic things I care about. Totally random.

Today I'll start with Stampin' Up.  For those who don't know, it is an awesome company that sells paper-crafting supplies, stamps, dies, ink pads, markers and adhesives.  I am what is called a Demonstrator ... not the income-earning kind (I couldn't sell a candy bar to a Chocoholic), but a hobbyist which, in my case, is a combination of collector (ok, hoarder) and enthusiastic fan of their products.

https://www.facebook.com/cherishinghappymemorieswithdottie/

http://www.stampinup.net/esuite/home/dorothyeverettstamps/


 I confess I have a lot more crafts supplies to organize than money to buy more, so I made myself a new rule -- before I can place another order, I have to use what came in my last order at least once.  So if I bought 4 stamp sets, I have to use at least one stamp from each set on a completed card.  Or at least one sheet of Designer Series Paper from the pack.  You get the picture.  Well, my last order (in June) was pretty big, since there was a brand new annual catalog full of temptations.  That's when I made the rule.  Then, in July, they're running a special.  For every $50 worth of product you order in July, you get a $5 coupon to spend in August (which is when Demonstrators -- aka Demos  -- can pre-order from the Christmas catalog.)  It seemed downright financially irresponsible not to place an order and get some coupons.  So I broke my own rule.  Well, actually I just "tweaked" it ... the rule is now that I can't PLAY with or USE anything from the new order until I have used everything from my last order at least once ...

After placing my order this past Monday, I went over my last order and found that 2 of the stamp sets ordered in June had not been used.  So I used one of them yesterday.  My order is supposed to be delivered by UPS tomorrow.  Here's yesterday's card, using SU's Capture the Good stamp set ...

So guess what I'll do tonight?  Time to get busy!