Tuesday, November 25, 2008

liers get caught most of the time

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Good Deal

A while back I spent $13 on a single skein of wool yarn. Good yarn can be expensive, but I usually try to find a good deal. This WAS a good deal. It was half off. Normally this yarn is $26. I got a great deal. It would have been a pretty good deal at $26. So far I have made a pair of felted slippers, a felted bowl, the trim on a child sized hat, a felted child sized hat, several felted leaves and I still have enough left over to make a change purse or maybe a pot holder. Keep in mind that felted items are made bigger than you need, so they take more yarn. I bought one other skein of the same of yarn in a different color. Now that I'm making stuff for craft shows I'm very very happy I decided to spend the $$ on the yarn.

I'm a bit of a yarn snob. That's why I have to look for good deals. I could buy cheap acrylic yarn and save a ton of cash - but you get what you pay for. Ever see that stiff, itchy crochet at craft shows? Maybe on the back of your grandmother's couch in afghan form? That's what you get when you cheap out on the yarn. I look for good deals and use the good stuff. A yarn has to feel good when I work with it. Most of what I use are wools and wool blends. My favorite is Lamb's Pride from Brown Sheep Wool. (wool/mohair blend) I also use cotton, bamboo and other natural fibers - I even use a bit of acrylic. just not cheap, stiff acrylic.

I'll post pictures this week of the stuff I have been making. I need to post some on etsy, but just have not had the time.

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

I feel better now

As I was posting my previous rant happy things were happening and I didn't even know it. I went back to look and sulk, when I found reason NOT to sulk. A customer from about 3 weeks ago posted a review that was glowing. Now I am less sulky. Give me an hour and a cup of coffee and I'll be totally chipper!

Feeling Chipper now, so you'll just have to wonder what I was ranting about. Deleted it since stuff happens and I'm over it.

Hwy 71

I live near the 150th exit off of hwy 71. This winter is going to suck big time. They couldn't close that exit during summer, spring or fall - nope they did it in WINTER. So much traffic down the access roads as people try to get on or off of 71. The narrow, barely plowed, no guard rail access roads.

If people would make some small attempt to drive carefully through the construction I would be less worried, but they aren't. Even with 71 down to two NARROW lanes and no shoulder, just concrete walls, speeding and tailgating are still the norm. I find myself going way out of my way to avoid the construction area. If it snows I'll have to go down 150 to Byers and then over to Highgrove before heading back to 71. Fun, fun, fun. That plan assumes that Grandview plans to plow Byers. Otherwise I will just stay home. I don't do snow very well, especially in the tiny car I have right now. It's more like sledding than driving with it.

Kansas city isn't the first time hwy 71 has been a headache and the people who drive it have been a headache for me. I went to college in Fayetteville, Arkansas and my grandparents lived at the other end of the state. To get there I just took 71 south. 20 years ago there wasn't a bypass like there is now. Leaving Fayetteville to go most places south meant driving on the twistiest highway I have ever been on. With sheer drops and steep inclines. Oh, and tractor trailers too. Can't forget the semi trucks hauling goods over that road. Speeding and tailgating was the norm there too. For awhile the state posted a sign at the beginning of the twisty area that said how many people died on that road in the previous year. In the winter that part of 71 can become impassable. Not that I would have been foolish enough to be on that road if there was any chance of snow. I would have rather gone into Oklahoma and then down to another part of Arkansas than take 71 south.

Today there is a bypass so you can skip all the icky parts and get down from Fayetteville to Ft. Smith pretty quickly. If the weather is nice I will still take 71. All the trucks, speeders and tailgaters are on the bypass and now it's a beautiful lazy scenic drive.

This is an interesting (to me) article on Hwy 71 in AR. http://www.nwanews.com/ozarksidentity/story.php?storyid=110

I hope that the mess on 71 south in Grandview does eventually become some glorious highway construction that improves life for people south of the city. I have to wait at least 9 months to find out. It's kinda like being pregnant, only you get to watch the baby being constructed.

I found this on Reader's Digest

Spitting Image
Driving her Chevy Malibu on U.S. 71 one day, Kansas City motorist Robbin Doolin, 31, opened her car door to spit. “I leaned too far,” she confessed to officers. And she landed on her butt. Not one to be deterred by a tumble, Doolin hopped up and, according to an amazed witness, chased her car down an embankment and into a construction site, where she finally caught up with the runaway.

Monday, November 17, 2008

Caylee Anthony


Little Caylee's story was national news for a week or so, then more interesting things happened and a lot of the nation forgot. Nancy Grace didn't. I really really really dislike Nancy, but she did keep this case out there. Why should it be out there? Because in our society people are too happy to forget the bad stuff. I wish that every case of a missing kid, no matter the race, income level or social standing would be on the news EVERY night.

If every local news station ran down a list of kids missing from Kansas City every night people would have a harder time ignoring it. We worry when some pretty teen goes missing, especially if the teen is from a wealthy family. We don't bat an eye when a kid from a poor family is missing. As the skin gets darker the apathy gets stronger. Shame on us.

I've been following Caylee's story on an Orlando Station's website. A lot has happened. Of course they now think she's dead, but everyone already knew that. Most of us knew it when her mother didn't report her missing for a month. I've been following the story because something about the mother grabbed my attention and I want to see it play out to the end.

In more local news GO HERE to KC Child Search to see the 17 pages of kids either missing from our area or who are believed to be in our area.

Stupid cheap racist

I read this story on Newsweek.com http://www.newsweek.com/id/169406/page/1 It's about an illegal alien who bought and sold a house The person he sold the house to set out to destroy his life when the deal went sour.

If she couldn't afford to pay rent how could she afford a mortgage?

Her quotes are those of a spoiled child. I did it, and I'm not sorry. I don't care if they suffered. I'm American, they aren't. so on and so on.

Lots of people reading this will side with her. Look at the bigger picture. yes, he was hear illegally - BUT - he was working, PAYING TAXES, and doing what it took to make life better for his family. If more 'Americans' would do that this country would be in much better shape.

Saturday, November 15, 2008

Original Art Flea Market


http://artflea.blogspot.com/ I was there today, and will be there most of the next few Saturdays. Some great stuff and it's CHEAP!!!

Pottery, clothes, vintage crochet, handmade soap, oil paintings, pastel drawings, prints, photography, knitted items, soy candles....lots and lots of cool things. Priced between $1 and $50. If the fantabulous balloons are not a reason to make you come, then there are plenty of other reasons.

Did I mention the great prices? One lady was selling awesome neckties that she had collected over the years. For $1 each!!!!! I missed out on the Gumby one, but I did manage to find 5 that Dan can wear when he's doing balloons.

yeah, you should come.

Thursday, November 13, 2008

Typealyzer

Thanks to May for posting this link Typealyzer

I am a feeler

ISFP - The Artists

The gentle and compassionate type. They are especially attuned their inner values and what other people need. They are not friends of many words and tend to take the worries of the world on their shoulders. They tend to follow the path of least resistance and have to look out not to be taken advantage of.

They often prefer working quietly, behind the scene as a part of a team. They tend to value their friends and family above what they do for a living.


Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Stuff from Monday

Some Sculptures we did on Monday. A dress and a Mermaid celebrating Christmas. The tree has lots of little sea critters in it.






Unlike other dresses we have made for display, this one is actually wearable.

Tuesday, November 11, 2008

the rest of the nation has noticed Kansas City

Sadly it's because of the lame ass momma's boy we have as mayor. I have counted 10 newspapers in other states that have run the article about him suing the city. I'm sure I have missed several.

He needs to go NOW!!!!


Can he sue the city? Isn't that a conflict of interest? How can you run the city you are suing. It's like divorcing a man and still being on his checking account.

I can't wait for the world to start reading about Dr. Sausage Fingers.

Saturday, November 8, 2008

Congratulations Teddy!!!!



Guess who is the mother of the #1 jazz trumpeter in the district?????

me that's who.

Congrats to my son Teddy who made first in district. Now it's on to State - December 6th.

The boy is scary good on the trumpet. If you ever see a long haired teenager playing trumpet in River Market or on the plaza - that's my baby. (and I do mean long hair. That's an old photo, his hair is about 4 inches longer now)

Charles Sykes Rules

A good friend sent me a list of rules supposedly from a speech by Bill Gates. They are good rules, but Bill didn't say them. Charles Sykes did in a book about the dumbing down of American kids.


Rule No. 1: Life is not fair. Get used to it. The average teen-ager uses the phrase "It's not fair" 8.6 times a day. You got it from your parents, who said it so often you decided they must be the most idealistic generation ever. When they started hearing it from their own kids, they realized Rule No. 1.

Rule No. 2: The real world won't care as much about your self-esteem as much as your school does. It'll expect you to accomplish something before you feel good about yourself. This may come as a shock. Usually, when inflated self-esteem meets reality, kids complain that it's not fair. (See Rule No. 1)

Rule No. 3: Sorry, you won't make $40,000 a year right out of high school. And you won't be a vice president or have a car phone either. You may even have to wear a uniform that doesn't have a Gap label.

Rule No. 4: If you think your teacher is tough, wait 'til you get a boss. He doesn't have tenure, so he tends to be a bit edgier. When you screw up, he's not going to ask you how you feel about it.

Rule No. 5: Flipping burgers is not beneath your dignity. Your grandparents had a different word for burger flipping. They called it opportunity. They weren't embarrassed making minimum wage either. They would have been embarrassed to sit around talking about Kurt Cobain all weekend.

Rule No. 6: It's not your parents' fault. If you screw up, you are responsible. This is the flip side of "It's my life," and "You're not the boss of me," and other eloquent proclamations of your generation. When you turn 18, it's on your dime. Don't whine about it, or you'll sound like a baby boomer.

Rule No. 7: Before you were born your parents weren't as boring as they are now. They got that way paying your bills, cleaning up your room and listening to you tell them how idealistic you are. And by the way, before you save the rain forest from the blood-sucking parasites of your parents' generation, try delousing the closet in your bedroom.

Rule No. 8: Your school may have done away with winners and losers. Life hasn't. In some schools, they'll give you as many times as you want to get the right answer. Failing grades have been abolished and class valedictorians scrapped, lest anyone's feelings be hurt. Effort is as important as results. This, of course, bears not the slightest resemblance to anything in real life. (See Rule No. 1, Rule No. 2 and Rule No. 4.)

Rule No. 9: Life is not divided into semesters, and you don't get summers off. Not even Easter break. They expect you to show up every day. For eight hours. And you don't get a new life every 10 weeks. It just goes on and on. While we're at it, very few jobs are interested in fostering your self-expression or helping you find yourself. Fewer still lead to self-realization. (See Rules No. 1 and No. 2.)

Rule No. 10: Television is not real life. Your life is not a sitcom. Your problems will not all be solved in 30 minutes, minus time for commercials. In real life, people actually have to leave the coffee shop to go to jobs. Your friends will not be as perky or pliable as Jennifer Aniston.

Rule No. 11: Be nice to nerds. You may end up working for them. We all could.

Rule No. 12: Smoking (or drug use) does not make you look cool. It makes you look moronic. Next time you're out cruising, watch an 11-year-old with a butt in his mouth. That's what you look like to anyone over 20. Ditto for "expressing yourself" with purple hair and/or pierced body parts.

Rule No. 13: You are not immortal. (See Rule No. 12.) If you are under the impression that living fast, dying young and leaving a beautiful corpse is romantic, you obviously haven't seen one of your peers at room temperature lately.

Rule No. 14: Enjoy this while you can. Sure parents are a pain, school's a bother, and life is depressing. But someday you'll realize how wonderful it was to be a kid. Maybe you should start now. You're welcome.

Friday, November 7, 2008

I'm still trying to wrap my mind around this

http://www.boomantribune.com/story/2008/11/6/84858/3741

Umm...Wow!!

I don't know if I should laugh or cry. Maybe a little of both. The depths of stupidity in this country know no limits.

Wednesday, November 5, 2008

Wow, I didn't know

I was unaware until today that the election actually cancelled out any powers that Congress might have. Apparently from now on all of the power will be held by one man. One great man or one evil man depending on which side of the vote you were on.

Is Obama really going to do all the things I'm hearing about? Is Congress truly unable to stop him? Come on people, get real. he can't raise taxes, start war (only works for Bush), implement new laws or redistribute any one's wealth WITHOUT THE SENATE AND HOUSE SAYING HE CAN. Not just the Senate OR the House, but the Senate AND the House. Obama will have great power to lead, to inspire and to some extent to influence, but he can't change everything all at once just by himself.

To all the rednecks who are in a panic - Obama can't force you to listen to rap and not country. He can't make a law that your daughters can only date black men and he won't make you get gold teeth. Your life is pretty much unchanged. On that note - cut the mullet. It was ugly in the 80s, it's still ugly.

To all the ultra ghettos - you're still going to have to work even if there is a brother in the White House. Lots of hard working black men and women will benefit from having a person of color at the highest seat in the government. Lots of lazy, not working people (of all colors from very white to very dark) will not see the instant benefits they are banking on.

I have heard so many stupid comments today from both sides of the voting lines. Obama has quite a bit of work ahead of him. I hope he does what's best for the country, 'cause he isn't going to be able to please everyone.

Bladder control training - the scary way

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Tuesday, November 4, 2008

Voting

Ok, I finally went and voted.

Decided to test the waters and vote without a photo id. Went fine. Of course I only tried this because I live across the street and would be able to come right back. I would have to wait in the line again, but I could still vote. I wanted to see what would happen after that guy in August got denied the right to vote. No problems at all. :-)

Voters

There seem to be a lot more voters this year than in 2000 or 2004. I live across the street from a polling station, so I see the traffic. I usually would support lots of voters, but they have put me in a bad mood today. The polls open at 6. At 5 I could hear lots of traffic, so I went to investigate. The right to vote does NOT give people the right to block driveways. I got to mine in time, but two of my neighbor's didn't and were late for work as a result. On our street parking is allowed on one side only. People were on both sides leaving one narrow lane down the middle. So far today I have seen 9 standoffs where people going either direction were determined that they and they alone had the right of way. That was all before 7. After Dan finally made it out of the driveway I went back to bed. I'll vote later this morning after some of the people have made it into work.

It's only once every 4 years, so I could just suck it up and complain less. That won't happen because it's not only once every 4 years. yeah, big votes are, but rudeness seems to happen every day. Have some courtesy folks. Our street didn't close down for voting. A lot of people actually live near the schools and churches you are voting at. Don't park in their driveways, don't throw your cigarette in their yard and don't blast your radio or having screaming fights about who is supposed to pick up the kids in front of their houses. Behave nicely and I won't be tempted to cut off the valves to your tires while you are waiting in line. :-)

Saturday, November 1, 2008

Evil

Hey AssHats uses the phrase Evil Republican Overlords. I like that phrase. I've been using it a lot since I read it on his blog. Politics is one thing my daughter and I do NOT have in common. She's a libertarian and since they won't win she's probably going to vote for the Evil Republican Overlords. Except of course that I have her voter card. Just kidding, she can vote for evil if she wants to. But I am going to say I told you so about a million times if McCain wins, dies and the most evil one becomes president.

This lady is voting for the Evil Republican Overlords too. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27488353/

So are the people who made up these flyers http://hamptonroads.com/2008/10/phony-flier-says-virginians-vote-different-days


I'm so sad, both for my daughter's choice, but also for the basic behavior of my fellow human beings. Geeze, people should know better than that by now.