Berry Me in Beads Update!

I am sooo excited!! I have my first entry for the challenge. I started a new page for the entries (See side bar to the right for the page under Norm and Barney where it says "Pages" and click on the "Berry Me in Beads Entries" link.

I will update the page as I get entries and have more news. 15 days to go to get your submissions in!!

Summer Kick-Off!! Are You Ready??

It’s been a long tough week for me, but at last it is over! It’s Memorial Day Weekend! The official kick-off to the Summer season! A three day weekend!! YAH-HOO!!!! Barbeques, Cherries are in season (my favorite fruit), great weather, lots of sun. What’s not to like??

I will tell you what’s not to like.

BATHING SUITS!!!

Yes, the season for BATHING Suits is upon us. Skimpy, revealing, and unforgiving. Thongs, postage stamp size little tops, tight firm bodies on the beach strutting their stuff. All the diets that began on Jan 1, with their results (or maybe just lucky genetics) will soon be paraded at the beach.

California beaches are especially “scenic” even the ones found in Northern California. All the athletic bodies, young and old scream to me…”Look at me, you tub of lard!! Oh….don’t you live near MANTECA (a city just to the north of my home in Modesto). Maybe you should move there. (If you don’t know what Manteca means, it is Spanish for Lard. Imagine naming a city that!!).

I eyed my bathing suit. Suddenly, I am happy that the coastal beaches are far away, no longer within reach should I awake in the morning and get the idea that I would like to pop over to Santa Cruz for the day for sand and surf.

Do you know how many diets I started since Jan 1?

Three!!

Every day.

That makes 441 diets this year.

I ate each one.

I once started that Weight Watcher program. It is a good program. But I think I was sold short. I took the pamphlet, totaled up everything I ate and stayed within the limits.

I nearly died.

The second week, the leader asked the group, “How’d you all do?”

Skinny bitch, I wanted to choke her. She was all happy…and skinny.

In the knick of time, the fatso next to me pipes up…”I couldn’t eat it ALL!! There was just way too much food!”

WHAT!!! I looked over at her. She was fatter than me. She looked like she weighed 400 pounds. I am NOWHERE near that! Did she have the same diet as me? Was she told to eat the same number of points as me?  How could she be fatter than me, and allowed the same amount of food as me, stick with it, and claim that what was allowed was TOO MUCH FOOD? Should I explain to her that the pamphlet we were given was for the WEEK, and not a DAILY allowance?

I was about to reach over to her and grab her extra points and slug her when the leader threw her a package of diet pretzels (2 points). I grabbed it mid air. And ate it, before she had a chance to catch it. She didn’t need it. She still had uneaten points. I ate all of mine and was about to keel over due to low blood sugar. I NEEDED those pretzels. I ate all of them. Crammed them all into my mouth. All two of them.

I think she was a shill, a  plant.  No one dared to challenge her.

I don't think she liked me.

I didn't like her either.

She lost 12 pounds.

I lost….well…let’s just say I think I lost my “points”…I was hungry…maybe she found them and that’s why she couldn’t eat all of her points. The bitch had mine.

Anyways… I got side tracked. It is the summer  kick off weekend. I plan on going to spend the weekend with Jasmine in Fresno. I think we will have a BBQ, watch girly movies and generally have fun.

Screw the diet. I don’t think I will wear my bathing suit anyways!!

Nonsense

Since Agricultural jobs are harder to find, and who wants to labor out in the hot searing sun anyways, it appears that people whose first language is NOT English are filtering in other more cushy jobs. Maybe they will cover fruits in their vocabulary lesson some time soon.

Hmmmm.......I don't know if I would trust these guys to do my alignment job. What do you think?

I hear the neighborhood is AMAZING!!! Especially in the morning!

And in case you are wanting to find a home in this community, I will recommend this realtor

Three Week Countdown!

Only 3 weeks to go for the Berry Me in Beads deadline!!

I hope everyone that is participating is having fun with their creations. I can't wait  to see everyone's submissions.


I will start adding the jpgs as soon as I get them so everyone can see them. Names will not be displayed until after the winners are announced.

Norm is studying up on beadwork so that he can be a good judge.
Barney thinks he knows enough about beads, just because he helps me package beads.

Since they have their own category, they want to pick a worthy winner!

Let me know if there are any problems/questions OK??

Tipsy Tuesday, 5/25/10 Goofing Off!!!

Hi everyone!! This is Norm....

And Barney!

We are goofing off today since Sig is gone all day at training. It is nearly 8pm, and we still have not seen her. I think she might have ran away. I hope she is ok...

I am just glad she isn't here to make us work! Norm, you always worry too much about her. I think she makes us work too hard!

Just because you are a lazy Bruin, Barney...doesn't mean Sig has you work too hard. You are just a hair above a slug in terms of ambition. All you think about is eating berries and sleeping! Don't you think you should do something for your keep?

I think about more than just eating berries!! I like salmon and honey too. Why should I work? Bears don't work! I think I should hide all of Sig's beads, that way we won't have any work to do.

Barney, you are just plain mean! What would everyone else think of you, stealing all her beads? Who would you give them to?

I dunno....the way Sig complains about people wanting things for free, there would probably be a line up, don't you think? Norm...you are such a suck up sticking up for her!

Maybe we should just sleep on it, Barney. Maybe you won't feel so bad when you wake up, you grumpy old bear.

Just wake me up when you hear her come home Norm. That way I can look like I am working. I am so happy to have a day off from answering questions! Some  questions are really hard. My brain could use a rest!!

I think I will take a rest too. If you hear my lovely wife Olga calling me, be sure to wake me up! I have to look like I am working too!!

I guess next week, we will have to go back to answering those tough questions!!

ZZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz!!!

Bragging Rights: Marty Measel

This week is a tough week for me. I am traveling back and forth to Sacramento every day for a training class....up at 5, out the door by 5:30, and I will finally get back by 7pm! Makes for a long day!! It's only Monday and I am tired already. Friday seems a loooong way off!!

Marty sent this to me today. I really love this piece I called Chinese Pheasant.

Bragging Rights: Joyce Cason

Arizona Flag Bracelet By Joyce Cason

I think she did a great job, don't you??

She also made matching earrings derived from the basic pattern. I LOVE them!!

Are you in support of Arizona's attempt at securing our borders and keeping our nation OURS?

Then make this bracelet for yourself! You don't have to be from Arizona to wear this bracelet.

Special price of $2 (save $3)  until May 31.

I will email the pattern to you as soon as I can after I get your order. Please allow me some time, as I do have a day job and cannot access my files at home until evening hours.

Yes!! I am in support of Arizona's attempt to keep our Nation safe, and keep ILLEGAL immigration in check!!

TAGGED!!

I've been TAGGED!!
Lee
from Tossing it Out tagged me for this "what if" game:

 IF I WERE A…

MONTH  -- May. Because it is my birth month.

DAY—Friday, because it is the start of the weekend!

TIME OF DAY  -- 7am, a fresh start of a day (especially on
a weekend)

SEASON--Spring for all the freshness and color and the 
baby animals.

PLANET --  Earth where things are green and alive

DIRECTION—West. Where I always hoped it would be 
better than the east coast and you can watch the sun 
set over the ocean and become morning to far away 
countries

TREE—The mighty oak. Able to withstand nearly anything.

ANIMAL—A bear…or course!!

MUSICAL INSTRUMENT- a violin. There is no more beautiful
instrument than a violin. My favorite string?? 
The G string…of course!

FRUIT – Cherries. Luscious and sweet

FOOD—Salad. A mixture of all sorts of yummies blended 
into one interesting and never boring dish

COLOUR—purple. Royal and rich

BOOK—a good travel book. Always wanting to discover 
new places

SONG –I owe, I owe… so off to work I go. (oh…that was
Hi-Ho, Hi-Ho… I never was good at memorizing lyrics)

MOVIE -The DaVinci Code. Or Yentil. Questioning and 
challenging the accepted norms of religion.

FLOWER—Fuchsia to attract hummingbirds and give a 
garden lots of color

FACIAL EXPRESSION--  A smile to share joy with others

I pass on this tag to:

Suzanne Cooper   Love-2Bead

Pamy Welborn  Violet Bead Blog  

Judith Bertoglio-Griffin  Bead Line Studios

I Am NOT Ashamed

Why does it seem lately that if you are WHITE , you are walking around hanging your head? When did White people begin to feel apologetic for all the world’s wrongs? Why do Whites willingly accept blame of those wishing to blame their misfortune and even their lack of ambition on their race?

There are those who are quick to throw in the race card as soon as things become difficult. Remember Huricane Katrina? I was appalled at those who claimed that the Hurricane targeted them because of their race. Good grief. Did white people get spirited away just before it hit?

Now with Arizona’s Immigration Law, the race card is thrown in once again. The law is accused of being the fast track for racial profiling. And many White people are once again shaking in their boots. Racist?  We would rather die of the bubonic plague before we are called racist. 

Then to add insult on injury, yesterday Mexico’s President Calderon also infered that the people of Arizona are racial profiling, and that the law violates human rights. He dares to lecture us on our laws, when his country’s law are much more exclusionary and harsh than ours, and yes even more than Arizona’s laws?

By the way. Have any of you read Arizona’s Immigration Law? I have. Go read it. It is not that long. Only 17 pages. Read it before you start following the “popular opinion” of how horrible it is. If you really read it, you will see that it mostly cut and paste of the Federal Law that the Feds refuse to enforce. There is nothing in it that singles out any race or any ethnicity.

With all due respect, for the President of Mexico, (or any country) to chastise us for wanting immigrants to come across the border LEGALLY, for us to want to have productive LAW ABIDING citizens, when his own country has laws much harsher is laughable. To give him a standing ovation, as was done, after he basically kicked us in the ass, just shows how spineless we as a nation have become. Especially White people. You would think that vampires sucked the blood out of us.

Racial profiling? If you are looking for illegals on the Mexican Border , then I am sorry, yes, it is Hispanics that we will look for. Taliban Terrorists? Again, I am sorry, but chances are it will be a Mid Eastern or Pakistani that we will look for. It very likely won’t be a little grandmother with the last name of Svenson.

It has gotten to the point where Whites seem to be ashamed of being white. We have become apologetic for every difficulty that every race has ever endured. Somehow, it is viewed that Whites need to make up for all the wrongs that all races, creeds and nationalities have suffered since Adam and Eve.

No one needs to be apologetic for their race, for their religion or their heritage. No matter what that might be. Political correctness has gone to far, in my opinion. We need to stop blaming the past on those who are living in the present.

Don’t get me wrong. I love all cultures. All races. The variety is what makes life wonderful. It’s just that I think that those of us who are white need to stop taking blame, and stop feeling ashamed of being white. If we constantly blame lack of opportunity on race, lack of financial success on race, inability to get good grades in school on race or any of the other difficulties that are encountered on race rather on an individual’s lack of work ethic, dedication in school, or self motivation, then there will always be a division along ethnic/racial lines. 

I for one, am not ashamed, or apologetic of my color or heritage. Nor should anyone else be.

Economy? What Economy?

Anyone who says the economy is starting to improve, must be drinking (or smoking) some primo stuff. I just don’t see it in my neck of the woods.

Last Saturday, I did a one day show in Oakland (The Bead Society of Northern CA). This show is all about the beads. There are some terrific vendors. And the Bay Area has a LOT of beaders. Just last year, I did KILLER at this show. I sold more in one day, than I did in some two day shows.

That was not the case this year. I BARELY made my booth fee. But with parking, cost of the items I sold, and milage, I have to say the show was a loss for me.

The signs that this would not be a successful show this year were evident at the start. The line up of customers waiting to get in before the doors opened was sparse. I remember the days as a shopper coming to buy at this show when it took 15 minutes just to get in the door.

At the height of the show, it was still quite sparse. Booths were still sparsely visited, when in years back, a shopper would have to fight to get to the tables.

I know my bead shopping is at an all time low. Perhaps that is a good thing. I will be forced to use the stock that I have. But it also means that sales are dismal. And when sales are dismal, it is hard to find the inspiration to create something new.

How about you? How are sales in your area? Are you like me, in that if you have little that sells, your drive for creating new things for sale is hampered?

Signs of a bad show

1. The show has been open for an hour, and you never noticed.
2. You think the show has closed and started packing, only to discover that there is still an hour to go.
3. You fell asleep and didn’t miss anything.
4. You finally got to read War and Peace. In one sitting.
5. You finally have a sale, and forgot what to do.
6. You’ve spent more money at other vendors than you sold.
7. You feel like you should pay the customers.
8. You decide to wear a sign that says “Please feed me” or  “Please donate”
9. You can actually see what is on the vendor’s tables without fighting a crowd.
10. Vendor count: 250, Show visitors: 115. Vendors win by a landslide.

Happy Birthday to Me!

Birthdays are a funny thing. As kids, we couldn’t wait to have one. Each year we would look forward to them. We could hardly wait for a birthday party complete with cake, ice cream and gifts. There are birthdays that are milestones of sorts. Sweet 16, coming of age at 18 and becoming “legal” age at 21. After 21, I think most of us begin to have a shift in our eagerness to become another year older. We now begin marking the decades. 30, 40, 50, 60… For many, each decade has some sort of significance. For me, I wanted a child before I reached the ripe old age of 30. At 40, I wanted to have my own house. At 50…well…I just wanted to be healthy and happy.

Most of my birthdays have been quiet days. A day just like every other. No big parties. No gifts except from Jasmine, or perhaps from another family member. I am not complaining at all. I am just stating that I just cannot imagine a huge grandiose celebration like some have. I am not sure I would want one. All the fussing would make me uncomfortable.

I look at my birthday as a time to reflect. What did I accomplish during the last year? What do I hope for my next year and what must I do to try to achieve it? This is not a New Year’s type of resolution where the goal is changing a behavior, but more of a check up for what I really would like to accomplish.
 What am I doing right? Where can I improve?


To answer those big questions, I guess I accomplished doing something I never thought I would. Writing this blog is a huge undertaking for me. It takes a lot of time to gather my thoughts and write them down in a way that makes sense. It takes almost as much time to gather/create a photo that matches the post. Sometimes it even takes a deep breath and a bit of courage as I write something really personal and soul searching for perfect strangers to read, even though I might make light of it to find the humor. Blogging takes more energy than I ever thought it would, yet, it is something that I also find comfort in. It can be a release, like confiding in a close friend. Comments received from readers are more important than you might think. Any serious blogger will tell you that the comments are their lifeblood when it comes to their writing. Each comment is a gift. Each time someone rates my blog with the little yellow stars, I feel like a kid getting a report card…with a star!

Other than blogging, I tried to keep up with designing and bead as much as I could. I also tried to fit in my yearly travel (escape). This year, it was my trip to the UK back in April (despite the circumstances that brought me there), but also last July, Jas and I traveled to China/Tibet and Cambodia.

I guess those are my accomplishments for the year that passed. They may be small, but at least I feel I have done something.
My goals for my year ahead? I guess I would like to teach more. I would like to get out and meet more beaders. I would like to find a new style or niche for my beadwork. It is time for change since I feel stagnant. I would like to work on defining my spirituality a bit more. I would like to find more time to explore spiritual teachings of the Dalai Lama, and of the Kabbalah.

I would like to travel even more than my once yearly adventure, if I could find a way to be able to afford it. Maybe I could tie that in with teaching, to make it possible.

But most of all, I wish to continue to be healthy and to continue to be as happy as humanly possible. All else falls into place as long as we have both our health and our happiness.

And a pile of beads with friends to share them with is worth a lot too!  

Tipsy Tuesday, 5/18/10 Summer Beverages

Today’s Tipsy Tuesday Question is from Janie. It is a non-bead question, but it earned her a free pattern!! Send in your question, regardless of the subject and you too can earn a free pattern!!

“I am trying to wean myself away from drinking sodas. They are expensive. I don’t need the sugar and I don’t like the idea of drinking the chemical artificial sweetener in diet sodas. Do you have a suggestion for a refreshing summer drink (non alcoholic)?”

My Response

You are right! Who needs the calories from the sugar in sodas? I would rather use the calories for a bit of ice cream or a frozen fruit bar on a hot summer day.  The artificial sweetener is not good for you either.  I just don’t trust them, no matter how “safe” the studies say they are.

During the summer, you can always find iced tea in my fridge. It is inexpensive, tasty and there is such a variety. Don’t limit yourself to the standard black iced tea. There are black teas that are flavored with herbs and essences of various fruits. I find these to be wonderful for a morning drink in the place of coffee, especially if the morning is already a bit balmy.

Herbal iced teas are fantastic when you don’t want to worry about the caffeine. There are all sorts of varieties to choose from. Some are so tasty, they almost taste like juice without the calories.

You can choose to sweeten to your taste, or leave it unsweetened with a squeeze of lemon (my favorite way). Serve over lots of ice. If you are missing the fizziness of soda, then make the tea extra strong, then just before serving, mix with sparkling water, kinda like an iced tea spritzer.

These are my favorite tea companies. They have a fantastic selection. Something for everyone:

Tevana I discovered this tea company in their own shop in a mall!! WONDERFUL flavors of tea. They mix a couple together for tasting in their store that make for yummy tea! And I love their tea accessories too!

Upton  So MANY to choose from. I LOVE the Rote Grutze tea. It is Kool Aid red, fruity (raspberries) just like the German dessert it was named after!!

Tea Forte  Great flavors and elegant presentations for both hot and cold teas...should you like to serve up a stunning tea service for friends. They even have some blends for tea-drinks to mix with spirits such as rum that I am wanting to try. I love their raspberry nectar iced tea. YUMMY!!


Don't worry about boiling water. Just stick the tea in a container and in the fridge. A few hours later, it will be ready for you. In a hurry? Then make the tea 3X normal strength with hot water, brew as you would hot tea, then pour over ice cubes. The ice cubes will dilute it, but because you made it super strong, the melted ice will make it just right.

 

Norm the Gnome in the Know’s Response:

I like lemonade. Sometimes when my lovely wife Olga is not watching, I will add a little rum to my lemonade, with a piece of crushed mint. The only problem is, when I have had two of these little refreshers, I feel a little frisky. Unless I slip my lovely wife Olga a little rum in her lemonade too, she will bat my ears when I get a little frisky with her.

Just the other night, I had a nice cool lemonade made my favorite way. I went up to my lovely Olga and I nestled my head between her ample….

Oh-Oh….here she comes!! I better get to work!!

Barney the Brainy Bruin’s Response

I don’t like soda either. It goes up my nose and makes it feel like there are angry bumble bees flying around in my nose. Plus it gives me indigestion and makes me fart. Have you ever been around a farting bear? It’s not pleasant.

Coffee does that to me too!! Except worse!!

I love cold water, straight from a clear stream.

The "Fantasy Island Music" Challenge

This post is part of a challenge by Lee from Tossin' it Out. It is also a "blog hop". Participants are listed below. I am sure everyone participating will have an interesting take on this challenge. Do stop by other participants, I can tell you this, many are fantastic writers! Just click on the participants to hop to another blog!

Not being able to take part in Lee’s mega A-Z challenge because I was away for about half the time period that the alphabet flew by, I wanted to make sure I took part in his next challenge. He calls the challenge Fantasy Island Music.

At first, I thought Ok…I would have a hard time picking out my 15 all time favorite CD’s. Perhaps I could choose one to three from each style I like to listen to. I often have an eclectic mix in my 6 CD changer these are some of the ones in my regular rotation:

Classical

Vivaldi’s Four Seasons: the most beautiful music written! EVER!!

Pavoratti: I don’t understand a word, but when he sings Nessun Dorma it gives me chills and I always cry.

David Garrett : I just LOVE this guy!! What a FANTASTIC violinist. Not bad on the eyes either!

Mood:

Blue Stone Breathe:  New Age? Electronic? I don’t know…Moody in a great way. Close your eyes, and you’re in another world.

Jens Gad: ANYTHING by him, including  his group Enigma. Not sure how to classify him, other than to say he will take you on an ethereal journey.

Bliss Quiet Letters: My ultimate stress reducer

Pink Martini Hang on Little Tomato Happy tangos, and jazz and just great  "lounge" type music

Pop

Michael Jackson, Thriller

Madonna Like a Prayer

Prince Purple Rain

All three are CLASSICS!! Just plain enjoyable

Lady Gaga 
Fairly new, relative to this category (at least for me). I just LIKE her!!

Singer Song Writer

Dan Fogelberg
What can I say. I love his music. Sappy, lyrical, just down right
enjoyable acoustic music. I guess his "Very Best of..."  is just that.

World:

Tarkan Dudu: The semi melancholy Arabian harmonies (he is Turkish) set to very upbeat dance style. Sad and happy rolled into one. Plus it reminds me of my trip to Turkey.

Loreena McKennitt An Ancient Muse: You can’t get much more poetic and haunting than this CD 


Soundtrack

French Kiss 
 Because I love the movie, and it has some great classic songs that will transport you to Paris.

I guess I could write about each one in nauseating depth. I could give you a critique about the moods each one creates, the artistry and skill of the musicians, and what I think some of the lyrics mean. Perhaps I could tell you stories of what each CD makes me think of, what memories some bring up. Yes, I could go into all this. I could get into the complexities of harmonies, the clever tempo changes and the unexpected key changes. I could also get into the differences of how a piece differs in feel from a ¾  meter versus a 6/8 meter. Music does have a lot of complexities that make music wonderful. But in the end it all comes down to taste. Do you like it? I love all the CD’s in the above list (you can find all of them on Amazon.com).

As I pondered the theme, Fantasy Island Music, I began to wonder .. Have you begun to notice that Thinking, Wondering and Pondering are my evil triplets when it comes to writing? If you have been reading my blog for a while, you should know that when I preface something in my post by saying I was Thinking, Wondering or Pondering what follows tends to be kind of wacky.

Yes…I began to wonder…did Lee mean that we were on a tropical island, and which 15 CD’s would we want to have with us for an extended period of time, with no chance of changing them? Which 15 CD’s could we listen to repeatedly if we were marooned Gilligan Island style, without becoming ill at the sight of them?
I looked over my original list that you see above. I guess I would pretty much stay with it, with one addition. I would add: U 2 Can Yodel.

Oh quit your gagging!! It is in the Germanic blood running through my veins. I have always wanted to learn how to Yodel. Real Yodeling that is, not that cowboy stuff. I want to Yodel like Franzl Lang. My Yodel-Idol!! I could join my accordian playing dad in some of the Oktoberfests that he plays for. But that’s not all…having this CD would give me something active to do. Instead of just listening to music, I could practice. I could accomplish something while being stranded on a tropical island for an undetermined time. Yes…I would finally have the time to sit and practice with this CD that I have had for over a year. Besides…learning to Yodel might be a life saver. In the Alps, Yodeling came about as a way to communicate over long distances. My Yodeling could alert a cruise ship on the opposite side of the island that I was here, stranded with CD’s I chose as a result of Lee’s challenge. They would come looking for me and take me and my 16 CD’s back to civilization.

With that thought in my mind…I thought (oh-oh…there is one of those evil triplet-words again).WAIT!! I am marooned on a tropical island, Survivor style. What makes me think that I will have electricity to power my CD playing Boom Box? It would have to be battery operated! Batteries do have a finite life. Unless there is an abandoned battery warehouse with the correct size of batteries, I would be out of power in no time.

Ok…I would still choose the Yodeling CD. And that would be the only one I would play, for the same reasons stated above. I would devote my battery’s life to learning this life saving skill. The other CD’s would be picked randomly. What would I care? I won’t be listening to them. If I could choose double CD’s or collections and have them count as a single CD I would, but I doubt Lee would allow that. He probably has the same policy as CD clubs have. Double CD’s count as 2 selections…

So…my main criteria would be choosing those CD’s with the least amount of ink on them. I want them to be as glossy and shiny as possible. Why, you ask? Think about it. I am marooned on an Island. Just me and my 16 CD’s and a boom box with soon to be dead batteries. The CD’s better be useful in some way.

I would use my CD’s for survival. I would use them like Frisbees. Having little else to do on this island but Yodel, I would soon become an expert marksman with my CD Frisbee flinging. I would practice my marksmanship on trees, and other foliage until my skill was dead on. The minimal ink coverage on the CD's would make them easy to find since they would be gleaming little beacons under the canopy of the trees or they would gleam in the sand. Shiny CD's would be easy to find, heavily painted ones would be lost forever.

With my new skill, I could hunt. Flying bird? ZAP!! with my CD Frisbee, I would have roast fowl for dinner! Small furry creature? My CD Frisbee becomes a slice-o-matic and I could have rodent stew for dinner. Fish in the ocean? My CD Frisbee dives in like a spaceship and skins and fillets my fish in one fell swoop.  Oh boy, grilled fish is on the menu! I have become the Yodeling-CD-Armed-Huntress.

Other CD’s would become my solar oven. The shiny CD’s would be placed just right to capture and reflect the searing sun, I would sear my day’s catch for my meals. They would sizzle to perfection in my CD oven. YUM!!

While others may be left with their heavily inked CD’s, and a dead boom box, wishing they could listen to their music and cursing Lee for putting them on this Not-So-Fantasy-Island, I will have learned to Yodel like my Yodel-Idol, and maybe I will open THE CD GRILL to feed everyone else.

Would that be a table for two, sir?

Narcissistic Sundays #23: Modesto, Final installment...at last!!

Settling in Modesto was not easy for me. I really felt like I was torn up by my roots. Now, nearly 9 years later, I STILL feel that way. I miss all the beadshops where I used to teach. I miss being able to go to Santa Cruz on a spur of the moment just because I felt like it. I miss going up to San Francisco because I had nothing better to do. I miss going to the Art and Wine Festivals until I got so sick of them that I could puke.

Modesto seems to be a no-man’s land. There is a Whole Foods in Sacramento and in Fresno. It seems to have avoided Modesto like the plague. Panera (a wonderful bakery), can be found in Stockton and to the south of Modesto, but apparently yeast won’t rise in Modesto. Chipotle’s is hot and spicey up in Manteca, and down in Turlock, but it can't seem to find its sizzle here. It seems so much happens outside of Modesto, but for some reason, not here. And this is not a small city. There are over 200,000 here.

Modesto is in the top 25 car theft cities in the nation, it is the meth capital of CA. Modesto had the distinction of being the 2nd (or 3rd depending on which study you are reading) of the worst places to live in the US, following our neighbor Stockton to the north. Oh…and I think the unemployment rate is hovering at around 15%. It is said that there are only three things to do in Modesto. Drink, Go to Church and Screw. And apparently it is said that the screwing isn’t so good in Modesto either. As for the other 2 choices…well, I guess I am not a drinker…and my personal religion…well…maybe that’s another topic but at the present, it does not involve a church.

I could go on and on with my list of why I am not happy in Modesto, but frankly, I would put myself in such a blue funk if I were to really itemize each and every point. I would rather focus on the positive.

The cost of living is cheaper here.

Ummm…..the cost of living is cheaper here.

Ok…I am THINKING….give me a moment. I will come up with another positive point…

Did I mention that the cost of living is cheaper here?

I guess I will leave it at that.

And make the best of what I have.

To continue with a more positive attitude, I have settled in as much as I can. I have found a way to be happy that involves escaping Modesto when I can. I take comfort in the love I have for my daughter and my pride in her when she graduated from UC Davis with her BA, and just recently with her MA in Education. She walked across the very same stage I did when I earned my degree. Being a child in a one parent household, she beat the odds. She is a success. She is my pride and joy.



Steve is still with me. He works hard on my website. He's an all around good guy. We have our challenges. He lost his job several years back, and has had a significant health problem that may keep him from working again. It makes it tough on me to hold full financial responsibility once again for someone other than myself and Jasmine, but I trudge bravely onward. I do what I can, and try to do what I can do the best way possible.

I hope to keep beading and creating. I hope to keep blogging, especially on topics to make you laugh or inspire you, or even help you, And of course the occasional full blown rant.  I hope to keep traveling, since it is my yearly escape from Modesto to explore the world!

For those of you who have been following this self absorbed “Saga” for the past 22 weeks, I hope you have enjoyed it. I hope you have found some sort of inspiration from it, since that was the main reason I started you on this journey. Magazines be damned…since they had no interest in telling you any of it in their bead-artist articles. Maybe if you feel like things are tough and you just can’t go forward, think of some of the challenges I faced, and know that if I made it through it all, you can too. All you need to do, is believe in yourself. If you need a little encouragement, let me know! I will cheer you on, from the bottom of my heart.

I guess I have you caught up to date fairly well. Of course, we go forward from here, for the most part. While my "Story" is finished with the "Narcissistic Sundays", it certainly is not over, otherwise I would be "pushing up daisies". I hope that you will stay with me as my "Story" continues here on this blog, day by day (or as often as I can post). I hope it will continue to be interesting!

And now…I have to think of what the heck to write about on Sundays!! ;)

The Forcast!!

Press Release!! News Flash!!  Important news unveiled by Pantone! The color for 2010 is Turquoise! More exactly, it is PANTONE 15-5519. Ok…they did announce this at the end of 2009, but I just found out about it. It is news to me, the eternal Day-Late-Dollar-Short-Sig.

How can you argue with news like that? Pantone LLC has been “the World’s color authority for 45 years”. Does someone like me, a fashion peon, with no training in color theory, and not even one formal Art class dare to challenge this news?

How do they come about this decision? With well over 1000 colors, how do they decide what color(s) are “in” for the year or season? Do the Pantone Execs sit around a mohogany boardroom table (or was that last year’s wood color, and this year it is cherrywood?), deciding what color is to be “IT”.

“Oh Dah-ling…. Shady Glade just doesn’t match my contacts this year. It CLASHES! It just won’t do!”

“ Blue Iris is just too common place. Who wants THAT color? EE-WW-UU!!”

“Withered Rose is, well….you know, WITHERED!”

“Shitake is rather uninspired ,don’t you think? Who (who is ANYONE) would want to wear a fungus color?”

 

“Mimosa is so last year…”

“Turquoise!! That’s the one!! It invokes the tropical ocean, gemstones, and matches my partner’s eyes! It’s F-A-B-U-L-O-U-S!! I would like to float my yacht in a sea of it.”

Or perhaps there is something in how the sun, moon and stars line up that determine the colors for the year and seasons. Or perhaps the Oracle at Delphi is consulted so that the mysteries of yearly color selection can be done with undisputed accuracy.

I can’t imagine that this is done lightly, or easily. Can you?

How much does this yearly/seasonal color trend affect you? Are your color choices in clothing affected? Is your beadwork affected as well, since your beadwork does need to compliment your wardrobe? Do you get nightmares  about being seen in last year’s colors? Oh the SHAME of it!

As I stand in front of my closet, I begin to raise a panicked sweat. Streams of sweat run down me as I realize that not only is my style of clothing (and hair) outdated by at least 20 years, but my colors are all wrong. The fashion industry would consider me a hopeless case. A major make over would take years. What should I do?

Wait!! It’s not so bad!! YIPPIE!! I am NOT a hopeless case! Do you know how much tie-dye, or tie dye “like” clothing I own? It’s a miracle!! I am set for any season, any year, any time. Just focus on the right color in my vastly multi-hued clothing!! I will ALWAYS have THIS year’s colors, no matter what the year!!

As for my beads…they are never out of style, but why does it seem when I am working on a project, I never ever have the “right” colors? 

Up Coming Blog Challenge!

I “met” Lee when he became a follower of my blog. I did not know him before then, and I only know him from his comments on my blog and from reading his blog, Tossing it Out. Lee is a really terrific writer. I really admire him. He is really supportive and offers a lot of encouragement to a lot of bloggers. I think he is one heck of a guy and one heck of an inspiration to anyone who aspires to be a writer.

While I was on my trip to England, Lee started the A-Z blogging challenge. Each day, a topic beginning with a letter of the alphabet for the day was the challenge. Lee had many participants. It was an astounding success.

Since I missed being able to participate in Lee’s first blogging challenge, I didn’t want to miss out on the next one. Lee’s next challenge is set for Monday, May 17. It is called Fantasy Island Favorites. Participants are to write about the 15 CD’s that they would choose to be marooned with. We are to choose our 15 favorite CD’s and talk about why these are our favorite CD’s. Lee has a great list of participants for this blog-hop. And I will be one of them! I hope that you will blog hop this challenge, and maybe discover some great music you might never have considered!

Which brings me to this question. Do you listen to music while you bead? Does the style of music you listen to influence the type or style of beading that you do?
I read that a beader who I really admire, stated that she does not like to listen to music while she beads. She finds the music to be too distracting. She prefers to bead in quiet. I was really amazed at that.

I need to have music playing while I bead, especially when I am creating something. The TV is ok when I am churning out my “production items” such a slews of earrings for a show. But when I am truly creating a piece of work, I find that music inspires me. It can create a mood that flows through my beadwork.

I find that when I am listening to up-beat dance type of music, my work tends to be more whimsical, light hearted and silly. When I want to create something more elegant and stylish, I prefer to listen to classical, or lounge/mood music. And for pure experimentation, then I will listen to a weird combination of World, Jazz and even Rock. And if I want to really confuse myself, I will have a random mix of all the above in my 6 CD changer!

I find that music has the power to create mood, inspire and motivate me to create my beadwork. I would find it nearly impossible to work without it. I have a large collection of CD’s covering the span of many genres (except Rap which I detest and most Country which I am not a huge fan of). I would almost bet that if you were to hold my beadwork to your ear, you might even hear some of the music that it was beaded with. Hold up a flowery piece, you might hear Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, hold up a beaded mermaid, you might hear some music from Greece. Hold up my Otter, and you might just be listening to Madonna!

I have a lot of CD’s. They cover everything from Pop, Classical, Rock, World, Dance/Trance, New Age, Blue Grass, Folk, and music I don’t even dare to classify. I have something to suit every mood, or every taste! It’s never dull.

What do I find in my cue most often? Be sure to visit on Monday, May 17 for my line up of the 15 CD’s I would choose to be marooned with. My selection and reasoning for them might just surprise you!

How about you? What do like to listen to while you are beading? Does music influence what you like to bead or create?