A very clever title

              So, I hate to say this again, but this week wasn’t much of a week. I tried to watch classic movies. Sarah was even nice enough to furnish me with a bag full of DVDs. But every time I got ready to watch, I fell asleep. I’m sure it has something to do with working over 57 hours this week. That does, however, bring me to a very important point that I have been thinking about for a while.

 The word “busy” is crippling our relationships. I want you to really think about all the times in the last month that you used “too busy” as an excuse. How many times has a loved one been too busy? We have all reconnected with a neglected friend and exchanged ‘oh it’s been so busy’s?   Even worse than not spending time with family and friends is that the phrase “too busy” implies, “What I am busy with is more important to me than you are.”

This whole month I have been trying not to say that I am too busy. Even when I am swamped with work and exhausted, I try to say yes to things. If I cannot I try and let the person know that it is a previous commitment that I am unable to cancel. If I am tired, I will tell them that I am too tired.  I hope that people feel better knowing that I am working hard, but still thinking about them all the time.

This week is sewing week. This should be some fun because I am attempting to make a dress form with duct tape and saran wrap.

As we move on, keep an eye on the counter. The 400^th visitor might get something special to commemorate their 400ness.

Look at my purty writin

     So, calligraphy is a lot harder than it looks. Particularly if you have terrible handwriting in the first place. In my reseaarch I found several types of calligraphy scripts. There is Japanese, Arbic and variations on script. There is an old english style, loopy script and every combination in between. I wish there was more that I could tell you, but really it is about practice and patience. Here are a couple of examples:

     So, who want me to do their wedding invites? :D

Poetry...in motion

     Poetry week was really just an excuse for me to luxuriate in words without giving in to more reasonable To-Dos. I love it as usual. Right now I am away from my books, but soon I will post the names of my  favorite new poems. I managed to memorize a bit of "She Walks in Beauty" by Lord Byron and "Music When Soft Voices Die," by Shelley.
      Special mentions to Vicky and Casey who sent me their favorite poems. If only we lived closer we could have a killer poetry club. I'd bring nachos! An EXTRA SPECIAL mention goes to my big sis Cindy who sent me an original. She didn't want it shared, so I will not. She hides her pen under a barrel too often and I hope someday she will share some of her writing.
     Inspired by my reading this week is Calligraphy week! I got a late start as I was in NC for three days out of the week. Oh well, onward and upward. Thanks to Casey I have also decided to to a 'classic' movie week soon. Any suggestions?

Late week update

   So, only one person has shared a poem. Whats with that? I have been reading a lot of poetry, but my attempts to memorize have almost all failed. But I would like more input from you the viewer. Have you memorized any poems? Whitman, Byron, Millay, Suess? And if you have any suggestions of what you would like to see in coming weeks I would like to hear it. If you are not too crazy, then I'll do it.

Yay vegan week!

     So, this week was the hardest one that I have done and yet the most rewarding. Being vegan cuts out a lot of things that most people don't even think about. One big stumbling block was sugar. Any sugar processed and bleached is made with bone meal. The crushed bones of animals? Ooh, sounds delish... Anyway, more than you'd think has hidden sugar in it. Ketchup, granola, peanut butter and more. Sugar was the only thing that I had strong cravings for. I wanted it sooo bad by day three.
     I have to admit that I slipped a few times. A muffin, a bite of ranch dressing on a fry (the fry was vegan), and on the last night I ate creme brulee. Oops. I loved it. I will admit that I did have more energy. But I ate like seven times a day. I stayed hungry. Perhaps if I had planned starches better that would not have happened.
     I'm sure you are all waiting on tenterhooks to see who won the contest. Well, I only had two real entries. Thank you Kayla Park (gravy) and JC Fulton (chocolate chip cookies) for two real, excellent recipes. Both of you get a prize- an original Hannah acrylic painting. As soon as I finish painting them I will send them off and post a pic.  Natalie- what were you trying to do to me? Guacamole on an endive did not work out for me. And of course, a (dis)honorable mention to Dana Hunter who quite obviously cheated. I really got the giggles, but I appreciated the fact that you took the time to google it.

This week: poetry week. Want to participate? Send your favorite poem. Let's act like we learned at college!

Baking week, mini-update

     I didn't announce last week what this week was. It is baking week! So far it is tasty and is earning me friends. I have made Chocolate orange cupcakes and pecan pie. Tonight I'm making brownies. There was one small setback. After the horrible storms here in TN I didn't have power for two days! That made baking next to impossible. Alton Brown would suggest digging a hole, filling it with charcoal an creating crepes on an upside down dutch oven (an actual episode of Good Eats). I'm just not that motivated. So.



     Next week is Vegan week! I have been having more and more trouble with dairy. I've known about my lactose intolerance for a while, but it's getting worse. So I'm going vegan for a week and giving my body a rest. NOW FOR THE CONTEST: Send me your best vegan recipe. The person who sends me the most tasty recipe will be sent a super stupendous prize!

Finish a project week

     Finish a project week was productive for me, but not interesting for you. I finished a lot of little stuff but nothing that makes for good reading. I finished making a fancy flower pot,Christmas ornaments (shut up, they are for this year now), mending my clothes, coloring a few leftover cartoons and hung paintings. I also finished making little one page books out of old calendars. They have orchids on the cover and contain a recipe. It is a cute, personalized gift.
    To keep you occupied I am adding a little more of my book for you to enjoy.

Chapter 2

“Manuel! Manuel!” I whispered, a little too loudly.


“Que?” He groaned, not wanting to wake up.

“There is someone moving through camp.”

“Angelita, it is probably just Guapo looking for a place to take a…”

“NO!” He did not understand, “The man was crouching. I think he is looking through our things. He is not one of us. He might be another villager trying to take our food and guns! ”

Manuel started to dismiss my anxieties by rolling back over to sleep but as he moved, he saw.

Not as I thought. Not a man. Men. There were at least a dozen combing the camp, looking over the sleeping soldiers, quietly going through bags and taking what they wanted. I grab my gun to fire a few shots in the air. Most of the time that is enough to scare away any thieving villagers, but Manuel had seen something I did not. He held me to the ground and then placed a shushing finger on my lips. His hand pressed into my back so hard that I know better than to fight back as I normally would have.

We lay as still as corpses. Even though we were not hiding in ambush or making an escape, we couldn’t help but hold our breath every time one of the men walked by. There were so many of them passing through that it felt we were hardly breathing. I can’t say exactly how long they lingered, but it felt like hours. They stayed so long that we began to relax into out our blankets. If they were here to kill us, they would do it quickly, not dawdle over each body.

Despite my remaining fear, Manuel’s heavy hand on my back began to feel less like a forceful weight and more like a lover’s embrace. The comfort of his touch and my own weariness overtook me. I fell back asleep. Morning would bring what it would bring. We were powerless to stop it.