Stationary Is Always Nice

Good Morning!

For Sunday, I had some kaleis I liked, so I put them into stationary. Some pretty gel pens in white would look nice on this.

I spent a lot of time doing artwork yesterday, so I already have everything for all week, plus extras. It was just a good creation day.

My granddaughter showed up around 6:30 am yesterday morning. I knew she was coming on Saturday, but didn't know what time. So when the doorbell rang, I didn't answer it. After it rang several times, my husband answered it, and we were very surprised to find her standing their with her stepmom.

My daughter called me about 7 am to tell me Bonita would be dropping Taylor around 8:30 am. "Too late," I said. "She's here now." They had to drop her dad off at the airport very early that morning.

We took Taylor skating later in the day. It was her first time on skates in a rink. I knew it would be a big learning exercise, but figured since she has taken gymnastics, dance, and tumbling, the balance thing in those would help. It didn't.

She made it around the rink twice. Once with Papaw, and then again on her own. She spent time in the center "beginners" ring, where she met two friends.

After that, she decided it was time to just skate around on the carpet. She tried to climb up on one of the rides they have there, and I'm yelling NO, NO, NO! at her, but the music is so loud, she doesn't hear me. I didn't get over there fast enough, so the fall was inevitable. Why don't I see these things coming???

She smashed her chest on the ride as her skates caused her feet to fly out from underneath her. She ended up flat on her back, crying. She had a nasty scrape on her chest. She cried that she hated skating. "Why did you bring me here?", she wailed. "I hate this. I don't want to skate! I want to go home!!!"

And, so we left. We were there less than an hour. $19 dollars is what the going rate is now for an open skate for one child, and one adult. I didn't skate. Heavens! After falling at work on the entry hall when it was raining out, I don't risk my body anymore. Not at 57 years old. My left hip has never been the same.

Now Papaw can skate. He flies around the rink, bopping to the music, skating backwards, hopping, whirling, and spinning. It's like he was born wearing skates.

I grew up skating, too. But it was OUTSIDE, not in the rink on slippery wood floors. The only thing I had to worry about was falling when I hit a stone. You remember what happens when you roll into a little pebble on the concrete or pavement? Skinned knees were always a part of skating.

I didn't find my first indoor rink till I was 16. In Atlanta, Ga. There, everyone skated indoors. I didn't make the transition easily. Boy, can you go fast when you're not dodging pebbles, but it was always too much for me!

We ordered pizza for dinner, a break from the non-wheat, gluten, diet, and watched I ROBOT, which Taylor really wanted to see.

We put ice on Taylor's boo-boo. The angry redness disappearred, and now it's a little pink. She is so fair-skinned, every little mark shows up on her. She told me, "Mamaw. If I ever say I want to go skating again, I don't really WANT to go skating. I just want to come here and play the video games."

So that was my Saturday. And Tay's. And Ray's. Today promises to be a much easier day. Nothing more strenuous than washing clothes and going to the grocery to shop for this week's food.

Have a great Sunday, and I will return tomorrow. Have some SAFE fun!

Little Witch Dreams

Good Saturday Morning!

Okay. Okay. I know it's not Halloween yet, but I was looking through some Halloween costumes, and this idea came to mind.

Every "little witch" has a big dream. And this little witch is no different.

Feel free to use it, if you wish. For a card, a sig, or whatever.

It was a fun little project for this morning.

Here's looking forward to a colorful, and cooler, October!

Have a great day. Back tomorrow.

Special End-of-Summer Dessert

Good morning,

Today, an "end-of-summer" dessert: a very special watermelon.

Of course, you won't find it in supermarkets, but you can find it in places like psp.

Most of the designs in this creation are kaleis. No surprises here, I know.

The white design at the top was drawn with my Wacom Graphire and then kalei'd to make the three designs at the bottom in white.

Just a little fun play this morning.

Have a great day! Back tomorrow.

Red Warrior Catches The Wild Puff

Good morning,

Oh my! I'm glad I "caught" myself.

I started off today posting Wednesday's creation. While thinking about what I would write about, work came into mind. I thought about how awful it was yesterday.

That's when I realized it was ONLY Tuesday; not Wednesday.

Our staff was drastically reduced on Monday. At 8:50 am, I was still the only one in. I had been on the phones by myself for 50 minutes. Two people finally came in within 10 minutes, thank heavens.

Our little staff grew by one more person shortly after that. It was a hectic day on the phones. I was exhausted when I left at 5:30 pm last night. I was in at 6 am.

This is a "fantasy" creation. The red warrior started as a kalei creation. I used parts of my kalei to start, and then just filled him in and created more as I went. For Red, it is wild puff-hunting season, and he's bagged his first one. Wild puff looks resigned at being caught.

Enjoy your day today. Mine has got to be easier than yesterday!

Back tomorrow ... with what was almost posted today. Hmmm. My mind must have been on grabbin' my first wild puff!

The Versatile Kalei

Good Morning!

Hmmmm. My creation says that all these kaleis were made from this one KALEI. But, this one kalei was not a kalei, but simply a creation I made first, and then kalei'd.

The weekend went very fast, as usual.

I saw an interesting infomercial this weekend for natural food cures that are a secret. Maybe you've seen it.

I am interested in such things since I am one of those people who has a problem with medications. It seems that any time the doctor prescribes a medication for me for some ailment, those risky side effects become a major problem for me. Therefore, I do NOT go to the doctor often.

I am allergic to sulpha drugs. I am to NEVER take non-steriodals again. I don't take aspirin for a headache unless I just have to do so. Thankfully, I don't get many.

If I get a headache, I have found the most effective way to rid myself of it is to simply lie down and take a nap.

If I feel funny, like something is coming on, I eat blueberries and low-fat vanilla yogurt three times a day for a week, and everything is put back to normal.

I also believe in the power of positive thinking and talking. My husband has had a bad cold all last week. He is really miserable with it. He keeps saying, "Honey. I hope you don't get this."

I tell him, "Honey. I am NOT going to get your cold!" And, for the most part, I am usually very healthy. Thank God!

I am a "hand washer". I mentally sing the Alphabet Song when I wash my hands.

Several weeks ago, I told my 7-year old granddaughter about doing this, and how it could help her stay healthy. And then I caught her singing a really FAST rendition of it while washing her hands, and pointed out that the slower version was more appropriate and much more effective.

The thing I've noticed as I've gotten older is how many people are now on medication. Medication for a life-time!!! When I was a kid, this wasn't so. I believe people were healthier then. Everyone around me takes some kind of medication.

Commercials on tv promote taking medications for just about everything. They prompt you to "ask your doctor if (meds) is right for you." I know this is effective education for big business. Years ago, they used to promote cigarettes. But when they wanted people to stop smoking, they banned those commercials. And today, the same psychology is used for medications. It promotes sales.

Society's view will and has changed as today's kids are seeing all those commercials, and adults (as well as the kids) are all taking medication. It is now. It is the future. It is normal for them, but I don't see it as normal. My granddaughter, my daughter, and my husband are all on meds. So are many of my co-workers.

Give me a home remedy any day.

Enjoy your Monday! I'll be back tomorrow. Stay healthy.

Sunday Welcomes the First Day of Fall!

Good morning!!!

When I wrote yesterday about fall being my favorite time of year, I didn't realize that it was today. So Happy Fall!

These kaleis help me celebrate this day. Simple, easy, and pretty.

Looking forward, in two weeks, it will be Columbus Day. Not every company gives you Columbus Day off, but the last two companies that have employed me have. My current employer is one of those companies.

It's coming up on October 8th, which is also my oldest son's birthday. I plan to take off the Friday before, the 5th, so I will have another 4-day weekend in just 2 weeks!

Wishing you all a terrific Sunday! See you tomorrow!

Red Bird

Good morning,

Red Bird here is thinking, "Maybe I should mosey on down south now...".

Maybe you feel like Red Bird. Or maybe, like me, you just love FALL!!!

I just love this time of year. I'm looking forward to the change in colors in the leaves of our surrounding trees.

I'm looking forward to the crisp air!

I'm looking forward to wearing my jacket instead of draping it across my steering wheel to keep it from getting scorching hot!!!

When I was young, summer was my favorite. After going through the cycles of life though, I appreciate the fall. I wonder if ... as I grow older ... I'll come to appreciate winter as much.

I don't mind winter though. I like the snow after it first falls on the ground. It's so pretty. But, after it's walked on, it loses something.

I don't like falling, and the chance of falling is greater in the winter. I will have to be extra careful about that.

But. Let's not move too quickly forward yet! We have yet to enjoy the fall season. And it's almost here!

This little red bird idea came from a kaleidoscope I did this morning. It had a tiny "owl" in it. That's what I saw, anyway. Gradually working with that picture, I came up with Red Bird.

I hope you enjoy this first day of your weekend. I know I will.

Have a terrific day. Back ... tomorrow!

Friday ~ Friday! Yeah!

Good morning, Friday-lovers!

A little creation to celebrate my most favorite day of the week.

I don't mind going to work on Friday's. I feel the atmosphere is much different.

People are looking forward to their weekend time off. They are upbeat, happy, as they walk off the elevator and say, "TGIF! Finally!"

Anticipation electrifies the air. Only a few hours left of everyone's daily routine. Hurrying through the end of the final hours, so we can "break loose" and have some fun time. Free time.

Things lay on my desk most of the week. On Friday, I tackle those things. While I can't seem to face doing a certain task during the week, it is much easier to do on Friday's. I don't want to see it again next week, so Friday mornings are great times for cleaning up loose ends.

I hope you have a really great Friday.

Here's to today! And tomorrow ... and the day after. See you then.

Hopefully Romantic Frogs

Good morning,

Two days left to this week, and these 3 frogs are hopeful for romance for the weekend. A kiss ... perchance?

This was a fun little creation for this morning.

The frogs are vector drawn. I am playing with shading and texture again.

Of course, I then had to kalei the 3 frogs. I added a black background circle to them before doing so to get additional colors in the kaleis.

The circle behind them, the flower to the lower right (there are 2 there; one in front and one behind), and the little funny star to the right are all kaleis.

The biggest frog, of course, was my original frog, which I drew. Then I colorized him several times, and chose these 2 colors for the smaller frogs.

All in all, a very good time had.

I hope your Thursday goes very well.

See you again ... tomorrow!

Life Is Good! It's Very Good!

Good Wednesday morning to everyone!

Ah! Feel and smell the crispness of these September mornings. Breathe it in deeply. Life is good! It's very good!

Yesterday, I had an experience that was terrifying. Thank heavens for quick-thinking friends!

I was at lunch, and I was just finishing up the last of my pita's from my South Beach Diet Salad lunch.

Those little pitas have a fine dusting of something on the outside of them. As I took a bite, I must have inhaled, causing some of that fine powder to go into my lungs.

No problem, I thought! I'll just cough and get clear.

Much to my surprise, it wasn't that simple! I could cough without any problem. But getting air back into my lungs was darn near impossible. My throat seemed to swell up. "Don't panic," I told myself. I kept coughing, thinking each cough would remedy the situation, but I'll tell you. When you cough, you expel air. The next thing you need is a big gulp of air going BACK INTO YOUR LUNGS to make your next cough more effective.

My friends immediately asked if I was okay. I shook my head yes, and tried to speak, only to find I couldn't speak either. I clasped my hands around my neck and continued to cough.

"Are you choking?" they asked. I shake my head yes.

"Are you okay?" they quiz. I shake my head yes again. I try to say, "I can't get any air," but it doesn't appear to be coming out. My heart is pounding, and I begin to feel panicky. I am still coughing, but nothing new is coming in. I've never tried to inhale, and NOT have air come in. Panic was starting to become terror.

"You're turning red ... I think you might be in trouble." Indeed. I am also now sweating. I feel like I should've made that trip to the bathroom before eating, as every cough almost causes me to "wet my pants". "Do you want us to call the squad?"

Still coughing, I shake my head no. "Heavens," I thought! "I don't want to make a scene!"

What in the world did I think was happening at that moment. People ARE "starting to notice" that there's something wrong.

In my head, I'm thinking, "I need to get up to the third floor to the nurse." I get up and walk around in little circles. Karrie says, "Do you want the squad?"

Again I shake my head no vigoriously, and suddenly, I'm shaking my head yes. I realize I am probably in deep doo-doo, and don't want to expire like this.

Karrie runs into the cafe which adjoins the eating area, and returns quickly. "They are on their way!"

I sit down trying to relax. It didn't take them long ... and by the time they were there, I was getting air again. At first, it was slow. Straining hard, I could feel my throat loosen up a little and feel air flowing in a strained fashion. But it was air.

I can't tell you how long the whole episode lasted. I know it felt like forever.

The squad checked me out. Pulse 92. I guess I looked okay. They asked if I wanted to go to the hospital. I said no. I was breathing again, although my throat ached and was sore. It felt like someone hit me on the back of the neck with a baseball bat, and I thought my head would split open, but I could breathe.

I answered their questions, still struggling with the words as my throat was still tight. My lungs ached and felt tight.

I signed a release, and they went on their way. As quick as it started, it was over. Thank heavens.

I went out with my friends, but did not smoke. You don't smoke after an episode like that.

So thank you, Karrie, Heidi, Chris, and Fred. For being there. For responding for me.

It's funny. Well, not really.

Last week, my husband began coughing when he was in bed. I was next to him, falling asleep. I woke up to his coughing, and asked him if he was okay. He kept coughing. He's had coughing episodes before, so I thought he was okay and rolled back over. After it all ended, and he could talk again, he told me what happened. It was the very same thing I experienced yesterday.

I felt horrible. He could have died right next to me, and I wouldn't have even known. It scared him a lot as it should have.

We've worked out a system to let each other know if something like that ever happens to us again. Grab your throat and shake your head no if you can't get your breath! Bump into each other when you know you really need help and you can't talk!

If no one is around, dial 911. Even if you can't talk, they will probably send a squad to your home. Maybe even learn to tap out SOS if you can't speak, so they will know you're in trouble! Anything to get help, quickly!!!

I am a healthy person. You call the squad for other people. It's NEVER FOR YOU. But sometimes ... I know now ... it is.

Things happen in seconds. A friend dies at the wheel due to a sudden seizure. Someone chokes to death. One minute, you're fine; and the next -- tragedy.

If something happens around you, be quick to assess the situation and take action.

So this morning I can say, life is good. It is very, very good.

Have a wonderful, safe Wednesday.

Back tomorrow. With God's grace ... and friends!

A Kitty For Sunday

Good morning,

Here is my try at a cartoon kitty. Much harder to do than I expected. But fun!

The flowers are kaleis, of course.

Hope you have a great Sunday.

I will return tomorrow.

Fuzzy Wuzzy Bear

Good morning!

Yesterday, I put up Taylor's bear. Here is another rendition of him as Fuzzy Wuzzy. That's FW, for short!

Working with the fuzzy brush is really fascinating. I like using light colors and low opacity and working on a DARK background.

Next ... trying new animals. Cartoon-y animals, of course. I just love cartoons!

I did this one as a logo, but it would also look cute as an avatar or sig tag with your name in it. Children would also be delighted to have FW with their name in it!

Enjoy your weekend. Today is to be another "cool" day in Columbus, Ohio.

See you again ... tomorrow!

Taylor's Bear

Hello!

It's Friday evening.

It's been a 'beary-good' day today. While I did miss two days of posts, I managed to just finish this one.

My granddaughter is spending the weekend with her dad and his family. My daughter, while missing her, will enjoy having some free time.

Today was a very short day at work. Being Joe's last day, we all decided to go to lunch together to celebrate his new job.

We headed off to Appleby's about 11:30 am, and finished up at 1 pm. Those that needed to return to work did. A few of us had put in for 1.5 hours of leave, so we could go on home. I was one of those who took leave. I'm so glad I did.

While I still have plenty of work on my desk, it isn't going anywhere. I can finish it on Monday.

The weather has been very cool today, and it feels just wonderful.

This creation was made with a big setting on a fuzzy brush I acquired somewhere. I liked the effect with the bear.

I hope you have a nice Friday evening. Keep it safe, but have fun!

Back tomorrow.

We will miss you

Good morning,

Today is the anniversary of 9/11. This creation was NOT made in honor of this day. Any creation for that day should be serious.

Instead, it is for a co-worker who is leaving our department. After about 2 1/2 months, he is moving on to a more lucrative job. Congrats!

Joe will be missed. He's has learned quickly and learned well.

He is also young, so thought he might enjoy a "sexy" woman in the message.

Years ago, I made a t-shirt for a young man with the same type of girl on the front. The message was, "Whip me. Beat me. Make me write bad checks."

This t-shirt was hand painted. He liked it.

Today, I work in a collections department. We collect from those who have written "dishonored" (bad) checks. It is not always a fun job, especially when talking to people we are taking money from out of their pay.

But, it is a good job. Our workload has been on the rise, and I see no foreseeable decline. And the stories! My, my. I could tell you stories. We've heard them all.

Many people just want to take care of their business, and be done with it. Others will yell at you. Some cry. Sometimes, it's hard to just remain calm, but after awhile, you learn to let the screamers scream. I give them plenty of room, saying nothing at all. When they finally finish, I let a pause linger. Deadness. They usually say, "Are YOU still there!?"

I then say, "Yes. I am. Here is how this can be handled."

I proceed to tell them. For some reason, they are usually calmer then. Maybe because I let them vent. Anyway you look at it, the debt must be handled.

So I changed the words to reflect our job. And that's the story.

I made the creation in Cartoon Maker, and transported it back into psp, my favorite program.

Have a great Tuesday. Back tomorrow and another post.

Buttons

Good morning!

A little something I was playing around with this weekend. Not much, but fun anyway!

It's Monday morning again, and the herds travel back to their offices.

Hope you have a good day, and that it is the start to a great week.

See you back here -- tomorrow!

Grandparent's Day

Good afternoon,

Happy Grand-
parent's Day ... to all grand-
parents and to their lucky grand-children.

Today's creation has been a major project for me. Two people to tube.

Actually, I had a picture of my daughter and her great grandmother to use as my inspiration and guide. Grandma Bessie has since passed away, as has her daughter, Virginia, my daughter's grandmother.

My own grandmothers have all passed away, as has my husband's grandmother. We are "grandmother-less" as adults, and now I occupy the role of grandmother.

My granddaughter, Taylor, came to spend the day and night with me on Saturday. She arrived about 10:15 a.m. We all went to the store to do our grocery shopping about 11:30. My daughter had a wedding reception to attend with her boyfriend.

Taylor had a great time picking up this and that to add to the cart. The one order for the day, per Taylor, was, "We have to make a cake!"

Her birthday was several weeks ago, and I was told that she did NOT get a cake this year, and she wanted one. With 7 candles, please! She chose chocolate cake with chocolate icing. I also picked up some butter cream icing which I put between the two layers.

For the most part, Taylor made the cake. I helped, of course, and did the things she couldn't. Like plugging in the mixer, helping her control it, and putting the batter in the oven, and taking the hot cakes out. Not being a patient child, it must have felt like FOREVER to her before we could ice them. I finally had to ice it as when she tried, the cake kept coming up and rolling into the icing. She found this intolerable, and said, "Ooops! You're going to have to do this part!"

She dumped a whole container of sprinkles on top, and requested that one cherry be placed in the middle -- which would go to the "birthday girl". She gave me complete instructions on lighting the candles she had placed carefully in a circle around the cherry, and then calling her. She snuck off to her room where she awaited my melodic invitation.

She came in and acted all surprised, and after I sung "Happy Birthday" to her, she quickly blew out the candles, picked them off, and threw them away so we could get to eating some cake.

I now have more than half a cake sitting on my table. My daughter ate some this morning when she picked up her daughter, and, of course, we had another piece. My daughter would not take any home, so I guess I will need to take the rest into work tomorrow so I don't consume it all. Heaven only knows ... I don't need it!

The one story that made this weekend, which made my daughter laugh was this. Taylor said, "Mamaw. You are soooo nice. My mommy's mean."

I said, "Well, honey. Thank you, but I'm a mamaw, so I can afford to be really nice. But your mom is a mommy, and once ... I was also a mommy, so I had to be mean, too."

Then I told her, But, your mommy loves you bunches and bunches, and she can be very nice, too!"

"Oh," she said, "She can be nice ... and she is when she comes over here. But that's because she doesn't want to disappoint you!"

Kids are so funny.

After I told this story to Jillian, she said, "I know. I know. At home she tells me, 'Mom. Mamaw's nice. I wish she was my mommy!'"

Jillian's response was, "Well. When I was little, Mamaw was a very mean mommy. She was much meaner than I am. You, my dear, are living in the shadows of a much nicer mom!"

Then I laughed. It's funny how we all remember the memories in our own life. I thought I was a nice mommy. But then again, my boys will tell you that they were always more afraid of what I would do to them than they were of anyone else."

And I was only 5'2" and weighed 105 pounds! (Shhh! That's why I was mean! They towered over me!)

When my oldest son was about 16, he held his palm up and placed mine against his, and said, "Look mom! I'm BIGGER THAN YOU ARE now!"

I said, "Yes, you definitely are. But I'm still a whole lot meaner!!!"

I guess my memories of me have faded some.

So I hope everyone is joining this day. I hope you have your grandchildren and children living close enough to you to be able to enjoy them.

I have one other grandchild, Judah! He is about 1 1/2 years old now, and he lives in TX. It is definitely different when they live far away. I've only seen pictures of this little handsome guy so far. And, he is expecting a brother or sister in Jan. 08.

Have a really terrific day.

I will be back tomorrow.

Little Girl with a look of concern or sadness

Good morning!

My favorite time to start creating is upon me again. It is Saturday morning!

The creation today is a child with a look of sadness or concern. She is bundled up for a cooler season, which I am looking forward to.

She took a fair amount of time to create. A minimum of 4 hours.

I love being able to really spend some time when I'm creating, so the weekends are perfect.

Hoping you have a terrific Saturday!

See you tomorrow.

Card for A Gift

Good morning,

This morning, I am posting a card that can be put on a gift.

Most of the items are kaleis. The faint background is a house.

The bow is one I made from a tutorial that I found sometime last year or the year before.

It is Friday again!

Columbus had hot weather again yesterday. We are looking at a possibility of a few showers today with clouds, and it looks like it will be that way through Monday. We'll see.

My granddaughter came to spend the evening with us last night. She had salmon, mashed potatoes, and a salad with Ranch Style Dressing for dinner. My husband walked with the two of us over to the rec center near our house, and she played on the playground for a little bit.

It was hard to get her to go.

We've lived here about 4 years now. Every summer, she's loved going to the playground where there is a chance to play with some kids. But last summer, she grabbed a hold of a ladder leading to a climbing object, and placed her hand on a wasp which stung her several times in the hand. It was an awful thing.

This incident brought an end to her wanting to go play at the rec center. Last night, when Papaw asked if she wanted to walk over with us for awhile, she said, "The last time I went, I got stung."

I asked her if she remembered ALL the times we went? She did. I asked her she remembered how many times she went, had fun, and didn't get stung? She did. And then I told her that sometimes, things happen that we don't expect. Things that are not always pleasant. But we have to remember the bad times do go with the good, and the good far out-number the bad. It is just life.

After mulling it over for a little time, she decided it might be okay to leave the safety of the house, and take that walk over. We went.

We took a hand towel that had been soaked in plain water so we could wipe down some of the playground bars. I told her that it was possible that sweet, sticky fingers from kids playing could've originally caused the wasps to be on the bars. We wiped the areas down before playing. This was fun for her. She likes to clean -- except her room.

We all had a good time although no kids came. Being a weekend night, and close to dinner time and being a school night, it was a lonely playground.

We left and walked home with the promise of an ice cream sandwich and her favorite "coffee" dessert. An early bedtime at 8 pm finished off our evening.

She is gone this morning, as her mom came and picked her up from her slumber here, and whisked her home. She has school this morning.

But she will return Saturday and spend the night.

I hope everyone has a good Friday, and that it goes fast. I will be sitting at my desk by 6 am, and out of there at 3 pm.

See you tomorrow.

Stationary for your letters

Good morning.

Do you still write letters? I guess people do, because you always see stationary.

But stationary can also be used for taking notes or be used as a base for advertising, such as flyers or on web pages. They can help dress-up words.

When making stationary, you can also make matching envelopes, small cards, gift tags, etc. If you find one you really like, you can even make them smaller and make your business card from it.

Stationary can be very pretty and very eye-catching. There is no end to what our imagination can create with it.

I also love making forms that I can use. The work place often has you collect certain information for certain things. Phone calls are one avenue for making pleasing information-catchers. I know. I am on the phone all day.

And being back at work yesterday was no exception. The phones were busy. While I didn't take as many calls as normal, each call had action on them: meaning, I had to do something for each caller. Whether it's fixing their record, doing research to get something for them or doing a refund, it all takes TIME.

I am passionate about notes. My file cabinet is proof of that. It always holds 3 months of communications with most of the people I have to talk to, and it especially holds info received from customers.

I keep older notes in my overhead stacked, just in case I have to go back 6 months. Three months starts my current files, and I add to that for about 2 months. Usually by then, it is so jammed, I have to do a little house cleaning.

People always think you remember them. When you talk to some 15-20 people a day, they just don't realize that people kind of blend together after awhile. Pulling out notes you've written does refresh the memory so you can deal with them.

While our online records have a place for comments, there are times when you just need to put down more information. Since my co-workers already accuse me of "writing a book", my physical files are very helpful.

So whatever paper you use, make it colorful. Make it representative of whatever action you have to take.

I hope you all have a great Thursday.

I'll be back tomorrow.

Flowers For Your Garden

Good morning,

This is the same flower with different centers. I wanted to play with special effects.

Well, I go back to work this morning. The good thing is, I'm starting my week on Hump Day. I guess that makes tomorrow my hump day. Only 3 days in this week till the weekend. That's my kind of week.

I like Chinese food, so when my husband suggested it for dinner last night, I was happy with it ... but also slightly unsure.

You see, we have our own favorite spot for Chinese quisine. We used to live about 5 minutes or less from the restaurant until we bought our home. Now, it's about a 20-25 minute drive away.

The last time we ordered, all was fine. I always have left overs, so I took them for lunch the following day. And while eating it, I bit down on a ..... rock! Yes! It was a rock. I was really lucky I didn't break a tooth!

So, it had been awhile since we'd ordered from that restaurant. I didn't bring up the "rock" incident last night, but said that dinner ordered from there would be fine.

I woke up this morning and found my poor husband sitting on the couch. He was watching tv. As we always turn on the tv in our room and watch, regardless of the time of night, I was surprised to find him sitting on the couch. I asked him, "Honey, why didn't you just turn it on in our room?"

"I've been throwing up, and I didn't want to wake you," was his reply. "I think that Chinese food got me last night." Strike number two for our favorite Chinese restaurant. He told me he felt better, after he got rid of his stomach's contents.

I don't think I'll be so thrilled with this restaurant the next time it comes up. It's time to look for a new "favorite". And, while I ate my dish (garlic shrimp), and did not get sick, I do feel a little wary about taking the left overs for lunch today. My husband had shrimp fu yung.

Hope you all have a terrific day.

Back tomorrow.

Cooler Weather Approaching

Good morning,

I can still say it's morning, even though it's closer to noon at the moment. I usually post very early, but somehow, this morning, I just forgot.

Oh! I've been up since the crack of dawn, and I'm off today on leave, but I just jumped into my psp, and never looked back.

This first creation is in honor of the fact that cooler weather is coming, and we are getting little previews this week.

The days have not been as hot, and the evenings can be almost chilly, if you have to be out for any length of time.

A Chill in the Air is my creation for today. I've spent a multitude of hours working on it. First I did the tube for the bear. Then the tube for the worm. And then I put them both in this creation. These two creatures were mouse drawn, and I did use my graphire wacom pen here and there. It was all great fun!

This second creation was done over the weekend and was originally slotted for early this morning.

It was all made from kaleis.

Today has been very relaxing. Maybe I should have taken this whole week off, as I am already lamenting that this is my last day off till next weekend.

Why is it our free time goes so quickly? I don't know.

My husband is off all this week on a week's vacation, so he's been very busy in the yard. He's trimmed trees and all the bushes. What few baby kitties we still have coming around are perplexed when they look at the bush that housed them from time to time. But - it looks very nice.

We still have two bushes to replace in our front yard. My husband and I are still discussing what should go in there. The two being replaced are spirea, which I like. He prefers another bush that has bigger leaves. I don't know what it's called, but I guess we will end up buy two of those. It does flower, as do the spirea.

We noticed a neighbor edged their yard in bricks. It's several houses down from ours. It really MADE their yard, so now we are considering doing something along the same line.

I hope you all have a great Tuesday.

I'll be back early tomorrow morning with a new post.

Labor Day: A Day To Play

Good morning to you!

You are probably NOT out of bed yet, but I am up and playing early.

This first creation was done over the weekend.

It is two kaleis that I liked. It is the same kalei I used yesterday, I believe, that I textured differently.

I liked this puffy look of it.

And in honor of playing, my husband is always on the lookout for new art programs that I can play with. And today, he found a new one.

And this is the result from my playing. This picture was taken in my tiny home office.

It is "my corner of the world". It is very, very small, and yes! The walls are painted a deep red. I didn't paint it. If I had, I would've only painted one wall red, and the others would be a cream color.

The picture is of me. I am gazing out my window, and you can see that the day is sunny from the light reflection.

One of the things this program does is make an outline. You can either use pen or pencil. This is pencil. You can take any jpeg and put it in the program. This program also morphs pictures. Morphing is where you distort it in some way.

I did not distort this picture, but did save it and pulled it into PSP where I added some color to it. I was only playing. This is my "first" play at it, so I still have a lot to learn.

You can get a trial version of this which allows you 10 times, I think, to play with it. Whether I buy it or not? Who knows. I need more play first. But it is interesting, and fun.

Enjoy your holiday off! I will be back tomorrow.

Fantasy Art

Good morning!

It is early Sunday morning. Another beautiful day!

The items in this creation are all kaleis. The little rocket ship, the little alien, and the star around the alien are kaleis.

I had to add a little to the alien.

The star was just a flat light green. I took it and just did some inner bevels on different layers of the same star. I came up with many that I liked, but decided on this one. See how an inner bevel creates the 3-d effect? It's fantastic. And fun!

My daughter and granddaughter were over yesterday. Taylor is growing so fast. She's gained 7 pounds in the last couple of weeks, and is getting taller. I remember the toddler that she was, and as always, I'm amazed. And can that girl read? Oh yes, she can!

Due to her growth spurt, we had to go clothes shopping. So we went yesterday. Kohl's always has something on sale, and we found her a pair of jeans and three shirts. My daughter found a deliciously deep turquoise, almost dressy, shirt. I found six shirts that I love. I think I'm all set for work for the next couple of weeks.

As I said, the weather is beautiful. The high yesterday was 86, and today it will get up to 88. Tomorrow should be around 87. The nights are down around 62 and 64, which is just wonderful.

I only created one other art piece yesterday, so today, I need to get busy. I need to go grocery shopping, and I'm still waiting to get to My Sims game. Having a long weekend with Tuesday tacked on should help.

Have a great Sunday.

Back tomorrow.

Big Dog and His Bee Friend

Good morning!

It's a terrific FREE Saturday morning. The sun is shining, the birds are singin' ... and the bees are out!

This little bee thought he'd take a rest on Big Dog's nose. You can see what he's sayin' about that!

This creation started out just playing with some special effects on circles, which became Big Dog's eyes. He must be feeling his allergies since his eyes are just a little pink! No wonder. Where there are bees, there must be flowers somewhere close by. Ah-choo!

It took way longer to complete this little cartoon than I ever thought possible. I had to search for "doggy" pictures, so I could compose him. But oh! What fun!

We are expecting beautiful, sunny days over the next four days. I have them all off, and I am looking forward to it.

Hoping you have sunshine wherever you are!

Back tomorrow!