Gremlins must be loose around the Internet today. My Blogroll keeps vanishing. PITA. How can I read blogs I actually like if they're not listed? I took the plunge a couple of weeks ago and removed my manual blogroll list and replaced it with BlogRolling. So, now it's having a brain fart and I am left with blogs I read rarely as they aren't as interesting. How Rude!

Then recently, for the last month, I haven't been getting comments by mail, so I'm not being rude on purpose. Well, at least not in this case.

The mechanic comment in my last post was related to a discussion with MOTH.

me: how do you stop that whine in my car [ power steering pump thingy or something :-)]
him: keep you out of it

how rude! but funny. heh.

Gah! Next time I say I have a bright idea, someone smack me back into reality!
Yoda's 11th birthday was on Tuesday, so by Sunday, we'd done 3 cakes, 6 pizza's, 9 candles & a truckload of gifts.
I had an empty wallet, 3 burnt fingers and a singed fringe and now know the reason I am not a teacher or provide any kind of childminding related services.

He had a birthday party on Saturday night, so I had 7 boys running around drunk on sugar for 5 hours. Huge storm just as it started, so I couldn't even release the pack out into the wilds of our backyard. It was supposed to be a pizza and dvd party, instead it degenerated into a Who can be the loudest and most obnoxious party. Guess who won? ME! heh. MOTH ran for the garage and hid out there, all the while claiming urgent repairs to his car. He's a mechanic, remind me to tell you about that later. heh.

So, Sunday, off to MIL & FIL's for the day. People who are older, really shouldn't get offside the only person likely to let them live with her rather than a nursing home. We are now the proud owners of a Hammond organ. Do I need say more?

Of course, this adds to Mia's repertoire of noisy musical instruments used to annoy the total crap outta of me, as teenagers do. The MOTH knows only one song to play, Amazing Grace, which when you think about it, is highly disturbing! and freaking irritating too, when it's been played 100 times in one day. Could be worse though, I could be teaching them! I can't even hum in tune to save my life, so they must have got the music genes from Dad.

Let me tell ya, by last night, I was thinking of packing and running away from home. No, not to join the circus, but I am seriously considering applying for an Internship in New York for an Illuminator. If some guy can get money to paint trees blue, I might have a chance to get a grant for airfare. Keep your fingers crossed for me.

Bargain!

I have been busy. I bought 116 pkts of fimo clay for 50c each as discontinued lines. Luckily for me, the colours are more suited to what I want it for but not for most people who buy that type of clay. I can always paint it anyway, so I saved over $500-. I'm a happy lil vegemite.

I'll put up pics later today of what I have done so far in the clay.

Woman's remains found in unit - BN NSW - Breaking News 24/7 - NEWS.com.au

Another one! When I was a bankie [yes, a witch one, I still have my broom in the cupboard] I was at a branch which worked with the Red Cross to have Volunteer staff make telephone calls to local elderly residents each morning to make sure they were ok. They rotated the calls around monthly so you didn't get too attached in case something happened. If you didn't get an answer, you rang the RC and they contacted the police. It didn't cost the person any money and obviously it cost the branch the cost of the local calls each day and the few minutes of each staff members time, but it did help stop this type of thing. Something so simple and easy to do and cost effective.

Maybe the Red Cross could actively market the service again to Corporate Oz. What about the pollies sitting in their electoral offices in each electorate? You know, give back to the community in a small way that isn't expensive or hard AND meaningful.

Adding:
Just after I read this story and was feeling a bit depressed, I read a great entry by Bill that made me feel there is hope for us humans. Even though he could have gotten into trouble at work, he stopped to help someone out. Bouquets to Bill for being a top blog bloke!

capping & casting

Today my thoughtful hubby gave me a huge box of chocolates for Valentine's day. Hmmmmm, guess he's forgotten about the $2500- gap payment for my dental surgery. hehe.

So, I toddled back down to the dentist today as the temp filling for the crown part was a tad sore. I thought it was no big deal & he was gonna tell me I was a big wimp, go home etc. Errrrr, no. It turns out it was infected, so he whacked the temp off, chucked some really seriously disgusting tasting stuff in my mouth and redid the temp.

Once he realised, poor hubby raced off and came home with 1/2 dozen roses and the Rogue Traders cd for me instead. Isn't he a darling? So, I regifted him the choccies as his present didn't arrive in time. I know S.A is behind us timewise, but not THAT much! You watch, it'll rock up tomorrow. GRRRRRR

I was laying on the couch before watching the news and Yoda suddenly says, Mum, look at my goatee. HUH? Did I fall into a coma and wake up 10 years later or something was my immediate thought. Nah, he stickytaped black paper onto his face and was singing Shannon Noll songs. Yes, I took photo's, I am an old hand at recording kids for future blackmail purposes.

Well, I think my cold porcelain clay has cooled enough to knead, so I better get casting.

I hope you all had a nice Valentine's Day.

Cocomment'ing all over the blogosphere

I am a sucker for pretty shiny things that scream USE ME, I am going to be the next best thing. You have to be INVITED to use me, I am not just for anyone.
See, I can be shallow and egocentric, just like everybody else. heh.

I am not a gadget person in RL unless it's related to computers, yes, I know I'm geeky. That's a very desirable trait donchyaknow! This is where my Gemini'ess comes into play, the arty farty & geek parts of my brain that constantly battle for control. So, if I see the words on the web " Beta, by Invitation Only" to me, it's the equivalent of Manolo Blahnik shoes on Sale after Christmas. Get out of my way, I want that. I must have that.

Sooooo, word must have gotten out about my Beta tester fetish and I got sent an Invitation to Cocomment. Pretty cool, you know how you comment all over the place and then have to remember where? Well, that's what cocomment does basically. In a nutshell, you sign up, add a link to your browser & comment as a normal, cocomment saves a copy of your comment in your conversation page or to access as an rss feed in your reader, then you can see where & to who you've commented.

I can see where some problems could arise, but they seem to be actively working on them. So, based on that, it seems like this could be a really good way to keep track of your own conversations on different blogs.

Here is my latest finished piece. It's the Hippocratic Oath in Latin with an illumination based on a 15C woodcut Anatomy Lecture by Joannes de Ketham & painted in the style at the time. The latin on the image side says, First Do No Harm.
It's done on Parchmentine with gouache & watercolour with 24ct gold leafing.
He loved it.





You can see more of my artwork at Antikva Art & Design

Well, my theatre date with the dentist went well. No major drama's except I woke up with a bloody nose, no, I didn't get punched out, I did pay the Anaesthetist. Apparently the right side of my nose didn't like the tube, so they had to change sides.

Root planing by quadrant is not as painful as it sounds when you wake up either.

So, I'll be able to tell you in a few weeks if I think the anti-amalgam brigade are correct or not.

Arrrrggghhhhhhh

I'm tempted to slap a stamp on the MOTH's forehead and ship him off to whoever wants him.

Going to hell in a handbasket.

Seriously. Yesterday I was tidying the family room while the kids were still in bed snoring and saw a group of Jehovah Witness people outside. So, I turned off the music and sat on the couch quietly resisting the urge to answer the knocking on the door. I didn't even grit my teeth and send nasty Go Away vibes.
So, it's very quiet except you can hear them knocking still, thought I had them fooled as the stoopit doorbell is not working, but they obviously caught onto that.
Suddenly a small head peers through the staircase at me and says, Mum, there is someone knocking at the door and he runs halfway down before I managed to hiss in my best Evil Mum voice, Open that door and I'm taking away your next birthday, Go back to bed!
heh. He turned tail and ran.
They came back later just as I was weeding the garden bed. *sigh*

Normally I don't mind doorknockers, however lately, they just won't take a polite No Thank You and GO. I've had 4 or 5 phone, gas & elec salesman who I've practically had to shoehorn off the verandah to make them go away. Not to mention, the number of telemarketers who also do the same thing on the phone. Which, btw, we have a silent phone number, so I always have to go through the rigmarole of saying, No, sorry, this isn't the *******'s number anymore. [They changed their number at least 5 years ago and even their friends still ring it] Most of the time the response I get is "Are you sure?" heh. Then the conversation just goes downhill from there, because then they want my surname to alter their records. One lot kept ringing back, obviously on the off chance to see if I would change my mind about who I was. I can be politely nasty when necessary, it's a by-product of being a bankie so long. They've never rung again. I think I made him cry.

The funniest one I've ever had though was the Privacy Commission dept coldcalling people to do a survey on Privacy & telemarketers. Huh?

I'm a busy little bee the next few days. I have a new source to check out [opals] and another supplier to freak out. Hope you all have good one's!

PS. Who knew 2 blogs would be such a PITA to do. I really wish the baddies would take a break. Sheesh.

Feelin' - tired
Hearin' - Fox on the Run - Sweet [Oh shut up! LOL]

Hello

I repeated my earlier trick of falling a over t down the stairs with pretty much the same success rate. Stupid bloody thick carpet on the stairs. I managed to hurt the same shoulder but luckily it doesn't seem as bad as last time.
The kids are talking about rigging up a motion activated camera so that they can score $500 from Funniest Home Videos. harumph.

The new washing machine arrived yesterday, hooked it up and nothing. doesn't work, so now they are delivering another one tomorrow. The MOTH is working all weekend so I told them that they'd have to send a guy to install it as well. The weather has been shit for me so I've been doing that cool walk I do when my joints stiffen. No way would I be able to undo/redo the connections up myself at the moment.

My saphhire and black spinel order arrived today! Veeeery Nice, Thank You Andrew and Leah fromAussie Sapphire Beautifully drilled sapphire & black spinel beads & gems, so pretty! Gazing upon them all day has pretty much kept me entertained. I can't decide what to do first *g*

I also made friends with a semi retired jeweller and he's interested in what I'm doing, so we're going to join forces and he's going to make the connectors I need and I'll be using some of his cast designs on the book covers and quills as well.

So, I've been pretty busy running around between the artshops, antique/2nd hand shops and not to forget the bookshop and music shop. Strictly for business and marketing purposes. heh. [ hey, it's my story, I'm sticking to it!]

Kids have settled back into school easily, except we're all glad it's the weekend, so we can sleep in. Well, except the MOTH cos he's working and won't be home till Sunday night.

Ooroo, avagoodweegend mateys!


Feelin' - sore
Hearin' - Play Me - Adam Thompson