Merry Christmas

Smile at a stranger, Hug a friend, feed the ducks.



Back in a few days.

Christmas meme

I got sent this via email, so anyone who wants can consider themselves taggee's! leave a comment though so I can see your answers. Yeah, I'm a sticky beak LOL

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags?
Wrapping paper. Lots and Lots. Think I was a cat in a former life, love wrapping paper and hate water.

2. Real tree or artificial?
Fake. We had real one's when I was a kid and then the mad bomber bombed the place we bought them from and it's made bad associations with real trees. Plus they're messy. I have kids to make mess if I want mess.

3. When do you put up the tree?
December 1st, without fail. One year before I had kids to do it, I speed decorated at 11.57pm. Best job of decorating the tree I ever did LOL

4. When do you take the tree down?
January 1st. I can also speed disassemble too. Although it does mean that before I got the new fibre optic tree this year that the lights were always so tangled that I had to buy a new set every year.

5. Do you like eggnog?
No. Raw eggs. Enuff said.

6. Favourite gift received as a child?
My crystal radio with earphones! I dragged that thing everywhere for years until it expired from overuse.

7. Do you have a nativity scene?
No, but I have been eyeing off a Santa train track that goes around the bottom of the tree. And a 2 foot high Santa that says Ho,Ho,Ho and flashes his lights at you.

8. Hardest person to buy for?
Parentals. GAH! One mob is easier  than t'other mob though.

9. Easiest person to buy for?
The granddaughter. heh. She's 7 months, anything she can safely gum to death is a winner!

10. Worst Christmas gift you ever received?
Lime green washing basket.

11. Mail or Email Christmas cards?
Errrr, well, I have to say I normally mail Christmas cards as I am a very competitive person and a friend and I try to beat each other every year. BUT, this year I was a bit cranky and Bah Humbug due to the sudden change of plans until I kicked myself in the arse and so it will be a mix this year. El won this year I'm afraid, so next year I'm sending them out at Easter to be sure I win.

12. Favourite Christmas movie?
The Santa Clause 1, 2 and 3. There was a cartoon I loved to watch every year but I forget what it was called and it hasn't been on that I know of.

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas?
Tomorrow. I think.

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present?
heh. yep, but so far I have resisted the temptation to recycle the lime green washing basket. And, so it sits. And mocks me.

15. Favourite thing to eat at Christmas?
Leg of ham. Ham thinks it's a bit kinky though *g*

16. Clear lights or coloured on the tree?
Both and with lots of flashy stuff happening.

17. Favourite Christmas song?
Good King Wenceslas.

18. Travel for Christmas or stay home?
While we have been in Melbourne we only travel on Christmas Day across Melbourne. It's not a good thing. In previous years depending on where we have been in Oz it can take from 1 hour to 3 or 4 days.

19. Can you name all of Santa�s Reindeer?
Dancer, Donner, Blitzen, Cupid, Dixon, Rudolph, Comet, Dasher and my personal fave, Prancer!

20. Angel on tree top or star?
Depends on who has the starring [snerk!] role of putting the ornament on top of the tree. Usually the Star wins as the kids think it's cruel and unusual punishment for an Angel, although sometimes poor Santa gets the honours *g*

21. Open all the presents on Christmas Eve or Christmas morning?
Due to travel as previously mentioned and me being stressed on Christmas Morning because I have to go over the Westgate Bridge in particular, we are toying with the idea of Christmas Eve being our Christmas Day now the kids are older. They all still assure me they believe in Santa though. Right. LOL

22. Most annoying thing about this time of year?
All the PC nuts. So, Merry Christmas everyone and I hope Santa brings everyone some happiness. Lime green washing baskets.

23. What I love most about Christmas�
Myer windows.Wrapping paper.Happy excited kids.Summer. No cyclones.

Bloody Hell!

Going on some of the recent search terms people have entered and found my site by, all I can say is....

Your computer needs to have it's cache washed out with soap.

I have some pics to put up but the usb cable is in hiding.  And I'm tired. And now gobsmacked after looking at my server stats. So later. Promise!

Today is really yesterday

[ Should be 28th]

I lost a whole post because my laptop overheated and shut down. Which, I should have known would happen as that has just been the kind of day I had.

So.. in random order....

My drafting table flung me, several glass items, all the clay I was using, a pasta machine, vise and various other painting and gilding items through the air this morning. I ended up covered in clay, glue, paint water and glass shards. I mean I usually am covered in paint, bits of gold and clay but not in such great quantities.

The drafting table's counter balance thingy or something equally as technological became unhinged. Much like it's owner did shortly afterwards when she realised that all the handmade buttons and beads she had just made were covered in glass. *sigh*

And no, I did not have shoes on, so had to sit there and wait until DH arrived back from his run to retrieve me. Yes, he laughed, but only when he thought I didn't know.

Of course, because I now have millions of tiny cuts similiar to paper cuts, it got very hot here and I felt like I was being stung by a million bees. So I cut my losses  and went shopping. Handbags! Shoes! Airconditioning! All at the same time! Bliss.

Youngest daughter passed her VCE and graduated. I know for sure because we went to her graduation tonight. I was so happy I almost hugged the hag who made our life a misery earlier this year. Almost. I didn't though. I am not THAT nice.

Aforementioned Youngest daughter turns 18 tomorrow. Her friends are taking her out to lunch and on a slurpy trail, which means she'll be on a major sugar high. Her sister is making strawberry daiquiri's for her birthday dinner. Which means I'll be as pissed as a parrot by 7pm and snoring 10 minutes later. [ You know I'm joking, right? LOL ]

Her sister is making the daiquiris because she begged me to let her organise D3's birthday cake and then forgot. Which I didn't know until 10-30 tonight when I remembered to ask her. The baker couldn't do it tonight as he finishes early but they will do it tomorrow. Phew.

I'm off to bed. Nite.

Best laid plans...

It's going to be another 4-6 weeks at least before the MOTH retires.

I am not a happy camper.

I think my head is going to explode.

I'm back

Interesting last couple of weeks I must say. Must be something in the water. Isn't it amazing the things that crawl out of the woodwork when they think someone is vulnerable.

Noone is afraid of you. Slink away.

Anyway, enuff of that effwit....

Funniest thing that happened though is my husband squished me with the car LOL Idiot! Accidentally of course, but hey, I get bonus stuff when he's feeling guilty! hehehe

New laptop I think. He only got my knee caught in between bumpers and it was the crappy knee anyway, but I'll run with it *g*  Although, he asked me if I wanted to go to Europe next year and see the pretty paintings and meander to a few motorbike races at the same time. Why, yes, I would! So, maybe.

This would be the idea :

August 3   Great Britain  Brands Hatch*    
August 24     Tba  Tba   
September 7    Great Britain     Donington Park*  
September 28     Italy          Vallelunga    
October 5     France          Magny Cours* 

 

I'm making pretty shiny things at the moment. Might even sell some. or not. I might keep them for me. I guess I better get off my lazy arse and take some photo's of what I have been doing. Otherwise, I have no reason to blog. LOL except make poor unsuspecting cyber travellers wonder how I manage to function in RL.

Luvya's all!

For all the search engine people...

Supernaut's official Myspace page is here

Gary Twinn's is here

Mine is here LOL [ *pout* I'm starting to feel left out!]

I really only use Myspace for musician updates, very convenient.

Wax is on apples to make them shiny and look good in the supermarket so you buy them.

Waxing without wax eyebrows is called threading or plucking *g* Threading hurts more than waxing and slightly less than plucking in case you wondered.

I don't know a place in Townsville that does threading. Your best bet for getting your eyebrows waxed there though is the Willows or Stockland or somewhere like that.

Without Wax means Yours Sincerely according to some definitions. The idea is that the latin sine [without] cera [wax] is the origin of the word Sincere, however that's also disputed by some scholars and dictionary putterer togetherers. It is also based on Roman/Greece sculptors who covered flaws in their products with wax. So basically without wax means no flaws *g*  

Yep, that's me. No flaws. Just kidding. It was my smartarse response to someone who was being a pita and it just kinda stuck.  I may change it at some stage though as I'm a female and that's my birthright.

As for some of the others, the photo's are mine. I took some and my daughter took some at Phillip Island. None were stolen from other sites.

I am tired, granddaughter is in bed so I am going as well.

Nitey Nite!

Naming Day

The granddaughter has a new name officially bestowed upon her by Nana...

 

 

Stinkerbelle

I am verrrrrrry tired!

I forgot how tiring looking after a baby 24/7 is! even if the Mother left me a Nana cheat sheet.

hehehehehehe. yeah. she did. So funny! No, she knows I know how to look after a baby, she has a routine already and I don't want to accidentally change it.

Actually, she's a very easy baby to look after, I'm just out of practice of missing sleep and settling fussy teething babies. I'm glad I had mine while I was younger though. If I'd had my first now, they'd be an only child!

Not to mention all the extraneous crap parents buy these days. I'm gobsmacked at all the *stuff* that is supposedly necessary these days.

Can't have a bath  without checking the temp with a thermometer.

The dummy [ errr no, not me] has to be a special one like a freaking venus fly trap and snaps shut if it's dropped. Of course it was not designed to be easy for idiot grandparents to re-open. I had to read the Instruction book 3 times to get it open again. I should have just given it to the 5 mth old, she'd have got it open again in 2 secs I'm sure.

The bath has to have a ramp thing so the baby doesn't drown. Geeez. Whatever happened to testing water temp with your wrist, holding the squirmer in the crook of your arm and by one leg while you dunk them.

The pram has to be assembled like it's a bike bought last minute on Christmas Eve with a bolt missing. EACH.TIME.YOU.USE.IT.  It doesn't just flip open and it's in 2 pieces. Refolding and disassembling the bloody thing once you got it open and reassembled the bit that holds the baby to the bit that rolls along is just as bad as getting the thing together. You just about need and engineering degree to work it out. Not to mention lots of lego building experience as a child.

I ended up standing outside the bank for 30mins holding the baby. She had a lot of pensioners fussing and making kissy faces at her the whole time. I wasn't game to sit down at the footpath cafe tables next door in case one of them clonked me over the head with their handbags and ran off with her.Bet you think I'm joking!

It's a wonder the change table/bath combo can't bath and change the baby by itself. Although, trying to lift a wet wriggly naked kid out of the bath and flip the change table part back down over the bath while flipping a towel on it to prevent said kid sliding off the plastic cover is definitely an interesting experience.

Toys require more battery power to run them than your average car. Not to mention that they all have to be educational rather than fun. Although it's definitely educational at 2am in the morning when Nana wanders past and sets of the music of the movement activated toy.

She's going to have an extensive vocabulary by the time she's 6 mths old *g*

And please, don't get me started on the capsule/car seat thingymajig.

Back in the olden days.. ROFL
I used to bath all of the kids in the kitchen sink more often than not until they were old enough for a bath tub or shower. Right height for me so I didn't break my back bending down to them. Throw some dettol or betadine on and wipe it down. Simple.

I do have a dishwasher though, so may not have done it if  I didn't.

The pram was one piece that you opened and closed by foot and side clips. When they outgrew it, you bought a stroller that *amazing* worked the same way.

The change table was a mat on the floor or table.

Baby capsules were capsules. Car Seats were Car Seats, neither of them were designed by NASA engineers as these new one's appear to have been.

No batteries were required in toys until they reached at least 2 years old and even then, generally only 2 were required.

The only crying she's done in the 2 days so far, was today when she was assessed by the paediatric physio checking her neck muscles and while she showed me the excercises she needs to have done to correct the problem.

Apart from that, she's been perfect. She even chucked up on Grandads side of the bed LOL

Speaking of which, I can hear my bed calling me.  Oh wait...no. It's not my bed. I forgot to turn off the bloody music motion detector toy!

'Avagoodweekend Mateys! I'm going to *g*

 

Hearin' - baby snores via the monitor complete with lights and battery backup

Readin' - Baby Instruction manuals for pram, bath, car seat and toys.

I apologise...

if I appear to be random and disorganised this year. That's because I am, which causes me to be even more random and disorganised because I'm stressed. VCE is not fun for the parents either, let me tell you. For some reason the youngest has dropped her bundle this year and we have been cajoling, poking and prodding her through VCE. I am empty. I have no clue how to get her moving again, she has 2 weeks until exams. Yesterday in a test exam, she wrote 2 lines. No. It was not a 2 line type of exam either. She says she just can't remember the info. *sigh* 

My 2 bobs worth on the Cousins thing:

People who use drugs won't stop using them until *they* want to, either their life becomes so shit, they have a near miss, or they just realise that they don't want to live that way anymore. It doesn't matter how much detox and rehab they do, it won't stick until they want to stop using drugs.

 It's not as simple as stop using drugs just because others want them to or because people are *concerned* about them. Drug addicts will tell you whatever you want to hear and appear to cooperate until you go away and they can access their drug of choice again.

Mind you, I don't think holding someone up as a role model and marketing them to the public as a role model if you know they have a drug or alcohol problem is a good idea. Pressure is in everyone's life, adding more pressure when you know they have problems is not a good recipe although it may seem that they're a marketers dream and can earn you money, increase exposure etc. Eventually it will rebound. Noone is above the law and although it's a cliche, the public expect that even celebrities and heroes receive the same punishment as the average person

Speeding. No one thinks big of you

Right Brain/Left Brain and other fun things I'm up to...

The Right Brain vs Left Brain test ... do you see the dancer turning clockwise or anti-clockwise?  Click here to try it

If you can't make her switch direction, leave a comment and I'll let you in on an easy way to make her change rotation. This has kept me amused for days LOL The best part is watching people freak out and think they're seeing things the first time it happens.

Yes, I am evil and if you don't use it, you lose it  ROFL 

In other exciting news youngest daughter has FINALLY finished all project and assignment work for VCE. Now she only has revision for exams. Phew! Less stress for the whole family.

I ordered some sterling silver jewellery findings that should arrive in a week. I've been making earrings as I couldn't find any that I wanted to wear. I can't wear pierced earrings as I keep having allergic reactions to the metal, doesn't seem to matter how high the gold content is.

 I have sapphires and beads that I bought from www.aussiesapphire.com.au  for a different project so decided to make my own instead using those. I made some with plated stuff and I really like them, so I'm going to duplicate them with the ss findings. I only wear white gold, silver or marcasite, so it's harder to find stuff that I like.

Bubbles is going to meet her Gt Grandad [my dad] in a week, so I've been training her in preparation so that he doesn't scare the shit out of her when he does his lion impersonation and roars at her. She thinks it's hysterical when I do it, so hopefully it's worked.  The youngest two used to hide under the table when he did it to them. No. I am not kidding.  Dad is here until December, so this is going to be interesting!

 

Hearin' - Nothing at the moment

Readin' - Waaaah! Run out of books as well. Have to go to the library.

Proof my kids take after me

D3: Mum,does all water evaporate?

Yep.

D3: Even water in the toilet?

Errrm, yep

D3: So that means there's shit in the air then?

Hmm.Yep.

D3: Ewwwww. Gross. We breathe it IN as well?

 

LOL

Sportified type of weekend

James Toseland won the World Superbike Championship  followed by Haga and Max Biaggi in 3rd place. Although Max didn't win the championship ya gotta be a happy Max fan this year. First season in Superbikes, not knowing a lot of the tracks and 3rd. Pretty damn cool *g* 

V8 Supercars, Bathurst was definitely interesting!  I bet Rick Kelly had to do more than have a sit down after his near miss when his tyre blew and he slid over the track with Lowndesy narrowly missing him. heh.  and the car fires! Yikes. I bet Andrew Jones also needed a quick sit down after that too. His fuel line burst apparently, although it looked like something like a piston took out part of his bonnet.

Took the boy down to the skate ramp today so he could play around on his skateboard. The older guys that were there helped him with his technique until he fell off and hurt his wrist, so he's been running around the house with a bag of peas on his arm all night. Huge lump though but only seems bruised. The guys said he was now an official skateboarder LOL One of them apparently spends $200- a month as he keeps breaking his boards. I hope the boy doesn't think we'll be doing that!

And on that note, I am off to watch F1 then get some sleep.

Hugs!

snort *g*

Wanna bet the Council is going to have to keep spraying the wall every year LOL
I can't believe they thought people wouldn't go back and sign it again. Have they not seen the shrines all over the country on the sides of the roads? Same thing happens there too, councils yank them and back up they go. DUH!

FANS of racing legend Peter Brock have again turned the heart of the Mount Panorama racing circuit into an unofficial shrine to their idol, to the dismay of Bathurst Regional Council Read More

 

Hearin' - Nothing
Readin' - The Stars Shine Down : Sidney Sheldon

Feast One Hundred & Sixty Three

Fridays Feast 163

Appetizer
On a scale of 1-10 with 10 being highest, how much do you look forward to your birthday?

10 as of course I'm getting younger all the time!

Soup
What is one word you don�t like the sound, spelling, or meaning of?

Whatever word is being overused by the media at the moment. Journey is one that makes me want to send the person using it on one and not a happy pleasant one at that.

Salad
Do you wear sunglasses when you�re outside?  If so, what does your current pair look like?

No. I hate sunglasses, the colour shift in the lens makes me feel like I'll thow up.

Main Course
If you were to write a book, to whom would you dedicate it?

Pebbles, my cat.

Dessert
Name a beverage that you enjoy

Limoncello is my current obsession since we moved to Melbourne.
Stoli Lemon is my long term beverage of choice

There is a link between the 2 and it's not just Lemon *g*

Alchemy by Numbers

I've started a new series though so I'll be putting WIP's up again, maybe on a daily basis or knowing me, on a randomly daily basis *g*  I was thinking though that I may do some Art Cards to refine my ideas, so I'll probably put some up of those for free, on a first come, first served basis.

I've been researching numbers [ mythology and symbols with a bit of theology thrown in covering several cultures] as part of it. So that's what I'm up to. I'll put up the outline once it's more refined.

For the person who asked, no, I don't have anything for sale on the web at the moment. I am thinking about it and the best venue to use [ online auctions, own site or via an online gallery] I have opened a gallery online at artwanted.com/antikva and will also put finished pieces up there.

I'd been stockpiling for an exhibition which has been cancelled as the business has now closed :-(  As that work was specific to the exhibition theme I don't know what to do with it, except enter them into a few competitions maybe. It's a bit too different and intimate to go online though I think.

Yes, I have sent art overseas. Some of my works are in the US and Monaco and a couple are in India. I can't send any vellum pieces overseas due to mad cows roaming the world. For the last year or so when I do use vellum, it's kangaroo vellum and from the legal cull in Queensland. I used to use other vellum but there were some problems.

The company I use  manufacture the vellum for drums using a traditional method. I only need to prep it a little more with pumice powder and elbow grease than if I bought it from an art shop or imported it and it is also a little cheaper.Mainly I use Arches Aquarelle Hot Press with a minimum of 300gsm.

I use gouache [ Winsor and Newton or Talens] with watercolours and watercolour pencils. I used to make my own paint from pigments but apart from cost factor, when I was on chemo I wasn't allowed to use the toxic pigments. Yes, some paint has toxic pigments in it but it's easier to remember not to lick your brush or not drink your paint water than having to worry about inhaling the dust accidentally.

Then again, I sometimes pick up the wrong cup, so far though, my brain has managed to alert me in time that it's not hot, therefore can't be coffee *g*

I usually use the watercolour pencils as the base to get the colours down. All of my work has indigo in it somewhere. I only use W&N's watercolour version of indigo though.

I use loose leaf or transfer gold, silver and platinum from William Ashcroft in Oakleigh. I prefer loose leaf to transfer.  

I make my own gesso and glair if I am using traditional materials, especially if it's on vellum. I use a modern version based on pva glue if I am on my all modern materials kick.  

That's about it. If anyone wants more info, email me :-) antikva at gmail

Now, I really am going to get some sleep.

'Avagoodweegend cobbers!

 

Hearin' - Shut Up and Drive : Rihanna

Readin' - Before I Say Goodbye: Mary Higgins Clark

TGIF

Sorry if this is a bit like follow the bouncing ball....

The baby has mild Congenital Torticollis, so she's going to see a paediatric physio. Well, they did think she was headless when eldest was 35 weeks and sent her off for scans. She starts while her Mum is off  house hunting, so I have to take her.  Should be fun.

Hopefully by then we'll have kicked the illness bug that seems to have taken up permanent unwelcome residence in the house. Oh yeah, plus the 2 adult children + hanger onerer who  think they live in a fully serviced hotel with on call staff for free. [Can you tell I'm just a teensy bit cranky]

Anyway...

I am not game to say too much about WSBK this weekend except Wheeeeeeeee!

Bathurst is also on, so that will keep me occupied until Sunday night.

Anyway...

We're going to Phillip Island for the V8's at the end of November, then back down in January to watch testing. Motogp is testing there Jan 29-31, not sure what dates for WSBK testing yet, last year it was the 1st or 2nd Jan. I'm tossing up whether to buy  Super Advantage Plus tickets for WSBK in March then hubby asked if I wanted to go a race overseas.

So now I'm waiting to see what happens and who is where and what series. I don't know but I don't think Max Biaggi is leaving WSBK yet, although that might just be wishful hoping on my part as I like the live WSBK atmosphere better. Not even paddock rumours are being helpful LOL so I'll just have to wait patiently for something official to come out.

Oh, I also found out that Dogbait has just retired! He's definitely a Cats fan and knows how to celebrate a Cats [Geelong] win in fine style ;-) go say Congarats and feel much envy :-)

Anyway...

I'm outta here, so I can try and get some decent sleep.

ummm.

Great racing in WSBK this weekend. Max Biaggi won the first race, 2nd in the 2nd race and slots back into 2nd in the Championship with 2 races to go.

Who was the new guy on Fox presenting WSBK last night? No, not Kevin Magee. The other one.

Meh, who cares, I'll just call him Dick from now on. Apparently it's fine for Troy Bayliss* to say something about the chalk and oil on the track but Max is complaining?  Why do they always do that? What a crock. 

So, the town I was born in won their first premiership since the year I was born. Yeeha! Go Cats! Took them this long to recover from the shock of me being born there! LOL

And to top off the weekend, our adopted team in NRL [ we follow the Cowboys normally of course!] won as well.

Bub is doing well. Spitting image of our youngest daughter and pretty much the same adorable sunny disposition too. Ok,mild sarcasm happening with that last sentence.  She literally yells if she feels ignored, I can hear her yelling from upstairs, doesn't cry, just voices her opinion on being left alone. Loves Eyeore and watches bike racing with me. Just sits quite happily on my lap watching the bikes go round. For some reason she likes me to sing nursery rhymes [ No clue why!] her current favourite is The Wheels on the Bus and Hickory Dickory. And, no. No public performances Thank you very much. Yes. I am *that* bad at singing.

She's staying with me all by herself for a week next month while her Mum nicks off to find a flat/house. Eldest is getting a video phone so the baby can talk to us when they move.

I'm starting to feel a lot better, still a bit *meh* but I actually did stuff today. Like grocery shopping and washing the dishes that noone else had bothered to while I've been sick. I've finally finished the antibiotics

I'm thinking tomorrow I'll be well enough again to start working on a new piece.

Someone please,please shove a sock in both the Warnes mouths. It's starting to sound like professional victimism** promoted by media. It's not like it was a shock.

Luvyasalllongtime *g*

 

* I'm not bagging on Troy, just the commentators.
** Is that a real word? I can't be stuffed looking it up:-)

Vertical

I am really back this time :-)

'Cept I must go and survey the damage the hubby, kids and cats have done downstairs while I have been horizontal for a few weeks. LOL

I know I'm getting  a new dishwasher because I heard the ranting and raving when hubby couldn't get the door open and he freaked cos he, well, might have to *eek* wash dishes BY HAND! ROFL

The door is a little fussy about how it opens ever since a small child used it to stand on while helping me do dishes.

Back later!

Pity Party is over!

Nearly back to 100%.

I've been on antibiotics and a different pain medication since Friday. All the swelling etc is nearly gone in all my joints. And I've been in bed since then, doing nothing but reading, watching tv and sleeping. And I still managed to break a nail!

Hubby went to the V8's and took the kids.

Granddaughter was bought in to spend time with Nana in bed along with her 2 brothers, who were down for the weekend.

No more monkeys jumping on the bed!

GS2 [4 yrs old] kept patting my arm and saying "Poor Nana" LOL He kept telling his Mother he needed to have a talk with Nana and sneaking back in to keep me company *G*

So cute.

 

Readin' - A Little Death : Laura Wilson

flaring and venting

Not a very happy lil vegemite at the moment. A minor flare since I had the flu has turned into a pita one [ and me too] the last few days. Not a lot of options drug wise as they've all been recalled. I'm very tired and very sore. I'm turning into a big whiny sooky la la today. 

At the moment I can't walk as even the soles of my feet hurt along with all my joints.  Can't paint because my hands are really swollen [which is probably more the reason for the emotional meltdown] I can't sit for long either, so can't surf the net much either. It's taken me several attempts throughout the day to type this. Pretty miserable git aren't I? sorry. I try not to let it rule my life but at the moment I've just reached *that* point.Tomorrow I'll be past it and be ok again.

The cats are feeling sympathetic & have been hanging out on the bed with me :-)

And there is nothing worth watching on tv either.

Anyway, enough whining! 

Hopefully I'll feel better tomorrow and be able to start moving around again. Or, at least be able to do some painting.

Eye of the storm

Yes, I'm still cranky.

But.

Anyway.

So, I decided to move all my portfolio images to my picasaweb storage for now. 'Cept of course, I uploaded all the images without descriptions. *sigh* ROFLMAO that's just the way my week has been though. I just can't find a gallery/portfolio solution that I like.

This morning my network croaked it, so had to crawl around under the desk & other furniture looking for the bit that was unplugged to fix it. Turns out that wasn't the problem. It was the router having a caniption, must have felt unloved, so after I hugged it all better and told it what a special job it does and how important it is to me, everything was back to normal. Well, as normal as it's ever going to get if you're in my sphere.

I've [sort of] finished my site redesign but haven't got off my lazy arse to redo the blog portion yet.  In the meantime... heh. Sorry, yes, I just slapped myself for you.

Chased all over the place looking for mylar or some kind of drafting film in between the youngest daughter having a trauma with VCE. She has a really high workload with 3 art based subjects and the stress got to her. Solutions have been found however and worse case scenario will mean 6 months at Tafe then Uni.

Still no luck with the drafting film though.

We rearranged my studio again. Got a smaller top for my drafting table and hubby is making me a new paper storage thingy [up to A2 size] similiar to map drawers but will have a special drawer with a lightbox in it as well, so that it can slide away when I am not using it.

We've also been investigating financial options when hubby retires and have been seeing financial planners and getting all the ducks in a row. He's been offered a couple of jobs, so it's just a matter of working out moving dates, house hunting etc. He's a bit freaked out about becoming a civvie again. 

 

Readin' - Catching up with the news.

Hearin' - errr, some rugby song the players are mumbling singing on the telly.

Like a kid in a candy shop!

Hit the Art shops today, got a beautiful kolinsky sable brush kit.  Ahhh, happiness. They were really cheap too, I quickly went to the counter and asked if they were wrongly priced, but nope, they were on sale as a kit.

WOOHOO!

I had enough left in the budget to buy 6 tubes of Talen  gouache to test  *G*  I like AS but some of their colours seem  a little out of whack [ red is a bright pink] and they had defective tube caps which they were a bit rude about when I rang to get replacement caps. They already knew but hadn't passed the info onto the shops but expected them to just replace them.

Anyway, the reason I went was because I am road testing gouache and gilding on wet media acetate and Durar-lar. I've read a lot of the Colour Pencil Artists are using this and apparently it holds ink and watercolour. So, i'm going to see if it works. I prefer a smooth support, the smoother the better.

I like experimenting LOL  I have an unformed idea in my head about using totally modern materials to reproduce some illuminated manuscripts. Using modern materials will bring down the cost substantially as vellum is really expensive.

I'll do some as Art Card size, so if you like one when I put them up, email me and I'll send it to you. First in, best dressed :-)

Tomorrow I am off into the city in my quest to get the matte version as today I could only get the clear version of the wet media acetate.

Other stuff has been percolating along nicely.

Hubby bought me a Nightwish tshirt and a new handbag, wonder what he's done wrong? LOL Nah, it's cos I had a bit of a meltdown with all the adult kids crap piled up higgeldy piggeldy furniture and personal belongings we are storing. I am not a mountain goat.

I start with a new physio tomorrow, he's done some research on PA and how it damages the joints, so fingers crossed.

 

Hearin' - When You Were Young: The Killers

Readin' - everyone's blogs :-)

Everyone cover their ears..

I am about to start shrieking.

Well, probably screaming first, but shrieking will set in once I lose my voice.

I.am.pissed.off.

I'd tell you why but that would only make me even more frustrated and angry. That's not a good thing. It takes awhile for me to burn but then I'm like a phosphorous flare that wipes out everything within range.

Not. happy. Jan. or whatever the hell the officious twits name is.

HA! twit must be in the spell check now as it doesn't have the little red underline telling me I can't spell or use fake words.

Oh.

Fair Dinkum Citizenship Test

I found the following citizenship test at

The Age in an article by Catherine Deveny.

She does have a point about the new citizenship test. You could test 99% of Australia's high school students on it and they'd fail miserably. Although I'd hope her last paragraph before the test part is meant tongue in cheek, although it doesn't come across that way. If not, then I guess I know which recently resurrected jailbird she'd vote for.

Anyway....

It's time for a real test that requires real Australian qualities.

LANGUAGE

1. Do you understand the meaning, but are unable to explain the origin of, the term "died in the arse"?

2. What is a mole?

3. Are these terms related: chuck a sickie; chuck a spaz; chuck a U-ey?

4. Explain the following passage: "In the arvo last Chrissy the relos rocked up for a barbie, some bevvies and a few snags. After a bit of a Bex and a lie down we opened the pressies, scoffed all the chockies, bickies and lollies. Then we drained a few tinnies and Mum did her block after Dad and Steve had a barney and a bit of biffo."

CUSTOMS

1. Macca, Chooka and Wanger are driving to Surfers in their Torana. If they are travelling at 100 km/h while listening to Barnsey, Farnsey and Acca Dacca, how many slabs will each person on average consume between flashing a brown eye and having a slash?

2. Complete the following sentences: a) "If the van's rockin' don't bother � b) You're going home in the back of a �

c) Fair suck of the �

3. I've had a gutful and I can't be fagged. Discuss

4. Have you ever been on the giving or receiving end of a wedgie?

5. Do you have a friend or relative who has a car in their front yard "up on blocks"? Is his name Keith and does he have a wife called Cheryl?

FOOD

1. Does your family regularly eat a dish involving mincemeat, cabbage, curry powder and a packet of chicken noodle soup called either chow mein, chop suey or kai see ming?

2. What are the ingredients in a rissole?

3. Demonstrate the correct procedure for eating a Tim Tam.

4. Do you have an Aunty Myrna who is famous for her tuna mornay and other dishes involving a can of cream of celery soup?

5. In any two-hour period have you ever eaten three-bean salad, a chop and two serves of pav washed down with someone else's beer that has been nicked from a bath full of ice?

6. When you go to a bring- your-own-meat barbie can you eat other people's meat or are you only allowed to eat your own?

7. What purple root vegetable beginning with the letter "b" is required by law to be included in a hamburger with the lot?

CULTURE

1. Do you own or have you ever owned a lawn mower, a pair of thongs, an Esky or Ugg boots?

2. Is it possible to "prang a car" while doing "circle work"?

3. Who would you like to crack on to?

4. Who is the most Australian: Kevin "Bloody" Wilson, John "True Blue" Williamson, Kylie Minogue or Warnie?

5. Is there someone you are only mates with because

they own a trailer or have a pool?

6. Would you love to have a beer with Duncan?

The people to be granted citizenship are the ones who call it a crock and cheat.

 

Someone should turn it into a meme and tag all Aussies ROFLMAO

Blood Red Moon

and no, Iam not talking about the eclipse :-)

Right now I am REALLY glad the youngest is a male. Because if I had another teenage female to get through *that* phase, I would run away from home.

Don't tell me that males do the same thing, I wish to cling to my naive belief that boys are easier to raise than girls.

Hearin' - Bat out of Hell : Meatloaf

Readin' - Velocity : Dean Koontz

Friday's Feast One Hundred & Fifty Seven

Friday's Feast 157

Appetizer
Say there�s a book written about your life. Who would you want to narrate the audio version?

Me

Soup
Take the letters from your favorite kind of nut and write a sentence. (Example: Perhaps every avenue needs understanding today.)

Cashew : Can anyone see him eat worms? LOL [sorry]

Salad
If you could go back in time and spend one week in another decade, which decade would you choose?

80's for the music

Main Course
Name a song that brings back memories for you.

You're the Voice - John Farnham  [ no,not the kind of memory you're all probably thinking!]

Dessert
Do you prefer to wash your hands in cold water or warm water?

Warm

 

This week was interesting, but so far the good interesting outweighed the bad. Son nearly got run over by a car driven by a brain dead idiot  woman on the school oval.  Mind you, not the part where parents are supposed to park OR where any vehicle is supposed to be.  I'm wondering how the hell she got her licence because the very next day she repeated the speeding entrance, almost collecting another car in the process and then narrowly missing a walking parent.

I rang the school and apparently so had others, not only about her nearly hitting the boys but because she flew in when she got there. This year for some reason has been really bad for such incidents caused by careless driving and lazy parents who let their small kids run around and/or wander through the car park by themselves or parents parking past the allowed parking area. 

Anyway, I went to get hubby's birthday present and scope out Fathers Day presents for the Fathers. Got hubby's and as we wandered into Big W there was this guy sitting there with a stack of books. I thought, hey, he looks familiar!  Aaah. problemo solved!  Max Walker signed 2 boxed sets of his books to each Dad, let us take photo's and had a bit of a chat. Son was a tad annoyed that he missed out. I'm reading my Dad's set before I mail them.

Then as D2 and I were waiting for D1 and the baby to turn up we saw Lisa McCune wander past with her kids. No, we didn't hassle her but it was hysterical watching people do double takes as they realised who she was LOL

I am still working on the redesign, I'm deciding whether to switch to wordpress for the blog side, Won't have to change my blog addy but each platform has it's pro's and con's. Maybe i'll toss a coin LOL 

 

Anyhow, 'Avagoodweekend and don't forget the Aeroguard! Luvya's!

Hearin' - On the verge of something wonderful : Darren Hayes

Readin' - How to hypnotise chooks : Max Walker

I was wandering innocently through cyberspace...

minding my own business and got tagged by Bella, who is lucky I like her :-)

 

What side of the heart do you draw first?
Left Ventricle, sometimes the aorta.
Can you dive without plugging your nose?
Doesn't everybody?
What color is your phone?
Black
Who would you want to be tied to for 24 hours?
ROFLMAO. I'd get into BIG trouble if I answered this question.
Where are you right now?
In bed
How do you feel about carrots?
Like Switzerland, neutral.  
How many chairs at the dining room table?
I've given up having chairs at the dining room table, now I just toss the plates across the room and if they catch it, they eat right there where they are.
Who is the best Spice Girl?
Who are the Spice Girls? *sarc zone*
Do you know what time it is?
1.22am
What would you do if you were stuck in an elevator?
Absolutely.Freak. Out.
What's your favorite kind of gum?
Like Bella, I don't do gum.
T or F: All is fair in love and war?
Nothing in life is fair.
Do you use words that you don't know the meaning to?
Never! I always pontificate using vocabulary I am comfortable with.
Do you like to sleep?
Yes. No. Yes.
Do you know which US states don't use Daylight Savings?
Dunno,I'd guess the states that have the highest number of faded curtains though.
Do you know the song Sugar We're Goin' Down?
Huh? No, Should I?
Do you want a bright yellow '06 mustang?
Nah, gotta be a Maserati for this babe *g*
What's something you've always wanted?
Maserati sports car
Do you wear a lot of black?
Define a *lot*
Describe your hair.
Apparently on the endangered species list [ red head]
Are you an adult?
I try really hard not to be.
Who is/are your best friends?
They're no longer alive.
Do you have a tan?
Not really. Although I have a touch of my Dad's olive skin, so never really have that lily white thing happenin'
Are you a television addict?
No
Do you enjoy spending time with your mom?
ummm... I don't have a Mom,I do have a Mum who is alright to hang with.
Are you a sugar freak?
No, I am sweet enough without it.
What is your favorite movie?
Waterworld
What's your sign?
Gemini,so watch your back.
Where do you wish you were right now?
On a beach
Who did you copy this from?
Bella at OzFemme.
How do you know them?
She's an Aussie blogger extraordinaire!
Would you have sex with them?
She lives way too far away *vewg*
What brand of shirt are you wearing?
Snoopwear
Have you ever smoked anything?
Yep. Tyres at a race track.

Let's see, the 3 people tag rule... Dogbait DragonSand and Becca

 

PS.Yes,I just worked out the links in my sidebar are brokened. I will fix tomorrow.

Hearin' Gold - Paul Harrigan [Footy Show]

Don't forget your dustmask and hardhat...

There may be some disruption for the next few days as I move files, change graphics and generally play with the design. This is a site wide change, not just the blog. Sooo, if anything looks like you've drunk too much vodka, give me a yell *g* Thank you very much!

The incredible case of the disappearing brain cells...

Today I was watching the V8 racing and listening to music with headphones.The headphones are infrared wireless. Then I decided I'd have a shower.

Yes. I still had the NOT waterproof headphones on.

DUH.

Hearin' - On the verge of something wonderful : Darren Hayes

Running Away from home

We did a midnight run to Macca's for flake cones. Didn't tell the 2 youngest where we were going as we snuck them out the front door. Halfway there Yoda says "Where are we going?"  The Dad answers " We're running away from home" Yoda then asks " Well, how come you're taking us then?" My answer ?

"You're under 18 and we have to by law." heh.

Went to Medicare today, the line was out the door.  They were really quick though and had more than 2 service points open, which was a surprise. Anyone seen their new posters about Customer Service?

I particularly liked their sign thanking me for visiting and urging me to *Take Care*  Rightio then. Nothing like fakefeelgood promo stuff while the healthcare system is overloading. Healthcare and it's underfunding [ along wth Education, specifically Arts & Music] has long been my bugbear since Yoda was born and the political stupidity involved became obvious. The problem is not restricted to one particular political party though. Moving to an American based system is not the answer either as it creates exactly what Medicare was supposed to prevent. Lack of access to healthcare by people who can't afford it. People with private healthcover can't afford to access the private medical and dental system a lot of the time either, due to the high gap cost and lack of *approved* providers in their area. All done under the guise of *reducing* the cost of premiums.

How about removing freaking Sport& Gym Membership or Massages first? and making it cheaper for Health, Glasses and Dental rather than *extras*. It was alot cheaper before all that crap came into the picture.

See? Get me on those 2 subjects and I'll rant forever.

 

Hearin' - U & Ur Hand : Pink

Readin' - Nothing cos I haven't been able to go to the library :-(

I got shaped...

by my ISP. I exceeded my bandwidth, I forgot how slow dial up used to be too. Blimey, it was like I was using tin cans on the roof to get a signal. And, even with a super deluxe model alfoil hat and a couple of coathangers I couldn't make it go faster!

I have to say though, the tech guy was great and upgraded my plan with an extra couple of GB for the same price. *g*

I took the extra time while waiting for pages to load cleaning out my favourites and My Doc folders. All neat and tidy again. By tomorrow they'll be all over the place like a dogs dinner again. I don't know why as I'm pretty organised in RL.  Oh and I played Solitaire.

I'm still sick in bed. I have pulled muscles from coughing. So, a slow connection was better than nothing.

I thought about sorting out my iTunes as well, but well, it's like housework and I don't like doing that either.

That's why I had so many kids.

Bella, be careful what you wish for! ROFLMAO. I just might give a run as Rockstar Granny on You Tube. heh. Then again, someone would probably sue me for damaging their hearing!

I tried your home remedy tonight too :-)

Well, I must be off to bed, I gave birth to the eldest 25 years ago and I'm tired.

Niteowls!

 

Hearin' -  Without You : Adam Thompson

Readin' - blogs

Moving along..

Hubby is defintely getting out but staying on as a reserve. We are moving to Bendigo in January sometime. YAY! Air that won't smell like an exhaust. Not so many people.

Close enough that I can still go to important stuff like Motogp and WSBK at Phillip Island. Close enough I can catch a train or drive here to go to anything interesting at the Art Gallery or for a Conference.

I finally lost patience with the *adult* children and made them swap rooms which is what I wanted to do months ago and got told No. Well. I won. One is moving out in less than a month and going to live close to her 2 eldest.

She's getting a webcam though so the baby can talk to me and I can sing Galumph went the little green frog to her. Nana singing is once again her favourite entertainment,the record is 46 renditions complete with silly faces, animated hands and funny voice. 

BTW, I got my new cd and it rocks. Tracks I haven't heard.

I'm pretty weird with music, don't know why but I visualize music as well as hear it. Music marks memories in my life as well. I use music to create imagery to paint. and yes, I dream in colour too *g*

Seriously, Wayne Carey should STFU. It's people who make comments like that about people who have depression are the reason why people are hesitant to get help or talk to someone. Next he'll be whining  that's he's a victim of tall poppy syndrome. *snort*  So, I guess it must be great to have no shit happen in your life. Ignorant twit. 

Hopefully everyone will be feeling better tomorrow and life can go back to normal. Well, my version of normal at least. Took D3 to the Dr today as the flu has gone into her chest and now she needs antibiotics.

Took the prexige to the chemist for destruction, so only have the high dose painkiller which I hate taking. Dr's going to do some research for me. I went and bought a bottle of Dr Red's punch immune system stuff. See if that helps.

I'm off to sleep.

Hearin' - Erased : Annie Lennox

Readin' - Illustrated Manuscripts of the Western World.

Great.

Prexige [Lumiracoxib] has just  been recalled, urgently even. If you've been on it, I'd suggest you ask for a blood test for liver function from your Dr and take the stuff to chemist for disposal.

TWO people are dead and two others have undergone liver transplants from a drug, used by 60,000 people in Australia, which was urgently recalled today by the Federal Government.

This is the 3rd time a drug the Dr's  prescribed me have been recalled. Each time they've told me they are more effective and safer than older drugs. And they snort if you ask about natural treatments.

Who is not doing their job properly?

And, Why not?

Wot tha?

I just read this in The Times Online:

For the first time China has given the Government the power to ensure that no new living Buddha can be identified, sounding a possible death knell to a mystical system that dates back at least as far as the 12th century.

Read More  China tells living Buddhas to obtain permission before they reincarnate

 

Hearin' -  Reckless : Australian Crawl

 

I have an elephant sitting on my chest...

who keeps slapping me across the sinuses with his trunk.

or that's what it feels like anyway.

My niece had her 2nd bub yesterday, 11lbs. OUCH!!!!!!! There were some complications with his birth, so he's in Special Care for a week or so, but he's doing well.

Cos I have been in bed all day sleeping [ I must have been a cat in a former life] I have nothing to really talk about.

I did reorganise iTunes and then resynched my Ipod, but that's about it.

Oh wait, I also recharged my mobile. LOL 

Such an exciting life I lead.

'Avagoodweekend mateys!

 

Hearin' - A Winter's Tale - Queen

Readin' -  Kleenex Aloe Vera Tissue Box  [ ooh, a competiton to win stuff!]

Check your reality cloak at the door...

I am hanging out for the new Die Hard 4.0 movie to be released here. I am trying to avoid anything remotely review'ish or critic'ish but I have to say, I watched a trailer of it with the most awesome stunt involving a chopper. Apparently Bruce Willis has done all his own stunts in this one, so it's sounding great so far. No CGI to distract me as I look at how they did it, instead of what just happened.

Then, today I clicked on a critics review...

and have to say, oi, nutjob, it's entertainment not frickin' brain surgery! I am not expecting some highbrow epic. Everybody already knows what the storyline is going to be along the lines of. I don't really give a shit about the plot apart from the good guy wins and saves the world. As long as it has a storyline that you can follow without having to analyse your eyeballs for clues later, I'm happy. People need the obvious sometimes. 

Bruce Willis has always been really good at saving the world too *G*

And of course they brought up my current pet media peeve, age. Gawd blimey. Someone grab my eyeballs as they roll past them and post them back please.

I hope it blitzes the box office and makes them look like dimwits.

 

Sniffles was the name...

of a clever little pig.
He could play the violin and do the irish jig,
but the other little piggies wouldn't ask him out to tea,
cos he didn't have a handkerchief,no, not he.

has my grandaughter in fits of giggles when I sing this to her. It's a fitting rhyme at the moment as the house elves have all had a flu/cold since Thursday. I got it Friday and still feel like I've been smacked across the face with a hammer.

Pebbles the cat had an adventure today. She went to jump upon the gallery/ [ 2 storey mcmansion house] balcony rail and kept going. Luckily for her I had anticipated this happening at some point and we have a couch right under it, she missed the youngest daughter sitting there and landed on the cushions, bounced and landed on the floor. She's fine but has refused to get off my lap ever since.

The daughter got a huge fright too and has also recovered from the cat dropping from a great height.

 

Hearin' : Mai Piu' Cosi' Lontano - Andrea Bocelli

readin' : Life Expectancy - Dean Koontz

Not really a political post...

but has anyone noticed how the *age* word has been bandied around again? As in, too old, not up with the times etc and all those other buzz phrases?  A mere few months ago  we were being told by the media that people over 50ish could still work and had valuable contributions that shouldn't be tarnished by a number. You know, so we don't become a future drain on the young one's pockets.

So... how come the same media are now saying the PM is too old to run?

What about issues? or can't they be bothered to write a real story with facts other than his age? and why are we now suddenly ageing after aging for a really long time? I can think of plenty of things other than his age to complain about.

The recent return to age bashing is getting old [no pun intended] We spend years getting old enough to do stuff, only to miss out because we're too old!  Happens in sport too, I personally think if you still want to do stuff and are still capable, then it's put up or shut up to all the too old comments that are going on. 

Wait your turn Whippersnappers, we nearly oldies ain't done yet and if someone tries to jump my queue, they'll get smacked with my walking stick!

I obviously am not young enough to know it all, nor old enough to have forgotten it all.

Hugs Bugs!

 

 

Hearin' : Just a song about Ping Pong : Operator Please

Readin' : Life Expectancy : Dean Koontz

Feast One Hundred and Fifty Four

Feast One Hundred and Fifty Four

Appetizer
On a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being highest, how polite are you?

10. Lower of course depending on how rude someone is being to me. I dislike rude impatient pushy people.

Soup
What was the last thing that made you laugh out loud?

Watching Bubbles trying to blow her first raspberry.

Salad
Who is your favorite cartoon character?

Road Runner, I can watch him for hours.

Main Course
Tell about the funniest teacher you ever had.

He was the spitting image of Ted Mulry.

Dessert
Complete this sentence: I strongly believe that education gives freedom.

Personal DNA test

Me in Colour! LOL

 

Independent Dreamer

 

 

Take the Personal DNA test

Quick Question

how long do 21 year olds act like they're 15 for?

Invoice induced hysteria

Went to my accountant today and got all thebusiness tax stuff done. Phew. 

I've spent the last few days running around looking for a receipt that decided it didn't want to live in the file with the rest. No clue where it went, so had to organise a duplicate. Then as I was printing out invoices, the printer decided it wanted a holiday. In the end I grabbed another one from my stash and finally! got everything finished.

Filled in the rest of the paperwork to transfer everything back to me, so it's all finished with now.

The bub has had reflux quite badly for the last week and she will only let her Mum or Nana anywhere near her and only tends to sleep in hour stretches. She definitely has a good set of lungs.

Anyway, I'm tired and a little sad cos I am homesick and disillusioned with the world today. so, I'm going for a nanny nap.

 

Hearin' : Let the canefields burn - Graeme Connors

Readin' : The insides of my eyelids

mmmm!

chocolate scented candles Yum!

I've been reorganising the house, sorting out the crap I really want from the tonnes of stuff we've carted around *just in case* for the last 7 moves. Somehow I don't think I'll be needing the box of staff training sessions I did for the bank. I left in 1999.Hubby has car parts for a car we haven't owned since 1989. Scary, huh? LOL

I don't think he's ever going to be so busy as a mechanic that he needs 8 wrench sets.

We also have kids bikes from when the 25 yr old was 5 and so many stuffed animals it is freaking unbelievable. 4 large boxes. Amazing how I haven't managed to toss them before this. I have a sneaking suspicion the kidlets conned Dad into putting them into his pile so I wouldn't notice.

I found stuff I haven't seen in 15 years. My prized record albums [ ya know, vinyl!] and a crystal radio I got for my 12th birthday. It still works, so do the records.

A Tenderheart carebear that I got given in 1985.

Our first mobile phone from 1995.

An original cabbage patch doll - repaired. She got squished in a Perth motorbike shop when one of the stands gave way and the bikes fell on everyone. Luckily the eldest was holding her doll and she was only cut slightly, the doll had to go to hospital with critical injuries.

An original Teddy Ruxpin with only one eye.

You don't want to know how much computer bits we have. Anyone remember the hand held scanners? Iomega Zip Drive? ROFL weird how it all seems such ancient technology now, yet some of it is not even 10 years old. I also found my original Mac, an Apple IIe.

So, we're going to take it all down to one of the markets and the rest is going to the tip.

This time I'm going to be heartless. *g* No longer will the plaintive cry of but what if we need it! work.

 

Hearin' : Little Red Corvette : Prince

Readin' : The insides of my eyelids

sigh....

so much to tell and yet.. I can't fully yet. Don't want to jinx it all. I'm starting to feel a little  Kylie'ish as I am reworking myself yet again and need a little time to work out the best way of segregating the different work areas before one overwhelms the other. Evolving is good, right?

I also need to learn to be less private and hidden. I'm extremely uncomfortable when I'm noticed and struggle with that side of it. I tend to hide my personality and hide away until everyone moves on. Web design allows me to work anonymously, but the one I love doing the most, Art, doesn't really work well if you're anonymous.

Not. smart.

Anyway...

Art -

Been a bit neglected for the web design side, have to get stuff done though.

I've just signed up to ArtWanted.com and ArtCardsWanted.com for exposure and to trade ATC's and sell ACEO's* online. It's easier to sell via a well known site than it is to sell from your own site. I'm not sure Ebay is the way to go, so went with Art based sites instead.

Still working on masks with D3. Hopefully some pics tomorrow night, if they've dried out enough to work with tomorrow. I'm almost finished another piece that can be put online.

I'm going to be doing some original ACEO's tomorrow as well, so will put the link up when they're up.

[* If you want more info on what ATC's and ACEO's are, go here, they explain it much better than me.]

Web Design -

As I mentioned, I have a regular in house web designer gig now as well as existing clients, so not looking for any more work in that area.

 

R - Adam Thompson is an Aussie, lead singer for Chocolate Starfish, remember Four Letter Word???? LOL  His site is here. Knock yourself out *g* 

Granddaughter loves Nana singing Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star. Only Nana and only Twinkle. She's getting teeth already and today that was the only thing that would stop her screaming. No clue why, I sound like a cat in a sack. So, I walked around the house singing madly for over an hour. She does NOT like Rock a bye baby, must be the idea of falling out of the tree. I might have to introduce her to Nana's favourite music. hehehehehe.

Yes, everyone else in the house hid.

 

Hearin' : Play Me : Adam Thompson

Readin' : The Icebound Land : John Flanagan

Fridays Feast 158

Fridays Feast 158

Appetizer
Describe a toy you remember from your childhood.

A doll high chair. Never really played with it though as I was [am] a tomboy.

Soup
On a scale of 1 to 10 (with 10 being highest) how observant are you?

Top10 and it drives everyone around me nuts.

Salad
Where would you rather be at this very moment?

At the beach in the tropics. I never thought I'd say this but I miss Townsville. Probably cos it's cold and wet here.

Main Course
When was the last time you learned something new?

Every day. I constantly research for both jobs *g*  I have an insatiable curiosity about lots of things, so go hunting for info.

Dessert
Fill in the blank: I have kissed but I haven�t told. 

 

 

Hearin' : Teenagers : My Chemical Romance

Readin' : The Icebound Land : John Flanagan

Who poked the stick?

I woke up grumpy today and never really got out of it. No clue why.

My grumpy mood was not helped by the fact it was Dipshit Day on the roads again. I wish the state govts would get their act together and bring back Give way to the right. Seriously, people drive that way anyway and there'd be less accidents at roundabouts etc. I have even seen numerous Learner drivers do it with real Instructors in the cars and as we all know, as a general rule Learners do not budge unless told to.

Yesterday a garbage truck managed to hit a light pole in the supermarket car park. It's not like they're placed like an obstacle course. Bit like the Boat? What Boat? commercial. Drove past later to see fireys and cops everywhere, so probably kids pinched it and took it to show their mates that hang out down there all night. 

My sister rang and we had a discussion about what our gandchildren will call us when they can talk, she says Nanny sounds younger than Nana. harumph, does not! I said being a grandmother doesn't make me feel old. Being  called a Great Aunt does! LOL

So after I got home from work, picking the kids up and burping the grandbaby I decided to make myself happier by spending some money. As you do. heh.

I bought a cd of Live at the Palace by Adam Thompson. I always thought it was sold out but he has it listed on his site, so I thought I'd grab it while it was around again.

I'm off to draw and paint before my head explodes.

 

Hearin' - I don't remember - Powderfinger

Readin' - When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit - Judith Kerr

I am so evil!

In the world of child, I am the equivalent of the Evil Witch.

I just scared the crap out of the 12 year old by IM'ing him. ROFLMAO

Now he thinks I really can see everything he's doing!

The good news is....

Daughter 2 does not have a brain tumour or a brain injury.

She does however have primary generalised epilepsy and will have to take medication for the rest of her life. The drug she's on can cause birth defects, so she can only have well planned pregnancies and can't drink alcohol at all. A certain light pulse sets it off, so no disco's for her anymore and she has to watch tv with the light on, she also has to be careful of flashes and flickering lights. But, she's fine, it could have been a lot worse.

I'm teaching Daughter 3 to gild this weekend LOL This shall be interesting! I'm also showing her how to mould a leather mask and some other stuff for her Art assignment. So we're having a Mother Daughter playdate. heh. I'll put some pics up.

I've also got a gilding workshop to organise for. I'm debating whether to cover oil gilding as well or just get them to concentrate on water gilding techniques. They'd probably only ever use gilding on paper, but it's always good to have a starting point for new techniques.

I'm working as an inhouse web designer for a printing business, so although I have been flat chat I don't have anything to put online. Still working towards an exhibition, so have enough to keep me out of trouble for a while.

Aussies had a good weekend in Motor Racing. I nearly fell off the bed when I switched to F1 and Mark Webber was 3rd. His car didn't croak it! Amazing.

Casey Stoner is doing well in Motogp, he doesn't look very fazed by anyone this season and Chris Vermulen is getting up there too.

All in all, it was a good weekend with all my fave sportsmen on top of the heap.

And, on that note, I am going to bed, I am exhausted! Night :-)

Wooohoooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!

Max Biaggi won race 2 at Brno after a 2nd in race 1, which makes him 2nd in the WSBK Championship.

He's only the 2nd rider ever to score more than 10 podiums in 16 races  [ 11, 2 of which are wins] according to wsbk.com

Gotta be happy if you're a Max fan and if not, sux to be you :-) 

Yes,that's a bit childish but oh well.

Bliss is...

V8's, F1, WSBK, Motogp and Le Tour de France all on at the same time.

I will admit to a bit of ad fatigue though on SBS of all channels. They really ought to give Sniff'n'Stiff a night off. I can't even begin to articulate how much I hate that freaking ad right now.

So, I'm watching Superpole timing live for WSBK on their site while alternating between the sprints on SBS and F1 qualifying. I am the Queen of Useless Multitasking LOL

The 2 youngest are happy as pigs in mud today, D3 got her copy of Harry Potter and limited edition owl and the boy is on a sleepover birthday party. So nary a whine was heard from either of them today. The baby is settled into a routine now and you wouldn't even really know there's a 9 week old in the house as she rarely cries.

Monday is D- Day for the results of D1's tests. I have everything I can think of crossed that it's good news. 

Hubby got given a weight machine, so more junk to sit in the bloody shed gathering dust. Then again, he may surprise me LOL  Doubtful.

Ok, I am off to snooze as I am off to the  market tomorrow morning to see what I can buy.

Catchyas later!

No one is reading ...

I'm scared to comment anywhere.

Several of my fave bloggers have had to resort to protected/hidden blogs for various reasons and I worry that I may accidentally *out* them.  Plus, I read via feeds so tend to forget to click through, no, not really forget, it's usually for the reasons below. I get frustrated and then forget what I was going to type OR change my mind about posting it in case it sounds stupid/rude etc. While self censorship is not a bad thing that some people should excercise more of while online, it's not always a good thing either.

Isn't it interesting that something that promised so much in terms of freeing our lives up so that we have more free time to socialise in fact ties us up longer in trying to get to the goal of actually doing the socialising. In the time it takes me to read, then navigate to a comment section, then navigate the catchpa and log in repeatedly [ Yes, Blogger, that is YOU I am especially evilly squinting at! Fix the bloody login.] just to add my 10c worth, it takes so bloody long that I've forgotten what my 10c was and/or it's value has gone down.

So many blogs & sites now require you to log in just to comment and really, who can remember all the different usernames/passwords, so you then wonder how the hell you managed to remember stuff before computers and their handy *Remember Me* which doesn't work if you delete your cookies or are on a different page of the site when you try to log in.

So, pretty much I say nothing and let people wonder who the visitor was that reads all the time and says nothing. I am one of the noone's.

Which brings me to this...

I keep seeing that phrase mentioned on blogs I read. The owner laments that *no one* is reading, when what they should be saying is no one is commenting and ask themselves Why?  Obviously if I found them and read it, then someone is reading.

The answer is simple really and has nothing to do with their writing style, personality or if they're one of the popular kids. So many abandon their blogs etc because they think noone cares.

 We're being spammed into oblivion.

I often think the solution to spam is not chasing down the spammers but get the dipshits who respond to them and make it worth their while to keep spamming.

It's gotten to the stage where you never know if someone has actually gotten your email or comments or we don't bother because of the hoops we have to jump through just to communicate. The avalanche of spam that results from putting your email address or blog link for the harvesters to find is the Interwebs birth control.

My personal fave is emails from me to me that I obviously sent while my other personality took over to sell myself some p*nis* extending product or v**gra [ See! can't even type out whole words now or there'll be more spam.] or how to buy pirated software [Interesting that they expect me to pay them for it though]

I know I have some who visit here on a regular basis and have never commented or have and been accidentally consigned to Spam Hell. So, Hi! Thanks for visiting :-)

Hail Asspants!

I was driving to pick up the youngest daughter from school today and it started hailing. Unfortunately for me, I had the window open. Youngest ended up with hail in her pockets. They'd been let out of school early and she was standing under a tree looking very forlorn.

I also saw this delightful new line in asspants. Cheap at $9-99 I reckon *G*

finally...

I have drafts of posts half finished because every time I start writing I get interrupted. Here's the tale so far

- In Victoria if you damage your vehicle while trying to avoid some dickhead on the road who has run a Give Way sign, tough noogies. It is not an accident and they don't have to worry about even stopping or pay for the damage they caused.

No wonder there is an increase in road rage and insurance premiums.

OTOH, if you hit their car, it's their fault and they have to pay.

Guess which one happened to us.

 

I have been busy watching Le Tour de France, boohoo 3 Aussies out in one stage yesterday. We do have 2 left though, Cadel  Evans and Simon Gerrans as well as the German dude who used to be an Aussie errr, Herman?

Shit. I just lost my net connection, I am starting to think the Universe is trying to tell me something! back shortly.

Ok, so it took me longer than I thought and now I've lost my train of thought. Bugger, I hate when that happens!