Hello Again!

I can't believe more than a month has passed since my last post. September flew by.

It has been a difficult month, and because I didn't want this blog to be a place where I depressed people or where all I did was whine, I really haven't had much to say (I haven't even visited anyone else's blog for awhile, something I wish to rectify on my day off tomorrow.) Although I'm getting more hours at work, it is not going well, as the retail store I work for has a well-deserved reputation for treating their employees like sh-t.  Still looking for a full time job, but so far, no response.  So discouraging.
 

The roommate situation is not working out either.  Let's just refer to the almost 5 year old as Spawn of Satan (SoS for short). The child has several out of control, shrieking, screaming, body flailing tantrums every day. I fully expect to see his head spin and pea soup to spew from his mouth. (And no, he does not have ADHD; by his mother's own admission, she didn't start to expect him to obey or to discipline him until he started kindergarten in August.  He is simply an undisciplined brat - the intellect of a 5 year old, the emotional maturity and self control of a 2 year old. I wish I had known this before I let them move in.) Well, anyway, my home is no longer a pleasant place to live in, and because I'm extremely broke, I have nowhere else to go.  Quite frankly, I feel as if my home is no longer MY home anymore, if you know what I mean. When I started thinking "maybe I could just rent myself a room somewhere and move out of here", I knew that something was radically wrong.

So, that's my life right now. I've asked them to move, and hopefully they will be gone November 1st.  I know I haven't always been extremely regular in posting, but until the work and roommate situations have been resolved, my posts may be even more infrequent.  I hope you'll bear with me for awhile, and won't completely abandon me.

Now, on to the REAL post:

I've been working on several craft projets, one of them being a couple of collages.  I've been collecting collage materials for years: old postcards, vintage greeting cards, old calendars, stationary, gift wrap, pressed flowers, old photographs, vintage wallpapers, magazine clippings, glitter, feathers, etc.  I go to thrift stores and garage sales to try to find cheap picture frames for my projects.  I feel kind of shy about sharing these (what if everyone thinks they suck?), but I thought I would do so anyway. So, here are a few of them (Sorry for the poor quality of the photos; can't get the lighting or the color right and having a hard time losing the glare on the picture frame glass).

This is my latest. I titled this one "The Garment of God":

 

 

 

A few others that have been hanging on my walls for years:


This one is my favorite. I call it "A Charmed Life":

"Love and Roses": I kind of wish I had not placed the images on this one in such a rigid, angular manner.  Oh well, I can always go back and change it when I get the chance.

 

 

 

I think this one was one of the first ones I did.  It started out with a Paris theme, then I sort of deviated from that. 

 

I'm now working on a couple of collages for Christmas.  I love the Christmas cards, gift wrap and gift tags from the 1930's, 40's and 50's.  So cute.  I've got these to work with:

And these:

This card, sent in 1954, is one of my favorites:

Except for the last card, these dog cards are actually reproductions.  I think they're just darling.

I absolutely love Christmas and decorate lavishly for it.  Someday, when finances are better, I want to have one of those houses that goes all out on the outdoor decorations.  But, for this year, I'll just have to concentrate on decorating inside.  Can't wait for it!

Thanks so much for your visiting, and for listening to me whine.  And for posting your comments. I love reading them. 

 

Cinema Sunday: Nick and Nora

 

 

One of the cutest film couples ever is Nick and Nora Charles, of the "Thin Man" series.  Played by William Powell and Myrna Loy, Nick is a hard-drinking retired detective, and Nora, a wealthy heiress. On paper, they don't sound particularly cute. Or lovable.  But on screen, they are pure magic.

 

 

 

Powell's Nick is hilarious, sly and droll, and if he drinks a little too much, well, he can be forgiven, because he's just so likeable. And Loy is absolutely darling, equally as funny as her screen counterpart, well playing a ditz who really isn't quite a ditz.  The two flirt outrageously and banter wittily, all while solving crimes, drinking, dancing, and keeping track of their wire-haired fox terrier, Asta. Oh, and they even manage to have a baby, Nick, Jr.

 

The first title in the series, "The Thin Man" was based upon a book of the same name by Dashiell Hammett, supposedly based upon his relationship with the playwright, Lillian Hellman.  I read the book long after I had seen the movie for the first time.  Usually, movies based upon books are very loosely based; I was surprised that there are long stretches of dialogue taken directly from the book.  And what dialogue it is!  I can quote much of it verbatim, and still laugh out loud at many of the conversations between our witty couple, even though I've heard them dozens of times.

 

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The mystery in these movies, although entertaining, is secondary to the wonderful chemistry between Powell and Loy.  Although the quality of the films diminished with each successive movie, Nick and Nora remained funny and charming, absolutely delightful from beginning to end.

 

So, if you're having a bad day, if you need a pick-me-up, pick up the "Thin Man" series.  If you only have time for one, the first one in the series is the best, but they're all fun and entertaining - great for a lazy Sunday afternoon!

 

Thank you for stopping by, and for leaving your comment.  I love to hear from you.

Tomatoes, a Dilemma and an Award

How's that for a blog post title?

As I said in my last post, the garden has been pretty much a nightmare this year.  In my defense, this is my first summer living in Central California.  I am accustomed to the milder climate of Southern CA, and even though I KNEW how hot it would get here in the summer, I just didn't realize exactly how much water it would take to keep everything alive, how much that water would cost, how miserable it would be trying to weed when the thermometer says 110 degrees, and just how fast those darn weeds grow!!  So, my first year gardening has been a bit of a disappointment.  The cilantro that was doing well just disappeared one day (snails?), the chives never came up, the tomatoes have been eaten alive by bugs (at least I hope it's only bugs), the spinach did not do well as we got very little rain this year and summer weather came way too early in April, and most of the flowers either didn't come up or they fried when it got extremely hot a couple of weeks ago.  I still have hopes for the bell pepper, though. 

 

So, I learned a few lessons that I can remember next year.  Hopefully, I'll be working full time by next spring, and will be able to spend a little more money on the garden, and will be able to afford to have my lawn guy pull the weeds for me (this year, it was gardening on a shoestring!)

 

I went out to water today and to get rid of some of the rotten tomatoes, and much to my surprise, I found a couple of tomatoes that the bugs hadn't gotten to yet, so I enjoyed home grown tomato with my dinner.  I'd like to think that the healthy organic tomato offset the unhealthy frozen dinner that I heated in the microwave, the chocolate chip brownie that I had for dessert, and my ever-present Diet Coke, but alas, those tomatoes aren't magical.  I really DO need to start cooking more often, and to start eating more healthy foods. That brownie was darned good, though, and it WAS homemade. Does that count as healthy? : )

 

I will never be a great food photographer.

 

 

Now for the dilemma part of my post:

 

 

As you can see from the photo above, I have crepe myrtle growing in the middle of the bushes out in my front yard (well, the planter on the side of the driveway).  Anyway, these are the white ones in bloom, but I also have one in a deep rose (no longer blooming). They're volunteers from the house next door.  I love free plants (let's face it, I love anything free), and I love crepe myrtle.  Last year, when I bought the house, the neighbor's trees (large bushes?) looked like this:

 

 

 

 

 

They had three different colors: deep rose, a purpley-pink and white. They're gorgeous in full bloom, and they are plentiful here in Tulare County.  So, what's my dilemma?  Do I:

 

a)  Try to pull out the crepe myrtle from each bush and plant them elsewhere, thereby taking the risk that none of the plants will survive the ordeal (the ground is pretty hard here, so it's going to take a huge amount of digging),

 

b)  Plan to get rid of either bushes or crepe myrtle, so dig accordingly,

 

or

 

c)  Save myself a lot of work, leave them all alone and see what happens.

 

Personally, I like choice "c" the best, but does anyone have any feedback for me?

 

As for the award part of my post, I need to thank Evi at Sexta-feira for passing on the One Lovely Blog award to me (well, to my blog anyway).  If you want to see beautiful pictures of Greek beaches, or just want to read about movies, check out her blog. 

 

I'm not sure what the etiquette is for passing on these awards.  I know some people notate that their blog is "An Award Free Blog", and I always want to respect that. And since I'm pretty ignorant of this stuff, ignorant of why some people like the awards and others don't, and since I don't want to do anything out of line or be disrespectful of anyone's wishes, I say that all the bloggers on my blogroll deserve an award and just leave it at that. Blogging is hard work (a lot of fun, but still a lot of work some days), and all of the other bloggers do it better than I do. So, go visit everybody!!

 

Hope everyone has a great Friday.  I finally have a day off.  (I can't complain though; I've needed the extra hours.  Maybe this month, I can pay the bills on time for a change!)  And to anyone who has said a prayer for me or offered good wishes for the job situation, I give a HUGE thank you.  It does seem to be getting better.  I really like working in the cash office; it is inspiring me to try to take some accounting/bookkeeping classes.  I'm getting more hours and doing something I like. 

 

Thanks so much for your visit, and for all your comments.  I love reading them.

 

 

 

I'm baaaack!!!

I'm back!  And I have missed you!

I never intended to be gone from blogging for so long (it's been TWO months!), but it took awhile to come up with the money to get the computer fixed.  I've hated being without a computer!  I've missed visiting your blogs, and I've missed posting on mine.

I have been using the time productively, though.  I've taken on a new position at work (same company), but instead of cashiering, I'm working in the cash office.  It's a lot better, although I'm still not fully trained (still feel a bit stupid at times, so I take my notes home to study in my free time), and I still don't have full time hours.  I AM getting more hours than I was previously, though, and I don't have to be on my feet for 4 or 5 hour stretches (or deal with cranky customers) so things have improved a bit.  I'm still continuing to look for a full time job, though.

I've also rented out one of the bedrooms of my house, and because the tenant has a 4-year old son living here, I've had to childproof my house a bit.  Okay, actually, A LOT!!  So, much of the china has had to find temporary homes out of reach.  And anything that I don't want to see broken, smeared by sticky fingers, written on, etc. is now stored in the garage.  To be honest, I'm not thrilled about having to rent a room to anyone, let alone someone with a young child.  I'm not used to living with someone (I've lived alone for half my life), and it is quite difficult living with a 4-year old that you can't discipline.  I also seem to spend an awful lot of time cleaning up after a child that isn't my own.  But, I know that I could have gotten tenants that were far worse, so I grit my teeth and bear it, because I don't have a choice.  I only hope that I will make more money in rent than I will have to spend in cleaning and repairing stuff.  I don't remember my nieces and nephews EVER being this messy or destructive. Or whiney. 

Unfortunately, much of the garden has gone to ruin  -  the weather has been so hot that I can't even think about going out to weed. And because we got so little rainfall this year (and water is VERY expensive here), much is dying, including my backyard lawn (of course, the WEEDS are drought resistant!) So, fall weather can't come soon enough for me.  I'm looking forward to getting the backyard and the planters weed free and ready for next year's planting (and a few autumn plants). And I'm hoping for a very cold, rainy, foggy winter.  The fog here is legendary in these parts; I was very disappointed that it was so mild last winter, because I LOVE gloomy weather!  And yeah, I know all you Midwestern women who read this are rolling your eyes at this native Californian, because I don't have a clue about REAL winter weather : )

Well, I have no pretty pictures to share today.  I was just so excited to be able to post, and I can't wait to read all that I've been missing on your blogs.  I also have more than 300 e-mails to plow through! Ack!

Hope to have a Cinema Sunday post this weekend, as I've been watching A LOT of movies lately, since I haven't been able to play on the computer.  And, at some point, I'll also have to share photos of a couple of decorating/craft projects that I've been working on.

Hope everyone has a great weekend.  And thank you for your visit!  Can't wait to visit all of you!

Vacation

Hope everyone is having a great day.

My computer is having some major problems that will take me awhile to be able to afford to fix, so I guess I'm taking an enforced vacation from blogging.

I'll be back.  I just don't know when.

It's a Mystery to Me

I thought that when I got a job, I would blog more often, since I would actually have the money to do something, and would therefore have something to blog about.  However, things never turn out quite the way I plan, and I've been absent from this for far too long.  Every time I would sit down to do a post, the only thing I could think to talk about was how it sucks to work retail, that the hours are so stinking irregular, that my paychecks are far too small to actually "do" anything, that far too many customers are rude, can't read signs, don't use common sense, and seem to think that their retail cashier sets store policy (if I had enough power to set policy, do they really think I would be cashiering for minimum wage??!)  Geez, I need a different job! (To be fair, I know that most of the customers are nice.  But it only takes a few difficult ones to have me wanting to pull my hair out by the time my shift ends.  There have been days when I've driven home in tears!)

But, enough about that!  It's 3:00 p.m., my work day is done, and I have tomorrow off to enjoy!

I haven't talked about books too much here, which is surprising, because I am an AVID reader and take a book with me everywhere I go, just in case I wind up having to wait somewhere.  Books are my security blanket, my refuge when life goes wrong, and, sometimes they are my best friends.  I know, perhaps, that sounds maudlin, but it really is true.  At 3:00 a.m., when worries and stress keep me from sleeping, and I don't feel that my best friends would appreciate my calling to whine, books are there to take my mind off my troubles.  They're also pretty good at killing boredom : )

I have a particular fondness for murder mysteries, both modern ones, and out-of-print mysteries written during the Golden Age of mysteries, the 1930's and '40's.  A good crime novel can absorb my attention for hours, and it appeals to the geek in me that loves to solve puzzles. Today, I thought I would talk about a few of my favorite contemporary mystery writers and their series. I'd love to hear about your favorite writers, whether it's mysteries, or another genre altogether. 

I think my favorite series is one written by Beverly Connor, featuring the character Diane Fallon.  Diane is a forensic anthropologist who is the director of a natural history museum in Georgia.  She is often asked to examine old bones, and this often leads to a murder investigation.  If you are a fan of cold case mystery shows and forensic science, you will love this series.  Diane and her forensic team are likeable and fascinating, and the plots are complex and absorbing.  Each book is a great read that will keep you up long past your bedtime, they are that hard to put down.  There are nine books in this series, with a tenth being written as we speak.

Another favorite is the Bennie Harper series, written by Earlene Fowler.  This series centers on a quilt-loving, folk museum curator cowgirl who lives on the central coast of California.  Bennie is married to the police chief of their town (named San Celina, loosely based on San Luis Obispo), and has a large network of extended family and friends who help her meddle investigate the murders that come her way, much to her husband's dismay.  Each book in the series has been given the name of a traditional quilt block pattern, the history and meaning of the pattern corresponding to the theme of that particular book.  I love the characters in this series (particularly Bennie), as they're the kind of people I would love to meet and befriend in real life. 

I also enjoy Carolyn Haines' Sarah Booth Delaney Mysteries.  At the start of the series (Them Bones) Sarah Booth is a failed actress who is about to lose the family plantation in the Mississippi Delta.  Desperate to raise some cash, Sarah Booth "dognaps" her wealthy friend's toy dog, holding her for ransom, then is hired by that friend to deliver the money.  Sarah Booth falls into a full time job as a detective, then eventually, in later books, begins working as an actress again.  Sarah Booth is smart and loyal, self deprecating and funny, and I love that the series has something to say about what it means to be a strong, independent single woman in today's world.

All of these are available at Amazon or Barnes and Noble.  Each author also has her own website for more info:

Beverly Connor:  http://beverlyconnor.net/

Earlene Fowler:  http://www.earlenefowler.com/

Carolyn Haines: http://www.carolynhaines.com/

Well, that's just three of my favorites, but I could go on and on about books and authors I have loved.  If I ever get to the point where I have a semi-regular schedule, I may start another blog just about books.  And please share with me your favorites; I love to talk books, and am always interested in learning about new authors (well, new to me, anyway).

Thanks for your visit today, and thank you for your comments.  I love reading them.

Heroes

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In memory of the heroes who gave their lives so that we could be free

We will never forget

Rest in Peace

 

And in memory of my dad, Ray

1919-2004

Sgt, US Army, World War II

Good Conduct Medal, Phillipine Liberation Ribbon with One Bronze Star, American Defense Service Medal, Asiastic Pacific Campaign Medal

Rest in Peace, Dad.