WAHOO !!! Its a CRaZy CaT WorLD !!!

Last night we put down the carpet in the NEW workroom/craft room. It was FREE - my favourite colour !! - because my parents had taken it out of their living room & we scavenged it. I LOVE FREE !! So, anyway, enough about my infrequent cheapness !!! We got it rolled out & the cats went insane !!! The room had become a GIANT CAT TOY ! They rolled, wiggled, squirmed, jumped, yahooed, sprang, danced, ran, ... you name it. It was amazing to watch ! Then we put the desk together ( which, I have to admit, we bought at Staples & got an awesome deal because it was a floor model ... and ooops, look its damaged... you'll take more off ... okay ... what if we disassemble it ourselves ... cheaper again ? Okay DEAL !!) Again, CAT-A-RAMA !!! They crawled all over the desk, in the cubbies, batted at anyone below, just plain CAT FROLICKED !!! This morning we came down & Emma was chasing her tail on the desk. After they went off to eat, I looked at it . It certainly had seen a night of great activity - it was COVERED in hair !!

I think we are all going to love this room !!

BuZZZZZZ OFF !!!

The summer people across the street from us have a bug zapper. And it is on 24/7. For two months solid so far ... Our bedroom windows look out onto the beautiful bay of Fundy ... and the bug zapper. We have a fan in our window which now runs at night as white noise to block out the bug zapper. It wouldn't be so bad if it wasn't for this fact - WE DON'T HAVE BUGS !!!! So most nights we go to bed hearing this BZZT ....BZZT .......................BZZT.....BZZT - condensation or the odd moth. But the reason I am even discussing this is because when we went to bed last night a little after midnight , it was POURING RAIN. POUNDING DOWN. TEEMING RAIN. So we heard BZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
... now I don't mind noise ... I sleep with the radio or TV on .... I can sleep while people talk or snore ... BUT THAT NOISE ... I may lose my mind if it rains too many nights. I think he may be testing something for Guantanamo Bay Prison ... oh, yes, it will make you talk. you will tell anything if it means they will SHUT IT OFF !!! If I had any secrets I would run over right now & spill them !!
Made cupcakes last night - in the food processor !! That was cool & easy. They had vanilla bean seeds in them and the batter was sooooo good !! The baked cupcakes - not so much. Oh, well , next time I'll know not to waste the electricity & just make the batter !!!
Anyway, must get to BEADS ... the deadline looms ( and there are pounds & pounds to go ...) !! And I hope to have a visit from my band mate today. Tonight is carpet laying night & furniture assembly. So ... busy day & glad for it !
I'm off !!

Endings & Beginnings ...

This is the last week of August so I have WORK TO DO !!! I have GOALS this week and they can be summed up in 2 words ...FINISH and TIDY. I plan to tackle every part box and bag of beads in that scary room. I want all trays full, all hooks filled, all MIA beads ordered by weeks end. The fridge needs to be cleaned out, moldy bread ends greencarted, dishes washed, floors vacuumed, bathroom scrubbed (ugh!). This is the LAST WEEK OF AUGUST ... CHOP CHOP !!

Then comes FALL - Love it !! September is really my New Years. I have not gone to school for almost 25 years but every September is a new start with new goals, dreams and plans. September is the new sneakers, it is the fresh notebook, it is the sharp pencil, it is the spankin' new backpack, and it is a time of fresh new hope & promise. Next week I will have all my plans & goals for this year (and some of them are doozies .. may even include an Olympic medal ...) but for now I have an old year to finish up in style and a locker to clean out ...

Be sure to love your day !!

Back to reality ... but it is Crazy Good too !!

You know the post-vacation blues - when you've had so much fun & lived in a whole other dimension & frame of mind that it seems so hard to come back to reality ? Well, I never got that !! The Mermaids Gone Bad Club adventure was SPECTACULAR but coming home was just as sweet !! As we were coming home I didn't have that regret that you sometimes get ... I was reveling in the great fun & friendship and excited to tell Charlie all about it. I think you know that your life is pretty darn sweet when there is no Valley of BooHoo in between !!

So now, instead of shopping & touring, my day will be filled with beads, customers, cooking, a bit of laundry, and MAYBE cleaning up at home a bit ... or reading a magazine ! But again, the "everydayness" is so comfortable and blissful that it is great too ! So remember to look around and reflect on how great your "here & now" really is too !! I truly am lucky to have both !!

Minutes of the Meeting of the Mermaid Club ...

I'd like to call this meeting to order ...
Here are the topics on the agenda today :
1. Mermaid Voyage 102 : The trip was a huge success. Unfortunately there doesn't seem to be words in the English language to fully describe the absolute joy, friendship, and happiness that filled the trip.
Maybe in mermaid song ...
2. Mermaid Hattie Bit : She was under the weather and I'm sure we all hope she is feeling much better. ( And no, I didn't make a pan of brownies, eat them all, laugh so hard ...) Get your SPARKLE back Miss Bit !!
3. The Bad Girls Cocktail Party
The Bad Girls Cocktail Party will have to be the next project we undertake ... since we have
the "leftovers" from the trip and the TATTOOS !!!
4. Mermaids Gone Bad Rockin' Band !!
What can we discuss? We are FABULOUS !!!
Album Cover : check
Video : check
Instruments : check
Costumes : check
Fans : you know it !!
5. Feel Good Bus
I will start to buy the required lottery tickets for the financing ...

LOVE YOU MY MERMAID FRIENDS !!!

"You Gotta Have Faith, Faith, Faith ... Baby"

Last night we went to the EX and met up with one of my favourite people, 7 year old Brandon. His goal is usually to make me laugh & just have fun - what more could you want in a friend ??
So we were off to explore the Ex. We watched the baby chicks, patted the calf, scratched the goats, and took it all in. Then I saw it ... (insert swelling music here)... a big tall black hat with little silver horns & a silver skull !! I said "I have to have that for Skully !!" He asked who Skully was & I told him that we were in a band together.
Brandon : "You're in a band ?"
Me : "Yes."
Brandon : "okay."
See ... absolute acceptance !
So he is in for the hat mission. We search the grounds & I finally find the hat. But you have to WIN it ! I quickly do the math - at $275 it isn't quite as appealing. So we decide we need something else. By now he knows that Skully is the lady who sat on her fries & he KNOWS her !! So he is determined to find the perfect thing. We go to the drug paraphernalia booth & he spots it !! Perfect !! (I can't say what it is because Skully might be reading & it would spoil the surprise !!) Then I hear a little voice asking a question ...
Brandon : "What's your song ?"
Me : "Pardon ?"
Brandon : "What's your song - in your band ?"
Me : (think fast ...) "Well we have lots of songs & we use CDs for music too"
Brandon : "Okay"
See... there it is again ... absolute acceptance !!
Later in the night he & Charlie disappear. They come back with a giggly manner ... more questions...
Brandon :"Pam, does your band play at night ?"
Me : " Yes, I think we will ."
Brandon : "We bought you something to wear in your band. It was my idea."
And there in his hand is a FABULOUS pair of pink furry bunny ears that LIGHT UP !!! That little guy SOOOO gets the band !!!
I want him as our manager .

My Philosophy

I have a philosophy about "things" ... have for many years .... I am not one of those people who could live without possessions . I LOVE STUFF !! I believe though that the things you use everyday should be beautiful, inspirational, or make you giggle. From your toothbrush to your cutting board to your pens to your egg flipper. They should inspire a feeling of happiness. This philosophy explains why I use a "SPLAT" calculator ( which I have to admit, isn't that easy to use) , why my cutting boards are colourful or little eggmen, and why my pencil sharpener was a chubby man's bare bum ... So ... here is my new filing cabinet ! I LOVE IT !!! Filing our bills & receipts will even be fun !!

Update for TRAVEL 102 ... bought my "sharing candy" , working on my "band clothing", and 3 more sleeps !!!

P.S. Now I can BEND WORDS around pictures !!! WAHOO!!!!!