Another Random Update

What'd you expect with a title called "Random Thoughts of AMW"???  

I feel like my work meeting went pretty well last week.  That meeting was for the other party to gather information to take to another meeting, this week.  So I haven't heard anything from them yet, and that's ok.  Most likely, it will lead to more meetings, and then more meetings.  Not really a fan of meetings, but they are a necessary evil sometimes.  Work itself is pretty stressful as I share a space with someone I don't really care for and don't really respect.  

I've been keeping an eye on the eaglets from Norfolk Botanical Gardens that I've shared about numerous times on this blog.  The quick update  is that the 3 eaglets were removed from the nest, and placed at the Wildlife Center of Virginia.    It was determined that while the dad would continue to try to provide for them, it would soon become too much for him (3 rapidly growing eaglets eat a LOT of fish) and still provide enough to nourish himself.  This solution saves the lives of all three eaglets and dad.  They are being "rehabbed" so to speak to prepare them for release into the wild hopefully in August.  They have set up webcams at their facility and still broadcast at the former webcam site:  www.wvec.com/eaglecam

I "rehabbed" an old T-shirt quilt that a friend had done back in high school, and wasn't crazy about.  She gave me the old quilt and asked me to do *something* with it.  Her birthday was last week, and I was going to give her as a present, but didn't see her.  I'll post pictures of it when I get it to her (since she hasn't seen it yet!).

In other quilt news - I've got a couple more in line to finish the tops, and then I'll make a run to rent the long-arm again.  Don't want to wait too long so I don't forget al the stuff I learned!  Could certainly happen in this over-crowded mind of mine....

And there's one other piece of big exciting news, but I think I'm gonna hold that one close until Favorite Things Friday!  So stay tuned!

AMW

Sheesh...

Has it really been more than a month since I posted here???  Crap!  Why didn't someone poke me?  Oh yeah, that's facebook...

It's been stressful and relaxing this last month.  I've been busy and bored.

But no real excuse for not posting...  I've been reading and keeping up with everyone, but just forgot to post anything.

Maybe it's age?

Anyway -

Took one small weekend trip to one of my favorite places, the Outer Banks!  Went with four other fabulous women, and we went to Endless Possibilities in Manteo, NC for a day of creativeness.  We each weaved a rug:

Our finished rugs!

And I bought a bucket hat made out of men's neckties:

I've since been given a grocery bag full of ties, and will try to make another hat.

The Japan earthquake/tsunami disaster happened while we were on that trip, and I've been following things since then.  The devastation is utterly amazing.  I started seeing calls for quilts at a lot of blogs I was following, so I teamed up with my friend JAB to see about each of making a simple quilt to donate.

We set up a sew date, and were doing so well, we ended up making 4 of them in a weeks time.  (no pictures yet, but will post when I do have them...)

That left us wanting to do more, so we've decided to get together once a month and make a quilt each for the local children's hospital.  Will post more on that later as well...

(See how I'm setting myself up for more posts later???  Clever, huh?  Or lame... whichever....)

JAB was also the one to tell me a bout a local quilt shop that offers a class on how to use their long-arm and then rents it to you by the hour.  Class is done, and let's just say that I'm in LOVE!  Renting it this Friday for some practice time.....  But more on that later (yet ANOTHER segway to a new post!)

As for the stressful stuff, I think I'll leave that for a separate post.  Mostly so I have a subject to post about , but also cause it's a bit of a vent, and that will make it easier to skip over. (Although, really, do we skip over people's vents?  Or secretly welcome them as a way to see what's REALLY going in the real life of some of our blogger friends?, Yeah, that's I what I thought...)

Enough rambling for today.

Thanks to all of you who post regularly so that I have something to read when I'm not posting!

Nothing update

I don't really have anything new to blog about.  But still wanted to post something anyway.  What do you do when you want to blog, but have writer's block?  For me - RANDOMNESS.

I've been looking for a pattern for the black, white, and red fabric I bought.  Most of the fabrics are rather large print, so I needed a pattern that would highlight them.  Thumbing through April/May 2011 issue of Quilt magazine, lo and behold, there was a Black, White & Red all over pattern.  I like it, but will probably adapt it a bit to better suit my fabrics.

Coming up this weekend is the Mid-Atlantic Quilt Show just a couple short miles from my house.   People come from all over the county to go to this show, and I can get there is 3 simple turns.  Yep, I'll be there all weekend.  More on that later in the week...

It's "President's Day" here, so that means a day off for me.  I love President's Day holiday because it's always near my birthday (which was Sunday), so it was an extra day celebration for me.  

The weather continues to fluctuate.  78 on Friday, 65 on Saturday, 55 Sunday, and back to 72 today.  Can you believe they are talking about flurries tonight!  With a high of 40 tomorrow.  UGH!  Some consistency would be lovely.  Consistently 70's, please!

Yep, that's all I can think of...

AMW

Question of the day...

I work in the public eye.  Sometimes, being the smartass that I am, this is extremely difficult.  Difficult in that I can't always say what I'm thinking.  ESPECIALLY when asked a stupid question.

This sign, and about 20 others exactly like it are posted in the circular drive right outside the lobby that I sit in.


So here was the question that was presented to me today:








"How long can I park in the 15 minute parking area?"












REALLY?????????????


(Sadly, this is NOT the first time this has been asked, and is not even the dumbest thing that has ever been asked of me....)


Thoughts anyone?


AMW

Quick before and after...

Today, I decided to pull up the carpet in the office.  I didn't immediately think of doing before and after pictures.  Shortly after starting, it hit me, and I ran off to grab the camera.  The batteries were dying, and honestly, I just wanted to get back to ripping things apart/up to bother with something like batteries.....

 

Yes, that is greenish/brown shag carpet.   That has probably been down on this floor for 30-40 years.  So, what do you think was underneath??

Here ya go!

The carpet apparently did a FABULOUS job of protecting these hardwood floors. Really makes a HUGE difference in this room.  

We will put some kind of rug down, to protect the floors a bit, since it's an office, with a rolling chair, and all, but for the moment, I'm enjoying walking in and seeing these beautiful wood slats all aligned perfectly....

I'm sore as hell, and would love to get in the hot tub to relieve the pain, but I'm too tired to lift the lid!  But it's worth it...  I think......

AMW

Whirlwind of Activity

Well, the last couple of weeks have been hectic, but are settling down just a bit.  The fish tank is now listed on Craigslist and will hopefully be gone by the weekend.  


The painter that we had scheduled a few weeks ago has come and gone and now one room has been COMPLETELY repainted from ceilings to walls to even the inside of the closet!  It looks FANTASTIC!  It's a slow process getting it put all back together, but we're even decorating in the process.  It will be kinda cool to have one room decorated.  All it REALLY needs now is a QUILT!!!!  Gotta get to work on that......


Last weekend, Wednesday through Saturday, I went to the Original Sewing and Quilt Expo in Chantilly, VA.  It's about a 4 hour ride.  A lady where I work told me about it, so we decided to go together.  She was thrilled that she didn't have to drive up there and back.  Just realized that I have a ton to say about this trip, so I'll do another post....  (And I promise, you won't have to wait tooooo long for it....)


And the Sneak Preview post from a few weeks back is 97% complete.  It is down to the binding, which has been put on the front, and I'm toying with the idea of finishing the binding with a decorative stitch.  I saw it done at the Expo, and it looked REALLY cool.  Just need to see if I can step out of the box enough to do it......


No trips or anything major planned until the first weekend in November.  But around here, you never know....


What have you been up to?
AMW

A fish tale... part 2.

So what was the fate of the PSYCHO shark?  Did he jump out and become a dog treat?  Did he jump out and die of (un)natural causes?  Did I fry him up (with chips, Ms. P.)?  Did I release him in the wild?  Did I flush him?


All of the above were viable options that I either considered, or could have feasibly happened.


BUT, we did the humane thing, and took him to the local pet shop.  Re-homed him if you will.


Now, I will spare you details of how we got him into a five gallon bucket, but will just say that it was not pretty, or dry.  And he was NOT happy to be in the bucket.  Fortunately, I had a lid on it, cause we could hear him jumping around in there.


Back at the pet shop, a couple of the employees peeked at him, and he jumped around when they did.  And they were amazed at his size.  They found a suitable tank, and true to form, when they removed the lid on the bucket, he promptly jumped out onto the floor.  Sheesh!  Will he ever learn?  Does that make him suicidal???

So here he is in his new temporary home.  This is probably about a 35 gallon tank (ours was a 55 gallon), and he is HUGE in there.  One employee said he guess he was about 12 years old.  He was astounded when I said he was less than 4 years old.  Apparently, saving his life periodically equated to "taking really good care of this fish".  And the manager of the shop said he was the largest one she'd ever seen.  


And gave us $20 store credit.  Not bad for a $4.00 investment, 4 years ago.  And the stress is GONE!


It was very therapeutic today to scrub out the tank.  


So all's well that ends well.  He has a new clean home (and someone else to worry about him jumping out) and we have a section of house back that is stress-free!


AMW

A fish tale...

About 4 years ago, we had the opportunity to get a used fish tank from a friend.  The price was right, and well, we thought it would be fun and relaxing.  And it was....  for a bit.

As you can see, all was well with the world, and things were pretty, and fun, calming.  There was quite the variety, from sharks to barbs to platys to suckers.  You can see the Bala shark in the middle of the pic above.  He's silver with black tips.  About an inch  or so long.

As happens, some fish made it, and some didn't.  Some lasted a loooooooooong time, and some only made it days.  The bala shark was one that lasted a long time.  He's here again in the top left of this pic above.


While most of the fish died off for one reason or another, the sharks held tough.  There was the bala shark, a red-tailed shark, and a rainbow shark.  The red-tailed shark and rainbow shark were both black with red tips on them, but the red-tailed dominated over the rainbow, and kept him confined to one spot.


The bala shark was not aggressive at all, but he kept growing and growing and growing.  Within 3 years, he went from about an inch, to about 8 inches.  He was HUGE in the tank.  


Not a problem, except that during one cleaning, he JUMPED OUT OF THE TANK!  We saved him, and put him back in, but he was never right after that.  He became PSYCHO!


He tried to jump out REGULARLY if you LOOKED at him.  And at times, he succeeded.  And yet, we always got him back in the tank.


Our calming, relaxing tank was now a STRESSFUL side show.  No more cleaning, for fear of the the PSYCHO fish jumping out at you.  You can't look at him, cause he might SNAP and JUMP!


Yes, a FISH is causing this much stress!  And this has been going on for well over a YEAR!


So what do we do????????  What would you do??????


Tune in tomorrow to find out, but I'd love to read your comments as to either what you would do, or what you think we did.......


AMW

Still here...

One major event done (last weekend while camping) and one more to go Sunday and Monday.  Then things should get back to somewhat normal.

Until the following week when the painter comes.

So, after that's done, then normal.

At least until I go the Sewing Expo at the end of the month.

THEN normal....


Oh, who am I kidding????  There is no normal schedule around here!  LOL!

But we'll see what pops here in the next week!

AMW

Sooo.....

I don't know why I can't post more.

Each day, I CANNOT WAIT to see what's going on with all of the blogs that I stalk, er I mean, read. It's the highlight of my morning, and I check throughout the day as well.

I get inspired by the quilting blogs.

I catch up with friends on personal blogs.

I commiserate with bloggers that are having tough times.

I enjoy seeing what some of the odder blogs are gonna post about.

Yet - I do nothing. I think to myself that I don't have anything interesting to say.

But I sooooo enjoy the posts from the blogs that I read that even say that nothing is going on. Makes me feel connected to them somehow.

And really - it's not like I'm not working on any projects, or that nothing is going on. I just don't post it.

When I do post, I've noticed that a lot of it is about vacation. While that's wonderful and fun for me (and maybe fun for you too), I'm not on vacation THAT much. REALLY! (I just wish I was!)

I've promised before to update more, and I fall behind.

So what to do??? I WANT to post more. I just need some kind of push.... But what?

Dunno.... All I can say is that I'll try!!!

So, if you don't hear from me more/enough - YELL AT ME! Please? LOL!

AMW

New shoes and a quilt

I've finally got one quick quilt picture I can show, because it's a gift that's been given to it's owner. It was really a simple, simple, simple one, but I knew she would love it.

And here are my new shoes! I can't wait to really start wearing them. They recommend starting out wearing them just an hour or so each day, and increase the amount of time. I've only had them two days, so we'll see, but so far, it's like going barefoot...

Yes, they look funny, and yes, I fully expect people to stare, but they feel so good, I just don't care! (Hey, I made a rhyme!)

I think I'm going to try them out at the Boardwalk Art Show this Sunday. Except it's supposed to be near 100 degrees, UGH! So maybe I won't be out there very long.........

And they are definitely going with me on vacation in 12 days!!

YEAH!

AMW

An embarrassing problem

I'm wondering if any of you out there have ever faced this, and how you dealt with it...

When I get nervous, especially if I'm public speaking, my neck, chest, and ears turn a splotchy bright red!

Not just the flushed cheeks kind of red, but patches of randomness that look idiotic.

I can feel it coming on, and can't stop it from happening.

Like yesterday.... I had to attend a meeting where I was going to be giving some ideas on a project. Before the meeting, I met all of the people, had nice conversation, and felt comfortable. As soon as the meeting started, and I was "called" on....

Dun, Dun, Dun!

Here comes the red splotches....

It's involuntary. And EMBARRASSING!

HELP! Anyone know of any solutions?????

AMW

Hello??? Is this thing on?

I guess I just haven't had anything interesting to say. Or I just forgot to say it. Who knows....

Been quilting a bit. Got a couple finished up for gifts. And a wall hanging for me. Will post pictures of them after they've been delivered. Got several cut, and bought more fabric for even more.

Finally had to break it all out on the white board in the craft room.

A friend has been in the hospital this week, so I've been running out to visit him on my lunch hour. He's a pretty private person, so he didn't let on that he was in the hospital until he had been there two full days. In ICU. His fiancee lives on the other coast more than 3000 miles away, and his folks are almost nearly as far. Some of his co-workers are keeping an eye on his cat and apartment, but I know he was getting bored in the hospital...

Today I picked him up some boy magazines. Computers, Men's Health, and a puzzle book. I also picked up the newest quilt magazine and stuck it in there. He chuckled, and handed it back to me....

Took an impromptu trip on Memorial Day weekend to check out a casino in WV. Charles Town Races and Slots. Not bad. A bit smokey, but the place was huge! And this summer they are opening table games. Nearby is Harper's Ferry, WV. An adorable town on the AT with a bunch of National Parks around. Really want to get back there.

And remember a LOOOONNGGG time ago, I mentioned that we were going to try a CSA? Well, we had our first couple of baskets. I PROMISE to post an update VERY soon. I even took all the required pics tonight... So it's coming.

And, once again, I'll try to do better about posting. I read other blogs every day, but just can't seem to post. Doesn't seem like I anywhere as interesting as the folks I read....

AMW

Blog identity

I struggle to post...

Not struggle, so much, as just wonder what to write about. Sure, I post about trips, or funny stuff, or projects. But nothing on a regular basis...

There are blogs that I read that have something posted everyday. And it's all interesting.

There are blogs that I read that are very insightful.

Some are full of pictures.

Some are inspiring in the crafts that they do....

But, me? Well, I have so many interests, but nothing in particular. Not a "niche" per se.

Although I love quilting, and love posting about what I'm doing, that's not the whole premise of my blog.

I love kayaking and the outdoors, but there's more to it than that.

I love traveling, and posting about trips, but again, not all that I am or do...

So, what's my blog identity, and what keeps people coming back? Friends stop in so they can see what's new with me personally. But what about the rest of the blogosphere? Why do they come and what are they looking for?

Some days, I wake up and say I wanna do a post today. But about what? And then I'm at a loss... I didn't quilt over the weekend. I didn't do anything outdoorsy. I didn't travel. Nothing is new or exciting... So now what?

I'm certainly not a political person, and don't want this blog to be a political blog.

I guess, for now, it remain completely random as the name implies. No idea what will be here, but I'm gonna strive to post at least twice a week for now!

Stay tuned...

AMW

It's been rather odd here lately, when I take a look at my map. As you'll see below, I've gotten hits from all over the globe. I'm not sure what I've written here, that has sparked so much interest.

If you've found me from some other country, or even if you've randomly found me in the US, please post a comment and let me know! I'd love to hear how you happened upon my little slice of the world wide web!

Country Page Views for Map Area: United States [72%]

Spain [9%]

France [9%]

Canada [9%]

Germany [9%]

Mexico [6%]

India [8%]

United Kingdom [5%]

Italy [5%]

Hungary [5%]

Malaysia [4%]

Sweden [4%]

Greece [4%]

Romania [4%]

Norway [3%]

Russia [3%]

Portugal [3%]

Pakistan [3%]

Brazil [3%]

Netherlands [2%]

Switzerland [2%]

Turkey [2%]

Ukraine [2%]

Venezuela [2%]

Argentina [2%]

European Union [1%]

Bulgaria [1%]

Azerbaijan [1%]

Morocco [1%]

Egypt [1%]

Belgium [1%]

Estonia [1%]

Iran [1%]

Finland [1%]

Singapore [1%]

Poland [1%]

United Arab Emirates [1%]

Thailand [1%]

Israel [1%]

Colombia [1%]

Ecuador [1%]

Paraguay [1%]

Honduras [1%]

New Zealand [1%]

Chile [1%]

So stop on in to the comment section and say hi!

AMW

Little Things

You know, sometimes it's the little things that just make my day...

I've been having car trouble.

I basically had no power steering. Spoiled? YES!

I thought that my power steering pump was bad, and that it would cost an arm and a leg. And since I like both of my arms and legs, I had been putting off getting it fixed.

But after last weeks snow storm, I realized it HAD to fixed. So I took it to the dealer.

When they called to tell me it was ready, they said it was the power steering belt. And that my old belt had chunks missing out of it. UGH.

And when I went to pick it up and pay, the total cost was $53.00.

$53.00!!!

AWESOME!

To get out of the dealership for $53.00 MADE.MY.DAY! Hell, it MADE.MY.WEEK!

WOOHOO!

Drove it, loved it.

I think I can parallel park again!

YEAH!!!!

AMW

Brrrrrrrrr......

Baby it's cold outside!

I'm not a big fan of the cold... It's nice for a day or two. And it's ok when you plan for it to be really cold and go for a nice long hike in the woods. But this un-ending cold spell is not really my idea of fun.

We fire up the wood stove most nights and get the game room nice and toasty. And the heated mattress pad is a welcoming treat when it's pre-heated so your toes will be warm when you crawl into bed.

But I'd rather have it warm/hot outside so we could sit on the porch with a nice cold beverage and watch the world go by.....

Do you like warm or cold weather? Why

AMW

Non-bowling update

Well - I decided not to bore any of the viewing public with weekly bowling updates. Suffice to say there were good games, and bad games. And there will be more good games and more bad games. I jinxed Denise when I penned a whole post about great she was doing, and her being a superstar! She's done well, but no more 190+ games. Now she can back to that...

So, I'll have to think of some other meaningful things to post about. So far, I've got nothin....

I'll think of something soon, though!

AMW

Interesting Combo...

Not the best picture quality, as it was taken from the phone. But it was taken in the parking lot of where we had breakfast this morning.

Apparently, there was a political breakfast for local supporters of one the candidates for governor. The stickers on the vehicles didn't speak to us nearly as loudly as the two license plates. Check them out!

One says: "PRY4US", which we took to mean "Pray for us" and the other one said "BE NUDE".

Interesting combo, we thought...

AMW

Completely Random Update

Well, I sure have been delinquent in my blogging, haven't I?  Have I lost all of my readers?  All 2 of you?  LOL!!  Kidding!  I hope there's at least 3...

This is likely to be a complete hodge-podge random update.  

It's been an extremely busy summer!  A friend is staying at our house for a bit, so there is the dynamics of a third person.  Kind of strange, as there have only been two of us in the house for 3 years.  We're adjusting.  I'm not sure if I've ever lived with someone that shows signs of ADD and OCD.  It certainly makes for an interesting combination.

Since it's summertime - there have been lots of "gatherings"!   Several have been birthdays with pool parties that have been fun beyond words.  There have been impromptu "porch" nights, dinner at friends houses, and a near-weekly breakfast at Paul's Restaurant.  (I promise a FULL post with pictures about Paul's in the not-to-distant future.)

Our ADD/OCD houseguest has an over abundance of energy, and has a list of projects she's working on at our house.  She just re-roofed one of our sheds, edged the front brick walk with a shovel, cleaned and re-organized the back patio, and has dug up an overgrown flower garden, complete with pulling out bushes with her truck.  Did I mention she's only been with us for 3 weeks???  For her next trick - she'll do cartwheels while simultaneously cooking a gourmet meal for 100 of our closest friends in between re-grouting all three bathrooms!  She moves too fast for pictures, so there will be no photographic evidence.  

Work has been a bit on the stressful side.  Without dwelling on it too much, I'll just say that even though I own my own business, I still have to do what others tell me to do.  The owners of the building that pay my contract have had some requests lately that are affecting business.  And since business is already slow due to the economy, well, let's just say that it's nearing the painful stage.  I'll get through it.

My Casey-Dog (who is 13, by the way!) has started having a little more issues.  Her hips are bothering her more, and she's taking to chewing herself raw in spots.  And this is a dog that doesn't take kindly to your trying to help her.  If you try to clean a sore spot, she's likely to turn around an nip!  I've never bathed her...  I've always taken her to a groomer.  And clean her ears?  No thank you!  They can muzzle her at the vet, or they can risk the nibble that she'll give them.  So imagine when we take her to the vet, and the vet says to clean the area twice a day, and apply this cream.  Oh, and don't let her lick it.   Hmmm....  This poses yet another problem!  We all know that most dogs dislike the plastic collars, but my dog FREAKS.OUT.  Yeah, having her die of a heart attack from the stress of a plastic collar kinda defeats the purpose.  So I've tried just about everything!  What works?  When we're home, we keep her on a leash, so we can monitor her every move.  When we go to work, I put a doggy diaper on her that covers her raw hip, with a piece of gauze under it for a little more protection.  That was after trying a t-shirts (put on her backwards), and soft collar, and self-adhesive gauze.  All of those were not pretty either.  She's not thrilled with the doggy diaper, but she tolerates it.  We go back for a follow-up visit today.

Overall, the summer has been fantastic!  There are still more parties to attend before the summer is over.  We got invited to THREE for this Saturday, alone.  We can only make it to one, which is a bummer, but there are more lined up!

And then......  BOWLING starts up!  I know you can hardly wait for the weekly bowling updates, can you?????

What summer fun have you been up to?  Leave a comment here for me!

AMW