SALE

I'm putting all the wristlets on sale. Each one is made from corduroy on the outside and thrifted plaid (formerly shirts) on the inside. I have a few more new ones to list. Only $15. Get yours before someone else does.
:)

wb- week of play

Last week was spring break from school. It was much anticipated...by both students and professors no doubt, and rather glorious for me. I was able to finish work on the Minifolk bride, spend time with a crafty friend noralane, and just vegged.

I also started walking again...and riding my bike and adding some jogging into my walks. Seeing me run is probably not the prettiest thing at the moment. But this is an epic step because for years I have hated running. I'm trying to be more active.

It was a good week. Now back to work.

darlins by elpy

by its cover- notes of a baseball dreamer

By Its Cover is independent book review column. Selections are mostly made based on the book's cover. I'm testing the old saying in my quest to find new favorite authors and books.

Title: Notes of a Baseball Dreamer
Author: Robert Mayer

Robert Mayer grew up a fan of the Brooklyn Dodgers, from childhood until they moved to LA. This book is a memoir, chronicling his life and his passion for his team(s) and the game. Told in 9 chapters and an epilogue and prologue (pre- and post- game?), Mayer carefully recounts his days as a child in the Bronx as a Brooklyn Dodgers fan and all the pain that entitled. The memoir continues through to present day (at the time of publication), covering not just his dedication to mastering the game but also other milestones of life: being in high school, first love, losing a parent, getting married...finding yourself. All is intertwined and often related back to some aspect to the game, but it's done subtly, tastefully. His multiple timelines carried out in each section with each story with each chapter, each scene, being meticulously crafted, stitched together, completing itself...something like a baseball.

This book moves me to the point where I feel anything I type will not do it justice. I'm a baseball fan, for the team that Mayer hates (Yankees). During a not-so-good time in my life, the daily games of baseball, tracking the players and the teams were the only thing I cared about. Then came winter...and no baseball. So I made frequent trips to the library reading books about baseball to fill the void. That's when I found this book, under it's old title Baseball and Men's Lives: True Confessions of a Skinny-Marink. I was...at the title of this blog suggests...intrigued by the title. 'Skinny-marink' had been part of a song I'd learned as a child. But I never knew what it meant. Unfortunately Mayer doesn't either.

I'm currently on my second reading and I'm finding it just as transporting as the first time. Gone are the days when baseball alone filled my life. I have school, and a budding craft business...or two. This book is still dear to me. Normally, I don't go for memoirs or non-fiction books. But this one is special. It's the only book that I've gotten from the library and then had to purchase for myself. The list of other library 'must-haves' is short.

finding.me- rebound

2009 was a rough year. In many ways, I helped it by being rather complacent...and mistaking it for contentment. There were good things about last year as well. I got my driver's license, went back to school, won $500 in the Etsy video contest. But largely I let the misfortune I faced keep me down. Now I'm efforting to come back.

I'm making new pieces for the elpy shop. Had a home show with my mom a few weeks ago and whipped a few long-standing but unstarted ideas. I'm pleased with them. Above is a new necklace that I'm calling 'breta' in a letter-jumble tribute to my mom since they were her beads. (She wanted me to destash them but...they're too pretty.) I have a red one to list soon too...and match earrings. I'm all about sets.

New ideas are flooding my brain almost faster than I can make note of them. Part of me thinks that I went back to school at entirely the wrong time as it eats up a large portion of each day. But then I think that school is helping to inspire me (though I have yet to take an art class...nervous). Academic learning keeps me brain active and then I need to create something unrelated to school as an outlet. It's a sort of cerebral symbiosis. I wouldn't be the same without one or the other.

Also, changes are afoot as far as blog template is concerned. Don't be worried you've found the wrong blog if things appear vastly different in the next few days and weeks. I'm experimenting.

finding.me- hello, moon

I have an early class on Mondays and Wednesdays.  Because of where I live and how public transit operates in my area I have to get up 3 hours before class starts to get to school on time.  Usually, after a time of getting up early, my body gets used to it.  I haven't adjusted to this 6:00 wake-up time.  (That is was winter didn't help.)  I was starting to freak out myself.  Maybe there was some deep problem.  Maybe I had chronic fatigue.  Then I thought...

Tara of Scoutie Girl posted today about being a morning person. Everything she described about the early morning before her family is awake is exactly who I feel about working on my craft business late into night.


From about 3 in the afternoon is my prime thinking time. Most of the hours before that, and definitely the ones before 9 in the morning are blur. (If ever you see a new post published before 9 AM on any of my blogs know that it was scheduled...mostly written late the night before.) My brain kicks up a gear and revs with ideas and thoughts for new and old projects. All the tedium of classes and bus rides, homework and housework has largely been completed and now...I can craft.

I like the quiet of my house at night. During the day it's bumbling with five human occupants and one 10-ish-year-old cat who still randomly runs from room to room. At night, when everyone else is in bed...there's a peace. I don't have to jockey for the computer or the TV (I need background noise when I work.) I kinda have free reign. I can spread my stuff out and not get in anyone's way. It's nice.

I guess, in a sentence, I prefer sunsets to sunrises.

_{photo courtesy: Anthony Arrigo- www.astrophotography.com}

when.words.fail

thisnext:: ruche

Ah, what comfy cuteness! *contented sigh*

From Ruche. I love so many of the items on this site. I found it via Modish. Dare you not to fall in love.

As always, if you want to follow my picks between Tuesdays you can check them out here or subscribe.

march

I'm here...and not here. It suddenly got really hard to share a computer with 4 other internet-dependent people. (that being my family. and we have more than one PC but the in-house network isn't hooked up properly)

New work almost ready for elpy. Exciting things going on at Minifolk. Where it all lead? Only time will tell.