My Weblog

Hot, Hot, Hot

Well, I've always said Life is nothing if it's not an adventure.  Yesterday was a real adventure.  I did my office thing, came home and blogged and started on some design work I wanted to finish up.  About 11 I noticed it seemed quite warm in the office.  I'm sure the thermostat is a bit off, but we keep it set around 73-74 degrees.  I checked it and it said 79.  As I stood there, it clicked up a notch, making it 80 in the central portion of our house (where there are no windows).  We had a new A/C system installed about 3 years ago and never in the succeeding years have I seen that thermostat with such a disparity in the numbers.  I noticed the sound the A/C makes was considerably less than usual, walked out into the kitchen where we happen to have the vent cover off for cleaning, stood under the open hole and there was no air flow. 

First, I called the client I had scheduled and canceled our appointment.  She recommended a place that advertises 1 hour service.  I called Joe and he was CRABBY.  I really called to let him know the thing wasn't working and to discuss my calling a repair service.  Finally, I just called the repair service.  I did have to giggle and then feel really bad after talking to them.  They advertise 1 hour service but it was going to be anywhere from 4-6 hours before they could get a technician here.  Oy!

During the first little while, I did cut up some cantaloupe and dust a couple of tables in the livingroom.  But, as it got hotter and hotter, I did less and less.  The technician showed up around 4.  The first thing he did was pull out the dirty intake filter (that I had reminded Joe to change last weekend).  Then he went up on the roof.  With an outside temperature of 103, according to him, there was a solid block of ice formed around the A/C about an inch thick.  He came back down and told me that as long as it was frozen up like that, there was nothing he could do.  He called in to his dispatcher and requested that someone come back out here between 7 and 11PM. 

Finally it hit 91 degrees on the thermometer INSIDE the house.  I had, of course, gone from room to room closing blinds, covering windows, trying to keep the heat out.  It didn't seem to work, though perhaps it would have been even hotter in here had I not done that.  For the last 3 or four hours, I sat at the computer with a wet dishtowel wrapped around my neck and a small fan blowing directly on me.  It was truly miserable.  Finally at around 8:30, the dogs were acting funny.  Joe had gone to bed leaving me to wait up for the repairman.  I never heard the doorbell, but thanks to Max and Parker, I looked out through the peephole to see the technician outside.  Believe me, he was a welcome sight.  He came in, talked to me, then went up on the roof.  I woke Joe.  Final diagnosis....something was blocking the airflow which caused the thing to ice up.  Apparently a/c units are insulated.  And the manufacturers simply glue a slab of insulation to the inside of the box.  Yeah, well, the glue gave way, succumbing to the desert heat, and a piece of the insulation fell down, against the machinery.  Beyond that was the fact that our intake filter was filthy.  That little adventure cost us $100.  I hate that, but it could have been a lot more.  Given the economy, I suppose the charge was fair, particularly since they had to come out twice.

Joe went immediately back to bed.  He can sleep in any situation.  However, I waited and waited while the thermometer fell.  Finally, about 10:30, I crawled into bed.  I didn't think I would sleep because it was still quite warm in here.  But, I was just exhausted from the day and did finally doze off.  Needless to say, I did NOT get up at the crack of dawn to go to the office!

Design

I have pretty much completed work on my kit for August 9.  It sure looks cute.  I'm so NOT a good preview maker, but I do like the way this preview turned out.  I now have to get it into the official "wrappers" and write the product description, add the anti-piracy notice, and my TOU and it's done. 

Meanwhile, I was really pushing myself to get my kit for August 2 uploaded for my CT.  I was tired and stressed and somehow saved half the alpha somewhere other than to the kit.  Worst of all I don't know where else I could have saved it.  So, I ended up having to make a completely new alpha last night.  Urg!

I ran across some fun photos of a very lively group of fabrics, all intended to coordinate.  I was really quite inspired and have several papers made with the color palette.  They are cute.  You'll see them in a kit, probably in September.  For now, I'm calling the kit Playdate, so that will give you some ideas as to what kinds of colors might be involved. 

Scrapping

Not yet!  

I am going to see if I can make some progress on all the things I wanted to do yesterday, haha.  Nothin like being a day behind!  Have a COOL day!

Dawn to Dusk

I was up at 4:00AM and at my desk at the office at 5:30AM.  Still don't know how I did that, but I even worked very efficiently while I was there.  When I leave, the things that need attention go on the computer keyboard.  I could have stacked the papers just so and covered the keyboard about 4-5 times.  Instead, I just fanned them out in such a pretty fashion, LOL.  Can't be missed.........

When I left home at dawn, it really looked like we might get some rain today.  Now, it seems to be clearing up.  Oh well......

Today I will meet with a client to complete a tax return.  And I'll get paid.  Since the IRS levied "our" bank account, Joe is operating out of "my" bank account.  What once was an amazing (for me) bank balance is reduced to $46.00.  When we operate out of two bank accounts, I kick in what I think I can and there it stops.  When we operate out of one account, all my money vaporizes in seconds flat.  I don't like it!  Selfish of me, I'm sure, but I have bills to pay too and he doesn't help with those. 

Jennifer posted something cute on Facebook.  Apparently someone referred to Atticus as a "small handful" within his hearing.  His response:  "I not a small handful.  I human people."  Yes, Atticus, indeed you are human people, LOL. 

I forgot to post here about Joe's meeting with a celebrity.  Friday, he got a call to go to the loading dock of a certain hotel/casino at a certain time, turn the meter on, and wait.  He did as he was told.  Shortly after he arrived, a security guard came to check and make sure he was there and had his meter running.  He waited a LONG time.  Finally he was joined by a potential candidate for the Presidency.  I am not giving the man's name because he has apparently not made up his mind about running.  His trip to Vegas was hush hush.  Interestingly, Joe had just read an article about this guy the night before.  AND, he had his picture taken with the guy.  (Now, if he could just figure out how to e-mail me the photo, LOL!)  This is pretty much his first experience with a celebrity.  I think most celebrities who visit Vegas hire Limos....

Design

I finished up all the design work on my release for August 9th.  I still have to do the kit preview, but the guts of the paper previews are done.  It is looking darned cute.  And, I keep adding elements to it.  I have to stop that!  By this time of the month, I usually have the releases for the next month all planned out.  Woe is me, I'm still wondering what I will do for the last week of the month.  I have a kit in mind but I really have to go take a good look at it.  What I have in mind may be a bit too summery for the end of August.

I now have 128 downloads on that freebie quick page I posted.  That's not bad.  I know, for myself, I do not download quick pages anymore.  No matter how beautiful they are, I don't touch them.  I NEVER use quick pages and it makes no sense to have them on my hard drive if I don't use them.  But if 128 people actually use the quick page and actually give me proper credit, that could be beneficial to business.  We'll see.

Scrapping

No, it's not my day to scrap.  Somehow that seems to fall on Friday and/or Saturday.  I do have several kits I need to work with so there'll be some eye candy here soon.

I need to go chase some dust bunnies around.  And do some laundry.  I was totally caught up on laundry at the beginning of the week.  I looked at the hamper last night around bedtime and was astounded to see it was overflowing.  It is so hot here that Joe is going through clean clothes like a Sherman Tank through mud.  I've got to get some slacks washed or else!  Hope it's your best day in a long time!

Rain, rain, don't ever go away!

It is actually raining in the desert. At least, it's raining in MY part of the desert. Sometimes when we get a rainy day, it could be raining here and as dry as a bone 3 minutes away.  But, hey, I'll take what I can get.  From the looks of the sky to the west, there may be more in store--some very dark clouds there, but the ground around the house, the sidewalk, it's all actually wet!  How's that for a big deal!

I pity Joe, driving in this.  A combination of the heat and heavy traffic result in a lot of microscopic drops of oil hitting the pavement around town.  When it rains, it is our version of black ice.  And it rains so infrequently around here that folks really don't know how to drive in it. 

Yesterday was a good day.  I went to work and did payroll, picked up last week's paycheck, updated the cash and the bank reconciliation and the checkbook, sorted through my inbox, paid as many bills as I could, and left.  Odd, but we had only 3 checks left in the checkbook.  I don't know how that happened, but it DID limit the number of checks that I wrote.  Next, I'll start doing the checks via Quickbooks which has been my aim all along. 

I am almost ready to hand the stuff off to the CPA who does the tax returns.  I'm making a strong case for writing off a bunch of garbage that is in our Accounts Receivable and Accounts Payable.  There are A/R entries, still treated as current, that were made in 2006.  Come on now, if we haven't received a payment on them in the two years I've been there, and the debt is 4 years old, what is our chance of getting paid now?  No chance.  And, A/P is full of entries, some of them actually made by me, that are not valid corporate debts.  Over and over I've asked about various credit cards on which we were paying.  Turns out they must have been personal, as, since the Big Kahuna declared bankruptcy, we don't see bills from those companies.  True, he could have used those cards for materials purchases or something of that nature during times when we were short of cash, but those specific purchases should have been booked as Loans from partner, and off set against his draws.  So, all of that stuff needs to go away.  AND, I am still trying to determine what vehicles we own.  I asked Matt, but his answer in NO WAY matches up with the depreciation schedule I got from the CPA.  Truthfully, I don't think Matt's answer is valid and I don't think the CPA's schedule is accurate either.  We accountant types are so subject to the information we receive from our clients. 

We are 3 days from the end of July.  The new company I will be working for has said they will want me part time starting in August or September.  So, my life could change radically any time now.  Marketing of the main product kicks off in Mexico and South America in August, last I heard.  Dr. Bert, one of the founders of the company is Hispanic and is in charge of that end of the business.  I hope it happens soon as we certainly need the money I will be earning. 

It's the dog days of summer and so very hot.  Not as many people want to come to the desert when it's 113 in the shade and a good 8-10 degrees hotter in the sun.  It's silly, actually, because these days, who doesn't go from their air conditioned car to their air conditioned hotel/office/home, and right back to air conditioning from there.  But, business is a bit slow in Vegas this time of year and Joe is definitely feeling it.  I shudder to think what his next paycheck will look like.  Postage stamp size?  Very small, but the bills actually go up in summer with much higher power bills and higher water bills too, even though we are watering very conservatively.

Jennifer has made two very brief posts on facebook.  It appears she and the kids are having fun.  She planned on doing some laundry and was bemoaning the fact that she had no laundry detergent.  In that she is in Southern California, I'm pretty sure there's a grocery store nearby! 

Design

I've had a few answers to prayer design-wise.  My CT is very small, just 3 ladies.  August promised to be a pistol.  One lady is headed to a cabin in Maine with her husband, on vacation for the month of August with limited internet access.  Another is in the process of moving from England to Bermuda with a stop in the US along the way.  She's moving alone, with two boys, ages 4 and 8, while her husband stays behind to close up their home.  I don't expect either of them will be doing a lot of scrapping.  And, if they do, they may not be able to upload what they've scrapped.  So, it looked like it would be me and the newest team member doing what scrapping with my stuff could be done.  And I don't have a lot of time for scrapping! 

Yesterday I received an IM from Sharia Braxton.  Sharia is suffering from a case of designer burnout.  It happens.  It requires a lot of hours for not much pay.  Most of us design as much for the joy of creating as we do for the money.  So, Sharia has decided she won't be designing any more.  At least not in the foreseeable future, unless we do another collaborative kit.  She IM'd me to see if I'd like to have her on my Creative Team.  I had to ask her some questions, but based on her answers, I happily accepted her on the team.  In the matter of a few hours, as her first CT duty, she volunteered to set up a forum for the CT.  THAT made me very happy.

I don't know about the other ladies who work to help sell my products, but my e-mail is always flooded.  Updates from scazillion designers and scrap stores, devotionals, forwards from folks, etc., even reminders that certain bills are due.  Right now I have over 1300 e-mails I need to read through and trash or file.  YUCK!  The idea of sending an e-mail to my CT ladies doesn't appeal.  I'm so careful to NOT just flood their in-boxes with mail from me.  However, a designer and her Creative Team must communicate somehow.  Now, with the forum, we can each post whatever we want/need to say, in a centralized place where all can see it.  That's a GOOD THING. 

So, with one IM yesterday, God helped fill the gap in the CT for the month of August and got us a team forum to boot!  And, answered my prayers for guidance on whether I should continue to pursue this venture.  I don't suppose He'd have taken care of those little issues if I was supposed to quit any time soon.

Usually, when I sign on here, I check my stats.  How many folks have visited the blog today?  Today's stats were WAY up.  I couldn't figure that out......  Well, I posted a free quickpage with my latest kit.  I advertised it in the forum at ACOT.  There is a blog that advertises Freebies.  I got picked up on that blog and folks are being referred here through them.  I love it!  In the design world, anything that drives traffic to your blog is a good thing.  Maybe I'll have to do more freebies?????  Could that be another sign that I should continue with this?  Could be............

So today, I will put on my Accountant hat and work on A/R and A/P, take off my Accountant hat and put on my designer hat and work on my next kit, due to the CT on Monday, the 2nd, and take off my designer hat and put on my housewife hat and see what progress I can make in this house.  I cannot tell you how much I dread the demands on my time that will result when a second part-time, soon to be full-time, job kicks in.  Gotta run.  Be blessed.  May God cause His face to shine upon you today!

I'm SO tired!

Well, I didn't make it to bed by the mandatory 7:30PM bedtime last night.  It was actually 9PM before I got there.  Then, I was up at 10, at 12, at 1, at 3...........  No real sleep to speak of.  And here I am trying to blog, feeling like a zombie.

Yesterday was fairly uneventful.  Joe overslept and I didn't have the heart to wake him so we went to church on the internet.  After all, the man is 60 years old and working 60 hours a week, every week.  As "penance" (not really, just because we wanted to) we listened to two sermons instead of one.  It was good!

Joe did his usual Sunday afternoon Costco run.  We needed some dog food and some eggs and some milk and a few other things.  I talked him into buying a package of steaks.  These days, we cook one steak and split it.  He got three top sirloins for $15.  We made some baked potatoes to go with them and dug into my stash of frozen asparagus.  I put a little olive oil in a skillet, laid the asparagus in there to cook on medium high heat (they had already been blanched when I froze them), dusted them with salt and garlic powder, and let them cook until the natural sugars in them turned them dark brown.  I just love asparagus cooked that way.  We bought pounds and pounds of asparagus in the spring when it was on sale.  I cooked them and froze them individually so we are able to just dig in one of the freezer bags and pull out however many we want.  We ate a LOT last night!

I wanted some fruit.  He came home with a pineapple and 3 cantaloupe.  I asked him if he checked the cantaloupe for ripeness.  For example, I always push on the "belly button" (the part where the melon connects to the plant) to see if it is soft.  He gave me that deer caught in the headlights look.  I asked if he smelled them--a ripe melon will have the smell of cantaloupe, an unripe one won't smell at all.  The deer in the headlights look again.......  I just checked them and they're HARD.  You could easily give someone a concussion if you hit them with one of those cantaloupes.  Now to keep the pineapple from getting overripe while I wait for the cantaloupes to ripen........

Yesterday was computer problem-solving day.  If you read this blog regularly, you probably remember that while I was in Florida, Joe moved my computer around for me.  Originally, we had the tower on the floor.  But, I live in the world's dustiest house.  No kidding--I dusted in the living room on Thursday and by Saturday, you could probably have written in the dust on the table tops.  So, I was concerned about the tower being on the floor exposed to all that dust.  He put the tower on the computer desk with the CD/DVD opening facing the wall and he put the monitor on my regular desk.  Well, I couldn't play a DVD that way, and I spent my design time leaning way forward to be closer to the monitor.  I was having neck problems from trying to view the monitor which was up about 3 inches higher than before.  So, I asked him to swap them out.  Of course, that entailed unplugging everything and plugging it all in again.  That's a real pain because he has to lie on the floor to do it.  But ever since he swapped things out, neither my calculator nor my back-up EHD has worked.  Having been through a disastrous EHD crash, I was not at all comfortable with not being able to do back-ups.  So, yesterday he investigated and found that he had simply failed to connect the EHD to the computer.  He'd also forgotten to plug in the calculator.  Now everything is functional again!  Whew!  What a relief!

I am still having a horrible time with the whole concept of going to bed at 7:30PM.  It seems we barely get our dinner eaten and it's time to go to bed.  I am so used to having hours after dinner to work around the house, design, etc.  Sure enough, I was just getting up a good head of steam when Joe announced he was going to bed.  How in the world will I ever manage to get anything done on this crazy schedule?  I am SO not a morning person........ 

We heard from Jennifer and she is changing locations from Los Angeles to Claremont.  Not much of a drive.  My only advice to her was avoid rush hour, LOL.  LA has a rush hour that is pretty much without equal.  But, with the 3 kids in tow, who knows when she'll get started on that little leg of her trip.  She posted a photo of the boys at the Santa Monica Pier getting ready to ride one of the rides on the boardwalk.  They looked like they were having fun.  I hope so.  I don't think Will has much time left on his summer vacation by the time they come back.  I'll see if I can "steal" those photos and post 'em here tomorrow.

We have had rain in the forecast for days, but that's not unusual for this time of year.  Neither is it unusual for us to have rain in the forecast and get no rain.  But, today, the sky to the west is overcast and dark, so maybe we'll be blessed with some rain.  Sure hope so--we could use it!

I put a new kit up in my stores today.  I want to show it off, so I hope you'll bear with me.  This was a really fun kit to create.  I LOVE the bold colors which are combined kind of unexpectedly in this particular kit.  It's called Chocolate Raspberry.  I was inspired, believe it or not, by the Godiva chocolate store at the Venetian here in Vegas.  We were wandering around in the Venetian and I was overcome by curiosity because I had never had a piece of Godiva chocolate though I'd heard a lot about it.  We went into the store and they offered us a piece of Chocolate Raspberry candy, all wrapped up in a gold foil wrapper.  I remember the color of the raspberry filling against the gold foil and the chocolate.  Yum--a feast for the eyes as well as the tummy!

 

Here's a closer look at the elements and papers:

 

 

And, if you happen to be a scrapper, I made a Quick Page for you.  Actually, I made a layout which I turned into a Quick Page for you.  Here's the layout:

 

And, here's the link where you can download it.

Design

Well, I worked my little tushie off, but next week's kit is all wrapped up, with a pretty pink ribbon on it, ready for my little CT to do their thing.  I have to upload it to the internet for them, but it's ready for uploading.  That's next, after I finish this blog post.  It's gawgeous, y'all!  I worked and worked Saturday night on the preview, got it all put together the way I wanted it, tried to save it, and my darn computer locked up.  I had to pull the plug to even get her to reboot.  Then, I started over on the preview!  Arghhh!  Like most designers, I don't enjoy preview-making and I don't ever feel I am able to do the kit justice.  So, to have to make the preview twice is no fun at all!

The next kit is almost finished.  It's a girly kit too.  After that, I have a boy kit coming.  I've got all the papers done for both kits.  Still lots of elements to make though......

Scrapping

I have one more Bella Gypsy kit I SHOULD scrap with.  I'll be so glad when this month is over.  I've received a boatload of kits from them, but that has meant that in addition to working, working in the house with NO help from Joe, and designing, I've felt pressured to do a boatload of pages.  Well, at least I've scrapped a boatload of photos that needed scrapped, LOL.  If/when I get that last page made, I'll post it here.  

Well, I am still sorting through Accounts Payable and Accounts Receivable, trying to build my case to write a lot of those off.  The CPA is very reluctant to do that (I don't know why--they're dead, dead, dead) and I have to make a strong case.  See ya later--Have a blessed day!

Lazy Day

To say I haven't accomplished much today would be fairly accurate unless you count scrapping.  I also watched an almost 3 hour movie with Joe.  One of Joe's favorite movies is In Harm's Way.  It's an oldie, made in 1965, starring John Wayne, Kirk Douglas, Henry Fonda, Burgess Meredith, Patricia Neal, and numerous others.  It has to do with the war in the Pacific, though the places are fictionalized.  A few weeks ago, I got the opportunity to purchase 2 DVDs for $12.  They didn't have the one I wanted for me, but they did have In Harm's Way for Joe.  Sometimes I can watch mine on Netflix instant play, but In Harm's Way has a waiting list.  Anyway, I've watched it several times this week and today, he finally had time to sit down and watch it.  We munched on potato chips, leftover pizza, and Taquitos from Costco.  I am full now and won't eat any dinner!  Of course, we were surrounded by the dogs most of the time and I managed to get a few good photos of them.  Except Punky, of course.  The boys seem to edge her out most of the time and she won't fight to get near us.  So, that's part of the reason she gets to sleep with us, but it doesn't help us get good photos of her, LOL. 

We had the kids Thursday night.  Atticus was dressed in pink high-heeled shoes and a tutu, shorts and a baseball shirt and a baseball cap.  Poor little guy.  He was the baby and he's now been edged out by Bethie who, of course, gets lots of attention as is pretty common with babies.  He hears his mother talk to her and call her "pretty, pretty princess".  Apparently, for now, Atticus thinks if he's a princess too, he'll be back to being the center of attention.  Honestly, there's no one cuter than he is, but I'm not comfortable with his desire to be a princess.  His mother promises me he won't wear pink high heeled  shoes to college.  I pray she is right!  Yes, of course I got photos.  I'll be using those for blackmail when he grows up! 

Bethie was in quite the mood.  She cried when I picked her up from day care.  She cried when I put her in the car.  Then she fell asleep.  She cried when we got her out of the car and cried pretty much most of the evening.  She wasn't interested in food; she wasn't interested in a bottle.  She was just an unhappy little girl.  Finally Grandpa worked his magic and got her to sleep.  I think maybe that was the problem all along.  Maybe she just needed to go to sleep.  She is sure one beautiful little girl. 

William was his usual helpful self.  He toted and carried his backpack, his lunch bag, a big glass jug of toys, and helped carry Bethie's diaper bag, Bethie's insulated bottle bag, Atticus's diaper bag and Atticus's lunch bag.  Boy, I'm sure glad he's helpful like that.  Carrying Bethie is already more than I can manage!  

I have worked from home most of this past week.  Working on journal entries from the CPA's office.  Working on journal entries and corrections FOR the CPA's office.  We are edging closer to my July 31 deadline.......  I have to get the 2009 financials in shape before I send them over there!  

Yesterday I spot cleaned the carpet and cleaned the couch with my Little Bissell.  I bought that thing when Toby was sick, and though I don't use it often, it's worth it's weight in gold when I do get it out.  I had planned to work on the love seat today and the chairs, but it didn't happen.  And since it's early evening, I have a hunch it won't happen any more tonight either.  Maybe tomorrow......  It's not so easy to do with a touchy back.  But, I got it done.  I did have "help" from Parker who just couldn't control his curiosity.  (Maybe he's part cat?)  He was just on top of me whenever I was on ground level doing the bottom portions of the couch.  I'm afraid he wasn't much help!

Design

I haven't done too much design work since I last blogged.  I spent my "spare" time yesterday unzipping files I've downloaded from various sources.  I still have scazillion to go.  Also cleared another 4 gigabytes of duplicates off my working EHD.  Phew!  Will it ever end?  Somehow, I doubt it.  

I hired a new person to do my advertising.  She sent me a copy of the first advertisement she's sent out on my behalf.  Lordy, if THAT doesn't increase my sales, there's no hope!  She sent to a LOT of different sites and groups which should really increase my exposure.  I was using someone else for advertising, but between internet problems and computer problems, she just couldn't seem to make it happen.  I think this new person will rock my world.  I sure hope so.  My original intention was to pay someone to do this advertising for three months and then evaluate whether it seemed worthwhile.  I actually paid the previous person for one month, but after that..........  So, I am starting over at the end of July and we will see how things go between now and the end of October. 

Scrapping

Well, I have done SOME scrapping.  Nowhere near as much as I'd like to have done, but still.........

This first layout is a photo Jennifer took in the middle of the night with her camera on her phone.  I used a filter to try to disguise that it wasn't one of the greatest photos.  Actually, I think I would have scrapped this photo at some point, good photo or not.  Jennifer woke up in the middle of the night and THIS is what she saw:

 

I used a collaborative kit done by Bella Gypsy Designs and Graham Like the Cracker, available at Scrap Matters.  This kit is called Some Summer Night.  It was supposed to be a kit about Lightning bugs, but we have no such thing in the desert.  So, I capitalized on the "night time" part of the kit and created this layout.

A couple of weeks ago, we picked Jennifer and Beth up from the airport.  I had a lot of nerve, asking Jen to smile for the camera after flying for HOURS with an 8-month old in tow.  But, she was kind enough to do that for me.  I scrapped this photo using Saffron Blues, a collaborative kit done by Bella Gypsy Designs and Trixie Scraps. 

 

I used templates by Bella Gypsy for both of these layouts.

I also created a Quick Page to give away with the launch of my next kit, but, for that, you'll have to wait til Monday!

Okay, to paraphrase Minnie Pearl, I'm through typing now.  Have a great day!

Better today

Well, there's been several more rounds of prayer over my back since yesterday and it is feeling better.  At the moment, I can honestly say there is no pain.  Perhaps the Good Lord decided I'd had all I could stand for a while.  In any case, it is a great joy to be able to get up out of my chair normally and walk to the kitchen just like a "normal" person. 

Today there was another "bid" at Joe's work.  Apparently after the last bid about a month ago, they have been having trouble getting anyone to work days on Tuesday and Wednesday.  So, everyone had to bid again.  I'm sad about it, but Joe decided to stay on days.  It makes more work for me and less time for me to design.  But, he felt this was what he should do, so there we go.  I didn't flat out tell him I wanted him to switch back to nights, but I did let him know that the day shift thing is not working for me.  It's been several weeks now and I still haven't adjusted to going to bed at 7:30PM.  I am doing better about getting up EARLY in the morning, but a few hours later, I am exhausted and my body is whining for a nap.  He pointed out that once I start working 2 part time jobs, with a night time shift for him, we would basically never see each other except on the weekends, as he would have to leave for work before I get home.  I guess that's true.  I've been leaving the current office by around 9AM.   If I headed from there straight to the other office, I could work 9:15 to 1:15PM and then head home.  I would get here a little before 2PM and he'd leave for work a few minutes after 3PM.  To top that off, after a 12 hour shift, he's not much help around the house; but, after a 12 hour shift in a poorly air conditioned cab, he's just darned near worthless.  He scared the heck out of me the other night.  We'd had dinner and had about an hour til that time of the night when I go to bed and pray for everyone I've ever known (otherwise known as bedtime).  We were sitting at our desks which are next to each other in the office, separated by about 6 feet.  I looked over and he was slumped over with his head on the desk.  I honestly thought maybe he'd had a heart attack or something.  He IS overweight and a smoker and working a very difficult schedule for a man his age.  No, he'd just put his head down to "rest".  Arghhhh!

I am taking care of the kids tonight.  It was supposed to be last night, but Jennifer called and asked if we could change.  As bad as my back was feeling yesterday, I had no trouble saying "yes".  So, this evening I will pick the kiddos up at day care and then spend about 3 hours with them.  They are leaving Friday morning EARLY and won't be back for a while.  She has to speak at another conference and then they are going to Southern California for PYM.  She didn't have the money to go, so she is working at PYM to cover the cost.  Great vacation, LOL.  Actually, I'm sad that it isn't a real vacation for her.  She has a lot of stress in her life right now and could use some time off.

I gritted my teeth and worked around this house regardless of the pain yesterday.  For a lady in pain I didn't do too bad.  I unloaded the dishwasher, cleaned off counter tops, etc., cleaned two shelves in my pantry, washed the dining room window on the inside, and did some dusting in the office.  Today, I move on to the living room where dust and dog hair abound.  You probably remember that we received a lot of food from a client of mine and from Jennifer a couple of months ago.  I was over the top grateful for the food, but have been struggling ever since with places to put it.  So, it was pantry cleaning time.  There were a few products that were way beyond expiration date.  I don't worry about that too much unless they are foods with a high fat content--the fats tend to go rancid after a while.  I got rid of those and started consolidating stuff--Jen gave us a little bit of honey which I added to our big bottle of honey.  I thought I was almost out of apple cider vinegar, just a dribble left in the bottle.  Then I found another almost full bottle of apple cider vinegar shoved to the back and added the dribble to it and threw away the empty bottle.  I found duplicates of several more items, soy sauce, sesame oil, and so on.  So, two shelves are all clean and consolidated; two shelves to go........

Design

Every time a scrapbook designer is interviewed, someone asks the question "where do you get your inspiration?"  Most of the time, the answer is "everywhere".  I worked as a CT member with one designer who used to design kits to go with her personal photographs.  I actually started a kit the same way just recently.  Wanna see the photo?

 

I took that photo of Bethie while we were in Florida.  Now, I'll bet you can guess the colors in the kit, right?  Keep an eye on my August kits.....you'll see.

I did do some design work yesterday, during my "breaks" from pantry cleaning.  But I got really silly and did something I shouldn't have done.  I got to thinking about the girly kits I've been putting out lately and how it's really time for something to scrap with for boys.  So, having a gorgeous color palette in my back pocket, I designed all the papers for a boy kit.  Since NONE of my August kits are complete, that was a darn silly thing to do.  Bad choice of how to spend my time.  BUT, killer papers, if I do say so myself!  And they're still bright enough to scrap summer photos, but there's a hint of darker colors there which will work into the fall.  But, I MUST work on my first August kit now or I will screw up my whole schedule.

My CT is going to be hit and miss as far as layouts in August.  One lady is moving from England to Bermuda and another is going on vacation with poor access to internet for the month.  It's going to be me and one CT member, trying to hold the fort by ourselves!

Scrapping

Are you kidding?  No, I didn't scrap.  I designed all the papers for a kit.  Whaddaya want from me?

Okay.  Gotta get this day moving.  I have a mountain of things to do, around the house, on my next kit, for the job, and tax wise.  Have a blessed day!

Shame on me.......

My back is STILL hurting.  I know it is not possible, but some days, when the pain has been there day and night for weeks, I begin to think this pain is everlasting.  I must guard against feeling sorry for myself.  If I begin to feel sorry for myself, then all I will accomplish is curling up into a little ball in my bed.  I can't do that.  I have a job.  I do tax work on the side.  I design scrap kits on the side.  I have a house to keep, clothes to wash, well, you know the drill.  Yet, I hurt.  I have pills here but I don't want to take them.  I wonder about the long term effects of pills.  Are they harming my kidneys?  my liver?  I have done everything I know to do and I cannot seem to get this bout of back pain to give in.  We have prayed.  We have prayed some more and some more.  I have taken breaks every couple of hours and laid down to rest my back.  I have taken pills.  I have even worn the detested back brace.  I have soaked in a hot bath which brings relief for about 20 minutes.  I sit with the heating pad baking my back which helps til I move, and still I hurt.  I want to complain and whine and lay around and I have to fight off thoughts that someday I will be in a wheelchair because I refuse that.  It will not happen. 

And when I feel this way, I have to begin to fight.  I have to praise God for the healing He has promised.  His promises are true.  Being God, He cannot tell a lie, because as soon as He says something, it becomes truth.  When, in Genesis 1 He said "Light be", there was no light.  But, then everything changed and there was light, because God has said something.  So, I am healed because I have faith in the promises of God and in the sacrifices of Christ.  The pain cannot be everlasting.  It will go away. 

I have to remind myself of miracles He's performed in my life.  My daughter, healed of bi-lateral, mirror-image rheumatoid arthritis.  My daughter, healed of cervical cancer.  My own back, the thing that is betraying me at the moment, pain free for 10 months many years ago.  Pain that went away just for Thanksgiving Day last year after I begged for that one day to spend with my family, doing what needed to be done, without pain.  The tremendous bout with pain from TMJ that lasted for almost 6 weeks and went away just as tax season arrived; just in time for me to earn money I needed to support myself and my daughter.  I could go on, but these are the thoughts I must think when I begin to think I can't cope any more.  

And, sometimes when I am feeling very sorry for myself, I read the NieNie Dialogues.  This is a blog written by StephaNIE NIElson, who, in 2008, was involved in the crash of a private plane and was burned over 83% of her body.  Then I am ashamed of myself and I get myself in hand and do better.  If you ever think you can't go on another day, just start reading her blog (you can Google it) and continue reading until you begin to realize that in spite of whatever is happening in your life, whatever has you down, you have much for which to be thankful.

So, today I am thankful for warm sunshine, for a gentle breeze, for salvation and healing, for my daughter, so beautiful, intelligent, and talented, and for my grandchildren who never fail to brighten my world.  I am thankful for my husband who makes me crazy half the time but is still the man I KNOW God meant for me.  I am thankful for books to read on any subject, from Christian books to history books, to how-to books, and best of all, the Bible.  I am thankful for my three dogs who darn near worship me and shower me with love.  I am thankful for a roof over my head.  I am thankful for a job in a city with the highest unemployment rate in the nation.  I am thankful for the internet because it lets me learn things, share things, etc.  Yesterday, I downloaded Paula Deen's recipe for pound cake.  Last week I researched the Battle of Roark's Drift, and learned that the movie In Harm's Way, is really about Guadalcanal, not Gamavutu, a mythical place.  Soon, I'll look to see how many flights are due into the LV airport today and call Joe to tell him whether it's a good day for him to hang out at the airport.  There's much more for which I am thankful, but, right now, I am thankful that my rendition of Paula Deen's recipe for pound cake turned out so well and I am going to go get myself a piece from the kitchen.  BRB.

Design

I uploaded my next kit to my CT yesterday.  It's a pretty kit with bright colors, brown, raspberry, and gold.  I think you'll like it.  I planned out my kits for August.  I more or less decided I am not going to do a back-to-school kit.  EVERYONE will be doing them and I don't want to conform, LOL.  And, I am trying a new technique in designing papers that is working pretty well. 

Scrapping

This week Bella Gypsy has given us 5 kits for which to create layouts.  I need a twin! 

Now, I'm going to go accomplish something.  Have a good day!

Horribly Hot

Friday afternoon, the high temperature was 113.  Oh my goodness was it hot.  I had to go to the bank and make a deposit, then run to a different bank and make a payment on a credit card.  I was first in line at both banks, so I was only out of the van a minute or two at both banks.  I had the A/C going full blast the whole time, and the van never cooled off til just about the time I got home.  I was all drippy from perspiration.  Joe looked a sight when he came home Friday night--sweaty wet and red faced.  Most of the handicapped vans the company owns do not have tinted windows.  They make such a difference in this climate.  Then there's the fact that most cars don't produce much A/C when they're idling and he sits at a lot of traffic lights.  Even worse, sitting in cab lines means you either go without A/C or you idle.  Friday, the cab he was driving kept overheating so he had to turn the heat on!!!!!!!!  I'm surprised he survived the day!

My back is still causing problems.  I have a very low supply of Soma and we don't seem to be able to get any more.  We've been trying for more than a month.  For some reason the pharmacies at the border seem to be out.  They continue to offer me a substitute that contains both Naproxen and Soma, but I am allergic to Naproxen so that is just worthless to me.  I do have some Flexeril and have resorted to taking that, but I get a terrific drug hangover with Flexeril.  So, I am in a bit of a fog for hours after I wake up--they also put me to sleep. 

I went in to work on Thursday.  Didn't stay long because I was hurting.  One of the things I did while I was there was payroll.  Later in the day I got an e-mail from Matthew telling me I'd forgotten to reimburse two of the guys for expenses incurred on the job.  I have a weird kind of photographic memory.  For some reason, I can recall odd things with a mental picture of the page they're written on.  I got a mental picture of the payroll screen for one of the guys and "watched" as the reimbursement amount popped onto the screen after I input it.  I was so sure I didn't screw that up.  When I got to work Friday morning, I found my "photographic" memory is still functioning fine.  I don't know what Matthew was looking at, but I DID do those reimbursements.  

I brought several things home with me to work on yesterday and today.  I should be busy for hours if I finish all of it.  I also need to spend some time on my desk.  It looks like a hurricane hit it.  Amazing what a mess can be made with both Joe and I piling things on there and me not taking time to clear it off.  There is so much stuff on it, it's hard to find a place to work.  The only clear spot is where Joe sits to eat.  I've got the dining room table all clean and shiny, but for some reason, it's preferable to eat at my desk.

The IRS levied our bank account.  In the "real" world, they didn't get much.  But the truth is that every penny they get already has 3 or 4 names on it.  Names like Nevada Energy, the mortgage company, the car loan folks, etc.  And, then to make it even more pleasant, the bank hits us with a $100 fee for processing the levy.  Well, it was a nasty surprise to us, but the Lord wasn't surprised. 

Joe got paid yesterday.  His paychecks are so small.  We can make the car payment and maybe a utility payment or two, but there's not enough to pay all the utility bills.  The simple fact is that in this weather, if we want to live here, we must pay the power bill.  If I am going to have an online business, it's pretty important to pay the cable bill since that's how my design business functions.  We are watering our yard, but only a teensie bit.  I am concerned that with so little water, the tree roots will come up even higher searching for water.  Oh, well, on the long list of repairs we need to do we'd already have to list  a new sidewalk, so...........  In the past we've watered 3 cycles of 4 minutes each on all 5 stations.  Now we are watering for 5 minutes, 1 cycle.  Less than half of our usual, but the grass and flowers seem to be surviving. 

Our little volunteer palm tree from God seems to be surviving in the front yard where we transplanted it.  Joe was concerned it would die.  I have to admit July in Vegas is NOT the time to plant anything, usually.  And, it's not as though I didn't bug Joe for weeks to move it, weeks when it was cooler which would have increased the likelihood the tree could stay alive.  Nevertheless, it has a new green shoot coming up in the middle which I take to mean it is healthy.  I wasn't too worried.  Somehow I just had faith that since God supplied the tree, somehow it would grow.  And, it has.

While we were in the dead of winter, Joe couldn't wait for it to warm up.  Of course, he lived in California for 30 some years and it doesn't get as cold there as it does here.  Then, as it began to warm up, he just reveled in the warmer temperatures.  I, having lived here for almost 31 years, was well acquainted with the fact that after the 70 and 80 degree spring days, come the 110 degree days of summer.  He is now begging for cooler weather and so is our air conditioner.  When it's 110-114 degrees outside, our poor air conditioner never gets a break.  Hence, the fearsome power bills we get this time of year.  Jennifer's house is SO hot.  She turns the thermostat up to 80 when she leaves, to save on power bills.  But, the a/c seems to just really struggle to bring the temperature down to something livable when they come home.  The front door to her house was hung crooked.  There is a substantial crack between the door and the frame.  Joe put some weather stripping around the door for her Saturday.  By Sunday, part of it was down due to the fact that it stuck fast to the door and pulled loose from the frame when she tried to open her front door.  And that was in spite of the fact that it was even nailed in place.  We'll have to try that again because her front door faces west and no one needs air leakage around their door in the summertime. 

We were remarking how wonderful it would be if she had some ceiling fans in the living room, kitchen, and dining room.  Of course, interior decorators regard ceiling fans as eyesores, but they really are invaluable in this climate.  Even some box fans sitting around would help.  But, her budget is very tight right now so I don't know if she can squeeze out fans or not.  Probably not.

I feel a lot like I am just treading water around here.  I don't feel like I am in control of the house, the design work, the work at my job, etc.  I have so much to do and every hour seems to be spoken for.  It doesn't help that I have to go lie down for an hour here and there throughout the day because of my back.  Nor does it help that bedtime is now 7:30PM.  I'm used to keeping at it for hours past 7:30.  Now all grinds to a screeching halt at such an early hour.  And, now that Joe is on day shift and home for dinner, I have to cook something.  He isn't likely to take kindly to a dinner of Pop Tarts, LOL.  I spent over half an hour boiling, chopping, peeling, and mixing yesterday to make a BIG bowl of macaroni salad.  He will take that in his "lunch" this week which is good, but I really didn't want to spend over half an hour making it.  We did have macaroni salad with our hamburgers for dinner last night.  I have no idea what rabbit I will pull out of my hat for tonight's dinner........

Design

I started a new kit.  It's all pinks and greens, very girly.  It's shaping up nicely.  All the papers are done and I've done quite a few of the elements but there are still more to do.  The color scheme is derived from some photos I took of Elizabeth while I was in Florida.  I'm looking forward to scrapping a photo of her with a kit designed specifically for the photo, with colors drawn from the photo.  Should be pretty.  It sure helps to have a baby girl in the family when it comes to design.  Jennifer has been given many cute outfits for her and there are a lot of potential color schemes in those outfits, LOL. 

I'm not putting out a kit this week.  My design partner has decided she is retiring from designing.  She says she will continue to do some collaborative work with me, but everything will have to be sold in my stores.  One of the good things about collaborative kits is that each designer gets to show off her style, her wares, to the other designer's customers.  To other customers that frequent the other designer's store.  With her "retiring", that benefit will be lost.  Oh, well.  A lot of designers are retiring these days.   I think we can safely say we all love it.  But, it is incredibly time intensive and the earnings are so small.  But, it seems that after a while, folks just burn out on it.  I've watched so many designers "retire".  Some come back after a hiatus.  Others are never heard from again.  Just this morning I was reading that a woman who has been selling for four years at one of the really big name design stores is retiring.  Maybe after 4 years, there just isn't anything new and challenging to do? 

Scrapping

I do have one page this week.  This photo was taken last summer when Jennifer was pregnant with Elizabeth.  It was taken in the backyard at Jason's house by a professional photographer.  Bella Gypsy put out three new kits last week.  I did some other CT type duties for them, but only managed to scrap with one kit. 

 

I'm not thrilled with the page, but the photo is good!  The kit used here is a kit called Swing, Slide, Repeat.  Swing, Slide, Repeat is available at Elemental Scraps.

That's it for today.  My to do list is as long as my arm and I've got to get on it.  Have a great day!

 

Still hurting

I had made a comment to Jennifer that I hadn't seen much of the kids.  She asked me to babysit Tuesday night.  This was before she got sick on Monday.  Anyway, she was completely recovered yesterday and I went over and picked the kids up from Day Care and spent the evening with them while she took care of some things.  It was a hoot.

She had some pork with green tomatillo sauce.  She swore the boys liked it.  But, Grandma screwed up and forgot to mix in some sour cream and cheese.  Apparently, these tone down the spiciness which made the boys decide they weren't all that hungry after all.

I LOVE picking Atticus up from Day Care.  No matter where he is in the room, no matter what he is doing, he comes running and wraps himself around my legs.  It's quite the greeting!  What a sweetie!  On arriving home from day care, Atticus found himself a go-gurt.  He was enjoying that when a big PLOP of it hit the floor.  While I was trying to grab a paper towel to wipe it up, he was down, doggy style, trying to lick it off the floor.  YUCK.  Thank goodness I caught him just in time. 

Not long ago, Will's prized DS was broken.  I'm not sure how it got broken, just that it was broken.  He told me about it and he was very sad.  If I'd had the money, I'd have gone out and bought him another immediately.  But, I didn't have the money.  I did pray about it, however.  Jennifer met up with some guy (I don't know whether she met him or just talked to him, or what).  Anyway this guy is involved with the Boy Scouts.  He told Jennifer they'd given a DS to one of the Boy Scouts as a prize, but they'd ended up with two DS's and only needed one.  He asked if Will would like one.  Ha, ha.  Of course, she said yes and when she arrived home from Georgia, there was one waiting with her mail.  Yesterday when I picked Will up from Day Care, he very proudly showed me that he has two now, one red, one blue.  Apparently there is still some functionality in the old one as he still uses it for some things.  Thanks, Daddy, for sending my precious grandson a new DS.

Bethie was her usual cheerful self last night.  She has quite a number of teeth that have popped through the gums.  She now eats tiny bites of whatever the family is eating.  I gave her 8 tiny bites of meat, about 4 heaping teaspoons of rice and she still ate an entire jar of apples and mangoes baby food.  She is starting to pull herself up on things.  Will was lying in a bean bag chair watching a video most of the evening.  She crawled over to him repeatedly and pulled herself up to hang over the edge of the chair to be with her big brother.  She sure loves him.

Of course, carrying Bethie and that darn car seat around just aggravated the pain in my back so I am really feeling it today.  In fact, any minute now, I'm going to go lie down.  Just an hour, and then I'll put the back brace on and I should be good for 3 or 4 hours after that.  

Design

Well, I'm happy to say I've just added another kit to the stores.  I think it is my all-time favorite so far.  Either it was inspired or the stars all lined up just right or I had supernatural help, but it came together so easily.  And I LOVE the color scheme.  Here's the kit:

 

The elements:

 

The patterned papers:

 

and there are 7 coordinating solids.  I did a page with it.

 

That's my beautiful DD.  It seems I learn something with every kit and I really had fun with this one.  Here's a link to it at my ACOT store:  http://www.acherryontop.com/shop/digital/company/hotflashdesigns  or you can also get it at NDISB:  http://www.ndisb.com/store/index.php?main_page=index&manufacturers_id=38

Well, that's all I have for now.  I need to get that back brace on and get busy.  Have a blessed day!

It's Tuesday, and not one of my better days.  I got an emergency call from Jennifer yesterday around 4:15.  She was sick and needed me to pick up the kids.  She had thrown up twice at work and, as she drove herself home, threw up again.  I immediately got in the van and headed south and east.  By the time I gathered up the kids and loaded them all into the van and drove to her house, it was an hour and 20 minutes later. 

Carrying Bethie in her car seat seems to spell doom for my back.  I actually felt pretty well yesterday.  Then I carried Bethie to the Van and stepped up into the van, bent over, and buckled her in.  Immediately, when I stepped out, my back went into spasm.  Fortunately I had a lower dose Soma in my purse which I swallowed right away.  Then I drove to Jen's house.  Thankfully by that time, the Soma had kicked in.  I managed to get Bethie out of the car and Will and I pulled everyone's bags out of the car. 

At first, coming in from outside, I was delighted at how "cool" her house felt.  It didn't take long until I was dripping wet, though.  I'm pretty sure that for some unknown reason, my blood pressure took a dip.  Anyway, perspiration was dripping off my head and my shirt was quite damp before I left there.  I offered to fix dinner, but the kids weren't ready to eat.  So, mostly I just sat with them and watched a video.  Around 7PM a friend of Jen's came over and she stayed with Jennifer and the kids and I took off, headed for home.  By the time I got home, my hair was still wet although my shirt had dried out somewhat.  She posted on her Facebook that she is still sick, but feeling some better.

Meanwhile, I ended up eating one piece of leftover pizza and headed straight to bed.  I was still an hour late for our new enforced "bedtime".  I took a Flexeril and went to bed.  For whatever reason, though we discussed everything last night, Joe opted not to wake me this morning.  I cannot seem to get through to him that I am trying to reset my body's timeclock and so need to stick to a schedule.  Dealing with him can be so frustrating!

Jennifer is taking us out to dinner this weekend.  I've asked him to please be prepared to install some weather stripping on her front door.  It's on the west side of the house and you can see daylight between the door and its frame.  I know that can't be doing Jennifer's power bill any good.  If I were her, I'd keep the other bedroom doors closed between 12 noon and sundown.  The three side bedrooms are all on the west side of the house and even with the blinds closed, they heat up.  I think she'd save on power if she were able to do that, but it might be difficult with the kids in and out of their rooms once they come home from school/day care.

Design

I have a kit ready to go up in the store, a kit I really love.  However, on taking a closer look yesterday, I decided one element just will not work.  It's a problem with the way it was made.  And to think I paid good money for that.  So, I'm going to have to pull that kit back, change the previews to exclude the element that is not good, and post the kit later.  Yuck.  I'd love to protest to the designer who created the element, but it hardly seems worthwhile.  I tried that with another designer who created a paper overlay that was all chopped up and never even got a response.  Anyway, I'm not a happy camper about that.

Well, my back is talking to me and saying nasty things.  So, I'm going to go lie down for a while.  Hope you have a great day.