Fabric

I was browsing online at one of my favorite stores and came across a few fabrics that piqued my interest. I thought I'd share them with you.

The Onion...

On a recent evening John and I found ourselves engrossed in The Onion website. For those of you who don't know, The Onion is a satirical news source that does not discriminate. While looking at the items that they have available for purchase, we came across a few that were too funny not to share. Hope you find the same humor in them that we did.

Another new project?

It's true...I have another project up my sleeve. This one will have to wait until after parent/teacher conferences, church sign-making, and weekend wedding festivities, but when the time comes, it will be quite the creative undertaking (at least for me, for those of you more experienced at these things, humor me). I will attempt to take the roll of foam you see below and turn it into a bench cushion for the seat by our front door. My dad had this roll of foam lying around his shop, so I thought I would try and put it to use. I will cut three equal sections and glue them one on top of the other using spray adhesive and then hopefully it will create a firm, yet perfectly smooshy, cushion. After the cushion is endorsed by John I will sew it a cover and possibly use buttons to increase the comfort level. I will keep you posted on my progress.

My newest creation...

I finished my first apron today. My grandma guided me through the process, but I manned the machine (almost) the whole time. After I finished the apron I made two placemats out of the flower material to match. No pictures of those, sorry.

A Christmas wish...

This year for Christmas I've decided to request 2 of the bookshelves shown below (only in a dark brown color) and a sideboard to match. It's high time for our front room to look more "put together". The post isn't deep or profound, I just wanted to share it.

Office Humor...

One of the best moments of the season thus far...Enjoy!

Etsy.com

I've discovered a new website recently that is full of handmade items that are really quite exciting. Etsy.com is a site devoted to "buying and selling all things handmade". You can set up your own "store" and sell things if that's your thing, or, like me, you can browse around the stores of others and look for clever and creative items that will either serve as a unique Christmas present (of which I have not found...yet) or buy things for yourself. The areas of interest for me are of course housewares, but other categories have also piqued my interest. It's worth a gander if you believe in helping small businesses blossom.

The Office Season 4 recap...

In case you've been living under a rock these past 3 weeks and have missed the first 3, hour-long episodes of NBC's The Office, these interviews will help catch you up to speed on the storylines so that you can join the party-Thursday nights at 9pm. You won't be disappointed...

http://www.nbc.com/The_Office/video/#mea=160117

Another funny reminder...

...of my worst childhood fear. I believe I've written about this once (or twice) before, but the reminders just don't end. Today at work I received the flyer below. It is from the Kern County Fire Department and requests that all the classrooms in Kern County have their students prepare a fire escape plan. I might just assign it to my students and complete one myself, it may allow me to deal with my repressed fear of losing my home to an all-consuming inferno. (The other funny part about the flyer is that it offers the participants the opportunity to be included in a drawing for a whole-class pizza party...this is funny because Kern County is rather large, with an area larger than that of Connecticut, which means it includes hordes of schools, so the odds of winning a pizza party are rather slim...Knowing this, I am wondering why the creator of the announcement decided to underline the phrase "one classroom". This seems to suggest to me that they want to draw attention to the improbable odds of winning, which in turn would discourage teachers from participating...not very well thought out.)

(Sorry for the crummy picture...I was too lazy to scan the flyer)

We sold the papasan!

Yep, that's right folks, can you believe someone bought that chair for $75! John's dad always likes to tell us that things are only worth what people are willing to pay for them, so...I guess he's right. (And yes Bob, I did put this in print, so there's no denying that I have now confirmed your intelligence.)

Our Sunday...

Today we spent the afternoon and early evening with the Dorises. John and Dana watched baseball while Julie and I baked cookies--2 batches: 1 chocolate chip, the other oatmeal raisin. We also went on a walk with their dogs Kota and Daisy as well as drive to our grandma's house to take care of "Calfey" the orphaned calf. The calf's mother died shortly after it gave birth to "Calfey" and since then none of the other cows have adopted the little one. This means that every night Julie drives to our grandma's to put the calf in a small crate so that the coyotes don't chase and attack her during the night. This is a very real threat as just last week my dad's dogs found a way to attack the calf and ripped off 6 inches of her tail... Below are our adventures in picture review. Enjoy.

Smart Growth...

If you know me, you know that I feel passionate about the kind of development that fills our community. I believe that neighborhoods shouldn't *gasp* have walls around them, I think architecture should distinguish your house, not help it blend in, and I think residential areas should be close enough to retail so that residents can walk to more places than just their mailbox. All of these things promote neighbor collegiality, a healthy lifestyle, and an appreciation for our Creator and his magnificent creation. Obviously the majority would disagree with me, but I stand by my position.

Whatever your stance, the Californian did a feature story today on Tehachapi's new "Smart Growth" plan. It includes: pedestrian friendly neighborhoods (unwalled) and a variety of architecture and public spaces. If this interests you, check the article out here. The picture above is an artist's rendering of the new development. Sounds like "Smart Growth" to me.

A good read...

I just finished reading Rodman Philbrick's Freak the Mighty to my class today. If you are looking for a quick and easy read (I believe it is a 5.4--5th grade, 4th month--reading level), then this book will not disappoint. It is about two preteen boys, both social outliers, who develop a symbiotic friendship. The book is difficult to put down and even more difficult to forget. Each year it quickly becomes my students' favorite book... Check it out for yourself and find out why.

(And yes, in case you are wondering, there is a movie based on the book, which I have not seen, but, in true teacher fashion I would recommend reading the book first and then watching the movie to compare notes).

Indigestion...

In order to pay homage to the story from whence my title comes, I do believe I owe it to my readership to grace my page with at least somewhat frequent tributes to "The Sound of Music"...

Captain von Trapp: Fraulein, is it to be at every meal, or merely at dinnertime, that you intend on leading us all through this rare and wonderful new world of... indigestion?