Under Construction

I don't want to scare you with a photo of my laundry pile

So no photo this post (because Laundry Mountain is all I've got). I think my last post said something about the Olympics being over and my renewed crafting/blogging inspiration. To my credit, I made 10 jars of jam last night (if I photographed all the jam I'd have to rename this blog "the jam blog" so I won't). Tonight I cooked up a double batch of mac and cheese to bribe my way over to hold this snuggly little newborn. I swear, she was the size of a kitten. Did you have any idea newborns were so small? Very small. Very cute.

In other news, the Olympic washcloth is done! I learned how to cast off just in time for the closing ceremonies. I think I may just take up knitting!

Hmmm. That's it. Oh, except that I have a major travel bug and my sister, who works for a travel company and goes on 3 international trips a year, is NOT helping. If you had your choice (and airline prices weren't so crazy), where would you go? I'm thinking Belgium to visit my cousin (don't worry, Kathy, tix are too expensive). Maybe Mexico? Turkey? Most likely my kitchen to do the dishes.

Spring (and my thoughts about animals and where they reside)

These photos are from two weeks ago.  The flowers are long gone.

Sorry to the rest of the Northern Hemisphere--you may still have snow! But in Northern California it's spring for sure. Which is not to say it won't be cold and rainy tomorrow.

My dad is the real flower photographer in the family but the tulip tree in our front yard was sooo pretty this year I had to try.

So, I was reading a blog the other day about a woman who had never seen a squirrel in real life (it was Kirin Notebook, I think).  That seemed hilarious to me as we have many types of squirrels where I live (mostly ground squirrels--none of the fluffy tail East Coast tree squirrels). Anyway, I guess she's Australian and saw the squirrel during a trip to England. Then I wondered if I had ever seen a kangaroo in real life. Maybe at the zoo.  Certainly never in the wild. She probably has kangaroos as backyard pests.

It must be the zoology major in me but I do think/wonder about where critters live. Hedgehogs. We don't have those anywhere in the US (do we?).  Are they somewhere other than the UK?  Europe?

I had a long discussion with an English friend about badgers once and where they live. I believe we determined that they are in the US as well as UK but now I can't recall for sure. 

For a class in college I had to learn to recognize all the (orders? classes?) of native mammals of California by their skulls. There's a skill that HAS NOT come in handy.  I also had to learn to ear tag wild voles (and got bit by a wild vole). Also NOT USEFUL for my current career (I rarely encounter voles in need of identification ;).

You still following this train of thought?

ANYWAY I was thinking it would be fun to post photos of the plants and animals around my neck of the woods. The really boring see 'em every day sorts of plants and animals. If you live somewhere else and do the same, let me know. I'd love to check out your squirrels or kangaroos or hedgehogs or front yard trees. Then this fall maybe we can have an acorn swap. I read about that on a blog once too. Sounded cool to me.

Final (sad) animal factoid: On Wednesday I counted TWENTY dead pigeons (well, gray birds anyway) in about a 2 mile stretch of road.  Why??? There aren't usually any dead birds on this road. Nor do I ever see any gray birds of that size alive. Is it possible a truck full of pigeons was in an accident? Bizarre.   

Do it for the karma

Got a few minutes?  Would you be so lovely as to click on over to the survey I just spent my entire Monday evening on?

Click here for good karma.

If you notice a typo, please keep in mind that Biscuit woke up at 3 a.m. last night and thought it was morning. Very unfortunate.

We're looking for folks who live in the USA and work outside of the home. If this isn't you but you want extra karma, you can send this your friends who are sitting at their desks, bored, wishing you would send
them a joke. Or a survey.

Here's the stuff to paste in an email and send: http://www.eSurveysPro.com/Survey.aspx?id=38e1b6e0-facb-4baf-b9d6-0f10ac6144af

There's also a $10 random prize....

Thanks so much! Tutorials will be yours....as soon as this business plan is submitted.

(In case you care, my friends and I are entering a business plan competition hoping to win start up funds to get this business going.  It's a long shot but we're giving it our best. Or at least our "it's midnight and this needs to be done today" best)

Seven random things

I haven't been tagged but I love reading the "random/weird things" posts on other blogs and I always come up with my own stupid stuff. So now you are subjected to it. Here are 7 weird/random things about me:

1. I refuse to use Starbucks' fancy names for sizes--I order small, medium or (rarely) large
2. I don't like using grocery carts and will stuff a hand basket to ridiculous proportions to avoid them (and I usually make Biscuit walk)
3. I can easily go a whole day without looking in the mirror--makes for some bad hair days
4. I don't care at all about clothes and sometimes wish I had a job where I could wear a uniform--I have a hard time choosing clothes each morning (but I love Project Runway)
5. I have an odd fascination with the "I have a gazillion children" type shows. Like the Duggars or Jon and Kate Plus 8.  I have no desire to have a zillion kids.
6. I step over cracks in the sidewalk with alternating feet (or else I feel off balance somehow). Ok, that one is really weird.
7. I hate when someone "helps" with a project I am working on. Then I feel like I didn't do the whole thing. (Mr. H learned this one early since we met when he was my woodworking teacher

Ok, that was comes across as sort of negative--all stuff I don't like. There is plenty I do like, promise. I'll have to post that another day.

In the meantime, please tell me you're weird about some of these things too...any other Duggar fans out there?  Off balance walkers?  Bad dressers???

I tag all the bloggers I know in real life to do this. Really, I love reading them.

P.S. The photo is of a quickie project I'm working on. My mom did the embroidery!

February 1

Mr. H asked Biscuit what she wanted to get me for my birthday today. She said, "an orange." So I got an orange. Along with some wine, chocolate, brownies, daffodils and an "art project" card. Not a bad haul for someone who didn't ask for anything at all.

Other than feeling slightly sick all day, it's been a nice birthday. Tomorrow we head to San Francisco for a night away (sans Biscuit) courtesy of the in laws.

Also, today started "Thing-a-Day" Lots of people are participating this year. Each day I am drawing a design that could potentially be screen printed (by me) onto fabric to create my own fabric for my projects. I'm not letting the fact that I can't draw stop me (although maybe I should). I'm hoping out of 29 tries I'll get one usable idea--lucky it's leap year.

TGIF to ya!

Tall, cheap and lazy (but not necessarily in that order)

Lazy: Haven't taken the dry cleaning in for weeks
Tall: About 5'9'' (but still the shortest in my family)
Cheap: Recently purchased new (pants) suit on clearance at Ross
Cheap/Lazy: Have never found looked for a tailor in my neighborhood
Lazy: Have never learned to actually do my own tailoring

Problem: I have to wear a suit to a meeting tomorrow
Second Problem: I didn't really think about this until 10 p.m. tonight

Nobody look at my pants under the table.

Announcements

1. Sign ups for "Thing-a-day" end soon.  I signed up. The site seems to imply you need to be an "Artist" but I hope that's not true. We'll see if I stick it out.

2. There's a pillow case challenge going on at Handmade Parade. I started talking smack over on Lauren's blog so now I have to come up with something really spectacular to make with a pillowcase. There's pride on the line (and $50!)

Crud, I forgot the other one. There were three announcements when I thought of this post this morning.  Hmmm...

It's raining here. And I have to go back to work tomorrow. Whine, whine, whine (wine, wine, wine??)

Happy Monday to ya.

onomatopoeia

Totally had to look up the spelling of that word. But you know what it is, right? A word that sounds like what it is (like squeak or drip). I was listening to a program on NPR on the way home about language and how new words are invented. The speaker said that sometimes there is a hole for a word (like what do you call the decade we are currently in?) and there just isn't a word in use yet. Or sometimes a word just catches on and fills a hole in the language, like spam for junk e-mail.

Anyway, it reminded me that I have a word that I think should catch on.

"Bink"

As in, "will you bink the car for me?" or, "do you have the binker for the car?" 

A binker (n) is the device that has a button to push to unlock your car doors. To bink (v) is to use that device to unlock the car doors.

I've been using this term for several years and frequently forget that only Mr. H knows what I'm talking about.  And now there's the confusion that the word sounds like binky so I have to be more careful.

Does anyone have an alternative word for this device? Anyone have any other words they've made up and put into use?

Finally, since we need a photo here, an action shot of the shirts I screenprinted today. Hopefully I'll get better photos tomorrow.

What do you say?

Other than the fact that Biscuit has completely stopped sleeping, things are good here at Casa Haworth. We're tired (well, Biscuit doesn't appear to be tired) but we're good.

All around us things seem to be not so good.

I hope you don't think I'm making light of some really sad situations (I don't intend to) but here's a sampling of the Hallmark cards I could have used this week:

Even though we haven't talked in a decade I was so sorry to hear that your house burned down. I have fond memories of swimming in your pool and throwing spaghetti noodles on your kitchen walls.

I was so sorry to hear about your father; I hope you are able to spend time with him before he slips away.

Glad to hear your baby boy is home from the hospital. My fingers are crossed that he won't need that kidney transplant after all.

I'm so sorry to hear that you'll need surgery; is there anything I can do?

I heard you were in the hospital yesterday. I hope the doctors are able to make a diagnosis before this happens again!

Do they make those Hallmark cards?  Because I am at a total loss as to what to say to any of these friends and family members are are dealing with such tragedies and difficult situations.

Between the lack of sleep (seriously, Biscuit, if you don't sleep tonight I am going to be very disappointed) and useless worrying over things out of my control I've been a bit tired this week. Getting the laundry and dishes done has pretty much been beyond me.  I feel stupid even saying that knowing what people dear to me are going through but there you are.  My life is overwhelming me and I've got absolutely no problems whatsoever.

I'm glad it's almost Friday.  Take care wherever you are.

Sorry, I'm busy

What was that I said about an Etsy shop update after the birthday party?  Hmm, maybe tomorrow. Sorry 'bout that. Been both tuckered out and busy catching up.

In the meantime, a photo for your amusement. She specifically asked for the magazine (it's Parents).