The Nikiverse

T-Rex Trying

2012-02-16T17:52:00.001-05:00

We all know that i am short (5'2"and three quarters), but it has been pointed out that even for my stature i seem to have kinda short arms. Really, my arms aren't that short, i am just super long torsoed (thanks Dad) so both my arms and legs seem proportionally short. Some of my closest friends and colleagues enjoy referencing the tyrannosaurus rex when helping me reach things on high shelves.
Why am i telling you this?
T-Rex Trying is a tumblr account that was brought to my attention last week when we were telling a bunch of science jokes (yes, we are geeks, but it was actually for a project; wait, does that make us bigger geeks?).
It is a series of drawings of a lovable t-rex trying to do ordinary things like jump rope or clean the windshield or use eyedrops.
With my wee little arms it is the funniest thing i have ever seen; i was laughing so hard that a co-worker came from the other side of the room to make sure that i was breathing. There are a few that are sad (trex trying to win an auction breaks my heart) and some that cut waaaaay to close to home (trex trying to get food from a buffet with a sneeze guard; i actually look like that if i want something from the back row - make salad bars only one row people!), but mostly they make me snort with laughter.
Given my penchant for ribbon dancing on the Segway, this is my favorite.

He just looks so befuddled.
I'm keeping an eye on their t-shirts cause i will scoop that up if it ever appears.

life-hungry stupidity

2012-02-14T16:43:00.001-05:00

One of my all time favorite books is Life of Pi by Yann Martel; I read it a few years after it was a best-seller, after all of the hub-bub about it had died down. It is a fabulous tale of faith and survival and tigers. I love it; you should read it if you haven't.
Today i have been pondering existence, survival. Yes, that is a bit deep for the keeper of the sparkle ponies, but we all have our thoughtful sides sometimes. I like Pi's take on it, in this week's quote:

Some of us give up in life with only a resigned sigh. Others fight a little, then lose hope. Still others - and I am one of those - never give up. We fight and fight and fight. We fight no matter the cost of the battle, the loses we take, the improbability of success. We fight to the very end. It's not a question of courage. It's something constitutional, an inability to let go. It may be nothing more than life-hungry stupidity.

the joy of arthropod devastation

2012-02-13T18:35:00.000-05:00

If you are from a coastal state you probably have some sort of relationship with a local shellfish or mollusk that others don't quite understand. Be it lobster boil or oyster shucking or sucking crawfish heads, there are foods that bring us all back to the maritime traditions of our homes. Here in Maryland we eat our blue crabs steamed and covered with Old Bay from a communal pile.

Michelle, Anastasia, Will, Debbie,
Cassie, Sue, John, Reggie, me, Denise

The connection between Marylanders and the blue crab is so strong that when your birthday falls in a non-crab season month (like Cassie and Denise from Objects Found) your friends will still gather in a crowd for crabs.
Yes, they had to be brought in from the Carolinas and yes, they are 5 times more expensive than local crabs in the summer. But the stomach is no different from the heart in that it wants it wants. If a winter baby (or babies) wants crabs for a birthday celebration then by jimminey it is gonna happen.
Picking the meat from these bad boys takes patience and practice, resulting in hours of hanging out with your friends, hands covered in spicy goodness. The crab feast is a time honored tradition here that transcends all socio-economic boundaries. Even in a nice restaurant the crabs are dumped directly onto brown paper covering the table and everyone digs in like primitives, ripping claws and legs and swimmerettes off with their hands.
After knife and mallet, bucket and paper towels, a good time is had by everyone, except, of course, the crabs.

mmmmm... tasty carnage

don't sneak up on me like that!

2012-02-10T18:46:00.000-05:00

Now that the jewelry show is done i can back to doing things like laundry and posting on my blog.
All of the headway i made in December on shortening the queue was blown in January; i mean i haven't even done New Year's Eve yet.
In an effort to be productive this weekend i am sorting picture folders on my camera, computer and thumbs and all of a sudden i am confronted with this:

GREAT GOOGLEY MOOGLEY!
I thought i had deleted every version of that heinous, creepy, nightmare-inducing photo.
What is going on with that middle girl?
What happened to her EYES?
Crap, i am never going to be able to sleep tonite.
So, of course, i thought i'd share.
You're welcome.

ReWearables

2012-02-09T14:27:00.000-05:00

The Soroptomist jewelry show over the weekend at Object Found was an unqualified success for me.
Item 3# on my 40 While I'm 40 list is to create a line of recycled jewelry. To determine the number of pieces necessary to define "a line" i did a lot of sciencey stuff - namely, guessing. I gave myself the following goals:
-20 necklaces
-20 bracelets
-20 rings
-40 pairs of earrings
which seemed easy several months ago when i picked the numbers, but seemed more and more ridiculous as the date approached. I was allowed to use new hardware and findings and new seed beads (often they don't survive through the decades), but everything else on the jewelry -beads, baubles, accents, chains, etc- had to be recycled from vintage or broken pieces. Plus, there could be similar pieces, but no duplicates.
(and this would be why one of my new year's resolutions is to set reasonable goals for myself)
The show opened Saturday at 11am and i had the following stock:
-20 necklaces
-23 bracelets
-17 rings
-53 pairs of earrings
YIPPEE! I made the goals. Yes, i was 3 rings short, but i ran out of ring blanks having experimented with several different adhesives. Plus, since i went over on bracelets and earrings i figured it was okay.
The six jewelry vendors were set up in the antique store amongst everything; it was a tight fit to say the least.
The pictures don't really capture the cuteness of my table (bad lighting), but here you go:

It was important to me to only use repurposed items for display; if the line is about recapturing the beauty of old and broken things it seems silly to have fancy new display pieces.

A pair of candlesticks was saved from my neighbor's spring cleaning and flipped over to hang necklaces.

This lighting fixture was taken out of the upstairs apartment a few months ago and salvaged from the trash. After ripping out the ancient electrical bits, scrubbing it, dremeling holes and applying several layers of glitter spray (cause who can't use a bit of glitter spray now and again?) it made a fabulous earring tree.

Glasses were flipped over to showcase bracelets

and bracelet/earring sets.
(with my own amethyst chunk)

A vintage mirrored kaleidoscope reflected these bracelets while many pieces ended up just draped on the table, which worked out nicely because every time something sold i rearranged.
For some reason there is no picture of the ring bowl with which i was quite pleased; i took a vintage relish dish from my collection (yes, i have a collection of relish dishes; i love them for some reason) and filled it with flat pebbles and clear beads so that the rings could be stuck down in and they would stand upright.
I sold over 20 pieces which may not seem like a lot, but astounded me. Even after contributing 20% to charity, i made enough to pay for all of the supplies i've purchased in the last months leading up to the show. Breaking even on your first try seems like a win to me; selling any of my stock now is pure profit.
I am reconfiguring my Etsy store to include the jewelry. I called the line ReWearables. Someone already owns the website for a used clothing line, so i need to check if the different spelling means that i can trademark it.
I've been asked to participated in the community Spring Fling in May and Reggie -the owner of Objects Found- has already asked me to reserve the first weekend of February for the jewelry show next year.
ahhhhhh... let's call #3 done!

quick hello

2012-02-08T20:04:00.000-05:00

I've been ill since Monday, hence the silence.

The jewelry show went great and i will have stories and pics up in the next few days.
Until then, i plan on sleeping.

On a totally different note, i think the trip to Alaska is back on. It might have been a fever dream, but i feel like Douglas said he isn't starting school until September so we are cruising in May. Just don't tell Fate.

CRAPUARY!!!

2012-02-02T15:35:00.000-05:00

...shaking my fist at the sky

sigh...
This is my desk right now:

Because this is the ceiling over my desk right now:

I can't go home cause i have a performance at 5:30 (for 7 interns; yes, SEVEN), but i can't get anything productive done, either.
I've had an allergy attack cause of the mildew from the leak and had to change my clothes due to an unrelated incident and sat in a meeting about governmental reports about blah blahblah something.
BLECH

don't let the Dark in

2012-01-30T17:58:00.000-05:00

We are at T-minus 4 days until i need to be ready for the set-up at the jewelry show.
Things are moving along nicely in the studio, there is a doable plan in place, ideas about displays are coming together and i am taking the next two days off from work to make the final push.
Yet still i'm scared.

What if i run out of time?
What if i run out of supplies?
What if no one likes my line?
What if i don't sell anything?
What if the other vendors are stand-offish?
What if my stuff looks amateurish next to the professionals?
What if my friends at the store are embarrrassed by me?
What if my jewelry falls apart?

The questions become more and more ridiculous if i let myself dwell on the fear.
I know that it is the process that is important.
I know that taking chances are scary, but that it is better than being stagnant.
I know that to grow as an artist you have to push yourself past your comfort levels.
I know all of the right answers, but still i am scared.

This week's quote is a long one from the Dark is Rising series book Silver on the Tree by Susan Cooper about the folly of allowing fear to overshadow the joy of creation:

"So the Dark did a simple thing, he said. "They showed the maker of the sword his own uncertainty and fear. Fear of having down the wrong thing - fear that having done this one great thing, he would never again be able to accomplish anything of great worth - fear of age, of insufficiency, of unmet promise. All such endless fears, that are the doom of people given the gift of making, and lie always somewhere in their minds. And gradually, he was put into despair. Fear grew in him, and he escaped from it into lethargy - and so hope died, and a terrible paralyzing melancholy took its place."

Not this girl, people.
No paralyzing melancholy for me, no sir.
As a friend once told me, The only difference between a rut and a grave is the depth.
Let's push past the fear and get a move on!

it is hard work to make sparkles

2012-01-29T20:10:00.000-05:00

I am clavicle deep in getting ready for my first jewelry show next weekend.
It is already on your calender, right?
Well, just in case:
The Annual Soroptomist Jewelry Show
at Objects Found
Saturday, February 4th, 11-7
Sunday, February 5th, 11-4
818 Frederick Rd, Catonsville
I am one of six jewelry vendors who are participating; 20% of our sales will go to charity.
Come see me.
Anyhoo, i've converted the dining room portion of the great room into the jewelry studio. I was describing the setup to Rea and she requested some pictures; I think she is more than a bit incredulous of my descriptions of the organization since my studio often looks like raccoons are squatting there. (fTN Rob once declared that raccoons are the hobos of the animal kingdom)
So while i take a break from working in the studio, let's take a look, shall we?

beads, board and tools on the dining room table

metal, chains, spacers and hardware at my left hand

random bits and ring tops right behind me

findings, large tools and Santa at the end of the table

pieces drying in the kitchen after cleaning

Now who wants to bet that this stuff is still nicely laid out like this 2 months after the show?
:-)

Quick Quotes 7

2012-01-29T18:33:00.000-05:00

Sitting at my desk when co-worker Jami walks up with a pan flute she had just made from straws and tongue depressors asking, Can you listen to me play this and tell me if it is anywhere close to being a real scale? I can't hear the difference in tones.
TM Chris calls out, Do you want my phone? There is a tuner app on it that i use to tune my ukulele.
What about that situation isn't ridiculous?
It's my real life every day, people.

you can have my money cause i'm not going in there

2012-01-28T18:15:00.000-05:00

Diving into the Chesapeake Bay in January is crazy.
Insane.
Reckless.
Possibly even a little bit dumb.
But the Maryland State Police sponsors a very popular and well attended Polar Bear Plunge every year and i can support doing ridiculous things for charity.
Don't get me wrong, i'm not gonna get into that water even if it IS a La Nina winter; however, i will gladly send them my monthly charity budget for January. Especially since the money goes to Maryland Special Olympics.

Plunge on Polar Bears; plunge on.

mental morsel #3

2012-01-28T17:48:00.000-05:00

How's your Egyptian mythology?
I have always loved all things Ancient Egypt and for one year (4th grade) wanted to be an archaeologist so i really like historical fiction set in Ancient Egypt or golden age of archeology (turn of the 20th century). I've been enjoying that Egyptian mythology is popping up in literature more and more.
Recently i read a four book series by R.L LaFevers about the 11 year old daughter of archaeologists who could see curses -her name is Theodosia Throckmorthon; isn't that the best name ever?- that was a fun read; however, it highlighted a mythology question that has been picking gently at my brain.
You see, i'm used to the evil God of Chaos (embodied by a serpent) being Apophis. I've read it in books -both fiction and non-fiction-, seen it in movies, heck, it was even in Stargate SG-1 (Col O'Neil would not lie to me, people).
Apophis. Got it.
Then last year, i saw the name Apep for the God of Chaos. No big. Egyptian religion wasn't static and there were a lot of changes over 3000 years, so i didn't think that much about it.
Then i saw Apep again in a different book, with no mention of Apophis.
hmmmmmmm...
Maybe there was more than one God of Chaos.
Maybe it was a male and a female deity.
Maybe i'd just ignore it.
Along comes little Miss Theodosia and the book is all Apep this and Apep that so i finally needed an answer to my question. After much research (well over 12 minutes), here you go, people:
Apep was indeed the Egyptian God of Chaos, but the Greek spelling and pronunciation is Apophis. The first was more widely used because we of western civilization take many of our cues from the Greeks, but the original Apep is now being used more often as it is closer to the original Egyptian. Also, it can be spelled several different ways.

phew... now i can sleep at night...

You may now continue with your day.

sock monkey saturday

2012-01-25T16:52:00.001-05:00

note - listen, Rea, there are no real monkeys anywhere in this post. there is a vaguely creepy guy-in-a-sock-monkey suit, but no actual monkeys. i promise.

The American Visionary Arts Museum was sponsoring a class on making sock monkeys and co-worker Lydia asked if i wanted to go.
Even though we all know about my questionable sewing skills, it was a new thing so i said yes. In my mind i imagined 1 or 2 of AVAM's classrooms in their out building with some folks working away diligently to make wee monkeys as an instructor explained the steps.
Man, was i wrong.
What i didn't know is that Sock Monkey Saturday is a THING; i mean, a big thing. The entire top floor of the revamped warehouse was full of tables and tables of people.

Patterns were on the tables and step-by-step directions were being played on various screens around the room. You had to bring your own socks and scissors, but everything else was supplied at stations around the room.

Lydia and i found a table against a wall, went to get needles, thread and stuffing and got started.

We figured out the first few steps, but the directions were woefully lacking. Luckily, "Monkey Helpers" were wandering around to help out. Lydia and i both had to rip some seams and start over, but on the second try everything went fine.
A family joined us about an hour into the adventure so our table was soon a clutter of monkey guts and string and bits of fabric.

It was so much fun.

The room was full and buzzing with energy of families and friends all working on the same project. It was great to see so many dads sewing away with their kids, as well as lots of teens, 20's, and 30's who were there without kids. It had a fabulous feeling of creativity and community.

There was a huge hanging photo frame where you could have your picture taken with your finished monkey and even a giant sock monkey character walking around.

The time went really fast and by the end of the event Lydia and i had both only finished the body and legs of our respective monkeys.

We agreed to finish them at home and bring them to work on Monday to show each other.

The purple and burgundy striped socks that i was working with were the ones i had worn to the Mars300 concert; i'd bought them intentionally, knowing that i was going to sock monkey saturday and planned on turning them into a concert keepsake.

It really wasn't hard to make the monkey once you understood the pattern, but those knit knee highs took forever to stitch and stuff. One of the volunteer Monkey Helpers had shown us a cool trick to wire the tail, so i was able to give him a jaunty corkscrew.

Once my monkey was really taking shape i added sparkley blue buttons for eyes (like mine, but a little darker). At the concert i bought a keychain with the band's triad symbol on it and turned it into a necklace for my monkey. I also made him a charm bracelet with Mars300 on it (metal stamping with inking). The date of the concert i intended to stitch on like a tattoo, but it looked horrendous, so i redid it with beading.

Finally, i decided to wire his arms and legs so that i could get him to sit upright next to the stereo.

Ta-da! A project, a keepsake and a new thing.

Lydia reported that her monkey took even longer to finish because she was using pink heart tubesocks,

so they just kept stretching as she stuffed it. In the end, hers ended up with the longest limbs i have ever seen, but with the heart shaped accents she added, it really gave him character.

Sock Monkey Saturday has apparently been going on for a decade. I highly suggest that you go next year because it was a hoot and a half!

Zhu-tastic

2012-01-24T14:46:00.001-05:00

Mayhaps you've been subjected to my current agonizing over getting a pet.
I miss having an animal, but am never home.
I am going back and forth between a hamster and a corn snake.
The debate has been going on for months and thanks to my mom it can continue to rage for a bit longer as she got me

a ZhuZhu pet.
A ZhuZh pet with a pink mohawk.
Her name is Roxie.

Now, you need to understand that my mom did not know that i have been considering getting a hamster. Also, she had no idea what ZhuZhu pets were. She walks the aisles of the Walgreen's or CVS the way that i do and one day she saw these little toys on sale. Apparently when my mom sees a mechanical hamster with a pink mohawk, she thinks of me.
Really.
I was delighted, of course, but getting Roxie was only half of the fun.

Mom admitted that she had gotten another mohawked ZhuZhu named Pax for one of my nephews, but then decided to keep it for herself.
So at 11:30 one night me and my 76 year old mommy are on the floor of her apartment playing with mechanical hamsters,

which is a perfect illustration of why i am the way i am.

mmmmmm... dragon pie

2012-01-23T18:12:00.000-05:00

Today is both National Pie Day and the Chinese New Year.
2012 is the Year of the Dragon so i suggest celebrating by procuring some high quality dragon meat from your local butcher and baking up a savory pot pie.
And inviting me over to share, of course.

Tot Down, Tot Down!

2012-01-20T23:25:00.002-05:00

Getting into the van at the Sonic i saw this one lone tot abandoned in the rain, cheese clinging helplessly to it.
sniff...
that's so sad

stretching

2012-01-20T18:25:00.001-05:00

I just finished my first card commission.
The owner of the antique store where i used to work wanted custom cards so i had to make 25 cards in a particular color palette, that included the logo of the store.
It was an interesting exercise in finding a balance between uniformity and creativity.

my favorite price is free

2012-01-19T13:55:00.001-05:00

Perhaps you know that i am trying to wear every piece of jewelry that i own in a year; if it doesn't get worn i don't get to keep it. Now that we're over halfway through the challenge you might be wondering how i am keeping track; that would be my memory. Yes, MY memory.
Needless to say a new system was called for, especially for my earrings. You see i've been keeping the earrings on my vanity for the last mumbley-mumble years. I had a great idea of how i wanted to organize and display them, but just hadn't gotten around to doing it. So last week when i went to try to figure out which pairs i still needed to match to an outfit i was confronted with this:

AAAAAUUUUUUGGGGHHHHHHHH!
That is a dog-gone disgrace.
When i did my practice earrings last month i fibered up an empty frame to display them and decided that i liked the idea so much that i'd try it for my room.

This frame was saved from a trash can.
Yep, it's a dumpster find and has been sitting on the sun porch for three years.

I cleaned it up and installed a picture hanger on the back.
(yes, my awesome ratcheting screwdriver is purple)

I already have a necklace holder over my vanity that my parents made for me a jillion years ago that i love, so i picked heavy fiber in purple and white to match it,

used the existing staples to wrap them and then trimmed and sealed the ends with my favorite adhesive.

The earrings are easy to access
and it looks pretty good, too.

is that crooked?

[BTW, there are only 32 pairs of earrings that i haven't worn yet and now that i can see them, i think that 5 or 6 might not make the cut]

National Popcorn Day

2012-01-19T09:37:00.000-05:00

Corn is delicious.
Corn is delicious in every form: plain, creamed, on-the-cob, roasted, corn muffins, spoon pudding, corn salsa and, of course, Fritos.
But let's not forget

pic from betterbagofgroceries.com

POPPED!
Enjoy National Popcorn Day with a handful of buttered, salted, white cheddar, kettle or caramel.

Casa Momma

2012-01-16T07:57:00.000-05:00

My Virginia siblings haven't had a chance to visit our mom's new apartment yet, so let's take a quick tour together, shall we?
The four-floor apartment building is set back into the woods at the top of a hill. Deer come to visit every day between 3:00 and 5:00pm. Past the hanging swings at the front door, there is a lovely lobby with couches and chairs where residents tend to hang out, as well as a common room, kitchen, piano room/library and game/fitness room all on the first floor. Everything was decorated to the teeth for Christmas, yet somehow it didn't occur to me to take pictures.
Mom's second floor apartment has an entrance hall with a huge coat/storage closet on the left and the kitchen on the right (even she has a bigger kitchen then me!)

with an awesome pass-through
to a small dining area.
Kris and Mom found this great little table and chairs that matches the china hutch at a thrift store.
The open living room is a nice size

with a sliding glass door to the world's tiniest balcony overlooking the courtyard.

All of the furniture has been taken in for the winter, but normally there are picnic tables and a covered glider and a big grill out for the residents to use.

The bedroom is in the back and is large enough not only for the bed (Kris also found the headboard at the furniture thrift place) and mom's tall shelves, but for a sitting area as well with her favorite chair and a television. (not pictured)

The bathroom is huge (i think the linen closet is as big as my whole bathroom) and Mom decorated it in a beachy theme to bring some of Florida with her.

Thanks for visiting; drive safe.

2011 book review

2012-01-15T13:31:00.000-05:00

There was a lot less reading in the Nikiverse this year as there was distinctly a lot more doing.
I was shocked when i counted and had only read 68 books last year; 10 of those were rereads.
The genre breakdown is pretty much what you would expect from me:
Mystery/Action - 28
SF/F - 30
YA - 28
Non-fiction - 3
Short Story collections - 1
Graphic Novels - 3
new series started - 9
Here are 3 recommendations and 1 warning:
Totally Worth the Wait: The release of Jim Butcher's next Dresden File book was pushed back, twice. It felt like forever and ever and ever, but he said on his blog that he didn't want to release something half-assed when with a few more months of work it could be whole-assed. And he was so right. Ghost Story was not only worth the wait, but took Harry Dresden and his universe of unusual characters is a direction i could never, ever have anticipated. Well Done!
Totally NOT Worth the Wait: What happened Charlaine Harris? I've been enjoying the Sookie Stackhouse novels quite a bit, even as they go further and further afield, but Dead Reckoning was just painfully mediocre. I guess i can give you a pass on this one since the odds are in your favor. Better luck next time.
So Fun on So Many Levels: Jasper Fford's Thursday Next series has something for everybody: mystery, romance, literary allusions, puns, farce and fun with grammar.
Something Actually Different in YA: If you read enough books in any genre you start to feel like you've seen every theme, every outcome, every scenario; Garth Nix's Keys to the Kingdom series, starting with Mister Monday was a treat of variety. Yes, there is a parallel world and yes, only our hero can access it and yes, he has to find strength in himself that he didn't know he had, but the trappings of the world were really different, making use of color and time and the Seven Deadly Sins. Plus the ending was not what i expected, which is always a plus.

Christmas in Ohio redux

2012-01-12T19:34:00.001-05:00

With mom moving to Ohio, i headed north for the holidays.
She and i hosted Christmas dinner at her new apartment so i still got to cook, but my sister's family came over as well.

Larry, Kris, Matt, Mom, Niki

I love that you can tell how happy the group is to be together because if you look closely you'll see everyone has their arm around or their hand on someone else. :-)
Though that is the "good" shot of us (Matt's friend Jessie came over for dinner, too and he took all the family pics), i love the one below cause i wonder what my nephew and mom are saying to each other at that moment:

Kris and i figured that this is probably the first Christmas we've spent together since about 1987; she is a decade older than me so was married, had kids and moved away before i graduated from high school. It was great to have some sister time; we even went after-Christmas-sale shopping on Boxing Day.

I also got to see my BFF Rea on Boxing Day where i gave her matching earrings to a pair i made for myself and she gave me not only more homemade jellies (huckleberry and lilac!) but some homemade vanilla.

It was a different holiday than what i am used to, but it was relaxing and joyful - not to mention there was a DVD of a fireplace playing all day, which makes me immensely happy.

mental morsel #2

2012-01-11T08:23:00.000-05:00

Last night i was combing through my commonplace book to do the annual reading review post this week and out fell the bottom of a benadryl box with the word circumbendibus scrawled on it.
CIRCUMBENDIBUS
Say it out load.
You can't tell me that word doesn't sound totally made up and if I -who bends the english language to suit my needs daily- think it sounds ridiculous, that's saying something.
Just from the roots you can figure out that it had something to do with going around something or, you know, bending something.
CIRCUMBENDIBUS
I seem to recall that i ran across it in the book The Anubis Gates.
Originating in the late 1600s, it means a roundabout way.
Try to use it in a sentence today, even though i bet you will have to fashion a circumbendibus sentence to make it fit.

ps- spellcheck totally thinks that i made that word up; i didn't, really

back to what we consider normal

2012-01-11T08:11:00.000-05:00

Back to work this week.
I love my job, but 5:45 on Monday morning came as a horrible, horrible shock to my system.
I could be very happy taking another 18 days off (or more), but yesterday afternoon after my third meeting in 2 days it occurred to me that i really wanted to blow something up; in fact i think i said, I want to set something on fire out loud. In my office that isn't cause for dialling 911, but rather Lt Com Laura replied sympathetically, You have the 12 O'Clock Shock on Thursday; you can set as many things on fire as you want.
:-)
Today i am doing training in the morning, but i have a show in the afternoon. It has been almost a month since i stood on stage and i am sitting here full of joy because i am counting the minutes.
This week's quote from Terry Pratchett's Discworld book, The Light Fantastic captures the balance i try to strike between loving my job and loving the adventures when i am off:

"The important thing about having lots of things to remember is that you've got to go somewhere afterwards where you can remember them, you see? You've got to stop. You haven't really been anywhere until you've got back home."

Christmas Lights Gone Wild

2012-01-10T19:28:00.000-05:00

One of the things on my Local See and Do list are the Christmas lights on 34th St in Hamden. It is unbelievable that i've never been to see them, as i love, love christmas lights and all things odd.
This year, after our 5th annual Elf Night at the Salvation Army, co-workers Jami and Will took me to experience the insanity. I feel like i need to let the pictures do the talking.

looking down the block

one side of the street

and the other

There's traditional mixed with salutes to Maryland and Baltimore.

Jami can join the holy family in the Robot Nativity while Will in his elf ears gets cozy with a random Christmas palm tree.

At the pet shelter house you can buy treats for humans and pets along with hot chocolate to sip while you explore the wide world of winter sculptures made from recycled things:

including this awesome Crab Sleigh and the infamous hubcap tree, along with the slightly less-well-known vinyl album tree

and Natty Boh angel tree
Some houses had so much going on
that you had to walk up onto the porch to get the full effect:

there were things in every window
or else!
It really embraces the full-on quirkiness of this town and has to be seen to be believed!

it's new year's miracle

2012-01-08T16:33:00.001-05:00

Stop the presses, people!
I actually have my New Year's cards made and mailed in the first week of January.
Normally, about now, i might have a design in mind or mayhaps even be prototyping.
But this year, i'm DONE.
{okay, technically i still have to write inside the ones i am taking to work, but that's on the agenda for tonite}
Thanks to that extra day off, courtesy of my awesome team, i was able to really bust them out over a 3 day period.
The magic number this year was 75 and since i am neck deep in getting ready for the jewelry show I deliberately made the design a little easier to execute this year. It isn't completely stripped down like 2007, but it certainly isn't the double-sided, hand-painted odyssey of 2010 either. A lot of the visual interest was done with cutting; once it was designed i could set up an assembly line and get busy with my table top rotary cutter. There was a beaded element that took a bit of time, but i checked Season Three of Castle out from the library and did an 11 episode marathon to get it done.

NEXT!

Mars300

2012-01-07T16:26:00.002-05:00

The first part of this adventure can be found here.

Have you ever tried to run in a floor-length lace and sequin gypsy skirt that is soaking wet?
I wouldn't recommend it.
I swear that my skirt had the same specific gravity as galena as i pounded up the rather creepy side stairs of the Hammerstein Ballroom to the second mezzanine, but by jiminey i was on a mission.
I bought the tickets right when they went on sale so i could have gotten floor seats, but when you are 5'2 and three-quarters there is no point of being on the floor unless you are guaranteed to be in the front row, so i went with the balcony knowing that i'd be able to see even if i didn't get to the very front.
But, i did indeed get to the very front.
In fact, i could have had front and center, but i chose to go front and slightly stage left because that was where the drum set was and we all know that i have a deep and abiding love for all things percussive.
Then, it was time to wait.
The ushers wouldn't let us stand at the railing until show time so i sat in my seat and waited.
And waited.
Lordy, time was moving slowly.
Look, the ceiling is cool:

sigh... too dark to read my book...
waiting...
Talking to the sisters next to me that had been standing in the rain for 13 hours; feel a smidge guilty that i only stood in the rain for 2 hours and have the same seat.
Do i hear music?

my view, without zoom :-)

The big screens over the stage start playing 30 Seconds to Mars videos.
The crowd goes bonkers.
It is still nowhere near show time, but using videos to fluff the crowd is brilliant. I've never seen a band use their own music for the pre-show wait, but now i wonder why everyone doesn't do it because the atmosphere in the ballroom was crackling electricity.
Final sound check; I enjoy that the techs can just ignore the blaring videos.
waiting...
Video screens cut off mid-song, lights go out and IT IS TIME -
...for the opening band.
sigh...
I understand the point of having an opening band, but i swear that 8 times out of 10 it is just a disappointment. And this opening band... i'm not even sure if they were one of the 8 or one of the 2. In fact, their whole set made me feel like i was really drunk. Semi Precious Weapons are a New York band that put a lot of energy into showmanship. The frontman was a charismatic freak (i mean that as a compliment) that got the front of the crowd really riled up, but up on the balcony i was contemplating their lyrics, such as Put a diamond on it and bite down or the classic She wants free booze, no rules and you. They were really something and I was certainly entertained, but i'm not sure it was in the way SPW intended.
Finally, finally, finally 30 Seconds to Mars took the stage.
They were amazing.
I described Muse as more than epic and U2 as a spectacle. 30STM had all of the flash and lights and lasers and sound and giant inflatables of an epic spectacle,

but the whole show felt much more intimate.
It had something to do with the size of the ballroom, but it really came from how the band interacted with the crowd. This was the last big concert of a 2 year tour and they held nothing back. The crowd, in turn, projected raw energy back to them. It was unlike any other concert experience i've ever had.
The frontman, Jared, talked to the crowd throughout the show and i could see the guitarist, Tomo, and the drummer, Shannon, interacting with the people on their sides of the room between songs.

Plus, since this was a world record breaking show (more about that later) it was being streamed via VyRT so Jared would interact with people all around the world while telling us what they were saying.

It felt like a huge house party with a much better band than you could ever actually get for a house party.
In the rush to get ready i'd left my earplugs in Baltimore and was pleasantly surprised that except for when the opening band was playing i didn't miss them. It was actually appropriately loud with the sound fully filling the room, instead of needlessly ear-splitting and generally the sound engineer did a nice job (i would have mixed Jared's mike louder, but then again i am never really happy unless i am running sound myself).
Like any good play list there was a good mix of super-high energy songs and quieter moments,

like when Shannon came out from behind the drums to play a Tibetan singing bowl (really) and guitar for a song he wrote from the last album

or when Jared showed up all the way at the back of the audience on a tiny stage next to the sound board to do several acoustic songs; basically he was right below me and about 20 feet to my right. Again, the music was fantastic, but what really struck me was the genuine emotion filling the room. He talked about how this was the last time he would get to do this for who knows how long and sang his heart out on about 4 songs, taking requests from the crowd.
Partway through his acoustic version, i saw Tomo and Shannon come back to the main stage (even with Jared 20 feet away, my eyes naturally look toward the drums; i think it might be a clinical condition) and launch into the full band version

at which point Jared stepped onto the security barrier for the tiny stage and indicated for the crowd to part between him and the main stage. They did and he leaped down to the floor, running through the crowd, singing. It took me completely by surprise; i have never seen anything so insane. The crowd let him get part way before they started to close in and he almost made it to the stage before they gobbled him up like an amoeba.

He's almost to the stage

Holy crap, where's Jared?

Security managed to dig him out -still singing, by the way- and bodily threw him over the security barrier onto the catwalk. I enjoy a wee touch of insanity in my frontmen.

At this point in the post i'd insert a video snippet of them nailing my favorite song of theirs, Closer to the Edge, but i was dancing so hard by that point in the show that i kinda flailed my camera into a metal pole and she was understandably a bit persnickety after that so i thought better of trying to shoot video. [note: the link on the song title is a performance video of it, so you can kinda get the idea]
Before the concert it would be fair to say that Shannon Leto was my drummer crush. His self taught playing style delights me to no end when in song after song he makes awesome choices that no classically trained drummer would even consider; he embraces full tonality like a rock drummer, but is more polyphonic and rhythmic like a jazz drummer. [if i just lost you, i mean that he is really different from other drummers, but very good] Now that i've seen him play live i think that he might be my one true drummer love. I can't imagine ever finding another drummer that i'd rather watch play. I won't subject you to a song by song analysis, but trust me, i could.

that is a bitchin' kit

intense much?

Almost at the end of the concert a gentleman in a suit from Guinness World Records took the stage.

At some point someone counted up the shows that 30STM had played on this tour and realized that with just a few more it would be a world record. Hence the shows added in New York even though the last leg of the scheduled tour was in Europe.

Here, rather out of focus (my wee pink camera was throwing a full on fit at this point about how i treat her), is Tomo, Jared and Shannon receiving the certification of playing the most number shows for a rock band on the same album cycle, which is why the whole weeks events were called Mars300. [i think the final official number was 309 shows in something like 745 days]

The set list was mostly from the last album This is War and the hits from the previous A Beautiful Lie, but one of my favorite parts of the show was when the band pulled out some earlier songs. Jared called for requests and they'd just play bits and pieces of songs. Tomo talked to Jared with his guitar, playing riffs from various things to suggest what he wanted to play next, some of which elicited an Are you kidding? or I don't think the bass player knows that one. My favorite reaction to a suggestion was Jared looking hard at Tomo and saying Okay, let's at least try to get through the chorus. It seemed like the band was making every second that they had left on stage count; they were having as much fun -if not more- as the crowd.
I don't have any pictures of the last part of the concert where Jared pulled a 5 year old from the crowd and talked to her like there weren't thousands of other people present -it was adorable- or the very last song where about 60 or 70 people from the crowd were on stage singing and dancing with the band.

Or when Jared stopped the song in the middle and called for medics because someone was hurt in the pit. Yep, he just stopped singing. I know from being on stage on a much, much smaller scale that when you are really on an adrenaline high from a great show it is hard to see around you so i am frankly shocked that he even noticed that there was a problem. Not only did he notice, but he took action. MTV News (an oxymoron if there ever was one) reported that a woman had been trampled, but in fact she slipped while dancing [a girl that had come from New Zealand for the concert was next to me at the merch stand later and had been standing next to her when she went down]. The band handled it really well, giving us updates about what was happening and telling us not to leave. Once the medics took her out took cheering from the crowd, the band started right back into the song. Awesome.
To finish out the whole reckless-at-a-rock-show experience i decided to find the stage door and wait for the band. Though i did meet Nickel Creek after their show it was pretty much by a coincidence; i've never intentionally tried to wait for some one famous and thought that it would be a fun new thing.
Did i mention that it was raining?
And really cold?
Getting colder by the moment?
But by jiminey when i make up my mind there is a deep streak of stubbornness to back it up.
I didn't risk the camera in the rain to take pictures of the other few brave/crazy bedraggled souls waiting along with me next to a block-long line of full garbage dumpsters.
The bad news is that 30STM does their Gold Ticket meet-and-greets after the concert instead of before like other bands, so they were occupied inside for over 2 more hours while we were outside in the rain. The good news is that it was so cold, so wet and so late that there were only about 20 of us outside of the stage door when Shannon and Tomo came out.

It was obviously too nasty for autographs and pictures, but Shannon came over to talk to us quickly while Tomo loaded up the taxi. He was honestly incredulous, What are you guys still doing out here? It's freezing. You need to go home and get warm; take care of yourselves.
So i caught a taxi back to the hotel (much easier at 2am), took a hot, hot bath and went to bed; then back to the train station in the morning to get back to work in the afternoon (which in the spirit of full disclosure i admit that i skipped any way).
I loves me a good adventure and good music.

i'm in the yellow oval

regional delights

2012-01-06T22:05:00.000-05:00

One thing i love about traveling is finding wee tidbits that are specific to the region that you are visiting.
At a Sheetz in western PA i went to buy a Diet Coke and found this:

mmmmm...moon-misterrific

DIET FAYGO MOON MIST?

I have never heard of such a thing, but every molecule of my thirsty, tired body said, Yes, please.

needle-phobia? Not here.

2012-01-06T21:50:00.000-05:00

In 2011 i set a goal for myself that i would achieve maximum blood donation at the Red Cross.
You can donate every 58 days, which means that i would need to donate six times in a year.
I was restricted from donating for almost a year because of being sick, so in my head i told myself that if i hit maximum donation it would mean that i was truly well again.
I did it, baby!
This week was my sixth donation in 12 months.
I think we can call that fear of needles that i used to have gone, gone, gone.
And, i think that we can call me no longer endocrinely challenged.
And, i believe that i owe myself 10 shiny Gold Stars.
Now, i just have to keep it up since maximum blood donation is on my 40 while I'm 40 list, as well.
Have you given blood lately? It's a new year; Donate Life, people.

(graphic from Oregon Pacific Chapter website)

seeing my own city

2012-01-06T12:53:00.000-05:00

When i go to a conference i love to take some time exploring the host city, but when it was my own city there just wasn't a lot of spare time. However, at lunch one day i did take a few moments to shoot some of the art conveniently located in the rooftop garden where i was eating:

As i shot that last picture i heard trumpet music drifting up from the street.
I didn't think that i had ever seen a street musician any place besides the Inner Harbor, but then it occurred to me that i am hardly ever any place in the city besides the Inner Harbor.

Not all public art is a joy, of course.
In the lobby of the conference is this travesty:

Man, i really, really don't like these creepy "real life" pieces at all.
{Do you remember when i found the courtyard of unholy, green children?}
Sometimes i still dream about them.

To make up for that icky statue i walked out onto Pratt St to cleanse my palate with one of my favorite piece of public art in Baltimore:

This big sail is supercool because it is kinetic; the wind spins it slowly. In fact, you have to really watch carefully sometimes to see it move at all.

Love it.

as if i couldn't love my team more

2012-01-05T20:41:00.000-05:00

Right before i left for work for the holiday, i rearranged the schedule so that i could take 2 full weeks (plus 1 day) off. But, there was a show on Friday (tomorrow) that i had to perform because there weren't enough people trained for the bookings. Today i called TM Joey to find out what time we needed to leave for the show tomorrow and he was all, What show? You're not on a show tomorrow. Katie learned that show. In my notes, you are off tomorrow.
?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!
That's right, people; the team got the shows covered and i don't have to go to work until Monday.
That will make 18 days off in a row!
It is the longest i have been out of the office since, well, ever.
sigh... i love my team
Thanks to whomever had the idea, anyone who helped with training and to TM Katie for learning the only show that can actually kill the performer if you screw up.

Here's to 2012!

2012-01-03T20:04:00.000-05:00

2011 was hectic and challenging, but overall i consider it a good year.

As far as last year's resolutions, i did pretty well:
1. Make volunteering a priority - did a bunch of information gathering and legwork, but not a lot of actual volunteering; this will remain the first priority for this year
2. Be pro-active, but patient about my health - i feel really good about not only my health, but my attitude about it; i'd call this one done
3. Establish and invigorate new and old relationships - yep
4. Write in my journal at least once a week - 39 out of 52 weeks, which is 75%

For this year's resolutions, i didn't do anything quantitative as i am still working on the 40 While I'm 40 List which is filled with quantitative goals, but instead went all qualitative with attitudes i need to make priorities:
Niki's Resolutions for 2012
1. Make volunteering a way of life
2. Treat time as a valuable resource
3. Set reasonable goals for myself
4. Live, instead of exist

Let's start out this year with a quote filled with anticipation from Jonathan Auxier's super-fun adventure book about a child thief who is blind, Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes:

The start of any journey - whether pilgrimage or promenade - is one of life's true joys. Every moment is charged with an excitement about things to come. Obstacles and complications are seen not as discouragement, but as seasoning that improves the flavor of one's adventures.

love this crazy life

2012-01-01T10:13:00.000-05:00

If i make a plan i normally stick with it.
That is, i stick with it unless life steps in with other ideas.
I'd decided to stay in all weekend, get a bunch of cleaning and designing and blogging done and have a quiet new year's. I made a blood donating appointment for January 1st since the Red Cross does Baby Brigade drives on holidays and set up a massage for Monday.
Good plan.
Then, at 11am yesterday, i got a text requesting my presence for a New Year's celebration with fTM Matt and his lovely wife, Sara.
In Pittsburgh.
For you non-East Coasters, that's about 4.5 hours away from Baltimore.
I admit that there was raging internal debate.
For about 3 minutes.
Two hours to shower, dress, pack, change my appointments, get gas and hit the road.
I assume all of the things waiting for me at home will get done.
Eventually.

Happy 2012!

return from the arctic

2011-12-30T12:59:00.000-05:00

Okay, i wasn't in the Arctic, just Ohio.
There are Christmas pictures and my mom's new apartment to come, as well as my goal to pare down the queue by the end of the weekend.
Hope you all had a nice holiday and are looking forward to fabulous New Year's plans.

Turkey Hill experience

2011-12-20T19:58:00.000-05:00

One of the very best things that happened in 2011 is that fTM Matt and his lovely wife Sara returned to the East Coast.

Yippeeeeeee!

The first thing we did together after they arrived waaaaaaay back in August was visit the newly opened Turkey Hill experience in Lancaster, PA. For those of you not from around these parts, Turkey Hill is a dairy that makes wonderful, wonderful ice cream. They also make fabulous flavored teas and have their own min-marts.

Matt and i tried to visit the dairy a while back, but they didn't have factory tours. ...so sad...

But as soon as i read that they had opened an off-site visitor center, i texted Matt and we made a pact to go once he was in the correct timezone.

Any place that has a giant cow overlooking a giant container of ice cream outside of the front door has got to be good, right?

Let us in!

please show some restraint

Built in an awesome old brick factory, the museum portion of the experience was upstairs. After some history of Turkey Hill and some biology of dairy cows [with Matt and Sara saying we have some of them and some of them and a calf of that... remember, Sara was raised on a dairy farm in PA] we got to the entrance

First up was the tea room where we learned all about brewing tea, different types of tea and why the machinery used in a dairy is well suited to be modified for making and bottling iced tea.
There was a fun interactive to find out what type of tea would be your favorite based on your personality; no lie, it picked the correct tea for all three of us.
Then there was the tea tasting area; you could try every single variety of their iced teas. It was fun to taste flavors that i would never normally buy.

The best place in the tea room, though, was the chill zone. Painted sky blue, there were cloud screens on the ceiling projecting a short film about Turkey Hill tea that you had to lay on your back on squishy beanbags to watch.

Very relaxing.

Onto the ice cream discovery section we go -

right through a giant ice cream container.

This was an amazing exhibit.

Working in a museum i really pay attention to signage and flow-through and line facilitation and on-floor staff - probably more than your average guest.

I was impressed.
There was a ton of information, but all sorts of interactives as well.

First you have to make sure the milk is safe to process so we learned about microbes, both good and bad,

and then played a game to destroy the bad bacteria while cultivated the good.

After turning the milk to basic ice cream, there was a fabulous interactive on how to mix flavors. At these columns, you could emboss scents onto a card, mixing them in different ways to find ones that you liked.

Then it was time to make your own imaginary ice cream at a bank of computer terminals. Our tickets had an activation code so that once you were happy with your flavor and named it, the computer remembered it for the next station. Matt tried to recreate something like a flavor called Moose Moss that he'd had in Canada, Sara went with a coconut and pretzel mix (i think) called Quirky Lou and i created Nikilicious.

On to mixing, with a giant walk-through Disco Blender and i really hard game about the precision it takes to mix industrial amounts of various flavors.

Time to create the packaging for our ice cream. Again, you just entered your code and up popped all sorts of designs that you could use. I'd never thought about how big the picture should be on the box or whether to have it in a bowl or on a cone. Very enlightening.

mmmmm... looks delicious
i'd buy it

As we waited in line for the last station - making a commercial for your product - i noticed a monkey sitting way up on a display. Why in the world would there be a monkey in a place all about cows?

A staff member told us that the managers place the monkey in a different place every day and the employees have to find it during the shift; so, basically all museum people are weird, not just me.

Once you were done with your commercial, there was a tasting area. they didn't have all of the flavors that Turkey Hill makes, but they had several that you could try.
There were also some mechanical cows to practice milking that were an engineering feat. Matt and Sara were both impressed that you had to use the correct finger rolling motion; I was just impressed that i managed to get it right.

Finally it was time to go downstairs to the gift shop and creamery for some treats!

All of the things that you did in the exhibit were put on a website and the address was mailed to you, which is how i have all of my Nikilicious stuff. Unfortunately, they only keep it posted for a certain amount of time, so when i went to pull Matt and Sara's things, they were gone.
But, because you've waited so patiently, here is me interviewing a cow - my hat was making me insane throughout the shoot, but you only got one take.

If you ever find yourself with a free afternoon in Lancaster, i highly recommend the Turkey Hill Experience.

it just feels reckless

2011-12-20T18:19:00.000-05:00

Two weeks ago i went to Manhattan for a concert in the middle of the week.
Just left work and went to play for 36 hours.
Yep, i'm a rebel.
There were several new things on this little excursion, starting with the insanity of taking a trip in the middle of a work week. Who is this responsibility dodger and what is she doing sleeping in my skin? Plus, i've never gone out of town for a concert (Northern Virginia doesn't count, people; it's still in the Balto-Wash Metroplex), i stayed in Times Square for the first time and this is the first time i've taken the train. [okay, sidebar: i did take the train to MA for Kurt's funeral, but all i remember from the trip is my dad walking me to the station and meeting an older lady on the train who said the most shockingly rude thing that i have ever heard; since i don't remember the train or the stations, i'm calling this a new experience]
Let me share just a few words about the train - love it! It wasn't too busy, the stations were cool, security took 5 minutes, the seats are huge, there's electrical outlets and WiFi and a snack car and the constant clackety-clackety-clack of the wheels. Plus, no traffic. I really, really loved traveling by Amtrak both ways and hope to do it more often.
I stayed in an old timey hotel called the St. James with a gorgeous lobby, rickety wooden elevator that i think Mr Otis installed himself and real room keys on brass fobs that you left at the front desk. It was charming, though definitely the smallest room for the largest price i've ever paid.
I had a co-worker take me to the train station directly from work and was in my hotel room by 10pm.
In the morning after not setting my alarm clock (on a Wednesday, people - a Wednesday) i asked the front desk where i should go for breakfast and they sent me to Junior's on Broadway.

It was lovely to eat my pancakes and eggs leisurely, sipping tea and trying the apple and raisin compote that came as a side dish, while watching the world hustle by on the way to work or shopping or whatever.. In fact, it was such a relaxing meal that i stopped next door at the bakery and bought muffins and croissants to take back to the front desk staff as a thank you for suggesting it.

I had intended to do something touristy like the Observation Deck at the Empire State Building during the afternoon (somehow i have never done that; crazy, right?), but this photo of Times Square sums up the weather for the whole trip:

blech, with a capital BLE

It was cold and rainy and foggy. I generally like to enjoy my adventures and I knew it would be a long night, so instead i spent the afternoon in my wee hotel room lounging on the bed, reading a book (did i mention that it was a Wednesday? it is simply reckless to lounge in another state on a Wednesday). At lunch time I brought back food from the deli next door and lounged some more.
Around 3:00 i showered and got dressed for the 30 Seconds to Mars world record concert. It was at the Manhattan Center about 14 blocks away so i went outside to catch a taxi.
Ever tried to get a taxi in the rain at 4:00 in the afternoon in New York?
Don't.
It was full-on raining and the temperature was dropping by the moment so i kept walking thinking that i'd find a taxi somewhere along the way. BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
By the time i started seeing available taxis i was only 4 blocks away; after 10 blocks of slogging through a jillion people and puddles i was drenched so it seemed pointless to catch a cab. Thank goodness that i threw my umbrella into my bag at the last minute while packing.
I arrived 2 hours before the doors opened and in the pouring rain the line was already 3 blocks long.
Really.
I queued up and balanced my umbrella to read the book i brought along. I really wish i had a picture of me in the midst of hundreds of wet people, holding my umbrella in one hand and Love in the Time of Cholera in the other as i tried to read by the light of a streetlamp.
It was a different experience to be sure.

Eventually the doors opened and the line started moving slowly toward the Hammerstein Ballroom entrance. We weren't allowed to take our umbrellas in, so there were hundreds of them abandoned along the wall; it would have been a fabulous picture, but there was no time to pause as it was general admission seating and being short means you have to run for the front.

to be continued...

i want a punkin pyramid

2011-12-20T17:55:00.000-05:00

So the weather has been really odd the last few months, right?
It snowed before Halloween and it was in the 60's in December.
But it has meant that we've been able to adventure during lunch longer into the school year than normal.
A few weeks ago TM Joey and I were in a more rural part of Maryland and as we passed an orchard stand i spotted a big pumpkin pyramid set off on the side of the road.

That was certainly cause for a U-turn, which i did while shrieking Punkins! Punkin Pyramid! because it was December and you don't expect to see pumpkins in December and it is a well known fact that i loves me some punkins.

Meanwhile Joey is like Wait... what are you talking about?

When we pulled into the parking lot of the Catoctin Mountain Orchard i was besides myself with joy and he was giving me a strange look; How did you even SEE this from the other side of the highway?
To which i could only answer How did you NOT see it?

i am on tiptoes trying to be as tall as a cheeky anthropomorphic apple;
there are so many things wrong with that

Farmer Joey

Farmer Crazy-Eyes Gonna-Kill-You

educational flip signs; YES!

though even the signs couldn't make me understand this concrete cup tree

some questions have no answers

2011-12-19T19:21:00.000-05:00

I understand that footprints in the sidewalk are from when the concrete was still wet.
I understand that there are different types of cement and concrete.
I understand that sometimes you might patch the sidewalk.
What i don't understand is this

It is a perfect footprint in the sidewalk of a different type of concrete that is perfectly flush with the rest of the cement, as opposed to a raised patch.
Why?
How?
And most importantly, what about my brain constantly causes me to notice things like this?

i heart girl geeks

2011-12-19T19:14:00.000-05:00

How many of you read Cake Wrecks?
Hilarious, right?
I enjoy it, but i really love the author's personal blog, Epbot.
Jen is a full-on girl geek.
I appreciate her humor and that she loves so many things that i love, too. I've gotten a ton of ideas from her; some day i hope to turn my smashed penny collection into super-neato jewelry. That's right, not only does she collect smashed pennies, but she makes her own jewelry.
Sound like anyone you know?
Anyhoo, she and her husband John -who appears regularly on both blogs- went on a book tour for the Cake Wrecks holiday book and the third stop was about 15 minutes from my house and conveniently on a weekend so i was able to go.
As is my way, i went early cause being short means that you need to be in the front if you are gonna see a dang thing. I scored a seat in the front row. SWEET!
As soon as they arrived, Jen and John were just as laid back and personable as they seem in cyberspace. They bring their own gear and set up themselves to alleviate any last minute kerfluffles with using other people's sound systems.

well, technically Jen waits

while John sets up

There was a pre-show pre-show, then a pre-show, then the show with both of them talking about some of their favorite wrecks and writing the blog and writing the book and being on a book tour and whatever seemed to occur to them.

It was entertaining, yet comfortable. Jen and John took questions and spent a long time with the audience. Before the actual book signing, though there was a contest for the best cupcake version of a cake wreck that audience members had made.

his shirt is Boba Fetch; really

Plus, there was a Charm City Cake done as a wreck of Jen (i didn't get a pic before it was cut); that is the head sitting on the table in front of John.

As we went through the book signing line we were given a piece of it; yes, it was delicious.

I didn't have a book for her to sign -cleaning out my book shelves is on the 40 While I'm 40 list after all- so she signed on of the Epbot pins that they had made for the tour; i've turned into a fridge magnet.
Since she does steampunk crafting i gifted her some antique Victorian lace that i've hand-dyed for my own crafting purposes (like the pin and hair clip that i am wearing).

It is great when the people you want to meet are as nice in real life as you hope they are.

practice makes perfect

2011-12-19T18:30:00.002-05:00

With less than two months until my first jewelry show i have been cranking out designs, but haven't spent nearly enough time improving my wire work. It looks easy, but it is a mother trying to get every little loop the same size and shape. This weekend i took some pretty lampwork glass beads and made 45 pairs of earrings for the practice.
Yes, i did say 45.
Yes, that is a heck of a lot of wire work.
I couldn't feel the end of my left thumb and the nail was wrecked, but i feel more confident.
Of course, i now have 45 new pairs of earrings, of which i really would only choose to keep about 5 for myself. So then i thought to myself, Self, you should take those to work and sell them for $5 a pair; they'd make excellent last minute presents.
Indeed.
Then i had to figure out how to transport them and display them. I went with a vintage frame that was in my studio wrapped in fuzzy white fiber so that the hooks wouldn't slip.
Not only did i get practice in wiring, but now i have a good idea about how much time it takes to make certain pieces, a new idea for display and an idea of spacing so i can adjust my stock goals for the show accordingly.
I consider it 24 hours well spent.

ps - if you see anything you like, it's $5 a pair and i'd be happy to mail them to you. ;-)

Hail (a really big) Mary

2011-12-19T12:48:00.000-05:00

If you've ever been on the Delaware Memorial Bridge between New Jersey and Delaware, you've probably noticed this large statue of Mary.

TM Joey and I were at one of my favorite schools in northern DE so during lunch we went on a quest to find her; basically we found her from the highway and just drove around neighborhoods until we found the church where she lives, Holy Spirit Catholic Church in New Castle.
From the road you can't tell how she was fabricated, but up close you can see the thousands of sheets of stainless steel welded together; it is truly amazing. Because of the spot welding technique, there are nooks and crannies where people leave rosaries and medals and prayer requests:

Named Our Lady Queen of Peace, the Delaware statue is one of a series done by sculptor Charles Parks and was dedicated in 2007.

From the road you can tell she is large, but like many giant sculptures you can't really appreciate her size until you stand right next to her.
At over 33 feet, Mary dwarfs everything around her, including TM Joey.

jewelry roundup 4

2011-12-17T18:48:00.000-05:00

I get a great deal of satisfaction from matching my jewelry to some tiny detail in my outfit that most people wouldn't even notice.

After buying a new shade of nail polish (bought on sale with a coupon, making the bottle 88 cents) i realized that i had an enamel tulip pin was the exact same shade. I found it years ago for a dollar, but had never worn because it was an odd off-pink. I can't imagine anyone noticed since they were on different sides of my body, but it made me giggle inside all day.

While this clip earring that i slipped onto the band of a side ponytail is almost the exact pattern as the post earrings i'm wearing (you can almost see it in the picture).
Both were randomly found in the 25 pound box of junk jewelry, making the whole ensemble about 15 cents.
Love it.

This leaf pin has rare red AB crystals that makes it kinda hard to match to an outfit, so i tossed it onto the top of a side braid with my uniform. Anything can go with khaki (perhaps the only saving grace for khaki; i hate khaki).

One of my favorite pins is this heavy deco-inspired deal from the mid 80's.
It is a rather bold statement and I found an onxy ring that perfectly matches. It is really different from my normal girly choices, but i have loved it since i saw it for the first time a jillion years ago when i was a mallrat.

As the days get shorter i like to sport traditionally springish or summery pieces to chase away the cold; these clip earring have a lot going on with painted leaves, cut crystals and plastic flowers.

This pin was one of my mom's favorites in the 80's and i love feeling like she is with me when i wear it. Being so large and dangly you really have to find the right placement for it and i thought holding a traditional twist bun together highlighted it nicely.

In fact, buns that are well pinned make the perfect platform for larger, more ornate pins that could overwhelm a blouse, like this cool pearl and white circle that is a new $3 acquisition from the local thrift store.

Meanwhile a delicate wire and pink crystal pin is a better for this messy side knot.

Colored cut crystals make me so happy;

they make every day feel special and sparkly so this flame shaped single clip earring got tucked among the twists of some whimsy hair when i performed three shows for a state engineering group.

Speaking of sparkles, these flaring clips were the very first vintage pieces that i ever owned with AB crystals. I inherited them, along with a fabulous matching pin, from my great-aunts.
They are just a touch of color that match any outfit.
I made the snowman earrings from a kit to practice eyehook loops.

They are getting a lot of wear right now; here they make an appearance at my work holiday party with another inherited piece. This pin that my mom chose for me after her mother died amazes me with its needlepoint flower.
How was this even manufactured?

Looking through the pictures for this post i also realized that with the imminent holiday not only are the snowmen showing up often, so is this bulky red sweater. However, this day instead of going with a big brooch on the collar, i went with a tiny initial pin tacking down the color and this crazy necklace that i got at a flea market like 14 years ago when the uniform at work was red. I've never seen anything like its coils, beads and tiny gold drops.
Awesome.

tree swing

2011-12-17T14:57:00.002-05:00

This note appeared on the front door to my house recently:

A tree swing you say?
No one in the house ever uses the back yard because... well, i'm not actually sure why. Directly behind the house is a circular drive and parking, then there is a garage/storage thing, but we do have open grass behind that. It is completely ignored by the residents, though.
Let's go see what upstairs neighbor Scott has done, shall we?

yippee! As promised, a spanking new tree swing hanging from the huge tree right outside of my sunroom.

And it has been hand-painted.

Of course it was 40 degrees out, the sun was setting and i was wearing a skirt so i didn't give the swing a test ride, but some day soon i shall take it for a spin.

It is the little details like this that make a house a home.
How awesome is it that Scott just did this and invited us all to share in his joy?

perhaps a new tradition

2011-12-16T19:57:00.000-05:00

For the third or fourth year in a row (getting old is heck on the memory, people) I went over to fTM Karen's house to help decorate their Christmas tree.
This year, though, there was a new twist.
As we were finishing hanging the last ornaments, Karen pulled out some plain clear and frosted glass balls along with paint and glitter pens

and suggested that i make an ornament of my own for their tree.
She figured that i might want something of mine on the tree.
...sniffle... isn't that the sweetest thing you ever heard?
After dinner i got to work on the Niki ornament and asked if anyone else was going to make one, so Karen and her MIL Nancy joined in the painting fun.

Karen went traditional with her name, date and holly leaves. Nancy did multicolored swirls to capitalize on being able to see through the ball to the designs on the other side. Mine has free-form gold lines with red and glitter spots running around it and a striped cap.

As we found spots for them on the tree Karen said I think we should do this every year.
I heartily agree.

i will plan accordingly

2011-12-15T23:24:00.000-05:00

Doesn't it seem like the days get shorter this time of year?
I mean, i know that technically the days are shorter cause of the lack of sunlight, but i mean that it seems like somehow we actually have less time in each day.
There is so much to get done, but i want to be sure to enjoy each day as well so this week's quote is from our old friend, Ben Franklin:

Dost thou love life?
Then do not squander time, for that is the stuff life is made of.

I will attend to my tasks at hand, but be sure to sleep and have fun as well; i consider being joyful a great use of my time.

the evil genius of Swiss Colony

2011-12-15T22:26:00.000-05:00

Every holiday season i have shared with you here in the Nikiverse my unrestrained joy at receiving a package from Swiss Colony that has been sent by my brother.
I can't even reasonably explain why tiny tortes and cheeses and sausages and chocolates in red and green boxes fill me with such delight. I mean these are things that we would never normally even eat at any other time of the year.
I remember looking through the catalog as a child dreaming that some day, some how, someone just might send me a holiday tower.
Crazy, right?
Today when i got home today from my massage there at my door was a telltale green and red box.
YIPPEE!
Once again, my big bro has not failed me - the Swiss Colony treats have arrived!
Little did i know that he outdid himself this year.
First up - solid chocolate penguin Santas:

Okay, i acknowledge they they look more like chicken Santas, but i can support that, too.

Then i open the box with a label that reads label Reindeer Tower.
Being familiar with their holiday towers i figured it would be a fun assortment with pictures of reindeers on the boxes. Maybe even goodies in reindeer tins. Perhaps regular boxes, but with a solid chocolate reindeer on top.

Not even close.

I could never ever ever have expected this:

It is a fricking tower shaped like a reindeer.
Do you see the wistful expression?
And the half-cocked smile?
And his pom-pom nose?
And the Christmas lights twirled around his antlers, for pity's sake?
It is so adorable that it makes my spleen hurt a little bit.

And know what?

Each piece of him is a box filled with goodies.
His head has candy pretzels,
his body has carmel toffe crunch,
and even the wee little present in his paws has chocolates in it.

I'm telling you, the designers at Swiss Colony are evil geniuses.

I heartily thank David Jon for sending their diabolical goodness to my home.

Well-Being Massage Studio

2011-12-15T21:16:00.000-05:00

In my unending quest to do new things every month, i used a Living Social deal to get a 90 minute hot stone massage today at a studio in Columbia, by the Mall.
It was different from any other massage with stones that i've had before because at various points there were stones under me, over me, on me and even between my toeses. Plus they were really hot, which is a good thing for me cause i love the heat.
The very beginning of the appointment was a bit rocky because i realized that the therapist was a guy. It is funny how it never occurred to me that it might be a dude cause every massage i have ever has was by a woman. I mean, it never crossed my mind, so imagine my surprise when Yuri introduced himself. There was about 5 minutes of internal freaking out (hello? mostly naked here with some dude i don't know touching me), but of course it was totally fine in the end. He was completely professional and once that first stone came in contact with my skin i couldn't have cared less it the therapist was male, female or tentacled alien.
This was also super different for what i am used to because his specialty is deep tissue massage. I asked for medium pressure and in hindsight i can't begin to imagine what hard pressure would have felt like because this guy really dug into those muscles. Tension didn't stand a chance with Yuri on the case because by jiminey he was going to knead those knots into submission.
His style was much more brisk and forceful than my beloved massage therapist Lynn's, but it was a valuable experience. I can report that there are definitely no tension spots in any of my muscles (i'm pretty sure Yuri wouldn't have let me leave if there were).
They have really good introductory massage rates and comparably priced normal rates which you can find here.
I still recommend Massage Associates above everyone else, but this is a good deal and a great technique if you like hot stones.

please fasten your seatbelts

2011-12-14T20:18:00.001-05:00

You know how i like declaring my intentions for accountability.
I have until my birthday to get my blog totally caught-up -per the 40 While I'm 40 list- but i want to get it done sooner.
There are over 20 posts in the queue and i want to get at least 15 of them done by new year's.
That's right, people; I have no idea how i am going to get that done either since i see new things that i want to share every day. Plus while i am at my mom's new place for the holiday i won't have internet access.
Sooooo, i am going to try to double and triple post on the days when i can to get this puppy done.
Keep an eye out, cause coming up there will be giant cows, airplanes, New York, Guinness World Records, 30 Seconds to Mars, punkin pyramids, local lights, Pearl Harbor, a tree swing, public art, jewelry, more jewelry, pulling pearls from oysters, Christmas ornaments, Hawaiian blow holes, sock monkeys, geeky field trips, a book signing, and sunset over the North Shore.
Wish me luck.

thursday addition: i totally forgot to mention the domino topple!

i can't tear my eyes away

2011-12-14T17:53:00.001-05:00

I've spent the last two days at a leadership seminar.
It has been uber-informative and i'm glad that i went, but there was one problem:
the carpet-

sometimes my eye would wander from the speaker to the floor and i would be mesmerized by the pattern and color.
The phrase that echoed over and over in my head was nauseous eyeballs.
I'd want to look away, but i couldn't.
This little picture doesn't do it justice; imagine a whole conference room of this pattern wall to wall.
It was like a textile nightmare come to life.

nauseous eyeballs...

nauseous eyeballs...

i don't know if it is art...

2011-12-14T17:17:00.000-05:00

but i know that it is something intentional:

Obviously the first cups were litter, but at some point people began to carefully place their trash to create... something; the stacking and balancing continues under the phone as well.
I really wonder what people were thinking as they added each cup and how long this installation has been growing.

back to class

2011-12-12T15:07:00.000-05:00

One of my 40 While I'm 40 is to take a class at the community college and since another one is to make a line of recycled jewelry, i signed up for a 4 week beading class. It was the first time i've been in a formal classroom in almost 15 years and it was an interesting experience.
Now that i teach classroom programs, it is hard to sit there being the student without considering how i would be teaching the subject. My instructor knew her material, but didn't seem to have much of a plan. The quality of the sessions was vastly different between the 4 weeks.
I went in with 3 specific learning goals in mind and through a lot of questioning (yes, i am THAT kid in class)was able to accomplish all of them.
Here is a quick break-down of the beading we learned, with my projects:

- first we learned about tools and findings so i made these straight blue glass hooks to go with my uniform and these straight hematite and purple hooks;

- next up was chain work where we had to create hanging bead hooks to attach to a bracelet; i of, course, went with uniform colors and made matching earrings;

- crimping is a way to secure beads to wire and i did both a long necklace and a set of reverse drop earrings;

- these are jointed for extra movement;

- lastly, we touched on spiraling and wire work; i had time to finish a set of uniform colored earrings and this drop pendant that i am still searching for the correct chain to finish.

It was a worthwhile experience and i feel much more prepared to create my jewelry line.
Plus, that is another thing checked off of the list!

The garland fairy came

2011-12-09T15:51:00.000-05:00

...but i don't think it was one of her better days.

the flag pole outside of the museum;
no one knows why this is here

yuck? maybe? i don't know

2011-12-04T15:12:00.000-05:00

Driving through a picturesque little town in western Maryland TM Joey and i saw a sign outside of a local eatery that took us aback. We couldn't stop to get a picture so i don't have proof that it exists, but we both agree that we saw it.
Can anyone tell me what slippery ham pot pie could possibly mean?
Please?
It's haunting my dreams now.

The education department gets a new pet

2011-12-03T09:47:00.000-05:00

One day in the office Lt Com Laura was working at her desk...

ummmmm...Laura?
you might want to look behind you

What the...?
There's a giant airborne shark in my cubie!

Luckily, we discovered that he is a good, kind, giant airborne shark.

I'm gonna love him and hug him and call him Bruce

In fact, he is a classy guy who prefers white bow ties when not swimming through the lobby high over the visitor's heads:

Would you care for a cuppa?

best.quote.ever.

2011-12-02T22:48:00.001-05:00

Do you get fan mail at your job?
I do.
Honestly, i think everyone should.
Imagine how much happier the world would be if people got hand-written notes that said things like, Thanks for delivering that letter to me, Way to design that kickin' website, Tax accountants rock my world, Nobody rings up my Twinkies better than you, or Yes, i DID want fries with that - you're like a mind reader, thanks.
On the team we call fan mail "love letters" and this week i received a packet of amazing letters and drawings from a fifth grade class. The last few years i have been despairing that spelling, grammar, punctuation and handwriting do not seem to be taught at all in schools any more so i was delighted that these were legible, understandable and even articulate. Plus there were fabulous drawings of explosions (it was after a chemistry show).
There were great quotes about wanting to be a scientist and how much fun the show was and how we showed them that "science isn't just boring stuff" (yikes; you know a piece of the teacher's heart died when she read that one) but about halfway through the pile i came across the quote that is so hyperbolic, so freaking fabulous that the Asst Dir of Guest Services thinks that we should put it on t-shirt:
...that was the best hour of school that has been or will be at {school name}.
You wonder why i chose to work a job with terrible hours and crappy pay - THAT's why.

the last day of Movember

2011-11-30T17:24:00.000-05:00

Do we all know how much i hate facial hair?
I despise it.
There are some ethnicities and cultures where facial hair looks good on a man, but pretty much anyone with European genetic stock should just not bother, in my opinion, unless he is actually a Viking. And i really, really hate it when a guy tries to grow facial hair to look older cause you know what, you look like a young guy trying to look older - stop it.
Which is why it might shock some to know that i supported both male members of my team growing 'staches for Movember. If you haven't heard of it, in Movember, men grow mustaches to raise money and awareness for men's health issues, like prostate cancer. How can i not support prostate cancer awareness, even if it makes me cringe when i look at them?
However, i am very glad that tomorrow is shaving day because not only did my two do it, but two other members of the Education Department grew mustaches along with them. shudder
For more information, to make a donation or simply to laugh at them, you can find TM Chris' team under TSP and Friends.

Dole Plantation

2011-11-27T13:19:00.000-05:00

[NOTE: these pics were taken in 2010]
When i was in Hawaii i had a few days to do non-work related things. A friend had been to Oahu a few years earlier and told me that one of her favorite places was the Dole Plantation so after the canoe surfing adventure i set out with my trusty map towards the North Shore.

it looks like botanical fire

As one might expect the grounds were breath-takingly beautiful, featuring this awesome pointy plant that i had never seen before,

and, of course, pineapples. In fact, there were so many fruit bearing plants that in the parking lot i chuckled to find this sign:

There are a number of things to explore at the plantation - store, restaurant, gardens, world's largest pineapple maze, train ride - but i arrived only two hours before they closed so i had to make a strategic plan to see as much as possible.

If you know me at all i bet that you can guess that my number one option was the train tour; i don't know what it is about little trains, but i LOVE them.

The Pineapple Express took us on a narrated tour through the pineapple fields and grounds of the Plantation:

hello wooden cutout of a worker

hello lychee trees

hello gorgeous red soil

Did you know that pineapples grew on the ground?
Cause i thought that they grew on trees.
Nope.

They grow on short ground plants that are individually hand seeded,

then hand picked and put on one of these conveyors to be transported to shipping.

The train did a turn around in a beautifully cultivated garden where various shrubs grew in the shape of pineapples.

Also, it took us by a lovely reservoir with mountains in the distance.

hello cool looking machine that i have no idea what you do

The train tracks went right in among the plants, sometimes so close that you could reach out and touch them.

There were lots of crops besides pineapples, like the lychee trees pictured earlier, macadamia nut trees and row after row of birds of paradise.

Right by the train station is the variety garden where you can see the different types of pineapples.
Heck, i didn't even know that there were different types of pineapples.

lordy, isn't it adorable

this pink guy is so big it fell over;
no, i have no idea what variety it is

I made a stop at the nearby pond where i encountered tourist fish:

These koi are so forceful about being fed by humans that they actually come out of the water.
Yikes.

I decided it was time to hit the store which was quite randomly surrounded by peacocks and peahens.
I don't really think peacock when i think Hawaii, but okay.
After some shopping and wandering i worked up the courage to try the house specialty, a type of soft-serve called Pineapple Whip even though i am no big fan of pineapple:

if only they had these dishes i definitely would have bought a set

It was surprisingly delicious.
Here i am enjoying my cone next to a perfect little pineapple.

i'm Pineapple Pete

and whatever the female version of Pineapple Pete is called

almost five thousand miles away from home

[look Rea: one of the fabled last five Hawaii posts]

mmmmmm... turkey

2011-11-25T21:01:00.000-05:00

Since all of my relatives live in other states, i tend to borrow families for holidays. Here is the motley assortment of characters at Kate and Jason's yesterday:

Babysitter Nicole (she didn't have time to go home for the holiday, plus it was her birthday so she hung out with us), J's mom Bebe, K's mom Cass, Jason, K's Aunt Felicia, J's stepdad Marty, grinning idiot, Dash - Kate is taking the picture.
I look like a hyena in the picture cause i was trying to get Dash to turn around to the camera.

silly monkey

He, however, had more important things on his mind, like how to get both tubes of food into his mouth at once.

I am so grateful to have another family when mine is so far away.

Happy Thanksgiving!

2011-11-24T08:55:00.000-05:00

Despair not for what you lack,
Rejoice instead for what you've been given.

is this a sign of the apocalypse?

2011-11-23T20:49:00.000-05:00

Yes, that is a cat eating a Dorito.
I am housesitting tonight for fTM Erin and Bria stuck her head into the bag while i was snacking. I figured she might sniff one or maybe lick at the cheese powder, but she ate it.
Ate it.
That is not natural, people.

an anniversary of sorts

2011-11-22T11:47:00.001-05:00

A year ago i was in cascading endocrine crisis.
My own body was trying to kill me.
Did i mention that it was not a lot of fun?
But here we are with me healthy and happy and as sparkly/ornery as ever.
Thank God.
I met with a personal trainer last night for the first time to begin rebuilding my fitness routine. We were talking about how disheartening it could be to have to redo all of the hard work i already did a few years ago; to have to start over from scratch.
But i find myself less bothered by it than you might think. Results should be faster this time because i have prior knowledge, plus i don't have any other choice. This is where life has brought me and until someone figures out quantum dimensions, our time stream only flows in one direction.
This week's quote is from Garth Nix's Superior Saturday:

"In general, one cannot go back. But in going forward, you may achieve some of what you desired of the past. If you survive, anything may happen."

drinking alone

2011-11-20T07:52:00.000-05:00

You've been performing on a stage that was approximately the temperature of the surface if the Sun.
You're crazy dehydrated.
You've blown your voice.
Your vocal cords feel like they are on fire.
You need cold, refreshing liquid and you need it now.
There is no time for some namby-pamby glass.

Living alone means no one is gonna judge you for this.

Of course, it also means that there is no one to appreciate that you match your crazy straws to your beverage.

south mountain creamery

2011-11-19T11:27:00.000-05:00

If you ever happen to be out cruising around the back roads of Frederick County, MD and suddenly on every side of the road there are delivery trucks painted with cows and as cows, you've probably stumbled upon South Mountain Creamery.

This place is legend on the team because it is from here that TM Sam's family gets their milk, yogurt and ice cream delivered. Did you know that in this day and age you can still even get milk delivered to your house?
Sam and I were out driving during lunch one day when she said, Turn here; i think South Mountain is somewhere down there.
We drove and drove, the cow trucks telling us that we were getting close. Finally we spotted it and stopped for a little snack. The tiny store not only has their products, but other local goods as well. I bought some pickles and homemade pumpkin spice granola. And, of course, some ice cream.
The best part is that the store is right next to the milking barn so as you enjoy your Golden Roof (their version of Tin Roof) and Apple Pie ice creams you can sit and talk to the cows.

Thank you #316; your milk made delicious ice cream.

powerlessness

2011-11-18T09:57:00.000-05:00

I've lost my voice.
Me without my voice is like moni cheese without any cheese.
Asking me not to talk is like asking me not to breathe.
I even talk to myself, for goodness sakes.
Obviously my job revolves around my voice (luckily i don't have any shows today), but so does my personality. I am the person who always says Hello, How are you?, Have a nice day, Thank you, etc. I think it is important to be polite, but also to be personable; it is the tiny interactions that we have with the people around us that build the foundations of relationships. I just heard someone sneeze on the other side of the room and started to call out Bless You automatically and only stopped because the first syllable hurt my throat.
This is ridiculous, people.
My voice is one of my defining characteristics; without it i feel lost and awkward.
Plus, there is a tiny irrational fear way in the back of my mind whispering, What if it never comes back? What if you are mute forever? What in the world would i do, people?
I have to be at work today because there is a ton of things on my desk so i came prepared:

Not only can i try to act like myself, i can let people know why i am acting so strangely. Plus it is important that no one tries to talk to me; i may not be able to not talk back. I'm gonna need all the help i can get to make it through the day in silence.

Dusenberg's

2011-11-17T05:53:00.002-05:00

Some days are just a zombie apocalypse and a girl has to take herself out to lunch to keep from going insane.
On days like that i like to treat myself to trying new places.

I've driven by Dusenberg's in Catonsville a jillion times, but never eaten there,(mayhaps because until recently they only had breakfast and lunch hours) but on this particular day i decided that it was time to see what was what at this local eatery.

I knew i had made the right decision when i saw fresh, seasonal flowers on the table.

I really love that.

The scuttlebutt on this place is all about the sandwiches, so i went with a hot roast beef with melted havarti on rye and wasabi sauce. Keeping with the new feeling of the outing i opted to try their green bean fries.

Look at this ridiculous order:

Can you even believe the size of that thing?

I'm supposed to eat that how?

And how about this Smith Island cake for dessert?

Also ridiculous.

Ridiculous, but delicious.

Everything was tasty and the service was super friendly if a little slow (they were slamming busy).

I spent more on lunch than i normally would, but considering that i ate it for both lunch and dinner that was okay.

I'll be back the next time zombies are getting me down.

the end of an era

2011-11-16T18:41:00.001-05:00

I have had the same cell phone for five years.
That's right, i said five years.
Isn't that like 900 in technology-years?
I love my phone.
It was a gift from dear friends and it does what i need it to do.
At least it did until yesterday morning.
The alarm went off at 5am, no problem.
It went off again at 6am, no problem.
(i was playing the early-morning laundry game, you see)
When i looked at it at 6:45 it was off and wouldn't turn back on.
...sigh
I can't complain because it lived well beyond what i assume would be its natural lifespan.
So i actually had to go get a new cell phone.
I doubt it will be as great as my old one, but i'm hopeful.

bye-bye my loyal little friend

guess what i found

2011-11-11T16:53:00.000-05:00

Oh commonplace book, why did you roam?
I found you in a bag, under a chair.
How did you even get there?
I don't remember using that bag in the last month, much less putting you in there.
dang gremlins...
Anyhoo, since i am so joyful that you are found, i am putting up a happy quote from Nietzsche; yes, i acknowledge the craziness of the the phrase a happy quote from Nietzsche:

And we should consider every day lost on which we have not danced at least once. And we should call every truth false which was not accompanied by at least one laugh.

Okay, perhaps it is not flat-out happy, but it is a joyful quote to me because i tend to dance and laugh everyday and believe with my whole heart that joy is the key to long life.

things you might see at work

2011-11-09T17:48:00.000-05:00

Well, things you might see at my work, at least.

Has anyone seen my commonplace book?

2011-11-08T16:39:00.000-05:00

Really, people, where is my commonplace book?
Have you seen it?
My quote hasn't changed this week because i haven't seen hide nor hair of my book.
Where can it be?
It looks like this, so let me know if you find it.

Oktoberfest at Blob's Park

2011-11-08T16:20:00.001-05:00

fTM Felicia put together an excursion to a local biergarten for Oktoberfest. When she sent the original email it included the phrases ...it can't quite shake the Moose Lodge feel... and ...like attending the wedding reception of a relative you don't know... both of which made it imperative that i went. Let me tell you, she was not kidding, people. It was amazingly corny. There was paneling, grown men in lederhosen, people playing their own accordions; i wish i could truly convey how awesomely ridiculous the whole extravaganza was. I, of course, pinned up maiden braids across my head to get in a festive mood.
Here we are, Felicia's boyfriend Danny, Felicia, Abby, Lt Com. Laura, Laura's husband Kris, coworker Brian, former coworker and Jami's boyfriend Will, coworker Jami and me:

The food and service were terrible; i mean, horrifically bad. We never saw a waitress and they ran out of food. Perhaps it was just an off night, but if you go, be sure to eat ahead of time.
However, the entertainment more than made up for it. Polka Family was the band that night and the lead singer made sure that we were fully aware that they had been nominated four times for a Grammy Award; i didn't know there was a Grammy for polka, but okay. They were really good and did a great job of mixing traditional polkas with oom-pahed versions of popular songs. Did i mention that they had groupies? White haired groupies who brought their own cow bells and washboards to play along? I couldn't make this stuff up.
In between sets, there was a local German dance group that shared traditional dances and a bit of cultural background.

It seems that the guys do a lot of the fancy footwork while the girls spin, and i mean they spin and spin and spin - i don't understand how they didn't fall down. It was mesmerizing.
The group's leader, in a fabulous thick accent, talked about the genesis of each dance, including this one The Blacksmith's Dance:

Wait, did you just ask if there was a Maypole at any point?
Oh, you bet your bippy they broke out a maypole:

I had no idea that there are all sorts of intricate weavings, having only ever seen/done the traditional over/under steps. It was so cool to be watching the dancers and then see the patterns emerge in the ribbons.
Being out where people are dancing is one of the few times that i really mind being single; i love, love, love to dance. Anyone who has ever seen me dance can attest to the fact that i am, in fact, a horrendously bad dancer, but i do it with a lot of gusto. Well into the evening they were doing a second or third round of audience participation dances and i was vibrating a little in my seat when Kris shouted Let's GO! from the other end of the table. Lt. Com. Laura wanted absolutely nothing to do with dancing so i went out onto the floor with her husband.
We did this fun dance where you circle and switch partners. When i was with someone besides Kris i did a passable polka/fast waltz, but when Kris and I were partnered he said Go Crazy so we did. Here, because i can take the teasing, is a video of the resulting carnage - the laughter in the foreground is Laura and Jami:

Speaking of Jami, she had no idea how to polka or even waltz so i spent a goodly portion of the evening explaining and pointing out different steps. Finally, she and Will were feeling brave enough to go out and try it. The picture is a bit fuzzy, which is how Will described feeling after doing the polka; in fact, he had to sit down to keep from falling down. Amateurs. :-)

Finally, i'll leave you with this video. The dancers brought out cow and sheep bells to play songs. What? you say. I was just as puzzled, but it was fabulous; in fact, i apologize if i was singing along in the video. You gotta watch to the end to see the oldster throw his hat:

jewelry roundup 3

2011-11-07T13:13:00.000-05:00

We'll start this roundup with a necklace that i inherited from my Great Aunts - Edie and Jerry. They travelled all over the world and i've received so many awesome pieces from their collections over the years that sometimes i can't remember to which sister a piece originally belonged. I do know that they bought this necklace in China outside of the Forbidden City. The beads are hand-painted and hand-knotted onto silk. It is beautiful and rather heavy, but this is only the second time i've worn it in a decade as i am always afraid that something bad is going to happen to it if it leaves my room. Let's face it, i'm not gonna be able to replace it anytime in the near future.

This articulated fish is also from Asia. My mom's boss brought it to her from a trip overseas sometime in the 80's and i acquired it about 15 years later. It didn't get worn often because it didn't have a chain, but i found this one in the 25-pound box of discarded jewelry and lo and behold it is exactly the right length.

Plus, my stepmother bought me these little blue fish earrings a few Christmases ago that exactly match;

you know how i love things that match.

Matching is what led to me weaving gold chains through my loopy bun after converting some broken bracelet chains into long earrings.

On days when i don't have to wear my uniform my jewelry choices can be inspired by just about anything, like the day that i really wanted to wear these polka dottted socks,

which led to pearl studs in 3 different sizes, a pearl and light blue beaded choker (which is, BTW the first necklace i ever made, approximately 10 thousand years ago), and a long set of blue pearls inherited from my grandma that i looped as a bracelet.

<>Since we have well established that i am forever putting clips and pins in my hair, let's go straight to the pictures, Chuck:

double round pearl and gold circles

pink bead clusters on double buns

perfect for my first beading class

standard bun with a pair of white flowers

did i mention these pearly beauties were 40 cents?

some random bling from the big box

Check out this awesome enamel flower that a found in my exact uniform color for only $3!

And these flowers with uniform-colored stones. Yes!

Also a new purchase, i bought this dragonfly pin specifically to be worn in my hair on the day that i premiered the new show; it however, was a pricey $7.

Though this is not a good picture of this pin atop my maiden braids at Oktoberfest, hopefully you can see the pink stones. This pin was scavenged from a junk jar 10 years ago and languished as half of its original crystals had turned yellow. Over the summer i popped them all out and replaced them with pink crystals that i've had for probably 20 years.

At a yard sale i totally scored these four dyed stone necklaces that i wore part of the day twirled together and part of the day separated over a purple sweater. I remember my 9th grade English teacher had sets of those beads that she wrap together and link as a chunky choker: it was an 80's thing. I was fascinated back then and delighted to find all four for $1, though i doubt i will be wearing them as a choker anytime ever.

Finally, a pin that i actually wore as a pin. This blue-eyed, white stoned beauty was a perfect accessory when i met fTM Amy at the sushi buffet.

Day by day all of my jewelry will get worn or it had to go.

Help Hospitalized Veterans

2011-11-05T18:37:00.000-04:00

It seemed only right that my November charity should be for a veterans' organization.
There are several different ones that i have been involved with in the past, but my favorite has always been Help Hospitalized Veterans. For over 40 years, they have been supplying veterans in VA hospitals with craft kits. It seems like such a simple -almost silly- thing, but the kits give the patients something to do, a way to pass the time and can be therapeutic for injuries involving the hands or brains.
They are also a tangible and real thing that a patient can hold in his or her hands and know that someone somewhere cares that they are in the hospital.
You can send a card with your donation and i have received several heartfelt thank-you postcards in return.
This month's donation will go to sending craft kits and kind thoughts to soldiers who will be in the hospital over Christmas, which honestly makes me smile.

banjo

2011-11-05T14:31:00.000-04:00

Just the other day i was thinking about how many people i know that play the banjo.
Do you think that it is weird that i know four people that play the banjo?
I mean, it would be one thing if i lived in the heart of bluegrass country, but i don't. Lots of people play guitar, but banjo?

For instance, i was at a porch party the other month and with the Yuengling flowing freely, out comes Michelle's banjo.

And her horsey laptop where she keeps her lyrics, of course. Interestingly, she doesn't pick that banjo, but strums it like a guitar so you get the rhythm of the guitar with the sound of the banjo; it's really cool.
After doing a few originals -one of which i am pushing her to post because it is gorgeous- she started taking requests.

Then, somehow, the conversation had turned to the legality of cannibalism (specifically whether it is illegal only if you kill the person, which would be murder, or is it still illegal to eat someone who died of natural causes) so after much pleading from Mike, Michelle improved a banjo song with the words from a court case about cannibalism which made Cassie almost die from laughter.

[though there is still no ruling on whether it would have been legal to eat her in that case, had we been stranded on an barren, irradiated atoll]
I also know a lot of people who can play the accordian.
Does that say something about me?

quick conference redux

2011-11-02T15:52:00.000-04:00

Two weeks later and i'm mostly recovered from the national conference that my museum hosted. It was really fun, in that challenging, stressful, frantic, no-sleep kind of way. The only real downside for me was that I did not attend any sessions where i wasn't speaking or volunteering; there just wasn't time.
I spoke at an all day workshop about educational outreach basically highlighting the 2 outreach programs at my museum because we were the hosts. There was a session on physics demonstrations (that fTM Jonah titled May the Forces be With You. Really) where i shared our zipline CO2 demo for Newton's Third Law and TM Chris' amazing portable version of a periodic wave machine (though a standard thing in museums, i've never seen one for outreach before; he did such a great job):

There is a showcase of coolness on Sunday every year in the Exhibit Hall called Live Demo Hour and the host museum normally does something. Along with co-worker Chris i shared our Squirty Sphere and Ping Pong Cannons:

From those pictures everything looks well and good, but i have to admit that i totally screwed up on stage. I was nervous as 300 of my peers from around the world, as well an informal science education celebrity (yes, there is such a thing and we'll get to him in a minute) were watching plus I was the first act, so i misspoke one of my explanations. I know the right explanation, i just said it wrong.
You know when you say something wrong and you don't even realize it until someone points it out later?
That was me.
Was the person who pointed out the error my boss?
Yep.
As soon as it was posted to YouTube did people immediately start commenting on the error?
Yep.
Will i let this haunt me for the rest of my life?
Probably.
sigh...
BUT, before i humiliated myself in front of the entire science center community, i got a chance to meet Steve Spangler. He's like the Bill Nye for educators instead of the public; you might recognize him from the Ellen Show. When you meet someone that you admire, you're always afraid that they might be a jerk in real life, but Steve was friendly, down-to-earth and genuine. He was also in the Live Demo Hour show and after rehearsing all morning with him, I finally had to ask to have a picture with him; the exchange went something like this:
ME: Steve, I've waited all morning, but can i please have a fan-girl picture with you?
SS: Of course, but we have to take it with my camera first.
ME: Why in the world would you want a picture with me?
SS: You're the one doing the show; i'm gonna post this on Facebook.
ME: You're awesome and cool and nice and give us geeks a good name.
(that last bit was luckily only inside my head)

On Monday, i was the session leader (along with fTM Miriam who is the other supervisor) for an all day outreach session in local schools; presenters from my team, Miriam's team, Seattle, Hawaii and Boston did programs with kids where other educators could observe. This year we had the largest attendance in the event's history.

And in a rare moment of personal growth I decided at the last minute not to perform myself, but to have TM Chris (who built several of the props) and TM Sam (who designed the show) do our new show for the group. Here they are causing fire with refraction:

The whole experience was amazing and something i have been looking forward to for a long time. But as with many big events, i was happy to do it and am equally happy that it is over.

Spiced Rum Apple Crisp

2011-10-28T09:22:00.000-04:00

Ahhhh, fall... crisp weather, beautiful colors and ten bajillion apples.
Really, people, is it my imagination or are there apples everywhere you look?
Last week there were so many apples left from the conference that I took some home to create some sort of appley desert to bring into the office.
Now as we have discussed before, i am not a baker. I love to cook because cooking is art; however, baking is science and i just can't be bothered to precisely measure. I figured i'd go with some sort of Apple Brown Betty thing. In looking up cooking times for such things I discovered a recipe for Apple Crisp. Did you know that the Crisp was a popular dessert during WWII because it uses low amounts of shortening and sugar so it was easy to make even with food rationing? Neither did i. Anyhoo, i decided to use the basic Crisp recipe as a template.
A few weeks ago co-worker Jami had made a Bourbon Carmel Apple Pie that was fan-dam-tastic and fTM Felicia had been talking about cooking apples in butter and amaretto (really, there are apples everywhere), so i thought i might want to soak the apples in some sort of liquor to give them an added flavor layer. Spiced rum seemed a good choice, but when i went to the bar i found that i didn't have any spiced rum (except some Captain Morgan Private Stock that Rachel gave me that i didn't want to waste in a baking experiment that might be a colossal failure). But, i did have some mid-grade rum that i inherited when Justin moved that i normally wouldn't drink so i figured that i'd make my own.

i heart my Doughboy mixing bowl

I peeled, sliced and diced a combination of McIntosh and Granny Smith apples (one for flavor and the other for consistency), mixed them with whole cloves and immersed everything in the rum to soak for about 30 minutes.

and adorable matching baking pan

Meanwhile i mixed up the topping a la Niki - that is, with very little regard for the recipe. There was supposed to be some sugar, butter, flour and rolled oats. I mixed white and dark brown sugar, used margarine and had flour, but my choices for oats were either quick oats or steel cut oats. Of course, i used both. After adding the basic apple spices -nutmeg and cinnamon- i thought that since i didn't have true spiced rum i should give it a little kick with a tiny bit of cumin and cayenne.

i'll be seeing you later

The leftover rum with cloves was drained back into the bottle and put in the fridge to see what would happen if i left it alone for a while.

The results were sampled while i phone-shopped with my BFF, as you should never take a baking experiment to work without trying it first. It tasted really good with the sweet and tart apples, tangy rum, smoky cloves and just a wee hint of spicy at the end. However, the Crisp part was just a little bit dry with a slightly grainy mouth feel, so the next day when i took it to work i served it piping hot with vanilla ice cream on top; the cold melted cream was the final piece it needed.

{so i just strained the cloves out of the rum last night and gave it a little taste; YUM!}

how i know it is time to clean my desk

2011-10-27T19:42:00.000-04:00

That's my desk blotter at work.
Today was the first time i've been in-house for a full day since a week before the conference.

I started out with high hopes of getting a long list of things done, but quickly i realized that before any actual work got done i needed to just dig out from under the crap that had piled and piled up over the last month getting ready. The weeks leading up to the conference were a bit of a frenzy and i was jotting notes everywhere to make sure that i didn't forget anything.

I mean, how could i even concentrate on moving forward with this staring me in the face?

Honestly, any of you would probably be able to figure out what any of that stuff means as well as i could.

Seriously, people.

The only thing to be done was to strip the desk clean and then file, toss, recycle, or follow-up with things as i put them back on the desk.

Taking that hour to decipher the mess, throw away the crap and organize made it much easier to get things accomplished and i really do use my blotter to gauge when it is time to sweep things clear.

recycled hearts lead to yet another undertaking

2011-10-27T10:07:00.002-04:00

I found this necklace at a yard sale

and though i liked the mother of pearl hearts and the length, it was a hot dang mess. What is with all the different types of chain and what in the world is going on with this shmanky heart?

Yikes!

But with a 75 cent price tag, how could i resist?

I took apart each section and realized that not only were the chain sections different types of chain, they were each a different length. Who made this abomination? It was obviously manufactured, not handmade.

I fiddled with lengths, added some pearls, AB beads and gold circles from other broken pieces and in 45 minutes i had a brand new necklace and bracelet set,

plus 3 extra hears to be used at a later date.
Every time i wear this set i get comments and questions about it; i think it might be my favorite reimagined piece ever.
In fact, it was this very project that inspired me to try to make an entire line of recycled jewelry for my 40 While I'm 40 list. We all know that i am better with projects if there is a concrete deadline and if i publicly announce it so that there is some sort of accountability.
So here we go:
I will be a vendor at the annual jewelry show for charity the first weekend of February at Objects Found. Mark your calendars because i intend to have necklaces, bracelets, pins and rings all made from vintage pieces and found objects at bargain prices.

And while i'm branching out of my comfort-zone here, i will be linking this post to the Thrifty Thursdays at Quilted Cupcake (once Jean -the most talented person i've ever met- has her post up today) and this will be the first time i've participated in a blog linking event.

I am taking this week's quote to heart.

death to monotony!

2011-10-26T09:10:00.001-04:00

Every once in a great while i find myself looking around my little apartment at my little life and thinking Is this it? Is this all there is to me?
Normally this malaise comes after several days of general restlessness.
Often i realize that i am dragging my heels on some idea or some project; i've set myself in a rut because deep down i'm trepidatious about taking the next step. I allow fear of action to become inaction which is so contrary to my nature that i feel uneasy.
So this week's quote from Richard Louv is about me getting on with it already:

Boredom is fear's dull cousin.

yes, i said "roller derby"

2011-10-25T08:53:00.000-04:00

Are you looking for a totally different sporting experience?

skating line during the intros

May i suggest, roller derby?

warm-ups

My only experience with roller derby was the episode of Charlie's Angels where Jill and Kelly had to go undercover as roller derby girls. I had no idea what to expect, but fTM Felicia's boyfriend follows roller derby, so she invited a group from work to go to the East Coast Regional Finals.

Really.

The Charm City All-Stars (Baltimore's team) are a flat track team (as opposed to inclined track) so there was no railing to flip people over, but man was there still some crazy excitement.
Will had looked up the rules so that he could explain what was happening to the rest of us: play is divided into 2 minutes jams during which one skater (the jammer) tries to lap the pack and skate around the track as many times as possible without someone killing her. There are actually a lot of rules about how you are allowed to block or contact someone, but it was still mayhem on wheels.

It was immensely fun and action packed.

Plus the people watching was as intense as the game.

And there was a guy dressed as a banana. Really.

I highly recommend going to a match, especially if your local team kick as much a** as ours.

climbing playground

2011-10-24T17:39:00.000-04:00

I love, love the trend of having climbing equipment on playgrounds.
And i don't mean those crazy metal things we played on back in the Dark Ages or even the plastic climbing walls with the colorful hand- and toe-holds.
I mean crazy, ropes course-like things:

TM Sam tries to make here way across the ropes only to find that they all have bungee connectors so that they sway.

Meanwhile, TM Katie discovers that the round footholds spin all the way around.

Even what looks like a flat incline rotates about 50 degrees on its axis when Sam tries to walk on it; she determined that it might be physically impossible to walk upright on it. Luckily, the ground was the sprongiest surface i have ever felt, just in case someone takes a header.

And none of us are really sure about the weird hanging plastic seats, though they make for a great place to relax and read during lunch.
Yes, this really is my life. ;-)

but, whyyyyyyyy?

2011-10-21T06:54:00.001-04:00

It is no secret that i love gummi.
It is also no secret that i am cheap, so i am forever trying different types of fruit snacks that are on sale.
Which is how i ended up owning:

Why would you put sharks and dinos together?
One lives in the sea, the other on land.
One is still around, the other is extinct.
I pondered this for a while, but then decided that i didn't care about the reasoning because they were darn good fruit snacks. They had nice texture, good flavor, different shapes in different colors, nice variety...
wait... what is that?

Why is there an astronaut/old-time deep sea diver in here?
What could he possibly have to do with dinos and sharks?
I thought it might have been an accident, but no in subsequent packs i found more of these guys in various colors.
Then, i found some treasure chests.
I was too baffled to even take its picture.
Are the sharks in an aquarium and these are the bubbler shapes?
If so, where do the dinos come into the picture?
Not to mention that pterodactyls weren't actually dinosaurs so what are they doing here?
I'm so confused...
(but full of delicious gummi)

Li'l monster car

2011-10-20T18:56:00.000-04:00

We see all sorts of crazy things at work.
This is the car that was parked next to our van in a school parking lot - it belongs to the art teacher:

I am so in love with all of the little monsters,

like the ones who will devour tailgaters,

or who love their moms,

but my favorite is this pink one:

He looks so forlorn. He really wants you to be his friend even though he is a monster. I imagine him speaking with just a hint of a lisp and the occasional sniffle.
Of course, TMs Joey and Katie had to be little monsters, too

The teeth on the bumper just bust me up.

I took these pictures about 3 weeks ago, but today on Michele's blog i saw that she had spotted this car too so i wanted to add my monster love to the mix.

just a quickie

2011-10-19T10:34:00.000-04:00

The national conference is over and it was awesome. I have the day off to catch up on some sleep, do laundry and finalize my mother's move to Ohio next week. Then, mayhaps, we can get back to some sort of regular posting. You can look forward to a week of Hawaii posts, roller derby, a mini-monster car, jewelry roundup 3 and Oktoberfest. See you soon.

Pear Jelly

2011-10-18T14:12:00.000-04:00

Now that there is a wonderful toaster in my life, I was able to try another new food from my BFF:
pear jelly!

why are the eggs only ugly on the day when i photograph my breakfast?

I had no idea what to think. I do not like canned pears and don't think i've ever eaten a fresh pear; what in the world would the jellied version be like?
I am happy to report that it was tasty.
It tasted like... hmmmm... it was defiantly a fruit jelly and not a berry jelly and it was sweet with a little tang... Okay, that description was less than helpful. I guess you just have to have your BFF make you some pear jelly and try it yourself.
Thanks, Rea!

When work is more than what you do

2011-10-13T17:51:00.000-04:00

At one time my job was way too much a part of my identity; it was who i was. It wasn't healthy, people. Now i have found a nice balance, but still my job is more than just the time i spend at work.
I love being an educator. I love being a performer. I love touching people's lives.
Tomorrow is the beginning of our national convention and i am super excited because this year my museum is hosting the conference. It has been a ton of work, but i am excited to see it all come to fruition.
Plus i am excited about seeing all of my compatriots. It is awesome to be in a room full of people who do what i do because they understand what my crazy schedule looks like; they understand why i hate GPS and how hard it is to try to get dressed when you are loading a van outside at 7am in January, but 3 hours later have to be on a stage that is 95 degrees.
This week's quote is from... well, i don't know where. I think i cut it out of a magazine about 15 years ago because it is yellowed and wrinkled and peeling, but still taped to my monitor at work. I read it every day and count myself lucky:

Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful.
-Herman Cain

Hot toasty love returns to the Nikiverse

2011-10-13T17:23:00.002-04:00

Do you remember when my toaster died?
How i tried frantically to fix it, to no avail?
My $7 rebound toaster barely satisfied my toasting needs. After a year of vague disappointment, it finally gave up.
And then i had no toast.
None.
I was given a Free to a Good Home toaster oven with the caveat that it needed cleaned. No big deal, i thought. Wrong. It must have had a fire in it because even after a hard, thorough cleaning it still smoked enough to set off the alarm.
...sigh
Still no toast.
I was desperate enough to put bagels under the broiler, but that was a pain since they went from toasty to cinders in a matter of seconds.
...sigh
Then I decided that i didn't need toast.
My life is full and fine without toast.
Right?
Okay, i'll buy a new toaster.
Thus started the search for a new toaster. How many slots? What width? Toaster oven? Who has them on sale? This was not a frivolous undertaking, people.
Then, out of no-where, there was a like-new toaster oven in my hands. A Black and Decker one. A nice one. An expensive one. A FREE one.
Co-worker Stacey had inherited it from fTM Kate, but neither of them had particularly used it so Stacey was taking it Good Will. Look at it...

remember: no matter how much you love the toaster oven, don't kiss it; it's hot

I am so in love with my toaster oven that i am now toasting things that don't even need toasted.
I might have a problem. But i also have toast.

To my Darling Neti Pot Upon the Return of Autumnal Allergies

2011-10-10T08:23:00.000-04:00

Roses are red,
Violets are blue,
I'd pen words of devotion,
If i could think of anything that rhymes with nasal irrigation.

if only i could keep my dang mouth shut.

2011-10-07T18:40:00.000-04:00

The word for today, my friends, is hubris.
Hubris is excessive pride or insolence.
Often, it is referred to as pride before the fall because it is a classic character flaw in heroes.
Basically, the hero has so much self-confidence that he is blinded into doing something exceedingly dumb that proves to be the beginning of his undoing.
One of the interesting things about hubris is that it is so blatant, so obvious that everyone can recognize it (except for the hero himself) and most everyone can guess what is going to happen because of it.
Let's take a hypothetical example... the heroine of a story is feeling so good, so happy, so elated that she declares before a gathering of her friends that she is unafraid of Fate; she boasts that no matter what, she will be going on vacation to Alaska in eight months.
Hubris!
Therefore, no one would be the least bit surprised when one week later a text message arrives -while she is hypothetically grocery shopping and trying to decide what kind of yogurt to buy- with the news that the trip might have to be cancelled; no one, that is, except our hapless heroine who honestly can't frickin' believe it. Despite having studied Aristotle's Poetics on more than one occasion and having written numerous papers on hubris, she is indeed clueless and doesn't see the other shoe inevitably falling.
Of course, Fate has risen to the call-out and tossed a good, legitimate wrench into the works.
Why?
HUBRIS

...sigh

ps - hey Fate, sorry about that; you win

new from K-Tel

2011-10-04T18:16:00.000-04:00

Here are the newest members of my team: Katie, Joey and Chris.
As posed as this looks, it actually happened quite organically; we were outside getting ready to do some awesome exploding science when my brother called to us and we each looked up. With this job you get used to being photographed a lot so when we see a camera it is natural to just freeze at whatever you are doing until you see the flash. You can tell Chris and I have been here longer than Katie and Joey because we both automatically smiled as well.
When Katie first saw this picture she remarked It looks like our band photo; you know, for the cover or inside of an album.
Holy crap, it really does...
teehee.. I think Katie's body language says keyboards, Joey's says drummer (though in real life he is a guitarist) and Chris would be our affable bass player. I, obviously, would be the applause-wh*re frontman. [just like real-life ;-)]
What i first noticed, however, is that Katie is all nicely tanned and my legs look like i am a vampire.
Dang.

The Shine Project

2011-10-02T16:51:00.000-04:00

I like reading other people's blogs; i enjoy seeing slices of other lives. Recently, i added The Shine Project to the my blogroll because i find the writer Ashley inspirational. She issues challenges to her readers to make the world a little better in tangible ways. She tries to be creative and foster imagination in others. I like that. I like that she is making real changes in the world, not just talking about it.
In fact, her current project is to raise $20,000 to help kids from a city school where she volunteers to go to college. She started a change4change drive, is donating some of the proceeds from her vintage clothing store and handmade necklace line and is hosting a fund-raising event at the end of this month. I found the blog too late to do a change4change jar, which would have been cool, so instead i am sending my 50 cents per day for charity to her this month.
It is amazing to me that in this huge world, every little thing we do can affect change.
Really.

not just for grannies

2011-10-02T16:22:00.000-04:00

So i went to water aerobics with fTM Felicia.
Water aerobics.
You know, stretching and moving using the water for resistance.
It's very popular in retirement communities.
Felicia goes because she has a bad back.
I've always thought it sounded interesting and she had a guest pass so i joined her.
You figure, if this is the exercise of choice for grannies, how hard can it be, right?
Holy frijole, people.
It wasn't stretching, it wasn't gentle, it wasn't for grannies.
It was almost an hour of running and jumping in water up to my shoulders.
Forget low impact; within 20 minutes my bad ankle was screaming from the repetitive jumping and landing on concrete; sure the water made the impact less than my body weight, but it was still concrete.
I realized that if i tread water with my hands i could still do all of the jumping without fully landing, but that means that i was also treading water while running and jumping.
It was exhausting, but really, really fun.
Next, Felicia says that i have to try the deep water class where you lift weights.
Can't wait.

a little levity

2011-09-30T23:14:00.003-04:00

If you were to go back through the posts in the Glimpse into the Commonplace Book label i would seem to be a rather serious, thoughtful person. I'm not saying that isn't true, but it seems high time to let the sparkle ponies run free a bit.
This week's quote ended up copied into my book for three reasons:
1. it contains one of my favorite words: pandemonium (quick mental morsel - this word was invented by John Milton in Paradise Lost)
2. it is a great example of comedy of the ridiculous
3. it appeared in a scene of Tim Powers' The Anubis Gates that was so not funny that its startling inclusion broke the tension and made me bray out loud with laughter

"What's a pandemonium?" whispered one of the men in the rear.
"It's like a calliope," answered a companion. "I heard one played at the Harmony Fair last summer, when i went there to see my sister's boy play his organ."
"His what?"
"His organ."
"Lord. People pay money to see things like that?"

Let's lighten the mood this weekend people and have some fun.

hey Fate, i'm not afraid of you

2011-09-28T06:22:00.000-04:00

Having now cancelled not one, but two vacations in a row, i am flying in the face of common sense, spitting into the wind and thumbing my nose at Fate by announcing the eight months from now i will be in
ALASKA!
Douglas is going on a Disney cruise to our 49th state and is taking me along as his trusty traveling companion.
I love being the trusty traveling companion.
I kinda wish that trusty traveling companion was my job.
So, all my dear, dear people, this is your advance notice:
from May 19th through May 30th of 2012 Niki will not be available to you, (unless your name is Douglas).
I can't plan your wedding, feed your iguana, dye your hair, throw your party, be your child's godmother, attend your rugby match or perform frontier surgery.
I won't be available.
Mark your calendars.
Plan accordingly.
Over and out.

and around we go again

2011-09-27T19:53:00.000-04:00

The new show Hey, Try This! was premiered on Wednesday and it went great. Every time we performed it, we tweaked a piece here and there; Thursday we will have a chance to take it off of the road to do the final nips and tucks.
I'm really pleased with how the show turned out, but i am even more pleased with how my team is turning out. Everybody really stepped up to the plate and made it happen.
The summer was frantic and fantastic, but i was so happy to be back on stage; it feels like home.
Plus, it only took one day to find a ridiculous photo op:

How can this possibly be my real job? -TM Katie

T-minus...

2011-09-20T14:19:00.000-04:00

By this time tomorrow we will have already performed the first ever showing of Hey, Try This! and be starting the second.
Premiere nerves have visited me in my sleep for the last three nights.
I'm sure that it will all work out, but it has been one kefluffle after another.
Therefore, this week's quote will simply be my team's motto:
ADAPTAMUS ET VINCIMUS

Adapt and overcome, indeed.

Twart Hog sighting

2011-09-16T13:13:00.000-04:00

DAGNABIT!

The water main broke at work yesterday so we are closed on Monday which would be awesone except that the new show premieres on Wednesday, so Monday was all day blocking and rehearsal.
The blinking LED smiley face base was all ready to start the polying process until acetone accidently dripped on it.
I found out that the largest circle bit for our drill press in 2 and an eighth, but i need 3 inch routed circles on a prop.
Running up and down the steps between my lab and the wood shop i popped the knee i have been babying since i cracked it during the Poultry-geist attack.
The fresnel light we were going to use for one experiment overheated and cracked the lamp housing, rendering it useless.
We are almost ready to do a table set-up, but there are no spaces available and my yearly employee evaluation is in an hour.

I know that right before a premiere things are supposed to go wonky so that the actual performance is smooth, but really, people, REALLY?
Send me some good vibes today, please, before i inadvertently electrocute myself during training tomorrow. (oh, did i mention that i'm already working tomorrow for public programs?)

jalapeno help

2011-09-15T10:03:00.000-04:00

TM Chris brought in a bunch of extra peppers that he had harvested from his garden and i couldn't resist taking a few jalapenos:

aren't they adorable?

The problem is that i have never cooked with fresh jalapenos before. I'm not sure i've ever even had fresh jalapenos in my house before.
Soooooooo, what should i do with these, people?