I love orchids because the blossoms last so very long, but I love amaryllis because they are so very, very bright and vibrant. Here’s a couple that I have blooming right now,


Some new beads,

I’ve been getting away from making the big hole beads, trying to get out of my rut, and have been getting back into the small beads and focal beads,

I love, love, love Dark Aurae, but it’s so hard to work with sometimes. I really like getting the green shimmers, but it’s such a touchy combination of oxygen/propane, it’s really hard to get, so mostly I end up with just the blues. But they look pretty too!

Two years ago today David collapsed and we called the ambulance. Two days later, he was gone. It seems like a lifetime ago, so very, very long ago.

I am in a rut, and I need to make some changes, except I don’t know what to do. There are lots of things I’d like to do, get back into drawing/painting, genealogy, needlework, sewing, quilting, jewelry, maybe even pottery, but there’s this inertia built up like a brick wall.

Maybe I’ll go wash some dishes instead...

BRRRRRR! We’ve got the January temps, -15° with -25° wind chill. Still no snow to speak of, we just got a light dusting last night. This is not good for the plants.

It’s really sad to see how an American business like Sears go downhill. I usually buy my large appliances there, and have tried using their website. Their website must have been designed by a community college drop-out, it is just so bad. A couple of months ago, I wanted to buy a couple of things that were on sale. It wouldn’t give me the sale price in the cart, so I called their customer service to find out how to do it, only to be told that I could order it over the phone. So after reading the part numbers to her, and giving her my Sears card number, then she needed me to spell out my name and address. At that point, I told her ‘that’s why I order online, so I don’t need to do all of this!’ and hung up.

So yesterday I got an email about the Sears Craftsman Club sale. I want a router, and they had one on sale. Went to their website and open the flyer and spent 10 minutes trying to put it into the cart to order it. Seems the only way to do that is to click on the little words ‘Member Price,’ not the photo or name of the item, which would be the logical way to have it set up. So I get to the item, and instead of being $99.99 like in the flyer, the member price is $107.99. No wonder they’re not doing well.

That was my peeve of the day.

I’ve been getting bored with making beads, so have been playing with making murrini again. Murrini is laying down layers of colors on a rod of glass, then pulling it out into a thinner rod, then nipping it into slices, which then gets melted onto a bead. Here are some of the better ones,


This is a bead with one of my favorite Double Helix’s murrini,

and I really wish I knew what glass they used in this murrini!


ETA: This is one TALENTED lady! Her name is Cynthia, http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_nkw=glassactcc&_armrs=1&_from=R40&_ipg=&_trksid=m37 and http://www.etsy.com/shop/Glassactcc/. She makes such a variety of beads, and they’re always just gorgeous!

It’s raining. January 11, yesterday it was in the 50s in the cities, no snow, and now rain. It’s just unsettling.

Meanderings all over the place today!

Did you know that you can have your bank account closed down if you make more than six withdrawals from your savings in a month (or statement period)? I thought at first it was some kind of scam when my credit union called me and warned me (when my check goes into the bank I transfer most of it into the savings, and then it automatically puts money into the checking if needed), but after I got off the phone, I searched on the Internet, and yes, it’s a federal law that was made after the bank collapses prior to the Depression. For whatever reason, the government has decided to start enforcing it.

Our non-existent winter continues. It’s like we’ve gone from October to March, no snow, and in the 40s. I went shopping with my sister Friday, and there was a tree in a parking lot that was starting to bud. Just crazy, crazy weather. It’s contrary to my nature, but I’m actually hoping for snow. We really need it. The birds are enjoying the warm weather, though. Here’s a couple of photos of one of my favorite visitors,


Believe it or not, I’m keeping my eye out for another puppy. Suka is over a year old now, and he is such a playful dog, so he picks on the cats and the little dogs. We’ve been having problems with Pip, the long hair chihuahua mix, attacking the other chihuahua, Squeak. Poor Squeak! She’s at the bottom of the totem pole. The other day, while they were outside, Pip tried going after Squeak, and the only reason Squeak didn’t get beat up was because Suka grabbed Pip’s tail, so Pip went after Suka instead. Well, he just loves teasing her until she chases him! I brushed up on a few Dog Whisperer episodes and have been putting Pip on her back and holding her down when she tries going after Squeak, and that is really helping. Just have to stay consistent with it. But we’ve decided we need to find another big breed dog so Suka has someone more his size to play with him. I’ve got my name in at Petfinder for a Newfoundland, Pyrenees or Great Dane cross.

I’ve been bringing my amaryllis bulbs up from the basement to join the ones that I’ve bought (like I really need more! I’ve only got a couple dozen of them already.) As much as I like amaryllis, my favorite indoor plant has to be the orchid. The flowers on them last so long! Here’s one that’s blooming right now, and a couple of Christmas cactus,



I’ve opened a shop on Zibbet. It’s another online market place like Etsy and Artfire. Artfire has been very disappointing. Last year, they closed down all of their basic shops, so between that and the sellers who left because of the way it was handled, they went down from 80,000 to 15,000 shops. Traffic to Artfire (and my sales there) has fallen drastically, and now they’re setting up a new policy, the Artfire Assurance program (which they will be charging another $12 a year), where they will guarantee a product for 60 days. That may be OK for Amazon (whose return policy they likened it to), but that doesn’t translate too well to a handmade venue whose sellers carry things like soap, candles, custom made jewelry and clothes, not to mention bakery and food items. As one person put it, she would hate to see her fudge after 60 days (they originally were going to offer 90 days). They’re losing more sellers because of this policy.

My favorites out of the last batch of listed beads,

OK, I’m not complaining, even though we’ve got a working snowmobile this year for hauling hay. This winter is a no-show so far, no snow, no real cold. It was in the 50s the other day, and there are 40s in the forecast. Absolutely amazing!! LOL, and absolutely fine by me. There is a feeling of dread, though. After all, this is Minnesota, and we’ve going to get slammed eventually. But until that happens, I will enjoy every day that I don’t have to slog through 2 feet of snow and brace against cutting -20° winds. Oh, and have I mentioned yet, the days are getting longer!!!!! Spring is on the way!!!!!!!!!

Wow, talk about a disconnect! Mr. Gingrich didn’t get enough signatures to get himself on the Virginia ballot (he lives there!), and he (or his staff) compared it to the Pearl Harbor attack.

Gosh, it’s been a while since I posted! Blame it on the cold, it’s been down to 0° a couple of mornings. Too many evenings I escape to my nice warm bed with the electric mattress pad and electric blanket turned to high with my iPad and Solitaire. Not the most productive use of time, sigh.

And still no snow, which is a mixed blessing. We got a new (used) snowmobile for hauling hay, but without snow it’s just sitting there. And while I don’t mind not shoveling, the dry weather is not good for my trees and perennials. And another bad thing, the dogs are bringing in tons of sand! Suka goes out and rolls around, and the sand just seems to soak into his fur. And somehow, it seems to end up in my bedroom, on my bed.

Talking about Suka, he’s a ball of energy, and is a bit overwhelming for Squeak, Lukas’ chihuahua. But sometimes he will slow down enough to entice her to play with him. Here he is teasing her with his teddy bear,

And she can’t resist,

It gets really funny when she chases him to get the toy. He just loves to be chased. And here he is talking with Pip,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BOZOHjQAcCg&list=UUaC2ORJsoWEC9p9uvC8uGIw&feature=plcp

The big hole bead craze seems to be slowing down, although it could just be the economy. So I’ve been making more small hole beads. I love silvered ivory and the webbing it produces,

 

And thanks to a Firefox extension that lets me know when Double Helix adds something to their website, I was johnny-on-the-spot when they listed some Dark Aurae seconds. I snatched it all up, and have been making small earrings size beads with it.

Dark Aurae is still my all-time favorite glass; in person it just shimmers and shines. Speaking of which, I’m going to fire up the torch, I’m freezing!

I’m whining. My shoulder hurts, my shoulder aches, it is screaming for drugs. The last time it ached this bad was the last heat spell we had. Jeepers, it only got up in the 50s today, that’s not a heat wave!

My Suka puppy is such a character! Here he is sleeping on my bed,

And here he is smiling,

Goodbye until next spring...
And this guy looks a bit out of place.

Brrrr, it was cold out there today! 12° this a.m., and snow, yucky! But only another 4 1/2 weeks until the days start getting longer, :)

The poor birds yesterday had to dig through the snow to get to the bird feed,


And a couple of new beads on Etsy,


I’m watching the news, and have to just shake my head at our politicians. Newt’s comment on the Wall Street protesters, ‘Go get a job.’

Enough said, I’m going to go make some supper for the boys.

LOL, I just had to read this headline, “Kim Kardashian's cold feet keeps her out of Minnesota,” written by Tracy McCray of the Post Bulletin, and it gave me a good chuckle.

“Kim has a popular “reality show” on TV, which follows her life and the lives of her sisters and various warped branches of her family tree. Recently she married a Minnesota boy named Kris Humphries. Kris grew up in Hopkins, played basketball for the Gophers and is waiting to get back to work for the New Jersey Nets.

Toward the end of the summer, a heck of a wedding was staged for the cameras at a cost of more than $10 million. They didn’t have to hold a dollar dance to pay for the buffet however, because they made nearly $18 million from their TV contract. Over 10 million viewers tuned in to watch Kim’s fairytale wedding.

This is where we come in.

When it came time to set up a home, Kim just couldn’t imagine moving to Minnesota where — to hear her tell it — the locals are hicks and the poor girl would likely freeze to death....

She hadn’t heard it tends to get a bit nippy at times when you step outside the Mall of America? I guess California girls didn’t grow up reading about The Long Winter and the other fun times the Ingalls girls had.

I love winter but I do realize all the snowy outdoor activities, beautiful frost-laden landscapes and the sound of falling snow aren’t at the top of everyone’s favorite things list. It’s true the Midwest is full of snow and cold and people who aren’t like Californians, but in the end one of the oldest sayings about Minnesota has once again been proven true.

“It’s the cold that keeps the riff-raff out.” California can keep the Kardashians.”

I admit it, I’m a bird junkie... I see a different kind of bird and I get all excited. I’ve had a pair of cardinals hanging around the past week, and I really hope they stay for the winter. They are so colorful! So today is a bird post day.
A flicker

Cardinals

And as I went into the kitchen this morning, this is what I saw sitting on the fence post in the back yard. I ran and grabbed my camera and got a couple of nice photos of him.

Oh, my goodness, I’m going to pay for this later with an upset stomach from all of the grease, but it tastes soooo good!

I decided to try making corn dogs, (saving grace was the buttermilk and Hebrew hot dogs with no filler, etc), and thought, hmmm, I have a bag of cheese curds in the refrigerator, maybe I should try battering and deep frying them. They are delicious, sweet and salty and gooey! Maybe I’d better get started on the Tums now, :)

I had a flock of crows harassing a hawk this morning, so I had my camera ready when this bald eagle went by, and the crows went after him instead of the hawk.

Sometimes I think I might be just a little bit obsessed with birds and beads.