Christmas-5:45am

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

I let Karma check out the packages from Dagan and Leah for a while. :)

Since I have been on such crazy hours (slept from 3pm till 10:15pm yesterday)--I opened presents from Dagan and Leah in the afternoon before I went to bed. Christmas Eve night was the traditional time for opening presents in my family.

What a shock! Pearl earrings! Real pearls!! I'll be afraid to wear them! Wow! I could have never guessed that one--never! I am speechless! Thanks you guys! You two are the genuine pearls in my life. :):)

I had already guessed correctly on the other two packages--candles! They know I love vanilla scented candles. These smell wonderful! Got one going right now. :)

I peeled off the labels on one of the candles and stuck them on Karma, of course!

That kept her busy for a while--ROFL!!

She finally got them off of her back. She's so funny! Then she does some victory pouncing and smacking like she killed those nasty stickers.

Karma played with all the wrapping paper...

...and I decorated her--hehe!

The bows really put a quarter in her--hehe! She raced about the apartment--up and down chairs--around and about--until she was all worn out and I took the above picture--and then relieved her of her bows. (Which she smacked around, of course, when she regained her energy.)

Since I got up last night I had been watching X Files--all night. Not exactly Christmas fare, eh? But now on Christmas morning--here before the dawn--I have gotten out the Christmas DVDs: It's A Wonderful Life, A Christmas Story, and Polar Express. I have Polar Express on right now. Working my way up to my all-time favorite--It's A Wonderful Life. Every time Jimmy stands on that bridge and cries "I want to live!" I tear up and need to blow my nose. (That's practically an emotional breakdown for a Swede, ya know--hehe!)

I get daily emails from www.gratefulness.org and a couple of days ago came:

"A sacred illness is one that educates us and alters us from the inside out, provides experiences and therefore knowledge that we could not possibly achieve in any other way."
Deena Metzger

I have thought about that ever since. It was like a Christmas blessing sent to me.

I have a sacred illness. I really do. :):)

Karma and I had a wonderful Christmas Eve. Hope you all did, too!

Blessings!!

Christmas Eve-7:30am

Snowed several inches yesterday--and drifted a bit.

But it was warmer out, so Karma wanted to visit the porch. She is very distressed that the snow reached across the entire porch because of the blizzard. She is used to having carpet to walk on across the back half of the porch.

Now the only spot of dry carpet is under the chair in the corner and she has to walk across the snow to get to it. Most annoying for her.

She has taken to begging to go out just to step in the snow and come right back in--thereby tracking snow on the carpeting inside of the apartment that she can eat while being warm. Karma does love her snow--hehe!

Dagan stopped by yesterday with a bucket of cookies from Leah!

My goodness! She went all out this year!

Dagan's interview went well--but they had him sign a form for a credit check. That could be a real negative for him on getting hired. :( We'll just have to wait and see.

Leah sent me some more of the big plastic bags that work so great for loaves of bread--found them at Sam's Club.

It is so hard to find bags for bread. I have used grocery bags and all kinds of things-chuckle! These are great! Trouble is--what I had to put inside one yesterday.

I have sometimes bought frozen bread dough loaves. I always bought Rhodes in the past. I decided to buy some last month and bought one package of Rhodes and one of Fettings. Thank goodness this is the last of the Fettings! I have never seen anything like it! They collapse in on themselves after they come out of the oven!! They come out looking normally shaped--I went to get the camera, but it was already collapsing.

I have tried letting them thaw in the refrigerator, keeping them small and low, and this time letting it raise really high--they all collapsed like a balloon with a slow leak! I even tried to let one cool inside of the pan--and it shrunk away from the pan--kind of curled up a little and collapsed when I removed it anyways. The crust looks really strange, too. Uneven and blotchy. And they all tended to be doughy on the bottom. Edible, but just barely. Isn't this the ugliest, silliest loaf of bread you have ever seen?

Well, this is the fourth one that I have had to look at--and eat--arg! End of the package--hurray! Obviously, I would not suggest anybody buy Fettings frozen dough.

Dagan and Leah made it to Henning okay last night (his dad's family). The snow had let up quite a bit by the afternoon, but the roads couldn't have been good. I was glad to get a text message that they had arrived safely! :)

If you can believe it--I have been uploading 8 videos since Monday night about 9pm and there are only 6 of them loaded so far!! Good thing I have more time than money, eh? LOL! I think it is because I have the high quality videos, so that's okay I guess. As long as I can finally post them, I am fine with it. I don't really plan on doing much of anything but putter, watch movies, eat Leah's cookies, and hang out with Karma over these next two days, anyways. :):)

Merry Christmas Everybody!!!

Tuesday-5:45am

Karma greeting the morning in her usual spot yesterday. Her ears are back because she heard me get the camera ready--hehe!

She doesn't like to be interrupted while she watches her Cat TV. Must be something very private for her. Hard to catch her in her spot by the window--snooping and observing.

She left right after I took that picture. Not usually that camera shy, but hates being spied on while she is spying upon, I guess--hehe!

I have resisted trimming the cat grass. Looking wild, but not dying so far.


Dagan and Leah came yesterday. I suggested a Pita Pit stop vs. the stress and hassle of a big meal so we could just have the time to visit. Was very, very nice! :) Leah is always busy baking and they were heading out to Henning, Minnesota for Christmas today. (His dad and family this year--they trade off. I hope the weather will be okay for them.) Anyways, I wanted Leah to have a break--and I am much more interested in the company than the food. :)

They got a section of beef ( a quarter?) and brought me a bunch of soup bones! Cool! Leah brought me some more of these really great large clear bags we use for loaves of bread (Sam's Club). And they put some presents under (near) my tree! Which I didn't even notice until they had gone--duh!

I will wait until our traditional Christmas Eve night to open them. I'll be good...
I am truly like a little kid when it comes to presents--hehe! I am totally baffled by these. The two big ones feel like some kind of a jar or tub with a screw on lid?? But they're really quite heavy and don't make any noise at all when you shake them. The flat square little present is lumpy--no clue! ??? I'll find out tomorrow night. :)

Yesterday I finished the rice paper sketchbook for Ann!! Ended up making mistakes and am in the process of uploading videos to YouTube right now. I think a couple of them are done.

Cut some felt for a buffer so the ink doesn't bleed through.

Haiying has been my inspiration to be brave, try new things, and to just post everything--mistakes and all. I have always admired her so much for that. :) So--you see me crafting and learning--errors, repairs, silliness, coughing, forgetting where the camera frame is, and all. I'm sure people watching will think--"If she can do it, I sure can!" ROFL!!

As I told you, Leah has been baking and she said they forgot to bring me some cookies yesterday. Dagan is supposed to stop by with them today. :) He is off for his interview this morning at 8am, too.

It's a balmy 11 degrees right now! Above zero--tada! But we are supposed to get another 1-3 inches of snow. If it is really looking bad for travel out there Dagan and Leah might have to leave on Christmas Eve instead?? Or at least I would hope they would.

My next project is going to be working on the birthday cards for 2009. Over the next couple of days I want to start that--and wash clothes--and set up my calendar & weekly sheets--and pick out a journal to use for the Soul Coaching book. I am always excited to greet a new year!! Maybe today I should wash clothes and get that over with...??? Later. :)

Monday-8:45am

Twenty degrees below and sunny in Fargo this morning! Brrr!

I planted the cat grass again this time. I'm going to see what happens if I don't trim it and leave Karma's oats and barley alone? (I always trimmed it and it died.)

She's been lolling around on the packing paper for days.

I decided it was time for it and her cardboard box to go. I put it by the door and she hasn't been begging for it, so the thrill must be gone--hehe!

Dagan and Leah are coming over tonight. They usually try to make it over some time before or after Christmas--this year it is before. :) Dagan has a second interview tomorrow at an insurance company. Think good thoughts!

Stay warm. Drive carefully. Love those loved ones!!

Sunday-8am

Have you ever picked something up and noticed it really needed a nice hot cloth cleaning--and next thing you have cleaned them all--hehe!

By the time I was done I had the entire corner cleaned and the bottles refilled. :)

Obviously my bum arm was feeling better--and it held up pretty well.

I worked on my list of Artistic, Creative, and Spiritual Goals for 2009. Am getting excited about the coming year! I think it is going to be a good year--a year when things will turn around. I do have a lot of faith in humanity. When times get really rough people usually pull together and help each other out. Hard times--crisis--can bring out the best in us. I believe that 2009 will be a year of hope--of uncovering deceit--of change--of new beginnings. :):) You may call me a dreamer....

3 degrees below, hazy, and light snow in Fargo. May your spirits rise and have a wonderful day!

Saturday-8:30am

As long as I am working my way around the clock again and my days and nights are totally flipped--thought I'd post before I go to bed. This is what it looks like this morning.

Been snowing lightly all night. Looks like we got a couple of inches--a white blanket.

I was watching Eli Stone on tape during the night and was fascinated by something he said to this brilliant young woman who was feeling she didn't care if she accomplished anything in her life:

"I understand you have a gift. But a gift is something that is given. You don't own it. The world is asking you to use it and you don't get to say no--no matter how much you might want to."

You don't own it.

Something to ponder, eh?

If we all tried to use whatever gifts or skills we have to somehow make the world a better place--to think of ways to improve life for somebody other than ourselves--what a wonderful world it would be! We would be rising up to our true potential.

My soul soars in the contemplation. :):)

Friday-6pm

Worked on eyelets yesterday. :)

Ann approved of the wild covers. :):) So I'll continue on when my bad arm has calmed down--chuckle!

What did I learn yesterday? I learned that it is much easier to use the hole punch set (used with a hammer) than my beloved Japanese screw punch for making the holes in the covers--or for anything thicker, for that matter. I do love my Japanese screw punch, don't get me wrong. But I use it on paper all the time--not cardboard, etc. It is my absolute favorite for paper, but I won't try to use it again on my covers. You can see why on my YouTube videos.

My bad arm burned after making just those first five holes. Sad, but true. Still is burning a little today. So--I'll be good and get off the keyboard, too--hehe! A day or so and it will be fine again. No problem. I should know better--my own fault. I should be back to working on the sketchbook soon--maybe even this weekend some time. :)

In the meantime--guess I'll catch up on my TV shows I taped this week, read, play with Miss Karma, and try not to use my left arm much. Never fear! I am in such an obnoxiously cheery Christmas mood that this minor arm issue can't possibly get me down--ROFL!!

Oh--Dagan liked the insurance company job the best and has another interview with them on Tuesday. Good thoughts! :):)

Thursday-2:30pm

The nice girl from the office came for the apartment inspection yesterday. And I did take pictures of what somebody would see walking into my place. :)

The kitchen and pantry are to the left.

And this is my large main room where I spend my time every day. Supposed to be a dining room next to the kitchen--but I put my desk on that end.

The room is basically a couple of chairs surrounded by a desk, computer, books, art & craft supplies, a TV, tables, and a fish tank.

My craft area is the table by the windows--hung my own lamp from the ceiling on that end. That is where I now do YouTube videos--chuckle!

The door to the balcony/porch is on the right.

Looking back into the kitchen. The folding table on the left is my art table--a place to do brush painting, etc. Too often it become a place to set things--hehe!

When you live alone you can arrange things the way you want them--hehe! Priorities, eh? Can't say I don't use every available inch of space--ROFL!! Having so much stuff everywhere would drive a lot of other people nuts, I suppose, but I am quite comfy here. And Miss Karma doesn't care--as long as there is room for me to keep a packing box around for her to play with for a while before I haul them to the dumpster. (That's her latest box there under the folding table.) And she needs her sprawling room, of course--hehe!

I asked if I could buy some new blinds--how much it would cost. Less than $10 each! So, I am going to get one new one for the living room and a new one in the bedroom. Karma has chewed the sting pulls on those two. Can't even close the living room one all the way. Karma had left them alone, but has suddenly taken to chewing on the strings again. I told the girl that I can be at the bottom of the task list for the maintenance men. No hurry at all--the pulls have been like this for over two years. So I don't expect them for a while--maybe January?

Leah had an idea a long time ago about installing some hooks so that I could wrap the strings up and away from little teeth. So, that is going to be a new project--finding and installing hooks. I emailed Leah to peek around when she's out and about shopping.

Dagan called. Not coming over today to look at my computer because--tada!--he has TWO interviews today! Think positive thoughts, right? :):) He might come over tomorrow. I told him there's no rush. The desk computer is working right now and I managed to get it going again the two times it froze up. Speaking of freezing--it's one degree below zero right now--and time for me to get moving. Later.... :):)

Wednesday-9:15am

95% of the time this is the Karma I live with every day. Looks innocent enough, right?

She's a big, sweet, lazy cat--with me. But she has turned into such an old lady cat who wants nothing to do with anybody but me anymore. She really gave Caroline a hard time yesterday! Karma was trying to hide under the bed but I have so much stuff under there that she could barely get under the bedspread at the foot of the bed. So I'm sure she felt threatened--trapped. Thought Caroline might step on her or touch her with the scary vacuum--heaven forbid! So she threw a hissy fit and lunged at Caroline's feet while she was dusting! She has no claws, but I shut Karma in the bedroom and I told Caroline to forget about vacuuming in there. It is so strange having an antisocial scardy cat.

I asked Dagan to switch about coming over for the computer to Thursday. When he comes I am going to ask him to help me get a couple of the boxes out from under the bed so we can make room for Karma to actually be able to hide under there again. What a naughty girl!!

Anyways, Caroline brought all the rest of the Princess Diaries books that she owns! So funny! Instead of book 1. 2. 3.....the author, Cabot, has like book 4, 4 1/4, 4 1/2, 5....

Lots to read--a whole shelf of books from Caroline now!!

I started on Ann's sketchbook yesterday. I think one video is up and the other is still uploading (since last night). The next thing I do is the eyelets. Pounding with a hammer is not a good thing to do when you have the camera on the table top--hehe! I also bang my hands on the table sometimes and send the camera into tremors--ROFL! (I've always talked with my hands.)

The camera snaps on to the top of that red and black pliable dodad--the gorillapod--that I have twisted around a burned out lamp with a heavy base. :)

Anyways, I am going to try out a new set up today. Using a sturdy TV tray and that box I painted--and whatever else I need to add until I get the camera high enough.

This way--hopefully--I won't cause the camera to tremble when I hammer or pound the table with my hands for emphasis--hehehe!

Today the apartments are all being inspected. Not sure when they will come here to my apartment. Made me think about what my place would look like to a stranger coming in? It is sure packed full! Looks like book, art, and craft central! Maybe I'll take some pictures today. Later... :)

Tuesday-10:30am

Karma keeps me company on these cold nights. :)

I got a kick out of the weather report last night. They said it was going to be "unwarm" again--hehe! 11 below right now. They reported yesterday that several businesses had pipes burst from the cold and had water damage--including Hobby Lobby--oh no!

Caroline is coming over to clean pretty soon. And Dagan is supposed to come over this afternoon to look at the computer. Maybe he can find out what it was complaining about and why it panicked & was refusing to work for a while?

I watched a very good movie last night--Lantana (2001). There was a murder, but it was also a kind of quiet character study of this web of people--and a good mystery!

Love, sex and deception rule the day in this psychological drama from director Ray Lawrence. Detective Leon Zat (Anthony LaPaglia) dives headlong into a missing-persons investigation just as he's grappling with guilt about his extramarital affair. His case crisscrosses the lives of four couples, all of which have secrets -- including Leon's wife, Sonja (Kerry Armstrong), and her secret psychiatrist, Dr. Sommers (Barbara Hershey).

Well, I've got to get moving here. Have a good day!! :):)