Making Some Plans, Getting Stuff Done

I have two days off work in a row again, which is going to give me time to make a dent on my fall To Do list.  Here is the short list of the first items on the list:

• Do Laundry
• Organize clothes for fall
• Put away clothes
• Organize tops of dressers
• Reorganize books
• Dust books
• Do dishes
• Clean stove
• Clear off counters
• Clean fridge
• Mop kitchen floor
• Dust downstairs
• Dust upstairs
• Vacuum downstairs
• Vacuum upstairs
• Prep upstairs hall for sanding and varnishing
• Clean bathrooms and reorganize cabinets
• Make a list of things to get done on monday for Korea
• And a few other odds and ends

That is the list for the next two days anyway.  I need to plan a play list for may dancing around the house while I clean.  I think I will also get some cooking in if I can.

In other news, I saved a woodchuck from one of the window wells outside my house.  It was pretty cute, but very stupid.  The first time I saved it, it took off running and fell right back in the hole and I had to save it again.  My brother and I had a bonfire last night.  It was pretty fun, but most of his friends are kinda immature so it is a little like babysitting sometimes.  And boy do those kids drink.

I have an interview today with a different company who will help me find a placement in Korea.  The place I am going through now is taking way too long.  I don't want to be here another year, I really don't.  And as much as I like a lot of the people I work with, the job itself leaves something to be desired.  I am very ready to move on.  The interview is in 30 minutes, hopefully all goes well, and then it is down to getting at that list!

Junk Into Gems?

After reading up on steampunk and going to that steampunk ball and seeing all the awesome outfits and jewelry people had created, Kim and I decided to try our own hands at making some jewelry of our own.

First, we went online and looked up some videos about how to make resin jewelry.  We found a three-part video that was really detailed and informative.  Once we buy our resin and supplies, we will most likely be relying heavily on this video for at least the first test runs we attempt.  We don't want to ruin any of the vintage supplies we have purchased, so we are going to start out making resin pendants in bottle caps. Here is the first part of the video.

             

After we learn how to make these without bubbles, or bleeding colors, or touching stuff before it dries, we are going to try to make some steampunk jewelry with gears and things floating in them.  I went on to eBay and purchased some little gears and watch bodies and things that we can use in our attempts.  We tried to find watches and keys and things at our local antique and junk shops but we havn't had any luck there.  We also are not sure yet what we a re going to be putting these into as a back, but we are keeping our eyes open for possibilities. I took some pictures of some of the things I found online.

Maybe if we get really good at it we can start selling stuff on Etsy.  Maybe.  N?either of us really have time for it right now.  Kim has tons of class stuff and I have work, working out, research, garden/outdoor stuff, fall cleaning, dog walking, and several other things I am trying to squeeze into my days.  Coming up in the next couple months will be another visit to Platteville, a possible trip up north with Jess, Fight Fest, a couple Halloween parties, and one or two more Deadman events.  

Hunger Games Trilogy: A Reveiw

Over the last three days I sat down and read the Hunger Games trilogy.  I kept hearing all these great things about it and finally I was curious enough to check it out.  As silly as it is going to sound, I have dreams of one day being a best selling author.  I think that it is important for me to keep up on what the top selling books right now are like.  So far, I am not worried at all.  These reviews are mainly focused on my opinion with a little plot thrown in.  If you want full plot summaries and character info, click on the book titles and you will be taken to the Wiki page for each book.

The Hunger Games


When I first started reading this book, I was not impressed.  I didn't think it was all that well written and I thought it was too simple for someone of my reading level.  As I read the book however I began to really feel involved with the characters.  I didn't really like any of them, but I wanted to know what was going to happen to them.  The main character, Katniss, Is a poor 16-year-old girl who feeds her family by hunting illegally in the area surrounding her home of District 12.  The whole series takes place in the future in North America after we have almost destroyed ourselves through war.  Katniss trades herself for her sister in the mandatory Hunger Games, where is believes she is going to die.  The book follows her and her fellow tribute, Peeta, through the games.  You never really love the characters in the book, but you really begin to respect them and the decisions they have to make.  Needless to say, by the time I was done with this book, I ripped right into the second one.


Catching Fire 

This book continues where the last one left off.  The events in the last book involving Katniss and Peeta have start minor rebellion in many of the districts.  ***SPOILER*** They are brought back to the Hunger Games a second time for a special edition of the games.  In this battle they must face off against all the previous winners of the games.  Again, none of the characters are particularly lovable, but they are put in such terrible situations that you wonder if they are really given the chance to show that side of themselves.  The events of the last book have warped Katniss even more that she already was an it is sometimes hard to not want to scream at her for her decisions and her reactions to things.  At the same time, you can not put the book down.  You need to know what is going to happen next.  You also find yourself wondering how you would react in these situations and would you be able to survive.  I zoomed through this book and right on into the next one.

Mockingjay

The last book of the series was the least exciting.  There is less action then the other two, but the character development and relationships seem to be the main focus in this book.  It also seems to me, to be questioning how much a person can take before they completely break down.  I do not know if I could have dealt with all the things that Katniss does and still come trough relatively sane.  This book is a great ending to the series and even though you still don't love the characters, you are happy fo them, scared for them, and sad for them over and over throughout the book.  The author did a great job of getting us to feel exactly what she wanted us to feel or her characters.




 Overall, though I am still not convinced that these were the most well written books, and they did have some issues that bothered me, I really enjoyed reading them.  Putting these books down to go to sleep of work was not an easy thing.  You are kept at the edge of your seat while reading them, and just when you think you have them all figured out, something completely crazy happens and messes it all up. Great Books. And I am kinda excited for the movies as well.

Brewers Are My Favorite

I went to the brewer game with my parents last night.  It was supposed to be my parent, my brother, and I, but my brother backed out at the last minute because his job didn't schedule enough people to cover the shift and needed him to stay.  Stupid sub place.  Anyway, the game was still fun.  It turne out my cousin was there and so was one of my half brother, but I didn't see either of them there.  Not surprising since there were about 40,000 people there.

We had amazing seats, seventeen rows from the diamond.  I don't ever remember having seats that good before.  It let me get the sports photographer in me out and working for a little while.  The game was super close an went into the 11th inning before Braun hit a home run out to right field to win the game.  The following are my favorite pictures of the 240 that I took.

I played with my phone durning the slow parts and took a ton of pictures with my camera.  My dad finally asked me if I was planing on taking pictures of eery at bat before I slowed down.

                       

 

I Can Can

Over this summer my garden has been sadly ignored for the most part.  Once I finally got it planted, the weather got super hot and the mosquitoes in my yard swarmed in masses numbering in the millions and were the size of antelope, so I didn't really get out there very much for very long.  Still, the garden grew and I am now able to get out there and weed it and care for it like I should.  My first big harvest has been completed and I am getting ready to do my fall planting of purple runner beans, beets, spinach, chard, radishes, and lettuce.

The tomatoes and peppers are still giving me more fruit than a family can eat so I have had to become creative with it.  I had never canned before last week and I didn't have access to the people I know who have, so online I went and found crazy recipes calling for 40 pounds of tomatoes or 30 pint jars or recipes with 20 ingredients.  All I wanted to make was a simple stewed tomato recipe and a few cans of plain canned tomatoes.  So, I got creative.  I cut a bunch of different kinds of tomatoes from my garden and added a green pepper (also from my garen) and an onion.  I mixed in a few spices and that was it.  Much easier.  I forgot to write down what I was doing however so I will have to figure it out again for next time.

Tinka thinks it looks yummy too!

The actual canning wasn't all that hard.  It did take me two tries to get the lids to seal, but after I figured out what I did wrong, not wiping the lid dry before putting it on, I didn't have any problems.  I am super excited to make the rest of the canned goodies I have planned for my garden.  I am going to make some salsa with my hot peppers and tomatoes, onion and green peppers.  I am making plain canned hot peppers with my jalapenos.  I am going to make some hot pepper olive oil and some hot peper and basil olive oil and some plain basil olive oil.  I am also going to make some simple syrups out of my herbs that I don't dry.  This winter I will have all sorts of wonderful thing to eat and all of them will have come from my wonderful garden.

I have been making notes and adjustments to how I plant my garden and what I use as fertilizer and what I plant where.  After I get back from Korea, my garden will be completely amazing.  I am getting better and better at planting the right things at the right times in the right spaces, and I am even adding flowers to my garden for a little color and to invite the bees.  As for this fall, one my second harvest is complete, I will put in horse manure, ashes, and compost, turn the soil, cover it with newspapers and plastic and let it sleep till spring.  I also have a bunch of other yard work to get done, like pulling buckthorn, cutting down dead branches, and getting the dog fence installed.  I am looking forward to a wonderful fall full of the outdoors and bonfires.

It all looks so good!

Busy Bee

Wow, a lot has been going on the past week.  Besides a full forty hours of work, I have been canning, gardening, shopping, cleaning, and just sleeping.  Oh, and reading as well.  And though it has taken away from my time to blog, it has given me a lot to blog about.  Just so I do not forget anything, here is a list of the next few days blog topics:

1. Shopping
2. Gardening/Canning
3. Brewer Game
4. Book Review
5. Jewelry Making with Kim
6. Cleaning/Fall To Do List

As you guys know, I don't usually like to plan my blog topics ahead, but since I am behind, I am making an exception. 

ON TO TALKING ABOUT SHOPPING!!

I went to see Jess last weekend, and as always, that leads to some serious shopping on our parts.  Besides buying the canning supplies I needed, and cooking some fabulous meals, and taking a road trip to her friend's house a few towns away, we raided Platteville's Goodwill twice.  Man did we get an excellent haul too.  And I have pictures!!

I got two very cute pairs of flats for work.  The black pair is a bit more comfortable than the leopard print, but I really loved the rocker feel the leopard one had.  I really needed some new flats that weren't just running shoes so these were a great find.  And, at $4 a pair, they were a great deal.

I also grabbed a really nice blue leather coat from worthington.  Jess was eyeing it up while I was trying on some clothes.  She made me try it on and it was such a perfect fit I couldn't say no.  I always need coats in wisconsin and having this blue one will help add a little color to some of my dresses this fall.  It was $7, real leather, and my favorite color.  Oh, and did I mention, brand new, tags still on?

Next up is the green lacy sweater.  It wont really help keep me much warmer this winter, but it does help to dress up a plain tanktop.  And witha blazer over the top, or even my blue coat, it will be plenty warm. I wasn't totally sure I wanted this shirt until I tried it on with an a-line houndstooth skirt that was there.  together they looked great, and reminded me of some other clothes I  already own that I have been looking for something to wear with. And, since each were only $4, I am pretty sure I can get my money's worth out of them.

After the green sweater I went on a little green binge and bought a green sweater dress by Banana Republic and a big green sixties inspired sweater from Habitat.  I knew that Banana Republic had a little bit more expensive clothing, but I had never heard of Habitat.  When I looked them up online, a lot of their stuff seems to be pretty pricey.  Which only made the fact that both of these only cost $4 again, even better.  Both of these items have a very sixties mod feel to them, and both will be really nice this fall.  The dress will be great with a pair of leggings and the sweater looks great anytime.

I was also trying hard to find some sweaters that I could throw on over a t-shirt or tank top when the nights start getting cooler.  I went for a black drapey sweater and a really adorable green cardigan.  I am not one to really like cardigan usually.  I feel like they make me look even younger than I usually look.  The embroidery on the front is just enough that it works with nice dresses as well as jeans and a t-shirt. And if I wear it with the houndstooth skirt, I can totally rock the cute librarian look.  Hey, I have a degree in Literature, I am entitled.

I also picked up some plain t-shirts and plain long-sleeved shirts to wear around the house this winter.  I only had two long-sleeved shirts before this trip, so I bought a few.  I got some red plain shirts for work, but didn't have any luck finding some new cargo pants.  I also got a tank top that has a really cute design on it to wear under the red shirt for work.  It lets me put a little personality into my otherwise bland wardrobe there.

After the clothing was picked through, we stopped at the jewelry section and found some really great things, for really reasonable prices.  The first thing I found was this deer necklace that Jess and I thought had a Modcloth feel to it.  It was only five dollars and after some slights worries about how long it was, I have decided it is one of my new favorite pieces.  It works with pretty much anything and since I wear so much black, it really helps to add a little something to those outfits.

I also found this really neat ring that I thought also had a Modcloth feel to it.  I thought it was cute until I realized it opened like a locked, then I loved it.  I have yet to figure out what I want to put in it, but I and flipping back and forth between some pictures or something more permanent.  Maybe I will make it into some resin steampunk piece.

As we were leaving I noticed a piece of jewelry that will work perfectly with my halloween costume of Ms. Peacock.  I couldn't believe how great it is going to work.  And it was $3, so it is okay if I only wear it for that one day.  However, I really like it so I have a feeling it will be warm quite a bit more that that. And it came with earrings that /I probably won't wear again but will also work great for the ostume.  Maybe I can give them to my mom after, she would wear them.

And I saved the best for last.  I found this dress in a section that I was sure I was to big for, but when I put it on it was like putting on a second skin.  I walked out of the dressing room to show Jess and we both agreed it looked amazing and made my boobs look awesome.  We decided it was a "BAM!" dress. One of those things you can put on and no matter how crappy or icky you are feeling that day you will always feel like you look great.  I needed to fully show how great this dress looks so I took a picture of me wearing it.  It show off my curves and my small waist so perfectly it is as if it was made for me.  Now I just need to figure out somewhere to wear it.

Steampunk Ball

Kim and I managed to work out our outfits just in time fot the steampunk ball.  I feel that I should put a big shout out on here to Gypsy Geoff for organizing it.  And for making my whole summer more entertaining overall.  The guy has som serious talent for entertaining everyone in the crowd, I have yet to leave one of his shows without my face hurting from laughing.

The ball took place at the Hot Water Warehouse in Milwaukee, a beautiful and historic venue, very industrial and old.  Perfect for a bunch of steampunkers to enjoy a night of letting their hair down.  Kim and I spent the first twenty minutes just looking around and admiring everyone else's clothing.  We have decided to work a bit harder next time and we will be working on some sweet jewelry before then as well.

There were shops upstairs, and hoops and ropes hanging from the ceiling and "fire" coming from the tops of pillars all over the place.  Everyone had dressed up in their finest and some of the people had some amazing clothing.  The best outfits were definitely the ones that were home made over a long time.

The shows were pretty good, even though there were some technical difficulties and an opening band that was... not awesome...  Overall it was a great show.  I finally lost the russian roulette I play when I go to these shows and I had to throw the hat on to Gypsy Geoff's head.  Not as easy as it looks, lets put it that way.  As always, Sir Pinkerton and his group was amazing.  I still can't believe his voice.

Kim and I sat around, enjoying some absinthe cocktails and great music until 2 am when I realized I needed to clock in at work only two hours.   After a rushed drive home that Kim had to take over halfway back, I slept for an hour then booked it to work, still thinking about all the great stuff I plan on making.