scrappydoo

Pets #74: Social Petworking

2009-11-19T10:42:00.002-06:00

I did look through the dogster site. I was kinda fun, but I don't think I would spend much time there.
I chose not to make a blog profile for my pets. They are fat and lazy and not very interesting.
So unless you wanted to hear about how they ate....slept....ate....slept....ate....slept....well... you get the point.
I checked out a few of the other sites...I clicked on some of the message board discussions.
There were some interesting comments/stories/questions to be found there.
And as usual...lots of cute pictures of pets.

Pets #73: Losing a Friend

2009-11-19T10:37:00.002-06:00

Oh....how timely....
I just found out yesterday that our cat has a large "growth" (aka: tumor) in her abdomen.
We are going to have to decide when to have her put to sleep. Right now she is just lethargic, but
still eating and not in any apparent pain. I guess we'll just take it day by day and see how she does.

I did go to some of the websites about pet loss and grieving....and they made me all teary-eyed.
I reckon I'll be doing a bit more surfing on these sites in the near future.

Pets #72

2009-11-10T11:26:00.002-06:00

...and the results say......

That Lucy is 82.3 years old!

She's fat and she's lazy.
She sleeps a lot....snores even more....doesn't wake up when I come home.
She would eat anything she could get her paws on.
We don't know when she was actually born since she was a rescued dog, but she is getting old.
A lot of her black hair has turned white and she just "looks" old.
But she is the sweetest old dog we know!

Pets #71: Finding a Pet

2009-11-03T11:38:00.003-06:00

Exercises:

1. ...and the quiz says: That I should have a reptile.
hmmmm.....we have two dogs, a cat, a parrot and lots o'fish.
We had a turtle....REPTILE!....and it was my least favorite pet.
He grew so fast and got his tank so dirty. He was a pain to take care of.
He is now happily making new friends in the lake at Meyer Park.

2. I looked at Petfinder...but not for long.
I didn't want to get too attached to anyone!

3. I looked for pugs....
We got one of our pugs...Lucy...from a local Pug Rescue Society.
She is great! and I would do it again.

My daughter and I recently started volunteering at a no-kill shelter.
I'm afraid I'm gonna want to bring home oodles of new pets...my daughter
has already begun pitching me for another cat.
I'm afraid at this time all we can do is make sure the poor homeless dogs
and cats have clean cages and get played with.

Genealogy #70: Genealogy 2.0

2009-10-12T15:49:00.002-05:00

I did the Celebrity Collage using various pictures of myself and my family.
I would post some of the results, but I have no idea how to "use the widget" to do so.
The closest match to me (at 73%) was Natalie Merchant. I don't see it, though....

Then I went to Footnote....I think that is pretty useless...sorry....

Genealogy #69: Database Researching

2009-10-12T15:34:00.002-05:00

I went to Heritage Quest and looked up my father's family name.
I found my greatgrandfather and his family on the 1910 census.
I then went to the 1930 census and found my grandfather and his family, including
my dad who was then 5 years old...that was cool!

Genealogy # 68: Detective Work

2009-10-09T10:40:00.002-05:00

Exercises:

I tried to look/listen at Tejano voices, but it kept locking up the computer for some reason.

As far as doing an oral history, most of my older relatives are deceased.
That leaves my mom and an aunt of my fathers.
The aunt always reminisces about the family, so I have learned a great deal from her stories.

I did go to the Find-A-Grave site. I looked up the cemetery where my dad and most of my relatives on his side of the family are buried. None of them were listed as of yet.

There is a very interesting marker in the cemetery....
I don't know if you can read it....it says that Paul is the illegitimate son
of Nelson and Leona.....and he was apparently adopted by his
aunt and uncle. He's not dead yet...so did he put up his marker himself in preparation?
I guess he wanted the truth to be told....

Did you look at the section for "interesting epitaphs"?
There are some funny markers out there....LOL!

Genealogy #67

2009-09-25T10:43:00.002-05:00

I am fortunate to have had my genealogy researched for both my maternal and my paternal sides of the family done by other relatives.
Aunt Velma spent years researching the Roades family line.
She even had her volumous findings published into real books which she either gave out or sold to family members for many years. (she had a lot of them printed...I guess there was a minimum).
I received one when I graduated high school, and again when I got married....snicker....

An aunt on my mother's side of the family also did extensive research on that family, and while she did not have the information published into books, she did make a ring-bound book for those who wanted one.

So, while I have not had to do any of the actual researching, I do know my family trees going back many generations.
It is interesting to read these books, and I have used them to make a large depiction of my family tree which hangs in my house. I took branches and glued them together, forking where appropriate, and then attaching leaves with each family member's name and dates of birth and death on them in their rightful branch on the tree. It turned out to be a rather lopsided tree, as some family members had many more children than other members....so some branches were very long an forked as a result, while the branches for those less prolific members were much shorter and sparse.
Anyways....its cool....Thank You to Martha Stewart for featuring this project in her magazine!

Crafts & Hobbies #61: Craftspiration!

2009-08-28T10:54:00.002-05:00

I looked at several of the sites mentioned.
They were interesting.
I loved the video! LOL!

You mention Etsy.....I have an Etsy shop as
a matter of fact.
I (try) to sell my beaded bookmarks and
repurposed boardbook books...(for lack of a
better way to describe them).
Its fun....

Crafts & Hobbies #62: Decoupage

2009-08-28T10:51:00.001-05:00

Exercise:

Of course I am familiar with decoupage!
I'm a decoupager from way back.
I still have a trash can that I decoupaged
with pictures that I cut out of magazines
back when I was in high school....so thats
a very, very long time!
Its all rusty inside, but the outside still
looks terrific!

Crafts & Hobbies #64: Zines

2009-08-28T10:42:00.002-05:00

Exercise 1:

These 'zines' are a lot like the things I used to make when I was younger...much younger.
I would collect my favorite cartoons out of the Sunday papers and paste them onto pages
of paper folded in half . When I had enough, I stacked them and stapled them in the
middle...just like a book.
I would also make similar "zines" writing stories about my brother....and what I would
do to him if I could. (Hey....we were kids...we didn't much like each other back then!)

Now I make something similar to a zine I guess...I take old boardbooks and cover the
pages with papers and cardstock. Then I take images I download and print from the
computer and glue them to the pages of my book.
I usually have a theme....like Halloween or Christmas.
I also include printed out verses or definitions etc.
Of course I have to take it one stip further and distress it and all...
These also make into really cool birthday "cards".

Exercise 2:
Zines in the library?
I don't care one way or the other....whatever floats your boat.

Crafts & Hobbies #63: Digital Scrapbooking

2009-08-28T10:35:00.000-05:00

Exercises:
I did them all when I did the module!

Crafts and Hobbies #65: Coin Collecting

2009-08-27T10:53:00.002-05:00

Exercise 1:
I always keep an eye out in my change for
an unusual coin.
I have one now in my change purse. I think
its from Canada...I don't remember and I'm
too lazy right now to go look at it, but I did
notice it the other day when I was digging
through all my change to pay
for something.
I always save the "wheat" pennies.
I have quite a stash of them at home.

Exercise 2:
I have been to coin shops before.
My father was a big-time coin collector and
my brother also collects coins, so I have
been in the shops with them before.
They are interesting.

Exercise 3:
I think I already kinda answered
this exercise questions in my other
two posts above.

Crafts & Hobbies #66: Knitting and Crocheting

2009-08-27T10:39:00.002-05:00

Exercise 1:

Yes! I can knit and crochet both.
I learned to knit when I was in 7th grade. I worked in the
school library for one period (a slow period) and the
librarian taught me how to knit. I made a pillow!
Now I have a knitting machine...it makes knitting
go really fast if you want a long row of plain plain
straightforward knitting.
My grandmother taught me how to crochet.
I've made blankets by crocheting , but it was a long
time ago.
I don't have so much "free time" as I used too!

Exercise 2:
Yes...we have a knitting group.
I do not have time to participate in it now,
but perhaps one day I will.
I think I'll teach my daughter how to knit,
then we could do this together.

2009-06-06T17:11:00.009-05:00

DIGITAL SCRAPBOOKING

Scrapbooking refers to a method of preserving personal and family memorabilia and photos in an artistic manner. The art of scrapbooking goes back to the Victorian era. Photos would be mounted in albums using photocorners and would include journaling and bits of memorabilia like newspaper clippings, letters, cards....even hair clippings! Modern scrapbooking now incorporates a variety of handmade and manufactured embelishments, making it a multi billion dollar industry.

The advent of scanners, desktop publishing, photo editing programs and advanced printing options has now made it relatively easy to create professional looking layouts in digital form using the home computer.

Digital scrapbooking offers several advantages over paper scrapbooking. Photos can be moved straight from a digital camera onto a layout...no need to print them first. It is easy to correct mistakes or change a design. A few clicks on the keyboard is all it takes. If you have already been bitten by the scrapbooking bug, you are well aware of the amount of time, space, tools and products required to create a traditiional scrapbook page...not to mention the hassle of packing up and cleaning up your work area each time you finish working on a layout. With digital scrapping you no longer need a large work area, nor do you need to pack up supplies. Plus, you can reuse your supplies endlessly. Just think of the money that saves! Digital Scrapbooking is also fast and becomes portable if you are using a laptop which allows you to be creative whenever and where-ever you want!

But...as with anything, there can also be drawbacks to going digital. Because digital files and graphic editing programs can be quite large, going digital requires a computer with a lot a available memory and a fast processor. Graphic editing software can be expensive and may have a high learning curve. Digital layouts are less "tactile" than their paper and glue counterpoints. If you like the physicality of actual artifacts, you may want to consider combining digital elements along with traditional scrapbooking techniques.

Getting Started

If you decide to delve into digital scrapbooking you will need, at minimum, a computer, some digital photos to work with and some kind of graphics editing program. Digital photos and editing programs can create quite large files, and manipulating them can be very demanding on your computer's memory. You will need a computer that is relatively up to date and that has ample RAM and a large hard drive. Make sure your computer's hard drive has at least 10 GB of free space. If you don't have enough room on your computer's hard drive, you may want to save your layouts to an external hard drive. External drives connect to your computer via a USB port and are a relatively inexpensive way to add more storage space to your computer. If you plan to download digital elements (papers, alphabets, tags and other digital goodies) from the internet then you will also need a fast internet connection and the ability to unzip digital files. (EG: WinZip)

You will need some sort of graphics editing program in order to create layouts. There are dozens of graphics editing programs available that allow you to edit photos. There are also specialized programs designed primarily to create digital layouts.The learning curve, features and cost varies from product to product. Fortunately you can find free trials for many of the software programs.

There are also some free online services available that are fast and easy. Smilebox allows you to make scrapbook layouts using ready made templates but you need to register and install their software. Through Smilebox, you can use their basic services to create, edit, publish or print scrapbook layouts. Scrapblog is a free site that does not require you to register or install any software. With Scrapblog, you can create scrapbook layouts from scratch or by using templates. Scrapblog enables you to pull your photos from popular sites such as Flickr, Photobucket and even Facebook or you can upload them from your computer. Once you have finished creating your scrapbook, you can choose to share it on those same social networking sites, email it to your friends, or print it out and put it in an album.

Photo editing programs cost more, but the freedom to learn and create is endless. You will also need to make sure you have some photo editing software for Digital Scrapbooking such as Adobe PSE, Adobe Photoshop Elements 7 or ACDSee. Some manufactures offer free trials for these programs. If you need any help using any of the programs, tutorials are offered on various sites such as The Shabby Shoppe, or Scrapbook-Bytes.

Exercise

Go to Scrapblog.com and take the 5 minute video tutorial, then create a layout using their free online program. (No registration is required).

Other online sites you may want to try would be Crop Mom or

Scrapbook Flair

Post about your thoughts on digital scrapbooking on your blog.

Do you think this is something you would like to learn to do?

Did you encounter any problems in trying to make a layout?

Post your layout.

Testing Testing

2009-01-26T16:40:00.003-06:00

Spring Cleaning #30: Unloading the Drives

2008-04-24T10:54:00.003-05:00

I had never created a file for the "S" drive, so I did and then deleted it.

I had nothing on the "P" drive....nor the "Z" drive, so this was an easy one to do!

Spring Cleaning #29: Email

2008-04-24T10:51:00.002-05:00

I cleaned out my email account for work.
At home, I made folders for various topics that I wanted to save and will be diligent in keeping it tidy and organized.
Now.....if I can just remember to go through the saved files from time to time and weed them out.....OK....I'll just put a note on the 'fridge!

Spring Cleaning #28

2008-04-24T10:45:00.002-05:00

I read about GTD....
I reviewed the links to the google calendar and the to-do lists.
These organizational tools are not very useful for me.
I am a "visual" person....I must "see" my list in order to remember to do the things I need to do.
Therefore....I have found that the best method for me is the old standard of "stick it on the refrigerator door".
I open my refrigerator door numerous times a day. If I stick a note on the door....I am guaranteed to see it!
Unfortunately....I need a much larger refrigerator to display all of my "to do's" on....and it bugs the heck out of my poor husband, who hates clutter.
But, I have tried little pocket calendars....I have tried larger desk calendars....nope....does not work. I would have to remember to actually look at the calendars to see my "to do's".....which would require a note stuck on the refrigerator door.....

Week 10: #23 The end?

2007-12-14T20:01:00.000-06:00

It has been a very interesting and informative 10 weeks for me.
A little time consuming.....but mostly fun.
I was already aware of some of the exercises....youtube and meez for example.
Other things, like RSS feeds, Library Elf, Delicious, Podcasts, etc....I had never heard of.....
but they are also things that do not have a place in my internet use.
However, just because I do not have a need for them, it is still useful information to cram into my head...you know....just in case!
I'm not one to write a book on the matter.....I completed the course and I am more knowledgeable as a result. Hopefully, if presented with an opportunity, I can impart some of my newfound knowledge on others.
Thanks!

Week 9: #22 Downloadable media

2007-12-11T10:47:00.000-06:00

I browsed the sites for downloadable media.....and found some very interesting childrens titles.
My daughter much prefers to "listen" to books than to actually "read" them, so I think this will be very useful for us.
I will definately download some digital titles for her soon!

Week 9: # 21....podcasts

2007-12-11T10:37:00.000-06:00

I explored the podcasting sites and found some interesting podcasts on scrapbooking. However, they are pretty long and I do not have time at work to listen to the complete program. I'll do that at home when I have time.....LOL!....Yeah....its Christmas rush time....so it may be a while...sorry....

Week 9: #20 Discovering YouTube

2007-12-11T10:34:00.000-06:00

YouTube is not a new experience for me. It certainly can be entertaining!
My daughter loves to look up clips of funny cats.
One of the exercises is to post a youtube clip into my blog...I did that earlier, however, so I won't do it again....

Have you ever had a dead squirrel dropped on you?

2007-11-09T16:28:00.000-06:00

Well....I came this close to having one land on my head this morning!
You see....I was out in my back yard...when all of a sudden this huge hawk type bird swoops over my head...it was really low....and then plop! it drops its breakfast at my feet! It was a half-devoured squirrel! YUCK!

Week 8: #19 Web based Apps

2007-11-04T13:10:00.000-06:00

I signed up for an account at Zoho Writer and took a look around.
I think this would be a great benefit if I did not already have a word document program on my computer. It still may hold benefits, even to those who do already own such programs.
I liked that it had templates you could use....I can see how those would come in handy.
It is easy to use....a major plus!
I guess it deserves a bookmark on my computer for future reference......