Jennee Thompson

Origins....Bloghop

2012-02-13T06:04:00.004-05:00

Please visit all the other participants sharing about their writing dream.
You can find that list on DL Hammons blog, Cruising Altitude
and thank you for putting this great blog hop together!

I was 9 years old when I told my parents "when I grow up, I want to be a starving artist."

This didn't sit to well with my dad. He immediately told me that I needed to come up with a better idea of what I wanted to do with my future. I remember sitting there, in the middle seat, between my brothers, in the back seat of the car as we drove home from my brother's birthday dinner. I believe my oldest brother said that he wanted to be a baseball player and I have no memory of what my other brother said he wanted to do.

At the age of nine, I hadn't fully decided that writing was in my future but I knew that I wanted to have a creative future as an adult. And luckily, it stuck with me....as did the title of a starving artist.

However, looking back at my childhood, it seems that writing has always been very much a part of who I am.

I plagiarized my first story by the age of 7. It started when I wanted to learn to draw and so I traced the pictures from my favorite book. Since the pictures didn't look the same without the story, I copied it word for word. This proved to be an excellent idea since we no longer had to borrow the book from the library since I made my own copy. I had completely forgotten about my criminal and youthful ways until I found the copy of this book a few years ago. I have to admit, it all looked pretty amazing coming from a 7 year old.

In 4th grade, we were allowed to write books and set them on the chalk board ledge for our classmates to "check out" and read. I wrote a story that became the class favorite. It was called "The most boring story you'll ever read about Ohio." (Even at such a young age, I wanted to get out of Ohio!)

I loved the feeling of having a book that all my classmates wanted to get their hands on, and I think that is when the real dream started to form in my little mind.

Writing was still an after thought for the most part. I wanted to go into fashion designing or theater.

But the idea kept creeping back and I found myself picking up my pen and writing my first "novel" (probably 20 pages) at the age of 14. I was so impressed with the story (a 14 year old met the man of her dreams and he proposed... they lived happily ever after through their high school drama - please don't judge me!) that I read it out loud to my mom.

She wasn't impressed. In fact, I never read her the final chapter because she told me that it was a bit unrealistic. (Yes mother, another scar you've given me! haha!) I gave up on novel writing a few years later when my mom found a story that my friend Mal and I started writing.... my mother did NOT like how the story started or where it was heading. (I get it, a mother doesn't want her 16 year old daughter writing about sex and affairs...) Still needing to use words to express my creative side, I turned to poetry which flowed easily. Then, once I got a guitar, I turned to song writing as a way to express myself.

Journaling became my obsession after I realized that my fingers only understood how to form certain chords. I had fun work stories to write about, boys and everything else that a 18 year old has to record. Still, I wanted to change the stories a little more, to make them seem a little more exciting than they had when it actually happened. I wanted to change the dialog of the words spoken to what I thought should have been said. Stories with exciting adventures would fill my head, dreams would be vivid and I wanted to live in a different reality. I wanted to write the stories that I loved thinking about all day. I wanted my fantasies to breathe their own life.

I had notebooks everywhere, filled with unfinished thoughts and story ideas. I wanted to write but I had no idea how to write anything other than some childish poetry or cheesy song lyrics. I gave up and stuck with the artsy stuff that I was good at... sewing.

And then, a funny thing happened in 2006....I discovered myspace and starting writing journal entries. People were reading what I was writing and commented on what I had to say. It was like that sensation from 4th grade came back and I craved more of it, I craved the approval of my writing from the human race, I craved attention from strangers from what I would write and I craved writing.

I didn't write regularly but I tasted what I wanted to do. Writing slowly opened my eyes to a dream that was always there.

In the last 4 years of writing regularly (thanks to blogging) my writing career has really taken off. Saying the words writing career still sounds funny to me but I've picked up some freelance writing on the side, I have amazing followers and readers on my blog, I've completed 4 first draft novels and I've been encouraged to follow my dream because, as it turns out, I'm not the only one that thinks this dream of mine should come true.

There is a part of me that has just realized the dream of writing but there is another part of me that has always been nudging me to find this path, as if it's always known that I would find my way here. The starving artist in me has always been crying for inspiration, I just never knew that it was going to be the writing bug that was going to get the best of me.

And I'm ok with that.

writing is sexy

*** This song is about never giving up on the dream with music, but I find it to be inspiring for any dream!.... Keep on dreaming even if it breaks your heart. ***

(Even if it breaks your heart - Eli Young Band)

* Dr. Seuss Style blog hop happening on March 2nd! Please join in!

Project 52: Week of February 13

2012-02-13T00:00:00.000-05:00

I'm participating in the Origin's Bloghop today which is why I am a bit behind on posting my Project 52 update. And, I do have something to report.

I finally decided to tackle #27 and clean out my art closet.

I am lucky to have a closet for clothes, a closet for books and a closet for my art supplies. However, when the niece came to visit and we did art every single day, I got a little lazy and starting just shoving everything in the closet verse putting everything away.

I'm sure none of you are guilty of doing anything like that...ever.

Anyway, it was getting hard to open the closet door and even harder to close the closet door. In fact, it was so bad that I couldn't even close door and so it remained open for over two weeks. I rolled up my sleeves and dug in (getting distracted along the way and finishing a few unfinished projects...) and it went from a hot mess....to this.

And then my parents got the word that they got a house and we'd be moving in 30-45 days.

And then a few days later, my aunt, the owner of this house that I've been living in for almost three years, decides to send her son-in-law over to do some plumbing. Turns out that they needed to get to the piping and the access point was through my art closet. And so everything was pulled out of the art closet and placed in the middle of my room again.

I let it sit there for a few days and finally today I just decided to box it up until we move because honestly, why should I clean out and organize my art closet one more time? And yes, I'm still taking it off the list!

How are you doing with Project 52? Link up if you've recently posted about your goals for 2012.

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Going From a Last Day to a First Day

2012-02-10T21:21:00.000-05:00

My life as a cook is over.

That is, as a paid occupation. Unfortunately, I will have to continue to cook for probably the next 50 years of my life but I won't be cooking for anyone but family and friends, and that's no so bad.

It was a strange feeling walking into my job on the last day, knowing that I won't be working with everyone anymore but pretty sure that I would still see most of them on a regular basis, so it was like I was leaving but I wasn't at all. Which is probably for the best since I don't like goodbyes and I tend to run away instead of dealing with the awkward goodbye process....seriously, I always moved at 4 am before anyone would awake and stop me to say goodbye. I don't like saying goodbye and so I always do the casual thing of "hey, well, see ya later...."

I thought that maybe the clock would stop moving and that I might live the longest day of my life over and over again but it wasn't like that. In fact, the song made famous by Europe kept being sung by my co-workers.... it's the final countdown!

Dear MW,
Thanks for the memories.... I have a ton of them.
- JTho

All in all, it was a great last day and I'm looking forward to having a fresh new first day in the jewelry business next week...but before I get back to working, I'm going to a luau....so if I act like I've drifted away, it's probably because I have.

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Get Firm this February with Gaiam TV!

2012-02-07T06:43:00.001-05:00

If you didn't get around to getting fit or trying that new style of aerobics in January, February is the month to start! Get off the couch and get active, it's easier than you know.

Gaiam TV is a great way to explore different styles of exercise and plus, you can work out in the comfort of your own home. Gaiam TV even offers a 10 day free trial with no strings attached so you can get a feel for the program before you commit to it. After the free 10 day trial is up, it's only 9.95 per month after that! This means you can stream over 2,000 videos whenever you want something new in your fitness routine.

Gaiam TV is the health and fitness junkie's netflix!

I've been using my trial period to get a little more motivated and the variety is helping me so much. *If you don't change up your exercise routine, your weight could plateau and it can get very frustrating if you're working on loosing weight.* Today, I streamed (and did) the Jillian Michael's Shed and Shred work out and whew! My entire body aches! I'm pretty sure Jillian thinks that if you don't feel the burn within the first 30 seconds of the work out you a) aren't working hard enough and b) don't want to change your body hard enough!

But if you aren't ready to start at Jillian Michael's level (and I'm not!) there are other instructors that you may have heard of....Mari Winsor, Rodney Yee, Seane Corn, and Kathryn Budig. The work outs are there for you to use and there to help you become one with fitness.

Gaiam TV is easy to use. It's set up so you can find work outs for what you want. You can search for something as broad as yoga (which offers pages and pages of videos) or you can narrow it down to weight loss videos, abs or beginners. The site isn't designed to discourage you from fitness but to make it easier for you to get the information and videos you need so you continue with your change of life.

There is more than just work out videos. There is a whole entire section devoted to philosophy and spirituality. There are a lot of videos that I plan to stream before my trial is up and if I don't get to them in the next 10 days, the membership fee is very affordable.

Don't miss out on this great offer and take the time to make yourself feel great!

Namaste.

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Project 52: Week of February 6

2012-02-06T05:47:00.001-05:00

#28 DONE!

Last week I stumbled on an open writing contest and since the topic was something I am much to familiar with, I submitted two entries into the contest. Over at Memoirs of a Single Dad, he is having a contest on the "best" or "worst" dates and there are prizes.

I lived through the stories.... Nothing for Something and Beinvenido a Miami and I would REALLY appreciate it if you would vote for me EVERY day until the contest ends. (February 15) And when I say vote, I mean vote because the winner is the person with the most comments and shares via the "shareboard" options at the top of the post.

(I could use a free membership to eHarmony and it'd really help with #11 on my list!)

I'm kind of amazed at how everything is coming together so easily for me and Project 52 this year. Maybe it's because it's my third year of doing this and I've finally figured out how to follow through with my plans or maybe it's just coincidence. All I know is that it's the start of February and I already feel like I've accomplished a ton!

How are you doing so far? Have you crossed anything off lately? Link up over at Karen's so we can stop by and see how you are doing. And don't forget to vote for me!

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Pinterest vs. Jennee #2: Glass Cutting

2012-02-05T08:54:00.004-05:00

When I heard that I could cut glass by using some string and fingernail polish, I HAD to try it. Plus, I really wanted to make some Absolute Vodka cups like I saw on Pinterest!

The Inspiration:

Source: make-handmade.blogspot.com via Jennee on Pinterest

The link takes you to a video that shows you just how cool it is, and even after watching the video, I still didn't believe that it would work.

Supplies: Empty wine, beer, glass bottle, acetone (nail polish remover), yarn, matches or lighter and a sink full of cold water.

Simply wrap the bottle a few times with the yarn and knot it. Remove the thick ban of yarn from the bottle and soak in nail polish remover. Place the yarn back on the bottle about 1/2 inch below where you'd like the glass to break. Light the yarn. Slowly turn the bottle in a circle so that the flame will heat the glass evenly, also keep it at a slight tilt so all of the heat stays in. As soon as the flame goes out, put the glass into cold water *BUT DO NOT GO ABOVE THE YARN LINE. Once it has broken, rub steel wool around the edge of glass.

Hopefully it gives you a clean break, but I never got a clean break. I got a lot of breaks just nothing smooth.

The ones that had a fairly smooth edge, I ended up using for candle holders but it's no where close to being used as a cup. I don't know if it has anything to do with the placement of the knot or how long it soaks in acetone but I plan to figure out a way to get a cleaner cut by using these few supplies.

The best part of this project....getting the bottles empty. :) Drink up! Have you tried this? Do you know any secrets or suggestions on how to get a clean cut?

Round #3 comes down to a TIE!

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Rain is a Good Thing

2012-02-03T18:26:00.001-05:00

You know the saying,

When it rains, it pours!

I think for the first time in my life, I'm glad that it is pouring. I've always associated this little saying with bad news because for the majority of my life, it has always been the bad stuff that has come in bunches and the good stuff was few and far between.

I thought maybe I had the wrong attitude and just wasn't seeing all the good in my life....but then people would actually agree with me and that fact that if I didn't have bad luck, I wouldn't have any luck at all.

I've gotten used to things going wrong and not going my way. I've adjusted to that kind of life and so when things start going good...I get very skeptical...beacuse this usually means that a good streak will be followed by a bad streak, a very long and painful bad streak.

Anyway, last week I shared that things were looking up. I had gotten a job offer at a place that I would learn to be content at, and had a few other interviews on hand that didn't go quite as well as I imagined. Over all, I was satisfied with life and could feel stress leaving my shoulders. I put away all of my unfinished art projects because I didn't feel the need to pour myself into art just so I could clear my head anymore. A feeling of peace floated around me.

In the middle of this clean up process, my phone buzzed that I had an e-mail. I opened it up and read the message.

Hi Jennee,
I just found your resume for a job you applied for back in October saved on my computer. Are you still interested and can you come in for an interview?

Now, let's refresh....there was a merchandising position at the fashion company that I had an interview for but really I just wanted to get into the company so I could maybe someday get to the stage of world wide travel. This email was from the same company...and for the world wide travel position.

Even though I had a bad vibe from the company it didn't stop me from replying to her email and setting up an interview.

As I walked back in the doors, I questioned why I was putting myself through this! I had an offer and I was happy with it. I didn't want to sit through another interview watching someone read my resume. I was wasting perfectly good ~~reading, writing~~, napping time.

However, this time, another secretary welcomed me in. She was much more professional (even though she left 5 minutes later fearing she caught the flu) and before she headed out, she informed the other secretary that I was going to be sitting in the chair around the corner and not to forget about me. "Go ahead and take a seat..." the new secretary says as we both glance towards the office where I had my first interview. There is a heated argument happening and spoken in Hindu. "...or you can walk out the doors and run as fast as you can." I give her an unsure grin and maybe she remembers me from last week. I sit down just as the office door slams in anger. I wondered if it was too late to run now that I had sat down.

Then I hear the secretary on the phone setting up travel plans to London and I think I'll take the chance.

A few minutes later, a young Indian woman walks out and introduces herself to me. Shivani and I head back to a different office, an office that looks like it belongs to the fashion industry. Dresses are hanging on racks and flopped over chairs. A measuring tape is sitting on an empty chair.

Shivani's desk is organized and we quickly go over my experience as a seamstress. "What I like about your resume is that you have a lot of variety with sewing but I really need someone with a fashion industry background."

I nod and silently curse at myself for giving up on the fashion designing dream in my youth. (True story...I got chubby as a teen and for some reason, my stupid teenage brain made myself believe that you had to have a size 0 body to be involved in the fashion industry. I blame Vogue magazine covers.)

"However, I'm impressed with you and I'd like to offer you a part time position." She told me the pay which is equal to my new pay and it's one day a week. All I do is measure clothes and type the measurements into the computer. (Ok, I'm a little insulted she thought I was under qualified for the open position of a "technical coordinator" but I'm not going to lie, I'm WAY over qualified for this part time job.)

I accepted her offer and sacrifice one of my days off. The way I see it, this could be my foot in the door at what I consider my "dream job" and it'll give me a taste of what this company will be like without having to give up my other job offer.

Later that night, I went out with a friend and although she was more interested in flirting with a married man verse hearing about my recent life changing events, it kinda worked out for me. See, I too, bumped into a familiar face while we were out. He's probably close to 60 and very generous. He's also a little creepy at times but over all, I like him. (His friend, no, not so much. A restriction order sounds nice for that guy...) We have a lot of mutual friends and since we don't really know each other, he adopted me for the night (as I mentioned, my friend abandoned me to do some flirting - which it was ok, I already told her that I was her wingwoman...) and we began to talk about the ever so fascinating topic....my life.

"Can I ask you how much you make right now and how much you'll be making at this new job?"

I tried to avoid it because I'm under the impression that he's a fairly wealthy man. I finally caved.

"That's all? Darlin' you are worth so much more than that. Let me do some talking, I think I know someone that can get you a job that will be worthwhile."

Whether he does this talking or not, it just kind of confirmed everything that I needed to hear.

I'm valuable.

For 3 years, I've only been taken advantage of in every aspect of my life. For 3 years, people have told me that I'm not good enough. For 3 years, I've been torn down to nothing....and it's changed me.

And not for the better.

I'm not the same girl that I was when I lived in Miami. I've lost that happy girl filled with adventure that never met a stranger. I used to be able to cheer anyone up in moments and now it's easier for me to be a bully. I used to be protective over anyone that wanted or needed protection and now I'm a girl that is told that I'm so desperate for a friend, for a date, for any attention at all that it makes me undesirable.

And it just breaks up so much of me to know that a stranger can see my worth when the people I see and talk to every day see nothing at all.

So finally, finally, a different kind of rain is falling from the sky. It's the kind of rain that will renew me and help me grow instead of drowning me even more. It's the kind of rain that feels good on your skin after a hot day, it's the kind of rain that comes just at the right time.

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And Guest

2012-02-02T08:18:00.000-05:00

Sometimes it is the every day things that suddenly catch us off guard. Running a red light gets your blood pumping, hearing a certain song might bring back a sad memory and turning that corner to find someone unexpectedly standing inches away from you almost always makes us gasp for oxygen. Life surprises are always out there, waiting until we are completely comfortable and content and then sneaks up on us.

Sometimes these are pleasant surprises, the ones that make you feel like you have finally found good fortune.

And then every now and again, it changes the whole outlook of your day or possibly week.

I got some mail the other day.

I love mail for the most part. I don't like the bills but I love receiving packages in the mail, even if it isn't a gift but something that I ordered. It's the anticipation of opening something that you have been waiting for. With a world of instant gratification and everything taking on a technological form, the mail is the only thing that we still wait on, and still surprises us.

I was invited to a wedding.

I am very happy for the bride-to-be and of course I will be there, watching her walk down the aisle and make vows to the man of her dreams. But every time I get an invitation in the mail for a wedding, I have a small panic attack. It doesn't really have anything to do with being single but it has everything to do with being single. I have my panic attack and then I look at the envelope and re-read the cover, hoping to see...

To: Jennee Thompson And Guest.

Although I don't have anyone that I would be taking to a wedding, I always wonder if I'll be dating someone by the time this wedding comes along. (Shockingly, I never do...)

Isn't it normal wedding invite etiquette to offer a single person to invite a guest? I've gone to tons of weddings without a plus one because it never suggested that I bring on one the invite...unless of course this just means they already know that I won't have anyone to bring with me.

Which is what the real panic attack is about.... the fact that no one thinks that I will have "a plus one." I've been defined as a single gal for life, not because this is the life that I want and hope for, but it is the title that everyone has assumed that will always follow me around, because it is the title that I've always had. And it is a status that I do so well.

In my best defense, I don't exactly bring anything to the table to convince anyone that I do want to get married and have kids in the (near) future. Because I don't date much, I don't complain about my singleness out loud, and I don't pry about so and so being single.

I've been told all my life that if I don't look for love or him, love and the man of my dreams will find me. So, I tried not to look for it. Time has taught me that that is a big lie because if I never look for it, how will I ever see anything? I'll never notice the "what ifs" and other possibilities that are happening right in front of me.

I don't want to be reassured that it'll happen someday, because it might not. I just want others to believe in the possibility that it could happen someday and at least give me the option of having a plus one to a ceremony of two people that miraculously fell in love. Because if the people I am surrounded by don't believe it'll happen for me someday, I'll find myself in agreement with them.

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Currently - February 2012

2012-02-01T08:55:00.001-05:00

Current status: single

Current Facebook status: writing is sexy.

Current book: Voyage of the Dawn Treader - C.S. Lewis. Oh how I love the Chronicles of Narnia!

Current album: Kelly Clarkson - Stronger. Yes, I love Kelly.

Current song:
Mr. Know It All.... I feel like I could dedicate this song to a few people....

Current color: Plum

Current drink: I am so sick of drinking water...

Current food: blueberries and yogurt...finally, a healthy craving!

Current celebrity crush: Gavin DeGraw

Current favorite tv show: I miss Chuck already! Who else cried during the series finale? (Anyone else feel like it should have ended differently?)

Current wish list: every piece of jewelry being discontinued from Lia Sophia

Current need: to charge my cell phone

Current triumph: only falling of the new healthy eating plan for 3 days....verse 3 weeks!

Current bane to my existence: people that tell me that I could do better, I mean honestly, I'm trying!

Current Favorite Movie: I really liked Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows. I hope they make so many more Sherlock Holmes movies!

Current Shame-inducing Guilty Pleasure: Pinterest

Current blessing: having Sundays off

Current indulgence: buying jewelry

Current outfit: pajamas. I really need to stop blogging in my pajamas.

Current excitement: Starting a new job, getting a change in life....but oh so nervous!

Current favorite photo that I took:

Ok, it's not really the photo that I love...but the creation of food that I love! Mmm, this is my cranberry orange dip and it's a good one.

Current Quote: "Never let success get to your head. Never let failure get to your heart." - Anonymous

What are you currently up to?

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January Wrap Up

2012-01-31T07:40:00.000-05:00

What! January is gone already? Well, just as I've started doing a currently at the start of each month, I'm going to do a wrap up at the end of each month.

(I'm trying not to get depressed with my break down of everything. I really need to get out a little more next month...and take more pictures!)

Number of dates: 0

Number of second dates: 0

Number of movies watched at the theater: 2

(Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows and Chipwrecked!)

Number of pounds lost: 15 (all of that holiday weight!)

Number of concerts: 0

Number of books read: 1

(Prince Caspian - C.S. Lewis)

Number of new burns on my arm: 1

Number of weddings: 0

Number of Engagements: 0

Number of bloody noses: 0

Number of babies born to friends: 2

(Baby Jackson and Baby Knox)

Number of text messages sent/received: 2,277

Number of applications sent in: 4

Number of interviews: 2

Number of evenings out: 4

Number of pins on Pinterest: 1,473

Number of writing gigs: 1

What did you do during the last 31 days?

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Project 52: Week of January 30

2012-01-30T15:17:00.001-05:00

1/12 months of 2012 done!

Oh wait, I didn't put surviving January on my list! Man! Must add that to next year! :)

January has been a great month for me, in terms of crossing things off of my Project 52 list. There was a time where I actually thought that I made my list a little too easy...but I think I had those same thoughts last year too (and I didn't finish everything last year!)

So, what have I crossed off this month?

#7 Publish something. - Now, I'm not technically taking this one off of my list just yet because I would like to publish something a little more well....to a bigger crowd. I wrote up a thought after church one day and my dad liked it so much, he passed it on the the preacher guy. Next thing I know, I'm getting a phone call to give permission to have it printed up in the bulletin. So, kinda published, kinda not.

#10 Find an income that will allow me to move out - This one caught me by surprise because I honestly didn't think I would ever find a different job (given the rate I was going!) But yes, I got a new job with pay that will get me out of the parent's house a lot sooner. I'm hoping by Spring 2013.

*Side story.... My co-worker asked me if I had a background in jewelry now that I'm getting a job at a jewelry store. My response, without missing a beat was....no, but I have a background in being awesome.

He agreed.

#13 Do 5 creative ideas found on Pinterest. - Yeah, I think I did 5 in the first week. Way too easy of a goal.

#16 Print off my blogs. Yep, there is an amazing website called Blog2Print and they make really nice books of all the blogs that have been posted. It's so much nicer than when I printed them off myself and put them in a binder.

#33 Donate money to a good cause - Get better Steve Babb's!

That's 5 goals out of 52 that are already done. I've been in the process of completing a lot of them as well, so January was a great kick off month for me. How about you? What have you accomplished so far? What are you working towards?

Please link up so we can stop by and say hi!

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Pinterest vs. Jennee #1: Kindle Cover

2012-01-29T14:46:00.000-05:00

With Pinterest taking over the internet...and blogging, I thought it was time to creatively combine the two.

Call it crafter's fail, or take that Pinterest!, I wanted to start sharing the projects that I've done with the inspiration given to me by Pinterest. So, here is the plan (and please feel free to join me each Sunday with this project by linking up), I'm going to show you the inspiration photo and then show you what worked for me.

It's going to be similar to my How to Make a Button Bowl post, but I'm hoping that not all of my Pinterest inspired attempts end up like that! I'm actually a very artsy crafty person! And somedays, I might just come up with my own idea without the help of Pinterest.

Pinterest vs. Jennee #1 is the Kindle cover:

Source: cometogetherkids.com via Jennee on Pinterest

This website gave a great tutorial on how to make this cover, so if you have questions that I forgot to answer, check out cometogetherkids.com

Tip #1: Make sure your kindle or nook or whatever kind of e-reader you have will fit inside of the book.

If you find a thicker book, then you can glue the binding to make it a little smaller but I chose a book that wasn't very thick. (I also chose a book called The Art of Mingling. Ironic, huh!)

A quick run down of supplies: material of your choice, hot glue gun, elastic, iron on adhesive tape

A quick run down of how to make the cover: Go back to your seventh grade memories of covering a book with a paper bag, but instead, use material. Fold, wrap, fold some more, etc. Apply the adhesive tape to edges and iron to glue together. Glue the elastic to four corners (place the Kindle inside and mark where you want to glue the elastic!)

I didn't follow all the rules that was given on the other website but I found that since I wanted a tight cover I ended up using Modge Podge around the corners and I even sewed a seam down the center of the cover. If I were to redo it, I would have sewn majority of the cover because I think it would give a cleaner look.

I also HATE that the elastic that holds the Kindle in place is with a hot glue gun. It works, it holds it in place just fine but I need a clean and crisp look for my cover, so I wish I would have sewn the elastic on the material before I glued the material to the book. With my Kindle having a keyboard, there are times when the elastic is in the way but over all, I enjoy reading my Kindle a lot more now that I can hold it like a book.

I also wanted to make my pocket a little more obvious, so I added a little bit of trim. Ready for my final results?!?!?

Jennee wins Round #1!

Fashionably Unusual

2012-01-27T08:17:00.002-05:00

I mentioned yesterday that I finally landed an interview with a company that for a year, I had been trying to get an interview with.

You can imagine my excitement when they called to set up an interview. (I'd only applied 4 times in the last year and for every position that they offered...)

Let me tell you more about the job and company so that you can really grasp my interest in this position. The place is at clothing corporation, and yes, the corporate offices are in Wooster. The company is world wide and has been pretty successful for a while. Working for this company includes mandatory world wide travel and fashion shows, which is my cup of tea. Plus, there would be constant room for growth which is good for an over-achiever like myself.

The interview was set up right after I got done working at my current job...you know, a cook. Hot, sweaty, no make up, hair pulled back job...not my best look. The last thing I wanted to do was go to an interview for a fashion industry job looking unfashionable. I requested a later time in the afternoon for an interview but they told me it was that time or next week. Since I already had a job offer in my hands, I wanted to do the interview sooner rather than later.

I left from work and drove over to the interview location, arriving with plenty of time for me to do my make-up, fix my hair and change my clothes (while still in my car.) With 20 minutes to spare before my interview would take place, I headed into the small corporate office building.

Quickly, I felt like I was over dressed. In my heeled boots. Dark jeans. And swoop neck sweater. Of course, I was carrying my D&G bag.

The receptionist had an outfit on that she'd probably been wearing for the last ten years. Faded and wrinkled, she looked like she could careless about making a fashion statement. Her hair was a big frizzy mess and she maintained her desk like she did her appearance.

"Hi, I'm here for a 3:00 interview." I gave her a smile.

"Who are you?"

"Jennee Thompson."

She looks around her desk and then walks into another room. "Do you have a resume, I can't find yours?"

I always take a resume with me on an interview, even if I already emailed it in. I get it, a lot of resumes come in and it's hard to keep them all straight so I tried not to judge her for her lack of organization as I awaited my interview.

She took my resume and walked into the other room. She came back with a stack of magazines and handed them to me so that I would have something to look at while I waited.

When I say a stack of magazines, I kid you not, she gave me probably 20. It wasn't awkward at all since there was no table or empty chair to put the stack on. So now, I was holding my purse, my coat and trying to flip through 20 magazines without dropping them.

I listened in to the other receptionists talk as I waited for my interview. There was some traveling conflicts where their hotel lost a reservation and several times they wondered if so and so knew he had an interview and would be coming back into the office today.

Finally, an Indian man walked in followed by his teenage son. He approached me with excitement and shook my hand. I gathered my stuff to stand but he insisted that I stay seated, "It's only 2:55." He assures me, and apparently we can't start the interview until 3:00.

So I wait. For five minutes.

Then, the Indian guy (named Raj) comes out and asks me to follow him to his office and have a seat. (A seat beside his teenage son!) He sits down behind his desk and starts reading over my resume.

"Very good. Very good. Ah, Miami, very nice place. Very good." He says without looking up at me.

"I have a lot of variety." I add since I feel like I should say something in my interview.

"That's fine, all very good." About a minute later, he says this.... "We have a show and we'll be gone until Feb. 18th. I'll call you then with my decision."

My brow crinkles. "Uh, ok."

He offers his hand, we shake again and I walk out of his office, out the door and back to my car, mumbling WTH?!?! Was that even an interview?

There was no discussion about the position that I applied for, no discussion about my work experience, no questions about my strengths and weaknesses.....I literally drove out there to watch him read my resume.

I've had some strange interviews in my days...but this was a new one.

Part of me hopes that he'll call me on the 18th. I guess I'm hoping he'll tell me something about the job but if he offers me a job, I'm going to have to decline...because something tells me that this company doesn't have the greatest communication skills.

So much for traveling abroad and going to fashion shows.... but hey, I tried.

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Things Are Looking Up

2012-01-26T16:25:00.000-05:00

Just before New Years, everyone I knew said things like "2012 is going to be my year, I just feel it."

I was a little concerned because I didn't get that feeling. I hoped that I would find that feeling just as I hoped that 2012 would be a great year for me.

January kicked off and I was incredibly sick. Sicker than I had been in probably 5 years. It took everything out of me, including my motivation, happiness and good thoughts. By the time I recovered from my intense and unusual sickness, I was lost in depression. It happens this time of year for me, no matter how many vitamins I take or how warm this winter has been. I need sunshine on my skin and to be absorbed into my soul. Yes, every Fall and Winter, I become victim of SDD.

On top of all of this, there was dieting drama (as it cravings...)moving drama, work drama, singledom/boy drama and life just sucked.

So, I tried to change things.

Nothing changed.

I turned to art to sooth my soul and take away my stress. It calmed me yet frustrated me at the same time.

Still, I felt tortured about everything. Tortured, unhappy and restless. The weight of everything was burying me and just waking up in the morning was work.

I thought everything over and pinned the problem areas that were keeping me up at night.

I apologized to the boy, I ate a piece of cake and I applied to a few jobs. Nothing can change the fact that I'm moving. (It's not the move, it's the fact that my parents bought a house and I have no choice but to move with them when they move...)

It helped more than I thought it would.

Even though the boy still won't talk to me, I gained my pound back and I didn't have any phone calls for interviews.

So, I put the past in the past where it belongs, did some more art work and focused on living the life I want to live and not the life that keeps getting thrown at me. I focused on changing my attitude about boys, work, moving and dieting.

As I was in the middle of painting, my phone rang. I did my best to hit the send button without getting paint on my phone.

"yell-ow" It was a bit obnoxious but it was my mom on the other end and I hadn't talked to any human in 4 hours. (I say human because I'm pretty sure that I talked to my fish a time or two...)

"You need to call Tim about a job." She vaugly fills me in on what she just heard. I quickly hang up with her, push my painting aside and call Tim.

"Tim's Employment Agency" He answers, joking about how this could be the THIRD job he has found for me. We talk over what he knows and I decided I'll stop by his shop tomorrow so he can introduce me to his neighbors, the one's looking for someone to hire.

The place is a jewelry store and as much as I fear that I might find it a little boring, it will be nice to have a different pace, plus the hours and pay are better than what I have right now. And, best part yet....SUNDAY's OFF! A girl has to look out for herself and since I haven't gotten anywhere in the last 3 years, I don't see how staying at my current job will ever change that.

When I met them the next morning, I put on my friendly and sweet face and did what I do best, make people look better so they forget that I'm actually interviewing. (I've been through enough interviews to know that the secret to people liking you in the interview is to get them to talk about how amazing they are and to sell them that you find it all to be fascinating. Then, the interviewer feels so good about themselves by the time the interivew is done that they "think" they like you because of what you offered in the interview.)

They loved me and offered me a job on the spot.

They loved me even more when I asked if I could be trained on how to engrave jewelry. (I need another trade since I claim to be the Jackie of All Trades!)

And then they learned that I sew and well, I thought they might faint from excitement. (Then they told me why they loved knowing that I was a seamstress and I immediatly loved them.... the owner guy does Civil War reenactments and sometimes they need tents and costumes sewn. How cool is that!)

I accepted their offer and felt the weight of my troubles lift. Finally, a change in my life!

As I was making a few phone calls about my good news, I got a phone call from a place that I have been trying to get a job at for about a year now. A job that I am REALLY interested in. And then I got an e-mail about another job that I would like to do as well.

I set up an interview at the place I'm REALLY interested in. It's a fashion company and there offers a lot of growth in the company, such as international traveling and going to fashion shows....however the position that I finally got a call for an interview is bottom of the totem pole. I don't know what the pay is but if it is better than the jewelry gig, I think I'll have to say goodbye to the possibility of this job and head towards the fashion industry.

Then the email is a sewing job but I don't know a lot of details about that one just yet.

Still...

I guess a lot can change in 24 hours.

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Dr. Seuss Style Blog Hop Coming Soon!

2012-01-25T13:36:00.000-05:00

In attempts to have a little fun, have a writing challenge, and get a little creative, I offer the Dr. Seuss Style Blog Hop!

March 2 was the wonderful Dr. Theodor Seuss Geisel's day of birth, and to honor his day of birth (He'd be 108...) post your best version of a Dr. Seuss style story or poem. It can be something that copies your favorite Dr. Seuss book, or it can be whatever you want.

You are the winninest of all the writers,

Winninest of them all whether your story be big or small

The story told is the best of all

Take your pen and cross it over your heart

Believe in your mind

Now, let's get ready and start

(I'm working on my style still, it's not as easy as one would think!)

Ok, I'll let Dr. Seuss offer you the inspiration you need....

Link up, spread the word and visit as many Dr. Seuss style posts as you can on Friday, March 2.

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Project 52; Week of January 23

2012-01-23T07:36:00.002-05:00

I've been working really hard at goal #31 this week, so much so, that I'm getting a bit obsessive about it.

Goal #31: Write a cook book, take photos of the dishes and turn it into a Blurb book

I have 35 original recipes (inspired from some rather familiar recipes) that I am dying to perfect. Actually, I'm dying to try them all but since I'm also working hardcore on goal #17 to lose at least 35 more pounds this year (and keep it off) it is making this process a little torturous.

Cheat the diet and taste delicious food so I can finish my cookbook or hope that I can hold on to this inspiration until I've met my weight loss goal? It is a dilemma, I tell you, major dilemma!

I can't help it. I love to eat and experiment with food.

Hence, the weight issue.

On top of that, people have been asking when this long awaited cookbook will be available to them. I know, I can't believe it either but people actually want to know how I make some of the food that I make at work. The problem is, I can tell them the ingredients but when I cook, I don't follow recipes, I just throw stuff together....and it turns out.

I have noticed while working on these recipes that I pretty much add black beans or spinach to everything. I was kind of impressed at how many meatless meals I have in my collection...and a lot of them are fairly healthy. That is, until I start thinking about dessert.

I confess. I am a chocaholic, sweet tooth crazed, dessert lover. Really, it is my weakness. I eat healthy all the time and work out on a regular basis...but give me some darn sugar so I can make it through the day!

So, all this to say that I am working towards my goal but there are a few limitations to being further along on this project that I am.

However, I'm in need of your help. I can't decide on a title for my cookbook, and so I started a poll on my right side bar. Please vote and help me decide which is best. Think in terms of...if I were walking through the grocery store, which one would grab your eye and make you purchase it?

Eat Well, Eat Much, Eat Often (Inspired by my favorite quote)

I'm Not Your Personal Chef, Make It Yourself! (I say this at least 6 times a day at work)

Don't Worry, Eat Happy (Because we worry way too much about eating)

Forget the Calories, Eat and Enjoy (Pretty much self explanatory)

Feed Me, I'm Hungry (That's what recipe books are there for)

I Was Told There Was Cake (It gets my attention every time)

I Try to Eat Healthy But My Sweet Tooth Keeps Taking Me to the Dessert Recipes (My dilemma!)

If you have some suggestions, please let me know. If I use your title, I'll give you a copy of the recipe book.

Oh, you want a recipe do you? Ok, this is an oldie but a goodie. I've even tweaked it a little since then...

but yes, this one will be in the cookbook....

Nutella Popcorn

How are you doing with your goals this week? What stopped you from reaching them? Did you write a blog about your weekly goals or attempts, it so be sure to link up over at Karen's!

Be sure to link up so everyone can visit you. Remember, Project 52 is a support system. If you truly want to make progress on your list this year....GET INVOLVED! It really does make a huge difference.

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Down With The DC Talk....

2012-01-18T11:47:00.001-05:00

It was a mild day for December in Ohio. No snow was on the ground and I was content in my unbuttoned winter coat. My brother and I were driving down the hilly and swerving roads to Loudonville, attempting to be good grandchildren and show up for our Grandma Thompson's 85th birthday.

As we drove through the country, we chatted about important brother/sister topics, like XFactor and Dexter. Suddenly, my ears perked up and I strained to hear the song that was softly playing thanks to Ipod Shuffle.

"Is that D.C. Talk?" I said mid conversation with Brother B. He turned up the stereo. In fact, it was D.C. Talk. "Wow, I completely forgot about them!"

And then I started laughing hysterically. (My brother looked at me like I was crazy but shrugged it off because he already knows that I am crazy.)

"Michael Tait bit my shoulder. I mean, how many people can say that?"

Michael Tait as in Michael Tait from D.C. Talk. (Or, as I just learned while googling him that he is now the lead singer of Newsboys?!?! I don't listen to Christian music much anymore.)

But in the early 90's...I lived for music from D.C. Talk. It was edgy, it was different and it wouldn't send me to hell. I had all of their cd's and listened to them regularly. When their Jesus Freak album came out in 1995, I had the whole thing memorized. Best Album of my teenage years (aside from my extreme addiction to the Broadway Musical RENT).

Life happened and I found other music that I liked more than the good old D.C.Talk boys. When they split, I got all of their individual albums but I only liked Tait's album.

I moved to Nashville in 2005, the land of musicians and my year of misery. I had a good friend that did her best to involve me in a social life but I had sever depression (that she didn't know about) and she often got frustrated with my lack of effort in involving myself in the social activities. However, we had met this guy Robbie at Bar23 one Wednesday night. (Wednesday night was 80's night and yes, we dressed up from time to time.)

Robbie invited us to go play darts one night and we agreed. When that night came, we got to know each other verses dancing with each other in 80's attire. He mentioned he worked on a sound crew (because every one in Nashville has a cool job in the music industry) and that a few of the guys might be joining him.

Not the photo of the night but from another time I played
darts while living in Nashville.

And then Michael Tait walked in and I was like holy crap, that's Michael Tait, I used to adore him as a teenager. And so, we played darts.

I'm terrible at darts. Sometimes I can't even hit the board. I don't remember whose team I was on, all I know is that I wasn't on Michael Tait's team and that he went after me. Somehow, I managed to get a bulls-eye at the moment that would cause my team to win the game. Honestly, it was a miracle.

And as a result, Michael Tait bit my shoulder because he was angry and couldn't believe that I just did that. And when I say that he bit my shoulder, I mean bit me like he was a vampire because I had his teeth marks in my skin for a good amount of time.

And that is my story of the time that I met Michael Tait from DC Talk.

See why I started laughing as the music brought back my memories? Anyway, Brother B and I hadn't listened to DC Talk in at least ten years. And so we thought that we would play the song Jesus Freak and see if we could still do the rap.

Yes, rap.

We still knew the words (isn't it amazing how we can remember the words of songs we haven't listened to in years?) and then we laughed at how we used to think that was a rap!

It was a nice little trip down memory lane as we headed to the birthday party (where I was the horrible granddaughter and told my Grandma that I was her favorite grandchild since she had no idea who I was. She has Alzheimer's and even by telling her that, she looked at me as if she knew I was lying.)

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Project 52; Week of January 16

2012-01-16T06:18:00.002-05:00

We're a few weeks into the new year and life is back to normal (or less hectic than it was during the holidays). Most people start giving up on their resolutions around this time because they tried for 3 weeks and didn't get the results they wanted, and so they give up.

If you want to quit, then quit but don't hold me responsible for any feelings of failure or lack of follow through you have when December sneaks up on us again. You alone are responsible for everything put your mind to this year. I hope you haven't gotten discouraged already and find yourself crossing things off of your Project 52 list already.

I've already crossed 2 things off of my list. #16 and #33. I'll tell you all about #16 next week because I want to tell you about #33 - Donate money to a good cause.

Saturday night a benefit dinner and auction was held to raise money for a young guy battling cancer. (I think he's 35...just a few years older than me!) It's a rare cancer of the adrenal glands, and I've been told that his cancer came back after he thought he was cured. Needless to say, he could use a little help financially to pay off his medical bills.

I talked my parents into joining me for this outing and I remembered to stop at the bank and grab some cash for the auction. I spent a little while mingling with all the people that I knew there and it was a really great turn out, probably close to 200 people! Then, I checked out the items that had been donated for the auction. I made my mind up when I saw a Ghirardelli chocolate gift basket that this would be the item that I would be bidding on.

Once the auction started, my parents and I decided that we would put all of our money together so we could go higher on bids. I liked the idea because I knew that chocolate would go for a decent amount of money. I bid on a few things but never followed through with anything, like I said, I had chocolate on the mind.

My father didn't get the memo because he got the highest bid for a tupperware set. And then he got the highest bid on a ton of kitchen supplies. And then he got some lamps. And we were out of money and the chocolate hadn't come close to being auctioned off.

So yes, I was a little sad when I didn't actually get to win anything from bidding during the auction, and I was a little sad that my dad spent all my money at the auction, but I remembered that it was going to a good cause. We still got a really good deal and I decided to take the tub of kitchen stuff since he bought it with my bidding money.

Then someone had the brilliant idea of auctioning off a crispy $50 bill and it went for $70!!!!! Talk about a fun auction and way to raise money. It was amazing, fun and all for a good cause. I intended to take more pictures during the event but I didn't want the auctioneer to think my raising of my cell phone to snap a photo was a bid.

So there you have it, #33 - Donated money to Steve Babb's medical bills = good cause.

Did you cross anything off of your list this week? Tell me all about it! Link up over at Karen's and be sure to visit and encourage others as they work towards their goals for 2012.

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Sunday Sermon Sidenote

2012-01-15T17:42:00.000-05:00

Where I attend church, it doesn't feel much like church at all and I love it. There are maybe 30 people that gather in a small location and we gather around for a lesson. It's an open discussion lesson, not a sermon and I have learned more in the past year about anything Bible and God related than I have my whole life. (And this is just attending every other Sunday!)

There is no church stiffness in this setting, it really feels like a happy family gathering to study from the Bible. (Who wouldn't want to be a part of that? If you live here and want to go to church with me, I'll be happy to take you!)

Today, the lesson-leader-preacher-guy got a bit distracted. He wanted to dive into Romans but he wanted to give us a quick thought about the Beatitudes found in Matthew 5 - 7.

This quick little thought lasted 15 minutes but it was a great discussion that tied in to what the lessons have been for the past few months. The New Creation.

(It's hard for me to dive into this topic without sharing with you all the other things that I have learned about this and I had considered writing a weekly post to share everything. So I borrowed the notes from the lesson-leader-preacher-guy and started writing a blog. I was 6 pages in before I got through the third note. There is to much background information to put together....so I hope you can follow this jump.)

Anyway, the New Creation is a part of restoring the Earth to what God intended it to be. God made humans to rule Creation as Adam ruled over the creation in the Garden of Eden, as Jesus came as human to show that it was possible to live the life that God intended. However, His creation got lost in sin, wickedness and evil. It turned everything upside down and we now live in a cursed and broken world.

During the lesson, the lesson-leader-sermon-speaker-guy (ok, his name is Dean) said "We (God's Children) reflect what creation has been looking for."

My brains started swimming with thoughts and next thing I know, I was writing and I missed the rest of the lesson. I think it was worth it. This is what I wrote.

We reflect what creation has been looking for....so when people go out to "find themselves" they are really searching for New Creation, seeking God's original purpose for humanity yet society has turned us to self help books, selfish wild goose chases and other distractions that will never truly lead us to New Creation. So we keep wandering and wondering where life is leading us, what our purpose is and soon we find ourselves walking in the dusk of the evening. Dusk always turns to darkness and once it is dark, it is hard to find the light. Instead of searching for the light, we find comfort in the darkness and conclude that our search is complete and we have found our purpose, yet we are still sitting there in the dark. When the sun breaks the darkness, that will be New Creation shining through. Will our lives be lost in the shadows of the world or will we be the ones living as Christ did, and bring the light into the darkness, and show the world a glimpse of the New Creation that God has in store for us?

And so I'll stop there, as I did while writing it (and since I missed out on the rest of the lesson writing this...) I don't intend to conclude this post but leave it as an unfinished thought so that maybe you can think about it too.

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I don't often post much about religion or politics, not because I don't have strong opinions about these topics, but because I hate starting an "I'm offended and I'll tell you why" comment war. In hopes to put all of this aside, I thought about turning off my comments for this one post but that would just be really silly. If this post bothers you, don't tell me and go read a post that doesn't bother you. Simple solution.

Just Like That...

2012-01-14T22:21:00.000-05:00

Just like that my friend tells me that she is unexpectedly expecting.

Pregnant.

With Child.

Soon-to-be-Mommy.

My closest single gal pal is going to change her chatter to baby talk.

I panicked when she told me the news.

Actually, I'm pretty sure that I freaked out more about it than she did. I paced the room with shaking hands trying to wrap my head around this change in my friends life....the change in our friendship...the permanent change of.... everything.

Once I got over MY shock, I asked how she was handling it. She said she was trying not to think about it and we decided it was time to get together and have a real life chat....since the reveal of the secret was done via text.

And it was a secret. Besides herself, her mother and the father of the baby that was beginning to form, I was the only other person that knew this piece of information.

I don't like when I'm one of the few selective people that know important time sensitive information. The last time someone told a secret about an unexpected pregnancy, it was to ask if I would take her to the abortion clinic. (Just so you know, that did not go over well since the thought of abortion makes me sick to my stomach.) To this day, I think I'm the only person she told that she was pregnant and got an abortion. To this day, it still bothers me that I know this.

I didn't ask my friend if she was planning to keep it or any of her plans about the pregnancy. That talk will come once she has sorted through all of her thoughts and feelings about her new role in life.

And just like that, I became a little bit jealous.

Maybe I've been around my niece a little too much lately, maybe it's because I'm getting older, maybe it's because all of my friends have moved beyond the single life and maybe it's because I'm tired of watching everyone else have what I've always wanted....

I don't want to be a single mother or have an unexpected pregnancy but I want to be someone's mom. I've always wanted that and it feels a little further from my reach every day.

Friends with children tell me to never have kids, they're too expensive, the birth is too painful, they are loud and annoying, they don't listen.....but what my friends don't know is that I watch them transform when they see their children. I watch everything they've just complained about disappear when their baby is in their arms and they look at their child with so much love. After seeing that unconditional love, it's really hard to not want to experience that for myself with my own child.

*Let me just add that I will not be going out in hopes to get knocked up by some stranger just so I can fulfill my dreams of being a mother.

I've watched friends that are single mothers struggle with all the responsibilities of motherhood and being the head of the house. I've watched friends that are single fathers struggle with figuring out how to be a father to a child they rarely get to see and spend time with, to find the balance in being the cool dad that spoils the child and disciplinarian. Raising a child is team work, whether it be in the form of a husband and wife (which is my goal) or a mother and friends, mother and grandmother, or even a community gathering around to help out.

I'll push aside my own desires for a family life like I have done so much in the past and lend my support to my friend, throw her an amazing baby shower and anxiously await another "niece" or "nephew". (I currently have one blood niece but I have somewhere around 7 "nieces and nephews".) After all, I'm the coolest Aunt Jennee EVER.

And wait for the day when I find out that I'll be a mom, just like that.

Single Ladies Ready to Mingle...

2012-01-13T16:25:00.000-05:00

The plan was perfect. So perfect, it was amazing that we hadn't come to this conclusion before but once the idea finally clicked, everything fell into place as perfect plans often do.

I had met my friend for lunch a few weeks back while she was in town. Her sister, Kyle tagged along for lunch because she thought it would be fun, and fun it was! We became instant friends and decided that since we were both single and actively looking in a dumpy town for classy men, we would become each others wing-women.

We made plans to go to one of the "ritzier" locations for happy hour drinks and appetizers, this way we could eat within our budget and scope out the men that are willing to dress it up a little more than jeans and t-shirts. (We know we'd just have to go to Leroy's to find those boys... ) But the truth is, we're getting older and going to the cheap bar only brings in the college boys and old drunks. To find men in our age group, we'd have to find the places and mingle where the "young professionals" mingle.

And so that was just what we did.

With my fresh knowledge of mingling taught to me by Ryan Gosling in Crazy, Stupid, Love, I felt confident and even spent a little extra time on my hair and make up. The only thing I had left to do was to walk out into the raining weather, drive across town and put our plan into action.

That's where my pep talk came in. I really hate the bar scene. I really hate the pointless flirting, the games and more often than not, the utter humiliation of attempting to meet someone in a bar.

However, Kyle and I both want to increase our social lives and the best way to do that is to actually leave the house.

Three hours and a few cocktail drinks later, we covered every topic from every bad online dating experience to the joys of being an aunt. However, there were no potential men in our sight and so we set up plans to prowl at a later date.

I didn't get to practice the art of mingling, nor give out my digits to any guy that looks like Ryan Gosling. (Bummer!) I know that we'll have some great single lady adventures together and I can't wait!

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The How To: Button / Embellishment Bowl

2012-01-12T11:40:00.010-05:00

Today's prompt that I've decided to partake in is....
Create an "instructional" post where you show your readers how to do something cool.

I got this idea from Pinterest and let's just say that I had crafter's fail. Since it is my instructional, I'll tell you how to do it and I'll share with you where I went wrong.

The inspiration:

The first thing to do is to decide what you want to use as your design. I loved the button idea but I'm not much of a button person, so I decided to one up it and go for some lovely embellishments. *This may have been my first mistake, but it is still undecided.

Now, since my niece was in town and she loves being artsy crafty, she worked on a button bowl.

After you decided what you are going to make your bowl out of, blow up a ballon to the size of a bowl you'd like to have. I decided to draw a line around my ballon to know where I should stop gluing but *another fail* the marker line gets soaked up in the glue.

Then, ever so gently, pin the part of the balloon that makes the tie, to a cardboard box (another fail, It's easier if you have a bowl that fits your ballon perfectly*).

From here, you glue your buttons to the balloon. I used Modge Podge *maybe another fail* and watched as my niece quickly glued her buttons to her ballon but my embellishments wouldn't stick at all! Talk about frustrating...getting showed up by a 5 year old!

Glue, Glue, Glue! This is very time consuming and you have to take breaks for the glue to dry. Sometimes the buttons move while drying, so then you have to go back and fill in the gaps.

Add final coats of glue, once dried on the outside, pop the ballon and apply an inner coat of paint.

And ta da! You have a bowl!

But here's where crafter's fail takes place..... after everything was dry, we put something inside of the bowl...

No, the bowl won't break and you can remold it into whatever you want....it just never really keeps a shape. Blame it on gravity, the weight of the buttons, the glue...we don't really know why the bowl won't keep shape.

After seeing what happened to my niece's bowl, I have yet to put anything in my bowl, and so far it has kept it's shape.. but if you ask me in a week, it might look a little different. Oh well, it was a good try....a neat idea and fun for me and the niece. I really think it was the choice of glue. If you try it and it works for you, let me know what kind of glue you used or where I went wrong!

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Lately....

2012-01-11T11:03:00.000-05:00

The past few weeks were a whirlwind of fun and sickness, holidays and crafts and play time with the niece. Yes, oh yes, for two weeks I was the Best Aunt Jennee in the whole wide world. (Even while having the strangest sickness...a different symptom each day, one day the fever, one day the flu, then just a bad cough...name the symptom, I had it...went on for 2 weeks!)

The niece (I like to call her Lulu even though that is nothing like her name...and I don't remember why I started teasing her with that name....) arrived on Christmas Eve's eve and I already had her presents under the tree. Being the smart 5 year old that she is, she quickly found all the presents that started with the letter S. (The first letter in her real name.)

The holiday excitement could finally begin and children really do bring the holiday spirit alive. Christmas morning, Lulu was so excited that Santa left her a note thanking her for the cookies. We had a few good laughs when "Santa" and Dad bought Lulu the same gift. Plus, I threw in a few prank gifts for my brothers.

Yes, I was sneaky and taped the gift card on the inside of an apron. The funny thing about this is I asked my brother what I could make him for christmas. Brother B said he wanted pillows but Brother J said..."what can you make me that isn't girly or frilly?" He didn't want pillows either. So, I just had to give him a frilly apron for Christmas.

All in all, Christmas was great.

I know I normally play the "Wilson" game with Lulu's photos but that was when she never wanted to look at the camera and it made it easy, so I'm breaking all my rules and letting you see pictures of Little Lu....Sorry Brother J, I know you don't like this.

But we still had 2 weeks of the little one and so, we took her ice skating. The last time I went ice skating, I believe I was 13 or so...yeah, 15 years-ish. That's a long time...but I didn't fall once! I surprised myself.

Lulu did amazing as well. She only fell once and once she got it down, she didn't ever want to stop ice skating.

There was baking, many rounds of go fish and then it was time for crafts. I had a moment where I wondered why I wasn't a kindergarten teacher and then I remembered my experience as a teacher's aid....

Anyway, we got a lot of the ideas from Pinterest. In fact, Lulu liked pinterest so much that we created her own board and she just sat at the computer pinning ideas to her board.

Have you ever tried painting with a 5 year old climbing up your back just so she can see?

We did a lot of painting! And she picked out the materials for the owl. Remember how she was climbing on me to see while I was painting? She did the same thing as I was sewing! There were a few times she would tell me that I was making the owl wrong, so I asked her how long had she been sewing? She grinned and said, "you've been sewing longer than I've been alive."

It was so much fun having Lulu over the holidays and even though my room is a disaster and I spent all my Christmas money on craft projects for us to do, I wouldn't change it for the world.

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Land of Men...Sexy Men of the African Descent

2012-01-10T10:24:00.001-05:00

Let me just start of by saying a few things and then we will get to the sexiness....

1) It's been a long time since I've done a lustful post.

2) I stole all of these images through google images.

3) I was going to say more but it is time to focus on these kissable lips...

Dijmon Hounsou

Dule Hill

Javiar Colon

Taye Diggs

L L Cool J

Brian White

Denzel Washington

Don Cheadle

Columbus Short

Marcus Canty

Lenny Kravitz

Boris Kodjoe

Usher Raymond

Will Smith

Ah, can't you feel the lust in the air! Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy! The best movie to get your fill of sexiest black men ever (or as I accidently told my mother....blackiest sex men ever!)

Stomp the Yard

Oh yeah.

Who did I forget? Get your lust on!

Project 52: Week of January 9

2012-01-09T15:17:00.000-05:00

Whoa, wait a minute here....is that right, can it be? We're already NINE days into 2012!?!?!?!? Well, I guess it is time to get down to business and go over game plans.

I kinda failed big time at introducing Project 52 last week. Honestly, I forgot that new people might be joining in and it was a post out of habit verses a kick off. So, before I go on any further.... WELCOME NEWBIES!!

For those of you that still don't know what Project 52 is about....let me tell you all about it....

What is a goal without a project? What is a project without a goal? Call it whatever you like but Project 52 is a fun way to make goals to accomplish whatever you want to do during the next year.

Here's how it works: Make a 52 "to-do" list and try to work on one project every week. And then blog about your adventures every Monday with me and Karen.

It makes succeeding fun and easy. Plus, it's always better with support!

Speaking of support, have you signed up at the year round linky? Right now, we have 17 courageous people working on Project 52. Are you on that list? Please let us know so that we can encourage you and support you throughout 2012. As Karen mentioned, sharing really makes a difference. Who knows, I might be able to help you with something....

I feel like I had a really great kick off. I didn't cross anything off of my list officially but I am working towards it already. Now that you've made your list, it is REALLY important to take the time to do a little research.

That's what I've been working on. I now know when there will be a renaissance festival in Ohio (goal #4) and I have the number for the local D.A.R. chapter (goal #3) and I've been looking for photography and writing contests to enter. (Goals #25 and #28)

Now that I know what to plan, now I can work around that information. I promise, if you research now you'll do better with your list. But...doing the list is up to you.

Did you write a post about Project 52 this week? Link up so that we can ~~stalk you.~~...hear about your first week.