I know, I know … 2 posts in 1 day … hard to believe! But I have news items to good to wait.
#1 — what every computer user needs
Wouldn’t that cutie thing just be the perfect gift for your favorite colleagues? You can get one or a dozen at Urban Outfitters.
Item #2 — a new gym
The Craft Gym in San Francisco. A gym where you do crafts. Now that’s the kind I can get excited about.
A funny story for hump day from my friend Cori who is the librarian at the local elementary school with a few literary liberties in the presentation of said story taken by yours truly …
The setting: school library at story time. 20 1st graders are eagerly gathered around Cori to hear the story she is about to read.
The opening: (Cori) Upon giving an introduction to a book on a female pitcher who struck out Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig, we were going over the rules of baseball so everybody would have a basic understanding of what I was about to read. I asked things like: How many balls before a batter is walked? How many strikes before they’re out? And then I asked, “And what happens when a batter is hit by a pitch?”
Long, long silence.
The ensuing conversation:
Boy 1: (says very seriously) “He gets really, really hurt … and he could cry.”
Cori: “Ohhhhh-kayyyyy. Does anyone know what ELSE happens when a batter is hit by a pitch?”
Boy 2: “Sometimes he has to go back inside and get a band aid.”
Girl 1: “And the pitcher could get into trouble and not be allowed to play.”
Cori: “Yes, that all that could happen, but usually the batter gets to walk to first base.”
Silence again.
Boy 2: “But why would he do that if he’s hurt and crying and needs a band aid?”
I’ll make you a book. So you can tell me a story.
Over the weekend, I had the itch to create. And since I’m still just the teeniest bit scared of my new-to-me sewing machine, I opted for some quality time with paper + cutter + bone folder + needle and thread.
This is a great project to use up any decorative papers you may have collected. Of course, plain paper works just as well. I used scrapbooking paper for the covers and plain copy paper for the inside. Simply cut to size and then make 3 tiny holes. I used another scrapbooking tool: eyelet setter. But a nail + hammer would work just as well … just tap lightly!
Then you stitch it all together. Start with the middle hole, going down. Then up through one end, over and down through the other. Come up again in the middle. Tie a knot and you’ve got a hand-sewn book. Yes, yes, staples work too but they’re not half as cute!
Word of caution: this project can quickly get out of hand. Especially, ahem, if you happen to have a lot of paper on hand. I set out to make a few for Miss K and her friends to use. Before I knew it, I had nearly 30. In this house of storytellers, they’ll no doubt go fast!
Outtake from the middle day of a three-day weekend. The sun has gone missing, leaving us with chilly, cloudy, blustery days. But with good friends, piping hot onion rings, a bit of ale and a new guitar, what does it matter?
I had a bit of a break today while waiting for info from a client, so I grabbed some fabric and gave an old chair a new look …
The seat of the chair is removable so I just popped it out. Starting with the sides, I pulled the fabric tight and secured it with the staple gun (one of my all-time favorite!). Then the top and bottom was tightened, gathered and bolted down with more staples. The whole process took about 10 minutes. I love the new look and the little joke … did you notice, it’s a chair covered by fabric that has a drawing of a chair. Ha!
We’re having a heat wave, a tropical heat wave. Temperature’s rising, it isn’t surprising, the way that she can can-can …
Whenever it’s really hot, that tune from South Pacific (I think) runs through my head and I see my mom dancing around the house singing it. Record-breaking heat has hit the Bay Area … 101 yesterday in my little town. Not even the shade provided respite.
I don’t really like hot. I melt easily. They say people who were born in San Francisco like I was can’t tolerate high heat because fog flows through their veins. Little bit of trivia for you.
There’s no air conditioning in this little cottage so we make do with old-fashioned fans and endless glasses of ice water. Meanwhile, despite the heat, the garden continues to produce surprise after surprise. Look who popped out this morning …
Happy weekend!
Sunlight filters through the newly leafed trees. New splashes of pink peak out from their showy purple and yellow neighbors. A difficult day, difficult for no particular rhyme or reason, ends in peaceful beauty, a harbinger of a better tomorrow.
Christina reminded me that it was time for a new post. And she is quite right. Funny thing, I sat in front of the computer yesterday toying with the idea that follows. Then I decided I was too tired and maybe it wasn’t much of an idea anyway. Now, probably because it’s before 7 a.m. and it’s all I’ve got, I’m bringing you two views of a Sunday …
Morning
About 9 a.m. though it seems so much earlier because it is so cold. Near the base of the Golden Gate Bridge, the fog swirls, the wind whips around our ears as we head out on the 10K walk to raise money for Multiple Sclerosis research.
Evening
7 p.m. On the other side of the Bay, at the edge of a dock in Sausalito after dinner at FISH where the sun lured us outside but we ate wrapped in blankets against the chill.
The organization of ingredients as first step of any recipe is a soothing ritual that is as visually appealing as it is time-saving. Whether accomplished cook or amateur, making your “mis en place” ensures you don’t get halfway through a recipe only to realize you should have toasted the almonds that need to go in right now or that you’re out of cream of tartar. With all the ingredients measured and chopped beforehand, even more complicated dishes come together easily. And if nothing else, I’ve just provided you a most excellent rationale for procuring many cute little dishes!
What better way to celebrate Cinco de Mayo? Unless it’s by doing a made up dance while singing “Cinco de Mayo” over and over very loudly. Ole!
