Life Lessons with Sirius.

Three months ago, Sam and I brought this cute little guy home from the local animal shelter home. Aside from being generally great and entertaining, Sirius has also taught us a few things.

1) A comfortable bed makes all the difference. 

 

Seriously (no pun intended), have you ever seen a more comfortable dog? We took him from the shelter, where he just had concrete and a towel to sleep on for the most part, and brought him home to this kingly dog bed. He basically just slept for two days.

2) But never settle, if an upgrade is available.

 

No matter how much he loves his dog bed, he loves my pillows and memory foam mattress more. 

3) Spend time just doing what you love.

For Sirius, it's hanging out in the sun room on his ottoman (aka. dog throne) watching the birds and squirrels in our yard.


4) And remember, always plan adequate snuggle time into your day.

 

It's the most important.

Things I Like About Not-Quite-Spring.

If you have ever spent more than an hour with me and/or you have ever read this blog, you probably know that I like categories, and I really, really like lists. Readings lists, to do lists, lists of synonyms, lists of favorites, lists of my favorite things to do, etc. I could go on.

Anyway, today, I was going to make a list about the many, many things I love about spring, since it's almost here. But since it is still cold and gross outside, I thought pining for spring would be a little depressing. Also, as a person notorious for looking for clues in the past and planning elaborate things for my future, I should probably spend a little time just appreciating today, including the current weather.

It's a little tricky, because it isn't bitterly cold anymore (not that it really ever was in Carbondale), but it isn't exactly pleasant either. It's windy, and it rains about once a day, and I feel like I haven't seen the sun in weeks. But this is a list of the things I like about the current weather situation, so I'll stop complaining and get to it already.

Things I Like About Not-Quite-Spring

1. I can still wear all of my cozy winter scarves. This is a big deal because I have a very cozy blue infinity scarf that I probably wear three times a week because I love it so much. Actually, this is a picture of me wearing it this morning because my house is cold, and we never turn on the heat.

(That's my "I-would-look-more-excited-but-my-house-is-cold-and-it's-morning" face. Right, not complaining. Anyway.)

2. No allergies yet! Hurray! I have terrible seasonal allergies triggered by all kinds of pretty stuff that grows during the spring. So, no flowers yet, but at least I can still breathe!

3. It's chilly enough that I can wrap up in a big cozy blanket anytime of day for no reason and just contemplate life. I can contemplate life anytime of course, but the cozy blanket is definitely overkill during the summer.

4. Still cold enough for hot chocolate, which is officially out-of-date when the song birds start showing up again.

5. Boots of all kinds are fair game, but it's pleasant enough outside that I can wear my nice boots without fear of ruining them.

6. It's still chilly and grayish, but it's finally March and spring is right around the corner!!!!


Alright, that's the best I can do. Maybe it's not the best time of year, but I suppose it's not the worst. I even saw the sun for a little bit today! Now if it would just warm up enough so I can wear a sun dress....

Til next time, kids.

Little Successes.

A few weeks ago, I wrote a blog post about all the things I want to do on a regular basis. As usual, the moment I made all these grand plans, life changed up a whole bunch of things, and my unregulated free time was the first thing to go. But, I am a stubborn woman, and I am proud to report that I have pretty much stuck to my list. My house has been surprisingly clean (by our standards anyway), I've painted my nails religiously, I've been super crafty in the past few weeks, and Rjjr gets exercise everyday!

Sure, I've dropped the ball on a thing or two, but I don't worry about it too much. Still not great at the dishes, and my husband is way more into knitting than I am. How could that be, you might ask? After all that huffing and puffing about being productive and getting stuff done and not making resolutions you won't keep, now I don't even care?! Well, that's not quite it. I certainly do care. It's just that my list is full of things that I like to do, my hobbies, if you will. If I worry too much about checking them off a list, it sucks the fun out of everything.

The logic behind "my list of things I started doing last year and would like to continue in 2013," was that I would make time to do all of the things I enjoy, regardless of what life throws at me. Which was good (er, maybe, unintentional) planning on my part! So, if I feel like writing five letters one week, and drawing a lot of things the next, I consider that to be a success. I took time off of worrying about work and school and finances to do focus on my list, and I can say with confidence that I have enjoyed it.

So, without further ado, here are a few of my "list" successes so far:

I made lots of cards! And I've even sent a couple of them so far!

 

I made this necklace! But I did not put it on Etsy, because I like it, and you can't have it. (Just kidding. But maybe not.)

 

I've been practicing my mad typography skillz, yo.

We even got some new pets!!

And, perhaps most impressively, this is the view of my kitchen, at 11:06 this morning. Please take your time noting how tidy and dirty-dish free it is.

Also, I wrote this blog post this morning. Bam. 

Alyssa's Continued Attempt To Have An Orderly Life.

Let me preface this post by noting that I think New Year's resolutions are dumb. People make them, promising themselves that they are going to keep them for this month, this year, or the rest of their lives. But we all know, in the back of their minds, somethings says "But it's okay if you don't, because none of your friends will keep theirs either."

And it's true. Think of one person you know who has kept all their New Year's resolutions for a whole year. Maybe you can, maybe you can't. But can you think of ten people who didn't keep their resolutions for even a month? I can.

The idea is flawed. You can't change everything about your life and your habits and start a whole new life just because it's January 1st. But you can make changes in your life gradually, for the better. So this is my list of things I started doing last year and would like to continue in 2013. Granted, the knitting I only started on December 29th, but it's still 2012!

1) Repaint my nails before they get chipped every week.
2) Draw one new thing every week.
3) Craft one new thing every week.
4) Knit one new thing every week.
5) Add two new items to Etsy every week.
6) Do the breakfast dishes before noon every day.
7) Tidy the house once a day.
8) Play with Rjjr every day.
9) Write letters every three months.
10) Study my class notes after every session.
11) Write on my blog once a week.

This might see like a silly list. After all, most people do all of their dishes immediately, and some of these things seem pretty trivial. But as for the dishes, I just really, really hate doing them, so this is really the best you're going to get from me.

The thing is, I have an irregular work schedule, and I only have four hours of class total each week, and being a generally unorganized person, I really struggle to be productive if I have large chunks of time to myself, but no discernible goals. So having a list to check off is the best method for me to actually organize my free time. And aside from the dish thing, I've done pretty well so far. (Three weeks in January and three blog posts! Woo, I'm a champ!)

So here it is, after school, work, and general bill paying, this is what I will continue to get done regularly! Anyway, it has been decreed. You all saw it. Guess I'm stuck with it now. Just don't ask me about the dishes...

Say hello, Rjjr!

As some of you may know, it's my life ambition to have a big, cuddly dog or three in my life at some point. However, I live in a little duplex that does not allow any such pets, and I probably couldn't afford the dog food, even if our landlord allowed them. So instead, we got Rjjr, a lovely little black and white rat. Actually, he's sitting on my lap right now, happily chewing a button on my sweater. He's no dog, but he's fairly cuddly and requires way less maintenance, except daily exercise.

Exercise, you ask? Doesn't he have a wheel? Yes, he does. He also has a clear plastic exercise ball. Unfortunately, he's pretty dumb even as far as rodents go, so he doesn't know how to use either device. (We tried to teach him a few times. No luck so far.) So I have to take him out and let him run around for awhile everyday. Good thing he's lovable.

He was getting a little antsy today,  so I let the little guy take a few pictures.

What a photogenic rat.

Also, this post marks the second week day in a row in which I have showered, cleaned, replied to my emails, taken pictures, and written something. Now if I can only finish my headband before I go to work!

Eh, well see. We're winners anyway!

Chilly mornings go great with coffee, but not with productivity.

Well, since the holiday season got start, I feel like I've been running everywhere. Running to work, running home. Running to the post office, to the store, to the car repair shop. Running around to pack, and to clean. And then running to Ohio and New Jersey, and running around on my computer to get stuff done that I forgot before I left.

Of course, all of that running is metaphorical, because I never actually run unless it is to get the mail from my mailbox when it's cold outside.

But today, I'm back in Carbondale, I'm registered for school finally, the car is fixed, the stuff is put away, my part-time job is back to being part-time again, and I still love run-on sentences and ridiculous rambling. Also it's quite cold outside, so I'm putting off getting the mail altogether right now.

But on cold mornings like today, I can't think of anything I find more comforting than a good cup of coffee. And by good, I mean Walmart brand Columbian coffee with a splash of Peppermint Mocha Coffeemate. Seriously, what could be better?!

 MMMMMmmmmm. Warm and comforting.

Speaking of productivity, before I started writing today, I was looking around at all these other beautifully designed blogs that get updated regularly by super attractive moms with small children. And I wondered, "HOW?!"Not only do they take regular, well edited pictures of their beautiful children and their beautiful lives and their beautiful clothes and then write about it, but they also apparently have time to craft, run errands, take care of their kids, and do their hair every morning (because we all know nobody looks that good naturally in the morning).

So, I thought to myself, if they can do that, certainly I can. After all, I only have a rat, a lizard, and a husband with a regular job. Surely, I can at least manage to shower, keep my desk clean, make something pretty, go to work, and take a few pictures and write a paragraph or two every day.

And the answer is probably no. I don't know what sort of magical powers they have that let them live way more productive lives than me, but I haven't seen the top of my desk in weeks or the floor in my back room. Also, I occasionally have the attention span of a goldfish which makes it pretty difficult to get into well-established habits. (And if I'm going to get into regular habits, doing dishes after every meal will be the first one I cultivate.)

But while I'm still here, this is a picture of what I ate for breakfast. (Guess I haven't caught on to Instagram yet.)

 Great! Now all I have left to do for today is shower, clean, and make the order I need to mail before work this afternoon!

Hah! Good luck.

Been Gone So Long.

Not that I have a regular posting schedule to begin with, but I've definitely missed writing for the last few weeks. It's been crazy, taking care of Mom in Ohio, funeral in Kansas, taking care of my house after being gone ten days, working, sleeping, another craft fair, and a visitor from Louisville. So finally, here I am, sitting in front of my computer, recapping my last three weeks.

Unfortunately, I have nothing else for you today, except that I'm hoping this will get me back into a habit of blogging.

Also: CURRENT PROJECT!! (capital letters make things seem more important)

Behold the workspace.

Closeup!

Later Kids!

Handmade Christmas: First Try

To tag on to my last post, I signed up for another craft show. (Indoor, this time. See? I'm learning!) Anyway, it's one of those XMAS XTRAVANGZA type shows, so to get myself in the spirit, and also just because I love Christmas, I'm about to write a string of blog entries about Handmade Christmas.

You might think, "Oh, this girl just wants to make all this stuff to sell it at her next show." You would be wrong. It's also because I'm super poor and cannot afford to buy Christmas decorations, so I'm stuck making all of my own. Fortunately, I am a well-educated liberal arts Art major, so I have the skills. (Yeah, take that "practical" majors.)

This week, my goal was to figure out how to make clay Christmas tree ornaments. As it turns out, it wasn't that hard. The mosaic pieces were a little tricky on the first one, but the balls retained their shape quite well. Plus, these clay ornaments are super hard to break! Which is even better, because the worst thing about glass Christmas ornaments is the whole shatter-when-they-drop-things. Nothing like having to pick up and vacuum 5 million tiny glass shards with sharp, stabby edges. Even if you managed to break one, these clay balls will not threaten to injure you. Yay!

A couple hours, and a little trial and error and Voila! My first tree ornaments! Two inches in diameter, hard to break, and they look good on my tiny Christmas tree!

Look at us! We're all fancy with our gold centers and lace background!

So the first set of three went off without a hitch, but my tiny Christmas tree was going to be pretty bare if I just stopped with the red ones. So I made gold ones, at about half the size of the first set. They were way easier, being smaller, since the mosaic surface area was a lot less. And I thought the gold and green was pretty together :)

Look here, we have a regal color pallette. We can't be bothered with your humdrum "holiday" musings.

So finally, I have enough ornaments made to decorate half of my 24 inch Christmas tree! Good thing I'm starting now. Anyway, here's my little tree, in all of his half-decorated glory. At least I'm doing better than Charlie Brown!

 Party on the Christmas tree!

 I ran out of funny captions for this guy...

Well, that's all for now. Tune in next time for another exciting edition of Whatever I Feel Like Writing! Just kidding, I really will keep writing about handmade Christmas stuff.

Weekend of Fun #1: Carbondale Street Fair

Hello, loyal readers (all three of you)!

I was hoping to get around to writing this sooner, but it's been pretty busy around here lately. I started work, had a couple eventful weekends in a row, and got another pet (RJ jr, but more on that later). But alas, Sam has to go to a dinner with his advisor, so now it's just me, my computer, and a glass of my favorite cheap moscato. What else is a girl to do except blog?

 Seriously, it's Barefoot Moscato. Sorry to all the wino's who are rolling their eyes right now.

So to catch up on all of the goings-on, two weeks ago, I had the pleasure of selling at my first craft fair ever! I spent whole week doing nothing but making mosaics from the show. Making earrings, necklaces, window mosaics, and business cards all morning, day, and evening! Sam was ready for it to be all over. My house fell into disarray; I stopped showering and sleeping; I started talking to myself and even making up alternate realities and storylines for all of my pieces!! Okay, that last sentence was a lie, but my house did get really messy.

And this was just my workstation. Imagine what the rest of the house looked like!

We finally got there, and it was a... learning experience. There were quite a few "less-than-ideal" things about the show, but they were mostly balanced out by something good. So, in typical Alyssa fashion, here's my list of the bad/good things about the show:

1) Not very many people came to the show, and most who did were there for the wine, BUT I did make over twice my entrance fee! Plus, everybody wanted to touch my mosaics, so at least I know they are interesting!
2) There was a weird giant metal wine glass in front of us, but all of the drunk people loved it and took pictures with it.

It's just a big wine glass! I don't get it!

3) The music was local and the first band consisted of high schoolers, but those kids were seriously talented.
4) It was extremely cold, but one of the wineries gave us warm sangria for sharing our power strip!
5) It was also super windy, but none of my displays blew over because they were just open frames!

 So there it is. My first craft show. All in all, I wouldn't trade it for the world. In fact, it was so not-terrible, I signed up for another show in November! All for now, later, kids!

Welcome Home, Comango!

This weekend Sam's parents came to visit. It was super great for several reasons, 1) they are fun to hang out with; 2) they made of lots of good food and also filled our fridge; and 3) THEY BROUGHT OUR PETS!!!

Granted, our pets are a fish and lizard. Not super cuddly, but they are still pretty cute, and I LOVE having animals around.

So, my friends, meet I Don't Know, Finn (Finn for short) and Comango.

As you can see, I Don't Know, Finn is a beautiful betta fish. He currently lives in a lovely little dish on our kitchen table. His hobbies are floating around in his bowl, eating fish pellets, looking at people as they move around the room, and occasionally making a bubble nest at the top of his dish.

 So regal.

He also seems to enjoy spending time with his fake plant and traveling from one end of his dish to the other. He's truly a joy to be around. His name is a story I'll tell some other time. Or maybe I won't. I don't really know.

 

 He loves that plant.

And now, the moment you've all been waiting for: Comango! He's an excellent desert gecko. He has fatty stores in his tail, and it looks like his head. Hence, Comango. Say it out loud, if I have to explain it to you anymore, it's not just worth it. Well, dear Comango enjoys sleeping in his cave, sleeping in the sand, sleeping near his rocks, and once in awhile, moving.

 Comango's Crib.

 He's a little cuddly!

His moving often involves crawling slightly outside of his cave and eating crickets. Unless the crickets wander in to his cave, in which case, he does not leave or really move at all. He's just the greatest lizard. He also has adorable feet.

What a sexy lizard!

The cutest feet!

Welcome home, guys! It's great to have you :)

Nature Hike: The Perils of Carbondale

Many of you may know that I live in Southern Illinois. However, I'm not sure how many of you were aware of how "wild" parts of Southern Illinois are. But not to fear, I'm about to enlighten you.

This weekend, Sam and I went hiking in the little Grand Canyon. It's a 3.5-4 mile circular hike down a huge, steep hillside, through a creek bed, and back up another steep incline. On the way, there are a few overlooks that give some spectacular views.

For example, this view. Pretty cool.

The big views are hardly the reason Sam and I hike around here though.  Most of the trail is covered by trees and crowded with underbrush. And that's the easy part. Lots of places on the trail are literally just walking on the side of a cliff. The trail even goes straight down a tiered waterfall, with steps cut into the stone.  And, all of that is super cool too, but still not why Sam and I go hiking here.

Not kidding about the cliffs.

We go to hike the Little Grand Canyon because there are so many cool creatures there! Snakes, lizards, birds, fish, and a ton of toads and frogs! Everywhere you look, there are little animals. We're working on identifying some of them, but I think it's fun just to see them. Take this guy, for example. We saw three or four lizards of the same species, but this guy practically posed for a picture:

 "I'm sexy, and I know it."

And these fish came right up to us when we went to look at them. I hoped they just wanted to say "hi" like the animals in Snow White. When they all lunged for the rock I tossed in the water, we figured out it's probably just because they thought they were going to be fed...

Feeding wild fish probably isn't the best idea...

However, there is also danger lurking in the woods! We almost got eaten by a cottonmouth!!!! (Okay, fine. I'm not 100% sure this is a cottonmouth. And it also did not lunge, threaten, or bother us in anyway. We didn't even get closer than five feet to it. And it's definitely too small to eat us. But still. It COULD be dangerous!)

Look at him! Definitely, possibly venomous!

It was certainly an adventure. It's nice to be able to drive twenty minutes and be somewhere kinda wild. And that place, surprisingly enough happens to be in Southern Illinois.

Anyway, I have nothing else for you, except this cave that looks like a face going "aaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhh":

A big cave mouth, and little cave eyes!

 'Til next time!

Today is a good day.

Sigh. Guys, I have a problem. It's not an uncommon problem, but a serious one nonetheless. I was sitting in my quiet little living room feeling totally sorry for myself this morning. And every second, I came up with another reason to feel even sorrier for myself.

Seriously. Full-on pity party. Feeling bad that I don't have a job yet, feeling bad that we can't have a dog in this apartment, feeling bad that my coffee was getting cold and that iwastesomuchtime.com wasn't very funny this morning. Then I started feeling bad that my living room doesn't have enough windows, and that I wished it was pomegranate season already and that Sam doesn't come back from work until 4:30 which is six whole hours from now and I have to be by myself until then. It started to get really ridiculous when I felt sad that my legs were sore from sitting and pouting all morning, and that I had six dishes in the sink to do, and that I should probably vacuum this week. (I obviously have a hard life.)

Finally, it got so ridiculous, that the living room couldn't even hold my sadness anymore, so I had to move to the sunroom.... And then I felt sad in the sunroom because it was messy from the last time I was in there, as I hadn't cleaned it up yet, and that I keep losing to Lance from the Elite Four because his dragon Pokemon are better than mine.


So, here I am in, in the throes of depression, when I heard an acorn outside the sun room. I looked up, and this is what I saw:

Now, it's a little hard to sit around and keep telling yourself how much life sucks when this is the view outside your windows. Especially when the sun is shining, there is a nice breeze, it's a beautiful 65-70 degrees, AND twin fawns just walked through our backyard with their mom. (Of course they freaked out when I opened the door, so I didn't get a picture, but you get the point.) 

 I really couldn't stay inside, so I went and walked around my yard for awhile, looking at the grass, listening to the birds, smelling the air, and generally having happiness forced upon me by Mother Nature.

I mean, THIS IS WHAT THE SKY LOOKS LIKE TODAY! How can you be grumpy when the sky looks like this?!

After that, I had to do a little re-evaluating. Perhaps my life doesn't totally suck. For example:

I am currently without a job, but I do have two interviews coming up, and I'm almost done applying to grad school.

I do have six dishes to do, but half of them are mine, and Sam did the dishes yesterday.

I have to vacuum, but most of the cat-hair from the previous owner is gone.

Sam is gone during the day, but I get to spend my whole evening with my best friend and greatest husband ever.

My legs felt a whole lot better when I actually stood up and did something.

We can't have a dog, but Sam's parents are bringing our lizard Comango to Carbondale in two weeks.

PLUS I live somewhere where I can fish five minutes down the road, hike for miles, and have adorable animals walk through my backyard everyday.

When I look at it that way, I suppose I was being a little ridiculous this morning. Okay, okay. I was being completely absurd. It's so easy to get caught up in feeling sad. All I have to do is sit and make excuses for why everything is wrong, and I'm not required to make any changes. Sometimes, what I really need to do is just stand up, look around, and realize that the forecast is really good.

So yeah. Actually my life is pretty great. Thank you, tiny deer, for reminding me.

P.S. To be fair, I do keep losing to Lance in Pokemon, but I guess it's not that important :)

Wall Hangings: Glimpses of Eccentricity

That title might be a little bold. But as I was looking around the house this morning, it occurred to me that we have some weird things showcased on our walls.

It started out innocently enough. I just wanted to make the house seem more lived-in, but Sam and I (okay, mostly me) like some weird things. Also, the whiteness of the walls has caused me to compulsively cover them with anything and everything I can find. (In fact, I ran out of 3M poster hanging tape today. I even put it on my grocery list, although it's probably for the best right now.)

Anyway, as I started going around and actually looking at all the things I have taped together on the wall, it started to get a little strange. Sure, it started out normal, but the typical "crazy cat-lady"only started with one mild-mannered cat too. Before you know it, she's covered in scratches, she can't find her tv remote under the fur shed all over, and she's got seven cats that sleep in her bed while she's demoted to the couch, (not unlike the girl who lived in this house before us.)


Exhibit #1: The Normal Things
Not everything on my wall is weird. I have some very typical things. Like this nice clock, or this picture frame full of people that I love.

Exhibit #2: Nature Things
This isn't weird either, not by my standards anyway. My husband is a fisheries major and we do to do things outside! It's perfectly reasonable that we would have a scientific fish poster, a witty "Fisherman Lives Here" sign, and a sentimental paper cut of a great outdoor scene. 

Exhibit #3: Alphonse Mucha?
Here we start to digress from the previous theme. Yes, I am an artist, but I get that an Alphonse Mucha design study doesn't really fit the mood we set. Weird? Not necessarily, but perhaps it is a little out of place. 

Exhibit #4: Old Winking Man?!
Seriously?! Where did this guy even come from? Why did I agree to hang him on my wall right above my computer? Why is he looking so seductively at everyone?! 

Exhibit #5: Pandas. There are pandas everywhere.
This is perhaps the most disturbing trend because I didn't realize it until recently. Yes, I have a lot of panda things, I always have. But I really did leave a lot of things at home when I moved! I only have two panda wall hangings. 

But as I started looking and cleaning, I discovered my walls are not the only place the pandas are lurking. On my night stand, my panda necklace....

Under my craft desk, a panda trash can....

And in my closet!!! The horror!!!!

Okay, so maybe the stuff on my wall isn't that weird. But the title says "eccentric," not weird. And it is definitely eccentric. Plus, the winking guy is totally weird. And I do have a potentially unhealthy amount of panda things. (Actually, I'm pretty excited about having the cute little guys with me all the time.)

Until my next update on the status of my house, (or whatever catches my fancy next time I feel like writing) I hope my pandas brightened your day :)