The great sewing machine arrival

THE SEWING MACHINE FROM EBAY HAS ARRIVED!!!!

I still have no idea if it's any good, but the needle moves, the light turns on, the pedal works...all signs point to it having good potential. I'll know more once my coworker comes over to test it out...since she's knowledgeable about sewing and I am not.

But man oh man did it need a cleaning. I'm sure it could probably use a professional internal cleaning as well, but I took care of the external cleaning. It smelled like a mix between grandma, moth balls and an attic. You know exactly what smell I'm talking about. I used some Clorox wipes, a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser and vinegar to get most of the easy to access crud out. It turned out great! The Magic Eraser is seriously an amazing product. It worked wonders. As for the professional cleaning, we'll see how my sewing progresses and if it turns into something I can see myself getting serious about, then I'll get it tuned up.

Sewing goal numero uno: Sew in a straight line. Potentially make cloth napkins. I'm trying to set goals that I have a chance of being successful at...otherwise there's a chance I might get frustrated. :)

All cleaned up!!!!

Be brave enough to say good bye, don't ask permission

"When you take charge of your life, there is no longer a need to ask permission of other people or society at large. When you ask permission, you give someone veto power over your life." - Geoffrey F. Abert, was a French philosopher and priest

Sugarfree gum - it's not as safe as you think

I chew gum like a fiend when I'm at work (otherwise I'd be eating chocolate), so I made sure I picked a sugarfree brand to avoid cavities. Apparently that's not a good idea either. According to the Wellness Warrior, there's aspartame in sugarfree gum (which I was unaware of because I live in a hole) and it can cause really bad things healthwise - more bad things than I had initially thought. I was suffering from a lot of dizzy bouts and it sounds like my gum could have been the problem (or at least a contributing factor). It's an interesting read.

From her blog post:

"Aspartame is responsible for over 75% of the adverse reactions to food additives reported to the FDA. A few of the 90 different documented symptoms include: headaches/migraines, dizziness, seizures, nausea, numbness, muscle spasms, weight gain, rashes, depression, fatigue, irritability, tachycardia, insomnia, vision problems, hearing loss, heart palpitations, breathing difficulties, anxiety attacks, slurred speech, loss of taste, tinnitus, vertigo, memory loss and joint pain."

Jessie

Jessica is one of my best friends. She's a beautiful woman with a beautiful soul. And she understands me, which is ridiculously amazing. We met in college and have gone through lots of ups and downs together. She helps me survive this crazy life and I can't thank her enough for that.

She was the first stop on my vacation - all the way back to my roots in northeast Ohio. I'm sure she never imagined she'd end up there, but her and her honey have a great little life going with two furry children, Ava and Adora. I was lucky enough to get to hang out with them for a weekend. And get this, she didn't have me do any home improvement projects while I was there! They just bought their first home so I was ready to help, but, of course, she insisted I kick back, relax and watch trashy reality TV and drink some vino. Fine. Twist my arm.

It was great to just to be able to spend time with a great friend and chat and laugh and shop and watch movies and play with the dogs and eat and hike. I miss being able to do that. Developing true friendships is harder when you get older and move new places. I know a lot of people in Indy, but I don't have a friendship here that can compare to the friendship I have with Jess.

We watched Eat, Pray, Love! It was great, as I expected. It was a coincidence that the movie came out the same weekend I went to see her. The year I read the book I ended up sending it to a few of my friends for Christmas since I loved it so much. And they all enjoyed it as well. I see a lot of myself in Elizabeth Gilbert's thoughts, definitely not all of them, but I can relate to the questions she has about life (as I'm sure a lot of people can, but I'm going to pretend I'm extra special for a moment). Now, if only I could travel like that. Hmm. I'll add it to my to-do list.

Favorite quote from the book:

"People think a soul mate is your perfect fit, and that's what everyone wants. But a true soul mate is a mirror, the person who shows you everything that is holding you back, the person who brings you to your own attention so you can change your life.

A true soul mate is probably the most important person you'll ever meet, because they tear down your walls and smack you awake. But to live with a soul mate forever? Nah. Too painful. Soul mates, they come into your life just to reveal another layer of yourself to you, and then leave.

A soul mates purpose is to shake you up, tear apart your ego a little bit, show you your obstacles and addictions, break your heart open so new light can get in, make you so desperate and out of control that you have to transform your life, then introduce you to your spiritual master..." - Elizabeth Gilbert

After the initial puppy introductions, the girls got along great! We got a lot of entertainment out of watching them play together. I have a few videos of them, but I'm having technical difficulties at the moment. Check back later!

Lizzy also had her first encounter with a kiddie pool.

We hiked to a lovely waterfall.

I just like this random picture.

Jess and Liz.

This girls. Lizzy Lizard with a crazy face.

You can get the scoop on the latest adventures in Jessica's life on her blog. There's lots of family love, puppy love and new house love. Love. Love. Love.

City brainstorming

Those of you who know me know I’m always looking for my next move (literally and figuratively). My brain has been in overdrive for a while, so it's time to start mapping things out.

Today’s list of potential cities:

Charlottesville, VA
Burlington, VT
Asheville, NC
Albuquerque, NM
Denver, CO
Nashville, TN

Like I said, this is TODAY'S list. It could change again tomorrow, which should not surprise anyone.

I think I have a fear of commitment. And I'm OK with that.

Tick talk

Let's talk about ticks. Lots and lots and lots of ticks. That's what I've been doing since Friday.

On my last day in Virginia, I met up with my friend Charlie from high school and he, Lizzy and I went hiking at Newport News Park. It was a beautiful sunny day, which is important since it rained every day I was there except Friday. We probably hiked between three or four miles. It was great. But when we got done my legs felt really itchy. I was on the lookout for poison ivy, but was pretty sure I managed to avoid it. I chalked up the itchiness to sweat and dirt. It looked like I had a lot of dirt on me, so I tried to brush it off as best I could, then we headed back to my brother's place to shower.

On the drive back I felt what I assumed was a bug bite on my right hand, so I glanced at my hand. Hmm. No bugs, only dirt. Odd. At a stop light I took a closer look. The dirt was really tiny little bugs. And the bugs were ALL OVER ME! OK, breath...breath...breath. I started trying to come up with what they were. My first guess was fleas, but they weren't jumpy enough for fleas (I had one awful encounter with fleas, so I'm very aware of how they act). Surely they weren't ticks because ticks are bigger than specks of dirt, right?

We get to my brother's place and I'm out of the car jumping around like a crazy person blabbering on about being covered in bugs. Charlie, who I haven't seen in eight years, was staring at me like I was a crazy person. (He drove separately.) He doesn't believe me, so I give one to him and ask him what he thinks it is.

Here's a picture I pulled off a Google image search (imagine this...times 300...all over me!):

He says he thinks it's a baby tick. At that I proceed to freak out a little more because, like I said, I'm covered in hundreds of them. And if I'm covered with them, Lizzy is probably covered with them and they're probably all over my car. And Charlie has to have them too, right? Nope. Not one. Of course, he thinks it's hilarious that I'm covered in BABY TICKS and he doesn't have any on him.

So what exactly are you supposed to do when you're covered in baby ticks/seed ticks? That's a very good question. I had no idea. I tried brushing them off. I sprayed myself head-to-toe with Off Deep Woods. I scrubbed myself three times in the shower. I shaved my legs. I put my clothes and shoes in plastic bags. I continued to freak out.

According to my Internet research, you're pretty much screwed if you get covered in these things. And you can be walking right next to someone and you can pick them up and they won't get one. NOT COOL. If I have to suffer, I prefer not to do it alone! (Just kidding...sort of.) Oh, and if you live near the woods and leave your windows open, they can blow in!

Other possible remedies: wipe down with rubbing alcohol, take a bleach bath and use packing tape to remove as many as possible.

I was so stressed out I was sweating after I got out of the shower! And I had to rush since we still had to go to dinner and make it to Nicolas' (my nephew) magic show. It was rough.

And on the way to dinner a vulture flew into the passenger side window. Luckily the window was closed otherwise I would have had talon marks on my face. That would have made the story ten times better.

When we got home I ran the flea comb through Lizzy and it came out clean. Thank goodness for the monthly flea and tick treatment.

That was Friday evening. I left Saturday morning after using duct tape on my seat. Then I got home and de-ticked pretty much everything I own. Sunday the welts appeared on my legs and arms. Monday morning I found an adult tick on Lizzy.

This is what I get for loving nature. Sigh.

Rebellion is joy

I found this quote on one of the latest blogs I stumbled across by Kyla Roma:

The greatest expression of rebellion is joy.

I LOVE IT.

It was in this image of an old typewriter she has and I almost didn't see it.

Hawaiian shirt and purple Crocs

That's my nephew, Ethan. He's on the riding lawn mower. In a Hawaiian shirt. And purple Crocs.

I have a feeling he's going to be the tan old man kicking it on the beach without a care in the world. He's 9 and loves Hawaiian shirts. Who knew?

The drive

From Ohio to Virginia

From Virginia to Indy

(I forgot to take pictures between Indy and Ohio)

I'm back from vacation!

After a fabulous road trip from Indy to Ohio and Ohio to Virginia, it's time to get back to reality.

Stories to come, I promise! But for now, here's what I have this hanging on my fridge:

(I found it on Etsy. I can't remember name of the artist. If you know, please share!)

Goal in life: Happiness

From the Wellness Warrior

Playing around with rosettes

I have developed a thing for rosettes. Oh dear. This is what I made last night.

I think it's kinda funky and fun. I made the rosettes out of ribbon, part of a zipper and an old shirt. I have some ideas for improving it the next time around, but a little off-the-cuff creativity is always good.

Cardboard art

I ordered a new comforter a month or so ago to kick start a little bedroom makeover. I love the comforter, but I think the best part was the box it came in! I was trying to come up with headboard ideas and I decided I was going to tear up pieces of cardboard, paint them, hot glue them together and hang them on the wall. After some thought, I decided that this wouldn't make a stable headboard, but it would make a pretty cool piece of wall art. TA-DA:

I think it turned out great! The only problem I had was hanging it. You would think it would be easy to hang since it's made out of cardboard. Not so much. Per my coworker, I would suggest putting chicken wire on the back to make it more stable. I ended up crisscrossing duct tape on the back to reinforce it. I put two of the removable wall hooks on the back and tied a string between them. That worked pretty well after I realized that the sticky stuff was old and that's why it wasn't staying in place.

In the middle of the night a couple days ago (before I came to the conclusion about the old sticky stuff) I felt something pounce on my head in the middle of the night. Clearly the only think pouncing in my apartment is Lizzy, so I rolled over, turned on the light and found her on the edge of the bed staring at the fallen piece of cardboard. It scared the poor pup. But I let her sleep in bed with me after that, so she was happy.

Oh, and I also forgot to mention that my spare bathroom is my workshop, so I decided it would be a good idea to spray paint in there. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. The fumes were bad, but they weren't the main problem. The main problem was that the spray paint floated all over the place and gave a nice silvery dusting to EVERYTHING in the bathroom. Ugh. But two or three Mr. Clean Magic Erasers (and lots of elbow grease) saved the day.

Grey Gardens

Today kicked off my vacation! Yay!!!! And after a delightful trip to the eye doctor and a purchase of some funky (yet classy!) glasses, I stopped by the library to pick up a couple of movies. First up was Grey Gardens. I really wanted the watch the 1975 documentary, but I couldn't find it at my lovely little non-inclusive library, so I opted for the 2009 version. It was sensational!!!! I was a little skeptical at first, but Big Edie and Little Edie quickly won me over. Basically they were the "black sheep" of their large upper class political family. They're quirky, artsy and strong-willed women. I may need to put this on my Christmas list!

Here's my favorite part of the movie:

Little Edie and her cousin, Jackie O, are walking on the beach and they pass a group of young men. One of the men comments on Edie's looks and she recites a poem:

Smart and sleek she sits,
Ready with her playful quips.
Wondering who will come her way,
To dine her, to wine her,
Which to snare to stay. 
- Grey Gardens, 2009

The men guess that it's a William Blake poem. But Edie corrects them:

Edith Beale:  poet, temptress, entertainer.
- Grey Gardens, 2009

Temptress! I love it. Now, if only I could get my hands on the actual documentary.
 

Courage

Cliff jumping

Last Saturday included a little adventure in cliff jumping. It was a ridiculous amount of fun! My neighbor, Matt, invited me to go with him and his friends and I was a little skeptical at first. I decided to go because I knew I'd regret it if I didn't. The place is in St. Paul, Ind. at White Rock Park between Indy and Cinci. It's an old stone quarry designated for swimming and cliff jumping.

I watched this video before I went so I knew what I was getting myself in to.

It was crazy fun and definitely got my adrenaline pumping. Five of us went and only three of us jumped off the 30-foot cliff. I did it!!!! There were a bunch of different heights to jump from, so I started with the lowest one and worked my way up. They also had a zip line and a rope swing. I would go back in a heartbeat.

And thank goodness for me doing some research before we went. I knew they had a place where you could float around on rafts, so I "encouraged" Matt to pick a couple up before we left. It was so relaxing to float around after jumping. I also packed a picnic for everyone, which turned out to be a good idea since we were in the middle of nowhere with no food to be found.

I had no problem jumping in, but some people took forever. One of the guys was getting ready to jump off the 30-foot cliff and the girl in front of him took about 15 minutes to decide if she was going or not. I thought he was going to push her off the edge. She finally went. Right before I was ready to jump, the girl in front of me started panicking and eventually decided she wasn't going to do it. Those are the people that really freak you out! I was good to go with all of the jumps, but people like that make you start second guessing yourself. I'm so happy I had the courage to do it!!! It was an absolutely awesome day.

My life in a cornfield

I woke up Saturday morning to the sun coming up over the corn field across from my apartment complex. It was beautiful. The pictures don't capture it as well as I would have liked them to. I think it looks like the corn is on fire.

Care package from the Texans

Since my trip to Texas in April, my cousin, Nick, has been tasked with sending me care packages. I only requested one, but I received the second one last week!!!! I'm loved. All I really wanted was fresh, REAL tortillas since Indiana is kinda lacking in the cultural foods arena and the things I get here just weren't cutting it. So I got those and then some!!!

My other cousin, Nathan, made me the "survival" bracelet. I just thought it looked cool, so I was excited to see it mixed in with the goodies. I don't know the back story behind the bracelets, but I think you're supposed to wear one when you go hiking and you can do lots of different things with it to "help you survive". Clearly I would be no help in figuring out what any of those things are.

And those shopping bags? Amazing! They are awesome for getting groceries because they hold a ton. After this package, I now have three of them so I should be set for a while. I love anything that cuts down on the number of trips that I have to take from the car to up and down the stairs in the apartment.

I've already eaten way too many tortillas to keep track of. But I have to be careful, my Aunt Irma made it very clear to me that I was going to get fat if I ate them all the time. I'm pretty sure she said it just like that. I guess there's no need to wonder where I got my direct-ness from.

(Lizzy decided she needed to be part of the photo shoot.)

First-time ebay user

I'm a new ebay user. God help me. I just signed up the other day after I decided that I wanted a sewing machine. I placed my first bid. Bidding closes in 46 minutes. I'm a nervous wreck. It started out at $9.99 and I'm up to $26.01. My maximum bid is $35.

I guess it would be helpful to know more about the item. It's a sewing machine. An old Kenmore sewing machine. I place it around 1987. Why would I want an older one? Those things are tanks! They are all metal, so there's none of this plastic junk that is passed off as the "new and improved" models just because some of them have electronic functions and LCD screens. I want an old school sewing machine that's going to last. (But I do have a newer refurbished back up model on Overstock.com that I can order in a heartbeat if this one falls through.)

At the same time I'm fearful that I'm going to win it and it's going to be worthless. But this seller has lots of good ratings and I have seven days to return it if it's not to my liking.

Breath. Breath. Breath. 40 minutes!!!!!

I want it, so I'm freaking out hoping to win the bidding. If I win the bidding, I'm going to be freaking out until I get it since I won't know if it's worthwhile. Too. Much. Analyzing.

I also looked on Craigslist. There seems to be a lot of good options there as well, but the problem I run into there is that I don't know anything about sewing machines (a woman I work with helped me pick out the ebay find and the back up model...she actually ordered two of the back up model since it's only $19.99) and usually the people selling them don't know anything about them either. A lot of the sellers received the sewing machines as hand-me-downs, inherited them and/or have had them sitting in the attic for years and have never used them. Thus, when I ask questions they can't answer them. Sigh. 33 minutes.

Time for a glass of wine. 23 minutes.

Real Housewives of D.C. starts tonight. Too bad I don't have cable. Maybe I'll go force my neighbor, Matt, to watch it. 11 minutes.

2 minutes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I WON I WON I WON!!!!!!!!

And I figured out how to pay. Even better. :) My winning bid was $26.01, but with crazy shipping costs, it totalled $42.02. Now let's hope I fall in love with it when it arrives!

New yoga mat!

I got a new yoga mat! I got a new yoga mat! I got a new yoga mat! Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey!

I've been browsing the world of eco-friendly yoga mats for a while. It was actually getting a little depressing because the super-duper eco-friendly ones are around $90. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy yoga, but sometimes my mat sits in the corner and collects dust. I'm one of those exercisers who goes through phases. I'll go all out for three months, then spend two months on the couch. A great habit, I know, but at least I can admit my faults.

I just wanted something eco-friendly that wouldn't break the bank. And that's how I found Lotuspad eco yoga mats. It's a tiny, independent mat company run by Katy Downey. She lives in Massachusetts and is a writer by day and a yoga mat maker by night. I'm completely supportive!!!

Although the mats aren't top-of-the-line in the eco-friendly sense, they are MUCH better for the environment than the mats you find at the big box stores. They are made out of ThermoPlastic Elastomer, which is 100% biodegradable and they resist bacterial and fungal growth. (This is all information you can find on the Lotuspad website.)

In addition to bringing eco-happiness, they're also 72" long, which is longer than normal mats and, although I'm short, that extra few inches makes a big difference. And they're thicker than normal. Yay for a little more cushion!

Here's a little comparison between my old mat and new mat:

Katy even took a couple seconds to jot down a little note thanking me for my patience since I placed my order at the end of June and just received the mat last weekend. But this was fully disclosed when I ordered it and I knew the earliest I would receive the mat was the middle of July since she didn't have any in stock.

Great customer service. Great packaging. Great mat.

Joy!

I'm very happy with my choice.

Storm panorama

We're having storms and tornado warnings tonight, so that made my think of this picture:

It's not the best panorama action out there, but it gets the point across.

Strawberry-rhubarb pie

I made my second strawberry-rhubarb pie last Sunday (I made the first one sometime last year). It was delicious! Even though I could have eaten the entire thing myself, I was nice and shared with a few of my neighbors and coworkers.

The crust is super easy. You make it in the food processor! And the worst part about the filling it actually chopping everything up.

Here are the recipes:
Flaky food processor pie crust
Strawberry-rhubarb pie

I got to test out a new-to-me kitchen gadget that my Mom sent me last year after I made a couple of pies. It's a piece of silicone that you roll your pie crust out on so you don't have to scrape the crust off the counter - you just flip the whole thing over. It's from Pampered Chef and I'm sure it has a name, but I shall call it the Pie Crust Flipper.

The magical Pie Crust Flipper saved me from mushing pieces of crust together in the pie plate and on top of the pie.

Here's the beautifully delicious end product:

I like to cut different designs in the top of the pie crust. This pie crust got the triangle treatment. These cutouts also helped because I forgot to put drops of butter under the top crust since I was so excited about using the Pie Crust Flipper, so I just put a drop of butter in each triangle.

The beheading