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Legal Disclaimer: All content is simply my opinion and cannot be used to sue anyone.

Monday, June 28, 2010

random crabbing about products

Lately it seems like I have been having problems with products doing what they are supposed to do.

One is Super Glue. Isn't it supposed to stick to everything? I tried to use it to hold my hand brace that I wear at night together, and it didn't last one night. It sure sticks my fingers together tho! The brace is made with tiny holes everywhere, so I guess I will have to try and stitch it together instead. Stupid Super Glue.

Another is Sharpies. Don't they write on everything? NOT. I recently tried to put my name on my UPS memory thing, and it wiped right off. Sigh. Then I decided to Sharpie the top of my tea tree oil bottle so I could tell it apart from my nail blend without having to pick one up and read the label. Wears off in a few days!! I couldn't believe it. It is just a plastic bottle top. Stupid Sharpie.

Yep, I have been sick lately, so I am extra irritated when stuff doesn't work like it should.
Is it just me, or are these "super" products not really up to the job?

Anne

Friday, June 18, 2010

Catching up

My Auntie Mary retired this year, so I made a card to celebrate. (I asked my Mom if I could do a dancing lady, she said no, but I thought this was pretty close. hehehehe)
Inside:


This is one of the Just Because cards from Card Class. I love the new bide set from SU!
My new stamp for the back of cards! hehehe

Jodi asked me to make her some earrings with the dice charms. I picked clear crystals so she could wear them with anything.

This is the baby blanket Julie asked me to make for her, for a gift.

She wanted plain knit stitch, but the edges are garter to help stop it from rolling.

Here are Emily and D enjoying Em's name frame.
Finished Maila's name frame, but she won't be having her party for a few weeks. It is... pink and girly.

Have a great weekend!
Anne

Wednesday, June 16, 2010

nother good book

Okay, I admit, I have never been married and pry never will, but I truly enjoyed:

Miss Manners' Guide to a Surprisingly Dignified Wedding
by Judith Martin and Jacobina Martin

I just enjoy the way Miss Manners can cut someone down so politely that they don't get that she is making fun of them. :)

For example:

Dear Miss Manners:
What would be the tactful way to say "no presents but a money tree"?

Gentle Reader:
"Never mind all that junk- just gimme your wallet."

HA!

I think all the Bridezillas should read this book. :) For the record, it is both you and the groom's day, ladies. Just saying.

I learned some things. The response card is a late addition to wedding invites, and not proper, etiquettely speaking. Guests are supposed to respond immediately, in writing, accepting or declining. Response cards were thrown in to try to force RSVP compliance. They are not needed.

Cash grubbing and begging for gifts is, of course, not proper. You may register, but you should not advertise that and let people curious to ask your relatives. If you are asked, you must pretend to be a bit frazzled and say you can't remember but surely your mom, sister, ect would know. :) There are also stories about people registering for things they don't want and returning them, allowing them to be repurchased by other guests and getting thousands of dollars that way. Eww.

Amusing book, as Miss Manners always is! Crazy things going on out there. Remember, you never HAVE to bring a gift to a wedding. Of course, if you don't care about the couple enough to want to give them something to celebrate their wedding, why would you go?

And, if you are invited to an engagement party, 3 showers and a wedding, just say "no" to any you don't want to attend. There is no need to send a gift if you don't wish too. One gift per wedding is plenty....

Anne

Sunday, June 13, 2010

stupid errors in books

I have been pretty sick lately, in fact, so crummy feeling that for several days last week I did not even read any books- that means I was REALLY weak.

However, I did read one book that made me crabby. It is pry easy to make me crabby when I feel like this, but still, the book easily could have avoided it by just paying freaking attention to the details.

The book was a romance/fantasy type. Basically a handsome warrior from another world was cursed for 1500 years until he meets and falls in love with.. a modern day american woman, of course. This is fine, except then he breaks the curse and gets sucked back to his own world, to find that only a few years (or seasons as they are called there) have passed for them, while he spent 1500 years on earth. He makes a deal to fight the rebellion that is still going on for one year if they bring his love to him at the end of that time. He fights. Switch to the chick. She is so depressed she can't carry on. They don't mention how long has passed for her, but imply she hasn't gotten out of bed yet, so it can't be too long before the warrior's year is up and she is whisked to him. Wait a minute. I thought a few years passed on his world while 1500 passed on earth? So a year on his world would mean his love would be... 500 years older! AS IN, DEAD.

Now, I wouldn't have minded the discrepancy if they made something up to EXPLAIN it. Make the powerful dude the warrior made the deal with say, "You fight for one year. Only 3 months will pass for her." OR SOMETHING. Don't just ignore it.

Cuz then I am crabby at the book instead of being happy they will live in love after after and their firstborn daughter is prophesied to bring peace to the land. Instead I am hollering "She is 500 years DEAD you idiots!!!"

You gotta explain these discrepancies. It ruins the book.

Okay, so I was also mad that the heroine left earth without even saying goodbye to her sister, when their parents were dead and they had relied on each other their whole lives. Now, if they HADN'T tried to explain this by having the heroine think "Oh, my sister will be fine without me" it would have been better. In this case, I would rather they ignored it so the reader could pretend that she... forgot her sister or something, not deliberately said "oh, she's fine" and left with no explanation.

You know?

Anne

Sunday, June 6, 2010

Good Books

I have been really tired, but I wanted to jump on and recommend some good books.

First is:

Infidel
by Ayaan Hirsi Ali

Now, I pry will get a fatwa put on my head for recommending this book, but it is very necessary reading if you want to understand the world we are living in today.

Ms. Ali was born in Somalia, moved around quite a bit because of the civil war, and ended up getting refugee status in Holland. She became a member of Parliament, shot a movie about the treatment of women under the Koran, had a Fatwa put out on her, and moved to the USA to escape the worst death threats.

If you read this book, you will learn quite a lot- about African countries, European countries, about how one's religious beliefs evolve when faced with reality, and about how REAL the threat is from Muslims today to all and anyone who does not convert to their beliefs.

Fascinating book. I couldn't put it down.

****

Another really interesting book:

Scent of the Missing
by Susannah Charleson

If you love dogs, or not, you will like this book. It tells the stories of the UNPAID search and rescue dog teams that save lives every day in America. It also tells the story of Puzzle, a golden retriever trained from puppy hood to become a rescue dog. I don't care for dogs, and I loved this book.

The intense training, the hard searches, the hours and hours of work that go into this unpaid volunteer job in incredible. And the joy that comes from a successful search- both for the dog and the trainer is also.

Have a great week,
Anne

Thursday, June 3, 2010

bugs

If you remember the terror of bugs in feb, you will understand why the two topics I wanted to post about today are postponed.

To recap- I feel like bugs crawl on me all the time. I also see things out of the corner of my eye, and my brain interprets the motion as bugs. In feb there was the attack of the box elder bugs, when there were bugs actually on me at times. It took MONTHS for me to convince myself that there were no more bugs and to start ignoring the "bug on me!" signals coming from my brain.

Then this morning when I was on the puter, I glanced down at my hand, after ignoring the "bug!" signal, to see.... an ant crawling on my hand. I smashed it, jerked back to see several more crawling on the desk. I vacated the basement.

Now I am back, was going to go on the bike, but still can smell the bad chemicals Dad sprayed this morning. So I pry will skip. Specially since pesticide exposure was one of the triggers for my Lupus. I did spray peppermint oil on all the doors on the main level, and dump several (okay, many) peppermint cotton balls in my room. That was effective last year keeping ants from coming in under the front door.

Look forward to "book of the week" and "the tv show I currently hate the most" coming soon!

Anne

Wednesday, June 2, 2010

various rants

I have been really sick, and sleeping, and not posted for a while. I figured Julie needed to hear some ranting tho, so I am forcing myself to do so today. I also realized that the crappier I feel, the crabbier I holler at the tv. Interesting, huh?

First, I heard (cuz I was busy and didn't look up, or too tired to open my eyes, I don't member which!) a commercial today that said "when you have children, the words "good morning" take on a whole new meaning." Okay, I don't have kids, but what on earth does that mean?? Anyone with kids want to take a shot at it? Maybe they mean "get back to bed you bratty kids"? Nah, the parent wouldn't say "good morning" if that is what they meant. Help!

I recently realized two commercials are giving me conflicting info. I hate hate hate the commercials that say you DON'T have to pay your back taxes or your credit card debts, and there is one running now that says there is a government bailout for credit card debts. Now, I was pretty sure that was a lie, cuz that WOULD have made the news. The banks got bailed out, but not the customers. Then yesterday, another commercial said there ISN'T a bailout for consumers' credit cards, but they still can help you cuz the banks did. Both commercials were for debt help places, and both pry just take your money and run, but how can they say opposite things? Are you allowed to LIE when you advertise your products and services? Isn't anyone monitoring what these places say? Didn't MN's attorney general recently take action about these debt companies?

I can just see all the people with maxed credit cards calling and demanding their money from the credit card bailout. Sigh.

Anne