Cherry Mistmas!!

Hello again virtual world... did you have a good Christmas? Please accept some late festive fortune wishes from me, I hope you partook in some form of merriment or shenanigans with those you hold close.

This year was a first for me... between Christmas Eve and the day itself I visited everyone in my family. EVERYONE. Its a good feeling knowing that I don't have to do more visiting - any extra visiting is done on my own accord. Yay! The icing on the cake for me was trundling up the Old Lane to visit my gran parents, since I moved to Paisley I havent visited them on Christmas day. Thats 13 years.

After dinner I drove home as my flat mate is in France and I had to hang out with and feed the cats. I'm glad I did come homE, as Schmerc came up and we watched some stand up comedy and finished the Crobot featured in the last post. He is so freaking awesome! We have started on 'Bopbot' a crobot with headphones who dances to techno. Sweet as a mutha funkin' nut.

This is the quietest Christmas for me since I started getting wrecked... and I have to say I'm totally digging it! I'm kind of using Schmerco's injuries as an excuse... but I'm realising that you dont need no excuses - holidays are holidays and you get from them what you want. Do I sound like a humbug? I hope not, cause I'm not.

I'm looking forward to partying with my homies when cabin fever sets in and I have to escape!

He he!

Peace, love n happiness x

Crobot dog!

Schmerc bought me a 'crobots' book for Christmas. Here is my first one, called Dogbot!

Filthy scummy little f*** wits.

Wow.

What a crazy weekend it has been here in Paisley Land. It started off so well, with a group of 40 of my friends all enjoying a Christmas dinner together on Saturday afternoon. Me and Schmerc couldnt stay for the after party drinks for long as it was his wee brothers 21st, but we were able to stay for a couple.

I wish we hadn't. Schmerc always helps out when he's not working, collecting glasses and generally being a barman. Two wee fuckwits came in who were quite clearly offf their face on something, and also very bamlike. In the most unagressive manner EVER, Schmerc escorted them out. I didnt think anything of it and went to the loo with MW. When we returned it was clear something was wrong, the bar was strangely eery and there was a trail of blood to the wee store room behind the bar.

Uh oh.

It was Schmerc. He had been stabbed twice in the back, there was blood everywhere. Two of my friends were in there with him, applying pressure to the wounds, keeping him sane and calm, and generally doing a very good job at stuff that I would have been completely useless at doing. So I left the wee room and went outside, realising that I would be no good to anyone being in hysterics.

Thankfully he is going to be ok... narrowly missed his heart and his kidney.. but I tell ye - what a horrendous f00king night. I never want to witness anything like that again, and although it was a very crap thing to happen I do believe he has a wee Guardian angel watching over him.

Sorry for the crap rendition of that. Can't convey, or rather I dont want to, convey my emotions for it all.

x

Ten Things...

Ten things that……

I Love

·         Feline Friends

·         Family and Friends

·         Multi coloured things

·         Music (Samba is pretty cool....although I dont love it as much now Kings of Macumba are no more...)

·         People watching

·         Talking about the wonders of EVERYTHING with my friends (including bitching)

·         Pillow talk

·         Trying new things

·         Partying

·         Good tin openers

·         Pepper

I Hate

·         People leaving window handles up when windows are open

·         Cold-sores

·         Lying

·         Rude people

·         Contestants on ‘The Weakest Link’ who say, ‘I think it’s unfair I was voted off, I clearly wasn’t the weakest link’

·         Mushrooms
·         Spiders

·         My boss doing ‘pregnant pauses’ on the phone to me

·         Failing miserably in front of people

·         Being told what to do when I know the instruction is wrong

I am Scared of…

·         Spiders

·         Occassionally, driving by myself in the dark

·         Failing miserably in front of people

·         Trying things in front of people in case I make a tit of myself

·         Being stuck in my job forever

·         My friends realising that I’m a shit friend and dumping me

·         Being on a raft in the sea with a massive boat about to pass by

·         Never having any kids

·         Confrontation

·         Discovering a dead or dying person

The produce from yesterdays crafternoon..

 

As arranged, I met up with some girlies on saturday and we had a Crafternoon. Saturday has been dubbed either SaturYey or SaturGay... I think both of them are quite fitting titles!

M.W was our host this time, and her living room was turned into a complete craft fest with Fimo Clay, Jumping Clay, Plant stalks, glitter, felt, embroidery threads, buttons, material and other such stuff adorned all over the floor. We all left after having made something although I think we expected a higher standard of output from ourselves! Although, to be fair, I do think that we  did alright. Some of the girls made Fimo things, inlcuding 2 Bees in a Pod, and Robins. G.O made a stocking for her Christmas tree, with a few presents stuffed in it. My niece was there and she made some wee things from the Jumping Clay. I was a bit worried watching her though as she was using loads of the clay... but I guess thats what its there for! I made the wee butterfly above, its stuffed and has lavender oil sprinkled on it. So, I'm giving that away as a Christmas gift too.

Similarly to the owl in a previous post, if I was to make this again I would do things a bit differently. I'll stick up photos to demonstrate if I do.

Towards the end of the crafternoon I was internally freaking out a bit because of all the mess, nothing was in order and all of the crafty bits were everywhere. This leads me to believe I may have very mild OCD! Yesterday afternoon after I had dropped my niece off I spent time in my bedroom organising my craft cases. Phew! Glad thats done!

Speaking of organising, I am whole heartedly in love with the idea of having a bureau, or a wardobe type bureau for storing all of my bits and bobs. My interest in this was sparked by an offering on Freecycle, but alas I didnt win it, and Schmerc said it would have been too big anyway. (I'm moving in with him in March). I think I am destined to have one though, as I seem to be exposed to similar things all of the time, including a post on a blog I follow where someone had turned one into a groovy art station. THATS WHAT I WANT TO DO!!! I have been selling the idea to Schmerc, under the guise of how it will be so handy having all of my things all TIDY, in one place, etc, etc! Plus, the handy wee desk will be handy for sitting at and working on projects. Truth be told though, I dont actually do that many crafty things. I do like organising stuff though, and presenting the stuff that I have organised.

Having such an art station will no doubt encourage me to be more creative. Just like that time when I bought the good running trousers, running trainers and T Shirt. OK, ok, I have only been out running once.... but if I did decide to go out running..... he he he!

Anyway, here is a wee picture that K.W posted onto my facebook page, that I inturn posted onto M.W's page. I kept relaying this to everyone on Saturday, as I think it is so very true. And that is why, I'm proud of my first attempt at a scented butterfly. Imagine what my hundredth one would look like!! ;)

Love and light my fellow fellows.

LT x

p.s Oh aye, nearly forgot to continue with my thread of the bureau... a charity shop in Paisley has one for £35!! Its not an antique one,nor does it try to emulate Georgian furniture.. BUT...it is still gallus and I do want it ridicously so!!

I think it was meant to be..... :)

p.p.s I'm going to ask my friends if I can use their real name on my blog, or perhaps they can choose an alias. Using their initials is a bit weird. Especially G.O's.

Felt Owl

My first attemp at a felted owl!!

I followed instructions loosely from this very handy blog: http://savingartistryan.wordpress.com/2011/01/27/felt-owl-brooch/
I haven't made this as a brooch though as its a Christmas present for my friend, LW, and as she is so fashionable I doubt she would wear one of my creations. Yet. Wait till I get better!!

As I didn't make it as a brooch I had to improvise on some of the instructions.. I didnt want any knots or thread showing on the back.. so I sewed the eyes on before pulling it together. I also attached a ribbon under the beak so the owl can hang somewhere nice.

I really enjoyed making this and it didnt even take long! I will definitely be making more, although I think I will try and make my owl rounder, (as to me that constitutes cuteness).. and if I'm not making them as brooches I think I should stuff them a little to give them more depth.

I'm meeting up with some of my girls tomorrow for a Crafternoon, where we will all get stuck into creativities and have a good old chat. I'm really looking forward to it, especially now as I can bring a few things to the table. For my next project I'm going to make 3 of these owls, stuffed and all hanging in a vertical row. That will be the final Christmas present for my mum, so I'll need to choose sensible colours that will compliment her house - or else she wont hang it up!

Happy weekend everyone! Hope yours is as productive as mine hopefully will be :)

LT x

My bedroom and my blanket

I know I said my next post would be about comedy....but alas, I took a photo last night of the start of my crochet blanket to show a work colleague, so I thought I'd show you too. I decided at the very begining that I wanted 101 squares - I've only made 21 so far, so I think the ETA for the finished article is round about March some time.

I have also been crocheting prayer flags for Christmas presents for my friends, but I cant post them up at the moment incase someone accidentally stumbles upon it and sees the finished article before Christmas. Bah, humbug!!

Stand up, Stand Up.

I signed up for a Stand Up Comedy course a few months ago. I'm not sure why really, definitely not because I think I'm funny, it was more of the opposite to be honest. I feel that when I tell jokes, or a story to my friends I get nervous once I have commanded their complete attention, and fail to make normal eye contact, while spurting out the rest of story at a million miles a minute. I was hoping that upon completion of the course I would be able to 'hold my own' and would have ultimately improved my delivery and in turn would be able to chat freely without looking like a rip roaring reptar!

Perhaps that would have happened - if I had finished the course! After 3 weeks I had a massive case of 'The Fear' and was dreading going back in. So I transferred the rest of my credit onto a course called, 'Finding your Voice'. I wasn't dreading going to college because of the comedy element - I quit because I felt absolutely terrified standing infront of everyone, and realised that I should tackle that element first before leaving myself open to complete humiliation when attempting to do the end of class Stand Up gig. I'm not normally a quitter (except from earlier this year when I quit Trees for Life a few days early) so to accept my failure I looked to Facebook - a few reassuring words from your friends always helps. One of my friends wrote something like 'Dont feel bad, you've made a grown up decision about your own limitations based on existing commitments'. Fair dues. That IS what I did.

The gig took place on Tuesday night and I went along with some friends to check out my classmates. It was interesting to see how they had developed. One girl used a story I had heard before - but she added in lots of side jokes that weren't previously there.. and the end result was - humour! Also, it was interesting to note that the more confident performers were actually not very funny at all. One to think about. Everyone asked me if I wished I had stuck it out... the truthful answer is, yes, of course. But alas, I made a decision that was right for me at the time, and I have to have faith in my own conviction. Plus, the 'Finding your Voice' course sounds good, and will provide a good platform for moving onto more adventurous pastures.

As I was lying in my bed that night I had lots of ideas floating around my head for a Stand Up routine. One is based on an exercise we tried at college using newspaper articles, and it moved onto stories about the Brownies. In my next blog post I am going to attempt to write down what might have been my routine had I not been a quitter! It might seem quite vulgar though, but be rest assured (particularly in reference to the Brownies)  that I'm not really so crude! When I was thinking about this in bed I could see myself delivering this routine in a super confident manner... so I know how I would like to be as a comedienne.. I'm not convinced though that I would ever be able to pull it off!

I feel like I should also point out that I don't have a burning desire to pursue a life in the lime light. I signed up for the course as I thought it would be a fun (ny) thing to do.

LT. The second.

 

This wee dude is called Lewis - he's not mine, he is my nephew. How adorable though? Since I took this photo I have looked at it loads of time, as his wee smile never fails to make me smile. A smile definitely lights up the world. And EVERYONE looks beautiful when they smile.

See!??

Luna. Being heavy cute. And Dominoes tongue.

Ah ha ha. I tried to upload this video via my phone yesterday as I was trying to 'resurrect' my blog. I didnt think it had uploaded but now I see that it has, it made me smile.

Meet Luna. She is my wee cat, and archnemesis of my older cat Dominoe. They are both almost identical, except that luna has a black nose and Dominoes is pink. In my opinion Dominoe is the more beautiful between the two of them, but Luna is so unbelievably cute in a we weirdo kind of way, that I love them both just as much! Dominoe is 12, Luna is 1. Dominoe only has one tooth at the top of her mouth, and this means she often pulls funny faces and her tongue just falls out. The photo below doesnt do her cuteness any justice... but it does showcase her tongue :)

 

Thinking about it, I only have one or two photos of Dominoe looking gorgeous. The rest of the time she adopts either a 'little madam' pose, or 'I know you're taking the piss' pose. Still love her though, yup indeedy!!

Starry Owl at the Observatory

Firstly, apologies for the length of time taken to post since the last time, and secondly, apologies for the content of the last post! I think I may have been hacked off or annoyed about something or someone, but I am pleased to say that I cant remember who, what or why, so in my opinion its all good!

I have been volunteering with the Brownies for over a year, and tonight is the night that I make my Brownie promise. I'm quite excited about it as I'm making it during a visit to Coats Observatory in Paisley - one of my favourite places ever. Check out the photo above of the observatory taken in 1890!! I LOVE their clothes, and I love their expressions too! The observatory still looks the same, although the town has been built up around it.

I wonder if you noticed my Brownie name, Starry Owl. You may be thinking that there is no such owl, and guess what - you're right! It was decided that we let the girls choose my name and following suggestions like 'Cheryl Cole owl' and 'Fluffy Owl' I realised something had to be done. The week before we officially chose my name I dropped hints about how much I like the moon and the stars, and how my wee kitten was called Luna, French for moon.... and low and behold one clever girl suggested Starry Owl. Why thank you, I'll take that!! He he. So you see, it is quite fitting that during the last stage of our Brownie pack completing their Star Gazing badge we visit the observatory, and it is here with great delight that I pledge my allegiance to the Brownie guide law, and that is to think of others before myself. I think I mostly do that at the moment. But I will try to be nicer to people and do at least ONE good deed EVERY day.

Give a Little Bit?

Give a little bit
Give a little bit of your love to me
Give a little bit
I'll give a little bit of my love to you
There's so much that we need to share
Send a smile and show you care

~ Supertramp

Gallus wee song so it is.

I think giving a little bit is a really good thing to do in life, giving a bit of yourself and opening doors to let folk in. And giving a little bit of what you have to help others. But what if you give a little bit and people fuck you over? do you keep on giving and giving and end up with not much left of what was originally you? Or does it not matter how much you give,  you will somehow always be able to replenish your depleted stores of 'the good stuff'?

I'm not really sure where I stand on this one.

I have been known to wear my heart on my sleeve.

I love honesty, friendship, love, appreciation, values, morals, common decency, respect, sharing, openness.

I hate lies, cheating, agression, avoidance, disrespect, enemies... and probably a few more things that I cant think of.

No idea where I'm going with this one, so I'm just going to stop. Right here.

500 words about a personal experience with no I's....

The thing that got to me the most about the whole mix up was the look on everyone’s face as the parade was forming. Imagine the scene if you will, eighteen different acts all lined up showcasing their hours of hard work in flamboyant costumes. Bright colours everywhere. Sparkling ribbons, sun-reflecting eye-catching sequins, peacock eyes, feathers, colour; everywhere.

There was a buzz of excitement hanging in the air. Actually listening to the air revealed a mish mash of carnival music; upon closer inspection with a finely tuned ear you would discover that several songs were being played at once, although not in unison and all completely different. There was a look of excitement on the performers’ faces. Looking in any direction would uncover a smiling face. The smiles were everywhere. Everywhere except on us.

Personally for me it was initially one of the most disheartening experiences of my life. The emails sent back and forth between me and the organisers. The time spent on agreeing the costumes; the money spent acquiring the costumes. The struggle to ensure everyone arrived there on time. Not only on time – for the first time in our two year existence we were actually early.

It was plain to see that a few members of the band thought it was some sort of joke, perhaps all of the organising claimed to have been happening hadn’t actually happened at all. This was my time to feel responsible.

The emails had been sent. The fee had been agreed. The confirmation email arrived stating where we had to be and when. Infact everything was in order and as it should be. Without meaning to pass blame, the blame actually should fall upon the organisers; not me. According to the rules of logic in my head that is not passing blame. Credit where credit is due. Acceptance of responsibility when that is also due.

After speaking with the rest of the band it was agreed that we should go and find another area of the park to play in. Looking back it doesn’t seem that bad now. The parade went on their merry way, minus a samba band that couldn’t fit in for logistical reasons. On a brighter note when the parade had finished we had our own part of the park secured. Not only that, it was a damn good location in the park too!

Looking around our audience uncovered lots of friendly faces, some familiar, some not. Everyone looked happy and it always makes me smile to see how much people enjoying listening to us. People-watching is one of my favourite pastimes, especially looking at the rest of the band when we’re playing. The smiles were back on their faces and for me although we didn’t play in the parade it was still definitely one of my best days of the year so far.

If you ask me it doesn’t get better than sun, fun, friends and samba. Although perhaps playing in the parade might have sweetened the deal.