In Celebration of Love and Martyred Saints

Every February 14, across the United States and in other places around the world, candy, flowers and gifts are exchanged between loved ones, all in the name of St. Valentine. 
Why? 
Personally, I adopt as many celebrations as possible, be they Catholic, Christian, Pagan, Buddhist or Muppet.  We get one real shot at this life and I like to think that, while I celebrate every day I wake up, there's always room for more reasons to celebrate.  If one or more of those "holidays" can be exploited by consumeristic, profiteering, mass-production businesses, then by golly, they can sure be exploited by me.

To that end, here's a few things you may, or may not have known about Valentine's Day:

• Many believe the 'X' symbol became synonymous with the kiss in medieval times. People who couldn't write their names signed in front of a witness with an 'X.' The 'X' was then kissed to show their sincerity.
• Casanova, well known as "The World's Greatest Lover," ate chocolate to make him virile.
• Physicians of the 1800's commonly advised their patients to eat chocolate to calm their pining for lost love.
• More than 35 million heart-shaped boxes of chocolate will be sold for Valentine's Day.
• Over $1 billion worth of chocolate is purchased for Valentine's Day in the U.S.
• Every Valentine's Day, the Italian city of Verona, where Shakespeare's lovers Romeo and Juliet lived, receives about 1,000 letters addressed to Juliet.
• Over 50 percent of all Valentine's Day cards are purchased in the six days prior to the observance, making Valentine's Day a procrastinator's delight. (Source: Hallmark research)
• 112,185 marriages were performed in Nevada during 2008. (My own Vegas elopement was in 2009)
• So many couples "tie the knot" in the Silver State that it ranked fourth nationally in marriages, even though it's total population that year among states was 35th.
• 53% of women in America would dump their boyfriends if they did not get them anything for Valentine's Day
• Approximately one billion Valentines are sent out worldwide each year according to estimates by the U.S. Greeting Card Association. That's second only to Christmas.
• Women purchase approximately 85 percent of all Valentines.
• Teachers will receive the most Valentine's Day cards, followed by children, mothers, wives, sweethearts and pets.
• Men spend double what women spend on Valentine's day: $158.71 compared to $75.79
• 15% of U.S. women send themselves flowers on Valentine's Day
• 73% of people who buy flowers for Valentine's Day are men, while only 27 percent are women.
• About 8 billion candy hearts will be produced this year; that’s enough candy to stretch from Rome, Italy to Valentine, Arizona 20 times and back again
• According to a Durex survey, condom sales are highest around Valentine's Day -- 20 to 30% more than usual
• More at-home pregnancy tests are sold in March than in any other month

Need some ideas or inspiration?

*   One year I wrote 100 reasons why I love my man - I printed them out and cut them in to little strips and used them to replace the flags of Hershey's kisses.  (Yes, I had to un-wrap and re-wrap them all.)

*   Post-it makes some heart-shaped sticky notes that I use all year to leave spontaneous happy notes for both my husband and son.

*   I use a dry-erase marker to write notes on bathroom mirrors.

*   When my guys go on trips I sneak notes and/or candies in to their bags or coat pockets.  I've also been know to put them in their shoes in the morning.

Here's a few other goodies I've found:

32 Ways to beat Valintine's Day Blues

100 Romantic Ideas

Martha's Valentine's Day

Ideas from Hershey's

Ideas from HP

Free Crafts for Kids

Family Project Ideas

Lists of Free Printables

Valentine's History & Facts

Perspectives

I'm reposting this from a tumblr blog post by Lindsey - I was afraid the link might disappear, so I pasted it in it's entirety because the bottom line it this:  How you look and how you feel and how you see both and compare it to others is distorted. 
no shit.

This weekend I was told a story which, although I’m kind of ashamed to admit it, because holy shit is it ever obvious, is kind of blowing my mind.

 

A friend of a friend won a free consultation with Clinton Kelly of What Not To Wear, and she was very excited, because she has a plus-size body, and wanted some tips on how to make the most of her wardrobe in a fashion culture which deliberately puts her body at a disadvantage.

Her first question for him was this: how do celebrities make a plain white t-shirt and a pair of weekend jeans look chic?  She always assumed it was because so many celebrities have, by nature or by design, very slender frames, and because they can afford very expensive clothing.  But when she watched What Not To Wear, she noticed that women of all sizes ended up in cute clothes that really fit their bodies and looked great.  She had tried to apply some guidelines from the show into her own wardrobe, but with only mixed success.  So - what gives?

His answer was that everything you will ever see on a celebrity’s body, including their outfits when they’re out and about and they just get caught by a paparazzo, has been tailored, and the same goes for everything on What Not To Wear.  Jeans, blazers, dresses - everything right down to plain t-shirts and camisoles.  He pointed out that historically, up until the last few generations, the vast majority of people either made their own clothing or had their clothing made by tailors and seamstresses.  You had your clothing made to accommodate the measurements of your individual body, and then you moved the fuck on.  Nothing on the show or in People magazine is off the rack and unaltered.  He said that what they do is ignore the actual size numbers on the tags, find something that fits an individual’s widest place, and then have it completely altered to fit.  That’s how celebrities have jeans that magically fit them all over, and the rest of us chumps can’t ever find a pair that doesn’t gape here or ride up or slouch down or have about four yards of extra fabric here and there.

I knew that having dresses and blazers altered was probably something they were doing, but to me, having alterations done generally means having my jeans hemmed and then simply living with the fact that I will always be adjusting my clothing while I’m wearing it because I have curves from here to ya-ya, some things don’t fit right, and the world is just unfair that way.  I didn’t think that having everything tailored was something that people did. 

It’s so obvious, I can’t believe I didn’t know this.  But no one ever told me.  I was told about bikini season and dieting and targeting your “problem areas” and avoiding horizontal stripes.  No one told me that Jennifer Aniston is out there wearing a bigger size of Ralph Lauren t-shirt and having it altered to fit her.

I sat there after I was told this story, and I really thought about how hard I have worked not to care about the number or the letter on the tag of my clothes, how hard I have tried to just love my body the way it is, and where I’ve succeeded and failed.  I thought about all the times I’ve stood in a fitting room and stared up at the lights and bit my lip so hard it bled, just to keep myself from crying about how nothing fits the way it’s supposed to.  No one told me that it wasn’t supposed to.  I guess I just didn’t know.  I was too busy thinking that I was the one that didn’t fit.

I thought about that, and about all the other girls and women out there whose proportions are “wrong,” who can’t find a good pair of work trousers, who can’t fill a sweater, who feel excluded and freakish and sad and frustrated because they have to go up a size, when really the size doesn’t mean anything and it never, ever did, and this is just another bullshit thing thrown in your path to make you feel shitty about yourself.

I thought about all of that, and then I thought that in elementary school, there should be a class for girls where they sit you down and tell you this stuff before you waste years of your life feeling like someone put you together wrong.

So, I have to take that and sit with it for a while.  But in the meantime, I thought perhaps I should post this, because maybe my friend, her friend, and I are the only clueless people who did not realise this, but maybe we’re not.  Maybe some of you have tried to embrace the arbitrary size you are, but still couldn’t find a cute pair of jeans, and didn’t know why.

About the author

Lindsay, 25, Canadian, hunkered down just west of the 100th meridian. College drop-out. Spinster. I like old things and television, animals and pretty things, food and Friday Night Lights, history and politics. I care about stuff, which means I get angry and wordy sometimes. I like to tell pointless stories which highlight my social incompetence and flaws in a way I pray is charming but is more likely obnoxious. This is an "everything but the kitchen sink" blog. Sometimes there is a kitchen sink, too.

I blog about music at chainlinklots, and about food at justaddhotsauce

Ask me anything

WOW Deals I'm compelled to share

Hiya!

   Every now and then I come across a great deal and I'm literally compelled to pass it on -

If you're in the Boise, ID area, Groupon has another WOW deal on 5 laser hair removal treatments for $99 to get your underarms done. (This place and most others charge around $500 regularly.) Click here> Boise Groupon

Also, A little site I found called NETAYA has some unbelievable daily deals on jewelry - I gave myself a present of a pair of 1 ct. natural blue topaz earrings and a matching pendant plus a sterling silver chain for $10 each!   They have a an adorable sterling and diamond bow pendant on a sterling box chain for $20 bucks and free shipping!  (USE CODE NYR5 at checkout to get the deal on the bow pendant.)

     

Click here > NETAYA.com  

Overstock had a 1" memory foam mattress topper in a CA King size for $20!  (For that price you could get 2, fold 'em in 4ths, put 'em in a funky print twin sheet sewn around the edges and make an amazing gaming lounge pillow chair for the kids!)

Everyday at 12 ET NoMoreRack will post their deals and some are pretty great (Others are just Meh and some are actually just cheap shtuff)  But it's worth a look in case they happen to post one of those super great deals (like the leather tote I got for $10 or the Green Peridot earrings I bought for only $7) Best of all, shipping is just $2 for each item.

Today they had a 10-pack of lace scraps for only $24 that'd be great for crafting and scrapbooking! 

Click here > NOMORERACK.com 

Alrighty, that's all I've got time for right now, but if you want me to send you some other stuff I get in my DOD emails, let me know.

Cookies are made of butter and love. ~Norwegian Proverb

It's that time - Christmas Treats Everywhere!  At the office - At home - At the parties - At school - You can't avoid them - I don't even try.

Below are some helpful tips and recipes I've twiddled across during my distracted forays into the web:

TipNut.com

From one of my favorite sites - TipNut.com - Bake Cookies Like A Pro and 12 Quick & Easy No-Bake Cookies

Martha's always good for some great tips and recipes - She even has an App for cookies!

Betty Crocker and Pillsbury (Those two are both owned General Mills.) are timeless classics - Check out Betty's Homemade Gift Section too!

Better homes & Gardens (or BHG) even gives you the very basics of baking along with great recipes.

Paula Deen's is also a good resource.

diycrafts.blogspot.com

mixingbowlkids.typepad.com

Oh! and if you're looking for some last minute DIY's - You should definitely check out some of my recent Pinterest Pins! for Reinbeers, I-Spy Bottles & Ornaments, Lavender Sachets and Bath Soaks, Sweater Sleeve Wine Bags, A DIY Ice Cream Sundae Kit and Gift Bags to wrap it all up!

Seven Helpful Habits for ADDers

 

Every adult with ADD has special talents. The trick is to uncover them–and use them to achieve important goals.  by Edward Hallowell, M.D.

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Do you sometimes worry that attention deficit disorder (ADD / ADHD) will hold you back? There’s no need. Everyone has special interests and abilities that can help them reach their goals. The trick is to identify these often-hidden passions and talents—and put them to work.
In more than two decades as a psychiatrist, I’ve known countless people who have managed to thrive in spite of—and often because of—their ADD. I’m thinking of people like my friend R.L., who parlayed a gift for gab and an ability to stay calm in chaotic environments into a dynamic career as a television anchorman.
Of course, I’ve also met plenty of ADDers whose careers and personal relationships were hijacked by their condition. What explains this “success gap”? Why do some ADDers struggle, while others succeed? I think it’s a matter of habits. That is, successful ADDers tend to be those who have learned to focus on their strengths and who have developed these good habits:

1. Do what you’re good at.

Everyone is good at some things, and not so good at others. Often it’s more productive to focus on improving your strengths rather than on trying to shore up your weak points. And when you must do something you’re not particularly good at? Work with family members, coaches, or tutors to find coping strategies that help you become “good enough.”

2. Keep in touch with your friends.

Good friends are essential for happiness. And friends can provide you with valuable perspective.

3. Ask for advice.

Life is tricky, but there’s no need to go it alone. Figure out whom you trust, and confer with them on a regular basis—and especially when problems arise. Ignore naysayers and finger-waggers.

4. Get enough organized.

You don’t have to be totally organized—perfect files, no clutter. That’s too hard for most ADDers and, in my opinion, nothing but a waste of your time. You only need to be organized enough so that disorganization doesn’t get in your way.

5. Find an outlet for your creativity.

What’s your hobby? Music? Karate? My outlet is writing. Life is always more interesting and fulfilling when I’m engaged in a writing project.

6. Learn to delegate.

If you’re faced with a task or responsibility that you find particularly difficult, ask someone else to do it for you in exchange for doing something for him. And don’t assume that someone else will pick up the slack for you when you don’t get things done. Ask him or her to do so. Asking for help is especially important within the context of marriage; failing to acknowledge that you are leaving the not-so-fun stuff (housekeeping, bill-paying, and so on) to your non-ADD spouse invariably leads to resentment.

7. Stay optimistic.

Everyone has a dark side, and can feel down sometimes. But do your best to make decisions and “run your life” with your positive side.

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This article comes from the April/May 2007 issue of ADDitude.

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Copyright © 1998 - 2010 New Hope Media LLC. All rights reserved.

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I'm full of it...

I am full of it - Gratitude - that is.


I refuse to go even one single day without consciously being thankful for something - usually it's several things.


My family. My awesome son. My amazing husband.  My job.  My health. And on and on.
I am even grateful for much that I don't have!   


It's easy to find things not to like.  It's easy to complain.  It's even easier to find bright sides. 


To CREATE your own gratitude is to find happiness.  There is a measure of peace to be felt in everything we can find to be greatful for.


I challenge everyone who reads this to start a list and add to it at least one thing everyday.  Make it pretty!

DESIGN your own gratitude!

What I'm making - Wine Cork Board and Beer Cap Tack Tutorial

Remember I told you I was going to be making some wine cork board/trays for my mother and sisters-in law?  Well I got two of them done this weekend and thought I'd share.  I also made some beer cap tacks to go with them.  I was unusually lucid and I had the rare forethought to take some pictures of my progress so I could post a tutorial about the tacks. - I'm thinking I might also have to include some wine charms to hang from those beer cap tacks. 

I gotta say that this whole thing was super easy - in fact the hardest part was puzzling the corks together so they fit nice and tight in the trays.

I had originally planned on using picture frames that I picked up at the thrift store, but on a recent foray into my local Ross, I found these beautiful trays for $6 each.  They're really too nice to cover with corks, but there ya go. 

So the rule for the day - If you want an amazing end result, you have to start with quality ingredients/supplies.

Box o' corks and my $6 tray - I used real corks rather than the rubber variety, simply because I think they have more character and it's easier to insert tacks in to them.

Lay them all out.  You may need to cut one or more in half or thirds with a sharp utility knife to make them fit snugly.

Keep your band-aids handy! 

Then hot glue them in one at a time - To the tray and to each other - Use the High Temp glue in case it's used as a trivet so a hot casserole dish won't undo all your work.

For the beer cap tacks, you'll need flat and round pliers, strong adhesive, beer caps, a straight pin and some resin.  I used Mod Podge Dimensional Magic.

First bend your pin at a right angle

Then use the round pliers to bend, first one way, then the other, to make a swirl - You can do an actual swirl or whatever - the idea is to give your pin more substance for a base to hold it in the cap.

  

Use your super strong glue and stick the pin to the cap.

   

When it's dry, fill the cap with the resin to cement to whole thing.

Allow to dry at least two days. 

Tack on your tag, wine charms, gift certificates and GIVE!  = >

Cheers! Salut! Prost!

What're you making?

I ususally make most of the gifts I give to family - The exception being my husband and son who prefer electronics, sporting equipment, toys and gadgets - But everyone else gets goodies I make. 

In years past I've made gift sets of Dip & Rub mixes and mixes for soups and breads all packaged with my meal saver and wrapped in handmade burlap sacks, dish towels or oven mitts.  I've made liquers and ornaments and hand woven rugs, crocheted scarves and yummy soaps too.  (A lot of these can be found in my shop)

I usually make too much.  Enough so that I inadvertently make my relatives a bit uncomfortable.  In fact that's how my Etsy store came about - With my husband asking what I intended to do with all the stuff I made.

This year I'm making wine cork boards/trivets with beer bottle cap tacks for the grown ups and manicure and travel baglets for the nieces.  (I was considering some funky monster fur leg warmers, but simply don't have time to test my sketchy sewing skills.)  I've also been making jams, jellies, salsas and loaves of bread that I've frozen to bring for the holidays.

I'm very interested in what others give for presents.  One never knows what will inspire the next fit of manic creativity.  I'm posting this question on here and on my FB @ adcdpage, on my twitter feed @idahocrystals and I'm also pinning any pictures that I can find that may inspire you on my Pinterest boards.

So - What are you giving?

Brutal HonEtsy...

...Some unsolicited observations

from an Etsy underachiever...

You know those posts on the forums of Etsy?  The ones where people whine because they're not selling anything and they can't understand why people aren't lining up to throw money at them for making those profound works of art and amazing macaroni bracelets?   When you visit their site, you're speechless because you can't think of where to start? 

I've seen a couple from some obviously left-brained crafters that made me close the thread and back away - I couldn't possibly spend the rest of the day giving them the same tired advice they could have found in the thousands of other threads from similarly dissillusioned, asthetically- challenged crafters - and still be nice about it.  (Regretsy anyone?)

 Some of these poor "Martha-bees" had some pie-in-the-sky expectations about selling hundreds of creations and having product fly out of their shops as soon as they created the listing.  Some are truly mystified as to why they're not eeking out a living wage with their Etsy shop.

The Quit Your Day Job Series is a wonderful aspiration, and I've seen a few snippets that do a pretty good job of glossing over the Raman-Mac N' Cheese budget most of the actual subjects have finally attained.   Those articles make them sound so romantic!  Seriously, no mention of health insurance or vacations or retirement planning or other "luxuries" that most evil capitalists consider important. 

Remember, there's a reason they're called starving artists and, just like celebrities and professional athletes, the one's who do make bank are the exception, not the rule. 

If you're really mystified as to why you're not selling more of your stuff, here are some questions you might ask yourself:

1* What are your goals? - Do you really want to quit your day job?   Can you plan on working night and day until you can?  Do you need a regular paycheck, health insurance and a retirement plan?   Are you a stay-at-home parent and is it realistic for you to spend 8 - 12 hours running your business or will your TV be taking your place with your kids?

2*What do you know about starting or running a business?  Like any other venture, you get out of it what you put in to it.   Working full time online, might  earn you a part time income.  Running a successful business online or in a brick & mortar store will always take far more time & effort than if you work for "The Man".

At last Google, there were over

half a million results for

 "Successful Etsy Sellers" 

so you can get some input from

people who are undoubtedly

more driven to sell than I am...

3*Is your market saturated? - There are literally millions of jewelry listings and hundreds of thousands "photos" or bath and body products.  What's going to make your thing rise above all the rest?  Where and how will your creation stand out? 

And speaking of unique -

4* Can anyone make what you're selling?

   - If it's pretty easy and requires very little time or skill to produce, why would anyone pay to have you make and ship it to them?   There are litterally thousands of jewelry makers on Etsy and 10 times that many beads strung on to widely sold findings or those "ooak" pieces of mass produced crap hot-glued or jump-ringed together - (Cabochons?!  UHG! I can't be the only person to think these things are creepy!)

     

         If you started making stuff as gifts for friends and relatives and they suggested you start selling it, you have an idea.  If you do the research and find out your product makes a nice gift, but people just won't pay you enough to make it profitable or you can buy something that looks nearly identical elsewhere for $2.00 - it's time to rethink.

And finally - Lights, Camera, Blah -

5* WHAT is that?! ~vs~ I didn't even see it

    - You're making an amazing and really unique product - but who would know because it looks like you took those pictures in your basement.  You've obviously seen the pictures Etsy (and buyers) seem to love.  Those muted color, bright, clean, glossy magazine-type photos can be of your product, no matter what kind of digital camera you use.  Really!  My phone takes better pictures than my camera!

*Does your camera have an exposure adjustment?  -Turn it up.

*How about that Macro? - Play with your close ups.
*Do you spend time editing your phots? - You don't need Photoshop - just a regular FREE program like Gimp or PicNik or Photscape or any of these others.

These are just a few things to think about -  The next step would be marketing - But that is a whole other can of SEO worms and will definitely require a post all it's own...

Wait!... Don't eat that! It hasn't been tested!

Every year it happens - One of the biggest threats to the physical and emotional health of parents and children alike, all over the U.S.   People are forced to walk for miles, knocking on doors, dressed in clothing not fit for the light of day, begging for tooth-rotting, hyperspastic-coma-inducing, pre-packaged sugar.

The parent tasked with supervising the minature walking dead is especially troubled when that strange, awful day happens on a Monday.  A school night.  When it's even more pressing that all the little goblins must be repeatedly chastised to "Wait." 

"Wait" is the four-letter word of the evening.  It is the mantra of parents everywhere.  Wait until after dinner.  Wait until it's dark-ish.  Wait for us to catch up.  Wait to eat the candy. - It's that last bit that's the hardest for the munchkins.  But the threat of the poisoned treat; The razor blades in the apples, (As if anyone gives out apples anymore.) The LSD-laden candy bar - Those are the threats parents rely upon. The urban-legends of scary wrong things hiding in those sweet, chocolate-covered pieces of bliss that help us keep our children fearful and safe until we can fulfil our parental duty to "Check the Candy".

It is a truly thankless and vital responsibility we must shoulder.  Many parents just can't or won't step up and take the bull by the horns to do whatever it takes to ensure our children remain safe and healthy.  Many of these so-called caring adults actually allow their offspring to eat un-inspected food gathered from strangers! 

It's a burden I'm willing to shoulder to ensure the safety and well-being of my own demented spawn.  Even if I must test each and every piece of chocolate myself, I will persevere.

For I am the parent of a Trick-or-Treater and that makes me:  The Official Candy Tester.