The Slap Chop Rap

As a member of the middle-aged community I'm happy to be able to present a profanity-free rap video. This is so cool it got me bopping my head and doing a groovy little chair dance. Coming soon as an infomercial near you.

Check it out:

SLAP CHOP VIDEO

Resistance Is Futile

I either have to take a class or go back to the dark ages because I simply cannot figure this Facebook stuff out. Actually, the whole social networking thing has got me stumped.

A) It's taking way too much of my time trying to figure it out.

B) I speculate that even if I did get it all figured out I would spend way too much time tending to the site(s) and not enough time tending to the things in life that really matter.

I figured out the blogging thing, but I'm working at a pretty unskilled level. I have no idea how to personalize my template or other fancy things others have on their blogs.

It's a conundrum. Do I simply go about life as I always have, about which I've been perfectly happy for many years, or do I go over to the dark side and spend the rest of my days electronically connected to the world? OK, in my case I won't actually be connected, but I'll be driving myself to an early grave trying to figure out how to be. Not being connected is the way of the past and I could surely be passed by. Being constantly connected makes me feel really claustrophobic.

It clearly sounds like I want to be unplugged, which brings on the next question: Do I want to be unplugged because being quiet and invisible makes me happy or because I simply cannot learn how to be plugged and make it work for me?

For today I'm going to remain unplugged. Charlotte and I are playing our first game of tennis this summer. We won't have our cell phones on and we won't talk about it on our Facebook pages. We also won't tell anyone where we're playing (Ruthie!) so no one can come and watch us do our sorry Billy Jean King and Chrissy Everett imitations.

How about you? Are you willing to be unplugged? Join me.

Don't be Borg!

Busy Weekends

So much going on these days. Seems it’s been a month since I’ve been able to sit and write about anything. Hey, it has been about that long.

First of all there was the Chateau St. Croix Fetes Des Fleurs Festival. Husby and I love going to that show. The crowds are always fun, the vendors are fabulous, the owners and staff of the winery are spectacular, and of course there is wine aplenty. Weather for the festival was less than desired. Saturday was hot. Like, Africa hot. (Name that movie.) The sun was dang near blistering. I got a lot of questions about how that kind of heat would affect my candles. The beeswax got a little sticky but there was no out and out melting. It would have to be about 130 degrees for that to happen and we didn’t get near that temperature. Sunday it rained all day long. I mean it rained. All…day…long. A gust of wind blew over one of my drink charm displays, but there was no serious damage. Yep, the weather was less than desired, but guess what? My sales were fabulous! Even though it seemed the crowds were less than last year and the weather was really really hot and really really rainy, I was very happy to see those who came enjoyed my booth.

Sunday (the rainy day) also gave all of the vendors a chance to peek more deeply into the other booths. There was a lot of bartering going on. What a great way to decrease inventory and gain other beautiful things. I made a couple of deals myself. I’m glad to see that not only the shoppers but also fellow artisans find my items to be something of value, beauty, or happiness. I certainly admired what they had to show.

The next weekend we attended a small family reunion at my aunt and uncle’s house in Three Lakes, Wisconsin. Mikey loves to throw a party and the gathering was centered around the Outdoor Yard Game Olympics. We played rounds of beanbag toss, golf-balls-on-string toss, and Jarts. It was pretty obvious Husby and I are really bad at games that require aim. Paenney and Fojo were the big winners. Go figure, they’re the youngest with the most fit bodies and the best eyesight.

Fourth of July weekend was spent at the family cottage. There were a few chores to be done, but for the most part we just celebrated the holiday. Charlotte and her family took charge of putting on a spectacular fireworks show for us and the rest of the lake. Fojo, Paenney, Pinky, and my dad spent a lot of time fishing, hoping to land a big muskie, happy to catch bass and perch. We also had a big water war where Fojo and Paenney win again. All I got out of the deal was a lot of water splashed on me and a bit of a sunburn on my nose, shoulders, and back. Summertime fun.

Monday evening I decided to just be tired and turn off all compulsion to catch up on housework. I sat back and watched Amityville Horror in its entirety. Funny how a movie with such bad dialog can suck you in nevertheless. Nothing like a house whose walls bleed to make for a relaxing evening.

Happy Birthday, America

Chokes me up every time. My annual offering...

The Movies

Things are looking up in the movie world. Well, I can't really say they've been looking poorly, but there really hasn't been anything I've considered worth seeing in a while.

Husby and I saw Up, which was a great escape to the drudgery of everyday life. It made me want to get out there and try something completely insane and wacky. It's a wonderful movie (what Pixar movie isn't?) about true love, friendship, good and evil, adventure, and all the other makings of a fairytale. Oh, and if you can, do the 3D thing. It costs more to rent the glasses, but it's totally cool - like watching a moving View Master reel.



Other than Up, nothing really captured my attention. Until...

Being enamored with bloggers (I'm much better reading them than writing them) I knew all about the girl who did the Julia Child blog, giving a chronical of her year making hundreds of recipes from the Julia Child cookbook. Guess what? They're making a movie of it. Both Julie (blogger) and Julia (chef, or is she "just" a cook?) are taking center stage. Two completely different lives and how one had an enormous impact on another, and how both were based in food. And what could be better than Meryl Streep playing Julia Child? Sadly, I'm unable to embed the trailer for the movie Julie & Julia, but you can see it on YouTube here. Should be hitting the theaters in August, just in time for a birthday date for me!

Lastly, I heard rumors about Johnny Depp and Tim Burton working on a project together, but never dreamed it could be so magical as this...

Alice In Wonderland! Apparently it will be out in March, 2010. I will be eagerly awaiting it's release. Being a true fairytale, the story of Alice has all the creepiness an old-fashioned children's story should have. Tim Burton is so talented in how he makes fantasies even more surreal than they actually are, and Johnny Depp, well, if anyone can play a character, especially a make-believe one, it would be him.

So looking forward to these movies. What's your favorite one these days?

Face Book Schmace Book

Oh it's all the rage, isn't it? So I got a Face Book page for my little business and now sit here wondering A) did I do it right? B) how will anyone know it's there? and C) can I run away and hide as it is now going to be very obvious I have no techno prowess at all? I'm feeling very sheepish. That's a nice way of saying I feel like a moronic dolt.

Being the recluse I am, social networking just isn't my thing so I haven't been paying attention to all the instructions on how to Tweet and Friend and all that other jazz. Just call me Wilma Flintstone.

So if anyone out there is reading this post, please leave a comment and let me know if I'm doing anything right, wrong, or at least visible. Apparently you can find the page here.

HELP!

Magnet Mania

Right now, as you're reading this post, there are twenty-one very fun magnets sitting in my shop. They want a home on your refrigerator, keeping put that recipe you're making for the picnic this weekend. Maybe your locker door at the gym would suite them, to give you motivation, or to make you smile after an especially gruling session with your personal trainer Thor.

Twenty-one magnets, and so many more in the East Wing where I've been storing them. They'll be making their appearances soon.

And here's the best part: I like making these magnets so much that I'll make a bunch just for you, if you want. Say you go to the shop and see only one Someday magnet for sale and you want thirty-five of them to hand out at your Procrastinators Anonymous meeting, I can make those up special, just for you.

And you know what else? All of these magnets are also available as a pin. Instead of the bottle cap being secured to a button magnet, it's secured to a bar pin. How cool is that? Get the same image as a button and a magnet if you like.

The best thing about owning your own Etsy shop is being able to come up with all sorts of solutions. Keep an eye on Auntie B Online for additional magnets/pins to come.