Frazzled

I know it's in bad taste to make excuses on a blog as to why the writer hasn't written.  So I won't. 

Not only am I behind in writing, I'm behind in filing, applying, banking, producing, cleaning, and cooking.  Even with the long weekend away from the day job I failed to catch up. 

Could have something to do with Husby's parents, who are taking most of our attention lately.  They're failing.  And we're both pretty new at this aging parents thing.  Doesn't matter that we watched our parents go through it; either we weren't paying attention or it's something you just have to learn by doing. 

Now I have to get back into the swing of awaking at 5:00 a.m. and going to bed before 11:00.  It won't be easy, and I won't much like the time away from my half-finished projects.  But this week I'm sending out a custom order, finishing up a boatload of palm wax votives, placing an order with one of my suppliers, and getting in good with the Wisconsin Department of Revenue.  Oh yeah, and also I must devour the Midwest Art Fairs publication which I can't even believe I haven't so much as thumbed through despite its arrival at my house over four days ago.  Hopefully I'll get a bunch of shows listed on that sidebar.

Don't forget to check out the ongoing Pulp Fiction Magnet listings at my shop.  This week I'll be listing more frequently; I'm anticipating two to three new listings per day.  I just love them!  Here's the latest:

Wish me luck, and a huge amount of motivation and stamina. 

Featured Shop - Milton and Margie's Soy Wax Candles

Most people don't realize how many different types of candles there are.  I'm not just talking about colors, scents, sizes and shapes.  I'm talking about wax.  Jess of Milton And Margie's Soy Wax Candles uses, as the name implies, soy wax.  Soy is a natural and renewable wax (read: Earth Friendly) and looks so beautiful and creamy. 

Not only is Jess doing the world a favor by using soy wax, she also uses recycled containers for her candles.  This makes her shop such a delight to visit; not only can you peruse the beautiful colors and decadent scents of the candles, the containers are so unique and pretty too.  Get them while they last as a lot of them are few-of-a kind.

I love the selection Jess provides in her shop too.  She has categorized the candles according to scent in the Sections part of the shop.  These are some of my favorites:

Lavender Soy Wax Candle in a Reused Drinking Glass

Pomegranate Soy Wax Candle in a Reused Vintage High Ball Glass

Buttercream Soy Wax Candle in a Reused Vintage Punch Glass

So lovely, so colorful, so fragrant, and so eco-friendly.  The candles at Milton and Margie's Soy Wax Candles will certainly add character and ambiance to your home, or make a great gift for just about anyone.

Thought For The Day

Take a chance.

Perpetually Lucky

Happy Birthday Diggy. I'll slip a hundo to Lucky Larry in your memory.

Happy And Humble

Once again I'm so happy to be included in a grouping of lovely products.  Memorable Mentions put together a bunch of her favorite things in the cool shades of blue and green.  Be sure to go to the HandmadeMN blog to get details on where to find these great items.  My cute little Queen of Tarts bottle cap magnet is honored to be among such beauties.

Also, check out the HandmadeMN February challenge and vote for your favorite Fiery item.

Dolly

Some say the life of an artist is a lonely one.  I wouldn't know, as I don't really consider myself an "artist" so much as a crafts person.  There are plenty of times when I'm holed up in the studio pouring candles and working on various other projects for hours on end, but I'm never alone.  Meet Dolly:

Don't you just love her attire?  She's much shorter than I am, so it's kind of pathetic how her pants bunch above her bare feet.  Her turtlneck top is perpetually festive with holly sprigs.  She's missing a finger on her right hand and she has to wear a wig, but she seems to be fine with that.  She also happily dons a cap reading "Dopey."

Dolly stands right behind my work table, overlooking everything I do in the studio.  Sometimes I make horrible mistakes in the studio and have been known to swear a blue streak on such occasions, but Dolly understands and is always giving me an encouraging smile.  She doesn't judge; in fact, it seems she always approves. 

I think all artists and crafters should have a mascot of some kind.  Dolly was retrieved from an abandoned retail storage space by my brother Diggy and me over twenty-five years ago.  Okay, so the storage space wasn't technically abandoned, but we pretty much figured they had no use for a mannequin with a missing finger, so...

She's my constant companion in craftland.  And sometimes when I forget she's there she scares the bejeepers out of me when I catch her out of the corner of my eye.

Do you have a mascot?

Dive Night - Meister's ~ Scandia

Dive Night is a once monthly adventure undertaken by me and Husby, along with our friends Ruthie and Ray. Each couple alternates choosing a restaurant, one which must come under the category of "dive." Our definition of dive: a neighborhood gathering spot hiding under the radar. Casual atmosphere and good food. We're out to find the best food in the Minneapolis/St Paul area without having to pay a fortune or dress up. A sip of beer or wine doesn't hurt either.  See a list and links to the previous dive night posts here.

Last year when we started the whole Dive Night routine Ruthie and Ray kicked it off by taking us to a place called Meister's in Stillwater, MN.  Husby and I were surprised when they did a Meister's reprise.  Who knew there was another one?  In Scandia, MN?  We make it a policy not to choose chains for Dive Night, but I don't think the Meister's would be considered such.  Behold, Meister's:

I love these bar/grill establishments, and this one was one worth visiting.  It's a small place, but didn't seem crowded, even though there were plenty of people there.  The service was wonderful.  We were not only waited on by our waitress, the owner also checked on us and made sure everything was satisfactory.

We started out with cocktails and appetizers.  Ruthie had a glass of wine, Ray and Husby had beer, and because I had a somewhat difficult week I decided to go for it and have a Cosmo.  The Cosmo was delicious, but on the weak side.  For appetizers we chose deep fried cauliflower with a ranch dipping sauce and smelt served with tartar sauce.  The smelt was fileted!  Ruthie and I had never had smelt before, and don't you know we had been missing out on a treat our whole lives.  The cauliflower was delicious too; I had been craving it for so long.  Both appetizers were really hot when they arrived at our table.

Next came the entrees.  None of us had any complaints, and we were all so hungry there was no need for to-go boxes.  The fries were great, and the sandwiches were big, juicy, and very flavorful.  Our choices, right-to-left top:  Husby=chicken sandwich, plain and simple, Ruthie=mushroom swiss burger; bottom: me=bacon barbeque burger, Ray=bacon cheeseburger.  The burgers were 1/3 pound and perfectly cooked.  Mine came with fried onions, much to Husby's delight...not, but I loved them!

Of course we have to assess the bathrooms too.  This was in the stall of the ladies room:

Pretty funny.  A poster-sized print made to look like a window.  I didn't hear any reports of peeping Tomasina (female version of peeping Tom?) in the men's room. Both bathrooms were clean and fresh-smelling.

I give high praise to Meister's in Scandia, MN, with a small demerit for the weak Cosmo.  All of us agreed we'd certainly visit again.