Well Loved

Remember this poor dishcloth?

Well, I have another at this stage:


Since they are both well-loved, I've repaired both with a bit of blue cotton yarn, and they're now part of the "good rags" collection:


Hmmm... I wonder if it's getting time to contact my "supplier" of dishcloths?

Found on Flickr

Katzenquilt - quilt with cat

Awww! So sweet!

Found on Flickr

Little Lace Gems

Lovely! What an adorable idea!

*sigh*

I always quit my web browser before teaching. Today, instead of clicking "save and quit", I unthinkingly clicked "quit"... so now I don't have all those tabs open that I had planned to do stuff with... interesting tutorials that I had planned to read... "found on flickr" images I had planned to post... recipes I had planned to write on cards and stick in my recipe binder... *sigh*

On the bright side, I no longer have all those tabs nagging me, and my browser uses a lot less memory. (But still... the reason they were open is that I *wanted* them open!)

Mail

I gave my precious parcel to the post office today. It came to ~$32 including insurance. Now I'm antsy to hear about it's arrival. Perhaps I should have paid the extra $5-$10 to have the slightly faster option? (Of course, that would have only cut about two days off... to get the really fast service would have added ~$100.)

Mail

Recycling Tip: Packing peanuts can be brought to your local UPS store for reuse.

Housekeeping Tip: Actually taking the packing peanuts to the UPS store reduces clutter.

Mailing Tip: Procrastinating on the housekeeping tip means you have a box and peanuts to use yourself when you need it. (Note to self: Actually finally take the other two boxes of peanuts to UPS... I don't need them in the foreseeable future, even with all the other stuff to mail.)

Question: Why does it take me an hour and a half to package something to mail? *sigh*

By my calculations, tomorrow I will be giving Canada Post approximately $35 of my hard-earned money. They better treat the package well... (That amount includes insurance, just in case they don't.)

Strange.

Heard clattering outside. Looked out. Someone was riding a bicycle... but there was no tire on the front rim. (Somehow that seems like a metaphor for me lately...)

Ow.

My head *hurts*. I had a killer headache last night, and so took some tylenol before bed. It still hurts this morning, although perhaps slightly less than last night.

I've been having a bunch of headaches recently. Sometimes I take ibuprofen, sometimes I take tylenol. (I don't want to end up with a reaction headache to either, although I'm certainly not taking either on a daily basis or anything.)

I remember having headaches both days last weekend (ibuprofen each time), I remember taking ibuprofen for a headache at some point this week, and then last night I took tylenol. Three headaches in a week, with probably similar frequency before that, seems like an unusual number. I wonder what's causing them? I don't drink coffee, I rarely drink tea, but I do eat chocolate. And I'm certainly under stress. I am taking magnesium. Anyone have any suggestions?

Last night I was helping students until 6:15, then did a bit more work until 7:00. Then I caught the bus as far as the shopping centre with FutureShop. I picked up a few things at Dollarama, bought a pair of headphones, then, since I was there anyway, stopped in at the pet store to pet whatever animals I could get at without having to ask staff. (So, no puppies, but I petted bunnies, and stuck my fingers though the bars of the kittens' cages... I particularly liked the one that licked my fingers!) I left there a bit after 8:00, was home by shortly before 9:00, and couldn't keep my eyes open by 10:00. I was in bed by 10:30, and asleep shortly thereafter. I woke at 8 am, but rolled over and slept/dozed until noon. I was definitely in bad shape by yesterday afternoon (from stress, lack of sleep, and being overworked). My goal this weekend is to put myself back together as much as I can. (Putting myself back together completely will probably take more than just a weekend... especially since I have chores I need to do this weekend.)

*sigh*... anyone know a good house elf looking for a home? I promise to treat him/her well, and will give them lots of socks...

Mush Brains

Mush brains, mush brains, bhf hsa;l a;lk jdaslk lhfs hfjdkslafhiouvhc akl jhd ....

TGIF

I just need to hang in for today, and then it's the weekend... and boy, do I ever need it!

Work

Tonight is knitting at McNally Robinson. Tonight is art club. Tonight is adult pottery night. What am I doing? Sitting at work, fighting with MS Access. *sigh*

I went to Timmies to buy a bagel with cream cheese and a cookie. Now my tummy is unhappy... it has stress tummy feeling. I don't know if it's the food, or the fact that I'm at work at 7:14 pm.

Warranty

They replied:

Thank you for contacting Koss Stereophones.
Stereophones that were purchased after July of 1989 are covered by our No-Questions-Asked Lifetime warranty.

Please send your stereophones to our Corporation and we will repair or replace them in accordance with our Limited Lifetime Warranty.

...so, for shipping there plus $7 plus whatever my bank charges me for writing a cheque, they'll repair or replace them. I can buy a new pair for $20 from their web site, but I'm not sure what shipping is.

I wonder if they'll actually repair them, or if they'll send me a new pair? (Given that they also need new foam covers, and they sell those for $5, it's probably worth it to buy a new pair rather than get the old ones repaired.)

I don't have the dated receipt any more (I think), but they don't ask for the receipt.

If it were you, what would you do?

Warranty?

Hmmm... I just noticed those Koss headphones have a "no questions asked lifetime warranty"...

(reading)

It covers defect in material or workmanship, and you need to send $7 CDN plus the headphones. I'm probably better off just buying a new pair.

Curses.

Well, it finally happened. My headphones died. I was wondering when it would... the I could feel the plastic on the cords getting hard, and the foam covers were getting quite beat up. I still get sound out of one side, but the other side only gets sound if I hold the wire "just so", and don't jiggle it. I've been idly looking at what's available locally, and have just been frustrated that I really can't make a good judgment when they're encased in plastic. (The numbers don't mean much to me, and I certainly can't test how they feel.)

Anyone have a recommendation? These will be for my iPod. I can't use earbuds. I'd prefer something that isn't too clunky (for stowing away when I'm not using them) and works with hats. I mostly listen to podcasts, rather than music.

The pair I currently had are these ones by Koss. The only downside they had is that sometimes the ear clip would come off... although I somehow managed not to lose them (well, I lost one for a bit, but it was in my apartment, so I found it again).

I may see if I can find something decent at the mall before knitting... assuming I get enough class prep done that I can go tonight. :(

Relaxing

I finally feel like I can relax. This morning's demo went well, and I got a ton of fantastic comments on my artwork! I'm thrilled. :) I stuck around for the acrylics demo at 1 pm, but around 1:30 I felt myself "crashing"... even though I got eight hours of sleep last night, I still have an accumulated sleep debt. I tried sticking it out until the end of the demo, but I was feeling pretty woozy. So I bought the painting I had had my eye on (there are lots more that I would love to own, but don't have the money or wall space for), ate some dainties, then walked home. When I got my laundry downstairs, someone was just finishing the wash cycle, so that meant I could start napping right away! (Drying takes an hour, but the wash cycle is short enough that it's not really nap-worthy.) I think I've had three dryer-cycle naps this afternoon. ;) The second-last load is in the dryer now, so I'll still have all the laundry done fairly early. (Not that I've folded or made the bed with what's come out already.)

I think I'm going to take this evening off. I'll answer some student questions, and *maybe* do the dishes, but that's it. I need some relaxing "veg time". I'll probably regret that decision tomorrow evening... but that's life. Right now I'm starting dinner. Once it's ready, I'll put on some of the TV shows I recorded on Thursday and Friday, and pretend the outside world doesn't exist. :) Mmmm... knitting and TV!

Ow.

Killer headache. Ow ow ow. Took painkillers, but they haven't taken effect yet.

I got eight hours of sleep last night. :) Much better than the three hours I got the night before.

The opening for the art show last night was lovely. I got *lots* of compliments on my art. The only complaints I got were that I was doing a "show", and not a "sale". ;) Only one of my paintings in the main display is for sale... the rest belong to other people. I did this on purpose, though, because I wanted to show how I started and grew into my own personal style for two different mediums. (Silk painting and acrylics.) I only got my write-ups done last night after I got home, so they'll go up this morning.

I do a silk painting demo this morning.

Yesterday I got paid for the workshop I ran. Considering the hours I put in (estimating 16 hours, including prep time), it doesn't pay as well as my other jobs (I got around $150), but it's nice, and I'll definitely do it again. I certainly got a lot of requests to hold another workshop last night. :) Today during/after the demo I'll pass around a sheet for interested club members to write down their names.

Well, my head is still pounding (perhaps my over-inflated ego is having trouble fitting in?), but I should go have my shower and get ready.

Home.

It's 10:50, and I'm finally home. For the second time, actually, but the first time was around 8:20, and only for long enough to gather my art show paintings, etc, plus putting some hangers on three. Then it was over to my mom's to pick up a protective sleeve, over to my dad's with the sleeve to pick up the painting I'm borrowing from him, back to my mom's to adjust the sleeve size (whoops), assemble a frame, and make one last pair of sleeves.

Although I'm home, I can't go to bed yet. I have to score, cut, and assemble my cards, assemble my magnets, cut my bookmarks, and label everything with prices. (Which, for the magnets, involves painting a white strip on the back to write on.) Oh... and prepare for tomorrow morning's class. Updated to add: And read and respond to forum and e-mail questions...

The question is, do I want dinner? I'm thinking just a bowl of cereal, but that will mean I won't have enough clean dishes for Saturday morning breakfast... there's no time tonight to wash dishes (please let there be enough time for a few hours of sleep!), and tomorrow night, besides a brief period at home to eat dinner (if I'm lucky), I won't be home until after 9 pm... probably closer to 9:30 pm or later.

*sigh*

I cancelled this morning's tutoring session, because I woke up feeling tired and stressed. I decided I needed the two extra hours of sleep more than I needed to keep my student happy. He replied to my e-mail, saying "okay but we will have to try and make up two hours next week some how." Yeah. Like I'm going to feel any less fried *after* working all weekend.

Please send sleep.

Art Show Flyer

I suppose that if I want my local friends/readers to come, I should actually let you know the details...



(Click through for biggy view!)

You're welcome to just come and look, or you can choose to shop. Whatever floats your boat. :)

I'll be hiding behind the sales counter on Friday and Sunday, if you'd like to say hi. (I can even pop out to comment on my art, if you'd like... they let me take the occasional break.) I'll also be doing the silk painting demo on Saturday morning.

Whiny

Head is 'splodey. Took painkillers and eating halloween-sale chocolate. Thought about buying a bagel, but not feeling like one. I finished sending the marker comments. I have to figure out forms (and queries?) in Access before I can go home.

I'd rather be anywhere but here.

Will still need to wash a pot or two before I can eat tonight. (All out of frozen pizzas.)

Grumble.

Opinion Poll

a) The person choosing the paint is at least partially colour blind.
b) The person was fooled by the tiny paint chips.
c) The paint was free or a cheap mis-tint.
d) The person doesn't care, and grabbed two random accent colours.
e) The person actually thinks that colour combination is a good idea.

Sleep.

I finally got to bed around 2 am. That meant four hours of sleep. I washed about half of my dishes last night: milk & juice jugs, water bottles, bowls, plates, and cutlery. That leaves glasses, pots, pans, cutting boards, cheese grater, and tupperware for today.

I knocked one glass over this morning while preparing lunch... it shattered. That's one fewer glass to wash, but cleaning up the shards took more time than washing. It was a glass I liked, but at least it wasn't wasn't of my way-cool-awesome vintage glasses.

The before-lunch tutoring session was cancelled, so my office hours plus tutoring time became a 1.5 hour nap on three chairs pushed together. I left the door open in case someone did happen to come by. I don't care who saw my feet sticking out from behind the desk.

The help centre is rather light today, which is kind of nice.

I suppose I should go mark that assignment... *sigh* (Whoops... people came in, and now it's time to leave for knitting. I guess I'll get that done tomorrow.)

H found some Lindt halloween candy on sale, and bought me some.

H is *awesome*!

*Exhausted*

I'm *wiped*.

I left campus at 8. On the bus ride home, my stomach was in turmoil from stress, and the late dinner probably didn't help any either. I decided on comfort food. Luckily, since I haven't made it since the cold weather left in the spring, the dishes necessary for risotto were clean. (Well, a few things I had to make do.)

I got home at 9 pm.

Mushrooms: check. (Luckily I still have a stash of dried ones, although I probably only have enough for one more meal after this.)

Onion: going a bit mouldy, but enough still good after trimming off the bad bits. Check.

Butter: butter can go mouldy?!? Trimmed the fuzzy bits off, was left with plenty.

Stock: only expired by a few days.

Arborio rice: thankfully, nothing wrong with the rice.

Gee, how can you tell that I haven't had time for real cooking in far too long?

It's now 10:37, and the risotto is only just ready. *sigh* I'm off to eat it now.

And no, I still don't have clean dishes for breakfast. My eyes are burning from exhaustion, but bed is still a ways off. :(

Overworked

It's 6:52 pm, and I'm still at work, prepping for teaching tomorrow. (Do you think my students appreciate the effort I put in? I sure hope so!) After I leave here, it'll still take another hour before I get home. *sigh*

Then, once I get home, I have a stack of dishes to wash, in order to have clean dishes for dinner and breakfast. *sigh* (I kept opting for small amounts of relaxation or sleep instead of clean dishes.)

I bought some chocolate covered almonds at 4:00 to keep me going until dinner. Just now I had my leftover yoghurt and orange juice from lunch. (After a BLT sub and a grapefruit, I wasn't that hungry, and didn't have time either. Grapefruit is nice, but takes too long to eat.)

MS Access is a pain in the tush. I've already figured out a bunch of stuff. Once I figure out queries, I'll let myself go home. *sigh* And here I was hoping for a relaxing night and early to bed. *grump* I wish there was Access for the mac so that I could at least be doing my class prep at home. (And no, it's not just me procrastinating... I did at least two and a half hours of prep yesterday, and probably about about four or five hours so far today, counting the bits of prep I managed to squeak between students in the help centre.) This week is *definitely* running over the 40 hour "full time" work week... without having any of the benefits of *actually* being a full time employee.

Well, whine-break is over. Back to work. *sigh*