Stuff

while we were snowed in on Saturday

Tue, 22 Dec 2009 15:57:01 GMT

The neighbor came over and we made stuff - caramel apples and peanut clusters. We had a really good time and made a really big mess.

this is it, I promise

Tue, 15 Dec 2009 06:47:42 GMT

Rudolpho the red-beaked penguin

so did anyone else watch the a cappella singoff?

Tue, 15 Dec 2009 05:37:42 GMT

Here's the blog post I made about it with all my oh so clever thoughts and opinions...

I need someone to write a story about the Trio becoming a singing group.

cherries

Sun, 29 Nov 2009 04:42:13 GMT

Made chocolate covered cherries with my BFF today. We had so much fun. In a few weeks these will be so good. Blog post with more photos and how they are made.

christmas is like solstice and we miss you and it's been a while...

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 16:40:25 GMT

I've been listening to the Dar Williams song, The Christians and the Pagans, and thinking about the holiday season and how it's really OK that not everyone celebrates Christmas. Given the choice, I probably wouldn't. But we all do stuff to keep the family peace, don't we? And of course there's not much work for a choral musician who doesn't do Christmas! Anyway, as generally non-religious as I am, I am somewhat fascinated by the history of holidays and the transplantation of Christian holidays on top of pagan ones.

Anyway... here's an excuse to share my goddess pendants :)

funny xmas cards

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 18:27:14 GMT

I re-opened my card shop on etsy.

My favorite:

glee

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 06:15:04 GMT

I've been watching Glee since it started. I absolutely loved the first episode, but I feel like it went downhill from there fast. The characters are so ridiculously cliche. Big fat stereotypes, anyone? Yet I can't help liking some of the them, especially Kurt -he's just so cute. And of course Jane Lynch as the cheerleading coach is hilarious. Still, where is there for the characters to go? I don't see much character development going on, and that's what I dig about good TV. I think that's also why I prefer TV series to movies generally.

I think my main beef with the show is that it isn't what I hoped it was going to be - gasp - the nerve! I wanted it to show the coolness of ensemble singing and how it works, and well, duh, it doesn't. Everyone gets sheet music and is singing in harmony and dancing big complicated choreography within seconds. Yeah. Whatever.

So, complaints and general embarrassment for my TV-watching patheticness aside, I have to say that zinger quotations from shows, brilliant or not, make me happy. I had to make a card.

P.S. Chuck starts up again in January! Woot!

random thoughts of the moment

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 17:12:11 GMT

I put my shirt on backwards today and didn't realize it until I was at work. how sad is that?

I just had a great idea for next December's concerts. This planning ahead thing is getting out of control, but it's better than the alternative...

I miss singing and gigging so much, and it's making me sad. Every time I open the hall closet full of sound equipment I just want to cry. Meh.

So, what's everyone up to today?

dresses and such

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 16:54:01 GMT

Have you noticed the influx of ruffles this season? I don't mean potato chips, I mean clothing. Everything is so frilly and feminine. Everywhere I go I want to buy clothes, and then I remember what I look like, so I don't bother, LOL. But damn, I so love looking at the dresses - frills, frills everywhere! Like this and this. I'm really not girly in most ways, but I love ruffles and frills. Is that odd? I really want to learn to sew, but I just can't add another project right now. Sigh.

In other news related to my love of dresses: New etsy shop I am in love with. Gorgeous collage work of women and ephemera. Love love love.

I have to spend the afternoon learning accounting crap again this afternoon. Hate it. I'm trying hard to make myself care and it ain't workin.'

Being at work all day with a head full of things to make, songs to arrange, ideas to try is frustrating. But I'm grateful that I have a job and a head full of stuff!

Fall and Thanksgiving pretties

Mon, 16 Nov 2009 16:57:35 GMT

scavenger hunt

Sun, 15 Nov 2009 19:21:06 GMT

My etsy team is having a Scavenger Hunt this week. Visit my blog for the details of how to play and what shops are participating. My prize giveaway is a set of holiday cards. And there's some other good stuff to be won. So if you have a few minutes, come and play :)

more penguins, yep

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 20:24:31 GMT

I've started pulling penguin ideas out of a hat. Well, plastic bag, actually. Here are the first few: red hat penguin (oh, the irony of the red hat, but that's a post for another day...), stars and stripes penguin, and baseball penguin.

Here they are before baking.

And here they are after baking. It's like a penguin costume party.

Or a joke. "Three penguins waddle into an elevator..."

Writer's Block: Play it again, Sam

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 08:17:47 GMT

If you could only listen to one CD for the rest of your life, what would you choose and why?

Submitted By lexxyloser

View 1933 Answers

Buffy the Musical. Duh.

library display

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 15:34:48 GMT

The penguins are living at the library for a month or two. Cross your fingers for me that they sell. In past years I've been able to make a pretty good donation to the library by selling polymer clay stuffs; this is the first time I put the penguins up for display. Here's hoping!

"Revelations" drabble

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 02:59:33 GMT

The children of course didn’t realize it, being self-absorbed as teenagers tend to be. But Giles kept rather a close watch on the whole gang, not just Buffy. He had a certain tenderness for them. And a certain wariness. Their presence could occasionally cause mayhem - worse than vampires.

It came as a bit of shock to see them kissing in the stacks like that. He never really thought of the slayer’s friends as the cheating types, especially not Willow.

But when it came down to it, it wasn’t his business. So he cleaned his glasses and pretended not to notice.

but I don't even like Christmas...

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 17:12:22 GMT

Been making holiday cards - lots of them. All collages made from old cards. It's a very satisfying project, using up all those cards! See lots more collage cards at my flickr if you're so inclined.

Fall necklace made for my SO's mom

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 17:17:58 GMT

tenors

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 05:14:28 GMT

The tenor section of my choir. Some of the nicest guys ever.

pimpin' the whedonverse ornament swap

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 17:56:39 GMT

This was really a lot of fun last year. Anyone want to come play? Signups end in the next few days.

Clickety click the picture to go to the Buffyfest blog.

So, what should I make this year?

live long and prosper

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 17:07:47 GMT

Here's the penguin I made for the winner of my penguin idea contest.

penguin dressed up as a turtle.
penguin holding a jack-o-lantern.

bluetooth/cellphone penguin.
raking fall leaves penguin.
penguin in a space suit.
penguin in raincoat/boots.
penguin with a waistcoat & a watch! (like the white rabbit)
80s boombox penguin.
orchestra conductor penguin.
buzz lightyear penguin.
policeman penguin.
firefighter penguin.
penguin cradeling baby penguin.
librarian penguin.
penguin with huge jar of huge pickles.
mountain climber penguin.
penguin in a hot dog bun, or a hot dog suit.
baseball penguin.
oompa-loompa penguin.

penguin dressed as a fairy!

Penguin vulcan!

Renaissance/medieval penguin!

Rainy day penguin with umbrella and slicker who has fallen into a mud puddle!

Disco penguin

Albert Penguin Einstein

Dorothy and Toto penguin

Glenda the good Witch Penguin

Wicked Penguin of the West

Phantom Penguin of the Opera

Pharmacist Penguin

Accountant Penguin

Star Spangled Penguin

Statue of Liberty Penguin

Red Hat Penguin

Under the Sea Penguin

Mermaid Penguin

Fa Penguin

Penguin as a birthday candle.

Penguin as a Pineapple.

Surfing penguin.

Star Trek Penguins

Lord of the Rings Penguins

Pilgrim and Indian penguins

Penguin as a turkey

Rudolph the red nosed penguin stuck in a chimny.

Snowman penguin

Penguin as a cupcake.

hula couple penguins trapped in a volcano.

Missionary penguin in a stew pot.

barak,

bush,

hillary,

abraham Lincoln

PIRATE PENGUIN!

+ Leather penguin

+ Dominatrix penguin

+ Singing/Choral penguin

Michael Jackson penguin

+ Penguin in a wheelchair

+ Swine flu penguin

+ Jogging/80s aerobic penguin

+ Photographer penguin

Disco fever penguin (fun with patterns!)

Dickensian choir penguins

An Internet one (wwww.penguin?)

Penguin in a kayak

Surfer penguin

Penguin on a slip and slide

Penguin dressed up as a pig

Workout penguin in his zumba gear

Jay Leno

Trumpet player!

Penguin dressed as a frog

Medieval Knight penguin

Painter penguin (possibly wearing a smock and holding a paint palette and paint brush)

Penn State Penguin

Scarecrow penguin with a crow sitting on its shoulder

Monty Python penguin

Ninja penguin

family of penguins (mom, dad and baby)

Phantom of the Opera Penguin

Musician Penguins..... guitar, drum sticks, microphone, etc.... :D

Penguin holding a fishing rod and wearing a fishing hat and a fishing vest

Penguin with swine flu...wearing a hot water bottle on his head and holding a box of tissues with a thermometer in his mouth

Suitcase, umbrella drink and a hawaiian shirt or lei!

Zombie penguin!

barista penguin

A fish with a penguin in it's mouth - you know, maybe hanging off of the penguin butt or something. Life in reverse!

bartender penguin - a little martini shaker in it's hand

Race for the Cure penguin

Breast Cancer Awareness penguin

Video game penguin. A penguin tangled in video game cords.

A penguin drinking many cups of coffee that looks very tired

A photographer penguin, with a big camera around his neck.

A nerdy penguin, with the glasses with the tape and the pocket protector.

A California penguin with a bikini or board shorts and sunglasses

A Hannah Montana penguin with the blonde wig for all those crazed kid fans

A Mickey or Minnie Mouse penguin

cheerleader penguin

6 of 1 size, 2 a little bigger, and the 2 more even bigger and then you have Jon & Kate plus 8

a bride and groom penguin

a penguin in a tiny wheelchair

a chef penguin with the little chef hat and apron

a doctor or nurse penguin with the lab coat or scrubs

A Veternarian Dr. penguin holding a little animal

Newsreporter penguin with a little suit and a microphone

racecar driver Penguin in a tiny car

Angel penguin

penguin with antlers to be Rudolph

penguin in a bunny suit with ears and tail for Easter!

penguin with t-shirt that either says Wildcats or High School Musical for kids

penguin dressed n camo for the military

Michael Jackson penguin with a leather jacket and a glove on one wing

does it involve a midget and a block of ice?

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 15:59:42 GMT

We have now watched the first 4 episodes of True Blood. I think I'm hooked. I don't usually yearn for crossovers, but now I so want Buffy to show up in Bon Temps. Is anybody writing this?

Yesterday was a hospitally adventure. First, Kim had a bone scan. They messed it up. She had to do the whole injection/wait/scan deal over again. Then at midnight I had an incident involving taking out the trash, a broken jar of pesto and a puncture wound. Had to call my father for a trip to the ER (same hospital we'd spent the whole day at...), and didn't get home until after 3 AM. And now I look like a suicide watch patient with this huge thing of gauze around my wrist.

Party this weekend was a success. For anyone who wants to see photos of my friends running around doing a treasure hunt, scavenger hunt, top chef, game show, reality show, party extravaganza: http://www.flickr.com/photos/divadea/sets/72157622679740748/

That's the news that isn't.

the results show

Mon, 26 Oct 2009 20:15:41 GMT

Thanks so much to everyone who commented on my blog, livejournal or facebook with penguin personality ideas!

Normally for a drawing, I would use an online random number generator to choose a winner, but this time I actually cut and pasted all the entries into a document, printed them out, cut them apart and physically pulled a random one from the middle of the pile. Why? Because I plan to put them in a box, draw them out one at a time and start making them.

The randomly drawn PenguinPalooza winner is SassyPackrat, who suggested Star Trek penguins! I love that idea.

Thanks for playing :)

writer's block, new hair, and my party

Mon, 26 Oct 2009 02:54:05 GMT

If a friend or relative makes a racist or homophobic remark, do you tend to confront them or let it slide? Are you more likely to confront them if it offends you directly or someone else who seems reluctant to speak up?

View 1576 Answers

I let it slide. And I hate myself for it. I'm getting better, though. I glare. And hopefully one day soon I'll start speaking up. I will say that about a year ago when my neighbor informed me that gay people are a "manifestation of evil in society" I did pretty much flip my lid. We came to the agreement that if both of us were willing to admit that there was a chance we could be wrong we could stay friends. Also there was alcohol involved. He probably wouldn't have said it sober. But that doesn't mean he doesn't think it. Meh. So sad.

So anyway...

Here's my new hair:

Had a big geekfest party tonight. It was fun. I will (probably, maybe, who knows) post about it tomorrow. All I will say now is this - sweet vodka=bad news, LOL

I think Dollhouse may have hit its stride with this past episode. Which I suppose means Fox will cancel it in the next ten minutes or so...

another reason I love the internet

Fri, 23 Oct 2009 04:56:51 GMT

I just played several hands of Uno on facebook with my youngest sister a few towns over, my middle sister several states over, and some guy named Bruce. Much fun was had. My sisters are so very awesome.

I never have time to write drabbles anymore...

Thu, 08 Oct 2009 16:51:04 GMT

But here is one :)

"And, I mean, holy bananas, batman, I never thought I’d see him again, what with all the fiery doom, may our sweet demony town of sunshine rest in peace, and then there he was, and it was like old times, us working side by side, ready to find that girl and bring her back no matter what Angel said, and by the way, I’m not sure his soul is all that soully anymore…"

Buffy’s eyes slowly widened as the words tumbling headlong out of Andrew’s mouth started to unravel themselves and line up in her mind.

“Wait. What? Spike’s alive?”

-----------

And a random Buffy thought.

I love the scene in season 1 with Giles and Angel in the stacks in the library. ASH is so brilliant there, all nervous and awkward talking to a vampire and then all geeking out when Angel says hey I can get that book for ya. Such a great scene. I want a Giles.