Category Archives: Home & Garden
Cleaning Out the Cobwebs
Since moving to our new house right before Christmas, and the months-long push to get Kill Me out into the world, my mind and my dedicated office space have been suffering from a severe case of the Clutters. Tonight, after putting in a eight hours at the day job, I came home to do something about it.
I figured cleaning up my office would get my household moving in the right direction. Little did I realize it would also juice up my creative side via a trip down memory lane. But I’ll get to that in a minute.
First I want to show you my office-in-progress. It’s mostly organized and once I get all of the computer tower chords tucked away, it will be decorating time! (I have so many Pinterest ideas!) So here are the before pics and I’ll come back and post After pics at some point.
Now, about that trip down memory lane…
I organized three filing boxes into one and had to go through sooooo many files. Some of those were things I’d written up to twenty years ago. I cringed at some of my melodramatic, flowery poetry and stunted prose. It was bad. Very bad.
I also discovered that I had the bare bones, scribbled on multi-colored bits of paper and tucked in several folders, of a dozen novels that I’d completely forgotten about.
A dozen novel ideas. Some only a few paragraphs, while others had a fleshed-out synopsis, chapter outline and pages of notes. Cleaning reminded me about why I write, and just how long I’ve been at it. And it was just the kick-in-the-pants that I needed to get working on something new.
While I do that, you can enjoy (not) two of my early little ditties. Be kind, I wrote these as an impressionable teen and over-tired young mother. And I’m embarrassed enough all on my own, thank you very much!
(This was written way back yonder when I worked on greeting card scripts.)
Seasons pass, and years go by We ditched a class and learned to fly Spouses appeared and children were had We’ve reminisced on the times we were Bad So many memories, we have shared And when it mattered most, I knew you cared Storms came and went, and in the end We’ve weathered it all, because we are friends.(Then there is this… not sure what else to say about that.)
When the question is posed to me- at my job, online, in a bar- Who am I? What Am I? What singular word describes the Who of Me? I speak, I type, I slur- one word, on compulsion (a habit I don’t recall forming) It falls out of my mouth like errant food. dropped on my blouse A stain to wear all through the day Like a badge, a dull cookie-crusted badge of reproductive capabilities Who Am I? What am I? I am a Mother.(That’s all Folks!)
I Should Be Writing (a new form of procrastination!)
So I’ve developed another method to avoiding all that I should be doing. It’s addictive. It’s amazing. It let’s you snag all your favorite things from around the net and organize them into cute little pin boards for your viewing pleasure. It lets you gather idea for the upcoming holidays, remodeling jobs, organization, fashion, or whatever else interests you.
What am I talking about? Why, Pinterest of course! You can see my profile here 
If I could figure out how to grab a screen shot of it, I’d post one here just to show you how Fab it is.
My little Mock-Up will have to do:
But I’m burning daylight here and I’ve got 1,235, 998 projects calling my name. Ciao’
Your Bookshelf but Better
If someone asked you how many books you have ferreted away around your house, would you draw a complete blank? Have you every purchased the same book twice because you forgot that you already had it? Have you ever tried to recommend a book to a friend only to find that you can’t remember the name?
If you answered “yes” to any of these questions than it is crystal clear—you need to catalog your book collection. If you answered “yes” to all of them, well then you may need to carry yourself into the nearest Biblio-addicts meeting (have no fear, I’ll put the coffee pot on for you all!)
There are several comprehensive web-sites out in cyber-land dedicated to helping you gain order and accomplishment over your literary tomes, ranging from free services to ones that charge nominal fees.
The website Library Thing lets you catalog up to 200 books for free, or you can pay just $10 for unlimited cataloging for one year, or shell out $25 for lifetime rights to catalogue as many books as want. This site is pretty cool, and it has many bells and whistles.
You add books to your library by searching for them by Name, Author, or IBSN, though you can also browse if you know part of the title. It is so easy to add a book to your library, and once you do, you can organize the list in the way that you prefer. Oh, and after you’ve read a book, you can rate it and even include a mini-review.
You can search for books through the available-at-Amazon database. You can “tag” your book with phrases that help you organize into sub-groups (like chick-lit, mystery, horror), and you can chat with other members who have the same book. One neat feature is that you can see what other books were tagged similar to yours, or what other people recommend to read if you liked a certain other book.
If you have a web-site, you can make a little widget that will run down the side of your page showing what you’ve added recently, what your favorite books are, or whatever criteria you choose to set. You can see my little ditty down the right-hand side of my blog under the heading Recent Books from My Library at: in Literal Limbo.
I’ll have to admit, adding books to this site is addictive, and I’m up to 140-something now, which means I’ll have to pay-to-play sometime in the near future.
I dreamed of Irises
I found out a while back that one of my photographs was chosen for publication in BellaOnline’s Literary Journal. You can see the picture here, and while you’re there, check out the rest of the fantastic fiction, poetry and artwork. Bon Appetite!
Name that Mosaic Tile Collection
So, by day I work for a great marble mosaic company, New Ravenna Mosaics, and recently they launched a new line of mosaic tiles. Now they are on the hunt for the perfect name to encompass the collection. I put in my two cents, and one of my ideas made it into the final two choices… so go vote for me and my name “Samsara
(cycle of reincarnation)” over at Sara Baldwin’s Design blog!!! Go. Now. Vote.
Growing Tiny Gardens
I admit, I’m a budding gardener. And it is so exciting that the time to order seeds and plan this years garden is upon me! Last year I ran upon a great book, Animal, Vegatable, Miracle a little too late to start a full-fledged garden, but that didn’t stop me from getting a few seeds to germinate in my less-than-desirable soil. The tiny eggplants we grew were scrumptious– so much better than those store bought monsters. And that has incitd me to do better this year.
I’m going to do more eggplant, but I only need a plant or two for what we will consume. I want to try to grow some baby greens for a salad mixture, mainly because those bag mixes are so expensive and I never seem to finish them before they get all slimy. Carrots are definatley on the agenda and I want to try to grow them into next winter using cold frames. Supposedly carrots get so much sweeter when it gets cold because they start converting their starch into sugars. I’m not a raw tomato fan, but I do love pasta, so I’m going to try my hand and some Roma and other sauce tomatoes. And some beans, lima, pea or green beans.
I still remember helping my mom shell limas and snap green beans when I was a child. Those kinds of earthy memories stick with a child, so I want to give my kids a head start at growing their own food later too!
This is bound to be a learning experience at any rate. I know almost nothing about plant pests and problems, soil requriement, pruning and harvesting. What I do know is that growing some of my own food will save my family a little money, help cut down on the amount of fossil fuels burnt by trucking in my food, and help the environment a little at the same time. I’m thinking of it as my own little victory garden– only the cause is for my life to be a better one in general.
Compostable Cups, For the Busy Green Mom
Anybody that either:
A) Has children who seem to make the number of dishes in your sink quadruple
B) Hates doing dishes
C) Currently buys plastic cups for whatever reason
..Needs to read the blog I just posted on One Quirky Gurl. I found these great fully biodegrable and Compostable (my garden will love these!) cups. Less dishes to wash, without the guilt of clogging the landfills. Same cost as grocery store plastic cups. Its a win-win, really. I only wish I had thought if it
Become a Locovore, and Other Lessons from Animal, Vegetable, Miracle
I just put up a blog about the book by Barbara Kingsolver, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle and I wanted to share it with everyone here too.
And In case you’re wondering, being a LOCAVORE, is all about eating locally to better the planet, better yourselves and to support your local farmers and growers. Still not sure what I’m talking about? Go on over and read the review… or just get the book. You won’t be sorry
