Burford Designs

Mr Fix It... Ticket

Last night I was issued a fix-it ticket. 

No this isn’t an April Fool’s joke, how I wish it was. 

It’s not too big of a deal and it is totally my fault but now I have to go to the county courthouse (which is 30 miles away) to take care of it.  I was pulled over because one of my headlights was out.  I have the bulb to replace it but not the time (during good weather/ daylight hours) and it was at the top of my spring break to do list.  However, that’s not why I got the ticket… somehow I failed to put my current proof of insurance in my car (it just renewed last month).  I usually put in it my little insurance pouch the day I get it in the mail and somehow I didn’t.  I do have every other one in there from the past four years though.  The sheriff told me last night that I just had to call in and get the info to send in my proof of insurance and the ticket will be voided.  When I called today the lady I spoke with was shocked that I was handling it so quick and said that they won’t even have a copy of the ticket for a few more days and that I would have to come over and bring my copy of the ticket and proof of insurance. Luckily I am off next week for our spring break and will hopefully get off work early tomorrow (so I’ll take care of it then).

 

I guess I have another thing to add to my spring break to do list.

Bells Will Be Ringing

Since I wrote about a few, okay a lot, of the upcoming holiday programming schedules I have now watched several of my favorite Christmas movies and that was before it was even December.  So far I’ve watched The Christmas Card, Comfort and Joy (twice), and While You Were Sleeping (also twice), just to name a few.  Both Comfort and Joy and While You Were Sleeping showed back-to-back encore presentations so I left the television on instead of changing channels while I worked.  I like to have ambient noise while I work and normally it’s the television, sometimes movies, sometimes shows I’ve seen a million times, and sometimes it’s simply Food Network or HGTV.  Although I don’t have a DVR or TiVo (oh, I could only imagine) I am able to program my TV to tune into the programs I want to watch (or listen too). 

 

I can’t believe that it is already December 2^nd.  December, really?  There has been some snow, but most of it has already come and gone, twice and we have a sunny but cold outlook for the next several days… and that leads to some gorgeous sunsets with pink skies.

There is a lot going on this month as I’m still figuring out special holiday posts, making party plans (that I will share with all of you), as well as getting ready for all of my end of the year lists (goals, dreams, etc), that I will share with you too.  I should be getting to bed soon, it’s late here for me, but I’ll be back later with some more information to share with all of you.

 

Happy Tuesday!

Summer To Do

Now that my summer vacation has officially begun (and since I’ve had a couple of days to recuperate from the craziness of work and shows) I finally made a few lists for the summer.  I have my regular life to do list (like cleaning and fixing things around the house) and my business to do list (what needs to happen before certain shows, what needs to be made, etc) and even a happy crafty fun things I’d like to accomplish list (different crafts projects, art journals, scrapbooking etc).

 

I like to set out my pads of paper, partial lists, calendar, etc and make my massive to do lists.  It’s cathartic for me to begin pretty much anything I want to do like this.  Mommy is an avid list avoider and hates to see my making my list (she feels overwhelmed anytime I make a list whether it involves her or not).  So she really freaks out when I bring out the big pad of paper (it’s around two feet by three feet in size) and make a list to post on a door or the fridge.

 

Now I’m off to get some of those items marked off of my lists.

 

Happy Wednesday!!

Spring Break, Spring Cleaning

Working for the school district does have its perks, one being that I get most of the vacation days that the schools get.  So I am off of work for the week and relishing in that little fact.  However, I am not completely off the hook with duties, albeit these are self imposed.  I have three legal size papers filled with my to-do lists.

 

Most of it centers on cleaning…deep cleaning, spring cleaning.  After a long winter (that really hasn’t quite ended) I’m in need of some freshness.  So I will have windows open and rooms being aired out, lots of scrubbing and list making (the pantry and kitchen cupboards need some tending too) and my workroom has been a catch-all since November. 

Then there’s the minute detail of my car…it has been a long hard winter on him as well and he’s in need of some tender loving care…tires changed (the studded ones go back into storage), oil change (get the heavier winter oil out) and he needs a good washing and vacuuming. 

Of course there are lots to do for the summer shows I’m a vendor at like sewing, creating, photographing, pricing, tagging, and packing.  There are completely separate lists for those shows and what needs to be done. 

I was able to get some things crossed off this last weekend and I still have all this week and this coming weekend so I think that I will be able to complete the lists…it looks like a lot but I thrive on that.

I hope you all are having a great start to your week!!

Save Rachel and Elsie

I make lists.  I have to do list, to purchase lists, to watch lists, etc.  I also keep a couple of calendars…a yearly one in my handbag (broken down by week) and a large dry erase one in my room (it has room for five weeks).  It relaxes my mind (because it’s ALWAYS zooming) to sit and write things down (thus the post yesterday). 

I enjoy the process of writing on my dry erase calendar when it needs to be updated.  I use different colors (that’s the creative side coming out) for different activities and due dates and some things are in my own shorthand or code.  I usually change the color of the dates and the name of the month to coincide with what I feel is a good color for said month.  So January is an icy blue, February can be pink or red, March green, etc.  Then certain things are always the same color – like bill due dates, work obligations, etc.

On my monthly calendar I put my bill due dates, swap send out dates, any appointments, vacation/non-work days, and lately I’ve been putting says that different online class info should be posted.  The calendar I carry around has the same info as well as my daily work schedule, if I am owed mileage, etc.  And the blog title if I posted one that day.

For both of these calendars I end up using my shorthand after the first couple of times (I have to get used to what I’m writing).  So for one of Teresa’s classes it may just read “bella” or be specific to the theme so right now it is written down as “cottage”.  So on a to do list I may have “save cottage” written down.

That’s what leads me to the title of this post.  I am taking the spring online class from the darling RVA girls Rachel and Elsie that I wrote about here and here, so for my initial shorthand I wrote “Save Rachel & Elsie”.  At first I didn’t think anything of it until I looked at my open calendar one day and thought what someone else might think if they saw that.  I laughed and decided to test the theory…I left that page (with only “Save Rachel & Elsie” written on the calendar page) open on my desk. 

It was a short while and one of my co-workers stopped by to chat and glanced down, didn’t say anything, we continued chatting and then she looked down again and asked “Who are Rachel and Elsie?” 

I chuckled and explained who they were, but left it at that (without going into the entire “save” part).

She then looked at me quizzically and questioned “and what do they need to be saved from?”

Of course, I’m also a smart aleck so I replied “from awesomeness”.

She walked away at that point but returned later in the day and asked what did they really need to be saved from…I joked that it was similar to the “Heroes” motto “Save the cheerleader; Save the world”.  Then I told her what was really going on… I’m not that mean.

(photo from the spring class sign - altered by moi)

I still have to take some photos of some of my completed projects (and possible some works in progress).  Hopefully I’ll be able to post them later today, if not, then I will show you all sometime soon.

Happy Wednesday!

In Search Of…

There are so many things that I am currently looking for while thrift shopping that I decided to list some of them on my blog as a means to get them out of my head and on a different type of list (rather than using pen and paper).

Most things I’m looking for are older –vintage, antique, etc. but not everything…I’m fine with newer things too (sometimes it’s just about the look).

Doilies – any and all sizes, shapes, colors, patterns, etc – I used to see them pretty cheap in California (and picked up a few here and there) but up here either I can’t find them or they’re $10 for a simple 3”-4” one (some even the Made in China kind).  I understand if it’s really old, or if you made it because as a crafter I know that time should be a factor too…but at a thrift store…come on you can.

Lace – lace fabric, lace trim, elastic lace trim, stretch lace…yep, just about all lace.

Putz/Christmas Village Accessories– houses, churches, animals, people, bridges, etc.  Basically anything to help me build up a Christmas village.

Vintage hats – this is one of the items where I prefer true vintage – usually from the 1960’s and prior, and the condition doesn’t matter.

Jewelry – any and all kinds, chains, old clip-on earrings, broken necklaces, and rhinestone pieces...pretty much anything.

Ephemera – sheet music, pages from cool books, dictionaries, children’s books, old labels, postcards, various holiday items (any holiday), etc

Sewing Notions – old spools of thread, buttons, eye hooks still on the card (or partially deteriorated card), etc

Vintage Circus – or things that look like they belong in a vintage circus…or a really cool funky circus.

Metal Chocolate Molds – I probably wouldn’t mind plastic ones either.  I know that they can be expensive.  I used to work in a handmade ice cream and candy store and Mr. Henne, the candy maker and owner, used to mold Santas and turkeys and bunnies (depending on the season) and I would have to carefully take them out and wrap them to be sold.  They are really cool to look at and I have such fond memories of them.  (I should probably write about the myriad of jobs I’ve had over the years…some are quite interesting.)

Baking Molds/ Pans – tartlet pans, bread pans, cake pans…just about anything.  I love these for storage and for actual baking.  I currently only have a few, but I would love to own and use more.  Basically if you see what Martha has in her baking book, that’s what I’m looking for.

I’m sure there are other things that I’m in search of, but like I wrote earlier it’s all jumbled in my head and I just needed to get it out for now. 

I hope your Tuesday is going well…it’s sunny here but cold, in high teens and it’s supposed to drop to about 5° overnight.  Yippee!

Countdown to 09

I thought it would be interesting to do a countdown to 2009 with a look back on a few things that happened in 2008.

Total number of posts I wrote: 175

Number of months blogging: 9 1/2

Number of craft shows participated in: 2

Number of jobs hired for: 2

Number of minutes to hear if I got job after interview: 15

Number of swaps participated in: 34

Number of packages sent: 54 (some swaps had multiple partners)

Number of packages received: 50

Number of online parties participated in: about 12

Number of new friends: Countless

What a wonderful 2008 and I'm very much looking forward to 2009.

Happy New Year Everyone!!!

Planning It Out

For those that have seen the Ashton Kutcher Cameron Diaz movie "What Happens in Vegas" I tend to be a little like Joy (Cameron's character) especially when it comes to planning to plan.  Usually I can just sit down with a pad of paper and a pen and crank out a plan for whatever I'm doing.  However when I deal with Mommy she freaks out about lists, planning, and the like so if it's just sprung upon her we have to plan to plan...a date has to be set so that she can mentally prepare for whatever it is that we need to plan. 

Because of this I feel the need to schedule time to prepare my calendar, list of things to do, make, get, etc.  I enjoy being organized and organizing my organizing.

That's how I plan on spending my day today...planning, organizing, cleaning so that I can begin 2009 with a fresh start.

 

Happy Monday!!