Split Twig Figurines

Split Twig figurines provide us evidence of people living in the Grand Canyon over 4000 years ago. If eager little anthropologists ever happen to be digging through the remnants of my life in the year 6009 they'd marvel over:

7 mugs. (All containing dribs and drabs of coffee.) All sitting on my desk where I have been for the last 8 hours doing my taxes. Not one drop was spilled on my keyboard though it does appear to contain traces of smudged in muffin.

A monster pile of assorted papers. And this despite the miracle of accessing nearly everything one "needs" to know--online.

Plastic donut shaped discs---ahhhh, the wonder of TURBO TAX.

Gum Wrappers. Many.

And beads. (Which as I asserted just recently are breeding rapidly.)

2 phones. (Everyone knows more about this than I do.)

And an un rinsed cereal bowl.

I thought about taking a picture of all this carnage to make any and all feel more satisfied with their own lives---but it's a lot like needing a manicure---or underwear who's elastic has been stretched impossibly. Just better left unexamined.

Happy April 15th. Now maybe we can all (even the procastrinators!) get on with the actually important things.

The NOT so Amazing Race

I know, I know. 2 posts in one day---from the woman who's barely been managing two posts a month. I truly hope that the 3 of you non relatives non ex husbands non ex boyfriends who are reading this, don't suffer any detrimental shock or eyestrain.

Some of you know that I hide a dark secret. While I have never in my life paid for cable I watch not less than 4 reality television shows on the (gasp) computer. One is the Amazing (ish) Race on CBS. (I will not be disclosing the other 3 or more assuming deserved ridicule.) Anyway: it seems like each season there is one pair of racers that manage to travel the globe being absolutely horrible to everyone--their competitors, airline employees, each other, and most notably taxi drivers. While it's quite easy to mock them for their rudeness--and inability to understand why the entire universe doesn't speak English--it's done something positive for me. Watching people be horrible to those who are providing service to them, makes me nicer to nearly everyone. Now if Hell's Kitchen (gasp) would just inspire me to cook!

They are Breeding like rabbits!

I firmly believe that beads wander off and breed. Like bunnies. And this isn't just a lame attempt to somehow address the whole Easter thing. It's just true. A week ago I tried to ship an order....it was missing an item: Butterscotch Cats. Now...first...these are cuter than they sound. Second they were nowhere to be found. I search high and low, back and forth, in and out of that particular inventory box. No cats. I sent the purchaser a Kristen GOOFED again note...and some ducks....and refunded her payment for the cats. (No, ducks are not cats....but they were in both the animal and slightly butterscotchy family. ) Today I shipped orders again. Not one, but two lots of butterscotch cats. Precisely where they were supposed to be. I know there is an explanation for this phenomena that reaches past it being MONDAY and Kristen being slightly disorganized. It stretches beyond the universe is chaos thingy. It's simple. Beads wander off and breed.

Rainbow Bright

There are some beads....that you absolutely know you'll never do anything with---but still are so bright and perky they cheer you up. I'm lucky to have some relationships right now that fall into the same category. My own personal cheerleaders without the complications of sex or marriage or putting on makeup. And this in no way detracts from my appreciation--quite the opposite. Rah!

The Effects of Anthocyanin on Plant Production

There are simply some things I will never need to understand. Picking and choosing how to focus brain power and energy...once again. How to write a 7 page paper. How to manage sleep with a new neighbor--chronic smoker--invading my space. How to love. And how to be gentle. How to get it all done. Why to ride my bike. How to parent. Why to avoid sugar. 3 steps forward. 2 steps back. Buttons pushed. Blogs avoided. Friends avoided. Paper done. Phew.

Vrrrroom Vroom

I spent about 3 hours today in the National Auto Museum here in
Reno. Despite being a "non driver," many of the cars were beautiful. But then...gleaming....glistening...not far past the Morris Eight and the Packard, right there in the corner of the gallery, was a display with over 30 antique beaded evening bags. The best collection of vintage beaded bags I've ever seen--in or out of an automobile museum. Just when I thought my outing couldn't be more perfect, I spotted the penny pressing machine in the lobby. Nirvana, Reno. Who knew?

The Art of Being Tuareg

The 200 square foot studio I am now living in
has become the perfect size for me. I appear to be
in a process of downsizing which will eventually lend
itself gracefully to being packaged in a a rusty old Microbus.
I sit in my studio late at night and pretend I live on a boat--the effect inexplicably heightened by the freight trains that pass every
few hours. The broom has "it's" place. My only mug is my favorite mug. The 2 plates are each the perfect shade of lime green fiesta ware. I can sweep, mop, dust and clean in just under 25 minutes--and do so with far more regularity than I did in other much larger homes. Entertaining is made irrelevant. You fit, or you don't fit. (Or choose to fit.) Should you bravely venture in, I will feed you oatmeal cookies made in my toaster oven.

I have been accused recently (and probably accurately) of being selfish. Of being eccentric. (I used kinder adjectives than were gifted me.) I do know I'm lucky to be able to make this choice. It was not foisted upon me. And how pleasant to know myself well enough that small spaces (and those that I can afford) have far more appeal than Mega Homes.