A bit behind, and a few other things.

Yesterday I had the migraine from H-E-double hockey sticks. I've only had two migraines before in my life, and yesterday was one of them. Oh, it was miserable! If you've never had one before I don't recommend going and looking to get one, either. It really is gnarly. I can compare it to millions of tiny men inside your head, either doing one of the following:

A) Grinding a tiny pestle repeatedly against your skull, as if it were a mortar, and they were very intent on crushing a lot of fresh herbs,
B) Clunking a tiny pickaxe against the the inside of your skull, trying to form a jailbreak and get the heck out,
C) Celebrating Memorial Day a little bit too early, complete with whizz-bang firecrackers, a 50-piece marching band mostly comprised of a percussion section, and barbecuing hotdogs by lighting many tiny fires on the inside of your skull.

I spent the most of yesterday sleeping, and when I wasn't asleep I was curled into a little ball under the blanket making noises like "mrrrghhhghgemmm". Thank goodness for Advil Migraine, though! Once I had that in me it was no contest. Take that, evil little skull-kicking men!

So suffice to say I am a bit behind in all the things I've been meaning to do, so today and tomorrow are my catch-up days.

The floor hasn't been Swiffer'd in over a week, and let me tell you, when you own animals whos fur is the exact opposite color of your floor... well, it gets a bit noticeable. It looked a little like we were walking on a cloud cover, and while it may sound whimsical... not so much. Also, Swiffering now that we have a table and chairs on the floor is infinitely much more work than Swiffering a large empty square area. Move the chairs... Swiffer where they were... now move them back... Swiffer the rest of the floor... attempt to Swiffer under the table and lose half of the fur you've collected... yup. It's an exercise in skill and dexterity, I tell you!

My good friend Gabby has also inspired me again with her endless creativity (Seriously, where do all these great ideas come from? Sometimes I think someone dug my creativity well in the desert!) so I'm going to be starting a new photography project. It's something I've wanted to do ever since I became interested in DLSR photography (so it's been quite a few years), and it's going to be a series of self-portraits over the course of a year, one for every week, or a 52 as some people call it. A lot of people do 365's, which is a photo for every day of the year... not only do I have the attention span of a sea lion, but I don't want to feel obligated to get a photo every day. I think a week's time will give me a nice amount of time to figure out what I want to do, take the time to do it with the right posing and shot, post-process it at my leisure, and not feel like my creativity is stretched or burnt out.

So, yay for that! I don't have a name for my meme yet, but I will be posting it here weekly, so you'll get to see my results and hopefully, progress. (And my ugly mug. Bwahaha!!!)

And one last thing; thank you for all of your wonderful, inspiring comments on my Saturday Centus! I really enjoy the weekly challenge of it, and I'm happy to be writing again, and that people are leaving me their feedback. :) So, thank you thank you!

V-Day on a Budget, Right Here!

So it's less than two weeks away from the holiday of hearts, Valentine's Day! Some people aren't into this holiday ("it's sooooo commercial, blah blah card companies just want our money", well it's only as commercial as you make it! baha! so there! *heehee*) but if you are a total fan (like me!) and if you're on a budget (again like me!) there's still lots of ways to enjoy the holiday. :) I decided to make up a little list and post it here for others who are in the same boat!

CANDY
(my favorite ones are the yellow ones!)

• Let's admit it, this holiday has some pretty great tasty stuff. Candy hearts at the top of the list, cinnamon hearts, marshmallow peeps (yeah, they have those on other holidays, but they are one of my faves!) A favorite candy or candy bar is a sweet gift!
• Even better IMO, make your own delish treats! I made some amazing chocolate truffles a few years ago - it was easy and cheap with only 4 ingredients, the majority of which I already had at home. And they were SO yummy! Candies, cookies, little cakes... yum, yes please! There are recipes all over the internet, so check it out!
  

SWEET NOTHINGS

• Yeah, love notes are a little sappy, especially if one or both of you aren't the romantic type. In lieu of the smoochiness, maybe make a cute list of 10 or 20 things that you love about your SO, little things they do that make you all fuzzy inside!
• Make your own card! If you're anything like me, you've got some spare scrapbooking paper laying around. Have at it! You can even tuck that awesome list right inside your fab card. Double whammy! ;)

I.O.U NOTES

• I did this one year and it went over FABULOUSLY well!! You can purchase these online and fill in your own stuff (or even find some free ones to print out!), but that can be costly and as I am a crafty dame, I found making my own was much more fun and personal. :) Feel free to make them as PG (good for one car washing, will cook you one dinner of your choice) or as naughty (good for one shower together, good for one blanking of my blank with your blank ;) ) as you like. A combination of both is always nice too.
  
• A nice lasting twist on this is to create 52 IOU cards and have your SO pick one out of a cool little bag or box (Yay Michaels run!) each week for a year.

COOK TOGETHER!

• Sit down together and plan out a meal to make together. Bonus points if it's something new you've never tried before! I love cooking together; we have a blast in the kitchen and generally make an awesome meal while doing the teamwork thing. :) So light some candles, put on some Sinatra, and get in the kitchen!
• I love the idea of a picnic, but it's usually a crummy time of year for that. Be creative; find a cozy little corner or nook in your house or apartment, set down an adorable gingham blanket, and fill a basket with sandwiches, snacks, and some bottled water (or fizzy adult beverages) and enjoy each other's company.

MASSAGE

• I've never met a guy that didn't like a massage. (Oh wait... I did... that didn't last long.) I did this one a little while ago too, and massages are ALWAYS a big hit in this household! In fact, it was so awesome, we're doing it again this year! You can go as simple or all-out as you want, but Bed Bath and Beyond usually has a few selections of budget-friendly scented massage oils. I love that place! ;) Light some scented candles, pop in an Air CD, and get some sexy relaxation on!

Okay, that's all I've got! If you've got any suggestions, leave 'em here in a comment, I'd love to hear them!! :D Hope you enjoyed my little write-up of budgety fun stuff to do for (or to!... *heehee* ;) ) the one you heart this year!

F.P.U List #22 - Knit a Scarf

I've been very inspired lately, what with the holidays coming up or something, so I've decided that it's time to tackle one of my F.P.U list items - knit a scarf.

I don't know how to knit. I tried once about three years ago and almost ended up either stabbing myself in the eye, hanging myself, or both. I never learned how to even cast on properly because the diagrams that they give you in the books and manuals are pure gobbledygook! At least to me; the images baffle me, I guess, because I can't see how the yarn and needles move.



Like that, helps me none. So I've enlisted a new help - YouTube!! There are some great videos out there that show you exactly how to cast on and start knitting your first row. It took me about an hour or so to cast on and knit my first row, but for some reason I get all bungled up when I'm trying to knit my second. I'm not sure if I'm doing something goofy with the slip knot or what, but I get all these strands going back and forth from needle to needle when I'm trying to make a stitch.

I'm total novice because my yarn is always sliding around on the needles, and my hands cramp up, and I think to myself how in the HELL can Granny do this with her arthritis. But then I think it probably took her her whole life to master this insanity and now she's finally reveling in her glory! That must be it!!

I'm not too down and out about it, because I can already do a lot more than I could when I started, so it's a good beginning point. I can make one row of something very intestinal looking (because my yarn is a mottled pink) before my second row screws me, so I will just watch more videos, put some Ben Gay on my aching hands, and give it another go later. ;)