I've created a monster...

I just received a text message from the mascot asking me if I would like "a really cool plant pot soldier" from the recycling room at his grandparents' condo. I'm almost a'feared to see the thing, but I told him to go ahead and bring it home anyway. If he thinks it's "cool", then it must be...right? (At worst, it can live in our garden.)

A few years ago, I was constantly teasing my mom for "garbage picking". She would go to the dump with a trailer full of stuff and leave with a trailer full of different stuff. I was embarassed, horrified and afraid that someone I knew would find out. These days, though, I have had a complete change of attitude. I mean, I won't bring home *garbage*, but it's hard to resist some of the cool vintage stuff that seems to keep popping up in backlanes and dustbins. In the last year alone I have scored chairs, a couple cabinets, a table...all in perfect (or perfectly distressed) condition. Now that the mascot is on the case, who knows what else we'll find!

Friday Faves – The Shark Floor Steamer

If I am Ginger Rogers, then this is my Fred Astaire. It twirls, it glides, it gets my kitchen floors sparkling clean…ok, maybe it’s *better* than Fred. I mean, I don’t recall any Fred & Ginger routines that involved house-cleaning. I can only assume, given the time, that Mr Astaire didn’t do floors.



I heart my Shark. Not only is it easy to use, it’s actually kinda fun. As you push it around the floor, the back & forth action pumps the pressurized steam out through the soft, washable cleaning pad.

The best thing about my Shark floor steamer, though, is that it uses plain ol’ tap water. No soaps, detergents, chemicals…nothing. You just fill it up, plug it in and in 30 seconds you’re ready to go. Easy peasy…and because it uses steam to clean, and not water, the floor is dry in just a minute or so. Gone are the days of screaming “Get off the wet floor! I just mopped that!”

The Shark also comes with a 25 foot cord and is safe for all types of floors (even hardwood). There’s also a “carpet refresher” thingy, which I have yet to try.

Talkin' 'bout a resolution.

New Years Resolution #1 for 2010 - blog, blog, blog.

It has been a crazy month. Looking back over the past 30 days, I can't believe how much I managed to get done. It should go without saying that most of it was crafting and little of it was blogging. And oh, how I've missed it here. I didn't want the year to end without a post, though, so here it is...for what it's worth.

Several weeks ago I was talking to my mom and he conversation turned to Christmas gifts. We talked about how we already have so many "things" and Christmas shouldn't just be about feeding the corporate machine, but should be about showing your loved ones how much you care and all that warm-fuzzy stuff. Yadda yadda yadda. Since I was already planning to take the "Handmade Pledge", I extended the challenge to her. I couldn't wait to see what she would come up with and today I finally received my package in the mail...a few days late (snail mail is an understatement!), but well worth the wait.

For the Jakester: 2 chickens and a rooster were given in his name to a family in Africa. Yay! (No, not technically "handmade", but it's a "hand-up" and that's good enough for me! Plus, it's one less thing that I have to nag him to pick up.)
For me: a cuff bracelet that Mumji made from dozens of white and gold buttons. Love it! Not only is it super-cute, knowing that my mom made it just for me makes it even better. (You've really got to love somebody to sew on that many buttons!)
For both of us: cash, which I think we're going to spend it at the paint-your-own-pottery place that we've been threatening to go to...

All-in-all, I would say that it was a very successful experiment. I know I'll be smiling every time I wear my bracelet!

Respect & Protect

World Aids Day - Dec 1, 2009

People living with HIV:
33.4 million people living with HIV worldwide
31.3 million adults
15.7 million women
2.1 million children under 15
New HIV cases in 2008:
2.7 million people
2.3 million adults
430,000 children under 15
HIV-related deaths in 2008:
2 million total deaths

...

On anger, quotes and blog-neglect.

I have been so busy with stuff around the house and craft sales, that I have been neglecting my poor blog. I will be back in full-force, though, once the holiday madness is out of the way.In the meantime, I am going to be posting a few of my favourite quotes.

Lately, most of the quotes and sayings that I have been saving come from one of my Buddhist "thought of the day" emails. I am an avid collector of quotes, but these just seem to strike a chord with me. This one, in particular, is especially topical.

"Holding onto anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; you are the one who gets burned." - Buddha

I have long believed that anger, like hatred, is an emotion that takes too much energy. These days, I simply don't have the time to be mad or resentful. Letting go of all of that negativity frees up so much energy...you'd be surprised.

Our Earth

sask fields 3
Originally uploaded by zenbecca

It is our earth, not yours or mine or his. We are meant to live on it, helping each other, not destroying each other. - J. Krishnamurti

Friday Faves - Food, Inc.

I had the opportunity to watch "Food, Inc." yesterday and I liked it so much that I am making it my "Friday Fave". With all of the reading I have done on the topic, there wasn't a lot in it that I didn't already know, but having it all together like that really drove home the message.

The information is really well presented and, unlike other docs I have seen on this subject, not full of over-the-top scare tactics. The makers of this film just put it out there on the table, so to speak, and allow you to draw your own conclusions on factory farming, GMOs and the big business that is Food (with a capital "F".)