Books
I’ve had a pretty good day. Mom is back from my sister’s and I went over to visit her. Took the babies and all. Machin is getting bigger! Of course, he’s still rather puny, being a Chihuahua and all, but at least he can now run around without his legs getting all wobbly. Tushi, him and Leche had lots of fun together. We only let the little ones play with Leche for a little bit when we were watching them (we don’t want a repeat of what happened with Titi). Chico stayed inside with Chiquita. They both took over a chair and slept most of the day.
Chico is no longer playful… I think it was because of the neutering. He just acts older now and sleeps most of the time. But he still likes getting pet and purrs when he’s on our laps. ^_^
On a crafting note, I got two books, one on hemp jewelry (Hemp Masters) and another on knotting (Decorative Knots). I know about half of the techniques on Hemp Masters and the rest seem not too bad. ^_^ I hope to be posting some pictures of new works soon. The Decorative Knots one, though… that one has some tough work! I checked out a book on knots from the library, it has from how to tie your shoe-laces to sailor knots. It’s been quite helpful, but Decorative Knotting will really test how much I’ve learned from the basic knotting techniques I’ve acquired lately.
Once I manage those, though… then I’ll make some awesome stuff!
Drool
Images like this one make me so hot.
Tony Jaa, star of Ong-BakJaa has been called "The Next Bruce Lee" and the answer to Jackie Chan, and shows off the art of Muay Thai in its real glory. No wires, no CG animation. The fire is real, the kicks are real, the stunts are real, and I am sure so is the pain.
Here's a link to the trailer. I wish they were bigger in screen (and longer!), but this did it for me:
Trailer (I recommend watching the trailer from the Videodetective site.)
I gotta get hold of this movie!
New Lenses
I am getting so old! *cries*
I went to get my eyes checked last week and my optometrist gave me new prescriptions. I started wearing glasses last year for reading purposes only. Now I need them for seeing far as well.
*cries again*
*sniffles...* well, at least I see clearer now. *sniffles*
Dog Races
I feel all hyper tonight.
Dad invited us to the doggie races at Harlingen (neighboring town about 20 mins away via expressway). We said okay but we weren’t going to be betting… much… hehe.
Which I didn’t, since we didn’t have any money. Basically I took 5 bucks cash and with that I was able to play 7 races! I won the first race… like 40 cents, but that gave me enough to bet on the next race. I won that one too, like 5 bucks, then lost the 3rd, lost the 4th, won the 5th (7 dollars), lost the 6th, and won the 7th. I ended up with 12.40, so I actually came with 7.40 extra cash home!!!
Whoo hoo!
I played it safe, betting to so-so doggies to place on 1st, 2nd, or 3rd. My last race I actually went more daring and played a quiniela (or something like that) where I had to guess the 1st and 2nd places together. AND I DID!
It was fun. ^_^ and a good stress reliever from what I was doing just before dad came over – I was debugging a program… ~_~ The program has an error connecting to a database, and it is probably something very simple but I just can’t see it! I know the programming is correct (darn it! I tested it at another server and works!) but the connection to this specific server is not going through.
Ah wells. I’ll just have to keep debugging now. But I least me’s happy!
Portabella Mushroom Veggie Burger
I posted this one in one of my groups.
A really easy and healthy one. Good enough even for big meat eaters.
Portabella Mushroom veggie burger
Buy the big mushrooms (as many as you would like burgers)
1-2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon mayonnaise
Garlic powder to the taste
Black pepper to the taste
Salt to the taste
Parmesan cheese to the taste
Burger buns
Lettuce leaves
Sliced tomato
And anything else you like on burgers
Wash portabella mushroom under cold water and take off the ‘leg’ of the mushroom (if it still has it), while you put the olive oil to heat in the skillet.
Once the oil has heated (stick on bit of the mushroom in and it must sizzle) place the mushroom in carefully. I generally dab a bit of mayo on the top of the mushroom for added flavor. Then flip the mushroom over to also cook the other side. Sprinkle garlic, salt and pepper on the top side and flip again. Add pepper, salt and garlic on this side as well.
Meanwhile prepare the burger buns how you like them. I dab mayo, some ketchup and Honey mustard… honey mustard tastes better than basic mustard on veggie burgers. Check on the mushroom and keep flipping. Don’t let the mushroom sit on the oil alone for too long or it may burn. Mushrooms cook very, very fast, unlike meat which takes quite a while. Sprinkle parmesan cheese on the sizzling mushroom, both sides.
Drain the mushroom a bit (it will release a bit of liquid, try to drain that from the mushroom or the burger will get soggy) and place on the bun. Top with your favorite cheese (yellow, white, muenster, swiss, whichever!), lettuce, tomato, pickles, onion, etc, etc, and the top part of the bread.
ENJOY!
For less calories… skip the mayo, and only use one of the burger breads, not both…. But if you skip one bread, the it ain’t a burger any more! :D
Cat Stop
I was searching for training mats (specifically the pampers) because I was hoping to be able to buy online at a cheaper price than I do at our local pet store… Aaaannnnddd I came across the following:
[From the seller]
Cat Stop
#1 Cat Repellent on the Market!
Cat Stop® Cat Repellent will effectively deter cats from your yards, gardens, cars, or anywhere you would rather them not be. While powders & chemicals have to be re-applied over and over, the Cat Stop Repellent is fully automated, weather proof, and will last for years! With a money back guarantee, a 2 year warranty, and a low return rate of less than 1% you can be confident that the Cat Stop repellent will quickly deter cats from areas you don't want them.
And, its easy to use, simply place the cat repellent facing the area you want to protect. The built-in motion sensor detects the animal entering the area and emits a high decibel alarm. It startles the cat or animal and frightens it away. Since the sound is ultrasonic you and your neighbors cannot hear it. It is harmless to animals and people but extremely effective!
Cat Stop
hmmm… I dunno about you, but to me the picture of that poor cat doesn’t make me believe that it is ‘harmless’ to animals... It almost looks as if the poor thing is having a nervous breakdown.
O_o
Pet Toy
A couple of weeks back Chico jumped on the table at night and stole one of my hemp necklaces. It was a test for a new knot that I was learning, and the ends were not finished. It came rather twisted (and that was not on purpose) and I didn’t like it, so I just left it there. In the morning I found Tushi chewing on it happily.
Now I’ve been playing with the babies and the necklace all the time because one likes to swat at the loose threads and the other likes to bite and tug with all her might. Either way both are entertained by it.
So I decided to make a bigger one, with the very thick hemp and make a real toy. I came up with this chew toy
Pet Chew/Pull Toy
I will give it to mom to use with Machin since he’s biting everything he can get his canines on! It should help massage his gums while his teetch are coming out entirely and prevent him from chewing the chair legs. It has worked for Tushi so it may work for him too. This one is a little over 12 inches in length and ½ inch thick on the braided part. I was going to put pony beads on the ends before the little knots, but I opted against it because what if the little one is strong enough to break them?! It could be dangerous if he swallows broken beads.
I will make another toy, probably 5-8 inches bigger for Tushi, since being a Terrier she’ll get much bigger and the little necklace she’s playing with now will not last much longer. I’ll work on another design just for Chico… it’s probably gonna have to be thinner and with very long threads or feathers at the end or something.
I gotta brainstorm.
Vaquitas
Sister sent me a rather long necklace (the sort that you do not need to unhook to throw over your head) with lots of wooden beads and cute little cows and asked if I could use the beads and make her a set of earrings and a bracelet. she added that I could keep the remaining beads, but instead I made her the ‘matching’ necklace.
Vaquitas
I wish there had been one more cow to use as pendant for the necklace but unfortunately there were only five, and Sis requested that her bracelet have 3 cows and use the other 2 for earrings… so… :( no cow pendant. But it’s alright, she can use the necklace either way. ^_^
Machin
The inks on the posters have been washed off by the recent rains… All there is now are runny letters that say that Titi is Lost and the phone number… It’s been a couple of weeks now and well, I am sure she has probably changed. Mom would probably recognize her if she sees her on the street or with someone else, and I am sure Titi would recognize mom… I doubt doggies forget their owners when they were content with them.
But I also doubt that she is even around the subdivision. I do not think she was killed for those doggies are quite expensive and so easy to just take and place in another home. Tiny little dogs… who can pass on that?
I hope the new family treats her well.
Well then…
Dad surprised Mom with a new pup… I guess he didn’t like the fact that she had been sad when Titi was lost.
Another Chihuahua, male, also from the same mother, but from the new batch. He is a bit over a month old… ugly little thing. So ugly that he’s rather cute. Feisty and temperamental. I had him at my house for 2 days before Dad gave it to Mom and he made good friends with Tushi and made her cry several times. So mom called him Machin… as in little macho-man.
Mom is using my ‘pamper’ technique… so this time I doubt she’s gonna let him go out to pee. We almost have him completely house-trained now but since he’s so little, sometimes little pee drops just escape him as he walks around, so we’re watching him. Soon he’ll be like my Tushi and do only on the pamper ^_^ So here he is.
Machin (Tushi and Chico on background); DOB 9-25-04
Peta, Jacinta, and Margarita
I’ve been happy.
I’ve sold some of my hemp pieces, the most popular being the twisted half knot with round, painted wooden beads and earrings. I guess those are just pretty. ^_^
The pieces: Brita and Lisa
So I’ve done variations of the styles, just so there aren’t many people around wearing the same things you know. Some variations:
Peta
Jacinta
And here’s a piece I made a while back, for a Xmas present.
Margarita
My sister gave me a call this past Friday and said that she had told the girls at work about my pieces and even showed them some printouts she had made. Apparently some of them were interested in seeing the larger works (my sister only managed to print thumbs) and also feel them. You know, quality of work is better appreciated live, right? So she said, “Send me some things! Dad is coming over this weekend, so give some to him so that I have things to show them on Monday”
Yikes… I didn’t really have any… the pieces that I have are… mine and used (so they are nice and soft now ^_^; ) and all others pretty much sold (yeeeeyyy thanks Mom and Patty! With the money I got from those I paid for Chico’s operation ^_^) But I told her I could manage maybe 2 sets to show… plus some bead jewelry that I made for me, but hadn’t yet used.
So I took out my wooden post and my ball of hemp and did repeats of Le Work. Margarita was a repeat, since that one is a fairly simple chocker design, with braided ends, so no particular need to know much about neck sizes or anything. I’ve now requests for earrings… ayayay. Hopefully I can come up with a design that will keep the flower motif. I may work on that sometime this week.
Yey
