Wednesday, January 31, 2007

In blog hiding...

After a fun dinner at Buca I got on the computer last night & realized I was still up at 2:30 AM. My class this morning was from 7 - 9 AM, so as a result I am runnng on about 3 hours of sleep. I wanted to log in & let you know we were still here & having a great show. More tomorrow...

Sunday, January 28, 2007

Opening day!!!

CHA opened this morning & Circus Rose and Project Essentials officially debuted! I'm so excited & proud. I opened a box yesterday with REAL product in it, some of my coaster jumbles and I cried. I just burst into tears three times, wishing my mom could've been here to see this. Wishing I could share it with her {...there I go again - still choked up}. People tell me she can see me & everything I've done, and on one level I know that is true - but...I dunno. It's just been rough. I wish Matt was here so he could see it launch. I feel like I've given birth to an idea - maybe I'm just emotional. Maybe it's sleep deprivation. Who knows. I am so grateful for every one's reaction to my line & the line Ginger & I did together. People seem to like all the lines IP has this time around - it's really exciting!

Today I got to see Kate, Emily F, Stacey, Debby, Claire & Virginia. Not bad for never leaving the booth!

Corkboard Shenanigans...

While setting up the booth someone had the brilliant idea to integrate mini cork boards into our displays by the Office Supplied line. Laura & Brittany did an amazing job decorating them with pics Jane brought from the last trade show. On one of the cork boards we posted the fictional MarryMorrisNow website in honor of our single boss. We're betting he won't read those little pieces of paper the entire show. We all had a good chuckle about it. Come on girls, he's 36, funny, cute & owns a scrapbooking company - what else could you want? Email me or Ginger if you want us to arrange a meeting or a marriage for you.

Tomorrow the show starts at 9AM & runs til 5. I have meetings at 8, so I'm aiming to be in the booth by 7:30AM. This show is so huge it's hard to grasp. Here's a link to the floor plan of the show. Remember this covers all crafts & hobbies - from knitting to quilting, from scrapbooking to sculpting, from jewelery making to candle making and what seems like everything in between. I'm in 2273 which is a serious walk!

Saturday, January 27, 2007

Attn: shelf-lovers!!!

If you've emailed me about the IKEA shelves {and - wow, I had no idea it could generate that much interest}, here's the scoop. They're FORHOJA wall shelves with "drawers". There are 5 pitchers & the shelf unit per set. They retail for $34.99 & are NOT available to order online (sorry folks). Here is a link to IKEA UK which has a better picture of them.

Another day in Anaheim...

Once again it's late in Anaheim & I'm writing to update you on the show. We started bright & early this morning & put down about 2 rows of floor tiles before we were busted by the union foreman. Apparently we missed in the paperwork this is a union outfit out here - which meant we couldn't put up our own booth. It threw the whole morning out of whack, but Ginger, Sharon, Brittany & Laura came back to my hotel room & helped me get things ready for the classes over the coming week.

Ginger & I did the Crafter's Home presentation at 1:40 & the vendor faire tonight...it was PACKED! I've never seen one of their events this well attended - 112 stored & 171 people! It was awesome.

Ginger posted some funny pictures on her blog. Check them out - if you dare! I also did photos & a booth update on the IP blog. Tomorrow we'll finish the booth. I have four rep training meetings in the morning & the make & takes at Strictly Scrapbooking in Cerritos from 5-7.

Friday, January 26, 2007

IKEA inspiration...

As you know, I arrived in Anaheim this morning. I was lucky enough to spend my whole pre-flight time visiting with the ladies from Ten Seconds Studio. I've been using their craft metals for years & had no idea they were in the DFW area...

Even better - I sat next to & caught up with my friend Andria Gibson from Reminisce the whole flight here! Andria was on a connecting flight from Iowa - it was such a nice surprise. She showed me her new catalog & if you have girls in sports, you need to check it out - it's gonna rock your socks off!

OK, we went to IKEA to get booth stuff & fun stuff {read more about our trip here}. I fell IN LOVE with this shelf of pitchers. I can't wait to get these when I get home - although I might hold off until Valentines day, because they might be the perfect present for Matt to get me. {hint, hint} I want to hang them in my scrapbook room & fill the pitchers with my overflowing supply of silk flowers...can you imagine how cheery that would be? Of course these would work well with ribbons, even brads or eyelets if you have enough...oooh, buttons or little spools of thread would be good too. Yum, yum - I love these!

I'm going to try to post on both my blog & the IP blog EVERY day of the show - so stay tuned for your daily dose of CHA!

Wednesday, January 24, 2007

Pimp My Calculator, 4th & final edition...

Another day..you guessed it - another calculator.

This rockin' calculator is primarily done up with pieces from my Playlist collection, with touches from the Office Supplied collection thrown in. I added some MAMBI bling, white acrylic paint & white Hambly rub-ons to complete the look.

These calculators have been a joy to create & share with people. If you'd like to take a closer look at the entire Pimp My Calculator collection, I have created an album with all of the photos from the previews. *Click here for the full Pimp My Calculator experience*

Tuesday, January 23, 2007

Are you a Tom Hanks fan???

Do you consider yourself a Tom expert? See how many of his movies you can pick out of this trailer...This is some of the better editing I've seen in a long time! Not to mention a total Tom-fest...this video is a MUST CLICK.

In my spare time...

That's my joke - "in my spare time"...I never seem to have spare time, so if you're one of those people who thinks I look tired all the time, you're probably right, because when there's something I want to do I just make time - even if it's in the middle of the night!

I had the opportunity to work on a new book that's being released at CHA by Design Originals. Five of us contributed the writing, techniques and layouts - it was really fun. I met Suzanne, the publisher of Design Originals through Ashley and it so happened that when I met her I was working on a stack of cards for my 20/20 Christmas card class which was a kind of an exercise in freestyle. Well, I guess she took notice, because she called me about a week later with the opportunity to contribute to Oodles of Doodles. I ended up writing 3 pages & doing 10 projects in it. I have had a chance to preview the book & really like it - it's perfect if you want a way to jumpstart your creative process.

So after you come see me, Circus Rose, Project Essentials & everything IP has to offer in 2273, head over to Design Originals in 2736 & order your copies of Oodles of Doodles!

Monday, January 22, 2007

Pimp My Calculator 3...

Another day, another calculator...

For someone who has gone public as being marginally anti-pink, I sure am loving it lately. I can't help it - it just looks yummy! I did this calculator up with some of Ginger's Cotton Art Tape, some DoodleBug flowers, a MAMBI jeweled heart & plain jewels and lots of coasters & stickers that I designed for the Project Essentials line.

If you're at CHA & want to see these in person, swing by booth 2273!

Sunday, January 21, 2007

Fashionista? Fash-a-fabulous!

I got to really scrap with my own stuff today!!! This particular paper, Single Girl, is a favorite of mine. I kept the background neutral {the brown} so it can go in any direction. I envisioned people journaling in the person, collaging in there - chalking, painting or watercoloring to vary her "look". You can add flourish rubons on the leg to mimic those great embroidered jeans. Add the tattoo style rubons or stamps to the shirt to create a rocker top. I freehand wrote the journaling on the top - all lines from Decemberists songs {one of her favorites} that hold significance to her. I also watercolored the flames on the pants because she likes to doodle on her jeans. Another fun element - I used an exacto knife on either side of the legs to weave the strip of patterned paper behind the figure. It was really easy compared to the dramatic difference it made to the layout. I hope you like this as much as I do!

Got gear???

Due to sleeping in unbelievabably late this morning, I am still up. I have been working in CHA stuff all day, but arond 10PM I decided to take a break & upload a Cafe Press store. There's not much in there yet - but I've been wanting to do these confessional shirts for a while. They make me laugh. I also have a scrap stalker tote bag so you can carry your favorite stalking suppiles - handmade autograph book, 10 colors of sharpies, decorated chocolates & whatever else you might need on the hunt. I still get ridiculously starstruck with my "scrap idols", so this is as much for me as it might be for you...because, when it gets right down to it, there's probably at least one designer out there who inspires your inner stalker...

Saturday, January 20, 2007

Pimp My Calculator 2...

Another day, another calculator...

This one is done up with Ginger's As You Wish line. I really like the colors on this one. This is my favorite colection Ginger's ever done with Gin-X. It's a classic & easy to use about me line. The guilty pleasure sticker makes me smile. I threw in some prima flowers, red chatterbox rub-ons, ribbon, paint & Making Memories stick-on pearls and turned this into a mini-math-masterpiece!

I wonder what Target would think of these???

Friday, January 19, 2007

Thinking Pink...

This is a project from our cotton art tape call I'll be teaching at CHA for store owners. I thought you might want a peek because it's full of goodies from our new Office Supplied collection. This is all built on the black Super Steno Staggered Tag book. I pulled all the pink jumbles off the office set & loved the results.

I made a another flikr album featuring the entire project:
*click here for pretty in pink*

Pimp My Calculator...

I've really been having some serious FUN with our new products. I was inspired by these ridiculously oversized calculators currently in the Target dollar spot (for $2.50). I figured we'd need some calculators in the booth, so I did an entire series of these called "Pimp My Calculator" & I'm taking them on the road to the show with me. I can't begin to describe what a mind boggler it is to use the product you've designed for the first time. I'm seriously emotional over here - but it's all good. So there are more of these coming, so stay tuned for more episodes of Emily Adams' PIMP MY CALCULATOR! Go to Target & pimp your own...they're too much fun - they make me want to do math!

Thursday, January 18, 2007

introducing TOTALLY DATED...

Well this is the last rabbit in the hat. This is the Totally Dated line that Ginger & I created together for Project Essentials. Once again we wanted to make a collection that could be used on several different projects in a bunch of different ways.

We looked at all the different calendar offerings on the market to determine where "the holes" were. The products that didn't exist that we really wanted. Again, we kept the colors completely neutral so they could go with anything.

Ginger laid out the calendar papers in 12x12 - there are also pages with 4 per page & extra room at the top of each for binding. I love the calendar overlay in clear. Her months & days stickers are sized to fit in the boxes to mark the dates on the full sized calendars. The traditional & quirky date markers are great to label any of the calendars {those were a lot of fun to do - they were one of mine}. The traditional ones have standard holidays, but the quirky ones have stickers for game night, date night, just the guys, girls night, etc. Ginger rocked the square cardstock stickers & coaster jumbles and calendar corners. BTW - I've never been much of a corner fan, but I really like these - you can use them as the tips to arrows too. We both contributed to the transparency. This line has one of my favorite things I designed out of everything - the Mixed Dates & Save the Date coasters. I've been playing with unconventional calendar formats for a while & I fell in love with these circular ones. To mark the date - circle it, punch it out, chalk over it, ink or stamp over it or draw an arrow. Stamp a pattern over it in a subtle ink. ink or paint the edges. Use it as a center on a large flower. You can see these on the CHAW make & takes I posted earlier today - off the edges of the mini books.

I love, love, love the Project Essentials line & concept. I am thrilled about Circus Rose, but Project Essentials, well it's extra special. Ginger - I can't say this enough: this has been so much fun - I'm looking forward to what all we can accomplish & create together!!!!

introducing FASHIONISTA...

This is another mod collection that's trend inspired. It seems like I was on a roll with the silhouettes this round so I just went with it.

People were surprised that I was doing a pink line. I'm not a typically pink person, but I love this one! I have a lot of pictures with my friends and every time I go to look for embellishments - they end up seeming too juvenile, too college age, too red hat or all about the cocktails. So my goal with this line was to create a low-key women's friendship line without alcohol. I'm really pleased with the results - this is a set I'm dying to scrap with!

The embellishments say things like lunch with the girls, what were we thinking?, watching chick flicks, we're like peanut butter & chocolate, old enough to know better, a good friend is cheaper than therapy, etc...This collection includes 6 12x12 papers, 1 12x12 color transparency, 2 coaster sets & cardstock stickers. Here are a few notes on the papers: The all brown with the lone figure was designed for you to do all your journalling or create a collage in the girl. The diva dots {front right} fit a 1" punch {like the dancing dots from Playlist}. Instead of mini posters this line has mini "credit cards" that can be used as page elements or turned into a mini book on their own.

I created this line to celebrate my closest friendships. I am blessed by knowing each & every one of you! Special thanks to Angie, Martha, Ginger, Teresa, Debby, Ashley, Virginia, Kandice, Laura, Jane, Tracy W, Kate, Pam, Robin, Kim, Tracy Z, Amy & Meg for being such wonderful, fun friends & fabulous women! I had thoughts of each of you when I was creating this!

introducing OFFICE SUPPLIED...

Well, this is some fun stuff! I've been working on more than Circus Rose over here. This is a release under Project Essentials, Imagination Project's new house brand. This baby is half Ginger & half Emily!

Ginger & I talk A LOT and we started kicking around ideas of what we consider "staples" and how hard it is to find plain good product - you know "the basics". So we approached whis with an attitude of we want to make something that can go with everything. Simple enough to appeal to beginners, but with enough appeal that literally EVERYBODY could use it. And they could use it over & over again.

Collaborating creatively with such a good friend was an absolute blast! She's artistically more conservative than I am, but she has some serious computer skills! I feel like she reigned me in a little, I loosened her up a little and we ended up making something really fun & a friendship that's stronger than ever!

Let's see... can you tell who did what? Ginger did all the papers except the grids, the did you get the memo coasters & the warning circles. We each did half of the Funny Business transparency & Note to Self stickers and I did the steno books, rings of approval, approval stickers & the jumbles.

If you've been reading the blog you know I've been obsessively watching The Office DVDs - well it was while I was putting the finishing touches on this stuff...

Some of the thinking...yes, it's true. I dedicated the "bang head here" sticker to Ginger who was having a particularly rough day & I thought it would crack her up when I turned it in like that. The Sorry We're Closed sticker is going into a tiny frame & is being hung on my scraproom door. I also want to make another one into a magnet & put it on my fridge.

The Super Steno books are so much fun! These sheets of punch out coasters make an entire book for 2.99!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Seriously - an album this cute for 2.99! IP brought these out last year in raw, but I thought they'd be so much fun printed so I got all of Ginger's paper images and made this up. As a teacher - this makes some of the most fun class projects I've done in a while! Speaking of teaching - here is the $10 class I was talking about I'm going to be teaching in Anaheim at those two local stores. Since the album is so affordable, it allowed the class to be so reasonable! To see the full project I've created another flickr album called "From the Desk Of" {the name of the class}.

This is such an exciting time for me. I've had so much to say over the last few months, so many times I'd create something & want to post it immediately - it feels so good to finally share this with you! I hope you like it as much as we do!

Sneak Peek! Our CHA make & take!!!

Imagination Project asked me to design something really outstanding for their make & take at the CHA Winter show. They're going through a bit of a transformation with their look and wanted something that reflected their new styles.

We will be creating these 5x5 board books as the make & takes at the show. We will be rotating the two styles on alternating days. Each book doubles as a calendar with our new round calendar coasters on each page.

I did these samples up with the same group of pictures {of my cousins from this past year} to show how much the tone of the papers gives the pictures a completely different context. They are built with my Playlist line & Ginger's As You Wish line.

I have put together an online album so you can see the whole book. Enjoy!

Wednesday, January 17, 2007

introducing PLAYLIST...

Wow, what a cathartic process. I always thought I'd love to design my own product - that it would be so easy to identify what I wanted then just make it myself. It sounded so simple. But let me tell you, it was a shocking amount of work. This is such a departure from where I thought my product line would go originally, but ultimately it's exactly what I wanted to do. Because in creating this line I found myself and defined my style.

I like clean strong graphic design. While I love to alter things, I've always looked at predistressed paper as "cheating". I would always rather ink or paint up the edges myself - or leave them plain if I wanted to. I am inspired by the clean lines of IKEA, 2Modern & Chiasso. I still love vintage and retro designs, but for this collection I wanted to present something very forward. You know I'm a serious trend watcher and this line is a reflection of the use of silhouettes in advertising & design.

Playlist is ipodesque without being limited to that. It is a great dance & music line. I kept the colors neutral and bold so they would work for male or female pages.

The top ten paper is a sheet of lists designed to be cut apart and used on pages or to be cut up & made into a mini book of lists. The paper on the upper left is a sheet of "mini posters" - I called them dance cards - perfect for adding as a page element or for atcs or to create a mini book with just those. The next one down on the left - the dancing dots - fit a 1" punch. You can see some of them punched out in the You Rock My World layout. The one with the oversized silhouette is fun. I thought people would journal in or around the edge of the figure. The polka dot & stripe are just good basics so I added them as well. There are also FUN coasters & cardstock stickers with this group. {see the IP blog for those images} There will be a 12x12 color transparency too. A note on the jumbles - Matt's little sister is a senior in high school & is heavily involved in dance. She told me "Drop It Like It's Hot" is her senior quote. I couldn't help laughing & adding it to the jumble for her - she's a scrapbooker too.

Chronologically, this was the first collection I designed & what a great way to start!

The layout, You Rock My World, is by my friend & IPDT member Jane Hasty. She scrapped pictures from her work Christmas party since her coworkers are so awesome. I love that she picked such lively pictures - they really convey the sense of fun that playlist is all about!

In celebration of the preview, I have added a playlist to the sidebar of my blog. Music says so much about a person, which is another reason I thought this paper would be so meaningful. I invite you to share some of my personal favorites. These will play while you're reading - just double click on an arrow to pick a song.

I'd love to hear what you think!

Tuesday, January 16, 2007

The anticipation is killing me...

I am just dying over here...waiting for sneak peeks, just waiting to spill the beans. We're so busy with the day to day we haven't laid them out yet.
tomorrow...tomorrow...tomorrow...

Monday, January 15, 2007

Slip & fall...

My stepmom was supposed to have surgery on her shoulder today {torn rotator cuff}, but it was postponed. She had a doctors appointment instead. My dad was walking up the handicapped ramp at the hospital outside the ER {it was the least icy entrance - he was going to walk through the inside of the hospital to her appointment from there} and had a bad fall. His leg was already messed up - now his back is sprained & he has a concussion too {his head hit the concrete pretty hard}. Poor daddy - but if you're going to fall that badly, the entrance to the emergency room was a good place to do it. He is in so much pain right now & he can't "sleep it off" because Sharon has to wake him up every 2 hours because of the concussion to make sure he's OK. What a mess.

On another front, I just found out my uncle is now on the list for a kidney & pancreas transplant and will be starting home dialysis next month. It's a lot to wrap my brain around. While the thought of the surgery scares me, I know he really needs it & could be so much better off with new working parts. If you're the praying type, please add my family to your list.

Playing With Fire...

Well, thanks to another learning session with Ben & Ashley, my first newsletter, Playing With Fire, went out last night about 11:06pm. If you're not on the list, take a minute to click the link on the sidebar and email me to join. If you didn't receive it, you can view the newsletter on the page labeled "old news" on my website {my archives}.

We finished up really late last night & I ended up leaving my computer at Ashley's for the night, because it looked like it was still processing. Matt's off today, so we went over this morning to pick it up. Those of you who know my husband know he uses more sugar in his coffee (& tea) than most families consume in a week. Well, he had a cup of coffee this morning and Ashley gave him what she thought was the sugar canister & boy, did he get a rude surprise. He'd super dosed his coffee with salt and took a big swig. The look on his face was priceless. Poor guy...I must say we all had a painfully good laugh about it. Bless his heart.

Saturday, January 13, 2007

COOTIES!!!!

GROSS! My husband's big nasty germs got all over me & I woke up feeling awful! On a Saturday, no less with no hope of a doctor til Monday (which is a holiday - for some, not for me) or Tuesday. So Matt's still sick & now I'm sick with him - didn't I just get over this once already? I thought I was immune...Even worse I have so much to do this weekend {scrapping stuff for the show}I can't really rest. Looks like we can't leave the house either from the way the news is sounding. Dallas is about to be hit {we have a couple of hours while it's beating up Fort Worth first} by a major ice storm. It's going to be heavy freezing rain straight through today & tomorrow up til Monday morning. I love my state, but we don't know how to drive on ice! Even minor icing causes major disasters & I can't remember the last time we had this serious of an icing event. I'm bundling up and venturing out in the next few minutes, grabbing some robitussin & some cup'o'noodles at Target to get me through the next few days...I will have to get out on Monday, though...my stepmom is having major shoulder surgery & sick or not, I plan to be there...but maybe no hugs. I'm keeping these cooties to myself!

Thursday, January 11, 2007

Blogging in two places at once...

My friend Laura left Imagination Project to work for a charitable institution as a translator {it's hard to get mad at a saint}, so we're divvying out some of the duties from her position for a while. The most fun addition to my job so far is that I'm doing some posting on the Imagination Project blog. It's fun to post over there...great stuff - check it out.

Matt was home sick again today, but I'm happy to report he's finally feeling a little better. He's graduated past soup & actually had a burger and got out of bed for a bit. He thinks he's headed back to work tomorrow. For a guy who's never sick he's really had a hard time.

I will be teaching in two stores when I'm in Anaheim later this month - Strictly Scrapbooking {Cerritos} on Sat, Jan 27 & Scrappin' In the Hills on Tues, Jan 30. The classes will be 90 minutes and ONLY $10!!!!!!! Call the stores - space is limited! I designed the project today {a little late, I know, but with all brand new product}. It was surreal, designing a project with product I actually designed myself. It's hard to describe, you do all this art & kind of envision how it would look in use, but actually seeing it...it's an amazing feeling. I can't wait til they post the sneak peeks so I can show you the mini album that is the class!

Wednesday, January 10, 2007

Life with an unusually sick husband...

Matt's sick...again??? He got really sick on Christmas day, improved some - gave it to me, I got over it - but it's lingered on for him this entire time. Except it's gotten worse. So much worse. His cough is horrible, and it's excruciating for him to swallow, he has a dull headache & the chills. He missed work today, went to the doctor {voluntarily} and then stayed home. If you know Matt, you know this doesn't happen...he hasn't missed a day of work in a few years. Matt was so sick he didn't remember the exact diagnosis, but he filled the perscriptions. He's been doped up on hydrocodone cough syrup, antibiotics, advil & chloraseptic all day. When he's been awake he's been craving chicken noodle soup, pudding & hot chocolate. It looks like he might be staying home tomorrow, too. Since he's been home he hasn't ventured out of bed all day. Poor baby.

Tuesday, January 09, 2007

The BIG news...announcing Circus Rose!!!

Some of you may have noticed I've been unusually quiet lately - "immersed in a project". It's true. I'm happy to announce I have been designing my own product line for Imagination Project. Check out my logo on the Imagination Project blog. Circus roses are my favorite flower & have always held a special place in my heart, which is why I picked "Circus Rose" as my brand name. My collections will be debuting CHA in Anaheim later this month. I will be sharing sneak peeks and more details over the next few weeks!

Saturday, January 06, 2007

Dollar Spot Visionary...

My cousin Meg came over today to spend the night & we ended up at Target again {what else is new} where they have reset the dollar spot. These are techincally $2.50, they but are worth every penny! You can see the two sets I have in black in the background. I want to use them for scrapbooking & I want one for my bedside table for - glasses, remote control, tums, cough drops, etc. My cousin Meg saw them & went straight for the light blue & she's currently customizing an awesome jewelery box for herself. I'm really impressed - she's going to doodle & paint the whole thing. I kind of want flames on my boxes now. I think I need to buy a ton of these to alter & give as gifts. They're awesome. They're available in black, light blue & red. Check 'em out.

Thursday, January 04, 2007

In my own office...

I deserved a present today. I finished something I've been working on for months. It's absorbed a lot of my energy, creativity & a lot of my spare time. So I went & bought myself an "office" full of coworkers...Working at home has been quieter than I ever dreamed and I wanted a little background "chatter".

I need to get down to business & get back into education mode. Time is whooshing by & every day I feel more pressure to get the newsletter out, but I haven't been able to take the time to figure it out. Thanks for bearing with me.

Thanks to all of you for your comments & emails. Nothing else has broken {I cringed as I typed that}. Yet. No more possible: "evil influence of a star or planet" {but it was an interesting theory, dad}. :)

Monday, January 01, 2007

Starting the new year broke {literally}...

It's a conspiracy...since Thursday:

1. Our big TV broke. Matt & I got eachother DVR for Christmas. Instead of patiently waiting for them to install it I picked up the box so we could start enjoying it right away. While trying to unscrew the cable the thingie snapped entirely off the back of the tv making it un-hookupable to anything. Luckily there were lots of sales & since we didn't go flat or hdtv we were able to replace it.
2. The DVR box or remote is defective. Once we fixed the TV situation we're averaging 2 outages/call the cable company a day. A "reset" takes 45 minutes to an hour. I will be trading it in tomorrow.
3. The microwave broke. I didn't let it go so far as to catch on fire, but the flashing lights, giant booming sounds, smoke and shooting sparks signaled it was time for a new appliance. And no, I didn't put metal in it {or pants}. Bye, bye Target gift card...but hello new microwave.
4. My computer "ran out of memory". See what I mean about the conspiracy theory? I had a lot of work to do and I went to save an illustrator document and I got the dreaded message. aaaaaaaaaaaargh....now, I spent the spare money, but this is essential so got an external hard drive at Fry's & a usb hub at Microcenter. Got home didn't like the hard drive, returned it at Fry's, got home realized I'd put the cord for the USB port in the hard drive box...aaaaaargh. Back to Fry's to claim my cord, off to Microcenter to buy a new hub {more expensive - aaaargh}. Look at this picture - when did I become one of "these people"? I never wanted to be one of these people with all the cords & accessories & complications...
5. No newsletter yet...I missed my own deadline. I'm really bummed. I was aiming to launch my newsletter by the end of December, but I haven't figured out the program yet. It's virtually ready & will go out {hopefully} this week or weekend. I really apologize for the delay. Being sick through all of this has thrown me for a loop.
6. My *#@!* glasses broke again. Last night I did it - I said "what else could happen?" Like the hand of God came down and smote me on the face for questioning the universe my glasses snapped in the center & fell off my face. There are no words. There are no glasses. I...I...I...don't know. Um....at least I have contacts.

So here it is 2007...I have several new things {unexpectedly}, considerably less money, and a broken pair of glasses. It can only get better from here...HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Happy New Year...