10 February 2009
Got the photo from my wife’s camera finally. So, here I am at No Frill’s Grill just a few minutes after 20:00, and time for the 0805 Selfie.

I didn’t realize when I started the 0805 project, that it might overtake my daily photo. I need to be careful about that.
Cheers.

~KR (Written on 14 February 2009)

Watching
Next
on STRZ

Camera: Canon PowerShot SX110 IS
Exposure: 0.125 sec (1/8 )
Aperture: f/2.8
Focal Length: 6 mm
ISO Speed: 800
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

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12 February 2009

In an impromptu attempt to enjoy some “girl time,” Kelly, Janet and I found ourselves at Stephanie’s home, enjoying a fabulous little Mexican caserole, some tasty wine and a few hands of mah jongg.  It was a much-needed getaway for some, and a naughty indulgence for others . . .

The day was productive, though, and a girl’s gotta eat!  So, I can’t feel too bad about it.  And, I did go back to work upon returning home.  I snapped this photo of the other three girls, just shortly before heading home.

The next two days I won’t have much workshop time, because I’ll be at The Rose and Thistle doing my annual, much anticipated stint helping Ken and Denise stay a little bit saner on these crazy Valentines-y days.

~MB

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11 February 2009

Happy Birthday, William Todd!

After two nights in a row of quick meals at No Frills Grill, tonight was the night we were going to be good.
And a bit adventuresome!

Kyle had picked up some groceries in his shopping trip on Sunday, that were out of the ordinary for our house. Meat. Potatoes. And fresh green beans.

Now, I know that to most folks, that doesn’t sound unusual at all. But, we’re not most folks, and we’ve always been the “open a can” type meal-makers—when we even make a meal at home. But, in an effort to eat more healthily, and save money by staying home, we’re doing some experimenting.

I’ve been wanting for some time, now, to learn more about using our crockpot. Kyle has actually been studying up on it. He bought the stuff, and last night he cut up the meat and potatoes and marinated, and finally tossed all of it, and some seasonings into the pot and put the pot in the fridge. This morning, his intention was to turn it on before leaving for work and have it be all ready for dinner this evening. Well, I was using the power outlet and promised that I’d plug it in and start the crockpot as soon as I was done. It not being normal, yet, I forgot.

Not completely—but for a couple of hours. So, when I did remember, I plugged it in and put it on high to make up for lost time. I now know that’s a no-no . . . apparently, that causes your meat to get dry. And if I was to have any complaint about our meal, that the meat was a little dry would be it. But, that’s not much of a complaint when weighed against how tasty the meal turned out to be! We were both quite pleased . . . and I was very proud of Kyle, ’cause this was really all him. We have leftovers, now, that will feed us a couple more times. And next time, I know not to rush the process by turning up the heat! The key is low heat for longer time. Live and learn.

~MB

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10 February 2009

This is the pile of fabric in the corner of my dining room upon finishing my “meeting” with John and BeaJay this weekend.  It’s Tuesday, now, and I figured I’d better pick it up and fold and pile it neatly until it’s time for that project.  Before doing so, I grabbed the camera.  It’s a really nice grouping of coordinating fabrics—it’ll be a beautiful ensemble.

Kyle took me to see Coraline tonight!  Woo hoo!  Wonderful, fun, and very creepy!  I can’t say enough good about it, though—-go see it!  Based on the book written by our friend, Neil Gaiman, and directed by Henry Selick (the director of Nightmare Before Christmas), it’s done in a somewhat similar stop motion animation style.  Not for the faint-hearted or the kounapounaphobic. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQC0QVXa33o

~MB

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9 February 2009

I didn’t mean to procastinate.  But, it did rather turn out that way.  For about an hour, I took a break from my work, and played with wax, using the wonderful candle-making machine my brother gave us for Christmas a year ago.  This gizmo makes the process so easy and so mess-free, that it took no more time than a good lunch break, so I don’t feel too bad about it.  And, it was brought on by necessity . . . I’ve been saving the remaining bits of all my yummy-smelling candles for the whole year, and I was out of space.  Out of space for storing used, empty candle jars, too!  So, this was the day when I could stand the clutter in that cabinet no longer, and voila!  The end result is two beautiful new candles.  My photo is of one of them.

~MB

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9 February 2009
The second soccer match of the new season following a day at the office that was rife with decision-making and toil. The boss is out of town, so I get to pick up the slack. It’s alright, that’s what I get paid to do.
I was too busy during the day to take a photo, and at 0805 I was on the field. So, immediately after the game, I took this second in the series 0805 Selfie:

Despite appearances, we did not win, I’m not sure why I’m smiling like that.
Cheers.

~KR (Written on 11 February 2009)

Listening to:
No Direction by Longwave
from Longwave

Camera: Canon PowerShot SD850 IS
Exposure: 0.025 sec (1/40)
Aperture: f/2.8
Focal Length: 5.8 mm
ISO Speed: 800
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off

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8 February 2009

I got up bright and early this morning and Ronnie picked me up at 7:30 a.m. Yep. That’s love.

We had breakfast at IHOP and then went to his office, where I helped him with the planning and logistics of the trade show display for his company. I love doing stuff like that, and Ronnie and I really miss spending time . . . and even miss working . . . with each other. So, it was fun.

John and BeaJay had already hit the road by the time I returned home, as I had feared. So, I had a little while to myself here at the house, and then Kyle got home after a grocery run, and it was time to head to Flower Mound for “Bob Burgers” and awesome guacamole at the Haines’ residence.

Our planning party with select members of The Blazing Sun pirate crew was a good time. We made lots of progress, and even if it seems the project in question will take more time and money than we have right now, we are officially on the way toward making it happen.

On the way home from Curtis’ house, I realized I hadn’t taken a photo. I am sick of shooting pictures at home, and decided to snap something . . . anything . . . just not to have to find another knick knack to shoot. Um . . . I should have waited, it turns out, ’cause . . . this photo sucks. But, once I got home, I never thought about it again, and voila! This shot of Kyle’s car dash, is what you get.

~MB

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7 February 2009

This is a horrible photo, I know. But, the subject matter is divine!

Most of the really good fabric stores in Dallas, that sell the sorts of fabrics I buy, are also upholstery shops. Hence, when you walk in the door, there is always a marvelous display of custom upholstery work, just waiting for its various happy owners to come and claim their revitalized furniture. Chairs, bed dressings, sofas, pillows, ottomans, and even fabulous window treatments are there to provide me with great new ideas, and inevitably cause a little drooling. Rarely, though do these items stop me in my tracks and render me speechless. This sofa sectional did just that.

This is not a fantasy sofa from Yoville, folks. This is the real thing. And, someday, when I have a house big enough to accommodate it . . . I will have one very much like this. I am smitten.

The fabric safari was ultimately both successful, and a lot of fun. (Starr:  this one’s for you!  Let me know what you think!)  I know that John reached sensory overload about an hour and half before we were done. But, we found what we wanted and needed, and came back home happy and with tired feet and backs. I took and recorded all their measurements, with an eye toward having mock-ups done for them a couple of weekends into Scarborough.  Mexican Inn provided the four of us with dinner, and we said our goodbyes, half expecting that tomorrow will present too many challenges for getting back together. The business is done. So, sadly, the fun must be done, too. But, it’s a very few weeks until faire starts and we’ll see John and BeaJay, again.

~MB

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6 February 2009

My house is clean!  Of course, that’s primarily because we have guests from out of town this weekend, and I spent a considerable amount of time this week making ready.  But, it feels good, and I was indeed . . . ready.

John and BeaJay (and their four-legged child Nick) arrived just as expected in the late afternoon.  First things first, we spent some time in the backyard with the three dogs, allowing for some special get-aquainted time.  Once we were sure all was well there, we started to work.  John and BeaJay are an adorable couple that call TRF their home faire, and who we met about four years ago when they made their first purchases from Pendragon Costumes.  BeaJay can often be counted on to show up with some home-baked goodie or another, and John is always bearing a flask of yummy.  Somewhere along the line, as often happens, customers turned first playtron, then “pet patron” and then . . . friend!  And, soon, I will have the privilege of creating custom costume pieces for them.  This weekend was intended to be our consultation/measurement session for those outfits.

It took a while for us to iron out the basics so that we all understood one another, and after that, it got super easy!  We are doing a proper Tudor set for them, we figured out colours, chose a couple of our fabrics and had a specific goal for our fabric safari on Saturday.  The timing was almost perfect as Kyle arrived home from work, and we were all hungry for dinner.  Off to No Frills Grill—no need to impress friends with anyplace fancy!   More important to share our genuine selves—and No Frills is nothing if not typically “us.”

I snapped this photo of  John and BeaJay as we were playing trivia and enjoying each other’s company.

~MB

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5 February 2009

I had to run a couple of errands today—getting ready for a weekend of friends from out of town. So, in an effort to utilize every moment and every drop of gasoline to it’s fullest, I arranged to have lunch with Stephen. I blame him for the accidental shopping that occurred and prevented me from finishing my last errand!

But, Kyle was feeling generous enough to take me on that final errand when he got home. We went to Lowe’s, found the bolt and nut we think we need to fix a kitchen cabinet, and then treated ourselves to Abuelo’s.

I shot today’s one and only photo at the Lowe’s, and titled it in keeping with a news article I read today about how the word “screw” has attained a level of acceptance in journalism, no matter what the contextual meaning! Once upon a time, of course, it was considered terribly vulgar (and my mama would still have it be so!) to use the phrase “screw up” in regular conversation. But, times change, and language evolves (Did you know they recently put the word “meh” in the dictionary? That truly amuses me—thank you for writing that one into posterity with The Simpson’s, Matt Groening!—rhymes with raining). And this week, our shining star of a new president made a mistake, and publicly released a statement including the quote: “I screwed up . . .” The media took it in stride, printed it, and history is made.

~MB

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