Jun 30, 2010

Earrings for Annomi

I got a phone call from downstairs today from Annomi. She was bleak because I had made a pair of earrings for Faith and not for her. In fact, her exact words were "I know I'm a monster, BUT..."

Anyways, this isn't a great picture, because the light isn't good at night at my place, but these are the earrings that I made for Annomi. My fingers are now flat from trying to get the pearls threaded on the wire!

My Astrological Court Card: Queen of Cups

I thought I would do this for a laugh, but... but it's me!!!
----------------------------

She has the ability to see through people, to read them and know how to help them. She is naturally nurturing and protective of those she cares about.

Loyalty is very important to her and she loves and hates in equal measure. She can experience a roller coaster of emotions in any single day, so her sensitive nature needs gentle care to avoid mental and emotional exhaustion.

Her people-skills and natural intuitive abilities make her the ideal doctor, nurse, counselor, healer/psychic. She needs to feel her work has purpose.

Her emotional nature makes her a great lover, a compassionate friend, a loyal mother or daughter, but she is not the person to get on the wrong side of!

Her challenges or weaknesses are insecurity, jealousy and an overly controlling nature, so she needs to work on her ability to trust and have faith in others.

To succeed in love and life she needs to make sure her thoughts remain in control of her emotions rather than the other way round.

Well Done South Africa...


... Give yourself a nice pat on the back :)

THE HUFFINGTON POST:
Shari Cohen: South Africa Rolls Out the Ubuntu in Abundance

Wedding Plans are afoot…

… Not mine! Goodness! LOL! And you thought I was planning a sneaky wedding didn’t you? I don’t know about you, but I think being a bride is somewhat difficult without a groom.

No, I’m talking about Katia. Her wedding plans are well on the way. She’s venue hunting at the moment. After that (and somewhat in conjunction with it), she’s looking for a photographer.

Pat and Ros are also finalizing their wedding plans. Their wedding is happening the first weekend in August, down the coast. If you read any of my blog you would know that I’m doing their photography.

I have to say though… that there is a little piece of me that is jealous. *sad sigh*

Saturday Plans!

Ok, Saturday plans are sorted.
I'm going to head to the I Heart Market in the morning (Durban North) to look at the drawings that I saw there last month. I really want one of those.

Then after that (or maybe before, depends on what mom wants to do), we are going to head to the Ceramic Craft Studio (in Malvern - completely the opposite direction to Durban North) to pick up ceramic snails for myself and Katia to mosaic. I don't know what colours she is going to do hers, but mine is going to be a mixture of warm oranges and reds.

Happy Humps Day


I have not gone completely mad! I promise! I laughed at Jay when he told me about “humps” day, but actually, it makes a whole lot of sense. Apparently Wednesday is called “humps” day because we’re over the half way hump of the week, and it’s all downhill from here.

Thank you Jay, you made me smile :)

Casper strikes again

I am convinced that my office is haunted! There have been times when I’ve been working late, by myself, and have either heard or felt something that I could find no explanation for.

I can tell that you think I’m crazy. I’m telling you, our office is haunted! Let me explain why I believe this to be so…

Months ago, Pam and I were standing talking in the kitchen. I think we were in the process of making coffee. Now, in the kitchen we had one of those stands that hold the knives and forks. It’s the kind that the knives and forks hang off of. Anyways, we were talking and all the windows and the back door into the kitchen were shut. There wasn’t a breath of air in the place… Not one ounce of wind. As we were talking the knives and forks on the rack suddenly started moving, like someone had run their hand along them. We both looked at them swinging, looked back at each other, finished making our coffee and proceeded to exit the kitchen in a rather swift, yet organised fashion.

Prior to that, I ended up working late one evening and could hear someone picking up papers, shuffling them and putting them down again. I knew that I was the only one in the office and all the lights upstairs were off, so I knew it wasn’t someone working. Anyways, I could still hear the picking up of papers, shuffling and putting them down, so I go up and walked to the bottom of the stairs. All the windows upstairs were closed because the bosses had left, so I called up the stairs “hello.” No reply came back at me. I checked the alarm by the door as it tells you which zones are active because there is someone in them, and the only zone that it picked up was the zone that I was in. At this point I turned my pc off, picked up my bag and left.

Last night I was alone, yet again, and I felt a strange pressure against my left foot. I looked under my desk and discovered… nothing. Why the ghost decided he wanted to push against my foot is beyond me. Perhaps he has a foot fetish?

There have been other incidents where other people in the office have heard the shuffling and Pam has also heard the door open and close, so I know it’s not my imagination playing tricks on me.

Jun 29, 2010

Jewellery Photos

Here are two of the necklaces that I made this weekend.

This is the first one, and the one that I like the most. It's very earthy, and it's the necklace that I was wearing when Faith asked me to make her some earrings.


This necklace is very much wedding / evening wear, but I still like it. I've doubled up the strands to make a twisting/linking design.

My Reading List

I have so many books sitting on my shelf that I have yet to get around to reading.
Below is the list of the books that I own and am either making my way through, or have yet to tackle.

  • The Once and Future King: T.H. White - Currently reading
  • The Da Vinci Code: Dan Brown - Possibly next on the list to read
  • This Present Darkness: Frank E. Peretti
  • Piercing the Darkness: Frank E. Peretti
  • Prophet: Frank E. Peretti
  • Angelology: Danielle Trussoni - When it arrives
So I have a few to make my way through before I buy any more.

Amazon slashes international Kindle price

This is one thing that has been on my "christmas shopping list" for a while now. I would like a Kindle Reader, but the price of them has put me off buying one. I see that the price has come down quite drastically. Perhaps its time to move the Kindle up the shopping list a little?


Article from Tech Central
Amazon slashes international Kindle price
US e-retailer Amazon.com has slashed the international price of its Kindle 2 e-book reader as competition hots up.

The price has been cut from US$279 at its international launch last October, to $189 (about R1 400) now. With shipping and other costs, the new price works out to about R1 800 for SA shoppers. The larger-format Kindle DX remains $489.

The Kindle 2 price cut comes just months after Apple unveiled the iPad, which, like the Kindle, also features an online bookstore.

Amazon is facing increasing competition in the e-reader market, not only from Apple, but also from US retailer Barnes & Noble and its recently unveiled Nook device.

An announcement from Barnes & Nobile that it was cutting the price of the Nook to $199 (from $259) may have been the main reason for Amazon’s decision to slash the price of the Kindle.
Read more...

iHeart Market - This weekend!

The i heart market is this weekend all! For July it is being held at the Hellenic Community Centre, but is normally held at the DLI Hall in Durbz, next to the race course.


Saturday, July 3, 2010  |  8:30am - 1:00pm
Hellenic Centre - 5 High Grove, Umgeni Park, Durban

Hip City Guide

Check out the Hip City Guide for DURBAN

Dreams and wishes...


There are little things in life that I miss with not having a boyfriend… Closeness, hugs, little hello and goodbye kisses, secret smiles and special glances. Whoever says that being single is better than being together with someone is either in a really terrible relationship, or is feeling miserable about being single and doesn’t want to admit it. I know I sound like I’m having a minor pity party here, and to be honest I’m not. I’m simply reflecting on my life and wishing for a little bit of something “more.”

Good morning all!

It’s another sunny winter’s day on the east coast, and I’m ready to get cracking with my day. I got home around 7:00ish last night, had a quick dinner and then proceeded to make Faith a pair of earrings. She had seen the necklace I was wearing yesterday that I had made (pictures to follow soonish), and asked me if I could make her a pair of earthy-coloured earrings. It takes me about one-and-a-half to two hours to make a pair, but I enjoyed it. She also loved them, which makes my heart happy.

Let me know what you think of them!

Jun 28, 2010

Coconut Chicken

I love all things Chicken. It's possibly my favourite meat, and certainly a very versatile one.
What's For Dinner features some amazing chicken recipes and this is one of my favourites from that website:


Ingredients:
  • 8 chicken pieces
  • 15ml oil
  • 1 sachet Knorr Fresh Ideas Chicken Pepper Pan
  • 6 cloves
  • 30ml tomato sauce
  • Fresh coriander leaves to garnish
  • 2 red onions, sliced
  • 1 x 400g tin coconut milk
  • 2ml garlic
  • 3 Robertsons bay leaves
  • 15ml curry powder
(Note that the recipe includes 3ml of fresh ginger and trimmed green beans. I don't really think that the ginger is necessary and I dislike cooked green beans, so I leave those two ingredients out).
 
Method:
  1. Brown chicken pieces in oil and add onions
  2. Fry for a few minutes
  3. Add remaining ingredients except fresh green beans and simmer for 30-40 minutes until cooked
  4. Serve with jasmine rice and sprinkle with fresh coriander

Tia's Granola Fruit & Nut Muesli - Wheat Free

My favourite breakfast cereal, second only to Kellogg's All-Bran Flakes...

Quick life catch up

In an attempt to not turn my blog into a “Dear Fluffy” I’m going to say start off by saying “hi everyone

Where to begin…

Well, life is good. A tad busy, but good. As I mentioned in a previous post, my weekend away with Jay is booked. I have this feeling in my stomach when I think about this weekend away. I guess you could call it anxiety, or maybe excitement, or probably a mixture of both. I have all these questions going around in my head, the scariest of which is “will he like me?” Seems a bit of a silly question because we get on so well, but it’s always there in the back of my mind… Will he like me? When I stop thinking about that question and start focusing on the actual weekend, I find myself smiling quite a lot. It’s going to be great to get away, and it will give Jay and I time to actually get to know one another face-to-face. After all, there is only so much you can learn about a person via sms or phone calls. I just don't want anything to go wrong this weekend away... He's such a great guy that sometimes I wonder if I'm dreaming rather than receiving the sms's and phone calls from him. AND he has such a nice voice on the phone…

Well, that’s the one aspect of my life. The other is that I’m a sucker for punishment. I distinctly recall telling myself at the beginning of the year that I wasn’t going to shoot any more weddings. Well, Pat talked me into shooting his wedding. I feel sick from stress when I think about it. It’s not even shooting the wedding so much as it is the editing part afterwards. Actually, who am I kidding, the shooting part is also stressing me out. I need to check and see what time this thing is being held, and make plans from there. I’m just sad that I’m not going to be at my friend’s wedding and just enjoy it. *bang head on desk* Ag well, I guess that’s just the way it is.

On the home front, all is well. Mom is doing ok, grandpa is still invading… SSDD.
Mom has bought two decoders now, so that I can watch a different channel of DSTV in my room to the one that is showing in the lounge. Since grandpa got back from his holiday in Canada I think I’ve watched a total of 5 hours of TV. I just hate the programmes that he watches, so I end up beading or playing PS2 games. I suppose I can thank him, because I’ve leveled up my characters up quite a lot and am almost finished my game. Still… the whole space invasion is getting to me somewhat. The only real solution is for me to move into a place on my own, which is looking more and more likely as the months go on, but I’m still thinking about it. I can’t afford to move at this point, but perhaps in the new year? It will certainly make life easier if Jay and I do end up becoming some form of couple (I know I’m jumping the gun somewhat, but I’m just saying that at least we wouldn’t have to go away every time he came to visit).

I’ve moved into my own office space. It’s still open-plan, because there is a hole in the wall between my current office and my old office which I shared with Katia. I have to say though, as nice as it is… I feel… I dunno… Disconnected? Ag, well, I’m sure I’ll get over that feeling eventually.

Work is insanely busy, but my brain is sore from looking at the manual that I’m working on… hence the break and the post.

As you saw below, I’m going to take up glass bead making… eventually. When I am more into that I will post more about it.

I was going through some of my old posts and I actually don’t believe that I ever thought that Chris was relationship material. He’s such a chop. Did I ever tell you that the day that he stood me up for dinner, was actually the day that he left and moved to CT. He didn’t tell me! I found out via Facebook that he had moved. Ya know… that guy… *shakes head*… Good luck to the poor woman that ever ends up with him. She is going to need it.

Anyways, I best get on with my day.
x

Angelology

Fluffy, I ordered a new book this weekend from Kalahari.net
It's called Angelology.

More about the book:
Set in the secluded world of cloistered abbeys, long-lost secrets and angelic humans, "Angelology" has all the makings of a blockbuster hit, combining elements of "The Da Vinci Code" and Kate Mosse's "Labyrinth"

Sister Evangeline was just a young girl when her father left her at St. Rose Convent under the care of the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration. Now a young woman, she has unexpectedly discovered a collection of letters dating back sixty years - letters that bring her deep into a closely guarded secret, to an ancient conflict between the millennium-old Society of Angelologists and the monstrously beautiful Nephilim, the descendants of angels and humans. Rich and mesmerizing, Angelology blends biblical lore, mythology and the fall of the Rebel Angels, creating a luminous, riveting tale of one young woman caught in a battle that will determine the fate of the world.
 
Editorial Review - Publishers Weekly vol. 257 iss. 4 p. 92 (c) 01/25/2010

A covert age-old war between angels and humans serves as the backdrop for Trussoni’s gripping tale of supernatural thrills and divine destinies. Sister Evangeline, the secretary who handles all inquiries concerning the archives of angel arcana at an upstate New York convent, receives a letter from researcher V.A. Verlaine inquiring about an unknown link between the convent and philanthropist Abigail Rockefeller dating to 1943. It turns out that the Rockefellers were interested in a legendary artifact associated with an order of fallen angels. That priceless artifact is coveted by Verlaine’s employer, Percival Grigori, a Nephilim—offspring of the union between mortal and angel parents—who will stop at nothing to retrieve it for the awesome power it will give his race over humanity. Trussoni (Falling Through the Earth ) anchors this fanciful dark fantasy to a solid foundation built from Catholic church history, biblical exegesis, and apocryphal texts. Suspenseful intrigues and apocalyptic battle scenes give this complexly plotted tale a vigor and vitality all the more exciting for its intelligence. 9-city author tour. (Mar.)

The Once and Future King, by T.H. White

I’m reading The Once and Future King by T.H. White and it’s, honestly, one of the best books I’ve ever read. It’s basically a collection of books (5 in total) written by T.H. White on the life of King Arthur of Camelot.

The books that make up this fantastic book are:

The Sword in the Stone
The Queen of Air and Darkness
The Ill-Made Knight
The Candle in the Wind
The Book of Merlyn

At the moment I’m still on the first book, The Sword in the Stone, and I have to say Fluff, the Disney story doesn’t come close to the book. That actually surprised me, because the old Disney films were quite different to the Disney films of today. They were rich and full of blood and guts (if you don’t believe me, watch Snow White). Did you know that in the Sword in the Stone you actually get to meet Robin Hood (whom they say is actually called Robin Wood)? When I’ve read all the books I’ll give you a bit more of a review, but I have to say Fluffy, that if you feel like reading a good book at some point in the near future, this is one to get :)

Missing you as always!

Jun 25, 2010

Lampwork Beads

Hi Fluffy!

I have to tell you, I'm so excited! This year is turning out to be a bit of an adventure! I've got Pat's wedding down the coast, the first week in August. Jay and I are going to the Midlands in September (all booked), and I'm going to start making lampwork (glass) beads... Or at least, I'm going to go for lessons and see how I go.

It's something that I've always wanted to do, so I hope I do ok with the lesson. Through a series of website searches I eventually ended up emailing a guy at a company called Glass and Fire in PTA. Johan (the guy from G&F) said that the only person he knows of in KZN that may offer lessons is a woman called Barbara who lives in PMB. Anyways, I contact Barbara, and she said that she's overseas at the moment, but when she gets back we can do lessons. They're not cheap (R120/h), but I that's ok... Nothing worthwhile in life was ever easy or came cheap. The first lesson is a two hour introductory lesson, and then she said that after that I can decide if I want to carry on with it or not. I've decided that I'm going to make and sell both the beads and beaded jewellery. If not, why not?

Check out some of the images below that I found on the web for inspiration: