Tag Archive | signal boost

Tuesday Morning, Still full

Yesterday for dinner we had a sort-of-goulash made from tomatoes Mom left when she visited, and apple crisp made with apples from our tree. There’s a sense of happy homeyness about that that I love.

I patched T’s jeans the other day, and I’ve been looking up canning and other food-preservation. It makes me feel like I’ve come full circle. Which (along with a conversation with cluudle) has brought me to a thought I had in college, a magazine I wanted to publish.

The ideas are a little vague after *cough cough* years, but, loosely – a sort of practical Mother Earth News / Foxfire / different ways of doing things. Both how-tos and, if I get brave enough, histories and interviews.

If I were to do something like that, what sort of thing would you be interested in reading about?

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haikujaguar posted a call to cover artists so that she can begin a list of cover-artists-for-hire.

Autumn’s story written to comments/linkbacks/donations to Meeks’ sketch of Autumn is still hanging out there, waiting for more love.

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http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/making_grape_juice/ Grape Juice! (we have a lot of grapes)

http://www.etsy.com/listing/53092763/yarn-wreath-felt-handmade-door?ref=sc_2 I love argyle. I may have to make this.

This entry was originally posted at http://aldersprig.dreamwidth.org/138477.html. You can comment here or there.

Monday, tired and accomplished

I’ve been remiss in posting lately; this has been a combination of tired (sick + busy) and busy (busy + busy) 😉

This weekend, my parents came down to help us install a new window in the bedroom-to-be (the old one was leaking air and a general mess). Of course, it rained all weekend, but we have a new window, my mother cleaned our kitchen (it sparkles. How does rough ceramic tile sparkle? O_O), and we had two nice meals together.

Step one in bedroom remodel: done. Step two – find a plumber not occupied, difficult as two nearby counties were recently flooded in Irene. The baseboard radiators need to be redone/replaced/moved so we can have a closet.

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Until noon EDT today (you have 3 hours!) rebelsheart is offering a microfic fishbowl. Read the piece to my prompt!

Dakotabailey is doing a free icon day.

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I want this Ferris wheel. I have absolutely no place for it. But it’s cute.

This entry was originally posted at http://aldersprig.dreamwidth.org/137622.html. You can comment here or there.

Friday, Pensive.

I’ve been thinking, after some conversation with cluudle about the nature of friendships, most specifically the idea that it’s okay to stop being friends with someone. Not sure where I’m going with that one yet; it still feels foreign.

I do know I have some really awesome friends, and some people who I call friends who are really not awesome, some people who have hurt me by their soi-dissant friendship. (Hint: If I am following you on this blog, I’m not talking about you in the “bad friend” category).

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Cheerful stuff!

It’s apparently Bisexuality Visibility Day. So, um, hi, I’m bi.

[personal profile] lilfluff wrote a piece maybe-in-Cali.

[personal profile] clare_dragonfly wrote a piece to my prompt.

Rix_Scadeau commented on the [personal profile] meeks drawing, so have a little more Autumn.

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Castle Playsets – http://www.yutzysfarmmarket.com/swingsets/castle-playsets/cozy_retreat_playset.php

Spy Jacket – http://www.scottevest.com/v3_store/Carry-on-Coat.shtml

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This entry was originally posted at http://aldersprig.dreamwidth.org/133510.html. You can comment here or there.

Wednesday Good thing/Bad Thing

Good: The electrician came yesterday and fixed several things that needed fixing – disconnecting the old, scary boiler, putting in GFI’s, fixing the exterior plug that was open to the elements.

Bad: He turned off the new, non-scary boiler and we didn’t notice until we woke cold this morning.

Good: I’m back on the wagon losing weight.

Bad: Despite the 50 lbs I took off, alderfather has not yet quit smoking. Everyone now! Boo, hiss, Bad Father!!

Good: For only the second time since going on his sugar-cat diet, Drake let me sleep through the night without demanding food.

Bad: Nightmares anyway.

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[personal profile] clare_dragonfly‘s Garden of Prose writing is awesome, check it out.

And I began an Autumn story (LJ) in hopes of getting more comments on Meeks’ sketch of Autumn (DW) ; for every comment, I’ll post 100 more words.

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Links today are castle-based…

http://zenseeker.net/Castle/MiniCastles.htm
http://www.custommade.com/custom-arched-castle-doors/by/nopsmetalworks
http://www.yutzysfarmmarket.com/swingsets/castle-playsets/cozy_retreat_playset.php

This entry was originally posted at http://aldersprig.dreamwidth.org/132812.html. You can comment here or there.

Morning, with a small signal boost

It’s raining! Or at least grey-ing very actively.

I put together a set of wire shelves (we <3 wire shelving) last night to serve as a closet until we can finish the bedroom. Yay having closet space!

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[personal profile] clare_dragonfly is hosting a call for prompts; her theme is herbs, and there are tip incentives.

(herbs! I had fun with that prompt!)

My own Call is on writing-the-donor-extensions, and then I will put up a poll to determine which other story gets extended. (Also – any ideas for themes?)

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Two links for the morning:
http://www.theblaze.com/stories/you-have-to-see-the-441-sq-ft-garage-this-man-calls-home/ (this is pretty cool)

and one more goat house: http://catfishgallery.blogspot.com/2009/09/goat-house.html (not a house, actually, more of a playground).

This entry was originally posted at http://aldersprig.dreamwidth.org/131829.html. You can comment here or there.

Monday, after a productively desctructive weekend

This weekend, T. spent large chunks of time ripping large chunks of overgrown undergrowth out – what had thought was razor-wire-like-vines over a bush turned out to be razor-wire-like-vines over more of the same, for instance, and there are grape vines growing over everything; there are entire TREES that have been choked out by grape vines in our hedgerow. (I hear grape burns nicely).

Plus side: we know the soil’s good for grapes, which are on our list of to-cultivate plants (just not, ah, trellised up the 40′ pine?).

Today, T. and I were dragging piles of chopped vines into the hedgerow (mulch!); I asked:

“Is that an apple behind you?”

“In the pine tree?”

“We have pine-grapes, why not pine-apples?”

And, indeed, we have pine-apples (A small apple tree growing right up against the pine tree, putting out different apples than either of the other two apples on the property…)

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Michikip is holding another free icon day, and [personal profile] ysabetwordsmith has given me an idea for naming my prompt-calls, so I’ve commissioned a giraffe icon from Michikip.

Speaking of Ysabet, head over to her journal for a discussion on her serial poetry and an overview of her poetic series

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I am working on longer prompts now for this past weekend’s call for prompts – if you donated, please finalize where you would like your wordcount to go. If you would like to donate, I am counting all donations to continue prompt work this week at $0.01/word.

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Today’s links come from the awesome cluudle, who believes (as I do), that our theoretical pygmy goats deserve a castle.

<a href="
http://blogs.riverfronttimes.com/dailyrft/2009/06/behold_the_tower_of_baaa_findlay_goat_tower.php”>Tower of Baa-ble
http://i.imgur.com/5LdZT.jpg

“Goat castle is the best google image search ever”

<a href="http://listsoplenty.com/pix/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/goat-castle.jpg
“>another shot of Baa-ble

This entry was originally posted at http://aldersprig.dreamwidth.org/131276.html. You can comment here or there.

Monday, with caulk jokes and no cock

Friday, we caulked the tub in the House. Well, I tried, ruined my favorite shirt (still sad about that), and made a mess. It turns out I’m not very good at caulking. 🙁 T., on the other hand, is pretty good at it.

I can be a bit puerile at times, though, so there were more than a few “caulk” jokes flung about while I was making a mess – and the ugly tub is a bit less horrid for the new, clean, white caulk (however, the shower doesn’t work. Guess I’m getting new tub faucets sooner rather than later (the lever you “pull up for shower” is no longer attached to anything).

Then we were at Lowes ordering a window, sort of shooting the shit with the windows-and-doors guy, and I was talking about learning to use tools from my father, and the salesman asked…

“Did you dad always want a son?”…

I swear, power tools and carpentry and toy trucks and I don’t think anyone has ever asked this. I think I answered “No, he just didn’t see any reason I shouldn’t know how to use tools,” which is probably accurate (Dad? Close?).

Wow.

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Djinni is having another free icon day; tips are appreciated & incentivized but not required. If you’re not familiar with Djinni’s work, here are 4 icons he’s done for me:

and some more

Did I mention [personal profile] meeks has illustrated Autumn in the very first story I wrote about her?

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Link du jour: a lego bedroom

This entry was originally posted at http://aldersprig.dreamwidth.org/127807.html. You can comment here or there.

Thursday with the urge to spend

The more time I spend thinking about the new house, the more I want to Buy All The Things for it. Part of this is totally justified – there’s a lot of Things that need buying for this place. But I have to be reasonable (I hate being reasonable) and prioritize the Need It To Live, and the Too Ugly to Bear, and then the Decorating Things can come later.

We ha- I haven’t worked much on the house since Tuesday (T. spent much of yesterday over there, in the pouring rain). The bathroom is the current project, fixing some O_O and some WTF into tolerable, adding towel rods, etc.

The previous owners left stuff, and then for good measure, stuff, all over the place. The current found list includes:

At least 4 toddler trucks (the ride-on-them sort)
Two screw-top bottles of wine
8 gallons of paint, all opened
5 vases
1 set of bedding, incl. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles pillowcase
and a bedframe.

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[personal profile] meeks has illustrated (LJ) my story the Deep Inks; she’s also illustrated (LJ) [personal profile] ysabetwordsmith‘s poem Restoration.

(Comments help sponsor more work on the project; if you have not commented on Meeks’ work before, tell her I sent you! 🙂

[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith wrote a lot of lovely stuff from this fishbowl, but of the stuff that’s public, I like this the most.

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Links of the day – a very small cabin and

via [personal profile] ysabetwordsmith, and relevant to my fae apoc history writing: a potential ancestor

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Vocab will return when I’m less exhausted all the time.

This entry was originally posted at http://aldersprig.dreamwidth.org/126750.html. You can comment here or there.

Tuesday? With tired.

Too tired for a real post, sorry.

The house is so much cleaner. Pictures soon. Still ugly, but we’re slowly working on that. Soon, Lowes will know us by name (one cashier already recognizes us; T’s height makes us distinctive).

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Ysabet’s fishbowl seems to still be going – theme is pets and livestock 😉

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We own a home. *boggles*

Also? If you were wondering, cluudle, CaprioxBovidae, [personal profile] inventrix and daHob are absolutely awesome people.

…we really seriously own a home.

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Home decorating links!! Via Remodelista

awesome table Linens (literally!)

Bamboo Kitchen! (have I mentioned that Pandas who are Lyns LOVE bamboo?)

Cork Bath Mat! *giggle*

This entry was originally posted at http://aldersprig.dreamwidth.org/125821.html. You can comment here or there.