Day 17: Saturday, October 31

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!

This morning I cleaned up around the house, and I spent some time online.  I listed my first item on Ebay EVER to see how their posting process works.

In a more Halloween spirit (ha ha), I started reading the book Stiff : The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers again.  I first tried to read it about two years ago while I was still in school, and somewhere along the line it fell by the wayside.

It’s really cool, though, and talks about historical views of how cadavers should be handled vs. current-day applications.

There is a chapter about the “body farm” in Tennessee, where corpses are subjected to a variety of conditions such as being left in the sun, or in the trunk of a car, or in a shallow grave, and scientists measure the rate at which the bodies decompose and the level of particular chemicals that are found in the bodies and surrounding soil at different points during the decomposition.  This helps forensic scientists to better date crime scene bodies and solve cases.  Yay!

Another chapter discusses how cadavers are used in crash tests to improve car safety and to improve other products.  And how there was a market for body snatchers back in the day when no one wanted to donate their body to science because they felt that they would physically need it in the afterlife.  Wow!

And I’m sure that this has been better developed and researched since the time that the book was written, but there is a chapter on the disposal of bodies which talks about “tissue digestion” as an alternative to burial or cremation, where basically the body mass is reduced through water and lye instead of fire (or, I suppose natural reduction from bacteria).  It’s supposed to be cheaper overall and cause less damage to the environment.  Neat!

*****

Later in the evening, Ryan and I went to a Halloween party at our friend’s house.

Guess who we are!

We were all supposed to head to this bar for a costume contest at midnight, however, the contest was held before we got there.  This was a bit of a disappointment considering that the owner of the bar knew that my pal was bringing a lot of folks along specifically for the contest.  Plus, a lot party-goers thought that I would have won.

Bummer!

Either way, we had a great time and met a lot of new people.

Day 16: Friday, October 30

I often debate whether-or-not I should leave the house each day.

Honestly, I don’t mind being home because I have a variety of projects that I could work on.  However, it is nice to reconnect myself with the world periodically.  I just don’t want to waste too much time or money doing something just to do it.

I’m glad that I went out today, though.  It was very warm and beautiful outside.  My mission was to try and find a navy blue headband to wear with my Halloween costume.  It’s not life-threatening, but it would be more accurate to the character.

I checked like 3-4 stores, and navy headbands are surprisingly difficult to locate (unless you want one of those gumbands that slide off your head ’cause you’re misshapen…)

Anyway, it was nice to drive around with the window open on probably our last really warm day of the year.

When I got home, I spent most of the afternoon taking pictures of some jewelry that I want to post online.

Here are my latest handmade pieces:

I also made some pretty hardcore chili.  Ryan said it was the best he’s tasted.

Yeah, I’m pretty awesome…

Day 15: Thursday, October 29

So staying up late finally caught up with me today.

The past few nights, I’ve gone to bed after 1:30 AM and have been waking up at 7:30 AM.  This morning I got up at 7:30 as well, but after Ryan left for work I fell asleep on the living room floor for another few hours.

(I often sit on the floor and work on my laptop, which sits on the coffee table.  So I guess I just leaned over at some point and passed out?)

One of my dreams incorporated dialogue from the Bonnie Hunt show, which comes on at 11.  I think Michael Jackson’s sister was on.

In the afternoon, I finally experimented with drilling stones.  You have to keep the stone submersed in water, and drill in short spurts so it doesn’t overheat.

Luckily I didn’t get electrocuted.  At least I use a flex shaft, so I hung the motor up away from the pan of water and covered up the table and foot pedal with towels.

All other casualties were kept to a minimum as well.  A couple of stones broke because they were thin, but not because I messed up the drilling.

After a couple of hours of piercing whirs, I decided to stop before the neighbors knocked down the door with their torches and pitchforks.

Spent the rest of the night making jewelry and listening to some  Halloween episodes of shows on TV.  Can’t wait ’til Saturday!

Day 14: Wednesday, October 28

Today was kind of slow.

I did normal stuff like balance my checkbook, mail out some bills, and run some errands.  Ryan came home from work kind of early, and we went to his dad’s house to visit and borrow an amp.

We did finally make it to Sonic, though.  A new one opened up in Parma and every time we’ve tried to stop there for food, it’s been so busy that they’ve had kids in the parking lot directing traffic, and lines circled around the building.

Not that they’re food is that amazing, but it’s a novelty.

Once we got home, I stayed up late making jewelry.

Day 13: Tuesday, October 27

Biggest news today: I made it into the Handmade Arcade!!  It’s on Saturday, December 12, in Pittsburgh.

It’s one of the biggest Indie Craft Shows in the area (along with shows like Bazaar Bizaare and Craftin’ Outlaws), which typically display work by and for the younger “alternative” crowd.

You know, instead of embroidered snowmen hand towels you might find stuffed monster dolls or jewelry made from recycled materials like this:

(Shameless self promotion… but isn’t that what blogs are for?)

Anyway, I’m not the only one involved — I’ll be sharing a table with my sister, Amanda!  She makes lovely jewelry and handmade cards, too!

Hooray!

*****

In other news, I spray painted some clear coat on my furniture outside, washed my beach rocks from LAKE DAY, and worked on some new jewelry pieces.  I’m hoping to list some new items in my Etsy shop in the next day or two.

Day 12: Monday, October 26

This morning I applied for a few jobs I found online and cleared up some things with Unemployment.   I think I’ve met all of the qualifications, now, so should be rolling in the dough any day now… ha ha.

Ryan got home from work pretty early, so we went grocery shopping together.  It’s always nice for me to go to the store with a buddy because otherwise I can get lost for hours in there.  Comparing prices, choosing the best cracker…

We met a really nice lady in the the spice section who directed us to the most economical brand (which by the way, was Giant Eagle’s Market District).  She overheard us talking about cumin that retails at about $5 per like 0.025 ounces and showed us the other jars.  Also pointed out the cayenne pepper for us.

She told us that she was just looking around for some new things to try.  I like running into people like that.  Doesn’t happen too often in Cleveland.

Why the exotic spices, you ask?

Well, I found this recipe online for hummus and wanted to try it out.  Forgot to buy sesame tahini, though.

So I substituted sesame oil for the tahini and olive oil and that part seemed to work.  Kind of lemony, but worth trying again.

Meanwhile, Ryan made a pretty excellent tuna salad.

In the evening, I went out with some old work pals to talk about the good old days.  A couple of them lost their jobs, too, so we had a mini support group.  With beer.  Great good fun.

Finished off the evening by watching the new Dexter.

Day 11: Sunday, October 25

Ryan and I had a little Daylight Savings scare this morning.  When we woke up, his computer said 7AM, while our kitchen clocks said 8AM.  Our phones also said 8AM, but I figured that we needed to turn them off then back on to reset them.  That didn’t help, so we looked up Daylight Savings, and apparently it’s next weekend.

I nearly filed a complaint with my mom, too.  She generally keeps me up-to-date on these types of events, and I hadn’t heard a thing about it.

*****

Anyway, I find that it’s important to celebrate ethnic diversity in my breakfast foods.  Behold, my multicultural pancakes!

Okay, so it’s not intentional — I just can’t keep the heat and timing consistent.  At least the taste isn’t affected.  For most of them.

After breakfast, I touched up some of the paint on the black furniture and worked on our Halloween costumes.  You’ll have to wait until next weekend to see the final results on our costume choices.

On a somber note, Sunday evening cartoons were canceled tonight due to some baseball thing.  So I did some online searches for jobs and reviewed my unemployment paperwork.  Though they will be helping me in my time of need, the unemployment organization itself needs a little work.  In a letter I was directed to call in to sign up for some job search site, but on the phone I was directed to their website, but then their web site wouldn’t load.  Egads.  Once I get through this bout of unemployment I’m hoping to not have to do it again.

Day 10: Saturday, October 24

I spent the early part of the day painting my tiny craft show furniture.  Most of the living room was off-limits while the pieces dried on layers of newspaper and cut-open garbage bags, and I’m happy to say that there were no black paint disasters on the beige carpeting.  Once somewhat dry, I moved the pieces to the kitchen table to preserve the clean carpet streak.

Here are the final results:

Still need to spray a final clear coat on for protection, but you get the gist.  I ended up taking the gaudy upholstered lid off the piece on the right.  It kind of smelled…

I then conquered the mountain of trash and dishes in the kitchen.  It’s amazing how our trash will be fine all week, but then will need to be dealt with on Saturday, the day before garbage day.  Like it can’t be ready to go outside on Wednesday, or just wait until Sunday.  Kind of disappointing.

I spent the evening with my old roommate, Alison.  We did some window shopping and grabbed some dinner.  Hooray for cheesecake!

Afterward, I went to Wal Mart to get some supplies for Halloween costumes for myself and Ryan.  We were potentially going to a Halloween party tonight, but didn’t really feel up to it, and ended up staying in.

Day 9: Friday, October 23

Slept in today (until about 8:30), and bummed around the house in the morning.  It’s amazing how the meaning of the phrase “sleep in” changes over time…

I gave Ryan a pretty dapper haircut, but I always freak him out when I make comments like, “I can’t find my guide” or “Oh well, no one will notice” while I’m in the process of cutting.  He was pleased, though, when it was all said-and-done.

It’s been dark and rainy all day, so I was in no hurry to go outside.  Our only commitment for the day was that Ryan had a check-up at the doctors office at 3:15 PM (he’s okay).

Before then, we stopped by the hardware store so I could get some black paint for my garage sale furniture (see prior posts).

We also checked out one of those temporary Halloween stores for costume ideas.  We were invited to a party next weekend and need to out-do last year by actually wearing costumes this time…

Halloween is just about my favorite holiday of all time, but I can never seem to think of a creative costume.  It’s like how in Dogma Salma Hayak played a muse who inspired all of the top-grossing movies of all time, but couldn’t think of anything to write for herself.  You know, that fictional character in a made-up movie who has the same problems that I have.

Anyway, we were considering working together on costumes.  One thought was to be Bunsen and Beaker because I’m short and round, while Ryan’s tall — and speaks incoherently?

Or, Bert and Ernie because I’m short and round while Ryan’s tall.

Or, Mario and Luigi because I’m short and round (and 1/4 Italian!) and Ryan’s — well, you see where I’m going with this.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.  I am thinking about being the Progressive girl because I think she’s cute and I do like having insurance.  Ryan may end up just being a girl.

Day 8: Thursday, October 22

I spent the first half of the day at garage/estate sales.  I know I have a problem…

Really, though, I figure that I should potentially stock up on supplies now before the sales cease due to the weather.

See, I have a plan.

*****

I overheard some interesting dialogue between some fellow shoppers.  Basically they were all senior citizens who had arrived separately, but know each other based on what other sales they had attended.  They all sounded like antique dealers, and talked about how so-and-so can’t go to sales on the West Side because they had “made too many enemies,” or how all of the antique toys at this one person’s estate sale couldn’t have all belonged to the original owner of the house, or how the people running this sale were “eBay people” (said in a less-than-friendly tone).

Man, I didn’t realize antiquing was so cutthroat.   I was just looking for some pretty junk jewelry that I could tear apart.

Oh, and in an attempt to haggle (because I thought that was supposed to be a given at garage sales), I brought a handful of jewelry to the woman running the second sale and asked what I could get for fifteen dollars (knowing my total for everything was supposed to be a little more than that).  She then went on to count out my items until she reached fifteen dollars exactly and told me that she “doesn’t dick around with amounts under twenty dollars on the first day of a sale.”

Geeze louise, I was just trying to fit in…

*****

At home I spent a lot of time cutting out some new metal pieces and organizing my craft space.  You could even say that I was “working in my studio” — that is, if sitting on the living room floor counts as spending time in a “studio.”

Tomorrow Ryan has the day off of work.  I’m not sure what his plans are, but if he wants to frolic off and do his own thing I may try sanding/painting that furniture I bought last week.

Or, I saw some tuturials on YouTube for drilling holes through stones, so may attempt to do that with the beach glass I collected yesterday.  You’re supposed to keep the stones and drill bit wet so that they don’t overheat and cause the stone to break from friction.  So if I don’t post tomorrow, you’ll know that I got electrocuted from getting water on my flex shaft.