The Fringe Element

This is my project for the night, bead fringe on curtains. So far, it has taken up three episodes of Star Trek TNG. Seems like I am easily entertained, I need only beads and Klingons.

Oh, and chocolate,

Normal Girl

Glorious

Yep. There it is. Bead overdose. I bought this all in my fav bead store yesterday. It is all for work, so I did not even look at the receipt. Still haven't. The bead store owner said, "I don't know what you are working on, but you have a pile of gorgeous." hahahaha It looked a little better separated into color stories than it does all mixed together.

This represents a lot of work for the weekend. But if you have to work, it might as well be on a pile of gorgeous, right?

I love a day when I chain myself to the table in the studio, watch movies, and bead.

Normal Girl

Summers of Old

I made myself a Mamas and Papas Pandora station and I have been listening to it this summer so far. It has made me think about summers as a teenager. Those were the days. We used to lay in the sun during the day, oiled up with baby oil and listening to WHNN play the 5th Dimension, Peter, Paul and Mary, Simon and Garfinkel..... Even on freeing Michigan days, we would put a space blanket under us in order to stay warm enough to do it. Crazy, and I have the age spots to prove it. And I would work at the City Dairy in the evenings...making all kinds of ice cream confections. It was a fun job....I think I made $2 an hour, but it was fun.

Not sure why my thoughts have wandered to the past. Does it happen why you start getting older? Or when your life is not quite where you want it to be? Or maybe when you just would live to have a weekend by a lake and a tree with nothing to do?

Happy July 4th weekend everyone, I wish you time to relax and I thank God that we all have the freedom to do it.

Normal Girl

And we went camping nearly every week end. This pic was taken at Otsego Lake State Park. We must have gone sight seeing, we are pretty dressed up for camping.

1500 Calories

While I am prepping to sit and write my very interesting and engaging thesis tonight, I leave you with this.

Talk amongst yourselves,

Normal Girl

Reading

Something weird and scary happened to me tonight. I was in the airport waiting for flights to be resumed after some bad weather. Not wanting to read anything scholarly, I moseyed into the bookstore to buy something else. I looked at all the books and magazines and not one thing appealed to me. Not a single thing! What is that??

I have not read any fiction in ages, just texts and research. Has school ruined me for reading junk???? I can hardly stand the thought! What will I do???

Tired of reading to learn and yet I must!

Normal Girl

History Buttoned Up

I am spending a couple days at the office of Blumenthal Lansing this week. You know them, they sell buttons, and have been selling buttons since 1877. So, I am in Carlstadt, New Jersey and the office is across the street from the big warehouse where they make the Macy's parade floats. No sightings yet, but I am watching. Word is they are making a new Santa float.

It has been an interesting and enjoyable week. The walls of the office hold the history of buttons. It is fascinating. There is a display case like this for each decade, and then some.

Each has a short history lesson.

The pearl buttons are my fav. Buttons really used to be works of art. Look at these amazing things!

For sure, I do not have a garment that could manage these, but aren't they gorgeous?

One hallway has magazine ads from all eras. This one from the 50s.

This one from 1970. Apparently any dummy could sew on a button in 1970. These days, I am not so sure. I think I knew more people that cannot sew on a button than can.

Anyway, it has been so very interesting to see where they have been and where they are going.

Normal Girl

Hotel Happiness

Here I am in Somewhere, NJ. It is making me happy to get to stay in my favorite hotel chain of all time, the Residence Inn. This one is very nice, nicer than my house. And I can turn the air conditioning on as much as I want without worrying about the electricity bill.

Hotel with a sense of humor...

Fun with buttons tomorrow!

Normal Girl