uh-oh... IT's *just* dawned on Me...

TODAY IS "FRIDAY, the 13TH"..!? -- And, I have just SPENT *MUCH* MONEY on a "NEW" CAMERA!

If I wasn't "CURSED" *BEFORE*, then I'm *probably* SURE to be NOW!

Come to think of it, IT is slightly Larger and HEAVIER than the Previous-ONE. And, Runs on a BATTERY-*PACK*... I had wanted to go the AA-Battery route again. -- Having to "RECHARGE" a PACK can be Problematic at Times..?

ANYHOO... Here's a "STOCK-FOOTAGE" Pic of My *SHINY*-NEW-[early]-CHRISTMAS-PRESENT-"TOY" from The-ELDERLY-PARENTAL-UNITS...

Actually, I'm not really crazy about the CASE... Despite being nicely-Made, IT's still seems a tad too *snug* and not as "Protective" as I would *prefer*...

And, seeing as it was absolutely FRIGID Out Today - [-25C windchill..?] - and, IT's *BLUE*. - I think I'm going to Call IT, "ICE-The-CUBE"! -- Or, perhaps IT should be "RUBIK", since I'm still TRYING to *Figure* This BLUE-BRICK out..??

I've DOWN-LOADED the "MANUAL" PDF... Just spent the last HOUR or more "flipping" through IT. -- I keep getting this "BUSY" Message on the CAMERA whenever I attempt to ACCESS Certain-Functions... Do You think that I could FIND a "Reference" - ANY Reference? - nope! nada...

HOWEVER, after MUCH "fiddling", IT's now *GONE* and I can DO "STUFF"!! -- AGAIN...

Well, I need to PUT IT *AWAY*! - MUST get to Bed... MOTHER wants to be OUT "Early"-ish. And, there's some "BIG" STORM coming..? -- Needless to Say, I doubtlessly have a *BUSY* Day ahead!

"SHOVELLING" has already been Pencilled-IN to My *SCHEDULE* for the Weekend!

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I just *KNOW* that I'm PROBABLY **FORGETTING** "SOMETHING"!?!

TOMORROW IS SISTER's BIRTHDAY... And, over the Past Months, I've been GATHERING an Assortment of STUFF for Her - that is "Located" in *DIFFERENT* Places...

At the Moment, I'm feeling like a STARVING-AMNESIC-SQUIRREL "in SEARCH of" ITS **NUTS**!!

ANYHOO... I've spent the *better* part of the Evening TRYING to CARVE a "DENT" into "THE ROOM", *hoping* to FIND Some - [ANY] - of the ITEMS that I've been INTENDING to Give to VARIOUS-RELATIVES for Their BIRTHDAYS, The HOLIDAYS, "oh-gee-There's-a-FULL-MOON-Out!", et cetera...

hmm... I bought THREE 68L RUBBERMAID STORAGE BUCKETS the Other Day -- TWO are now *stuffed* with YARN and the THIRD with RIBBONS and Additional ODD-ITEMS...

So, then. *WHY* does the VOLUME-DISPLACEMENT of "THE DENT" still *appear* to be ONLY about HALF of what Those BOXES can Hold..?!? - Not to mention, the 1.5-Cubic-Feet worth of OTHER STUFF that's already been Removed!

huh. Who knew, that ALL of My "GOOD"-CRAP had the EXPANSION-PROPERTIES of STYROFOAM?!

oh! YAY! - I *FOUND* Those CABLE-COMPANY-DIGITAL-BOX-THINGIES! -- I've got to Attach Them *SOON*... As I'm about to LOSE a Few FAV CHANNELS in a Couple of Weeks IF I don't!

nuts! - I still haveN'T located That FABRIC I wanted to Give to PRINCESSES'-MOM! - IT must be BURIED in There DEEPER than I Thought... At least, I *Think* IT's in THERE..??

MEANWHILE...

I'm trying to DECIDE, *WHICH* of THESE ALARM CLOCKS will going to BIG-D and the OTHER to ME!

-- MAY THE *CHOICE* BE WITH ME!!

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IT'S BAD ENOUGH...

THAT the *MALE* Population in This Town has always been on the Low-Side - [..Even MOTHER married An IMPORT!] - but, when a *MAIL* Strike Hits... Well...THAT is just absolutely CRUEL!
-- Especially, when One is *expecting* GOOD Mail!

Meanwhile... Another SCORCHER Day! -- Hope it Rains - [..WAIT! hang on...DID I actually just SAY That?!!..] - TONIGHT to strip some of the Excess Heat off. And, NOT *during* the Day, "When" I HAVE to be Out and About! -- HATE having to Drive IN Rain...

BTW, HERE's that Promised PIC of My *Latest* MOABOALOHA - "AUTUMN TWIST" - with STEVE!


Oh, and that "BLUE" should be
"GREEN"!! - IF, You CHECK OUT the Previous Pics of the
"MAPLE" Yarn, They more ACCURATELY depict the Proper Colour.


...cheap Digital Camera... Grrrrrrr.....













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Shopped 'til I BOXING DAY'd in!

HEY! *MARK* this one on a Calendar to Celebrate LATER! -- A *Perfect* SUNNY BOXING DAY!!

So, of course, I got up Late... I'm a "Zen-Shopper". NOT, one of those Camped-Out-For-A-Week-In-Front-Of-The-Local-MEGA-DEBT-BIG-BOX-SUPERSHOP-Hoping-To-Get-"STONES"-Tickets Types... I prefer to wait until the First and Second "Waves" of "THEM" have come and gone...

If I'm "meant" to BUY it, then it will still BE There! ...Ready to JUMP into My Arms, BEGGING Me to take it Home!

Anyway... FUTURE SHOP is only a 10-minute Walk away, as Driving there and TRYING to "Find" a Parking Spot would have taken LONGER! And, despite the -19C Windchill, it WAS Sunny, I haven't had to Shovel in almost a Week, and needed the Exercise... Also, by *not* using the Car, I had to LIMIT My Purchases to Whatever I could CARRY!

[ooooo! Evil "expensive" Thoughts...!]

I bundled up - with my *newly* Created COWL [in CHOCOLATE] that needed to be Field-Tested - and set forth...

Huh. The Store really ISN'T as Crowded as I would have expected! No doubt, due to increased Online Sales and the Fact that some of the Prices AREN'T really that Low! -- I took My Time to Browse. Grabbed another one of those 500Gb BACKUP DRIVES like "KYLIE", except in BLACK. The Price actually was *good* on that one!

Wandered some more... The DVD Prices didn't seem that "special"... Nothing exciting going on in the Computer Section either... Hmm... DIGITAL FRAMES... Actually, I *have* been wanting to get one of those for Years now... Might look COOL on My CRAFT SHOW Tables...?

Let's go have a Looksee, shall We?

So many to choose from... The "Technology" has improved. Not big on those 10-inch ones - might as well just use My LAPTOP! And the 7-inch is too small. -- BTW, seriously, What IS the deal with the hideous "Frames" on some of these Things?!

Eventually, I settled on the modestly Sale-Priced 8-inch SONY one. And, MET a most charming
"Contemporary" in the process!

-- The Aisle was empty and He was parking Himself whilst His *Techie*
"Partner" shopped. -- Meanwhile, I was enlightened with His favourable opinion on These Things and other informative Conversation ensued...




Alas, I had to take My leave, since OTHER Shopping awaited! -- I also put back the DRIVE. I really
don't need it at Present, but the FRAME is something that I have wanted for a while. And *both*,
isn't in THE BUDGET right Now.

Managed to Survive the TREK through the Parking Lots, past the Cinema, over to the STRIP MALL where the OLD NAVY is located. -- Wasn't so bad in There, either...

Anyhoo... FOUND a great Pair of BROWN Flannel-Lined Brush-Denim CARGO PANTS -- I had forgotten that I was in *need* of such! The heavier Pants that I currently have, are actually too Loose on Me! Also, picked up a few thinner "waffle" Henleys - [ASH-BROWN, TURQUOISE, LILAC-PINK] - There were also a couple of more Tops, but they weren't "on sale" or, really necessary...

Meanwhile, during My perusal of the sparse and well-picked-over "Clearance Section", I got to play "AUNTIE DRESS-UP" with a couple of younger-side 20-Somethings...

Apparently, Fashionista "Contestant" #1 was a lover of All-Clothes-BLACK, whilst Her BFF was attempting to overwhelm Her with Death-By-Colour! I believe that I managed to introduce Them both to the Concept of "CLASSIC accented with TREND"...

TRANSLATION - GIRL-IN-BLACK got to keep one BLACK [instead of the really dull GREY] Top. However, also HAD to take the Trendy CORAL one to "layer" with it! Which, would also go great with Something in a PALE BLUE later on...

Whatever, when I left Them, I believe *some* of My profound "Sage-ness" may have stuck...

And then, off to the CHECKOUT LINE I went... Oh, hey! Great Flannel Shirts over there... But, I'll LOSE My "place" in the quickly moving Queue... OH! Thank You, SHOPPING FAIRY! -- MOTHER just walked IN and has found Me!!

-- [ ELDERLY PARENTAL UNITS were to meet Me at THE MALL later with the CAR... ] --

Parked Her into My LINE-SLOT whilst I took a Minute to grab one of Those Shirts!

So. Absolutely *nothing* going on at THE MALL! However, FATHER did get His "Walk" in, and the opportunity to purchase His beloved "on sale" FRUITCAKE! -- [Pardon Me, *have* to "Cringe" for a second..] -- Well, at least I got to add on more STORE POINTS and get a Ride Home...


****************************************************

You Are WHAT You BUY...

WHICH, makes Me either "YARNFUL" *or* "CRABBY"!! Then again, in MY Case, "BOTH" pretty much sums up My Day!

WALMART went and brought out MORE Colours, AGAIN..! -- Do You have *any* idea how DIFFICULT it is for Me to come up with *new* NAMES for These Things!? Seeing as, I'm really not that fond of the ones that They are originally given... Most of the Time...

Anyhoo... Found MORE of the GUMMI GRAPE. And, it looks like IT's part of the Rest of this LOT. Let's see... That Pinkish one [TOP] is rather close in Shade to My SHELLPINK - I think I'll call it, SHELLBUD. The Mix [RIGHT] with the GUMMI GRAPE and SHELLBUD... I'm going to go with GUMDROP. And, the [BOTTOM] Greenish one - GRAPESEED. Actually, the Green should be *more* Green!

Hmm....This last one [LEFT] is tough... Okay. "For Now", let's try SHELLWOOD. [..don't ask...] -- Besides, ALL Yarn NAMES are Subject to Change Without Notice - especially, IF I come up with something BETTER!

At any rate, I picked up 14 BIG BALLS total. A "few" more than I probably should have...
There goes My CRAFT SALE "Profit"! -- I'm going to have to hire STEPHEN HAWKING to do the
"Dimensional" Math for Me. I'm sure with a tad bit of tweeking, We can find a "Reality" where this LOT, *will* FIT into THE ROOM!

And, YES... I'll admit it - I "suffer" from O.C.Y.B.D. - Obsessive-Compulsive YARN BUYING Disorder!

I should probably get T-Shirts made... Hmm... I may be on to Something here... MUST do some
"Research"...

Meanwhile, I'm thinking... that SHELLWOOD will be perfect for LITTLE PRINCESS BIG-RED's future BLANKET... I might even use the GRAPESEED instead of LIME. -- I'll have to Colour Match them with the Pictures later...

As for the REST of My Day...

• NEEDED to go to the Bank. Why is it that Everyone in FRONT of Me has 10 Minutes of Stuff to DO!?
• Big 2-Day SALE at OLD NAVY! And, of course, the DISCOUNT Coupon was for YESTERDAY!  But, hey, I got some *wicked* Reindeer PJ Bottoms!
• After dumping the Naval-ware into trunk, went down that STRIP MALL to fetch MOTHER from BOWRING... As We left, the "cha-ching" sound of "Something" BREAKING was heard... Was **NOT** Us!!
• Quickie Stop at THE MALL - No new FACTORY ENDS. Got the needed SALE Item at The Pharmacy.
• Hauled out to a certain Grocery Store. FOUND some of FATHER's Fav Yogurt - We had thought that it had been discontinued...
• Skirted the EDGE of the *new* It-has-to-be-THE-Stupidest-Place-to-PUT-it! ROUNDABOUT! Yeah.. just WAIT until the FIRST really good Accident in a Snow Storm *during* Rush Hour!
• WALMART - See ABOVE. And, My much needed Fav JUICE!
• Despite the GLARING Sunlight, encountered squally headwind on Highway heading back Toward Home... A good thing that the Car was so weighted down, as I could almost feel it LIFTING on Me a couple of times!
• Another Grocery Store.
• Back at THE MALL - where, just across from TICKET WICKET GUY, We met the Sweet and Lovely "Pre-TEENish" BRIANNA! Maker of Many CREATURES... She was selling Them for a Dollar Each for Charity... I chose THIS Guy... I'm calling Him "CRAB-BRI".

• Then, finished up with the Grocery Store there. Their Young Awesome-CHOCOLATE-Samples-DEMO-GUY became My *new* BEST FRIEND!
• Finally, as the SUN set, We arrived HOME! With MANY trips on the VERY *slippery* Patches of the "..don't worry, it'll Melt.." ICE to unload the FULL Trunk!
• I never did get around to picking up My Replacement Earphones at FUTURE SHOP...

********************************************************

I survived!!

IT WAS A DARK AND STORMY MORNING.... At least it was WHEN We started out on Our way to the CAIRINE WILSON SECONDARY SCHOOL CHRISTMAS CRAFT SALE.

As predicted, I never did get ANY sleep Last Night. Although, it was a bit more restful than the previous Pre-Craft-Show evening. In fact, there was a "moment" around 4a.m. when I almost, slipped into Slumber... WHEN SUDDENLY...

aarrrggghhhhhhhh!  The ^%$%^#$^ LOW BATTERY BEEP on My Bedroom SMOKE DETECTOR started! - Really? - Like IT couldn't just *wait* a FEW hours?!  Well, at least it's not going off too often...

Anyway... I got up at 5:30. Fetched the Saturday Newspaper from outside the Front Door. Still DARK out, not as COLD as I had expected, a bit BREEZY... Perhaps, The Weather will hold up...?

Just after 7a.m., I open the Door once more to head to the Garage to get the CAR out - MOTHER is still a few minutes shy of "ready"....

Sooo... THIS  is looking *SPECIAL*..! Uhhh... WHAT'S with the GALE-like WIND?!  Oh, hey. Spitting RAIN, too! THIS couldn't have WAITED another Half Hour..?!  I'm already a few Minutes behind "Schedule", as MOTHER searches for a warmer Coat.

You could SEE the SQUALL LINE move across the GATINEAU and over the OTTAWA RIVER... LUCKILY, it wasn't such a wide swath, and despite the 20plus m.p.h. GUSTS, and heavily spitting DROPS - that could have easily turned to FREEZING RAIN - I *managed* to cross UNDER it, at the right spots and made it Safely to Our Destination!

Double LUCK! It settled down JUST as I pulled up to the Curb!  WooHoo!

We managed to SET UP on TIME for the 9a.m. OPENING! And, as One ENTERS the Larger of the Two ROOMS [a double GYMNASIUM], THIS is MY STUFF!!

So. Let's take a TOUR of TABLES 1 & 2, shall We?

As We ROUND the POLE RACK of MOA-BOAS, We spot, the "top" of the ever-mysterious AUNTIE SHAN's Head!

NEXT... a Close-Up "Visit" to WASHCLOTH WORLD!  -- It may not seem like it, but there's about 250 odd WASHCLOTHS there.

NEXT, a Visit with MOTHER's HAT "HERDERS"...

   

And HERE'S Her Latest Bunch of BUTTON BUDS! -- Most of THESE were Sold!

Rounding off Our TABLE TERRITORY - MADAME Q's vast array of CUDDLY CREATURES and other Retail Riches!

AS for the Rest of the Day...

• Rumour had it, that The Weather cleared up nicely.
• Although, the Customer Traffic was steady, I think the NUMBERS are likely down 30%.
• One of the "Kind" People who RE-TWEETED My Notice of THE SALE, dropped in to say Hi!
• My MOA-BOA Customer from the Last CRAFT SALE came by as well - Proudly WEARING her Purchase!
• SOLD a BLANKET!! -- "RIPTIDE" -- More on that, Tomorrow.
• Happy Dance!!
• Today's MOABOA Sale - made of the XMAS Colour - was acquired as a GIFT for a NUN!
• Made a "nice" Profit. Enough to cover the NEXT Round of YARN Purchasing! -- FINALLY!!

Meanwhile... I'm trying to stay awake long enough to FINISH This.... The exhaustion is catching up to Me! I'll be vegging ALL day Tomorrow!

****************************************************

Twinkle, Twinkle...

THIS, is what happens, when I tell the "BABIES" to POSE for the Camera! The next thing You know, They'll want Their own "Reality Show"! -- I can't wait to TELL Them, that They'll soon be
"Soaking In IT"!! [..Maniacally, She says, twirling Her HOOK!]

So, Today's "Big" news... It's looking like the CRAFT SALE that I'm doing at THE GOOD SHEPHERD CHURCH [SEE SIDEBAR], is expanding. Apparently, They've added on an extra Small Room for about 8 or so more Vendors.

And, with that new found opportunity, Our Neighbour cross the street - MADAME Q - has decided to JOIN in, on the Crafty Fray!

She's a GOOD Friend of Our's, as well as an accomplished Artisan. Her primary Skill is HAND-QUILTING. And,
she also teaches SEWING Night Classes on the Side. SHE, MOTHER,
and Myself often share CRAFT Tables, and many other varying Interests...

BTW, have I mentioned... She's ALSO a "CAT PERSON"?!!

And I am sooo NOT!   But These FELTED CREATURES of Her's really ARE CUTE!!



Anyhoo, I'm still hoping that We will be able to Double-Table this particular SALE. However, at the moment, it's looking like She'll be in the New Room... Hmm.. We may have to SWAP some of Our respective Merchandise to broaden Our "Marketing"...

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The Shiny **RED** One!

MEET "KYLIE"!

SEAGATE - 500GB Free Agent GOFLEX

THIS is Her, AFTER having been FED Her FIRST Upload! -- I had to tweak the Colour a bit. She was showing up being too PINK with the Flash... This is about as close as I could get to the specific tone of TOMATO RED. And give or take a half inch, about Actual Size...

Going to be just this VERY short Post Today. Have "Stuff" to DO. The Pregnant NIECE and the GREAT-NIECE are coming into Town Tomorrow. We haven't seen the 10 year-old for OVER a Year and several INCHES! We have MUCH catching up and Shopping to share!

And, hopefully, sufficient "material" for Future Postings! -- I'm still recovering from Yesterday's EPIC! - Whilst trying to FINISH THIS!

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