Bang, Crash, Boom!

The good news: there are guys working right now in the basement! Yes, the Brickworks dungeon may soon turn out to be a business area again -- I've got my fingers crossed! Ken Knopp and his team are also putting in a couple sets of new outlets perfect for classes and demos. They're installing a 'floating' wall in front of the concrete one, and fixing up the pipes that have caused us so much misery (not to mention lost fabric) in the past six months.
     They say about it  two weeks of strange bangs and sawing noises. Now the bad news: the insurance still is denying our claim. That means we pay out of our pockets right now -- and again when we pay the lawyer to bring the case to court. I wish they were listening...

Ever try to find boxes of Christmas ornaments in a storage space that already has a few hundred quilts and quilt tops jammed on top? I turned up a few wreaths and lengths of holly garland. Hopefully the rest will appear soon. 

We're waiting it out for a huge snowstorm that's supposed to hit tonight. All I know: we had a huge red sunrise ("red in the morning, sailors take warning"), and now the sunset is just as spectacular. ("red at night, sailors delight.") So what am I supposed to do with that?!?

A Flash Mob Hits DIA!

It happened on Nov. 22 of this month at the Denver International Airport
     ...if you enjoy Swing, you'll like this one.

Interesting Oddities

The guy who returned money he stole -- back in the Forties.

The lady who insists on dressing like the Brontes. Yes, you read that right -- as in Charlotte Bronte.

Some very freaky Black Friday incidents at Wal-Marts across the country. (All I know is our Castle Rock Wal-Mart was allllmmmost there, based on what we experienced that night.)

Len Penzo gets very number-y.

And a lovely candy cane sky, courtesy of The Frugal Girl.

A Very, Very Funny Video (For Us Geezers, That Is)

Ever think you're the only one who has trouble figuring out this computer business?

Nope! (And the Huffmans do just fine, eventually...)

Want A Million Dollars?

(Australian, that is.)

Some guy in tropical shorts and a "singlet" (whatever that is) left a battered suitcase stuffed with cash in a Sydney restaurant. According to witnesses, he then got nervous and left suddenly, leaving the suitcase behind.
    The police have no idea what's going on here. I'd guess drugs -- but hye, if you have a plausible explanation (or can prove ownership), I'm guessing the money is yours!

Tuesday - Stuff Continued

What's up with me? I wander off, take a lick at this job, wander back, finish up that one, return and finish up this one...just restless, I guess. And the mind is going a bunch of different directions, including:

*Wishing (or maybe not) we'd run into Prince Harry. He was apparently partying in Las Vegas the same time we were. He even went to a Cirque du Soleil performance...though not the one we did. Too bad -- he would have enjoyed the nakey people carpet. 


*Is there a way to give TOO much? Liz Weston thinks so. (I confess that we have seen this happen, too. Friends that we tried to help out long-term turned right around and took advantage of it, even stealing money before they disappeared. They are no longer friends, sadly.)


*ElfYourself is back, courtesy of Office Max and Jibjab. This is an incredibly fun and silly way to tease your favorite people -- by superimposing their faces on elves who boogie to disco, or in the case of Daughters, jump to funk. This year, they even sing! Use the link provided to see what's possible...and start your own. (Yes girlies, you can kill me now.)

Ah well. Thanksgiving's only a few days away...maybe that's good. Considering the amount of stuff I still need to get done beforehand, maybe it's bad!

Monday Stuff on the Way to Other Stuff

Whoo hoo -- after three tries, I have passed the USPAP appraisers exam! It was needed for me to feel confident writing donation appraisals for the IRS -- but even better, it's a big part of my taking -- and certifying -- to become a general personal property appraiser. I've been 'doing' textiles and related items ever since 1999. This new certification means I can actively head toward appraising everything that isn't nailed down: furniture, glassware, paper and such.
   ( Ok -- not Newt Gingrich. Or any of the Occupy Denver protestors, who are showing every sign of staying put through the winter.)
    This whole process has been a revelation -- I hadn't failed an exam since nearly flunking out of high school geometry class back in the mid-1970s. It wasn't that I didn't know what I was doing -- it was much more that I didn't know the vocabulary USPAP used for the same actions. Instead of mentally arguing with that glossary every time I tried to use it, finally sat down and just memorized phrase after phrase after PHRASE. That, and being able to study what I'd already tested on, helped immensely.
    Thank God. I mean that - literally.

MORE STUFF, ETC.

*Funky Junk Interiors gives us one last look at fall colors and textures. (Not that they're happening around here. Our trees are stripped bare, due to the windstorms lately.)


*This girl and her family gave up eating out for a month -- and gained some unexpected benefits. (Eating just from your pantry and freezer, or resolving not to spend any money past the critical stuff, can change your life, too. Going without cable's been an eye-opener for us.)

*You can make $200,000 a year with no education or experience...just be a miner in Australia. (Don't miss the next post, either, on the financial pro who lost his own house! We're supposed to hire him because he now Has Learned From His Experience. Kind of like rehiring a babysitter who 'just happened' to misplace your kids for a few hours.)

*A British grandma wishes her nocturnal groper would leave her alone. Only problem: he's a ghost.


* It's pies this week on the Christmas Goodies blog! (Yum)

And The Nester is advocating a "fuss-less" Thanksgiving table.

Hope your Thanksgiving week is shaping up nicely. (And congratulations to online friend Marcie, who just gained a new baby granddaughter!)

Friends and Influences

The Mama called, with a surprising message -- one of my high school teachers had a massive stroke, and never really regained consciousness. Her husband has had Alzheimer's for years now, and it is doubtful how much he understands.

Maxine Garland Schut was my English teacher. She taught the basics like English comp -- but I reveled most in her elective classes, meaty stuff like Shakespeare and satire. She was tough -- didn't take any crap. And she insisted on knowing - and using properly - a wider range of vocabulary than we cretins generally subsisted on.

I was a voracious reader before meeting her, but her classes gave me 'permission' in a way to explore more. She probed, asked questions, forced you to defend your opinions. (And praised you when you did, successfully!) She gave me a love for the Bard that endures to this day. (It was actually one of the things the Brick and I shared in common from the first we met...that, plus Gilbert & Sullivan.) 

Would I have written for publication without her influence? Become a teacher myself? I think so...but who knows. She inspired this little farm girl to reach to things I'd only dared to dream of, things like grad school and books with my name on them. I am better for having known her.

Turns out that she influenced many people during her thirty-three years of teaching at Sparta High School in Michigan. You can meet her, too, via her obituary.

Thank you, Mrs. Schut, for pouring yourself into your students. I am so grateful you did.

More on Life

Charley the dog is very, very glad we're back from the days in Vegas -- he follows me around, and makes desperate attempts to sneak into the car, if we go anywhere. The neighbors spoiled him rotten -- they actually hauled out one of Daughter #2's beanbag chairs (one that got wet during the basement caper) for him to sleep on. So now he snoozes on a leopard print pouf, up high so he can see more of what's going on. I swear he's even a little bit fatter. (These are good neighbors.)

I finished taking the USPAP appraiser's exam! God willing, I passed it...but I won't know for at least a week yet. It is so nice not to be studying about appraisal reviews, summaries and restricted use. Now on to the other things I'm supposed to be working on...

Las Vegas really was a welcome break. I don't think we acted like their typical visitor, though -- we didn't gamble. Not a cent. We generally only ate one meal a day...and that was at a buffet. (Try Main Street Station -- $8.99 for breakfast or lunch, and that includes whatever you're drinking. They'll validate your parking, too.)

We went to one show -- just one. Cirque du Soleil was great...except the only show we could get tickets for was their 'sexy' one, Zumanity. Other than a huge series of inane jokes about sex, most of the time the sexy part was that the women went topless. The effect was less than mesmerizing: I kept thinking, 'how come the guys aren't stripping down as much?' And quite frankly, the women just looked cold. They would have been sexier if they'd kept their clothes on...
    The gymnastics were great. Lighting and music - fabulous. And at interesting intervals, some pipes from the ceiling spouted out 'rose petals' onto the audience. Parts of the show were truly great -- but more of it was just waiting for the sex jokes to die down. And sadly, those jokes sounded like they came from a junior high school boys locker room. Come on, Cirque...where's the classiness you're so famous for? 

We also took a long day to head for Hoover Dam (about 30 min. drive away) and the Grand Canyon (4 hours). The Brick is an engineer by training, and was fascinated by the Dam tour. (Frankly, I enjoyed it, too.) You get a very-close-up look at the system's tunnels, turbines, and of course, that huge, famous wall that was constructed by pouring load after load of concrete back in the 1930s. Hoover Dam is really quite old in the parlence of construction, yet it still is producing an incredible amount of energy. It has already paid back all the costs of construction, and is now supporting itself, just by the energy it can produce from flooding the turbines with water from Lake Mead.
    You can also have an incredible amount of fun talking about all the Dam things you can do there, from visiting the Dam store and spending time in the Dam exhibits. (Oh, and sending Dam postcards to your family!) Not to mention our Dam guide's accent and voice had an unnerving resemblance to the Church Lady...

We had so much fun there that we got started late to the Grand Canyon. And got there just as it was getting dark. (Hey, I can tell you what the ranger station and the pine grove around it looks like in the dark!) Note to selves: Arizona is on Pacific time -- and you not only lose an hour going there, you lose an hour of daylight. Quit fooling around with all those Dam subjects next time, and leave earlier.

It wasn't a total loss. One of the reasons for making the trip was to check on a good friend who was working nearby in Williams. (He's been sick. We were worried.) We had supper with him before driving back to Vegas; thankfully, he's doing much better.

It was a long day...and we had to be at the airport at 6 a.m. the next morning, to catch our plane home. But it -- and the whole trip -- were worth it.  I'm looking forward to the next thirty years with the Brick - he's a wonderful guy. 


Happy Anniversary, Honey!

Where Did All the Lights Go?

It seemed strangely dark outside last night. Guess I'd gotten used to the blaze of glory that is Las Vegas 24 hours a day. (The Hoover Dam guide said, tellingly, "We provide less than 1% of the power that Las Vegas uses." To which my beady mind replied, "Yeah, and you're one of the biggest sources of power in the U.S. How much exactly DOES Vegas use?" But I stayed quiet...)

We got home and promptly took a nap. Today, I am in the final throes of taking yet another crack at the USPAP exam -- will be back in touch shortly. Including a Full Report on the trip. Promise.

Las Vegas, Part 2

On to the Grand Canyon this morning! We saw Cirque du Soleil last night, at the New York New York theater -- another item off my bucket list. They were amazing, though we both could have used about triple the acrobatics and a third of the dancing. (Weird side note: the carpet design in the theater was full of naked cherubs and other human types - ahem - all mixed together! Especially strange when viewed from the cheap seats: one poor lady got her face walked on all night.)

Husband is chafing at the bit. On to the Canyon. More tonight.

Las Vegas, Baby!

We have a wonderful room 21 floors up at the Luxor -- I've been having fun watching planes fly by! The windows are angled, so it feels a bit like we're in a French garret. (Don't all attic rooms in France have angled windows, according to the movies? Go see American in Paris or La Boheme, so I can prove it...) Except our French garret has comfortable beds, a television and lots of weird fake 'Egyptian' stuff. The armoire has hieroglyphics, and we've got a weird slab of 'stone' on the wall with 'wall paintings' on it.

While I'm getting my wits about me, take a look at this interesting post -- international workers who make reasonably good money here, but don't spend it and become the equivalent of millionaires when they get back home. Fascinating. And way different from the people parked in front of slots here.

More in a bit. 

So This One IS True...

The Swiss freighter Cassarate, nearly sank in 1972, after its cargo of tapioca started cooking and its weight threatened to buckle the ship's steel plate. As the article pointed out, where do you go to offload 50 truckloads of tapioca?


Hmmm...add a few truckloads of sugar, a dash of cinnamon, and...

The New Orleans Mystery UFO...Isn't

The puzzle of the UFO filmed during a recent football game has been solved.

Turns out that the NFL game photographer does some of his work in time-lapse photography! So what appeared to be a rod-shaped object with lights streaking across the background was...

a commercial jet.

Oh pooh. And it looked so convincing, too.

(See the original report here.)

Money Cache Found!

An elderly widow hid money all over her Florida home. After her death, a plumber found $20,000 in an airduct...and turned the money in. Read all about it here.

I keep looking around our house -- but it was always owned by people with large families. (We technically have 7 bedrooms here at Chez Brick.)  I'd guess they didn't have any extra cash to hide!

A Reminder...

...that not everyone gets to even think about holiday goodies.

This special report details what many poor Haitians are eating to fill their stomachs:

mud cookies.

Dirt, a little shortening, salt, water and maybe a little sugar. That's it.

And the women who are selling them are paying high prices for the dirt, said to come from the mountains. (I wonder.) A big sack of dirt? $5.

Go here for the full report. 

Weird Monday

Strange things are wandering around the Internet today. For example:


*The guy who was living on food stamps in August -- and now is bragging on a $75,000 job he got at a few days notice. (Oh yes, he admits to still being $50,000 in debt. No doubt he's actively paying it down now. Right.) Not sure where to go next on this -- we should ALL go out and do likewise??

*A piece of Saddam Hussein's famous statue (the one that was toppled) was auctioned off in September...a piece of his butt. (The seller, a former British soldier, says that choice was totally random. Sure.)

*That's not the end. (smirk)  Perhaps you'd enjoy reading a new novel about Empress Theodora, who gave a whole new emphasis to the phrase "she slept her way to the top." This one's puzzling, too. So we're supposed to admire her because she had spunk and spirit -- and knew how to influence lots of lovers?? The reviewer sure spends lots of time burbling away about her courage, etc. (Funny - integrity is not on the compliment list.)

*Or perhaps you'd prefer the heartwarming tale of the woman who attacked her elderly father because he wouldn't share his potato salad. 

*And the Russian who gives family living a whole new meaning -- he scavenged 29 corpses from various graveyards, dressed them up and positioned them all around his apartment. (Maybe he needed partners for canasta?)

One more thing: 
*There's a naked guy wandering around Dulles Airport -- but don't worry. He's not a threat.

Makes me grateful for things like dirty clothes and household chores -- at least they make sense. I learned a new trick today: if you've got problems with a spot or two of mildew on your walls (especially in your bathroom), try this: spray it with a 50/50 mixture of bleach and water. (Use one of those fragranced bleaches for a nicer smell -- mine was "clean linen.") Let dry, then wash off with regular water. Solves the problem in a snap! Be sure to remove towels, rugs and other textiles first, though, and stay out of the way of any backsplash or vapor -- bleach spots could spot your clothes.

Husband surprised me with breakfast in bed this morning -- the sweetheart. Guess he realized I was pooped, too. His selection: a sausage-stuffed omelet...and a piece of leftover pizza. The breakfast of champions! 

Dead Tarred And...

Just finished the last gig of the year, appraising at Holly's Quilt Cabin in nearby Centennial. (Hi guys! I had a great time -- thank you for all your help!) Tore home, just in time to catch the tail end of the Brick's song at church...then went and stood by the missions committee table for the outreach fair at church. I took care of some other matters, and by the time I got home, the Brick in tow, I realized:


I am just plum tuckered out.  When people say similar stuff, I can relate.

Still some appraisals to go out from yesterday's gig -- some bills to send -- some other writing to do. Even some appraising to do here at home. But I think I will generally lay a bit low this week. Get a few hours of needed sleep. Maybe even read a book or two! We've got another storm moving in tomorrow night; it may be the perfect opportunity to just stay at home and get stuff done here.

Also, both daughters are saying they're heading here tomorrow night to celebrate my September birthday. (I was in Michigan, with the Mama, at the time.)

Sounds wonderful. 

Sunshine

Storm's over -- for the day-long break it gave us, it was a lovely one. I am now caught up on Fringe's second season, and starting into The Walking Dead. (Do you think the latter is a big reason why zombies were so popular at Halloween this year?)

For other oddities, check out this UFO inadvertently caught during an NFL Foorball game -- what do you think it is?

Brrr.....

Boy oh boy, is it chilly around here. When we went to Small Group last night, it was cold, but dry. By the time we got out, only a few hours later, an inch of snow was on the ground!
    We had a heck of a time driving home, too. The Jeep, thanks to a hunting mishap, is down to two-wheel-drive only, and just couldn't quiiiite make it up on the easier hill to the house. (We have a steeper alternative that is often used by the neighborhood kids for sledding on a day like this.) The Brick had to give the Cherokee a not-so-loving push just to get it to the stop sign, then down the hill to home.

    Woke up to 8 inches of snow on the ground, and lots of drifting. No school. Which means, since the Brick works for the Douglas County school system,  an automatic paid vacation day -- whoo hoo! He's been having fun eating pancakes and playing rude videos, like this telling "Obama Budget Plan" one by Ray Stevens. (Ouch. Maybe TOO close to the truth. But hey, let's ALL follow the guvment plan!) 


    We'll have a fire and Mexican food for supper. Staying close to home today.

Sylvia Plath Revisited

This American-turned-Brit poet is best known for her last group of Ariel poems...and her suicide. I have always preferred her fiction and nonfiction writing, instead; she was a brilliant essayist. Even her letters home to her family,  filled with notes about home decorating, picking daffodils and making strudel along with poems and manuscripts submitted, have a crinkly aliveness to them that is a pleasure.

Now her daughter Freida Hughes, a good writer in her own right, has brought out a collection of Sylvia's drawings. Take a look at the slideshow -- a sample of Sylvia's work is below.

As the article points out, Sylvia would have turned 79 a day or so ago. What a waste of an incredible talent.

"The Pleasure of Odds and Ends" by Sylvia Plath