Free Coffee Samples!

Courtesy of Nescafe's Taster's Choice...


Just apply here, and you've got six different kinds to choose from. (The Mama loves this stuff, and she's getting a sample, too.)

Enjoy.

Another Storm's Coming!

...the snow is supposed to start tomorrow afternoon. Projected total:  1-2 FEET. And this is March???

The Mama and Joy left on Amtrak tonight, thankfully headed east. (The storm's coming from the West.) The house seems a little empty, now they've gone, but Daughter #1 is spending the night. Lovely.

Here's an interesting thought: use a dropcloth to upholster your furniture! Normally, I'd say this was a bit strange, but the chairs in Homebody Holly's post are quite lovely. Take a minute while you're there, and read some of her other posts; she's got great ideas.


And now 'regular' life begins again...whatever that is.

Tales from the Economic Downturn

Salon has "Pinched," a whole series of articles on people and lifestyles that have been hit by financial problems. But these aren't your standard "oh woe is me, I was a moron and lost my house" screeds. Instead, they cover everything from a kid at Duke University who lives in his van (so he can attend grad school) to hipsters who are using their food stamps to buy healthy food. Some good ideas on making the most of your fast-food dollars, haggling and work ideas, too. (Well, most...a few get weird.) I was particularly touched by the single mom who had a job and a master's degree, but still needed to take her kids to a food bank to get by.

Take a look -- but plan on being there for a while. One article leads to another...and another...and...

Snowy Day...and Dover

There's a layer of ice underneath the feathery stuff. It took forever to chip off the windshield, so I could have coffee (and sit like a slug until I completely woke up) with my early-bird friends.

It's still snowing. And snowing. And snowing.

A good day to stay inside, and get some work done! 

If you like unusual graphics, there's a great free place to get them -- Dover Publications has a weekly sampler of selections from their huge library of titles. Here's this week's sampler, including a very quirky anatomical clip art book. Just request that you be put on the e-mail notice for upcoming samplers. Think of the places a skeleton or two would come in handy!

Brrr...

After two days of glorious 60s weather, clouds have papered the sky, the wind is up, and we're getting warnings of a spring blizzard roaring in tonight and tomorrow.

It's not terrible news; we did our traveling earlier in the week, when Daughter #2 and I took the Mama and Cousin Joy to Garden of the Gods. (They said they were impressed, but we spent a lot of time fielding comments, finding bathrooms and hustling people places where they wouldn't feel chilly.) I have a boatload of appraisals to finish off, and watching the snow will be a good stimulating factor to Get Them Done.

I would love to tell you something wonderful has happened this week, but it has been all I can do to keep business stuff going, make sure I'm at commitments promised, pick up/take people to the train station, and schlep the Mama off to see her granddaughters, as well as a few quilting events. It'll stay this way through next Monday evening, when the Michiganders head back home.

Next Saturday is speaking at the Colorado Quilting Council in Longmont about Crazies...the Sunday class that follows is full, but there are plenty of spots Saturday morning! (See the Colorado Quilt Council website for info.)


Helpful tips: 18 ways to find great clothes at thrift shops, thanks to Get Rich Slowly.
    And a look at the New Essentials, courtesy of Tight-Fisted Miser. (Thanks, dudes.)

Have a great Friday, dears.

Women in Mining in CO Springs...School Cuts...and the Midnight Knitter

You wouldn't expect anything less than this odd mix, from this blog, right?   :)

School stuff has been a brooding interest lately... it's not that I couldn't use more edjimication (Popeye-style), but because our local school district has to cut more than $40 million from Somewhere. They're supposed to make the announcement any day now where the ax(es) will fall.

Husband is a trainer for special ed and regular bus drivers and their assistants (TEAs). He took a 20% hours cut last year...will this mean more hours gone? We have many friends who are teachers, and are dreading what could happen. One friend has already offered to quit her job, if it will mean that others can keep theirs.


I wish the Powers That Be would GET ON WITH IT, and make the announcements!

In School News:

*The teacher who thought writing "Loser" on a 6th grade student's assignments would somehow motivate her to do better. (Give me a break.)

*Kansas City (Missouri side) will be closing nearly half of their schools. Just imagine what that's going to do to employees, families and students.

And in the World of Freaky, someone in West Cape May, NJ has been clothing the trees in a park with bright knitted sleeves! (Take a look at the photo -- who, and why???) Some people have been calling this person the Midnight Knitter, because he/she apparently operates during the dark of the night. A performance artist? An eccentric? Someone who's worried about the poor, chilly trees? This one's a curious one, all right.

The Mama is on her way here via Amtrak, with cousin Joy. She'll spend about a week here, making chocolate chip cookies for Husband, and helping me out. Their train comes in at 7:30 a.m.... but I have a gig tomorrow, too. Should make for an interesting weekend.

Come hear me talk about mining, women, gold & silver, and of course...quilts! There will be a lot of them to look at, too. It's all at the "Women in Mining" weekend at the Western Museum of Mining and Industry --
tomorrow, March 13, including a 11 a.m. lecture (and a 2 p.m. repeat), with an Edwardian-style tea in between. The museum is on the northern edge of Colorado Springs, and very easy to get to via I-25.
Should be lots of fun.

Growing Up Poor

I bumbled onto this long involved post (including 400-plus comments!) on what "Being Poor" means.

A lot of thoughtful ideas here, though some are fueled more by frustration and anger, than they honestly reflect a desire to Stop Being Poor. Some are apt to throw the baby out with the bathwater, and vow they'll never again have to practice some of their previous economies. Examples:
     No more mac & cheese (Why not? It was a treat to us! My father hated the stuff, and we only had it when he was out of town.)
    No more secondhand clothes. (Some of my best luxury outfits have come from our local thrift shop -- smack in the middle of one of the wealthiest counties in Colorado.)
    No more used cars. (So paying for the automatic $ loss when you drive the car off the lot is...smart??)

So -- reading this stuff also means wearing the Hat of Common Sense while you're processing it.

We may not have had much money growing up -- by federal standards, I guess we were poor. (We've qualified for the label some of our married years, as well...a status we've both found amusing.) But we never took welfare or food stamps. We had a huge vegetable garden, raised our own meat, and bartered and traded with cousins for other stuff. (My first car, a present from Mom and Dad, was a hand-me-down purchase from cousin Steve...something I didn't know until a few years ago!)


Maybe this is less about being poor more than it is thinking poor. Being poor can be temporary, until your job prospects get better, or you're out of school, or you can afford to move away. Thinking that way, however, can take you over for the rest of your life.