25 for 25

Today I turn the big 2-5.  

I'm a quarter of a century, and it feels kind of old.  But since there's not a whole lot I can do about it, I might as well enjoy it. :)

                                                                                                        Source: cilantropist.blogspot.com via Kari on Pinterest

I'm a little bummed because my new computer didn't arrive when it was supposed to on Saturday.  It's okay though.  I still had a great time going out to eat in Honolulu last night, and I got some sweet gifts from my family in the mail.  Even from thousands of miles away, my family knows how to make me feel special on my birthday.  When my new computer decides to show up, I'll share some birthday pictures with you guys.  Until then, here are 25 random facts in honor of my 25 years of life.

1.  I'm left handed... but sort of not.  I write left handed, cut right handed, play golf left handed, bat as a switch hitter, and throw right handed.  I'm a little mixed up, but it works for me.

2.  Old TV shows are my favorites, in particular I Love Lucy.  Since I was really little, I've loved Lucy, but I also adore any of the old classics-- Leave It To Beaver, Andy Griffith, Bewitched, I Dream of Jeannie, The Munsters, Happy Days, Green Acres, The Beverly Hillbillies, The Addams Family, etc.

3.  I'm kind of weird when it comes to eating M&M's.  I eat them in color order, starting with what I consider the ugliest... so it's brown, then orange, then red, then yellow, then blue, and then I end with green, which is my favorite.  Strange, I know...

4.  My favorite movie ever is The Notebook.  I know it's cliche for girls to say that, but I can't help it.  I love the love story, and the Alzheimer's story hits home because my PawPaw had it for 12 years.

5.  I really like Big Band music when I'm working on artwork.  I turn Pandora on to an Artie Shaw or Benny Goodman station, and I can paint away.

6.  I was lucky to grow up surrounded by tons of animals.  We didn't have them all at the same time, but at different points of my life we had fish, hamsters, mice, guinea pigs, parakeets, chickens, rabbits, cats, dogs, goats, cows, a donkey, and horses.  I learned a lot about the circle of life, and I wouldn't trade any of those life lessons for anything in the world.

7.  When I was little I wanted to be a country music singer, and I constantly gave "concerts" on the fireplace hearth, the deck, or any platform I could find.  It's funny because I used to love being the center of attention, but now I'm super shy.

8.  When I was in the 4th grade, I wanted to be a professional golfer.  I even invented the "all-in one golf hat," which had a place for tees, markers, balls, and just about anything else you might use while playing.  I wonder why that never caught on?

9.  I've only broken one bone.  It was my middle finger, and I broke it in the 8th grade doing back handsprings on a basketball court.  It twisted so that every time I bent my finger, it would bend towards my ring finger and pinky.  I had to have surgery to fix it.

10.  My favorite color is green.  It just makes me happy.

11.  The only food I really don't like but wish I did is black olives.  I keep trying them over and over hoping that my taste buds have changed, but so far I've had no such luck.

12.  My first "car" was a red Power Wheels Jeep when I was about 3 years old.  When I turned 16, I got a red Jeep Cherokee to drive.  It's still the only car I've ever had, and it even made the trip to Hawaii with me.

13.  My middle name is Renee. (I guess it's not legally my middle name anymore, but in my mind it always will be.)

14.  Only once in my life (knock on wood) have I had to have stitches.  When I was really little I fell on a floor vent and sliced my knee open.  I don't remember much, but I remember having to sit still for a little while.

15.  Pretty Woman and Dirty Dancing are tied for my second favorite movies ever.

16.  I'm a nerd at heart, and I'd rather play Scrabble than just about any other game. (This also makes me a BIG fan of Words With Friends on my iPhone!)

17.  If I could choose any magical power, it would be the ability to teleport.  Boy oh boy, would that ever come in handy right about now?  I'd love to be able to literally "pop in" to see my family whenever I like.

18.  I have a major sweet tooth.  Chocolate is probably the absolute best thing ever, and cheesecake is pretty amazing too.

19.  I have a real, honest-to-goodness phobia of needles.  Even now, the thought of getting a shot makes my muscles weak.  I tear up every time I go in for anything involving needles.  I always tell the nurses they can laugh if they want, but I'm going to tear up even though I know there's really nothing to it.  It's just one of those totally irrational fears.

20.  I'm kind of OCD about some things.  I can't stand clutter!  If I see too many things out of place I start getting claustrophobic.  It drives Kent crazy, and he knows when he better get his things picked up because I turn into a great big agitated ball of grumpiness when clutter takes over.

21.  I haven't had fast food-- aside from Chick-fil-A when visiting home-- since moving to Hawaii nearly two and a half years ago.

22.  My lucky number is 17.

23.  I secretly wish I was outgoing enough to sing karaoke.  I'm entirely too shy to ever do it, but I envy people who are brave enough to go through with it.

24.  I love country music from the 80s and 90s.  I grew up listening to it, and it's my favorite.  Don't get me wrong, I like pretty much all kinds of music (except screaming stuff), but country is my roots.

25.  My great great aunt is literally the oldest living person in the world.  Her name is Besse Cooper, and she is 114 years old.  Check her out here.  She's not able to get around like she used to, but her mind is still really sharp.  I think it's pretty amazing.

Hope you guys enjoyed my 25 really random facts. :)  Do we have anything strange in common?

How About Them Apples?

Okay, so I've been missing in action all this week.

And I can explain.

My computer broke on Tuesday.  Just as I was sitting down in my studio to work on a pet portrait using my computer to see the true colors in the images I was working on, my favorite computer ever-- my little pink Dell-- fell off the table and onto Murphy's little dog bed beneath.  (Yes, my little Murphy is so spoiled that he has his own bed in my studio... Luckily he wasn't in it when this happened.)  Well, since it didn't fall that far, I thought nothing would be wrong.

                                                                                                           Source: google.com via Stinkweed on Pinterest

Not the case...

When I tried to turn little pinky on, it said "no hard drive detected."

Oh no...  I just replaced the hard drive in this computer about 6 months ago when it died of old age.  

I took my poor little old computer to Best Buy so the Geek Squad could give me a diagnosis, and I was hoping against hope that it was just knocked out of place.  No such luck for me though.  It hit the floor juuuuuust right so that the hard drive shattered, broke, or whatever happens when they die.  Crap...

I came home to discuss it with Kent.  I didn't know whether I should dump more money into a 3 year old computer or just get a new one.  He said I should just get a new one.

Really, he just saw it as the perfect opportunity to convert me to a Mac.  Don't get me wrong, I don't have anything against Mac.  I used them in all my art classes in college, but I just never could get used to them because I had always had a PC.  (Let's face it... we all love what we're comfortable with.)  

Well, upon deciding that I needed a new computer, Kent-- because he's such an awesome husband-- got online and ordered me one right then.  Just after he placed the order, his computer ran out of battery.  That's because he left the cord at the hotel where he stayed during his last training trip.  Soooo... neither of us had a computer until his charger came or my computer came in the mail.  Needless to say, that didn't happen until today, and Kent's charger finally came.  

I felt bad not being able to check in, and I hope you guys didn't totally forget about me.  Hopefully, tomorrow I will be getting my new computer in the mail today (Yay for a really awesome, one-day-early birthday present!), so I can check in on it later once I figure out how to work the new contraption.  :)  

Anyone got any advice on seriously learning about Mac's?  I know the basics... well, enough to get by, but the darn things confuse me. (And yes, I've heard all about how "simple" they are and how "streamlined"... I just have a hard time relying on keyboard commands)  Any tips, tricks, or cool things I should know? 

Hope you guys have a great weekend! 

Sunday Blues

I don't know what was up with the weird day I had yesterday.

Do you guys ever have those really funky days where you just wake up and everything seems a little off?

That was yesterday for me.

It should have been a fantastic day.  Kent had just gotten back home Saturday night, so I had been stoked to spend all of Sunday doing lots of fun things.  However, it didn't happen quite that way.  

                                                                                                         Source: google.com via Nicole on Pinterest

Since Kent was so jet lagged, he woke up at 4:30am, and since he wakes up and turns on every light and loudly opens and closes every door when he gets up, I did too.  Plus, I woke up from a not so pleasant dream, that just made my day start off all wrong.  Has that ever happened to you guys?

The morning wasn't so bad, since I made a big breakfast, and we went to the farmer's market.  Getting my favorite jam-- Coconut-Pineapple-- definitely put a smile on my face.

On the way home we had a discussion about where we might be in the future.  Those discussions don't always end well because we don't always agree.  We get over it soon enough, but a little piece of it sticks in my head and drags me down.

For most of the afternoon, nothing really went the way I planned, so I just felt like I had wasted precious time... and who ever gets enough of that, right?

By supper time, I was just feeling a little down.  Despite the fact that I had yummy cheesy rice (don't judge), and fresh Mahi Mahi from the farmer's market on my plate, I couldn't help but see my mood reflected back at me.

Honest to goodness, this is how my food looked immediately after I scooped it on my plate.

As I sat down to eat, it started pouring down rain outside.  I seriously felt like I couldn't catch a break, and a big part of me still has no idea why I was so down.  I guess between the dream waking me up on the wrong side of the bed, the day feeling wasted, some difficult conversations, and some anxiety I've been having about some upcoming appointments I've got (nothing crazy... just regular doc and dentist stuff... but when you have a real, honest-to-goodness needle/medical phobia like I do, you start stressing weeks ahead of time), I guess it was just a little much.  

However, I'm bound and determined that today is going to be a much better day and that this week will be a happy and productive one.  They say you're as happy as you make your mind up to be, so I'm deciding that I'm going to be very happy this week.  After all, it's my birthday week.  I turn the big 2-5 next Sunday.... oh boy....

Do you guys ever have days like this?  What do you do to get out of the little funk they cause?

Halloween Nails!

It's been quite a while since I've done a nail art tutorial, so I thought with Halloween just around the corner, today would be a great time for one.

How about some Halloween nails?  :)

These are super easy (although you may need help for your "wrong hand"). 

All you'll need is a base/top coat, some orange nail polish, a black nail art pen, and white nail art pen.

Start by applying your base coat, and follow it by painting your nails orange.

Next, use the white nail art pen to create a little ghost on your thumb.  Do this by creating a little circle, add a body with a little tail, and add arms.

Outline the ghost with the black nail art pen, add eyes and a mouth, and add the word "BOO!" if you like.

Add a spider web on your ring finger.  Do this by drawing several intersecting straight lines. Then, starting at the center, connect the lines in a spiral with short, slightly curved lines.

Let the paint from the nail art pens dry completely.  Then, finish off with your top coat.

There!  Now you have festive Halloween nails!

Hope you like them!

Glorious Gloomy Days

With all the pretty pictures of fall scenes and beautiful leaves I've been seeing on blogs and Facebook lately, I've been feeling pretty homesick.  As beautiful as Hawaii is, it's hard for this girl from the South to be so far from home and away from the changing seasons.  I was really missing the crisp air, the pretty colors, and wearing comfy, cozy sweaters.  To make all that worse, Kent got a chance to go to Charleston (one of my favorite places) this past weekend for a big family event since he was already doing some training in North Carolina.  I was beyond bummed, and I felt completely disconnected from my family and all the things I love back home.  It was one of those times when the isolation of this island felt very pronounced.  (Don't get me wrong... I was happy for him that he got to be there.)

However, I desperately needed at least a little taste of back home. 

Yesterday, the weather here must have gotten my message.  We had one of those rare, glorious, gloomy Hawaii days.  (Yes, I know that sounds totally ridiculous.  But can you imagine if you never had a lazy rainy day??)

 

I decided that the rain and gloom would be the perfect time to imagine that I was back home in weather that was slowly turning colder.  I cranked my air down, put on some comfy clothes, and decided to make "cool weather food."

Back home, my daddy always makes chili on cold, rainy days.  So what did I do?  I pulled out some ground beef, and got to work.  Before long, I had an incredible smelling pot of chili simmering on the stove all afternoon.

It was amazing.  I needed that little taste of home.  

I also decided to sip on some coffee with a little homemade Irish cream while the chili was cooking.  Warms the body and the soul...

Want to make your own Irish cream?  It's super easy.  Put 1 cup heavy cream, 1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk, 1- 1 2/3 cup Irish Whiskey, 1 teaspoon instant coffee granules, 2 Tablespoons chocolate syrup, 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract, and 1/2 teaspoon almond extract into a blender.  Blend on high for 20-30 seconds, and store in a tightly sealed container in the fridge.

It's amazing what familiar food, cool weather drinks, and a little lazy, gloomy lighting can do.  I may not be home, and I may not be able to make it to every family/friend event that I'd like, but these little "tastes of home" help hold me over.  

What about you guys?  Ever need those little things to make you feel closer to home?  What do you do on a nice lazy, rainy day?

A Little Shop Talk

Just wanted to take a minute to remind you guys about the crochet hats and scarves in my shop right now.

With the colder weather and holidays approaching, these would be perfect for you or a special person in your life.  Not only would you be warm and cozy, but you would also be helping to save animals because 10% of each sale in my shop goes to an animal charity (Humane Society, SPCA, or a local animal shelter).  For a short time, you can also use the coupon code SAVEAPET for an extra 10% off your order.

I also do beanies for men!

If you don't see the exact color/pattern combination you're looking for, shoot me a message.  I'd love to make something just for you with custom colors or even custom yarn.  With advance orders, I can create your hat or scarf from high quality cashmere blends, alpaca, or wool. (I just need time for it to be ordered and shipped to me.)  Just contact me for pricing information. :)

Turn on the Faucet

I know I did a fairly random post yesterday, but I have to do another one today.  I watched a documentary last night (I know... I'm like an old person with all these documentaries lately), and it really opened my eyes about some things.

It's a film called "Tapped," and it's about bottled water.

I had heard a good bit of what the documentary told me.  Plastic bottles have chemicals that can cause cancer and other problems, some companies bottle tap water, and the bottles have very detrimental environmental effects.  However, this documentary showed images that I can't get out of my head.

So many un-recycled bottles make their way to our oceans.  Plastic doesn't break down like organic materials... it takes a very long time.  Plus, it washes up on our beaches.

[source]

Is this what you want future generations to play in when they visit the beach?  It's not what I want.

Those plastic pieces also are being ingested by marine animals and fish.  It's killing entire populations. 

[source]

Is this what you want to find when you eat your filet of fish?  It's not what I want.

It's not even just the environmental effects that are so crazy.  It's the fact that these companies producing bottled water take it from small towns like many of us grew up in.  Did you know that when Georgia was in a very serious drought several years ago (one in which lakes were at the lowest recorded levels) and everyone else was on severe water restrictions that the Coca-Cola bottling company was still pumping water out of local lakes and streams to bottle water--  many of which were sold back to people in Georgia?  How about them apples?

And the politics behind it all?  Oh, it's frustrating.  Politicians are pretty much working for the bottling companies that are bottling our free tap water and selling it back to us.  Does anyone else see something wrong with this?

Now that I've told you some of the juicy tidbits, I should tell you that there's much more.  I highly recommend  that you guys check this film out.  It will change your way of thinking, and you will want to turn on that tap more often.  

Here's the trailer so you can check it out.  The full length version can be found on Netflix, for sure, but I'm sure you can find it other places as well.