Priorities

so little time these days, I can't keep up with the tribes, or the blogs, or the pictures... I'm cutting back on some tribes and some of the folks on my friends list. About half of each will feel more like when I log on I can see what's happening in my much smaller slice of the world.

I swear I will puke!

If I hear one more uneducated person exclaim "OH! did you see Doomsday? She looks just like a belly dancer!!!!"

um... no, she looks like a Maori, or a North African tribesperson FROM WHOM American Tribal Style and ITS belly dancers have borrowed the facial tattoo. She's wearing pants, a vest, wields a sword... doesn't look a thing like a belly dancer. And yes, I did see the movie.

Yep she's hot. Yep, she's cool looking. Yep, I'd do my face like that. But, seriously, I'd kill for those arms!

nuff said. I'm going back to work now.

Gothla - one woman's reaction

I am not a member of the Goth sub-culture. In fact, I live on a farm in Kansas with my husband, cats, guinea fowl, chickens, ducks, geese and what have you. I wear jeans and sweaters to work.

Within me, it seems always, is a heightened comfort level with darkness. As a child I was exposed to the pre-Raphaelites, read all the Rosetti’s, saw/fell in love with Howard Pyle’s Marooned long before such things became popular. I came to know despair far more intimately than most people think possible whilst maintaining some semblance of sanity - my mother suffered a burst brain aneurism right in front of me (I was all of 13), later a brother brutally murdered, a sister who chose to stick a .38 in her mouth and pull the trigger... no, I’m not a member of the Goth world, but I have reasons to love Gothic belly dance.

Whoa! Where did paradigm shift that come from?

During the weekend of February 9 and 10, I was thrilled to be able to attend the first ever American Gothic Belly Dance Festival - Gothla. About a year earlier I’d gone to a workshop in KC and met a woman who has literally changed my life. Through her I discovered that I could take an art form that I was learning and use it to express some of what goes on in my warped little mind. I can dance and express my rage, I can dance and pour my sorrow over the audience, I can dance and draw energy from those who are watching. Or, I can dance and send my energy into the room, feeling powerful and raw. Only Ariellah could give me that gift, and each time I am fortunate enough to study with her I receive another piece of the puzzle. I am honored to know her, truly. And so, this, then... is what gothic belly dance represents to me.

That being said, I approached Gothla with interest and a huge amount of trepidation. I had met Sashi at a terrific workshop in Springfield, was excited to be taking my first Tempest workshop and, indeed, looked forward to meeting all of the teachers (I signed up as a glutton.) BUT... I’m 50 (was that old?) I’m blond-ish (should I dye my hair black?) Am I going to be the only person there with no tattoos or piercings? I wear workout clothes to workshops (um, erm, is that too nerdy?) I’m not a very good or very experienced belly dancer (are people going to roll their eyes?) I have spinal issues that make my flexibility suck. Etc. Etc. Etc. I had no idea what to expect. So I pulled on my Marine Corps Sergeant inner strength and walked right in.

I was blown away. I met the most delightful women on the planet Earth, I swear! The enthusiasm and excitement was palatable in the festival hall. There was no one looking down their noses at me, no one judging me. I was part of a festival (such a good word!), we were all celebrating and having a wonderful time. Friday’s meet and greet was fun, albeit short. The workshops were wonderful. My only real criticism is that attending the workshops meant that I saw almost none of the day-time performers. That saddened me more as I got to meet and “know” a little of some of the women I could not see perform.

Thank you to all the organizers, teachers, volunteers, vendors, performers and everyone who made this event possible.

Gothla - the weekend that proved that, yes, Goths DO smile.

How do I love thee?

let me cite 3 ways.... 3, simultaneous ways!

ALERT 1 - WINTER STORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM LATE TONIGHT THROUGH THURSDAY AFTERNOON
Urgent - Winter Weather Message National Weather Service Wichita KS 1057 AM CST Wed Jan 30 2008
Snow Will Develop Across The Area Late Tonight And Become Widespread Overnight Into Thursday. The Snow May Be Heavy At Times. Storm Total Snow Accumulations Of 4 To 6 Inches Are Possible By Late Thursday Afternoon.

ALERT 2 - WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 6 PM CST THIS EVENING
Urgent - Weather Message National Weather Service Wichita KS 1054 AM CST Wed Jan 30 2008
Strong Southerly Winds Of 25 To 35 Mph... With Gusts To 40 Mph Will Affect South-Central Kansas Today. Winds Will Diminish By Early Evening. A Wind Advisory Means That Sustained Winds Of At Least 30 Mph And/Or Wind Gusts Over 45 Mph Are Expected

ALERT 3 - Fire Weather Warning RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT UNTIL 6 PM CST THIS AFTERNOON
Red Flag Warning National Weather Service Wichita KS 1051 AM CST Wed Jan 30 2008
The National Weather Service In Wichita Has Issued A Red Flag Warning... Which Is In Effect Until 6 PM CST This Afternoon.
A Red Flag Warning Means That Critical Fire Weather Conditions Are Either Occurring Now... Or Will Shortly. A Combination Of Strong Winds... Low Relative Humidity... And Warm Temperatures Will Create Explosive Fire Growth Potential.

Kansas, gotta love it.

MUAHAHAHAHAH!

it says 50 now!

I truly am.... flypaper for freaks

Why does it always surprise me when people are untruthful? Seriously, at my age I should know better. It is my experience that the majority of the people I’ve met are, sad to say, REGULARLY untruthful. Not scam old people for their life savings dishonest, although some are outright bald-faced liars. Most are so small as to fall into the “sin of omission category”… this month’s specials have been:

1 - those who take credit for other people’s work
2 – those who try to derail other people’s work by indicating little things that are wrong with it - things that were not wrong at all. But, they're always little, teeny-tiny things.... insidious shit that.
3 – those who have boring lives and make things up to help themselves seem important or seem exciting. I'm sorry your life is lame, oh wait, no I'm not! pftftftf!
4 – the ones who haven’t a clue what your talking about but can’t be honest enough to say “No, I’ve never heard of ….”
5 – the offerers. You know the type, offer to help with something ONLY because they are confident you won’t take them up on it. I’ve got a family full of these.
6 - the deflectors. "I did *this* because YOU said/did/wrote *this*" No, YOU did that because you're a dumbass who wasn't listening when I explained something, saw something you wanted to see, and/or didn't read the entire thing. If you can't pay attention don't blame ME!

And today’s favorite – the deliberate mis-quoter. Or would that be delusional mis-quoter since I wasn’t even remotely talking about you when I said what I said? Hm?

Maybe tomorrow's rant will be on ingrates or mean people! Then again, perhaps you will be returned to your regularly scheduled broadcasting and I'll go back to being my usual mellow self. 3:>

Better late than never, eh?

I've had a lot of questions about this year's Ren Faire bra (detail photo). I promised some of you some details. Yes, I did make it. And I learned more from this one than the others I've made.

1 - Burnout velvet is a great look, but when the FRONT of your bra weighs 1 pound 9 ounces, be prepared to put a soft liner as the burned-out part is really scratchy with weight on it! I used good quality panne velvet - a single layer took the scratch out.

2 - I used 3/4 inch wide black, non-roll elastic in the shoulder straps. They never bit in, nor did they budge! I also lined the shoulder straps with the panne.

3 - I also made this a cross back bra and I am going to convert all of my “real coin” bras to cross back! I was in this bra for nearly 12 hours and it was perfectly comfortable the entire time. people.tribe.net/jadzia/ph...2c32ea5718


4 - the beadwork (grey strips) is removable. I left permanent room so that, as my WONDERFUL HUSBAND looms strips for me, I can change them out.

5 - I completely removed the back support strap from the original bra. I’ve never done this before. I lettuce leaf-ed the burnout straps with a nice thick rolled hem width and, again, it was comfortable and never moved. Another change I’m incorporating into my existing bras - none of them can hold a candle to this one in terms of comfort. people.tribe.net/jadzia/ph...bc530989d6

Between design, redesign and sew time I spent about 2 months on this, probably couple of evenings a week. I hand sew all ornaments and each coin or bauble is attached as a separate entity so it a thread breaks I only lose the one. That may seem slow, but I did have elbow surgery in May, after all!

Stolen from Qamar - Jadziaology

Let others know a little more about yourself. Repost this in your blog with your name followed by "ology".

MOUTH-OLOGY

Q. What is your salad dressing of choice?
A. Blue Cheese

Q. What is your favorite fast food restaurant?
A. Burger King

Q. What is your favorite sit-down restaurant?
A. hmm... I like food too much to pick just one.

Q. On average, what size tip do you leave at a restaurant?
A. 15%

Q. What food could you eat every day for two weeks and not get sick of?
A. Turkey Chili

Q. What are your pizza toppings of choice?
A. black olive and onion

Q. What do you like to put on your toast?
A. my homemade pear butter

TECHNOLOGY

Q. What is your wallpaper on your computer?
A. our beloved Polar Bear Baby, who passed away in August

Q. How many televisions are in your house?
A. hmm... 1 that's on all the time, 1 I use for BD practice, 2 more that are plugged in - hope they still work!

Q. What color is your iPod?
A. Chrome

BIOLOGY

Q. Are you right-handed or left-handed?
A. Ambidextrous

Q. Have you ever had anything removed from your body?
A. like parts? or did you mean foreign objects?

Q. When was the last time you had a cavity?
A. 2005

Q. What is the last heavy item you lifted?
A. a tortilla chip with salsa

Q. Have you ever been knocked unconscious?
A. years ago

RANDOMOLOGY, pt 1

Q. If it were possible, would you want to know the day you were going to die?
A. Something were meant to be unknown, that's one of them in my mind.

Q. If you could change your name, what would you change it to?
A. Meg

Q. What color do you think looks best on you?
A. lol, I can hear my friends laughing - burgundy

Q. Have you ever swallowed a non-food item by mistake?
A. the occasional bug.

Q. Have you ever saved someone's life?
A. Literally? I doubt it.

Q. Has someone ever saved yours?
A. nope

DAREOLOGY

Q. Would you kiss a member of the same sex for $100?
A. I wouldn't kiss anyone for money

Q. Would you allow one of your little fingers to be cut off for $200,000?
A. No, I like my hands.

Q. Would you never blog again for $50,000?
A. Darn tootin!

Q. Would you pose naked in a magazine for $250,000?
A. No.

Q. Would you drink an entire bottle of hot sauce for $1000?
A. Been there, done that on a drunken dare years ago. That just isn't enough money.

Q. Would you, without fear of punishment, take a human life for $1,000,000?
A. It would completely depend on the designated victim. Sorry if that offends you, reader, but there are people on this planet I would gladly plant 6 feet under for free.

DUMBOLOGY

Q: What is in your left pocket?
A: Nothing

Q: Is Napoleon Dynamite actually a good movie?
A. Never saw it, never will.

Q: Do you have hardwood or carpet in your house?
A: carpet on our hardwood

Q: Do you sit or stand in the shower?
A: stand

Q: Could you live with roommates?
A: I lived with 51 other women in an open squadbay - sure I can put up with a roommate or two!

Q: How many pairs of flip flops do you own?
A: None

Q: Last time you had a run-in with the cops?
A: I've never had a "run in" with the cops

Q: What do you want to be when you grow up?
A: An Astronaut!

Q: Who is number 1 on your top 8?
A: My husband, always.

LASTOLOGY

Q: Friend you talked to?
A: Pat

Q: Last person to call you?
A: Sheri

Q: Person you hugged?
A: My husband

FAVORITOLOGY

Q: Number?
A: none

Q: Season?
A: I have moments in each that I think "Ahhh.... xxxxx is just my favorite season!"

Q: Book?
A: Out Of The Silent Planet

Q. Website?
A. ebay - it's a love/hate thing :)

Q. Month?
A. Whenever the first daffodils pop out

Q. Alcohol?
A. Wine

CURRENTOLOGY

Q: Missing someone?
A: Occasionally - those that have gone before me

Q: Mood?
A: Iight

Q: Listening to?
A: The Secret Meeting, Shooting Laser Beams

Q: Watching?
A. not

Q: Worrying about?
A: my boss who is very ill

RANDOMOLOGY, pt 2

Q: First place you went this morning?
A: The kitchen to put on the coffee pot

Q: What can you not wait to do?
A. Ariellah workshop this weekend

Q: What's the last movie you saw?
A: Resident Evil Extinction... I love Mila

Q: Do you smile often?
A: No, I hate my teeth

Q: Are you a friendly person?
A: Moderately

Q: Someone you wish you never met?
A: The person who murdered my brother