Treasury Time Again!

Fellow EtsyNJ crafter WoollyBoo included my Large Sunflower Smash Tote in her What Are You Toting Around? treasury. You can find it here* nestled amidst a selection of other great totes. If you have a minute, then be sure to click through!

*Treasury deactivated.

What's Your Sign? (and Happy Birthday to Me)

Capricorn

Aquarius

Pisces

Aries

Taurus

Gemini

Cancer

Leo

Virgo

Libra

Scorpio

Sagittarius

I've always been fascinated by horoscopes. Not the day-by-day you-will-make-a-lucrative-business-deal and be-wary-of-friends-asking-favors predictions you find in newspapers and magazines, but the personality profiles associated with each zodiac sign. I've read and reread several horoscope books over the years, matching people I know to each sign description, and have found most of them to be astonishingly accurate. As today is my birthday, I thought I'd cut and paste the profile for my sign, Capricorn. (This version comes from a now defunct site):

The sign Capricorn is one of the most stable and (mostly) serious of the zodiacal types. These independent, rocklike characters have many sterling qualities. They are normally confident, strong willed, and calm. These hardworking, unemotional, shrewd, practical, responsible, persevering, and cautious to the extreme persons are capable of persisting for as long as is necessary to accomplish a goal they have set for themselves. Capricorns are reliable workers in almost any profession they undertake. They are the major finishers of most projects started by the "pioneering" signs; with firm stick-to-it-ness they quickly become the backbone of any company they work for.

Capricorns make of themselves resourceful, determined managers, setting high standards for themselves and others. They strive always for honesty in their criticism of self, respect discipline from above, and demand it from those beneath them. In their methodical, tough, stubborn, unyielding way, they persist against personal hardship, putting their families and/or their work before their own needs and welfare to reach their objectives long after others have given up and fallen by the wayside. In fact, when practical ability allied with the drive of ambition are required in employees to make a project succeed, Capricorns are the people to hire. They plan carefully to fulfill their ambitions (which often include becoming wealthy), they are economical without meanness, and able to achieve great results with minimum effort and expense. Because of their organizing ability they are able to work on several projects simultaneously.

They have a great respect for authority but may not, if they reach high rank, be willing to listen to other opinions on things they are directly responsible for. As the ranking authority figure in a given situation they expect their underlings to be as self disciplined as they themselves are, and to perform every task undertaken to the highest standard.

They are, nevertheless, fair as well as demanding. Among their equals they are not always the most pleasant of work fellows, for they are reserved and too conservative, valuing tradition more than innovation, however valuable the latter, and they are often humorless. There is also a tendency to pessimism, melancholy, and even unhappiness, which many Capricorns are unable to keep to themselves, especially if they fail personally. In the extreme this trait can make them a very depressed individual; ecstatic happiness alternating with the most wretched kind of misery, which is so subconsciously buried that he or she should seek help if such emotions become frequent. For the above reason, capable Capricorns should spend many hours in meditation, gathering the strength to control such inner emotions.

The swings in mood are not the only reason some Capricorns deserve the adjective based on their name - capricious. They can be surprisingly and suddenly witty and subtle for the quiet, reserved individuals they seem to be, and they also have a tendency to ruin things by unexpected and utterly irresponsible bouts of flippancy. In certain individuals in whom the characteristic is strong, the temptation to do this has to be resisted with iron self-control. Another unexpected quality in some Capricorns is an interest in the occult, which persists in spite of their naturally skeptical turn of mind.

Their intellects are sometimes very subtle. They think profoundly and deeply, thoroughly exploring all possibilities before deciding on a "safe" alternative. They have good memories and an insatiable yet methodical desire for knowledge. They are rational, logical, and clearheaded, have good concentration, and delight in debate in which they can show off their cleverness by luring their adversaries into traps and confounding them with logic.

In their personal relationships they are often ill-at-ease, if not downright unhappy. They are somewhat self-centered but not excessively so, wary and cautious around people they do not know very well, preferring not to meddle with others and in turn not to allow interference with themselves. Thus, they tend to attract people who do not understand them. Casual acquaintances they will treat with diplomacy, tact and, above all, reticence. They make few good friends but are intensely loyal to those they do make, and they can become bitter and powerful enemies. They sometimes dislike the opposite sex and test the waters of affection gingerly before judging the temperature right for marriage. Once married, however, they are faithful, though inclined to jealousy. Most Capricorns marry for life.

Their occupations can include most professions that have to do with math or money and they are strongly attracted to music. They can be economists, financiers, bankers, speculators, contractors, managers, and real estate brokers. They excel as bureaucrats, especially where projects demanding long-term planning and working are concerned, and their skill in debate and love of dialectic make them good politicians. They are excellent teachers, especially as principals of educational establishments where they have the authority to manage and organize without too much intimacy with the staff members. If working with their hands, they can become practical scientists, engineers, farmers, and builders. The wit and flippancy which is characteristic of certain Capricorns may make some turn to entertainment as a career.

The color of choice for Capricorns is brown.

Likes: reliability, professionalism, knowing what you discuss, firm foundations, purpose

Dislikes: wild schemes, fantasies, go-nowhere jobs, ridicule, ignominy

For better or for worse, most of it is dead on. Except for the parts about me being good at math and liking the color brown.

What about you? Do you put any stock in astrology, or do you think it's all just a bunch of hooey?

Jack Handey Quote of the Week

"If you ever catch on fire, try to avoid seeing yourself in the mirror, because I bet that's what really throws you into a panic."

Treasury Time Again!

I just had my Fabulous Felt Cupcakes Necklace and Pink Rocker Bangle included in two different treasuries just minutes after relisting! The rush makes the forty cent relisting fee worth it. :)

The necklace appears in AudreyandKatie's ultra sweet Help yourself to a cupcake! treasury, and the bangle is part of Robin's Mixed Media's totally awesome The Big 80s collection. Check them both out here and do a click-through if you fancy.*

*Treasuries deactivated.

Why I've Always Hated the Word Hobby

The word hobby has always bothered me. It sounds insincere and unworthy of respect, like a make-believe word masquerading as the real thing. I'm sure the word "hobbyhorse" is at least partly to blame for my feeling. Speaking of which, I wanted to include some clip art of a hobbyhorse in this post but couldn't find one up to my standards (surprise, surprise), and decided to go with my always-appropriate unicorn in a box instead (hey, it's still a horse).

Anyway, sometimes when I'd tell people about The Tote Trove they'd respond by saying, that's a nice hobby, and I'd be secretly offended. Irrational, I know, especially as these people were, for the most part, well-meaning and polite. But I remained perturbed, so much so that I consulted dictionary.com to find out what kind of connotation the good folks there ascribed to the word. This is what I found:

1. An activity or interest pursued for pleasure or relaxation and not as a main occupation: Her hobbies include stamp-collecting and woodcarving.

2. A child's hobbyhorse.

3. Archaic. A small horse.

Begrudgingly, I had to admit that the definition wasn't nearly as disparaging as I'd anticipated. After all, I can't deny that I craft because I love it, not because I think I'll make any money. Still, a shadow of the patronizing spirit I'd expected was alive and well in the example. I don't think crafting can be equated with stamp-collecting. Woodcarving, yes, but not stamp-collecting. Not that there's anything wrong with stamp-collecting. Stamp collectors probably hunt down new stamps with the same enthusiasm that I hunt down new shoes. Even so, I don't put shoe shopping in the same category as jewelry making or painting. Although shopping can be a creative activity, say, in terms of coordinating outfits, it doesn't really require skill, whereas making art is about creating something where nothing existed before.

I'd be a lot more at ease with all of this if the definition at least included something about passions or creative pursuits.

So, what do my fellow artists think? Do you have positive, negative, neutral, or ambivalent feelings toward the word "hobby?" Or do you just think I'm nuts? It's perfectly okay if you do. Now that I've concluded this post I must admit that it's a little soap-boxy and makes me sound as though (gulp) I take myself too seriously. But being the vanity case I am, I decided to post it anyway. :)

Book Report: Safe Haven by Nicholas Sparks

Every Christmas the bf buys me the new hardcover Nicholas Sparks novel. This year's title was Safe Haven, the cover of which I glimpsed on one of our many Target excursions. "There it is!" I cried, pointing, my voice betraying more excitement than the sighting warranted.

That having been said, I was eager to start reading it when I unwrapped it on Christmas Eve and did so as soon as I finished Marley & Me. Maybe this would be a good place to shout SPOILER ALERT! because, as in all my book and movie reviews, I can't be stopped from giving away the ending. So, if you don't want to know, then stop reading now and come back later (if you want to). Maybe I should start putting SPOILER ALERT in all these posts . . .

But on to the discussion.

Not too far into the story, I realized that this book was . . . different. Although it had all the hallmarks of a Nicholas Sparks tearjerker - two single, salt-of-the-earth people, an aura of sadness, and a safe, sleepy North Carolina town - it also had a darkness, the shadow of which had surfaced only in one other Sparks novel, The Guardian. In that story, the darkness stems from a stalker, but in Safe Haven, Sparks takes that idea a little further, casting his heroine, Katie, as a woman on the run from her abusive husband (Kevin).

In many ways, this story is the stuff of Lifetime movies. You know, damaged woman flees violent man, eventually seeking refuge in the arms of kind man. But Katie's flashbacks are more spine-tingling than anything from a movie. As I read, I tried to imagine being married to a man who not only forbid me to drive, have a job, and make friends, but who decided how I dressed, ordered me to cook and clean like a servant - and beat me. The idea was terrifying and was made even more so by the glimpses Sparks offers of the inner workings of Kevin's head.

As you might expect, Katie's escape is chilling. She changes her appearance and her name, crashing in seedy flophouses and changing waitressing jobs every week, fleeing city after city until finally landing in Mayberryesque Southport, North Carolina. There she takes yet another waitressing job and rents a dismal cottage that she slowly but surely begins to refurbish. Her only friend is Jo, a grief counselor who lives in the neighboring cottage. At least she's Katie's only friend until Katie forges a fledgling relationship with Alex, the widower who owns the general store where she frugally shops for rice and beans. This in itself is a quaint notion, the tired young widower raising two small children and managing a general store (complete with lunch counter!) in a world taken over by Walmarts getting to know the quiet, beautiful woman who walks there (she doesn't have a driver's license, not to mention a car), trying in vain to shut the world out.

As per usual, Sparks spends his time describing Alex's wife and the brain tumor that took her life. She's been gone about a year, and Alex hasn't dated anyone since. These sorts of scenarios used to give me lots of trouble when I was younger. I would think, if there's just one person for everyone, and that person dies, then how can the person left behind end up falling in love with someone else? Sometimes the dead spouses in such tales were portrayed as giving their husbands or wives their blessing, outraging me even further. I've softened a bit since then and like to think that I would want the bf to find someone new should anything happen to me. Nevertheless, reading about stuff like this still leaves me feeling a little unsettled.

Alex and Katie's relationship blossoms tentatively. She's a natural with his children, and he appreciates what she's going through because he used to work with battered women as a detective in the army. (As corny as it sounds, I enjoy reading about good people finding love. But then, so must lots of other women, judging from the success of Sparks's novels.) Alex wants to marry Katie, but she reminds him that she's already married, even if under a different name. To be sure, even as she falls in love and begins to feel safe, Sparks reminds us that Kevin, drunker and more unbalanced than ever, is still out there looking for her.

As the story winds down to its inevitable conclusion, Alex asks Katie to watch the kids at night while he picks up a friend at the airport. When he leaves, it's one of those nail-biting moments, kind of like when you're watching a horror movie, willing someone not to open a door. Hours pass before anything happens, but Katie is eventually awakened by smoke and realizes that the house is on fire. What follows is a chaotic episode rife with near-death experiences. The short version is that Alex comes home in time to save Katie and the kids, but not before she gives Kevin an ass-whupping. The only casualties are Kevin (I think his death is self-inflicted if not intentional) and Alex's store. Yet the fireproof safe that Alex kept in his bedroom remains unscathed. In it is a sealed letter from Alex's wife to Katie (or, as she puts it, to the woman he chooses).

This is where things get a little weird. Katie's about to open the letter, alone at her house, when she notices that Jo's house is completely deserted and ramshackle-looking, as if no one has lived there in years. Before Katie even opens the letter she begins to think about her times with Jo. About how Jo asked her not to mention their friendship to Alex because she'd been Alex's grief counselor when his wife died, about how Jo had urged her to give Alex a chance, and finally, about Jo's untouched wine glass the one time they'd met for drinks. In a burst of The Sixth Sense-like clarity, Katie (and I) realized the obvious -- that Jo was the ghost of Alex's wife. I was embarrassed not to have seen it coming. I had known there was something off about Jo but had chalked it up to her being one of those nosy, buttinsky friend characters. I was also a little creeped out. But then, it was two o' clock in the morning, and I've been known to get creeped out easily.

Jo's letter to Katie is every bit as heartrending as you'd expect it to be. Sparks pulls out all the stops with his signature story-telling device - the letter. (On the back cover of this book he's even photographed poised over a notebook.) It adds a whole new dimension to the kind of love triangle between spouse, deceased spouse, and new lover that I described earlier. Knowing that Jo helped to engineer Alex and Katie's relationship makes the ending even more bittersweet. If you can read the letter (not to mention the book) without crying, then you're a stronger woman than me.

Eraser Treats and Other Trinkets

It's no secret that I'm ecstatic about eraser jewelry. When I first saw it being sold on Etsy, I was mesmerized. Then I realized that I could make my own custom eraser creations and started turning them out with abandon. All I do it take apart each eraser (they're actually puzzles), glue them back together using a tiny bit of Gorilla Glue, coat each one with a layer of clear nail polish (for preservation), and jab a metal earring finding into each one using jewelry pliers, leaving the loop on top so I can add a jump ring for stringing. This last part is kind of tricky, as I've occasionally speared erasers, especially those that are oddly shaped, in such a way that the other end of the finding comes jutting out somewhere where it shouldn't. So, I'm careful to push the finding down into a fleshy eraser part, making sure not to push too hard so that it stays hidden.

I was delighted to be able to add more necklaces and bracelets to my eraser-themed jewelry tree. I guess that's obvious, seeing as I couldn't limit myself to posting just one jewelry tree photo. :)

Hey, those aren't erasers. I had a few spare plastic bangles and decided to try my hand at decoupaging some stickers on them. It was a long and arduous process, as I needed to add numerous layers of Mod Podge to each bracelet to tamp down flyaway sticker remnants and ensure maximum durability. I'm pretty pleased with the results though and am especially fond of the fruity turquoise one in the middle. I see it figuring into more than a few of my fruit-themed ensembles.