MAJESTYinc

Happy Happy Friday

Alright, so I have made an almost full recovery and will be up and running at the downtown market this Saturday. I have some new designs and colors for my pouches, and depending on how much work I get done tonight- some cool new messenger bags! I had my supplier deliver me some new colors and I was so excited to finally be able to sew again this week!

Yup--- I was missing my sewing machine like crazy last week.... I have found that there is an amazing amount of time you can waste being UN-productive. I spent some time getting my workshop organized and cleaned up. (I get thread everywhere... lots and lots of thread) I watched SO many movies I can't believe it. I even GASP! left the house and saw a real movie live and in person at a real movie theater! I went to the grocery store. I had no idea that there were so many different kinds of bread. I got so much extra sleep that I almost feel like a normal human with only one job. Instead of a tired, haggard old crone with vinyl fingers. And, I spent a lot of time online looking around at neat things to buy.

One of them... A LOMO colorsplash camera!  This is most likely my next camera purchase coming up. I used to work in a photo lab developing pictures and doing digital work. It was my favorite job. In case you didn't realize it, most labs view every single picture to adjust for brightness and color. Surprised? I was too. This is why it is important to not take pictures of anything you want kept a secret, or private. Because it doesn't stay private for very long! Anyhow, I loved adjusting pictures to make them look all strange... and after I switched to digital and saw what I can do with photo programs, I was hooked. BUT this LOMO is a bit different.... you can actually change the color of the photos at the time that you take them, and it uses REAL FILM! I don't know the exact way this camera works, but it kind of seems like an adventure. And super fun. You can get all kinds of fun LOMO cameras at Fred Flare and they have no problems shipping to Canada... like some other websites do. Just not fond of us bonspeialers. ???

Anyhow... have a super long weekend, hope to see you at the market!

Ouch!

Hi Guys...

This week I am totally M.I.A from the City Market! I have an injury that doesn't allow me to do much of anything lately. Which is sad, and I miss my sewing machine.

Have a super weekend!

Super-Amazing AND Fantastic.. 20 gold stars.

So... my reason for my big FRED FLARE splurge in the first place was the neat brownie pan that I heard about from notmartha.... when I saw it, I knew I had to have it! Unfortunately, this might be old news for some because hers arrived first, and she has some lovely pictures posted of her brownies. Mine are just out of the oven and not cool enough to cut, so here are some gratuitous photos of my FAVORITE NEW THING.

I do not like to "Waste Time" when I could be sewing up vinyl bags.... so I cheated and used brownie mixes instead of from scratch. I know, it's horrible. Beat me alive. But, if they didn't turn out I would be really mad that I measured out flour for nothing. Anyhow..... this huge pan takes 2 mixes, so beware if you only have one. They cooked for 40 minutes at 350 F and are super amazing AND fantastic. Wow, almost nothing gets both a super amazing and a fantastic from me, so if you like brownie edges, this pan is a must have.

I think they might be cool enough now, so off to fuel up and sew like mad!

The Relic Hunter.

This is my new title. The Relic Hunter. Yes, I realize that Tia Carrire is the star of the show, but I make the rules here at MAJESTYinc. (The only place I can make rules.....) Anyhow, moving on.

When you were a kid what was the one thing that you really really really wanted and never ever got? Unfortunately, my list is a little longer than yours. Not that I was underprivileged, just um... maybe a little greedy? But when you think that all my toys and clothes were hand-me-downs, it may be understandable that a kid would want a brand new toy once in awhile. (Or Ever). (OK, I had a few cabbage patch dolls).

Enter in ..... The box that arrived this week! This box contains LOTS of fun things that I bought from FRED FLARE. One of my favorite sites to peek at, but I haven't ever actually bought anything before this. I usually buy everything from ETSY, but ETSY does not sell what is in this box. Can you take a guess if I give you a clue?

OK, here are your first clues....

So what do you think? Are you imagining a kinder, gentler time? A time when Tang was all the rage and everyone had rust or olive green carpet in they're living rooms? When the theme song from "Knots Landing" kept you awake at night? When you wanted to grow up to be just like Krissy from "Three's Company? When the Snuffalufagus was just a figment in the imagination of Big bird and Mr. Hooper hadn't died yet?

Well... I am now the proud owner of my very own SNOOPY SNOW CONE MACHINE!!!

You can see how much my cat loves it too...

I want to be an Octopus.

Oh My Goodnes.....

Check out this completly breathtaking cake pan over at Williams-Sonoma. I am just so astounded. I love sea creatures, not to eat but just in general, and I know that I will be ordering this one soon! Like today!

Note... I still haven't used my sandcastle bundt pan that I bought last time.... I need to step up my domestic skills.

Size does matter

A few weeks ago... while it was still summer... some friends and I got together to play Bocce Ball. It was my first time, considering that I thought that only senior citizens played this low-impact sport. (along with domino's and Chinese checkers.) My favorite part of the game is when it's YOUR turn to throw the little ball.... because fortunate for me we were at the Legislative grounds. And... fortunate for me there was a bench with a (possibly) homeless guy sleeping on it. I thought about it for a second, then threw the ball right under the bench. How much fun it was to try not to hit the guy on the bench... a TRUE test of bocce skills. And today, I was reminded of this when I stumbled upon A GIANT CHESS SET!!!! I can think of many things that are quite bizarre that would be fun to do outside... and here is another activity to add to my list. A giant Chess set? But it's true, it's real and people are buying them.

Is it still summer, or what?

I woke up yesterday and realized that it really isn't summer anymore. I bought winter boots. I have NEVER bought winter boots before. I usually just suffer with normal shoes, open toe sandals or stiletto boots that aren't made for snow. This makes me realize that I am getting older in some respects. But don't worry... they are not mom-boots or sorells. I actually had a friend who's mom made her wear sorells when she was in high school. Social Suicide. I am glad sometimes for the small measures of neglect that my parents gave me!

This makes me think about other wonderful winter things....

I need to get winter tires for my car, as mine are almost bald, and also realized that buying tires is harder than you may think. I thought you would just go to the tire place and say, "Slap them on!" and then pick your car up later. No. That is wrong. Because I am a woman. And, I look younger than I really am. So there are two strikes against me. The tire shop I went to the other day treated me like I was invisible and a total idiot... which is bad bad customer service. They tried to trick me into buying 4 tires, when I just need two. And, the prices they tried to charge me were more than the quote I got over the phone.   This bad experience has left me with.... the same old balding tires. Which is strange, because my car is only 2 years old. I will try again..... next time I may dress like a man and wear stilts. I can do a mean truckers voice, I tell you.

More winter goodness...

Um Christmas! It's coming! One of my favorite times of the year... Gingerbread houses.... stockings.... pretty snow.... icicles. So much winter goodness to exclaim about, except I am escaping this year and going to Thailand. It will be so good to leave my winter coat behind.... and don't forget those new boots either. I am really excited to visit the wax museum there, and the markets. I can bring home strange and unusual wonders the likes of ye have nev'r seen. Ooops... lapsed into my pirate voice... sorry. That means it's time to go.....

No wonder they tasted terrible....

So, now I realize that I was SWINDLED at the farmers market this weekend! I really and truly believed that I had bought $3.50 worth of fresh pea pods. But, since I am neither a farmer, a vegetarian or a walking encyclopedia of vegetable in-site.... I didn't realize that the Alien peas I bought were actually BEANS. Come on people.... you have to forgive my ignorance! They looked like really big peas! But.... think about this, the farmer that sold them to me told me that they were peas. I remember very clearly saying, "Wow, are those pea pods? Those are huge!" and she said, "Yes, they are peas". So you can see my mistake. I should have bought peas from one of the other vendors that don't LIE to make a sale. So no wonder why they tasted terrible. I am not the only one who thinks so either, I brought them to work today and put a "Free" sign on them and left them in the lunchroom. By the end of the day they were still there. I can only hope that someone on the midnight shift will take them home. I am tempted to drive back to work, get my beans, encase them in a Lucite bath and set up a trophy to my ignorance. That way they would last forever, as will this lesson I have learned.

The Adventures of Today...

Which started last night actually.

I decided that I HAD TO HAVE a dvd copy of "Adventures in Babysitting". One of my favorite movies from way back when, it is still lovingly shared within a small circle of believers in the Power of THOR.  Filmed in 1987, starring Elizabeth Shue, who also was in Back to the Future as "Jennifer". Another one of my favorites. And..... just coincidence of course, Anthony Rapp played the character of the annoying red haired tag-along in Adventures in Babysitting, and he also is in RENT which is on my T.V at this very moment. (Just found that out, and I got a little excited.) Anyhow....... I really really love 80's movies so very much, and I was so disappointed when I couldn't find it at any stores. Actually, the teenager at Future shop looked at me like I was nuts when I asked him to help me dig through a huge bin full of discounted movies in hopes of finding it. He tried to get away by mumbling something about getting a cart, but I was like, "NO, just dig deeper". That's right, I rule with an iron fist. He managed to escape as I found a copy of "Tank Girl" and remembered that it was once in my top 10 favorite movies of all time. I didn't end up finding it. I dug through the whole bin, and came up empty handed. BUT WAIT! What's over there.... on that shelf? Wow, it's a copy of Labyrinth! I haven't seen that one in years..... of course I bought it. I enjoyed it, I think I must have forgotten most of the movie by now because a lot of it was new to me. And... David Bowie still scared me in this one. Glad to know that I am still a little frightened of the glam look for men. And.... another fun thing about it is that it's in the "Top 10 Movies of the 70's". 

More Adventures....

Today the City Market was cold, dismal, wet and depressing. Standing in the rain for 9 hours wasn't my ideal for the day, but I got to wear my skunk hat so it wasn't all that bad. I bought these super huge pea pods. They are alien peas. I swear it. The pods look like Green Alien fingers. When you crack them open, little baby alien fetus's are resting in a thick bed of fuzz. They are the weirdest peas that I have ever seen. The peas themselves are actually the size of quarters. And they don't taste very good, actually. But Alien fingers usually don't.   

When I got home I frantically shooed wasps out of the house, since they have made a nest right by the back door. They made a new nest by the door, just for spite. They originally had a nest on the barbecue, and that just wasn't cool. Since removing the nest in favor of charbroiled meat, they are "The Wasps out for Revenge" and are freaking me out. They probably want to make a nest under my bed or something.

After shooing the wasps, I broke the stopper on the bathtub, and watched dismally as my hot water ran down the drain. And ran down the drain. And kept running down the drain. Checked the time. The stores are all closed. Then.... I remembered a comic strip from For Better or For Worse which I must have read 20 years ago, about when the stopper went missing and they used a potato to plug the drain. I run and grab a potato, and stare in wonder at the weird funny looking drain cover that will definitly not fit a potato. I thought about hooking up a hose to the tap and filling a kiddie pool with water in the yard... but I don't have a kiddie pool. So the neighbors are spared for today.

I cooked dinner, and it was really gross.

I am still cold, and tired and it's only after 8pm but I think I'm going to bed. I am officially old.