Day 28 - Something That Stresses Me Out

I get stressed when I have to give up control and have to trust others to do what's been asked. A recent example is when I ask people to perform musical numbers in church. I can ask, and they agree. And I have to let them arrange for a pianist, practice times, etc. If I tried to control all aspects, I would go insane, but I have to be able to give them the opportunity to learn and grow, especially those that aren't used to performing. Yet it still stresses me out, hoping that they've done what needs to be done. And I get especially stressed when I have several of these going on for big occasions like Easter and Christmas.

And yes, things usually turn out okay in the end, but it still stresses me out. ^_^

Day 27 - Pets

As you know, I currently have two cats. They are both Siamese, and they are brother and sister. Yuki is the female, and Yanni is the male.

I found them on Petfinder.com, and they were exactly what I was looking for -- they were rescues, kittens, Siamese and siblings. Sadly, I missed most of their kittenhood, because they were still quite feral when we got them and so we had to work with them a lot. But, I was told that they might never be lap kitties, or that affectionate.

But thankfully, even though it took awhile, both cats are VERY affectionate in their own way. Yuki isn't a lap kitty, but she likes to sleep with me in bed. She's also incredibly sweet.

Yanni is a lap kitty, and he's extremely vocal, and he has the biggest personality.

They bring so much joy to our lives, and I hope I have them for many years to come.

Here is a favorite picture of each of them (you may have seen these already):

Yuki

Yanni

Day 26 - Picture of My Family

Since I don't have kids, I guess I still think of "my family" as my parents and brothers and sister. However, I have also come to think of it as including my nieces and nephews. So, here is the most recent picture of us all together.

This was actually taken over 2 years ago, and the only person missing is my brother Michael (the one who has chosen to have nothing to do with us).

Day 25 - Put iPod on Shuffle, First 10 Songs

I'm having to use my iPod Shuffle, because I don't have that many songs on my iPhone yet. ^_^

1. "Hope Has a Place" by Enya
2. "World Gone Crazy" by SLEEPTHIEF*
3. "Sublunar (Sweet Angel)" by SLEEPTHIEF
4. "Catch You Catch Me" by Gumi (on the Cardcaptor Sakura soundtrack)
5. "The Tide Is High" by Blondie
6. "Love Fool" by The Cardigans
7. "Rainy World" by SLEEPTHIEF
8. "Smell of Desire" by ENIGMA
9. "Playstation (My Console)" by Eiffel 65
10. "Penelope's Song" by Loreena McKennitt

* Out of this set, this is probably one of my favorite songs right now. The music video is a little strange, but I love SLEEPTHIEF's music (as you can see, it came up often, even though I only have two albums and some remixes).


As you can see, my taste in music varies, although a lot of "New Age" music came up in the shuffle, which is interesting. I would say that's probably my favorite genre of music, but it's sort of a catch all that does contain the artists some would consider New Age, as well as Celtic music, and Electronica, as well as others.

Did you listen to any of these, and what did you think?
 

Day 24 - Something I've Learned

I've learned the art of digital scrapbooking. I would even like to say that I'm good at it, though I think I'm still finding my style, as I like to try different things. I think that's validated by having been asked to be on the design team for PeppermintCreative.com. I picked up many scrapbook things over the years, but never really did anything with it, and then discovered digital. I fell in love. It's a great creative outlet, and also a way to preserve memories.

You can see a progression of my abilities, with some before and afters.

Digital Scrapbooking

THEN: This was done in June 2007, one of my first layouts (LOs) after I discovered this craft.

NOW: This is one of my most recent LOs, and I chose the earlier one because it and this one have a similar subject matter -- my cats!

Hybrid Crafts

(the use of digital and traditional scrapbooking items)

THEN: One of the first hybrid things I did, a birthday card.

NOW: Apples and oranges from this and the "then" craft, but I'm now willing to step out of the box and do other things besides cards (which I still love to do).

So, this is ONE thing I've learned out of the many, many, many things I've learned in my 35 years on this earth. How about you?