Monday, March 26, 2007

Chilicraft--The Afterburn

I'll make this fast, since I broke the camera and have no pics to share.
I felt Chilicraft was a good success, considering I had a month to pull it together, and it was hot.
Here was my day in a list:

1. Wake up tired.
2. Get to school later than I had liked, because every single stoplight from South City to U. City turned red when it saw me coming. Marcia calls; I try to sound cheerful and unpanicked.

3. Roll up to school. Vice principal is there, as are several other crafters. It is quite warm.

*added after list was made* Patrick from Meshuggah does indeed bring me my large vanilla latte, even though I said he didn't have to. I lord it over Tiny Montgomery, who anxiously awaits the first brew of coffee. The good thing about student volunteers is that you don't have to lift a finger. "R.! Go see if the coffee's ready!" and off he trots. It was.

4. 5 of my male students show up at 8:15 am on a Saturday to help me, even though I had pissed at least 3 of them off the day before. They are wearing their team t-shirts, or navy blue shirts and are charming and carry heavy stuff for my crafters.

5. I am mumbly and confused without coffee. One boy, D., takes my seating diagram and directs the table set up and placement. He tells me to go away and that he can take care of it.I grunt thanks and unload my car.

6. The district turns off the AC and heat on the weekends. We get R. to climb up the closed bleachers with a tool to crank the windows open. He enjoys any chance to show off his muscles to a room full of women.

5. Beqi arrives, crabbing about the worst birthday ever and a speeding ticket. My students assist her in unloading and uncrab her.

6. The kettle corn man shows up, and speaks to me from his van. He is unsure if he'll do the fair or not, since I am not Dionne Warwick and cannot predict how many customers he'll have. He smells funny, and I sense that he is not the type of man I want around my students. He tells me he'll make some calls and let me know. In 5 minutes, he calls me FROM HIS VAN to say that he's going to St. Ann instead.

7. I pace the room, entertaining crafters, and am nervous that nobody will show up and we will make no money and my friends will hate me.

8. People show up, we make money, and my friends love me.

9. Matt's chili is among the first to get sampled into extinction.

10. Other students show up and work my booth for me. They are good salespeople, and sell a lot of raffle tickets.

11. Most folks go home happy. Cranky Cricket gets invited to the Best of Missouri Market, which is awesome news.

12. I "get" to climb up the closed bleachers and crank the windows shut myself, even though I am scared of heights. I develop chameleon-like suckers on my hands from gripping the wall so hard. I don't look down. I sweat a lot. I get the windows closed without falling 15 feet onto the gym floor and snapping my neck in the now-pleasantly-scented corner Morgan's Naked Soaps was situated. At least I would be soothed by the faint cloud of lavender.
I have to sit on the top bleacher for a minute until my arms stop shaking and I can get the courage to climb back down the closed bleachers. I assure my principal I'm fine, mentally cursing the 2 girls who didn't show up for their shifts. Women, man....

13. My principal is pleased with me, and I feel the best I've felt in a LONG ASS TIME.

14. Now I feel weird, since a parent of a possible future student is reading this. Hi Bev!

15. I shower, nap, and then go to poppymom's for wine and cheese and telling funny stories about chipmunks and knives and the North Rim of the Grand Canyon.

16. I come home, find Matt already asleep, but pull a 20-something thing and lay in bed with him talking until 2 am.

17. I worry about what bad thing will happen to delete my euphoria.

18. I sleep.

19. I wake up and wonder if my friends embarrassed me in front of my students or vice versa.

20. We think we hear someone at the front door and yell that we are sleeping and to come back later. It was just the wind.

I ate no chili.

Thursday, March 22, 2007

Chilicraft!!!

Yes, the Chilicraft is almost upon us! Start starving yourselves for the taste-off!
One of my students drew up a more amazing flyer than this yesterday. I will have to scan and post his. I almost wept, it was so creative and awesome.

So, if you're interested in the mayor of Squaresville, come on over to Brittany Woods to sample chili, spend a lot of money on awesome clothes by Beqi, jewelry by Tiny Montgomery, cute little purses and change purses by String Theory, and more and more.
Heck, here's a list:
1. Beqi Clothing
2. marciamenendez.etsy.com
3. sherrybingaman.etsy.com
4. superchickstudio.etsy.com
5. Crankycricket.com
6. Luckybeesbazaar.com
7. aogstudio.com (wicked awesome glass things)
8. cateanevski.com
9. smallthingsbandb.etsy.com
10. Soul Diva trading (yum...shea butter stuff! I shall be soft!)
11. Stringtheoryshop.com
12. Morgan's Naked Soaps (a craft fair isn't complete without a soap person)
13. Tiny Montgomery
14. Of course, myself, squaresville.etsy.com

There will be kettle corn, Meshuggah Coffee, and many of my darling students to entertain you with their banter. Oh yeah, and a raffle contest!
*sigh* now to sleep. Hopefully no tornado-themed nightmares tonight. Last night, my dream killed off the guy Kate is seeing. I mean no harm!

Sunday, March 18, 2007

More pics

Me and Mom in the parking lot near the Art Museum in Philadelphia. Note the tell-tale grey streak that proves I am her child!

Me being circled by seagulls. Yes, that is snow piled up in the background. Note my cool wonderful.etsy.com t-shirt! Hi Megan! We had great pizza and a cheesesteak calzone at a little pizza joint in this strip mall.

Matt and some other kid pretending they're Rocky.

Matt and 2 other people pretending they're Rocky.
My dad helped build one of those tall buildings in the background.

Me and Mom not pretending we're Rocky, next to some girl whose boobies are escaping.

It was totally fun to hang out with my mom for the day. I wish we lived closer, so I could chill with her more often.

Friday, March 16, 2007

Spring Break


So, I spent the greater part of this week either in Pennsylvania, or on I-70.
It was great to lounge in my parents' house and eat good home cooking. Mom and I went to an "antique" mall and I ended up with these:







Each piece was $1.00, and the polka dot scrap was a mere quarter! Click on the fox/bird fabric to decipher the wording. The orangey-yellow and yellow/purple squares had old quilting lines marked on them, which sort of came out in the wash. I think they'll be fine for potholders, though.
Of course, a visit to the greater Philadelphia is not complete without a stocking-up of Tastykake products and good coffee.

More pics to come once Matt emails them from his computer to mine.

Mmmm....Tastykakes....









Oh yeah, I also scored this supposed McCoy planter. It is an exact smaller version of one my mother has! Neither one is marked, but both have similar flaws. I lurve it.