lifeLOVEpaper

because that's how I roll.

The past few weeks have been such a blur. I'm finding it hard to prioritize. I want to do everything in a day and then move on to the next. Just never happens that way. Yesterday's to-do's spill into the next, bump a few of things from that day, and so on and so on. I've said it before and I'll say it again, my full-time job really gets in the way. For instance, we had the most beautiful sunrise over the mountains the other day. I wanted to grab my cameras and take some shots. The light was so beautiful. I wondered how that field of daisy's would look with the warm sunlight spilling over them. I turn around, take a deep breath, and continue on with my workload.
Time after work is gone in a flash. Before I know it, I'm in my pj's about to crash and wonder where my precious free time has escaped to. I'm complaining again. I'm aware of this. It's not my intention to post such things but this is my life at the moment and I can only be truthful. Not that things are going badly. Very much the opposite. That line in the movie The Devil Wears Prada where Nigel tells Andy,"Let me know when your whole life goes up in smoke. Means it's time for a promotion." That says it all for me right now.
Continuing my journey through the viewfinder.
 
Current playlist:
Modest Mouse
Raconteurs
Thom Yorke
Portishead

Dvr'd shows I have yet to watch:
Project Runway
The Hills
Generation Kill (just caught up with this one and love)

Still haven't finished Breaking Dawn. Pathetic. I'm almost there though. This is the reason why I've been avoiding several blogs and threads......to avoid spoilers.

Working on:
Studio Calico, September. I'll have some peeks by the end of the week.
Dare #105
My Etsy store, LifeLovePaper. Grand opening will be September 5th. I'll also have a little give away too.
Updating ye ol blog.
Possibly partaking in the UrbanNomad competition.

C'est la vie!
Tina

I survived!

I'm always a little pleased with myself when I survive yet another hellish work week. No heads bitten off, no overwhelming feeling to join the smokers. Just coasted through countless tasks and to-do's. *sigh*

No huge plans for the weekend. Just the norm. I was going to venture out at lunch today and take some ttv shots but being the bone-head that I am, I forgot my friggin' memory card. ah well. I should have a back up but too cheap to buy one.

And because I'm a good sis/friend, I'm taking my girl to see the traveling pants sisterhood whatev movie tomorrow. I'm not huge on extreme chick flicks but I'll suck it up and enjoy it. She's in dire need of some adult time since the birth of her second. I swear, she's the only one I would sacrifice such things for.

Currently pursuing some things that I've pondered for quite some time now like opening up my own Etsy store. Should have her up and stocked with goods by the end of this month. Also pursuing possible promotion at work. Possibly. There's been talk of me moving up several times in the past few years but nothings happened. Still busting ass as if it happening though. The joys of working for a small company.

New Dareskys up. #104 KC dig. Lovely stuff to work with.

Enjoy the weekend!
Tina

hello friday.

The very best day of the week, in my opinion.
I recently read an article on blogging in Macworld magazine about not forcing a post(not that I have a Mac but it was the one closest to me in the hospital waiting room)...that readers can sense a fake post. So with that....I simply leave you with well wishes for a lovely weekend.
:) 
Tina

ps....Dare 103 is in full effect. Check out Gen's diginess and get to work.

a new toy.

 
Meet Argus, my new toy. Found at a local antique shop last week, I hesitated buying it until today. I went back to said antique store thinking if it was still there, it was meant to be.....kismet. Being the most terrible haggler ever, I was only able to talk the nice lady down 4 bucks. I could of found it cheaper on ebay but who wants to deal with the shipping and wondering if the the sellers a flake...yadayadayada...so it's safely home with me now, all cleaned up and ready for some ttv action. I quickly constructed a light blocker thingie and shot a few things around me.


 
*sigh*
I'm so in love with him. I foresee lot's of adventures around Anchorage with Argus. I'm sure I'll get a few stares as the light blocker contraption is not a pretty one. Hopefully I'll have more to share soon.
I did get my film back from my first go with the Diana+. She, unlike Argus was a a little more sketchy. Out of the 12 shots I took, 1 came back half-way decent. And it wasn't cheap to get them developed. I'm not going give up on her though.

Other than my happy purchase, not much else to report. I'm only on chapter 12 of Breaking Dawn so I've been avoiding certain online spots. No spoilers please. I'm taking my time with this one only because other things like a serious house cleaning were on the top of my to-do list this weekend. I still didn't get half of what I wanted to get done around here. And  I know you're dying to chat about it Vee, I know.....I'll try to get it done by the weekend, maybe. :)

Oh and here's my very first Dare as a Dare.

#102:Nisa's digi. Her little template was cool..made for a quick layout. I freaked a bit when digi was mentioned but this I could handle.

Off to get a little reading in before I hit my pillow hard and pass out.
laters-T

a week of goodness.

 1. jumping (again). day 85, 2. Surprise, 3. Untitled, 4. 1, 2, Jump!, 5. We Laugh [out]doors, 6. Scream *lomo*

goodness....are we all getting a little tired of adding "ness" to everything? whatever. I'm still riding it for every things it's worth. so onto the goodness....

Monday. Glorious Monday. Have you ever heard me put the 2 words together? Usually Mondays are sh*t for me but not this particular Monday. Not when I get an email from this lady about joining this motley crew.I sh*t you not. No words people, none. Just expressions. See above Flickr mosaic. And because I have no scrappy friends near to scream my good news to, I had to settle for my man who has no f-ing idea who or what the Dares are but was still super excited for me. Yeah, he's a keeper.

So yeah, I am effer now. Crazy.

Tuesday. Still high from Monday. Found new under eye concealer. Resisted the temptation to buy more shoes. Chatting with my Twi-girl about the daily quotes.

Wednesday. The high is still lingering. Downloaded some new music. Doves, Wildbirds & Peacedrums, Silverspun Pickups, Nicole Adkins....all a little whiny, weird and moody, just the way I like it. Found awesome new mag to read: JPG.

Thursday. Yes, still high. It will probably continue for awhile. Can you blame me? Fit back into my skinny black J Crew jeans I've been holding onto. I was weary when I pull them up one leg, remembering that I couldn't zip them up 6 months ago and neatly tucking then away with hopes of losing the tire around my waist. Knowing that in 2 days I will be fully immersed with Breaking Dawn. If you don't hear from me, it's because of that.

Best of all, tomorrows Friday. (enter big sigh of relief) Works been crazy busy, my inbox doesn't seem to ever be empty which reminds me that I need to stop blogging and get started on the stack.

Take care! Oh and I guess I should say that Dare 102 is up tomorrow. My first. Like, whoa.
Tina

I live in Forks.

No, not really. Still in the great state of Alaska. It's easy to get swept away in the Twilight series when this is my environment. 6 days people. 6 days. Ok, enough of the Twi-talk. This is going to be a tinee tiny post as I'm amped on coffee and inspo.
Today:
-finishing up on some things for the Studio Blog. will be posting later today.
-finishing up the 100 dare and starting 101 dare.
-editing photos.
-laundry
-work out
-finish rd season of Weeds.
-read a few chapters of The Host.

That's all.
Happy Sunday
Tina

say hello to my little friend.

Welcoming my new nephew Mason! Born July 23, 2008 at 4:34 a.m at a whopping 9lbs!
Being there for the birth was highly emotional. My sis-in-law did so well....she made it look all too easy. And seeing my brothers face light up was also a big highlight. I'm so glad they invited me to share their personal and joyous moment. I couldn't be more happier for their growing family.

Photojojo had the funniest and truest line in their newsletter this morning about Flickr.
"We loooove Flickr. We want to marry Flickr."
I whole-heartedly agree. I want to marry Flickr too. I am continuously inspired and in awe of the amazing photographs, to see the world through a million different lenses. Here's some things that make me happy.

1. <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/69112375@N00/2508695260/">iwant to name them ~ one is definitely shirley</a>, 2. <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/38047620@N00/1758628132/">OneMore Slide</a>, 3. <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/38047620@N00/2428868238/">Takenby the wind</a>, 4. <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/72296542@N00/2626537363/">Untitled</a>, 5. <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/57852006@N00/2494593681/">j'adoredior</a>, 6. <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/13080291@N06/2678706027/">Yesterdayneeded better shoes</a>, 7. <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/68095902@N00/2571202566/">Amy</a>, 8. <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/68095902@N00/2668547544/">Nina</a>, 9. <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/22811474@N07/2653260358/">landofshoes</a>

Lastly, I will be taking over the Studio blog starting this Sunday. I'll have some fun things that feature all the lovely exclusive stamps Studio Calico produces. So swing on by. I'm also planning a give-away here. I'm still clearing out my stash. Why I end up with doubles on certain things is beyond me but hey...you get to be rewarded for my mistakes. I'll post some pics of the give away stash soon.

Have a great one!
Tina

Some things.

Pretty things.

 
Hit the Nordstrom sale Friday thinking if I went early enough I would avoid the masses. Oh was I wrong.

Scrapy things.

A layout I had on my desk for awhile and finally finished.

100 Things.

Dare #100. I'll have this baby finished by the Friday.

Cool things.
Free downloadable stamp from The Small Object. I will be getting one made very soon.
Daily quotes from Breaking Dawn.
 

I love this graphic. It's currently on my desktop. So very true.

Sneaky things.

Studio Calico peeks for August.

Take care!
Tina

Eeeppss.....I really hate going this long without blogging. How can we possibly be in the middle of July already? It's been chilly, grey and rainy here for the past couple of weeks but I'm still enjoying the summer. As long as there's green grass instead of cold white snow, I'm good.

No scrappage to report. Have not touched anything in my scraproom since the last kit from Studio Calico....which reminds me. I don't think I ever posted those layouts. humph. I'll get on that later this week along with some peeks of the upcoming August kit. I like to describe next month as sweet & juicy.

Happy to report that I'm still headed on my path of happiness and fulfillment. Thinking of other things I want to accomplish. Possibly taking piano lessons? I don't know yet. That would entail a purchase of piano that I neither have room or money for but it's something I do see in my future. Korean lessons also high on the list as I have no way of communicating with my grandparents.

I've been having so much fun filling my new ipod with new music. I had the old mini for so long and kept it in pristine condition until my husband jacked it since his nano ended being a piece of dooky. Oh how I love all the videos and podcasts. Something to play around with when the boss isn't looking at work.
Currently on the playlist:
Bat For Lashes
Radiohead
Dashboard Confessional
St Vincent
Muse
Santogold

What other random sh*t can I blog about today. Let's see...
-looking forward to all the new fall fashions and big fat fashion magazines coming out.
-enjoying talks about moving out of state. just talks though, no immediate plans.
-thinking of how quiet it's going to be with everyone headed off to the fabulousness of CHA. I won't hate.
-19 more days until the release of Breaking Dawn. still not sure if I'm team edward or team jacob. can i be team both?
-thinking I'm in dire need of a manicure and pedicure.
and a random glimpse of the past few weeks.

That's all folks!
Take care,

Tina

be safe.

1. Happy 4th of July to all of my USA flickr friends!, 2. DC Fireworks

Thank you for all your supportive comments and emails to my last post. I'm always delighted to hear that I can inspire someone or make someone feel at ease about a similar, if not the same situation. Still balanced...sort of. J has been on his "guys trip" since Monday and I've had the hardest time sleeping. Even when I do sleep it's restless, no dreams which I hate. Even if it were a bad dream, I'd be ok with that. It is nice to have the house to myself though, do whatever I please which is mostly reading. I think I've only watched tv an hour since he's been away. I'm savoring the last of Eclipse. I don't think I can wait another month for the next book. Think I'll start them over again. I remember Veesaying she read Eclipse 2 already and I thought, could it really be that good? It is. Oh and thanks for setting it straight for me girl. Can't believe I was about to start with the 3rd book! I would of been so lost.

Busy at work today so I'm off.....have a safe, long weekend!
Take care,
Tina