user6937

Update:

My dental implants have failed!!

Please, research before going to a foreign country to have these done. It might not be as expensive as you think in your own country.

And, if you do go, don't go to Clinica Prisma. I had a bad feeling about them right from the first day I arrived in the clinic, and I've been proven right. My denturist here in Calgary has found out that the implants used by Prisma doesn't sell to Canada OR the U.S. because of copyright issues. Clinica Prisma buys a copycat product - if you have a problem with your implants, you can't get help from your own country (Canada or the U.S.) - you have to go back to Costa Rica.

Because I tend to grind my teeth at night (as I've been told by more than one dentist), I was told that "snap-ons" would be the best choice for me to buy - cheaper to replace than ones that would be permanently attached, if grinding harmed the denture.

Of the four implants placed last March, the bone didn't ossify around one, so I only had three left for Dr. Josef Cordero to use to make the denture to attach to. He used two different snaps to attach my denture (because there was 1 on one side, and two on the other). My denturist in Calgary found this to be very odd, as well as saying that he never should have proceeded with only the three implants - at the very least, I needed four.

I'm now in the position of either going back to regular dentures (!) or having more surgery to get these replaced with proper material. I've just had radiology done ($425) to see what bone tissue I have to get this done.

I'm planning another trip to Costa Rica in September on other business but can I trust Dr. Cordero to fix this? And, why would I want more low cost material put in my mouth?

I'm so disappointed, and more than a little angry.

March 7, 2013

I was just about to delete everything I've written down to the October date, but decided to fess up instead.

I've fallen off the wagon.

The bread is back (just bought some really good WHITE bread the other day). I do keep it in the freezer, though!

The journal is sitting on my desk - unopened for weeks now.

My craft room is in the same condition, or even worse - I've attained more stuff, and put more in there (temporarily, of course).

Sigh.

January 4, 2013

I've kept my NY's resolution for 4 days now!! Low carb diet, more exercise, and inspiration to look at things in a happy way.

Food: I'm loosely following the South Beach diet (Kalyn's Kitchen sends me recipes every day!) so I don't have to count calories.

Exercise: I've walked each day and today I bought a pair of second hand x-country skis - will try them out this w/e.

Inspiration: Yesterday I bought a little journal book (I know, I should have made it) and entered in my "word of the year" - HEALTH. On the first page, I wrote down the things I want to concentrate to get me to my goal:

lose weight

gain strength

help my hubs get healthier and stronger

learn how to organize my crafts

clean the clutter

Each page after that I've started to enter things I've been happy about. A couple of examples are:

I'm happy I can hear the birds sing.

I'm happy my legs are strong enough to carry me.

In the Friendship Circle, I was chosen as the Dive Bomb of the Day - that's going in my book :)

Wish me luck!

October 20/12 - leaving for our Blues Cruise today (departing from Puerto Rico) and then going to Costa Rica to have my dental work finished.

Needless to say, I didn't learn the language, so I'll bring my Spanish/English dictionary with me, lol.

Will be back Nov 15; sending my last card out today, will rate when I get back.

October 6 - I'm gonna be a grandma (first one)!! Due May 31/13, so could be on my b-day :)

March 2012 - back! It WAS great, but next time, I'm going to know how to speak the language - that was the only drawback. The people are wonderful - friendly and helpful. The weather is hot and muggy (of course, I'm from Canada!) I saw howler monkeys :)

February 2012 - in a couple of days, I'm off to the Happiest Country in the World (Costa Rica) for a dream vacation (and dental work). I'll get one last ATC off in the mail and be done with SB for a while. If I haven't rated you, I haven't received your mail. I'm still waiting for some, but I'll be happy to open them when I get back on March 17 :)

=====================================

I just went through the postage stamps I rip off envelopes from swaps I get, and noticed that the U.S. has flag stamps for each state. I'd love to get a set of these! Used, please!

If other countries do this, too, please send them on :)

I mention this under my dislikes, but my profile has gotten to be pretty long so maybe it gets missed, so here it is right at the top - I don't like PINK (any pink)! I've been getting a lot of it and, I'm sorry, but when I see it I just plain don't like your art as much as I would if it was only a different colour; ergo, your work doesn't give me that WOW factor that it needs for me to give you that all ellusive HEART.

On to bigger and better things!

I've become a medal mounter - think of those veterans you see standing on a parade ground with those rows of medals on their chests. I always assumed that the government supplied them, but they don't - they do give out the medals but they don't mount them. The individual (whether armed forces, police, fire, cadets, etc) has to find somebody to do it for them. Well, I'm here! (hand goes up)

I don't use glue as the main ingredient - I wouldn't want anyone's medals to fall off while standing in the hot sun. I can find any medal (in case you need to replace one) and any type of ribbon you need. PM me if you'd like to discuss this with me.

Well, it's official - my last day of work is July 5/11 - yay! Early retirement - I've been dreaming of this for years! Now, there's more time for swaps, lol.

Music:

I have to share this - we've just booked on a BluesCruise for October 2012! We'll have to change our sleeping habits - no bedtime at 9 or 10 that week, I betcha!

I love the blues and, what I think is, called "alternative" music. I like rock, easy listening, and swing (think "In the Mood" by Glen Miller), too - I listen to a station you can log onto on the web: CKUA.com (Friday nights from 9 pm and Saturday from 3-5 pm they play the blues - Sunday AM they play swing). But, the station plays everything, and it's listener sponsored, so you don't hear ads. I hear music played by people I've never heard of and I LOVE (most of) their styles. Try it out.

I don't like classical, jazz or rap, so I do have to change the station sometimes :).

James Blunt, Natalie Merchant, Molly Brown, Corey Hart, Huey Lewis, Uriah Heep, Dave Mathews, Los Lobos, Stampeders...

Books:

Stephen King (most of them but to me Salem's Lot was the scariest book I've ever read), Robert McCammon (Swan Song - a long story, but I didn't want it to end), Dean Koontz (Watchers - my first Dean Koontz and it got me to read them all; I even read it again), Jodi Picoult (just started her books - kind of whiney but that's the way people are these days), and others.

I like to read, so I read a lot, but I read so fast that I can't remember the books I do read - have you ever started a book, and know that you've HAVE read it, but you don't know what's going to happen, so you just continue to the end? Well, I've done that. More than once.

The Chrysalids (also called Rebirth), by John Wyndham is one of the best - read that one a lot of times. When I was younger I loved the Outsiders, by SE Hinton.

And, to age myself, before that - Trixie Beldon - The Gatehouse Mystery. I must have read that one seven times!

I don't like most movies made from books, and I'd rather read the book, but I was glad I saw the movie, The Godfather, before reading it. Most of Stephen King's books are slaughtered when made into movies. I actually thought that Needful Things would make a great movie, but... Ahem, it wasn't, LOL.

I had laser surgery on my eyes in 2009. There's quite a difference having to put glasses ON to read now, instead of taking them off! Still getting used to that. I wish I'd done this years ago when I didn't need reading glasses, then I would've slowly got used to needing them (like most people). Anyway, I can't read comfortably right now - hopefully, the one eye settles down in a couple of months. Don't get me wrong, I still read, but not quite as fast, or as compulsively now. I've just learned that the one eye that doesn't have 20/20 vision is actually helping me read without reading glasses - ironic, eh? The day will come that it won't help me in that regard, and then I'll have to have Lasix on it again.

I don't recommend having it done if you're already wearing bifocals. They keep telling you that you're going to have to wear reading glasses, but it's impossible to know what that really means when you always wear glasses (even bifocals). I can tell you now - you have to have glasses with you all the time, or at least accessible (in the car, in the bathroom, by the computer, in the kitchen, by your crafts, at the store), etc, etc, etc. And it's easy to forget to carry them around with you. It's a pain in the butt. Now I understand why some people have plain glass in their glasses to go along with their bifocal lenses on the bottom - but I'll be "damned" if I'm going to do that!!! Now that I've done it, I've heard about a lot of people (my age) who wish they hadn't spent the money.

I don't see a lot of movies anymore. I did when I was younger - living on an Air Force base in Germany, I went to the movies every Saturday with my 25 cent allowance. A movie and a bag of fries is what that bought. Hayley Mills was one of my favourites back then - The Truth About Spring, The Moonspinners, etc.

I saw Avatar January 2010. Well done. Of course, the aliens are very human (in fact, they must be based on the aboriginal peoples of the America's in this world who are/were trampled upon by the exploiters who want/ed their land for the treasures within it). But the cinematography is wonderful. This is the first 3D movie I've seen - I didn't see it on an Imax, but it was still impressive.

We have our cable back on now (2012), but I still don't watch a lot of TV - I found Cold Case again last week (April/12), so try to see that.

We had our cable cut off years ago, so I don't watch TV much - I used to watch home decorating, cooking shows, etc. Cold Case was one of my faves.

Although I didn't get the channel to watch it on a weekly basis, I rented Six Feet Under and loved it. (1/10) We're renting Deadwood and 4404 now; I love Deadwood - all the cussing is making me cuss more, lol.

There was once a great show on CBC (This is Wonderland) that was absolutely one of the best shows I've ever watched weekly, and they CANCELED it. Duh.

I like comedies. I used to really like Northern Exposure. I like quirky comedy.

Scrapbooking rules, but because card-making is so fast, I finish them more often than any of the albums I dream of having someday (there's no way I can give anybody a "store bought" card anymore)!

I finally have a craft room, and I have to admit - it's really full. I could hold a class and supply everyone with everything they'd need and not miss any of it. This is not good, but then again, it is.

I tend to collect patterns of different crafts to do. My computer is full of patterns, and so is my filing cabinet :) I can't stop. When I clean up, I just organize better - I seldom throw anything away.

Since discovering Swap-bot Nov/08, ATCs rule these days! I spend so much time making these little gems, that everything else has been put on the back burner! I also like inchies and homemade postcards.

1/10 - I'm making my first skinny this w/e and I'm in a swap to make twinchies. Am I EVER going to get back to scrapbooking???

I met my husband in 1992 and we married exactly 5 years later. We have a few children between us, all of them grown now. My youngest daughter finally moved out this year (2010). Now I never see her and I'm a bit miffed!!

Aug/11 - my three daughters and I had our hair cut/coloured and then went to a photo shoot the next day - they turned out awesome :)

I'm a camper - my husband and I have an acre sized campsite about an hour and a half away from the city and visit it every weekend if the weather allows. My parents had a place there before us, and that's where we got married.

I would love to have an acreage. 2011 - we've just bought an acre in a hamlet south of here. It's a laid back place so we can have a horse, chickens, etc!

I'm an Air Force brat, so travel is in my blood - plan to see more of this planet.

I have a garden, but I'm lazy about it - in other words, I'm organic, haha.

Have always had an interest in photography - my husband bought me a great camera so one of my retirement plans is to really USE it.

I work as a lab assistant in a city college (now it's a university). Chomping at the bit to retire, as most of us are, eh? UPDATE (May/11): One month to go!!!! July 5 - last day. July 8 - loving it :)

LIKES:

I like bright colours - red, yellow, and the different kinds of blue there are. Not sure what "jewel" colours are, but they sound nice!

I like having little kids around, teaching them to cook or do crafts - expand their world. With babies, the first thing I do is have them touch something - usually a plant.

Love the vintage look; things that are old. Things from old books, old tickets, postcards, pictures. I like sorcerer pics, dark, mystical visions. Love the steampunk look!

The following likes could be for anything to do with rub-ons, stamps, die-cuts, etc. I really like rub-ons.

I like: faux stitching, doodles, trees, wild animals & bugs, birds, ocean stuff, travel, nature, ducks (the real ones, not the rubber ducky ones), horses, grass, lighthouses, fairies, mushrooms, dinosaurs. dragons, pin-ups, tasteful nudes. I'd love to get some decent punch-outs or die-cuts - unusual ones, not hearts and squares (who doesn't have those?) I could use some 7/8 inch circles (bought one May/11), or some large snowflakes, big die-cut shapes, etc.

If somebody wants to trade some punch-outs or die-cuts with me I have 7/8, 1, 1.5 and 2 inch squares (for inchies & twinchies and I have a 1 inch circle punch now) and a cool carousal (horse) punch, and others (wings) - I can send a list of what I have. Just pm me.

I like postcards or anything that could be incorporated into an ATC - kind of off the wall, or macabre, quirky, not cutsey. Dragons, mermaids, Boris type art.

I like Native art, and love African masks.

I'd really like it if you wrote a bit about what you're sending me - why you like it and what you'd like me to know about it. Or even just something about yourself!

I don't wear jewellry, but I'd like to get "parts" that I could use - I'm getting into Steampunk art.

I love "Classic 45" scrapbooking paper, Zetti, the grunge look, Tim Holtz.

If you're from another country (besides the U.S.), I'd love it if you'd send me a coin or two from where you live. Or a postcard, or a postage stamp (used is fine), or anything else different from what I'm used to seeing here.

DISLIKES:

I don't like any kind of pink, bright or otherwise, and don't like pastel colours. I still remember, as a child, my bedroom walls painted a pale green!

Disney, cutsie, lots of small anything, pet things, stuff for kids (mine are grown), wedding items, stickers with sayings on them, religious themes.

I don't need stickers - don't use the ones I have, so please don't send any. I don't like glitter.

If you're sending me a recipe (food or drink), I don't like coffee, coconut, tequila or scotch. I'm not an adventurous person with many types of seafood (oysters, sardines & mussels), though I like fish and large shrimp.

I'm very upset with Canada Post with regard to the cost of mailing anything that causes the envelope to be more than 3/4 of an inch. If it doesn't go through that slot they use, then it costs $7.80 to send, even if it's less than 100 grams of weight. If it DOES go through the slot, and is less than 100 grams of weight, it costs less than $3. That's 5 bucks in my pocket. So, I'm being picky on what I sign up for.

Flaked by:

Robyn J Broadus @RJBroadus Stamped Images #5 - Love; May 7 - angeled by @hanfmuk

Judy Fort @fortcrafts 100 Inchie Project # 21-30 Flowers; May 13 - angeled by @boopgirly

Lory Alvarado @Caker Got ATC's? Potty Mouth - May 3/12 angeled by @Mareree10

stephanie porter @dastephan6 2009 Reading Log 1; June 28 - angeled by @artistic

Thespoena McLaughlin @1GruviScrapper Vintage ATC - Newbie; July 3 - angeled by @patricia

Maggie Owens @m2mowens Birdhouses ATC; July 22 - angeled by @groundhoggirl

Hanane Elmoumi @Hanane Skull ATC; May 16/11 - angeled by @PeNeLoPe

Katherine Kennedy @katken Stained Glass ATC; May 16/11 - angeled by @PeNeLoPe (she sent me a stained glass sugar skull, so combined these two swaps into one - very inventive)

MidiAna Bilik-Franklin @carseattourist I Can Make This Better

Shayla Fish @shaylafish Art History ATC #3 (dropped out of SB, so her actual partner sent to me - thanks @jringling )

Viviane Gonzalez @ViviGonzalez One person from Each CITY (village) # 3 (this was a postcard swap)

2012

Anita Bragg @Bastet59 Gorey Alphabet ATC -Letter O

krystal butherus @krystalskitsch Cocktails---Vodka

Fiona . @swaproos Postage Stamp ATCs #2 - CANADA

Caitlin Donnelly @mombiebrains Images to print off via emailQUICKIE

2013

Kathleen Ferris @madcrazy PBP-Journal Page - Weather (I was the host); angeled by @BusyB

NEVER GOT RATED BY (and I always pm to ask if they received my swap, and offer to resend):

Stefanie Schade @m4riella Xmas Card Swap

Susan Lee @Bubblewrap M Recipe Swap

evey del sotano @eveyinorbit Owl ATC, January

Krys Williams @tehuti 100 Inchies (Love) 11-20

Karen Ferrero @KarenMarie Stamped Images #6, Spring

Lisa Sikorski @PennyArcade 2009 Reading Log #1

Dominique Anne @coeurdartichaut Owl ATC March

Kristen Kimball @sleepybeachbum Your City ATC

Thespoena McLaughlin @1GruviScrapper Beeswax ATC

Anna Khayrnasova @goldenfish Pocket Change #3

Agnetha Gustafsson @Agnetha Promote Your Business

Andrea Lynn Wilson @andrealynn Promote Your Business

Andrea Sheley @GlitterGypsy Promote Your Business

Elizabeth Duquette @ElizabethMD Promote Your Business

Mari Luz Lavado Martín @marilavado 1 for All # 13 My Butterfly (never sent to her partner either)

Laura Thykeson @lthykeson New greeting card

Share Smith-Baxter @savvygal 1 for All #20-French Woman (flaked on her partner, too, but I angelled it)

Kathryn Berry @kasade Images to print off via emailQUICKIE

ca pi @capi Images to print off via emailQUICKIE

Perla Guzman @Sultana Images to print off via emailQUICKIE

Caitlin Donnelly @mombiebrains Images to print off via emailQUICKIE (naturally, since she flaked on this swap, too)

Jen Fletcher @jenstreats I Am The Queen of Everything Doll & Incentive

TAGS and/or WTA's NOT RECEIVED: These are fun, but dangerous! The only reprimand is to display the non-senders on your profile page.

Rubber Stamping WTA (Sept/10) Theme: Travel

Boo to:

@sarita

@katyushka (rec'd Oct 31/11)

@whiskey

I always rate and I don't flake. If you get my swap, I'd appreciate a rating. If you didn't, please let me know so I can fix the problem. After a month or so, I will pm/email if I haven't been rated to see if my item made it to your house, but I shouldn't have to.

I often send my art out on the send date - that doesn't mean I've thrown it together on that date; I do spend a lot of time searching for the right image and thinking about how I'm going to put it together. It's just the date that I've finished making it for you.

Postal workers in Canada don't work on weekends, so if the send date is a Saturday/Sunday, they won't be postmarked until Monday. Do people really check that?? I always give extra time for things - especially overseas. Even crossing the Canada/US border seems to take forever sometimes.

I won't automatically give a heart because of extra's anymore. There have been times in the past when I have, but I haven't wanted to because, well, the main part of the swap (which is what I look forward to) didn't do it for me. If something makes me say "wow", you'll get a heart anyway. Not that I don't appreciate the extra's - I enjoy using them in my art. It's just I want you to know that they won't necessarily earn you a heart from me. If I give a heart, it'll be your art that got it for you!! Hope you'll do the same for me.