Because I'm totaly wiped out. Especially since my entry just went poof again...grumbles.

Still, checking out our shop blog will give you an idea:

http://www.knightpeople.bravelog.com/index.php

Also, there's a reporter here for the local college's paper doing a piece on the shop at the moment so've got to dash.

Cheers folks!

Melissa (with finger crossed.)

Okay, did that and ended up with a loooong one page ebook because it doesn't recognize things like "next page" unless you hyperlink to a second HTML file.

Hmm, seems after your main index.html file you can't just title the next Page2, Page3, Page4...oh, you can, only when you get to Page10 the proggy reads "10" before "2" the one before two, right?

Thus my day from 10am to 8pm was spent thusly. From that point it was pull out an old favorite PC game POOL OF RADIANCE (a D&D thingy) and blast the bloody hell out of as well as chop up some zombies and other crawling beasties. Wonderful therapy, I swear

Question was how to spend this day off? Well, went music surfing, found this great Gothe Belly Dancing CD called "Strange Flesh" and got a free tune from www.payplay.com though may get the whole thing soon. Got the "Black:: The Shroud" playing right now and it's pretty groovy.

2nd time around since last one just went POOF!

Hi folks, just a quick peek out of my hole. Sorry, just been too busy and too tired to find energy to post. Also working on holding off one of those depression thingies. Ptooie!

Well, whatever. Just plugging away with work to IMPROVE and that helps. Have THREE WHOLE DAYS off starting tonight where we're even going to close early to go out to dinner with some friends.

Been house hunting again and hmmm, indeed, a couple possibilities, though one has really jumped to top of the list. Another built in the 1800 monster only THIS ONE WAS TAKEN CARE OF! Actually has things like walls, lol. 11 rooms (PLUS several bedrooms) solarium, fruit trees, 10 acres of woodlands...but we'll see. So much changing with economy and all that. Still, much, much, much research needs to be done as yet before we think what to do here...

Ugh, brain is shot, so going to just chill a bit till dinner.

Be back soon as can,

cheers,

Melissa

Some cool quartz crystals with orange garnets

PT 2

Whoa I'm back...whoa I'm drunk.

Okay, went out to dinner at this place called the Blue Oar, outside joint by the dock.

'Kay, was told be a little gathering of the gallery folks where I used to work...get there and get "Here's you retirement party, Melissa!"

Yikes!

Ursel, the wonderful lady and 2nd mother I used to work for goes okay, know it's been 25 years (almost) but no plaque. Got something for your tummy instead, and pulls out a huge bottle of Baileys. LOL!

For later, brought couple bottles of red vino and that's why I'm zooming now.

Couple shot (picts) for yas then I'm going to go walk into a wall or something...

Gallery Ladies

Me & my pal Mary Geary who's a cool artist.

You can be a ham even with beans!

Turn around and this is view from our table.

Emile got the ribs. I went with a Cajun red peper cream sauce catfish with peppery cus-cus...

Place is BRING YOUR OWN meaning table cloth, boose and extras. Flowers I was given at end of the events.

Me, Mary & Ursel

CHEERS!

Okay, just finished making the videos of our weekend vending Tibestfest IV in Goshen, CT, 2008.

Scenes from the event like the sand mandala making, making dough flowers, me giving some aura & chakra readings, people, an outside walk, the violent thunderstorm that ended the festival and some impromptu Tibetan music after the fest ended. Was great to watch as we all waited for the latest shower to pass and could continue packing up the car to go home.

Note that because we were vending these were brief forays. Typically, every time E left I got swamped by people. LOL

Cheers and enjoy,

Melissa

PART ONE

PART TWO

AFTER THE FESTIVAL - SOME MUSIC!

Uh-huh, yeah right. Well, 'vacation' or not it's over which means (drumrollll) MORE WORK!

ARGH!

Ah well, better to have then have not I suppose. Still, going to that gem and mineral show was great and no, still haven't gotten to pictures of my stuff, but eventually.

Last day of vacation was staying up till 4 am to take some videos of E playing for our http://www.templesounds.net site. Got some great stuff, here's just one of them:

Today it has been more photo shoots of tumbled stones and crystals for the website. Soon as camera battery recharges I have to dash and download to my laptop; select the good ones, resize, upload to website then do the HTML thumbnail codes for, um, think have 30 maybe for today. Ha, today and tonight and possible tomorrow on day off as well since am already blind. Dreary muggy-clammy overcast day where you just can't seem to get it in gear no matter what. Don't mind the work though because at least we're seeing results. Helps when you do as opposed to finishing and feeling like all your effort ended up in some black hole someplace, right?

Okay, sorry, know this is all boring, but at least I am trying to post. Something that won't leave me drained further at that, since actually thinking and going on a raging tangent on oh, say 'politics' just won't be doing me any good. Least right now. Whole world is just fucked royal due to having a majority population of moronic herd beast cattle, and let's leave it at that.

This video here is a brief highlight of our day participating in the Meiklem Kiln Works 4th Annual Holistic Fair...

And to round thing up, some morning glories blooming here in the living room amongst my baby mimosa tree. Was a great thing to wake up to and find as I lifted the shades.

Cheers all,

Melissa

Oh I am just so psyched, today being one of the Good Ones. Yup, not only did my loooong awaited little cigar darlings arrive, yet the CD containing one of my fav songs in fav version arrived as well (best $3.98 including ship & handling I ever spent) ALONG with just this moment finding the bastard for my free music player here at the blog. Ha, go figure, right?

Still, "Don't Fear The Reaper" acoustic version by GUS is here for all to share. Least as long as it's available.   

Now I am off to kick back, smoke, drink and groove to tunes while the sun sets, the clouds glorious, a large thunderstorm just ending in time to view the whole, natural show.

Cheers gang,

Melissa

Uh-huh. Well, plan to enjoy it all the same. Try for some 'me time' when I can get it. Just put a post on my Pipester Blog, so came winging here next.

Had a great time Friday at the Gem & Mineral show. Both E and I got ourselves some goodies. (Picts to come later when I can see straight, ha.) A new wompin' piece of Sphalerite, a companion and helper to bring with me when I do chakra readings at shows, ets. A little spiked-ball critter, full sphere of crystals with touch of hemetite maybe since it's a rusty orange/red inside. Some more funky quarts crystals with light orange garnets growing over and inside and a really cool hunk of Carnelian, a shiva linham-type tumbled thing almost as long as my hand. Wonderful energies, very healing and just what was needed.

Bunch of stuff for the shop, tumbled stones by the pounds and can't wait to open the bags of sunstones, aquamarines and blue kyanites. Some green goldstone as well. Love green and my Aquarius nature just drools over things sparklie, hehe

Another piece, a pendent that E found and sorta pushed my into. A carved dragon's head made of fossilized ivory. Mammoth tusk with lots of sharp teeth. Very cool though, can't wait to wear. Other things for the shop, goddesses and dragons, wolves and mermaids. Going to be fun getting them on the web or at least smile when we re-open the shop and actually have new things to shop folks once again.

Will see how today goes though. yesterday was a BAD ONE. Art & Holistic fair was a total bust beyond some contacts made, still, it's the energies around here need to be dealt with. Now, I am not one to bitch about my significant others as so many are prone to do online here. Not fair really, because you only ever really hear one side of the story in those things, lack the true nature of the events and personalities involved. Lets just say I DO understand, know he's as burnt out as I am and his nature, only neither of us needed that full screaming and literally spitting rage tantrum he through at me yesterday morning as we drove to a day of work. As usual, I'll accept his apology, and as usual, knowing the principles, will just sigh knowing it will not keep the same thing happening again in the future. Ah well.

Okay, it's 9:30am and I am wiped out totally, just sitting here slumped over with eyes barely cracked open. More soon.

Cheers,

Melissa

In light of that as well as my own stuff, I've just this moment before posting gotten myself an E-Book Creating program. (Since I now have a laptop that doesn't rattle or take 20 minutes just to start up!) Been looking at a couple, got the full working free trial for this one, though for under $50 bucks it looks to be easy as well as comes with all the bells and whistles the more complex ones just starting at $100.

Create Your Own E-Books Today! Free Trial Download Activ E-Book Compiler Make and sell your own information products: Simple to use Packed with powerful features Drive traffic to your web site Creates e-books that you can sell Start today - test run the software for FREE by clicking here

Melissa

Hey folks,

Well I am BACK ONLINE!!! with new pc Still no time to catch up yet though, just did a 2 day ventding festival over the weekend Tib*t F*st (so no search engines find me due to that. Long story about what hapened last year yikes) and now here it is Tuesday and I'm still wiped out, just had to cancel a dinner party with friends from the gallery I've not seen in months. Migrain and nausia (spelling) and dizzy to boot.

Anyway, will catch up soon, only, hum, anyone know what happened to my tagboard messages? Grr, hope this thing hasn't been hacked again... Still pissed off royal about that bugger who banned a bunch of my fav buddies IP addresses that time...

Okay GTG lay down again, Be Back soon as i can,

Melissa

...continues. Nixing the Toshiba idea, just got back from some stores and looked them over. Keyboard, yuck. Last row spaced too far away, and since they are 'lifted' like tiny mushrooms all it would take is one little thing to get snagged beneath and rip them right off. Three store demo models were actually minus keys, all Toshibas. 'Nough said. Reason further, however, is fact that YES I CAN get a PC with Windows XP! Whoo-hoo! XP Business Professional is what can be installed at places like Dell. Costs $100.00 extra, (you get the Vista disc free with the system for when you want to 'upgrade',) but it will be worth it. Especially considering Vista is going to be replaced next year with OS Windows 7.

Beyond that though, my darling Emile said the magic words to me today, which were: "Get what you want." Followed by: "We can afford it."

*Swoons*

Now, that last may not be exactly true, however, a commission started three years ago for a custom built ULF (Ultra Large Format) camera was just completed, and the percentage Emile made for being the go between of customer and builder (high blood pressure, threats, hours of phone calls, emails after emails after emails, inspections, returns, more threats and shouting since the builder who can make a best of the best cameras is a pathological liar, lazy and sloppy because he is lazy. Bugger actually forgot to put the hardware on a $4,000 camera once, thus upon receiving it fell apart, there being nothing actually holding the damn thing together, just wood slotted into wood. Also phones you out of the blue, saying your camera has been shipped, should be there in two days, gives you a UPS tracking number...only to find out he made it up. Tracking number is bogus, and when you phone him back after waiting around all day long for your delivery he admits he has not actually started making the camera yet. Be eight months more at least, crap like that,) will cover a good bit of a nice new computer system for me.

Further, doing lots of research and reviews, Emile came to me saying--holds breath-- "Have you heard about Alienware?"

*Shrieks!*

BTW Alienware also comes with OS Windows XP Biz Professional too if you want.

Drools.

So now I am playing around online building a custom system. (Hehe!) An Area-51 m15x 15.4" LCD. Bells and whistles, Lightscribe DVD RW, glowing, lit keyboard in my choice of color, (which will be an awesome help when I type late at night in low light conditions,) RAM and speed up the ass and three years of in home, next business day tech service around $2,500. I mention this to Emile and he says, "Get what you want," once more. "Get everything you need because you will be using it." Recalls as well that 30% is write off able at end of the year...

Alright, may not go that way, (more like probably because it really is too expensive.) might end up with a Dell Latitude D830 or Precision M4300 (BTW Dell makes Alienware as well,) because even if I am going to venture deeper into the 3D graphic art creations for book covers and eBook art there really is only so much I need, and main purpose of my computer is writing and website design work. Video creations for the websites, as well as our upcoming DVD creations on Tibetan bowls, etc. Still, considering this is a laptop that is going to be running the Aura Chakra video station at shows, the Alienware Smart Bay is a bonus. It is where you have a slot to so can pull out and exchange your DVD gizmo with a second battery or extra hard drive on instant whenever you feel like it. More then once we've been to shows where they lost power, and that second battery could be a survival issue at that point. Sure, may not be able to prints then, but with all that memory it is a piece of cake to save and then print up and mail to people the next day from home.

Guess everything is going to depend on the answers we get from the Aura station software manufacturers at this point. Cutting edge in biofeedback technology, but backwards when it comes to WORD and program compatibilities. Like it can not be used with anything beyond WORD 2003 last we heard. (Fingers crossed it has changed.) Considering that is the only program that displays the photos and reports it is an issue. Also, Alienware seems to be a 64 bit system, not a 32 bit. Very sensitive for a $10,000 program, even with the same operating system and proper WORD programs something about Sony computers screws it up.

Needless to say I am keeping my fingers crossed here. Have decided on the Ripley cover and I want my glowing alien face! LOL!

Well anyways, we shall see. Going to wing by HP now since I still have an affection for Conpaqs, and after our hands-on store venture they still seem the nicest when it comes to keyboard design and stability. Don't think you can get them with XP though...

Okay, off to window shop some more. if nothing else, it's fun as hell.

Cheers,

Melissa

Buy a song, I make a few pennies...or at least a couple thin shavings. LOL

Hi gang, hugs all around.

Well the literary agent answered my inquiry email yesterday morning. Has been having a crazy bust few weeks along with some travel, yet the response was:

So off a copy went yesterday. Fingers crossed, folks!

Next, with luck I shall be getting a new laptop this weekend. Love, love, love my one now, but it is only a matter of time till it wheezes its last. Am looking at a kick-ass Toshiba, but we shall see. (One looking at Toshiba Satellite X205-SLI5 17" Widescreen Laptop. Intel Core 2 Duo T8300, 320GB hard drive, 3GB of DDR2 memory, hard drive speed 7200RPM...ooo-la-la!) is actually meant for gaming, but beyond the Aura/Chakra programs I have some 3D art proggies (Like Z-Brush) that need the space. Book and CD cover art and graphics, the tarot deck I am designing, stuff like that. Never had a Tosh before, always went with Compaq, but they do not make them like the used too. My main concern is, no guesses, VISTA. Of course I could go to HP direct and get a “downgrade” option of XP...still thinking of it. Would go MAC, only the Aura Chakra programs do not work with a MAC. Called the company and they said yes, their programs do work with Vista, so we shall see. Still window shopping at this point. Price is a major “ouchie” but since it’s for business 30% is write-off able so we shall see. Besides, no problem with dreaming, right?

Well, that’s the good stuff, now on to the suckie.

Family. Family = headache for Melissa.

Really thought I had a handle on things, had the “I know the principles involved, know who they are and what they are like, and I do not need to be effected detrimentally by these people,” thing down.

Like I did not give me mother a call this Mother’s Day. Reason for that was what happened last year. Mom lives across the country from me, lives close to my sister and her kids. My sister and I do not get along, are simply just too different in how we choose to be and live in this world. Details are not required.

Anyway, I had called mom, we were having a great conversation, then suddenly something changed. Mom started reacting like she was chatting with an annoying neighbor. No responses now except neutral ‘uh-huh’s’, ‘yeahs’ and the like. The she says, “Well, my daughter just got here so I have to go now.” Meaning she did not want my younger sister to know who she was talking to on the phone. No ending “I love and miss you,”, just an absently spoken “Bye.” Now, I understood she did not want her day ruined by having my sister turning into a bitch by finding out who was on the phone, but come on...

Now, mom is going through a nasty divorce, mentioned briefly in previous posts. To update, she has lost everything. Guy who wanted the divorce emptied their bank accounts before he told her and took off. Returned while she was at work and hauled away everything of value, from lawn tractor on down. Mom tried to have a yard sale, but not a single person showed. After putting everything away she hiked up to the highway and discovered every single sign she had put up had been pulled up and laid face down. Her husband’s boss and good buddy lives there. Enough said. Unable to make the mortgage payment, her husband now has the house because he could.

Now comes an email from my sister who has not spoken to me for a long time. They are very doing well, but have decided to sell their sign-making business and go into retail property. (Renters.)

Following is from the email:“Wayne and I are taking her (mom) to look at a trailer in a mobile home retirement (over 55) park today. We are seriously considering purchasing this trailer for her as long as she can make lot payments and utilities. I don't want to make her pay for it because she will need all the money she earns in savings for when she can no longer work. That won't be too far down the road... So, I am asking if you both have any desire to help out with purchases of a home for our mother. We are prepared to get a loan and purchase it ourselves but the thought came to me that you might want to be included in this decision. I don't want you to have any reason to say you were never asked to help. If you decided you would like to help with the purchase, I will give you financial details.”

“I don't want you to have any reason to say you were never asked to help.” Love that line.

Now, not going into it, yet I did not contact her back as yet on the matter. Looks like I do not have too since mom called me on Wednesday.

Sister and her husband have bought two nice homes to rent out and mom was to have one of them, but that is not going to happen now. A depressed personality with a mile-wide self destructive of personal happiness streak, mom drinks when times are bad. She got a DWI and spent the night in jail. Had a psyc evaluation and was deemed “a very sad and depressed person” so has been ordered by the court take a series of classes ($45.00 a pop).

Because of this happening, she is not going to be allowed to live in the home my sister and her family bought for her, telling her, and I quote: “You have brought shame and disgrace upon our family.”

Here is where I remind folks that my sister and her husband are Born Again Christians. Reason my sister despises me is that I once had the balls to tell her to actually live the quote that ends her emails, being “let love into your heart” because if there is any single person on this planet who does not do this thing, it is her. Told her this after I discovered she had went to mom’s then still husband while mom was not home, sat him at the kitchen table to tell him about all the boyfriends mom had had in her life during the years before they were married because my sister in ‘good consciousness’ could no longer stand the burden of ‘guilty silence’. Mom’s husband got pissed at my sister for being a bitch, could not comprehend how anyone could do such a thing or feel they had a reason too, I got pissed at my sister, told her to let some love into her heart...and from that moment on became the bad guy to everyone. Mom was quite cold towards me for a good year plus...

Back to the present. Now, mom--who has been extended the offer to come live with me and Emile on several occasions and refuses (wanting to be near her grandkids)--is going to have to get rid of her dog, a toy breed and the only thing she has of companionship in her life, join the YWCA in order to take showers and live in her truck.

Now get this, soon as I heard that “You have brought shame, blah-blah” line I got furious. Told her families were supposed to come together and help one another during times like this, and that it was the most horrendous and biggest crock of shit I had ever heard in my life and it was not true, how dare anyone think something like that let alone say it when mom is going through everything that she is right now...stuff like that. All mom could say is that no, is was true, they had every right to do what they did and that I should not say bad things like that about my sister. Damn near started to get panicky. Hung up soon after.

LOL, but Emile was in raging-shaky state same as I was, said I should write my sister a good long letter and lay it all on the line. I said to what purpose? You know her, do you think she will listen? No, she will not, because that is who she is. Not in this instance, but in many such as that sit down with mom’s then husband experienced over the years, we both know my sister. Not for good reason does she do those types of things, (many, many, many such,) merely because she enjoys doing those things. My sister truly enjoys doing such things to my mother. Gets off on it. Drops a bomb from the blue and sits back with a grin on her face to watch the fireworks. More traumatic the better. My young sister is an evil person, lacking all morals except for things she ‘says’ (because she gets a lot of attention and praise for saying such things,) and it pains me the unhealthy relationship between mom and her, but it is the way things are and throughout my life it has been proven time and time again that there is nothing I can do about any of it.

Ah well. Like I said, thought I had gotten beyond becoming emotionally involved in these things, but haven’t. Got a whopping stress headache and the whole nine yards. Still feeling it, to the level I did when my sister forced my then thirteen year old niece to have radiation ‘treatments’ for her diagnosed case of ‘adolescent arthritis’. (I.e Fibromialgia.) Not that it helped--of course it wouldn’t--however, it did get my sister a lot of attention for having a poor, sick daughter like that to talk to everyone about. Yup, pity the poor mother who stressed out her intelligent and sensitive daughter enough to make her ill in the first place...and now has undergone extensive radiation exposure during her young body’s most critical, growing years...

Anyhows, that’s some of the latest from my neck of the woods and things that have been keeping me busy, as well as reclusive. Hate it, trying to do better...oh yeah, one more thing. The house we wanted to buy sold to someone else. Hurts like hell, still, probably for the best. Would have been such a burden and taken too much energies and years to ever realize what would have made it a dream. My mind says it is a good thing, and I truly do know it is, yet there is still sadness. No biggie, a better, brighter future awaits. I don’t know, but it still feels--as tumultuous and whirlwind uncertain as things are now--that everything that is happening is meant to happen. The friction that ignites and propels us on to something much finer--this thing that is also meant.

Okay-d, that’s it for now. Been working our asses off past few days and am going to go chill out a bit.

Hugs and keep smiling, folks! Believe it or not I still am.

Then again, maybe I’ve just cracked? LOL!

Cheers,

Melissa