And per se and

Joe is AWESOME- Electric Tattoo in Pasadena, MD

Rings

OK So I got married January 20, 2007. I haven't shared too much about it here but another blogger was sharing a blog about birthstones so it got me wanting to share some too.


Here's my ring now.   

This is not my wedding ring. Well it is the ring that signifies I'm married but it is not the ring I got married with which does make me a little sad.




My original ring looked like this but in gold and with 9 stones across.


Russ knew I loved garnets since it's our birthstone and we also got married in January. He knew I really wanted them incorporated into our wedding ring. The band (bottom) was reworked to have every other stone (4 total) as a garnet. It was beautiful!

When he proposed the ring was a tiny bit tight so we took both and got them re-sized together at the place he bought them. (Gordon's Jewelers but I'm only going to say that once.)

During our engagement we went letterboxing/ for a walk through a park. When I got back to the car I realized a diamond had fallen out of the side. We immediately drove to the store and they took it for repair and replaced the stone. 

About 6 months later we got married. I enjoyed my ring for about 2 weeks but then sadly found a garnet had fallen out! Again we took it to get replaced and asked how this could be permanently fixed since it was the 2nd incident. They assured it shouldn't happen again. It took about 3 weeks and I finally got my ring again. 

A week later, a diamond fell out. 


After many angry calls and visits to the store the again assured us the top jeweler would repair the ring for good. 3 more weeks and I got my ring back on Friday night. I had a horrible dream that night that again this was going to be trouble. Saturday morning I woke up and looked at my ring and was happy to see it was all there. I got up and went right to the couch, turned on the TV, looked down and a garnet was missing.....

At this pointed I was married about 4 months and got to wear my ring a total of 3 weeks. My MIL got involved and she knows who to threaten. Basically they admitted the holes in the metal are meant for the specific diamonds they are setting it it, the ring should not ever be "reset" with different stones than the original. Something they failed to mention when hubby purchased the ring. Secondly, this type of ring should also not be re-sized because there is a possibility of changing the spacing/setting in the channel. Again, something they failed to mention at the sale and before it was re-sized by them. 

So wrapping up the long story, they upgraded/changed ring styles for me (ahaha when they asked 4 or 6 prong for the main stone I said 6!!! It better not fall out again.) Again, I'm sad it's not technically the wedding ring or the ring my husband chose for me but it's a very nice ring and I do get compliments on it for being original and having our birthstones in it.

Hot Fudge Cake

So Meagan asked Bridget about egg-less cake on facebook and I butted into the convo. Bridget posted 2 recipies and I posted them on Spark right away to figure out the nutritional value - only 186 calories a piece! http://recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-detail.asp?recipe=912879  

This cake is amazing. It makes it's own hot fudge. While making it I made 2 little mistakes- I only had a 1/2 tsp so when measuring the baking powder I got distracted and then couldn't remember how many I'd put in. I was pretty sure it was only 2 so I added 2 more. Also I thought the last ingredients were mixed and then poured as a sauce but had a short save as I'd only added part of the water.



Fresh from the oven it's nice and crusty- I was worried a little about if it came out right.

- As I scooped it I saw the drippy fudgy goodness-


Finally I flipped it into the bowl so the fudge could drip down the cake and added some fat free cool whip- frozen it's better than ice cream -

&

This was one of my favorite books in those "tween" years. I still love it and while it was written for young adults it's themes are on the darker side but also the metaphors (maybe not as intended as I like to think) are very deep.

A few months ago I saw this  

and fell in love.

Last week my FIL got some more work done- some things added which hubby saw on Sunday. Also on Monday there was a show we kept seeing- Ancient Ink. Watching it was fascinating and taunting.

Tuesday Russ and I called and got appointments. We knew we were both over due (It's been almost a year for me and a little longer for him) and needed to get in for more. He'll be adding a Rangefinder and a Minox spy camera to his camera sleeve of 35mm film SLR, 4x5 View Camera, Brownie, Twin Reflex cameras. 

I'll be adding my lovely ampersand under my right clavicle and a mirrored one on the left side. I've researched like crazy what the type is. The book lists it as Garamond, however there are really subtle differences in the closest Garamond as yet another F&P inspired inked person notes- 

Adobe Garamond Italic Alternative is on the left, the tattoo in the middle and the correct ampersand on the right. You'll notice some subtle differences like the center loop being filled and the curl on the top loop of the "E". The person who got this tattoo discovered the closest is "caslon 540 italic is correct, but ITC caslon 540 italic is more accurate. some sites that list (non-ITC) caslon 540 italic show the ampersand on the left."

I brought in the image of the books cover into the studio so I know it will be the one from the cover exactly. 

Eventually I'll write a blog all about the book and why I love it so much. Today it's about & though. 

In reasearching I discovered lots of cool sites. Specifically these two:

(This one uses the nearly similar &) http://ampersand.gosedesign.net/

 & of course this neat "Calender" http://ampersandampersand.tumblr.com/ 

& Etemology from Wiki: 

The word ampersand is a corruption of the phrase "and per se and", meaning "and [the symbol which] by itself [is] and".^[1] The Scots and Scottish English name for & is epershand, derived from "et per se and", with the same meaning.
Traditionally, in English-speaking schools when reciting the alphabet, any letter that could also be used as a word in itself ("A," "I," and, at one point, "O") was preceded by the Latin expression "per se" (Latin for "by itself"). Also, it was common practice to add at the end of the alphabet the "&" sign, pronounced "and". Thus, the recitation of the alphabet would end in: "X, Y, Z and per se and." This last phrase was routinely slurred to "ampersand" and the term crept into common English usage by around 1837.^[2]
Through folk etymology, it has been claimed that André-Marie Ampère used the symbol in his widely read publications, and that people began calling the new shape "Ampere's and". ^[3]

Here are some more Ampersand Tattoos:  

http://www.flickr.com/photos/photofoe/3704050394/in/photostream/

 

(Not a tattoo but a pen drawing - still nice) 

And finally I leave you with some cool Ampersand Art and collections:

(ooh a snagged mosaic even:) 

1. ampersand, 2. ampersand, 3. ampersand, 4. ampersand, 5. ampersand

6. ampersand, 7. ampersand, 8. ampersand, 9. ampersand, 10. ampersand
11. ampersand, 12. ampersand, 13. ampersand, 14. ampersand, 15. ampersand
16. ampersand, 17. ampersand, 18. ampersand, 19. ampersand, 20. ampersand
21. ampersand;, 22. ampersand, 23. ampersand, 24. ampersand , 25. ampersand

The Spark and Goals

 As you may know, I am an active member of the popular healthy-living website, SparkPeople.com.  In an effort to help SparkPeople live out their mission of helping millions of people reach their goals and live healthier lives, I have joined a contest they're holding called "The Spark Free Chapter Challenge."  If you have one minute to spare, I could use your help, because I REALLY want to win!

So here's the deal with the challenge

Chris Downie, SparkPeople's CEO and founder, recently published a book called "The Spark" that offers a proven new approach to improving your health, transforming your life and reaching your goals (for example, real people have lost over 10 million pounds using their free online program)!

People like me who are helping them "Spread The Spark" through The Spark Free Chapter Challenge are encouraging our friends and family to download a FREE chapter of "The Spark" book.  And for every person I can encourage to download the chapter, I will get an additional chance to win a $500 weekend getaway and other prizes, as well as something they offer called "SparkPoints," which also help motivate me to reach my goals.

All you have to do to help is download a free chapter from The Spark book. Nothing else.  To do so, simply go to http://book.sparkpeople.com/book.asp?u=CHEDDERFISH  and click the button to download your free chapter.

If you would be willing to help me with this, I would truly appreciate it, and I also think you will enjoy reading this free chapter from "The Spark".  I know I did!


EDIT: I just want to add - for all those people who have not bought the book because they don't have the extra money. Check out your library- if they don't have it you should be able to request it/ suggest they order it. I did that at my library before I decided I couldn't wait and ended up buying it. I just got an e-mail from the library- "The title you requested has been selected for purchase. This title should be listed in the catalog within the next two weeks."
Seriously It's really worth it to at least do that much!


Ok so I actually was having a conversation with a friend (chat online) and typed most of this out. I'm just copying and pasting and editing a tiny bit so I hope it makes sense.

In the spark book there was one woman who realized working such long hours so far from home to earn money for her kids (single mom) kept her away from them more and mean she ate more on the go. She set a goal that in a year she'd find a job closer to home and get in shape to spend more quality time with her kids

Well obviously that struck me. (Background: I commute 50 miles/2 hrs one way with my husband- He drives I read, stitch, or nap. We work for the same company of about 10 employees but on different floors)

But I also realized finding a job closer to home isn't the answer for me. It would still mean less time with Russ and it would cost me more because of added fuel and probably additional car expenses.

I needed to look at from a different angle.

Why can't I make my job more enjoyable?

I mean I'm the one who makes it so miserable. It's really not a terrible job. Complaining about it is what makes it so hard.

I need to look at each challenge as just that. A challenge I can overcome rather than a problem everyone needs to hear about. I've gotten lazy and I complain about others not willing to do the work but I've become the very same way.

It's hard not being praised for extra efforts and when others get kudos for half or even a quarter of the job but I shouldn't/ can't expect that from anyone else. I need to be happy with my own progress. If I am, and I work a little harder like I used to, pay attention a little more that should help my sales and eventually my pay.

While it doesn't mean I'll get credit for it and I'll never make the big bucks here I do know that the company peeps are more of a family than most jobs. I will always keep in mind though the bad times- when they are a little more self preserving than helpful and if ever necessary I will be prepared to move on. I know this isn't a career. Well not here. I do enjoy helping people and selling them the goods and services they want but I know when it comes time for a family I'll be ready to move on.
So that's it- just be better!

Specifically, after reading the story was: I will become happier in both my personal relationships and business life by focusing on the positive and reinforcing those positive thoughts with positive actions.

I'm also trying to get a print from one of my fav local artist. I saw it a year or two ago and it's always been in my mind but I never got it. Here is a tiny part of it - on a mug but still you get the point.

















** I actually wrote this for my SP blog back on January 6th. Since then I've also found this:


and now it lives here: