The Chronicles of Janie

Am I truly qualified to write this post? My blog has what, 11 followers? I get a comment about once every other blue moon, and I think it's safe to say that my little blog is hardly at the top of any popularity list. So no, probably not the most qualified. However, I do read a lot of blogs, and I do write a lot of blogs, and I have made {and hopefully learned from} a great many blogging mistakes...and that's got to be worth something, right? In a spirit of humility, I'll share a few hard-learned tidbits of advice with whomever decides to read this. No worries, I won't take much of your time. Assess your reasons for blogging. I blog for enjoyment, and because blogging helps me relax and process my thoughts. Journaling would do the same thing, but my writing gets sloppy when I journal. The knowledge that somebody, somewhere might read my blog forces me to keep polishing my writing and correcting bad habits. I don't blog because I'm insecure and I n...

It's no secret that I've been suffering from a very serious addiction. It's an addiction that involves wire and pliers and lots and lots of time. Mmmhm, I'm addicted to wire wrapping. I'm really not very good at it yet, but it's just SO FUN! Anyway, I was searching for a new project to take on, and also anticipating Zhenya's return from her European adventures...and so it seemed natural to connect the two and make some dreadlock ornaments.  Do you know that the internet is pretty much devoid of all instruction in the dreadlock ornament-making department? I'm not sure who has the corner on the dread ornament market, but whoever it is, they're not sharing their secrets. But I decided 'it can't be that hard...right?' So I looked at a few pictures to get an idea of what I wanted to do, grabbed my weapons of choice, and went to work. It was a bit harder than I'd expected. To start with, I was using a thicker gauge wire than the...

During the month of March I... Completed my very first decent-looking crochet project And made lots of jewelry I'm pretty pleased with my handmade tree pendant This one's made out of broken shells I picked up at a beach A wire-wrapped arrowhead, and a piece of a giant pinecone This one's my favorite Hemp, hemp, and more hemp! I'm learning how to make wire-wrapped jewelry, and these are my three best attempts. As you can see, there's still room for improvement. This necklace was so much fun to make! It goes with anything, and the bright colors really help liven up some of my dull tops. I've got some fun projects going on this month, too...I just love to spend an evening making something pretty while curled up with tea, music or a movie. ____________________________________________________ What projects are you working on?

So, you remember that post where I asked you to let me know what you'd like to see more of on here? Here's the feedback I got: You'd like to read more about:      Me - why I am the way I am and stories from my life and the people in it. Funny or embarrassing      moments were specifically requested. I've got so many of those, I'm not really sure where to start...      What God's doing in my life.      Opinions/thoughts on books, movies, culture, etc. And 'I love everything you write. Just keep on.' (Thanks! That was nice to know)! Thank you for the feedback. Stay tuned for new posts coming soon, and if you have any ideas, feel free to let me know.

I often have a lot of trouble blogging. I feel like my blog either gets too me-centric, or that I get stuck in some form of writing rut. I'm frequently held back from posting because I'm convinced that the post would be too boring, too silly, too aggressive, etc. Restraint is good, but sometimes I probably take it a bit far. I want to just sit down and WRITE, but I have trouble deciding what to write about. This usually results in me getting about halfway through a blog post before deciding that no-one would ever want to read it. I have a heap of half-finished drafts lurking around this blog. I've been trying to think of a way to get out of this...and I think I may have hit on something. What I'm about to ask strikes me as a potentially really bad idea, but I'm going for it, anyway, because I have a habit of leaping headfirst into bad ideas. ;-) If it flops utterly, I'll pick myself up, dust myself off, and forge ahead. Anyway, I'm asking you, my patien...

If you value nothing in your life above life itself, then what's the point of living? Really, if there's nothing you're willing to die for, then what is there to live for? As I ponder this morning on all the things...all the people...I'd willingly sacrifice my life for, I realize that my life is full. Rich. Beautiful. And that I am over-abundantly blessed. _________________ What gives value to your life?

My mind is basically like a rock tumbler. I tumble a thought around and around inside my mind until the thought is polished and beautiful and I must decide what to do with it. Sometimes I share it with people. Sometimes I store it away for my own personal enjoyment...and sometimes I write a blog post about it. I like to make sure that I have all the rough edges smoothed off, so I examine my thoughts from every angle. I try to shoot holes in them, and sometimes I give them a test run on some unsuspecting soul. As a result of this, there are may be a few people who think I'm a genius, probably a handful who think I'm on the verge of heresy, and a great number who think I'm just plain crazy. I've also (quite unintentionally) earned the label of 'radical'... Anyway, if a thought makes it through this process, I categorize it as possible subject matter for a blog post, and after more days (or weeks, or months) of further thought I may begin to write.When...

I had to chuckle when I saw this on Facebook. Apparently, complaining about Monday has become the trendy thing to do. Or maybe it always has been, and I just never noticed it before. Whatever the case, I am glad that the Monday blues have not yet caught up with me.  Even when I was a child, living in dread of the well-hated mathematics, I rather enjoyed Mondays. I like the feel of getting back into the well-worn routine of things. After two days of relaxation, it's good to have the solidity of a Monday to fall back upon. What's your favorite day of the week?

Wal-Mart had a bunch of earrings on clearance. I had a crafter's heyday (or heyweek)? turning them into various necklaces. I really need to find someplace to dispose of all this jewelry I make...

I have had some of the greatest nicknames ever. Calamity Jane Canary Janie Janie Bop Indiana Jane ('cause I have an Indiana Jones-style hat) And then the many variations of 'Janie' (which is also my nickname, but not very exciting). Why didn't any of them stick? I'd love to have a great nickname.

I'd rather have good water pressure, or no running water at all. I'd rather have dependable, speedy internet, or no internet at all. I'd rather have well-brewed, nice-tasting tea, or no tea at all. And the list goes on and on...I've known this about myself for awhile, but I never really thought about the why of it 'til this evening. Then it struck me that this is probably a result of my somewhat perfectionistic mindset of 'if it can't be perfect, I'd really rather not even try. If the things I have aren't what I consider to be good enough, than I'd rather not bother with them at all'. I could see this being a real problem if I lose the easy-going flexibility that leavens my perfectionism out. It could become an even bigger problem if I start taking myself, my abilities, and disabilities, more seriously. If I can't have my druthers, you probably won't catch me whining about it (okay, well, maybe a wee bit of whining), I'll ju...

I tend to accumulate piles of things around my favorite sitting places. One of my favorite places to sit is on my bedroom floor, with my back against the hide-a-bed, so there's an almost-permanent collection of frequently used possessions scattered around the area. One night, as I was trying (unsuccessfully) to sleep, I started wondering how much that pile says about me. Just by looking at that pile, how much could a person tell about my personality and habits? One inescapable conclusion would be that I love tea and candles. Even when my bedroom is squeaky-clean,  there are a coaster, candle, teabag holder, and lighter sitting out on the little white table in front of the hide-a-bed. Usually, there's also at least one my favorite teacups in the area. Other almost-permanent features are my Bible and whatever Bible study guide I'm currently ignoring. These two books spend far more time in my 'floor spot' than they do in their official 'put away' place. Wh...

Pardon me for a moment while I bask in a warm glow of thrifty, distinctive Janie-glam. Behold, two unadorned hats, which, to my eyes, hold vast amounts of potential.. Now, behold finished product #1 Hat - $5 (I think) at an antique store Feathers - free! (from our now-deceased chickens) Knight pen - $3 at another antique store (yeah, now you know where I do my shopping). ;-)  Finished product #2  Hat - free! (thanks, Miss Carol)! Feathers - free! (picked up in various locations). Pin - $1 from a second-hand store A few minutes spent arranging, cutting, gluing, and sewing, and viola! I've got two more pieces of headgear. I think I'll need a hatpin for the black one. That big brim is liable to catch the wind and send the whole thing sailing away. Long story short, I love thrifty crafting, especially when it turns out nicely. Frequently, my projects end up looking like something the cat drug in, and I have to banish them to dark corners. So, whe...

Please forgive me while I go on a brief rant. I try very, very hard to keep my number of negative blog posts to a bare minimum, but no-one can truly appreciate positivity without a little negativity to season it. At least, that's what I'd like you to believe. Anyway, here goes with a rant in letter form. Enjoy! Dear People Who'd Like to See Me Get Married Off, I don't mind your efforts. I really, really don't. In fact, they add a sometimes-welcome dash of spice to my life. I used to feel a bit threatened by you, but now I just laugh at you. I'm very definitely tough enough to take it, and since no boyfriends have magically materialized from the woodwork, I've noticed that many of you seem to have given up hope. I would venture to suggest that I'm hardly an old maid yet ...but if you choose to expend your energies on someone else, far be it from me to moan. To those of you who tenaciously continue to hint and suggest, I salute your extreme perseveran...

I recently finished reading How the Irish Saved Civilization by Thomas Cahill. It is a book that covers the role of the Irish in preserving the heritage of Western civilization during the period of barbarian unrest between the fall of Rome and rise of the Middle Ages. It is a fascinatingly well-written and engaging book that I would highly recommend. I found lots of food for thought throughout the book, but the last section of the last chapter was especially thought-provoking. In it, Cahill takes a look at our modern world through the lens of history, and gifts us with a few of his thoughts. I can't say that I agree 100% with his spin on things, but his thoughts are definitely worth the thinking.    'As we, the people of the First World, The Romans of the twentieth century, look out across our Earth, we see some signs for hope, many more for despair. Technology proceeds apace, delivering the marvels that knit our world together - the conquering of diseases that plagued ev...

This is what I've been doing lately when I feel bored, tired, and lack the necessary creativity to work on something more demanding.

...especially the lyrics‎! 'Me, I imagine places That I have never seen - The colored lights in fountains, Blue and green And I imagine places That I will never go. Behind these clouds that hang here, Dark and low.' 'So we carry every sadness with us - Every hour our hearts were broken, Every night the fear and darkness Lay down with us. But I am holding half an acre Torn from the map of Michigan. I am carrying this scrap of paper That can crack the darkest sky wide open - Every burden taken from me, Every night my heart unfolding... My home' 'The starless night come fall around me Over all we've left undone. I know a light that shines forever Howsoever we may run.' 'I'm a king at night And a poor man in the morning How will anybody know me?' 'Every mystery grows like a vine; Reaching out to the sun for a while And holding the soil Forever and ever.' See? Wonderful! You should come listen to my  Hem...

So, I had just reconciled myself to the sad truth that I am not, and never will be, very good at writing novels...when I started working on a novel . That's right. Another novel. That I'm determined to finish. Same old story as all my other unfinished novels. The intense urge to write has grabbed me in earnest, so I'm working on a story line I came up with last year. I refreshed the plot with a few twists that really, if I do say so myself, make a pretty darn cool story. I'm worried that I'll end up jinxing myself if I divulge too much, so I'll just say this: picture ancient Irish mythology happening in modern-day Missouri. Yeah. Weird, but I think it really might be very cool. I'm still not under any delusions about my writing skills, and I don't really have any plans or ambitions for this story. I've just decided that I'm going to have fun making up characters and writing about them and not worrying about anything else. And hey, at the ver...

As an artist, I often wish that there was a place where I could go and get artistically re-charged. A place that was full of all the music, pictures, and poetry that made me feel like 'I can actually do this'. So, my thought was, 'why not create a blog?' Yes, ANOTHER blog. I guess I should just face up to the fact that I have an addiction. ;-) Anyway, this wonderful new blog would be a place where I could collect all of the things that inspire me into one organized, easily accessible place and possibly also post some tutorials, articles, or other kinds of what-not that I find interesting. But, of course, I must be a visionary. Whatever ideas I have must immediately be expanded into some big, grandiose dream. So, I decided that it would be really amazing if other artsy souls could contribute, and the blog could turn into some sort of place where artists could just hang out and be inspired. This idea is still very much in its infancy, but I'm pretty sure that it...