Missed me?...

I wish my blog could update itself.

I know you've been there too. You mean to write something, but time forges forth. Soon so many things have happened and you realize that it will take way too long to catch up.

Yeah...that's where I am.

I got a job! I had accepted a job as a customer service assistant at the company where my husband works as an engineer. I actually started a month ago yesterday and four days into the job I found out I was getting a promotion and raise...not bad, eh? So tomorrow is the first day I officially work as a customer service rep. I love actually working with other people that talk back and don't bark.

Despite my absence online due to my presence IRL, I have been scrapping. The amazing Vera Lim at Scrapbook Bytes and the equally amazing new designer Cindy Irvine at Elemental Scraps asked me to be a guest on their design teams this month. I'll come back and post some of my favorite layouts later, but you can see them by clicking my DST gallery to the right.

Oh ok...this is my latest of my darling niece. Yeah, I've scrapped this photo before, but those eyes...they deserve another layout.

Credits: a variety of items from Cindy Irvine (Elemental Scraps): paper (burned and sponged), ribbon and tag from Dear Little Girl; staples from Somewhat Daisical; flower brushes from Sketchy Flower brushes ("painted" in to fit layout). Word art my own design. Sharp Color Pop action from PhotoBlast. Vintage frame by Andrea Burns.

I just fell in love with those flower brushes. I loved playing with the airbrush in Photoshop to paint them in.

I really forgot I had a blog until Molly pointed it out in a recent entry on her blog. Oops. Anyway she did this blogmeme on her blog and tagged me.

Creative Musings on Books...

Hardback or trade paperback or mass market paperback? Anything really...I don't discriminate.

Amazon or brick and mortar? I do buy a lot of my books on Amazon...I'm thrifty. But there's nothing better than spending an afternoon in a brick and mortar.

Barnes & Noble or Borders? Barnes and Noble, but it's more from lack of good bookstores in my area than anything. I love variety and having almost every available title at my disposal.

Bookmark or dog ear? I dog ear. You can lose a dog ear.

Alphabetize by author or alphabetize by title or random? Ummmm...do people really alphabetize anything?

Keep, throw away, or sell? I keep most of them. The rest I pack up and give to Goodwill or the local thrift shop. I buy a lot of books from Goodwill too.

Keep dust jacket or toss it? I went through a tossing stage, but the most recent ones still have them on.

Read with dust jacket or remove it? I use the flap as a dog ear alternative.

Short story or novel? Novels.

Collection (short stories by same author) or anthology (short stories by different authors)? Collections.

Harry Potter or Lemony Snicket? I guess Harry Potter because at least I read HP books.

Stop reading when tired or at chapter breaks? I stop reading when my eyes do.

"It was a dark and stormy night" or "Once upon a time"? Both

Buy or Borrow? Both...I think I may actually be the only human to have her library card number AND credit card memorized.

New or used? Both.

Buying choice: book reviews, recommendation or browse? All of the above. I tend to read books in themes...I've been on a historical/biblical fiction kick for awhile.

Tidy ending or cliffhanger? I hate cliffhangers.

Morning reading, afternoon reading or nighttime reading? I can't sleep unless I get my reading time before falling asleep.

Stand-alone or series? I mostly read stand-alone books now, but used to read tons of series as a child.

Favorite series? My childhood favorite...Little House on the Prairie.

Favorite children's book? I'm out of touch on this one, but my favorite when I was real little was The Panda Bear's Paintbox.

Favorite book of which nobody else has heard? The Kitchen Boy by Robert Alexander...at least many people I know never heard of it.

Favorite books read last year? Son of a Witch by Gregory McGuire.

Favorite books of all time? Seriously? Molly gave a great review of hers, but I'm just going to list some. Les Miserables by Victor Hugo, Wicked by Gregory McGuire, The Kitchen Boy by Robert Alexander, The Red Tent by Anita Diament

Least favorite book you finished last year? If I don't like a book I don't finish it. I used to like Nicholas Sparks, and attempted his last one, but I barely made it through the first chapter.

What are you reading right now? Besides my collection of photography/Photoshop books, I'm about to start The Boleyn Inheritance.

What are you reading next? Whatever my book club decides on next.

Now what about you? If you do this, send me a link in the comments so I can read about you.

Well, that's enough for this evening...We are celebrating the dogs birthdays this week (Dakota's 5 today and Kelvin is 6 on Friday). So hopefully I'll have some photos of them in birthday hats, eating their gravy-covered food and playing with their new toys.