I'm Always Up For A Challenge ;o)

I have to say that I'm quite impressed with myself. I've done quite well with my challenge considering it's only been a little over a month since it started. If you haven't seen it yet, check out my 40-4-40 Challenge :o)

I know I won't complete the whole list but I'm still going to try to get as close as I can to forty! One of my concerns will be reading forty books in twelve months. I've been keeping track of my reading list on Shelfari and it says that last year I read thirty books. It could be possible :o) I already have two books that I HIGHLY recommend you check out. The first is called The Forest Horses by Byrna Barclay. I think it would be awesome if they made a film from this novel. The second book is called The Truth Game by Janet Tanner. This one was hard to put down.

Tonight I ate my something new ;o) DH and I had ostrich wrapped in wild boar bacon. Oh-so-good!

Recently I completed another challenge and found a fireplace mantle! Here it is -

DH 'thinks' it's made of walnut but there are quite a few layers of paint to remove. LOL! It's from 1914 so it's a true antique and we're both really happy with it. I think we're going to re-paint it white to match the trim in the house. Normally we would stain such a lovely wood but unfortunately the walnut won't match our other wood furniture. Once the mantle is installed, the antique mirror will go on top of it. We had to take it down because it hung too low.

I'm really enjoying this challenge. I don't feel any pressure but it's fun having something to strive for :o)

Stephen King Fans

Hey you guuuuuuys! Are you out there? Come on, who's a Stephen King fan?

Did you know that he was born in Maine and that the majority of his books take place in that State? Did you know that in 1999 he was struck by van while walking on the shoulder of the road? Did you know that he has a home in Bangor, Maine with a spider webbed front gate? Do you know that he wrote Stand By Me, The Shawshank Redemption and The Green Mile? Not your typical Stephen King type stories ;o)

To be honest, I do like 'some' of Stephen King's stories but I cannot read his books. I just can't! I've tried numerous times but it has something to do with his writing style. I've seen several of his movies but prefer his 'softer' side :o)

So why am I bringing up the subject of Stephen King? Have you seen his new television show called Haven?

I think they're up to their sixth episode now. Turns out they shot this show in Nova Scotia! They used Halifax, Chester, Mahone Bay, Lunenburg and some other smaller towns; basically my backyard playground :o)

DH and I saw the show last weekend for the first time. Right at the beginning of the show you see some great views of the town of Lunenburg. It was so neat seeing places we knew :o) In the premier episode, they filmed a lot of the show inside one of the Lunenburg antique shops. When my parents were here last year, we were in that very store! In the second episode, there's this huge metal ball rolling down the road and it passes a bench that DH and I sat on this past spring. LOL! DH said it was a good thing we weren't sitting there at the time. Silly boy ;o)

If you do get the chance, watch an episode and catch glimpses of the kind of Haven that I live within. This truly is a gorgeous piece of Earth and I'm SO happy to be living here. Maybe next time a film crew is in the vicinity though I'll try to weasel myself onto a set and get cast as an extra ;o)

A Thursday Thought

Right now I'm reading Eat Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert. DH and I have yet to see the movie but we both wanted to see what the book was like first. I have to say that I am not disappointed so far.

If you're not familiar with it, the book is about Elizabeth herself. Upon leaving her husband, she decides to travel to Italy, India and Indonesia to try and find out who 'she' really is. She spends four months in each country and each country contributes to discovering a different aspect in her life.

While in Italy, she has a very interesting conversation with her friend Giulio. He explains to Elizabeth that every city in the world has a word that defines it and in turn that word identifies most of the people who live there. If you were to read the thoughts of the people in that city, you would notice that the majority of them are having the same thought. Whatever thought dominates is the word for that particular city. If your thought does not match that of the city you are in, it means that you do not belong there.

So that left me wondering...what would be MY word? After much contemplation, I think the word that would best describe me at this point in my life is - LOST. Yes, lost. Now that may sound funny or weird to some of you but let me explain :o)

A huge part of my problem is that I have no idea what my purpose is in life. We have no children, so I'm not a 'mother'. I don't work so I'm not a so-called 'professional'. I'm definitely not your typical wife so I'm not a 'homemaker'. What am I???? You got it...LOST! LOL!

Right now I have nothing that 'defines' who I am. Yes my name is Cathey, I'm married to my DH, we live in Nova Scotia, blah, blah, blah but who am 'I'???? And that is what I don't know. I've been searching for years and it feels like I'm not getting any closer to answering that question. It quite frustrating sometimes. Okay, the majority of the time. I want my word to change but I have no idea how to go about it :o(

Until that time, I will continue to search. My life will remain incomplete and I may be found wondering aimlessly...LOST. If do happen to spot me, please make sure I get back home okay? ;o)

What do you think YOUR word is?

D Is For...

DEBORAH! Deborah, you are the winner of my giveaway! Please email me your mailing address so that I can get your package off to you :o)

P is for...Popcorn. My little monster went in on Tuesday and was spayed. It was a good thing too because she was coming into heat. No wonder I was dealing with Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. She's been really good since she came home. We've been keeping her in my stitching room where it's really quiet. I hope this will be the solution to her bitchy attitude because it's no fun dealing with her angry alter-ego. LOL!

S is for...stitching. I've been working at it but not as much as I would like to. I'd say that I am about halfway done but this is crazy! It's only ornament size but it seems to be taking forever :o( My in-laws were here over the weekend and since they've left, I've been SO tired. I hope this feeling goes away soon. I miss my stitching.

M is for...movies. Tonight DH and I went to see The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo at our local theatre. If you're not familiar with this movie, it's a must see! Just a warning, it's a foreign movie, with sub-titles, and it's very graphic. If you're not up for the movie, I highly recommend reading the book! It's by Stieg Larsson and the first in a three part series. I'm almost done reading the second book - The Girl Who Played With Fire and I can't wait to see the movie.

Julie & Julia

DH and I went to see this movie on Friday afternoon :o) We'd been waiting for this to come out. DH was the one that brought the movie to my attention, so for his birthday at the end of July, I bought him the book. He seems to be enjoying it because every once in awhile, I'll hear him chuckling. Unfortunately he didn't get to finish the book before he saw the movie but he was okay with that.

They did an excellent job of paralleling the lives of the two main characters. Check out Julie's real Blog! I learned a lot about Julia Child too. There were many things I never knew about her. I didn't even know that she was married! And what can I say; Meryl Streep did a brilliant job of capturing Julia. DH says there is so much more in the book and you get to know the characters a lot better. I'm next in line to read it ;o)

There's something fun about going to a movie on a weekday afternoon. Not only were there very few people there but we were in one of those awesome theatres with the comfortable seats. To top that off, I even got my slushie!!!! Do you know how long I've waited to have one of those???? Pure bliss...

Did I happen to mention that Stanley Tucci acts as Julia Child's husband in the movie? Stanley Tucci. Tucci :o)

Stash, Books And A Mouse

Today was a good mail day :o) Even though it was miserable out, I ventured to the post office and I'm glad I did. First off, I got part of my order from Mary Kathryn. This is what I bought with my gift certificate from my Secret Santa -

Thank you again, whoever you may be. I wish I could thank you personally but so far you've been very sneaky about your identity ;o) There is also supposed to be some 40 count fabric (I know, I think I'm going nuts) and some threads coming as well.

I had a couple of cross stitch books arrive this week -

I've always wanted one of Isabelle Vautier's books and I was not disappointed. I can't wait until her new one comes out :o) Jane Greenoff's book is quite nice for the price. It's got an excellent Stitch Library at the end.

Recently, I had someone recommend to me some new authors so I put in an order with Amazon -

I'm really looking forward to reading these books and I'm having a hard time deciding which to start with. I have read a small portion from Crossing Open Ground already and this author's writing is just beautiful. Very inspiring.

I killed a mouse today. Yup, I grabbed it by the tail and flung it across the room! It even hit the wall with a loud THUNK :o)

Whoever designed a mouse with ball for scrolling should be shot! I was going all over the place and finally got fed up enough to go out and buy a new one -

I bet some of you thought I meant a 'real' mouse ;o) You know I wouldn't be that mean! It was funny when I was reading through the 'Important Safety Instructions' though. Here are some examples -

"Do not drop or hit your mouse."
"Do not disassemble or modify your mouse in any way."
"Do not insert metal objects, such as coins or paper clips into your mouse."

Now read those again but think of a real mouse. ROFL!

Okay, I've just had TOO much time on my hands...

Watership Down

What can I say? If you've never heard of the book, I highly suggest that you go out, find a copy and read it. NOW! This novel has got to be one the most brilliant pieces of writing and it has even been compared to Tolkien's, The Lord of the Rings. It is by far the favourite book in my library and it's had a home there for many, many years. Richard Adams is a magnificent storyteller and by the time you are past the first chapter, you come to know not only the characters but the landscape that surrounds them as well. It's almost as if the story springs to life in your mind as you're reading along.

For those of you who are not familiar with the book, it's about a band of rabbits who decide to leave their current warren as it is about to be destroyed by the hand of man. Their dream is to find a new home and set up a better society than the one they are leaving behind. The story takes you through that journey and what it takes for them to eventually get there. By the end of the book, I guarantee that you will fall in love with Hazel, Fiver, Clover, Dandelion, Pipkin, Hyzenthlay, Bigwig, Holly, Silver, and Kehaar :o)

I read a review once where they compared General Woundwort and the Owsla to Hitler and the Nazis. And while I can definitely see this view, the story does not stray far from what our own society has evolved into today. We still don't live in a perfect world. It's ruled by government and corruption. Racism and inhumanity still exists whether we want to acknowledge it or not. Every one of us has an idea in our head of what our perfect world would look like and I think unconsciously we keep trying to find it.

That's one thing I love about this story. Hazel has a dream. He knows what he wants and he sets out to achieve it. The road there isn't an easy one by any means but it's his determination that keeps him going. He knows what will make him happy. How many of us can say this? I feel that after almost fifteen years of being together, DH and I are finally on our way to finding the happiness that we have been seeking. Don't get me wrong...I'm not saying that we've been unhappy all this time but it's almost like we end up just living from day to day, waiting until that opportunity comes along. Some find it faster than others but the constant remains the journey. There is always a journey.

So, how's that for deep thinking on a Saturday afternoon? LOL! I'll end this post on a lighter note then ;o) Over the years I have been trying to collect a set of Watership Down figurines that were produced back in the 70's (I believe). These are the characters that I have so far -

Stupid me packed these away before writing down the information that was underneath them :oS I really don't know much about them but I believe they were produced in the UK and there was the name New Orleans. I received two from a very special friend who was lucky enough to find them at a flea market and the rest have come from EBay. If anyone knows more about these or where I can get additional ones to complete my collection, plmk. Thanks!