Jewelry!

I've already sold several necklaces and bracelets, but still have a few left to sell. So, I thought I would post some pictures here of what's left for those of you who have asked. Please let me know if you are interested, and remember that all of the money I raise goes to the Breast Cancer 3-Day, which benefits Susan G. Komen and the National Philanthropic Trust!

The above necklace is a grayish color with pink and purple accents. The beads are very large when compared with the other necklaces as you can see in the second picture. It is a medium length and will go around only once.

The three above are also medium length and will go around once. The necklace pictured on the left is orange. Very cute! They are also $20.

 

This last one is the long length and is $30. It will go around the neck at least two times. For more information about the necklaces, please check out 31bits.com.....such a great cause from both sides! Thanks everyone for your support!

P.S. I only have one bracelet left! 

31 Bits

There's a link below to a blog called Wallycado. I read it regularly not only because the writer is a good friend, but also because the author and I are just different enough from each other that I feel I can learn about something new and interesting every time I visit her blog. Every time she posts, she writes what she calls her "points of grace," which is a list of the things that made her happy that day/week, and that list always leads me to a new recipe, a new band, or a new website that I wouldn't have otherwise heard of. 

This week, from Wallycado, I learned of a company called 31 Bits Jewelry, a company created by a group of young women to provide aid to the people of Uganda. Because Uganda is plagued by poverty, poor sanitation, poor healthcare, and a lack of jobs and education, the women of 31 Bits have joined together with several Ugandan women with a vision of hope. The goal of 31 Bits is to help these women get out of poverty, get their children a proper education and provide food and healthcare for their families, and they hope to accomplish this by selling the beautiful jewelry that these Ugandan women are creating.

Upon reading about this plan and the short stories of the Ugandan women who are involved, I decided that I also wanted to get involved. I figured that by buying this jewelry, I could support 31 bits. Then, by selling it, I could support Susan G. Komen and the National Philanthropic Trust (through the 3Day), making it a win-win situation for everyone. The girls at 31 Bits agreed, and they sent me some bracelets and necklaces to sell. So, please check out their website at 31bits.com and let me know what you think. Consider buying a bracelet for $10 or a necklace from me for $20 or $30 (depending on the length). Remember Mother's Day is coming up, and this is a purchase you can feel GREAT about!

An Obsession

I don't know what happened to me when I reached my late twenties, but it was something that wasn't present when I was younger. I grew up with two brothers, and I liked to consider myself a girly-tomboy (if that is really even a thing). I was not (in my mind) a girly-girl at all. Yes, I took dance and gymnastics and dressed in all the latest fashions, but that was only because my mom signed me up for those classes and bought all of my clothes. I spent all of my afternoons out in the yard with the boys or on my skateboard down the street. I thought I could "hang,"and as my husband will tell you (and he tells me frequently) there is not one ounce of athleticism in my body.

So what I have come to realize in the last couple of years and have mentioned in a previous post is that I love the color pink. In fact, I have an obsession for the color, the most girly color on the planet. As a matter of fact, I recently bought a colander at Anthropologie just because it was pink. Now, since I have no idea what to do with a colander it has not even come out of the cabinet, but it is very cute!

Anyway, I am in need of a sleeping bag for the walk because we walk 20 miles in a day, then camp out, then walk 20 miles, then....you get it. So, the other night when J and I were at Bass Pro Shop getting a b-day present for his brother, I took the opportunity to check out the sleeping bags. FYI, sleeping bags are made for men. Apparently, someone somewhere thinks that men are the only people who go camping, and all the bags they carried were in very masculine colors. 

So, my next step was to do a search on the internet, and although the pink sleeping bags were few and far between, I lucked upon the perfect one....it was just what I was looking for...pink and inexpensive. Without another thought I got out my credit card and started to purchase my perfect pink bag, and just before finalizing the sale, I read the product description. Well, ladies and gentlemen, I was ordering the perfect pink sleeping bag......FOR MY BARBIE! Can you imagine my surprise had I actually completed the purchase and opened the box expecting an adult size sleeping bag? 

Crooked Teeth

Most people don't know this about me, but I LOVE Kenny G. I don't know what it is about his music, but he is one of the few artists that I will always listen to if his song is playing on the radio. In fact, I love his music so much that....

- I listen to his Christmas CD year-round in my car. His version of Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas is one of my top five all-time favorite songs.

- I own one of his piano songbooks and play his music often

- I went to his concert last night in Norman and was REALLY excited about it, and...

are you ready for this????

-  I asked for and received a saxophone and lessons when I was in high school b/c I thought I could learn to play just like him. Unfortunately the instrument I was given must be broken because the noise that comes out of it is excruciatingly painful to the ears! If I remember correctly, I only made it through a couple of lessons; my instructor may have actually encouraged me to quit....I'm not exactly sure.

Anyway, when my mom called a few weeks ago to see if I wanted to go to his concert, I jumped at the chance and have been looking forward to it ever since. He played at the Riverwind Casino, which is actually pretty nice, albeit smokey, and I would highly recommend it as a great place to see concerts. We had second row seats, and we were so close that I thought a couple of times that Kenny and I actually made eye contact. 

So, the point of my story is that during the show he announced that at some point he would be bringing an audience member up on stage where he would play a song for them and then give them the sax that he just played, making it theirs to keep. In order to get in on this little deal, you had to go to the merchandise table and buy two items in exchange for a ticket. These could be t-shirts, cds, etc. So, I left my seat (in the middle of the concert) and stood in line for my two items and the chance to win a new soprano sax (mine is an alto sax). I waited and I waited, and when I was five people from the front of the line, Kenny's bodyguard announced that the contest entry period was over :(. So, since I was already at the front of the line I decided to buy a CD anyway, and I returned to my seat for the remainder of the concert. 

Well, as the concert came to an end, Kenny made the announcement that he would stay after and sign autographs for all of his fans. So, with CD in hand, I jumped into line and waited my chance to speak to Kenny and get my autograph. Yes, I am THAT girl. 

As I got closer to the front of the line, my stomach was churning because I wanted to say something other than just "great concert" like everyone else had said, but I didn't know what to say. So, I finally decided to ask him the question that a friend has asked me during the concert, "why does he hold the sax in the side of his mouth instead of in the center?" Our conversation went a little something like this:

T: Do you hold the sax in the side of your mouth because it is easier to take breaths that way?

K: No, I hold it that way b/c the sax rests against my teeth and that is the most comfortable position. My teeth are crooked and they slant down, so that is how the mouthpiece rests on them. See...

(He smiles really big to show me all of his teeth)

T: Oh, well I really can't tell, but it makes sense I guess. Maybe holding the sax that way caused your teeth to do that?.?.

K: Yeah. I guess. That's a good question. I never really thought about it that way. Do you play?

T: Well. Uh. Hmmm. No. No, I don't. (I was deciding wether or not to launch into my personal sax history and finally thought better of it.)

K: Well you should. It's never too late to start.

K's Bodyguard: Come on guys. Less chit-chat. We gotta keep this line moving.

So, that was my conversation with Kenny G! I didn't get the picture with him that I was hoping for, but I am happy to say that I got to talk to him and am once again inspired to learn how to play the sax! I told Josh that I am going to become a groupie, but I think I will be going at that alone. Most people my age (including my husband) aren't huge Kenny G fans. Oh well, their loss.

P.S. I am really having to bite my tongue to resist saying something in poor taste about the person I heard saying she would like to kill him with his saxophone!!! Nuff said.