Friday the Thirteenth

You know how Friday the Thirteenth is supposed to be an unlucky day? Well, the only bad luck I had was pricking my fingers making my latest Tsumami Kanzashi.



I have been told it looks rather steampunk-ish. What do you think?



I also made some mushroom jewelry. There are two charms and a set of earrings. They may look like poisonous mushrooms, but there super cute!

Happy Easter!

It's Easter!



Here comes the Easter bunny! At my house, the Easter comes while we are at church.



And Easter means treats, and eggs. Why not both at the same time? These lemonade cookies were fun to paint. Food color paint, that is^^



My new Easter jewelry set. I hadn't tried this kind of bead weaving before. What do you think?

Blog Anniversary

Today marks the first post of this blog. Of course, after the 'Google ate my blog' fiasco that doesn't mean that much. But hey, that's what I get for not keeping backups.
Here's a little something that also took me a year to make, just because I ran out of yarn and it took me that long to find some more. Perhaps I need back up yarn balls too?

New Flickr Account Success

I have a new Flickr account. Well, actually, I lie. I have had the account for almost a month, but have now figured out how to link the pictures to my blog. Tada!



Made by me, photo'd by me, and now posted by me^^ If only I could figure out how to fix the time and dates on the pictures...

Nashville Sakura Matsuri (Cherry Blossom Festival)

Today was the 2012 Nashville Sakura Matsuri. Here is the official website; nashvillecherryblossomfestival.org. The curse continued; rain chased us from the park as the festival came to a close. Always with the soaking!
There are several Sakura matsuri, or cherry blossom festivals, in America this time of year. Washington DC in particular is a big one, but Hanami (flower viewing) parties are scattered all over the US. This year was special because Nashville received three baby cherry trees grown from cuttings from the original cherry trees given to our countries' capitol by the mayor of Tokyo in 1912. This year marks the 100th aniversary of the first Japanese cherry grove in the US. I know that according to Japanese folklore objects sometimes gain spirits after reaching a hundred years. I wonder if cherry trees do as well?

The last of the cherry blossoms. It rained petals as the wind blew.

These guys were adorable little troublemakers. Their mother would dry them off and they'd be right back in the fountain. It was too cold, but they didn't seem to mind.

This was a demonstration of a tea ceramony. The way of the tea is so complicated!

A sakura kusadama.

Yoyo balloons. You had to hook the string with a wire hook attached to a twisted rice paper rope. Tricky like you wouldn't believe.

First Day of Spring

Spring Equinox is here, and with it the Spring. There are bugs, birds, and baby animals everywhere. Is it any wonder almost every culture and religion has a celibration of new life this time of year? Easter, of course, is what I celebrate; a story of rebirth out of what appears dead. Like a pheonix, let's make this new life better than the old one.

With all the warmth all my flowers are seriously confused. The lilac is blooming almost a month before usual.

I took this picture of cherry blossoms last weekend. Good thing too; they're already falling. Looking forward to the cherry blossom festival this weekend, even if the trees are bare.

Not sure what kind of flower this tsumami kanzashi hairstick is, but I made it anyway.

Also, this strawberry kanzashi. It was a fun hair accessory to make. It seems a little early, but the plants are already blooming. The berries will be here before we know it.

Saint Patrick's day/twin's birthday.

Today was not only the twin's birthday party, but Saint Patrick's day as well. Mmm corned beef and cabbage!

This was the quietest birthday party this year. No screaming, no crying, just playing video games. It was almost scary.^^

Minecraft cupcakes by me. Creepers, gravel, dirt, and minecraft style cakes. The new square cupcake pan made them easy.

Four leaf clover Tsumami Kanzashi. The big one is a lapel pin. Gold at the end of the rainbow anyone?

Nashville zoo / spring break

This week was spring break, and it's not over yet. Tomorrow is the twin's birthday party; their birthday is actually the 13th, but their friends are coming over tomorrow. Yesterday we went to the Nashville zoo. Here are some pics^^

 It was over 80F!

The elephants were enjoying it a lot.

This iguana was part of the America exhibit.

There were many different animals from all over North and South America.

Some of them I see all the time, but black widows and brown recluses

aren't nearly as friendly as this guy was^^ 



The play ground at the entrance is huge.

This is only one of six or seven parts.

Some parts were four stories tall!

3.11 media

Over the last couple days I have read many stories about the Tohoku Earthquake. Some of these stories are about the brave survivors, the amazing clean up work, and the mass prayers and ceremonies for both the living and the deceased. However, many of the ones most pushed, reported, or published were highly offensive. They made me ashamed of some of my country members, who apparently only care that they are/might be affected by this tragedy.
This goes especially for those who only see this as a platform for their personal agendas. Whether they are against the fishing boats, feel the Japan's way of life is wrong, claim Japan is over populated, or anything else does not give them the right to slander our neighbors. The fear mongering and hateful way that this natural disaster has been portrayed, especially by English speaking media, disgusts me.
The main tragedy was the loss of over 20,000 lives; not a nuclear accident. The brave men of Dai-ichi plant are to be commended; and while certain groups could have moved faster or done more, hindsight is always 20/20. Saying things like Japan should be cleaning up the mess in the ocean so we don't have to, destroy all nuclear plants because while we still need electrical power we don't want to deal with the consequences, or that anyone deserved the Tsunami for any reason is selfish. Let us stop accusing each other of things and help one another.

3.11

Today marks the one year anniversary of the Tohoku Earthquake and subsequent Tsunami. Let our prayers be with them. May the souls of the departed rest in peace, and the spirits of the living be healed.