The Sewing Mom

I know exactly what I want to find in my Christmas stocking this year, Pirates of the Caribbean, At Worlds End starring Johnny Depp. No one can play Captain Jack Sparrow the way Johnny Depp did it and I can watch any of the Pirates of the Caribbean movies over and over. I all ready own the first two and trust me, I have watched them again and again, just ask my family!I love the way Captain Jack swaggers, almost as if he is drunk, and yet he knows everything that is going on around him at all times. There are so many wonderful scenes in these movies that whenever I watch them I find myself saying “oh, I love this part” and “watch this, watch this” over and over! I’m sure I drive my husband absolutely nuts whenever the movie is on. I don’t know if I could list my favorite parts of these movies, there are so many of them right from the beginning in The Black Pearl when he arrives in Port Royal on his sinking boat and swaggers onto the dock. There are so many good lines in the movie too, I just think it’s very entertaining and very well written. I just can’t name one single line or scene that is my favorite because I love the entire movie.

The second movie in the series, Dead Man’s Chest, I love almost as much as the first. I love it when Captain Jack first appears in the second movie and he’s with the native tribe, all painted with a “second set of eyes”. It’s so bizarre and yet I love it. I enjoy watching his banter back and forth with young Will Turner. I really enjoyed the scene where they are all trying to escape from the natives and Jack hanging from a skewer over the fire blowing on it trying to put it out. I was laughing through the entire scene. I just think these movies are great entertainment and Johnny Depp is perfect in his role of Captain Jack Sparrow.

Yesterday I saw Johnny Depp being interviewed along with Tim Burton, the director of Johnny’s new movie Sweeney Todd.  It was really interesting.  I decided to visit the official Sweeney Todd movie site to check out this new movie coming to theaters in December. The thing I was most surprised to learn is that this new movie is a musical, yes, Johnny Depp is singing! If you visit the official site you can hear some of the music from the movie and yes, you even get to hear Johnny himself.  Visit Sweeney Todd on MySpace for even more information.

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I never thought it would be so difficult to find a simple piece of sheet music.  But then again, this is the first time I’ve ever been out shopping for sheet music, so what do I know?

My daughter played a piece on her baritone in a solo contest last winter and there was a piano accompaniment that went with it.  She still has her solo part, but needs the piano piece because she and her friend want to play it together in the talent show.  Talent show tryouts are next Tuesday.  

I spent the weekend online looking for this music but the only place I did find it at can’t get it to me for two weeks.  So I picked my daughter up from school today and we hit 3 different music stores looking for the music.  The first one was a referral from the online store.  Unfortunately, they didn’t sell instrumental music, but they referred me to a second store that they were positive would have it.  So, off we went.  We find the place, walk in and say we’re looking for sheet music and they right away tell us they don’t sell any sheet music!  WTH?

So, we head off for the 3rd store which was also a referral from the online store.  This last store does indeed sell sheet music but unfortunately, they don’t have the specific song we’re looking for.  Not only that, the woman was rude!  She made it quite clear that they don’t play that in the schools here in Texas until at least 7th grade and since my daughter is only in 6th she couldn’t understand why we wanted it.  I explained that we moved from Illinois where they begin band a year earlier and that she had all ready played it.  (I should’ve also told her that my daughter won a 1st place medal for her performance, which she did!)

Anyway, needless to say we came home empty handed. My daughter is upset because she doesn’t have the music and I’m trying to tell her she and her friend need to find a song that perhaps they both do have the music for.  I suggested she take her baritone book with her to school tomorrow and they can look it over together to see what they can do.  In the mean time, I’ll be spending tomorrow on the phone with a couple of other music stores that aren’t as close but may have the music. 

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The holiday shopping has begun! I heard that the best way to keep from overspending on the holiday gifts is by making a list of every single person you need to shop for, including teachers, bus drivers, etc., and then write down what you are spending on that person. You should have a total budget figure in mind and divide it up appropriately between all the people on your list. Then, we you go shopping, don’t deviate from the listed amounts. This can keep you from getting in over your head and having to get pay day loans to cover your holiday shopping spree.

So, after hearing all of that, do you make a list and check it twice? Do you stick to your budget or do you tend to overspend? I tend to have a list for the immediate family, but there always seems to be last minute additions to the list that don’t get included in my budget. Plus, I know I am definitely guilty of overspending every year on my daughter. I really need to reign myself in when it comes to her, I just can’t seem to do it.

So, I’ve started my shopping. I bought a few items online last week and a couple more today. I like shopping online especially when I find the no tax and free shipping deals. I hate how much tax can take out of my budget! I had even gone to the store this morning and purchased a gift, then came home and found the same item available online with no tax and no shipping so I’m returning the one I purchased this morning. Even if it’s only a few dollars in tax, it all adds up and in the end, it will save me money. In fact, I just ordered my niece a gift and by saving on tax and shipping, I felt good about spending a few dollars to have the present gift wrapped since I was shipping it directly to their home, not mine. Saving in one way, allows me to take advantage of other services.

I am going to avoid a payday loan by following my own advice: make a list and stick to it!

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This is under the category of just plain stupid! 

A man in South Carolina went into a local bank to open a new account.  He handed the bank employee a $1 million dollar bill to open the account with.  When the employee refused to open the account, the man became irate and started cursing at the bank employees.  Police were called.

First big mistake on his part?  The U.S. Federal Government has never issued a $1 million dollar bill.  He was arrested on forgery charges.  He was later charged with a second count of forgery when the police discovered that before going to the bank, he had purchased cigarettes at a convenience store using a stolen check.

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In my previous post I mentioned that I’d been out doing a little bit of shopping this morning. One of the items I was shopping for was Christmas cards and I was not successful in finding any that I liked. Well, I should say, I didn’t find any that I liked that didn’t cost an arm and a leg. So, now I’m rethinking the type of cards I would like to send out this year.

Last year I did custom holiday cards and I think I will go that route again. We’re in a new home, new holiday decor, new puppy. I think there are a lot of photo opportunities I can used to create some very nice or very cute cards. I’ve even noticed some cards allow you to use more than one photo which gives me an idea, I could use a photo of my daughter and a photo of the puppy and create one card. I could even do a photo collage using up to 6 photos, that would be different! The nice thing about creating custom cards is that the sentiment is also custom. I can use a favorite saying or theme and feel like the card is truly coming from us, not just something I picked up at the store.

So I think our afternoon will be spent taking pictures in front of our decorated tree and seeing what we can come up with.   At least I can do it all from home and not have to deal with the traffic, cell phone drivers, and stupid people that I dealt with this morning!

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I was driving this morning to run errands and it emphasized why I really enjoy staying home. 

To begin with, I was at the intersection of E. Main and N. Allen Heights waiting for the traffic light to turn green.  E. Main is 3 lanes in each directions and N. Allen Heights is 2 each way.  Traffic was fairly light, but coming from my right was a ladder truck with its emergency lights on and siren blaring.  Do you think the traffic stopped to let the emergency vehicle go through?  NO!!  Vehicles continued through the intersection and one small suv even made a left turn, right across the direct path of the fire truck.  WHAT IS WRONG WITH PEOPLE? 

So, I get to where I am going and get my shopping done.  I begin my drive home going the opposite direction, using the same route.  Mind you, the speed limit is 45.  So why is everyone doing 30?  Three lanes across and every single vehicle is doing 30.  I thought I was losing my mind, but no, there in front of me was a street sign stating explicitly that the speed limit was 45.  GET OUT OF MY WAY!

I’m finally able to get around all the slow pokes and am content to be doing the proper speed limit, heading home.  But what to my amazed eyes should appear?  A Landrover veering into my lane and just about taking off my front bumper!  I laid on my horn and he was just inches from wiping me out and he came on over anyway.  I had to slam on my brakes and then he turns his right turn signal on.  So I’m thinking he’s going to turn…. NO!  He goes straight and keeps going straight AND, he slows to about 20 mph.  So, I go around him and sure enough, he’s on his cell phone.  Left elbow resting on the window ledge and left hand holding cell phone to ear.  He was totally oblivious to what the fact that he’d almost just caused an accident or what speed he was doing.  GET OFF YOUR CELL PHONE!!

 I’m very glad to be home, think I’ll stay here the rest of the day.

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