State of Being Obsessed

Do you ever go into an insane phase when your thoughts and feelings are dominated by this persistent desire to obtain something? And you know that you will not have another good night sleep until you have whatever that is in your hands or have the entire set in your shelf? I have an aunt who can answer yes to this question as I have witnessed her go through many obsessions such as: beanie babies, furbies, Precious Moments figurines, Starbucks mugs from different cities and Dooney and Coach purses. The beanie babies craze was by far the biggest of hers I've seen. She would travel to different states to obtain "limited edition" beanie babies. She had a case for each beanie baby and tag protectors, because without them they will not be worth much. I remember how they were all proudly displayed all over their house. Fast forward 15 years, I don't know what happened to them or if they are still projected to be worth a lot. 

I remember my son as a little boy completely absorbed into the whole Pokemon and Yu-Gi-Oh cards claiming that they will appreciate in value someday. After he left for college I found all those "collectible" cards in a shoe box and boy, I cannot part with them. They remind me of those many times when I would catch my son with his cards spread out on his bed room floor just admiring them, being a child. He would tell me how powerful each card was and what it could do. My daughter is the princess of obsessions. I remember the Iwako erasers phase...ah the joys of collecting.

I have been known to have a few obsessions of my own such as: makeup, paper crafting tools, pretty papers and pens. My current selection to obsess over are Copic markers. I have heard of Copic markers for many years, but I have not really focused on learning to use them in my card making and other paper crafting projects until recently. I must confess that for the past couple of months or so I have been just completely gung-ho over obtaining enough (however much that is) Copic markers that during my lunch time I would go to all three local craft stores and purchase one marker from each store using my 50% off coupon. They are not your regular Crayola markers mind you, they are $7.99 each. I will (fingers crossed) stop at 160 because there are almost 400 in its color chart. I have also been watching youtube a lot and learning from people who are so generous in sharing their knowledge and expertise with copics. I am still learning, but I truly love how these markers blend and how smoothly they apply on the images. I love that you can control how intense or subtle you want your colors to mix. I used them on the two greeting cards below. The photos do not do them justice, but they truly are more distinct up close and personal.

My Copic markers collection

Greetings Cards Kids stamp set (Wood 119887 Clear 120633)

Well, that's all for now. I have been very busy because my mom moved in town and we have been spending a lot of time in her house. She drove her Toyota Prius 2,900 miles from Alabama all by herself. She is exhausted but very happy in her new house. Isn't it wonderful that in spite of life's unavoidable challenges and tribulations, we cannot ignore the fact that life is always full of new beginnings?

Petite Purses

People who interact with me on a daily basis know me as someone who's transparent, frank (often misconstrued as crude), highly-spirited, loud and unafraid to voice out my opinions. I love to laugh and I CAN always find the humor in anything. Those people who knew me a few decades ago and at some point unfortunate enough to witness my unpredictable "basket case" syndrome can attest that I came with plenty of ghosts. Many of them still find their way to haunt me even in my most beautiful days and peaceful slumber. Sometimes it will be just an ordinary day, then a song on the radio or a certain smell will trigger it and I'd be halfway back down the black hole once again...raw and bleeding. A week ago a casual conversation at work made me accidentally revisit an event in my previous life. Something I thought I had been so successful to outrun after all these many years. Unbeknown to the people who see me five days a week that I was having a nervous breakdown inside, I simply walked back to my desk, took five deep breaths and focused on the task at hand. As I went on with my day, my mind would somehow wander off and think about the validity of my affliction. How accurate is my memory? My life has surely changed in so many ways over the years, but sadly my past will always be the same and it's mine to live with for the rest of my days. I am utterly powerless when it comes to the past. Then again, if given the chance to go back in time...would I want to change it? You will have to forgive me, September is sort of a dark month for me and I suffer from September-ism without fail every year.

In my personal experience, a pretty purse can always cheer any girl up. So, I want to share a few of them. They turned out really cute. I used my Big Shot Die Cutting Machine (113439), Petite Purse Bigz L die (125606), Boho Blossoms Punch (119858), Textured Embossing Folders in Perfect Polka Dots (117335), Chevron (127749) and Fancy Fan (127751). I also used the Designer Series Paper in Twitterpated (125406), Card stocks in Pretty in Pink, Basic Gray, Cherry Cobbler and Marina Mist, 3/16" Regal Brads (119737), Pleated Satin Ribbons (retired) and be prepared to use plenty of the Sticky Strip (104294).

That's it for now, I have to go to the Farmers Market. Have a wonderful week, everyone and thank you for stopping by. 

Retired BNF Friday #14

I apologize that I wasn't able to post last Sunday. We went on a short vacation for Labor Day weekend and I have not had the chance to sit down and think about my blog since. It was our first vacation without my son and we missed him. I am sure that it will take some time to get used to. Then in about six years my daughter will leave for college and it will be just hubby and me. Perhaps there will be more time for us to travel as a couple and more time for me to read, write and create.

My daughter really loves the beach. As I was sitting there watching her play in the sand and screaming at the waves, I thought about our childhood and tried to recall a time such as that. It sort of made me sad that for the life of me I couldn't dig anything in my memory vault of a family vacation. Sure, we went on day trips to Antipolo, Luneta and Manila Zoo; but always with aunts and uncles and cousins in a rented jeepney or in my uncle's Ford Fierra. There were times when we tagged along with my dad to Manila cramped in his brown pick-up truck whenever he had to deliver furniture to customers. We also went to watch the Christmas shows outside of COD Department Store in Cubao usually around my birthday when I could pick two toys and my younger sister could pick one (since she wasn't the celebrant). We would then eat at this Chinese Restaurant called Hong Ning, which had the most delicious Pancit Canton and Ampalaya Con Carne I've ever had. I could still taste it to this day. Oh, the simple pleasures of being a child.

In the midst of all those people in the beach, I realized that I could not remember a single present I ever received as a child, but I remember events and places. I remember emotions and tragedies, simple joys and feelings of loss. I remember that we never went on family vacations, but I also know now that as young and broke as our parents were back then...they tried their best. Becoming a parent made me understand. Parenthood made me more forgiving of my parents' shortcomings. They did the best they could with the knowledge and resources they had. It's all good. I must bear this in mind when buying my children "stuff" versus creating happy memories together that will last them a lifetime. We should go on family trips more often, even just weekend getaways...and make deposits to their memory bank.

Oh well, before I get completely sidetracked from the purpose of this post, allow me to share with you a really cute Halloween card. For someone who did not grow-up celebrating Halloween, I sure love this holiday.

Card Recipe

Stamp Set(s): Teeny Tiny Wishes, Sweeter Treaters
Paper: Card stocks in Concord Crush, Dusty Durango, Basic Black, Pear Pizzaz and Whisper White
Ink: Classic Stampin' pad in Basic Black and Stampin' Write markers
Accessories: Punches in Modern Label (119849) and Pinking Hearts Border, Embossing Folder in Spider Web (120889), Stampin' Dimensionals (104430)

Well, that's all for now. I have a very busy weekend ahead of me. Thank you for stopping by.