From a Cluttered Desk

I am Tammy Cardwell, she of the cluttered desk. (Hey, you think I'm kidding?!) I'm having a blast here in Blogland and invite to you to peruse my ramblings. Like a buffet, they offer variety - essentially whatever makes it to the top of the piles that sometimes clutter my brain. We'll eventually cover it all - homeschooling, God, our church, the Eclectic Homeschool Online, books I'm writing and publishing, conferences I speak at, the joys of grandmotherhood, and hopefully chocolate. Of course, this is only what's near the top now. Who knows what's in those piles?

Her name is Susan Boyle and she’s taught thousands of people not to prejudge someone’s abilities by their appearance or presentation.

I wish I could embed the video, but they’re not allowing it, so do yourself a favor and go watch this clip from Britain’s Got Talent’s 2009 talent search. See 47-year-old Susan Boyle completely floor the judges and everyone else when she sings "I Dreamed a Dream" from Les Miserables.

Celebrating Jesus!
Tammy C

Considering what I’m supposed to be doing - as opposed to what I AM doing, this one did make me LOL!

see more Lolcats and funny pictures

Celebrating Jesus!
Tammy C

I’m not linking this post to my Living on a Dime category, because we’re not talking low-end products here, but I really am tempted when I consider just how much you can save with this site, especially with the invitation rewards.

The online company is The Gilt Group. I first read about them in Reader’s Digest and was impressed. These two ladies founded a business that sells upscale products (clothing for men, women, and children; accessories of all sorts; and home items) online via an invitation-only website. The "invitation only" part is the key. Because their customers have to be "members" and because they must be invited to be members, big designers are willing to sell them products that they know will be sold at greatly (GREATLY) reduced prices.

If you’re wondering about credibility, let me add that Forbes has also written about them. You’ll find the article for yourself if you google it.

The concept is that they put up a designer sale (11:00 a.m. my time, which is Central) and the sale stays up for 36 hours or until it sells out. From what I’ve seen people saying online (Yeah, I did my research), things sell out quickly, and I’ve noticed that it’s true. The Cole Haan slingbacks that I was drooling over this morning are totally sold out now. I’m not in a position to have bought them, but seeing these $185 shoes in my size for $85…

Currently, they’re running sales on…
Cole Haan Shoes
Walter
Habitual
A. Testoni
Alexis Bittar
Converse by John Varvatos Mens
Converse by John Varvatos Shoes
Gustto
Boy by Band of Outsiders
Authier
Women’s Sunglasses (various designers)

Of course, if you read this two days from now, it’ll be a different story entirely.

I’m not big into designers, so most of the ones I’ve seen are news to me, but I can definitely appreciate their designs. Well..okay..some not so much. But there are some great things here. There were some great things when I first joined, too. Among other things, I had fun perusing the Links of London jewelry offerings, and If I’d not already bought my dress for our music ministry banquet, I might have looked seriously at some GEEEEEEORGEOUS evening gowns that were up last week, up and with many at prices even I might have been able to pull off.

When you’re on the main sale page, you can scroll down to the bottom and click on the calendar on the left. This takes you to the list of upcoming sales so you’ll know which days you want to be in hover mode by your computer. You can also sign up for the daily emails that remind you about the sales in your preferred categories.

Also at the bottom, on the right, you’ll find "Quick Style Picks." This focuses on half a dozen individual items; I’m assuming these are things they have left from a sale that has ended. I’ve seen more than one item here that I’ve seriously considered as banquet gifts (See my earlier post), but so far I’ve held off since none felt like just the right fit.

Are you interested in checking it out for yourself? If so, here’s my Gilt Group Personal invitation Link. As I said earlier, if you sign up as a result of clicking this link, and place an order at some point, I’ll receive a $25 credit within about two days of your order shipping. This means that you, too, can invite people and if they place orders you get credit. Now that’s a great system!

Celebrating Jesus!
Tammy C

The following press release just hit my inbox. As a writer, this is a conference I’d rather like to attend. It’s not an option for me, of course, but if you’re a writer and at all in the area, you might want to consider it.

Celebrating Jesus!
Tammy C

Someone on one of my lists was asking about a photo her mom took of an animal that had been flying outside her window after dark - an animal that, in flight, looked like a hummingbird, but was much too large to be a hummingbird. After consulting with several people who are in the know, she determined that her mom had captured a "flying" photo of the rare Luna Moth. As I was reading the emails and visiting the site that came most highly recommended, I had flashbacks to my stepfather. I had a great stepfather when I was in second grade and one of  the special things he did was find things for me. One day he found an absolutely gigantic white grasshopper. I wish cameras had been as common then as they are today, because I’ve never seen one even remotely like it since and have no clue. My grasshopper definitely made a stir at show and tell and spent a few days at school, being fed by its delighted fans. It made even more of a stir when it disappeared out of the cage and we had no idea where we’d find it. One of the boys found it eventually and I let him take the grasshopper home to show his own family.

Flashbacks aside, after wandering around the site for a while, I decided I had to come share it with you. What’s That Bug? is a fantastic place to visit if you find a bug you don’t recognize, but it’s also great fun if you have any interest at all in the wide range of insects that are out there. I checked out the grasshoppers, of course, and was astounded by the variety of fabulous photos (Complete with scientific information) they had. Nope, no giant white creature appeared, but many other awesome things did.

What’s That Bug? Check it out!

Celebrating Jesus!
Tammy C

If you’re looking for a special book, perhaps a really old book or one in a language other than English, you may wish to see if it is available for online reading at the Universal Digital Library. This online library hosts The Million Book Collection. To create it, they have people at locations in many parts of the world that are scanning and digitizing books in over 22 different languages and 48 topic areas. They even have 218 books that were published between the years 1000 and 1700.

Due to copyright laws and the fact that not all copyright holders have given permission, not all of the books in their collection are available for online reading, but a massive number are. At this time, the books are in tiff format, so you’ll need to get a plug-in for your browser, but they have begun the process of converting files to PDF and HTML format, so hopefully within the next year you’ll be able to download complete ebooks.

So, do you want to read a book?

Celebrating Jesus!
Tammy C

I’ve been meaning to share about this for a while and just remembered where I put the link. (It’s amazing, how you can misplace things on your hard drive.)

I LOVE musicals, and one of the things I love about musicals is how groups of people will burst into a song and dance routine in public. I mean…really…how do you think REAL people would react to such goings on?

Well, you don’t have to wonder anymore.

This musical number was staged (With the mall and vendor’s cooperation) by a group called Improv Everywhere. Their site is well worth checking out; reading about them makes me envious that I don’t live in their area, will likely never have the chance to stumble across any of their "missions." And if you want to know more about Food Court Musical…

Celebrating Jesus!
Tammy C

Are you into recycling? Maybe. But are you really INTO recycling like these folks? <grin> I was looking for some information online - checking out a plane that a woman had made into a home, and found SuperUse. Its blurb is "Where recycling meets design" and those whose work appears on these webpages really believe in seeing just how far they can take the concept.

This is the airplane home that nudged me in the direction of this site.

The story is really interesting, especially when you learn that this woman, with wrench in hand, scavenged for parts herself.

You’ll find all sorts of things here, from a house sided in squashed soda cans to a house built of rolled newspapers to a pair of scissors made from flatware, beads formed from the insides of security envelopes and…

A Chiquita Chandelier?!

Gotta love it!

Celebrating Jesus!
Tammy C

Yes, you read the subject line correctly. This time I’m pointing you in the direction of Don Marco, who is an honest-to-goodness crayon artist like you won’t believe until you see. Take a look at his art and you’ll be astounded, completely blown out of the water by what this man can do with a handful of Crayola crayons.

Having trouble believing me? Check this out. It’s from his bio.

Don Marco was born in Northern Minnesota in the late 1920’s. His interest in art was evident even before starting school. As a young adult in the Army Air Corp, he began his life’s career in Air Traffic Control, which continued until his retirement from Honolulu International Airport in 1973. Much of his spare time was spent as a professional artist.

Before retirement, Don started developing a technique to create fine art using Crayola Crayons. Shortly after retiring he published his first print. Living in Southern California, his work was in demand including commissions from Burt Reynolds and a one-man show at his Dinner Theater in Florida. Highlights of Don’s Career include:

• Portrait of Arizona artist Ted De Grazia on a collector plate
• KSTP/5 TV feature. On the Road with Jason Davis
• Duluth/CBS TV feature. Points North
• Mpls/CBS TV feature. PM Magazine - local and national
• Duluth WDSE public TV feature Up North
• Newspaper articles in major U.S. cities
• KUSK TV Feature. Northern Arizona
• Plate Collector Magazine, Self Portrait and Feature Article, 1979 (cover story)
• Rainbow Reporter, Binney and Smith magazine cover and feature 1982
• Featured Artist - Alternative Trends Magazine Fall Edition. - 2007
• Fox News Feature - 2007
• Duluth News Tribune Feature - 2007
• Living North Magazine - 2007
• More than one million prints sold.

You very much need to visit his site and see his masterpieces. Take time to read his FAQ too, because it’s really interesting.

And you know what? He has a great use policy where the graphics are concerned - for non-profit purposes of course! Art teachers across the country could be sharing it with their students to encourage them that yes, you really can do anything you set your mind to.

With all the art I’ve been stumbling across lately, I’m beginning to think I need to start an art category for this blog.

Celebrating Jesus!
Tammy C

Anna Davidson read about this artist in her local newspaper and couldn’t wait to tell me about his website. It’s home of The Texas Fallen Soldiers Project and it’s awesome. This artist provides, free of charge.. Wait, let me let him tell it.

Our primary mission is to honor, respect and forever remember the Texas Soldiers who have sacrificed their lives while protecting our freedom. This project makes available, at no cost to the family, a framed, hand painted portrait of their Fallen Soldier. These works are supported through donations and sponsors wanting to recognize and honor those who have died during active military service

I went to the gallery, filled with some of the most impressive artwork I’ve ever seen (Impressive both artistically and emotionally) and cried as I read about these soldiers and read the names of those who had sponsored the portraits. Most of these soldiers were so YOUNG!

Not surprisingly, this project has gained some national coverage; you’ll find links to videos and articles when you visit his site.

Just be prepared with a box of tissues. I wasn’t, and especially when viewing video footage I needed them.

Celebrating Jesus!
Tammy C