bubbledog blog

the goonies are good enough

Some family and friends came over last night to celebrate my brother's 28th birthday.  I have been eagerly awaiting his birthday for the last three months because, in April, I found him the perfect gift.  My brother has loved the movie The Goonies since he was a kid and still views it on a fairly regular (though with less frequency) basis.  Unbeknownst to us in the 1980s, there was a set of promotional glasses made for the film.  They have fairly hideous artwork, but they depict various scenes from the movie... and who doesn't want to drink out of a glass with Chunk and Sloth on the front?  I think my brother will enjoy them - at least until his wife decides to lose them or break them (which I would have to understand). 

ringing rocks

Over the weekend, I have had some house guests visiting from England.  Last time I was in England, they gave quite the tour and I had a really great time... so the pressure was on!   After doing some searching for things to do in my area, I came across Ringing Rocks State Park in Upper Black Eddy, PA.  This is only about 10 minutes from my home, but I had never been there, so we decided to check it out.

Basically, it is a large (128 acre) park with various nature trails and picnic areas, but there is one unique feature... a field of large boulders that occupy a clearing towards the top of the mountain.  It looks kind of unnatural, but there is apparenly some natural reason that these rocks are located there as there are places where the rocks are piled some fourteen feet deep.  As you climb through the field and over these large boulders, you will see people banging away at them with hammers because about one third of them ring like a bell when struck.  It really is amazing - I was very doubtful until I actually experienced it.  Some of them have a gong like quality.   I can' t explain it, but this site has a lot of insightful information. 

If you are ever in Eastern PA or Western NJ, go check it out... and don't forget to bring your hammer!

pizzagaina

Once a year for Easter, my grandmother bakes everyone in the family a traditional Italian Easter pie called pizzagaina.  It is quite scrumptious and has absolutely no fat... yeah, right!  It is basically a pie with all sorts of Italian meats and cheeses baked inside.  You can see a picture on the left of my first slice for 2008 - yummy!  My parents prefer it warmed, but I like it at room temperature where it is nice and cakey solid.  I really love it, but it is SO rich that it works out perfectly as a once a year treat!

it's beginning to look a lot like christmas

Well, the tree is up and the house pretty much has as many decorations as it is going to get.  This is my first Christmas in the new home and I am pleased to report that the house has a good Christmas feel.  The fireplace helps and so does the snow (that just won't seem to melt), but most of all, the place just feels like home - the dogs are happy and I'm happy.

My tree is a fake, but it's  a good fake.  I just can't see cutting down a tree for a couple of days - though that fresh pine smell would be super sweet!  The picture I am posting is of my tree without the skirt on (scandalous), but your not missing out on much since it is just a white sheet wrapped around the base.  My last house was a little taller in the ceiling department, so there will be no tree topper to speak of this year.

When it comes to decorating the tree, I love vintage ornaments from the 50's through 70's.  I especially love this box of Santa Land ornaments that I found at a flea market a couple of years ago.  The ornaments are painted and flocked and the box is awesome!  I love the simple primary color tree design on the box - we had some of these boxes when I was a kid and the image just makes me instantly feel Christmas-ish. 

One of my favorite ornaments on my tree is this blue and green ornament that I made when I was about five.  My mom and I made a bunch of different designs out of garbage ties, Elmer's glue, and food coloring back in the seventies.  This is the only one that remains, but it brings back a lot of fond memories for me.

 

ElfYourself is back!

For those of us that are easily amused by the most stupid things, a joyous time of year has returned.  Yes, that's right, ElfYourself is back from Officemax.  How many people can you upload and create dancing elves with before you get bored?  The number is infinite for me!  Check out my dancing elf doggies.

birthday surprise!

A big thanks to my friend Amy for sending these "belated birthday goodies".  A belated gift is even better than a non-belated gift because it is like a little post birthday celebration that keeps the party going just when you thought it was all over!  I love the fabrics that she picked out and who can resist vintage Sears buttons!  I also love the cute postcard she sent which features some of Amy's tiny clay food (go check her stuff out at Amyville).

I was also thrilled to get the "Softies" book that I have been seeing appear on several different blogs lately.  It has some really cute projects and the photography in the book is amazing... you should go get your own now!

Thanks again Amy.  As usual, you rock!

lazy sunday

Do you ever wonder what deer are doing when they aren't walking around eating your plants or almost being hit by your car?  Well, I do.  I always wondered where they sleep... do they have a nest... do they just lay down??? Enquiring minds want to know!  Well, I woke up this morning to find two deer sleeping in my back yard.  They were just curled up in a ball (like my dogs would be) and it was very cute.  I tried to get a good picture, but was only able to nab the pic above of one deer just kind of hanging out.  They actually hung around on the ground for a couple hours before getting up and leaving.

The dogs and I were equally ambitious today.  I've had a very busy week (62 hours worth of work over five days) and I am trying to enjoy every minute of this one day off.  After coming to terms with the fact that I didn't gain an hour this morning (I thought last night was the end of Daylight Savings Time), I spent some quality time with my Tivo and caught up on some of the highlights from the week... namely the season finale of Damages with Glenn Close.  If you haven't seen it, it is really a great show that not only raises a lot of questions about the plot, but also gives you some answers and makes the viewer feel like they have closure while still wanting more... attention LOST producers & writers: please take note - it can be done!

Since it is three days away, I also decided to decorate for Halloween this morning.  This took approximately 3 mintues since I own a whopping three Halloween decorations.   I purchased the candy corn fella from my friend Laura and the other two decorations are gifts from my mom.  Though not authentic, the cat decoration on the right has that vintage feel that I do SO love.  I have them all displayed in this odd wood and copper pipe partition that is in between the front hallway and the dining room.  It is super-funky 60's, but the jury is out as to whether it is cool or hideous... I change my mind daily.   

pet trauma 8-24

Poppy and Ginger were due for their vaccinations, so we headed up to the veterinarian's office yesterday.  I haven't found a new vet since moving, so it is about a 25 minute drive to our old vet... I don't mind the longer drive, but it isn't great for emergencies.

Now, for those of you that may not know... dogs can develop allergies to their vaccinations after years of getting them successfully.  So, at the ripe age of six, Ginger has joined the allergic reaction club.  After geting home (about an hour after our appointment), I went to go find Ginger (who likes to hide in her crate) and noticed that her head was swollen close to two times its normal size!  It was terrible... her eyes were almost swollen shut and her lips were red and enormous - she was barely recognizable as my own dog!  I scrambled to find a phone number for a local vet (too afraid to risk a long drive) and was able to rush out and get her some anti-inflamatory shots to counteract the swelling (you have to be careful that there is no swelling in their throat which could affect their breathing).  The vet informed me that the shots could make her a bit loopy, so I wrapped up my drunken little girl in a towel and took her home.  I took the photo above about three hours after the ordeal and the swelling had gone down quite a bit.  I was too panicked earlier in the day to even think about getting a picture.  She remained in the towel for about three hours because every time I took her out and put her on the ground, she was shaky, frightened, and disoriented... look at those crazy drunken eyes in the picture!

Strangely enough, a similar thing happened to Poppy three years ago when she was six.  The photo on the left is of Poppy after we returned from getting a shot of Benadryl after her reaction to a vaccination.  Poppy had hives all over her little chihuahua body and her face was puffy and swollen.  Ginger didn't get the hives, but her head was ridiculously more swollen.  Since that incident, Poppy gets an anti-inflamatory shot before she gets her vaccinations and it seems to do the trick... I guess Ginger will be joining her from now on.   

I'm feeling so mixed about these vaccinations...  I don't want them to ever get a fatal disease, but I also feel terrible putting them through this.  Rabies, Parvo, and all those other doggy diseases are much worse though!  Just a warning to dog owners - I would always make sure you are able to be home with your pets after their vaccinations - don't do it on the way to work or something.  I'm so afraid to even think what would have happened if I wasn't home! 

   

new house tour starts here...

This post is for you overseas friends and internet pals that are curious, but will probably not see my home while it can still be referred to as a "new" house... or ever for that matter. 

Of course, since it was built in 1963, it's not exactly new, but it is new to me.  And since my last home was built somewhere between 1910 and 1920, this house feels like I am living in a space-age modern marvel home!   Straight, flat, smooth walls... who knew! 

The main selling point on this home (besides its sixties-osity) is the living room which has this large bank of windows that look out onto the deck and the backyard.  The living room gets great light and is perfect for taking pictures of Etsy items, though also making it difficult to take a picture of the room itself.

The room is still in dire need of some artwork for the walls.  The only thing up right now is a giant square molded wood piece from PIER 1 and a tacky fifties printed painting up over the fireplace.  Suggestions?  My friend Amy recently reminded me about SHAG prints with this post in her blog... hmmm....

Anyway, what the room has going for it in windows and length, it lacks in its twelve foot width... notice the crammed in picture of the fireplace - I would have had to go outside to get any farther back.  While speaking of the fireplace, does anyone know how one goes about replacing that brass monstrosity on the front?

The sofa and funky floor light are from IKEA, the clear base lamps from TARGET, and the wood/chrome lamp and green ottoman are from CODA.  The vintage buffet, nesting end tables, and small wooden cabinet with sliding door are all courtesy of the neighboorhood Salvation Army over the last 10 years.

So kids, that's my half decorated living room.  Wasn't that exciting?

beautiful day

Well, after a week of a lot of rain and a whole lot of humitidy, it finally seems like there is going to be a beautiful day.  There's a gentle breeze, the sun seems just perfectly warm, and it is insanely comfortable both in and outside.  It's still morning, so it may change, but I have my fingers crossed!   

The dogs are already loving the day and have wanted to be outside all morning.  They've each found a nice patch of sun to take a nap in and if I go inside, I don't hear any scratching at the screen door... like right now.

I took dozens of pictures of the dogs this morning - because they didn't run when they heard the "beep" of my camera starting.  My dogs are like celebrities and I'm like the paparazzi... I'm just waiting for one of them to learn how to put a paw up in the lens. 

Please forgive the sepia tone madness... I forgot that it wasn't the late nineties anymore :)