Yay!

Our harddrive took a dump a couple months ago and we lost everything on it...including my resume. I was online last night looking at jobs and remembered I had one loaded on one of the job search websites. I was able to copy/paste it back into Word. I'll need to do some reformatting and add my current job...but it's better than starting from scratch! I have to get the resume done and my rebuttal letter (which will go in my personnel file along with the poor review) written this weekend. Sounds like lots of fun, eh?



On to something that IS fun...a new card! This is the first card I've made with this stamp. It's a Hero Arts flower. I colored it with markers and then spritzed it with water and stamped it. I was going for a watercolor look but not sure I got it. I then used a shadow stamp from CTMH and inked it up in a light color and then rolled the edges in a darker color and stamped it over the flower. Tore out that piece. Distressed all the edges of paper and then layered it(all paper from CTMH). Stamped the greeting (SU) and then added the paper piercing and brads.



Hope you enjoy it. I'm not usally a floral type of person (if you hadn't noticed! ha!) So this is a little out of my "comfort zone". And I'm not sure I'm in love with it. But I think it is worthy of being sent out to someone...not so hideous that it needs to go in the round circular file! :-)

I'm so sad these days (between the job stress and this being the time of years that my two daughters passed away) and stamping helps me to relax and forget for awhile and hopefully (assuming I ever MAIL them) they make the receiver feel happier too.

Have a great day all.

The incredible exploding woman!

I don't know WHAT is going on with my body (other than it's 109 degrees out) but my legs are so swollen they hurt! Worse than when I was pregnant. I have sausage legs from the knee down. Ugh.

Anyways, on to more fun and exciting things...a new card! This is the card I promised yesterday. The dog stamp is from Penny Black, the background is from SU, and the saying is from CTMH. A little bit of everyone...LOL! That's why I like being an equal opportunity customer instead of a consultant for a single company. I can buy and use what I like without any restrictions!

I got the new SU catalog last night. Not many "gotta have" sets...but I really like a lot of the jumbo wheels! And there are a few sets. More than likely I'll start seeing artwork done on SCS and decide I HAVE to have a set because of what some of the ladies there have done with it.

Other than that...not much new is going on. Enjoy the card and the "holiday weekend". Weird to have the 4th fall on a Wednesday. I actually do get it as a holiday. An extra day off to work on getting resumes sent out. :-)

Rambling

Just wanted to check in...I woke up too late this morning to post. And now, here it is 10:00p.m. already! Where does the time go?

The local stamp store is going out of business so I decided to stop by there after work. I only bought one stamp, and then some glossy cardstock and some transparencies. I also bought what I thought was a black Marvy ink pad...turns out to be dark green. Sigh. Apparently my eyes aren't what they used to be! LOL!

Then I stopped by a friend's house and we stamped together. I used my new stamp and will post the card tomorrow. Stamping with a friend was just the therapy I needed this week!

Anyways, off to bed with me. Just didn't want you to think I forgot about you! LOL.

Jane

It's HOT, HOT, HOT!

Haven't stamped in the last couple days. Still trying to work out a "battle plan" for the job. So that's been taking up my time.

So...instead I would dig into my creative "files" and find you an "oldie but a goodie". It's a 109 degrees here today so I thought I'd pull out an appropriate card because it's Hot, Hot, HOT outside! This is a card I made for my hubby. The "U" and "R" and "HOT" are from CTMH. The chili pepper is from an unmounted border strip I bought (I just cut one off to use by itself) It's a solid stamp so required coloring the pepper each time with markers so it was a bit of a pain. But I like h0w it turned out. I used SU's background stamp and sponged the edges and then did direct to paper with the brown and also the red ink pads.

Enjoy.

Going to hell in a hand basket.

Hmm... maybe I'll figure out a card to go with my emotions later. I do have a basket stamp...

Work has gone from bad to worse than bad. I have 3 weeks left of probation and I was told yesterday that he's not expecting me to pass. I won't go into the details here - but I'm beyond PO'ed. I totally disagree with him. I don't understand how it can go from one extreme to the other. I've already started looking elsewhere and when I leave I will be honest about why I'm leaving. I think I would have liked it there had it not been for the boss. I'll behave and show up to work till I find something else. I will even put in the overtime that he seems to think I'm not doing enough of. And even if I pass probation, unless things drastically change I'll still be leavng ASAP. Which is a shame. Like I said, I liked the people and after 6 months I feel vested there. I hate new beginnings.

If anyone feels like sending me a card to cheer me up I could use one...and I'll be happy to post it here on my blog if you'd like. In the meantime, I'll try and come up with a "going to hell in a hand basket" or something else appropriate later on tonight. (Hmm...maybe a voodoo doll with pins?) ;-)

Jane

My First Slider Card

Last night I decided to try something totally new...my first ever slider card!

Here is the card closed...

I kept the outside really simple...especially since this was my first. Mainly I was just worried about the logistics of the folds and such. This is a background stamp from SU as well as the Unfrogettable Set. You can't tell it (maybe you can if you click and view it larger?) but the center of each flower is white.

And here is the card with the slider portion opened...

Well, I guess I should go get ready for work. Today is my husband's last day of work. After today (at least for the summer) I'm the earner for the family. That makes me just a wee bit nervous!

Sketch Challenge

SplitCoastStampers has different challenges to inspire people. Each day of the week there is a different challenge (for example there are sketch challenges, ways to use it challenges, color challenges, limited supply challenges, etc). My favorites to do are the sketch challenges and the limited supply challenges.

Yesterday I was feeling uninspired so I went and checked out the latest sketch challenge. You can find it here.

And here is the card I made for the challenge.

I'm SOOOOO bad.

I'm as bad as a kid at Christmas! I made two new cards tonight with my new stamps and I HAVE to share BOTH of them RIGHT NOW because I am SO excited about them! LOL!

The first one is another humourous one. I'm enjoying these!

Outside:

This layout is called a "tent card" (since the top of the card is kind of sitting on a tent base I guess). The lady is by Inky Antics. The background is embossed with a cuttlebug plate. The saying is from Viva Las Vegas. You can't really tell it very much, but I put stickles on the ball so it sparkles. The outside quote says "Skinny people irritate me! Especially when they say things like "You know, sometimes I just forget to eat."

Inside: The rest of the saying says, " Now I've forgotten my address, my mother's maiden name and my keys. But I've never forgotten to eat. You have to be a special kind of stupid to forget to eat!"

Ok...have you finished rolling on the floor laughing out loud yet? Not yet? Ok...I'll wait...Now? No? Now? Good...now I can show you something sweet instead. Talk about two totally different cards and styles of cards! But, as I say, I've never met a rubber stamp I DIDN'T like yet! I'm an "equal opportunity stamper". :-)

This next card uses a House Mouse design. I stamped them and colored in with chalks. Cut it out in an oval shape with the coluzzle. And then the rest kind of fell into place. To make the perfect oval piercing I just used the coluzzle template and my paper piercer and poked where you would normally put the blade to cut. In the inner corners you couldn't do it...but most of it was "loose enough" that you could. Then I just went back and connected the dots in the places where I couldn't do it.

Helllooooo (do I hear an echo???)

Boy, it's been quiet. No comments lately. I'm glad I added the counter...at least I know SOMEONE besides me is visiting! LOL!

I promised artwork this morning - so I dug out a couple of things I'd previously created and will post those for your viewing pleasure. For some people, you may have seen them before. I will play with my new stamps this weekend hopefully and get some new artwork ready for next week.

This first picture is a trio of items I made as gifts for the kids' teacher's aides. It included a covered notepad with a stamped matching pen, a set of cards in a holder, and a "fruit can" filled with chocolates. The bear stamp is from TAC. These tablets are easy and inexpensive to make. You can buy the tablets at the $1 store or Big Lots (they are about 5 x 7 in size) and then you take them to an office supply place (I use kinkos) and they'll cut them in half for you. I helped a PTO make these for all their teachers one year. Another tip if you make a lot of white based cards is to buy your ream of cardstock and then take it and have it cut in half for you at Kinkos. Saves a lot of cutting with your blade!

The other item is a card I made with a "Happy Hopper" stamp. These little bunny stamps are made by the same designers as the House Mouse stamps. I added stickles and to the bubbles in the tub to make it shine. The bubble background is a cuttlebug embossing folder. I used the stampin up corner ticket punch on the white and green and then pierced the green. The bath "rug" is actually a solid oval stamp from Amuse. So I had to mask the tub and then stamp the oval. Then I colored in the image with chalks and finished with the stickles. The "relax" is created using Karen Foster Snap Stamps and the ribbon is from the $1 store.

Grrrr....

I'm really irritated at SplitCoastStampers right now. Remember the two pictures I posted yesterday? (Hippo and Crab hat)? Well, I also posted those pics to my gallery on SCS. They DELETED the picture of my son wearing the crab hat. They sent me an email and said that they only allowed stamped items to be posted. So I contacted them again and told them that the hat WAS stamped. They wrote back this morning and said that the focus had to be on the hat...so if I wanted to post it I had to just take a close up picture of the hat and that I should find another place for my "personal photos".

I've seen pictures in the gallery of peoples' kids stamping, I've seen pics of peoples' kids holding cards they created. Also, I see pics of cards by themself that are "staged" so they look better (for example a card with grapes on it might have a picture taken with a wine bottle). So, how is what I did any different? Without the head to put it on...the hat will look like a white blob.

I guess I better get going and head to work. TGIF! I'll post some new artwork later tonight when I get home.

Jane

Hippo Hurray!

This is the card I made for my son, Mario, who turned 10 years old today. He LOVES hippos. I still can't believe it's been 10 years! The stamp is by Art Gone Wild. Ordinarily, I wouldn't put the hippo brads on there...but it's for a 10 year old who loves hippos and doesn't care about fashion. ;-)

And, on another front, I'm working on stuff for my secret pal. The theme for scrap camp is "Cruising" (because it's the 10th year). So in the theme of the sea...I made my pal this hat. The crab stamp should look familiar by now (from SU...former posts). And the little boy is from me! ;-)

I'm SO scatterbrained!

Ever have one of THOSE days? Today I was coming home from work. I needed to stop and pick up some cupcakes for my DS to take to daycare tomorrow for his birthday. I stopped at Albertsons and just decided they were too expensive. So back into the car and stopped at Fry's. Went inside and got the cupcakes and a few other things and went up to pay. Swiped my debit card and then went out and unloaded the groceries in the car. When I got to the daycare I decided to go ahead and take the cupcakes in tonight so we didn't have to unload and reload them tomorrow. It was then that I thought "I better make sure I got my debit card back." Well, it wasn't in the place in my purse where I always put it. I carried the cupcakes inside and then unloaded the bags to check in there. Then I looked through the rest of my purse. I sat the checkbook out so I could pay (it accrues a late fee if not paid today). I didn't find the card. Packed my purse back up and left with the boys. Got half way home before I realized I hadn't clocked the boys out...NOR had I paid. Grrrr. Came home and did one last search and called the grocery store. Then had to call and cancel the card. Ugh. In 37 years it's the first time I've lost a credit/debit type card...so I guess it isn't so bad. But I just feel so out of it these days. Still trying to get used to the whole 40 hour work week plus being a mom.

I do remember one other time I felt this scatterbrained but it was due to lack of sleep. (I rediapered my son in his wet diaper and still had the dry one in my hand when I "finished" changing him!) But being a light weight (less than 4 pounds) he was up every 2 hours around the clock and I was exhausted. So at least then I had an excuse.

So...share with me your worst scatterbrained day so I don't feel so bad. :-)

And on that note...here is a very appropriate card to share! Stamps are from Sparkle & Sprinkle. Inside the sentiment says "I hate it when that happens". I used some of the same patterned paper to line the inside of the envelope to match and also used a strip of it on the outside front of the card.

I got some new stamps today (from a 20% off sale and free shipping). I need to make a birthday card for my son (who loves Hippos...and luckily my hippo stamp came in today). So keep your eyes out for more cards. And don't forget about the Ronald McDonald House! (See below for more details.)

Jane

Ronald McDonald House Party!

Ten years ago (June 21st) I gave birth prematurely to triplets. My daughters died at 2 days and 15 days of age. Our son survived and is doing well. Each year around this time of year I try to do something in their memory.

This year I've decided to put together some things off the Ronald McDonald wish list so they can give parties for sick children. Some of the items on their list are toys/board games, arts & crafts, cake mixes, frosting, candles, balloons, and party decoration. If you'd like to join me in this project, just shoot me an email (janeenaj72312836@aol.com) and I can give you my mailing address. You are welcome to send actual items or if shipping would eat up the cost then you can also send money and I'll shop for items off their list.

To encourage participation, I've decided to add an incentive...each person who sends something will be entered into a drawing.

First place will be a boxed set of 5 cards of your choice. (You can view my gallery on SCS here to see some samples.)

Second place is your choice of either a small grab bag of unmounted stamps or a stamped post-it cover.

Third place is your choice of a decorated can (like THIS) or a set of watercolor paints for cardmaking.

Fourth place is a card of your choice or a SU wheel handle.

Good luck!

I Like You Buggy Card

Just a little something to share today. This is another image from Viva Las Vegas Stamps. The saying is from TAC and has dimensional adhesive behind it so it pops up. I was trying to imitate the spots on the bugs...I think it needs more circles (maybe some smaller ones) but by the time I adhered it...it was too late to change.

I've got the Monday blues.

Before you read any further, I just want to say blogger (the site I use to create my blog) is acting up and not allowing me to place any hard returns (blank spaces between paragraphs). So I apologize for that. I went to bed at a reasonable time last night, I swear I did. But I couldn't fall asleep. I read till midnight. Turned off the light...and the last time I looked at the clock it was 2:00a.m. and then I woke up on my own before 6:00a.m. What's up with that? Guess I was just SO excited to share something new on my blog that I couldn't sleep (ha!). Let's see what I can find to share from this weekend. This was actually a pretty simple card and came out just as I imagined. I used glossy cardstock. Then I inked up my brayer with brown and blue inks and ran it across the cardstock multiple times till it was the darkness I wanted. Then I stamped the ants (After Midnight Rubber Stamps). Then I thought the blue looked blah and needed clouds. I'd never made clouds before but I had an idea. I used my scalloped oval punch and punched an oval. Then I used that and a darker blue ink and sponged around the edge to get clouds. I think it turned out well! Then I add the hamburger brad. And to give the ground more texture I used a speckled texture stamp and a darker brown ink and stamped on some texture. Then I stamped the greeting (from TAC). Attached it to a white card base and drug the edges of the card in brown. And wha-la....an adorable ant card!

Off Color Cat Card

Last night I broke out the stamps that I'd gotten from Viva Las Vegas Stamps. They had run a special on their "pound o rubber" so I'd bought 2 pounds. There were a LOT of duplicates so I'm hosting a Round Robin Swap on SCS to try and get rid of some of the stamps that I didn't like or that were duplicates. They definately have some unusual stuff! I'll be posting some of the cards this week. But this card was my favorite...so it gets posted first! LOL!



DISCLAIMER:



This card is created in memory of my Mom who HATED cats (because her sister's cat killed her beloved parakeet). So, if you're a cat lover...you may not want to view the card. I'm really much more of a dog person than a cat person...but I don't hate them. And I still found the card humourous. So, I guess I'm saying, view it with caution, an open mind, and a sense of humor.





There were a few cat stamps (and a few dog stamps) in my pounds o' rubber...but this one seemed perfect for the sentiment which reads "So many cats...so few recipes!" Doesn't he look just a tad bit paranoid? This was SUCH an easy card to make...now I wish I'd chosen it as my swap card. I'm still working on the "Roses are Like Men" cards because they are so detailed.

Have a great Father's Day all.

My Wish List

Last night I worked on my swap cards. I'm about 3/4's of the way done but need to borrow some cardstock to finish them.

Today I need to work on a Father's Day card for my dh. Don't even know what I'm going to do. In the past I've made him a mini scrapbook, cards with the kids handprints, I've made him t-shirts with "we walk all over our dad" on it with their footprints on it. And another that says "we can't keep our hands off our dad" with their handprints on it. I know he plans on buying something that he wants for himself. So today it's just a card in the plans...maybe something with monkeys or computers?

As I said in a former post, I've been shopping for my secret pal on-line. I've found a lot of cute things that I would love to have (LOL!) So today I'm going to attempt a new feature on my blog...I'm going to attempt to do hyperlinks. So...hopefully if I do it right you'll be able to click on items and it'll take you to their website to view each item. Maybe I'll enable someone else!

Before I start...let me just say that if you want to save money and NOT find new stamps to lust over...then you need to STAY AWAY from the SplitCoastStampers gallery! With so many stampers from all over the world...you get a lot of exposure to wonderful artwork that makes you want to buy all the stamps! LOL!

I fell in love with these Changito Monkey stamps. They are so adorable! Here are some cards made with the stamps from the SCS gallery And then there are the Crabs from Gina K Designs. There is one shown at the top of the page and then another in a bucket at the bottom of the page. (Gina is from SCS and has started up her own company...very cute stamps all the way around but I love the crabs the best.) Here is one card sample made by the designer herself. And here is another created by a different person (Ericka). Then there is the Amuse stamp line...I don't have any particular favorites...but it seems like I love every card I see made with them. Here and here are a couple sample cards made with their stamps. And lastly, I love the Penguins by Memory Box. Oops...those were just the new release penguins for summer. Here is the full line. And here and here are a couple card samples from the gallery.If you haven't guessed by now, I'm not much of a floral type of gal. Give me critters any day! LOL!

I'm CRABby!

I'm SOOOO glad it's Friday! But then the weekend flys by too fast and it's Monday again. Oh well, guess you take what you get.

Realized I hadn't posted in a couple days and decided I probably should do that. I meant to do it last night but got distracted trying to find some stuff online for my secret pal (for scrap camp next month). Sometimes it's a bad thing to carry a variety of items...I was looking at Addicted to Rubber Stamps last night and searched for "chipboard" and I think it was around 14 pages (of 100 items per page). It was insane! Unfortunately, they didn't have the one line of stamps I've been looking for myself...the Stampendous Changito Monkeys. I'll have to figure out how to do a link over the weekend so I can post the monkeys. They are so cute!

My family is all having a family reunion this weekend. I wasn't able to go since I can't get time off work yet. I wanted to go because they will be doing a memorial service at it and my Dad will be remembered. And since I'm feeling a little CRABBY about the whole thing...I decided to share these particular cards!




Stamps are from Stampin Up. I love this crab...he's just so darn cute. I've also been eyeing some crab stamps on another site Gina K Designs. What is it about crabs that are so adorable? You'd think a hard shelled creature from under the sea wouldn't be nearly as adorable as a fluffy critter...but I guess crabs are cute in their own special way.

This one I colored with H2O's that my secret pal sent me. They are kind of like hard water colors except when wet they are creamier and they shimmer. Very pretty in real life. The background is done with a Fiskars plate.



Have a great Friday!

Office B-Day Cards

One of the ladies in our department always buys and circulates birthday cards for everyone. After she'd seen some of my cards she asked me if I'd like to make the cards and she'd pay me. So these are my first two cards.

This first card is for a male co-worker. He is a technical writer for our department. I saw a tutorial on this technique over the weekend and knew I had to try it out for Jim's card. Basically you stamp the image(s) with versamark ink and emboss with white embossing powder on glossy cardstock. Then you choose 3 colors of ink that coordinate. You ink up your brayer in the lightest color and cover the whole piece of cardstock in that color. Wait for it to dry (hardest part for me!) and then place a few post-it notes down. Now add the next lightest color ink and let dry. Add a few more post-it notes (leaving the others in place and overlapping some if you'd like). And then brayer over with your darkest color. Let dry. Remove all post-its and buff off any ink that is left on the embossed images. And you're done!

The stamps are from CTMH. I love my leaves! Probably my most used set.



The next card is for a female coworker. Actually our director. I've had this card around for awhile but hadn't done anything with it because it's larger than I normally mail. But I figured it'd be perfect for people to sign. I'm not sure if she wanted one for the director or not...if not it can be saved for later. This one uses the faux postage technique and also uses CTMH stamps/cardstock. I added some glitter to the wings but I doubt you can tell it from the scan.



Ok...two new cards...that counts for two days worth of postings right??? LOL. I'm sure I have plenty more I can share!

Have a great day!

Another Stamp Club Card

Already running late this morning, but wanted to leave a message for the day.

Here is another of the cards we made at Stamp Club on Friday.



All products are from CTMH. Inking the edges of everything was kind of a pain. But a cute card design overall. I can see using the design again with bright colors and no inking.

Jane

Post-it Note Holder

I received some 4x4 chipboard coasters in a package of "blog candy" that I won. I was looking for something to make with them and found a tutorial online about making a post-it note holder with them. I love the way it came out!

The cheetah stamp is from Prickley Pear Stamps (http://www.prickleypear.com/). The paper I bought at Joann's. I think it was from Hot Off the Press.

Enjoy!

I can't wait to share!

I was going to make you all wait for the items I finished...but I can't wait! LOL! I'm as bad as a kid at Christmas. When I have something new I want to show it off!

This is the card I made for the "quirky card swap" on SCS. I have to make 11 of them. This is more detailed than I usually make for swaps...but I'm happy with the outcome.

Here is the outside all nice and sweet. The little tag says "Men are like roses."



Then you pull out the insert:



In case you can't read it it says: "Men are like roses. Watch out for the pricks."

In case anyone is wondering about swaps...this is how they work. Generally you'll join a swap with some sort of theme and they'll post the number of cards you need to send in (in this case it's a 11/10 swap meaning I'll mail 11 in and get 10 cards back...the +1 is a bonus for the hostess or she can choose to do whatever she wants with them). I'll send 11 of this same card in and 10 other people will be sending in 10 of their design. The hostess then swaps them out so you get one of every person's designs and mails them back to you.

The easiest way to do swaps (or any large number of the same card) is to do it "assembly line" fashion. Once I've got my first card designed, I then cut all the papers like you see here...



If I don't have enough time to set and finish all the cards right then, then the next thing I do is place each pile into small ziplock bags and then place all the smaller ziplocks into a larger one. Now it is portable and contained at the same time. So I can grab my bag, add in the paper piercer and the mat and take it with me to do that step. I do this now that I'm working full-time. I take my bag and a couple items (maybe ink pads and the stamps) and work on them during my lunch break.

Anyways, that's how I do my swaps (or any large number of the same item). I will save the post it holder for tomorrow.

For now, I guess I better go to sleep.

FUN MAIL!

Did you know you can send LOTS of things through the mail? Things that are NOT in a box or envelope? Pretty muchly, as long as it's safe to send (not breakable, flammable, etc) it can be sent. I belong to a group of stampers called Arizona Stampers and they enjoy sending out fun things. One day I got a pen that was in a package (like the store packaging) and they'd just put my address on the back and put stamps on it and put it in the mail! Then today I got a PLATE...yep, a plate. A pretty paper plate. I decided it needed to be shared here where everyone could enjoy it. So, without further ado...here it is!



I don't know if you can read it...but handwritten around the edge of the plate it says "Little by little, day by day, friends and flowers grow that way."



And here is the back so you can see they just put on postage and addressed it. Hmm...if you were going to do a themed party...how cute would this be for the invites? (Just need to buy an extra package of plates.)

In the continued spirit of sharing - here is one of the cards we made last night at the stamp club. It was all designed out for us so we mainly just had to copy it. Even there I screwed up. But the good thing about stamping is that you can use your screw ups and just modify your plan.

The striped paper on this card was supposed to be cut across and then taped down so there was a gap of the yellow showing through. I didn't realize that and had already stuck my paper down before I did realize it. So I just went ahead with the rest the plan. Noone else would know except for me (and now all of you!) that I made a boo-boo.



Today I've been working on a couple things that I'll share later in the week. One is a post-it note holder made with 4x4 cardboard coasters and the other is my "quirky cards" swap card. I've got them mostly finished but both need a few finishing touches. So you'll have to wait...but I promise they are WORTH waiting for! One has new stamps...and the other will make you laugh.

Have a great rest of the day.

Jane

Saturday is GOOD!

LOL. I'm so happy it's the weekend. Last night's stamp club was the last one for the year. It's a year committment and then you can decide to rejoin (or not). As part of the commitment you agree to purchase at least $15 a month and then you are the "hostess" one month out of the year. Overall, it's been a good experience.

But I decided not to rejoin for a couple reasons. First is because I really don't NEED to spend any more money! And second is because I joined hoping I'd find more stamping friends. Unfortunately this club has been in existence for awhile so they all have their own friends within the group. They are friendly enough to everyone but seemed like they were pretty set. Instead I've decided my friend (Concetta) and I will just have to set a day every month to stamp together. We can use stuff we already have and we're already friends!

Last night we made four cards. I think I was so frazzled that I messed up just about every card. But I will still post them. Just to show that we're not all perfect...and that even experienced people make mistakes. And they are cute designs...so maybe you'll get some inspiration from them to make your own. I will scan them and post later today.

Jane

Venting...and more cards promised tomorrow!

First off...I promise to post more cards tomorrow. Tonight I go to a stamp club - so I KNOW I'll have some cards to share tomorrow!

On to the vent. I'm so frustrated with my work situation. I sat at my desk today for an hour and cried and then cried all the way home. I haven't programmed in 10 years (so I have a huge learning curve to begin with) and add to that new languages, etc. They offer no formal training (most places I've worked will send you for a 1 or 2 day crash course in the language at least to get you started). My boss wants me to work ONLY for him and to ONLY ask HIM questions. Which would be ok if he was available. But about 75% of the time he's physically not there or so busy with everyone else and his own work that he can't help. Usually I'll email him my questions...and it can take up to 3 weeks to get a response! So yesterday I tried ASKING him a question and he told me that he didn't have time, that the other new guy had 4 emails and that he needed to respond to them. (He did eventually come over and help me though). Today I finished getting the program running from yesterday and then spent all day working on "assignments" that he's given me in the past on things he doesn't think I know well enough. One of them was to build a scroll bar into one of my pages/programs (which allows users to ask for multiple employee ID's for example instead of just one). I'd done one before on the finance system but it had been deleted because of a boo-boo (of my bosses, not mine). So I didn't have a sample to follow. I tried finding one on the HR system (where the program resides) and wasn't having any luck finding a scroll bar. So I asked another programmer if she knew of any pages I could use as samples. She showed me one and told me that she wasn't supposed to be helping me. And that was my breaking point. I understand she's under pressure and will be working all weekend on a project...and she still helped me...so it's not her at all. It's the fact that everyone has been told not to help me - and he's never available. So how in the heck am I supposed to learn? It's like taking a 1st grader and putting them into a 4th grade class and expecting them to figure it out and the teacher is too busy to help. I am learning - but could learn faster with more direction. I feel like I'm being punished (by not passing "probation" yet because I'm not programming at the level he expects) for something that isn't my fault.

Ugh. I'm off to my stamping club so I can try and forget work for a couple days.

Jane

Just some ramblings...

No card today. But I did start getting emails for the design team! Apparently she sends out sketches of the upcoming sets and asks for input from the design team. So we get to help design the sets themselves and then make things with them afterwards. That's pretty cool.

Today I worked literally ALL day (8 full hours) trying to get my SQR program to work. It wouldn't even compile and had to be something weird because the logic is sound. I asked my boss to come over and look at it and he got it to compile (by something as simple as adding []'s around the table name)...but it still only produces a blank report. And, after looking at it, my boss determined that he doesn't want it done in an SQR. So tomorrow I go back to the drawing board I guess. Can someone tell me why I became a computer programmer again? Oh yeah, because my BROTHER told me to (and he is now out of the field and says he'll never go back into it!) I love the feeling of accomplishment when something finally works right...but it's a heck of a lot of frustration to get to that point. Some days I wish I had a job where you felt like you completed multiple tasks each day. Oh well, tomorrow is another day...and it's a FRIDAY! Yay!

I joined a card swap on SCS (http://www.splitcoaststampers.com) for "quirky sayings". Basically anything goes...but none of the standard sayings. Humor and sarcasm is encouraged. So I'll probably work on a couple designs for those this weekend. Got a stamp from Viva Las Vegas Stamps (http://www.stampo.com) that I'll have to use.

Have a great evening everybody!

Jane

EXCITING NEWS! (Yes, I'm shouting!)

I've been invited to be part of a Design Team! I'm still waiting to find out the details (how many samples I'll be expected to create and if I'll get "paid" in rubber stamps and/or cash). But I'm psyched either way! The company is called Clear Dollar Stamps and their website is http://www.cdstamps.com. So check them out!

Here is another one of the cards I made this weekend. It has a unique triangle fold (the main image is only attached to one half of the triangles below it. It stays closed by the ribbon (and I added a photo turn mount just for good measure).

Is it ONLY Tuesday?

I woke up this morning feeling like I got hit by a truck. I went to bed last night by 10 which is really early for me but I was exhausted. At 3:00a.m. my oldest son woke me up because he was having trouble breathing (asthma from being a preemie). So by the time I got up and got all the stuff ready for a nebulizer treatment I was pretty well awake and it took me a while to fall back asleep. About the time I fell into a nice deep sleep again...then the alarm started going off. Ugh! Now I'm hoping he makes it through the day without me getting a call that he's sick. Today they have a field trip to go bowling.

Anyways, if you're still with me after that very poorly written paragraph...then I guess you're here for the artwork and not my ramblings. ;-)

I printed off a tutorial for this card and tried to follow it...but something was wrong. So I ended up doing what I needed to do to make it work! Somehow the edge of the cardfront is supposed to come over far enough that you can use a slit punch that keeps the front closed. Well...mine obviously didn't...so I improvised and made my own "slit" with the coluzzle. The popscicle stamp is from Clear Dollar Stamps and the "Girlfriends" stamp is a $1 stamp from Michael's. The scalloped square opening is made from punches. And the popscicle itself has stickles on it so it shimmers.

My "Guest" Artist

While I was making the lego card, my six year old, Dakota wanted to come and stamp with me. I was only allowed to give limited help (he had problems with the tape dispenser) but for the most part this is entirely his creation. I love that he "layered" the cardstock on the outside.

The frog set is from CTMH. It was one I earned as a hostess, but I haven't had a chance to play with it yet.

I also did some stamping this weekend. The two cards I made are different folds...so watch for those later this week. For now...without further ado...my guest artist's work.

A First for Me

Today...I made a card....with absolutely NO stamping involved! My nephew LOVES legos. I'd bought him a gift card (because I had no idea what legos he did or did not have) and I wanted a unique way to package the gift card. This is what I came up with.

Here it is closed:



Here it is "open" (the card itself also opens but this is the part where the gift card is stored).

Meanie Card

Well, after bouncing some ideas around this is the card I came up with. The "U" is printed off the computer. The skunk is from Victorine Original's (as is the word "stink") and the word "Meanie" I made with my Karen Foster Snap Stamps. The rest is self explanatory...a pretty simple card but it's all my tired brain could come up with on short notice.

There are a couple people at the office giving me a hard time about not liking coffee. Yesterday while browsing the net I found an "office humor" site and it has pages of humor about coffee. I may have to use some of those in the near future.

I'm sooooo glad it's Friday! Although that means I have to get a birthday gift for my nephew today. Hmmm...need to find time to stop somewhere. Tomorrow we'll do his party and then Sunday my hubby is off and I'm sure we'll do something. The weekend will FLY by unfortunately.

Have a great Friday all!

Jane

Just wanted to drop back in and say my boss loved the card. As did everyone in the office. I posted the card over on SCS (a stamping site I visit) and so far I have 18 comments on it! That's a lot for me.