It's my birthday!
...and we're having a party!
The day has dawned clear and bright, and it looks to be a hot one. But the key is "rain-free". We have had some rather heavy storms in recent weeks, so that right there is perhaps the most important thing today.
The party is a Greek Gods themed BBQ - costume required. Many of my friends clearly enjoy costumery, but I haven't been to a themed costume party in as long as I can remember, so this is a new thing. Tia and I toyed with the idea of purchased costumes, but we kept putting it off. I am glad we did. In the end, we made our own. White muslin, a bit of stitches here and there, aluminum foil, some gold lamé, and a liberal application of construction paper and hot glue... who needs a $50 piece of acetate that almost certainly won't look as good as the picture? Tia is Athena, and I am going as Zeus (of course). Although I am depicting the young, beardless Zeus rather than the old fat one from the Las Vegas era.
I love the creative process of making things like this. It is a true pleasure to have the luxury of time to sit on the floor with my cutting board and ruler, looking at some components and thinking "what can I do with this?" Usually, if I can get started on one aspect of a project (in this case, some gold gauntlets) I get ideas about other things while I am working. I then need just one more trip for supplies (unless it is one of those truly fortunate days where I can find everything I need already lying around) and my vision takes form. And seriously, how did I do anything before we got a hot-glue gun? I am particularly proud of my thunderbolt made from shipping foam (that I refuse to discard in the trash-stream at work).
Yesterday I took the day off in the hopes of being well prepared and minimally frazzled when the party time actually rolled around, and this has been largely successful. The lawn is mowed, the yard is freshly mulched, the tables, chairs, and shade structures are in place. We have ingredients and a prototypical recipe for a yummy champagne punch "ambrosia" (just need to get the dry ice). We have a nearly full tank of propane for the grill. We have flags of lamé and glittery-lettered signs a la Tia. I have the "Greek Mythology Trivia" packets prepared. I believe we are ready. Oh noes, what if no ones comes?!
If only my sister and Jen could be here, it would be perfect. Sigh. When will we get that transporter technology worked out?
one more thing... a week or so ago we discovered a large carpet rolled up on the street in front of a neighbor's house. Boulder has a strong tradition of "put it on the curb and let someone else have it" for furniture and such, and it usually works well. We had been thinking how awesome it would be to have a bit rug for lounging upon so no one would have to sit on the grass, so this seemed perfect. It was obviously dirty, but not stained ... and heck, it was free! Once we got it home and unrolled it in the carport, it proved resistant to cleaning.We tried the vacuum, and it scoffed at us. We borrowed an upright steam cleaner from a friend, and it hardly noticed. Tia moved it to the side yard to attempt a hosing and scrubbing technique, and then a particular thing happened. Once the sun warmed it up a bit, the True Aroma of the rug began to waft. The aroma of "dog". Ugh. Needless to say we will not be deploying this rug during our party. Now I am saddled with a large, smelly rug. I wonder if I can just drop it off in front of the house where we picked it up? Are returns allowed in this kind of thing?
The day has dawned clear and bright, and it looks to be a hot one. But the key is "rain-free". We have had some rather heavy storms in recent weeks, so that right there is perhaps the most important thing today.
The party is a Greek Gods themed BBQ - costume required. Many of my friends clearly enjoy costumery, but I haven't been to a themed costume party in as long as I can remember, so this is a new thing. Tia and I toyed with the idea of purchased costumes, but we kept putting it off. I am glad we did. In the end, we made our own. White muslin, a bit of stitches here and there, aluminum foil, some gold lamé, and a liberal application of construction paper and hot glue... who needs a $50 piece of acetate that almost certainly won't look as good as the picture? Tia is Athena, and I am going as Zeus (of course). Although I am depicting the young, beardless Zeus rather than the old fat one from the Las Vegas era.
I love the creative process of making things like this. It is a true pleasure to have the luxury of time to sit on the floor with my cutting board and ruler, looking at some components and thinking "what can I do with this?" Usually, if I can get started on one aspect of a project (in this case, some gold gauntlets) I get ideas about other things while I am working. I then need just one more trip for supplies (unless it is one of those truly fortunate days where I can find everything I need already lying around) and my vision takes form. And seriously, how did I do anything before we got a hot-glue gun? I am particularly proud of my thunderbolt made from shipping foam (that I refuse to discard in the trash-stream at work).
Yesterday I took the day off in the hopes of being well prepared and minimally frazzled when the party time actually rolled around, and this has been largely successful. The lawn is mowed, the yard is freshly mulched, the tables, chairs, and shade structures are in place. We have ingredients and a prototypical recipe for a yummy champagne punch "ambrosia" (just need to get the dry ice). We have a nearly full tank of propane for the grill. We have flags of lamé and glittery-lettered signs a la Tia. I have the "Greek Mythology Trivia" packets prepared. I believe we are ready. Oh noes, what if no ones comes?!
If only my sister and Jen could be here, it would be perfect. Sigh. When will we get that transporter technology worked out?
one more thing... a week or so ago we discovered a large carpet rolled up on the street in front of a neighbor's house. Boulder has a strong tradition of "put it on the curb and let someone else have it" for furniture and such, and it usually works well. We had been thinking how awesome it would be to have a bit rug for lounging upon so no one would have to sit on the grass, so this seemed perfect. It was obviously dirty, but not stained ... and heck, it was free! Once we got it home and unrolled it in the carport, it proved resistant to cleaning.We tried the vacuum, and it scoffed at us. We borrowed an upright steam cleaner from a friend, and it hardly noticed. Tia moved it to the side yard to attempt a hosing and scrubbing technique, and then a particular thing happened. Once the sun warmed it up a bit, the True Aroma of the rug began to waft. The aroma of "dog". Ugh. Needless to say we will not be deploying this rug during our party. Now I am saddled with a large, smelly rug. I wonder if I can just drop it off in front of the house where we picked it up? Are returns allowed in this kind of thing?