Look Out, Howktown, I've got some plans...

Heya folks, I've got to warn you, it's the least I can do. See that 'look' in my eyes? That means I've devious plans coming up and I'm excited to execute them. Bwahh haha haha aha hahaha! However, I can't reveal what they are, exactly, I can maybe only allude. 

Guess what garage sale season is here.

In fact, I've already assisted by Jo Jo Potato in her first garage sale in her own personal garage this season. We took advantage of the warm spring weather (and its a good thing we did because this month has been annoyingly cold) and put out a few things.  Since that time I've been to several more sales around Howktown including the city wide sales.  Where I found such gems as this:

 I wonder what I could do with something like that.  If only I knew someone who liked fishing and camping a lot. I bet they would love something like this. They could put it on their kitchen table and then I could get them matching plates and dinnerware to match.  I think I know just the person. 

I plan to take full advantage of the sales this year, if not for tormenting someone with pictures of fish items, then perhaps for finding the weird things people try to sell. It should make for an interesting summer!

A Christmas to Remember

I'll have work on this entry way

There are a lot of things to make this year a pretty memorable Christmas.  The least of which is the 2 feet of snow that has showed up on my front door in the last couple days.  Luckily I didn't have too many places to go, so I'm not sweatin' it too bad.

Oh No! Ski hill too steep!

We donned the skis and snowshoes and made it as far as the front yard. We built a pretty sweet snowman complete with carrot nose, dug two snow forts at the end of the driveway, AND had a snow bank high enough in the yard to have a snowpant sliding hill. Even The Queen Mother of Howktown slid down on her butt.

Snowball fight with himself

Let's not forget the snow balls, either. The snow is so deep neither the kids nor the dog could walk in the yard unless the adults packed down a path for them.   Good times were had by all...

Of course I'm leaving out the highlight of my Christmas with my family. Yes it involves presents. It shouldn't be mistaken for material values over family togetherness. It was really the reaction to the greatest gift ever. The look on her face is one that I will never forget.

Walleye cribbage board with bobber pegs and antique fishing lure playing cards

It was worth all the torment. Because she just about threw up when she saw it, AND simultaneously her husband was giggling with glee at the awesomeness.  She did come around when it came out the package and she realized it wasn't as awful as I made it seem.

In return, my mom and she acquired a very cool and unexpected gift for me. They happened to run into Christopher Straub (of last season's Project Runway fame, who is from MN) at an art fair and picked out a very cool wallet that he signed!

Oh, and she cut up a children's sweater to make me matching wrist cozies and leg warmers. Tre` Chic!

Torment is Love, right?

Now that the craziness of Thanksgiving is over, I can take a little breath and tell you about something that I've been meaning to tell you about for a long time.

It has nothing to do with Thanksgiving, at least not directly. Are you disappointed that I'm not going to talk about the crazy dinner, surprise guests, full length table of food, and the Holiday Haikus that I suggested and my sisters pulled off while I was clucking around in the kitchen?  Ah, that's boring, lets talk about our family members. Namely my sister, The First Lady of Ingvaldia, Sara.

See, I've been tormenting her for YEARS. It's true. She made the mistake of telling the whole family when she got married that Under NO Circumstances, did she want "FISH" items.  "Just because we LOVE fishing, doesn't mean I want a SWEATSHIRT with a WALLEYE on it!" She declared.

As you can imagine, that hasn't stopped me from finding exceptional examples of fish related items, taking pictures of them and sending them to her on her phone with a not so veiled threat... That I'm at the store now buying this for you. HAHAHAHAHA.

It started out simple enough. One really ugly fish head photo holder just couldn't be passed up. I had to show it to her. Of course, it really was just a gateway. A gateway of torment, that was really just my way of showing love... Right?

Every store I walked into, every catalog I opened. Garage Sales, Craft Shows, Festivals... all full of glorious ways to taunt my fish loving sister.

There wasn't anything more to it... but the examples... they  just kept coming.

There were the lamps that were fashioned to look like a walleye jumping out of the water, the wire mesh chip basket with a dip bowl in the tail (and mini fish hanging off the side), the stained glass suncatchers, the pot racks that looked like a giant lure.

The best part of it, however, was Sara's reaction to everything I showed or sent to her. Sometimes she would walk away without acknowledging the awesomeness that I was showing her.  Other times she tried to play it cool, because she knew (or did she?) that I was just playin' her. When she started to act like it was no big deal, that I wouldn't really do it... I reminded her that it might be true that I wouldn't get something for her... but her husband was fair game.  He already had a "Rather be Fishing" bumper sticker.

That's when she would turn a shade lighter and try to change the subject.

All I have to say is... Christmas is a comin'! Will I?

heheheheh HAHAHAHAHA hheheheheh HAHAHAHA