The Reach Of Social Media

Look what the beautiful Jo from Love Stamp sent me! Just because. We have gotten to know each other through Twitter. I received it yesterday. These are the second set of photos I took. The first lot? I had to go back and dust my table. That iPhone is so powerful sometimes... it picks up amoebas in photos! 

"You hold the key to my heart". Gorgeous. Thank you Jo! It is so special. Look I can still see dust! How good is that iPhone camera! 

And in other breaking news.....thanks to my beautiful Twitter friends, and their retweeting of my tweeting of my blog post yesterday.....and their addition of the words 'Epic Fail' to their tweets!, Origin made contact with me through Twitter (saves sitting on a mobile phone for 3 hours.... I don't have a landline for portability... always moving!). I have a Case Manager now who arranged for some money to be transferred into my account, which will go towards replacing the contents of my fridge. The most heartbreaking part of cleaning out my festering fridge was tossing out all the beautiful meals my friends had lovingly cooked for me over the past few challenging weeks.

My power came back on yesterday afternoon. 'Mr Energex' arrived with beautifully coiffed hair. He confessed that he thought TV cameras were going to be here so he did his hair in the car. He was rather sheepish, as he was the one who removed all my fuses and locked up my meter yesterday. Just doing his job. Under directions from Origin. We chatted about the meaning of life until he got a phone call saying 'hurry up' from his boss. Yes, heaven forbid some customer service and my need for a chat.... even if it was with 'Mr Energex'. 

My boys had been happily playing their Nintendos in the apartment complex corridor all afternoon, plugged into the cleaner's powerpoints. Big one said to me, "just think Mum, Bill never has electricity, or a hot shower". We all had a gratitude moment back inside, listening to the hum of the fridge and the remote control blinds going ballistic, up and down, up and down, until they worked out that they had a constant source of power and calmed down!

Later on I had a visit from a public relations person from Origin, from here in Brisbane. She confirmed my grocery money and said she'll get back to me about my impending bill for the last 8 months I have been here. It will be interesting to see this bill..... as the meter I have been paying my bills for is at 36 which doesn't exist. But Origin say they have been visiting this address at number 45 to read the meter. But this meter was cut off as no account was attached to it. So my other fictitious account, where did they get the meter readings for that? I still can't get my head around it so it is going to be interesting hearing Origin's take on the whole thing.  I will be taking your advice my dear readers and progressing to the Ombudsman if need be. Definitely. 

And in sad news, it looks like we have lost the whole batch of lizard eggs that my boys were lovingly caring for. An outcome of this whole fiasco that can't be remunerated. There were 15 babies anticipated. 

Nigella is still sitting there protecting them, even though they are all shrivelled... and 'cactus' as my boys keep saying. There have been tears.

But all is good.... fridge full of food, love from our friends and family.

Life is good.

.....and breathe out!

Thank you! :)

PS If you want to chat to me via Twitter, I have a link on my bloggy side bar. I can be found at 'TheHouseOfAM'.... and if you want to get in touch with Origin, they're now in my Twitter followers list!

Brunch – Bored – Building an Ark!

 

Yesterday we had our Son/MaryAnn and Aidan over for brunch for MaryAnn’s birthday.

Besides the Egg Bake we had sausage links, Sour Dough toast and fruit
It went from this…

To this…

To this….

End result…

Aidan was preoccupied with hit little cup of Nutter Butter cookies – so nothing mattered at the moment…don’t know where his mind was but he sure was quiet.

After brunch he kept busy with his new Crayola coloring book and Magic Markers
 

Darren bought MaryAnn her Tony Romo Jersey
  

So on to the bored part…we had been so busy pretty much the entire month and now nothing…nothing to look forward to until the 20th of October when we go to PA for the Wholesale Show – it can’t come soon enough – I’m getting PA withdrawal. It will be one year since we made the trip and that’s just not a good thing!
Not even anything happening around here…no shows, no parties, no dinners – but I do have orders I’m working on and that’s good. Plus I really should get my mind in gear with some new ideas for next August for the Lititz show and the Artisan’s Porch Walk shows. Time does go by faster than ever it seems and it will be here before I know it.

    And….today I’m transferring all my files onto Flash Drives.  I have a few but they are small in storage space so today I bought one with a large enough file to hold ALL of my photos and website and other things can go on the other drives. 
I’m getting way too many photos on the computer.  Plus at the moment NOTHING is BACKED UP so it had better not crash while I’m in the process or I will have lost EVERYTHING important.  And YES, I do back up on the Flash Drives…but last night I cleaned them all off to start over and that’s when I discovered not a single one was large enough…so please say a silent prayer for me today.

And for the Ark…well it has been raining here since last Sunday….every single day and night…off and on, off and on…just pouring when it does come on so it makes you not to even want to leave the house. Very gloomy. I need some kind of pick me up and quick!
If I was a drinker (for pleasure that is) I’d have my husband light the fireplace and sit back, read and gulp sip on a Mimosa!
How’s that for bad behavior - and on a weekday at that!

Where does the time go – this month just started and it will be October when we wake up tomorrow…It feels like Sept. just started. I know the older one gets the time flies by, but this is ridiculous – is it just me?  Or do you feel time is just going by way too fast ?

I had thought maybe it’s because we plan so far ahead for things, or maybe we are wishing our lives away wishing for the next ‘fun’ thing to happen.
I wish I could just sit back and not think about tomorrow and then maybe it wouldn’t get here quite so fast.  What’s the answer.

So my blogging buddies (Thank You) and all others that come visit me from time to time (I thank you too)…I hope I didn’t run on too long.
Guess for not having much to say today I did go on and on didn’t I ?

Have a great weekend and wishing you all a beautiful October!

Blessings,

Karen

Recipe Swap Roundup - Tailgating/Party Appetizers

For many people this time of year means only one thing - football. Even if you aren't into the game itself, there's always delicious food to cook and eat. In honor of football season I thought tailgating/party appetizers would be a great theme for the recipe swap. I was pleasantly surprised by the popularity of this theme. I'm proud to say this was the swap with the highest number of participants at 28 people. Woohoo!

Whatever team you root for, whether you prefer college or NFL, I'm sure you'll enjoy the recipes below.

Nicole enjoyed her Italian Appetizer Bites during a recent football game:


Caitlin loves having an excuse to make football food and she loved this recipe for Crispy Baked Thai Chicken Wings:


Heather is a football fan and loved her recipe for Buffalo Chicken Tenders:


Katie and her toddler both enjoyed the Ham and Swiss Double Pinwheels:


The Cooking Nurse was a little wary of her recipe for Brat Bruschetta but ended up being pleasantly surprised by this fun twist:


Jaida loves dips and pizza so she thought her White Pizza Dip was a great football snack:


Ashley, a newcomer to the swaps, loved her recipe for Grilled Sriracha "Poppers" so much she's already got plans to make them again when she tailgates in a few weeks:


Brianna isn't a big football watcher (like me), but she enjoyed making and eating her recipe for Buffalo Chicken Rolls:


Coleen enjoyed her BBQ Chicken Dip:


Jessy had planned to take some of her Prosciutto and Fontina Pinwheels to a friend, but they were so delicious she and her husband couldn't part with a single one:


Lishie's husband is a wing fanatic so her recipe for Baked Buffalo Wings was a perfect addition to their game-day spread:


Melissa loved the idea of putting Hot Artichoke Dip in wonton cups:



The Cookaholic Wife just recently started experimenting with different burger toppings and found out she loved this recipe for Tailgate Sliders:


Jey's recipe for Oven Fried Pickles made the cut for game-day:


My recipe for Philly Cheesesteak Eggrolls with Spicy Ketchup was perfect for this Philly-area girl:


Krystal had my recipe for Potato Slabs:


Maryanna's recipe for Corn and Jalapeno Nachos is great because each chip is individually filled with all the yummy toppings:


Melissa put a buffalo chicken spin on her Cheesy Chili Chip Dip:


Ellie really enjoyed watching a game while eating her Chile-Lime Chicken Wings:


Jenna enjoyed her Chicken Cordon Bleu Rollups:


Peace, Love and French Fries loved her Soft Pretzel Bites and Beer Cheese Dip:


Melissa brought her Spinach Artichoke Dip to a recent family gathering, where it was a huge hit:


Jill took inspiration from her recipe to create Mediterranean Chicken Calzones:


Lindsay took a trip back to where she used to live with Hot Crab Dip:


Mary Ellen simplified her recipe for Creamy Sundried Tomato Pesto Dip:


Vicki, a swap newcomer, made Thai Shrimp and Scallion Dumplings (no photo).

Would You Ever Use Origin Energy?

Image Courtesy plumenshopus.com

My power went out yesterday. With a big bang.

Everyone else in the complex had power. I checked the switch board for the safety switch. No, all good there. I phoned 'Origin', my electricity provider. No all good there....account is actually in credit.

Wandered around to see if any workmen might have accidentally cut something important while doing their stuff. Nope. Collected my mail.

"Your electricity has been disconnected today... right now, actually... go directly to jail.... and thanks for coming". What?

I phoned Energex....the people who cut my power off. They informed me that they received written advice from Origin, my provider, to do so. It was 3.30pm by now and they informed me that, no matter what, there would be no way that I would have power again by nightfall. Tears. I had just been grocery shopping and I had a fridge full of food for my hungry boys, frozen meals in the freezer made by caring friends and to break my heart further, my boys lizards have 15 eggs hatching under a electricity run heat lamp. Boys + lizards + no electricity = more crying.

I rang Origin back. "What, you're at number 45 street? Your account says number 36 street. Your account is for number 36. We have no account for number 45". Ok, so Origin, what meter have you been reading to calculate the bills I have been paying? There is no 36 in this street. Umm, errr.

On hold. On my mobile. For 1 hour by now.

I cried. As you do. When you're female. And sitting in a corridor with your mobile plugged into the power point that the cleaners use. And this is just the last thing you need. And you have baby lizards needing heat. And a fridge full of fresh (but soon not to be) food.

Went and retrieved 'cranky site manager who hates my boys' and he opened up the meter box... yep, there were all the meters... and mine?... fuses removed, padlocked and taped. He had opened it earlier for the Energex guy and happily stood there letting him cut off my power!!!!! I retrieved the meter number and informed Origin. "Yep, that's the meter number we have been reading".... well that's at number 45.... the place you say you have no account for. The physical place that your meter reader has been attending to read the meter in order for you to bill me.

On hold. Again.

Meanwhile back in my memory banks. Hang on, the notices I have been receiving from Origin since August.... "You are an unauthorized user of power and hot water at number 45. Please contact us"... my replies were unanswered. My faxes and emails, with copies of my paid bills - unanswered. Even the one I sent 2 days ago that unfortunately included the word 'moron' in it. What about those?

On hold. Again.

2 hours later. "Umm, errr, we don't know what has happened. We're sorry for the mix up. We will get Energex to reconnect your electricity TOMORROW somewhere between the hours of 1pm and 6pm. Sorry about your food. Sorry about your boy's pets. We will be starting your account again and back billing you from the date in February in which you moved in". What? I have been paying my bills. "Yes, but that was on number 36. This is 45. You have been using power at 45 and it has to be paid for".

So my mobile phone bill for 2 hours on hold? The entire rotten contents of my fridge? And the impending one year bill for electricity that I have used at number 45 for the past year? I have to pay for it all ??????? So where is my money for the bills I have been paying at your ficticious number 36? Where are the replies to all my correspondence that said, "there is someone living here... this is me.... here are my paid bills".

??????????

What an expensive mistake. All at my cost. I will be getting my electricity connected and then closing my account with them. Today. I am looking for another electricity provider.

As my boys would say, "Origin???..... EPIC FAIL".

I am typing from a bed, not in my apartment. My boys and I were kindly taken in....like waifs.
I am heading back this morning to clear out all my rotten food and check on the lizard babies.

There, I feel better now. I am sending a link to this post ... to Origin.

Late to the Party

I’m always late to the party when it comes to things like this.  But here I finally am… a newbie on Pinterest. 

If you’re on Pinterest and want to follow along as I pin, click here or click the Pinterest link on my side bar. 

What a clever idea… organizing all things that inspire in one spot.  I’m digging it! 

I’ve been collecting images of kitchens with subway tiles, as I think we’re headed in that direction with our new kitchen.  Late to the party on that one too! 

Hopefully not too late that it will look outdated in a few years.  To me, subway tile is classic.  I  suppose time will tell!  What do you think?  Is it timeless or a trend already on the way out?

On a different note, I want to give a big shout-out to Rebecca Razo for including some of our bedroom and bath images in the Fall issue of Bedrooms and Baths.  Thank you Rebecca!