Friday, July 16, 2021

Eva Visits The Sears Portrait Studio & I Got A Stay Puft Duck Butt

::wanders in::

::looks around::

::notices you::

OH HI.

So I have a big project to reveal and another to debut, but I'm feeling kinda swirly today. You know, where you don't want to focus, but you do want to chat? Yep. That's got two thumbs and is sittin' right here.

So let me tell you about my new favorite cookies:


These are SO good, gang. Soft like cake, and the orange filling punches your taste buds right in the sweet spot. Plus, dark chocolate. Humina humina. You can get them at Aldi, I recommend buying 2 boxes at a time. For science.



Remember when I posted this Eva photo in my Story?


Someone - forgive me, I don't remember your name - said it had 1980s Sears Portrait Studio vibes with that stone column, which made me laugh and tell John. Then an hour later, John sent me this:


Let this be a lesson to you commenters: John is always up for a Photoshop challenge. 
 

I've been addicted to browsing Facebook Marketplace lately, which is my only explanation for buying a vintage Christmas bracelet in July:

Y'all. I don't even wear bracelets. But look how pretty.


I also got new-to-me Converse! Look at the cute lil' stripes on the back: 
 

The Converse website doesn't carry much in my size (Youth/Junior 3), so I find some of my Chucks secondhand. I'm guessing these were a limited run with the red pinstripe?




I have no segue for this, but look!

A BOX.

More specifically, look what I did to the box:


Ta-daaa! Low-budget ghost trap!

I cobbled this together with stuff from around the house: insulation foam, colored paper, a soda cap dial, and then John made the handle with scrap PVC pipe. I love throw-away projects like this; takes the pressure off.

And of course the box was a clue for the gift inside:


A vintage Stay Puft from 1984. My friend Tim was bemoaning losing his childhood one years ago, so I found him a replacement on eBay.

Tim and I are both big Ghostbusters fans, counting down the days 'til we can see the new movie together. After I delivered this Stay Puft - his belated birthday gift - I came home to my belated birthday gift from Tim, and had to laugh:


(Sweet Stay Puft, there's also an Egon version. Love it.)

The segmented duck butt is quite disturbing, and therefore my favorite part:


I can see how the designers got here, and yet... WHY

This Stay Puft duck claims to smell like marshmallows, but... no. It's more like fresh rubber mixed with vanilla-scented baby powder. Here's hoping it fades quickly.


Tuesday night John and I and a couple FoE friends went to Disney Springs for a meetup, but because I am a disorganized Doofus, I got the time wrong and we showed up 2 hours late. ::facepalm::

Happily we were able to reschedule with the folks we missed, but as I wandered around feeling like an idiot, I found something appropriate:


It's me as an M&M. It's even orange! 
 
Get outta my head, M&Ms.

On a more serious note, and one of the reasons I'm feeling scattered today: the very next morning one of those friends with us miraculously survived a serious car wreck, one that by all rights should have killed her. Karen was going 60 on the interstate when a larger vehicle veered towards her, so to avoid collision she swerved to the shoulder, side-swiped a concrete wall, blew out 2 tires, lost control, shot across the interstate, and finally got HIT BY A BUS. Her car is totaled, the steering wheel wrenched 90 degrees, and Karen walked away. (No one else was injured.)

Then she texted John an extremely calm message that apologized for the inconvenience, but since it wasn't far from us, could he maybe come pick her up? Because, oh yeah, she'd totaled her car.

We're forever telling our friends to call us when they need anything, so really just that text was a victory. John was there in minutes, and has been spending the last few days being Karen's personal driver. She still has lots more medical tests and paperwork and recovery ahead of her, both physical and emotional, but today I'm celebrating that my friend is still here.

We need to celebrate that more, don't you think? And hug more, for those who want it.

So hey, here's some chipper homework for your weekend: Imagine everyone you love just walked away from a deadly accident. Ask yourself what you could regret. Then go celebrate someone. Make a surprise visit or phone call. Bring chocolates, or tacos. Say the things. If you've been waiting for it, this is your sign.

And don't forget to rest and take care of yourself, too, because some of us out here are celebrating you.

Love y'all. Happy Friday!




*****

Whoops, almost forgot to announce our art winners:

The winner of the Toothless set is Texpenguin
The winner of Dragon Specs is Emily F
And the winner of Dragon Hug is froggibabey

Congrats, you three, and please e-mail me your mailing addresses!


*****

If you like posts like this, then you can help support me and John through Paypal!

Or, if you feel like shopping, I have an Epbot Amazon shop with lists of fun things I like, wear, and use.

25 comments:

  1. Hey Jen, out of humble curiosity, will there be any movies streamed on the Discord this weekend?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Not this weekend. "The NeverEnding Story" is next weekend, though.

      Delete
    2. Ah, okay. Thank you. :)

      Delete
  2. Oh my word, I'm so glad your friend is mostly ok (traumatized and shook up to be sure).

    And that picture of Eva is maybe my favorite thing I've seen this year. Amazing! 😂

    ReplyDelete
  3. So glad your friend is ok!

    (In the meantime, anyone want to start a fake band with me called "Eva and the Segmented Duck Butts")?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. OOH Me! I will be your fake bass player! I have great hair for headbanging (long, straight and bright blue!)

      Delete
    2. Me! Me! I don't play piano, but I will be your fake keyboard player!

      Delete
  4. please please please please please do a demo write up of your Ghostbusters box transmogrification so I can steal it for a teen library program-!!!!

    Ahem.

    I mean, well done Mrs. Yates. Very nice projects.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ha, there's not much to tell! I painted the box black with craft paints, glued on silver craft paper for the panels & yellow & black paper for the stripes, then used blue insulation foam to make the red bars, which I hot-glued on. The trap handle is more blue foam with a short piece of PVC pipe stuck to the side. Oh, and a Mountain Dew bottle cap for the dial. :p

      Delete
  5. P.S. My Grandma was a pastor's wife in a town where the richest guy could afford shoes for all(!) his kids and the nearest doctor was days away. She went to a lot of funerals. The saddest thing was hearing people say kind things and offer praises that they never said to the guy in the coffin. It would have meant so much, and it was given too late.

    Never let the sun go down on your anger. Make peace, even if you can never agree. Always part with a hug and saying I love you.

    ReplyDelete
  6. I wear Chucks almost exclusively. Have you tried Converse outlet stores? They have whole walls of clearance t great prices. I know there’s at least one in Orlando.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I have! It's down by the Disney character outlet, so we try to check when we go there. I've found at least one pair there, but my size is really rare, so tends to be slim pickin's.

      Delete
  7. My cousin and his wife got to bring their daughter home from the NICU yesterday. She was there 112 days and it was only eleven days after her original due date. That is what my whole extended family is celebrating this weekend.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh my goodness, y'all have EARNED that celebration!

      Delete
    2. That is fantastic. PTL. Fireworks!!! Marching bands!!!

      Delete
  8. I have Egon duck!! I loves him.

    I haven’t had the Jaffa cakes from Aldi, but Lidl sells some that are cherry instead of orange and I HAVE to buy two boxes every time I go there. They’re unbelievably delicious.

    I’m so glad your friend was ok. ❤️

    ReplyDelete
  9. My Aldi doesn't have the Jaffa cakes all the time, but when they do, I always get a box or three.

    I actually like the raspberry better than the orange, but both are delicious.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I still need to try the raspberry! I'll grab those next time we're at Aldi, which needs to be soon since I'm also out of their sweet potato chips, which are fantastic. :D

      Delete
  10. Authentic German food? Jaffa cakes were invented in Britain in 1927 and we have lots of yummy flavours. Orange is the most usuaul, but we have lemon,lime, raspberry, blackcurrant, cherry and even pineapple or passion fruit ones! There is a huge debate over whether they are a biscuit or a cake that even went to court for tax reasons.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ha! That legal battle sounds an awful lot like how tomatoes are legally a vegetable in the United States because of a Supreme Court case and an argument about tariffs. My husband is a lawyer, so I have a lot of respect for the work that they *can* do, but sometimes it just makes me laugh!

      Delete
  11. I am so chuffed you posted the Jaffa cakes photo. I am addicted to several British authors (Ben Aaronovitch, Charles Stross, et al who do dark stuff you probably would not care for)who regularly reference Jaffa cakes as the pinnacle of tea cakes! Now I know what they are talking about. And glad your friend dodged the reaper, it is good to have reminders to tell folks who are important to you how much they mean to you. On that note, thanks to you and John for making my life so much richer and creating so many awesome connections between people.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Until you have had a tunnocks tea cake straight of the fridge you haven't lived!

      Delete
  12. It's SO great that your friend walked away! I found myself crying a bit reading that, and I don't know why. Just a bad, weird day today, and I think that was a cherry on top.

    And then I read that I won! When I tell you I've never won anything, I'm not joking. Thank you so much, for your weird, random, posts. And your cheerfulness and REALness and just.. everything!

    ReplyDelete
  13. Now you have to try Tim Tams (usually available at Target, not sure where else).

    Seriously though, your friend's experience is sobering and terrifying. Thank you for reminding us to let the people we cherish know that we cherish them.

    ReplyDelete
  14. "Stay Puft Duck Butt" Try saying that 5 times fast

    ReplyDelete

Please be respectful when commenting; dissenting opinions are great, but personal attacks or hateful remarks will be removed. Also, including a link? Then here's your html cheat sheet: <a href="LINK ADDRESS">YOUR TEXT</a>