A Review of Outlander

As soon as I read a few synopses from Outlander, I knew I had to read it. From almost the first page, I found myself delightfully transported to places in Scotland I've visited like the Highlands, Loch Ness, Urquhart Castle, and the site of the Battle of Culloden. I could easily hear the Scottish brogue in the characters' dialogue as well. 

One thing is certain, Gabaldon knows how to write romance! The graphically intense love scenes require some acclimation at first but the author's fantastic descriptions pull the reader right in. There are times when the scenes are so vivid and steamy, I felt I was watching more than I was reading. Because of that and the sheer frequency of those scenes, it would be easy to assign it to the genre of gothic romance, but Gabaldon's well-layered period plot and intricate web of characters puts it, in my library anyway, decidedly in historical fiction. 

Some early parts of the story seem less than plausible. Despite her primitive-like experiences as an army nurse on the front lines of WW2, Claire adjusts more quickly to the rough and tumultuous way of life in the 18th c. than seems likely. Also, the comfort level that Claire and Jamie share so early on seems dubious as well, given the circumstances.

One of the most enjoyable and thought-provoking aspects of the novel is the idea of time travel as it links generations from past to present. Who hasn't ever wondered what it would be like to live among their own ancestors or other people they've learned about from history? It is, of course, the rock upon what poor Claire's fate rests, quite literally. 

The novel has a bit of everything, including action, suspense and mystery. I highly recommend and very much looking forward to reading (and watching!) the rest of the series.

Walls Family Holiday Riddle 2012

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! Enjoy this year's riddle!

I am the shape of Captain Hook's arm
And a nostalgic Christmas charm.
In duplicity, I make a heart.
I'm a kitschy medium for art,
But to performers, I might cause alarm.

I sometimes have a wooden spine.
I resemble a barber's sign.
Jimmy Smits was heir to me.
I'm a cactus and a tree
And a servant for those who are blind.

I can be read, played, shot and licked.
I'd make a festive swizzle stick.
I'm an extra leg with a rubber foot
And a common bit of stocking loot
Dropped in by jolly old St. Nick.

I go up, then I come down.
I was made to curb sound.
I'm an alternative source of fuel.
You'll see me 'round at the tide of Yule,
But a game is my hometown.

I was the second known man on earth.
I conjure up rivalry and mirth.
I vary in color, species and size.
I'm a toothsome gem a small child espies.
Who else would appreciate my worth?

I alternate between hot and cold.
I am more than 300 years old.
A prop for tap,
I'm hard to snap.
An Aussie barkeep was once my role.

I'm the theme of a prosaic prayer.
I have a certain musical flair.
I'm the suffix of a violent storm,
But hang around in places that are warm,
Where I masquerade as a basket-chair.

I'm the crook of sheep-herding men,
And a renowned cinematic citizen,
Who just longed for his sled.
I'm an incomplete zed,
And hint at the blood shed for sin.


Unpublished Work © Heather K. Walls

Harry Potter Movie Tour | United Kingdom

In September - October, I was very fortunate to be able to spend some time touring the United Kingdom and Ireland. Okay, you dragged it out of me, the tour was three weeks, and it was A-MA-ZING! One of my favorite parts of the tour was seeing various Harry Potter filming sites. Now, Harry Potter's world isn't a real place on the map like the setting on our Twilight Movie Tour, so everything had to be CG'd or superimposed or edited together to make it seem real. So, as you are looking at my pics, use your imagination. Try reading it in your best British monologue. Or, better yet, go re-watch the films - HP7P1 comes out tomorrow/today on disc, you know! Alright, then! Jolly good!

As soon as we arrived in London, we made our way down to the London Eye, then cruised on the River Thames to the Tower of London. Along the way, we sailed underneath the Millennium Bridge, aka the Wobbly Bridge, which was used in the opening scene of HP6.

The next day, Stacey, Tracey and I went on a tour marketed specifically as Harry Potter. We did see a lot of HP sites, as you'll see below, but not as many as we would have liked, such as the building used for Gringotts Bank or The Leaky Cauldron. Don't get me wrong, the other stuff was fascinating. I felt quite learned following Nigel's bloody riveting hullabaloos every time we transitioned to a new period of ancient architecture. Doesn't it speak volumes about my level of cultural refinement?

Our first stop was the cloisters at Gloucester Cathedral, which was used in filming a few hallway scenes at Hogwarts.

The entrance to Gryffindor Common Room was also shot here. In the films, there was a red door in the entryway. Can't you just imagine the painting of the fat lady hanging next to us? What was that password again?

More memorable is the alcove where Harry Potter hides out when he spots Snape talking to Malfoy in HP6. This alcove is also at the Cathedral. Stacey and I tried to conceal ourselves behind one of the columns. I think we would have been spotted.

From here, we went on to Oxford, the college town home to Oxford University. I have to admit, I did not think Oxford such a large campus. It really is a self-containing town. My big question for Nigel was, does the university make the town or does the town make the university? He said that it was one of the great debates of the town. Oh, yea, score one for me in the astute column!

Within the town are even smaller hamlets that comprise each of the major schools of the university. We stopped first at Balliol College. The cloisters here were used in HP4, when the students were wearing Potter Stinks buttons and Mad Eye Moody turns Malfoy into a ferret. This was my first "a-ha, I recognize it" moment. And, yes, I felt like I had arrived. Isn't this shot brilliant? I'd say, I ought to be a photographer, but I'm sure that Stacey's photos turned out much better.

It's tempting to want to post all of the shots from this courtyard in this post, but I'll refrain and just add one more: a self-portrait of myself with Stacey in the background taking a self-portrait of herself! Nope, didn't plan that! But, from this shot, you can easily see the entrance they used to come in and go off camera during the scene.

Next, we stopped at the Bodleian College Library near Radcliffe Square. (Not making that up.) A few scenes and inspirations can be found here. First, this room was used in HP4 when Professor McGonagall teaches Ron how to dance just before the Yule Ball.

Nigel speculated that this case inside the room was the inspiration for the vault lock sequence in Gringotts Bank. Things that make you go ... hmmm.

Christ Church College was our next stop on the Oxford tur. (I didn't just misspell that word. It's how the Brits pronounce it.) Besides being one of the largest colleges of the University of Oxford, it also happens to be a popular filming location. The cloisters courtyard within the church were used to film winter scenes in HP2 and HP3.

Imagine snow falling! Stacey and I positioned ourselves inside one of the open-air windows.

Also at Christ Church is the long room that inspired the Great Hall at Hogwarts in the film, its walls covered in paintings much like the renown School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. If you look closely, you'll see that there are only three table rows. If I recall correctly, Nigel said they CG'd the other row into the scene in order to accommodate all four houses of students.

The paintings here were the inspiration for the moving pictures in the films. Nigel pointed out that this portrait of Thomas Andrew Terance, if I'm deciphering the nameplate correctly, literally seemed to move as we were walking past. I think Nigel was trying to impress us, but we know this is because the painting lacks a third dimension. Oh, Nigel!

The piece de resistance, which wasn't part of the original tur, but a landmark we requested, was to see the house used as Four Privet Drive, which is located in the lih'le burough of Picket Post Close.

The house appeared to be undergoing renovations, given the dumpster in front. And, of course, it was only used in HP1, before Warner Brothers constructed its own set.

Back in London, while were taking some night shots, we stood on the Lambeth Bridge, the same one the Knight Bus is on when it squeezes in between two other cars. Just so happens that scene was filmed at night! Stacey got a cool time-delayed shot with cars streaking past. I would link to it here if Stacey had it posted somewhere. =]

A few days later when we were in the Scottish Highlands, our wonderful tur director Konrad pointed out that majestic Glencoe is where the flying car from HP2 was CG'd into the mountains here. Look familiar?

At Edinburgh Castle, J.K. Rowling gave a reading in part of the Governor's house, because it resembles Hogwarts.

Finally, one night we happened to be eating dinner at Merchant's, which is just under the George IV Bridge, where, you guessed it, The Elephant House is located. Stacey and I figured this out from the map and took a little stroll up the street to the bridge level just to see the famous cafe where the story was born. Dulce et decorum!

Here is approximately where J. K. Rowling sat crafting the first installment of her legendary tale while she gazed out at Edinburgh Castle. How I wish I had time to sit here and sip some coffee!

I suppose I'll just have to return! Who wants to go with me?

A Living Legacy | Peter Francisco

Over Veterans Day, Adam and I had the fortunate opportunity to spend a couple of days with Travis Bowman, good friend and a 6th generation descendant of Revolutionary War hero Peter Francisco.

As someone who is passionate about preserving memories and heritage, Peter’s story is right up my alley.

Thanks to the hospitality of the Women’s Club of Hopewell, Adam and I were able to attend their monthly meeting at the Maude Langhorne Nelson Library, during which Travis -- who stands a looming six feet six inches just like Peter -- delivered his convincing interpretation of Peter’s life.

Upon returning from war, Peter admits, with obvious emotion, “I just wanted to hear my father say, ‘Good job, son. I’m proud of you. Thank you for fighting for our freedom.’ But I didn’t have a father. I went back to the plantation, and, rather than laurels, I was met with Judge Winston telling me, ‘Get back to work.’

That part really hit home.

Peter who?

Prior to reconnecting with Travis, I didn’t know anything about Peter Francisco. Peter was like the Sully Sullenberger of his day! People everywhere knew his name and what he had done for them. He faced adversity and danger with aplomb and little regard for his own life. He protected his fellow soldiers from open fire and allowed them to retreat to safety by carrying and repositioning a fallen tree limb so snipers could get behind it. He was a commando at Stony Point, second over the wall, and first to capture the flag. He rescued a stranded, 1,100-pound cannon from its carriage, hoisting it with his arms onto a wagon. With his quick thinking and deft hand, he saved the same Colonel not once but twice during the same battle! He cut down eleven British in another battle with his formidable five-foot blade. He was instrumental in securing America’s freedom. My freedom.

It’s no wonder this guy is known as Hercules of the Revolution! Anyone remember that scene in Forrest Gump when Forrest carries all the men in his platoon off the front lines to safety, even brawny Bubba? That’s what I’m talking about! Booyah!

A Dutiful Tour

After signing some books and eating lunch with the sweet ladies of Hopewell, Travis took us personally on a tour of landmarks and monuments that now commemorate Peter’s life and legendary prowess. He even let me try on the hat! We stopped at City Point, the dock in Hopewell where Peter was deposited and deserted after spending weeks held captive on a ship by greedy swashbucklers.

We went onto see the monument in Hopewell in front of City Hall – one of five monuments in the nation. Now dusk, we drove into downtown Richmond and visited St. John’s Church, where Peter stood outside listening to Patrick Henry’s inspiring oration. Built in 1741, that church is truly a monument to its own history. Elizabeth Poe (Edgar’s mother) is also buried here.

Peter Francisco is buried in Shockoe Hill Cemetery, among other notables such as US Chief Justice John Marshall and famed Union spy Elizabeth Van Lew. The thing about cemeteries for me – and I’ve said this before – it’s the last place on earth a person was. No speculation. No imagination. Peter was there. His soul had departed, but the vessel – his body – the one he so freely tendered for our freedom touched that cold, winter earth.

Adam and I brought two Betsy Ross flags to place at his grave. Travis and I did the honors.

The piece de resistance was seeing Locust Grove, the post-war home Peter and his family occupied for nearly two decades, which we visited the next day. It’s possible Peter inherited the property, but he did not build the house, as was evident from the standard-sized doorways. The property is privately owned, but the owners, who restored it to its former glory, graciously let us in for a look-see. The fireplaces were probably original, and I could imagine Peter warming himself there, perhaps contemplating the legislative matters of the day. I could have spent hours walking those rooms.

Lastly, we visited the Buckingham County Museum, which is located in the Housewright House on James Anderson Highway. This museum contains the most documents and papers on Peter Francisco. They have a Civil-War-era sword that was recovered from Locust Grove and a tall cabinet that was hand-crafted by Peter Francisco.

What a fantastic way to spend Veterans Day, learning about one of America’s Founding Fathers! Thank you, Peter, for your service and for your willingness to sacrifice yourself. And thank you, Travis, for sharing your ancestor’s legacy with us.

Check out more the photos from the trip.

Learn more about Peter Francisco. Or better yet, read the book!

What stories of memory preservation inspire you?

Ode to Comfy Jeans

Thou goest on without a struggle.

From the dryer art thou smuggled.

Thou art like an extension of my skin,

A chameleon for every occasion.

Thou never gappeth, droopeth or saggeth;

Ye frayed legs never draggeth.

Though ye knees art worn

And ye belt loops torn,

To no other pair

Doth thou compare.

Thou zippeth, buttoneth and snappeth with ease

Thou makes me looketh so good, me wants to strip tease

O, how do I love thee comfy jeans!

Childhood Memorabilia: Keepers or Castoffs

Had the fortunate opportunity to spend three weeks in the United Kingdom with some members of my family – girls only. We even went on a Harry Potter movie tour! That’s right, Harry Potter and Twilight in the same year! I thought about blogging during the trip, but there was really only so much time during the day. I did keep a journal (for the scrapbook!) and will post some pictures to the blog soon.

We had a blast visiting England, Scotland, Ireland, Wales and even Belgium. Can you believe we didn’t encounter a single scrapbooking store?! Many of the souvenir shops didn’t even have stickers. Fortunately, there are sites like Scrap Your Trip. After the second week, I was convinced scrapbooking just isn’t as popular in the UK as it is in America. Certainly hope that isn’t a sign of things to come!

Find order in organization

Since returning from the UK, I’ve been on a cleaning and organizing binge. For someone who is so passionate about paper and often finds herself surrounded by it, even I get tired of the trail that somehow ends up all over the house. Number one organizing rule of thumb: don’t set it down -- anywhere! Any scrapbooking expert will tell you that staying organized is the key to completing any project, advice I would do well to take, lest I find myself on another scavenger hunt.

Not all of the paper belongs in the recycling basket, though. As a lover of all things papyrus, including memorabilia, I have amassed quite an assemblage of Summer’s drawings, painting and art projects. Early on, I tamed it by purchasing one of those oversized accordion art folders, dating each item, and grouping them by month. Come scrapbooking time, I thought, it would be a cinch to pull something out for whatever page I happened to be working on. However, the months and years have quickly generated a paper mound that would rival kindling for a bonfire. And she hasn't even started school yet! Sheesh! At least I had good intentions! 

Sad truth: we can't keep everything

Yesterday, with a little trepidation, I spent the afternoon going through a lot of Summer's old drawings and art projects. Part of me felt very accomplished as the pile gradually dwindled, but the other part felt like a heartless mother casting off the imprint of her child’s first years. As I went through each stack, I set aside one out of every dozen or so pieces. What criteria did I use to determine what to keep? You may wonder. It wasn’t easy, because every piece is precious in some way, but there comes a time when even the mawkish among us must find a way to let things go.

Scrapbook-perfect. First and foremost, I held onto anything that would fit neatly onto a scrapbook page beside other items without having to manipulate or shrink it.  I can just envision a Valentine's Day page from 2010 embellished with those two red-hearted teddy bears bearing Summer's penciled-in faces and circles.

Sentimentality. I know what you're thinking: what of our children's art doesn't have sentimental value? I agree, but had to exercise pragmatism in solving this dilemma. I know they are all cute, but how many pencil drawings and paintings of stick figures do we honestly need to recollect our kids' youthful innocence and unsullied world view? I elected to keep anything Summer worked on with members of the family. For example, my mom occasionally does one-on-one projects with her about stories from the Bible, like Joseph and his colorful coat, and sometimes the three of us draw cards to give each other on holidays. 

Milestones. I never want to forget how small Summer's hands were, so I kept anything with the shape or outline of her hands. I also kept things like her first coloring book, or the progression of her practicing to write ABCs and 123s.

Originals. Some pieces were easy to separate based on whether she had worked on them herself or she had some “help.” While some of the more intricate pieces are nice, originals by Summer are much more cherished.

If there was a piece of memorabilia I was waffling over, I snapped a picture of it, then committed it to castoffs. In everything, there is compromise.

Do you keep all of your kids’ artwork through the years? If so, how do you keep it organized? In sifting through it, how did you decide what to keep? How have you incorporated the artwork into your scrapbooks? I'd love to hear from you!

Next organizing project:  Scrapbook merchandise inventory (that means sale - stay tuned!)

The New Jacob and Bella

For all you Twilight fans pining over Jacob Black and still waiting in vain for the installment in which Jacob and Bella do hook up, meet Max & Menna. While Max and Menna are fraternal twins born in a small town in a family without a single hope, the unlikely friendships they forge teach them about things their home life does not. Things like love, acceptance, loyalty and sacrifice.

The first novel by friend and debut novelist Shauna Kelley, Max & Menna is a melancholic coming-of-age story about beating the odds and breaking free from the cycle of generational influence and rural mores that has all the shadow and mystery of Twilight sans the supernatural forces.

Although the first few pages read awkwardly like excerpts from a collegiate creative writing assignment, as the relationship between Max and Menna starts to unfold into a gentle cadence between past and present, Max & Menna quickly develops into the story of me or the story of countless latchkey-like kids who, growing up, were the product of broken homes, abuse or otherwise distracted, derelict parents. We all had a place like the Hill, whether real or imagined, and, like Max and Menna, while there, we rarely spoke of why we fled to it, as if doing so would somehow diminish its sanctuary.

Kelley aptly captures the void one feels — even into adulthood — that results from dysfunction and abandonment. The way the weight of its emptiness latches to the soul like a dense, torrid humidity.

This underlying emotion — clingy desperation, perpetual inadequacy and permanent entrapment — may be lost to readers unfamiliar with nuances of a childhood riddled with alcoholism and abuse. These depressive states are easily vanquished, though, by the feverish intensity between Nick and Menna — the new Jacob and Bella — and, even amid tragedy, the unbreakable bond of friends.

Max & Menna was published by Lucky Press on November 1, 2010! Look for it at Barnes & Noble and on Amazon!

French Broad River Bike Ride | Biltmore Estate

[Written August 9, 2009]

We spent one of the few torrid days this summer season outside in the back yard. Summer played with a bucket of water and her sandbox. Adam trimmed some low-hanging branches, and together we transplanted Summer's sunflower from a large pot on the deck to out in the yard. While Adam was digging the hole with the augur, Summer exclaimed, "That's cool! What's down there?" If you can imagine that in "Summer voice," it was quite humorous. Because of the heat, we didn't stay outside very long and soon returned inside to shower and thank God for whomever invented air conditioning!

Today also happens to be Crop Club. I have just one guest today, and she'll be arriving late. So, after I put Summer down for a nap, I use the time to peck away at the Biltmore Estate trip album.

The next few pages are among my favorites because the pics are of the bike ride Leslie and I took along some of the trails and French Broad River on the Biltmore Estate grounds. This bike ride ranks among the top ten most inspiring experiences of my life.

As we pedaled passed a field of corn towards the lagoon flanked by the majestic Blue Ridge Mountains, sprawling vineyards and timeless architecture, my spirit was freed. I was living in the moment without a care about yesterday or worry about tomorrow. I was grateful for Leslie's company because she truly got it. I would have rather been with no one else at that moment. As we rode along the Lagoon Trail, pedaling in time with nature, I remember commenting, "This is what life is all about." At the end of the Lagoon Trail, we were rewarded with a spectacular view of Biltmore House reflected in the lagoon, a gentle reminder to inwardly examine ourselves.

With these feelings in mind, I begin to layout the page. I saved a page completion kit just for this cluster of pages. The kit contains a double-dipped -- that's scrap lingo for double-sided -- border and two double-dipped journaling boxes. The page completion kit is aptly named Riverside and contains images of river rocks. I shuffle the three pics, border and journaling box around until I'm happy with their positions. I also want to leave room for a special vignette in the bottom right corner.

Next step is to crop the pictures with the personal trimmer. For a fleeting moment, I consider using the oval patterns to crop the pictures in shapes of rocks, which would have been pretty cool if I could pull it off. The intent wouldn't be immediately apparent. Also, I couldn't bear to crop out too much of that lush landscape. So, at least in this instance, it's hip to be square or rectangle, as it were!

The title emerges as the clear obstacle for this page. For one, I can't think of anything appropriate. For two, I have no idea how to craft it. I consider punching squares with square maker in dark green and sand card stock and embellish with cornflower ABC/123 stickers. I then remember I have dark green 3/8" ABC stickers in my stash. I try in vain to transfer "French Broad" to the page but the oval shape is slightly too narrow, and the stickers don't cooperate.

What will I do to cover up the mistake? you ask. I plan on cutting an oval with oval patterns to eclipse it. That's the least of my concerns. I'm still suffering from scrapper's block on the title. I thought "River Ride" and even "French Broad River Ride", but I'm not sold. It's missing pizzazz. So, I do what I always do when I hit a roadblock: go around it! No reason to hold up the entire page for one hurdle.

I know I have to cut an oval to hide my last blunder, so I grab the medium-sized oval pattern, my red blade and cutting mat. After slicing the oval from sand cardstock, I realize I have much more room to develop the title. I think: It would be sweet if I could cut/draw some outdoor elements (trees, river), add them to the oval, then put the title around 'em.

With my trusty pencil, I start by tracing the outline of a river fading into the horizon. I professionally cut some "evergreen" trees in - you guessed it - green cardstock then fill in the trunks with a brown fine-tip pen. The result is pleasing and will coordinate nicely with my planned vignette.

I complete the page with the vignette, professionally cutting trees and using the tearing tool to form the hill. I professionally cut an image of a bike and to make it look more like the bikes we rented, I color in various parts with the black round tip and silver metallic pens.

The final product is a fitting tribute to memory Leslie and I knotched out of the weekend.

Next episode: Bike Trail Map holder

Make Gift Tags From Greeting Cards

I know I'm not alone. You get excited when those greeting cards come pouring in the mail, especially at Christmas. Some of you probably tear right into them. Others of you wait until there's a small collection, then savor them with your favorite cup of holiday cheer. You display all of the cards with pride on your door, mantle or card holder, taking care that the most unique or most treasured cards occupy a prominent spot. You tweak the arrangement so the photo cards aren't obscured. You never know when those family members might drop by!

What happens when the season is over, and it's time to send the decorations into hibernation once more? If you are like me, you're not quite ready to part with the cards. But after several weeks, the stack of cards you had such good intentions for becomes more of a nuisance than a source of pride. Then you're forced to filter the stack into toss-outs and treasures.

No more. Turn those toss-outs into gift tags!

You treehuggers out there will appreciate this idea. I've been talking about it for a while. Some of you have even been recipient to a few. So, anyway, here's how I make them:

1. Trim your favorite part of the card with multi-purpose scissors or personal trimmer. This could be an image, words or both.
2. Embellish the cutout with brads, eyelets, ribbon, etc. of your choice.
3. Choose one to three pieces of coordinating cardstock.
4. Trim a piece of cardstock that is slightly larger than the card cutout. Use the cardstock to charge the cutout or cut slits in the corners following steps five to nine below.
5. Using a photo corner maker, punch slits into all four corners of the cardstock.
6. Make sure the card cutout fits into the slits. If not, trim to fit.
7. Optional: Trim corners of cutout if you don't want them to appear on the other side of slits. 
8. Put tape runner on the back of the cutout and slide it into the corners.
9. Trim another piece of cardstock so that it fits into the slits on the reverse side.
10. Put tape runner on one side of the cardstock and slide it into the corners. (If you trimmed the corners of the cutout in step 6, this new color will appear on the front side in place of the corners.)

11. Using a eyelets setter, create a hole on the corner, top or bottom. You can later insert ribbon to attach it to a gift.

12. With a metallic round tip pen and your best penmanship, write To: and From: on the back side of the tag.

13. Attach to the gift package!

Scrapbook-izers Anonymous

Those faithful few of you who’ve followed my blog from the beginning know how long it takes me to complete a project. I’m deluding myself if I say I’ve got it all figured out. I make no pretense. I do have an occasional breakthrough or personal triumph, but eventually I start to question my own self-awareness. I will depart this life one day – and what will my legacy be? A pile of scrapbooks and albums with missing pages, blank pages tagged with sticky flags, haphazardly strewn stacks of embellishments and memorabilia, and a work table surrounded by the leavings of my latest temporarily abandoned project and the faint odor of adhesive. It could rival the domestic lifestyle of Walter Sickert.

How much better is this than a container- or computer-full of unorganized, unmarked pictures?

This subject came up at one of my recent crops. One of my good friends asked me point blank why I think it so hard to finish some projects. She tactfully grouped all of us into the same category, but I knew she meant me.

She’s right. At any given point, I might have four or five different projects going on at one time. Believe it or not, I don’t plan that; it’s just a symptom of a VERY short attention span. I have the memory retention of a dog. Doug from the movie UP comes to mind here: Hi, there. My name is Doug. My master made this collar so I may talk - Squirrel?! – Hi, there. My focus constantly migrates from books to movies to scrapbooking to copious miscellaneous side projects (e.g. gift tags, Valentines, paper albums, greeting cards, borders, journaling boxes, writings). I can’t even use the same shower gel for more than a few days at a time without experiencing ennui.

Have you ever started a book only to have several weeks go by without ever picking it up again? You suddenly feel disengaged from the story, forget who the characters are and wonder what brought them to the page where your book bungee has nestled itself. Then you contemplate starting over or giving up on it entirely.

Let’s just call it: I’m a scrapbook-izer with an insatiable need for variety. I like to play the field. My commitment falters because I’m tempted by the flirtations of newly purchased supplies, project ideas, or recently experienced events.

I have good intentions, but, frankly, the novelty begins to wane. Some days, after weeks of neglect, I’ll walk by my work table on the way to the kitchen and think: Ugh. Do I still have to finish that? What inevitably follows are the haunts of past projects that I never called back. I probably have enough now to warrant keeping a little black book. Oooh – a little black scrap book! Sounds like a good diversion. Anyone know where can I find a gently used genie lamp?

In part, it’s what we in the scrapbooking world reluctantly admit as scrapper’s block. That really happens to some people. But, for me, it’s just more of a doctor’s note excusing me to put personal projects off indefinitely. After about the 30th page or so, I’m suddenly spent – fresh out of ideas or embellishments or motivation.

Do any of you belong in this camp or am I the self-proclaimed leader and sole member of the club? Is there any cure for it?

To alleviate myself from the commitment, maybe I’ll put it to vote and let my two or three readers decide which project I should complete (list below).

Comment or message me to vote. My future generations are depending on you.

1. 2001/2002 Years in Review
2. Biltmore Estate girls’ weekend
3. Hawaii Revisited
4. 2009 Walls Yearbook
5. Blank, tagged pages from so-called completed albums
6. Project I can’t remember still in progress

My Hands - My Perceived Weakness

[written Sunday, August 2, 2009]

Last day of staycation. Went on a bike ride along C&O Canal yesterday stopping at Dickerson Recreation Center along the Potomac River. Dirt splattered onto our legs with each pedal and bugs smacked against our heads, announcing their arrival with a buzz. But we were in the heart of nature, near where the Confederate Army crossed the Potomac River during the Civil War. The terrain is flat flanked by the canal on one side and the river on the other. We picnicked at Dickerson Recreation Center and watched White's Ferry make its routine crossing a few times before biking back to our car.

From there, melancholy crept in. The thought of returning to work is almost unbearable. Soon autumn will be upon us again and with it the rush of back-to-school activities and holidays and, ugh, winter. By the time you read this, that dreaded season may well be over.

This may be the last page of the Biltmore scrapbook I complete for a while, but I'm happy with my progress this week.

I've got most of this page worked out already. I selected a couple of 6 x 6 background papers that resemble Victorian wallpaper to arrange in checker formation behind my pictures. I also know I want to use a "Rest & Relaxation" rub-on in the center of the page.

For the journaling, I plan to cut strips of beige cardstock to flank the pictures. But right now, I adhere everything with tape runner. As I'm trying to line up the papers with the edge of the page and with each other in the center, I silently curse because my very unsteady hand won't cooperate. When I'm old and decrepit, I'll have tremors. You heard it here first.

Wiggly, wobbly hands is my chief weakness from my vantage point. They contribute to camera shake and many an error when handling delicate embellishments like alphabet stickers and tiny wands with stars. Fortunately, the digital age has been my saving grace. Gladly, the shake doesn't negatively contribute to vigorously moving a popsicle stick back and forth over a rub-on, which I proceed to do now onto a piece of beige cardstock. I add this to the center.

Ink color is the only real decision I'm faced with before completing this page. I consider three shades of pink before reasoning that black would coordinate with the R & R title. I lay beige cardstock under the first picture I'm going to caption, then mark with a pencil where I"m planning to cut. The mark is a guide for me when I write so I don't scrawl beyond the cutting point.

I set the captions on the page where I plan to adhere them. I don't adhere immediately because of my commitment-phobic tendencies. Read how I conquered this. Sometimes this works to my advantage, like today. I initially write vertically for the top right and bottom left photos but don't like it, so I rewrite captions on smaller squares, then adhere with tape runner right on photos. Since all my paper, adhesive and ink is acid- and lignin-free, this is safe for my photos. The result is a smidge more whimsical.



The next page is very easy. I mimic the layout and color scheme from page five posted under Biltmore Rewind. I trim the background paper to fit, which consists of drawings of caddy, overdressed women gossiping over afternoon tea - perfect for this page of us eating breakfast on the Biltmore Inn patio. Using a few purple and green photo mats from the Everyday Storybox, I charge three of the pictures. I crop the picture of our waitress, and trim a section off a green photo mat for the background. I cut a strip of purple to charge a vellum accent, which reads: "Friends are the sunshine of life." I write about the pictures on a purple journaling box using a lime-green colored fine-tip pen. I adhere all with tape runner and frosted splits, which are for the vellum.

Next episode: Bike ride on Biltmore Estate