CLICK HERE FOR FREE BLOGGER TEMPLATES, LINK BUTTONS AND MORE! »

Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Still missing.... Sigh!

My upload photo buttons are still MISSING!! I'm going bonkers soon! I really so wanna post my latest LOs, my gorgeous stash from Japan, my kids.... Arghhhhh!!!!

Monday, July 27, 2009

Sigh.....

I have no idea why.... But Blogger is not allowing me to post any pics. There isnt a post pic button on my Posting page anymore. Anyone out there can help? I just received a gorgeously scrap ladden package from Japan and so wanna "show off". Guess this is fate's way of telling me that I should not be such a fluff head show off! Hahahaha!

Friday, July 17, 2009

Chicken Soup for the Scrapbooker's Soul

I laughed when I received this as my birthday present. Chicken Soup is such a success that even scrapbooking is playing a part in one of it's titles! Hahahaha! I thought it would mostly be about what sb is, why others sb, the hoarding instinct, etc. What I didn't expect was the touching stories about how scrapbooking changed the lives of some and made it easier for others. Scrapbooking for these people was about leaving behind a story, yes, a story, not the bombastic word, legacy. Why use the word legacy at all? It's not like we're leaving behind millions of dollars for our next generation. But what these scrappers were leaving behind were worth more than the billions of dollars. They document their lives, the children's lives, the laughter, the tears, the breakups, the weddings, the funerals, the sickness. Everything. Nothing was mentioned about competitions, Design Team, pretty embellishments, admirers, being recognized.
After reading it, I realized that I had strayed from my original aim of scrapbooking. I was too caught up in the buying (who isn't) and the opinions of others. I let the trends take over. I slaved over ONE single LO for days just to make it look pretty and trendy and acceptable by others. I blogged hopped, magazine hopped, friend hopped.... just so I could create the loveliest LO that would be praised and admired by others!
Finally, I felt so tired by it all. I had no more mojo left in me. I needed to make another gorgeous LO to be admired and fawned over. I wanted everyone to drool over the wonderful creations I had come up with, I wanted the praise and the recognition. I had lost myself.
Chicken Soup had done its job again. Reading it brought me back to my senses and reality. It was nobody's fault that I became this way. It was too easy to lay blame. That was what I did initially. I blamed the manufacturers for always coming up with new stuff, the LSS for bringing in all that drool worthy goods, even my friends for their bad influences! I must have been mad!
When at last I ran out of excuses, I looked deep within myself and dug out that worm called "GREED" and squashed it flat. Greed for new things, greed for recognition, greed for money, greed for everything! I need to relearn to scrap for myself again. Not every LO needs to be beautiful, to be admired, to be nice. Each project that I undertake now must be for myself only. To please myself. To leave behind a story. To make me happy that I've done another LO...
I am happy now!

Happy enough that I cleared my cabinets of years of mess and dust. I carefully packed my coke collection and made space for my scrapbook collection. The display shows many of my years of work. Whether it is artistic, childish, out-dated, I dont really care. I just want to clean the dust off my work and give it a nice place to reside in. If it is admired, I'm happy. If not, I can live with it too!



Love the clean, clean display shelves. Weeks of hard work cleaning and throwing and packing resulted in this!

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

My Beloved Coke Collection

I finally made the decision to give away my coke collection. It was not as painful as I thought it would be. I had to make space for more of my scrap stuff to be displayed.
It wasn't too painful maybe coz I had a good friend who was willing to house my collection. I definately have more than the pics I showed here. I wanted to take pics as I packed them away, but I got so carried away that I completely forgot about taking some memories. I cleaned them, polished the bottles and scrubbed the years of dust away. As I cleaned them lovingly, I savoured the memories each bottle had for me and I almost put them back again. But I knew that if I did that, I would never be able to part with them again. So now, here they are, most of them in a box, ready for their new home.
I really have to thank Ed for so kindly taking them in. I'm really glad I don't have to throw them away. I was not even willing to sell them to Cash Converter, which was what one of my friend did.

All my coke collection are from around the world. Italy, Nepal, Japan, Cyprus, Dubai, England, Thailand, Hong Kong, Denmark, Alaska, Canada.... Can you imagine the effort it took me to carry them all back? Especially the glass bottles.
So my beloved collection is now going onto a more worthy home. One who will take care and display them for more people to enjoy. Thanks Ed! Will remember this favour!

Tuesday, July 7, 2009

Has it been almost one month??

When I saw the date on my last post, I thought, "Hey, Blogger ate some of my posts! Where did those posts go? I specifically remembered that I had posted some photos, some musings in between.... Or was that in my dreams? Hmmmmm..."
In reality, I must have forgotten to blog again! Why do I do this to myself? Why must keep up with this blogging thing? It's not as if I like such a popular personality and thousands read my blog everyday. Aside from my few really loyal friends, no one actually reads my blog. Hahahaha! I'm not belittling myself. I just wonder why I even blog really!
Recently I just got a new bag. It's a first for me. Not the buying of the bag. But the price tag that came with it. I have not bought such an expensive bag in my life. I enjoy the good things in life, just like anyone else. But to spend such an amount on a simple bag is just not my style. It's not like the bag costs a couple thousands, just a couple hundred. But still, it was a first for me and then I realized that it would not be the last. I finally understand why young girls are willing to blow their 1st paycheck on a thousand dollar bag. It's the thrill of buying and carrying it around for others to admire. And after buying my first couple hundred dollars bag, I'm now more willing to blow a few more couple hundred dollars on another branded bag. Would I carry on this way? Would I now think that a couple hundred dollars for a handbag is nothing? Would I start to lose my sense of perspective? Should I even allow myself a second expensive handbag?
In this current economic downturn, to even spend on this sort of frivolous thing seems very sinful to me. Especially when there are others out there who are living from hand to mouth. Not so much the adults. It's the kids. Are there kids out there who do not have enough to eat coz their parents had lost their jobs?
I think the next time I give in to my impulse to get another couple hundred dollars handbag, I should think of those kids out there who are eating only biscuits drinking water to assauge their hunger. Really. There are such kids out there. I have met them.....