2014-04-22

karadinart: (unfurl my wings for you by karadin)
2014-04-22 05:21 pm

That's a nice find

Years ago when I lived in the UK, I rented a room in a house that was filled with females, all students, all from different countries, and we'd hang out together in the one room of the house that was like a sitting room (with gas fire) this was actually a building (we were on the second floor, above a very seedy lingere shop and the next floor was an empty office space) that was right down the road from Baker Street on Marylebone Road, and yes, Speedy's was just over two streets, and I had a sandwich there about two decades before Sherlock.

One day I went on a trip to Liberty's, which is a well known shop for design of household goods and picked up a small crewel embroidery kit, I hadn't sewn since I was a kid, but I always found it relaxing. The other girls teased me for being and 'old maid' though I was just newly wed, but pretty soon, all of them had kits, and we'd spend the evening listening to my CDs from Roxy Music and the soundtrack from Twin Peaks.

I was rooting around in a box of stuff, and lo, I found that little crewel work kit, I'm gonna take it in to work tomorrow to get framed! (and for free, since manager wants samples of things to frame, I'll just let it hang a both galleries for a year or so)

After this I made a very large banner of the Battle of Hastings, which I later gave to my brother. I'd actually like to start up this hobby again, and maybe make some crewelwork versions of my drawings, in particular, the gemstone meditation cards.

Photo-0127

here is the kit I made for my bro - you can still buy it


http://www.frenchneedle.com/products/norman-horsemen-at-hastings
(I've also seen these kits on ebay)
karadinart: (unfurl my wings for you by karadin)
2014-04-22 07:41 pm

Wage theft from US teachers

In state after state active teachers were being forced by legislatures to increase the amount of money taken from each paycheck into their pension systems.

At the same time the same legislators were saying that pension systems cannot and will not exist in the future. Therefore, legislators are forcing teachers to “save” money while promising them they will never get it back later.

In state after state dual systems or choice systems force teachers to pay into 401k programs approved by legislators.

These 401k programs make upfront profits (fees, handling costs, service charges, or premiums paid for by the teacher and/or employer) from this mandatory savings system while openly stating that the 401k programs will lose money at various times.

Retired teachers who contracted for lower immediate wages while earning deferred compensation (pensions) are now being told that states have not paid what they were contracted to pay by law into the systems, therefore the state will punish the teachers they stole from by refusing to pay the agreed upon amounts.

read more
karadinart: (unfurl my wings for you by karadin)
2014-04-22 09:01 pm

SPN review

Okay, that was one of the better MOTW all season, however, I really mind that yokel vamps were able to take down Sam and Dean Winchester so easily, and here Dean is supposed to be a killing machine, so did Sam and Dean even need to be in this one? It’s okay to give the guys a break, don’t have them in every episode, if that episode makes them incidental.