Words of Wisdom: Erin

"There is no squeezing in ballet!"

She Is Too Fond of Books

Can you guess who I am?

Last night I dressed up as an Aunt of Literature to give out candy at my friend's house.  Even with the book as a prop, the only people who knew I was Louisa May Alcott were women over the age of forty.  The costume itself was a smart choice, though.  All those petticoats and layers (and the fur lined coat I borrowed from my friend as a finishing touch) kept me toasty warm.

Next year, maybe I should dress as the girl who wrote the Twilight series.  Or I could go as that Snooki person.  She wrote a book -- I saw it at Barnes & Noble the other day. 

Somehow, the idea that girls are reading Confessions of a Guidette instead of Little Women scares me more than all those creepy clowns and zombies I saw last night.

Happy Halloween!

I totally stole this from someone on Facebook.

Tonight I'm going to my friend's house as I do every Halloween.  She lives on a busy street and gets a bazillion trick-or-treaters.  What's more fun on Halloween night than sitting on the porch drinking tea and handing out candy to a bunch of cute kids in costume?

Dressing up to hand out candy, that's what.  I usually think of this approximately five minutes before leaving the house.  Last year, my friend loaned me a plush moose hat and all evening people kept saying it was too early for reindeer.  That was annoying.

This year, I've got a costume all ready to go.  I'm going to get someone to take my picture and I'll post it here because obviously I have no shame about posting pictures in which I look silly.  I'll give you a hint: I'm dressing as an Aunt of Literature.

And no, it's not Auntie Em.

Doesn't Everyone?

Who wouldn't want to drive the Zamboni?  I'm not saying I'd want to make a career out of it, but to me, the only rational response to the question "Do you want to come down to the rink and drive the Zamboni?" is "Let me get my jacket."

Dept. of Home Economics: The Incredible Egg Carton

It's the little things.  Specifically, it's the little things lying around the house that are tough to corral and keep organized.  So it was with my jewelry making supplies -- until last night, when I made an omelet for dinner.

I washed and dried the empty carton from my Little Rhody Natural eggs, and then cut it apart to create three storage trays.  You could leave the top on if you want storage with a lid; I wanted to be able to place them flat in the storage drawer that I take out of its cabinet and bring to my table when I'm ready to make jewelry.  The egg-shaped sides stack nicely, provided they are not too full.
Here are some uses for your empty egg cartons that I came up with just off the top of my head, but there are probably a lot more:

• Desk drawer: Use one or more sides to organize paper clips, binder clips, erasers, sticky notes, etc.
• Craft and sewing supplies: With or without lids, you supplies will be neat and organized.  No more ransacking drawers looking for one specific thing -- or worse, buying something you forgot you had.
• Tiny toys: I'm thinking of Barbie's accessories or all those pieces for the Littlest Pet Shop -- but anything tiny and easily lost can be stored in egg cartons.  Let the kids get creative and decorate the cartons with stickers.
• Girls' hair accessories: You'll be able to find barettes, snap clips, and ponytail holders, even on a busy morning.  Let your daughter get creative with decorating the outside of the carton.
• Kitchen junk drawer: One or more trays will neatly store batteries, matches, restaurant business cards, rubber bands, twist ties, etc.
• Jewelry: if you're a gal who keeps jewelry in the top dresser drawer -- or a guy with tie tacks and cufflinks you want to store -- a plastic egg carton is the perfect see-through storage solution.
• Home repair kit: Keeping those screws, nuts, washers, etc. organized might make it less likely that you and your significant other will fight while fixing something.  Might.  I'm not making any promises.

Safety First

If you go for a walk with the Army Dude in the western part of Rhode Island at this time of year, he requires you to wear one of these attractive numbers.  It's to avoid getting shot because of deer hunting season, but honestly, how much danger could I be in?  It's not like I ever shut up.

Note how it gives that pumpkin shape to which every girl aspires -- and the color... well, the photo doesn't do it justice. 

Even though the day was a bit overcast, I decided to accessorize with a pair of sparkly sunglasses.  (Translation: I hid behind them.)  Not that I think it helped.  I haven't felt this conspicuous since my sister Rachel visited and did my makeup before we went out to dinner.

Cozy

A rainy day.  Tailor-made for making jewelry, reading, and taking a nap.  Who am I to argue with Mother Nature?