X-Mass Already?!

Ok, so Christmas isn't for another 80 some-odd days but seeing as how I'm a 'starving artist' and plan to make my gifts, I need to get started now. Before you think I'm miserly and don't believe I'm broke-as-can-be, let me put it to you this way: When you receive a gift from someone that was personally made for you (colors, design, and materials all picked for you) you know that person put some real thought into the gift. It doesn't matter if it only cost $4. It's not the price but the thought that counts. Besides, when more than half the items on todays market are not only environmentally UN-friendly, they're all exported goods made and manufactured in another country with very little or no money going to the people who actually build/make it, why would you want to buy anything other than handmade?

That all having been said, on to the list!

I currently have 9 scarfs to knit. 3 will be fashion scarfs and the rest thick, functional scarfs for cold winter days. I'm not sure if I want to use this pattern or this pattern for the fashion scarfs, though.
I would also like to make 3 braided rugs. 1 small, and two medium. These shouldn't be all that hard, despite the fact that I have never made a braided rug before, but I'm optimistic! {LINK}
I don't know what I'm going to do for 'the boys'. They're a tough one and require some major think time!

Pink for October

If you haven't noticed things have gotten a little... pink around here. That's because October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. So for the month of October my personal accounts (blog, Twitter, and MySpace) as well as The Gilded Pen, have all gone pink! I've left everything the way it was (background, layout, etc) and just tinted everything pink to give it a bigger impact. It takes a bit of getting used to, but I like it.

Each year it is estimated that 200,000 woman will be diagnosed with breast cancer. If that wasn't bad enough, it is also estimated that 40,000 women will die. Many people believe that breast cancer is only associated with woman, but they would be wrong. Approximately 1,700 men are diagnosed each year and 450 will die. Wow. An approximate 40,450 people will DIE this year from breast cancer alone. That means one out of every 1,513 people will get breast cancer, while 1 out of every 7,547 people will die from it in the US alone. IN ONE YEAR!

But don't be afraid! Studies have shown that as little as 4 hours a week of physical activity (which pumps up the immune system and lowers estrogen levels) can lower your risk. Don't for get to eat a nutritious, low-fat diet with plenty of fruits and vegetables as well, which can also lower your risk of breast cancer! And the best tool for early detection for both men and women is the monthly self exam. Self examination accounts for nearly 70% of early detection which in turn accounts for a 5 year survival rate of 96%.

Read more about breast cancer awareness and join Pink for October to help spread the word! You can also download the following images and background to help spread the word.

Goals for the Week

Taking a page from Meroko and posting my goals for the week. Since I plan on keeping track of them I'm posting them here instead of to Twitter. I'm also posting them here because my list is much too long for Twitter's 140 character allowance.

So here it is, my to-do list for the week of Sep. 29th to Oct 4th (with Sunday as my back-up/catch-up day ^^)

- Drop 2 lbs.
- Write 5,000+ words for DW
- Walk 30+ mins every morning (with this cold, I doubt I'll do this one)
- Walk the river at least twice (not associated with the above goal)
- Finish Any Given Doomsday by Lori Handeland and The Devil Wears Tartan by Karen Ranney
- Write reviews for both of them as well as 4 others.
- Work on book covers to add to my portfolio.

A Whole Bag of Back Reading

To say my reading habits have been blown to dust would be an understatement. In the past two months I have started--and not finished--8 books. That makes this years total jump up to 13. It's getting to be very annoying. So my plan for the next month or so is to read those 13 books. There is no reason why I stopped reading them. Most of them where--are--very good books that I rather liked. But I stopped.

So expect mini reviews for the following books. So if you don't see them withing the next couple of months feel free to pressure me just a little bit.

Books I WILL read

Temptation of the Warrior by Margo Maquire {WIR Post}
Mr. Cavendish, I Presume by Julia Quinn {WIR Post}
Before I wake by Kathryn Smith {WIR Post}
Seduced by Sin by Kimberly Logan
Hidden by Eve Kenin
Eternal Pleasure by Nina Bangs
Weddings Can Be Murder by Christie Craig
Let the Night Begin by Kathryn Smith
The Edge of Desire by Stephanie Laurens
The Matchmaker of Perigord by Julia Stuart {WIR Post}
This Year's Model by Carol Alt
Seduction of a Proper Gentleman by Victoria Alexander
The Devil Wears Tartan by Karen Ranney {WIR Post}

This post will be edited in the future only to show which books I have finished

Lessons by the River

I went walking along the river today with mom and the dog and realized 3 things. First: I'm really not that great with a camera. I took quite a bit of shots and only came up with 4 for this blog. Blah. Maybe it's not me so much as the camera it's self.. Second: It really isn't that easy to get a dog into the water when she really doesn't want to. We tried this last time and she would have none of it. This time we had treats and after I got in—treat in hand, of course—it still took quite a bit of time and urging for her to get her feet wet. No pun intended. And lastly, third: The sun burns. Oh, sure, I know this one already—learned it at a young age, I bet—but when the sun is beating down on your already fried scalp and your lips are so chapped it hurts to smile, I believe you learn your lesson a little bit more. That or it gets pounded into your thick skull until you do.

It wasn't a horrible day. Quite the opposite, really. Walking on top of all those river rocks—not a single one solid ground, mind you—for an hour or two causes you to use muscles you would normally not use unless you had a regular gym membership. It was all quite a sight, though. The watter level had dropped a few weeks earlier due to the closing of the dam so there where a number of things to see even if we didn't want to see them, and the fishy smell was gone, so it was really quite pleasant.

We only have about two months left before the rainy season starts, so we're planning on coming down every other day or so. I'm sure my thighs will be nice and strong by Thanksgiving. How the heck am I going to keep them that way through the winter?!

That log in the upper-most picture, BTW, is normally completely covered by watter in the summer. I need to go down again to take a picture of the hallow inside. Really freaky!