Drawn for Emma Jeanne

I drew these for my niece, Emma Jeanne, to colour.

Princess Included

Local TV Channels Going PPV in Canada

I've signed the petitions for the local TV stations to get paid through the cable companies. I know this will mean another increase to my bill from Bell TV. I am even willing to pay another dollar or so per channel to keep watching A channel, CBC, CTV and etc.

Ideally, this would mean the local channels could stop running ads. If I'm paying for the service I'd like to stop having the ads (ideally). I know this will not happen and I'm not even writing to ask for that.

What I am asking for however, is for CTV, the A Channel and all the others to cease and desist with the practice of turning the sound up when commercials are running. Then turning the sound down again when the programming starts. This is something which has really ticked me off from the very beginning. I have completely stopped watching some channels, like YTV, over this.

As a consumer who will be soon paying for the local channels I do not think it is too much to ask for CTV, the A channel and the others to treat us (the paying customer) with a little courtesy and respect.

I will also send this to Patrick Brown, our local MPP here in Barrie. Maybe my request will just be ignored but I really do think this is little enough to ask for in return for paying for the service.

Did you Bake a Rhubarb Pie Today?

We are making rhubarb pie today. Not this Cherry Rhubarb recipe, I just added it cause it sounds like a yummy idea. Next time.This time we have just rhubarb but have added nutmeg with three pies, ginger to two of them and one with orange marmalade. Will see how they turn out. Only two are getting baked today, the rest are being frozen to be baked later. Good luck to me trying to fit more stuff into the freezer!

Cherry Rhubarb Pie

Ingredients:

l lb. rhubarb, cut in l/2 inch slices (about 4 cups)
l lb. can (2 cups) pitted tart red cherries, drained
l l/2 cups sugar
l/4 cup quick-cooking tapioca
5 drops red food coloring (or fresh or frozen red cherries)
Butter
recipe pastry for double crust pie

Procedure:

Combine rhubarb, cherries, sugar, tapioca, and food coloring; let stand l5 minutes. Line a 9-inch pie plate with pastry; pour in filling. Dot with butter. (Sometimes I like to sprinkle lightly with cinnamon and nutmeg also)
Top with a lattice crust: From remaining pastry, cut strips of dough l/2-inch wide. Lay lengthwise strips on top of filled pie at l inch intervals. Fold back alternate strips; fold up as you weave crosswise strips over and under. Trim even along outer rim of pie; seal edges. Dampen edge of pie slightly with water and place extra strips around entire rim of pie, covering ends of lattice. Flute edge, pressing well to seal. Bake in hot oven (400 degerees F. 40 to 50 minutes.

Daddy Blog Stalker

It's embarrassing how much of a sucker I am for Dads/ Fathers who write about their families and how happy they are being a Dad, husband and etc. I don't read Mommy bloggers but I have to work on not becoming a stalker for a really good Daddy blog.

Reading, Drawing and Writing at the Coffee Shop

Not Allowed to Attend

I hope she ignored the request not to attend the funeral. No one has the right to tell family they can't be there to give their respects, say good-bye a last time and just know that they attended and were some part of the whole thing. What is wrong with people that they would dare to tell someone not to be there?!! I married an American guy and my wedding and reception were all about who was allowed to be there. I told them to bite me and I made sure all the groom's family were there, whether they liked it or not. It was my bloody wedding and my own family couldn't all attend just because I was married in the US and not Ontario (where I was from).

I posted this to 30 Something and Searching in response to her friend being told she was not to attend her sister's funeral.

Your Birthdate

What Your Birth Date Reveals About You!

Laura this is what your birth date reveals about you!

19 + 12 + 1964 = 1995
1 + 9 + 9 + 5 = 24
2 + 4 = 6
Your Birth Number :6
6’s are idealistic and need to feel useful to be happy. A strong family connection is important to them. Their emotions influence their decisions. They have a strong urge to take care of others and to help. They are very loyal and make great teachers. They like art or music. They make loyal friends who take the friendship seriously. 6’s should learn to differentiate between what they can change and what they cannot.

Type 1C Person

Facebook: Full Personality Evaluation: Your Result: You are a type 1C person - You have a need for other people to like and admire you, and yet you tend to be critical of yourself. While you have some personality weaknesses you are generally able to compensate for them. You have considerable unused capacity that you have not turned to your advantage. Disciplined and self-controlled on the outside, you tend to be worrisome and insecure on the inside. At times you have serious doubts as to whether you have made the right decision or done the right thing. You prefer a certain amount of change and variety and become dissatisfied when hemmed in by restrictions and limitations. You also pride yourself as an independent thinker; and do not accept others' statements without satisfactory proof. But you have found it unwise to be too frank in revealing yourself to others. At times you are extroverted, affable, and sociable, while at other times you are introverted, wary, and reserved. Some of your aspirations tend to be rather unrealistic.

Applying to Lifehacker

I'm Laura. ASCII artist, stick figure cartoonist, urban and rural explorer of abandoned places - these are a few of the things I am doing when I'm not writing. I began as a web writer in 1998 but I started online in 1996, an IRC diva. I think I am a great fit for Lifehacker because I have experience, stamina (I was an editor at Dmoz over ten years), creativity, originality and inspiration. I've also been a copy editor and forum moderator so I can write and self edit my work quite well. I love finding new things online: new gadgets, new sites, new ways to use what we already have. I'm not the most organized person so I look for anything to help me with that.Some things work and some don't but I try them. Once a year I reformat my hard drive to make sure I'm not left with any nasty critters from my experimentation. I'm teaching my Mother to use the computer. It takes patience, a lot of simple words, straight forward answers and I'm usually repeating the same things over a few times before she actually listens but we are making progress. I'm Sagittarius, I just feel the need to teach the world.

WordGrrls (http://wordgrrls.com) is my site for web writers. Originally I used it to stash content I had written for BackWash, WZard.com, HerPlanet, LockerGnome, BellaOnline and Suite101. On WordGrrls I post (daily) creative writing prompts, writing inspiration, web publishing ideas and generally my point of view about anything to do with keeping a space for yourself on the web. There is a flood of information for SEO and marketing your blog but the writing itself is being put on the backburner. I bring the writing back into the lime light. I love writing and even making lists of topics to write about. A bit crazy. Currently I am working through a mild addiction to WordPress plugins. I have found several I like for odds and ends but I've yet to find just what I want for displaying a featured past post.

I'm located in Barrie, Ontario, Canada. Not the US but I was once married to an American and spent a few years living in Illinois, does that count?

Right now I am not employed, trying the work from home plan but still mostly just unemployed. I have a lot of availability. Usually I am online in the evening when it is quiet and dark and I can pretend I'm far more mysterious than I really am.

From a Quiz on Facebook

You have come out with Raven as your soul representation. This is a very interesting path for a being. I suppose the most important thing to remember about a persons life when they are under the Ravens wing would be, you have been here before.. you know all about this stuff and what you don't know you are about to find out. There is really nothing too surprising or amazing to a Raven person.. new things, sure, but as they have been witness to so many massive shifts over the miriad of lifetimes required to lead a Raven life, there are virtually no real surprises. The danger for a raven soul is landing in an area where there are no other ravens and no real competition for them. A Raven needs some powerful reflection and only another Raven can do that for them as they know that they are the only ones who really understand. An old soul does not protect a person from falling into a trap of getting too comfortable and growing lazy. Laziness is deadly for a Raven, they need the power of their wings to carry their great bodies high above the world so that they can gain the perspective that they so need in order fulfill their ultimate destinies here on earth. For each Raven has a particular mission to complete their earth cycle. Find out what it is Raven. You may be comfortable and unshaken, but are you alert and fulfilling your vision?

Interesting. But how much faith do you put into a quiz where they didn't even proofread. Still, I liked it enough to post it here. :)