Printable quote- Do not spoil what you have - Epicurus

“Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; remember that what you now have was once among the things you only hoped for.”

Epicurus

I really like this quote, and since there hasn't been a printable quote in a while, I hope you enjoy it too. The small version above is on my Facebook page if you'd like to share it.

Click the version below for a larger version to print. I'm still loving Astrobrights paper for black and white quotes. The printable version doesn't have the URL in it and is designed to print at 8x10 inches.

A long, exciting week

The photo above is of one of the Superballs I set free in the wild. That's what my family calls it. Occasionally I buy handfuls of them from vending machines, then leave them in odd, unexpected places for other people to find, to play with. I took that photo a couple years ago.

This week has been full of "Superballs". Random good things, surprises and interesting moments. Maybe it hasn't been exciting by a lot of people's standards, my excitement is generally pretty quiet stuff. But it's been good.

The big thing of course, the Duck Tape contest. Still waiting to find out who won, and all week I was pretty obsessed with it, I want to win it so much, but now voting is done, there is nothing more I can do, and feel pretty good about at least making it into the finals. Winning would be a great thing for this little blog, because Duck Tape said they might post a URL to the winner's webpage.

I'm getting a Fiskars Fuse Creativity System! YAY! It will be here tomorrow and it's really too nifty! If you haven't heard of them yet, it's a upper end home crafting die cut system that will emboss, letter press and cut. You can buy an adapter kit to use dies and folders from other systems with it, and it has a very large area so it will work with larger dies like the Big Shot dies. I've been wanting one since they came out, so it's pretty nifty. I've been looking at information about making my own letter press plates using photo polymer plates, and talking to my husband about building a small breakdown portable exposure unit to burn the plates.

Since I've been considering self-publishing a zine full of dandelion recipes, I can do a letter pressed cover for it! It will be a small run at this point, but I'll also do it in e-book format. That's something I plan to start working on seriously as soon as dandelions come up in spring. My son said he would help with it.

Yesterday was my best friend's birthday. It's hard to believe it's been over a year since she passed. I miss her daily. Last year for her birthday, when it was still all very raw, we donated food to our local soup kitchen. This year we did the same thing, checking their website for the wishlist and buying them stuff off of that.
After we dropped that off, we went to a local craft show. I managed mostly to stick to my plan. One new cup from one of my favorite local potters, Hot and Spicy Reindeer Sausage from Indian Valley Meats and a few other little things.
Then we met Dad and William at Peggy's for pie. Peggy's is an Anchorage institution, it's been there since the 40s, and they make the best pie. We had lunch and pie, and watched planes and helicopters landing and taking off from Merrill Field, a small private plane airport.

There were a lot of little moments of happiness and joy this whole week, and the total excitement of the Duck Tape contest. I think they will probably announce the winner tomorrow.

Exciting news

Duck Tape started a MyDesign contest last month, and picked 20 finalists from all the entries to be voted on by Duck Tape fans. The winning design will be made into Duck Tape that will be available for sale!

Because of Sandy, the voting part of the contest was delayed, and I was notified yesterday that my design made the finals. I'm super honored, the other finalists all have fantastic designs, and they would all make fun tapes to use for crafts.

Of course,if my design gets picked, it means publicity for Don't Eat the Paste. It also means I'll probably do several hours of happy dances, and I told my daughter we would go out to eat at one of my favorite restaurants and I'd let her have two desserts. Because it would be a huge, wonderful, amazing thing.

Vote for the design you like best at Duck Tape on Facebook. I voted for my owls of course, because I would really love seeing that on tape. You can vote daily until the voting period is over.

I've been super excited since being told I was a finalist, and sort of nervous, afraid nobody would like my design, but a lot of the comments are so nice! (Super excited= dancing, laughing, telling my family repeatedly "I'm a finalist!")

Oh, the photo above is an old Captain Hammer messenger bag. I used it for about 3 years, and it was falling apart by the time I finally gave it up. Now it's a home for stickers on the outside and I keep my markers in the bag to keep them easy to find.

Today was the first time my son voted in a presidential election. He was very serious and very careful about his vote. I'm so proud of him for the care and consideration he took.

Printable Quote about Laughter

A quote to print and hang about laughter and it's importance.

“I love people who make me laugh. I honestly think it's the thing I like most, to laugh. It cures a multitude of ills. It's probably the most important thing in a person.” 

-Audrey Hepburn

As usual, you can also share this quote, either from Don't Eat the Paste on FB or from Don't Eat the Paste Quotes.

Click the image below for a version without the link at the bottom to print. Print at 8x10 inches!

Peace Symbol Knot to Color

Yesterday I got a pleasant surprise when Hippie Peace Freaks on FB shared one of my images. Reading the comments just made me so very happy. Since I was tipped off when Celtic Trims reshared the image, it inspired me to draw a knotted peace sign.

I hope you all enjoy coloring it! Usual terms (or lack of them)- feel free to use the design for any craft purpose.
Click on the images for the larger version.
Small JPG version:

Large PNG version:

Joy, Family and Shasta Daisies (with a printable quote)

The small version above will be available at Don't Eat the Paste Quotes for sharing. 

Today I got the results back from my CT scan, it was clean. So whatever the issue is, it's not a tumor or an aneurysm. My husband let out a deep sigh of relief. He's been very scared and very angry the last few days while waiting to find out. Being pretty sure isn't the same thing as being certain and that uncertainty was very hard on all of us, but especially on him. There will be a lot more neurological tests over the next couple of months, but the big, scary things have been ruled out. He's finally sleeping well and soundly. My daughter, who has been jumping every time the phone rings is super happy and said "I don't need anything for my birthday, I got what I wanted." (well, she's still getting The Master's Pocket Watch as well. It's a Who thing)

PNG- click for large version:

Today's quote is from Arthur Dobrin, an ethics professor who served in the Peace Corp in Kenya during the 60s. His specialty is applied ethics with a good amount of philosophy. Check out what he wrote about empathy here. 

When you express your gratitude, you will bring joy to others' lives.When others know joy, your life will be filled with happiness.

Comments recently on various things I've posted, from a lady who uses one of my scrubbie patterns as missionary donations to the very enthusiastic response for the comic book Mod Podge bracelet and the outpouring of support during this challenging week,  I'm grateful. To all of you, my regular readers, the people who find my blog through referrals or searches. Thank you all for the continued encouragement and kindness.

Shasta daisies are the most common types of daisies up here. Instead of fields of field daisies, we have Shasta daisys every where with their spiral button centers and 21 petals each. The printable quote has 21 petals.