ook what I found! Daily Drop Cap's fantastic typography designer, Jessica Hisch creates a daily drop cap that is up for grabs to use in your blog posts! So cool! I found her site while creating a new shop for my hubby at BigCartel.

Soon, I will be selling his original Artist Trading Cards (2" x 3") double matted and ready to frame (8" x 10" w/mat)  for $20. Shipping is FREE within the United States. I'm super excited about his new shop! I'll post a link soon.

o, I'm listening to this book - I bought it on itunes. It's actually read by the author, which is weeeeeird. Mainly because Tim Ferris is a very strange, albeit genius, human being.

 Also, you may have noticed that I still suck at blogging every day. But maybe the 88 words idea would make give me some motivation. Right now I'm at 64 words. Maybe I should start telling a story or something. Just 88 words of it per day. Too bad I don't have a story finished.

'm quite certain nobody on planet earth is visiting this blog anymore, BUT. I am back. Sproadically at least. Here's the deal with me. I am on a rampage to finish a book or two this year and find an agent. I'm taking a writing class at the moment, which will last until March. The story I am currently working on is titled Switchwife. I'd tell you about it, but I'd have to kill you.

Among other things, I'm in the mood to make things, but I haven't got any crafty stuff with me. In particular, I've been in the mood to make two things. A leather belt, and some pendants made from my vintage picture button collection. I'll keep you posted.

I am also devising a plan to blog every day, but I haven't figured out just what to blog about yet.

Well, I guess that's it for now. Here's something random to make you laugh, until next time.

ear Readers,

I apologize for my absence. Firstly, some good Stuff: the Haiku Kung Fu Champion is Cheri! Congrats to her, and thanks to all of your for playing. I announced it here.

Secondly, some very sad Stuff: I just returned from an eleven day surprise trip to San Diego. My sister, who was six and a half months pregnant, lost her baby in a mysterious way- her baby's little heart just randomly stopped beating. It was an emotional weekend, as my sister had to be induced into labor and deliver her baby.  Just heartbreaking. Apparently this happens more frequently than most people realize, and medically the doctors can't usually find a reason for it. The doctor said that occasionally there is something like a knot in the cord but usually, it's just this totally mysterious thing that happens, and they just don't have any answers for it. I was surprised to hear that.  It's just so sad, and seems so wrong and unfair. My sister was so happy to be pregnant and was so healthy, as was the baby. It makes no sense. We will all miss the chance to see little Sofia grow, and are hopeful that maybe her spirit will return when my sister is ready to try again. Any prayers for Sarah and her husband Tony will be appreciated. They need all the help they can get to make it through their grief and be ready to try again.

Thirdly, some more sad and scary Stuff: Valena, a dear friend of mine gave birth to her baby girl, Olive, just a few days before my sister lost little Sofia, and little Olive is now fighting for her life. She was born full term, and thought to be totally healthy, when at the last minute just before Valena and hubby John were about to take her home, a nurse had a funny feeling and wanted to give Olive a quick ultrasound. Turns out she found bleeding in Olive's brain, and they discovered that she was having these strange invisible seizures. Olive stopped breathing in Valena's arms at one point, and has been in the NICU ever since. The doctors have found no reasons for any of this- Olive is otherwise healthy. They are hopeful for Olive's full recovery, but it has been pretty taxing on Valena and John, and on Monday, Olive's two week birthday, they just recieved word that Olive will need to have some sort of tube dealy put in her head to drain some of the fluid out. This is sad because Valena had been told that Olive was doing great and may be able to go home on Friday. Now she's about to get another round of MRI's CT scans and the like. I can't imagine how frustrating the waiting and wondering is for them. My heart just aches to think of it. If you are a person who says prayers, I will share this one with you, it comes from my friend Amanda in Australia:

Lord I pray for Olive. I pray for complete healing of her brain. I pray that the doctors wouldn't be able to explain the miracle you will do. I believe in FAITH God that you desire to give this girl life and life to the fullest. Heal her Lord!!! I also pray for Valena that she would rest in you during this time. May she know that you love her little girl as much as she does and that she can relate to you in that way. I pray that this would bring her family closer than ever before and that they would believe for a miracle as a strong unit. I pray that if they don't know you yet, Lord that through this process you would give all of them life with you- eternal life. I love you Lord and thank you that you hear our prayers. Amen

Valena & John and Baby Olive need all the prayers  they can get at the moment. They are the sweetest family, and have already had their share of medical hardships, as Valena has been battling Lupus since she was nineteen. Get strong, little Olive!

Finally, my Stuff: I will be taking a break from this blog for a while to get my head on straight. As some of you know, I wrestle with Bipolar II disorder. It isn't fun, and I think I need to just stop everything I'm doing and focus on getting better. I'm reluctant to take drugs, so I'm on the lookout for a natural remedy if at all possible.

Last night I actually came across a website that reports eating 4-5oz of fish per day gives your body 72+ trace minerals that are typically missing from our American diet, due to the way our crops are grown. Apparently, if you eat seafood EVERY DAY, after about three months your body & brain should be feeling really healthy, and whether you suffer from Bipolar Disorder or Diabetes, or even Lupus or Cancer, this "eat something from the sea each day" diet will heal you. Many of the diseases we experience in AMerica are nearly non-existent in Japan and China, where seafood is a staple part of the diet.  I'll be back in a few months with a full report.

In my time away, I will also be writing as much as I can. It is a goal of mine to finish a manuscript this year and submit to/ get accepted by an agent or publisher before the year is out. I find that I spend more time messing about on this blog than I do writing, and that ratio needs to change if I am to accomplish this goal.

I appreciate you all, and thank you for sticking with me on this little journey so far. I'll be back soon, and if you should ever care to get in touch, just leave me a comment or send me an email at 88words (at) gmail.com. I will respond immediately.

Cheers, Hugs, and Happy Almost Spring!

Chelsea

This is my imaginary new outfit to wear swing dancing. I have been in the mood for some yellow, maybe because I'm tiring of the dreary days of winter. I thought something nautical would be cute with the sailor pants. I liked this tattoo-inspired necklace for a punch of color. (And because dancing with earrings is kind of scary sometimes.) I wanted something fun for my hair, and this fascinator is cute, but not quite what I had in mind. Plus I'm not sure if my hair is quite long enough for this yet.

I'm in the market for a new pair of dance shoes, but I am having a tough time choosing. Chances are the shoes will be the only part of this outfit that I'll actually ever own, as I did my "shopping" at Anthropologie and the pants and shirt combo came to a pretty penny. Damn me and my good taste.

The tan wedges are a dancer-friendly replica of a vintage 1940s wedge, and are wicked cute. The Mary Jane wedges are a black and grey herringbone and a black plaid with a little red stripe; a very cute shoe for skirts or pants alike.  And then there's the wingtip Mary Janes, which draw attention to fancy footwork. (All of these fun  shoes are actually made for the dance floor!)

But which ones do I need? I tend do dance in pants more than dresses or skirts, but my dance wardrobe has dwindled to nothing in the past five years, so I'm starting over from scratch, and just might re-think the lack of skirts in my closet. What do you think?