Carpe Noctum? i'm TRYING!

did i mention that i think the telephone is a grand invention? Yes. Yes, it is.
So, while i'm waiting around to Carpe Noctum....
Let me tell you, my faithful readers about how i did a completely goofy thing getting out of the car today. i have a couple of Pharmaceutical clients that i have to visit every 3 weeks. One of them needs this sample of a chemical proof suit. i'm supposed to deliver this big bird yellow suit tomorrow. As i stepped out of my car, i spilled an entire mug of coffee on it. Well, it's not exactly coffee proof. By the time i got it in the house, it got stained and rumpled. i'm trying to get it cleaned off, dried and to not smell like coffee so they can do some testing on it. Good grief.... so out the window goes any idea of playing fantasy dress up by wearing it tonight and being the sexy big yellow laboratory geek.... i can't wait to deliver it and have someone sniff it and say "does this whole product line smell like Arabica?"

Live in such a way, that when your feet hit the floor in the morning, the devil says, "Oh no, she's awake!!"

Amazing Weekend! First of all, i LOVE 4 day weekends! They've just got such relaxing feel, i love not knowing what day it is? Thinking that Saturday is Sunday and then realizing that i still have ANOTHER day off! Watching the two lines that are between Master's eyebrows go away during the course of the weekend is a big bonus for me!

We've been getting to spend a lot of time with our Asbury Leather Family and also with the NYboL Family in the past few weeks. i had no idea at the beginning of the title year how much i was going to miss those guys. No idea at all. i know that we've been doing really good work, but man, oh man... i really was getting home sick. i've been having fun the past few weeks, thinking of what to fill up the time with, after we step down. Yes, i know - we're already booked for a lot of dates in 2008. But it's not going to be anywhere near as busy. i firmly believe that the Universe hate a vacuum and will fill up empty space with something. So, before the Universe gives me some crappy space fillers, i've booked myself at another Art retreat. Not the same on as last year, but i am even more excited about going somewhere different and learning new things. So exciting. i had 15 days between when they announced the classes and when registration started, so i plotted and planned and i think i got the best possible classes for me. Some are just going to be fun, some are going to be difficult (metal work!) and a couple are really going to stretch my skills. And that, my friends, is going to be a good thing.

A few years ago when i got back in touch with an old friend (and Master's old band mate) He told me how he always looked up to me and my personal style. That i was an ass-kicking girl that made him so proud. That i was a role model for him. A role model? me? i started thinking about whether i had lived up to the expectations or projections that he'd put on me - and decided that i had NOT. But more importantly, i wasn't living up to my own expectations. i let a lot of crap get in my way. i completely abandoned my Art. i compromised my moral values. i compromised on what i needed to become a full, complete and healthy person. The combination of that kick in the ass and the mental/spiritual inventory that i did before running for the titles with Master did wonders for me. i decided that the people that i had chosen as role models for myself, the people who cut me off or cut me out or really, truly spiritually disappointed me were not worth looking up to.

i took a bold step 9 days ago, after 2 months of wondering and planning and discussing it with Master. With His encouragement, i've asked for something that i really, really want. For me, that 2 months of envisioning all the possible out comes, what could go wrong, what could go oh-so-right, was it worth the risk.... Yeah, i'm a ruminator. But, in the end, the only way to manifest something in to being is, i believe: do your homework, ask for what you need/want and then let it go..... (yes, that's how we Witches work!) The hardest part is the letting go. i asked for what i wanted and then let go so hard it hurt. (Part of what i let go was a piece of my Art, i've never done that. Ever. Scary stuff for a recovering Artist!) Patience is NOT my particular virtue. It looks like i am, ultimately going to get my heart's desire.

i am thankful for 4 day weekends, Holidays spent with Great Friends in warmth and good fellowship. i am grateful that i can let go of old baggage, to make room for new experiences. That my life is filled with Beauty and Art again. So happy that other people have reached out to me, welcomed me in to their circle. Grateful that i have a loving and generous Master to share my life with. Thankful for remission so that i can play hard again. Thankful for a body that is strong and is capable of giving and receive such great delight. For great, healthy role models. Thankful that my path in life has so many twists and turns and different paths that i can travel. Welcoming a new experience in to my life. i've made room for it to happen. There's a line on the book "The Mists of Avalon" about whether there's an after-life or not - Life itself is reward enough. i am starting to see that that is so true.

No sleep 'til Brooklyn...

As the Beastie Boys would say: No sleep 'till Brooklyn.

Yes, that's right kids - Insomnia day 2. After a wonderful day out yesterday - i couldn't get to sleep at all. Oy, this sucks! i ended up getting up at 3 am and puttering around the studio. i made a call, thought really hard about taking a drive and decided against it (for now), puttered some more and actually got some work done. 4 Art journal pages decorated, one piece started for my next book binding project, and cleaned off my work area so i can actually get some work done.

Got a call at 6 A.M. which was superb and made me feel if not refreshed then at least, shall we say invigorated? Yes, that's what i'll say. Invigorated. :-) That's a good word. Did i mention that i was a lucky girl? i think i did. i'll say it again. i am a lucky girl!

There's definitely a short list of people who could call me that early (or late) and would make me happy.

Spent the rest of the day setting up the room for tonight, putting up holiday decorations. Pagan that i am, i still love the Christmas decorations. i'm looking forward to tonight. Hopefully, after a good night of play, i'll be able to get some sleep. i hope the 48 hours with no sleep doesn't ruin the evening though. We'll see. Sleep deprivation should be good for reaching new spiritual heights, right? i hope so!

happy happy HAPPY girl

Well, to start my day - or perhaps to end yesterday - i got NO SLEEP last night. i was tossing and turning all night. Thinking, pondering, wondering..... once my mind gets to working i should really just get up and write or make Art, but i always think "5 more minutes and i'll be asleep" which, of course never happens. Sometime around 6 A.M., i finally started to drift off.....so, when Master started with the chipper voice "Come on sunshine, time to make biscuits for the NYboL Thanksgiving!" i was less than happy and cheerful. i was a down right frightful grump.

Once i got dressed and had some Nectar of the Gods (coffee) things looked much brighter and we got to work on an assembly line of cheese grating, sifting and mixing. 3 Batches of whole wheat cheddar biscuits and a half gallon of gravy later, we were ready to head off to be festive. We breezed in on the train and got to Jake's really early....so we were put right to work: running for ice, chopping onions and peppers... and then i heard some muffled music from my purse. An unexpected (but very hoped for) phone call. That totally made my day. OK- who am i kidding? Made my month! Whoo hoo! Yeah, happy girl did the happy dance around Jake's kitchen! i ended up with a big dorky grin on my face all day. (yeah, i admit it! Big. Dorky. Grin)

The house started to fill up with old friends, new friends and good fellowship. Not to mention good smells. i loved watching Jake run his kitchen. He's amazing. i don't know how he can cook that variety of food, get it on the table hot and have it be so darn good. That man is a keeper! (and he make s a mean flan...)

Much later, we headed home. No Eagle bar for me tonight (*big frowny face*) - the dogs have been locked up too long and we have a long train ride home.

What an awesome day. Great friends, fantastic food, good conversation, a phone call i've been wanting..... i'm settled on the couch now, big cup of chai at hand, 80 pounds of dog on my lap. i can't wait to go to sleep and catch up on some dreaming about....

Anniversary Antics

So, after spending the morning being locked out in the yard by the deadly canine duo of Taybor and LiLu, Master and i hustled around trying to get ready in time to head out to Leatherfest at the Center....
We made it out right on time and breezed in to NYC. Leatherfest was hoppin'. i scored a pair of long, tweezer type nipple clamps and a gear shaped piece of jewelry. The nipple clamps will end up being used for holding things while i solder them, and the connecting chain i think will become the watch fob for my pocket watch. The gear jewelry will end up being a base for another creation - it was exactly what i was looking for. i'm sure the Leather Gods will be angry that i'm using BDSM tools for Art but i'm sure whatever Art i make will still have a perverse bent to it.

It was awesome to get to see the NYboL guys again, as well as seeing all my other Leathery friends. Although, once again - too many people that i expected to see there were MIA. Perhaps i just missed them? Who knows..... Oh, yes, and i got 25 punches and one to grow on while we were at the Fest...

Off to dinner with Jake, where we discussed important things, like Flan. :-) Then to the 9th ave Saloon for the NYboL bar night. Rubber was the theme - and once again, i am amazed that the scent of rubber is so hot to me. Hmmmmm. i have no interest in actually wearing rubber but jeez, it sure does smell great.

After that, we buzzed over to the Eagle for about an hour. We had a beer, i had 2 annoying guys say some somewhat crappy stuff to me. One was just flirting with me and had some boundary issues... the other one was all in my face like "what are YOU doing here? what are YOU doing in my bar?" This while he's in his white sneakers and cologne. BAH! Not to mention he was interrupting a conversation i was having. BAH again. At least, the gentleman i was conversing with handled the annoying dolt with style and shut him down cold. Very nice! i do so love kinky gentlemen....We finished our conversation and then it was time for Master and i to head home.

Home, anniversary sex. Yes, bliss. i am a very lucky girl.

Lassie! Come on girl!

i must now point out that neither of our dogs are very useful.... Master decided that this morning we should go out and rake up leaves, we were going to do that tomorrow but it's supposed to rain, so: let's get it done while the weather is good.

Well, we needed to use the leaf blower for part of the job, since we're still not supposed to walk on the new lawn. Dogs are, of course, afraid of the noise and are barking their heads off. So, i - brilliant slave that i am, put the dogs in the house. They leap around and somehow hit the latch on the back door. No problem, except the front door is also locked. As are all the windows.

Neither of us had keys or cell phone, so Master went to a neighbor's, got the dog sitter's number and called her. (Meanwhile, i was trying to reason with the dogs, trying to get them to understand that we're very busy today and i really needed to use the bathroom, so they should open the door. i came to the understanding that neither dog is as useful as Lassie.) The dog sitter scooted over with the key. We gave her a big tip for being so helpful.

We'll be making spare keys and hiding them around later today.

25 Years

Tomorrow, November 17th is our 25th Anniversary.
i am so blessed.
Here's a link to last years post about our anniversary.
i think it says it all, the only thing i can add is, as we've continued our journey as International Master & slave.... it's been a Hell of a ride for us. It seems that not many people grow together, or allow each other to grow in their own ways and still remain committed to each others happiness.
my life, what a blast!

i heart Virginia!

This weekend Master and i drove down to Charlottesville VA to present for C.U.F.F., i love taking long drives with Master. He's learned in the past couple of years to be a traveler and He really enjoys the experience. Rather than just seeing the journey as something to endure, He likes the whole "get to the airport early and watch the sunrise" experience or the "let's see how many cows we see per mile". It's a vast difference between the drives of old, when we were with The Band and everyone just hated the drives. We all loved getting to the shows but, man - 5 guys stinking up the van with their Man Gas and all the inner-band-politics-and-turmoil... oy. Not pleasant.

So, Charlottesville. What can i say about the town? um, i love it! It's just small enough to be cute and funky enough to be fun without being like big city madness. Tons of funky shops and good restaurants. i even managed to snag some art supplies (Literally, pounds of paper for $3.00, such a deal!) Nice, i would definitely be in to going there again and making more time to explore.

The group we presented for was amazing. They have a fantastic space (a private, members only Gay owned club/bar) which was warm and friendly and very well laid out. (i always love a bar that has a few cages on stage to do lock-down fund raisers...) Our host took such great care of us, dropping off a cooler of water and iced tea to our hotel room, taking us out for lunch, giving us a mini-tour and some college football lessons! The group themselves were equally warm and friendly, fun and asked *really* engaging questions. If anyone has the opportunity to present for them, i give a hearty "thumbs up" to them. Awesome! i SO want to go back down for their Holiday party next month - they are going to have a blast! :-)

Master and i had a party of our own and made the best of dirtying up Charlottesville ourselves by having a ton of hotel sex. Nothing like soiling some one else's sheets, i always say.

In which i discuss my ass cramp...

Gah! i wish my body felt better! i've spent the week hooked up to a TENS unit and last night was spent huddled on the couch while Master iced my hip. There's nothing like feeling unable to do things for your self to make you realize that you are normally a fairly strong and independent person. i miss going to the gym and doing my 320 lb shrugs. i just started to be able to bench press 70 lbs.... i feel like all my gains at the gym are going right down the toilet right now.

On the bright side, i am strong enough and healthy enough to create through my discomfort. i was able to get a little work done in the studio, even if i did have to stand up to do it. It was good, angry, uncomfortable art. Good release! i needed a good release: for both my physical pain-in-the-ass and the figurative one that's manifesting in my life right now.

i also had to say good bye to a client and friend who is retiring/moving away. The great part is he got the send off party that he deserved, it was amazing to see how loved he is. And i have a place to stay for free, should i ever get the chance to visit Puerto Rico. (The title is International, no? *grin*)

Let's hope my body feels better as we get ready to head off the teach in VA. It's a long drive on a sore ass! i am really looking forward to presenting - we've had a few weeks off and i'm getting itchy to do it again. (oh, gosh, did i just say that? me? i don't like doing presentations!) My, how things change!

what's that noise?

Master loaded the washing machine with all the dark clothes....
an hour later, i put the clothes in the dryer.... i sat down at my laptop and was answering email.....
*clunk* clunk* clunk* Hmmmm, what's that noise coming from the dryer?
Master?
Master runs from other room, cursing slightly. It's the work cell phone, washed and partially fluff dried.
i stand up and go to walk over to help Him dry it off. my foot tangles in the cord, my laptop does a very comical pratfall to the floor. Now it's broken too.
Yes, it was technological bumper cars last night and we lost.
Master got me an extended warranty which actually ends next month - so i'll drop it off at Best Buy tonight and pray that the Geek Squad can work it's magic. Grrrr......