Crypt Stitch

Santa can suck it...

Howdy strangers! Been a bit lax. I know I'm slack. Whip me. Go on, I dare you.

.

So I joined up with the lovely Cobwebs "Santa Can Suck It" virtual secret Santa, and was pared with the most talented Jayson, one half of the lovely Nickols Manor. What do you get the man who can make his own creepy corpse? Who shalt build scary tombstones? Who doth frighten his neighbourhood with his partner in juicy crime?

I can see no alternative.

Has to be puppies.

Yes, PUPPIES.

No not the cute an cuddly type, the ones that chase you to your death, rip your throat to shreds or turn you into zombies. You know, Hell Hounds. Yes they deserve capitals. Observe:

Picture credit

Awww...cute. All I Am Legend like. Would look good in the gravestone infested front yard. Might actually maim or kill the trick or treaters rather than just frighten them, but life is for the un-living. Sometime we just have to take that leap. Right?

No?

No to the puppies?

Right.

Play poker Jayson?

Not a card person myself, but this would make a nice conversation starter:

The Ace of Spades poker table. Plus that looks suspiciously like Iron Maiden's Eddie on the table. Extra points.

Already have a pool table? Hows about a coffin rack?

Cute!

You can use it on your coffin pool table!

And those who aren't in to playing sports like poker and pool (ahem) can sit on your coffin couch. You can choose the colour, I'll let you!

I hope you have the room for your gifts Jayson! If not, you should SO build on a theme room to your house for all these presents. Hours of fun for the whole family!

Ahhh...I love giving gifts. Makes me feel all full-upped inside.

Merry Christmas Jayson and Dixie!

xxCryptStitchxx

Ecuador - Quito to Mishualli

Is it boring looking at other peoples holiday snaps?

My quick survey suggests a definate 50/50 split.

I personally like to look at others pics, especially of far away places, I like to imagine being there and the way the happy-snapper felt while taking them - awe, amazement, excitement. I look longingly, usually, so it was nice to be on the other end for a change! So if you don't like looking at them, Dear Reader, avert your sensitive eyes now. For here is some more of Ecuador. You will see a lot of buildings in my collection - coming from such a young country (meaning in the western way of course) I was in awe of grand old architecture. And church architechture is so deliciously creepy isn't it? Oh, and in my six and a bit weeks away I took nearly 2000 photos so thank your lucky stars I can only be bothered uplading 7 right now. (And hey, click on them to super-size your viewing pleasure! You know you want to...)

 

 

After leaving Quito, on our way to the Amazon Basin. Check out that snow capped mountain. I mean really, can you even believe it? Now, I certainly haven't checked the facts, but our lovely South African truck driver said it is the closest mountain to the sun, not the largest in the world, obviously, but a very big bloody mountain very close to the equator, and therefore technically closest to the sun in measure. Very cool.

 

Our jungle guide Fausto and his Uncle, the Shaman. Beautiful men, both. A treasure of knowledge indeed. And no, they don't actually have glowing red eyes, they aren't that special. Or are they? Guess I should have fixed that in photoshop before posting. Oh well.

The Rio Napo, the Rio Amazonas largest tributary - just beautiful. Just look at that cloud forest, Dear Reader, isn't it amazing?

I know. That was 8 pics. Thought I would sneek one more in while you weren't looking. Insert evil laugh here. *Sigh*

Home again, home again, jiggetty jig...

Yep, we're back. It's all done, over with, kaput. After so long planning and waiting and anticipation, in the blink of an eye I have been back at work for a fortnight and it was all seemingly a dream. A wonderful, rich and amazing dream. So much to share with you, but for today, as I ease myself back into the blogging thang and contemplate CryptStitch's future, a couple of photos:

 

Yep. That was our first day in Quito, Ecuador. Oh, the photos I am going to bore you with, Dear Reader...

Akasha

13th October 1993 - 27th October 2009

I miss you so, so much.

 

18 days to go...

Yep, I know. It's been a while between drinks, hasn't it Dear Reader? Had a bit on my mind, and a lot on my to do list. But I feel like rambling just now, and I am pretty sure you will sit still long enough to listen to me.
.
19 days to go, and counting. I am nervous, and excited, and anxious and overwhelmed and jumping up and down, all at once. It is exhausting being me. And we aren't even there yet.
.
I am exercising. Always exercising. Or thinking about exercising. And it's not like I have become one of those sweet but misguided gym junkies who get high on the exercise. I am driven but loathing of the exercise. Mostly of the stairs. I hate stairs. And I know I have to do it to be ready, or an approximation of. I live at see level for goodness sake, and I am going to be climbing stairs, serious STAIRS, at over 4000 metres. Shit. So back to the stairs, and the consequent sweat and beetroot face and jelly legs. And yet somehow my arse is still big enough to have it's own atmosphere. Weird.
.
Sewing? Yep, there has been none. Well not of any consequence. Why? See above. STAIRS. My sewing room is tidy and patiently awaits my return. I think I will re-do the sewing obsession thing when I come home, yule will only be 8 weeks away then. And I will have conquered the stairs on the Inca Trail by then, or have died trying.
.
Lists. So many lists. Like stairs. Do you see a theme? Lists of things to buy, things to take, things to do before I go, things that need to be done while I'm away, things to ask my long suffering travel agent (she must roll her eyes when she sees yet another e-mail from me).
.
Drizzle outside today, the most precipitation we have had in weeks. I am eyeing off my moon calendar to see when I can plant some veg.
.
I will miss this little peanut while I'm gone - she'll turn 16 on Oct 13th
.

Drooooool...

Hola! (See how well my Spanish is coming along?). Not really feeling 'it' at the moment, so posts are scarce - rare as hens teeth as they say. I've gone into hibernation mode. But I had to share this. I nearly wet my pants when I saw it. Now you can drool too!

Sigh.
Find the recipe here - yum!

And right now, I have trouble keeping this out of my head. I hope you like it too (isn't the fashion...awesome, and terrifying all at once?)

Fear not, Dear Reader, I will return post haste!

Birthday Shenanigans - Part Three: Grave Goods

For our final installment, Dear Reader, a trip to Kurri Kurri Cemetery.
.
There were quite a lot of headstones depicting accidental colliery deaths, and at least three from deaths in the conflict in France in World War I - interesting. There were, however, no burials pre 1900 that I could find. We will have to go for a visit to Sydney or right into Newcastle, me thinks.
.
A few random shots then?

I find the unmarked sites the most moving. I know that the majority of seemingly empty plots contain someone whose marker has long gone, but it is the ones that someone tried to ensure remained marked despite limited resources that speak volumes of love and remembrance.

And finally, I loved the way this headstone was set out - reminded me of advertising from that era (particularly, I thought of 'soap' for some reason. And ideas?)

.
That, Dear Reader, concludes this pictorial edition of my Birthday Shenanigans! Now go do something useful.

Birthday Shenanigans - Part Two: Fungi and Assorted Accoutrements

Part Deaux. There was a lot of fungi. More than I remember noticing anywhere else before. But I could have also noticed more because my super powers are now kicking in. Happens when you turn 35, so I hear.
.
But I have MORE than just fungi for you today. "What else do you have for us oh wise and beautiful Goddess?" I hear you ask? Well, quit pestering me and just scroll down for goodness sake.
.

A thing of beauty

But where is the fungi, you ask? Patience, grasshopper.

Spot the bug, on it's looooong journey up or down...

A very important sign - good advise. Should also be displayed at shopping malls.

There were goth fungi, but my shot of them is not so great. Use your imagination a little on this one.

I didn't break it off for the shot. I found it this way. Honest.

Deep, dark rain forest...

And the grand finale?

Morning tea at the cafe. Warm scones with jam and cream. Look Mum, I tried the cream! Cause I am a big gal now.
.
Had your fill of fungus? Good. Tomorrow, you and I shall have a grave affair...

Birthday Shenanigans - Part One: Grevillea

For my 35th Birthday (and yes, it does deserve a capital B) my brother and I visited the Hunter Botanical Gardens, and then Kurri Kurri Cemetery. Then I had a yummy dinner with the Family (again a capital F, but not because they are The Mob), followed by lots of giggles at Time Zone and the movies (Star Trek) with both of my Brothers. A good day, yes? And I got some fab pressies to boot. Want to see some pics? I hope so, since I'm not really giving you a choice.
.
For todays installment: Grevilleas at the Botanic Gardens. I love their spidery flowers, and mostly forgive them their gaudy colours. (click to get super-duper large photos of awesomeness)
.

Spot the ants!

Tiny gossamer spider webs.

Thorny ivy leaf, so pretty and spikey!

Autumn dew drops on lemon - looks edible.

Tiny bugs inside

Pink new growth in autumn - like a lot of our native trees and shrubs. And again the finest of spider silk.

This is, of course, a Banksia, not a Grevillea, but she deserved to be seen damn it.

.
Wow. That was a lot of photos - not bad for my wee point and click camera! Despite the sunny disposition of the Banksia, all of these were taken on a grey and mostly miserable day - much as it has been for the last week or more. As soon as the sun shines again, I will try to take some half way descent photos of the new stuff for the shop. I'm not procrastinating. Really.
.
Tomorrow, we shall explore the fascinating world of fungi. Yes, I am serious.

Cemetery Finds...

A few pics from an excursion to a couple of local cemeteries on the weekend. The oldest headstone we found was 1893 - a big reminder of how young this area is in terms of white settlement. I don't believe it morbid to want see the love expressed in honouring of family and friends - the effort in chiseling away someones statistics, a quote or two, and perhaps a rose or clasped hands or, in one case, a suspiciously dead looking bird. I so enjoyed the history of the cemeteries I visited in New Orleans - and how I would love to visit those in Europe. I'm sure there will be some interesting finds in South America...

Now I've just got to learn how to tart (or creep!) them up on Photoshop...I think I may go visit some older cemeteries in Newcastle for my birthday tomorrow (sounds like fun to me!)