Spray Saturday
Mood:  a-ok
Now Playing: "Digital Love" - Daft Punk
 

Not much doll stuff going on today. It's bright and sunny, so I figured I'd best re-spray the old posters and spray the new ones with Krylon Matte Finish. It keeps the shine down in photos. Only problem is that it was a bit windy at times. Usually right after I'd waited for the breeze to die down - it'd pick right back up again while I was in the middle of spraying ! That stuff smells too bad to do it in the house. Like last time. Phew !

 

Beloved Hubby sprayed one. His was much better than mine. Nice even coat. Wish I could have gotten him to do ‘em all.  But he was already working on some stuff due to be picked up Monday.

 

In any case, I got all the posters done, and they stayed flat this time. The twelve-inch string I tied to the can really helped me keep the right distance, so the weight didn't ripple the paper. Brought them inside to dry, although they dried very quickly outside. Just got tired of chasing them over the yard when the wind started its tricks again.

 

I'm thinking of duct-taping two foam-core pieces together, to store all the posters flat. Or just get another cardboard project display triptych. I was going to mount each one to its own foamcore, but now I'm not sure. Long as they stay flat and undamaged, I'm fine with it.

 

After a few errands, we hit Dollar Tree. Nothin' really new there. I found one of those sticker packets like what we bought Dearest Son - but these were for me. One hundred Barbie stickers, all glittery and pretty, with lots of brunettes ! Actually, there were four each of 25 designs, with pastel-tinted iridescent backing. They're about the same size as the Cars ones Son got, so I'm not sure how I'll use ‘em, but they're fun !

 

Still working on the pattern catalog images. Not much time to work on ‘em, when Beloved Hubby's home, he has his own projects on the terminal ! Got 101 of the ‘Aileen's Petite Fashions' images done. Only another 59 to go, since I'd done 40 Friday. They take next to no time at all. Still, it's really starting to get tiring. On Tuesday, I'll be at the library, so I'll do a test print of the images that are already ready. Hope their printer works better !

 

Not much else going on. Hope your Saturday is more exciting - in a good way !

Friday, and things become clearer...
Mood:  bright
Now Playing: "I Walk The Line" - a really good DVD rental.

 

Of course, now that I'm using Word to type the entries, Tripod hasn't misplaced so much as a semicolon. Oh, well. This way I can type throughout the day, and think a bit more about what I'm trying to say, possibly edit out the excess verbiage I'm known for. Plus, Word - even our ancient but legal 2003 version - has a spell checker I don't have to download and install separately.

 

Still pluggin' away at the pattern image catalog. Stripped 40 files today, but they were sooo easy. Next to nothing to do. While we were at the library yesterday, I verified that I could use their laser printers to print ‘em out for 15c a page. Still cheaper than the approximately 25c a page ya get out of most inkjet cartridges. Since I have an appointment there with two young ladies on Tuesday - they're inheriting my Japanese Sailor Moon manga - I'll take the back-up CD I've already burned and see if their printers do a better job on the images. I'm willing to bet that they will ! The Brother is doing a bang-up job, much better than the Lexmark would have done with the same source material, but shelling out $5.25 for the pages I have ready now is much cheaper than buying another $25. inkjet.

 

The shelf I had Elphie and Fiyero sitting on - along with the Witch of the West and Ogre Baby Girl toys from the ‘Madame Alexander Wizard of Oz'  and Shrek 3 Happy Meal promotions - fell, and dumped everyone to the floor, about four feet below. On top of My Size Barbies Casey and Gracie and Baby Chrissy. Yikes. Luckily no one was permanently damaged, but I'm not putting that shelf back up there. Instead, I'm going to finally buy that white 1968 Barbie case I've been wanting. Beloved Hubby told me to go ahead and order it when I came back from the focus group Monday, but I dawdled, mostly because I wasn't sure where I'd hang the case. Walls in the Studio are getting pretty full !

 

But it'd be perfect in that non-shelf space ! I had the pink version of that case - here's a link if you'd like to see one -> http://www.dolls4play.com/barbielistphotos/mc238.jpg - but I prefer the white version instead. That is one rather violent shade of pink ! Mine was open most of the time, sometimes because it was an apartment, but mostly because I hated that color. I didn't hate pink, just preferred more cotton-candy shades of it. I didn't hate what came to be called ‘Barbie pink' until I had to wear sunglasses to check out that section of Toys R Us back in the day. Odd, how I now think of those times as the glory days. I did think of getting the pink one, as a sort of ‘childhood repurchase', but even the child me would have wanted the white one if given a choice.

 

They're not any more or less expensive than the pink or blue ones, but I only see the white version once or twice a month. It's otherwise identical to the pink case, just the vinyl is white and the detail coloring is different, and in prettier shades. So I'm gonna hunt one down and cherish it. By hanging it up in the Studio ! Maybe part of it is a poem to my ‘new, improved' childhood !

 

I sure won't hang up clothes in it, or the Midge and Barbie ones. Could never get more than three or four hangers on that bar in there anyway. They never stayed up there for long, either. I was either a rough-and-tumble kid, or the little coat hangers were just eternal optimism meeting uncaring gravity head-on.

 

My Barbies' clothes (along with Ken's and the Skippers') all fit in there back in '75. I simply didn't use hangers. There they were, either neatly laid out or hurriedly tossed in, either way soon becoming a shifting wad in the closet section, easy to dump out when setting up apartments at Lisa or Angie's house. While we didn't yet understand irony, it was kind of funny to us that big props - houses, cars, etc - didn't start appearing until shortly before we were ready to move out of Barbie and into teenhood.

 

But everyone had a licensed vinyl case ! Closet section became a sofa, when the ‘Accessories' box got turned so the blank part faced out. Sometimes it was covered with a fabric scrap, for that ‘comfy home' look.  It'd be removed completely for seating until the cardboard slot for it started to sag. The doll section was the door, or a phone booth. Artwork clipped from magazines or included with bubblegum cards usually decorated the blank spaces. Since the case fastened at the top, when it was down, the lid became the floor, usually festooned with a carpet scrap or a crocheted doily for an area rug. I stupidly put an ugly sticker from a pack of  CB Radio trading cards on my ‘floor', and to my horror, it wouldn't peel off ! I picked at it until most of it came up, but that spot was sticky from that moment on.

 

Not a lot of Mattel furniture in the ‘hood, either. Spray-paint and hair spray can lids in various colors made available modular furniture. One of Lisa's more...unique dolls preferred a seat on a tomato-shaped pincushion. Since Lisa's mom hated having all the pins pushed in, Lisa's unfortunate doll was hopefully ‘into' that sort of thing. Angie had a double ‘sleep and keep' case that I sort of envied, I just hated that our dolls couldn't handle or touch the painted-on props. And those beds did not look comfy until we found some fabric scraps. I have a 90s version of the ‘Sleep and Keep', but I don't consider it a case. It's Molly's bedroom ! It actually does sort of resemble the one shown in a few episodes of Sailor Moon...

 

It's sort of funny how a fallen shelf put me into contact with so many memories...and clarified what I wanted. Hmm. Maybe Elphie and Fiyero pushed it ?

Cut/Pasting my way through Thursday...
Mood:  cool
Now Playing: "My Super Ex-Girlfriend" - DVD rental, one more time.

 

I finally learned my lesson - I'm doing this in Word from now on. Much as I love doing DDD, I don't want to spend hours retyping the same stuff ! This way, if Tripod hiccups again and loses my entry, I just cut/paste it again.

 

I'm darn good at cut/paste. Got the first pattern book's images cropped, cleaned, grey-scaled, background removed, sharpened, reduced, and posted twelve to a page. Whoo. I wondered how many more files I still had to go. So I went through all the books to get a count. Discovered that one book I have scans only of involved making full-length plaster ‘skirts' for the doll and decorating them. By pushing ribbons, silk flowers, old jeans, or fabric into the plaster, then gluing more of the same material to the doll for a bodice. It's in French, too. And another was for various dolls, none of which were Barbie or any other doll I own. So there's two I don't have to do !

 

Yet I still couldn't bring myself to delete them completely. I already had a folder of pattern exchange group Lord Perry designs, so I stuffed ‘em in there. This may seem odd on several counts. LP patterns are considered the ne plus ultra of doll patterns, backed up with reams of research and attention to detail that makes even Vogue Doll Collections authors shudder. So why did I stuff ‘em into a folder I'll rarely even see, much less use ? Well, I doubt that I'll need a 42 piece pattern that makes a court gown commemorating the life of one of King Henry's eight wives. One whose name I've never heard until I curiously opened the pattern. Too elaborate, too fussy, and I don't really favor big ballgowns anyway.

 

The other aspect troubles me more. If I know that Heaven and Earth will have to change places before I use these patterns, why am I keeping them ? I could easily delete them. But they're fine where they are, and don't take up much space, so... maybe I'm keeping them for the 1 in 10000000x50 chance I'll actually want something there. I guess it gets down to ‘ya never know' and since no one's complaining but me at me, why not ? Besides, some of those plaster-skirt dresses look great, so maybe I can incorporate some ideas of theirs into something I like better. And an opportunity is hard to dig out of an emptied Recycle Bin.

 

Anyway, while I was deep into the images, I listed the names of all the files I'll have to edit into what's becoming my Pattern Catalog Project Notebook. Won't have to do it later this way. Even with the two books dumped in with the also-uncataloged Lord Perry patterns, it's a huge amount of work. Also remember, this is just the Barbie patterns. Not the Elphie, Crissy, My Size Barbie, Timey Tell, or general ‘x-inch doll' patterns. Don't have enough of those to get too disorganized like I have been with the sixth-scale ones. One day, I'll have to find out exactly how many Barbie patterns I have - not how many McCall's patterns, how many different outfits I can make. I'm sure it's an amazingly obscene amount. So. Are you ready for the total number of files I still have to clean and print ?

 

328. Yup. Over three hundred individual files. And my goal to get it all done is in 16 days. Counting today. Although there's no set reason as to why I want to have it all done on that date, I've given myself a deadline. 21+ cleaned files a day sounds like a lot, but I've been doing that for days already, and plus some. It's just starting to get a little boring and tedious. I can guess it's even more so to read about it !

 

So today, I swept and vacuumed floors. Did four loads of laundry. Then took Dearest Son to the SplashPad, a city-run water activity area for kids, and the library. We're both sporting slight sunburns, which is amazing. It's the first time in so long that days weren't cloudy, and skies weren't full of rain, that anybody could get red-tinged this summer. Last year, we were at the SplashPad twice a week from the end of April until school started. Stopped off for a snack, and Beloved Hubby brought home McD's. Then DM&FIL brought over a new-to-us dishwasher. The one here is shot. And DG-GMIL just replaced hers, although this one is only three or four years old. So we'll see how this one works for us. I've been using the one here to hold dishes to dry after I hand-washed ‘em.

 

Beloved  Hubby'll install it later. He's exhausted. But it's been a good day for everyone, especially Son. While I've already done one book today, I think I'll go tweak some more images. At least it'll be done within two weeks ! I hope...

Tripod trouble and Mattel's latest madness...
Mood:  a-ok
Now Playing: "Garfield 2 : A Tale of Two Kitties" - DVD rental, looking forward to returning it.

 

Right now, I really am beyond angry at Tripod. Took me a half hour to write today's entry, and, like Monday's, it has vanished into the ether. The fourth try actually went through. So, from now on, I'll write in Word, and bring it over. That way, I won't have to try to remember what I've already written and forget things. Man, this ranks.

 

Anyway, the good news is that I finished the individual pattern cataloging today. I'm way ahead of schedule. Bad news is that there's 13 books waiting for similar treatment, not 11, and one has over 190 images for me to cut, clean, resize, bleach, and organize. Seriously. No more ^&*%ing patterns. My eyes are gonna end up square-shaped from the monitor at this rate.

 

To break up the monotony, I cleaned Dearest Son's room, with his occasional help. Took three and a half hours. The only people less prepared to spend that amount of time in one small space is the crew and passengers of the Minnow. Took out three Mal-Wart sacks of trash, and one 13-gal bag of papers, unidentifiable substances, and bits of broken toy. Man, and I thought I was overindulged with my dolls and sewing ! 

 

In a few minutes, it's time to clean the living room and put *those* toys away. Yup. Spent almost four hours, and not even all his toys were in there. If you don't hear from me for a few days, it's because I'm beneath a wave of Lunchables Transformer toys and Lego pieces, and I can't get up !

 

So, while there's not much doll news here, I can tell you the global doll news, at least from Mattel. Their overall sales health is good, with profits up 15% this quarter (Q2). They report global Barbie sales as up 6 percent, but 4 of those percentage points are from currency exchange fluctuations. Stateside, Barbie is still continuing her lackluster sales, this quarter, down 5%. They're hoping that 'Barbie Girls' will save the day.

 

I'm hoping they didn't bet the farm. Barbiegirls.com is a site, sort of like a Second Life avatar-based virtual reality. Girls can personalize an avatar, try on clothes, mall -virtual-trawl. With the addition of a $60. flash drive 'doll', more content and options are unlocked. But the site itself is free.

 

I don't know why they insist on calling the flash drive/MP3 player a doll. It has snap-on changeable hair, and looks like a Bratz figure painted on a $15. flash card by a guy who took a flyer on a description, never having seen one. Tiny body, huge head with an indiferent expression. And the snap-on hair. I don't dress up my Sansa SanDisk, it's not a doll. In any case, the big question is whether or not Mr. and Mrs. Public is gonna shell out $60. for a non-IPod MP3 player just so BrytianneAnnye's avatar can have puffed sleeves instead of the cap ones.

 

And I understand that they're just trying to stay alive in a fast-changing world, where 8-year-olds want IPods and avatars instead of baby dolls and sleepovers. But I really don't see how this is gonna generate much interest, much less income. There's already more, better, and cheaper, and a password and naughty words filter isn't much reassurance for parents who've seen too many 'to catch a creep' Dateline episodes.

 

It's not just Barbie who has sales to make Mattel weep. They own American Girls, and their sales are down 10%. A new historical doll is due out, the first one in years, probably just in time for the '07 holiday crush, but I can't help but think that Pleasant Company sold out just before the bubble burst. Quality is nice, especially in dolls, but if Caytlynne is outgrowing dolls before she's outgrown Happy Meals, few parents are gonna shell the kind of numbers AG dolls demand.

 

Boy toys, however, are doing quite well. Matchbox (Mattel owns 'em) and Hot Wheels are selling well, and Cars is the surprising sales powerhouse. While most licensing is down, Cars toys continue to sell well. I understand that one completely. The only place I could find the Luigi/Guido/Tractor die cast set last Christmas was eBay, and I refused to squander $48. (plus $12. for first-class - not even Priority ! - shipping) on a $7.88 toy. It wasn't out for Son's January birthday, either. Last month, it was. And yes, I bought it. I don't think I'm the only one, either. Poor Tractor's been tipped a few thousand times, I can tell ya.

 

Fisher-Price (yup, Mattel owned, too) is doing very well, with a 10% increase in sales globally. It's funny to think that the classic Popcorn Popper push toy is subsidizing a nearly-50 glamour queen, but there it is. Or that toy cars that usually retail for less than a buck are keeping a toy giant afloat. Strange world we live in.

 

Here's links, so you can read without my editorializing :

*Mattel 2Q profit rises 15 percent ->

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070716/ap_on_bi_ge/earns_mattel;_ylt=AsCWai8kubVcop4agyYjxzrMWM0F

*Mattel's Barbie Girls act like avatars, rock like MP3s ->

http://www.usatoday.com/tech/products/2007-04-27-barbie-girls_N.htm

 

Even when there's not much going on at Chez Insanity, there's always something I can go on and on about ! :)

I am so po'd at Tripod. Fourth try to get something to show  up.

If you liked yesterday's 'low content' entry, you're sure to adore today's...
Mood:  lazy
Now Playing: "Comic Party" - anime DVD series Beloved Hubby ordered. Pretty good !

 

Two more pages of pattern cataloging done. I have 15 more patterns and 11 pattern books to go before I'm done. I'm into the R's now. And starting to get thoroughly sick of the entire enterprise. Geez, if I ever buy another Barbie pattern again, I deserve to be smacked in the mouth with a three-days-dead wet trout. I'm serious !

 

Got to go to Dollar Tree today. They were having RGIS over for inventory, so there were beeping sounds echoing throughout the store, like a herd of rabid crickets. I hated taking things off the shelves while they were working so hard, but if customers buying stuff mid-inventory it was that much of a problem, they'd do it at night or close the store. About all I got was more document protectors - DTree's the cheapest, at 5c each, not even the big boxes at Office Max are less expensive - and a packet of small Cars stickers for Dearest Son. They're about the size of your pinky finger, from the fingertip to the first joint.

 

I really like those stickers ! There were 100 of 'em in there, iridescent and pretty. Just about every character, too, even the ones not frequently seen.  Son loved 'em, and decorated his blue Beetle with about 95% of the pack. In addition to the regulars (McQueen, Mater, Sally, Luigi, Ramone, Filmore, Doc Hudson, the Beetle now sports Red (firetruck), Boost, Snot-Rod, DJ, and Wingo (the hot rods),  The King, Chick Hicks, Flo, and the Sherrif. There were also '95' logos in a circle, and a 'LowNSlow' license plate. Son handed me a Filmore sticker, and said I could put it on my green Barbie Beetle. Isn't he so sweet ? And it's there, on the back window. I may go get the 'Disney Princesses' pack and decorate the bumper ! :) Not sure what I'll do with the other 97 or so...

 

And I'm not sure where the rest of the day went. It vanished out from under me !

Late entry, little content...
Mood:  irritated
Now Playing: "Comic Party" - anime DVD series Beloved Hubby ordered. Pretty good !

 

I'm about to freakin' lose it. For the fourth time, I've typed and five times I've sent today's entry. And the only thing to show up is the 'WTH' test message. Which kinda ranks, as none of the four versions I've sent had much content anyway. (sigh)

 

Anyway. Here we go again. Raise your hands if you wanna go faster !! Apologies on yesterday's wonky format, and today's lateness, my general lousy attitude, and the fact that there's just not much here. Two more pages are done on the pattern catalog, and I'm mid-way through the M's.

 

Had a focus group to attend tonight - basically a group survey on why the local paper is so lousy, none of us re-subscribed. It was a bit of a drive into The Big City, which made me nervous. Ridiculous, because I used to drive The Metro every day for work, in worse traffic with always-being-repaired roads. I saw more hazard cones than I saw flowers most years. But now, driving in heavy traffic makes me titchy. Go figure. Must be getting old. Made it there safely, got lost coming home. Remembered from my Google map research that one highway leads to the interstate home, so I just paid attention, and got home faster than I got up there.

 

And now I know the way to the only Kay-Bee toy store in the entire region ! It's easy. I may have to go sometime. Another plus is that the survey company paid me cold, green cash, so now I don't feel so guilty about my little doll and Beetle spree Saturday. Dearest Son still plays with his daily. I've seen stuffed animals, GI Joe, and a wooden building block driving it.

 

Well, I've about had it for one blog entry. Hope your day is going better !

Beetles and dolls and navels, oh, my !
Mood:  quizzical
Now Playing: Crickets ! A few thousand of 'em, in concert !

 

I got a 'Dream Date' Ken yesterday from GoodWill. Only $2., and still in his original tux, right down to the shoes. His velvety jacket's Barbie-pink boutonniere is missing and the all-in-one pants and shirt need cleaning, as well as some minor repairs. After 15 years in the same outfit, he didn't complain about the more casual outfit I put him in. Besides, the outfit - or more likely, sunlight through the outfit, since the MIB ones I've seen aren't like he is - seems to have stained his neck and two strips down his chest an odd shade of yellow. No biggie. I actually prefer dolls with some imperfections - they're more fun to play with that way ! We are our scars, after all.

 

Spent a good chunk of yesterday evening and today cleaning yesterday's acquisitions. Dearest Son loves his new blue Beetle, it's rarely more than a few inches from his hands since he chose it. The green one had three plastic Easter eggs in the trunk, almost exactly the same shade of green. None of them had seat belts, keys, or the side mirrors, and only one had the rear-view one inside. Two had the 'hidden keyhole' license plate cover, but without keys...Taught Son how to open the trunk by putting his hand inside and gently pushing it up. That's how I'll be doing it !

 

Baby Ariel's hair, while still in the factory set, was tangled and a bit wooly, so I took it down and brushed it. And brushed it and brushed it...ad nauseum. Whoo. Toddler Belle's hair was also wooly on the ends, and I never took her hair down, either. I cut about an inch of the dolly equivalent of split ends off Belle, and may need to do the same with Baby. In my opinion, shorter hair suited Belle !

 

I sort of wondered why I had such a need to brush out Ariel's 'do. It was OK the way it was. But I know that it's too easy to give away a doll when you have no interest in playing with her hair ! Once I got it down, it was easy to style - and it went down to her butt ! And folks say Baby Crissy's hair is unrealistic ! I say, for dolls, both are typical. Ariel's hair is fairly easy to take down and put up - the rooted part is easy to find, but doesn't limit styling - and maybe with a bit of conditioner, I can tame hers a bit. It looks more like a fire-engine red mane right now. Didn't have time to sew for her, she's wearing one of Mia's little shift dresses. Almost fits her, just too tight at the neck and the armholes could be a bit bigger.

 

Did two more pages of pattern reference sheets. I'm into the L part, only 39 more files and 11 books to go. I should have it done by the time Son's school starts. I've spent so much time on it, I got paranoid and backed it all up on CD-R. I'll probably take a complete copy, once it's all done, to the library or a Kinko's to print it out. Library uses laser printers, at just 10c a page. I know our inkjet is much more expensive. Dunno what Kinko's charges, but I may find out in the next few days.

 

Not a lot else going on - I slept in, and now I'm wiped out. Cleaned the kitchen to start the week right, and did a couple loads of laundry. I think I'm still behind from May ! Oh, and the surgeon who did my recent operation has pronounced me healed and ready for Life. But he wants me to wait 'til August before I attempt skating again. Well, he's the expert ! What's funny to me is that my navel has changed. It's a different shape and depth now. Odd how you go through your days, figuring your belly-button will always be the same, and one day you notice it's different.

 

Lot of things are like that...

It's all Dearest Son's fault. Oh, and my DMIL's too.
Mood:  bright
Now Playing: a silent Beetle fleet

 

Yes, it is. I was completely innocent of ulterior motives when I left the house for a quick yard-sale run. I knew that Dearest Son wanted another Barbie VW New Beetle - the one my DMIL got him from a yard sale was quite literally played with to death. Which kind of ranked, it was silver, and I sort of wanted to play with it, too. But he loved it, and played with it. Not overly rough, it was the mileage Son put on it that killed it, not accidents and abuse. He loved the doors off first. Then the rest just came undone. Sometimes too much love can be fatal, especially for toys.

 

Looked 'em up on eBay. While they're pretty cheap, shipping isn't. So, when I found a sweet green one at a yard sale, I snapped it up. Only one problem. I love green. How were we gonna be able to share it ? I packed it and the $2. in 25c kid's books I got him in Lightning Molly's trunk and drove to the next sale. And GoodWill.

 

Alleluia ! Another Beetle ! How wonderful - we could each have one ! But...there's another one ! A yellow one and a blue one ! In decent used shape, too. Not as cheap as the yard sale one, but not expensive, especially considering these were around $20. new. Which one do I get him ?

 

Well, we all know how it turned out. Yes. I bought both. And it's all Dearest Son and my DMIL's fault that I have three Barbie VW New Beetles beside me in Easter-egg colors. I had no intention of buying a fleet of the darn things ! I'll let Son pick out which one he likes, but they all need cleaning and sticker (and sticker goo) removal. Green one's mine, though.

 

I also had no intention of bringing home any new dolls. I have plenty, thanks. But...there was a Dream Date Ken, still in his complete outfit, even shoes. His neck and waist were a bit loose, and his chest had some yellow to it...whaddya expect for $2. ? I asked myself.

 

But truly not playing fair was the nude Baby Ariel doll. Her little arms reached up from the 'donations to the sales floor' cart, asking for someone to pick her up, play with her, maybe get her some clothes. She's also by Playmates, a line extention of their 'Before Once Upon A Time' todder versions of Disney Princesses. I just couldn't leave her there ! Hair still in the factory set, not a mark on her, but some smearing of her butt markings. This makes the sixth Ariel doll I own - and I'm not a big Little Mermaid fan ! If I were buying off the shelf, I'd probably get Belle, but I didn't really like her infant version.

 

Hmm. A quick tour of eBay shows numerous Baby Ariels. From stuffed to porcelain to miniature. Here's a good photo of the one I got - http://www.amazon.com/PlayMates-72503-Baby-Princess-Ariel/dp/B000HFQRV4 . While she didn't come with any of that stuff, she's one cute baby ! I'll probably get her measured for Doll Shop Deluxe tonight, unless Beloved Hubby's hunting Napster for more music. Now that she's home, I've noticed she kind of smells like baby powder. I couldn't tell that at the GWill.

 

I also scored a brand-new ring binder (I have a use for it already !), a wicker loveseat that'll fit Elphie and Fiyero, a starburst trophy (good doll backdrop), a local calendar (more scenery), some storage boxes, and a kids' meal Shrek The Third baby girl ogre. I wanted that one for some 'Elphie Baby-Sits' photos, but I'd already embarassed myself getting the Madame Alexander Wizard of Oz Witch of the West when those were out.  So when we didn't get 'em in Son's once-a-week treat, I figured they'd turn up at yard sales. And they have ! I have two of the three, so I'm happy.

 

Man, I just wanted to go out for a bit. Instead, I come home with Ariel, Ken, and a baby Ogre, and a fleet of Beetles. At least I didn't spend much, it was all less than $20. total. And it's all Dearest Son's fault ! Those darn Beetles - and all those new dolls ! Wheeee !

 

It's my fault...but I'm too busy having fun to regret a thing ! :)

Doll shopping in the USA...now with music !
Mood:  a-ok
Now Playing: "One More Time" - Daft Punk. Sorry, but I LOVE that song !

 

Well, I finally got to see some of the Birthstone dolls. They look just like the promo photos, possibly a first for Mattel. Aaaand....the ones I saw are still on the shelf. For one, they didn't have the one I might have purchased - not my birthstone, I'm looking at hair colors more than stone hues - and for second, I didn't really like them. Sure, they have lovely hair and the much-loved-by-me Steffie face. I even like their dresses, although I could do without the oversize necklace and the dumb 'Tinkerbell' inspired tiara-wearing dogs. But the facial screening is too 'Bratz' for me.

 

No kidding. She's a lovely doll, and I don't want to say anything bad about them, or those who love theirs. But with the rail-thin Model Muse body and the stylized face, she looks like a Barbie Bratz...more Bratz than My Scene. The lips look like she's whistling, or teasing some poor Ken with her professional acumen in certain adult activities. And the sidelong glance doesn't help. I kept wanting to pose her by a streetlamp ! It's a shame, because it's the first Barbie I've been interested in for months. But, no sale.

 

They also had the High School Musical dolls out. I don't know jack-all about the movie (?) or whatever they're based on. We don't have cable, satellite, or even broadcast TV. But they are nice, attractive dolls. I'd buy the set - the guy and girl, don't know names - but the singing feature makes them $38.-something. Kind of high for me. Besides, you know me, I'll be looking for them next year, nude and with dead batteries, at GoodWill for $2.

 

I'm still obsessing over pattern-cataloging. I'm in the 'E' section ! And we joined Napster To Go, so I have a musical buffet to go with my tedious new hobby. Beloved Hubby got his 'free with a year's membership' MP3 player, and bought me a compatible one. Wow. I can listen to so much stuff ! It's easy to use, too. It's just funny that they'll have really obscure stuff like Joshua Kadison's "Postcards From L.A.", but don't have half of Janet Jackson's 80s output. Or several of my faves from Robert Palmer. (sigh) But what I got is ultra-cool. I feel like I have my own radio station now, no commercials and all my favorites, from childhood, my years as a DJ, and now.

 

And now you know why it's been taking me so long to write the Blog ! If I'm not looking up some nobody's-ever-heard-of-it song and getting distracted by three other songs, Beloved Hubby is ! He can spend hours almost motionless, on the musical hunt. I need to start writing this at noon...