Thankful Thursday - Crafts and Quakes

I'm thankful that for the last couple of days, this is where I've been:

(that's also a sneak peek at the "secret" project I've been up to lately...)


I'm also thankful, and this might be a weird one, that we had a "big" earthquake yesterday..

Thankful?  Stick with me...

I was sitting at my desk, making stuff, happy as can be, when my cell phone went crazy.  It started making this loud sound and a voice started saying something in Japanese, over and over.  I started at my phone - a message in Japanese was on the screen.  "What is going on...?"  I thought.

Just in case, I put my scissors away, blew out my candle, and grabbed hold of the desk.  Sure enough, here it came.  Small swaying at first, but it got worse and worse until everything was shaking, I heard things falling over and saw the paints in the rack on my desk rocking.  I thought sure they might fall out, but they didn't.  I didn't dare move, I've read that people most often get hurt by getting knocked off of their feet or by things falling on them.  So I stayed where I was, braced against my desk, watching everything jump around.

I kept saying out loud, trying to reassure myself, "It's okay...  It's okay...  It's okay..."

At some point near the end, Max came into the room and laid down right behind my chair.  I don't think he approved of the ride we were on.

I don't know how long it lasted, maybe 20-30 seconds?  It faded away like it had began, with small swaying/shaking lasting for just as long after.  Once the worst was over I glanced around and noticed the water in the fish tank sloshing around.

I know I heard some things fall over, but aside from my phone ending up on the floor somehow, I couldn't find anything out of place - well any more than the mess that's already in the room.  ;)

So, why in the world am I thankful for that experience?

I've been dreading what it would be like to feel a "big" quake ever since we got here.  I keep saying "big" because they get a lot bigger than this one was, but it was the first to be bad enough to set off the alarms.  Our first few days here, we had heard about the cell phone alarms, but until now I hadn't heard it.  Now I've heard the alarm, know what it means, and have an idea of what to do when it goes off.  The fear of that unknown is gone.

How big was it?  A 6.7 at the epicenter, which was 117 miles north of us.  It registered as a 4 here where we are.  So far the largest one had been a 3.5 that woke us up in the middle of the night, but didn't set off the alarm.

(we are approximately in that cluster of yellow dots to the lower left
of the epicenter, right above the blues)

I'm also thankful that there was no damage.  I'm thankful for the bit of a wakeup call that there are still some things we need to do to prepare for a big one.  We've gotten complacent, because it's actually been months since we've had anything more than a tiny tremor.

This weekend we'll be finally securing the bookshelves to the wall and taking a look around the house for anything else that should be addressed.

I'm also going to get back to work on my shelf holder idea.  I'm happy to report that my Popsicle stick prototype did its job, haha.  Those three horses were just fine.  ;)  However, I need to finish that project.

So, yes, I'm thankful for an earthquake.  And thankful that I've been in the studio a lot this week, quake and all.

Wordless Wednesday - Snow on the Beach

Organizing For Tiny Tack

I had planned to do a "Tiny Tack Tuesday" post today; I think that might become a somewhat regular feature on here, since I'm working on several Stablemate-scale props and tack items right now.

However, most of what I have to show is still a surprise, for the SM Performance Group Prop Swap.  So, as much as I want to share, I'm going to wait to post all about them until they've arrived at my secret swap partner's home.  I hope she likes them!

Instead, I thought I'd post a quick picture of some neat little organizers that I found.  They are actually for organizing (finger) nail embellishments, which is what most of the things I put inside them are.  I had bought a sampling of such things, thinking they will be fun for tack and costume projects.

These holders are handy, they work well for any kind of miniature hardware/embellishments.

I may have to get a few more of them.  ;)

Motivation Monday - Dream Today

I hope everyone is having a great start to the week!

Costume Progress - More Pictures

Yesterday I did a quick post on the progress of the costume.  Here are a few more pictures of how it came together.

First step was to cover the epoxy saddle tree I'd made with the base fabric.

Next, I covered it with the actual fabric that I'll be using for the seat.

The book I'm following mentions using clothespins to clamp things together, but it mentions that wooden ones might not be good, because the glue can fuse to them too.  All I have are wooden clothespins (mini ones), so I modified them a bit by putting little strips of scotch tape on the parts that will be clamping.  (this worked great, by the way)

A bit of a test fit on the model.  In doing this at this phase, I learned that my rear panel was too long - despite having done test fits all along.  Hmmm....

I briefly considered taking the rear panel apart, or making a new one.  However, it works just fine if I attach it further up under the saddle and side panels, so I went with that option instead.

Scotch-taped clothespins in action:

After all of the glue had a bit of a hold, I rubber banded the whole contraption onto my model for some "training".

And that's where I left it!

I've still got quite a ways to go on this costume, but I'm really happy with how it's looking so far.

Quick Post: Costume Progress

I've been working on the first costume and here's where it's at so far.

Dinotopia Book Signing and Sketching

I was inspired by a post on the Five Paws Studio blog about how she acquired a copy of a favorite book with a sketch by the author inside.  It reminded me of a book signing that I went to, many years ago...

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One of my all time favorite books when I was a kid was Dinotopia, by James Gurney.

I was fascinated by the fact that, not only did he write an amazing story, he illustrated it himself as well.  Some of the illustrations have a rough, sketch-like quality, others are full blown paintings, loaded with unimaginable detail.  They are all gorgeous, true works of art.  Many of the detailed paintings inside look like photographs.

Being a dinosaur loving kid from pretty much the beginning of my life, I LOVED this book (still do!).  Around the same time that I spent many hours staring in wonder at the illustrations in Dinotopia, the movie Jurassic Park came out.  I was in Dino heaven.

Dinotopia was followed by a sequel, The World Beneath.  Of course, I wanted it, but it would actually be many, many years until I had a copy.  More on that later...

When the sequel book had come out, I happened upon a mention in the paper.  James Gurney was going to be at a book store in the area!

Yes, I still have the newspaper clipping, and also a postcard announcing the book's release.

My mom took me to the signing, but couldn't afford to buy me the new book.  I took my well-loved paperback copy of Dinotopia, hoping he'd sign that one for me.  I had never been to a book signing before and I was afraid they would only sign the new book.  There was a long line at the book store.  I didn't realize that he was sketching, in addition to signing.  I was so surprised to learn this when it was my turn, that when he asked what I'd like him to draw I didn't know what to say.  I told him, "Whatever you'd like to."  haha.

He drew a "Skybax" (Quezalcoatlus) and rider, while telling me that everyone was wanting him to draw T-Rexes and Velociraptors, thanks to the popularity of Jurassic Park.

He added their motto, "Breathe deep, fly high, seek peace."

It was a magical experience and one that I have always treasured.  I still remember watching him draw in my book and being in complete awe.

Fast forward a few years, when the majority of my childhood books were ruined in a flood.  Dinotopia was in that flood too.  It was damaged, though thankfully not completely ruined.  There was no way I could throw it away, not with the author/artist's sketch inside.  So I kept it, water damage, musty smell, and all.

(A quick pause here to add that Kristian of Five Paws Studio is another part of this story.  Early last year she sent me a box of Black Stallion books, after I'd mentioned that I'd lost all of my childhood horse books in the flood and was hoping to build up my collection again someday.  It was an unexpected and wonderful gift!)


Shortly after meeting Jeff, who is also a lover of books, we had been wandering around in a book store when I'd stumbled across the Dinotopia series.  It was then that I learned there had been other books written, after the first two.  I told Jeff the story of my copy of the original book, the sketch, and how it had been damaged.

That year, for my birthday, Jeff completely surprised me with hardcover copies of not only The World Beneath,

but also the other sequel, Journey to Chandara,

and the prequel, First Flight.

I'm still a Dino-crazy "kid", and I'm so happy to have these books in my collection, but most especially the one with the sketch of a Skybax.