tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post1482988991943293339..comments2024-03-22T05:18:29.555-04:00Comments on Romance Bandits: Vicarious Competence, or Things I Can't DoLoucinda McGary aka Aunty Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02217492654108300014noreply@blogger.comBlogger85125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-76244523019353812982010-08-28T13:59:52.561-04:002010-08-28T13:59:52.561-04:00Thank you, Karyn. Who knew being a Boy Scout would...Thank you, Karyn. Who knew being a Boy Scout would prove to be so useful later on for so many husbands?Barbara Monajemhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06740868750916582900noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-77899019921333476712010-08-28T11:03:02.523-04:002010-08-28T11:03:02.523-04:00Sharon - I had a similar experience when trying to...Sharon - I had a similar experience when trying to make a mitten a few years ago. It was shaping up to be big enough for a Sasquatch. I don't know any Sasquatches, so I gave up.<br /><br />My first book came out two months too late to promo at the local garden show last year. Ah, well.Barbara Monajemhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06740868750916582900noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-72478411213418545982010-08-28T10:35:42.869-04:002010-08-28T10:35:42.869-04:00Barbara,
I went on a bender and took a socks class...Barbara,<br />I went on a bender and took a socks class at the local knitting store, thinking I could knit some socks with that new yard that does the striping, for my granddaughter. The teacher was very frustrated with me and I worried she'd have a heart attack. The sock is too big for even my foot. Hmmm. to I follow the pattern again and make another one, or just use it at Christmas?<br />I love gardening and have done so for many years. Love your landscaper heroine. Not that you need to, but you could market those books in nurseries...Sharon Hamiltonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09733653906932403080noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-87699752557832186922010-08-27T18:15:47.828-04:002010-08-27T18:15:47.828-04:00Hi, Cories. You've chosen such a great variety...Hi, Cories. You've chosen such a great variety of things to dabble in! I'm with Nancy re the fencing -- that's quite some dabbling. Archery, too -- wow.Barbara Monajemhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06740868750916582900noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-32334845614758317542010-08-27T17:50:25.436-04:002010-08-27T17:50:25.436-04:00Cories, you "dabbled" at fencing? That ...Cories, you "dabbled" at fencing? That sounds like pretty involved dabbling to me.<br /><br />Locksmithing sounds fascinating. You've done some way cool things.Nancyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13705259501965011703noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-58425574963976361342010-08-27T17:41:41.288-04:002010-08-27T17:41:41.288-04:00Great excerpt! Congrats on your release!
I gave ...Great excerpt! Congrats on your release!<br /><br />I gave up on drawing when I was about 6 years old and realized my artwork wasn't coming out as I liked, but I still dabbled. I'm great at dabbling in things: sewing (made an aloha shirt), needlework, fencing (with foils only), woodworking, horseback riding, jewelry making, breeding tropical fish, violin playing, growing various types of plants in containers and in my backyard (and in the fishtank, of course), ballroom dancing, archery, etc.. At one point I realized that I dabbled enough that I could be a character in a historical romance - as the <b>man</b> (I'm okay, but not great, with firearms as well).<br /><br />One of these days I will finish all the half-finished projects in my storage space (including my locksmithing course if I can find it).<br /><br />I also sing to my nieces and nephews; being young, they're not particular about how I sound.<br /><br />Yep, I'm not particularly good at anything but I sure have fun finding that out! :)<br /><br />cories119[at]yahoo.comAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-86442790822180223272010-08-27T16:19:14.995-04:002010-08-27T16:19:14.995-04:00Donna, the marbleizing effect does sound way cool,...Donna, the marbleizing effect does sound way cool, but the process seems very complicated. Another one of those crafty things probably not meant, alas, for me.Nancyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13705259501965011703noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-74981663346038732752010-08-27T15:51:52.929-04:002010-08-27T15:51:52.929-04:00Catslady - Glad you enjoyed the excerpt. I don'...Catslady - Glad you enjoyed the excerpt. I don't know whether I have a sense of direction. I used to think so, but changed my mind after I moved to Atlanta, where the roads twist and turn so much that it's impossible (for me, anyway) to know which direction I'm going. I've had to learn the roads by heart.Barbara Monajemhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06740868750916582900noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-28682336393581353722010-08-27T15:47:51.582-04:002010-08-27T15:47:51.582-04:00Donna - I remember doing marbleizing in school. It...Donna - I remember doing marbleizing in school. It was probably messy, but I don't suppose I noticed. I was just a kid, and the teachers had to clean up. :)Barbara Monajemhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06740868750916582900noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-38176601088490212892010-08-27T15:28:49.461-04:002010-08-27T15:28:49.461-04:00Great excerpt and I love the title. I definitely ...Great excerpt and I love the title. I definitely wish I wasn't afraid of driving and had a sense of direction. I can drive but only where I know where I'm going and not busy highways and turnpikes. It really has kept me from doing so many things.catsladyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06375770995988927860noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-5765273961913364052010-08-27T15:20:49.561-04:002010-08-27T15:20:49.561-04:00Barbara - Love the concept of the random man. How...Barbara - Love the concept of the random man. How cool to be able to blend into the background and be invisible - oh the things you could do!<br /><br />I can fill volumes with the things I can't do. One of my more messy attempts was to try marbelizing paper. This is where you float paint on a tray of water, swirl it in a design, then lay your paper, box, material - whatever on top. In theory, when you lift the paper, box, material - the paint will adhere. I did manage to make it work on the boxes - but only with paint everywhere, clothes, floor, table. It's too messy for me to attempt again, but the effect was cool.Donna MacMeanshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10310857800824141312noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-70710854949244381892010-08-27T15:08:02.858-04:002010-08-27T15:08:02.858-04:00Minna - I know what you mean about figuring patter...Minna - I know what you mean about figuring patterns out! I tried making socks a few years ago, and I got completely stumped when it came to the heel. I downloaded instructions from the Internet, but I still couldn't figure it out. So I unraveled what I'd done, and my daughter made me fingerless gloves with the yarn instead.Barbara Monajemhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06740868750916582900noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-64553108640327714382010-08-27T15:05:12.264-04:002010-08-27T15:05:12.264-04:00Pat - Wow, I'm impressed. Really impressed. No...Pat - Wow, I'm impressed. Really impressed. Not only by the sewing, but by the organizing. A festival - wow!Barbara Monajemhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06740868750916582900noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-6180056637116455322010-08-27T15:01:59.186-04:002010-08-27T15:01:59.186-04:00Hi, Aunty Cindy! Good to be back. You won't ca...Hi, Aunty Cindy! Good to be back. You won't catch me dreaming about tap dancing. Now, belly dancing does appeal to me. I took a course for a week or two when I was young. I was REALLY bad at it, but fortunately I found out I was pregnant, and morning sickness (only in my case it was more like evening sickness) made it possible for me to withdraw gracefully, LOL.Barbara Monajemhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06740868750916582900noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-549343122737443502010-08-27T14:56:36.085-04:002010-08-27T14:56:36.085-04:00Minna, my mom knitted beautiful sweaters, caps and...Minna, my mom knitted beautiful sweaters, caps and scarves, and I never could learn. I think a lot of the instructions craft magazines presume a level of knowledge not everyone has. There was a yarn shop in my hometown, and Mom went there when she needed help with anything.Nancyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13705259501965011703noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-1304215149154567612010-08-27T14:33:26.018-04:002010-08-27T14:33:26.018-04:00I knit and I crochet, but I wish I could some real...I knit and I crochet, but I wish I could some really fancy stuff, because I can only do really basic stuff. And I have a hard time understanding the directions in the knitting books and magazines, because they have obviously been written for people who really know what they are doing, and not for those of us who just sort of know.Minnahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04150644876765079753noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-37459901311457056512010-08-27T14:03:13.241-04:002010-08-27T14:03:13.241-04:00Pat, that's fabulous sewing. Simple or not, a...Pat, that's fabulous sewing. Simple or not, a wedding dress is still a wedding dress.<br /><br />I'd like to take painting, too. The boy is taking lessons from a friend of ours. When he goes off to school, maybe I'll step into his time slot.<br /><br />My current hero paints. I'm picking this friend's brain about it.Nancyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13705259501965011703noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-82214575827541535342010-08-27T13:59:12.568-04:002010-08-27T13:59:12.568-04:00Skills? I sewed my wedding dress
and bridesmaids&...Skills? I sewed my wedding dress <br />and bridesmaids' dresses for my<br />two sisters. I sewed "Mom & me"<br />outfits for DD1 & I. The key word in these designs was simple. They<br />were not elaborate. I chair the<br />publicity committee for our annual<br />festival, using my fairly good<br />organizational skills. What I wish<br />I could do is paint, not walls but<br />on canvas. I've dabbled over the<br />years, saying I'll take lessons,<br />yet I never have!Pat Cochranhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11997396930842831460noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-35679059032523341122010-08-27T13:53:31.289-04:002010-08-27T13:53:31.289-04:00AC, I like musical theater, too. Thanks to Anna S...AC, I like musical theater, too. Thanks to Anna S., I'm enjoying my CD of Oklahoma with Hugh Jackman as Curly!<br /><br />I can't dance, either. I wish I could. Basically, anything involving graceful movement of the feet challenges me hugely. I did okay with tae kwon do; maybe the absence of music helps.Nancyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13705259501965011703noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-65586458964317578292010-08-27T13:48:25.066-04:002010-08-27T13:48:25.066-04:00Hey Daz, meant to say CONGRATS on getting the choo...Hey Daz, meant to say CONGRATS on getting the chook. Hope you have plans to keep him BUSY! ;-)<br /><br />ACLoucinda McGary aka Aunty Cindyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02217492654108300014noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-30968141642093175152010-08-27T13:47:12.643-04:002010-08-27T13:47:12.643-04:00Welcome back to the Lair, Barbara!
It's alway...Welcome back to the Lair, Barbara!<br /><br />It's always a treat to "see" you hear, on either side of the blog. ;-) Your new book sounds WONDERFUL, can't wait to get my hands on it!<br /><br />WOW on your heroine's sewing talents. Back in the day, I actually worked in a fabric store and made clothes for my son and my two oldest nieces. Now, I don't even know where I've stored my sewing machine. :-P<br /><br />As for something I WISH I could do... Last night some friends and I went to the theater and saw a live production of 42nd Street. It was sooo fun and energetic, made me wish I could tap dance! Alas, not in this lifetime and not with THIS body...<br /><br />ACLoucinda McGary aka Aunty Cindyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02217492654108300014noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-7476741050932254102010-08-27T13:33:34.382-04:002010-08-27T13:33:34.382-04:00Mary M., I like realistic art, too. I can sketch ...Mary M., I like realistic art, too. I can sketch and occasionally produce something decent, but I never got the hang of paints.<br /><br />See you at DragonCon?Nancyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13705259501965011703noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-73860486516730340032010-08-27T13:32:40.047-04:002010-08-27T13:32:40.047-04:00Patrice, tennis is the only pro sport I actually f...Patrice, tennis is the only pro sport I actually follow. I took it as a gym class (along with archery, which I truly loved and actually was pretty decent at), but I have no foot speed, which becomes an issue before long.<br /><br />My ambition re: Wimbledon is to have tickets at Centre Court for the fortnight--maybe when you win!Nancyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13705259501965011703noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-15154316482739286762010-08-27T13:30:45.048-04:002010-08-27T13:30:45.048-04:00Mona wrote: I can't grow anything but weeds an...Mona wrote: <i>I can't grow anything but weeds and mint<br /><br /></i>LOL! I can grow weeds. Never tried mint, but the dh frequently had to battle it back to its own corner of the garden one summer.Nancyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13705259501965011703noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3815530646091177574.post-1767762861264391522010-08-27T13:29:37.277-04:002010-08-27T13:29:37.277-04:00Alice, I also like that aspect of writing, the get...Alice, I also like that aspect of writing, the getting to be someone I'd never be otherwise. I describe one of my heroines in particular as me on steroids. She's the way I would've liked at that stage in my lie.Nancyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13705259501965011703noreply@blogger.com