xanga just isn't fun any more.  There is no Bianca Broussard to rail against, and all the little facebook queries and mini whatsits are just annoying.  I'm not blogging about the same things anymore, either.

I've opened a blogger account, and I'm exclusively blogging about my art and cards there.  If you want to see what I'm making, check Ballpoint Bliss and it's all there.

I'll probably still weigh in with my opinions to whomever is still venting here.  Andy, quit whining and write your book already.  Ostara, you are an inspiration.  I will never tire of reading about your adventures.  Spankeee, I can't believe you're married!  You were just a kid when I started reading your blog. GMMT, I hope you only have trustworthy friends from here on out..

Everyone else - I don't know where you went, but I hope you are happy there.  Ciao.

For years, I felt turn two different directions.  On one hand, I had my husband, the huge proponent of Sattelite radio, steaming his music from space, and offering the benefits to me to share.  The problem there was that even with 150 different stations, not one of them played what I really liked to hear.  It was like going to a restaurant that only sells one kind of food - no sides, drinks, or desserts, just one food cooked 30 different ways.  This is not what I wanted.

On the other hand, my kids were collecting mp3s.  Great, except that you have to acquire every last song and build your own playlist, and deletee everything and start from scratch if you want a change.  It also doesn't allow for you to find new music that you like.

Finally, both options are expensive to maintain (I'm not considering here the expense of the music device, either mp3 player or satellite radio).  You either buy the inidividual songs, or you pay for a subscription to the service.

For me, Slacker is the perfect solution.  It is radio, but not streaming or broadcast radio.  You download off the internet the entire days programming into your Slacker portable, up to 25 different stations, and your radio plays wherever you go, no antenna required.  You refresh the programming when you recharge your portable, so it is new music every day.  Now, here's the cool part:

You can design your own radio stations!  I have four different custom stations that I have built, in addition to the ones that are already designed by the Slacker DJs (over hundred different stations) that I like, and I'm always listening to a song I really like, without listening to the same playlist over and over.  It's super easy - just pick three or four artists you want to hear, and the software pulls up similar artists to fill out the station.  It's a great way to find new artists that play what you like to hear.

But wait, there's more!  There are favorite and ban buttons that allow you to pick songs you would like to hear more often, and get rid of songs you don't like.  There is also a skip button for songs that are okay, but you just don't want to listen to at that moment.  You can also pause a song and resume it later.

The absolute best part?  It's free!  Once you own the Slacker unit (or download the app to your iPhone or Blackberry), you can listen forever at no charge.  There is advertising, about one ad an hour, and no chatty DJs.  There is a premium service, $7.50 a month, that makes it completely ad free, and allows to you save mp3s of the songs you really like and play them at will, but I don't need all that. I just want MY music wherever I go (it plugs into my receiver downstairs or into my cars audio system very easily).

www.slacker.com

 

Don't hate me, but I won the WTA again!  I'm still pinching myself - I barely got the last WTA posted.

I will try to be more prompt with my scans this time.  I have six to share today.
 
The first one I received is Indian Flowers by Mara Viviano - isn't this a cool shape?  The gold flowers is popped up, too.  The gold dots are raised, too.  This is much more elaborate than you can see in the scan.

Cave Painting by Joan Melton.  You can't see the copper leaf on the faux silk background on the medallion, but there is a lot of copper in this piece, not just in the metallic fiber.  I would love to know how she made this one.

Elena Garcia made this for me - isn't it cool how the bingo chip highlights the girl's face?

The Victorian elements really work on the valentine made by Leslie Davenport.  The swirls on the gold metallic background show through the mulberry paper overlay on the top half of the card, and the flowered divider is really a printed ribbon!

This valentine card by Tisha Christian makes excellent use of the linen texture of the cardstock, and that lip sticker is the perfect accent.

Finally, I have this richly colored collage card by Brenda Beene Shackleford.  You can see her sig stamp in the lower left corner.  She was nice enough to also include some of this fascinating ledger paper to play with and my initials in a gorgeous chipboard alpha that I can't wait to use.

 I'm glad I didn't ask for any themes in particular - I would have hated to miss out on these beauties.