I’ve been thinking about what I want to change in my life for 2006. First, I want to focus on the positive more. It’s easy to get down on life when we are surrounded by instability. I’ve noticed how much my thoughts affected my outer world and how memories mold our future outlook. No matter what your past has been like, it’s over now. Yes, you still might have scars to remind you of what once was, but the event HAS past.

My favorite artist, Miles Teves always says, “Worry is a waste of imagination”

How true. I have to give up worrying about things that haven’t happened yet and focus on the end result. PEACE and Contentment. Those two things cover it all really. Money and work is just a means to an end. Isn’t it best to focus on the end result? Freedom, Peace, Contentment…..

Pray and ask the universe to send you work that is fulfilling. Then, let the universe take care of the rest.

As an intuitive, I have learned how to co-create my reality. I set up my day before it happens. I ask that events will go smoothly and they usually do. Although I pray often, I still waste TONS of energy on things out of my control.

Our society sets us up to feel bad about ourselves at every turn. Just look at a fashion magazine with its pages of ads of products that “remove eye bags, smooth out cellulite, and diminish fine lines” How can you not feel bad about yourself when you see these skinny airbrushed models on every page? Well, first of all, they don’t really look like that….at ALL! Beauty and Confidence has to come from the inside. Otherwise, it’s just a mask and sooner or later it will come off. No product will make you look in the mirror and see anything but yourself. I think we all need to stop and make a list of all the traits we like about ourselves. In the end, you’ll probably say, “Wow, I want to know her!” Love yourself and your body will love you back.

So, this year I will focus on the positive traits that make me unique and stop worrying about everything else. What WILL I do with all that extra time? Happy New Year everyone!

Love

Malena

Happy New Year tomorrow everyone! Miles and I will be spending our new year in Disneyland! Maybe….
You see, it’s raining here like mad. I guess it’s a big deal for Hollywierd. I love the rain. It washes away all the pollution out of the air AND it smells so clean! Today is about getting ready for our guests. We have one of Miles friends and his family coming to stay for a few days. That means putting all the skulls and books in order to make room for company. We have WAY to many books…and skulls.. (As if that were possible) Books are like shoes and spiders…you can never have too many. So, throughout the day I’ll be posting some cool bits. Lorraine will be rocking the house tonight. Wish I were there screaming with her. I told her to wear 3 times as much makeup as she thinks looks good. (The lights take over 75% off you know) So, if you see her looking like a mini nocturna, it’s my fault.
Let us know what you’re up to.
With pirate skulls and buried treasure,

Nocturna

I talked to Big Sexy this morning about the Big New Years Plans and it is official, I will be playing all night, so if your plans are still up in the air, let me tell you that he has Nearly talked me into wearing a corset for the show. Yup. May do it. Complete with all the girlie make-up I own. And fishnets. And HEELS. The whole deal ( oh where oh where is Malena when I need her? It will most likely end up looking like the Creature from the Black Lagoon !!!)

Big Sexy , for the record, is either going to wear a SUIT or his Elvis outfit. You heard it here first. ( yes, there WILL be pictures ) No word yet on what Mr Stemple will be outfitted in.

So, 10:00pm to 2:00am at Kieran’s in Minneapolis, for New Years Eve, me with the Tim Malloys, like you’ve never seen them!

Been listening to the radio this morning. We are having our Big Storm. Rain, sleet snow the whole bit. ( The Hot Birdchick is stopping here on her way back from the Fields of Birds, as it looks like getting thru to Minneapolis will prove to difficult ) And yes, the big story is STILL that is is going to rain in LA.

On Monday.

Weather Girl Teves needs to keep us posted on this apparently Big Event, and give us regular updates. We need to know…..

Love and the Darkness of Winter,
Lorraine

You will all be glad to know that Fred, the Unlucky Black Cat is back and alive and well. Mostly well. He got bit by somthing on his leg it seems, and it started to abcess. He has some drugs and is hobbleing around just fine now.

Hopefully , wiser, tho I doubt it. Lisa Snellings told me again how much she adores Fred , and I have offered to bring him out with me for her when I come in January. He wants to be with her. I am sure of it.

I am glad you are all so chatty lately, as I am sitting here in the country waiting to be snowed in. Snow and rain are coming, and I think noone will be going anywhere tomorrow. If it snows more than it rains, then I shall be skiing again before you know it.

It was funny today, we are waiting for a Winter Storm of ice and snow, and the radio reports were all about how it is going to RAIN in southern California starting tomorrow or the next day. This was MN Public Radio with the complete report. We don’t blink an eye at the Winter Storm coming our way , but RAIN in the land of Sunshine??? Now that’s news……

I am off for dinner and a DVD, and I hope your evenings are as relaxed and wonderful,

Love and cats,
Lorraine

Hello all again! What a Holiday Season, I can’t believe how busy and , uh, interesting it has been. Got the Current Cold and so didn’t get to have my Party on Christmas Day, it was the sort of cold where all one does is lie in bed and drink tea for three days , sleeping when not sipping. But all is better, or mostly so now, and I am catching up and getting ready for New Years and some real fun!

First off, some sad-ish news, altho knowing Fred all may yet be well. Yes, Fred the Unlucky Black Cat is once again at the vet. I tossed him out last night ( not literally ) for spraying the heating vent ( I have the MOST tolerant Housekeeper on the Planet, truly! ) and I told him he could jolly well stay outside. And then he came home this morning unable to walk on one leg. It looked pretty, uh, crooked. Here’s hoping he still has a life or two. I think this is only 6.

And now for happier news….Malena sent me the most wonderful Box , which incuded one of the sweetest things ever, she has been making a scrapbook for me all year and saving things for it, a truly wonderful thing, and yes, I cried. It made me laugh, too, this scrapbook, as I have been saving e-mails all year, from the first time I wrote to her, until our cd came out, and I made them into a book for her, complete with intro. Share a brain or what???? Two stories of the first year, one in photos and one in words.

There were also all sorts of trinkets, in my Box from Malena. A fairy house made from a rock, and Indian earrings and of course, Malena Bath Salts, without which my life would not be complete. I , for my part, as you can see, sent her BUGS, lots and lots of Spiders, ( in Skull Stockings of course ) . I have been buying Spiders on Ebay a little at a time for months now. As she says, you can never have to many.

So , onto New Years and other Fun. It looks as tho I am playing at Kierran’s in Minneapolis with the Tim Malloy’s, which ought to be a LOT of serious New Years Fun. Big Sexy ( John Sjogren ) is truly the Spirit of New Years and his outfit may surpass mine! ( not that I know what mine is going to BE yet, either my feather top Malena made me or a corset or something else. There. I have narrowed it down. ) Come on down if you are in town, great food, fine drinks and , some excellent music!!!!!

If you would like a little calmer fun, Paul and I are playing at Charlie’s in Stillwater on January 6th and 7th from 7:30 to 11:30. Now, this is the first time we will be playing as a duo, and we have some ideas , and need to try them out on a test audience. It will be entertaining, that I can promise, so if you live in the area ( or can afford plane fare , hee-hee ) hope to see you there.

On the 9th then, I am off to the Land of Sunshine again.

Which makes me happy.

Happy All, to All,
Lorraine

Here’s a photo of the spider pins I got for Christmas this year. Lorraine sent me a dozen of them. really….. But, one can never have to many bugs, real or fake..sparkly or hairy.

Hello LaMies! San Fransisco was beautiful as usual. We love the vintage shops, the weather and THE CANDY! Yes, I do believe I am candied out for the next three months.

I had a very fairy/spider Christmas. I came home to a spiderific box of presents that Lorraine sent. WOW! I now have the best collection of spider pins ever. I’ll ask Miles to take a picture of them for you!! She also sent some SOLAR powered fire flies for my fairy garden. How innovative is that? Can’t wait to hook them up. I made her a LaM scrap book filled with snap shots we wouldn’t want anyone else to see. Hey! We’re not always glam divas, but we must keep up the appearance yes? Haaaaa. no! Not really. Secretly you know you love us more because we burp and swear like the rest of the free world. Lo-We want photos d#$^ it!

Miles family gave us all sorts of creepy cool stuff. Like a Creature Features CD! How fitting. In addition to giving me the coolest spider earrings ever, they spoiled my baby bean rotten! ROTTEN I SAY! (She loved it of course.) She is now the Hip Hop Rasta Diva. Everyone knows I love spiders and bats, so when Christmas comes, that’s what I get most of. Yeah! Life couldn’t be sweeter. Even my Mom gets into the goth action for the holidays! I missed my little Momma and sisters very much. I didn’t get to see them this holiday season. Major pooper! I won’t go into that or I’ll cry.

If any of you dare, send us your christmas photos and we’ll post them. I was taking most of the “christmas morning” photos so I lucked out! (I’m not in them) I can’t wait to catch up with all of you.
XO
Malena the spider woman
P.S. Those Anansi boys better watch out!

In the land of Jelly Beans and sourdough there lives a sweet little TEVES family. On every wall there hangs artwork from every stage of Miles career…from his first dinosaur painting at age 6 to his darkness bust at age 19,,, and so on. Mr. TEVES is very much like his son Miles. They have the same handwriting and the same angelic disposition. Mrs. TEVES and I use the same vocabulary (everything is CUTE and DARLING)and we both love craft fairs. We get along like two peas in a pod. How picturesque! For me, going home with Miles for the holidays is like getting out of a time machine set for the idelic 1950’s. (Or what I imagined that time to be) Instead of being glued to the computer and a tight corset, we start out day with oatmeal pancakes and good conversation then move on to big tasks like walking around San Fransisco and visiting with friends. I so look forward to this time of year with the TEVES family. They are what every girl wants to marry into…kindness, acceptance and silliness.

While Lorraine is skiing and being good, I will be longing for chocolate as I walk past the Ghirardelli factory. he hee. I have instructed Lorraine to call me when she opens her present. In fact, she should take a picture of it and post it on the blog. I will do the same if you don’t mind seeing me half asleep in my spongebob jammies. We want to see all of your holiday cheer this season, so be sure to take lots of photos for us. And if I don’t post for a while, it’s because I’ve O.D’d on garlic in little italy and wore the wrong shoes while walking in San Fran.

Happy Holidays EVERYONE! LaM loves you!!!
Mrs. TEVES
…God I love the sound of that. We’ve been married for a while now and the name still rings in my head like heaven’s bells.

Hello All,

This has been such a busy week, even for me and my Oh No I’m Not DOING The Holiday This Year vow, it all just seems to catch you up and whirl you away in, suck you up and leave you wondering just how you got here.

I am getting a lovely box for Malena ready to send off. Looks more like Halloween than Christmas, go figure. I would tell you all what is in it, but I suspect our little Corset Queen checks in here from time to time and she has been trying for weeks to figure out her present, hee-hee. ( Ok, I’ll give you a hint, it’s mostly about BUGS. The perfect thing. No one ever has enough bugs. )

I have sent off a Basket of Goodies to my Grandmother, which seemed like a Good Thing to do . Am now looking for a river to go over, and some woods to go thru , to make the experience complete. In the last month she has had hip surgery, pneumonia, a heart attack and triple bypass surgery. Apparently, she is fine now. I should be so tough at 80….

It looks as tho The Hot Birdchick, her husband and the Sexy Librarian will be coming over for Chirstmas day for something called Naked Christmas. I am assured it has much more to do with Pajamas and Pie and bad movies than it does with actual Nakedness. Fingers crossed.

I may be playing on New Years Eve, with the Malloys, but that has yet to be confirmed. If I’m not playing I plan on staying safe at home with 7 cats and a DVD player. I am not sure which to hope for , to tell the truth, both sound like great ideas.

We will have to have another chat sometime between Christmas and New Years. All of you school folk are off school, the working folk not working to hard, and the family types are probably going to need a family break. These chats get more exciting each time, and uh, go places I never would have expected.

I have a little thing in my head all about holidays and family and friends, but it is going to have to wait, as this is still work time, and there is a lot of it. I am trying to be good and not eat to many Goodies. The ski trails are open, hurrah and I am about to go off for my first Ski of the Year.

( And remember, I live in a state with no HILLS. This is calorie burning, butt busting, knock down drag out ski on the flatlands in the below zero weather. The sort of thing we do for fun in the winter here. For a complete day, I may talk someone into taking me ice fishing. That’s where one sits in the cold over a hole in the ice and tries to catch a frozen fish. )

Ah winter…..

Love and Snow, Lorraine

Today was filled with baking and wrapping. My daughter’s school Christmas party is tomorrow. Each child was supposed to make one food item and one dessert, then share it with the class. My Baby Bean asked if we could make creme brulee’ and added, “but we don’t have to torch it Mom”. I guess that IS my child. hh heeee
We settled for raspberry chocolate cheesecake. If you call that settling. It is a little easier to make. We even put it in little cupcake tins. Here it is almost 10 pm, and I’m still baking. So far I’ve got fruit salad and baked mac-n-cheez.

Being a mom makes the holidays worth living. It’s always fun to shop for your child. Everyone else is stressful, but kids are easy. I’ve found some of the cutest fairies on Ebay. And if you’re into chocolate, LEGACY chocolates are the best. Hey! Soon, I will be sharing quick and easy gift ideas for the holiday season. I know it’s not Halloween, but we have to do it. So, we might as well make it as painless as possible. Here’s to cheesecake for 45……… 12 year old.