Over the years I have been called many things… yes really The one that seems to crop up more often than not is “hey girl”. It seems to describe me for some reason, and I don’t really mind it. I’m fifty-four and still get called that on occasion, so it’s all good!

http://dailypost.wordpress.com/2013/06/19/daily-prompt-tagline/

http://thetrashbash.wordpress.com/2013/06/19/the-uncategorised-daily-prompt-tagline/#comment-1031

WASHINGTON (AP) — A wide-ranging farm bill the House is considering would cut food stamps by $2 billion a year and make it more difficult for some people to qualify for the domestic food aid program.

Passage of the five-year, half-trillion-dollar farm bill could depend on the level of cuts to the $80 billion-a-year program. Many House conservatives have said the cuts don’t go far enough, while liberals have argued against any cuts, saying the House farm bill could take as many as 2 million recipients off the rolls. The cuts are about 3 percent of the food stamp program, now called the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP.

The chamber is expected to begin voting on 103 amendments to the farm legislation, including bids to reduce or expand the food stamp cuts, on Wednesday.

Farm-state lawmakers have been scrambling to win bipartisan votes for the measure, facing defections from both parties over the SNAP cuts. It was unclear whether Republican leaders will be able to gather the votes they need to pass the bill, which would also expand some agriculture subsidies and set policy for rural development programs.

Conservative groups have lobbied aggressively against the legislation, arguing for greater cuts to farm subsidies and food stamps. The White House has threatened to veto the bill, saying the food stamp cuts are too high.

In an effort to push the legislation through, House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, said last week that he will vote for it, while making it clear that he doesn’t really like it. He said he wants to get the bill to House-Senate conference and passing the bill is better than doing nothing. The legislation would cut around $4 billion a year in overall spending on farm and nutrition programs.

Democratic leaders have said they will wait to see how the chamber votes on amendments, but have so far signaled opposition to the measure. Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi of California is a “likely no” on the bill, according to a spokesperson, and No. 2 House Democrat Steny Hoyer of Maryland called the food stamp cuts “irresponsible” on Tuesday.

House Agriculture Committee Chairman Frank Lucas, R-Okla., pleaded for votes on the House floor Tuesday, saying a robust farm policy is necessary to avoid farm crises like those in the 1930s and 1980s.

“I will work with all of you to improve this draft,” he said. “I ask you to work with me.”

The House legislation would achieve some of the food stamp cuts by partially eliminating what is called categorical eligibility, or giving people automatic food stamp benefits when they sign up for certain other programs. The bill would also end a practice in some states of giving low-income people as little as $1 a year in home heating assistance, even when they don’t have heating bills, in order to make them eligible for increased food stamp benefits.

Lucas called his bill as the “most reform-minded bill in decades,” saying it would make needed cuts to food stamps and eliminate $5 billion a year in direct payments, subsidies that are paid to farmers whether they grow or not. The bill also expands crop insurance and makes it easier for rice and peanut farmers to collect subsidies.

It was uncertain how amendment votes could affect the vote on final passage, which could happen this week or next. Any alterations to the delicate balance of farm subsidy support included in the bill could cause members who represent the regions or crops affected to turn on it. Amendments targeting rice, peanut, sugar and dairy subsidies, among other crops, are expected to have contentious votes. The chamber will also vote on a Democratic amendment to eliminate the food stamp cuts.

It has been more than five years since the House passed a farm bill. Since then, Republicans took control of the chamber and more than 200 new members have been elected — many of them conservatives who replaced rural Democrats.

The politics of farm and food aid have also changed since then. Farm country is enjoying record-high prices and is one of the most profitable sectors of the economy, causing many lawmakers to question why farmers still receive more than $15 billion a year in subsidies. And the food stamp program has doubled in cost as the economy has struggled.

Farm groups were scrambling Tuesday to lobby lawmakers on the bill.

Chandler Goule, a lobbyist for the National Farmers Union, said his group is telling Democrats that the food stamp cuts will likely be reduced in conference because the Senate farm bill passed last week has a much smaller cut — about one-fifth of the amount of the House cuts, or $400 million a year. With the presidential veto looming, lawmakers will have to bring that number down, Goule said.

“We need to remember this is not the last vote,” Goule said he is telling lawmakers.

With leadership staying mostly on the sidelines, much of the lobbying has been left to the farm groups, Lucas and Minnesota Rep. Collin Peterson, the top Democrat on the agriculture panel. On Tuesday, both said they think they have the votes for passage.

Peterson said predicted at least 40 Democrats will support the bill. He too has been telling fellow Democrats that the food stamp cuts are likely to change in a conference with the Senate.

If the bill fails, he said, Congress will just have to haggle over another extension of current law. The 2008 farm bill was extended in January.

“If we can’t get this through now, I don’t know when we can,” he said.

___

Follow Mary Clare Jalonick on Twitter: 
http://twitter.com/mcjalonick

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.

When I first met James Britton, he was sitting with engineer Jake Grotticelli and artist Nita Chawla in one of the recording rooms in House Studio. This team put their heads together, tried out different ideas, and created a song.

James is a brilliant guitarist and songwriter. Only twenty years old, his first album was nominated for “Best Pop/Rock Recording” in the 2012 Wammies. His style is reminiscent of artists like Ed Sheeran, Josh Verdes, Joshua Radin. His sound is primarily acoustic, and he plays off of his guitar proficiency in a John Mayer fashion.

I was extremely impressed with James Britton’s talent, both as a musician and as a writer. I hope that promoting this new artist’s music will help his talent to be recognized, and I encourage other music lovers to share his work.

Join the Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/jamesbrittonmusic

Here I was tonight on facebook commenting on a minimalist page, I like their posts as I believe they are good in theory, and I had a bit of a discussion over one in particular…  But, I could never commit to it.  I have an addiction to buying clothes, sewing supplies and kitchenware.  I can’t help it, I just like to cook and sew.  I used to buy a lot of furniture, but my partner has managed to curb that part of me, and I see the value in having more space around our home and less clutter…  Having said that clutter can be disguised by organisation, which leads to more expense in the process of acquiring this level of masked clutter.

My current addiction is Tupperware!  I am looking to find some cheap tupperware, I don’t even mind if it’s second hand so long as it is in good condition.  However, what I’m finding on ebay is that most of what I want to buy is coming from Malaysia.  I have read a post saying a lot of it comes from countries offering low paid labour, which I can understand from Tupperware’s perspective, but I would assume they wouldn’t be selling it outside of Tupperware, especially since I can’t order items from the American site.  Does this mean it’s not genuine?  Or just sold from the manufacturer?  I would be willing to pay for it if it is the same quality, especially since buying it here from a demonstrator would be the same as if I bought it off ebay, only ebay is more convenient for me.  It’s the same product, made in the same place by the same people, in the same conditions, only at a different price.  I just don’t know how reliable it is to purchase from these buyers.  I haven’t had too much trouble buying on ebay in my time, but this is a substantial amount of money I can’t afford to lose.  So maybe I just save that little bit more for their trusted and quality customer service and attention to detail.  I must admit I’ve never had a problem with the Tupperware representatives.  My biggest dilemma is that I feel guilty and pressured into buying more, when I can only afford a few items at a time.  Don’t get me wrong, I could probably purchase everything in the catalogue given half a chance, but if I wait like I am now I might miss something as new colours come out and new items replace old styles.  This form of marketing works for them, and we all battle out for items on ebay, sometimes paying way more than the item is worth because either the item is missing from our collection or we don’t realise the true value and overpay.

I am looking for fridgesmart containers and modula mates to help organise my kitchen.  Currently my pantry looks a mess, no matter what I do I feel like I can’t maintain order.  I try to organise my shelves, but I have little space, and with lots of packets, different containers etc it looks so unorganised.  I think if I could just get some modula mates my cupboard would be more organised, labelled and easily accessible.  But, I can’t decide if I have enough faith to purchase from these sellers…  At the same time, if I went with Tupperware I would have to save for months to have a party and get all the items I’m after.

Part of my problem is that I’m too impatient and a completist.  I don’t like to wait, in the past I have borrowed and paid off things I couldn’t wait for.  I have a tupperware order to pay a consultant next week, and I know it’s going to cost me around $300+, and I won’t get much off my list for that either.  I can’t have a party at the moment, although it would be lovely.  Maybe the tax man will be kind to me this year, and I might get a nice refund!

How do these items catch us?  And, where will it end?  No matter what we get, we will always want more.  It’s like our incomes.  The more you make the more you spend, living a humble little life on a humble wage encourages us to appreciate what we have.  I like to take a step back from time to time and forget my wishes and imaginings of what I want to be and achieve  to just step back look at how far I’ve come and do today what I can to work towards tomorrow.

My partner and I are changing a few things, little changes at a time.  We’ve come from a lifestyle where we went out for dinners and brunches everyday and had nothing to show for it.  I have since developed a taste for organisation and a sense of accomplishment, I’m cooking at home more, looking for healthy alternatives and trying to curb our habits for the best.  We are finding date night to be an effective step in the right direction, although it goes against the idea of home cooked meals, they sometimes take me away from him as I spend a lot of time in the kitchen and maintaining the house.  We’re still in the process of making our house a home, for me the kitchen, laundry and bathroom are my areas (plus my craft room which I haven’t been spending as much time is as I’d planned), so I need to feel I have some control and management over.  Which is where my appliances and Tupperware comes in as it makes my time in there easier.  Where as he uses his computer a lot and his values are different to mine, but at the end of the day, we come together and what we have made together is our home!  Something that defines us!

I would like us to spends some more time outdoors, but I will have to work on that one.

We had a lot of work done our yard this Spring. Last Fall we needed to replace our sewer pipe coming out of the house and leading to the street. This required the plumbing company to dig a trench across our front yard and left it looking pretty horrible. We are SO pleased with how it looks now and I am really enjoying spending time sitting on our front porch. (The grass has come in really nicely since I took these pictures.)

Corey and I decided not to plant a large garden this year, but I did want to grow some herbs. We used a pallet and are growing three kinds of basil, mint, cilantro, lavender, and three kinds of oregano along with a few flowers. It is such a fun addition to the back patio. (And checks off another goal from my 30 before 30 list!)

details from a house in Unterammergau (Germany)

That being said, I think we have made enough updates in this house that it would be an appropriate time to give you all a whole house tour, complete with before and after photos(my fav).

I decided to go ahead and include photos of the very first day I laid eyes on this house(the photos are from my phone and they aren’t too clear, sorry!), also I will include photos of the house the day we moved in and lastly photos of our progress! I will also explain what we have done in each area of the home to date and what we would like to do down the road. So hold on to your hats cause here it comes.

Front Yard:

Here she is! The first time I laid eyes on her, it was love at first sight.

And here she is today, this photo is a bit closer. I did not get a photo of the front yard on moving day though! poop!

What we have done:

• Removed dying sago palm on the left side of the garage door.
• Removed holly bushes, stumps and all.
• Dug out all remaining plants.
• Removed all garden rocks and pavers around gardens.
• Trimmed back remaining sago palms.
• Added in new red mulch.
• Added solar lights.
• Power washed house and driveway.

What we still want to accomplish:

• Add more plants/flowers to the gardens.
• Paint front door.
• Get new house numbers.

So far were off to a good start with the front yard.  I am sure this to do list will expand. Next up…

Dining Room:

This is the first time I saw the dining room at my walk through with our realtor…

Here is moving in day…

and today…

What we have done:

• Prepped and painted the walls and trim.
• Changed outlet covers, door handles and hinges.
• Steam cleaned the carpet.
• Removed the chandelier and installed new light fixture.

What we still want to accomplish:

• Get rid of old couch.
• Remove carpet, replace with new carpet.
• Get furniture.
• Find art for walls.
• Add window treatments.

We are still unsure what we would like this room to be, we do not necessarily need a dining room.  We already have our table in our little eating nook in the kitchen and we now have the new patio set.  We are contemplating another living/sitting area.  We are not really formal type of people, so a formal dining or living room isn’t really for us.  We still have a long way to go in here.

Office:

First day I saw it…

Then on moving day…

And then here it is today…

What we have done:

• Prepped and painted the walls and trim.
• Changed outlet covers, door handles and hinges.
• Steam cleaned the carpet.
• Added our desk, printer table and lamp.
• Added some wall art.

What we still want to accomplish:

• Remove carpet, replace with new carpet.
• Add walls and french doors to close off the room.
• Get new corner desk.
• Get book shelf or hutch for storage.
• Add window treatments.

Still plenty to accomplish.

Long Hallway:

At first sight again…

Then on moving day….

And today…

What we have done:

• Prepped and painted walls and trim.
• Changed outlet covers, door handles and hinges.
• Removed lighting at front door.
• Added small hanging fan to front entry.
• Added carpet runner.
• Added long hall table.
• Let Charlie live here.

What we still want to accomplish:

• Paint inside of front door.
• Add glass storm door.
• Add art to walls(possibly gallery wall).

Kitchen:

At first sight…

Then on moving day…

And then today…

What we have done:

• Cleaned grout.
• Prepped and painted walls and trim.
• Changed outlet covers, door handles and hinges.

What we still want to accomplish:

• Paint cupboards white and replace doors with new white ones or replace cupboards completly with new white ones.
• Add granite counters.
• Replace island with butcher block.
• Get stainless steel appliances.
• Add art to walls.
• Re-grout tile(it’s all discolored).

Kitchen Eating Nook:

At first walk through…

On moving day…

And then today…

What we have done:

• Prepped and painted walls and trim.
• Cleaned grout.
• Added our kitchen table.
• Changed outlet covers, door handles and hinges.

What we still want to accomplish:

• Re-grout tile.
• Add art to walls.

Living Room:

At first sight…

Then on moving day…

And today…

What we have done:

• Prepped and painted walls and trim.
• Changed outlet covers, door handles and hinges.
• Purchased new couches.
• Purchased new TV console and TV.
• Made cornice for window.
• Added area rug.
• Added art to walls and mirror above fireplace.

What we still want to accomplish:

• Mount TV to wall.
• Add decorations to nooks.
• Possibly add a matching cornice above french doors.

Guest Bedroom #1:

First sight…

Move in day…

Then today…

What we have done:

• Prepped and painted walls and trim.
• Changed outlet covers, door handles and hinges.
• Steam cleaned the carpet.
• Purchased queen guest bed and bedding.
• Added wall art.
• Added rocking chair and small stools for tables.

What we still want to accomplish:

• Remove and replace carpet.
• Get nice antique dresser.
• Add more art to walls.
• Make window treatment.
• Get headboard/footboard for bed.

Guest Bathroom:

First…

On moving day…

Today…

What we have done:

• Prepped and painted walls and trim.
• Changed outlet covers, door handles and hinges.
• Added shower curtain and rugs

What we still want to accomplish:

• Repaint walls(I do not like the color).
• Replace vanity.
• Possibly add bead board.
• Purchase new shower curtain and rugs.
• Add wall art.

Guest Bedroom #2:

First sight…

Moving day…

Today…

What we have done:

• Steam cleaned the carpet.
• Added junk.

What we still want to accomplish:

• Remove border.
• Prep and paint walls and trim.
• Change outlet covers, door handles and hinges.
• Replace fan.
• Get shelving/furniture for storage.
• Remove and replace carpet.
• Get desk for myself.
• Purchase easel for painting.
• Organize and store painting, sewing and crafting supplies.

I have a lot of plans for this room since it will be my office.  I am waiting until I find the right furniture and art.  I want unique things in here! I can’t wait to get going.

Master Bedroom:

Moving day…

And today…

What we have done…

• Prepped and painted walls and trim.
• Changed outlet covers, door handles and hinges.
• Got new bedroom furniture.
• Added art to walls.
• Purchased new bedding.
• Added area rug.
• Added rocking chair and old trunk.
• Made throw pillows for bed.

What we would still like accomplish:

• Add one more piece of art on the wall between the bathroom door and the bedroom door.

Very close to done! Woo hoo!

Master Bathroom:

First sight…

Moving day…

And today…

What we have done:

• Add some decorations.

What we would still like to accomplish:

• Remove shower and tub.
• Remove linoleum.
• Remove vanity.
• Remove walls around the toilet.
• Lay new tile and grout.
• Add storage closet.
• Add new vanity, mirror and light fixture.
• Add glass shower stall.
• Tile and grout shower.
• Add art and decorations.

Basically we have done nothing in here.  We would like to change the whole layout of this bathroom.

Back Yard:

moving day…

And today!

What we have done:

• Added screen.
• Replaced ceiling fan.
• Power-washed the house.
• Painted doors.
• Dry-walled, textured and painted back of house inside screened area.
• Tiled and grouted floor.
• Bought patio set.
• Bought plants for inside patio.
• Re-sodded yard.
• Trimmed bushed and trees.
• Removed holly trees.
• Planted palm tree and magnolia tree.
• Made garden around patio.
• Mulched all gardens.
• Bought Big Green Egg grill.
• Added patio pavers.
• Had new gutters put on back of house.

What we would still like to accomplish:

• Add trim between grout and wall of house.
• Add wall decoration in patio.

Laundry Room:

First sight…

Moving day…

and today…

What we have done:

• Prepped and painted walls and trim.
• Removed old shelving and added new shelves.
• Added decorations and wall art.

What we would still like to accomplish:

• Add art to wall on opposite wall.

So that’s our whole house!  I think we have gotten a good start on changes we want to make.  Of course we still have a few huge projects like the kitchen and master bath, but so far we have made some good improvements. What do you think?  Please share!

The border amendment proposed by Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) failed 39-54, with “nay” votes coming from the entire “gang of eight” — which includes Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), who famously said in a 2010 ad that the government should “complete the danged fence,” and Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), who has called for more border protections in his own bill.

The amendments were among the first to receive votes since the bipartisan bill passed votes last week to move forward to debate. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said Tuesday that he plans to file for a final vote by Monday, with the goal of passing the bill by the July 4 recess.

Genre: Deep House

My first impression of this is very good. I very much Like the intro. a deep rasta vibe that really takes you on a beach in the sun rise early morning vibe. Yeah very nice.

Very Laid back, running at about 120bpm which is right for me and this mix. Some nice scattered vocal tracks dotted around some really nice instrumental ones.

This has got feel good all over it. if you like your deep then you will enjoy this. I will be saving this one for the car, windows down who cares about traffic, im listening to this shizzle and let me tell you its worth downloading and keeping.

The mixing is bang on. No fault that I can hear. I can hear the passion from this DJ.

The only thing stopping this from being a ten in my eyes is the length. 54 mins should have been made to an hour. one more lovely track and it would have been there.

Our Mixed Reviews rates this Mix 9/10

Parisian DJ, producer and remixer, Julien Auger began his musical career by learning guitar at the age of 14 and playing with various Parisian Jazz Funk bands. It was around this time that he began DJing with a few different Hip Hop bands and also started to produce his first tracks for them.
As raves became larger and more popular in the early 90s, Pepe discovered Techno and House music. His first two records were released on BPM Records under the ‘Trankilou’ moniker with Ark and Doobass, before he changed his name to Pepe Bradock. His musical influences range from Jazz to Dub Reggae which culmulates in his hypnotic production style.

Pépé Bradock has done remixes for New Jersey’s Blaze, Cassius, Alex Gopher amongst many others. His biggest hits to date include ‘Burning’ and ‘Life’ both for the French label Kif. Apart from that Pepe has produced for well-known House labels including Classic (UK), Silver (France) and Nuphonic (UK).
As a DJ, Pépé Bradock has spun in almost every major club in the world and is known for his versatile, and mesmerising mixing style.

via

How awesome is this grey space!

I cant get enough of Avicii’s new song ‘WAKE ME UP’! It kinda takes me back to last year when I went for my first rave in Durban. I begged my mom to let me go and after that night I fell in love with house music. I was in love with Avicii for a whole year!!! really love this song and how much he has opened up into the EDM world… well done tim!!

House is home
with intimacy and comfort together
home sweet home.

Captain Morgan’s ad had obviously conquered this mural…

The amazement grew as I went along discovering their work. These guys were creating, in present tense, a house sound that exhaled the sophistication and the soul from another time, without falling into any revival patterns – a rare equation that I could only find in the outstanding productions from Phonique, Storm Queen (Morgan Geist’s side-project), and a handful of cases.

No wonder, then, that the news of a Disclosure album placed the duo of brothers Guy and Howard Lawrence at the top of my “Most Anticipated Debut Albums in 2013″ list. No wonder, too, that when I bought my copy of Settle, before it even reached the shelves, I saw myself leaving the record store with this huge smile – no, dear reader, I don’t do album streams.

A few hours later, the “first listening ritual”: lights off, headphones on and the first track, “When a Fire Stars To Burn”, igniting the muscles with an uncontrollable urge to dance and setting the ground for 60 minutes of absolutely incredible music.

Settle is everything that Disclosure projected one year ago and even more: it’s a manifesto of house music’s emotionality and sheer elegance. Tracks are shaped into pop songs – accessible, contagious, and passionate. The voices, from an outstanding range of guests, take the leading role, injecting soulfulness and warmth to the rhythms, magnifying the feeling of infatuation portrayed in the lyrics written by the Lawrence brothers themselves. Not only are they producers, Disclosure also write their own songs.

And what an amazing set of songs: “Larch” is still the best pop single that came around these days (there’s no explanation for Sam Smith’s vocals); the spaciousness and rhythmic language in “White Noise” and “F For You” are just brilliant; “January” and “Defeated No More” are loaded with so much sensuality it hurts; in “Help Me Lose My Mind”, the closing mid-tempo track, we lose ourselves in a tender kiss by the sunset.

When there was silence, still in the darkness of my room, a certainty was settled: this is the best dance album since Daft Punk’s Discovery.