Simone Quentin de Manson

I have been sitting on an idea for awhile now, but have hesitated saying anything about it because I am far from being a techy expert. BUT I am online all the time, it comes with my profession (Web Designer) . This idea is to write about tools and cool stuff I find out in the world wide web. Be it a useful website, a tool to help you browse the internet or anything thats just got that, “thing” about it. This will be aimed at everyone, not just the techy geeks that find computers absorbing enough to voluntarily spend hours behind them. Ideas on posts is TOTALLY welcome.

Google Pages

I want to start with google pages. If you have gmail, you might have stumbled across this. Its a way of putting up a webpage for nothing, thats not a blog. You can put text and images in there, use it to advertise what you do or sell, have a CV for people to access, advertise your new litter of puppies you will be selling etc without having to commit to blogging. It doesnt have to stay up forever either. Keep it “published” while you are looking for a job for example. The only kicker is the URL has to end with “googlepages” eg. http://simoneqdm.googlepages.com and the designs are templates, you also need to sign up. Here is a link to an example site I set up in 20 minutes

Preview of Website Pages Editor and the Individual Page Editor

A few things to make sure your new site navigates well

• Keep your pages using the same template to avoid confusion.
• Keep your links to other pages on your website in the same place and looking the same.
• Name your pages to reflect the content.
• Keep it simple! Stay focused on its purpose and stick to it.
• Have fun!

Christchurch has this amazing system to deal with peoples trash. ONE part of it is as you go to “the tip” with your trailer load of “rubbish” you go through/past a recycling area. This recycling area has the usual bottles and paper, they also have a big shed to off load anything that is re-usable; be it electrical, parts out of mower, car or bike, toys, furnitures, kitchen things… anything! So where does this go? THE SUPER SHED!!! Early on a Saturday morning you will find the best deals.

Bring on: 5 wooden backless deckchairs (now fabric hunting) plus two deck loungers (sorry photo to come) $1 EACH!!!

A beautiful old school chalk board $10 (thats expensive for The Super Shed)

The coffee pot for this set: $8

Where does one find the super shed? (Shopping trick: Get in early wknd or during the week) Details here and below:

The SuperShed
220 Pages Rd, between Cowles Stadium and the Marae.

• Eftpos facilities are available, but credit cards not accepted
• Cheques are accepted,only with id .eg. drivers license or passport.
• This central warehouse is for sales only, you may not drop items off here.
• Trading hours: 9am to 5pm 7 days per week,

Closed on Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Years Day, Good Friday, Easter Monday and Anzac Day.

I took my camera so I could give you another montage of yummy old cool stuff!

Ahhh happy *sigh*

I have a small room that I have used previously for my web and graphic design work. Now that I am employed I want to convert that space so its not so computer orientated. This is a slow process as I am busy with lots of things and this means the studio gets a thing added now and then. Now I am up to sorting out storage and shelves! After finally going through the images I have saved when I see them I have made up some photo montages. I’m hopeless and still have not sorted out my method of saving the images original URL. BUT i will post a list of all my favorite sites for this sort of thing.

This one says “crates” because, one idea I have seen somewhere but cannot find you an image, is beer crates stacked and possibly painted to make shelves. Slightly restricted in how they are sized tho.

I also really love these:

As found on the you grow girl website.

Favorite idea-gathering Websites

• http://www.yougrowgirl.com/
• http://www.decor8.blogspot.com/
• http://bloesem.blogs.com/bloesem/
• http://www.designspongeonline.com/
• http://poppytalk.blogspot.com/
• http://blog.modishhandmade.com/modish/

For those of you who have a website and ever wonder if you can get some STATS that really rock. (nb “STATS” mean: shows how many website visits you get, from where on what dates, from what part of the world and how long they stayed on the website etc….)  There is Google Analytics. I have only just added the code to my site and have started playing. Its free and there is so much to it that I have decided to do some further research. You might get a more detailed report once I have read some help material.

Sitting in the stands waiting, we saw the cars roll up to the stage, the crowd starts a nice conservative loud cheer. I am reminded of the video living on a prayer as they stride onto stage playing Lost Highway. Sunglasses on, the Man himself tells the crowd off for sitting through the first song and makes everyone stand up. From there on in he had the stadium yelling and cheering louder and louder for every song. Your not in rock and roll for that long without learning how to make everyone sing until they are horse, or at least I did….

It was my first huge international act (for chch) I have ever been too, LOVED it. When I woke up first coherent thought was “I went to BON JOVI last night.” I even wore jeans, white shirt and black waist coat to celebrate the occasion. Quite surprised I can talk this morning.

Check out the stuff review.

When I was young my sister and I used to collect stuff. It was usually out of money my sister and I saved or a pretty little thing my mum would see and pick up for us “as a treat”. Back then I had no guilt about how much money I spent and if the right proportion of my earnings were spent on more “practical” things.

Now its different, I love pretty things; boxes, cups, pictures and more. I gravitate to junk shops and antiques. But as I do I tell myself off, some times maybe even saying “No, focus Simone. Your out to buy bike tyres NOT cups and saucers!” Sometimes I find myself saying these types of things aloud (everyone on the street now thinks I’m MAD). I do wonder where this guilt stems from; being a poor student and gaining a real respect for what money is and how we need it to eat, drink and stay warm? There is an awareness that since we were young the desire to buy and consume is ingrained and when that fact is looked at from an objective standpoint, I ask, “are those teacups really needed?”

But when I look at this post from poppytalk about Lisa Congdon I fall into a delightful daydream of finding such objects to put on my wall.

Art, culture and prettyness are essential to make people happy. Happiness is directly related to making amazing things happen. I am sure whoever invented the wheel was looking at a pretty cup that rolled off the table…

Stuff has an article about women and sewing groups. After having our wee meet up last night it seemed quite appropriate for me to say, so already there darling! When will you catch up?

Apart from being REALLY hungry, training for the Le Race has only left me a little sore. I am pretty sure I can do this and not die in the process.

Almost time for coffee, but in the mean time Decor8 had some lovely posts today, I read every word and give big shout-outs to the amazing woman behind the work.

Game on! In two ways; the first: My boss, who is paying for the entry into Le Race plus some branded cycle shirts mentioned something to do with the race and added “Simone’s “attempt” at entering the Le Race” I asked him what he meant by this, with a wicked smile (as riling people up is his past time) he said I wouldn’t make it cause I was a girl. This is a fairly recent employment. He doesn’t not yet know what I’m like when someone says I cannot do something especially if the reason is “cause your a girl”. For the record, he was joking, it still riles me and will fuel my training tonight. Infact now I want a road bike so I can actually beat the bast… man. The thing is I am saving, not for a road bike and no man makes me spend stupid amounts of money.

The second way: Check this out, thought it was quite cool! Especially since I have embroidery on the brain right now.

Ooo and started another knitting project last night, I so missed it! One should never stop knitting for that long.

Thanks to Poppy Talk!