photo of the day

this is why I was willing to spend the whole of saturday baking.

Happy birthday my dear sweet nephew!



Birthday sugar

Handy Manny is the inspiration, so blue hammers it is!

I am making a mountain of cupcakes and cookies and a personal birthday cake just for my youngest Nephew.

I am making everything from scratch and hubby even helped frost the cookies saying under his breath they will sure know which ones the Uncle helped with. I think the fact that the Uncle helped is magical in itself...what a good Uncle.

I will report more tomorrow, I think I am a little buzzed from the vast amount of sugar in the air!

Reflections

With all the Veterans day talk I have been reflecting about past family and their military experiences.

this is the oldest record I have:

My grandmother simply had it labeled "Uncle Phillip"

the picture on the left is his high school graduation picture young bright eyed boy in a new suit.

The person on the right is the same man, but haunted now. WWI uniform, gaunt, changed forever. The shape of his mouth is even different. I wish I knew more about Uncle Phillip, where he was stationed, where he served, even where the pictures were taken.

My grandfathers and great uncles served in WWII, maternal grandfather was in the Pacific...newly changed name as the family rumor was that he was hiding from the mob, after a bad deal.  I have seen pictures of him in a jeep driving on beaches. I do not know where in the pacific he served, Hawaii or beyond.

My paternal grandfather did not serve, he did not pass his physicals...but my great uncles did and they were in Europe with the Canadian Forces, one uncle was in Halifax and parts beyond and others fought overseas. I even know of a family member that was there to liberate death camps....he told me that he had taken photographs of the day they arrived as no one would ever believe what they had seen or how they had treated people....but the military took the camera away, he claims he kept a roll they did not know about.

I guess in many ways they were the original Inglorious bastards.

Western Jews fighting the Nazis.

There are even tales that my great grandmother worked for the OSS, $75 dollars or so to a research librarian in the National Archives can get that validated if we want. I like the idea of her, hunched over listening to conversations in German and transcribing.  My Grandmother and great aunts were in Canada and Stateside, doing their part with the USO and war bundles...in fact my paternal grandmother was rationed food in her home, slowly being starved and to escape that she married my grandfather. My maternal grandmother was working as war bride.

Then comes to my father and uncles, they all came to age during Vietnam. I am told that they knew of all too many friends that died, way too young, in far off places. My father joined to avoid being drafted and he had access to documents and when it was discovered that he was a Canadian he was honorably discharged, but when he wore his uniform to his brothers wedding was called a "baby killer"

One of my uncles ran with soap bars under his arms to raise his blood pressure so he would fail his physical.

I was born while Vietnam was still being fought, by brother as it was ending.

I admire the willingness of this long line of men and women to serve, I have been called an idealist in my beliefs that words can resolve conflicts.

I like the idea that no blood should be spilled and no hearts broken.

I understand that is not the case....but I see now a whole new flood of broken men and women returning home to a broken system of care for them. 

I remember the calls from a friend of my father who lived in the VA hospital; the screams and crying always present in the background. I think of the treatment my father and others received after returning home from Vietnam and newer wars. It breaks my heart. 

Although I might not believe in the war they are fighting, I believe in them.

 I only want them to come home, unbroken in spirit and body.

tired

I am really tired....I have a few big things on the horizon so I am gonna take care of myself tonight and report

more details soon

sorry.

wordless wednesday



Wide open

I am looking at you world, eyes wide open and fixed on making a difference.



Day 8

fashion 1982ish

I have an eye exam tomorrow...you would think that being an artist I wouldn't get behind on those...but according to the doctor I saw last, my last exam was in FEBRUARY 2007!!

It surprised even me.

I have had glasses since 3rd grade...when my grades dropped on stuff I was understanding and my sleuth of a mother asked where I was sitting in class. (they sat us alphabetically, so I was in the last row far far far away from the chalkboard)  I was teased all thru elementary school for the LARGE glasses I wore, then by junior high they were paired with braces and the masterpiece was complete!

Tomorrow I will take an eye exam and I hope to pass...I will look like a rain forest animal; a blind in the daylight animal wearing glasses and driving home.

Crinoline

Racks of crinoline at the Betsy Johnson Store

Last month I went "shopping" with a friend to the nearby outlets. I am not a shopper.
I don't really enjoy the trying on of clothes, the shopping for shoes and the people telling you that "you should totally get that"
Well this trip I was able to avoid all three. I did a lot of shop dreaming instead!

We went into the Betsy Johnson store, it was magical.
I was sent back to my junior high and high school creations!
There was crinoline as far as the eye could see and the shopkeeper was like Annie Potts in Pretty in
Pink except with a lot of deep lines in her face, that made the eyeliner look that much more bold.


Even with the discounts this dress that I totally fell in love with was still $348

although the store was offering a BOGO (buy one get one offer)

My friend wanted me to try it on, just for fun...
 I don't play that game well...if I liked it, I couldn't get it and if I didn't it would burst the bubble of the daydream.
So instead, I wandered and smelled the stiff fabrics and imagined myself one day returning to get any dress I wanted and getting extra crinolines too!


Superficial and shallow I know, there are far far better things to dream about then a dress.


I can honestly say I do not feed this part of the little girl in me often, in fact she is quite forgotten most of the time.
I have almost always had hand-me-down clothes, thrift store clothes and recently clothes my brother no longer wants to wear. The new clothes I have bought, are now several years old and are worn well beyond their $20 price tag.


I really like clothes, I love fashion, I don't understand it sometimes but I admire the thoughts.
So wandering out of the Betsey Johnson store had me swooning over clothes and colors and design.

I have never been to a fashion show, I have watched them on Youtube and TV and read about them in fashion mags at doctor offices...I know that Betsey does cartwheels at the end of her shows.
I admire that....be who you are, dress how you want, dance.

I might not be able to get that dress, but I can have that dream.



Take it easy

bathroom door at the local record shop,
reminds me of my mind right now

Against my better judgement I have been doing things slowly...

I figured the harder I tried to fight towards my next goal thru the haze of exhaustion,

I would not make wise choices.

I took a reality check pill or something.

So yesterday I made a new plate in the Autumn sun, and looked up some competitions. While today I organized images for future projects, ignored the pile of laundry and watched movie after movie.

I have so many ideas I am swirling, and trying to decide which direction to go first.

So I I have been feeding my internal image file...

Alice in Wonderland and  The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus

what amazing films; colorful and inventive and dark and moody...I ate them up!

Now I just wait for the dreams to come and bring me the rest.

Maybe it is ok to simply "take it easy", mental health time...very important

Lovely

I have had a couple of glasses of wine and I feel fine...

I am not going to write but simply wish you all a wonderful Friday night!

wordless wednesday

Inchworm

Inchworm

Two and two are four

Four and four are eight

Eight and eight are sixteen

Sixteen and sixteen are thirty-two

Inchworm, inchworm

Measuring the marigold

You and your arithmatic

You'll probably go far

Inchworm, inchworm

Measuring the marigold

Seems to me you'd stop and see

How beautiful they are

I am making small and purposeful moves forward, admiring the views along the way.

NaBloPoMo

I am off to try it again...can I post something of interest for a month strait?

We are celebrating our 8 year wedding anniversary tonight.

We got married on Dia De Los Muertos.

We wanted to make sure that anyone who had passed could still come to our wedding!

So after 10 years of dating,

 Hubby got a wild hair and asked me to marry him!

I was totally fine to live in sin the rest of our natural life

...but I agreed and boy I am glad I did!

I first meet hubby in a pottery class.

I had just come home from a trip to Europe to study art in Paris and then ended up traveling alone for an additional three months.

On arrival home, I was filled with a pure sense of self and "cahones" and was on the prowl!

I signed up to take a pottery class with my mom at the local community college

and had given myself one of my many ultimatums,

I said to myself, self you get no pleasure from creating things in this class, then it is time to pursue another field of study.

Well on the first day while they were taking attendance a few late comers were coming into the room and one of them was this dark haired guy

and

when I saw him the WHOLE ROOM went black except for him!

 I swear to the heavens...I am telling the truth.

It was there and then that I set forth to find out more about this man....

He never had a chance

I think it took another two classes to get him alone in class,

and when I did I handed him a piece of paper with my phone number on it

and said the smooth line

" It looks like you need to talk, call me"

Much to my surprise he did that night and invited me over to his place the next morning for a homemade breakfast!

I didn't know how to cook so I grabbed the chance for a free meal with a hottie....

We ate, we walked in the rain and that was the first day of the last 18 years!

oh yeah, and I am still making art too.

Hang'em High

the final touches

The show is hung, I add labels and text tomorrow

Almost There

framed work ready for gallery transport...
wait that is me.
Xander can barely look

I go to the gallery tomorrow morning to hang my show...it sounds totally weird to say. I have been working so hard and so long for this the level of surreal is extreme.

As I write this I am finishing up a piece of assemblage and working on pricing work.

prices on labels or not...I am thinking yes and therefore avoiding additional paper like price menus etc...

I am also thinking of getting rid of the chair in the front gallery. It clogs up the area and I would prefer it didn't have a clog in the flow of people.

OK I am totally obsessing.

I take the work to the gallery and lean it up against the walls....that is the first step according to this "bible" I am reading, well more like memorizing! It is great and walks you thru step by step to hanging your own show...problem is I forgot it at work and now hubby has to bring it home tomorrow so I can breathe again. Although I AM hanging tomorrow, for some unknown reason I need to have it in my possession even if I don't crack it's spine tomorrow.

I am having two people help me and have asked that all others respect the space and not come into the gallery until it is hung and finished. I hope to have it all on the walls by late tomorrow and simply do labels and text on Thursday and then simply sit back and wait for the other show to fall.

I barely slept last night, the heat and my panic attacks had me awake most of it...and when I did slip far enough into sleep to dream, all my dreams were of my name being spelt wrong or people saying mean things about me in the paper. As well as some strange crossbreed of Twilight meets random Monica ideas...but that is a whole other ball of wax.

Tonight I am simply trying to not melt, it is all over the new...California is not only in a drought but also a massive heat wave. I am sitting here at 9pm dripping as it is currently a cool 87 degrees in my home!

ugh

but the cats seemed to have coagulated enough to move again.

Tomorrow the adventures begin!

Running Like The Wind

"Grateful Dance" by Ranell Hansen
Celebrating her new hips

I spent yesterday running to and from things....

I submitted some work as well as a friends work to a Call for Entries in Santa Barbara.

I have only gotten into this annual show in the very long ago past.

Since then I have paid money to have the gallery babysit my work for several hours while I wait at another location trying to not think about it and trying to imagine it in the show. Meanwhile they are mostly looking at the work and then setting it into time-out.

Call for entries are kind of cut throat cattle call; you pay some money to have a juror look at your work and decide if they like it, and if it fits their vision enough to include it in the show they are forming for this event.

Last year it hurt so badly that I had a "Pity Party Sale" in my Etsy Shop,

"please get this reminder of my rejection out of my house"

I have yet to sell anything from that pity party sale....

I could go down a whole other path about that but why?!

my mother-in-laws quilt "Piccalilli Circus"
a classic pickle dish design

This year, while distracting myself with a Quilt show, a soccer game and some family visits

the judge was looking at some great work and deciding who was going to be in this years show.

Turns out I get to sit this one out again,

but

my friend made the cut!!

 I am so thrilled for her, she submitted something she loved and said "even if he doesn't like it, I love it enough that I won't beat myself up about it if it is not accepted"

Well dear friend....he loved it too!!

~

I bought myself some FINE chocolate on the way home, and savored the sweetness of the day, then fell asleep with the heavenly flavors in my mouth.

Back to the grindstone.....My show opens on Thursday after all

and

I have a TON of work to do before then!

Off the subject

Although the theme is Art this month, this works well with my upcoming show.
A little humor to lighten the pain.

I am here

So here are the videos that Chad Sorg made as part of his ArtistFishbowl series.

He put a call out to artists and asked if anyone wanted to talk about their art.

 We chatted and he shot it via his laptop camera.

It is a funny video but I get to talk about my show and look nervous too!

Machine Ready

the image from the card

I was at the machine shop today....doing some work for the brother.

and delivering the news as gently as possible that I will not be in again for a while.

I am up now mounting the last of the images and tucking them into their silver frames.

It feels great!

Busted My Butt

I was given a small break today when Theo (short for Thelonious, as in Monk) mewed to me to chase him...I did was rewarded with some kitty play time.

Well I spent the whole day cutting mats and they are now all cut and assembled into window mats!

A monster task that was taking so so so so long, so now that is all done, I just "simply" need to mount the images, find their names and tuck them into frames.

then transport them to the gallery and hang them on the walls!

I got an email interview sent to me today, I need to finish that too.

I hope my eyes and hands will work tomorrow, I kind of whipped their asses today.