What I could use today....

....some serious nappage......

Some days I just wish I was my cat. * o

What I could use today....

Girl's Night Out

Yesterday I had to travel to the city for an eye appointment and my "BFF" came along with me. She agreed to be my eyes after the appointment for the couple of hours it takes for my pupils to go back to normal after those hideous drops that dilate them. I ended up looking pretty funny after the drops too - one eye didn't get as much as the other, and so one pupil was waaayyy dilated! We browsed a couple of stores, laughing at how stoned I looked, had supper and went to see "Mamma Mia" on the big screen. The movie rocks! ABBA music, a Greek Island, great choreography, a cute and funny story and Pierce Brosnan - so who could ask for more? (OK, so Pierce can't really sing that great, but damn he looks good anyway) And if you don't like ABBA, then you'd probably not like this movie. I wore out my ABBA eight track when I was teen (if that sentence doesn't date me at all). Best part? Meryl Streep totally nails "The Winner Takes It All" - wow.

We laughed, we cried, we had a blast and we both wondered why we don't do these girlfriend outings more often. Sometimes, we just have to kick ourselves in the butt, and drag us out of our routines!

(.....you can dance, you can jive, having the time of your life, see that girl, watch that scene....dig in the Dancing Queen!) * o

Girl's Night Out

Oh, those summer nights

We've been enjoying some fairly nice weather this August, the best night being last weekend. The temps were warm, the skies clear and the moon full. The perfect summer night. Made even better by the addition of a dozen or so of some of the the most awesome teens/young adults I know who hung out around our fire for a bit.

Oh summer nights......soon to be fall. I'm keenly aware of the passing of time and summer coming to a close. One more week and College Boy will be heading back to school. The days even now are starting to get shorter.

If I had seen the meteor shower a couple of weeks ago, I would have wished on the shooting stars for a longer summer. It seemed so long in coming and so quickly flown by. But nature knows these things are not to be. The seasons must change, the wheel must turn.

Do I sound a bit blue? Ya, I always hate the end of summer. * o

Oh, those summer nights

A Sort of Artsy Weekend

Not the best photo of it, but finally finished my first assemblage type piece this weekend. This one took me a while to do, from the time I salvaged the old weathered board until when I decided just what I was going to do with it. There's rusty things, and feathers, and mosaic tiles and polymer clay in this piece and generally I'm pleased with way it came together in the end.

The August long weekend has been fabulous weather wise, and I'm really glad I've had some down time and some play time to enjoy it. Would like some more play time, but with company in the house it's hard to manage that.

I've seen two bears, a doe with two fawns, and the cutest little not too shy bunny rabbit over the course of the weekend so you could say I've been enjoying some time communing with nature as well.

Tomorrow it's back to work and back to the routine. These are the summer days when you wish you had a time machine, just to stretch things out for a little while. * o

A Sort of Artsy Weekend

This Summer shall be known as....

"The Summer of the Skunk"....or..."One Skunky Summer". Yup, the dog got nailed again. Worse than the first time requiring three baths so far and several days of trying to get "that smell" out of the house. Seems our dog is a slow learner and has not yet learned to compute the equation - Black and White Striped Kitty Like Animal = Very, Very Bad Smell. Cats are just so much smarter.

On a Funnier Note

File this one under "Stupid Things People Say". Recently we acquired the lot next door, after our neighbour of twenty years tore down his old house and sold the property to us. He's moved on to bigger and better things, and while we miss him as a neighbour, we are definitely happy for him regarding the wonderful happenings in his life. And so our yard has gotten bigger, and John has been busy building a fence and putting in grass seed and now he has a lot more grass to cut. This being a small town, the usual rumor mill has been working full shifts with people speculating on just what will be done with "that property". Today I overheard the funniest conversation yet. I'm standing at my open livingroom window when I hear this couple outside the yard on the sidewalk.

Her: "Must be nice to just suddenly acquire a whole 'nother yard, eh?"

Him: "Ya, like they just took it right over." Pause. "Maybe they paid for it."

Ya think?????

Quick, somebody call the police. Apparently I'm a yard thief. * o

This Summer shall be known as....

Hands

"I am fire and if you have doubts about that, bring your hands forth." - Rumi





(watercolor, ink and pastels)

* o

Hands

And the Universe laughs...

So, remember yesterday's post? The "something wonderful will happen today"? Remember how I said that I knew that even with the wonderfuls would come the awfuls? You know, life is full of goods and bads?

And so the Universe laughed and tonight - my dog just got nailed by a skunk. Right outside the open livingroom window. Yes folks, we are smothered in Eau de Pepe LePew right now. And said dog, a lab, is ironically afraid of water. Bathing him to get rid of the smell was a job and a half for College Boy. The dog will be sleeping in the porch tonight.

I think I still hear the Universe chuckling......something wonderful this way smells.... :) * o

And the Universe laughs...

Something Wonderful

Last week I started an experiment. It came about from something I read (and don't ask me where I read it because I can't remember if it was in a book, a magazine or on someone's blog - I read too much and remember too little). Anyway, the gist of what I read was that when you wake up in the morning start your day off thinking something wonderful is going to happen today, instead of thinking about all the ick things you have to do that you don't want to do. Then be open to receive whatever wonderful thing comes your way. So, I thought I'd give it a shot. I start the morning off saying to myself "something wonderful is going to happen today." Amazing what a shift in perception that gives you.

You see, for every day that I have said that, something wonderful has happened. Now, these are not big miraculous happenings. And most of them would have occurred whether I said, "something wonderful is going to happen today" or not. (I'm pretty sure my husband was going to give me flowers for our anniversary anyway, and that package in the mail was going to arrive one day....) Nor am I so superstitious as to believe that if I don't say "something wonderful is going to happen today" all sorts of weird and awful things will happen. Life is full of good and bad moments and I'm pretty sure there are going to be bad days. Nope, the shift has come in my attitude to those "something wonderfuls". By opening myself to the possibility of receiving them, I become AWARE of them. They pop into my day, and I think "hello, something wonderful" and I'm happy. It's all in what you dwell on isn't it? Good moments or bad moments? Something wonderfuls or something awfuls? I'm kind of liking this experiment, this opening up to the little, good things that make up my life.

Join me? Something wonderful is going to happen today.......I guarantee it.

* o

Something Wonderful

Mandala

Been fooling around with pastels today and created this mandala on black cardstock paper. The colors are a little bit brighter than how they show up in this scan.

Last night we lit a fire in the pit and I threw an Altoids tin in it to experiment with altering it. Turned out good, now I just have to figure out what I'm going to do with it. Lately, I have so many projects I want to try out but when I get into the shed to create, I can't decide what to start on! Then there's this whole energy problem I've been having - too drained during the week to do anything but get myself to work and that's it. I guess if I try to look on the bright side it would be that I'll never have a shortage of "creative projects" to work on!

So much art out there......so little time :) * o

Mandala

Happy Anniversary!

23 years.....two kids...a cat and dog...a home...numerous ups and downs...friends and family that have come and gone...we're still here - here's to the best part of my life! * o

Happy Anniversary!

I spent my birthday....

yesterday at this gorgeous place, with my "bestest" friend. We were attending a watercolor workshop, taught by Biljana Baker a local artist. It was a gorgeous day as you can tell by the photos and so much fun. Learned lots I didn't know about how to use watercolors, some brush techniques, and using masking fluid to create a resist. Biljana is an amazing artist with a wonderful warm personality - you could tell she was enjoying herself. I really love when someone who is teaching you is also passionate about what they are doing. That enthusiasm just overflows to the students! Add a gorgeous location with tons of atmosphere, and overall it was a pretty good day. Later that night we relaxed around the fire pit at my place with friends and family. Everyone surprised me this year with artsy presents - brushes, markers, stamps, a mosaic stepping stone kit, a heron sculpture.....I was totally spoiled. High School Boy, home for the weekend, made the birthday cake which was yummy! And there was plenty of sunshine, something so desperately needed around here.

(photos - Quebec Lodge where the workshop was held, the awesome view from the lodge, Lynn and me) * o

I spent my birthday....

Butterfly Woman

The story of Butterfly Woman

Butterfly Woman was born a small caterpillar in a rather nondescript garden. She had an uneventful childhood in the garden, going to school with the other caterpillars learning how to avoid becoming a bird’s tasty lunch. She entered her teen years a shy, awkward caterpillar with a few close friends. She worked in the garden, always looking up and dreaming of one day flying around the garden just like the birds and bees. Deep down inside she knew the caterpillars could change, that transformation was possible, but she didn’t know how to do it and she was afraid. So she continued to live and work in the garden, and to read about other caterpillars who had transformed into butterflies. She learned that some caterpillars transformed by “thinking” themselves into butterflies. Others prayed and tried to live good lives. Some tried to eat only certain foods and exercise regularly at certain times. Butterfly Woman became so confused – there were so many ways to transform and so much advice out there she just didn’t know what to do. She felt so lost and lonely. One autumn night in the garden, while looking up at the stars, she fell into a deep, deep sleep. The darkness seemed to close in around her, and she slept longer and deeper. She dreamed of blue summer skies, and flowers, and floating. Then her dreams became dark and scary. Caterpillars, slugs and dark beetles taunted her and poked her. “You’ll never be good enough to be a butterfly” they hissed. And, “you have to do it our way, you’ll never get it right”. They pushed her down winding paths with confusing signs that pointed here and there. “This is the way.” “No! Go here.” “Don’t do this!” Butterfly Woman grew weaker and began to cry. Then she saw a pale, luminescent green light coming towards here. The light grew brighter and stronger, and as it got closer, she saw that it was coming from a beautiful Luna Moth Fairy. The Luna Moth Fairy hugged her, and wiped her tears away. “There, there little one. All you need to remember is that you are loved and you are love. That is all there is to know”, whispered the Luna Moth Fairy as she handed Butterfly Woman a tiny, beautiful, leather-bound book. “All you need to know is in here.” Luna Moth Fairy left her, and Butterfly Woman opened the book. On the first page, in beautiful scrolled letters was written, “This above all, to thine own self be true”. Butterfly Woman felt her self growing strong, and her heart so full of love that she thought she would burst. She stretched her arms out against the darkness and pushed it away with all her might. She awoke to beautiful, sunny morning in the garden. She felt cold and damp, but the sun’s light quickly warmed her. She looked at herself and gasped. Where once had been a plain, dumpy caterpillar in green dress, she was now wearing a beautiful yellow gown. A tingling came from her back and as she twisted her neck to look over her shoulder she saw the most beautiful pair of orange and black wings. Wings! She had wings! Beside her on the ground she spotted the little book the Luna Moth Fairy had given her. So this was more than just a dream, she thought. Lifting her face to the sky, and stretching out her wings she soared up over the garden. She couldn’t believe how beautiful it really was, and how tiny compared to everything she could see from her new vantage point in the sky. And so began her journey to explore this world, armed with the book the Luna Moth Fairy had given her, and the knowledge that she was loved and was love, and could do anything she set her mind to.

(Butterly Woman is the heroine I have created as part of The Artist's Healing Journey) * o

Butterfly Woman

'Shor is quiet round these parts.....

Dropped High School Boy off at camp yesterday, where he will be volunteering for the next couple of a weeks. Doesn't seem like all that long ago when we dropped him off for his first time at camp. His first ever week away from home. We worried that he wouldn't like it, or would be homesick. Instead he took to it like a duck to water and has been going every summer since with the exception of one. He strolls confidently across the field this boy-man - he shaves now, has a girlfriend, and a social network that spans 100 Km. Always off to new adventures. I'm glad that both my sons have way more confidence than I did at their age. I'm glad they are tackling the world with gusto, and I am an immensely proud mom of the two fine young men they are turning out to be. * o

'Shor is quiet round these parts.....

This...in my email this morning...

Today's poem offering from the Panhala list speaks volumes to me right now:

In the Middle

of a life that's as complicated as everyone else's,
struggling for balance, juggling time.
The mantle clock that was my grandfather's
has stopped at 9:20; we haven't had time
to get it repaired. The brass pendulum is still,
the chimes don't ring. One day you look out the window,
green summer, the next, and the leaves have already fallen,
and a grey sky lowers the horizon. Our children almost grown,
our parents gone, it happened so fast. Each day, we must learn
again how to love, between morning's quick coffee
and evening's slow return. Steam from a pot of soup rises,
mixing with the yeasty smell of baking bread. Our bodies
twine, and the big black dog pushes his great head between;
his tail is a metronome, 3/4 time. We'll never get there,
Time is always ahead of us, running down the beach, urging
us on faster, faster, but sometimes we take off our watches,
sometimes we lie in the hammock, caught between the mesh
of rope and the net of stars, suspended, tangled up
in love, running out of time.

~ Barbara Crooker ~
(Yarrow)

photo: bumblebee - beside the deck this morning

* o

This...in my email this morning...

The Last Day of June

It's 9:30 in the morning and I am sitting out on the deck, eating my breakfast, still in my jammies, enjoying the cool morning air, the sunshine, the birds singing - totally awesome after all the rain. I love that I have until Wednesday off from work. I love that I have been sleeping in, being creative, and following the rhythms of my own time.

It's mid-morning and I'm making another cup of tea. I am content, and lazy, and still not dressed for the day and I don't care. It's the end of June and it has taken me long enough to get here.

photo - blue sky and my beloved oak tree doing it's own form of sun salutation * o

The Last Day of June

If this is Saturday.....it must be raining...

Lately, it pretty much rains every day. Great for the trees and the grass, both of which are lush and green. Not so great for headaches, and moods, and trying to get outdoors and enjoy the long summer days. I'm starting to feel like the fungus on the willow chair..... * o

If this is Saturday.....it must be raining...

Trying to Slow Down

This is a collage I created that was inspired by my experience walking the labyrinth last month. I finally finished it last weekend. The labyrinth has tiny snails along the path, which is made of chunky wool. The outside of the labyrinth is made of tiny polished rocks. The woman is doing "Tree Pose" - a yoga asana.

I keep trying to remind myself of this image - to slow down, to be grounded like the tree. It seems like I just fly through my days and weeks, and lately I have had very little energy to do more than just go to work and then crash on my couch in the evenings. Maybe my body is trying to force me to "slow down"? I've certainly been giving up a lot of things, and thinking about just where and how I want to spend my time. Slowing down, in this culture, is not an easy task. * o

Trying to Slow Down

Creating a Journal - Part Two

The front cover. I like the feel of this journal - it's a good size, and the envelopes make a nice thick paper to work with! * o

Creating a Journal - Part Two

Creating a Journal

I started collecting envelopes a while back because I wanted to try making a journal from them. Thought this would be a good time to try it out for the "Healing Journey" course. This journal has three signatures of 6 envelopes each. * o

Creating a Journal

Journaling Courses coming up

My friend Zura is offering her "Fun Art Journaling" course again - starting June 30th. This is a great course for both beginners and experienced journalers. Three months of lessons, tips, and a yahoo group to help support you along the way. I learned a lot about art journaling from taking Zura's courses, and she really gives you a wealth of materials to work with. You can read about it and sign up here.

Also starting June 30th - Lani Gerity's "The Artist's Healing Journey". This is a 12-week course using the heroine's journey - an exploration of renewal and healing using art. You can read about it here.

I've signed up for the Healing Journey course and am looking forward to working on that soon. Today, I'm going to start working on making a journal just for this course. If I get it finished this weekend, I'll post pics.

image - spirit fruits - pen, ink and pastel - @2008

* o

Journaling Courses coming up