Thursday's Child

Getting Through the Holidays

2011-12-14T08:55:00.000-08:00

Christmas intensifies our emotions. Good times are brighter. Sadness is heavier. This is Marley's second Christmas with us, and he grows dearer everyday. No home should be without a dog. He's so goofy and happy and spoiled and always glad to be hugged and played with. In case you can't make out the dark photo above, it's Marley sniffing at the Christmas tree. He's such a polite little gentleman, never tears anything up. If he gets interested in sniffing a book or something I've left lying around, I'll say, "Oh, no. That's Mommy's." And he looks so guilty, as if he'd done something terrible.

I woke up sad this morning, though, due to a mixture of our Christmas plans getting changed for us, family members who are seriously ill, and I've been going through an especially bad place with migraines, just a lot of stuff. You know what I mean. I'm struggling to find the sunshine that's been hiding behind the clouds for a couple of days now. But I'm a hopeful gal, if nothing else. I always expect things to get better, and they invariably do. There's a book I'd like to recommend. It's called The Untethered Soul by Michael Singer. It is life changing as it helps us look at life's challenges differently. I bought it on Kindle, then bought 2 hard copies, one for me and one for someone very special to me.

I'm writing, a lot. And I've joined a little group of ceramic artists. I look forward to getting together with them on Tuesday mornings. Jim has been gone stalking Bambi for a week in Texas. He's coming home today. I didn't even ask if he got a deer. I don't care. My cards are sent out, the house is decorated, and shopping is mostly done. Since I last posted, I've gone Gluten Free, which isn't as hard as I'd expected. I'll share more about this later, but honestly, food tastes better, and I'm seeing some encouraging results.

I have plans to be a lot more present on my blog next year, along with selling some merchandise with my art on it (on another site).
I wish you Sunshine and Abundant Blessings this Christmas.

Hugz, and thanks for stopping by,
Cat & Marley

Growing Old Ain't For Sissies

2011-10-19T06:16:00.000-07:00

I feel young, mentally and spiritually. My body doesn't always agree, but mostly I make it just fine by taking care of myself. I eat so healthy my M.D. told me to splurge occasionally, and I have an on again, off again relationship with exercise and walking. But I always come back to them.

I was active in my youth and adolescence, cheerleader, walked to school (really), roller skating, bike riding, etc., and I guess that's part of why it's not too hard to get back on the wagon after my lapses, and I figure intermittent activity is better than no activity at all.

I mentioned my doctor, well actually, he's my former doctor. I rarely went to see him, anyway, skipped all of last year, but when I would go, for the flu that wouldn't go away, for my ribs when I fell and almost broke them while cleaning out the hot tub, stuff like that, I could tell that he was pretty much marking me off as another "old lady". I'm not even close to throwing in the towel, but whatever I asked him about he'd end by saying, "You know you're not that young anymore."

I'm very health conscious, research meds before I even think of taking them, would rather go the herbal, natural route, and he ALWAYS wanted to put me on a ton of steroids, antibiotics, pain relievers, etc., that had scary side effects that were worse than the ailment, so we argued over that a lot.

I truly felt that it was all a cop-out. Yes, I'm a senior citizen, but I'm not dead, and I'm just as important as his under 50 patients. So, we parted ways. I didn't make a show of it, and he doesn't know (or care). One of the challenges of aging (in addition to taking care of ourselves) is finding care givers who will treat us as worthy of their time and talents. There'll be another time when I need a medical physician, but I hope he's a better doctor for folks my age, and I'll try to be a better patient.

Anyway, I said all that to say that I think a big part of staying young is keeping interested in life and finding creative things to do. If I can stay active, I'd like to live to be a hundred or so, just to fit in all the arts I'm interested in doing. Here's a ceramic piece I painted yesterday.

And I've come to realize you need a pet. No matter how my hair looks or if I'm feeling on top of the world or a little down in the dumps, Marley is here with me, happy with whatever attention he gets (which happens to be a lot). I don't know if that's a little old lady attitude or not and don't care. We all need to find what works best for us.
Thanks for stopping by,
Love, Cat and Marley

Save Our Bookstores!

2011-09-09T04:27:00.000-07:00

Books have always been my best friends. They're how I learn, they entertain me as TV never could, and they don't get mad at something I've said or didn't say or should have said or maybe thought of saying, and pick up their marbles and go home. I would be miserable in a home without books, and one of my happiest little pleasures is to spend an hour, two hours, half a day (no, seriously, I have) in Books-a-Million, browsing, reading, lounging on a big, soft chair and drinking coffee, maybe even splurging and having a giant cookie, for which I'll feel adequately guilty later.

When Borders went out of business, it shook me. We didn't even have a Borders here, but it was the end of an era in some ways, and if it can happen to them, why not Books-a-Million or Barnes and Noble?

I have to take responsibility, though....we all do. Remember when the first Wal-Mart came to your town, and everyone said it would be bad for the local economy, and you shopped there anyway because it's so convenient and has great prices? Well it was/is bad for the economy. When Wal-Mart came to Batesville, within a couple of years, centuries old stores like Barnett's Department Store and Maxfields closed their doors forever because they couldn't compete. They sold quality goods that Wal-Mart never heard of, but people gravitate to whatever costs less.

Well, that's what we see happening now with the internet and fun places to shop like Amazon.com. There's not a week goes by that I don't order something online, usually several somethings. And when I got my iPhone and realized I can sit in my Books-a-Million store and scan book barcodes through Amazon.com and be told immediately that I can buy that $20-$30 book for as little as 1 penny plus shipping, I went a little crazy. Heck, you can place the order right then and there. My friends (the books) take a few days to get here, but I'm saving like a gazillion dollars (I never was good at math). Woo-Hoo!!

But then Borders closed, and it got me to thinking that I'm to blame! Oh, not me alone, but I'm one of the culprits, and so I turned over a new leaf, and yesterday, I found three books in BAM that I couldn't live without, and I ordered two of them, but I bought the third one in the store and vowed never to buy books, compliments of their store's hospitality, from an online business without buying at least one at their checkout. I don't mean to preach, but you know you're guilty, and I hope you'll mend your careless ways, too, so we can save our bookstores.

Oh, and Marley? He's not much into books. When he was still a puppy, he chewed the corner of one of my friends, but we had a serious talk, and he never has even noticed them lying scattered on the floor around my chair again.
He's such a good dog.

Thanks for stopping by!
Love, Cat & Marley

2011-07-28T16:26:00.000-07:00

Poke Sallet is the South's equivalent of spinach. My husband wouldn't touch it with a ten foot pole, but I like the boiled tender leaves for 1 or 2 meals in the spring. After 17 years, he's still certain I'm going to poison myself with things I gather wild. Poke Sallet is sort of like my spring tonic. I have a few stalks that I allow to grow at the edge of my yard. It beats hunting it down in the woods when spring arrives. This one got caught in the sprinkler, and I thought it looked sort of cool.

I know a few wild plants that are edible, but my maternal grandmother know many. I only had her in my life for 5 years, but I think of her everyday.

Playing Catch-up

2011-07-16T08:42:00.000-07:00

The hurrier I go, the behinder I get. I've got a new project that's taking most of my attention lately. It's not pottery. I'll tell you about it eventually, but in the meantime, I've been attempting a Picture a Day album on Facebook, and hey, I'm almost at 2 months, which is a record for me. So I thought I'd borrow some of those pics and get caught up here.

In May, we had our usual round of baby birds hatching everywhere. Jim fights the sparrows so the bluebirds, mockingbirds and thrushes will have a chance. We were happily watching these mockingbird babies, but one morning they had vanished. Darn cats!

I signed up for summer pottery classes, was ecstatic because I finally got to play on the throwing wheel, had connected with a former pottery teacher who was going to make me a heckuva deal on her kiln, wheel, etc., and then I got such awful tendonitis (tennis elbow) in my left arm, that I've gone back to handbuilding and don't think I want to buy the equipment. This phase has lasted longer than some.

I'm having way too much fun with my iPhone, yes, me Cat Bounds, who used to detest cell phones. But this is an elegant little computer I take everywhere, and I use the camera and photo apps (examples above) more than I do my serious cameras. Literally, whatever I can think of, there's an app for that.

My sister had multiple strokes; this is a photo of Ian in her hospital room. She lost all use of her right leg and arm, but she is making amazing progress since she went home and even drove to church last Sunday.

My herbs have done pretty well, despite the searing heat and drought that began in June. I've dried a few, but mostly I like having them growing fresh so I can pinch off some stems to toss in whatever I'm cooking.

And of course I've been cooking summer veggies. Tonight we're having another veggie meal, this time including fried green tomatoes. Can you believe I've lived in the South all my life and haven't had them before?

The best thing about Facebook is reconnecting with family and friends I wouldn't have contacted any other way. I got to chatting with Lynne, one of my former junior high English students (I only taught for 5 years), and she and I went to lunch, and then she brought Mickey (another one of my darlings) over for supper. Can't tell you how much I enjoyed seeing them again and catching up......and I have this thing for Perrier. That company will know when I die by the drop in sales. Anyway, Mickey brought me a gift of Perrier, which totally touched my heart. He said he remembered the bottle always sitting on my desk in front of the class.

Marley thought we'd brought him home a live chew toy and was a little dejected when we gave it away the same day.

Oh, and here's our kitty adventure. Jim and I were headed into Little Rock, and at the same moment we saw a kitten on the edge of the freeway raise its head. That little image was burned into my mind, and I said, "We need to see about it!" Which began a small argument about why we shouldn't. "It's probably dying," he said, hoping that would end the matter, but I thought that's the most awful place to die, alone and scared. At least it should die with people trying to save it. So, (long story short) he unhappily found an exit, and we backtracked along the service road till we spotted the cat again, now lying flat. I navigated the knee-high grasses and standing water, a towel in hand, and scooped it up, expecting to find it bloody and broken, but amazingly it seemed to be okay. We took him home and did the best we could to make him comfortable, but I've got cat allergies and was already stopping up. We knew this couldn't be our kitty, and he wouldn't eat or drink. I posted his photo on Facebook, and my nephew, Josh, texted me to say his brother-in-law might want the cat. Eureka! Things were looking up for this pitiful little guy. Josh and Trista came that evening, and Trista immediately had him eating and clinging to her. They took him home and found he was covered in fleas, so after a good bath he perked up a lot. Yesterday they took him to her brother, and I'm just thrilled that Kyo has a new name, a new home, and someone to love him. Anyone with a heart would have stopped just like I did; it's the heartless ones who discard animals the same way they litter the highways with their trash.

And that's mostly it for now. Marley is hibernating indoors. We can hardly get him to go out to pee. I don't know how he holds it sometimes. I credit him with opening my heart to animals....... maybe Kyo owes his life to Marley.
Thanks for stopping by.
Love,
Cat & Marley

A Visit with the Herbal Healer of Rose Bud

2011-05-19T12:54:00.000-07:00

I've mentioned my migraines to you occasionally and that one of my quests is to find a remedy that actually works. Well, my sisters, Nan and Tressa, heard about Barry Joneshill in Rose Bud and paid him a visit recently. Turns out he's something of a legend as an herbal healer, and I, who grow herbs, study herbs and have tried everything I've ever read or heard about, am the last to know in the state of Arkansas. They came away saying I should visit him. The remedy he prescribed was for Tres; we had no idea how life-threatening her condition was at the time or that the window for herbal healing had closed........but that's a whole other story.

So yesterday, I gassed up the Kia and drove 30 miles over verdant rolling hills dotted with goats, horses and cows. My kind of scenery. I passed the Rose Bud city limits sign, population 429, Sal-ute! Shortly afterwards my GPS proudly announced that my destination was on the left. I had arrived at Remedies. It's a pretty building with lots of glass in the front and interesting little walkways with well kept plants along the way.

Inside, there was a homey atmosphere, murals on some of the walls and even on the floor, with a large room off to the side filled with mirrors, red velvet chairs, dark shiny wood and tasseled lamps, like a Victorian parlour; price tags hung on them and a sign overhead said, "Your husband called. He said you can buy anything you want". The main room was lined with shelves filled with supplements and herbs, not the ordinary variety you can buy at Wal-Mart. There were 2 very large women, a child and a teenaged boy perched on a long sofa with the man I assumed to be Barry in front of them at a small table, writing on white cards. A few feet beyond them were 2 rows of chairs where 3 more people were waiting. Ah, the waiting room. I dutifully parked myself there so as to get in line, but the room fascinated me and every now and then I'd be drawn over to this shelf or that to read labels on herbal and homeopathic boxes, bottles and tubes. There was also a book rack. I could spend all day in this place. The coolest shelves were built on either side of a group of French doors, very Shabby Chic.

There's no privacy, so I all the while I was listening to the conversation with the people on the sofa. It seemed they each had an ailment, and Barry found a connection between them, prescribed some potions, and stood up, indicating that their consultation was over, but they were relishing their position at the front of the line and remained seated, bringing up more supporting ailments. I was thinking, "Go on already. Your turn is over." Finally they did, and the next group was up, a mom, her adolescent son, and probably his aunt. They'd come for the boy's upset stomach, but again, they all had ailments, and all were diagnosed in a matter of 10 minutes, never having been touched by Barry. He just asked a few questions and wrote on his white cards. I Googled one of the supplements he prescribed for them, just curious. The photos are also courtesy of my iPhone.

Barry has the reputation of knowing things about you, things that amaze his patients. He's a good lookin' soft spoken gentleman with silver hair and appears to be in his late 40's, but it's said he may be closer to 80. For a fact, he's highly educated and has created his own line of remedies called Thaumaturge, which means "Bringer of Miracles". We're all hoping for a miracle.

When those 3 left, it was my turn. On the drive up, I'd mulled over what to tell him. Over a span of 40 years, I've poured out my heart about the migraines to a gaggle of doctors and specialists; how severe, how often, what I have and haven't tried, arguing with them when they want to put me on meds that leave me in a drugged stupor....... it's very much like flailing a dead horse. I needn't have worried. He only asked why I was there. Lifelong migraines. Writing on his cards. Did I have thinning hair? Some, but not so much. I said that most people in my family who had these migraines had stopped by the time they were my age. "How old are you? 36?" Laughter on my part, no, turn that around......and I thought, he said it jokingly, but had he known my exact age? Hmmmm.

Well, here's what you need to do, and he came over and sat beside me and gave me the card with a diagram of what he determined was going on in my body, along with a prescription for apricot juice, tonic water, nutmeg and herbal tablets from his shelves. He said to follow it for 3 weeks, four times a year, and he indicated the calendar dates to begin each round. Will it stop the migraines? I pray it does. But either way, I enjoyed my little journey to Remedies, and I'll probably go again.

And Marley? He'll just be happy if his mommy has more happy days to play with him.
Much love to y'all and thanks for stopping by.
Cat & Marley

Playing in the Mud......and Notes to Santa

2011-05-14T11:17:00.000-07:00

I'm not a quitter, not by a long-shot, but I almost dropped out of my pottery classes for 2 reasons. One was the 9 AM time slot on Monday mornings, dealing with Little Rock traffic, and it has rained/stormed almost every Monday since I started, and then there were 2 weeks of flooding when I could have gotten to class by way of Dallas but opted to stay home with Marley who's terrified of storms. I'm a country girl, and while I can drive in crazy traffic, it's no fun for me, and these days, if it ain't fun, why bother?

The second reason was that all we've made in class are boring little 3 inch pinch pots, slab boxes, and coiled pots, and they're just dynamically ugly! This is the hand-building class, and they won't let us touch the throwing wheel till next semester. (I wonder why they call it throwing; seems to me it should be a spinning wheel. I guess the yarn makers already glommed onto that name.......but I digress.) Anyway this week, I brought home some of my clay and made a few pieces on my own. Duh! Of course this is why they teach us the techniques on ugly little pots, so we can transfer them to pieces we might actually want to claim.

I fell totally in love with my clay this week, even though it's an absolute hassle that everything has to dry, in stages, but not too quickly, and then be wrapped and boxed and precariously carted back to the Arts Center for firing, glazing and firing again. Before the first firing, it's so fragile you could pick up a piece and push your thumb right through it. I really wish I had my own kiln! Are you listening, Santa?

This little log with roses on it was my first pottery creation on my own. I've made tons of roses in cake frosting and in paper sculptures, but trust me, clay is easier. It has a lot of little sticking-out petals and leaves that I'll worry about in the firing process because we don't get to do that ourselves. Seriously, Santa, I need that kiln!

I made a bunch of these little herb plant markers. They're sorta messy but will be just fine hanging from wires in my herb beds; I need to buy some letters for stamping words in clay. When I die, the art and craft supply dealers are gonna miss me.

I'm not sure what this is........but it's not horrible. When it's dry, it will all be pale gray. The dark middle is where it's not quite dry yet. I just rolled it out and stamped the image of an old plastic Christmas place mat into it and then draped it over wadded up newspapers in a free-form fashion. It'll be interesting to see how well it glazes....or not. Oh, and I also need a slab roller, but for now, a rolling pin on a canvas covered board works fine.

This is a vase, about 10 inches high, that I made by wrapping a slab around a pretzel jar, and then I stamped leaf patterns all over it, played with the edges and added little strips to look like toggle buttons, and when it was stiff enough but not completely dry, I slipped it off the jar and added a bottom.

If you've ever made a lattice top on an apple pie, you know this technique. I'm liking this bowl; it's about 4 inches deep and 8 inches wide at the top. I cut strips from a slab, using a fettling knife, but it would be really cool to have an extruder. Uh, Santa.

And here is what I was working my way up to, and had no idea if I could do it, but she turned out not half bad. Anyway, she's a beginning, and I'm sure Jane will point out areas where I could have used better techniques. I predict more figurines in my future. I would have loved to have a banding wheel, so I could turn the piece as I worked on it, but I managed with just a small plastic board....still, it would be nice to have that banding wheel.....if a certain someone is listening.

My week went whizzing by, and I'd wake up each morning thinking of what I could make in clay. Marley hates it when I play with clay because he doesn't do loud noises, and I'm always pounding or slamming the slabs of clay around, and he takes off for his bed in the kitchen. But the storms had a positive outcome for him. He now sleeps in the bed with us full time. He gets so overcome with happiness and gratitude at bedtime we haven't had the heart to tell him not tonight, and anyway, he's a very good boy, and if he gets shoved by a foot during the night, he just scooches over and goes back to his soft little snoring....and besides I have cold feet. Shih Tzus are very warm.

I'll share more of my work as I progress, and I'll show you how these look after firing and glazing. My first attempt at glazing ugly pots was pretty awful. I guess it's true; you can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear. Wish me luck with these, and I'd welcome any suggestions as to colors.
Marley and I are so glad you stopped by!
Love,
Cat & Marley

P.S. I looked up the term, and here's what I found. I still think it should be a spinning wheel.
The Old English word thrawan from which to throw comes, means to twist or turn. Going back even farther, the Indo-European root *ter- means to rub, rub by twisting, twist, turn. The German word drehen, a direct relative of to throw, means turn and is used in German for throwing. Because the activity of forming pots on the wheel has not changed since Old English times, the word throw has retained its original meaning in the language of pottery but has developed a completely different meaning in everyday usage.

Morning Walk: Practicing Love

2011-04-28T08:13:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I'll catch myself expending more energy on negative thoughts than on positive ones. Negative thoughts suck the energy from us and from the Universe while positive ones make us all richer. This morning on my walk around the neighborhood, I reprimanded my brain good and proper and focused on things that I love, like, or appreciate instead of fuming that the trash guys never pick up bottles or paper that spill out of the cans.

As I lock the front door, I'm grateful that the tornadic winds didn't tip over my tall clay pots this time and didn't even damage the fragile irises blooming by the fence or the baby oxalis in a lower pot. Strange how those lethal winds seem to pick and choose their victims. I can hear Marley behind me, trying to scratch his way through the window, and I love how he loves me.

And now the storms have passed at last, and I love how deeply, richly blue the sky is and how the breeze feels washed and crisp and clean. I like how the sunlight glows on that little bunch of yellow pansies by a neighbor's mailbox. I enjoy how my muscles begin to stretch and relax as I get into my stride. Sometimes I listen to music when I walk, but mostly I think better if I walk acapella. In my jeans pocket, my iPhone jingles to tell me I've got a Words play; I won't stop to play now, but I like knowing it's there, waiting for me.

Oh, and I really like that patch of hundreds of pink primroses nodding in the wind, and there's an iron chair in the middle of them. Good idea. Maybe Jim would like to dig me a primrose bed. I love that when I meet neighbors walking they nod or say Good Morning; I meet 3 together, walking slowly, heads bent to the center, talking intently. Part of me wishes they'd ask me to walk with them, but I'd have to walk slower, and we'd talk about someone's sick child or grandchild or what the dog tore up or last night's corn casserole recipe, all good and worthy topics, but I'm busy practicing here.

In a long stretch of perfectly coiffed lawns, I wonder why this one has gone raggedy and weedy. Someone might be sick, or there may be a divorce. Nope, we're thinking positive! I'll bet they're in London, camped along the street to watch the Royal Wedding procession. He didn't much want to go, but she said this will be her birthday gift, and besides, he never wants to do anything fun, so he made the reservations and even wore the ridiculous hat she bought him with a red, white and blue silk band. I love that they're having such a great time.

As I'm about to turn right and head toward home, I notice that the street to the left has way too many cars parked at the curb, so I turn left instead to check it out and discover it's overflow from the middle school, having some sort of outdoor celebration, I'm guessing a belated Earth Day, and I love that I don't teach anymore and that I'm free to do what I want. Teaching has it's rewards, but for the most part it's like trying to coerce wild bunnies into becoming upstanding rabbit citizens, very hard and mostly impossible. So I turn towards home, and I'm grateful for my curiosity. It has led me into some sticky situations as well as into discoveries that changed my life for the better.

Finally, as I make my way back up my street and open the front door, I love that I have Marley waiting for me, all squeaky and happy and a little bit psycho, needing desperately to give me kisses. You'd think I'd been gone all day rather than 45 minutes. Yeah, there's an awful lot still left in this raggedy ol' world to love.
Thanks for stopping by to visit Marley and me.

Pottery, Paintings, iPhones, and Almost Eaten by a Bulldog

2011-04-12T11:13:00.000-07:00

Okay, it's spring......again. We had spring, and it ran away, and we went back to winter clothes, and now it's here with a vengeance, rain, storms, hail, and near 90 degrees a couple of days.

Marley hurt his foot (we still don't know how), but I took him to the vet, and now it's all better. I was a basket case, though, almost as much as when Dave used to get sick or hurt, and when I told a couple of friends afterwards about the ordeal, complete with an American bulldog that kept lunging at us (for 2 hours) while its skinny owner thought it was funny that she had no control over him chatted happily and preened herself in her spike heels and jeans with the knees blown out, Colleen said I should have taken pics for my blog........she was right. But I do have some things to share with you.

I've been going to pottery class at the Arkansas Arts Center for 3 weeks! It's just as interesting as I thought it would be but painfully slow at getting to the exciting stuff like using the wheel (which won't come till next semester) and glazing and using the kilns, which we're (hopefully) doing next week. My first impressions are that this is an art you'll probably be good at if you like it, but of course people who have been doing it for years are better than us newbies, by far. My humble little pinch pots, coil pots and slab pots are not things of beauty, but I'll show them to you once they're glazed. Three weeks and not one finished piece yet........sigh.

But I think these pieces of pottery showing glazes and colors do look like art.

This is Jane showing us how to wrap a slab around PVC and newspaper for support. She's a good teacher and knows her stuff.

This is a painting within a collage that I finished for my kitchen. I'm probably the only one who likes it, but sometimes that's enough. Those are pear leaves sprayed gold, and the driftwood came from the Oregon Coast, my real home I've been longing for since I was 2 years old; I dyed a piece of cheese cloth for it, and that's a piece of iridescent stained glass that I cut in that little square. I wanted a finished edge for this collage and the other 2 I showed you earlier, but I couldn't find the edging I wanted at Home Depot, so Jim made it for me. What would I do without him? Collages on wood just look sooooo much more finished with an edge.

This is a peek at the painting that's been dragging on for a while. It's not there yet, and I may just paint over it. I'm more interested in playing with clay right now.

And I've also been playing LOTS with my new iPhone. It's the second best birthday gift I've ever gotten, Marley being first, of course. But who knew I'd like it so much? I love apps, and there's literally one for everything. I even like the camera, and I have an app that gives some really fun photo effects. Of course you can do those in PhotoShop, but it's more fun to see the effects as you're shooting. Camera phones have come a long way, Baby, since my first one. The first photo at the top looks a little like infrared photography.

This effect is unpredictable but colorful.

And this is an abstract, posterized, pic of Marley. He's on the left side, looking right, and you can see his little nose sticking up.

Next time I'll share some more effects as well as some of my pottery. Thanks very much for stopping by!
Love,
Cat & Marley

This 'n That

2011-03-22T16:29:00.000-07:00

I have a painting and a collage in the works but nothing ready to show, so here are a few pics I've taken lately that I thought you might like.

"No, Mom. I haven't been digging in the herb bed because I distinctly remember you telling me you would whack my fuzzy little butt if I did."

"Me, sniffing the poppies? Of course not! Why do you ask?"

"Nope, Dad. I don't remember where my new golf ball came from, but it's definitely not one of your collectibles!"

My sister Nan and I spent the day together, and we stopped by the Old Mill park.

Nan on a bridge, Senor Dionico Rodriguez, a sculptor and artist, was responsible for all the details of each piece of concrete work made to represent wood, iron or stone, as well as the designing of the foot bridges and rustic seats. Rodriguez's secret techniques were so detailed and exacting that you can identify the species of trees in most of his work. Rodriguez worked without any written plans, but there are unwritten stories that describe how Rodriguez envisioned many of his works. "A black locust tree grew in the soft earth on the bank of the little stream. When it reached a certain height it was blown down, but continued to live. A woodsman who wanted to use the trunk of the tree as a footbridge cut off the limbs and..."

We thought the park would be lush with spring blooms, but there weren't many yet.

Jonquils were in full bloom on Deb's table, though, when I drove up to visit her, Dave and Mollie. I thought this was such a pretty arrangement using soft drink bottles in the little basket.

Mollie's compact horse.

She showed me the rest of her menagerie, including hermit crabs (camera shy), baby chicks, ducks, geese, rabbits, dogs, cats, and all kinds of critters; it's like visiting a petting zoo.

And that's it for now during these busy, happy spring days.
Thanks for stopping by!
Cat & Marley

Spring has Sprung!

2011-03-03T11:10:00.000-08:00

The calendar won't admit it, but spring is definitely in the air. I always plan to get lots done during winter, like watercolors, collage, and digital art, but somehow time just grinds by with little to show for it, and though I have more time on my hands, I do fewer blog posts, and finally we make it back to spring. Spring renews me; I don't think I'd like living where they don't have defined seasons.

We've already been busy outdoors. Remember Harry? The beautiful wisteria that covered the arbor and bloomed profusely in spring and shaded us in summer? I planted him 7 years ago, a spindly little brown sprig that just growed like Topsy and tried to take over the world, despite weekly trimmings all summer long. Well, we cut his life short, for several reasons, one being that he was trying to undermine the house, and while I loved Harry, I love my home more. Also, the blooms are poisonous to dogs, and you know I love Marley far better than any plant. We spent all Sunday afternoon cutting down Harry with a chain-saw and loppers and dragging him off into the woods; jobs like that, I realize I'm not as young as I used to be. We've ordered some knitted shade cloth to stretch over the top instead. I'll show you when we get it, though it won't be as nearly as pretty.
Rest in Peace, Harry.

My fruit trees are budding and flowers are peeking out, not many blooms but soon. The pansies and decorative cabbages stayed pretty all winter, and now I need to till them up and replace them with herbs, big plans for herbs this year. I planted elephant ear bulbs, hoping to get some gi-normous leaves for playing with hypertufa. No residents in the bluebird box yet.

We went to the Arkansas Flower and Garden Show, and one of the ideas I borrowed was a pretty little table and chair set for our screened-in deck, a nice place to sit and drink morning coffee. I mentioned it to Jim, and the same day he was building the table. I have one bent wood chair that I'm going to use, and I'm looking around for another one, unmatched, hopefully a ladder back with woven cane bottom. And then it dawned on me, most anything can be made to look more special with some cut glass mosaics stuck on it, so some parts of the chairs will be mosaiced. I've already sanded the chair and had no qualms about making it my next victim. It's the world's most uncomfortable chair. Now you may say, and rightly so, that sticking bits of glass to the seat won't improve on its comfort quotient, but if I get it nice and smooth, it can't hurt much, either.

Marley has spent a lot of time on his little stool at the window, watching cars and walkers come down the hill. When he sees a red truck, he always thinks it's Jim and goes racing to the kitchen door, yipping and crying as if it's been a year since he saw him.

So, these are my latest projects. I'm just so much happier when I've got projects in the works, especially when I can do them outdoors! I'll share my progress as it comes along.
Thanks for stopping by!
Love,
Cat & Marley

One Year with Marley

2011-02-03T12:44:00.001-08:00

Hey, guys, it's me! And this is kind of a special day because one year ago today, I was living with Peggy and my brothers and sisters and a bunch of other relatives and friends. It was noisy and smelly, and boy, were we loud and happy, but Peggy said we needed to get 'dopted, and so I would look at peoples who came to her house and wonder if they'd make good parents. Then Mom and Dad walked in, and they looked like they might love me, so I acted extra cute and gave them lots of kisses when they picked us up and held us, one by one. Then I heard Mom say, "We came for a female, but you know, I think I want this little male over here." And she was pointing at me!

It was a happy/sad time when they stuck me in the crate; I didn't have time to kiss my brothers and sisters goodbye, and then we got to my new house, and it smelled like a dog never even walked past it, and it was too big and a little scary, but I was brave and didn't cry the first night when they turned out the lights. Well, maybe a little but real quiet.

Mom eventually got a little better at taking pictures of me.

We had lots to teach one another, and believe me, the peeing thing was the worst! Peoples want everybody's pee-pee put in a special place, and they get all huffy when a guy forgets, but mostly we got along great.

They had the backyard fenced in just for me, and when peoples see it, they always say, "That's a big backyard!" But it's just right for me and Mom and Dad to play in.

Sometimes Mom gets ideas about dressing me up, but it never works. I'm not a dressin' up kinda guy, and I wiggle out of 'em real fast! When I had the operation, she did make me wear a stupid onesy for a few days.

I love all my toys, especially empty Perrier bottles and Dad's collectible golf balls. He has a lifetime supply, and he doesn't fuss too much when he notices I've been in his room to borrow another one. I get sorta nervous when Mom washes my cloth toys. I'll hang around the laundry room till they come out of the dryer.........actually, I like 'em better when they're a little grubby.

Dad didn't much want a dog, but he melted pretty fast and got to be my best play buddy. Mostly, though, I follow Mom around and help her paint, clean, pay bills, garden and watch TV. She says she doesn't know what she ever did without me.

Mostly, the peoples who come to see us are more fun than their dogs!

Things I have learned in 1 year:
1. Don't sniff your poop, no matter how interesting it looks. It makes grown-up peoples go nuts!
2. There's no use in trying to hide when it's time for a bath; Mom knows the house too well, and she'll find you behind Dad's chair every time.
3. Bugs taste better than dandelions, but if Mom is looking, go for the dandelions.

4. If you refuse to eat from your dish, Mom or Dad will hand-feed it to you.
5. Carpets are for wiping food off your face and for burying bones, but the bones disappear on Mom's house cleaning day.
6. Sleeping with Mom and Dad is funner than sleeping in my crate, but as soon as they lie down, they lose their sense of humor, so what's the use?
7. All peoples have feet, but Dads' feet (and socks and shoes) smell best.

8. Storms are scary, but they can't get you on Mom's lap. She has magical powers of protection.
9. Peoples toys like TVs, phones, and 'puters are stupid. They spend too much time playing with them when they could be playing on the floor with their dog.
10. Snow is awesome stuff, but it makes snowballs all over me, and I don't like the drying off with the hair dryer part.

Miss Sharon in Indiana says the boys and girls in her class enjoy reading about me. Y'all come see me any time, kids!!

Thanks for stopping by!
Love,
Cat & Marley

Zentangles, Scribbles and Doodles

2011-01-26T09:29:00.000-08:00

Just a quickie post to show you some scribbles I've been doing. I had seen the Zentangles online, but didn't realize how popular they were. There are even classes and workshops where people receive their Masters in the art of Zentangle. Well, I don't think I'll take any classes, but Annette has been showing us hers, and I still have drawing pads and micron and gel pens from my scribblings way back when and started playing with them at night while watching TV. It's the same kind of doodling we all do while we're on the phone but maybe with a little more focus.

White gel pen on black card stock.

I've been making some note cards with the Zentangles.

And these are some of my scribblings from several years ago:

Believe it or not, the Calvin and Hobbes cartoons about snowmen inspired me to draw snowmen for a while. These last 3 were the most fun. You don't draw any lines at all, just start out making dots to shape images.

There was a story, many years ago, about a girl who married into the family who owned Speidel, and she was so enthralled with the love she felt in her new family that she designed a line of jewelry called "I Am Loved". When I drew this painting, I had just married Jim, and for the first time in a long time, maybe in forever, I felt loved and protected. I wanted it to look as if I'd drawn the words into the moisture on the window panes.

Marley loves it when I draw because he can sit on the recliner footrest and sleep.
We're glad you stopped by.
Hugz,
cat & Marley

A New Direction, as Old as Time

2011-01-23T09:50:00.000-08:00

This latest collage took a turn that's Southwestern or tribal or something; I've done a few of these o'er the years and attribute them to my Native American heritage. I'm not a Daughter of the American Revolution. No, we didn't come over on the Mayflower. We met the boat...... and paid dearly for our hospitality.......but I digress. I'll show you how this piece evolved over about 10 days.

I began by loosely painting a sanded birch board with gold, tan and beige thinned acrylics and then did the same on 4 small gallery wrapped canvases. Not sure at this point where we're heading, but collage always feels good when it's evolving.

With those dry, I pulled out a piece of cloth that I had painted a while back using bright acrylics. It's good to spend a day now and then just randomly painting, spattering, scribbling, and generally abusing cloth or papers for future use, and then it's like having your own specialty art store to browse in for beautiful collage media. I'll pull out a piece from long ago and say, "Oh wow! I wonder how I got that effect!"

As always, Marley was on the table beside me, helping, and the day I was working on the woven piece, made of strips I cut from handmade papers and later sprayed gold, my sister and I were talking on Skype with my netbook on the table as well. Obviously, my art doesn't require intense concentration.

Next came the white paper sculpture pieces, and I cut them out while watching TV with Marley on the recliner footrest. Each feather is one piece, and the big central, stringy piece is one sheet of paper. When Marley occasionally gets overcome with love and plops into my face for kisses, I try to incorporate whatever cuts result from the crash to make them look intentional, but his main contribution at this point is that he chewed up a whole cluster of feathers......That furry little critter is lucky I love him so much! It was his way of saying, "Mom, that feather cluster just wasn't working!" Good to have varied points of view.

Now the collage is taking shape, and I've got a clearer notion of what comes next. I pulled out the 3 found objects, that were pendants in another life, and thought they worked well.

I harvested the 5 sticks from the woods behind our house and varnished 3 of them, finally wrapping colored twine around the ends. The dark doorway on the third canvas is watercolor on heavy art paper.

Of course I made up a story about the meaning of my collage as I went, trying not to make the elements too blatantly symbolic or obvious in order to allow the viewer to create his or her own story about it.

Before attaching the papers, cloth, sticks and amulets, I glued the four canvases to the board, but it didn't feel stable, so Jim put in 8 long screws from the back for me. Now it's solid.

And that's our latest masterpiece. The flash makes it look a little glitzier than it actually is, but it's a chilly, gray, winter's day here. We're awfully glad you stopped by.
As ever,
cat & Marley

Tea with Marley

2011-01-12T15:48:00.000-08:00

Picasso and Matisse were two of the most famous collage artists, and while I don't have delusions of grandeur, collage is one of my favorite art forms. We all did collage in elementary school, fingers all gunky, and the smell of paste and construction paper and crayons in the air, it was, and is, creative fun. This is my second one I've done lately on a birch panel, about 24"x18" and leans more toward realism than I have in a while. My artsy friends and I (We've yet to think of a name for our group.) take turns giving prompts for the next project, and this one was dishes. The thing about collage is you can make up your own rules and then break them in the same painting. My kind of art!

So, my li'l shadow, Marley, thinks his place is wherever I am, even when it means lying on the table where I paint. He drinks my brush rinse water, knocks over paint bottles, samples the rice paper, and would eat gel medium if I'd let him, but mostly he's very well behaved and looks out the window and growls at the occasional passing monster......You may be able to see that his muzzle is pink from investigating my art chalks.

I began with a simple pencil drawing over clear gesso, including some blossoms and a dragonfly that didn't quite make it into the finished piece and then did a watery paint wash over everything. My main colors in this one are going to be orange, rust, teal and gold.

This is the dragonfly that I did use, made from heat sensitive soft rubber foam, embossed with a rubber stamp and then dry brushed with metallic paint.

I have a little collection of Chinese hand carved seals (called chops), and since this piece is taking on a definite Asian feel, I added a seal to it. I couldn't find my red sealing wax, so I used this new gold one, and when I lit it, it smoked and burned my eyes, and made my throat sore.....Alas! How we suffer for our art.

The background is pieces of torn rice paper, some of it painted, some left unpainted, but it's so transparent that my under-painting colors show through pretty well. The torn leaves are painted watercolor paper, and the blossoms are torn from an old counseling book and shaped after being highlighted with chalk and acrylic paint.

The marbled papers I used had gold on them, and I added more gold leaf. One can never have too much gold....or puppy kisses.

I used the same Asian rubber stamp and embossing powder that I did on the blueberry collage because I plan to hang them close to each other.

Now here's the element that caused me to argue with myself for a couple of days, but in the end, it stays. I'm not even sure what it is. I pick up little chotchkies at garage sales to use in my art, and this might have been a shoe decoration at one point in its life, but I like it, along with the canceled stamps and paper scraps because it's unexpected, and it gives the viewer the chance to make up his or her own story about what's going on at this tea service.

For me, the best collages leave something to the viewer's imagination. I have my story about this piece. Do you?
Thanks so much for stopping by. We'll see you soon.
Love,
cat & Marley

The 12 Months of Christmas

2010-12-31T12:03:00.000-08:00

On the first day of Christmas my true love sent to me.....that 's one of my favorite Christmas songs, and even though our country's integrity has gone to hell-in-a-hand basket, for most of us, everyday is still Christmas. We pretty much get whatever we want throughout the year, so many freedoms, we're basically healthy and well fed, and each day is filled with gifts and blessings.

If you read my blog, you may think my life began the day I met Jim, but I had blessings before Jim. I gave birth to my son David, who is dearer to me than anything else on earth. I started college at age 30 and became a teacher/counselor, and some of my students tell me I touched their lives in a good way; I know they did mine. And there were other stories, other loves, some were my ports in the storm, some brought the storms with them, but all are a part of me now, of who I am.

I thought I'd look back and recount a few of the Gifts my True Love and my Family, my Friends and my God gave to me this year, not month by month (I'm not that orderly) but in my usual fashion of random musings.......

In February, for my birthday, I got a Shih Tzu; it was a life-changing event. I never considered myself hard-hearted before Marley, and I'm still not exactly sure how it happened, but this slightly psychotic, happy, shaggy little snip-of-a-dog has taught me to love more deeply, to be more patient, and to feel more connected ........hard to 'splain, but back in the day, when someone would say if the house caught on fire, they'd get their dog out first, I'd roll my eyes......it's only a dog. Ten months with Marley, and I get it, I totally get it.

Sometime during the year, on no particular day, my mother and I began to talk, I mean really talk again. There's a lot of water under the bridge, and we've had more than our share of issues, but there seemed to be a softening on both our parts, and I want to spend more time with her. At a Christmas party, a girl whom I've seen at other Christmas parties, came to me, saying she'd just figured out who I was, and revealed that she is the sister of my high school BFF, some 40 years departed....... I'm still speechless over it. I connected with quite a few old friends on Facebook and even had a visit from Bobby, Belinda and the girls. And I played a small part in reconnecting Jim with his son at Christmas.

I kept learning......If one day you read my blog, and I say there's nothing left for me to learn, someone please come throw me in a box and start shoveling dirt onto me, 'cause it'll all be over but the benediction. As of now, there are hardly enough hours in the day to explore all the new, fun stuff that finds its way into my life. During the summer, my friend Lu and I went to a Hypertufa workshop, and I plan to do a lot more with that in 2011; I took a few scrapbooking classes, played with some giant stencils, painted furniture, mosaics, painted fabrics, paper sculpture, collage, and mono-printing. Two friends whom I've known from the digital art forums, became closer friends, and we began painting together, though we live in 3 different states. I want to sign up for pottery classes in the spring. And I want to write more this year, maybe children's stories, and work more on my art journal. All art connects us with the Spirit, with one another, with ourselves.

Oh gosh! And here's a Blessing that was a long time coming.......In October, my cousin Linda and I finally got 'round to staging the first ever Goodman Cousin Reunion! Everyone who attended was slightly giddy with joy! So much love, so much history that deserves to be treasured. I get tears in my eyes as I type.

And Jim was by my side every step of the way; sometimes I push the limits as a temperamental artist; he has a short memory for the bad times, the patience of Job, and an uncomplicated outlook on life that keeps both of us on an even keel.He buys the sweetest Christmas gifts, and this year he did the thing where he wrapped notes with directions to the real gifts, but the notes are little poems. I've never thrown away one of his notes, and there have been hundreds over the years. Maybe I'll gather them up someday and make a little journal.

How would you sum up your 2010 in one word? Mine would be connections. Each Gift, each Blessing was about Connections. Happy New Year!

Paintin' Away!

2010-12-06T04:54:00.000-08:00

Okay, here's a quickie post. Colleen, Annette and I each bought a DVD called Painted Papers by Elizabeth St. Hilaire Nelson so the 3 of us could paint together, though I live in Arkansas, Colleen is in Colorado, and Annette is in Texas. It has proven to be a fun technique, and we're all planning on doing more. I've always loved to work in mixed media, collage, and paper sculpture, and this technique showed me how to take it a step further by beginning on a birch board.

I bought a board @ Home Depot, and Jim cut it into 3 pieces, each 16X24 inches, even sanded them down for me, and I covered the front of one with clear gesso, loosely drew on my image of blueberries, then painted on watery acrylics, enjoying the oozing and runny effects. I had a stack of rice papers and mulberry paper, along with some printed sheets that I'd painted with more watery acrylics in shades of purple, green, blue, yellow, and near-black all ready for tearing and gluing.

The collaging process can either be tedious or relaxing, depending on your current state of mind. I tend to enjoy involved techniques and loved tearing tiny scraps of paper, aiming for shapes that reflected their destination, curves and circles for the berries and graceful strips for the leaves. When you're tearing, the shapes are never perfect, and that's a part of the artsy charm of this type of collage. You can opt either to cover all the under painting or leave parts of it showing. I wasn't giving up those pretty drips and runs, so I left quite a bit of mine showing.

I added some leaves that I cut from the painted paper and glued them loosely with the matte gel in order to give more dimension. As the piece neared completion (or where I considered the stopping place to be), I painted in touches of highlights on berries and leaves, some hand writing here and there, touches of gold leaf, and a few embossed stampings using a verdigris powder I've had for years and dread running out of it.

And now I still haven't decided on a design for my Christmas cards, so I'd best get going on that, but I'll be sharing more painted papers collages when there's time. Don't you just love this time of year??
Love, cat

Playing Catch-up

2010-11-03T12:04:00.000-07:00

Just a quick post to catch you up (sort of) on what I've been doing. Marley's post will be next, I promise. His birthday is November 21, so I'm guessing he'll have lots to tell you about his first year.

First I'll show you the little note book we did for one of our cousins who couldn't attend the reunion. All my cousins are special, but we especially missed Lisa because she has been in bed in a nursing home for years. She has a devoted mom and brothers who visit her everyday, but I know she would have liked to be with us for our Goodman Cousin Reunion. I took a notebook to the reunion and had them sign it and write messages to her, then brought it home and tore out the messages, along with about half the blank pages. When you add a lot of elements to an album like this, you'll need to remove an equal amount of blank pages in order not to have a puffy, fat book.

Then I glued the remaining pages together, 5 or 6 per section, making a dozen or so stiff, thick pages for decorating and embellishing. Okay, now for the fun part. I went through all my handmade papers, hand painted papers and cloth, mulberry paper, etc., and covered the pages, then began choosing embellishments.

I love putting envelopes in these albums, little secret places for notes, and I have tons of junk jewelry that I take apart for unique beading. I like buttons; somehow they lend a nostalgic note to albums. Well, you get the idea, everything but the kitchen sink, and your labor of love becomes a keepsake. It's wrapped and ready for mailing if the rain ever stops. Yes, I do tend to melt when rained on.

A while back, I made this quickie little dream pillow, which is about 15 inches long and 5 inches wide, and tucked inside is a pad made of batting where I can put drops of essential oils. I like having it beside me in bed, and I try various relaxing scents. It's amazing how breathing in those soft, sensual aromas can put you in a calmer state of mind and switch off the cares and demands of the day.

Part of my time is spent in dreaming up things for Jim to make. I mean, he can make or repair anything, and he's only happy when he's busy, so I try to help him with that. He said I can't talk about him in my blog, but I'm about as obedient as Marley, so here are a couple of the latest things he has made. I have lots of wide ribbon that I use for decorating, and the plastic bin I had them in was running over, so I sketched a ribbon holder, and he built it that day.

Then we needed a little step for Marley to get onto our bed. Done. With an "M" carved in the sides.

Next, Dave's wife, Deb said she would like to have a bat house. We didn't know what that was, but he looked them up on the internet and built one.

The latest necessity of life is one of my favorites. I recently got a little netbook and told him I would like some kind of stand for it to keep next to my recliner in the bedroom. He made it out of cedar and pine, didn't have a pattern, except for the one he drew, and it's a piece of art.

Occasionally, when I ask for something, he'll say, "Now, how am I gonna make that work?" I tell him my job is to think of stuff. His is to figure out how to do it. We make a great team.

2010 Goodman Cousin Reunion

2010-10-25T08:55:00.000-07:00

I had rented a cute little house for 2 nights on Lake Cherokee, and Jim and Marley went with me; the weather was balmy and dry, the streets were strewn with color-splashed autumn leaves, and the Kia was packed with food and gold & burgundy decorations, pretty darn perfect so far, huh? Almost. I was taking Maxalt for the migraine that started on Thursday, and it's a toss-up which is worse, the pain or the meds because they make me so spaced I shouldn't operate heavy machinery, and I kept praying, just let it go away long enough for me to get through the reunion!

I woke up Saturday morning so sick, I thought about swinging by the Omaha Center, dropping off my decorations, registry, food, etc., and heading home but decided to make an appearance and leave early, very early...........but I got involved with setting up the long tables, 10 for dining and 5 for pot luck dishes, and sometime around noon I realized that I felt pretty good. I learned later that my sister Nan and my mom had held hands and prayed for the migraine to leave. I don't know how you feel about prayer, but I've always believed.

I have a big family. My grandparents had 9 children, most of whom had 3 children, but one child had 9 children, and one of those had 9 children. Add that to the fact that most of us cousins now have grandchildren and even great grandchildren, and you've got yourself a gathering! While our parents were all alive and healthy, they kept us connected, but we've dropped the connection, and we talked about how we should get together, but it hasn't happened until now. I get teary-eyed when I think about how my happy family poured into the room, smiles all 'round, hugs and laughter and picking up as if we'd never skipped a beat!

Everyone thanked Linda and me for finally making this happen and most asked that we make it a yearly event. I love the stories everyone has, memories of yesterday and would love to gather them and put them in a little book. I collect pretty picture frames, and I put old family photos in them and arranged them among the centerpieces. Some brought family scrapbooks, a recipe book, and a couple of digital frames with slide shows. There was a table for photos of the cousins we've lost. Danny provided live music.

We pushed folks outdoors for a group photo, which was about like herding earthworms; I'm supposed to PhotoShop myself into the group, but I haven't found one with me in it yet. I count about 50 in this group photo, but our headcount was closer to 100, so that leaves lots of Goodman descendants milling about in the woods. I've only posted a few pics here. You can go nuts trying not to leave out anyone, so if someone's not here, I've got you somewhere in my computer.

My son came to the Reunion! I hadn't expected him; if nobody else had come, it would have been a fun day, just him and me chatting. Sorry, but you moms know exactly what I mean. I snapped pics here and there with my little pocket camera and realized afterwards that I should have taken the Canon Rebel out of the car and handed it to my Dave, who's a very good photographer. Oh well. A few folks who could have come, didn't; you know who you are, and you also know we still love you. It was one of the happiest days of my life, and I felt good, just hope I didn't call you Judy if your name is Fred or connect you with the wrong siblings. Hey, I'm 62, and I was on drugs.

Tres has expressed interest in planning the 2011 reunion, along with cousin Debbie. If they do, ours will be like their open act. Knowing those two, I fully expect to have high wire acts, a full sized carousel, and Amy Grant as entertainment..........P.S. Several cousins mentioned that it was high time Marley did a blog post. Coming soon.

Growing Pains

2010-10-18T04:54:00.000-07:00

(Click on the paintings to enlarge them)

Gee, thanks Mom, for finally letting me post. I mean, I'm almost grown, and I've posted like 3 or 4 times, hello? I'll be one year old on Sunday, not much chance of getting a birthday cake, though. We never get good stuff like chips or cookies; I've never even tasted a Twinkie! Maybe she'll give me a pork chop with a candle stuck in it, woohoo.

I'm sure Mom told you about my getting "fixed" (she has no sense of privacy).........well, nothing actually got fixed, just a scary day at the vet's, some missing parts, and a few days of feeling really, really bad and having to wear a stupid onesy, embarrassing! But I bounced back, and I don't get fussed at anymore for forgetting where to tinkle.

I still play, hunt and potty in the backyard several times a day..............I can't bark in the house, without someone saying "Hush, Marley", but I get to bark out there...........between 9 am and 9 pm..........can you believe she has a barking schedule? Seriously..... Mom and Dad's communication skills are coming along. I'm supposed to ring the bell they hung on the backdoor when I want to go out, but it scares me, so I just sit there and look cute till somebody notices me. And when I want something to eat or a toy I can't find, all I have to do is sit and look up at mom and make a little growling, moaning sound in my throat, and she'll get up and get it for me every time.

Dad has been gone to camp since Wednesday, and he's coming home today! Mom plays with me, but she doesn't let me bite, so what's the point? Dad scuffles and rolls on the floor with me, and things get pretty wild. I miss him so much! Moms are better for loving than Dads, and I scramble up and bend my head back so that my neck is hugging hers. I also hug Aunt Tres, and she gets to laughing so hard she can barely breathe. She's a really good dog person.

Ashley is coming on Saturday to train me to do something.......I already know just about everything, so I'm not sure what they want me to do now, maybe play the banjo or something. Peoples never seem to be happy with the way a guy is. I'll let you know how that goes. Poor Ashley, she's probably bringin' doggie treats. Mom is always bringing home healthy treats for me to try. Sometimes I like 'em once, but then I'm through. She takes the stuff I won't eat to the animal shelter. I guess there are some guys there who are hungrier than I am. Bet they'd rather have Twinkies. Hey, thanks for stopping by; I'll see you soon!

I Love My Computer Because My Friends Live in It!

2010-10-04T13:55:00.000-07:00

Fifteen years ago, when I got my first computer, a bare bones clunker that Jim had a geeky friend build for me, I figured I might play an occasional game of Solitaire and send a few emails to family members, but oh, the things I've done and the places my 'puter and I have traveled! In time, I went from yelling "Jim!" whenever Windows flashed the blue screen of death to being his computer tech. Because of an email greeting card a new online friend created and sent to me, I became so obsessively immersed with learning digital art that for a few years there, my online life was more immediate and more interesting than my real life. It was a rush, a rush of challenges and kudos and finding how far I could push myself creatively. I eventually felt the need to choose, and I chose real life and took a step back from all that; these days, I'm pretty well balanced (well, as balanced as I'll ever be) I play, paint, surf, and research on my PC, but it's not everything......not even close.

One amazing and wonderful element of being online that remains constant, though, is that over the years, I've reconnected with some old friends and met some dear new friends, friends with whom I hope to share our lives for the rest of our lives, friends who share my interests and view of the world more than most of the folks I've met outside the sleek black box that sits purring softly on my over-sized computer desk. Some of these friends I will never meet in person, but they are very real to me, and I watch them virtually, going about their daily lives, ache when they ache and laugh when they're happy.

A recent example of the friendships I've developed online is Linda Ocon Santi, whom I met in a Facebook game (that became a mini-obsession for a few months) and who sent me a message last week saying she had looked at my art on PBase and loved it and would like for me to see her mother's website. http://aeoconart.com/ Eileen Ocon passed away last year, but her website remains as tribute to her beautiful artwork. I had a great time browsing her mixed media, watercolor, line & wash, calligraphy, and fractal art; when I told Linda that I had saved the link to my Inspirations folder, she asked for my mailing address........... today a brown envelope filled with Eileen's beautiful note cards arrived in my mail box! Isn't that a lovely, generous thing, to share your mom's art with someone else who loves art? I'm speechless (almost), and the cards are here beside me saying, "Hey Cat, could this be the next step in your handmade cards?"

I LOVE my online friends because they are real friends who are there for me in emails and on Facebook and because they keep me inspired. Thank you, Linda, and thank you to all my friends for being there for me, inside my computer.

Ommmmm-m-m-m.........

2010-09-30T16:02:00.000-07:00

Taoists believe that in order to be near God we must seek him in simple tasks like chopping wood and carrying water. This I believe. And I also believe that God is in creating things. At least that's where I feel closest to God. My art will never hang in an art museum, but doing it on a constant basis is, quite literally, necessary to my well being and my sense of oneness, whether anyone else ever sees it or not.

I've been working on a large painting for our new Sunday School classroom. If it turns out okay, I'll show you. Otherwise, I played one day with some really low tech media, including Crayola crayons, a travel iron and cheap shaving cream.

Encaustic wax painting is an ancient art technique; I've never been able to convince myself that I would like it well enough (or be good enough at it) to spend the money on real wax color cubes and tools, so the crayons and travel iron are a fun substitute. My canvas is a sheet of freezer paper. With a little practice, (or no practice at all) you can create landscapes, seascapes, and abstracts worthy of matting and framing. It's just a happy little exercise that gets your juices flowing.

You may have made marbled paper in elementary school art class. I like to make stacks of marbled card stock for later use in collages and note cards. Just pump the shaving cream onto a flat pan, drip watercolors, acrylics, or even food coloring onto it and pull a comb or other tools through it to make swirls. Lay your sheet of paper on top and press firmly enough to push it into the paint. Raise carefully, wipe away excess and let dry. It takes a lot of shaving cream, so don't forget to buy your husband another can.

........and then we decided 10 month old Marley needed to be neutered. Our perfectly house trained Shih Tzu was having testosterone surges and marking hither and yon throughout the house. He was also becoming more prone to run from us outdoors and even to growl at us if we picked him up when he didn't want to be picked up. All the signs said that our puppy needed his hormones reined in. Those of you who know me know it was a hard decision for me, but the deed was done on Monday, an interminably long day, and I brought him home about 4 PM and dressed him in a onesy to keep him from chewing at his stitches.

Long story short, we've had a rough rest of the week. He had more pain and got sicker than I expected, and I got a killer migraine. Along with the hellish, blinding pain, migraines (and the meds) take away my hope and my connection with God; I'm always sure that this one is never going away. When it's time for me to die, I hope I have a migraine, and I won't mind going as much.

The reverse side of the coin is that once a migraine is gone, I'm sure that's the last one I'll ever have. I woke up this morning with no pain but still drugged from the Maxalt, still worried about Marley and needed to make a quick run to Wal-Mart. On the way there, I got behind a white SUV with license plate "200 MMN". Maybe I was looking for something to pull me out of my pain induced drug haze, but I began to hum.....Ommmmm-m-m-m......... and to meditate as I drove through the morning school traffic.

Meditating is listening to God. I figure God gets tired of being told what to do. Be still and know that I am God. (Psalms 46:10) More than keeping my body still, it means to still my mind and my tongue and open myself up to the mind-altering majesty that is God, who has had some pretty spectacular ideas all on his own. By the time I got home, I felt the connection returning. Marley is slowly getting better, and I'm working on a couple more painting projects. Life is good. Ommmmm-m-m-m

The Best Medicine

2010-09-06T14:52:00.001-07:00

If you drop by even occasionally to check my blog, you've no doubt thought I had abandoned ship, but no, I got some sort of stomach virusy-bacteria-creeping-crud-thing, and I'm just now feeling normal again. Some folks press onward when they get ill, but not me. I prefer to withdraw in order to savor fully just how sorry I feel for myself.....and I'm finding that when I'm sick, a fuzzy, happy puppy is the very best medicine of all.

Anyway, even when I'm not blogging, there's a tiny brain cell or two dedicated to scavenging ideas for the blog. This time, I was planning to show you how I've been organizing everything from my art room to my clothes closets and took pics of the Kia stuffed to the rafters with things to donate to Goodwill, including an Imelda Marcos-like box of shoes, some dating back to my teaching/counseling days. I've also been experimenting with painted canvases for another project I've got in mind, as well as a gelatin plate monotype technique, and I took tons of photos for a mini-tutorial, but I somehow managed to delete them when I was transferring some photos for Jim (Oops! I forgot he says I can't talk about him in my blog anymore. Forget I said that.)
These are some after shots of my closet. After all these years it finally occurred to me to separate dresses, shirts and blouses by color. When you're about to get dressed, what do you think of? I'm going to wear my new jeans and the pale blue blouse. Voila! No more searching for the pale blue blouse.
(This photo was in my other camera.) The gelatin plate monotype wasn't as messy as you might think, and I plan to try it again. The recipe is all over the net and on YouTube, using plain gelatin and water; just mix it up and let it chill in a flat pan overnight. Paint on acrylics or block printing ink and then apply sheets of paper. I used handmade paper and got some interesting patterns that I may use to make artsy envelopes.
The most fun painting I've done lately were these pieces of canvas (below). Earlier, I had used grape leaves and acrylic paints to stamp impressions on them, and then soaked the fabric with water and loosely painted Pebeo Seta Color fabric paint on the wet cloth and placed leaves and other found objects on them and set them out in the sun to let it do its magic. It develops in about 15 minutes, and when they were completely dry, I splashed Jacquard Lumiere metallic paints on them.

When I was taking these photos, Marley came in and said that's enough pictures of cloth; it's time to focus on me.

So I did. Follow your bliss everyday; mine happens to be all kinds of art. It's what keeps me going, along with my li'l fluffy shadow........ See you later.

What I Did on My Summer Vacation

2010-07-28T04:23:00.000-07:00

Actually, we haven't gone on vacation this summer, probably should have gone to the Gulf when Belinda and Bobby did in the spring. We had planned to go after school started in August, but with the black blob enveloping our favorite playground, we decided not to go.........maybe forever. We discussed other places, but I'm not going without Marley, and Jim thinks this is a huge added travel burden. Life's not easy when you're Jim. Anywho, a while back, I realized that the best part of traveling was coming home. I'm insanely (probably the key word here) happy puttering about in my own little nest.

So, in lieu of photos of us standing in front of interesting sites, I thought I'd share with you some of the stuff I've been playing with this summer. There are always UFOs (unfinished objects) all over my house, so some of these are works in progress.

I liked these 2 old tables too much to throw them away; after a few winters on the deck, they were needing a paint job anyway, and I'd been wanting to try this primitive, playful style of decorative painting, so they were the obvious victims. I'm not sure this style has a name, but it's fun, and I wouldn't want more than one or two pieces in my house. I sanded them a bit and then began painting bright acrylics on them. I added rubber stamped stars, colored twine, some brass hardware I bought at Home Depot, and some pieces of old jewelry. The Scrabble tiles on top say, "Time is a River", which is something I say to remind myself that hard times aren't forever, and "What I do is me, for this I came", my favorite John Bradshaw quote. It was a slower process than I'd thought and took almost 2 weeks from start to finish. I was fairly happy with the results.

My next project was to brighten up the living room and entryway; theTumble Weed (dark taupe) walls were feeling dreary after 7 years, but I wasn't up for painting all the walls, so with Jim's help, I taped off four 8-foot panels (the same size and shape as the windows) and then painted them with China Doll, the color of the ceilings. I'd found these enormous dandelion stencils that I really love; I've done a lot of brush stenciling, but these suggested using a foam roller, which was tons easier, especially for such large images, but I hadn't figured on just how hard the giant stencils themselves would be to handle. I kept thinking Colleen would know a better way to do this. I painted them in taupes and white. I'm not totally pleased with them and would use brushes next time, but they do look interesting and brighten up the room.

Here's my first attempt at origami. I made 21 little cranes one evening. I love how once they're folded correctly, you don't have to worry that they'll unfold, probably not my next great passion, but when you've done a few, you gain respect for origami artists...........it's not as easy as it looks.

I've been seeing these miniature houses online, and you can invest hundreds of dollars in pre-fab appointments for them (which would be a total bore) or almost nothing and create your own decorations; I've opted for the latter. It's a project that I hope to work on for months or maybe even years, a concept Jim can't quite grasp. He keeps asking if it's finished. What I've done so far is to glue together a plywood house (only 18 bazillion unmarked pieces; the instructions said, "Look at the picture".) as well as some basic pieces of furniture that I got at Michael's. The look I'm going for is a Faerie House, and that's what I kept in mind as I painted it inside and out. For the "tin roof" I ripped apart corrugated cardboard and painted it silver. Kitchen and bath are floored with hand cut stained glass tiles, and the bedroom has a floor cloth made from a black canvas I painted with acrylics. There's also a living room, and of course up in the attic is an art room. I've got plans for tiny curtains, bed linens, etc., and in the eventual backyard, a Secret Garden.

I recently started going to classes at the local stamping shop; I enjoy them because it's a group of happy women playing. Greeting card making is big business these days, and some of the ladies have thousands of dollars invested in creating their cute little cards for family and friends. I'm not that enthralled with gluing Cricut cut-outs onto card stock, but after each class I come home all happy and relaxed, with 2 or 3 cards and possibly an idea or two.

And I've got several projects not far enough along for pictures, but I'll show you an altered book I started. For a book lover like me, it's a hard decision to deface a book, but when an old book has outlived its usefulness, I figure it's happier getting all gussied up and living a brand new life. This one has a little drawer for hidden treasures. I carved out a place for a box, using an exacto knife after I fused the page edges with Gel Medium.

And of course there's always time to play with my little shadow. He's definitely not a "dress-up" dog, but sometimes I try for 2 seconds. These starry-eyed sunglasses lasted for not quite that long. Lately he's sporting a Tinkle Belt because the marking isn't quite under control, and Jim was about to divorce both of us. Marley doesn't seem to mind the belt, and Jim loves us again. Life is good.

Who's Gettin' Fixed??

2010-07-17T08:38:00.000-07:00

Hey, whaddup? I'm 8 months old, weigh 8 pounds, and Mom's books say I'm a teenager! Whatever......There's a lot of talk in our house about whether or not to get me fixed. Tell you the truth, I didn't know I got broked. Dad has bad knees, and mom's back hurts sometimes, so you'd think they'd be getting fixed, 'stead of me, but who can tell about peoples? And they're all bothered because I'm marking. Hello! I don't have thumbs; how am I gonna hold a pencil or one of mom's paint brushes to mark? Anywho, I'm sure they'll let me know what they decide about who gets fixed.

Oh yeah, and Shawn and Sadie came to see me! Sadie is a beagle with sad, pretty eyes; she's 7 years old, which is middle aged, and she's patient with me, except once or twice when she snapped at me and said "Go away, kid, you bother me!" I fall in love with all dogs, even the older gals (Or boys, no I'm not that way; I'm just practicin' my technique on whoever shows up!)............and sometimes my moose. Haven't found anyone who's as interested as I am yet, but I am not givin' up. Mom's been trying to get me into some obedience classes. I don't have a clue why, I do what she says if I'm not too busy; the only ones she found were already started, so we'll have to wait till the next round begins. I figure maybe I'll meet some babes there.

And you're not even gonna believe this, but last week, right out of the blue, 3 loud, sweaty guys showed up and pulled out most of our carpet and took it away and put down a slip-n-slide floor in its place! I wonder if Mom knew they were gonna do that......I miss my old carpet. It was all soft and smushy, and a guy could stretch out on it for a nap after supper, and it made a great napkin, too, for wiping your whiskers, and best of all, if you didn't feel like going outside to pee you could just slip behind a chair, and nobody would know.....usually. The new floor is shiny and hard, and sometimes when I get the zoomies and race around the house at 90 miles an hour, I totally lose it on the corners. Good thing there's still carpet in the bedrooms; hope the sweaty guys don't come back for that!

It's still waaay too hot here to play outside in the daytime. Mom said she brought me home in February and that it was really cold. I think I like cold weather best, and she might buy me a bomber jacket this winter; I can hardly wait for the girls' reactions when they see me decked out like a fighter pilot. Hooyah!

Paper Sculpture

2010-06-30T04:11:00.000-07:00

If you're like me, your inspirations come in waves. When I admitted to myself (after 4 intense years) that digital art wasn't doing it for me anymore, I went through a fairly scary dry spell, but lately, the waves have been crashing on shore so constantly that I'm making lists of inspirations, lest I forget some of them. How do I know when it's a worthwhile inspiration? I forget to breathe. That, and my heart beats faster, and sometimes I get tears in my eyes. Sounds like a religious experience, doesn't it? It is, sort of. When we create something from within, we're connected as though with an umbilical cord with El Shaddai, The Great I Am, Cosmic Consciousness, or whatever you choose to call It. Anyway, it's a rush, and it makes me happy and gives me a reason to get up in the morning, to wake up expectantly with plans already milling around in my scattered little brain for my current art victim.

I was working happily on the project I thought would come next in this blog when I went rummaging in a supply/storage closet and came across 2 paper lamps I'd bought years ago at Pier 1. One of them got damaged when visitors were rough-housing in the living room (nobody ever admitted to the crime; I guess it jumped off and impaled itself on the table corner), and I liked the lamps too much to throw them away. They're useless as a light source, but they give off such a soft, golden glow. How could I not love them? People talk a lot these days about repurposing objects. I like that term. It's good for the planet, and it speaks to the reverence for the stuff we bring into our lives.

A few years ago, I began doing paper sculpture. I didn't know that was the name for it. Actually, I thought I'd invented something when I began cutting shapes from paper and gluing them together. Then I saw online that artists had been doing it for a long time, even making a living from it. So much for my invention. I did several ambitious pieces, one of them being a 4-foot picture of peacocks in a tree, all white. I never was satisfied with it, but Jim made a frame for it, and it hung on the wall for a while. Then I decided I couldn't take it anymore, but I'd spent hundreds of hours cutting out those feathers, and I couldn't throw them away. Do we see a pattern forming here? So I stripped them from the backboard and stuffed them into a couple of Wal-Mart sacks and stuck them in the closet. Here's a detail of the feathers, and the image at the top is a shot of an iris watercolor/paper sculpture that hangs in the hallway.

So, there were the lamps and the feathers, waiting to be repurposed, together; Breathe, Cat, just breathe.....I abandoned the other project for the moment and began feverishly gluing feathers to lamps, making sure to cover the damaged spot. It took about an hour, and I could hardly wait till dark to see the full impact of my new lamps! Well, I'm in love with them. They're not really repurposed; they're still lamps but with a new attitude. Hard to do them justice in photos.

'Scuse me now, I started yet another project yesterday, and it's the kind that involves the house, and Jim will be impatient with me till I get it finished and everything back to normal. He likes my art, just not the messy part between inspiration and ta-daaah!

Essentially Repellent

2010-06-26T18:06:00.000-07:00

This one is for Belinda because we were talking about the problems we have in the mid-south with biting bugs in summer, and she asked for my essential oils insect repellent recipe. Where commercial repellents have side effects and smell yucky, essential oils have health benefits and smell like the best of nature. It's a no brainer.

Some of us simply attract bugs! When I was a child, we roamed the fields and woods, picnicked alongside gurgling streams, waded through waist high sage grass to get to the swimming hole, and I can't ever remember getting bitten by ticks, chiggers or mosquitoes. These days, they'll crawl, fly or hop past a dozen people to get to me, and when I'm bitten, it's red and itchy for days. Global warming? I dunno, but they never bite Jim. I resent him deeply for that. He says it's because I don't drink enough alcohol. I tell him it's because I'm so sweet, dang it! Anyway, I'll digress here and tell you my favorite remedy for insect bites: Wipe the inside of a banana peel on the bite. It works better than Benedryl, and you get to eat the banana. When we're out of bananas, I have pieces of frozen banana peel in the freezer. It works just as well.

If you're new to essential oils, buy the good stuff online or in your health food store, but when you find a display where all the oils are the same price, walk on by. They may smell nice, but they're mostly filler because true essential oil prices within a brand can vary from $4.95 to 50 bucks or more, depending on how rare or expensive they are to produce. They are the essence of plants, flowers, berries, seeds, bark, rhizome, resin, peels and roots. Store the bottles tightly capped in a cool, dark place, and they'll last a long time. The uses are infinite. I believe they were the first medicines and are capable of making our bodies and homes healthier. (I think I've already shared with you my using Tea Tree Oil for dust mites and Oil of Cloves for ants.) I love nice perfume, but I don't wear it in summer because it attracts insects. Instead, I wear a dab of my favorite oils.

Many essential oils repel insects, and you can learn about them with a little research. The ones I've used in this recipe are simply some of my favorites.

Lavender Oil.....If I could have only one essential oil, it would be lavender. It's used in perfumes, is calming, anti-depressant, treats skin problems, is anti-microbial, anti-inflammatory, is used for burns, migraines, muscle cramps, digestion, asthma, allergies, menstrual cramps, and insect repellent. I have a diffuser pad where I can drop a few drops of Lavender Oil and plug it into an outlet in my bedroom; it fills the room with tranquility.

Cedarwood Oil.....Of course we know cedar keeps moths away, but among its many other uses are tonics for muscles, skin, digestion and brain disorders, also an expectorant, insecticide, fungicide, and sedative qualities.

Lemon Balm Oil (Citronella)...... has traditionally been employed against bronchial inflammation, earache, fever, flatulence, headaches, high blood pressure, influenza, mood disorders, palpitations, toothache and vomiting. A tea made from Lemon balm leaves is said to soothe menstrual cramps and helps relieve PMS. Researchers have found that using lemon balm also improved memory and lengthened attention span in individuals suffering from Alzheimer's disease. This effect may be due to its content of antioxidants, which are thought to protect body cells from damage caused by a chemical process called oxidation. And a few plants in your flower bed repels insects.

Orange Oil .....Gives relief from anxiety, anger, depression, inflammation, is a detoxifier, and boosts immunity, and insects avoid prolonged exposure to it.

Rosemary Oil.....has been a symbol for remembrance since ancient times. Aside from the fact that I love the smell of this herb and have a huge bush about 4 feet wide just outside my back steps, it's excellent in cooking, relieves muscle pain, is calming, lowers blood pressure and inflammation and treats wounds. Sometimes when I'm walking past it, I break off a long stem and rub it on my arms and legs just because I enjoy being enveloped in its scent. Oh yes, and bugs don't care for it.

Sandalwood Oil.......This is the most expensive essential oil I own. At Rose Mountain Herbs, 1/4 oz costs $42, but it's an awesome scent, found in many of my favorite perfumes, and it's all the good stuff, like antiseptic, deodorant, tonic, memory booster, etc. You'll notice bugs don't like anything antiseptic.

Patchouli Oil......I'm probably more drawn to this one simply as a scent than any other. There's a site called Basenotes, where I've learned tons about why we're attracted to certain scents. When I plugged in all my favorite perfumes from throughout my life, Patchouli was a common denominator in most of them. It's also a fungicide, insecticide, anti-inflammatory, tonic, etc.

So, take a small bottle, preferably one that has a pump, and fill it to within an inch from the top with a good oil. You can use Sweet Almond Oil or even a high grade olive oil. Now begin to experiment with quantities of your essential oils. Start with a dozen drops of each. Let your nose be your guide; you inherently know what's good for you, if your trust the process. Shake well before each use. I apply it to my arms and legs when I'm finished showering, wiping it on my wet skin and then letting myself air dry. Some of the scents evaporate before others. I notice the Patchouli lasts longest on me.

I wore this to my uncle's cookout on Memorial Day. It was a typically humid, sticky summer day, and everyone there was getting stung repeatedly by those dratted little sweat bees. I never even had one light on me. Proof enough. Let me know if you make your own repellent and if you come up with any new additions. The possibilities are endless................. Oh, and one more thing, I don't use commercial repellents on Marley. Some of the most popular ones have proven to be lethal to small dogs. When he gets his weekly bath, I put a few drops of essential oil, usually Patchouli, into his rinse water, and he's protected and smells a little like Jim does when he's wearing Polo.

Mosaic Dulcimer

2010-06-23T08:19:00.000-07:00

Well, it's finished; it took about 3 weeks, beginning with cutting my tiles from sheets of stained glass. I cut about 90% of the tiles in this project. I like to do that because the finished piece seems more like mine than when I buy them precut. As you'll see, the tiles for the back of the dulcimer are, shall we say, untraditional? My way of doing mosaics appeals to me, mostly because it challenges me to make do.

I grew up poor, nothing wrong with that, and mostly I'm glad I didn't have the proverbial silver spoon in my mouth. We were country poor, and by that I mean we had food, shelter and clothing, and most everyone around us was poor, too, so we didn't consciously know it or dwell on it. A few people in town, like C. C. Pierson, who owned the hardware store, roller rink, furniture store, and movie theater were considered rich, but by today's standards I think even C.C. wasn't that well off.

Back then, nobody ever thought of having the government support them, and we knew that we only could have what our parents provided with their hard work. That's a good thing to grow up knowing, and another thing, probably the most valuable lesson that my mother taught me was how to make do with what's at hand. She's creative that way, and if she wanted a flower bed out front, she gathered rocks and a sack of concrete and went to work building one. She sewed most of my clothes, and I'd walk down to the mercantile store and buy 3 yards of colorful fabric for $1.00 and a 35 cent Butterick pattern, dream up my own version of it, and she'd sew me an outfit as pretty as any in the J.C. Penny catalog. Once a friend gave her a long, wool coat, and though it fit her well, and she didn't have a long coat, she took it apart, cut it down, and gave it to me. I thought it was beautiful. And that's the feeling I get from creating with mosaic tiles. Here's how I did this one:

I used a glass cutter, grinder, snips and breaking tool, sand paper, alcohol, tweezers, glue, marking pen, and grout. I'd had the dulcimer for 30 years and thought it looked nice on the mantle but didn't have any remorse at taking it out to the shop and prepping it by roughing it up with sand paper. There are several ways of laying out and applying tiles; my way is to experiment with small sections and then glue them down.

The only part I don't like is the grout. It's messy and ugly, and once it's applied, it looks as if my jewels got stuck in mud, which is exactly what has happened.

Grout is meant to be a drab background for the sparkly treasures, but I experiemented this time and applied an acrylic, pearlized wash over it; I love the look, just enough of a sheen to compliment my sparkly tiles.

Actually, I was pleased with the whole thing, after I created some faux frets and added new strings.

Oh yeah, and here's the hypertufa leaf I made a while back. I painted it after the 28 day wait for it to finish drying. Waiting is the hardest part. And now I'm off on a couple of new artsy crafty adventures; I'll share them with you when they're finished. Have a happy, creative day!

Dog Days of Summer

2010-06-17T04:43:00.000-07:00

Hey, guess what! Oh, you'll never get it. Sawyer came to visit me! And he brought Ian and Josh and Nan. And guess what else.......Do I have to tell you everything? He wouldn't play with me. What's with dogs? This summer I've had Haven, Buffy, Bella, and Sawyer over for some romping fun in the backyard, and they're all amazing, beautiful dogs...............that do not play with me! There I am, doing all the friendly, tail wagging doggie stuff, like sniffing their butts and sharing my water and toys and food, and nuttin!

It's okay, not like I'm complainin' or anything. I just loved their smells and getting to know what dogs are like, and when each of them left, I ran from one door to the other, thinking maybe, just maybe, they'd come back. Mom says it's because I'm still a kid, and they're grown, except for Buffy, and she was real shy and hid behind her daddy.

Other than that, I'm spending most of these summer days inside with Moose, Turtle and Mickey. They're always ready to play. After the sun goes down, mom takes me outside for a while, and I run around like crazy and talk to other dogs barking in the distance. Oh yeah, and I got a Rabies vaccination! Mom didn't want me to have it; she said where am I gonna get rabies, and her friend Lu, who is a retired nurse, said the shots are hard on little dogs like me because they give us the same dose as they do to big dogs. But you know dad, everything by the book, so there we were, waiting in Dr. Mann's office with dogs whose heads are bigger than I am. It hurt pretty bad, and my right leg swelled up, and I'm still limping a little (nearly 2 weeks later), but I'll be okay, and mom said that was absolutely the last one!

That's about it, 'cept that my hair is shorter; Mom had visions of floor-length, silky hair and a topknot but decided it's not practical for a Shih Tzu in Arkansas summer heat, so when she brushes me everyday, she also trims me with scissors. (I just go to the groomer for a sanitary trim, ear check, anal glands, and nail trim.) Did you know that Shih Tzu hair is like human hair and never stops growing? She can experiment with longer hair when the weather cools off, but hey, I'm cute no matter what. Well, I'll see ya later, and if you happen to have a small dog that might play with me, c'mon over! High-5!!

A Time to Play

2010-05-30T06:08:00.000-07:00

Hi! It's me! (Not many photos today; Mom is knee deep in her mosaics.) She said her cousins asked about me at the family get-together, so I thought I'd tell y'all what I've been up to. Mainly, I've been growing! I'm 6 months old, and I weigh almost 8 pounds. I don't eat much, especially since it got so hot outside, but I've got Mom feeding me peoples food one bite at a time, and she keeps organic puppy chow and filtered water down all the time. She says I'll grow a little more but not much. Geesh! I was sure hopin' I'd get big enough to reach those door knobs......

I've started liking people, a lot, no matter who shows up at our door. Back when I was a li'l kid, like last month, I thought everybody was here to steal the peanut butter, and I'd bark and growl at them till they went away, but now I know they just came to play with me! Well, most of 'em do, but like the guy who came to look at the carpet and the ones who hang out with Dad in his shop, not so much. And then there are the ones like Shawn......when he came for supper, he got down on the floor and let me give him kisses and threw the ball for me and rewarded me with Cheerios! Only trouble is, they always leave.

I am not loving this Arkansas summer, though! Excuse me! Whose idea was this? I mean if you're butt nekkid, or close to it, this 100 degree heat and humidity might be almost bearable, but you try playing out there in a double-layered fur coat and see how much you love the good ol' summer time! Dad says it will only get worse thru September, so I'm stickin' indoors, except for quick trips out to do my business. In the mornings, the dew is so heavy that I come back lookin' like a drowned rat, so I mostly play in the backyard in the evenings after the sun has set. You just wait till winter. You guys will be sitting around shivering, and I'll be the one all toasty and rearin' to go!

Dad didn't stay mad about the little bit of tinkle on the bed, and I've been sleeping with them a lot! It's my most favoritest thing! I start out at the foot of the bed, being all nice and quiet and chewing on Mickey Mouse, but towards morning, I get a little bored, and whenever one of them moves or makes noise, I think maybe they want to play! So I move up and kiss them on the face, but usually they say, "No, Marley!" all grumpy like. And then it's just me and ol' Mick again, all alone in the dark. People sure are serious about their sleep.

Mom is still tryin' to leash train me. I get Cherrios for not biting it, but mostly I bite it and roll up in it. A Shih Tzu will do whatever you ask him to..............as long as that's what he was planning to do anyway. Well, it's almost time for Dad to come home. He only works 2 days a week, but he's my best play buddy, so I miss him really, really bad! When I hear his truck pull into the garage, I go bonkers......I think that's him! Omigosh! Omigosh! See ya!

Hypertufa Workshop

2010-05-20T09:43:00.000-07:00

It was a dark and stormy Saturday morning..........Lou Madrew (yes, her name rhymes) and I had planned to go to an all-day workshop to learn how to make hypertufa, and with an 80% chance of rain predicted for the whole day, we considered cancelling, but when I called Kandy, she said, "It's not raining here! C'mon, and we'll have a great day!" So, we went, thinking maybe she would reschedule when the rain moved back into North Little Rock. But the rain never came (no more than a few drizzles), and we did have one of the most fun workshops I've ever attended.

I won't go into the history, recipes and techniques of hypertufa, but Google will pull up over 400,000 sites where you can learn more if you're interested. Basically, it's a medium using Portland cement, vermiculite, peat moss, and sand and can be poured and molded into all kinds of troughs, bird baths, flower pots, and decorative pieces, but unlike cement alone, it's light and quite movable; and in time, it takes on a beautiful, weathered and ancient look.

I got totally inspired, even before the workshop began, wandering through Kandy's leafy, shady, tall-grassy backyard and discovering her handmade, eclectic treasures; I loved every inch of it. There's even a hypertufa waterfall with gi-normous goldfish in the pool below.

Working with hypertufa is muddy, messy fun, and I was transported back to making mud pies with my sister and cousins on our grandmother's front porch. I did a few mosaic stepping stones last year, but Kandy takes it to a whole 'nother level, and now I've got a mosaic dulcimer and pink mosaic flamingos on my to do list. And those leaves! They were our favorites and just screaming for all manner of artistic applications and interpretations. I've begun looking around for huge leaves, like elephant ears, banana trees, rhubarb, etc.; when I find a stash of them, I'll have an afternoon of leaf casting in my own backyard.

She served us lunch of chicken salad and fresh strawberries and told us stories about her historical home and intriguing life. She has reason to believe that she's Al Capone's unacknowledged grandchild. I kid you not. Her husband, Jimmy, is an actor and set designer in the local theater and has been for many years. He showed us how to pour hypertufa flagstones in minutes that look exactly like the real thing. Hypertufa is hard (as a rock) in 24 hours but requires 28 days to cure.

You can find the Garage Sale Queen on Facebook, and she has a book that you can download. Her art is displayed around Little Rock, including pieces at the Starving Artist Cafe. She is all kinds of fun, and I can see her with her own TV show. I think most of us could teach ourselves hypertufa techniques from books and instructions on the net, but it's fun to discover the beginnings with others, and Kandy shared with us some variations that didn't quite work for her, always good to know. I went to Home Depot on Monday and loaded the back of the Kia with the makings for hypertufa, and I'll be posting my pieces here with more detailed info on how it's done. When Kandy offers an advanced mosaics class next summer, I plan to be there, rain or shine.

Turtle Surgery, Challenging Authority, & Chasing Birds

2010-05-13T04:36:00.000-07:00

Guess what! I got a new toy. His name is Turtle. I've almost chewed his leg off, and Mom put him away till she gets around to sewing it back on; maybe I'll get it back someday. Anyway, I s'pose I ought to tell you that I've been in a little trouble lately, mostly about where I tinkle.....Mom says the internet tells her I'm going through adolescence and that I'm challenging authority, like when Dad throws the golf ball, I used to bring it back to him for Cheerios, but these days, it's way more fun to make him beg. Whoever the internet is, I like when it tells Mom about puppies 'cause it makes it okay to be me.

I mean, I got potty training down just perfect for a while, and you know how nutso Mom and Dad are about that kinda stuff, so they were real happy and told me Good Boy a lot! But sometimes it feels good to let 'er rip wherever I'm standing; I even peed on their bed (good thing Mom had a big, thick pad on it, otherwise Goodwill would have been getting a nice, new mattress with one tiny yellow stain in the middle of it this morning), and that got me exiled to my crate for the whole night, probably for a gazillion nights to come, 'cause Dad is still pretty mad at me, and Mom said I would be spending a couple of hours a day in the crate, to remind me to hold it. I don't mind so much, and I never put up a fuss; she always puts in an organic biscuit and my blue chewie dawg, and it gives me time to ponder life's important stuff, like chewing.

But hey, I play outside a lot, too, and I've discovered birds! We got lotsa birds. There's a nest of robins on the arbor, a nest of bluebirds in the little birdhouse Dad built, a nest of brown thrushes in the Chinese Witch Hazel, and a nest of noisy Mockingbirds in the Holly bush. I love to chase robins best because they're brave and cocky, and they steal the worms from our yard, all day long! I'm 'bout the fastest dog in the world, but I haven't caught one yet because just about the time I'm closing in and ready to nab one, it cheats and flies off! Watch out, suckas, one o' these days.......

Sometimes I wonder how Mom ever made it without me, though. I help her do everything, like sorting dirty laundry.......well, not actually sorting it, but I do grab socks and take off with them; it gives Mom exercise when she goes to find them. When she writes checks, I like to sit on the desk. She says I make a cute, fluffy paper weight; I'm very good and don't bother her papers, but I love smelling them. Did you know our mailman owns a cat? I can tell just from smelling the letters. I watch the writing as it comes out of her pen. Maybe I'll be able to make it write when I grow up.

So, that's how things have been going, workin' on the ol' potty training again, chasing ornery birds, helping Mom with the chores, and hoping Turtle gets well soon. (P.S. Mom says don't worry if you can't see my eyes. I can see fine, but we're trying to let my face hair grow out. I'll look totally awesome!)

Of Living Stones and Cacti

2010-05-06T07:24:00.000-07:00

I love you all and thank you for your encouraging notes about the mammograms, this year and last. I haven't heard from the lab yet, but that's probably a good sign because the phone calls come faster than the letters. Letters~good; phone calls~not so good. Update! The mail just came, and the letter says I'm normal! That's great, seeing as how I've never considered myself normal before.....

Here's what I've been playing with this week, other than Marley: I found shelves of Living Stones (Lithops) at Lowe's, and I've been making small, rocky landscapes with them and a few cactuses I already had and some gem stones and geodes I had collected for just such an occasion.

As with everything, I went overboard, (4 trips to Lowe's) but here are photos of a few that I took in the glistening morning sun under the arbor, partly shaded by the ever attentive Harry.

Sometimes it's difficult to tell the difference betwixt flora and mineral.

They come from distant lands, like Africa and Afghanistan, so I've never seen them growing in the wild, but I think they must look amazing.

Their botanical names are Greek to me, but they have cute common names, like Chocolate Soldier, Split Rock, and Baby Toes. I think a couple of them look like the goofy plant in The Little Shop of Horrors. I'm taking a couple of the pots to Dave, Deb and Molly when we meet tomorrow at the park for a picnic because they like unusual plants, too.

I'm just very drawn to all these tiny plants.

Anyway, this is what has held my attention for a moment. I'm taking a class (big surprise there) May 15, and it's a brand new adventure that I'll tell you about later.

This is the Day

2010-04-29T07:17:00.000-07:00

The women on my mom's side of the family have a history of cancer; My Aunt Dene and Aunt Iva died from breast cancer; my Aunt Lee has Leukemia, and my mom has had a mastectomy. I think every family has its own physical challenges; this day carries with it all those memories as well as the very present fear of pain.

I guess I have a low pain threshold. I'm not a wuss, honestly; I'm tough as an ol' pine knot about most things. I identified strongly with Steel Magnolias. Some women say mammograms are no big deal and very little pain, if any. I sometimes leave the hospital in tears, and once they burst my breast; I'm serious, about a half inch tear in the side. When the vice comes together, and I'm standing on tip-toe, trying not to breathe, thinking, "I can deal with this! I can deal with this! and the technician who must be sooo bored with seeing boobs all day everyday says, "It's not hurting, is it?" I go through what usually proves to be the worst pain within every 365 day span of time. Maybe smaller busted women have a harder time. I don't know. If it were just that few minutes and it was over for a year, I probably wouldn't harbor such fear, but more often than not, I get the call to come back in for another set of x-rays, and of course, I begin mentally rewriting my will, thinking of how I'll miss the sunrise and wondering if it will miss me at all.

Last year, I got the call to go back in, and they always read the second set of x-rays while I'm there, and everything's okay, and I go home, but not this time. There was a definite mass, and they wanted to suck it out with a needle (aspirate it). Would it be anesthetized? Yes. Would there be pain? No. Okay, let's do this, and I didn't even have them call Jim in from the waiting room.

Long story short, the pain was excruciating as the doctor, or orderly, or janitor or whoever he was, tried repeatedly to guide the 3 foot needle by watching it on the monitor and just couldn't reach the mass! Maybe they anesthetized the surface, but that needle went far, far beyond the surface. I hissed at him, "What in God's name do you do when you get a big breasted woman in here??" I was crying like a baby, couldn't help it; it seemed to go on for hours, but it couldn't have been more than 15-20 minutes. Finally, he reached the mass, extracted it, and pronounced everything was fine. Come back in one year. Well, I was teary eyed and shaken when I rejoined Jim in the waiting room. I knew everything actually would be fine once his arms were around me, and we even stopped for lunch at Jason's.

Within an hour after getting home, though, I got so nauseated and dizzy I literally couldn't stand up, was throwing up again and again, and Jim began calling the breast care center. He was beside himself with worry. Another long story short, 2 days later, the nausea subsided. The doctor thought that the Vagus nerve had been traumatized, which is very rare. Wouldn't you just know it.

So, here it is a year later. I'm not in a good mood, and Jim is lying low; even Marley is being still. I'm pretty sure that if men had to go through this once a year, there would be a less intrusive, more streamlined way of getting the job done. I support Susan G. Komen every chance I get (hope she doesn't mind that I borrowed her logo); it's on my license plate, for goodness sake, and I know mammograms save countless lives; I just don't have to like getting one!

The Green Monster, Silk Potty Pads, and a Girl!

2010-04-18T18:35:00.000-07:00

"Until you have loved an animal, a part of your soul remains unawakened."

Hi! Things have really picked up around here since it got to be spring. I've gained 2 pounds in 11 weeks (even though Mom says I don't eat enough), I'm completely potty trained, have showed the Vac Monster who's boss, and had a play date with a girl. Life is pretty good.

Potty training wasn't half as hard as it looked at first. All I had to do was figure out where Mom and Dad wanted me to go. Sometimes they'll throw in a different kind of pad, like the blue silk pillow Mom had in her recliner, but ya can't fool me. When she put it on the floor, I knew just what to do and tinkled on it, a lot! She didn't seem all that happy, though, and the blue pad went away. I guess she was tired of it. Come to think of it, the same thing happened with the furry comforter thingy she puts at the foot of the bed at night..........Mom likes to decorate. Anyway, since the weather's so amazing, I would rather go outside. Pads for for sissies!

The Vac Monster lives in his own tiny room and only comes out once or twice a week when Mom follows him around the house. He's big, really big, ugly and green and has one yellow eye that glows, and a long skinny tail, and he roars at me! If I wasn't so brave, I'd run hide under the bed when he comes out, but I growl and bark and pounce at him and pull on his tail. Mom doesn't mind, but if Dad's home, he says Hush, Marley! in his big voice. I guess he likes the Monster more than me.

When people friends came over for supper the other night, I didn't much care; Mom and Dad are the only people I want to hang out with, but when I saw they brought their dog, Haven, I peed on myself I was so excited!! Wahoo! At last I had someone my size to play with! And she was real pretty, with a bow in her hair and all, but guess what..... She doesn't know she's a dog! I'm serious as a train wreck, her mom and dad said she doesn't play. Say WHAT? I thought all dogs played. But sure enough, she ran from me the whole evening, even though I smiled and sniffed and rolled and tried to show her how to play. All she did was pee on my toys and growl at me when she stole my bone. Maybe it's because she's an older woman; mom said she's 3 years old. That must be like 95 in dog years, poor ol' thing.

Maybe there will be other dogs in my future, ones that like to play, but for now Mom and Dad play with me a lot. I get Cheerios when I do stuff like jumping through a hoop, sitting (big deal), or chasing the ball. I have to bring it all the way back to Dad, but Mom grades on the curve and will give me Cherrios for just about anything I do that's cute. I'm really good at cute.

Garvan Woodland Gardens

2010-04-15T08:09:00.000-07:00

(Click on the photos to zoom in)
It has been an eventful past few days; I'm writing the blog today because I wanted to tell you about the gardens (which Marley hasn't seen) and to mention his sick spell, and typical puppy, he didn't remember it 5 minutes after he got to feeling better.

A couple of years ago, we had the arbor built just outside the screened-in back porch. It's the size of a room, and in summer we stay out there a lot. Jim built me a swing, and I have my flowers, windchimes, and a waterfall, and then there's Harry, the Wisteria I've loved so much, though he has visions of taking over the world, and we have to trim him about once a week, but he has just about covered the whole roof of the arbor, in spring with heavy clusters of purple blossoms, and in summer with dense, green leaves, making everything below fragrant and cool. Marley loves to lie sprawled out with his belly on the river gravel and chew whatever's at hand....or at paw. The gravels are carpeted now with fallen blooms, and whenever he comes inside, I pick them from his long hair and vacuum the trail he leaves on the carpet.

Well, on Monday, I visited Lowe's and brought home a trunkful of bulbs and plants, and Marley and I spent a happy couple of hours planting and repotting. Almost immediately after we came in, about 2 pm, my puppy began vomiting and wretching all over the place, about every 5 minutes! My first thought was that he'd get it all up and be okay, but it went on and on, and I got really scared. Our vet is closed on Mondays, and Marley has such a horror of new places that I didn't want to put him through anything he didn't have to endure, so I kept watching the clock, thinking that if he had to go to the emergency room, we'd go before the doctors went home for the day. I managed to find Dr. Mann's home phone #, and he didn't seem too excited, just said to give Marley Maalox and keep food and water from him for 24 hours. The Maalox was magical! By the time Jim got home at 4:00, Marley jumped up and ran to meet him. What a relief! He was so hungry and thirsty that we gave him ice cubes (which he loves) for a while, a little Gatorade, and then water and puppy chow, and he was perfectly fine. I read up, of course, on what could have made him sick, and he most likely ate a bellyful of those lovely purple wisteria blooms! Never a dull moment with a puppy.....

On Tuesday, I'd planned to leave at 11:00 to go with friends from church to Garvan Woodland Gardens in Hot Springs, but if Marley had acted the least bit sick, I would have cancelled. He was fine as frog's hair, as we say in the south, so I went and had a wonderful time.

The gardens are constantly changing and growing, beautiful any time of year, even Christmas; if you care to look, I'm pretty sure my first blog entry was about the painting I did of Garvan Gardens that won me the Corel Painter Master Artist award (I think that's the name of the award; it has been about 5 years, and I can't even recall what I had for breakfast yesterday.) But I digress.

The main point of this trip was to have High Tea after we browsed through the azalea strewn trails. I had never had high tea. It seems the English used to have it (maybe still do) at 3:00 or 4:00 in the afternoon, and it often replaced both their regular tea and dinner as well because it's a lovely meal in itself, with scones, jellies, clotted cream, lemon curd, tiny sandwiches, and delicate little desserts, along with of course, 3 kinds of tea.

Didn't get any pics in the tea room, but one person at each table chose (or was chosen) to be Mother, and she filled each cup in turn with tea and added lemon, cream, or sugar cubes. Most of the workers throughout Garvan Gardens are devoted volunteers, and our table attendant was new to her job and kept dropping the food on the floor as she tried to place it on our plates, but it just added to the fun. Anyway, have you ever seen a roomful of women with food not having fun?

And no matter where I go, I look forward to coming home to this furry little ball of love who's always excited to see me.

How I See It

2010-04-07T11:03:00.000-07:00

Mom is persnickety about keeping the house looking all nice and pretty, but I guess she never thought about how it looks from 6 inches off the floor. Let me tell you, it could use a lot of decoratin' down here!
This is how her desk chair looks to me:

And you wanna talk art? Here are some of Mom's paintings over the sofa.

Now that the weather is beautiful, I would love to go outside all by myself, but the door handles are about 17 miles away!

The treats might as well be on the roof as far as I'm concerned.

I love playing in Mom's closet, lots of interesting smells in there and enough shoes to keep a puppy happy forever.

People go potty in the cool white things. Maybe when I'm a big boy, they'll let me go there, too.

Mom bought me a bed. It makes her happy to buy me stuff, but I won't sleep in it.

I'd rather sleep beneath her computer desk or in my trusty ol' crate.

This is my moose. His name is Moose, and he's my favorite toy. He looked better when he was new and had sewn-on eyes. Mom doesn't know what happened to them. Mostly I win when I fight him.

The view under the dinner table isn't much, either, and if you ever come to visit, do not chew on the furniture, especially the old dark table that belonged to Dad's mother!

You'll get fussed at, and Dad will be in a bad mood and won't throw the ball for you to chase.

The flowers in Mom's garden are just about the right height for biting; apparently there's a difference between weeds and flowers......... When you come over, don't bite either one, just to be on the safe side.

Here are Dad's feet; they're really ticklish. Maybe that's why he keeps 'em stuck way up there.

Anyway, maybe this gives you some idea of how the world looks from a puppy's point of view. Next year, when I'm big, things will be a lot different around here.

Spring Planting

2010-04-02T12:21:00.000-07:00

This morning I bought multi-colored Snapdragons, blue Creeping Phlox, red & gold Ranunculus (Ranunculi?), magenta Wallflowers, and lavender Petunias for the backyard flowerbed. It's a start. Most of the summer I'll be finding pretty plants I can't live without and adding them. I don't have a particularly green thumb; I call the ones that make it the survivors. Truth is, I can't help myself. Come warm weather, I must dig in the dirt. This spring, I've got a helper. Trouble is, he tries to eat the dirt, flowers, spade, and flower pots. Planting with a 4 month old puppy is a whole 'nother thang.

I got out my old pink Croc knock-offs. Yes, they're pink, and they're just as dorky as the real deal. Marley also tries to eat them. I still haven't found a puppy chow he really likes, but evidently everything else tastes great.

Ranunculus blooms look as if they're made from tissue paper. Someone who changed my life, way back when, planted them, and so there's a memory attached.

I didn't even know there were really Wallflowers. They're an old fashioned flower, and I read online that they're a biennial that takes 2 years to complete its life cycle.

I also bought red Geraniums for the big pots beside the steps. Geraniums never thrive for me, but I think it's the law that you have to buy them and try again each year.

Do you know how to make Snapdragons' mouths open and close?

I nestled the little Creeping Phlox behind my Rosemary bush that has made it through 5 or 6 winters and is about 3 feet high and 4 feet wide. It should be happy back there. The scent is wonderful.

The Wisteria (named Harry) that climbs over the arbor is budding. I'll post pics when it blooms. The little fruit trees have bloomed, and the Forsythia branches are waving hither and yon. I don't like when people prune them into flat shapes.

Hope Springs Eternal.

Wye Mountain Daffodils

2010-03-25T08:29:00.000-07:00

If you're ever in the vicinity of Wye Mountain in early spring, or just want a nice drive through the remote, (You'll lose all your cell phone bars) hilly countryside of Central Arkansas and a walk among millions of daffodils, this little trek is worth your time. The daffodils have been blooming on Wye Mountain almost as long as I've been alive, and I've been making the pilgrimage about every 2 years for a couple of decades. I've always had a thing for daffodils; holding them to my face and breathing in their fragrance restores me. In stressful times, I think of daffodils, and I can actually smell them. These are some photos I snapped with my trusty little PowerShot yesterday on Wye Mountain. The Canon Rebel and its fancy lenses decided to take the day off after one photo. (Annette, where are you when I need you?)

Admission is free to meander among the flowers, and there's a roped-off area for picking your own, for which you pay $1 a dozen. There's an arts and crafts barn where pretty paintings, quilts, candles, etc., created by the friendly people who attend Wye Mountain Church are sold.

You'll find many varieties of daffodils scattered about, and even on an overcast weekday like yesterday, families taking photos of pretty children everywhere. Each time I go, I'm fearful that the driveway to the fields may have been paved or that there will be motels and amusement parks sprung up just down the highway. But no. The Wye Mountain Daffodils are one of life's simple pleasures, virtually unchanged for 50 years.

Springtime in my Winter Years

2010-03-18T10:14:00.000-07:00

I haven't painted for a while, digitally or otherwise; maybe springtime is wakening my need to create something, anything. Here's a quickie I did this morning; I scanned a newspaper for the background, a handful of daffodils, and a decorated notepad from my desk, then played with filters and blending modes, finally taking it to Painter where I used some of Jeremy's brushes and one or two of Skip's brushes.

It's Spring!

2010-03-16T06:26:00.000-07:00

(Click on the pictures to zoom in)

Hey, you guys! Whassup?! Since I talked to you last, it has turned spring! That word means "Puppies can go outside everyday", and mom has moved my papers onto the screened-in deck, so we're working our way toward being potty trained outdoors. I luv, luv, luv outdoors!! I've grown a little, and have learned lots of stuff, but about the time I got really good at barking, mom and dad decided barking wasn't a good trick, so they tell me, "That's enough, Marley"; also, when I get the zoomies and start racing around and biting them, they say "No bite!" and stick a chew toy in my mouth. Gimme a break! Biting is the most funnest thing! I also love to chew on furniture, wires and plants, but mom says, "No, Marley!" and sprays them with Bitter Apple, so I have to go look for something else to chew on. So-many-rules! But mostly, we get along swell.

Their training is coming along good, too, like the other day when they went out to trim shrubs and blocked me into the kitchen. It's so embarrassing when they do that, like I'm a bratty li'l kid or something, but mom thought it would be fun to tap on the window so I could watch them working. Well, I started screaming! I mean really screaming and yelping like I'd broke a leg or somethin', but it was only my heart that was hurted, and here she came, tearing into the house (Who knew she could move that fast?) and scooped me up to see if I was okay. After that, they closed the blinds so I couldn't see them outside, but I'll have to remember the screaming trick.

I would probably eat all the time if they'd let me, but you know mom's a health nut, and I only get to eat at meal times, a little puppy kibble, but mostly real food like brown rice cooked in organic chicken broth, salmon, baked sweet potato, green beans, apple slices, and even bites of her healthy cookies that she gave you the recipe for a while back; of course she sneaks stuff into my meals like brewer's yeast, fish oil and flax seed oil.......gotta love her. When we play in the afternoons, she gives me Cheerios for easy stuff like sitting, jumping through a hoop, and bringing a golf ball back to her. In the mornings while I get combed and cleaned up, I chew on cold snow peas, and they feel soooo good on my teething gums. If I think mom has forgot about my combing, I scratch on the bathroom door to remind her.

Oh yeah, and this one night when dad forgot that the burglar alarm was on and opened the door onto the deck, all heck broke loose! I hate loud noises, and when the 2 policemen rang the front doorbell, I was still shivering, but I stood tall in the doorway and bristled and barked at them, letting them know that this house is protected by more than just a noisy ol' alarm. I don't know why they laughed.

When ya first saw me, I was black and white, but now I'm parti-colored, brindle & white with a white blaze on my forehead and the tip of my tail, which is something breeders like, but mom says she'd love me whatever color I was. The hair on my face is getting long, but we haven't got it trained or mastered the top-knot, so dad calls me fuzzy face. I've had my final puppy shots, and the lady at the vet's office thinks I'm gorgeous and loves on me and said I don't smell like a dog, like that's a good thing? Let me tell you, I was totally miffed by that remark, but hey, she's a people and mostly they mean well.

Interview with Marley

2010-02-20T07:27:00.001-08:00

(Click on the photos to zoom in)

My first 2 weeks with Mom and Dad have gone pretty well. Yeah, mom started out saying she wasn't going to be a dog's mama, but she gave in pretty fast. I think my name is Marley, but she also calls me her "woobie". Maybe that's my middle name. Dad calls me a lot of things in his big voice, and I don't always know if he's being funny or mad. He lies down in the floor and lets me romp all over him till I start biting. What else is a puppy s'pose to do?

There's a lot of exitement over where I go potty. They seem to like it best when I do it on the pads in the kitchen; when I do it on the carpet, they stop being happy. Dogs are always happy; I wonder why people aren't. I don't know what they do with the poo when they take it away. Maybe I don't want to know. They ask me a million times a day if I "need go potty". Get a life, people! I'm workin' on muscle control here! When I remember to go on the pads, mom gives me a taste of peanut butter. Oh my goodness! Have you ever had peanut butter? If I were a people, it's all I would ever eat! Hold on a minute, there's something scary in the corner.............I have to bark at every scary thing or else it might steal the peanut butter.

Yesterday I forgot and started peeing on the carpet in the computer room, and mom grabbed me up with her hand over my pee-pee, and as she ran through the living room, she said to Dad, "If someone had told me a month ago that I'd be running through the house with a handful of dog pee, I would have called them nuts!" She wasn't mad at me, though.

That mom of mine is soooo beautiful! Not beautiful like a dog and maybe not even as a people, but I sit at her feet while she's on the computer and gaze at her. What a babe! I love Dad, too, but mostly for his shoes! I kid you not, his old house slippers smell heavenly! I try to stuff my whole body, head first, into them. Mom wears shoes, too, but hers are nothing to write home about, if you know what I mean.

Mom and Dad are slightly bonkers about clean. It wasn't such a big deal over at Peggy's house where I was born, but everyday Mom brushes my hair and washes my face, ears, paws and privates. She has even started brushing my teeth, which isn't so bad 'cause I eat the toothpaste. I try to eat everything I can find. I found a big, crusty dead bug in the yard yesterday, and it tasted nice, but mom took it away from me; I guess she likes bugs, too. She gave me a dandelion instead, which didn't taste nearly as good but was fun to eat, and she laughed because I had yellow petals stuck in my whiskers. So, that's how things are going. They're doing a fairly good job taking care of me. Mom reads a lot about dogs on the internet and in books. I guess she's trying to get smart as me.

Puppy Love

2010-02-07T10:00:00.000-08:00

Who'd a thunk it? Me with a new puppy!! My sisters and I were raised to believe that dogs are unclean and that if you must have one, it stays outside forever and ever, Amen. If a dog ever touched a dish from my mama's kitchen, the dish could never come back into the house. My sisters recovered before I did, (Hi, Mom! Love you) and Dave and Deb always seem to have some fancy new puppy in their home, but then I've got Jim who said before we were married that we'd never have an indoor dog. Add all this to the fact that when I've spent the night with pet owners, I've gone home with runny eyes and stopped up sinus. A dog for me? Not likely.....

But as my 62nd birthday approached, I thought more and more about a puppy for companionship. I knew I wanted a small, fluffy one, and when I researched the most hypo-allergenic dogs, I was surprised that Shih Tzu made nearly every list, that despite all that hair, there's minimal shedding if they're kept groomed and brushed regularly and have very little dander. Okay, Shih Tzu was at the top of my list, too. Now to broach the subject to Jim; I knew he'd ask, as he always does, "What do you want for your birthday?" This year, I actually had an answer.

He said, "No," matter of factly, and tried to change the subject. He's generous to a fault with me, but this dog thing could really be the sticking point. I pressed onward, undaunted, and laid out my carefully prepared case. (Girls, don't act as if you don't do this.) He ended by saying, "Let me think about it a few days." I didn't care how many days he thought on it, I already knew I was getting a dog.

On Friday, he asked, "Now where are you planning to get this dog?" Ta-daaah!! We got out the Democrat-Gazette and looked under pets. Betty Williams had 10-week old Shih Tzu puppies for sale right here in our town, about 5 minutes drive away. I liked her when we talked on the phone. I didn't get "puppy mill" from her situation, just an older lady who raises a few litters of registered puppies in her home to make extra money. On the drive over, Jim delivered the speech you give to a 7-year-old who has begged you into buying a puppy, "Now, this is your dog. You will feed it and take care of it; I'm not having anything to do with it." Yeah, right.

Betty's small, neat home was alive with yelping dogs! Eight puppies from 2 litters in an enclosure in the living room and 4 or 5 adults in another room. I went in thinking I wanted a female, but you know how you're drawn to some more than others, and I was smitten with this little male I later named Marley (after Bob Marley, not the movie).

We're working on paper training.......with occasional successes. Jim's resolve not to be involved melted within the first hour. He sneaks him extra food and water, making house breaking even harder, and since Marley has become my little shadow, he's a tad jealous, but he loves the wild romps on the floor with Jim and hops around like a little bunny on speed; he also plays alone with his toys beside my computer chair, and when he's tired, he snuggles in for a nap under my foot rest. The only time he barks is in the kitchen; that's because of the monster. I'm not sure if the monster is in one of the potted plants or if the monster is a potted plant, but it must be watched closely.

That very first evening, while I was cooking supper, Marley clambered into the lower shelf of my napkin cart and snuggled in, on top of the clean, ironed napkins. He looked so cute and pleased with himself, I couldn't say no, just removed the napkins and put a towel in their place. Now he has claimed the second shelf, so I've taken out those napkins as well. Maybe it's his doggie bunk bed. He didn't even cry the first night he was away from his brothers and sisters, just snuggled into his crate and slept the whole night. So, it looks as if this is the beginning a beautiful relationship. I will likely post more Marley photos as he trains us in the Art of Puppy Maintenance.

Decorating My Space

2010-02-01T06:32:00.000-08:00

Decorating my home is telling a story about who I am and where I've been. I usually don't do theme rooms. I prefer to think of my style as Shipwrecked, as in, I was washed up on a South Seas island, and my belongings are all the things I've rescued from the waves. I guess you could call it eclectic, and I find a lot of joy in decorating with my finds.

My former daughter-in-law paid big bucks for decorators to decorate for her. Her home was impressive and beautiful, but I never thought it said anything about her, except that she had the money to buy whatever was in style.

Anyway, cabin fever finally got the better of me last week, and I decided my bedroom and master bath walls had to be painted! They were a deep taupe and a great color to sell in a house. Buyers like neutral walls, but I decided they were depressing, and I was craving color and light! I had spent some time thinking about color, and then I happened to find 4 blue and yellow, cloth-covered boxes at Tuesday Morning, and the colors in those boxes were exactly what I wanted for my walls. If I'd pressed the issue, Jim probably would have agreed to find a painter to do the work, but I wanted it done yesterday, so I came home from Home Depot, paint buckets and paint rollers in hand, and told him I would do all the work, knowing full well that he'd help some. I also said I wouldn't be in a hurry, might even take a month to do it, but once I got things dismantled and strewn about, I was in a rush to get it finished; it took 3 very full days.

Our rooms have some interesting angles and insets, and I wanted to accent them, so I decided to paint most of the walls Behr Ultra Moonlit Yellow, which is pale, soft, and lemony. For a couple of insets in both rooms I picked Behr Ultra Spring Bluebell, a soft shade that looks lavender in some lights and blue in others. They're happy colors.

I spent half the time masking off woodwork with that wretched blue tape, about 70 miles of it I think. I was on the ladder more than I was on the floor, and my body kept urging me to go look at my drivers license to prove that a gal my age doesn't belong on top of a ladder! As predicted, Jim couldn't stand to see me doing it all, and he took time away from helping the shop builder and did some of the edging for me. Do I know my guy or what?

The blue covered flawlessly, in one coat; the yellow was another story. It took 3 coats, and in some places twice that many. It's not a perfect paint job, but as I painted, I saw errors in the original paint; after it's up, people only see the whole picture.

Painting walls is a gamble; you can't be sure you'll like a whole room of what you see in a paint chip, but I'm so pleased with it! It's like a new blank canvas, and I'll have fun finding treasures that drift onto my shores to finish the decorating. I want to do a couple of stencils but haven't found any yet that deserve to be on my pretty new walls. I'll let you know if I find them. Oh, and don't tell Jim, but the living room is looking sort of depressing, too; it could get a color-lift any day now; he didn't suspect a thing when I bought a 48" canvas at Michael's yesterday for the new painting I have in mind that will hang over the sofa once the walls are finished.......Hope you're having a colorful day.

Love Notes

2010-01-19T09:56:00.000-08:00

I came across a box of old greeting cards and letters in the attic the other day and spent an afternoon reading them. I don't always save cards and letters, not even sure how these made it through my many moves. Among them was a stack of yellow post-it notes. I also have stacks of these precisely printed notes in various drawers and cabinets. It started when Jim and I were dating. We lived 2 hours apart, and when he'd leave my house and go home, I would find post-it notes stuck between plates in the cabinet, on bathroom mirrors, under sofa pillows, etc., and they said the kinds of things that we thrive on when we're in love, like "I'm thinking of you right this minute", and "Who knew I could love someone this much?" I couldn't throw those away, and I still can't. These days his notes are mainly to remind me to do things or to tell me when he'll be home, but there is still the occasional mushy one. To me, they all say, "I love you."

In the box I also found notes and Christmas cards from my childhood BFF who was killed in a car wreck the year my son was born. One look at her swirly, flamboyant handwriting, and I'm transported back to the summer evenings when we sat under her grandmother's sprawling magnolia tree and tried to sort out life's mysteries. And there are letters from my son when he was in the Navy, quickly scribbled, rambling sentences that don't always follow lines and columns, sharing his discoveries with me......... and a couple that sound lonely, and he told me I was his best friend. You keep notes like that.

And there's a birthday card from Mars, not the planet but a huge, white, bobtail cat who belonged to my friend Linda. Betwixt me and thee, even though a corner looks as if maybe he chewed me a message, I don't think Mars really sent the card himself, though he did appreciate the little play pillows stuffed with Catnip that I sent him, and he only bit me once, before I learned that he didn't want his belly rubbed. Linda and I have drifted apart, but I called her that day, and she seemed pleased. We're going to lunch together as soon as the weather is nice.

I'm not a Hallmark kind of girl, and I think the greeting card business stole some of the world's creativity. It's so much easier to spend 3 minutes choosing the perfect card than to write a heartfelt letter or create something beautiful on our own. I sent someone a virtual digital art birthday card. It was a painting I did just for her........ she made it known that I had dropped the ball in our yearly exchange of cards. I wanted to tell her that I'm not in a league with Hallmark, but people do pay for my art; I didn't. I went back to our routine, and truth to tell, those mass manufactured, commercial cards can take on a beauty all their own when kept packed away for several years; maybe like wine, they need to age.

These days, I receive more notes and cards via the internet than by snail mail. My day is brighter for each quick note that's sent my way. I doubt I'll meet my online friends; they live in my computer, but they are as real as any friends I've ever had. And speaking of friends, last week, I received a message on Facebook that said, "Are you Cathy Jackson? If so, reply to this message!" It was Trish, the cousin of my departed BFF. I was so glad to hear from her, and we promised to stay in touch this time.

I save some of the emails that touch my heart or make me smile, a virtual box of memories. These and the hodge podge of notes from the other decades of my life signify that Cat Bounds has been loved. I must admit that I do miss seeing familiar handwritings or even a kitty-chewed corner of a card; 50 years from now, I wonder if there will even be paper cards and letters. Maybe my tattered boxful of memories will end up in a flea market, and someone will take them home and cherish them, just a little bit.

Long time comin'

2010-01-12T06:23:00.000-08:00

Well, I've been slow in getting back into my blog. Christmas was not as I had envisioned, what with my sister getting a skin infection that almost cost her her right arm, but we made it through, and here it is another new year with infinite possibilities. I see I have a couple of new subscribers. Welcome! It's always exciting to know that someone cares enough to read what I've written.

I'll start off with news that Jim is finally getting his workshop, well deserved and a long time coming. He does woodworking and is better than he thinks. I can find a shelf, easel, picture frame, etc., in a magazine, and he can usually make it for me, even in the crowded third-garage where his tools have been for the 6 years we've lived here. The consummate perfectionist and practicing Obsessive Compulsive, with literally hundreds of drawers of wrenches, screws, nails, and such, no matter what anyone needs, he knows whether he has it and right where it is, as compared to me, if I laid down a book 2 hours ago, I may not find it again for weeks.

He has put off getting the shop because, frankly, from the day we moved here, we thought it was temporary, till we could find our dream home out in the country, but this is a great house, and over the years of wearing out several Realtors, we haven't found anything we like as well. One day on our way home from another failed house viewing, it came to me. I said, "James (I call him that when I'm serious), I know why we haven't found our house yet; it's because we're not looking for the same house!" We've considered lots of houses I liked and lots of houses he liked, but they were never the same house, so eventually, we came to know that this is probably where we'll live out the rest of our years, and Jim got serious about finding a contractor to build his shop, in mid-winter.

He found Ray, who as luck would have it, lives 2 streets away from us and who's one of the nicest guys you'll meet and almost as meticulous as Jim. He brings his radio with him, sets it up on the air conditioning unit, and lets his jivin' Contemporary Christian music wail till I've been thinking the neighbors would complain, but ya can't hold being an in-your-face-Christian against a guy. He lured me into one religious debate, and I found myself freezing in the ever deepening twilight air, inching my way toward the relative safety of my backdoor; I've avoided philosophical chats with him since then.

The workshop isn't quite as big as Jim would have liked, but it's as large as city code will allow, and he even walled off one end for storage for my decorating stuff, much of it Christmas decor, which will be so much better than dragging it back up the folding ladder to the attic. I've posted a few photos of the progress. By this time next month, we're hoping to have it finished and moved into, but you never know about Arkansas weather. One day last week the high was around 7 degrees w/ snow flurries, and yesterday it was sunny and in the low 50's. But even if it's not finished till spring, this shop will be the perfect Man Cave for Jim where he'll spend many happy hours.

I Resolve

2009-12-26T18:30:00.001-08:00

It's that time of year when we take stock of our lives and resolve to do better....... a ritual of sorts. Here are mine; I resolve to.......

1. be more patient with Jim..........and store clerks..............and telemarketers.............well, maybe not telemarketers. And I'll be more patient with myself. Having occasional goof-off days is not a sin, necessarily.

2. lose 10 pounds. This is the same 10 pounds I've been losing since I was 30 years old. It comes and goes. Mostly comes.

3. spend less time on the computer, right after I check who's on FaceBook, answer some emails, transfer some money to PayPal, play for a while in PhotoShop, watch a movie on NetFlix, place an order on Amazon.com, check my bids on Ebay, post in a few forums, do a little online research, and finish this blog.

4. exercise everyday. Well, I can take weekends off; 5 days a week would be good. But you know they say to alternate days of exercise, so every other day would work even better. Tuesdays and Thursdays.............definitely Thursdays.

5. spend less money, unless I get depressed and need some shopping therapy, or Dillards has a great clothing or shoe sale, or if I see something I simply can't live without at full price.

6. be less judgmental of others unless they're obviously idiots or evil or in politics or on TV, in which case they've got it coming.

7. spend more time with Jim. I like watching him sleep in the recliner.............. it's a bonding experience.

8. stop giving advice to my family; they've never followed my advice, anyway; I usually don't either.

9. let my hair grow out. I'm married to the only man on the planet who likes short haired women; he'll have to adjust.

10. give up a habit.....let's see, I don't smoke; alcohol mostly just makes me feel bad. My generation doesn't do drugs. I can't have sugar or chocolate because of the migraines. Maybe I'll take up a frickin' habit in 2010 so I can give it up next year!

Fa-la-la-la-la, La-la-la-la

2009-12-09T13:24:00.000-08:00

Christmas is almost here! And the weather has turned off wet, windy and bitterly cold......well, bitterly so for the mid-south. We don't do cold very well. With the first half-dozen fluffy snow flakes, schools close down, and Wal-Mart sells out of bread and milk, as if we expected to be snowed in for weeks. If we get any accumulation at all, it's usually gone by noon the next day. I only remember one White Christmas in my whole life, and I'll tell you about that soon. It was magical, one of those Christmases we keep in our hearts for life.

But I'm still adding little Christmasy touches around the house, haven't put up the tree yet (except for the Charlie Brown tree, a ficus hung with gold balls, the ceramic tree, 3 wire mesh trees, and 3 tiny green trees decorated with miniature ornaments on bathroom lavatories) or wrapped all the presents, but Lord willin' it will all get done. And I'm praying that this isn't a snowy or icy Christmas because we're having the family at our house this year, and it's about a 2 hour drive to get here.

Jim brought me some live mistletoe from the ranch were he hunted in Texas. He always touches my heart with the little gifts of plants, rocks or branches he brings me, and the fact that most of the leaves blew off in the back of his truck made me love the bedraggled little green clumps even more.

Decorating with Friends

2009-12-02T18:35:00.000-08:00

Rita asked Sybil and me over to help decorate her house for Christmas. (That's them in the pics.) Amid all the goofing off, silly talk and laughter, we actually did get a lot accomplished, and then she took us out for lunch and a quick trip to a local florist (note the lovely turquoise wreath) where I stole, or uh borrowed, a few ideas and bits of inspiration. That's why God created pocket cameras, for goodness sake.

Not much to report in the way of technique, but I promised I would share photos. Behind the house is an old red barn, trimmed in white, built by Rita's grandfather, and we made a huge green wreath with a red bow for it, but then we wimped out on climbing the long wooden ladder to hang it. That's why God created husbands.

2009-11-30T18:52:00.000-08:00

Here's our front door, all decked out for Christmas. First, I hung a lighted garland over it (Actually Jim & I hung it; he's such a gentleman that the sight of me on top of the ladder with a hammer in my hand disturbs him.) Then I began attaching the floral mesh to it by gathering bunches of it and securing them with the wire fronds of the garland. Finally, I attached the big balls. I'm not sure how stable they are. I just hope friends or family don't get conked on the head when they come to visit.

I'm getting together with Sybil and Rita to play some more with the floral mesh, this time making wreaths. I'll post a photo of mine, however it turns out. We went to a Christmas decorating workshop the other day at a nursery open house. The only tip I learned was to begin at the corner of the fabric in order to get a bias pouffiness (I wonder if that's a word...) from it.

I've also hung quite a few lights. If I get any good photos of them, I'll share them, too, red ones on the front porch and green in the back, so many that Jim said planes may mistake the deck for a landing strip.........

Rusty Stars

2009-11-24T15:30:00.000-08:00

I bought this rusty star garland in Canton, Texas last summer. It's one of those decorator elements that looks interesting any time of year, and for Christmas, I added a few blue balls. It just makes me happy looking at it.

I have a friend who has lots of free time on her hands and a gorgeous, big new home that she wants to decorate herself, but she doesn't trust her own abilities or taste, and I was thinking about what it takes to create home decor, or any art for that matter. There are some professions where the licensed, trained practitioners want us to believe that what they do requires a special commission from God, and they've sold that notion to many of us. The most valuable thing I inherited from my mother was the belief that I can do anything I set my mind to. Now mind you, this bravado has taken me down some long and winding roads where I floundered and eventually decided that I wasn't committed enough to devote the time to learning that it required, so I was on to my next adventure, but I honestly don't recall ever thinking I couldn't do something.

One of my favorite quotes says, "Creativity is allowing ourselves to make mistakes; art is knowing which ones to keep." So, I s'pose that believing I can do most anything frees me to see my mistakes not as failures but as additions to my garland of things that won't work......yet another learning experience, another rusty star.

Deck the Halls

2009-11-23T08:05:00.000-08:00

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas! I started my Christmas music Playlist today, hope you like the songs. I love Christmas decorations, and I've begun adding Christmasy touches here and there. I would rather decorate a little at a time than try to do it all in one day, and I'll share some of it with you as I go along. Then maybe you'll come help me undecorate after Christmas. Right.

My friend, Bonnie, gave me my first glass block gift, which I thought was simply gorgeous, and since then I've made 2 others, with at least one more in the works. You either have to drill the hole in the side where you insert the lights or buy pre-drilled blocks. I've bought a glass drill bit, and the block on the right side of the mantle is waiting to be drilled........If I don't get around to it this Christmas, chances are there will be other Christmases. It's best to frost the 4 sides of the block so that the lighting wires don't show so much; I used etching cream, but there are lots of ways to frost glass. Then tie the block up in some beautiful, wired ribbon, and you're done. I've bought a few actual Christmas gifts, but they're not wrapped yet. Don't you just love this time of year??

I Can Cook Lobster!

2009-11-19T04:09:00.000-08:00

This is a quickie blog post about cooking that I wanted to share with you. Jim doesn't care for lobster, and we don't have to eat the same things, but it's easier, so I've always passed by the big ol' lobster tails at Sam's till this week while Jim is at camp. On a whim, I picked up a package and brought it home, then began to have second thoughts because I didn't know a thing about cooking them. Here comes YouTube to the rescue! There are several videos on the subject, but this one really appealed to me. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XmkeWSnxkzY

It's super easy to follow, takes about 30 minutes from start to finish, and my tails came out perfect! I ate one for dinner with a baked potato, fresh asparagus, and a Cesar salad and saved the other one to go in a salad tomorrow. They had been frozen but tasted really sweet and fresh. Who says you gotta go out to get great seafood?

Things I learned at ArCA Conference

2009-11-10T05:50:00.000-08:00

Well, I made it back home.
The Arkansas Counseling Association powers-that-be decided for us to gather this year in Fort Smith, as opposed to beautiful Hot Springs where we've met for years. I've never thought of Fort Smith as being a destination, just a rural Arkansas town stuck out there on the border between us and Oklahoma that you drive by to get somewhere else; when I entered the address into the GPS, the guide's voice said, "Why in heck would you want to go there?" But it turned out to be a pretty good conference, as conferences go, and I thought I would share a few bits of wisdom with you that I learned.

1. Don't wear fancy jeans to a conference. Sitting down most of the time, you're going to want to cross your legs some, and even though the jeans I wore on the first day, the ones with beaded designs down the legs, got compliments, crossing my legs was uncomfortable and also ruined the beading.

2. Some presenters show up every year, and I always sign-up for Roger Young's sessions. This year he talked about biofeedback, something I've known about but haven't really tried. I always have cold feet and hands, and he showed us how we can warm them up just by thinking about it, and in the process lower our stress. Remember mood rings? They're Galvanic Skin Response detectors; he used electronic gadgets, but mood rings are based on the same principle. As kids we thought they were magic, but they're actually reading the temperature of our skin. Mr. Young gave us a Stress Test, and mine showed I'm not very stressed, but back in the day, my test paper would have spontaneously combusted.

3. A hot topic this year was Internet Predators. People tell me I sound like a little girl on the phone, and I've always wanted to help the police to lure and capture perverts, so I got up the courage to ask the presenter how I could help, and he said private citizens can't get involved, only law enforcement..........so, scratch that notion. Anyway, I won't ruin your day by sharing what he told us, but pedophilia is much more pervalent than you can imagine. It's one of those nasty realities that normal people try not to think about, and that's why the pervs are so free to move among us; the internet is their new "playground". Detective Ernest Ward made us leary of even going online because............ did you know that if you Google and accidentally bring up one of his watched sites, your IP address is automatically entered into his data base? Scary stuff! I remember years ago, looking online for a quote by Alan Alda about taking responsibility. I was going to use it in a classroom presentation. Somehow I ended up at a nude movie star site! Well, these days, I don't guess butt nekkid movie stars are that big a deal, but I'm just sayin'.

4. Sometimes I'll choose a session that I know won't all be sitting, like the one on Brain Gym. Brenda Wood had us romping around and doing movements that had us all giggling but would be even more fun to do with little ones. The exercises are supposed to reconnect parts of the brain that we need for focusing and learning; mine haven't been connected in so long that they're no longer on a first name basis, but I plan on buying the book to see what Ian, Mollie and Rani think about it. You can find it on http://www.braingym.com/

5. Choosing between the offered sessions is a big deal, but by the third day, everyone, including the presenters, is on overload and very tired so it's best just to pick sessions on the ground floor and nearest the front door, car keys at the ready..........

I did get inspired to try some new artsy things that I'll most likely share with you later.
Hugz, and thanks for stopping by!

Bright Side of the Road......an interview with Anne Marie Bennett

2009-11-04T03:59:00.000-08:00

Today I'm honored to share with you a brief book review and an interview with author, Anne Marie Bennett. As I read her book, Bright Side of the Road, I had to deal with my own emotions because the women in my family have been ravaged by cancer. I've lost two aunts to breast cancer, my mother had a mastectomy, and another aunt deals with recurring leukemia. Anne is also an artist, which is how I connected with her, and I believe her artistic vision, in large part, helped to define her attitude in dealing with this harrowing detour in her life's journey. Readers will be humbled and inspired by her gentle, positive acceptance of her role in dealing with cancer. This blog is a little longer than my usual posts, but I hope you'll get yourself a cookie and a cup of something warm to drink as you tarry for just a little while longer and read Anne's take a topic most of us try not to think about at all.

The book is written in journal style:

"Thursday February 28
A bright and windy day shines through the window as I settle myself at the kitchen table, warm in my sweatpants and large red sweater. A bagel with jelly, a mug of decaf with cream, and my empty journal laden with possibilities are spread out before me, along with several half-finished art projects. What shall I do today? The thought of all this uncluttered time ahead of me is very healing."

Q. Anne, I believe in creative visualization and positive self-talk. How much of the outcome of your recovery journey do you attribute to your positive outlook?

A. My surgical procedures, chemotherapy drugs and radiation therapy allowed me to be physically healed, but I also found myself in need of emotional and spiritual healing, wounded by my fears and by my uncertainty about the future, confronting loss on several levels, and struggling in quicksand when it came to my relationship with Spirit at the beginning of my journey. So my emotional and spiritual recovery was based largely on my ability to accept my feelings and change my thoughts (my definition of positive outlook).

Q. A great deal of our fear of breast cancer is the prospect of losing our hair or having our bodies disfigured. Can you please speak to this and how you dealt with it?

A. My own journey took me through several physical changes. I gained a lot of weight, lost my hair (and not just on my head!), got catapulted into early menopause and lost my libido. Trust me, I was not happy about ANY of this!

For me, my resistance to those physical changes disappeared the day I realized (about halfway through the journey) that I couldn’t do anything about it. I was on this journey, and this is just how things were. I could waste a whole lot of energy bemoaning the fact that I didn’t look like I used to, or I could just relax and go with the flow. It became almost like a game to me, finding the bright side of any situation, especially the baldness. What could be good about not having hair? Well, I saved a lot of money at the drug store, not having to buy conditioner and styling products! Also, I saved a lot of time every morning and there was a great freedom in that, not having to purposely “look good” every day.

Also, my left breast was still present but deformed because of the two lumpectomies and lymph node surgery; I felt lopsided and ugly in my own skin, and I’d never felt that way before. In the last chapter of Bright Side of the Road, I describe my experience at a Women Living with Breast Cancer Retreat at Kripalu which is a center for yoga and health in the Massachusetts Berkshires. At the end of that retreat weekend, we all got into a hot tub together, after placing temporary tattoos on our cancer-torn bodies. And right then, stepping into that swirling, frothy water with 17 other women whose bodies were in equal or worse disrepair… I suddenly realized… I really got the fact that it’s what’s inside of me that’s way more important than what I look like. Because I had grown to love all of those women in the course of the weekend, and it didn’t matter one iota to me whether or not they had one breast, or two breasts, or deformed breasts, or scars on their belly or legs from reconstructive surgery. They were who they were because of what was inside of them. That was a huge awakening moment to me, a sacred moment of realization.

Q. It's been said that we're fully actualized only when we can thank God for our challenges. Elsewhere online you mentioned "angels rearranging your soul furniture". How has this experience changed and/or blessed your life?

A. Yes, a friend of mine in college used to say that about any big thing any of us were going through. I always loved that, and wish I knew where he was right now to thank him for that beautiful image! I used to read about people who lived through cancer or some other traumatic event, and if they said things like That was the best thing that ever happened to me, or I am grateful that this happened to me, I thought they might seriously be a little bit crazy. But now I seem to be one of those people!

I can honestly say that my breast cancer journey has both changed and blessed my life in some beautiful ways. First of all, I changed my priorities. I was given the gift of several months off from my full-time job, which was no longer serving my needs for creativity and joy. My time off, although filled with fatigue from my treatments, reminded me of my passion for writing and art. So I went back to that job part time and actually left it three years later so I could pursue my creative work full-time instead. I never thought I would say this, but my my cancer gave me more than it took away. I was given love and support from family and friends that surprised me and was soothing to my soul. I was given a closer connection with Spirit. My practices of gratitude and meditation gave me a whole new outlook on life.

Q. Most of us have experienced the letter or phone call to go back for a second mammogram, and we panic and begin bargaining with God and mentally rewriting our wills. Please talk about your emotions after being told you actually had cancer.

A. What immediately entered my mind was absolute terror. It was completely surreal. My thoughts went something like this: I can’t believe this is happening to me. I don’t WANT this to be happening to me. I don’t have time for this. Am I going to die? Get the cancer OUT of my body. And really, my immediate response was fear. I know some women whose basic emotion was anger, but I didn’t feel much anger. I cried a lot those first few days (just ask my husband!), until my next appointment with my doctor where we created a treatment plan of action. After that I felt a little better and decided that breast cancer wasn’t going to kill me, it was just going to be one more interesting thing about me.

Q. You've looked at life from both sides now, Anne. Please share with us how to be helpful to someone who has been diagnosed with cancer. Did you want people asking about it, or would you rather they had just acted as if everything was "normal"?

A. This is a really good question, Cat. Every person is different, but I will tell you how it was for me. After I was diagnosed, I chose to tell everyone I knew about my cancer. It’s important to remember that this is a choice that a cancer patient makes. I really didn’t have to tell anyone except my husband and my boss, but a breast cancer survivor I met online confided in me that she had told everyone about her cancer and was glad she did because she received support from some surprising places. I’m a very private person, so that was a huge leap of faith for me to do the same!

So… if someone has told you they have breast cancer (or any serious illness), that is not something to take lightly. This is a conscious choice that they made, to include you on their journey. You should feel honored that they have trusted you with this part of their life.

I actually didn’t mind when people asked me about what I was going through. It made me feel like they were interested, and I preferred specific questions (Do you like your doctors? How often do you have to have chemo? Have you lost any hair yet?) to the main one that most people asked me which was: How are you feeling? And this was mainly because most of the time I felt like a washed-out version of my former self, and I really didn’t like saying that over and over again.

Also, I really liked it when people saw past the cancer and asked me questions about my normal life (ie: what I was reading or how Jeff’s kids were doing or what kind of art project I was working on). These kinds of questions reminded me that I wasn’t just a cancer patient, that cancer didn’t completely define me. These kinds of questions made me feel seen on a real soul level.

Q. I want to pass my copy of Bright Side of the Road along to someone else, but I'm not sure when would be the best time. My sister knows a lady who was just diagnosed with breast cancer, but we thought that a book about chemo, surgery, and hair-loss right now might be too much for her. On the other hand, I have a former student who is a survivor, and I thought of giving it to her, but once it's behind them, maybe people would rather just get on with living and not dwell on the past.

A. When I was first diagnosed, I read every book about breast cancer that I could get my hands on. But there was no book quite like Bright Side of the Road, which is the main reason I wrote it… it’s the book I wish I had had while I was going through my own surgeries and treatments. So, I definitely would have liked it if someone had given me Bright Side of the Road at the beginning of my journey. And once it was behind me, I really didn’t want to read any more books about cancer right away. But it will be different for every woman. If you do give my book to someone at the beginning of her journey, she might read little bits of it here and there, maybe just start at the back, with the resources section. Or she might just use the guided meditation audio recording that comes with the book. In other words, she’ll read it in a way that is most helpful to her.

Thanks, Anne, for recording and sharing moments and insights from your courageous journey with us.

Anne Marie Bennett is a writer, self-taught collage artist, and website goddess. She has worked as a bookseller, sheet presser, library assistant, computer consultant, and in theatre management. She lives in eastern Massachusetts with her middle-aged husband (also a cancer survivor), two elderly cats and one very playful dog. She is happiest when she is reading, writing, breathing salt air, dancing, and hugging her beautiful grandchildren.
For more information about Anne Marie’s book, Bright Side of the Road: http://www.annemariebennett.com/To purchase the book: www.annemariebennett.com/how-to-purchase
Bright Side of the Road is also available on Amazon.com

A Desk Chair for the Young at Heart

2009-11-03T04:10:00.000-08:00

This is an idea that I came up with, all on my own, thought I was totally brilliant, and then discovered by reading online that people have been doing it (with good results) for years. I have terrible posture, and I work and play a lot at my computer. No matter how hard I try to keep good posture, I always end up melting down till I'm sitting on my lower spine, legs stretched out in front of me on a little foot stool......not good. I also have the beginnings of arthritis in my upper back, and if you have joint or back pain, you know that all you want to do is find a comfortable position and vegetate there, but I'm trying to push myself to keep the spine as limber as possible. "Growing old ain't for sissies".

Well, I got this idea from reading about the balance ball chairs that sell for between $75-$150 (which is actually a bargain when you're looking at ergonomic chairs), and I had already added one that got great reviews to my shopping cart on Amazon.com, but then I decided to try just the ball by itself to see whether I might even like that way of sitting. After perching on it for part of a day, I took the chair out of my shopping cart because I can't imagine that the stationary one could compare with just the ball by itself because it's just that, stationary. On this one, I bounce, jab with my fists, roll around, dance when I'm listening to music, twist, balance with my legs up, stretch forward, backwards and to both sides. It's just fun, and all the info I can find online says it strengthens the core muscles with continued use, which means better overall balance and tighter abs........and now tell me, who among us couldn't use tighter abs? As for my posture, of course there's no back to lean against, so the constant moving around reminds me to sit up straight. When that gets tiresome, it's time to take a break anyway.

To try it out for yourself, choose a ball size that allows your upper legs to be parallel with the floor when your feet are planted firmly in front of you as your arms are also parallel with the floor when your hand is on the mouse, stylus, or keyboard; I got the 75cm one and then experimented with the amount of air till it felt right. Oh, and don't get rid of your office chair just yet; it's also recommended that you work your way up to using it full-time, beginning with just a few minutes at a stretch, so to speak. In the photo it looks really tall, but of course it squishes when I sit down on it; if I fall off of it, I won't post photos of the bruises..............

Some folks who use the exercise ball at their company office desk say they have to put up with a lot of kidding from co-workers, but all I have to contend with is Jim, and he's never too surprised at my ideas anymore. I wouldn't recommend the exercise ball to anyone who's really, really overweight, or to someone who has back or joint issues more serious than mine or are very unsteady. People have gotten hurt on these things, but then people have gotten hurt walking across the living room floor. I figure there's also more of a calorie burn than just sitting with my fanny glued to my stiff office chair, another win/win proposition..........and it cost $18. Where else are you gonna find a desk chair that lets you feel like a kid for any price?

Sprouting Stuff

2009-10-30T19:33:00.000-07:00

Happy Halloween! Today's blog has absolutely nothing to do with Halloween; I don't get into it since my son grew up, but I do have a cute Halloween sweatshirt that I wear once a year. Do I know how to live large or what?

I thought I would show you my sprouts. I've sprouted seeds for years, off and on. Right now I'm on and discovering ever more seeds, also beans and nuts to sprout. Did you know that sprouts can have up to 50% more nutrition than eating them unsprouted? I kid you not. Those dried lima, pinto, and navy beans in your pantry look sort of dead, huh? Chances are, they will sprout if given the right amount of moisture and TLC. The best ones I've done lately are lentils, good thing for me, since I kept buying them because they're healthy, and I can't stand the taste of them.......until I learned that they'll sprout! The sprouts are delicious. I also don't care much for broccoli, but I've ordered broccoli seeds to sprout, and fenugreek seeds (for enhanced immunity). I also buy mixed seed blends like mung/snow peas/chickpeas in the health food store, and those are yummy.

I love sprouts on salads mostly, but I also like smaller ones like alfalfa or radish on sandwiches. You can buy some interesting sprouting trays and kits, but I like various sized jars mostly, and you can cover them with special sprouting lids or with new nylon stocking net or cheese cloth and hold it on with rubber bands. I'm going to make some sprouting bags out of unbleached muslin, but I tried some little gift bags I had, and even though I washed them really well, the seeds immediately took on a strange odor, so I threw them away. Lesson learned. But I like sprouting my own, rather than buying them in stores because I know they were handled with care and with filtered water.

Place a couple of tablespoons of seeds in the sprouting container and rinse well, then cover with water and leave overnight. Next morning, pour off the soaking water and rinse again, draining as much water out as you can. You may leave them inverted, on a dish drainer for example, but I like mine right side up. Preferably twice a day but at least once a day, rinse and drain the seeds. They'll be plumper with each day. When delicate sprouts appear, I rinse and drain more gently. They don't need direct sunlight but near a window is fine. Kind, encouraging words are helpful as well. When they're ready, rinse and drain a final time and place them in the fridge. They will keep for 4 or 5 days, so you can judge when to start the next batch and always have fresh sprouts.

Along the way, you may discover whole jars of seeds that refuse to sprout or that the water remains milky, sour smelling, or bubbly. Throw these away (or put them in your compost bin) and start with a different variety. Occasionally the life force has left them, but they're inexpensive, you're not out much effort, and you'll have other jars bursting with happily sprouting seeds.

These are approximate sprouting times, depending on room temp, number of rinses, the age of your seeds, etc. Some seeds get bitter if they're allowed to sprout for too long.

Aduki.........................3 days

Alfalfa........................3

Almonds....................2

Buckwheat............... 2

Cabbage....................3

Clover........................3

Fenugreek.................4

Flax............................2 (These require LOTS of rinsing!)

Garbonzo...................2

Lentil.........................3

Mung.........................2-5

Mustard.....................3-7

Green Pea..................2

Pumpkin (hulled).....1

Quinoa.......................1

Radish.......................2

Rye.............................3

Sesame......................2

Sunflower (hulled)...2

Water Cress...............4-5

Wheat........................2

Wild Rice..................4

Feeding the Cookie Monster

2009-10-26T07:25:00.000-07:00

Jim calls me the Cookie Monster and tells people that he lives in constant fear that a stranger will say, "Here's a cookie, little girl," because I would follow them anywhere. Well, it's not quite that bad, but what is bad is being a cookie monster and finding out that you can no longer have sugar or chocolate! The migraines said no quite a few years ago, and so I've either been good and done without or been bad and paid for it later. It helps that I've always been a health-nut and know my way around healthy eating; sugar was just the last guilty pleasure to go. But I've been refining a recipe using Agave Nectar, and folks, this is about as good as it gets for a reformed sugar addict. Everything in them is healthy, lots of fiber and super nutrients. I was especially proud of the idea to include ground flax seed because the oil tastes kinda yucky, and I've tried grinding the seeds and putting it on salads, but it's a lot like sprinkling powdered concrete onto your food; in these cookies, though, the powdered seeds serves as a binder to keep them from being so crumbly, and makes them extra healthy with Omega 3 & Omega 6 oils. It's a win/win!

If you're among the happy majority who still eats Chips Ahoy and Nutter Butters, they'll taste pretty much like cardboard, but if you don't currently eat sugar, they taste amazing!

I won't label ingredients in the recipe as organic, but everything is, when I can find it. If you use the recipe, especially if you change ingredients, I would love to hear about your results. It lends itself to using whatever's onhand in the pantry.

Cat's Health-nut Cookies

1 cup rolled oats
1 cup oat flour
1 cup ground almonds (I grind them in the food processor, leaving small pieces for the crunch)
1/4 cup finely ground flax seed (I grind these in a coffee mill, but you can get them already ground)
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/4 cup carob chips
1/2 cup agave nectar (You could also use honey)
1/2 cup coconut oil (I love the taste of this stuff, but any healthy oil will do.)
1 whole egg
1/2 tsp. vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix dry ingredients together in a large bowl.
Mix wet ingredients in a smaller bowl and stir into the dry ingredients.
Form balls, about 1" in size, and place on a non-stick cookie sheet, pressing the balls down with a fork.
Bake for 12 minutes or until edges begin to brown. This yields about 30 cookies.
Enjoy!

I've gone on a killing spree!!

2009-10-14T05:48:00.000-07:00

Here's a topic I haven't covered, and it's guaranteed to make you itch as you read. The cleanliness of our homes affects our emotions and our sense of well being as well as our general health, and lately I've been on a crusade to get rid of dust mites. This was spurred on by a couple of winters with chronic breathing problems at night. The more I learn about the nasty buggers, the more I realize the necessity to get and keep them under control. Did you know that 10% of the weight of a 2 year old bed pillow can be dead dust mites and their refuse? Yuck! They feed on our dead skin cells, and you've got them on your clothing, in your hair and on your skin right now. A female dust mite lives for around 80 days and can lay 100 eggs, so you have an idea of the exponential growth of a colony of dust mites, and they're so small that 3 of them could fit on this period. Breathing in their waste material and fragments of their dead bodies is what causes breathing problems. We recently got rid of our mattresses ( still in great shape but nearly 20 years old) and got a new one that's natural latex, much less likely to harbor dust mites, and I've got all new bedding. I would love to have all our carpeting removed, but Jim thinks his feet have to have the cushy softness. However, whatever mattress, bedding, pillows, carpet, etc., that you have can still be made healthier by frequent vacuuming and routine precautions, and most of us clean our homes but stop a little short of chasing dust mites.

I've also brought in the ladder and have been dusting the tops of cabinets, walls, and cornice that hadn't been cleaned in a long time. Today I'm planning to buy a better vacuum cleaner, one with a HEPA filter, and here's my latest use for one of the essential oils, which I've always loved for their scents. There are chemicals that you can spray to kill dust mites, but I shy away from chemicals because they usually have side effects that are as bad as the problem they're trying to solve, but eucalyptus oil will kill dust mites, and the best way to use it is to fill a spray bottle with vodka (Yeah, we're gonna let 'em die happy.) and then add several drops of eucalyptus essential oil (the good stuff like you find in health food stores) and spray carpets, drapes, bedding, stuffed animals, anywhere that they could be living. Let it sit overnight and vacuum thoroughly the next day to get the dead bodies. Another tip, when you finish vacuuming, dispose of the bag. Live dust mites can crawl out, bet you hadn't thought of that one. Your house will smell wonderful, and the light mist of vodka dries quickly. I bought Gem Clear which was the cheapest vodka in the store; hey, I'm sending 'em off happy, but Jim would have a heart attack if I gave them his Absolut. (Be sure and test it on fabrics that it might stain or spot) I think you could do the same with water & eucalyptus oil, but it may not mix quite as well or dry as fast. Here's wishing you a healthy and dust mite free day.............well, logically you can't get rid of them all, but you can make a big difference in their numbers and their effects on yours and your family's health.

Happy Trails

2009-09-28T13:33:00.000-07:00

I mentioned my little Sunday hike on FaceBook and how I got lost........well, not lost, lost. It's just that the Tim Ernst hiking trails guidebook I took with me (and left in my car) is 17 years old, and during those 17 years, it seems the green trail (as opposed to the red, blue & white trails that criss-cross it) has expanded from a 5 mile loop to a 10 mile loop, and about the time I thought I should be returning to my car, I wasn't even close, so I wandered around for a while, never feeling scared or panicky, just irritated with myself. I had never gone hiking alone before. There's a group of (mostly) ladies called The Happy Hikers that I hike with sometimes in the fall, winter and early spring. They range in ages from 30-something through 80, but don't let the age fool you. The older ones who started the club can often out-hike the newbies. Anyway, this experience has left me contrite and convinced me that I should hike with the ladies, even though they tromp through the woods faster than I would and don't take photo breaks, so half the time I'm running to catch up after I've snapped a couple of quick pics, and the highlight of their day is not being in the woods nearly so much as the lunch afterwards at some nearby diner. But I digress.

I'll have to say here that my family has told me not to go hiking alone, too many America's Most Wanted stories of deranged madmen hacking up unsuspecting females on lonely park trails. This Sunday, though, I thought, I'm 61, and I can do as I darn well please, but as I got out of my car at 11:50, put on my hiking boots, got my water bottles, etc., I did feel very alone. Luckily I still had the old mace gun in my pack, and I took it out to see if it still worked. No spray, just a dribble. I decided if I got attacked by a deranged madman, I'd have to ask him to kneel and look up so I could dribble mace in his eyes.

But on my own, I had plenty of time to examine every leaf. (That's what Jim says I do. He won't go with me hiking. He has bad knees. I think men have specialized pain receptors so that they only hurt when they're asked to do something they don't like doing. He goes to hunting camp several weeks out of the year, and he always comes home with tall tales and yarns about the fun he and his buddies had building stands, riding 4-wheelers, and stalking defenseless animals. He never says, "I sat in the cabin the whole time because my knees hurt.")

I had a lovely day, for the first 2 hours, till about the time I thought I should have reached the trail head, and I ran out of water, and my little pocket camera's battery pack died, and the Pterodactyl mosquitoes discovered me. I had my cell phone, and I could have called Jim, but what would I tell him? "Uh, honey, I'm lost in the woods near the wild grapes and just after I passed a clump of red fungus"? But it wasn't as if I were a thousand miles from Nowhere. From a bluff I could see the Arkansas State Capitol building in the distance. If worse came to worst, I could have swum the river, gone shopping, and then taken a cab back to my car. At 3:30, I gave up on the trail, went to down to the highway and made my way back to my car on asphalt, not the ending I had envisioned, but 5 more minutes in the shadowy depths, and I'd have been a goner, anyway, sucked dry by those blood-thirsty mosquitoes.

The best photo ops always come after the battery dies, and so I didn't get the covered bridge, the pool of lily pads, the waterfall, etc.; I've posted a few of mine, but I'm not a nature photographer, and I rarely can resist the urge to paint or at least run a couple of filters on them. My favorite photographer is Dave Finley http://www.pbase.com/davedebbenmoladatodd/izard_county ;my second favorite would be Tim Ernst http://www.cloudland.net/ Tim is more famous, but I don't know him personally. Dave is my son. Check out all their sites for some gorgeous wildflower photography. I guess I'll have to be content with chasing the Happy Hikers through the woods.

Notes to My Grandmother

2009-09-25T10:56:00.001-07:00

Just a few yellowing photographs,
Stories told by my aunts,
Glimpses of memory that may not, in truth, be memories,
These are all I have of you.

But I feel you
In my veins, in my laughter and my tears,
I know you because my breath is yours,
And my eyes see the world as you did.

And there is the longing
For the warmth of your arms around me,
The last time your lips brushed my cheek,
For the last time I was safe.

I daydream, sometimes, about
Bringing you pretty things,
Baubles and bright colors you never had,
And a pink daisy painting I did for you.

Why Aren't You Painting?

2009-09-19T13:47:00.001-07:00

This month I'm answering a few Questions in Corel Painter magazine's Q&A section, and I did this painting as an example, using only the Acrylics Captured Bristle brush, changing the Bristle settings along the way. If I had to choose just one from among all the Painter brushes it would likely be this one because it's so adaptable.

Some of my followers are wonderful artists, and we've encouraged one another often through the years. If, however, you have never painted at all, you should (and I don't often tell anyone they should do stuff) give it a try. Art isn't, or shouldn't be, reserved for the bold and artsy few. We're all creative beings; some of us just haven't gotten in touch with our creativity yet. Whether you're interested in watercolors, oils, acrylics, colored pencils or whatever, invest in a few art good art supplies. Good art supplies. For example, if you go to Wal-Mart and pick up a cheap set of watercolors, brushes and paper, you've cheapened your creativity, (and there's a world of difference in quality art supplies) but you wouldn't think twice about spending $25 on a blouse, so take the $25 to an art store and buy one large sheet of paper (that you can cut into smaller pieces for painting), a medium quality brush, and 3 tubes of medium quality paint in red, blue and yellow. You may want to buy a beginner's technique book, but these days you can find plenty of tutorials online to get you started. And of course, I'm always here put in my 2 cents worth if all that white paper gets too intimidating. If you find that you really don't enjoy doing watercolors, don't think you've wasted your money. You've dabbled in one art form that somehow will stand you in good stead for the next.

Or you might have thought about trying digital art, which is just as much fun, just as addictive, and much less messy, but the cost of Corel Painter or Adobe PhotoShop may have put you off. True, spending hundreds, even thousands, of dollars when you're not sure just how much you'll love it doesn't make a lot of sense, but here comes Ebay to the rescue! The latest version of Painter, for example, is 11, but the earlier versions, back as far as 6 or 7 have many of the same tools and brushes, and as long as they work with your computer and browser version, (be sure and check this) they're a great way to get into digital painting for a few dollars. Or there are a few graphics software programs that you can download for free, like Gimp. I haven't used it, but I've known artists who used it exclusively, and it's a good way to get started.

What words of advice would I give you?

Believe in yourself, but know that you're your own toughest critic. Don't throw away anything you paint. I promise it will look better 2 weeks or 2 months from now when you take it out again.......and if it doesn't you can always tear it into pieces and use them in a collage that you will like. Paint subjects you love, not what you think someone else would love. Set a schedule and stick with it when you first begin, whether it's 15 minutes a day or an hour 3 times a week...........and finally, show me what you've painted! There's nothing more exciting than watching someone discover his or her own creativity.

First Bonsai

2009-09-17T12:51:00.000-07:00

(Click on the image for a closer look)

Okay, right, so it doesn't exactly scream Bonsai. It's my first untrained, raggedy attempt at pruning a Bonsai tree. I've always admired them but hadn't seriously considered trying my hand at it (not sure why; I've tried most everything else that's artsy) until Dave, Deb and the kids sent me a Dwarf Azalea Bonsai for Mother's Day from Flowers.com, such a beautiful and unexpected gift, growing in a Bonsai pot with gravel and a water tray, and it came unpruned, ready for me to make it my own, but I didn't rush in with the clippers. Instead, I set it outside under the Wisteria arbor where it spent a happy summer and even bloomed. I don't rush into anything that's important to me. When I buy something like a camera or monitor, I'll research for months, finally order it, and when it comes, it still may sit in its box for another few weeks while I acclimate it into my life and my thinking. At this stage in my life, I doubt I'll wake up sane and normal any day now. Besides, most of my friends and family are slightly nutty, too, so who would I talk to?

So this morning I knew this was pruning day. I've been researching online, have ordered a book. Of course there will be a book. If I forgot how to breathe, I'd just buy a book on breathing. You may wonder why I didn't wait for the book to arrive. Hello, I couldn't; this was the day. Beginning with the obvious dead twigs, I worked my inward, imagining as I went that it was a huge tree overhead, shaped by decades and years of wind, rain, heat and cold. I had always sort of imagined that Bonsai must have some archaic, poetic meaning, like windswept bower of the ancients. It doesn't. It means tree in a pot.

The snipping went pretty well, but the wiring, well, let's just say I've got to develop a gentler touch. When I broke a couple of small branches while trying to train them with the copper wire, I figured it was the Universe nudging me to consider a slightly different shape. Turns out, it's my kind of art because it will never be finished, and I'm pretty well hooked already. I've been looking at Bonsai tools, pots, and Dwarf Junipers. And anyway, it was meant to be. I've had the tiny Oriental mudmen for years, can't recall where I got them or why, but when I began seeing how they were used in the photos online, I knew where they belonged, beneath the branches of my first Bonsai.

Notes from my Inner Child

2009-09-14T06:08:00.000-07:00

I first learned about this technique back in the John Bradshaw days, when he was introducing each of us to our inner child, and it is powerful stuff, and I carefully filed it away with the rest of my treasured discoveries that are gathering dust in the cluttered nether regions of my mind. No matter how successful and happy and charmed a life you've led, you've taken some emotional beatings along the way, times when the Universe didn't seem to know your name, and times when you wanted to crawl under the covers and stay there, but we're resilient creatures, and we bounce back and present our smiley face to the world.........but we all have issues that nag at us and tell us that even though the sun is shining, there's every chance that we'll mess up today, and most of those issues developed before we crashed headlong into puberty.

All my followers are creative and intuitive and insightful, and you've probably been aware of your inner child, but do you ever talk to her or him?
If not, it's high time you did. When I do, I invariably have an emotional reaction, whether it's bubbling over with joy or a deep sadness, or sometimes remorse that I've waited so long in between talks.

Go to a comfortable quiet place, preferably when you're home alone, and take a notebook and pen. The first time I read about writing notes to myself, I was like, well, that's just strange, but I'll try most anything once, and I liked the idea of the different halves of my brain conversing with one another. It turns out that our dominant hand (for me it's my right hand) speaks for the grown-up part of us, and the non-dominant hand connects with the inner child. That inner child knows about the issues we've sloughed off, knows the real reasons behind our actions, and would actually like to voice them if given half a chance. Draw a line down the middle of the page and take a couple of deep, slow breaths. On the left side of the page with your dominant hand, write something, anything, like Hello or How are you doing? or What would you like to talk about? Take another deep breath. Now with your non-dominant hand, respond on the right side of the page. The child-like, unschooled scrawl will regress your thinking to about age 4 or 5. I don't know exactly why or how, but it does. Once you're into writing notes yourself, it can become a very useful tool. Maybe you've been wondering why you can't seem to meet your goals or why you're putting something off that on the surface is what you've been wanting to do. Your inner child knows, and she or he will tell you, maybe gently, maybe in a burst of anger at your failure to grasp the obvious. I find that the process is exhausting, and I can't do it for long periods, maybe only a few minutes, but I promise to come back soon.

Let me know what you think, no matter which half of your brain it's coming from and even though my Comments gadget seems to have gone AWOL. Oh well, maybe it will find its way home.

Blessings

Of Purple Trees and Other Bits of Wisdom

2009-09-07T15:26:00.000-07:00

You know how, when your children are little, you always mean to write down the funny, sweet things they say and do, and hopefully you remember to write down a few? Public school teachers hear a hundred fold as many quotables from their students that we think we'll never forget. I know I've forgotten most of them, but with school starting all over the country, I was thinking about my son and my former students today.

It was actually pretty smart of my Dave to pick up on plural nouns when he was just 3, and when he wanted one piece of lettuce, it was a "letta" just as one piece of cheese was a "chee". And he kept secrets really well. He loved to paint rocks and painted one that looked exactly like a Razorback hog and wanted to give it to my sister for Christmas, but I told him we would keep it a secret; as soon as she walked in, he ran to her and said, "Aunt Nan! I painted you a Razorback, but it's a secret!" He gets this ability from me.

Then there was Dudley in my 9th grade English class. I swear to God his name was Dudley, and pretty much everything he said sounded like a joke, but he didn't mean it that way. I remember handing out test papers, and the one I put on his desk happened to be upside down. "Uh, Mrs. Finley, I think you printed the tests wrong!" And there was the time I was explaining the pros and cons of something or other in our literature study, and half the class was totally puzzled because they thought I was saying frozen pecans.........I guess you had to be there. And there were the 3 years I counseled 500 kindergarteners. I probably could have filled a notebook with their cute chatter, but most of it has slipped away. I do remember Robert, who often had accidents in his pants. The clean clothes closet was just off my office, and when the teacher walked drippy Robert past my door, I said, "Robert, did you tinkle in your pants?" He said, "No, ma'am, I just peed in 'em a yiddle."

Of course sometimes they're smarter than we are. When Rani was first learning to jabber a few words, she said from her car seat behind me, clear as day, "Purple trees". I said, "Oh how sweet! She thinks the trees are purple! No, baby, the trees are green." About that time I saw where she was looking, and all the tree trunks had splashes of purple on them, as posted land............. And the first time 7 year-old Stewart spent the night with us, I put him to bed in a small guest room we'd never used. Minutes later, he was beside me saying, "I can't sleep. There are lights on the ceiling." Leading him back to the bedroom, I explained comfortingly that the lights he saw probably were headlights from the roads that wound up the hills and sometimes shined through the trees into the house. We turned out the light, settled onto his bed, and I looked up to see dozens of glowing lights on the ceiling, tiny stars, placed there by the previous owners for their children. After we talked about them for a minute, he was fine.
Moral of the story: If it makes you smile, laugh, or tear up, write it down.