friday's funnies

Hi ya'll! I am surprised I still have my eyes open and it is only 5:43 pm, considering I was still wide awake and chatting with Phyllis on the computer till 2:30 am or so.  Menopause and artsy thoughts and jewelry designs and painted collaged canvases racing around in my head (oh my)! makes it hard for a girl to get some decent sleep! Looks like I could pack for Europe in the bags under my eyes!!

I must say my day started wonderfully, with a shared conversation between the always lovely Joanne Rose and myself.  If she is not the sweetest, kindest, kindred spirit sister I have, I'll eat Phyllis' new hats!  Thank you Joanne.  You inspire me and I admire you!  xo

Today had some funny moments I would like to share with you.  I went to Las Vegas to get groceries at Trader Joe's and use my Joanns and Hobby Lobby coupons. I was so pleased to see that Joanns is making a large section with Tim Holtz products. They are expanding their jewelry section and carrying vintaj elements, but sadly they are downsizing their fine art section. I  got some 2 oz jars of liquitex concentrated professional acrylic paints for $1.97 ea. on clearance and some flat canvases.  Lots of coupons and some good deals.  Then went to Hobby Lobby and FINALLY  they had Jen Cushman's book "Explore, Create, Resinate".  Used my 40% off (or... as some husbands say "60% on) coupon.  Deal!  I would love to save for a nice big easel.  Hmmmm....maybe for Christmas!  My little 8x10" canvases will look just swell on a big ole easel!!  Then I went to Trader Joe's.  I had my cart full of healthy, organic stuff and I notice this lady, about my age looking at me.  Is she looking at those bags under my eyes??  She comes really close and in a low voice says "you look like you know your way around this store, can you tell me about the fruit?"  THE FRUIT??  I said I buy it all the time and it is fine.  She smiled and thanked me and left.  Bizarro!  Maybe I looked like I knew my way around the store from the size of my butt!  Then I headed back to Boulder City with the 108 degree temp.  Here I sit needing to make some phone calls and do some painting, but...there is always tomorrow!

The funnies:
1.  I saw a sign in a strip mall for "great massages".  What is the alternative?  Bad massages?
2.  A sign for a business called "Pretty Kitty", a  brazilian wax joint!!  LOL!  Wish I could have snapped a picture with my phone.  I will the next time by there.
3.  The expiration date on the vinegar.  Really?  And how do you know it has gone bad?  It smells good?

Also a miraculous day for me.
1.  I didn't buy a tootsie roll at Joanns on the way out.  (probably a first!)
2.  I didn't stop and get a bean burrito at Taco Bell.  (maybe another first)
and....
3.  I spent less than $100.00 at Trader Joe's!

"Simone"

Collaged and painted on 8x10" canvas

If you are still hanging in there reading this, what did  you do on this fabulous Friday?  I'd love to hear from you.  Have a great weekend and enjoy life.  As my favorite saying goes.......Live the life you've imagined.  xo

my journey begins TODAY

My most favorite coffee cup.

Love the colors.

Love the scooter.

But MOST of all...

I love the message.

Let your journey begin TODAY.

the desert

i have been pondering my thoughts about leaving the desert behind, when we move to oregon.  will i miss it? certain aspects i will.  i have lived here for 56 years and have suffered headaches from the unforgiving heat. and i am sad my skin looks parched with sunspots, even though it has been slathered with creams and sunscreen.  won't miss that!  i do though, enjoy spending time in the quiet, peaceful desert.  sitting on a rock, wondering who walked there before me, searching for beautiful rocks, chasing lizards that are always a fingertip away, and smelling the sagebrush after a desert rain.  sunsets in the desert are brilliant.  lightning storms are vivid.  the wild horses and burros are fascinating. searching through forgotten dumps, left by pioneers long before us is always rewarding.  looking for arrowheads and flint left behind by the indians that lived on this land, is always fun.  will i find another desert in oregon to explore..of course i will!  but in the meantime, i am giddy with excitement anticipating the rain.  that phenomenon of liquid falling from the sky that we don't get to enjoy very often here!  i know it is not for everyone, but cloudy, gray, rain swollen clouds make my heart skip a beat!  i actually get more accomplished and my muse works overtime when it is overcast.  i'll leave you with a poem i wrote after being in the desert this past year.

the desert

the desert floor sparkles like finely ground glitter

too bad it is covered in so much litter

the fresh smell of sage indulges my senses

the stillness and quiet remove all my tensions

who walked here before me, i'd love to know

lakota, choctow or maybe the crows

for now i'll enjoy this glorious day

picking up rocks along my way

what are you pondering today?  have a wonderful sunday and thank you for coming by for a visit!

Tuesday tidbits

This will just be a bit of rambling about the day, so get out your hand painted magic carpet and fetch a cold adult beverage of your choice and join me.  First thing this morning (well for those that really know me, it was about 10:00 am)!, but anyway, I went to Las Vegas to Joann's to use my 50% coupons.  Couldn't let those go to waste, even though I  have enough supplies of every kind to last a couple of lifetimes!  I showed my favorite checker, Joanne,  my beads in the Belle Armoire Jewelry magazine and she announces it as loud as possible to everyone in line and calls them over to see.  My face turned every shade of red possible.  She is a sweetheart , always a smile and a kind word.

I decided next to go get a pedicure.  Now that was an experience. The girl I got did not speak English very well at all.  She was making small talk with me and I just kept nodding and smiling, not getting a single word of it!  Then she asks me if I know Linda?  Linda who?  Oh, she says, she lives in Boulder City.  We only have about 17,000 people here! LOL!

Then when I left, there were about a bazillion pigeons all lined up in the median, trying desperately to find a little shade in the 102 degree heat, and hoping for a handout.  I know people don't like them, and think they are a nuisance, but I think they are pretty darn cute.  They looked like they were lined up like laborers waiting to get a job.  Was wishing I had some popcorn to give them.

Before I left this morning, I got the sweetest message on facebook from one of my stretching sisters, Joanne Rose.  She made my day.  What a sweetheart.  Who knew when I signed up for Misty Mawn's class, that I would make such endearing friends.  It is amazing that I feel like some of them have been my closest friends for years, and it hasn't even been a year. It was worth the money to make these friendships, even if I hadn't learned a thing! When we rendezvous in Port Townsend for Art Fest next March, it will be fun, fun, fun, till our daddy takes our T-bird away!  I guess I have 9 months to lose 30 pounds!

I have so many ideas for jewelry and art projects swirling around in my head, it is making me dizzy!  Speaking of dizzy, please say a prayer for Phyllis Peterson, she is really having dizzy spells.  We need her well, she and I have a lot of plans for 2012!

What art projects are you working on at this time?  I would love to see them.  Till next time....  xo

Create your own path.

Only you can create your own path......

when you find it and set foot on it

step boldly in the direction of what feels right.

The first steps

can be the hardest.

New landscapes

can be astonishingly beautiful.

My very first blog post!!

Well, thanks to Linda Penny I am in the blog world! My blog posts will mostly be about my  my artwork, my garden, my travels and my cats.  I will try not to bore you.  Now to post a picture.