Get Ready for This!

This is gonna be an art-filled...fun-packed weekend....anyone that is planning to attend...get in touch with me...you can stay at my house! The world's largest collection of atcs (art trading cards) is something to see in itself....plus lots of great artists...demonstrations....food......etc.

Good Monday Morning to you! We had the most picture-perfect weekend here...weather in the 80's....bright-blue sunny days...Andy and I worked! Saturday was a dispose of your 'junk' for free day for the entire community...so...we tackled the years and years of 'junk' that was piled up in front of the garage area...the garage area is huge...it sits away from the house and has lots of open space around it. It was piled high with old car parts....car seats...old pipe...cans...bikes....lawn mowers....microwaves....air conditioners.....jars...bottles.....old screens and window frames....baby seats...well...you get the picture. We ended up taking three huge pick-up truckloads out to the dump site...which consisted of gigantic dumpsters parked behind the county library... they even had some volunteers and county work crew guys out there helping with the unloading of your vehicle....it started at 9am and lasted until 3pm....we were number 3 in line at 9am... we finally finished at 1:30 in the afternoon...THEN....yesterday we raked all the leaves and misc. debris up and burned ...it looks like a new place now.... I'm thrilled to pieces that it's done! This might not sound like a very exciting weekend...but I love getting things DONE around the house....this was a HUGE job...and I'm just so happy it's finished.

I plan on finishing cleaning the studio today...then maybe I can get some ART done...I know it's a strange quirk I have...but I can't stand doing anything unless the house is cleaned and at least 'picked up'...its like I can't really relax unless 'things' are 'right'....my mom was like this... so are my sisters....anyone else??????

We all love to get 'good things' in the mail...I got this beautiful atc with the heart charm on it from that sweet 'Blue Girl'...it was among some junk mail...and the dreaded bills...kinda like the rose among the thorns....( like she is).....Thank-You Blue.......

Happy Things Friday

an afternoon with friends in a summer garden
a beautiful old book crammed with scraps of past and present pleasures:dried flowers, postcards, fabric samples
the silent wish you make
lollipops
a single flower meaning more than a dozen
the old cabbage-rose pattern
bedtime snacks
looking out a bus window
free road maps
soaking in a scented tub
"ringers" on playgrounds
sunup and sundown colors
those moments that go beyond words
water ballons
assorted paper
cats sitting in the sun with eyes closed...but not sleeping
drying flowers
baby bird time
the beat of a drum
the pure promise of dawn
the buzzing of bees
the soft, new green of a garden pea fresh from its pod
a beautiful state of mind
long hair
paper airplanes
I wish I could take this day and bottle it and send it to everyone...it is simply perfect! Its already warm outside....supposed to be in the mid to high 80's.......I've been working like mad to get the studio finished...it looks like a hurricane went through it...I'm going through all the boxes in the closets....and rearranging....throwing away...giving away....and organizing...it takes a LONG time! I hope to be done today. Toby is coming along fine...he is feeling much better....life is Good!

Main Street...Placerville

This is part of the Main Street in Placerville California....(where I live).

My little guy...Toby

My poor little guy.....Toby had a papilloma (skin growth, wart) on his head...the night before last he was playing too rough and it started to bleed.... needless to say...what a mess. Andy stayed home yesterday and we took the little guy to the vet..He is now minus one huge wart (8 stitches).....one bad molar...caught up on all his shots and heartworm....has 2 kinds of medicine....all to the tune of a staggering 456.00 !!!!!!!!! Holy OUCH !!!!!!
While Toby was at the doctors An moved all the albums out of the studio closet for me...YES! So...now I have some more space to fill up with art stuff! It is simply beautiful today....supposed to be in the 80's....I'm keeping a close eye on Toby ....I took that 'elizabethean'collar off of him....it just drives him so crazy..plus it was so large that he couldn't eat or drink. He's a good smart dog...and knows better than to scratch those stitches open...BUT...I'll be watching him close...he can help me arrange the studio closet..and work out in the sunshine today!

Another Big Eye

This is the other Big Eye that I have by Keane.....I love this one!

Keane On Big Eyes

I have had these for a long time....my Mom actually got them in the early sixties.... they are among my favorite things...I recently read a post at http://ragtagsf.blogspot.com/ about Margaret Keane. I also read this article about mass market masterpieces...I am going to share some of the article with you...
When Margaret Keane began to paint her portraits of big-eyed children in San Francisco in the 1950s,she and her then husband, Walter Keane, were trendy members of the North Beach bohemian scene.Margaret had graduated from selling drawings to fellow students at high school to painting portraits of tourists and somehow, later, movie stars.But..it was Walter who took credit for some of her early paintings, claiming that the inspiration came from his time in Berlin, where the hungry post-war kids who filled the streets saddened him. He made the unusual move of opening his own gallery and then began mass-marketing Big Eye prints. The art world was horrified and the Keanes reviled within it, but the public with unprecedented fervour accepted their art.
The Keane relationship broke up in 1965 and later in 1970, Margaret revealed that it was HER and not her then husband who had painted the big-eyed faces.
She challenged Walter to a public paint-out in San Francisco Park. When the case came to court the judge ordered them both to paint. Margaret Keane produced a work within an hour while Walter Keane claimed he couldn't paint due to a sore shoulder and hand. Margaret won! Margaret has said that she painted the sadness as seen in her paintings from the early 60s reflecting her own inner emotions while she was married to Walter
After a first revival in the 1970s, early Keane was again in vogue in the late 1990s.Keane can now achieve $200,000 in the Keane Eyes Gallery in San Francisco. The paintings are now known as 'Big Eye'.The painting style originated by Keane has permeated the consciousness of literally millions of people.
What a great story! Don't you think? I love the 'Big-Eye' art....I have another one also...and I will post it later....it's beautiful today...wonderful bright sunshine...I have to go to the grocery store..and I also want to mow the lawn...also... clean out a closet full (700-800) of record albums..I don't know what to do with all these old albums???? Music from the Beatles on up.....maybe I should sell them on ebay????? I have no idea if there is a market out there for these or not. I also started to do some atcs last night (yippee...I feel the creativity starting to take hold)...and I plan to start on the shadowbox I must do...I am excited...after this last rain we had... all the Spring flowers are going crazy!!!!!

Baseball Day/ Family/ Love

It's been raining hard since late yesterday afternoon....we were lucky enough to get Ty's baseball game in...the top photo is Me and Ty (Grandma and Granddaughter)....
Ty playing 2nd base.... the bottom photo is 3 generations...my son, Tony.....me....and Ty (I would say I am a proud mother and grandmother)...
It is Sunday morning...the rain is still coming down in sheets...and the wind is howling....I love it! We have lots of leftover asparagus from last nights dinner...I'm in the middle of cleaning the studio...all is well and good!

lepidopteran insects

Both of these beautiful moths were on the kitchen screen door yesterday....I guess the one is an albino??????? Here is what the dictionary says:
any of various families of four-winged, chiefly night-flying lepidopteran insects, similar to the butterflies but generally smaller, less brightly colored, and not having the antennae knobbed. They take beautiful photos !!!!!!

It seems like I always post those old photos of my Dad...but here is one that Al sent to me this morning....It's my Dad (with our dog Duke)....and my Gram, Edna. I'm not real sure of the year..but I think it's taken in the early to mid 70's....
Today it's cooler...rain is coming...hope it holds off until Ty's softball game is over...it starts this morning at 10am.....
I am going to make deep fried asparagus tonight...(in honor of the Stockton Asparagus Festival)....yum!.... I have lots of new swaps to tell you about......(thinking... if I join these swaps I'll get motivated???!!!!)...I know one thing....I better GET BUSY!

More Vintage Family Photos..Happy Things Friday

It is time for me to start posting more vintage photos....the little girl above in the pony cart is my Dad's cousin, Marion...She passed away yesterday the 19th...I believe she was 93 or 94 years old.....I just got the news this morning...this is for her son...Walter. I'm going to try to post some vintage photos every week....
The first photo above is my Dad and my Aunt Sis (working in the garden)...this photo is funny to me...my Dad went on years later to join the Navy...He loved it...and always has a great story to tell...I find it prophetic that in this photo he is wearing a sailor cap.
The second photo is my Dad...my Grandmother and my Aunt Sis at Santa Cruz in 1924..Look at my Aunt's balloon..it looks like a giant pickle...maybe thats what it's supposed to be?
The next photo is my Dad and my Aunt at Yosemite feeding the deer in 1928. I have a photo (somewhere) of me in Yosemite also feeding the deer.....History really does repeat itself!
Since today is Friday...it's time for my "Friday List".........Here goes....
tubing= floating downriver in an inner tube
hidden windows
ages and eras of history
cleaning the whole house
gleaming shells in jewel colors, half-buried in pearl-white sand
leftover flower children
logs and fires
echoes in a cave
things that are part of our dreams and hopes
white frame houses in tiny hamlets
making a list of things that money can't buy
taking yourself to lunch
silk screening
limbo contests
sunday afternoon cooking
a carpet of wild strawberries
a pot of blooming tulips
a special moment in time
living a long, long time
a zillion breezy notions
bunches of asparagus, tied with ribbons, in a basket
spontaneity
paper dolls
shades of velvet blue
laughing till you cry
a bonfire by the lake

CCs Whimsies Pure Imagination

Found this on youtube..It's really worth watching...the music and art are beautiful.

"The Secret"

This is a painting that I have hanging in my home....it is called "The Secret".....I have had this for many many years....and I can't find anywhere on it who painted it???? Does anyone know? I probably knew at one time...but, have forgotten.
I have a swap coming up in my CJ group...to do a quilt page with "a twist"...to incorporate a secret door...window etc. well...my latest idea is to somehow use this photo of this particular painting...but I would like to have more information about it....I have searched on Google...but I'm not having any luck...Can anyone HELP?

It is alot cooler right now....it's been raining on and off..and more to come. I still haven't done anything to speak of in the studio...but I'm getting ready to start! I've been reading...resting...cooking...baking.....working outside among the flowers... and going to Ty's softball games (weather permitting)....maybe..I just needed a break to do some other things...whatever...I'm going to go with the flow...and let it come "natural".....I snapped this photo yesterday before the rain started....I love the color!

A Prayer

There is a prayer in my heart today for all the those who suffer from yesterday's tragedy in Virginia....It is extremely SAD.....I pray for less violence and anger in this world...and ALWAYS HOPE for PEACE.

I use to collect rocks....for this reason! I paint them! I'd say to Andy...lets go to the river so I can find animal rocks...(good excuse as any)...instead of seeing just plain old rocks...I started seeing animal shapes...oooh look there's an owl....these are two of the "owls" that I painted..they live outside in one of the flowerpots now....
It's a beautiful Monday morning. I'm still in the "you know what"....but decided to just let it go...it will come when we are both ready...I do feel it getting closer...that's a good sign!
I took little Toby in this morning for his grooming.....time to make breakfast for Dad.... when it's time to go get Toby I'm going to stop at one of the local tobacco shops and see if they have any cigar boxes....I sorta..kinda...have an idea for a shadow box assemblage.....it's just GETTING STARTED ON IT !!!!!!

Sunday's Slump

Good Sunday Morning.....
The sun is shining this morning...after an extremely wet Saturday.....everything got a good soaking! These weekends just seem to fly by so fast....Friday night Andy and I went to Ty's softball game....yesterday we ran some errands..grocery store...thrift store...and a stop at the pizza place (so I got a break from cooking)...the rest of the day I just puttered around the house...doing laundry...cleaning some shelves....making cupcakes....watering plants...enjoying the fire in the fireplace...sitting on the porch and listening to the rain....but there is SOMETHING ON MY MIND.........
I am experiencing a CREATIVE slump!!!! and it's really bugging me! This has happened to me before...but it usually only lasts a day or two...this has been going on for over a week...I think to myself that I'm going to do this...and that...and have all these great ideas..then I walk into the studio and just stand there and stare at everything, and end up doing nothing...I can't stand it! Yesterday at the thrift store I spent 20.00 on a box full of old vintage lace...material...ribbon...doilies etc. for some fabric projects that I've had in the back of my mind for months ...last night I sat and went through the box...folding everything....looking at it...thinking about all the wonderful uses for it all, and that's it...thats as far as I got!
I start to think OMG! what if something has happened to my brain..what if I've lost it....what if NOTHING happens, and I no longer want to be creative...or no longer have creative thoughts.....I start to PANIC!!!!!! At first I blamed it on the weather...that it's Spring and all the flowers are budding and blooming...the weather is warm...too much else to do..and that I just need to be outside..but NOW....it's really starting to bother me!
Andy is calling me to breakfast.....I HOPE something happens today in the creativity department...we shall see......

Combine the Two.....

Well...I got a late start this morning..took Ty to school because her Mom and Dad were both at work....I decided to combine my Friday lists with some more old photos...and I promise I won't bore you anymore with all these old photos...the photo taken above was taken in 1972..I'm sitting out in the front yard (the very same front yard I'm still sitting out in)...and it's blowing my mind..because it is sooooo different...all the baby trees are now GIANTS....the small bushes are now huge....instead of dirt...there is now green grass....the old chair I'm sitting in we still have..and still sit in...only it's a different color..my parents bought these 50's patio chairs with them when we moved out here to California from the East coast...Granny dresses were popular back in 72.....(thats what we called them), and that's what I'm wearing. The old cadillac in the background belonged to one of my brother's friends...he is now passed away...........I am not nearly this skinny now! (darn) That little bush behind me...is the VERY SAME flowering quince bush that you have probably seen in lots of my recent flower photos...my hair is still long...but not quite this long....but one thing IS STILL the same....I was sitting out in the front yard...thinking...and I still sit outside and think...and enjoy the peace and quiet....I also still wear my slippers outside.....Below are lots more old photos, and I've combined them with todays Friday list...some things never change...
I've really enjoyed looking at all the photos everyone has posted ......it's been a fun trip down memory lane!
Tonight Andy and I are going to our Granddaughter's softball game.....as the "magpie" fairies would say...it just keeps going on and on......

sitting on a rock at the river
your brother's 55 chevy
thinking about all the fun times in the 55 chevy
playing horseshoes
winning the horseshoe competition
being tan in the summer
being able to wear short shorts
sittin and thinking
being caught off guard while someone snaps a photo

your new baby kitten
hiking in Desolation wilderness sitting on top of the world
diving off of your honey's shoulders in your favorite lake
having fun with the one you love
being in love
still wondering what happened to all those clothes
thinking about all your kittens and cats

holding a brand new baby boy
a new dress and a new sweater (knitted by your grandmother)
your crazy kid and you with your mom and dad on a summer day
your birthday boy with new puppet and bike
thinking back to those wonderful times
laughing at yourself
laughing at your nutty little boy
wondering whatever happened to those clothes
looking at the scenery and seeing all the changes
wishing you could still fit into those clothes

A Photo Challenge for YOU !!!!! (EVERYONE)

I was looking through some old scrapbooks last night.....forgot all about this photo...my sister, Tina on the left...my beautiful Mom....and Me....this was taken many years ago...around 20 I believe.....I remember the day..and how much fun we had...how much we laughed.....I can't remember the occasion..maybe there was none...maybe it was someone's birthday?????? All I know is that I am so grateful for memories. When you stop and think about it...memories are really "who we are"...just layers and layers of memories....built on top of one another...over and over....I love sitting and looking at all the really old photo albums that were once my Grandmother's...I stare at all the photos and try to imagine where they were taken????What the people were doing????? I look at the scenery, and think about how much it's all changed.....the clothes...shoes...hairstyles....SO..here is my challenge for everyone.....Go find one of your favorite photos...from lets say...at least 20 years ago....and POST IT.....tell us a story about it..and why you like it so much....leave me a comment so we can all share the photos and stories.....it can be of anything you want...a person...a place or thing....your high school picture...ANYTHING!

ATCs and ACEOS by Lesley

Look what I found on You Tube today.....

Pretty in Pink

Well..I just had to post this photo...simply because I LOVE the color of this flower...it's been raining on and off...not pouring...(darn) most of the morning. I am getting some charms ready to mail..and getting ready to go for a walk..with the camera under my jacket.

For Everyone

From Sweet Lisa....Thank-You! Lisa says to pass it on...so ANYONE who wants to grab it...please feel free to do so...you all and I mean ALL deserve it !!!!!!! Lisa is at http://heartofthenest.com

It is RAINING !!!!!!!!!! YIPPEE !

Think

Think love, not hate.
Think success, not failure.
Think health, not disease.
Think good, not evil.
Think prosperity, not poverty.
Think safety, not danger.
Think life, not death.
Think friendship, not hostility.
Think joy, not sorrow.
Think hope, not despair.
Think tranquility, not tension.
Look forward, not backward.
Personal guidelines of John Harris, Folkston, Georgia
Born January 20, 1874

Delicious Broccoli Recipe

This big ole frog sits outside somewhere...don't know where yet...He is from my friend's shop....he was knocked off of a shelf and busted into quite a few pieces.....I glued him all back together.
One of the dishes I made on Easter was this recipe from my sister for broccoli casserole....it really is DELICIOUS!!!!.....especially if you are a vegatable lover like I am...I just had to share it with you!
Broccoli Casserole
Beat 2 eggs and 1 can cream of mushroom soup with 1 cup of mayo. Beat with whisk. Add 1 cup chopped onion and 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese...whisk. Cook 2 packages frozen broccoli. Drain and mix well into above mixture.
Bake at 350 for 45 minutes. 10 minutes before removing from oven add 1 can of Durkees french fried onions, and bake for remaining 10 minutes until onions are golden brown. This is so yummy! and very easy!

Easter Sunday/ Monday

Easter at my house.....Toby guarding Ty's hidden basket....hidden yellow egg.....hidden strawberry basket....and Ty saying Thank-You so much Easter Bunny!!!!!! It was a beautiful day....we had lots of good food!
I have the usual Monday errands to run today.....and some art swaps to start.. some to finish and mail....the usual chores....and some flowers to plant in the garden....it is cooler today....rain coming in on Wednesday....

Egg-coloring........

Happy Easter

Happy Easter to all you little bunny-wunnies out there......I love you!

A Peony for You.....

No reason....really...I just had to post this photo......I got so excited when I saw that the peony bush is getting ready to bloom...it was my Mom's favorite flower...and it's mine.....

Happy Things On A Spring Day

I walk around this big old house and I'm in awe of all God's beauty...these Spring days are so beautiful here in the foothills...THANK-YOU GOD !!!!!!!!!!
the excitement of a storm and the sudden transformation of the landscape
the memory of a spring afternoon
dreamy music
the smell of peat moss
dogs nose-deep in wrapping paper
leisurely bubble baths
quilt blocks
dripping wax
flannel trousers
accidental meetings
good news for a change
the easter bunny hopping down the bunny trail
church bells
buying a dimestore jar of liquid for blowing bubbles
an authentic, artistic, and aesthetic life
a baby plant
sweet peas in soft bunches of muted colors
the pick of the litter
easter bonnets
smile makers
calla lillies
brightening up one's spirits
sunday rides in the country
mime artists
balance of nature
gentle, rocking motion
shoe buttons
old farm table in the kitchen
a retreat from the outside world
curled trees
fluffy pillows
walking between the raindrops
shy beginnings
Well...I could go on and on just listing wonderful happy things...but I must run some Easter errands...and hobble to the grocery store...I say "hobble"....I got off balance last night...and tripped "up the steps"...not down...but "up"....and down I went..the plate I was holding went flying...and I'm on the floor calling for the DOG!!!! Everyone else was in bed....and I guess I thought that the dog would be the only one to come!!! (he didn't).....I went down on both knees and my arm...so...I am limping around and sore everywhere today...I hope MOVING around helps! I hope all of my blogging buddies have a MOST WONDROUS and BLESSED EASTER!!!!!!!and I HOPE you all have warm Spring days...and that the Easter Bunny brings you all at least 1 BIG CHOCOLATE BUNNY!!!!!!
PS...Look at that Bee diving in for the sweet necter above...and the lavendar is just so "purple"!!!!!!