Back from South Florida where neighbors & I attended the wedding of some friends. It was held at a huge Venetian styled place that specializes in Posh gatherings. Beautiful room set up as a chapel. The two grooms in tuxes with 6 bridesmaids (women) in floor length dresses. White halter tops & black bottoms and two ushers. My neighbor, Patrick, performed the ceremony and did it very well.

The motif was Penguins. There were penguin place markers, key chains, large ones on the tables with the table number on their chests and a huge penguin ice sculpture. Both the chapel and reception rooms were done in black & white. A sit-down dinner served with a florish by chefs in tall white hats and passed to the formal servers. Extremely well done.

My only gripes were the video operator and photographers were constantly taking pictures and blinding us with bright lights and the DJ played music that was not friendly to my ears. The grooms were a delight, though, and it seems that their families were all happy to be there.

Long ride home last night and my cats were annoyed with me for being gone but were happy that I was back to open a can of food.

I'm wrapping some presents that have to be in tomorrow's mail. Priority so it gets there in time. Then I have a gazillion things to do before I leave for NJ on Wednesday.

Hugs for all who need them and those of you in the frigid north, stay warm.

Atlantic City Here We Come!!!!

Plans for our trip to AC have been finalized... My friend Cathy and I will be flying up on Spirit and staying at The Tropicana. It's the only Casino in AC that I'm familiar with and they have great slot machines. We've been comped for 3 nights and gotten a good price on the other two and a comped dinner our first night there at Wellington's restaurant.

The plan is to have our friends drive down to visit us instead of us heading north to see them. Should be interesting to see who actually comes. They have a spa that offers some delightful massages and facials that we may splurge on.

I must remember to take my camera.

Ahhhh.... the Jersey Shore. I miss it.

When you recycle one glass bottle, you save the amount of energy needed to light a 100 watt bulb for 4 hours.

Thanksgiving

A very nice Thanksgiving... Invited to friend's home for dinner but not wanting to be without leftovers, I bought a small turkey and put it in the oven to roast early in the morning. Peeled real potatoes and had made cranberry sauce. Had neighbors, Patrick & Wendell over late that evening for a second Thanksgiving dinner. Blew the diet but was very nice.

Next night we carried the leftovers to their house and we had another Thanksgiving dinner on lovely plates with crystal wine & water glasses and sterling silver utensils... My house is Mikasa and depression glass...




Saturday morning found a tall box with a bouquet of flowers from Number 2 son, Jeffrey. Aren't they lovely?








Studio is progressing. Finally had another company come and do the cracked windows. Neighbor helped moving the cabinets & counter top and now I am trying to organize as I put stuff back. Here are 2 views of progress.

Progress!!

I'm making progress. Wall is painted. Unit is disassembled and bases are being painted. The holdup is the window repair company. Over four weeks now. They sent one young man who didn't know how to do this type of window and no one else has come. I called and they said that he hasn't bothered even coming to work all week. I think it's time to call in another company.

Here's the picture of the painted walls and shelves. Looking good.

This is the corner with the unit that needs to be moved. It is all cleared off in the picture but I have now piled some of the labeled containers on it until the walls & shelves are painted.



Here'a a picture of the corner where the cabinet will go. It's been cleared out. Table gone. Corner metal shelf gone. I Freecyled a bunch of electronic stuff but picked out some odd pieces to keep for use in some assemblages.

A working weekend!
I finished the Grandpa & Me collage and framed it with pieces of an old yardstick. I'm happy with how it came out. I've just stuck the word "ephemera" into the metal tab slot but will probably change it out. or at least age the paper a bit more.

Studio is emptying out or at least the area where my work counter will be moved to. I'm debating with myself whether to mosaic around the window area or not. It would be fun but would be a huge delay in getting the room put back into any semblance of order. I do want to finish painting the walls blue.

The window on the cleared wall opens into the laundry room. It seems that the workshop side of the wall was once on the outside of the house. Pale green peeling paint covers most of it. I've sanded & scraped so new paint should hold. One of the glass panels in the window is broken as are a few in the house from hurricane Charley. This one is just from something falling against it. I've been good and called the glass people. I'm on the list for repairs sometime next week.

I'm trying to get myself motivated to get things crossed off the To-Do list and have done quite a few of them this week. Of course some of the calls were to answering machines and most of them have not called back. I'm hoping to get started on ordering shutters for the TV room. I love the ones in the bedroom and think they'll work well for the TV room.

Inertia...

Not too much exciting in my life right now and just too lazy to post. Helped my friend pack for her move to Tennesee so spent some days driving to Plant City. I did go to the Disney Epcot Food & Wine Festival with my Aussie friend, Diane. We waited until late in the afternoon to go so it wasn't too hot. Food was interesting. Several new countries this year. Chile and Turkey are two that I noticed. The walk around the World Showcase wasn't too bad. We sat whenever we tried out one of the food samples so not too tiring. I really need to do more walking but whenever I do, my hip starts to yell at me.

Another friend brought me some information on aqua therapy at Celebration Fitness so it's tempting me to look at signing up there for membership. It is a bit of a ride and I'll need some motivation to make the drive out there, but I need to do something before I fall totally apart.

Studio

Still working out in the "Studio" trying to empty off the corner shelf with all of G's electronic stuff. Amazing how much there is. I have emptied out 5 or 6 bins and they are in a pile for Dave & Diane to pick up. I've started another pile of aviation related bins for Leon. Ahhh, Space, the final frontier...

It's so hot out there, even with the window air conditioner that I work in short bursts, go into the house to cool down and then start again.


Here's one of the canvases I'm working on. Not finished, of course. I'm auditioning items to add to it. So far it's just the letter from Denmark, Grandpa's American Legion photo and me in Kindergarten. I'm trying to find the right words to print for it and also some other ephemera and maybe some more paint & inking.

Morning? What Morning?

Yikes, I had another of those nights when sleep was just not in the cards. Went to bed.. got up.. played computer games and made double hot chocolate with milk... back to bed and just couldn't turn off my awake button. Finally somewhere early this morning I fell into a mini coma. The phone rang at 9:15 and Shadow was pretending to be an alarm clock so I got up and staggered to the kitchen. Coffee in the micro and feed the cats so I don't trip over them & kill myself.. call Lara and cancel me driving to Plant City today. I'd be hard pressed to drive to my mailbox.

Second cup of coffee and getting dressed helped me feel like I may still be a member of the human race, abet, one in terrible shape. I've done all the morning computer stuff but there's still a long list of things that need to be done. I've dug out the TSP to clean garage walls to prep for paint, but do I really want to scrub walls in this condition? I don't think so.



Here's a picture of the other side of the room. I had organized the shelves with labeled containers a few months ago. Bottom shelf had to be removed. The table has to go but there is something called a "surface plate" on it that weighs a gazillon tons. It is 4" thick solid granite and is 18" x 24". My late DH bought it and made a cover for it but I don't think he ever used it. It's too heavy to sell on eBay & ship so I need to find someone to hopefully buy it and take it away. I'd like to tile the floor but don't think I can move enough stuff out to do it.

Making Art!

I haven't been working on my art very much lately but have been trying to make the space for making art into an organized room. Room is big enough but too much stuff. I've been working in my late husbands shop and trying to make it my own for quite a while now.

My son, Chris, moved & installed my old kitchen cabinets and I have emptied and rearranged most of them. He put a corner unit into the far corner but because of the circuit breaker box, it needs to be moved. I've been trying to clear out the other window corner at the other end of the room and it's finally looking almost big enough for the move.

Big decision is whether to paint walls & floor before the move or after. After would mean less wall to paint, but might be easier to reach the higher & hidden areas now.

Here's a picture of the corner that needs to be moved. I haven't even started on clearing it out.

I'll post more tommorrow..

This mornings PARADE magazine that came with the Sunday paper has a cover headline: "If you had one day to spend with someone who's gone.... Who would it be? What would you do?"

I've lost so many these past years but my first thought would be my friend, Deb. We would make art and go on a field trip to shop and soak up eye candy in the boutiques. As we drove, we'd be blasting Jimmy Buffet's CD and singing along very much off key.

I also thought of my late husband.He and I had over 20 good years together and did so very much, but Deb and I had only 2 or 3 and she was the closest thing to a sister that I've had. I have other wonderful friends but still miss her almost every day.

I found this quote on Misty Mawn's blog this morning. She posted it on 9-11 and I was touched by it.

Be grateful for what we have, give of yourself today and often. Reach out. Find Peace. Remember.

"Ideologies separate us. Dreams and anguish bring us together.”

~Eugene Ionesco

I'm trying to make art again and am working on some small canvases with pictures of me when I was a child and pictures of my grandparents, who raised me. One background is a letter from my GF's sister in Denmark. It is in Danish and was written to him the year he died. I had it translated when I was in Denmark. I realized that I was 11 years old then and yet there is no mention of me in the letter. I wonder if my grandfather's family even knew about me?

Haven't posted in awhile. Both lazy & busy or just busy being lazy. Here's a picture my son, Jeff, took this morning of the mountains in Colorado Springs, CO. I sized it down and it's a bit pixilated but still lovely.

Overdue for a posting. My friend, Lara, is moving to Tennessee next month so I've been trying to go to Plant City once a week to help pack & spend some time with her before she goes. We'll still be able to meet & play games on Pogo when she's gone but it won't be the same.

My grandaughter, Samantha, is really talented in HTML and has her own website. I think this is the fifth or sixth version. She keeps changing it but she does such great work.. Sammy's Website

Another Fun Video: Womans Brain!

A fun look at how it used to be...

A womans place

Treadmill Workout

This is the most amazing choreography I've seen. Almost makes me want to turn on my treadmill. LOL

OK Go Treadmill Dance

I need to do something here beside post links but life has been hectic lately. Finally did another listing of a Blue Fish top. Tried to do a 3 piece set but somehow I didn't take enough photos to do it right. I'm off to a friend's today to do lunch and recover a dining room chair so don't know if listings will get done or not. Oh, well, there's always tomorrow.. I hope.

Funny Bunny 30 second Movies

This site is so cute. I found it on another blog but had to save it here.

30 second Bunny Films

My Baby is Home!

Finally, my car is back home. They did a lovely job on it and it looks good as new. I'll try to post a picture later. I shopped on the way home and replaced my watch. It seems like everything is breaking.. faster than I can get them fixed.

All of my eBay auctions are paid for and shipped. I need to spend this evening and tomorrow writing up some more. Pictures are taken & edited so it's just the brain work now... If I can get the old brain to work.. lol

Still no Car!

I want my car back... I need to call again in a little while. He called last week & said it was going into the paint shop & would be ready the middle of this week. That would have been yesterday. Finding someone to take me up there to pick it up is something that I need to schedule. Aaarrrrgggghhhhh.

The good news is that my eBay auctions all sold. I just have the two Jams World outfits left that I'm selling for Tom. 100% sell through rate is pretty good but of course, Blue Fish always sells. I need to edit pictures and write more listings. I'm feeling list-less...

Bad night last night. Went to bed way too late, didn't easily fall asleep and then was awake before dawn. Weird dreams about the Mafia and buried bodies. I was laying there awake and wondering why.. I've never watched the Sopranos, although I did live in Jackson Township when they found the mob body in the oil drum on the chicken farm. Inspired them to dig up the 20" thick concrete patio behind the house but they never found anymore bodies. It became a running joke that even though they buried them in the Pine Barrens of NJ, they killed 'em in New York..
I've been reading some memes and need to do some. They are fun to read.

eBay Auctions

Some of my auctions are ending tonight and the Blue Fish is doing well with lots of watchers. The 4 square pants are doing especially well. I need to get busy today and write up auctions for some of Deb's outfits. I have two very colorful Jam's World outfits ready to go. I just need to stop being slothful and write them.

I also need to get my butt in gear & head out to the studio & create some "stuff".... I've been in a such a rut lately but since I still don't have my car, this would be a good time to do it.. no excuses.

Ebay Auctions!

Finally have some auctions running. Mostly Blue Fish clothing that's been hanging out in the closet for years. Most of it never worn. Wish I could lose some of this weight and wear some of them, but I really need to purge. I especially like the 4 Square pants and the matching vest.

The Vintage Olga Nightgown is attracting attention and getting bids but most of the other items are just sitting with tons of watchers. I hate waiting until the last minute for bids to come in but it is exciting when they do.

I was happy with Project Runway last night and with Bradley finally being booted off. What a whiney weirdo he is. Now to get rid of Vincent and then Jeffrey and for a change they'll have a nice group left. It might be interesting to see contestants who aren't mega primadonnas but of course the producers won't see it that way and will want to crank up the conflict.

The big car crash!

A week ago yesterday, I crashed my car into the car in front of me. I hit the brakes about 30 foot back but the car just slid into the one in front. There's a firehouse off to the left and they remotely change the light. I don't think it went through orange at all. First car slid to a stop, 2nd screeched to a stop, and I tried but bang... Amazing that I was going so slow and the car I hit just has a dent & a ding or two while my big Avalon has many smushed parts in front. Hood out of whack, light hanging out and fender like piece that wraps around is bumped out. Poor car is in the shop and looks like it will be another week or two before I get it back.

Luckily no one was hurt. I bumped my knee but fortunately it was the bad one so I still have one good one.

Tonight is Project Runway... Hope it's more fun than last week.

Another of these fun tests.... surprisingly accurate, though. Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

Your Birthdate: January 19

You are resilient, and no doubt your resilience has already been tested. You've had some difficult experiences in your life, but you are wise from them. Having had to grow up quickly, you tend to discount the advice of others. You tend to be a loner, having learned that the only person you can depend on is yourself. Your strength: Well developed stability and confidence Your weakness: Suspicion of others Your power color: Eggplant Your power symbol: Spade Your power month: October

What Does Your Birth Date Mean?

Yikes... July is almost over.. What a month... Youngest son, Chris, arrived at the end of June with his 10 3/4 yr. old daughter, Jennica.. We did Disney and Cocoa Beach and some eating out. Chris stayed a week & went home. Jenny and I got to know each other. I hadn't seen her since she was 4. After a week together here, we hopped on a plane to New Jersey so she could meet her cousins, Samantha and Rachel, my oldest son, David's girls.

A fun week in NJ where she met the Jersey Shore... Had a huge wave flip her upside down and landed her on the sand.. her first Atlantic Ocean wipe-out.. We all had a fun night at the boardwalk in Point Pleasant where she climbed the rock wall and did the Himalaya with Rachel. Sammy, older and way too cool to go on the rides just watched with the adults.

I managed to slip away to the Tropicana for a day to play slots but had no time to meet up with old friends. Monopolized their computer to play Pogo and check e-mails... could have posted here, but didn't.

Back to Florida for 5 days and then off to Kansas to return Jennica home. Visited with Chris and his significant other at their Hide-away Cafe in St. George. Spent the night with Jen & her Mom & her new husband. Headed off to Kansas City and spent some time at Harrah's casino... I think I've done my slot allotment for the year...

Off to catch up on the house & re-establish my old comfortable life.

Ahhhh, it's been awhile... I've been busy, busy, busy...

My youngest son arrived a little over a week ago with his lovely 10 year old, Jennica. We've done Disney and the July 4th Kissimmee fireworks and festivities... Lots of fun. He left very very early yesterday to head back to Kansas. Jennica & I will just hang out and work on a quilt for her. The one I made her when she was a baby is falling apart...

Bought her the sneakers with the wheels so she is practicing on the sidewalks.

We fly to New Jersey on the 13th so she can meet her NJ cousins for the first time. Should be fun. If I can get away for a day, I plan to hit the casinos and donate quarters to the slot machines. That is, if the casinos re-open by then. The idiot governor of the state has shut it down until he gets his way with a sales tax increase. Makes me glad I moved away.

These little quizzes are so addictive...

Your True Love Is a Sagittarius

Why you'll love a Sagittarius: Deep and philosophical, you'll love getting lost in hours of conversation with your Sag. Your Sagittarius is curious and adventurous enough to keep you interested... not an easy task! Why a Sagittarius will love you: You're passionate about a few important issues, a kind of depth that Sagittarius finds very attractive. You're outgoing, flexible, and up for almost anything. You and your Sag will have tons of adventures together.

What Sign Is Your True Love?

Another one.. My favorite city in Europe is Copenhagen so this comes close.

You Belong in Amsterdam

A little old fashioned, a little modern - you're the best of both worlds. And so is Amsterdam. Whether you want to be a squatter graffiti artist or a great novelist, Amsterdam has all that you want in Europe (in one small city).

What European City Do You Belong In?

I just love these crazy tests...
This one checks out your linguistic style.

Your Linguistic Profile:

45% General American English

35% Yankee

15% Dixie

0% Midwestern

0% Upper Midwestern

What Kind of American English Do You Speak?

I found this quote on someone's website and I like it.

Favorite quote

A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects.

- Robert Heinlein

Strange but fun time with old friend. Amazing that there are physical changes, getting older, gaining weight, hair color, etc... but basic personality remains. It was good to reminise about shared experiences from 20 to 25 years ago.

I was checking birthdays and days of birth and came up the the old familiar verse:

Monday's child is fair of face
Tuesday's child is full of grace
Wednesday's child is full of woe
Thursday's child has far to go
Friday's child is loving and giving
Saturday's child works for its living
And a child that's born on the Sabbath day
Is fair and wise and good and gay.
author unknown

I am so sore... purging and cleaning the house for the past few days... old friend I haven't seen in 16 years is coming to visit on Friday. The stuff that has accumulated in this house over 19 years is frightening.. I see a yard sale in my future..

Here's another of those fun tests. This one is which car are you?

I'm a Chevrolet Corvette!

You're a classic - powerful, athletic, and competitive. You're all about winning the race and getting the job done. While you have a practical everyday side, you get wild when anyone pushes your pedal. You hate to lose, but you hardly ever do.

Take the Which Sports Car Are You? quiz.

Yikes, it's been awhile. I've been busy but haven't made time for new art or eBay listings. Mostly playing POGO and meeting with friends.

This morning I was looking up Phallic because a friend misspelled it, Fallic on a chat board and was taken to task. I wanted to find out if it might have been an accepted alternative spelling. My search took me to some interesting sites but a fun and not naughty one was this one. Turns out my Phallic personality is a hot dog. Hahahahahah..

Which random phallic object are you?
Quiz by Andrea.

I need to make my life more interesting so there is more to post...

I've just signed up with ARTCHAIN to list the Mixed-media art group I'm trying to get started here in Central Florida. It seems like a good source for contacting people and also for promoting our art.

Here's another Sassy Picture:

My feet are still mad at me for all the walking I made them do at Disney but I'm trying to move around more and spend less time sitting here at the 'puter. The endless uncluttering of the garage moves slowly and seeing all the fabric I own is guilting me into clearing off my worktable so I can work on some quilts. I have a pile to finish and want to work on Deb's top so I can have it finished for her Grandson, Riley's second birthday..

Monday is go to Plant City to Laure's house and help with trinkets for her daughter's wedding. Should be fun. Her mom, Sally, will be there and she is so much fun. Judi will bring a soldering iron and some expertise at stained glass. I think the project is glass microscope slides with picture in between, copper foil along the edge and then solder. Not sure if we are adding jump rings so it can be hung or not.

Just got a phone call from Dianne. On Monday her mom heads up to Pennsylvania to stay a few days with David's mom and then she's off to Munich to visit her late husband's relatives and then the long trek back to Australia. So tomorrow we will go up to Lake Ivanhoe's antique district and browse the shops and do lunch. I guess that'll get me off my butt and away from this demon computer.

Another excuse not to write listings for eBay.. But the piles keep getting higher & higher...

Ahhhhhh... great morning.. had a pedicure and then a massage. I was sore and in pain from an 11 hour day of Disney's Animal Kingdom and a night at Magic Kingdom. I walked my feet into agony and the rest of me wasn't doing much better but it was such fun. My friend's Mum is visiting from Australia and we spent the day together enjoying the animals & exhibits. Met up with her daughter, my friend, at Magic Kingdom to watch the "Wishes" Fireworks display. Friend's hubby works there setting them up. As exhausting as a day at one of the parks can be, I still never turn down a chance to go.

Last week we had "Tea" at the Grand Floridian Resort. Very English style tearoom with all the extras. Very nice and civilized.

Here's a sassy update: She loves to crawl under things and hides. Here she is just coming out from under the quilt on the ottoman. She is so funny.

Ahhh, comments are finally getting through! So if anyone is interested in a Central Florida Mixed Media Art Group please post your comments & contact information. As soon as enough people show an interest, I'll try to organize a get together.

See my earlier post describing the group.

It seems there's been a problem with comments on my page. I only show one from one of my earlier posts and some have told me they've left comments.. where did they go?
I have gone in and reset some of my settings and tweeked a few things but don't know if it's fixed. If anyone reads this, please leave a comment so I can see if it's working.
If it's not, I'm not sure what to do to fix it. If you do, leave comment.. Hahahaaaaaaaaaa..

Who Should Paint You: Alfred Gockel

All American yet funky, you inspire an artist's imagination And while not everyone will understand your portrait, you will!

What Artist Should Paint Your Portrait?

I was reading one of my artsy publications or Zines the other day and found an article by someone who had started an art group that met regularly and grew to about 50 people. I really miss our ArtChicks group but since Deb died we just haven't been able to hold it together. We were a foursome to be reckoned with and had such fun. I tried to bring in some others but Four was just our magical number. We all fit in one car and could dash off on "Field Trips" to museums or stores or even down to Sandollr's in South Florida for a long weekend.

We cannot duplicat or redo that group so I'm thinking of a larger, loser group. Mainly for those interested in Altered Books/Arts, Collage, ATC's, Mixed Media, Assemblage, in Paper, Fiber, or Salvage Art. Anything funky. If it works we can break up into smaller groups to meet more often or to do specialized projects not of interest to the group as a whole.

I'm picturing tables laid out with piles of our excess "Stuff" that we've accumulated and maybe separating into "For Sales" and "Freebies"... We could have a project for each meeting or demonstrations or just show & tell.

Initially, we could meet here or move from house to house but once we've grown a bit, perhaps we can find a store or space at the Art Center or somewhere free/cheap to meet.

This would be for anyone in the Orlando/Kissimmee/Central Florida area.

Anyone reading this who is interested, leave comment and e-mail or e-mail me.

Okay, that worked. I guess I have to do them one at a time as separate posts. At least until I get a bit more proficient.

Let's try for another picture of one of the collages. I'm not doing well on uploading today.

Ah, it's been awhile. I've been addicted to Pogo games and now am a Texas Hold-em Poker fanatic.. but meanwhile I have managed to clear out some stuff to some Freecyclers and relisted some duplicate posters. I have photographed a few of my collages and will try to list them on eBay tonight. It's a bit frightening to put your work "Out There" with a good chance that no one will want it or bid on it. I did sell a nice one last year for not much and did sell a really good board book to a professor at a university in Japan so it is fun to send stuff out into the world to see where it winds up. I mostly give stuff away so this should be interesting.

This is the poster that has the highest bids and it's the last one I have. I wish I had ten more.
Poster auctions end tonight and I'm hoping for tons of sniping. Bids on some are very high but some are just languishing at or near the starting bid. Tomorrow will be spent packaging them and carting them to the post office. Not fun but the $$ makes it worth it. Now to find more "stuff" that people really want to buy!

I have six more Roger Dean posters to list on eBay tonight. One of my winning bidders from last weeks auctions has been kind enough to e-mail me scans of what they look like. There is one that I especially like and have duplicates of. I may keep this one if the price doesn't go too high.

I like taking the silly tests that friends find on the web. This one tells you what kind of Romantic Heroine you are.


You defy standards and are most attracted to men

who can accept that and enjoy your

intelligence. Beautiful on both the inside

and outside but not accepted by society, you

are a bombshell ahead of your time.


What type of romance novel heroine are you?
brought to you by Quizilla

I spent some time in Denmark four years ago and were it not for the cold winters and high cost of living, it is a place I would love to call home. Beautiful country and lovely people. It is so sad to watch the rioting and outrageous acts that have been happening. It was not a good idea for the newspapers to publish cartoons using a religious figure but it's been done before and will be done again and doesn't excuse the excessive backlash that has left people dead and a silly boycott that has cost many jobs. A country is not responsible for what it's free press publishes and censorship is worse than the cartoons.

An interesting site to check out is http:/supportdenmark.com

I took the Project Runway Quiz.... Very funny.

You are Kara:
You're an underdog. You manage to stay in the game

be remaining
quiet and going un-noticed. Slow and steady wins

the race for you, but if someone tries to

screw you over, you'll snip their pee-pee

off.


Which Project Runway 2 Designer Are You?
brought to you by Quizilla

It's chilly here in Central Florida but thankfully we aren't having the snow & blizzard conditions affecting most areas in the northern parts of the east coast. My poster auctions are doing really well on eBay and still have a day or two to go. I'm, of course, hoping for tons of money for them. LOL

I bought some nice big shirt blouses from Jessica London. They are linen and in nice bright colors. In my continuing battle with the clutter, I've tried to follow the "One in, One out" rule and so I pulled some blouses and outfits from the closet and posted them to Freecycle . They've already been picked up. It's a nice way to recycle.

It's going to be a long lazy Sunday and I should write up some more eBay listings but will probably waste way too much time playing games. I'm addicted to PoGO games and love aquiring badges and tokens, although they aren't good for anything. Humans are such a strange species...

I dug out some old poster stock from the '70's. Roger Dean artwork that was done for album covers. Really cool fantasy stuff. Listed six of them on eBay and had bids within the first few hours. I need to find more stuff like that to list.

Making some progress with my uncluttering project. Not a lot but a few bites taken off the elephant. The lovely old waterfall dresser with the wonderful drawer pulls is now empty of all the chotchkies from my collage & altered book stuff. Now to glue the seams so it isn't so rocky and figure out what to do with it. I'm planning on putting the treadmill in it's place so I can exercise when the mood strikes.

Watched Claudine Helmuth on Carol Duvall yesterday and want to try the transfer method she did. Used my Michaels coupon to buy a brayer. I have some but have no idea where they are. Also bought a small tube of burnt umber oil paint to use. Now to do it..

Yikes! It's February already. I finally broke my listing block and wrote up 5 listings for eBay the other night. Did another one tonight. Deb's brown linen cropped pants. I need to get busy and start listing them for Tom.

The acupuncture is helping my back. I only feel pain if I push it and stand or walk too long. I told her about my knees hurting and she's going to work on them Monday.

I'm taping Survivor and will watch it over the week-end. The only Survivor series I watched from start to finish was the last one and I really was rooting for Stephanie. I find many of the contestants unlikeable. I'll have to see if I get hooked on this one.

Well, it did it again. The photos post in the opposite order than I upload them. Anyway here's the last one of the possum as he decided that I wasn't anyone he wanted to associate with and headed off into the back yard. He's one of the cutest possums I've seen. Maybe he's the offspring of the raccoon/possum love match... wouldn't that be a hoot?

I have some lovely semi-ferral cats in my back yard that I feed. Sissy has been around for about 10 years and there are about 3 young tabby males hanging out. After feeding them this morning, I looked out and saw a new arrival.

I grabbed my camera and went out and there was this fat possum drinking water from the cat's water bucket. Unusual to see them so active during the day. Awhile back I stopped putting food out for the cats after dark because I had troups of Raccoons and a some large bold possums. There was even the odd couple. A possum and raccoon who came together to feed.

This guy is pretty good sized and when I got closer he didn't seem too worried. He looks like a loveable koala in the 2nd photo. I'll do the last one in a separate post so they don't get out of order.

Lovely day today. It started out dreary and drizzly but soon cleared up and hit an unseasonal 80 degrees. Accupuncture session was good and my back feels so much better. Last night I finally broke my listing block and got two auctions up and today they both have bids. That should motivate me, right? Well, I still need someone to kick me in the butt to get me going.

To divert attention from my laziness here are a few new "Sassy" pictures. The last one is Sassy being a contortionist. Wrapping herself around the coffee table is one of her favorite things. Have I mentioned that she's more monkey than cat?


Another one is her posing as the Queen of the Cats! Girl Cats Rule! Boy Cats Drool!


The top photo is just her being herself. She's very dark for such a young siamese but she's not a pure breed so there are stripes and odd marks here & there. The grey thing by her tail is her "Baby". She carries all over the house. Puts it in the litter box, by the food, brings it to bed and runs around the house with it in her mouth, all the while crying. She is so weird.

Okay, just previewed and the pictures are not as I loaded them and I haven't the foggiest idea how to edit or move them. So just figure out which picture is which!

Great birthday yesterday. I treated myself to a massage and it was great. Had lunch out and came home and played with collaging more tins. Mail brought Birthday Cards from Dave & Wendy, a separate one from the girls, and one from Patsy in Gainesville.
David called in the evening and so did Leon. I had them in stitches describing my bottom being stuck with electrified needles at the accupuncturist.

Today I had my 3rd session this week and the pain relief has been amazing. Next week will only be two days. I've also started on another Chinese herb for breathing. Awaiting the delivery of my Tai Chi DVD so I can start on that. Still looking for somewhere local to take some classes.

Lovely flowers delivered from middle son, Jeff. They are fresh cut and delivered within a day or two and the blossoms aren't even open. They are a mix of purple Iris and a lily of some kind. I'll take pictures when they open.

What a wonderful weekend it was. Laure & Sally stayed over for the Mosaic class and we had fun cooking, eating, and shopping, in addition to the classes. Every one of the pieces were different and reflected the maker. Mine is just a quick abstract of the sun, sky with cloud, beach, water, and sky.. We only had one day to work on them. Laure's was more complex so it came home with us Saturday and she worked on it until bedtime and it was worth all the work. Here's mine.

Today was my 4th accupuncture treatment and it seems to be working. Saturday's bending over the worktable made for lots of pain and Monday's treatment really helped. Just came home from this morning's treatment and I feel good. Dr. Xia recommends Tai Chi for building strong muscles and keeping the body fit and limber. I think I'll see if I can find some classes and/or a DVD for beginners.

It's time to get back to selling stuff on eBay. All around me is "Stuff"... and much of it needs to go. I just need to stop playing games on Pogo.

4 Things - MeMe Post

I've taken this from Deb Robinson’s Blog site for the FourThings Meme, so here goes.

Four Jobs You've Had:

Retail Sales
Real Estate Sales
Bartender
Product Demonstrator

Four Movies You Could Watch Over and Over:

Babette’s Feast
Any Star Trek Movie
Casablanca
A touch of Class

Four Places You've Lived:

Perth Amboy, NJ
San Francisco, CA
Manhattan, Ks
Jersey Shore

Four TV Shows you love to Watch:
General Hospital
Airline
Jonathan Creek
Everwood

Four Places You've Been on Vacation:

Merida, Mexico
Denmark
Isle of Wight
Nashville

Four Websites You Visit Every Day:

Ebay’s Book Board
Pogo
Claudine Helmuth's Yahoo Group
My Earthlink Homepage

Four Of Your Favorite Foods:

Chocolate
Home Made Soups with Buttered Roll
Pasta with Hot Italian Sausage
Sushi

Four Places You'd Rather Be:

At Massage Works Getting a Massage & Foot Reflexology
Snuggled up in Bed with My Down Comforter & My Down Pillows.
Having Dessert at a Street Café in Copenhagen
In the Studio (garage) Making a Mess.

Four Albums You Can't Live Without:

Jimmy Buffet - Margaritaville
The Platters – Greatest Hits
Tom Jones –Greatest Hits
Carole King - Tapestry

Four People You'll Pass This On To:

Laure
Judi
Claudine
Furtima

Thanks for sharing this MeMe Deb.

I took Sassy's bandage off last night. Sooner than the vet said, but it was down below her incision and she was chewing on it and tearing off strips. Her incision looked clean and secure so I set her free. She's doing fine and this morning was her old self, leaping accross the bed and chasing my feet.

Tomorrow I do my 2nd accupuncture treatment for my back. It's got to be more effective than the chiropractor or the physical therapist. The right side felt better today but the left side, which wasn't treated hurt more. We'll see what happens tomorrow.

Good friend is heading here tomorrow with her delightful mom and along with another friend, we'll be taking a mosaic class over the week-end. Looks to be fun. My kitchen mosaic is almost complete. I'll have to take photos soon. I'm hoping to get Laure and Sally to put up some of the pieces. Then it's on to the grout and done! This project has been on-going for over a year now.

I've also got a free-cycler scheduled to come in the morning to pick up some cookbooks. I think I overbooked.

Finished another smaller collaged tin. Came out nice. Photo isn't as clear as it should be.
Small photo was a mistake and I haven't figured out how to delete so I just shrunk it. Big photo is newer tin. These are fun to make. Made a big pot of chili yesterday so now I have four more of the medium sized Tins to play with.

Sassy is back home and doing well. I was able to bring her home at 2:30. She looks like a monkey with the bandage around her middle. I have pain meds for her but don't think she'll need them.

Here's a really bad photo I snapped of her.

Our cold spell seems to have passed for now. Today was a lovely day in the mid 70's with sun. Next week-end should be cold again.

Poor Sassy! Tomorrow she gets spayed. No food tonight after midnight. It won't bother her too much but the boys will be complaining all night. After I get her in the carrier in the morning, I'll feed them.
This is a photo of her visit to the vet a few weeks ago to finish her shots. She was pretty good about it.
I'm not a morning person so it's going to be a rough morning. She needs to be at the Vet's between 7:30 & 8 am. I'll have to get up at 6:30. Have two cups of coffee, dress, and then try to corral her into the carrier. I'm going to need a nap.

I finished my first collaged tin and it came out so pretty. I don't usually do pretty but it goes well in my girly pink bedroom. I'm working on some others in the garage and the blueish one will have a beach motif. They are such fun.

I'm finally getting to use my Mouse sander. It's such fun. I need to make a nice one for the restaurant (greasy spoon) that is giving me the nice cans. More practice needed in placing photos, I think.

Off to enjoy our cold but beautifully sunny Central Florida day...

Okay, day two of blogging... I've figured out how to find my blog site but then couldn't find the area to write my post. I went the long way around and finally found it. Now I need to figure out how to do links in the post. I received Lynn Perrella's new Book, Alphabetica. It's great but I liked her previous one, Artists Journals and Sketchbooks even better.

Now I'm playing with making links within my text. Working on this blog is giving my old brain a work-out. Artwise, I'm playing in my garage and making some of those delightful "Tinnies" that were featured in the latest issue of Somerset Studios. I begged some of the larger tin cans from our local greasy spoon and so I'm going to make them one with their name on it so the cans keep coming. They were even washed and had labels removed. How good is that?

Well, still mulling and pondering but having problems finding my Blog spot. I can find this editing box but that's it. I need to work out the kinks for awhile and figure out how to post pictures.

Okay, that worked. This is my old guy, Mr. Spats. Taken a few weeks ago at the Vet's. He's 19 years old and is getting thinner and thinner. He's also become a bit cranky but still can get up on the bed and eats a lot. I'm hoping he sticks around awhile.

Okay... I went to post a comment on Claudine Helmuth's Blog and wound up signing in and starting my own. I'd been pondering the whys and why-nots of doing one so now the decision has been made. I have a blog...

Who cares? What will I write? How candid should I be on something that can be viewed by millions? That's a scarey thought.

So I'll be mulling over what to post and will look over my photos to see what to include and find some of my artwork to show off.

Off to mull and ponder!