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Showing posts from October, 2008

November - so soon?

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The candy has been passed out, the lights turned off, orange and purple candles extinguished, and I'm packed. Our plane leaves Lexington in a couple of hours, destination Ft. Walton Beach, Florida, to attend the Sunday wedding of one our long-time best friends. They don't have kids so of course they didn't plan their big day around Halloween and the Thriller re-enactment that follows, which my son is played in for the first time (snare drum). So, it has been an interesting mix of last minute laundry, costume details, and packing, wondering what the heck I'm going to wear to a wedding on the beach. I'm leaving a horrendously messy studio layered with Christmas ornaments gessoed and painted, in a sea of found objects, buttons, ribbon, charms, piles of images and papers, glitter and trim to finish them, along with the cards, collages and jewelry I'm making for a Holiday Bazaar - in two weeks. That's way before I start my holiday preparation, so it has been a

Halloween ATCs

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Halloween isn't here yet, but like most major events, my favorite part is the preparation, whether it's decorating, planning or art projects, like making ATCs for a swap. I made these for my 14 Secrets Swap and I might as well admit, I'm truly a novice when it comes to this cool, inspiring art form - this is my third swap. I love the challenge of working in this size and, like inchies, am amazed by what is possible in such a small space. Today is cookie decorating day - my daughter and her friend, Maddie, probably with a little help from my son, are going to frost, sprinkle and eat their way through a plate full of sugar cookies; I'm sure it will trigger a wave of sweet nostalgia and a couple dozen photos.  Another tradition is waiting until 4:00 p.m. on the 31st to buy the first piece of candy. When the kids were little I bought stuff I don't like, but that's getting harder as they have a little more pull in the selections. I'm planning to wear the same co

A Journey

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I've kept a written journal nearly all my life, dozens, no hundreds, of notebooks -  from the 89-cent spiral bound notebooks (for morning pages) to hard cover books - zillions of letters forming  a record of my life, the better and a lot of the worse parts in detail that I don't think could be any more vivid, even if I had known how to draw. I made money writing, ad copy, articles, public relations and marketing campaigns, technical copy, video scripts.   I made the leap from personal essays to writing short stories and an entire universe opened up. In search of help I wound up with teachers who are among the best in the country, the list of authors they've edited reads like a literary Who's Who; they've taught at Iowa Writer's Workshop, edited Esquire Magazine, published novels... How did I get in that program?? Naively, of course, by responding to a classified ad for editing services in Poets & Writers, sans credentials. It wasn't until after I'd s

Crafting with Al

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It isn't often enough that my daughter, Alice, and I spend time making art together. I needed to make 5 ATCs for a swap and didn't think I had the right 'materials,' so earlier in the week I ordered papers and rub-ons. I had all five cards done by the time my package arrived, so Al and I retrieved a piece of chipboard shelving headed for the trash, covered it with papers (including the Daisy D) and embellished with a pumpkin and pipe cleaners, which aren't the easiest thing in the world to glue. Alice warned me, it has been so long since I've worked with them - I nearly got out the E6000, but Elmer's and waiting/weighting did the trick. Then we raided my button stash for orange and I made a few stems. My kids are getting a bit old for some of our Halloween decorations but we still have some pretty cool stuff that we can still use, a ghoulish severed head, that sort of thing. So, today will be decorating day. Several years ago, before we moved to this house,

fall poem

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Fall Plantings The morning just right for planting fall mums, small pink translucent Blooming, just before the rains darken the sky, lighter after the hail storm of acorns drumming against the roof the rhythm of hunt and gather and nest The earth shifts away from summer's yawning oven and into cool nights and pleasant days when breaths are not just another source of damp heat But whispers, down deep in rich soil, where fragrant earthy secrets dormant from another, distant time, begin to grow.

Dia de Los Muertos

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When my daughter told me her class was going on a field trip to the Lexington Cemetery, I wasn't surprised. It is historic, majestic, with lovely seasonal displays of color and flower. The date did stop me though. October 14, the birthday of my dear friend Sally (and my kids' godmother), who passed away in August of '07. My daughter has a history of 'seeing angels,' and I've never questioned her, but I've been envious. Children are so open that they don't filter out the many wonders of the universe that we often walk by without noticing.  I have been thinking a great deal about my Aunt who died in June, the long talks we had when I was directionless in my early 20s, and later when I had relationship 'issues.' She was always there for me and in many ways she still is. I can feel her presence, as I can Sally's; they both left such wonderful, honorable legacies, women who will long be remembered as giving, compassionate, understanding, powerful.

Make your Day - Make Someone Else's Day

Found this on Patti Digh's Blog ; the author of Life is a Verb. This video will make your day. Post it, share it, visit Amy   at her site to find out what her plans are. It will make your day!

Think Pink

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I don't think I need to tell you that October is the official month that we take action in the fight against breast cancer; we're surrounded by an incredible dose of evidence - on blogs, in magazines,  and the volume of pink ribbons that grow exponentially each year. At least I shouldn't have to. Wouldn't it be nice if the collective energy meant no more new cases, that the efforts to find a cure had been successful?  Five years ago, just after a friend was diagnosed, I ordered fifty  pink wristbands from the Susan G. Komen Foundation so there would be plenty to go around at an October school fund-raising event. They came in just in time and she was heartened to see so many women wearing them in her honor. She also looked great when I saw her in the grocery the other night, buying poster board for a college class project. I've had a number of friends endure and most all are survivors. The smartest thing we can do to honor those special ones is to take care of oursel

(a few of) The Things I Love

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I love the first days of fall, when the nights are chilly and the mornings crisp, the mums and summer blossoms that linger as the trees begin their transformation. I love walking around the neighborhood and discovering all the different ways people express their sentiments about the changing season. I love Third Street Stuff , which now carries my art pieces (yay), always has a warm and inviting atmosphere and a coffee shop that serves freshly roasted brew and a kind of cake - I don't know the name of it but it should be called instant addiction. And pumpkin chai. I also love Hendrick, who makes my pumpkin chai, latte or whatever I'm drinking that day. His smile, like his attitude and his spirit is, well, the best word I can think of to describe him is real. A deep and positive word and a hug from Hendrick have made more than one of my days. I love enchiladas. Especially when my mother makes them and my dad drops them off.  She has been sending me dinner once a week, knowing th

Art in a Carton

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It's Like Christmas in October! When I signed on to participate in Art in a Carton, a few months back, I thought it sounded fun, like a way to connect with a variety of artists I'd never met and, well, just a cool idea. I didn't think about the fact that it would begin with a carton. Filled with incredible art. The package I got the other day from Susan - who lives in Germany - was packed with exceptionally high quality pieces. the matchbook and carton are beautifully embellished.  The notebook - is actually a cover with a pad of post-it notes inside! And just when I'd gotten over my addiction to post-it notes. At one time I had lined pads, flags, tiny rectangular ones, in a variety of colors... What a great idea. The thing I like most about this project is the lack of restrictions. Whatever fits in a carton. The packet rattled, like it was an embellished seed package, but I couldn't find any trace of labeling, so I had to open it - very carefully (I still can't