Temptation

I got an email that the theater was accepting art submissions to hang during the showing of God's Favorite. The theme was temptation.The deadline was 2 days away. I decided to go for it.

There is a thin red line between a win and a loss...
Between right and wrong...
Between good and evil... Between resisting temptation and succumbing to its cunning ways...
Then, just like that, the course of the entire world is changed.

I actually finished it, submitted it and hung it during the showing (3 weeks). I got some good feedback, but it didn't sell. I don't know what the success rate is for hanging art at this venue, but it was fun.

quilts and paintings

Ten of my favorite pieces, not in any particular order.

 1. "A Bird's Nest"

The title refers to the back of the quilt. When free motion quilting, if you don't carefully tie off your beginning thread, it knots up on the back. This is called a bird's nest. The bird is painted and quilted seperately from the quilt, then sewn on, but floats nicely above the quilt background.

2. "Country Gator"

This alligator gets up close and personal. I would hate to really be that close.

3. "Quietude"

Quiet and solitude are nice when I'm on the water.

4. This was a watercolor study done for the next quilt, but I liked it so much I framed it and hung it on my wall.

5. "Road 9, Crandall Pasture"

Crandall Pasture, where I grew up, was and is a magical place to me. Accepted into a Summer exhibit at The Florida Museum of Natural History at UF in Gainseville.

6. Sunset Tree

Obviously I like trees. :)

7. "Hannah at the Beach"

Acrylic on canvas for a friend.

8. "Soul Windows"

I like painting people too! This is an early art quilt. I like the clean lines and the emotion.

9. "Precious"

Speaking of emotion, this little girl just melts hearts everywhere she goes.

10. "Tales at the Gate"

Dad doesn't melt hearts, except mine. He is a wonderful storyteller and has a style all his own. I think this quilt captures some of that style.

10 things I love about my sunroom

1. The transition from the house to the sunroom is framed in 200 year old timbers. Holes and All.

2. This tiny lamp that was given to my Mom by my Granddaddy's girlfriend a long time ago.

3. This cabinet that is new but looks old, and has safari animals on it.

These tiles that Noreen handpainted on the floor.

5. These gorgeous skylights.

6. The view of the creek and the marsh and beyond.

7. This big green vase.

8.My garage sale loveseat ($20), Trunk (free) and table ($25)

9. My bar. I made it myself.

10. The big ledge in front of the windows.

Observation

People who stick their fingers in everybody else's pie should not complain about having dirty hands.

How do you feel about Hip Hop?

Back story: My daughter is a wonderful, creative and talented young lady. She likes theater. She likes to perform and sing, not necessarily always on a stage. She is good at it. Always draws a crowd, she's witty and clever and quick. Her teen idol is not a hip hop artist you hear on the Pop radio station, nor is it a young, hot movie star. It's a theater kid. He is part of a group that originated in Michigan University Fine Arts department. They perform parodies on the internet and go on tour around the country. He is not an adonis. He is a normal looking fella. But she is gonna marry him someday! Oh my!


Turns out he is coming to Jacsonville as a featured singer for a hip hop artist, George Watski. Not your normal kind of hip hop artist, you know, saggy pants, gold teeth, ugly language? No, this artist does "spoken word" poetry and hip hop, a little clean cut white kid who defies stereotyping with his mad rap skills. I agree, in a moment of weakness, that this may be the only chance she gets to see Dylan Saunders LIVE, and I purchase the tickets.

I went to a hip hop concert. I enjoyed myself. These kids were extremely talented, not only was the material all original, it was thoughtful and in many cases meaningful. Then they sang the boobie song, but hey, sometimes ya gotta get silly. They played harmonica, french horn, trumpet, keyboard and organ (!), drums and (of course it's hip hop) heavy base.

 Jessie met, talked to and swooned over her future husband. He sang wonderfully and even interacted with her from on stage. We were right at the stage, so her view was unobstucted the entire concert.

She declared me the best Mother in all the Universe for ALL time, from beginning to end.

I don't know about all that, but for this day everything is good.

Intentionally or not, mean people suck.

Growing up in the country, I should have realized there is a gate that has to be opened before I can move on down the road. Sometimes the best roads are behind a gate. Just a minor setback, I'll be back in the saddle shortly.

Low Tide

I once told a friend, as he was enjoying our backyard view for the very first time, in a most apologetic way, that it was low tide and there wasn't a bit of water in the creek, just miles of mud. Sorry, I said, it's not very pretty this way like when the tide is high. His reply has stuck with me now for almost 3 years. "Maybe so, but I bet low tide is much more interesting."
Yes, yes it is.
At low tide there is no water. But you get to see what's underneath, all the way to the ugly bottom. Sometimes that is good.
Life works that way too, I suppose. Right now I feel like I'm at a low tide, but here are some observations.
Now that things are a low, I can see all the way to the ugly bottom. It's ugly, but it's not gonna kill me, so I need to face it and work past it.
It is interesting. Interesting to see where my support comes from when I'm standing in front of the crowd and each one holds a stone. Some support is expected, like family and some comes from surprising places, people that I didn't even expect to notice my duress. Just like low tide in the creek revealing things I can't see when it's full of water, I have the opportunity to see right down to the bottom of some people and know just where they stand.
And just like that; one day the tide will rise again, the water all flows back in, and it's all pretty and scenic once more. I hope I am better for having gone through this. I hope I can enjoy the view again, without worrying over the next low tide. One will surely come, but it won't catch me by surprise.
Very interesting indeed.

River Day

Oh River, How do I love thee? Let me count the ways...

Happy Vacation

Find the adults only deck on the ship.

Visit the most beautiful beach you can find.

Take a stroll through the gardens.

Have some local fare with a handsome man.

go to yet another beautiful beach!

Happy vacation.

Random Fact: The harmonica is the world’s best-selling music instrument.

:)

crazy tourists!

I'm packing my bermuda shorts, and Gerald, his Hawaiin shirt. We're loading our Carribean sounds CD onto our itunes account and we're headed to the Bahamas! It's our anniversary, and too many times we have let it pass without celebration. Not enough money, too heavy a workload, too many kids needing too many things....
This time the stars aligned just right and we are sailing off into the wild blue yonder.
AHOY!

Out of the Woods

...and home before DARK! The songs are still jangling around in my head! But the run is over, and things can get back to normal. (yea right).  Here is Jessica in her tree, as Cinderella's mother.

Just a baby herself, and already leading other children into the wonderful world of theater, with the help of Little Red Riding Hood and Cinderella's prince.

 Backstage in the green room, grubbing and making friends. Don't get too cozy with that prince!

In the recieving line, floating on air!  

They brought home the nearsighted giant's glasses. Now what are we supposed to do with THOSE? 

Now, both of my kids are out of the Woods, but they'll never be the same. They learned that good is different than nice, that opportunity is not a lengthy visitor, and slotted spoons don't hold much soup.

Hopefully they learned some other important life lessons in there, too!

Into The Woods

My daughter is playing in her first community production, Into the Woods. Here are a few of their promo shots, none of which shows her. Jessie's part is a small part, but she plays it beautifully.

The set is mind-blowing, not only visually but logistically, each piece is designed to pull off 2 or more different parts. These books open up to the interior of each character's house and then play another part in the finale with even more artwork on the back!

The carriage is life-sized and fully operational!

Rapunzel's tower, though you'd never guess it here, is Cinderella's mother's tree on the other side!

The costumes are fantastic! Some were borrowed from another theater, so we are being extra careful with them.

Opening weekend sold out and a complete success! Congratulations ALL!