home
about the artist
gallery
blog
links
contact

Archive for the ‘This and that’ Category

« Older Entries
Newer Entries »

Making Progress

Tuesday, January 11th, 2011

That is my beautiful daughter, Lisa, in the February issue of Martha Stewart Living. It is an article about collecting. She just finished posting a collection a day on a blog. The photos have been published in a book, due out soon.

A very exciting time for her and of course the Mom is enjoying a vicarious thrill.

Yesterday, I bought a new MacBook. It looks just like my old one, but it is driving me nuts! I spent an hour on the phone with a Mac genius to get my Mail working properly. The Trackpad is driving me nuts because it has a popup menu which is supposed to help, but I don’t like it. It is a big learning curve.

I also got a new camera. I had to get a new tripod because the attachment for my old one was on one of the cameras that was stolen. I upgraded to a Nikon D3100. It is very similar to the D3000, but has better video capability.

So, then I downloaded photos to my new laptop and fought with IPhoto which was being very cantankerous. I still need to upload photos for the Twelve X Twelve reveal and write a blog post.

I am exhausted with all of this. I am still not sleeping or eating well.  I am so far behind in my goals for this month. But, I am making progress. My new iPhone is coming tomorrow. Hope that doesn’t give me fits, too. I have decided to wait until next month to replace the iPad as the next generation is due out.

Here is a photo of my best friend, Scooter. He and Mr C are keeping me sane. This is the first photo I took with my new camera.

Posted in Slow Cloth, Stuff I Buy, This and that | 7 Comments »

Violated

Saturday, January 8th, 2011

Tonight, I fully intended to have my first post titled, “You bought it, now use it”.  That is not to be.

About 3 am this morning, we heard Scooter barking in his basement kennel. Usually when he does this, he has an urgent need to poop. Mr C went down to get him, he came up and did not want to go outside. Instead he was running crazy around our tv room, the dining room and the kitchen. Steve finally put him back in his kennel. We heard a few more barks from him.

When I got up this morning, the first thing I saw was my purse on the kitchen floor with money strewn about. The  contents had been dumped on the counter and ransacked. I screamed for Mr C. We then looked in the tv room and discovered both laptops, my iPad and two cameras were gone. In the living room, our iPod loaded with all our music was gone.

I think that when Mr C arrived with Scooter, the burglar was scared off as he was ransacking my purse. He got my iPhone, but my credit cards were not gone. I had stuck some business cards in my change purse. He grabbed those, thinking they were credit cards. Ha! At least I did not have to deal with calling all the credit card companies and getting a new driver’s license.

I spent the morning changing passwords and trying to cover any tracks of things that might be on my laptop. I have tried to activate Find my iPhone and Find my IPad, but nothing yet. Apparently, the devices have to be on for that to work. A very nice policewoman came very quickly. All of the serial numbers are in their system. Pawn shops are supposed to  check for stolen items in the system. I am checking Craig’s list every couple of hours.

I have my desktop downstairs. Every thing is backed up on Carbonite on line. No one was hurt. I have to be thankful for the good things.

Even if I had gotten some work done, I would not have been able to take a photo. Steph is going to loan me one of their cameras.  I have ordered a new iPhone. Should arrive next week. The insurance adjuster is coming on Monday. We have $500 deductible.

I think it might be good for me to be less connected for a few days.

You are wondering how he got in – the back door was not locked. Mr C and I have been married for over 47  years and never had a burglary. IMy car was broken into once. It is such a feeling of violation.

I will be back when I can take some photos.

Posted in This and that | 27 Comments »

Bring On 2011

Friday, December 31st, 2010

I am spending the last day of 2010 tying up some loose ends both personal and SDA job related. One of the things I wanted to get done was making a spiffy cover for my sketchbook.

I used some scraps of my hand-dyed and printed fabrics and fused them together.

I used gel medium to attach the fused pieces to the sketchbook and then did a layer of medium over everything.

Once it is completely dry, I will attach a ribbon tie to hold the fat thing together!! I am very happy with the whole project and part of me does not want to send it off. But that is what I signed on to do and I will enjoy knowing it is out there for others to see.

How you feeling about the end of 2010 and the start of a new year? I always spend some time pondering where I have been and where I would like to go.

As an artist, I tried some new things this past year. So far I have not had great success entering them in venues, but I plan to continue some of the exploration (more on that later) and attempt to push myself in new directions and also honing the work I find satisfying.

As an aging woman, I am mindful that I must keep taking care of myself. My sinuses seem to be under control for the time being. The ENT said not to come back unless I have a totally awful sinus infection! I did have a very serious incident with my blood pressure which scared the heck out of me. I am on new medication and seem to have it under control. I know I need to continue to eat carefully and keep an active life. Scooter is a big help, but I think it is time for me to join a gym and do some weightlifting and possibly some water aerobics.

As a busy person. I flit from project to job to activity, leaving a trail of detritus on my desk, in my studio, in the tv room or where ever I have been doing something. I find that the day comes when I can’t take it any more and I have to spend the day cleaning up after myself. I want to simplify my life and so I plan to spend 15 – 20 minutes a day tackling the detritus of the day before. I know that I can set my timer for 15 minutes and get a whole lot done that I would otherwise put off.

My 2011 Project: I have devised a project for the coming year. If you read my blog very often, you know that I buy lots of great books. I thumb through them and then they end up in a pile some place in my office. My goal for 2011 is to start going through my books and selecting exercises, perhaps one a week, which I will chronicle on the blog. I think Friday or Saturday of each week, I will plan to post what I have done for that week.

I had so much fun making the cover for my sketchbook this morning. It felt good to be in my studio thinking about color and design! I have lots of deadlines coming up. I have taken a month or more off from serious art work. It is time to jump back in and I can hardly wait.

I want to thank all my readers, known and unknown. You keep me going. You make my life interesting. You keep me thinking. You make me laugh. I wish you the best for the coming year. I hope you will continue to come here as I soon start my sixth year of blogging.

Tonight we are going out to dinner and then going to hear Pink Martini, a Portland musical group that we love. Here is a sample.

Posted in Sketchbook Project, This and that | 12 Comments »

The Tranquil Time

Tuesday, December 28th, 2010


This time between Christmas and New Year’s is always a laid back time in our house. There are left overs to be eaten. No meetings to go to. No deadlines. Mr C and I have been watching lots of movies that we download from Netflix, mainly subtitled foreign films that require my complete attention!!

I have spent some time in my studio and office and am happy to report that it is looking quite spiffy for the start of the new year. I have thrown all my silk fabrics in the colors for the next Twelve x Twelve  theme on to my work table. I must say – they make a glorious sight. I am not sure which ones will make it in to the final piece.

While I was cleaning up, I found my Flip Video camera that I bought on Black Friday. It is so tiny, I am going to have to be careful. I got it charged and set up, but that is as far as I have gotten. I hope to have some fun with it. Expect several goofy Scooter videos.

I am happy to report that Steph and family are all recovered from that crappy virus. She is planning a redo of Mia’s birthday celebration which was canceled due to her illness.

We are due to get some snow flurries tomorrow; it will be a relief from the incessant rain we have been experiencing. On Thursday, I have a conference call to start learning about and get training about administering the new SDA website which is to make its debut around the 15th of January.

So that is the news from tranquil Eastmoreland where we patiently await the new year. We are in better shape than this Santa that we saw on our walk in the neighborhood, yesterday.

If my photos seem different, it is because WordPress is unusually cranky tonight. Not sure what the problem is!

Posted in 12X12 challenge, studio, This and that | 6 Comments »

Happy Christmas!

Saturday, December 25th, 2010

We have had a scaled down celebration this year. Steph, Jack and Mia are still recovering from the crappy virus. They came last night for a couple of hours. I made a delicious cabbage, leek and chicken sausage soup which we ate with mini sandwiches followed by some Christmas goodies. We opened Christmas gifts to each other, and they had left for home to go back to bed by 7 pm.

Mr C and I went to midnight mass at Trinity and got there early enough to sit in the front row which was very pleasant especially during the pre-service music program. I actually wore a dress, something I have not done for a long time. It is an Eileen Fisher wool knit which I wore with tights.  Here is the dress – a bit longer on me. It may sound silly, but it made me happy to find a dress that I could wear with my weird body.

Today the family came over for a short time for lasagna, salad and pumpkin cheesecake. I could tell that Steph felt a lot better because she had seconds of the lasagna. They only stayed a short time. Both Miles and Mia were engrossed in their personal obsessions.

Miles and his latest Lego Star Wars set.

Mia is reading a new book by Richard Riordin about Greek gods.

The little nativity figures up at the top are a gift from Lisa. They were made in Tibet, I think. Very sweet. My favorite nativity set has to be the one the Kristin La Flamme made for me. Well, actually, we did a trade. I love all the details she has put into each figure.

Mr C gave me this beautiful necklace made by a Portland artist, Elaine Tan. I picked it out at our November Artisans sale at Trinity. It has lava beads, green jade and silver.

Steph gave me this book by Maira Kalman, And The Pursuit of Happiness. I just love her illustrations. With it is a new apron from Lisa.

Lisa’s partner, Clay, took a wood block printing class a couple of months ago and she made prints of Lisa’s dog, Wilfredo. I think she did such a great job and hinted that I would like one. She got it nicely framed for me.

I really enjoyed our simpler holiday. I am feeling tired, but very happy. I had lots of phone time with both Mark and Lisa. I was so tired from the late night and the cooking that I fell asleep this afternoon. I am heading to the studio tomorrow. First thing is to clean up from the coaster making frenzy. Then, I must get my next Twelve X Twelve done. We are delaying the reveal because of the holiday. So look for what we all do on January 12.

I hope your holiday was merry, too.

Posted in Art in our home, Holidays, This and that | 6 Comments »

« Older Entries
Newer Entries »