Fun House Photos

I think today might be one of those great days that will live on in my mind as bright, effortless and fun!
I love hanging out with these two...

Catch a Shooting (Rising) Star

What a wonderful and whirlwind few weeks!
Starting with LaLa coming to visit, then a week filled with dress rehearsals, tech and a pre-holiday celebration with Grandma & Grandpa, a coupla fantastic shows of Jungle Book (with Annie as the unforgettable Kaa, Mother Wolf and a stand out part as a Prickly Pear!) and finishing up with a wonderful visit with Grandma Pinky Mae Rose!
So fun!

A Pat Hog

I know, it's no fun in the re-telling.

And yet, here I go again...
Pat and I had the BEST time ever together the last three days.
I know I always say that.
It's always true!
And I don't think there is a way to translate exactly why it was go great without diminishing it.
So, I will just re-cap;

-We had a laugh attack at a hair salon, that quickly climbs to 2nd place in the history of all laugh attacks for us. (First place still has to be Reno, where our laugh attack continued, on and off for almost three days, leaving us weak and painfully muscle sore. ) This newest laugh attack went on so long, and was so embarrassingly public, that the stylist at the salon brought us a box of tissues. As she handed the box to us, the look on her face was a mix of pity and fear.

-A dynamite haircut for Pat, despite the above.

-A trip to Mastick (fabulous Senior Center thrift store) where we each found at least two great pieces.

-A fantastic Chinese full body massage. Four of us gals lined up in a row of massage chairs. It was Pat, myself, dear Jen and Kristin of West Vista Urban Farm School.

-Hot homemade apple pie as a punctuation, preface or in place of most meals.

--Tickets to Van Gogh, Gauguin, Cezanne and Beyond. Just go see it. There were at least six works in that show that transcend this realm and spoke of pure vibrating communion with the creator. The Nabis works especially. Many brought tears to our eyes. I could go on, but really, words are pitifully insufficient next to these works.

-A sparkling visit to a park and a walk on the bay between rainstorms.

-Dim Sum at East Ocean Seafood. Fortunes were read in the tea leaves.

-And Annie! My darling! Despite calling me a "Pat Hog" she did a fair bit of hogging as well. She made Pat breakfast, decorated her bed and door to her room, sang, played piano, acted out scenes for her upcoming show, held hands with, draped herself on Pat, and told a million stories and got Pat to herself as well. Annie, your are wonderful!

I'll stop gushing now.
Love you Pat!

Another Name for Thanksgiving is...

...Thursday dinner!

WIP

Inks + Carving Tools + Brayers + Papers + Temperature + Pressure + Patience

Experimenting...

Layering...

My studio has a strong smell of ink, lots of paper, tape, wet and dry cloths, palette knives an the constant streaming of Netflix movies.
(A few from my queue - Bela Fleck-Throw Down Your Heart, Imitation of Life,
The Art of the Steal,)

Say Ahhhhhhh!

Annie's got a slight case of the sniffles so we went to pick up some herbs and vitamins at Dr. John Nieters' office, and he took a few minutes to look at her throat, feel her glands, take her pulse, and make sure she didn't have Strep.

Annie loves seeing him.
She came right home and made him this card as a thank you.

Thank you John!

Pure Heaven

For those of you who don't yet know the pure joy of a heated mattress pad, I encourage you to buy one, upgrade to overnight shipping, and know the deep pleasure of slipping into a deliciously warm bed!

It's the modern version of a few warm rocks placed in the bed on a cold winters night.

I literally moan and squeal with delight each time I get into bed. Really!

If my words don't move you, see this pleasure beautifully illustrated above by Annie.

If you're curious, and you need further encouragement, know that it can help you save on your overall heating bill. Rather than heating your whole room (or home) just heat the bed. We just heat ours twenty minutes before going bed, and turn it off as soon as we slip in.

Pure heaven!

Thank you for the gift LaLa!!
(The original of the above artwork is on it's way to you via snail mail!)
xo