Coming Full Circle With The Thread Project

I am trying to get some things ready for my trip next week. For the Thread Project events they asked that we bring pictures and newspaper clippings and so forth. So I dug out my file and then came across the stories. As I read some of them I traveled back to the time when I met some of the people who participated. I recalled how this was what made it all worthwhile.

Since I have new readers now perhaps I should tell you a little about the Thread Project itself. It was started by a woman named Terry Helwig. She felt lost and isolated after 9/11 and wanted to do something. She felt the world was hanging by a thread, then she realized maybe a thread was all we needed. She came up with this ideas to collect threads from all over the world and have them woven in cloth to celebrate our diversity as well as out one ness. There are seven cloths and each has 7 panels in it. I wove one of the panels for the cloth called "Weaving Reconciliation". This is a picture of my panel. The other panels are called.

Hope Materializing - Purple
Threaded harmony - Red
Ariadne Prayers - Indigo
Dawn Looming - Orange
Lienzo Luminoso (Cloth of Light) Yellow
Sophia's Mantle - Blue

Although the cloths were displayed at St. Paul's Cathedral in New York City last September, the real official unveiling is this year in Charleston, South Carolina. There will be two events at a gallery in Charleston. One is a night to meet the weavers and the other is the official opening. Not all the weavers are coming unfortunately. They are from all over the world, I believe the ones from Canada and the US will represent the whole. It is bound to be an exciting adventure. My friend Pam lives there so I will stay with her and she get the opportunity to attend these events too.

If you find the whole idea interesting you can read more at the Thread Project website

Let me end with a excerpt from Sue Monk Kidd entry in "Following the Thread" on the website. It was reading her article in a newsletter she sends out that got me involved in the first place.

"When you stand in the presence of these cloths it is like stepping into the epicenter of hope. The cloths inspire a sense of how potent and majestic a symbol can be when it erupts from the great heart of the people of the earth. It is very possible that these cloths are the most diverse tapestries ever woven. Aesthetically they are intricate and beautiful to look at, genuine works of grassroots art. But most of all, they are contemporary parables that speak powerfully about unity amidst diversity, about tolerance and hope and compassionate community". - Sue Monk Kidd

The Heroes DVD is out!

Yesterday Dave got me this. For the fans out there you get to see the original pilot that has not been shown on TV. It is very interesting to see what they initially had in mind and how they changed it. The deleted scenes are fun to see also. I am looking forward to watching the commentaries next. By the time I am done with all of it the new season will have started so that is perfect for me.






I got my release from restrictions concerning my back and now I am doing physical therapy 3 times a week. I am sore but it feels good to be doing something again.

On the computer front, I can only get on the net when I am plugged into the router. Dave thinks the router is the problem. It looks like we may need to get a new one. Previously the internet company replaced them but it doesn't appear that they are doing so anymore.

The trip to Missoula went just fine, Sarah's apartment is small but it should work out great for her. She is right on the edge of a mountain, you can see deer on the hillside right outside her door. We spent the 2 days shopping and getting all those things she needed.

Of course I managed to hit a yarn shop, stamping store and the Art Dept at the bookstore. I picked up some silk yarn for socks, a copy of Artful Blogging, some sheets of watercolor paper and a collection of Shiva Painsticks. I had bought some of the metallics before but this time got some basic colors.

It has just dawned on me that I will be in South Carolina this time next week.Wow I will be visiting Miss Pamela in less than a week... and I think it will be an awesome time.

Computer Problems

I have been having computer problems again. I don't know if I will be able to get on the Internet again or not. I was on with tech support but I am not sure that it is fixed yet. I may be back later to post a real entry or not for awhile.

Off to Missoula

I'll be gone for a few days, I am taking Sarah back up to college. I will be heading to the UM bookstore Art Department so who knows what kind of danger I can get into. Then there is the import store which is always fun and maybe Rocking Rudy's too. Hopefully there will be new things to share and fun adventures. I heard that all the fires are making Missoula smoky, I hope it clears up a little before we get there. I'll be back Friday with new tales to tell.

Artnest Retreat Day 3

I was going to post this before my surgery but here I am a month and a half later. Our third class was with Kristin Steiner and it was a Fabric book entitled I am a Woman Who. I don't seem to have any pictures of Kristin teaching but here is one of her with Misty.


























These are pictures of the class sample that Kristin made.

Blogger just doesn't want to load pics today so I will post now and edit later to add the rest of the pictures.

I never did finish my book by that time my back was so bad I spent part the class back in my room lying on a heating pad. I loved the class and the books and I will make my own and post it here eventually. I connected with Kristin right away, she is such a delight. If you get a chance to learn from her go for it.

Judi"s Gifts

I have had these for some time but had issues with blogger uploading the pictures so now I had better get them posted.

I received this box in the mail. my friend Judi Redhead sent them as a thank you gift for the 1967 copy of the Wizard of Oz that I sent her. On the box she took some art I had posted and put my face on it. I was really tickled at that idea.

































She sent this lovely card and decorated envelope.















Here is a piece of cake, glitter style.
















She also included this leather bound journal. It is really nice, it has gold edged pages and the spine makes it look like an old book. I think I will decorate the cover with something brighter that the brown marbling.














Here are the first few pages that she decorated to get the book started. As you can see she is one special person. One that I am really looking forward to meeting next April in Sedona.

There be Pirates Here

Due to my back surgery I missed this movie when it came out. I thought it was gone from the theaters. I found out it was a the cheap theater, they get movies later and tickets are only 3.50 and treats are affordable. Anyways I loved seeing the movie and I just found out it comes out on DVD on the 4th of December. Yippee.

My friends Amy and Ginger are getting ready for a bike ride next week. Its 45 miles, so they bike out to my house for practice. I didn't even know they were coming, it was about 9 Sat morning and they said they wanted breakfast when the cirled back to my house on their route. So I made a nice breakfast and used my new placemats and fiesta ware and it looked lovely if I must say so myself. Anyways it reminded me that I was going to make napkins to match. So I stopped at JoAnn's and got 4 colors, yellow, red, turquoise and navy. I am just going to cut them to size and hem them on my machine and they will be perfect.

I need to get that heart book finished and I went to do all the gluing last night only to discover all the copies I made were not 4 x 4. So of course when I went to print more, my print cartridge died. So I picked one up late last night and will be making more copies today and gluing them to watercolor paper and then add the finishing touches to them. I wanted to mail tomorrow but that might not happen unless I get moving on them. On that note I should publish this and get off the computer.

Its hot again

Well we got the hot weather back 96 degrees yuck, too hot for me. I have been busy painting the floor in the bedroom. Now I need to do a touch up on walls and molding and that will be done. Since I have been moving the furniture around I haven't decided just where I want things to be. If I could move the furniture myself it would be easier. Once its done I will post some pictures.













I am a big Stargate fan and decided that I would do a marathon. I know I have missed some episodes so this is a way to see them. We have them all on dvd so I can watch at my leisure. I think it may take quite some time since there are 10 years of episodes. Its a fun way to while away the lazy days of summer when its too hot to do anything. I can spin or knit while watching so I don't feel like I am really wasting time.

A walk with my dog

Today feels momentous I took Flynn down to Freeman Park for a walk along the river. Its the first time I have done that, first time I felt I could handle any tugging on the leash. He did really well and I had a great time. In the morning you have to dodge the sprinklers in the park of you will get drenched. Then there comes a time where you want to get wet since you are so hot.


I finally got a copy of this book. My friend Pam has mentioned it several times so I had put it on my list of books to buy. Its a page a day type book and has narrative and then affirmations for the day. Today's is "People love to give me money" Now there is an idea I like. The book is very good if you are trying to create more abundance in your life.

It looks like the Glitter Gathering is shaping up nicely. Gemma has found us a wonderful hotel that is pretty reasonable and gorgeous to boot. Its called The Sky Ranch Lodge. Take a look and dream with me. I haven't decided if I should just go with one of the inexpensive garden rooms or get one with a view and share it with someone.

Swimming with Dolphins

One of the things on my life list is to swim with dolphins, I decided it was time to start doing some research to make this goal a reality. If you don't have a life list now is the time to start. An easy place to do one is here. Now the decision to make is where to go. It appears, Hawaii, Mexico, California , the Caribbean and Florida have programs on this.

(This fun picture is from here)

Over at Superhero Journal Andrea talks about her experience at Sea World. So I could go to San Diego but I am looking at all options. If any of you have done this before please email me about your experiences or leave a comment.

I really encourage you to make a life list, sometimes this is the only way we can manage to do the things our heart desires. Put it in writing and then take steps to set it in motion. Just think what wonderful adventures you could be having.

Quote of the Day: “The big question is whether you are going to be able to say a hearty yes to your adventure.” - Joseph Campbell

The New Me

Well here I am in the new haircut, I chopped the top of my head off but this is the best picture I have been able to take.















After Stardust I came home and watched some old Firefly episodes while I spun some Tussah Silk. The colors in the top just made me want to keep spinning. There are greens and aqua, subtle pinks and yellows. I called the top "A walk in the jungle". The pic show some of the more muted shades. I stayed up till 2am. That was silly but I still enjoyed myself.














I tried out printing photos on the new printer and many have come out with a blue cast. Has anyone ever had this problem before? I bought some more paper to play with and photo ink cartridge so I'll be printing some more, I just don't want to waste it all on blue photos and you don't know they are blue until you've printed them out.

It looks like another beautiful day, sunny and low 8o's. It looks like we are getting July's weather in August which after a sweltering July this is bliss. I hope you can find a few moments this weekend to spend in nature's splendor.


Quote of the Day: If you are seeking creative ideas, go out walking. Angels whisper to a man when he goes for a walk. ~Raymond Inmon

Stardust

I know all of you are waiting to hear about Stardust so here goes. I went to see Stardust this evening and I was pleasantly surprised. The special effects are wonderful, the story engaging, of course I love fantasy so it isn't hard to entertain me but I did not realize it would be so funny. I went with my friend Ginger and we both enjoyed it immensely. It was filmed in Scotland and Iceland so the scenery is exquisite. The music was great too. Its not a show for kids as there are some scary scenes. I hope the make up artists were well paid since they did a wonderful job making Michelle Pfeiffer old and ugly. Robert DeNiro was excellent. I say 3*** out of 4. I think I will have to go again and take Sarah this time. She will really like it.

A Heart of Gold

Today I woke with a renewed sense of purpose. I worked on my page for the Heart Book late last night. I have really been frustrated doing this piece. I have felt stuck so many times, wanting to give up. The deadline slowly looms where I have no more time to waste. Initially I started with a gold background and thought its a heart book it should be red or pink or something. I lamented to myself that I will have the only gold poage and it will really stick out. So I worked on a pink/maroon background but I could not get any further with it.

Then my wise teenage daughter says "who cares if its golden, are you afraid to stand out." I thought maybe I was but then last night I decided to go back with the gold. Then Sarah says "She had a heart of Gold" so I guess gold is a mighty fine color for a page from the heart.

Now I have to work on the back. I went searching for some cool looking paper at all the craft stores only to come home empty handed. I have come to the conclusion that after taking Misty's class I can paint a better background than all the papers in all the stores. So I plan to do another background this weekend and look for some great quotes and finish this project. That will really feel good.

Well I am off to see Stardust..........

Back to the river

I had a busy day yesterday. I met friends in the park and we brought our spinning wheels, had lunch and a nice visit. Then I went on errands and found a quilt for the bed downstairs and a few other things. On my way home I stopped at Freeman Park and walked down to the river to sit on a rock and commune with nature.














As I was watching the river I looked to my right and thought I saw swans or at least they were white ducks. I went back to the car for my camera and took this picture. Alas they were not swans but beautiful white ducks with one big duckling.
















I had been wanting this book for some time so I grabbed my Michaels coupon and picked it up. which of course led to new art supplies, new pencils, ruler, circle templates an eraser shield and new paper. Learning to draw better is one of my goals and I really liked the look of this book. I did a beginning drawing to compare with after I have done the exercises in the book. I will share those when I have done them and seen some improvement.

Dave and Sarah are heading up to Missoula tomorrow for a first haul of her stuff. She was supposed to have everything packed but of course she doesn't. I have been doing all her laundry today so she can get it folded and packed. These are her winter clothes which have been in her room since she came home. She always was the last minute kid and I guess that has not changed. This year we are bringing so much more that it either takes 2 trips or renting a Uhaul. Dave decided on making 2 trips. I will go on the next one in two weeks. Since they'll be gone I decide to go see Stardust. It opens in theaters Friday night. I could use a good fantasy film.

Inflammatory Breast Cancer

I never really post much about health but I think this is really important. If you are like most women you have probably never heard of this disease. My sister sent me a file to a newscast on this but I do not know how to attach to the blog so instead I will point you to this website on it.

You can also google the name for other sites. In the newscast they were saying that most women go to their physician and its diagnosed as just a bug bite, since there is swelling and redness. They prescribe antibiotics and tell them to wait six months and by then the cancer has taken over. They also said most physicians hear about it in medical school but have never seen a case of it. Oh also it can not be detected by a lump or a mammogram. The best defense is recognizing what the warning signs are.

From the IBC website: The signs are One or more of the following are Typical Symptoms of IBC:

Swelling, usually sudden, sometimes a cup size in a few days
Itching
Pink, red, or dark colored area (called erythema) sometimes with texture
similar to the skin of an orange (called peau d'orange)
Ridges and thickened areas of the skin
What appears to be a bruise that does not go away
Nipple retraction
Nipple discharge, may or may not be bloody
Breast is warm to the touch
Breast pain (from a constant ache to stabbing pains)
Change in color and texture of the areola

So I really urge all of you to educate yourself on this disease, you could save a life.

Still working on the Bedroom

Its been cooler and that has been so pleasant. I spent the weekend continuing to work on the room. I got a new overhead light, the light had been a wagon wheel. That did not go with my theme at all. The one big window had black venetian blinds and I replaced them with white ones. I bought curtain rods for both windows. Dave kindly put all those things up for me. After much searching I found a white waste basket I liked. Its porcelain and I got it at Linens n Things for 50% off plus a 20% coupon. I have always bought just plastic garbage cans, I was amazed at what the nice ones cost. I think I ended up spending 12 dollars so that leaves money for other stuff which is awesome.

Now I need to make the curtains, and find some bedding I like and I should be done. I want to add some artwork but that will come later. I might get to that today or I might just go play.

I have playing around with my heart book page but nothing that I do seems satisfying. I know I am probably being too critical. Its probably time to let go of what I think it should be and just do it. The other day it came to me that since I seem to be stuck on this project that I should just work on other things instead. It seems when I have a deadline I focus on that so much that its hard to let go and just create. So I have been trying to get my studio cleaned up and set the stage for some other projects,hopefully some great ideas will come when I am least expecting them.

I was reading Celtic Woman's blog where she mention the book 365 Celts and exploring her Celtic heritage which is something I wanted to do. So I headed over to Amazon and found a copy for .48 now I had to pay 3.99 shipping but it doesn't get any better than this. I got the book on Friday and I really love it. I probably won't be able to resist sharing some of this later on. I love the way other bloggers can bring something wonderful to your attention. I'd quote something from it but I am upstairs and the book is downstairs and being the lazy person I am it will have to wait.

I went to church yesterday and the service was on Blessings. They were featuring a book called Learning to Fall, recording the blessings of an imperfect life by Phillip Simmons. Phil got ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease when he was 35. He died in 2002 and these essays of his are beautifully written and of course it makes you look at your own life differently. I borrowed the book from my friend Molly and can't put it down

Changes on the Horizon

Yesterday I went and got my hair chopped off. I said chin length or a little shorter. I guess I should not of said that. When I saw the first cut I could have said oh thats too short but I didn't. I was in one of those moods where I culd have said oh go ahaid and do what you want. So it is shorter than Sarah ever remembers seeing it but people tell me its cute. I am not used to it yet. I'll post a picture as soon as I can.

I am trying to finish decorating the spare bedroom. Yesterday I found a lamp I liked and then Dave put together the night stand he bought weeks ago. They look really nice in the room. I cleaned up a little and found an old perpetual candle. I covered the religious picture on it with beautiful paper and then stamped on it. Its lovely now. Today I will look for a new overhead light and a waste basket. I also want to replace these beat old venetian blinds. They are black and the room is basically blue and white, so I think white blinds are in order. There are still several other things to do but it slowly looking like a really nice room.

Dave is at the Doctors right now going through a 3 hour blood test. He told me that they said his test results are all wacky. He had to fast and they are doing tests every hour to see the results. It sounds like possible diabetes or something like that. So I just have to wait and see what they say when the results are in.

Well I am off to Lowes and Home Depot......

Knitting group

I went to my knitting group this morning, I don't get much knitting done but I do enjoy the company. My friend Annette who had surgery Friday is not doing well so that was hard to hear. She is such a bubbly positive person. She is back in for a second surgery to remove cancer and the prognosis is not good. Send some cheer her way if you can.

Then I went to lunch with my friend Ginger. We hit the Brownstone and I have been craving a good burger. It was a nice lunch and now I am back home trying to get Sarah motivated to do something. Its her day off so she just likes to do nothing. I figure if we only have 3 weeks left its time to work in some excursions together.

Last night I had another mishap. I was barefoot and sitting on the couch my dog Flynn wanted to play and I went to scoot his ball with my foot and apparently at the same time he decided to grab the ball. Here I am screaming my head off and D has no idea what is going on. I know have a hole in my 2nd toe under the toe nail and the nail is cracked. It felt like my foot should be bleeding all over but there was not a drop of blood or skin scraped. It hurt so much I couldn't believe there was nothing else wrong. It felt much better today but I am beginning to wonder why I keep creating these mishaps.

I ventured into the Art room and played a little today. Just the beginnings of the Heart Book pages that I need to get done. I don't know where I want to go with it so I mainly did a background. Hopefully I'll get some inspiration soon.