Sun Valley Wellness Festival

I haven't posted much lately at all. I been battling menopausal symptoms. I have done 6 more self portraits. You can see them here

I've also made an album of pictures from Sarah's graduation, You can see them at the same link.

I spent saturday in Sun Valley with my friend Ginger. We went to a wellness festival and had the greatest time. We went up for only one day and it turned out the speaker we wanted to hear cancelled and was not going to be there until Sunday when we would be gone. So we went to other seminars and really enjoyed ourselves. In addition to the lectures there were lots of vendors and hands on practicioners. I had a guy who did soul therapy work on me and that was pretty cool. I also had some rapid eye therapy done. I had heard about this techinque in Carol Tuttle's book Remembering Wholeness. I was really excited to try this out and it was awesome. The therapist was able to help me heal issues with my my mom in an easy process. I decided I really liked the process. I felt incredibly fantastic after that. I want to do a series of sessions, now I just need to figure a way to pay for it. Ginger, talked to a shaman, a channeler and had a session on energy work. It turned out all three people came up with the same stuff. It was interesting to say the least. Ginger went to a seminar with a medical intuitive and I attended one on entitled The Everday Goddess: Letting Go into the joy of being a woman. Mine was really a blast. I loved it, especially the part where we danced. All that free movement reminded me of taking African dance from my friend Masankho. I decided that I need to dance a little everyday. Its really freeing and really makes you feel good. I met some women from Boise in the class and we ended up going out to dinner with them. We were instant friends with 10 women. It was really a great time. We really hated having to go home. Next year I want to go to the whole event. There was also a Galley walk and we made it a few galleries. We saw some beautiful artwork. We also learned that there is a festival in Jackson in October. It has a different focus but will still be fun. They are having Andrew Weil and Julia Cameron as keynote speakers. I hope I can attend that one too.

Graduation Day

My daughter graduates from High School today. It seems like I just held her in my arms and brought her home from the hospital. Can 18 years fly by that quickly. I couldn't have asked for a better daughter if I had molded her myself. When I think about it maybe I did have a hand in doing just that. She has grown up to be quite the confident self assured woman that I wanted her to become. The sky is the limit for her now. She'll be off to college in a few months, ready to take on all the new experience that the world has to offer. She has many gifts, desires and goals, and I wish her the best with them. What an exciting time. She's graduating Magna Cum Laude having missed a 4.0 by .001, but thats ok she thinks the cords she gets to wear on her gown are a better color. That is quite an accomplishment for a girl who missed a lot of school several of those years. Congratulations Sarah!

Moonbeam

We had to put our beloved cat to sleep yesterday. He was the best cat I ever had. I miss him greatly. Here is an older picture of him with Sarah.

 








I will miss his tail that he always held erect with the top looking just like a question mark. He liked to head butt you in the middle of the night. He always liked to sleep with Judy when she came for a visit. I know she will miss that. He had the most beautiful green/gray eyes and a wonderful disposition. I will miss him sitting on my lap in the evenings. You were the best Moonbeam. 

My Creative Hand

I spent the evening this working on this self portrait. I got the idea from Kai and its been one of the most fun things I have done. Here is my hand. I tried to include all the creative and fun things that I like to do. It also gave me the opportunity to use the full range of micron pens.

I am too sad today

I moved all my pics for the 101 Self Portraits I doing with Violette's group to picturetrail. This is turning into a fun project.

Today I am sad cause I think we are going to have to put our cat Moonbeam to sleep soon. I've got company this weekend and Sarah graduates the week after so we are going to try and wait until after then. It is so hard.

Weaving

I ran into a tension problem with the warp, I tried to fix it but it didn't help much now I have broken warps to fix. I am trying to weave a little but I feel so down that I just don't feel like doing anything.

Happy Mother Day

A Happy Mothers Day to everyone.

I tried to fix my last entry anumber of times and still have problems with the pic showing up, so here it is. The Mothering Card I made

 













Dave gave me a massage gift certificate. I am looking forward to that. Sarah is still sleeping. She had the commencement dance last night and was up till 4 am and she has to work tonight so I am letting her sleep. We'll go out an early dinner in an hour or two. It looks like a heat wave is on its way up here. Its supposed to be 86 on tuesday and in the 80's all week. If I want to work in the garden I will have to get up early.

Oh I am wearing sandals today. That is quite an accomplishment for me and my foot doesn't hurt. Yeah!

Yesterday we went up to Market Lake for International Migratory Bird day. We took a walk and got to see a peregrine falcon close up. It turns out the guy with the falcon was the same man who came to get the hawk I found with a broken wing last year. Its a small world sometimes. We identified 2 new birds, a white faced Ibis and a franklins gull. It was a fun day. We stopped at Bj's bayou in Roberts for lunch. Its a cajun place we had been meaning to try. We both had red beans and rice and although it was good it wasn't spectacular. We bought a poster home and framed it. It is really nice. I'll pop a pic up later. 

What a day this has turned out to be

I really did not know what I was going to do today and I have had a blast all morning. I unpicked the black and purple and started again on weaving the scarf. Then I realized the silk is so sticky I won't be able to the unpick the weft to make the fringe. So I added some fringe spacers and started again. I hemstitched the ends and did some weaving. I like it so much better now.

Then I remembered that I want to learn to do calligraphy with a dip pen. I have had the supplies for awhile now. I got the table I have been doing watercolor on cleared off and ready. So I sat down and played a little. Basically I just got used to loading the pen with ink and then practiced a little. I have a book on Calligraphy from the library. I want to go through the exercises that they recommend, but this first playing was fun. I even used other inks that I have for stamping for a little color. Nothing to show yet.

Then I went and worked on a collage card. I started doing these soul collage cards last year. I did mine a little different than the book says, made them smaller. I decided the size I was doing was too limiting. When I found the kaliedosoul website I really wanted to get back into these and do them bigger and with more thought put into it. I ended up making mine 6 x 8. When a suggestion came by email to work on a mother based card I decided to give it a try. My cards focus is on how I mother. I really like how it turned out.

 














I started a flickr set with my old cards and then this new one.


I did not do a self portrait yesterday so now I have 2 to do to catch up but thats ok. I may get to it later today or tomorrow. I know that next time if I feel ike doing 2 then I will. I am going to do me as the Mona Lisa but also a fantasy self portrait would be fun too! I think I will have to do a Lord of the Rings one for sure. This is turning out to be fun and a generator of lots of ideas

Experimentation 101

My friend Amy came over on her lunch break to brainstorm ideas. I tried some black rayon and then I tried some purple zephyr wool/ silk and I really like that best so far.

Here is the whole piece with the 3 different weaving samples included.

 










Then a close up of the black and then the purple. You can click on them to make them bigger.
 



 




The purple tends to match pretty close with one of the colors in the warp and then it comlements the orange nicely. I also think the looser weave looks better too. I need to decide if I want to unpick all this weft or not. Then wind a shuttle and begin again. Sometimes weaving something is a really long process. 

Wednesay is for weaving

Yes I actually am sticking to the plan. I sat and wove for awhile and I still don't like how its turning out. Plain weav looked crappy, and now a twill is looking too stripey for my taste. I am trying to come up with something else that might work. I think plain weave would work at a loser set but I do not have enough yarn for that. I am thinking of perhaps using a solid color. If I could find some black silk or one of the colors in the warp and then rethread for a birds eye twill. Here is what it looks like now.

 

Or perhaps unthread and adjust the colors so they are less stripes and more a gradiation of color. I would appreciate any ideas, so comments please... 

Monday Musings

Monday I decided should be for Art so I start the week out right. I did get my watercolor things finished for my class and got them posted around 1 or so this morning, I think that counts. I also decided I might work along with Violette on her 101 self portraits. So I have done a simple one that I think I like. I don't know if I will be doing one a day but it still will be fun doing the ones I am doing. I think it would be fun to throw my face onto the Mona Lisa. I have to figure that one out.

On the writing front I found a new book I really like. Its from this site which I found through Sunday Scribblings. I seem to be getting all these synchronisitic events happen one after another. When I look at the chain of events of my life recently its one connection to another. Hurt ankle led to >being on the internet all day > which led to Danny gregory's book and drawing group> which introduced me to moleskines> and the moleskinerie> which told about Sunday Scribbles> which led to me finding the bold soul and her writing book. Or I could look at Cloth paper scissors led me to>violette's challenge> that led me to her website> and getting involved in collage and more drawing> hosting a swap> to a new community of friends. I have several other scenarios that seem to be working like this.

This morning I decided I would try and set aside a day for weaving too. So this Wednesday I plan to weave on the silk scarf on my loom. Hey this worked for writing and art so a day for weaving will get me back to where I want to be. Lately thing seem to be working out well creatively. Its like I am on a roll. I hope it continues.

On Sunday our church had a maypole dance that was fun. I wish I had taken a camera so I'd have pictures. This link gives a little history and has a small graphic showing the ribbons wind around the pole. It was quite a fun exercise to take part in. We all had so much fun I think it will be a continuing tradition.

Getting out for a walk

I was really feeling great yesterday but today I have gotten a relapse and have a bad sinus/cold thing going on. Its the pits.

I did manage to take Flynn for a walk. We walked down to the canal and on the other side for awhile. He sure was having fun. I swear he went in the water a dozen times, It has been months since we have been able to do that. It about killed my foot though. I am sore tonight. Looks like it will be awhile before I can do that.

We found out yesterday that Sarah got a scholarship from Jiffy Lube for 500.00. That will sure help out. We haven't heard from any of the other scholarships that she applied for. I hope she get another one or two. She brought home her cap and gown today. It turns out that the cap does not match the gown. Its a slight variance in color. I figure that the caps are new and the gowns are old and faded. They don't look that bad but it is sort of annoying.


My womens knitting group tried out a new coffee house yesterday. This one had better lighting but the parking was awful. I swear that every place has its little drawback. We see how this one works for a little while. I just have to get there early and parking won't be an issue.

I got a new mouse and I am loving it. When I got my laptop I bought a cordless mouse and it worked pretty good but I was always replacing batteries. Then the port connection started malfunctioning and then I had continual problems with it. It just stopped working period so I went and got a a new one. this time I got a logitech with a cord and it working great. I am happy camper.

I did some drawings today, but nothing I want to post. I seem out of my groove right now. I think the cold has me down in more ways than one.

There is nothing like new sheets

We put away the flannel sheets last night. Our old sheets died last fall so I went out to get a new set yesterday afternoon. There is nothing like the feeling of new sheets on a bed, Sleeping was heavenly last night.

I am here at the Villa coffee house doing some writing. So I thought I had better get something on the blog, I have been ill since last thursday so I have not done any drawing or painting. This is the last week for the watercolor class and I have 3 paintings to do. I hope tomorrow permits some time for that. I just have not felt up to doing anything. In those moments when I have felt good I cleaned the houise and reorganized a few things.

Graduation is right around the corner so I sent out Sarah's announcements this morning. She only has about 2 weeks of school left. I am not sure I am ready for all this change. Not that there is anything that I can do about it. Wasn't she just a toddler last week?

I found this great site called Sunday Scribblings they give you a topic on Saturdays and you write about it and post it Sunday. A link to your site is posted on theirs so all can now read and comment. I thought it was a great idea. So I started a separate blog for that. I figured this main one is getting a little crowded. Its also a way to get me writing regularly.