shall we fly south?

OK I happen to think this post is just brilliant

and nobody else but me left a comment -

hmmm...

does anybody else agree this is a great way to plunge into something new?

it just makes sense to me and I do believe 

I will try it with this new sorta phobia I have been experiencing this week.

let me explain -

here are various birds...

that I photographed while on vacation at Balboa.

don't they look happy?

well I do believe I am going to pretend to be them,
or more precisely,
 the canada geese that have already decided 
that it is time to migrate south for the winter.
do they know something I do not?
you see we have not really had a very sunny summer
(I do believe only 5 days just a tad over 80 degrees)
and I love living in the Pacific Northwest,
but I do require a gorgeous summer full of vitamin d 
to get me through our grey days until the next summer.
and I am feeling extremely panicky 
because I have not yet had my sunshine fix for the year - not even close!
this California girl (albeit 31 years living in the PNW)
is starting to hyperventilate and freak out to put it mildly.
So I will take Kim's advice and just pretend that I can soar south anytime I want.
maybe I can sit under a lamp to feel the heat, 
close my eyes,
hold out my arms,
 and just pretend I am floating above the clouds
with all the other canada geese honking around me.
it couldn't hurt.
and I do believe I am craving some grass and bread right about now...

a Sunday blessing

It's been way too long since I posted a Sunday blessing.

Spent yesterday in the yard and these hydrangeas broke off while pruning;

I think they will give more joy here than out in my front yard - 

don't you agree?

The desert and the parched land will be glad;

the wilderness will rejoice and blossom.

Like the crocus, it will burst into bloom;

it will rejoice greatly and shout for joy.

Isaiah 35:1-2

eye to eye

 finally finished her and her

 with lots of new color

and even a nest made of blue chip stamps

created in this beautiful spot

surrounded by...

 while visiting my bestest girlfriend.

comfort, clutter, creativity

are you one who would rather create than clean?

how about one who makes a mess while creating

and does not clean until the project is complete?

I would check 'yes' to both...

she so agrees with me.

I just don't understand the magazines (although I do love peering into them)

that show artist's studios with no clutter or mess... seriously?

so that's why this book is dear to my heart. 

Mary Randolph Carter tackles the question of how we live 

and what is important.

she says,

Clutter is the poetry of our homes.  It is a fingerprint of an experience, a souvenir of our childhoods, 

an expression of our humor, a collection of things that we just can't live without.  

Clutter gives life to ordinary things...

she includes this photo of Calder's studio..

oh how I would love to work here

Source: flickr.com via Pamela on Pinterest

love this mess...

Source: flickr.com via Pamela on Pinterest

and this table...

and paint splatters...

Source: kikicolore.blogspot.com via Pamela on Pinterest

and love the light here.

Mary concludes,

Clutter is a grand parade that follows us all our days,

from a playpen filled with toys to the scrapbooklike walls of our college dorms,

our first work cubicles, our first apartments,

and the places we call home.

Embrace it, make peace with it,

take control of it, share it, reorganize it,

and when the time seems right,

bid it farewell.

have not gotten there yet.

Doug and his friend have been painting doors in his friend's 'man studio'.

Ok I want a place to create like this. 

 He has garage doors on both ends that open, 

a place to work on cars, 

he has slowly refurbished this beautiful boat 

and this is an important and....

 a place to watch tv, refrigerator, wood burning stove

and he invites friends over for a little guy time -

see the boat sign in the corner?  that's the spot.

hmmm I want a 'woman studio' where we can all play.

and btw the friend assured me he loves to make a mess and then when the project is over,

he loves cleaning it up too.

Source: pamelaholderman.blogspot.com via Pamela on Pinterest

and then I seem to have an addiction to pieces that reign in that clutter -

remember this find at ABC Home Store?
still wish I could have snuck it in my suitcase.

and Nick likes everything in its place and then he's ready to create - 
got him this cool etsy book bag just so his art supplies could be mobile.
OK I strayed -
guess that's where my mind is lately.

now as a postscript you may remember we cut down these trees right outside of the small office my husband and I share...
hmmm... don't you think it would be a perfect spot for a 'woman studio'?
I could teach art and everyone could come over and play...
oh my the addition brain is churning over ideas and just won't quit.
and then I could leave it as messy as I wanted,
and leave 6 projects going at once and not feel guilty for the mess right?
can't say my blogging mojo has returned,
but I do have two art retreats to share with you next time.
until then.

blogging mojo is lost- reward if found

need to post a sign on a tree that says -

blogging mojo is lost -

reward if found

seems she just up and walked away...

and i have been waiting patiently for her return
just like this fellow.
instead i am left trying to be smart and funny on my own -

nothing 
the brain cells are struggling to get magic to happen...
maybe she went on summer vacation with us and decided not to return.  

i would have stayed here too if i had a choice...
(view from our balcony)

instead i came home to so many house upkeep projects 
such as 
redoing the floors while we were on vacation

and fighting giant moles -

just kidding, although we do have those too.

these are our septic tank lids which needed cleaning too

(and thank goodness not by me )
and 

this week we had trees falling left and right 
and others being pruned -
looked like a war zone.

and then add 3 cavities filled plus 5 more to go, etc. etc. blah, blah
you get the idea.
well i need another vacation

so off to Lake Chelan 

to visit one of my bestest friend 
to create jewelry and paint and visit wineries
and soak in the sun

(did I mention she has a hot tub and a pool?).

so maybe i will find my mojo out touring the wineries enjoying the sunshine 
and just maybe i can bribe her 
with a bottle of wine or promise to paint her picture or
buy her a magical croissant at the french bakery on the way home

because I really do miss her and need her back.
see you in a week unless i decide to stay...

painting in paradise

got to doodle while on vacation

 and just enjoy doing art without overthinking...

 I started these corgi and crow obsessions at my dad's

 and then got to overwork them

sitting at this beautiful spot with the sun and water

 and breeze - and the much needed daily iced latte.

I will try to finish them this week.

how about you - 

getting any doodling done this summer?

cartoonatic addict

ok i am enjoying instagram

but 

Nick discovered cartoonaddict

and i am 

head over heals in love

with this app...

even makes one's feet look good...