Snow Re-do

Yup, I've still got snow on the brain..... so I brought some to my blog.
Credits are in the right column.

Forget the rain dance... is there a snow dance?

It's snowing like a bugger in my hometown right now and darn it - it never snows here!
Here's the webcam shot from this morning....

What's a girl gotta do to get some snow around here? I guess I have to settle on the web cams. I've been glued to them all day....

Chocolate Mint

It's free upgrade time for my cell phone so this is the cutie patootie that I chose... LG's Chocolate Mint. I just can't get enough of lime green!!!!

I cooked.... and there's proof

If you knew me when my kids were little, you would have expected a grande feast from me for Thanksgiving. I was the one who baked all the cookies, painted all the windows, hand made all the invitations... I could put Martha to shame back in the day.
But in recent years, I've lost my zest for decorating for the seasons, preparing special meals, making everything from scratch, etc. .... until this year.... I've rejoined the festive ... and am chalk full of holiday spirit. Here's our Thanksgiving feast...

Thankful for....

This has been quite a year for me, and I am thankful for....

• closing my studio on my terms, and going out happy
• having Tyler come home
• the comfort in knowing Trev is ok living on his own
• my Mom's support of my art sabbatical
  
• my sister for being my sister - which means the world to me
  
• having the time to focus on my art (till now)
• Patty - for not letting the miles get in the way of our friendship
• Amanda - my partner in crime, for making me laugh and for being here for me, in the good times, the bad times, and everything in between
  
• Sandy - for good advice, good company and flexible hours :)
• Lori - for the support and good words in my new job
• my computer - because it connects me to the world, otherwise I'd go nutty
• selling my art
  

May your stuffing be tasty
May your turkey be plump
May your potatoes have gravy
May your yams be delicious
And your pies take the prize
And may your Thanksgiving Dinner
Stay of your thighs!
- anonymous

Can you say WINDY?

Last Sunday night it was soooooo windy... it was actually pulling water back up the drain, through the vents in the ceiling. There was this rumble and gurgle going on in the sink with every gust... it was the water swishing around in the drain pipes, from the wind action on the roof. Crazy yes, but it gets crazier.... The wind was so strong, it blew some of the railings off at Sea Lion Caves. Wowza!
It's windy again tonight and here's our storm warning for the beaches, right off www.accuweather.com:

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN PORTLAND HAS ISSUED A HIGH SURF ADVISORY WHICH IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM PST THIS EVENING.

A PACIFIC STORM HAS GENERATED LARGE SEAS THAT ARE IMPACTING THE SOUTH WASHINGTON... NORTH AND CENTRAL OREGON COASTS THIS AFTERNOON.
HIGH SURF CONDITIONS WILL SUBSIDE AFTER A COLD FRONT MOVES ASHORE EARLY THIS EVENING.
IT CAN BE VERY DANGEROUS TO VENTURE NEAR THE COAST UNDER HIGH SURF CONDITIONS. PEOPLE AT TIMES ARE SWEPT OFF ROCKS AND JETTIES AND DROWN WHILE OBSERVING HIGH SURF. STAY WELL BACK FROM THE WATERS EDGE AND BE ALERT FOR THE EXCEPTIONALLY HIGH WAVE.
A HIGH SURF ADVISORY MEANS THAT HIGH SURF WILL AFFECT BEACHES IN
THE ADVISORY AREA...PRODUCING RIP CURRENTS AND LOCALIZED BEACH EROSION.

Took the hubby

Today I took my hubby to the gallery where my art is on display. We took a few photos, pardon the glare from the glass case the shadow from the display on the tree pic. You can't tell from the photo, but ALL the stars in the sky on the tree pic are Swarovski crystals. {photo frame credit: Anna Aspnes}

I've had requests to put my charm back on Etsy, so I'm going to do it. Again, if you are in the charm swap - don't look because these are being sent in to one of them (I won't tell you which one, so even if you do peek, you won't know)

Immigration update for those sweet souls who have been following along and sending me emails of encouragement.... We have filed our final papers - woo hoo! Ty can be out of school for some time still, but the superintendent is a champ and promised he would day anything it takes to get him caught up again, upon returning. At least that's a load of my mind.

Peace!

Too much of good thing....

I woke up this morning to find a letter, from a very upset artist, thinking that I had stolen her idea, and she wanted me to credit her for the design. Horrified that I was being accused of stealing, I wrote her back with my sources of inspiration (home decor items). Because I felt her pain of having an idea 'out there' when she was trying to keep it under wraps for an upcoming publication, I pulled my photos from flickr... my item for sale on Etsy.... but there's a bid on my auction on ebay, so I couldn't pull that. I pulled all those things out of empathy for her. After searching and finding all my links to send her, I found a ton of the same item on etsy already. Both posted before mine, and after. Hey they are adorable - who wouldn't want to make some? It just goes to show you there are no new ideas out there, lol.
I'm happy that we have worked it out this morning...
she has no ill feelings for me, and vice versa. As a matter of fact, she's one of my fav artists, so I couldn't be happier that this was all a big misunderstanding AND bad timing for other reasons.

YES! - Kinda

Well the immigration officer came through for us and called with good news today. The only problem is the receipt might not reach us until January. I'm praying for a speedy return.

Going for the hat-trick

Wow - what a great 2 days it's been.... first finding out I got into the show, then tonight we went to the reception and found out I got 2 honorable mentions! (for this one and this one) That's my first score.
My second score was our fantastic visit with my son's neurologist today. He found the answer we have been looking for, for 13 years. The tears just started welling when it happened - such relief.
So... the third score I need for my hat-trick is immigration to say yes to school with out 485 filing.
If you say prayers - we need one for that.

Doin' the Happy Dance

All day I had my phone call forwarding to my cell, waiting for the call from the selection group at the FEC gallery, to hear if I got in the juried show I've been making art for. I didn't get a call so I went down there (because I know the stuff had to be picked up by 5 tonight). I didn't realize they were only calling people to pick up art that didn't make it into the show... that's why they didn't call me because all 3 pieces of my art made it!!!! I am so excited!!!!! There is a private reception tomorrow night for all the artists who submitted. We can bring one guest, so I'm bringing Tyler, since he's seen me fret over this since I started my show pieces, and he was with me when I found out. He was so proud of me - that was the best!!!! He's never been to any of my receptions yet either, because he was Canada all year, so this will something I can share with him.

I'm so happy to have some good news, especially since we are going through this whole immigrations/school thing. The X's new wife told him this is my problem, so he won't help pay for this, which is our only stumbling block at the point. This really sucks - it's not me they need to help, it's our son. I swear, every man that leaves his family and gets a new one, leaves his original kids behind.... it happened with me, it happened to my best friend's kids.... and now poor Tyler. I just want to call the 'latest' wife and tell her she better not get too cozy, cuz sooner or later she'll be old news and she just might feel this frustration with the kids they have together too. But I'm not going to call - I'm just going to find a way and when they call seeing if he's coming up for Christmas I'm going to tell where to shove the mistletoe!

OK - back to the good news.... I recently got accepted into a group of artists that I not only admire, but really respect. I'm now a member of MMCA (mixed media collage artists) and I'm tickled pink. I accomplished my art goal for 2006 - to get my work out there in shows and galleries and start selling. My goal for 2007 is to start submitting my art to publications that I admire and really focus on some pieces that I can market to shops/galleries (they need to be reproducible)