Hodge Podge(Goodbyes, Thank you's, New Work and Animal Wednesday)

This is my last post for a couple of weeks as I am leaving town this weekend and will likely be too busy to post while on my trip.

I have been struggling with painting for a few weeks, I knew something new wanted to come.

I had to give it space, take walks, meditate, read and finally this weekend it came. The tip top photo is my brand new painting and also a close up. Please let me know what you think, even those of you who do not like abstract. You can click on it to make it larger

The next three photos down are Zoe my new girl, Finn, a friend's wonderful dog, and then two love bird Ravens.

Yesterday I received this beautiful moleskine journal from my sweet friend in the UK, Joss, not only did she send this, but it is the second one as the first one got eaten by the post office, she remembered that I said I wanted one in a post once.

Last Week I received a wonderful surprise from another friend in the UK, Melanie, she had gone to Amsterdam for her birthday and bought me these sweet little China clogs, so dear of her to think of me. Thank you Joss and Melanie for always being there for me. I love you both.

I hope you all have a wonderful two weeks, I will miss you! XOXO

ART LOVE

Painting by Mark Bradford,Photo taken from here

As you all know by now if you have been coming to my blog very often, I am obsessed with art.

Making it, looking at it, reading about it, and thinking about. I know a few people who I love very much, who do not care at all about art and I am always amazed by this, I could not live without it! I thought I would share with you my number one favorite contemporary artist: Mark Bradford, also go here to see more paintings. Mark works very large and uses all manner of things to make his collage/paintings with, his paintings always inspire me and move me beyond words to describe. His story also inspires me as he was once poor and worked at his mom's beauty salon doing hair. Now his paintings fetch up to 250,000! It could not have happened to a more lovely artist. I hope you enjoy and are moved as much as I am by his work. Happy Sunday! I am off to hike and work on my own humble painting. XOXO

Mother's Day Sale

I am having a weekend, 15% off sale in my ETSY shop. Attempting to make a little spending money for my trip home. I can only run it 2 days as I want to have plenty of time to pack and ship before I leave town. To get your 15% off just type in mother when the coupon code window appears at check out. I hope you all have a wonderful Weekend! XOXO

Animal Wednesday

This guy came to my bird feeder the last couple of days, I have never seen these bird here before. I love his iridescent greenish head, though you can't see it too well in the photographs. Can any of you out there identify him? Happy Animal Wednesday! XOXO

The World is Singing

Nothing More (remix)

If there is any secret to this life I live, this is it:

the sound of what cannot be seen sings within everything that can.

& there is nothing more to it than that.

-Storypeople

This is exactly how I feel today. Everything is singing. Happy Sunday! XOXO

Hodge Podge and Some Good News

It is Saturday and after a windy, but lovely long hike with my sweet old dog Zeus I have decided to give myself a free day, which means I can do anything I want and that would include reading wonderful books called "Ladder of Years" by Anne Tyler and "Still Here" by Ram Dass. I also intend to do a little painting on some porcelain as tomorrow I am actually going to start painting paintings again! But not today, today I play. I have some news, I have been wanting to go home to Oregon and see my mom and my family and the beautiful sea, and my mom has made it possible for me to do so, I am leaving in two weeks. I am so looking forward to it! Also I have not updated my weight loss, life style changes for a while, still making mostly the right choices every day, one meal at a time. My rules I try to stick by are, if it is a whole food (not been messed with) and organic, I can eat it and if it isn't I go for the best choice I can. Once in a while I eat cake just for fun :-). I feel so much better being off sugar, though it is sometimes hard. I also walk or run everyday. I almost have the body I have always dreamed of, not perfect, but lean. Not totally lean yet, but getting close :-). And the best part is I am doing this for only me and how I feel, nobody else. Also thought I might update my Busting Loose progress, still doing the process, still believe in it and know that I will bust loose! I will leave you with a couple quotes that called to me this week: "But screw your courage to the sticking place and it will not fail"-Shakespeare "You don't have to see the whole staircase. Just take the first step." Martin Luther King Happy Saturday! XOXO

Dreams are Real

Actually I think dreams are more real than life. Most of you know that I think that the world is a hologram (goggle it and you will see that I am not the only one :-), and if that is true and I believe it with my whole heart, then dreams are where we do the real spiritual stuff of living our real lives. It is just a theory. I have been asking Spike to come see me in a dream and to let me know that he is okay (you can think I am crazy, I don't care) and he finally came and it was a wonderful dream. He came and I kept telling everyone in my dream that "See, Spike is still alive, not dead at all" And this is indeed the real truth. I can't see him, but he is still very much alive and well and somewhere lovely, I am sure. I miss him so much, and I am still sad and still cry, but it feels ever so much better knowing he is happy. XOXO

My Week in Pictures

I went looking for joy this week. You can't be sad 24 hours a day And Spike would not want me to be, so I went looking and I found me some. The two tip top photos are of my good friend B and her baby L, what dolls they both are :-). Lots of joy there. Then there is a photo of a friend's dog, Finn, joy abounds there with tennis balls :-). Then a photo of new baby cow life, plenty of joy there. And last, a photo of a new bud vase, no end to the joy in making these. Which I am off to make more of this very day. Thank you for your prayers and love. I miss Spike like you would not believe, but I won't quit seeking joy, no never, and I won't quit finding it. XOXO