Animal Wednesday and Hodgepodge

This tip top image is my first sighting of a horn toad this Summer. I love them and always try to get an image when I see one. The other images are the cute earrings that my sister in law M made, she sent them to me to see if any of you may want to buy a pair. They are 15 dollars each pair plus a 1.50 shipping in the US. They won't be in my ETSY shop as I did not make them, so if you want a pair just email me and indicate which pair, I can do check or paypal. First come first serve :-).

In other news: My dog Zeus is doing very well, he is even running a bit. Part of his problem has been my slippery floors and this week a friend is giving me some carpet to put around the house which I think will help. He only falls when standing still on the hard wood floors or trying to climb a hill. He had a really good week, so I am happy to say I may have jumped the gun a bit. His passing is inevitable and it will likely be this Summer, but he has surprised me, so we will just have to have a wait and see attitude. Continued prayers and good thoughts are much appreciated :-). I will keep you posted.

This weekend I planted flowers and made 3 bowls which I will share after I take some photos, I want to show the process as it goes. I also went to see Jane Eyre with a friend and I loved it!

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend. Happy Animal Wednesday!XOXO

ABC

I got this from KJ and Jos. I thought I could use a little fun and lighten up a bit, so here goes:

A is for age: 55, though inside I feel 25, my body does feel pretty much 55 :-).

B is for beer of choice: I don't like beer, the one I least hate is a dark ale, champagne is my drink of choice, but I rarely drink liqueur.

C is for career: Can you call something you make very little money at a career? I am an artist and I do a whole list of things that I am self employed doing, Managing, cleaning, cooking, running errands, shipping and packing.

E is for Essential item(s) you use everyday: Furbabies, Ok, I don't "use" them, but they are essential, tooth brush, hair brush, paint brush :-), pencils & Paper, my espresso maker.

F is for Favorite song at the moment: Anything by Sting, actually I don't listen to much music or anything, these days I prefer silence.

H is for How About Whatever Favorite I Choose: Favorite TV show: Fringe. I don't have cable or satellite, but I rent dvds and have a friend tape them off his computer, so I am always up to date. I LOVE this show almost as much as I loved LOST.

G is for favorite Game: Chess, I am not very good and I rarely play, but it is the only board game I like, My favorite real game is hide and seek :-).

I is for Instruments played:When I was young I played piano and in my teens I taught myself to play "Court and Spark" on the guitar, I have forgotten how to do both at this point.

J is for favorite Juice: cranberry

K is for Kids: I have no children, but I currently have 3 furbabies, Zeus, Max and Zoe, and one little sweetie of a great Nephew named P.

L is for last kiss: I can't even remember the last real kiss, likely 3 or 4 years ago cause that is how long I have been boyfriendless, but I kiss all my friends.

M is for marriage: Never been. I have met "The One", but it did not work out, so I will most likely never marry and I am fine with that, never been lonely a day in my life.

N is for full Name: I will never tell :-).

O is for Overnight hospital stays: one at age 6 when my tonsils were removed, that's it!

P is for phobias: Just 2, doctors and public speaking.

Q is for quote: What you resist persists.

R is for biggest Regret: That it did not work out with the man I love.

S is for sports: Running and tennis.

Time you wake up: varies: usually by 7:00 am, sometimes 8 on weekends, occasionally 5 or 6 am, which is my favorite time of all.Kj we have the exact same wake up schedule :-).

U is for color underwear: most often black. And they don't ever match. Lately I bought multi colored underwear and I love it.

V is for Vegetable you love: Asparagus

W is for Worst Habit: impatience

X is for X-rays you’ve had: dental, that's it.

Y is for Yummy food you make: Chocolate cupcakes

Z is for Zodiac sign: Pisces, what else could I be?

Whew, that took a while. Happy Weekend! XOXO

Zeus Update

Thank you all so much for your heartfelt comments and emails, I appreciate you all so much.
Zeus is still with me, he has had a few good days, so I will see how it is going on Tuesday next week, I would like to have the weekend with him to say a proper good bye at least. As long as the good days out weigh the bad he will stay. All I can do it revisit this everyday and see where we are. I know he will tell me the exact time is right. Mr.B and Spike did, so I trust that Zeusy will too. I will let you know when the time comes. Every day is such a gift.
Love you all. XOXO

Zeus (Animal Wednesday)

This is my sweet dog Zeus (with my late little B in the last photo). The best dog in the Galaxy. I am doing his tribute now because in a few days he will be gone and I won't have the strength. Losing him at all is hard, but losing him so soon after B and Spike and G is just to much for my poor heart. Too much death and sickness and old age. He is now falling more than standing and while he can still do his walks and he loves his food, I feel the time is nearing when I have to take him and have him put down. I think Thursday or Friday evening will be as long as we can hold out, he could surprise me, but I really feel this is it. I rescued Zeus 9 years ago and he was 7 then, so he has lived a long and good 16 years. He is the sweetest, kindest most loving dog you would ever meet, he loves all people, animals and me, he loves me more than any human has. Zeus is a miracle of a dog and has never been sick a day. He just has bad hips and is very old. Time to go and run free again in the fields. In my meditation I heard the words, "You are not alone with this" and I know I am not, I know spirit is with me and will help me get through this.

Your prayers and good thoughts are appreciated.XOXO

Flowers and Vase

This is my new painting, 20"x 16" Venetian plaster, acrylic and pigment on board. This is the first vase and flowers I have ever painted and of course they came from my imagination, because I just find that more interesting then copying from what I see. If you click on any of the photos it will enlarge them and you can see much more detail. My paintings are all about detail and layers and if you don't enlarge you will miss a lot. This piece took me two full weekends and many evenings to finish. I think this is one of 3 paintings I will enter for the jury for the Taos Fall Arts show. These were rushed photos, and they are a little off, some colors are more intense and some are less. I will be taking much better photos for the jury and will share those when I get them done. Please let me know what you think, I don't know if it is good or bad at this point, but I think I like it :-). I also have not decided to leave it as is or varnish it. Oh, and I have no title yet! Happy Monday! XOXO

Hodgepodge (Life Lessons)

For over two years I have been visiting a woman in a nursing home once a week, a friend asked me to visit her and then over time G and I became friends, she was 93 when we met. The last 6 months have been really rough, her mind so full of the fear of death. her struggles ended Tuesday night. As luck would have it I went to visit her that day which was not my usual day, but I felt an urgent pull, I am so glad I did and that I was able to say goodbye to her. She is now free and it is a blessing.

Also some of you know I lost my special heart rock that I recently found on the beach in Oregon. I lost it on a hike, it was in my pocket and then when I returned home it was not there. As I slipped it into my pocket that morning, my little voice said "Don't carry that rock in your pocket, you will lose it", I did not listen and I lost it an hour later. Well, yesterday while hiking, against all odds I found my rock again! I have been blessed with it twice! It now has pride of place in front of my Buddha.

This is a tale of paying attention to that small voice inside, LISTEN! It is important. But also TRUST! Everything is a miracle.

In my comments for my last post my bloggy friend Melanie left this as her life list, I wanted to share it as it is stunning! And so very complete:

To be: content.

To do: everything I attempt.

To have: what I need when I need it.

I think I will put this on my mirror and make it my mantra, Thank you dear Melanie.

I am off to have yogurt and fruit and hot chocolate with agave, then I will paint on my still life, it is slow going, but I hope to finish this week. Happy Happy Saturday! XOXO

Life Lists

Photo found here
My mind is all a buzz, so to quiet it I thought I would make a few lists for your viewing pleasure, please leave a list of your own in the comments. Happy Monday! xoxo
What I want to be:
Kind
Loving
Brave
Strong
Giving
Successful Artist
Fun loving
Carefree
A list of what I want to do:
Paint a zillion paintings
Make a zillion bowls
Go to France
Italy
Africa
Berlin
Just to name a few.
Buy a house and paint it all the colors I love, build a fireplace with all my favorite rocks and shells.
Live near the sea
and also have a house in New Mexico
Have a large garden of my own design
Learn to cook more than the hand full of things I cook well.
Learn to knit
Learn to sew
Learn to speak French
Learn something new every year until I die.
What I want to have:
More love
More money
More animals
More time to do what I love.
More hugs
A house of my own
Okay, that about covers it :-).
What I have that I am very grateful for:
My family,
My furbabies
My friends
My blogging buddies
My talent
My sweet Subaru
My little rented house
My clients
My health
My thin body (Yay, for learning to eat healthy foods while still eating foods I love and enjoying life!) Finally! What took me so long?
Taos, New Mexico
Sunshine...
A list of things I wish I could do:
Have enough money to start a no kill animal shelter here in Taos
Save the Dolphins!
Stop hate and cruelty.
Had the power to make everyone I know happy :-).