Count Backwards

Where can you see my work?

2011-11-19T07:23:00.002-05:00

I have left Artique for something closer to home and am now at Micropolis Gallery in Gloversville. Micropolis is located inside the Mohawk Harvest Food Co-op at 30 N. Main St (the Schine Building). They are open from 8:00am to 6:00pm every day. I will be in the gallery to meet and greet on Wednesday the 23rd from 10 to 1. I have some new work on the wall over there that I am really excited about.
Also you can see my mini-purses/phone caddies for sale also.

What's New?

2011-09-09T09:33:00.002-04:00

I really thought I would get back to regular posting but it is not to be. I am incubating purses and don't have time for anything else. I still have to make more beads, and buy more accent beads, design a hangtag, have them made up, design a display, have it made up....much still to do. They will eventually find their way into Micropolis Gallery in Gloversville to start. When they are ready.

A simpler version of the purses could be on etsy within a week, I will let you know when this happens.

The End is Near!

2011-08-04T10:37:00.007-04:00

My desktop computer will be fixed on Saturday, so that will be the end of a difficult number of weeks with only my old laptop to work with. It'll be so nice to have things working properly.

My daughter and I went to Stockbridge, MA yesterday. First we went to the Berkshire Botanical Gardens where there were plenty of things in bloom, including daylilies and hydrangeas. We also saw a cork tree, and had a picnic lunch under a tulip tree. After lunch we walked around Stockbridge and saw a number of awesome things including the Red Lion Inn, and the location of Alice's Restaurant. We drank mocha lattes and had mousse (me) and gelato (she). Then on to Chesterwood, home of sculptor Daniel Chester French, most noted for the statue at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington DC, but also the scupltor of The Spirit of Life in Congress Park in Saratoga.

Sunday is the Heart of the Park Craft Show in Long Lake, NY. Forecast is for 50% showers. I still remember when the water was ankle deep up there during a storm 2 years ago. Hope we don't have anything like that this year.

"gimme five, I'm still alive"

2011-05-10T10:14:00.001-04:00

Tulip Festival was very nice, I did well enough and the weather was decent. The Fulton County Art Show exhibit was a huge success and I am so thankful to Michael Hine, who recommended me, Ann Lee Clough and everyone else involved in putting on the show.
Tomorrow I am bringing a small collection of framed pieces to the Frothingham Free Library in Fonda to be shown there till the end of the month.
Also tomorrow I will be sending in my application for membership in the new "Micropolis" art co-op soon to open in the same space as the Mohawk Harvest Cooperative Market's new digs in the Schine Building on N. Main St. in Gloversville.
Thursday night is Northville Central High's choral music and band concert which is always wonderful to hear.
Friday working at Artique!
Looking ahead to June, I am going to be the artist of the month at Grace North Church in Clifton Park, and also have 3 art & craft shows.
My plants are growing beautifully, the eggplant, tomatoes, and delicata squash doing particularly well. Outdoors my peas have popped through the surface along with mixed Chinese greens and lettuce.
I can't say enough about how much meditation, mindfulness, and happy thoughts have improved my life.
Cooking going well too! Tonight it's chicken pot pie with phyllo crust & shallots!

Raab and Cabbage

2011-04-09T10:59:00.000-04:00

Seeds!

2011-04-06T16:08:00.000-04:00

Started 3 varieties of tomato, 3 varieties of pepper, celery, eggplant, cabbage, broccoli, raab, basil, thyme, savory, and rosemary in the house today. I also threw in some nasturtiums for fun. And Bush Delicata squash. Now I already know that squash does not like to be transplanted, but we have such a short growing season here that I have to try. We got some delicatas last year, but I just think we would get a better yield if they had a head start. It's an experiment. The celery is also an experiment.

I am really looking forward to cooking out of the garden this summer. It is SO much more fun to go out and pick lettuce from the backyard instead of going out anywhere to get it. (Although we do LOVE to go to Barbers Farm for things we can't grow ourselves. We are just came to the end of the potatoes we bought there in the fall, and still have red peppers in the freezer). We do grow our own potatoes and peppers, just don't have enough space for a whole winter's supply. Well, we have the space, but not the soil, living on the edge of the forest, our topsoil is almost non-existent. In the back yard, all our garden soil was bought and put into raised beds.

Since I've been cooking more this past winter, I've noticed that Jamie Oliver cooks just like me.

The other night I made this fabulous Vietnamese Tangerine Sauce to go with the swai fillets. Swai is my new favorite fish. The sauce called for white wine but since I didn't have any, I substituted a handful of green grapes. Genius!

Decorating on the Cheap

2011-03-31T13:52:00.002-04:00

T-shirt on a bamboo pole! Simple!

Faith, Hope and Charity

2011-03-18T14:58:00.002-04:00

Yesterday I received a newsletter that had the words "faith" and "faithful" in the same paragraph. Ha! I said, I know what faithfulness is, like Agent Gibbs says, Semper Fi! So I wrote on a post-it note: "How is the word faith related to the word faithful?" Is stick-to-it-tiveness another word for faith? All I need to do is persevere and that is faith?

What about hope and hopeful? I always thought hope had to do with outcomes, like I hope things get better (in which case there may be no hope). But what if hope simply means holding positive thoughts instead of negative ones?

Love/Charity is definitely what the Buddhists call metta (lovingkindness).

Things to ponder!

O Blessed Brigid!

2011-02-27T16:13:00.004-05:00

It's not just me that is astonished at the ubiquitous use of "Patty" for Paddy. There's actually a website devoted to correcting this error
paddynotpatty.com.

I thought I would post this way before St. Paddy's Day so everyone will have the chance to get it right.

If you can dream it...

2011-02-25T14:09:00.002-05:00

"Mind is creative. Conditions, environment, and all experiences in life are the result of our habitual, or predominant, mental attitude."
Charles F. Haanel

What's Going On

2011-02-21T09:59:00.000-05:00

I have stuck with my diet plan and have finally reached 25 lbs lost. but it's taken from November to now to lose the last 5 pounds. I noticed in December the rate of loss was really starting to slow down so I added 40 minutes a day on the treadmill at 3 mph. This has done basically nothing. (well, I'm sure it has other health benefits but at this rate it'll be another year before I reach my target weight) So I am happyish but might start cutting back on portions of my main meal which I think are miniscule anyway...Clothes I wore last summer are not any looser! And I was fantasizing about new clothes for spring. Yeah, right.

I am working on craft show applications, deciding what new ones to try and which duds to dump.

My work has been selling steadily through the winter at Artique, in fact I need to beef up my inventory over there. This week I will order more square mats and get a display made for my Kaleidographs. Also thinking about a smaller size for my regular work.

The Fulton County Art Show requires that I have an inventory list and accompanying support material (bio, artist statement etc) by April 1st so I will need to work on printing and framing around 50 pieces for that. My own private March Madness.

My Christmas present to my husband was to offer to cook 1 night a week. For the 15 years of our marriage he has done ALL the cooking, his choice, he's an excellent cook and enjoys doing it. I just suspected he might like a night off once a week and it has been so successful that I am now cooking 2 nights a week! Tonight's menu is Sweet & Sour Chicken with rice and a greens salad and tomorrow night is Lentil Soup and Mexican cornbread (with cheese & hot peppers baked right in).

Interesting Thought

2011-02-10T16:37:00.002-05:00

Man is not a body with a spirit, but a spirit with a body.

How many times have I said "I hate that"?

2011-02-10T11:40:00.004-05:00

That will be the last time.

The following is by Charles F. Haanel (whose work is in the public domain and can be freely quoted):

"The importance of this is well illustrated in the lives of Emerson and Carlyle. Emerson loved the good and his life was a symphony of peace and harmony. Carlyle hated the bad, and his life was a record of perpetual discord and inharmony.
Here we have two grand men, each intent upon achieving the same ideal, but one makes use of constructive thought and is therefore in harmony with Natural Law, the other makes use of destructive thought and therefore brings upon himself discord of every kind and character.
It is evident therefore that we are to hate nothing — not even the “bad” — because hatred is destructive, and we shall soon find that by entertaining destructive thought we are sowing the “wind” and shall reap the “whirlwind.”"

I'll be in the library...

2011-01-19T11:51:00.002-05:00

I recently discovered that you can download books from the internet even if you do not have a dedicated mobile device, such as a Kindle. I had no idea that there was a Kindle for PC, and, lo and behold, the file sizes are so small that downloading them with dial-up is no problem. So I bought a couple of books. Then a friend told me about The Gutenberg Project. Free books! Most are old, but what the heck! I have just gotten through the "D" authors. I didn't find a LOT of books that I wanted. There's a lot of fiction. And war stories. And children's books. But I did find some books worth having and reading and the lists are fun in themselves. For instance:

Bradford, Charles Barker, 1862-1917
Black Bass
Where to catch them in quantity within an hour's ride from New York

Bureau, Children's
If Your Baby Must Travel in Wartime

Burrell, Caroline Benedict
Gala Day Luncheons, A Little Book of Suggestions (I have never given a gala day luncheon, but if I ever do, I will have a little book of suggestions!)

Carvalho, David Nunes, 1848-1925
Forty Centuries of Ink or, a chronological narrative concerning ink and its backgrounds, introducing incidental observations and deductions, parallels of time and color phenomena, bibliography, chemistry, poetical effusions, citations, anecdotes and curiosa together with some evidence respecting the evanescent character of most inks of to-day and an epitome of chemico-legal ink.(oh the victorian fondness for florid prose!)

Chavasse, Pye Henry, 1810-1879
Advice to a Mother on the Management of Her Children

Civiale Remedial Agency
Manhood Perfectly Restored
Prof. Jean Civiale's Soluble Urethral Crayons as a Quick, Painless, and Certain Cure for Impotence, Etc. (think about that one for a minute...!)

Cruikshank, George, 1792-1878
Sinks of London Laid Open
A Pocket Companion for the Uninitiated, to Which is Added a Modern Flash Dictionary Containing all the Cant Words, Slang Terms, and Flash Phrases Now in Vogue, with a List of the Sixty Orders of Prime Coves (the date makes this one funny! and are there really 60 orders of prime coves??)

Darlington, Richard
A Full Description of the Great Tornado in Chester County, Pa.

Tintinnalogia, or, the Art of Ringing
Wherein is laid down plain and easie Rules for Ringing all
sorts of Plain Changes (what?)

Dunsany, Edward John Moreton Drax Plunkett, Baron, 1878-1957 (a man with a very long name)

I could go on and on........go there and read some for yourself!

AHA!

2010-12-30T14:39:00.001-05:00

Looking over the winter edition of Tricycle, I came upon the following story: Two young boys were playing together. One asked the other, "We stand on the ground and the ground holds us up. What does the ground stand on?"
"Oh, my father explained that to me," the second boy said. "The grounds is supported by four giant elephants."
"What do the elephants stand on then?"
"They stand on the shell of a huge turtle."
"What does the turtle stand on?"
The second boy thought for a long time and then said, "I think it's turtles all the way down."

These photos fail to convey how cold it was today!

2010-12-09T17:43:00.000-05:00

Crochet project with vintage thread

2010-12-08T08:55:00.004-05:00

My latest crochet project is finally finished, except for the dyeing process. I am thinking indigo blue. This piece did not shrink as much as I thought it was going to...it's possible that in the spring it will be too big for me. Might have to try selling it.
If I ever make another one I will do something different at the neckline. I thought I was going to like the boat-neck but it doesn't look great on me. Now that this one is finished I have a much better idea about how to do the neckline.
My next project is a scarf using this same pattern. I have acquired some more vintage thread, black, very fine, looks like size 30, and soft. I have 4 motifs done and it is looking wonderful.

To make a long story short...

2010-12-04T08:52:00.002-05:00

I got creeped out at the monastery and came home. Kind of like Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz.

"Turtles all the way down"

2010-11-30T17:25:00.002-05:00

This is possibly the most interesting list I've ever come across. I was searching for "recursion", which came up in someone's description of their art. This is from wiki, under "see also". I especially like "turtles all the way down".

Church-Turing thesis
Continuous predicate
Corecursion
Course-of-values recursion
Fixed point combinator
Infinite loop
Infinitism
Iterated function
Mise en abyme
Primitive recursive function
Reentrant (subroutine)
Self-reference
Strange loop
Tail recursion
Turtles all the way down
Viable System Model

The rest of November will be a blur...

2010-11-20T12:09:00.003-05:00

Thursday evening while driving on the Northway coming home from Artique I noticed that because the traffic was very heavy at that time of day it might be interesting to take a few shots after work on Friday. It was really hard to drive and shoot so I didn't get much but the next time I am riding with someone else around 5:00pm below Exit 9 I will be sure to bring the camera. The image here is a combination of 2 shots.

Drop-off at the Arkell Museum is this week so I will be going over to Canajoharie in the next few days. I wanted to shoot in Richfield Springs too but I see the weather is going to be rainy. Darn.

Also spending a day with Trinity and Zander.

Friday, Saturday and Sunday you can find me and my work at the Holiday Open House at The Shirt Factory in Glens Falls. This promises to be the best open house yet as the event is now better organized and promoted. The SF is located on the corner of Cooper and Lawrence Sts on the East Side. Preview Friday evening 5:00pm to 8:00pm, Saturday and Sunday 10:00am to 5:00pm. I'll be in my regular spot near Elements of Art and Craig Murphy's studio. This year I'll have my own lights. Yay!

I have been on the "no carbs before 6:00pm" diet for 5 months and have lost a little over 20 pounds. So looking forward to this coming summer when I will be a svelte size 10, and can add some fruit and grains back into my breakfasts and lunches, the only thing I really miss.

Wow, is it ever windy out!

Nice Day but...

2010-11-04T08:43:00.002-04:00

Taking advantage of the sunny weather yesterday, I drove down to the Woodstock - New Paltz area to shoot. I don't know why I think long trips like that are going to work out...an hour here, a couple hours there and you're out of time because it's going to take you 3 hours to get home. I didn't really get any photos I can use out of the whole day.

First I went to the pedestrian bridge across the Hudson where I shot the view of the Mid-Hudson Bridge seen here. Then I spent some time "hiking" in the Black Creek Preserve near Esopus. Unfortunately the trails in the preserve do not follow the creek, so much of that was a walk in the woods. It was good exercise though, being very hilly, and the sun was warm and the smell of dried leaves and acorns delightful.

I had never been to Woodstock before and found it kind of hokey. The Center for Photography was closed, even though they are supposed to be open Wed thru Sun. Everything else was just a little too touristy. I had no time to see Byrdcliffe. Or that village with all the crafters. Or the Buddhist Monastery.

Speaking of monasteries, I drove past Holy Cross and the Redemptoristine Sisters along route 9W. I'll be going to Holy Cross (Benedictine Episcopal monks) for an Advent retreat weekend next month.

Fun in Altamont

2010-11-01T07:16:00.003-04:00

I had a great time with photographer Jim Miller yesterday at Desolation Road Studio in Altamont. It was an honor to meet the mayor and the lovely woman who purchased my new dahlia photo, and it was great seeing old and new friends including the very creative metal sculptor Howard McAvoy.

Juried into Arkell At Last!

2010-10-30T15:06:00.002-04:00

My kaleidograph "Barking" has been selected for the 2010 Arkell Annual Juried Art Show. Juror was Erin Budis Coe, Chief Curator of The Hyde Collection, Glens Falls, NY. The exhibit will run from December 4 - January 30, 2011 at the Arkell Museum, 2 Erie Blvd, Canajoharie, NY. Click here for more information about the museum.

New England Garden

2010-10-23T13:34:00.002-04:00

I am thinking about making a little New England garden here: White picket fence, ivy, roses, alyssum, ornamental grasses, stones, a buddha, windchimes. I will omit the ubiquitous shasta daisies.

New England

2010-10-23T13:22:00.002-04:00

Inspired by the creativity of others

2010-10-23T13:16:00.003-04:00

Provincetown is a wonderland of galleries and gift shops. The things which enchanted me most were indoors, so I couldn't take pictures, but this one was in a window display. The coolest things I saw were mounted giant insects & moths from the Far East. Incredibly exotic and wonderful.

Cattitude!!

2010-10-23T13:12:00.003-04:00

No doubt this cat came from Salem!

I'm back, darn it!

2010-10-22T17:07:00.001-04:00

Will post more tomorrow.

The 2011 Fulton County Art Show's Featured Artist

2010-10-19T16:53:00.001-04:00

Me. Oh my!

E. Jimmy Creek

2010-10-18T08:02:00.002-04:00

I knew I'd be (stuck) at Artique all day today so yesterday afternoon I went up to E. Jimmy Creek in Wells. Got some interesting stuff but can't stick around to play, off to Clifton Park!

A Minute to Breathe (and then Decisions!)

2010-10-12T13:31:00.000-04:00

Show season is over! Well, not really, but the main part of it is. I do have two important holiday shows late November, early December. But few deep breaths are in order.

Okay, now I have to get out and shoot. I haven't had much of a chance of late. This morning I had to go to the post office to mail my entries for the Arkell Annual Juried Art Show. When I arrived promptly at 9:02, the window was still closed and a sign said that the window now doesn't open till 9:30! The swine! So I drove over to Edinburg and took some shots of the falls, even though I didn't have the tripod with me. Not bad for hand-held.

Planning to get to NYC sometime this month to shoot. Can't decide whether to drive part and train the rest or take a bus. Or whether to go on a weekday or weekend. Last time I made plans to go by bus it rained. Also planning a couple days in Provincetown the 3rd week in October. Unless it rains..............

October 31st I have an artist reception/open house at Desolation Road Studio in Altamont. I will be the guest artist for the first 2 weeks of November.

Still working at Artique 2 or 3 days a month also, which really throws the monkeywrench into planning for shoots.

Another thing I have to work on is putting together a gift product for Artique and my holiday shows. Probably framed 5 X 7's. Need to find really inexpensive nice frames that they used to have at Walmart a few years ago. I was thinking about quotes on them too, like maybe from The Book of Common Prayer because it is copyright free. Not small versions of my current work, but new shots taken especially for the smaller format.

My thread crochet project is coming along but still a long way from completion. It's something to wear.

So that's kind of what's cooking. It's all a bit nebulous but hopefully everything will come together and make for a productive month.

Beautiful Fall Day!

2010-09-21T10:26:00.001-04:00

Cold morning air and warm sunshine hit the clothes on the clothesline this morning and produced a lovely "fog". I just started a fire in the house as it is not really warming up in here!

Had a great weekend at the Eagle Mills Craft Show. One of my tent neighbors was Terese of Woodland Divas. I have always admired her work and it was fun to have her close by. The Divas are beautiful "masks" that she sets in bark, branches and the like, and embellishes with moss, lichen and other found objects from the woods. They are just beautiful.

I've been asked to bring 20 to 30 matted prints to Java John's Coffee Shop in Northville to show and sell. A project that I will have to start on soon, probably after a cup of coffee!

The Northville Rotary wants applications in right away for their July Woodworking and Fine Art Show so I am mailing that out today. This past week I also received more applications for 2011 shows... I would really like a break between show season and app season but it looks like that is not going to happen. Promoters used to wait till after the first of the year, those were the days!

Colors of Fall in Glens Falls is coming up this Saturday and I am the person who decides who goes where and stakes out the show with the great Kate Austin-Avon. I am still getting last minute requests for spaces so I won't be doing the "final" map till Thursday. Sometimes the final map gets more corrections Friday night!

Okay that's it for now, I have a lot of printing to do.

Arkell Museum Holiday Fair

2010-09-13T11:43:00.000-04:00

I've just been invited by the Arkell Museum and Library in Canajoharie to be a part of their 4th Annual Holiday Fair on December 11th. This show features just a dozen quality artisans so of course I am very honored to be asked to participate. I'm having a great year so far and it just keeps getting better!

Brief Update

2010-09-13T08:21:00.002-04:00

Photo from last Saturday morning on the way to the Stockade Art show. The show was very successful for me, even though there wasn't the hordes of people that used to come. A lot less artists this year too. Coming up next is Eagle Mills, two brutal 9 to 5 days. The weather so far is looking amazing, hope it holds.

I've lost an additional 5 pounds for a total of 15. I took a new picture of myself for the blog and facebook and am stunned at the difference between the one I took last April and the new one.

Where have I been?

2010-08-30T16:28:00.000-04:00

Busy and likely to stay busy (and so not write) for the next 6 weeks. No rest for the wicked.

Quick update

2010-08-13T07:51:00.001-04:00

Photo taken yesterday on the way up to the (very successful) Speculator Craft Fair. Working at Artique today, then printing, matting, etc tomorrow for Shalom Festival in Saratoga on Sunday.
Garden beautiful, tomatoes, beans and cukes.
The octographs are now "kaleidographs" because people are noticing right off the bat the similarity to kaleidoscopes.
Love lo-carb, clothing getting looser!

Long Lake etc.

2010-08-02T09:03:00.004-04:00

I had a good show in Long Lake yesterday, selling 2 of the octographs, including a large limited edition work. The drive up was so beautiful! I had to leave the house at 5:00am so the light was just perfect, I regret not having time to take good shots with a tripod. I posted some over at a Shot and a Beer, they are nice for the blog but not good enough to use. Shots from the boat launch at the southern end of Indian Lake at sunrise would have been fantastic as conditions were perfect; a little fog, partly cloudy sky, and calm. I should keep a watch on the weather and see when those conditions will come together again.

I have lost 10 pounds and am beginning to see my "real" body come back to me. My hands almost look like my real hands, feet too! It is SO exciting. I can actually fit into pants and skirts from a couple years ago. And shirts button! It is crazy good, I can feel the lightness returning, pretty soon I will be my old self. Now I wish I hadn't donated most of my old clothes!!!

The garden is doing fine but a few things are a disappointment. There are a ton of green tomatoes out there but the carrot tops have all turned brown way before maturity. Great peppers and onions and summer squash but green beans have not done as well. Lettuce too is kind of sparse. Cabbage is looking good, although not ready to pick. So kind of up and down out there. Nice to be eating out of the yard though, wish we could do it year round.

I'm pretty sure "Dapper Dan" won't mind me posting his picture. I spoke with him yesterday at the craft show. He was very appreciative of my work, someone who understands and likes what I'm doing. At every art and craft show there is someone who stands out from the crowd in manner of dress. This gentleman was definitely "it" yesterday.

Red Sky at Morning

2010-07-23T05:52:00.002-04:00

Beautiful sky here this morning!
Yesterday marks one month on my "no carbs for breakfast and lunch" new way of eating. I've lost 6 pounds!! I'm pretty sure I can keep this up indefinitely, it's not all that difficult.

Tuesday in the Park

2010-07-21T06:52:00.004-04:00

Women crowding around the jewelry tent and ducks deciding whether to go look at the jewelry or see my photography. (They went for the jewelry...)

I DO like hot peppers!

2010-07-18T09:05:00.001-04:00

These peppers are from the plant we overwintered on the windowsill. I noticed the other day that there are no new blossoms on it so I decided to pick the peppers before they turn red to encourage the plant to produce more. They are still very hot (spicy) at this stage. Later this morning I will cut them up for the freezer. I just went downstairs to count them...50 PEPPERS!! From one plant! The most we ever get is 15 or less from a one season plant so this is quite a haul. An experiment that succeeded, it does happen.

I do not like hot weather!

2010-07-18T09:03:00.001-04:00

Instead of going to the craft show at the Caroga Museum and buying locally made soap, lampshades, hand-knit hats, art, woodcarvings and jewelry, most people were on or in the lake! Sunny and 90, really hot weather is death to a craft show. I was bored on the way home and took some shots while driving over the Benson Road. The clouds coming in were interesting. Today I'm going to go into Northville to scope out the Rotary Woodworking and Art show. This is a show that I was invited to participate in, but had already committed to the Caroga show. I asked to be on the list for next year so I'm going to go down and talk to the artists and see what kind of weekend they are having. Have 2 shows this week in Saratoga, will be interesting to see how they go.

Hope Falls

2010-07-09T20:18:00.004-04:00

Rock pools atop the falls PERFECT for just sitting and enjoying the water and scenery. People below and above, but no one got to see me in my undies. Lucky for them!

Speculator Art Show tomorrow, hope the rain (which we need) comes early and leaves early.

What's New!

2010-07-04T10:33:00.001-04:00

I've been having creative soup for breakfast 5 days in a row and have produced 30 new works, some of which are posted on "A Shot and a Beer". (You just can't go out and buy creative soup, on some wonderful days it just arrives by magic on your breakfast table.) Packaging the new stuff is going to be tricky because the images are square, and so will need square mats and frames... and of course I have yet to see how people react to these new "octographs". Similar things I have done in the past went unsold...but I think these are better.

A quick update on other things:

Babysat a REAL baby on Friday (3 months old). What a whiner! But very cute anyway.

Have only 4 inches more crocheting to do on the curtain valance! Will have to go looking for a curtain rod this week, the rustic one we have now will not be suitable.

Loving FIFA World Cup, esp Netherlands, and boy, didn't Germany look awesome last game! Way too many hard challenges though, resulting in way too many yellow cards and interrupting the flow of the game way too much.

My low carb diet is going well. Basically I am not eating much for breakfast and lunch since there is nothing cheap to eat that is low carb. The first week I was terribly hungry but now I am getting used to it. The garden is very slow, I don't know why we don't have more lettuce... On the upside, the lo-carb beer is great! (by which I mean it is drinkable, not that it is better than Davidson Bros. IPA).

Friday night we found out that the animal going after our trash is a bear. My husband set the trash "can" up on some old metal roofing and when we heard the metal rattling about 9:00pm on Firday night, we opened the back door and saw the bear running off into the bushes. He's got big teeth (you can see where he bit the lid of the trash container). I really don't know if it's a he or she of course. Now we are keeping the trash in the basement. Why is it going after the trash? The compost pile is open 24 hours a day.

How about those Mets! And why do the announcers keep picking on Alex Cora? I like him. And Angel Pagan.

I have another photo project for the Friends of the Gloversville Library and am picking up "the bear" on Tuesday. This year's theme is "Fun in Fulton County" and local photographers including myself will be contributing photos for a calender that will be sold to raise funds for the library. All the photos will include "the bear".

5 Art & Craft shows in July beginning with the Speculator Art show on the 10th.

Well, that turned out not to be quick, there is just so much going on. And I left out the snakes...but not to worry, the "snake away" arrives tomorrow and it doesn't contain napthalene.

Okay, back to work!

My Booth at the Jazz Festival this weekend!

2010-06-27T08:39:00.000-04:00

You know it's a good show...

2010-06-19T16:18:00.000-04:00

when you don't have time to take pictures. Had a great day at the Gloversville Downtown Art Fair, many thanks to Linda Hinkle and the Sacandaga Valley Arts Network, and Wally Hart and the Gloversville BID. Great show!!!

Rain Rain Go Away!

2010-06-13T07:56:00.000-04:00

Interesting clouds just past 6:00am looking south from Route 20 between Sharon Springs and Richfield Springs yesterday on the way to another rainy show.

Rain jumping off the roof of a neighbor's tent. I really had wonderful tent neighbors yesterday.

This "puddle" was ankle deep! During the rain intermission this was a muddy mess, then wet, then omigosh vendors started driving through it with big trucks and trailers! Just awful.

Driving conditions on Route 20 after the show...

A marshmallow farm!

Craft Show Report

2010-06-01T13:55:00.000-04:00

My favorite comments from the show where I had so few sales that I didn't even make my booth fee:

"Best in show so far, other people have technique (and your technique is great, too) but there are ideas here".
And
"a cut above".

NO, the guy in the picture didn't even come in to my booth.

It's Show Time!

2010-05-28T16:25:00.000-04:00

Looking forward to a great weekend at the Ulster County Fairgrounds. (no, the dandelion photo isn't going with me!)

Going Backwards in Time

2010-05-14T08:19:00.000-04:00

Went up north yesterday to Camp Santanoni in Newcomb. It's still trillium season up there, and the leaves are only about 1/4 out on the trees. I was hoping for some good new nature shots along the 5.7 mile trail but there is nothing up there that we don't have down here...same old stuff! The trail does not loop so it was an 11.4 mi walk. I'll be at Artique all day today, hopefully with my feet up on the counter!

"Prepare Ye"!

2010-05-09T09:03:00.000-04:00

Some wonderful person bought this work at the Fulton County Art Show! Thank you and I am so happy that you like it as much as I do.

Where does the time go?

2010-05-08T07:10:00.000-04:00

These are some pictures I took the other day while out on errands. I didn't have the tripod with me, so these are more like snapshots. Just wanted to post something... So busy with getting stuff together for show season.

Pretty New Earrings

2010-05-03T16:43:00.001-04:00

Italia!

2010-05-03T09:16:00.001-04:00

The weekend at the Shirt Factory was not good financially (one of the rare shows when the booth fee exceeds the sales), but I did meet some interesting people, and I bought a beautiful pair of earrings from the incredibly talented and artistic Arlene Schiek. I'll take a picture of them later today.

The big and wonderful news is that I was invited to be a part of a small group going on a trip to Italy next spring. All of the folks involved are artists associated with the Shirt Factory. We are going to Florence/Tuscany for 10 days and will be staying in monasteries. Imagine the photos I will have from this trip!!! Of course you never know what kind of world events might occur that would make this trip not happen... but looking forward to all the planning that will go into this and hope that this dream will actually come true.

The lilacs are for Amanda, even though she probably has her own. I took this picture yesterday on the way home from the open house.

Birdbath!

2010-04-28T09:20:00.000-04:00

Every time I get a Gardener's Supply catalog in the mail I wish I had a birdbath. Of course the really beautiful ones are expensive. A couple of weeks ago I saw one on sale at Ocean State Job Lots for $30.00 and thought I might get that but I never got over there. Then on my way home from dropping off work for the Fulton County Art Show, I saw this old beauty on the side of the road with a big "FREE" sign on it! Amazing! It's not beautiful, but it has a charm of its own. I put it out front this morning so we can see it from 'the window'. I never owned a birdbath in my life so don't know what to expect, but looking forward to birds actually using it (hoping it's not just ornamental).

Just a Worker Bee, That's Me

2010-04-21T14:22:00.001-04:00

This is my entry for the Arts Center at Old Forge's "Exaggerate" show. I have always loved teasels and exaggerated teasels are even better! I still have to do some framing work for the Fulton County Art Show and "Anything Goes" at the Buttondown Gallery, work for both shows needs to be delivered on Saturday.

My wonderful daughter has survived the budget crisis and will be starting her 3rd year as Northville High School's choral music instructor in September. Looking forward to her spring concert coming up soon.

I am hard at work getting ready for my first craft show, the Cherry Blossom Festival on Sunday at Congregation Gates of Heaven in Schenectady. I still have to put the new top on my tent, and I still have some matting to do.

We have tomatoes, peppers, cabbage, broccoli and herbs started in the house. Last Sunday we made potato and chive soup with our own chives...delicioso!

I have another filet crochet project going, a valance for the big window downstairs. The window is 7 feet across, and I have 18 inches done so far, it'll be a great project to work on at shows.

I am also taking an online class "Eyes of the Heart". It's a 6-week Spiritual Photography class, so far I am sorely disappointed in how little time the teacher spends on the class. I will hold off on an evaluation until it's over, perhaps things will improve, we are only in the 2nd week.

Photos of Boston Coming Soon!

2010-04-09T16:46:00.000-04:00

Going with Dave, I love going out with my kids, they are all awesome.

April Update

2010-04-01T08:23:00.000-04:00

What I am working on:

Trying to capture the spirit of the running water in my local area with the new camera. Today I will be on River Road in Hope and up at Christine Falls in Wells/Speculator.

I have a designed a new crocheted beret that is easy enough to work on at craft shows and uses Lion Brand Homespun yarn. This is a simple pattern for an everyday hat. The beauty is in the yarn, Homespun comes in all kinds of fantastic color combinations. Pictures coming soon! These will be for sale in the fall.

I did some digital re-touching for a project that involves the digital restoration of paintings of lighthouses. My trial work was a success and now waiting to hear from the owner of the paintings for his thoughts on digital remastering the entire body of work.

The Gloversville Library is having another fund raiser, the 2010 theme is "Fun in Fulton County". They are going to be producing a calendar featuring the work of area photographers. I have been awarded the cover spot! I am very excited about this.
I am still selling well at Artique! Need to replace a lot of work there and add new work as well.

The next themed exhibit at Buttondown Gallery in Glens Falls is "Anything Goes!", beginning May 1st. My "Angel Wings" diptych will be a part of that show and I will probably get 4 more works together for this because I love the idea that photography can be whatever you want it to be.

Coincidentally, the Art Center at Old Forge's Adirondack Theme Exhibition 2010 is "Exaggerate!". The two themes are so closely related that I will have work for this exhibit out of the body of work that I am producing for "Anything Goes". Both shows need work delivered at the end of the this month.

The Fulton County Art Show is also accepting work at the end of the month. I would like to have work exclusively with the new camera for this show. Thinking about taking a quick trip somewhere in the next 2 weeks to shoot for this, Boston, Cape Cod, Rhode Island.....

My first craft show of the season is April 25th, the Cherry Blossom Festival at Congregation Gates of Heaven in Schenectady. Followed closely by the Spring Open House at the Shirt Factory, May 1 & 2. I have a LOT of printing, matting, framing etc. to do to get ready for show season.

I am taking a 6 week online photography course beginning this month through "Abbey of the Arts". The course blends Benedictine spirituality with art. I'll write more about this soon, this is another thing I am really excited about.

It's just about time to start seeds for the garden indoors. We will probably do this next week. If you start them too soon, they outgrow their space in the starting trays and get root bound. We can't plant tomatoes outdoors here till June 1st due to periodic frosts all during the May.

Okay, back to work!

I love my new camera!

2010-03-18T17:57:00.001-04:00

Return of the Redwings

2010-03-12T08:47:00.000-05:00

I heard Red-winged Blackbirds in the yard 2 days ago but this morning I saw a pair, plus a grackle, so Spring has unofficially come to Hope Falls. We still have quite a bit of snow but it's steadily melting, even overnight. I am holding off putting up a Spring shot to replace the "Winter is Wonderful" photo on my sidebar 'til March 20th, the official Spring Equinox.

I'm in!

2010-03-10T13:58:00.000-05:00

I got the letter of acceptance for The Freihofer's Jazz Festival today, I am one of only 72 crafters accepted. They have everyone under one tent, that's why the number of crafters is so limited. The selling hours are 10:00am to 9:00pm on Saturday and 11:00 to 7:00 on Sunday. The crafters cannot leave Sunday night until all the patrons are out of the park, they say it could be till 10:00pm. "Hard work pays off", so I am expecting a BIG payoff, since this is definitely going to be hard work!

The Calm Between the Storms

2010-03-09T14:41:00.000-05:00

Today is a great day so far, nothing "bad" has happened! (Of course it's all good!) I was able to get out in the sunshine and shoot, and the Yaktrax are the bomb. All over slippery banks and icy rocks without falling into the Sacandaga River north of Wells. I got some bloggy ice shots, see a few at Shot and a Beer. I also got some really great texture shots from a rusty bridge.
My craft show calendar is shaping up, still waiting to hear from the Jazz Festival.

Weaving for the buttondown gallery

2010-03-03T12:10:00.000-05:00

Floral Weaving

2010-03-01T09:07:00.000-05:00

My newest work, a paper weaving! The original photograph is of an arrangement of botanical blossoms that I made from a bouquet of mostly pink flowers. I am disappointed with the frame. I wanted a gold frame of a similar width, but could find nothing at Michaels or ACMoore. I also don't really like the squashed octagon shape of the flowers after the weaving. The photograph shows a nice oval shape. aaahhhhh nothing is perfect. I am going to bring this to Artique Wednesday or Thursday.

Metta

2010-02-23T10:23:00.000-05:00

I am currently reading "Loving-kindness" by Sharon Salzberg. It is about metta meditation, which is sending out thoughts of loving-kindness to others. In Christian terms it would be about intercessory prayer. It quickly becomes apparent that it is easy to want good things for our benefactors. Next is that we do wish good things for our friends. Then we would want to extend our good wishes to "neutral" persons. Kind of like a random act of kindness to a stranger. Then we have to think about wanting good things for people we don't like, traditionally called "our enemies". Okay, I have often wished we could have George W Bush up for supper. Because that would be extreme kindness to someone we don't care for and it sounded like a fun challenge. But when you seriously get to thinking about a particular person that you actually know that has done a lot of harm to you or your family, you might think, "I really don't feel like I want good things to come to that person". Sharon Salzberg has a key that opens this door. Actually Jesus gave the key too, but in our culture we tend to pass over the "yourself" part when we read "Love your neighbor as yourself", as if it were too selfish. Sharon puts it this way: first want it for your self, then want it for others. I wish peace for myself, I wish peace for all other beings. Or God bless me with good health, and bless all other beings with good health. It is very easy to include one's enemies in this way. And it is also not as difficult as you might think to be more specific, if you ask it for yourself first. May I be blessed with everything I need today, and may so-and-so be blessed with everything she needs today. Ha! Love your enemies! Say the words, right action will follow.

Another GREAT quote

2010-02-21T10:30:00.000-05:00

" Let me respectfully remind you, Life and Death are of Supreme Importance.
Time swiftly passes by and opportunity is lost. Let us strive to awaken, Awaken.
Take heed, do not squander your life."
chant of the time keeper
from Leigh Brasington's web site via facebook

Limbo

2010-02-17T16:42:00.000-05:00

Life is "on hold" at this time, I can't believe it's been almost a week since I last posted. We are waiting for an event to occur, a private family matter, and it seems that the world is turning in slow motion right now. When things get back to normal (hah!) I'll be writing more regularly.

I have finished my crocheted "bed covering" but I need to buy a bedspread to go with it, it really doesn't work on top of the old comforter. Besides, the comforter has certainly lived a full life and is ready to be repurposed as a guest blanket. I will post a pic when I get the new spread, which might be tomorrow.

Today I worked on craft show applications. I was surprised to find that both LARAC and Zonta require insurance that I don't have and am not going to get because they are the only shows that require it, so now I have June 11th and 12th open. I am applying for a space in the Craft Tent at the Freihofer's Jazz Festival at Spac this year, and also going to try a show in Cooperstown Labor Day weekend. Have several new shows for 2010 as well as old favorites, still have to decide exactly what to show and sell, quantities I should have and prices. My craft show calender at www.judyolsonphotography.com has all the latest info, still have a few dates open, and still waiting for some shows to send info and apps.

I am enjoying some of the Olympics but wonder when the live coverage of men's downhill was? I only caught a replay of the winning run. This used to be one of my favorite events. Right now all I'm getting is hockey, curling and cross-country skiing. (saw some speedskating but not much...figure skating comes on too late at night for me.) Back to downhill, I was very taken aback by the blue course lines painted on the snow. I haven't seen the Olympics in over 20 years due to an inability to get NBC, but I find that now they have to paint the course because people nowadays are not smart enough to read flags? I don't like to write anything negative on the blog because it always pulls in more negative stuff, but really, this painting just blows me away. I guess people just can't figure out the courses without it literally being drawn out for them. I saw it on a snowboard course too. Things are so dumbed down today. (Unlike back in my day, where we had to actually use our brains). Next time they are going to skip the paint and use a GPS to talk them down the hill..."half a meter to the right, Sven".

I declined the job offer...

2010-02-11T13:22:00.000-05:00

At the second interview I found out that there were medical exams and tests that I would have to pay for in order to be employed there. These are pretty expensive when you don't have health insurance! So I declined. Looking forward to getting on with my life after a few days of weighing this and that...I feel like I've been "away". Actually I am still waiting for a phone call back, so after that, it's back to business!

In case you didn't see this on facebook...

2010-02-05T14:50:00.000-05:00

Yesterday after I went for the job interview, I thought, "Why would they want to hire anyone else after talking to me?" They just called me and I got the job! It's not a career or even a position, I'm just trying to pay some bills, my friends (and save up for that Nikon).

I will have to work every other weekend but I am hoping to be able to do some trades if necessary to do a few of the better shows this season. At least the ones that I've already paid for!

YAY!

2010-01-30T12:44:00.000-05:00

I've been accepted into the Woodstock-New Paltz Spring Art and Crafts Fair! Memorial Day weekend at the Ulster County Fairgrounds. Thank you to the fine folks at Quail Hollow Events!

Eureka!

2010-01-30T08:15:00.000-05:00

Yesterday while thumbing through "Classroom in a Book" for Photoshop, I discovered a tool I had never used called the art history brush. I'm not sure why it's called a history brush other than you need to work from your current history to use it. If you open a photo and do nothing to it, you can begin using the art history brush right off the bat. If you crop or color correct or do anything to your image, you must select the most current history state before you use the art history brush. If you are familiar with the history brush you'll know what I'm talking about.

Anyway, you can "paint" your photo with a variety of brushstrokes. I haven't even tried all of them because when I got to "loose medium" I fell in love and have painted more than 10 older photos with that one. You have to use a tiny brush for a large resolution image. When you have a large brush or a photo with small resolution, the effect is cartoonish. I printed out something I did yesterday on canvas and it looks spectacular. I'm going to try my normal paper today. I have tried using Photoshop filters in the past, calling them photographic expressions, with no sales. The new ones are much more beautiful than the filtered ones but it's still Photoshop so I don't know how people are going to react. I'm going to make up a set for Artique and take them down on Wednesday.

View the birch tree cuts close up to see the effect. The one on the top is a cut from the original photo, look at that one first. Then see how, in the new one, the art history brush has softened all the twiggy stuff. It also abstracts dirt, grain, chromatic aberrations, dead or insect damaged leaves etc! It actually turns these liabilities into assets. At the very least this has the potential of being a good subject for a workshop, "Make Your Own Photos Into Works Of Art!". Too bad Billy Mays can't advertise for me.

I will post more of the new painterly work later today at Shot and a Beer.

Bedcovering update

2010-01-25T13:09:00.000-05:00

The afghan thingy that's going to go on the bed is about 3/4 done. I'm going to need a couple more skeins of yarn to finish it. I am not crazy about the color and now wished I had waited till I found something I really liked. The blues and greens don't go so well with the brown of the walls, floor and ceiling. This photo was taken with a flash, it looks slightly better in real life. (I didn't weave in the ends yet either...)

Wish I had a photo to go with this...

2010-01-22T13:24:00.000-05:00

"The breeze of His grace is blowing day and night over your head. Unfurl the sails of your boat (mind), if you want to make rapid progress through the ocean of life."

Sri Ramakrishna

Sneak Preview

2010-01-20T09:47:00.000-05:00

Here is one of the works that will be in the "winterscapes" show at buttondown gallery at the Shirt Factory in Glens Falls. The show can be seen during the month of February and the artist reception is Saturday January 30th, 3:00pm to 7:00pm. The gallery is located near "Sensibiliteas" on the first floor. Come see winter-inspired art in a variety of media, sip a fragrant hot tea, and meet a bunch of creative people who are also really nice (except for me).

Green Hot Chile Peppers

2010-01-19T16:39:00.000-05:00

We brought this pepper plant in from the greenhouse in October after it got too cold to leave it out there, it didn't seem ready to die. It has grown twice the size it was, has blossomed pretty much continuously, and has produced 7 peppers, 5 of which turned red, the other 2 green ones are still on the plant. It's a miracle!

A New Era

2010-01-19T08:20:00.000-05:00

When I picked up a new bottle of laundry detergent this morning I noticed the cap was bigger. It wasn't just my imagination, I had an older empty bottle to compare it with. That's weird, I said, both bottles contain the same number of ounces, and both bottles say you get 64 washloads per bottle. I examined the inside of the caps, where there are lines and numbers corresponding to where you fill the cap depending on whether you are doing a small, medium, or large wash. In the smaller cap, the top line is about 3/4 up the cap. In the new cap, the top line is about 1/2 way up the cap! Do you see where this is going? Now it is easier to pour in too much detergent! I did it myself, pouring in 3/4 of the new cap without thinking and now I have too much suds in the washer! Of course they are counting on people to do this so they will run out of detergent sooner and consequently BUY MORE. Not to mention they had to increase the amount of plastic used for the bigger cap. Shame on them! I am going to write them about it.

I did write them and their response was that people had complained that the cap was so small they couldn't see the lines!! I was wrong? I was wrong. I jumped to conclusions. I thought that my way of seeing it was the right way. Hmm!! God is funny.

Ain't Got No Title

2010-01-17T09:27:00.001-05:00

A couple of months ago I saw a documentary about the musical "Hair". They played snippets of songs and every time they played something I said, hey, I like that song...so I bought the original Broadway cast recording and I have just listened to the first 20 songs. (When I first bought it I listened to all the songs I liked). Haven't had time to really give it a good listen but this morning I am sitting here amazed at the structure of this music. The melodies are unusual or at least unexpected and the words fit or don't fit in a very delightful manner. "Ain't Got No" is just brilliant, a guy sings out "Ain't got no mother" and the chorus shouts "orphan!" "Ain't got no schoolin' " and the reply is "Dumb!" "Ain't got no soap" "Dirty!" and the unexpected "Ain't got no friends" "Lucky!" This song is just 45 seconds long and they don't give you the lyrics with the CD so you really have to listen...it's awesome.

Within the next 3 days I have to edit almost 250 images I took for the Artique website. That should go well once I get going on it, I've already flipped through most of them and have good exposure and sharpness, the tripod really helped.

Still debating with myself how best to mount and frame the canvas prints for the winterscapes show. I really should get that done this week.

I am working on another fabulous crochet project, this will be a bed throw. I am getting a white chenille spread and will have this crocheted topper over it for some color. It's pastel blues, greens and purples, I was actually looking for something lighter in color but wasn't willing to drive all over the place for the exact right thing. It's very Springy and I will post a photo when it's done. Right now it's full of ends that need weaving in, looks messy.

Hope to be sleeping in the van soon...

2010-01-11T16:37:00.000-05:00

Today I applied for my first "big" art and craft show, the Woodstock-New Paltz Art and Craft Fair Spring Show. It is a 3 day show Memorial Day weekend, a weekend for which I can never find a good show. The best part is that you can camp at the show, held at the Ulster County fairgrounds, for free! I am so excited!

I'd like to pass along a great tip for dry skin. You may have heard that applying lotion right after a bath or shower is better than just applying to "dry" skin. Even better is wetting a washcloth with warm water and vigorously rubbing one arm or leg at a time, and then applying lotion as soon as you can't see water on the skin. The washcloth exfoliates and hydrates, and the lotion then seals in the moisture. This works even with an inexpensive lotion like Suave brand. This method has completely cured my winter dry skin, which used to itch really bad and feel like lizard skin. Now it is amazingly soft!! You can do it to your face too, just don't scrub too hard.

All You Need is Love (dat da dat da dah...)

2010-01-07T08:05:00.000-05:00

Yesterday the question was, after we have eaten Eve's apple, can we go back to the garden? Well, the answer came to me as I was watching a documentary about John Lennon last evening. All of a sudden they played The Beatles' "All You Need is Love" and I sat up and a bell just went DING DING DING DING over my head. LOVE is the answer! Buddhists use the word "compassion". Amma says that you would no more neglect to take care of your neighbor than you would neglect yourself. And who is your neighbor? Jesus' reply was "them"!! Holy cow.

Quick thought about the word "love". We use the word love in so many ways that it has totally lost it's meaning. I love football! I love you! (we say that to people we get divorced from). "All you need is love" and "love is the answer", that love is the spirit of the "I AM".

Lots to think about!

Smorgasbord

2010-01-06T14:11:00.000-05:00

art
I am going out to Schuylerville tomorrow to visit Jen Houck at Lock 5 Studios for framing help. I've been looking at frames online and nothing seems to be right... I know Jen can take my canvas prints and make them look good enough to hang in a gallery. Good thing, too, because that's where they are going, buttondown gallery at the shirt factory in Glens Falls. Grand opening at the end of this month.

gardening
I got a catalog from Nichols the other day, and made a list of herb seeds I'll want for the herb garden. I didn't have an herb garden the last 2 years because it needs rebuilding and my husband hadn't had time to do it. The time has come and the herbs will be growing once again. My everyday cooking blend is a mix of basil, thyme, and summer savory. Fresh basil and thyme are easy to get in the grocery store but they don't have the strength of homegrown. Summer savory is rare anywhere, I tried to get plants locally the past 2 years but no luck. New this year will be comfrey and soapwort as well as favorites from years ago borage and bergamot.

spirituality
What happens after you eat the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil is that you can point your finger and say "this is good" and "that is bad". Before that, you didn't know if it was bad or good, either in yourself or in another. You just lived with things as they are. Buddhists call this "beginners mind". After we think we know good from bad, can we go back and not judge? I'm not talking about making choices here, I'm saying to not automatically think "this" group is "right" and "that" group is "wrong".

simple living
My winter coat is over 10 years old.

peace
War is over if you want it. I'm just sayin'........

Twenty Ten

2010-01-01T17:40:00.000-05:00

It's New Year's Day and time to begin blogging again! The first thing you will notice is that comments are off. I have been bothered by spam and it just takes too much of my time to moderate comments. Anyone who sincerely wants to contact me concerning a post may do so via e-mail. Anything that resembles spam or is annoying will go directly to the trash. 'Nuff said.

I will be blogging more about our garden. I am proud to be a Kitchen Gardener, and will start with seed catalogs as several have already arrived.

Artique will be featured a lot since it is becoming a bigger part of my business.

Several of my works will be featured in a "winterscapes" show at the end of this month so I will be letting you all know how the canvas prints are coming. Fellow photographer Michael Hine has generously pointed out an eco-friendly coating material, but I am not happy with the self-adhesive backing board and will be looking for a better mounting method that doesn't cost an arm and a leg. (I just read an article on garlic scapes, so am imagining winterscapes in a different way!)

Also looking forward to Schenectady Art Attack! in March. The winter is going to fly by!

I have not forgotten about the buddha and incense project, just waiting for the holidays to be over.

I am working on a website for a wellness center in Gloversville. (I just remembered I have other web work to do...where is my "to do" list?!)

I am still knitting and crocheting like crazy, my latest project was a wool kitty blanket with attached catnip pouch for my grandcat. He loved it! I didn't take pictures of it though.

I have not blogged enough about my spiritual journey and will try to pass on things that have been helpful or inspiring.

Okay, that's a beginning! Happy reading and best wishes to all of you for a really rockin' New Year!

On Hiatus

2009-11-17T10:59:00.001-05:00

I made some winter "curtains" for the bedroom windows out of scrap yarn. I didn't have enough yarn of the same color but they are similar so what the heck. I still need to get more bamboo, I don't have enough to put a piece in both tops and bottoms. Also they need blocking, not sure how that's going to turn out since acrylic doesn't block well but maybe they'll just shrink up a bit which would be good. But this just gives you an idea of what they're going to look like. Kind of hippy-dippy but I like them anyway.
I've decided to take some time off from the blog. I haven't been posting much lately anyway. I had been using it as a tool to focus on the positive and I guess that worked because now I don't seem to have as much of a need to do it.
If I make anything cool over the next few weeks I will be happy to share it, other than that I am "off". See you after the new year!

A couple of things: Thank you Deb for blogging about Ovation TV, it is marvelous!

Final art shows of the year: I am in Northville at The Annex on the corner or Main and Water Streets Saturday the 21st from 10 till 2. Also at The Shirt Factory in Glens Falls on the corner of Lawrence and Cooper Streets the 28th and 29th from 10 till 5 both days. Hopefully I will be near Elements of Art and the Craig Murphy studio where I was located last year.

A very good selection of my work is at Artique, 1536 Crescent Road, Clifton Park, in the Exit 8 Plaza.

Abandoned Rock Quarry

2009-11-05T16:30:00.000-05:00

I went down to my son Dave's house today to help him get started on a research paper for school. After that, we explored an abandoned rock quarry on Route 67 between Amsterdam and FMCC. We saw the big bird who presumably uses the nest in the photo but it was too far off to identify, we just caught a glimpse of it as it flew out of sight. It didn't sound like a red-tailed hawk, but I think it must have been that big. The nest was very clean, just sticks. There was a lot of droppings underneath on the "floor" of the building. We found some old bottle and cans around, pop tops and those short-necked beer bottles, nothing too recent. Lots of shell casings in the quarry area too.

Incubating!

2009-11-01T17:19:00.000-05:00

Artique!

2009-10-28T14:55:00.000-04:00

I had more sales in October than in September! And the month isn't even over yet! I am so happy with my association with them. This is what I like to do, stay home and watch the money roll in! Well, I can't stay home all the time, tomorrow I will have to bring down replacement prints. October was traditionally a slow month at my previous co-op, so I am thrilled to see very decent sales at this time of year. Maybe I should get out and take more pictures while I'm at it.

The Wool Beret has a new home

2009-10-28T07:22:00.000-04:00

New Things

2009-10-26T14:17:00.000-04:00

A 3-D, 5-point star!
A crocheted rose!
A 100% natural wool crocheted beret!

I haven't been totally idle...I've been learning new things. I learned how to make the star at Artique last Thursday. These stars in brown, green, and gold are hanging in the shop, they really liven up the space between the displays and the ceiling. The rose is a traditional Irish crochet pattern that I'd never tried till today, they're fun! I made one with yarn and one with ribbon (shown). The beret is modeled after the kippah using the same bead pattern, but of course shaped like a beret. Now I've got to get someone to model it for me! I'm sure it looks better on a head than it does in this photo. This is just a first attempt...some modifications need to be made. It's too open on the top (too lacey). I'll have to close it up for winter hats, although the lacey top might be okay for spring hats made with cotton yarn. Okay, that's the report, back to work!

Another Failed Experiment

2009-10-21T09:23:00.000-04:00

I went out this morning to take pictures of smoking incense sticks for a photo project. The weather was supposed to be mostly cloudy with calm wind. I lit a couple sticks and the smoke blew off quickly horizontal! I guess it's just not going to work outdoors, and do I really want to light 50 sticks indoors?? Not really. So that project is shelved for the time being. Once the sticks are able to stick in the snow I can try it again.

Artique tomorrow 10 - 5

2009-10-15T15:31:00.000-04:00

Blessed are the Peppers

2009-10-14T12:25:00.000-04:00

for they have no skin to peel, and they do not need blanching. 12 quarts of sweet red peppers in the freezer!

After a Raucous Weekend

2009-10-13T07:16:00.000-04:00

I'm going to have myself a quiet day today (I hope!)

Filet Project Update

2009-10-09T10:48:00.000-04:00

Amanda's curtain is 3/4 done, I got a new camera tripod, and I have a 2 day show at Gore Mt. Ski Area Saturday and Sunday the 10th and 11th.

World Series!

2009-10-06T16:04:00.001-04:00

This is my booth at Artique Co-op at the Exit 8 Plaza in Clifton Park.

Today I had lunch (Mexican!) with Tangled Stitch, a creative woman who is in the process of finding her new groove. Since I am a person who has various grooves going, I can identify with being at the "not quite sure this is going to work" stage. I am never quite sure that anything I do is going to work, but I have no fear of failing, because failing is just something that happens. In fact, if I look behind me, I can see a huge mound of experiments that failed. It's more funny than sad though. The only real loser is the one who does not try. And I don't look back too much, only to prevent future failures, haha, as if it were possible....we try not to make the same mistake twice, but there are still many more NEW mistakes to be made!! You have to laugh.

Anyway, I wish much success to Deb and to creative women (and men) everywhere. "It's a hard-knock life".

And we can now watch the World Series because we just got our local channels added to our satellite TV subscription, yay!

Angels and Demons in NYC

2009-10-04T08:36:00.000-04:00

New York has it all! I spent yesterday in the city and went from the World Trade Center in the south to the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in the north (that's where the devil's head came from). The angel is, of course, from the much beloved "Angel of the Waters" Fountain in Central Park. My camera just does not perform well in low light. Add a leaky umbrella and no tripod and what do you get? Not much of anything! I thought my son was bringing his small tripod and so didn't bring my broken one...aarrgggghhhh! I did manage to get something interesting and will probably have one or 2 overlays to show in a few days.

Lost art

2009-09-27T08:03:00.000-04:00

Seen anyone flying a kite lately? This one was up at Crandall Park yesterday (the photo is a composite).
See more shots from Crandall Park on the photo blog. I was going to write a bit about the show but am just too tired, and grandkids coming today...no rest for the wicked.

Interesting Slug!

2009-09-23T11:03:00.000-04:00

Artique update

2009-09-22T09:06:00.000-04:00

I am completely set up now at Artique, and I have already sold enough work to cover my September rent. Yay!
I did not find any suitable glass beads for the kippot at either AC Moore or Michaels, besides the nice black/brown/gold/ that I already have. So now I am looking for a good online source of 4mm seed beads. The ones I saw yesterday look so cheap.

The Frost Cometh

2009-09-20T14:38:00.000-04:00

I can't believe so much time has gone by since my last post. I have been busy getting my Artique display up and running, it is looking better but I still have to put a black cloth at the bottom so you don't see cords and such. I have 11 kipot ready to display as well, need a shallow basket and some signage. I had a handful there over grand opening weekend and sold the green beaded one! The hooks we got for the pegboard do not fit right and I will have to get different ones somewhere.

The other day we went to Barber's Farm near Middleburgh, NY and bought a bushel of potatoes and half bushels of mixed winter squash and hot peppers. I froze the peppers yesterday and it made 12 quarts. We had some of the Delicata squash the other night and it was fabulous.

This Saturday is Colors of Fall art and craft fair in Glens Falls. I volunteered to map and stake out the vendor booth space again this year and will be meeting the amazing Kate Austin there on Friday with the stakes and my trusty 5 pound hammer. This year we are going to drink the beer first!

Today I made hang tags for the kippot and printed up a bunch of stuff I sold out of at the Stockade show. My to do list is still remarkably long...going out tomorrow for beads and hooks, bring the kippot to Artique, and checking out the thread supply at Jo-Ann Fabrics.

Frost last night, fall is coming.

O What a Beautiful Morning!

2009-09-10T07:55:00.000-04:00

Latest Filet Project

2009-09-05T16:43:00.000-04:00

This is one quarter of a panel I am making for my daughter's bathroom, basically this pattern is just going to repeat four times across. Custom designed by me! I love to crochet.
Good thing too, because I am going to be putting my kippahs over at Artique as soon as I can get some more done. I put in an order at Jo-Ann's online on the 1st and they haven't even shipped it yet! I could find no good thread locally. I ordered bamboo in 2 colors and several balls of DMC Cebelia which is the very best. If anyone knows an online source who proceses orders immediately, let me know.