Absence Makes...

*Us. In all our glory. Todd's hair is chopped off now, and he has a full beard, but I like this pic.

...the heart grow fonder, right? Now, when used as one of those pseudo positive/encouraging statements, I pretty much hate that phrase. However, right now? It works.

I've only been away from home one night, and I flippin' miss my husband! I can't even think of anything sassy to say to him when he calls. I'm being sweet as pie, and that's it! Seriously, I'm on the verge of being all mushy here, people.

I adore my husband and all, but I'm just not one of those lovey dovey chicks. More often than not, I'm sarcastic and clumsy-flirty with him. By clumsy flirty, well, that doesn't really need an explanation, does it? I'm am NOT smooth, and I've never really known how to flirt properly, but it works.

I figure my only hope is to get back home before this sticks! :P I hop on a plane tomorrow afternoon, and will be back in good old Alabama before sundown. My adorable huzbun will be waiting at the Birmingham airport for me, and I'm hoping by the time we get home I'll be able to muster some sarcasm.

Wish me luck. And pray! Supervisory Companion is staying here until Saturday, so I have to navigate my way to the airport and fly home alone! Traveling inept and unsarcastic?! I might not make it, people.

P.S. This counts as Nov. 4th's post, so I'm dating it as such. NaBloPoMo!!! ^_^

R-E-S-P-E-C-T

Let me introduce you to Julien. Well, a watercolor of him anyway. He's is one of my best friend's munchkins, and a favorite little person of mine. I like to hang out with him, talk to him and paint him. His little sister's not too shabby, either.

Anyhow, this has always been my favorite painting-of all the paintings I've done. It's called "Any Face You Want", and I just love it. I paint kids and animals a lot, but for some reason this one just stands out.

Wait. Have I mentioned why I paint what I paint in another post? I don't remember, so maybe you don't either.

I usually paint portraits of Respect, Resilience and Strength. So, it's not necessarily a painting of a kid, or critter. It's more an abstracted documentation of the respect that life has for life, and the resilience and strength that I believe all creatures possess to overcome the various forms of disrespect that they have or will most likely be subjected to. Just so happens I see these things in young children and animals.

Okay. Back to Ju-Ju. He has the most interesting ideas, and a very different way of thinking than most little guys. He's been through a lot of change that, like most children, was beyond his control, but he just keeps on truckin'. Quirky and awesome as usual. Personally, I think he's a genius. Though, maybe I'm partial because I've known him since he was born.

Normally, I don't know the kids or animals I paint quite as well as I know him. Maybe that's why it's my favorite?

Networking Fiend

This whole NaBloPoMo thing is paying off, and it's only day two. I've already got some of my readers back! I just LOVE you guys! ^_^

My little blog has been lonely for too long, and my little Etsy shop is still lonely, so I've decided to introduce both of them to The Book of Face! Hopefully Mimsy and MadShiny will make some new friends out there. ^_^

Here's hoping bloggy therapy and handmade goodness are contagious!

Not This Year

It's National Blog Posting Month, folks! You know what that means? A blog post every single day for the month of November. That's what. You in on this?! It's not too late. Go sign up now. Here.

Now, I didn't take part last year, because...well, I had no idea what it was. My dear friend and cohort, Ariana (from The Happy Cactus) was all about it, but I just kept my distance. I wasn't so sure about all that fraternization amongst bloggers, at the time, either. So, even if I'd fully comprehended, I'd have steered clear.

"Not this year!" I say. I am on a mission to get my vast array of readers back, and I'm going to do it one post at a time! You hear me, bloggers? I'm coming to get all *counts on fingers determinedly* 5 of you.

Thick As Thieves

Just a short post, bloggers! I'm waiting on a hot date, and my gorgeous escort, Debra, will be here to pick me up any minute. (Yes, I'm happily married, and no I'm not homosexual, but she's still a hot date.)

Anyhow, I met Debra when I was fourteen years old. My family (of gypsies) had just moved (again). I didn't know a soul in Mountain Heights Estate, and the only kids I saw were like 5. Quite certain my life was doomed, I spent a lot of time riding my bike round and round the block, hoping one of the kindergartners would magically sprout into puberty or something.

Then I saw them. Debra and her sister, struttin' down the road as if it were a runway.

And we've been friends ever since. Debra's sister (Dana) and I aren't so close, but she's a sweetie. Debra and I just clicked. No matter how much time we spend apart, the moment we're back together, we're thick as thieves again.

So, I'm off on a hot date with my dear friend of 13 YEARS! *gag* Having a friend for that long is definitely something I'm grateful for, but it makes me a little nauseous. OLDNESS!

So Much

I have been up to so much lately, it's ridiculous. And since So Much is the reason I've been neglecting my blog, I thought it only fitting that I dedicate a post to it.

First up were the Where The Wild Things Are birthday posters:

I promised some friends of mine that I'd do posters for their munchkin's third birthday. So, I whipped out my copy of Where The Wild Things Are, my watercolors, and voila! Said munchkin dressed up as Max for his party and everything. SO adorable.

And what better gift can you give for a Wild Rumpus party...than a monster?! It took me a few more non-blogging hours to hand-sew this little guy, but I think it was worth it. He turned out pretty fun.

And then there's the cake decorating class that my friend, Annie, and I have undertaken. This coming Wednesday is our last class. We've learned a lot, but we're pretty transport-a-gazillion-things-and-bake-cakes-for-no-apparent-reasoned out right about now.

These guys are the little cupcake toppers I made us as an alternative to the dreaded CLOWN HEADS everyone else gave in to. NO CLOWN HEADS FOR ME, THANKS.

We had to ice little bodies for them. My vampire was a little funky with a ruffly iced bod, but Annie's chicken turned out pretty darn cute. He kind of looked drunk after a while, cause our icing wasn't quite stiff enough to hold up. It was quite entertaining.

And these are the roses (on a lovely beach towel that I brought to cover that germ ridden cake class table) that made it quite obvious that I didn't make my icing the right consistency. They kept sort of morphing into little wilted blobs. :( Practice makes perfect, right?

I've also got a photo of my first cake, but blogger doesn't seem to want me to upload it. Huff. Anyhow, I put a green and orange owlie on it. ^_^

Aaaaaand I made three separate Homecoming shirts for a few of my favorite teenagers. We tie-dyed them, and then I used a textile marker to draw an image on them, and fabric paints to color them in. It was fun, but time consuming. I also have pics of those that this flippin' Mac won't let me upload right now.

So, there you have it-my legitimate excuse for neglecting my blog...this time. Hopefully I'll manage to get those other photos uploaded someday, for your viewing pleasure.

That is all. I've got brownies cooling in the kitchen. They're begging to be decorated.

Story Time!

I'm in the mood to tell a story to all my faithful followers. All *counts on fingers* two of you (Seriously, since I quit blogging/commenting regularly my vast array of readers have given up on me.). :(

So, as I was saying...a story.

Once upon a time, in a land not so far away, there lived a beautiful curly haired queen. Let's call her Heather, shall we? Okay! So, Queen Heather lived in her humbler-than-most-castles castle, with her handsome king. His name was Todd. King Todd.

Well, one day Queen Heather was running late for a very important meeting with her dear friend Princess Ari! Queen Heather should have hopped on her trusty steed, and been on her way to The Land of Hunts like a fortnight ago, but the evil King made her late! He forced her to sleep in, to finish the second to last Harry Potter book, and refused to help her be on time! Forced and refused, I say!

Despite her extremely agreeable nature, the queen decided to challenge the king. Outraged at this, the king threw a sock at her head! Yes, a sock! It hit her hard, but she managed to drag her half-conscious self to the bathroom, and dispose of the sock in the water closet forthright.

This angered the king even more, and he threatened to dispose of one of the queen's most prized possessions-her flesh colored brazier! :O This frightened the fair queen something awful, so she begged the king to have mercy, and he did.

Then the king locked himself away in his study, refusing to see the queen off for her outing. He knew everything was really all his fault, but he was a stubborn king, and slow to accept due blame.

The poor mistreated queen had no choice but to leave without a proper farewell. She bid no one adieu, and parted to The Land of Hunts.

Upon arriving at her destination, the queen sent the king a telegraph. He responded promptly with an apology, and all was well again.

Queen Heather and the fair Princess Ari were then free to be jovial and celebratory, and they all lived happily ever after.

The End

Temporary Insanity

Things are just a bit psychotic, as of late, but I have every intentions of posting/commenting regularly again. Between work and art and guitar and blah de blah de blah I've been having trouble finding the time, but I will...soon. I love you beautimus bloggers!

For now, follow me on Facebook, if you aren't already. Oh, and go check out my Etsy shop, MadShiny. I finally added some more handmade goodness!

See?

I uploaded this sleepy fellow a while back, but for some reason Blogger doesn't like the pics of my newest items. Ho-hum. He'll do for now.

Fantastic Indeed

There's no amount of praise I can give for Wes Anderson, his usual cast of characters, or Roald Dahl that can express just how awesome this is going to be. So, I think you should watch the trailer (again if you must). And you must.



Glorious, isn't it?

"I Disagree With You So Everything You Ever Say Must Be Wrong" Is Not A Good Rule To Live By

Over at Just A Titch today I read about how some people are reacting to President Obama's education speech. You should all go read that speech, btw. Open that link in another tab, folks. If you haven't already, you should really read it.

Having read this message, I am inspired. I find absolutely nothing wrong with it. It's full of truth and positive reinforcement, and I am glad the youth of our country heard it today.

I'm having a really difficult time comprehending how someone could believe that it's an attempt to "brainwash" or "indoctrinate" our country's children into anything other than believing in, and applying themselves to, getting their educations and succeeding in making the world they live in a better place.

So, what's the deal here?! Bashing this man for no apparent reason is not okay!

The only sense I can make of it is that they're scared. People are afraid of a lot of things, for a lot of different reasons, right? So, let's say they're afraid for themselves, their children and country. They're afraid of the unknown. I can understand all that. I'm a worry wart. I totally get the anxiety.

One man leading an entire country is something to be concerned about. We can't read his mind, or see the true desires of his heart. It's stressful, but what's really to fear here is that people have still not learned to harness their ignorance, set their differences aside, and respect and love one another.

If an individual doesn’t care for President Obama’s plans as the leader of our country, that’s one thing. Worry. Talk about it. Fine. But ignorantly (Because OBVIOUSLY they can’t have read his words, right?!) claiming that he’s going to “brainwash” our children with an encouraging, well-written speech about education?! Whatever.

I know I sound like a scripture, or a Bob Marley song, (and I'm fine with either) but love and respect is the answer here, folks! I know it's my belief, and not necessarily shared by all, but I have to say it.

We are all created equal, even if we don't always agree.

I don't normally talk politics. People get angry and opinionated, and I always sound naive and silly with my love and understanding for your fellow man talk, but I had to vent.

To be completely honest, I disagree with a lot of things that President Obama believes in and advocates for. I didn't even vote for him, but he is the President of our country. I have the utmost respect and love for him, and I refuse to be separated or blinded by difference of opinion. The man can make great things happen. This speech is one of them.

Sweet!

I get so incredibly excited about some of the strangest things. At least in my opinion. Maybe it means I'm getting older. I don't know, and I don't care. I'm just anticipating the heck out of a cake decorating class coming up in October. Squeeee!

It's that same excited I used to experience when I was little, and something outrageously amazing, like a trip to the beach, was being discussed. Of course, I was the kid that got excited if a trip to the post office was discussed. It didn't take much. I was just generally happy to leave where I was to go somewhere else. As a matter of fact, I'm still that way. The unknown is full of opportunity, man! :P

Anyhow, I am currently looking forward to a cake decorating class. One of my oldest friends (Annie) mentioned it, and I went berserk. I mean, the potential we have for being awesome at this is pretty high, folks. I'm figuring with our powers combined...we're going to rock this.

What does this mean? What if we are so great at this that it cannot be ignored? We might open up our own little bakery! We could share our awesomeness with the world via things that can make people fat! How wonderful would that be?!

As an artist, this is just one more medium that I haven't tried and I am so looking forward to seeing what can be done.

So, come October y'all better be ready for some photo documentation of my cake decorating debut. I have a feeling it's going to be monumental.