Friday Gratitude

I am thankful for....
1. The beautiful rose Michael gave me and that he is so thoughtful with doing things like that just because
2. That the art book I created gave me lots of satisfaction and that I get to see some wonderful images created by very talented artists when it finds it ways back to me.
3. And to go with the one above...thankful for so much inspiration going on around me right now.
4. Peanut butter sandwhiches!
5. That my migraine cycle seems to be ending.

Altered Book

I have 5 canvas' started. I have 4 altered books going - well 3 altered books and one handmade book. So I have been busy. But I am still fighting some frustration/self-doubts.

But I have been having a lot of fun on prepping this altered book as I am participating in an Altered Book Round Robin. A round robin is where it gets mailed to several people working its way back to original owner/artist. And so then this book will have all different works from different people.

So this is my book for the round robin....

The theme of is Words and Numbers. Eight artists are participating in this round robin.



The cover and then the rest of the book is on my website. Click on each thumbnail to get a bigger view of the book.

Friday Gratitude

Friday Gratitude using the letter ~ I ~

inspiration - there is so much inspiration out in the world. Sometimes I don't see it...maybe I don't want to see it. But more and more I see it...and I really do feel it coming to me more in the last year. I am very blessed to receive it and see it all sorts of forms.

Italian food - I really love pasta and just the flavors that come from Italian cooking...olive oil, garlic, basil I think are 3 staples of my cooking. So I am grateful to all the flavorful Italian food I have eaten and hope to eat for a long long time.

identity - I am grateful to know who I am....and not be afraid to acknowledge this is who I am.

integrity - One word that goes to the core of my beliefs. Integrity keeps me going forward and having faith in people and also lets others know I will not let them down and be true.

Internet - Well this one I am thankful for otherwise I wouldn't have been able to be even posting this fine list! I am very thankful for the Internet. I have met some amazing people via the Internet....including Michael so I am grateful for it.

icons - the little 100 x 100 pixel box that I use in each post because I am a visual person. I like to show emotions, likes and interests in a visual way as well as with words.

improvement - Always room for improvement and I am thankful for just growing and moving forward.

imperfect - I am grateful to be imperfect which kind of goes with the above one of improvement. But really why I am listing it is because I don't like things to be perfect. Especially when creating art. I don't measure. I don't want things even and perfect. I want things to just be as is...flawed, messy and beautiful in that.

India ink - I really like what India ink can do on paper. I am thankful for its inspiration, it movement, its feel from harsh to soft.

iconology - The word iconography literally means "image writing." And it something I have always enjoyed. I look at images and try to see their meaning, intent and significance. I especially enjoy looking at the symbols in religious iconology.

ice cream - yum! I am thankful for the cold cream treat! Ben and Jerry's Brownie Fudge is my favorite store bought in a carton. But Cold Stone Creamery is my absolute favorite. And I don't have a favorite mix or flavor I just go with what sounds good in the moment.

(cropped image of an atc - Into the Flesh V.1)

Living with Pain...

I have had several people ask me about living with pain (migraine pain). I usually don't go a week without one. And at times they are cycles where they last from 3 to 10 days. Every thing and every day with a migraine is measured. I wake up and gauge the level of pain...such as today is a 4...okay I might get away with coding or medium level of housework. If today was a 9 I wouldn't be able to get out of bed. And I would need everything quiet and black.(Pain scale)

Let me give an concrete example...lets say if I was to load/unload the dishwasher. I have to measure all the factors that goes into the task and the environment that surrounds it. So the kitchen has a window over the sink that has quite a bit of light coming through it. It also has a skylight and the adjoining dining room has a window too. So the kitchen is fairly lite up, light hurts my migraine and can cause it to spike if I don't watch it closely. Next smells affect me so the fragrance in dishwasher detergent, some foods residue when rinsing off plates and other dishes might bother me, if I need to scour something a little more I use vinegar and baking powder (vinegar is not the most pleasant smell). When I unload and load the dishwasher I then wipe the sink and counters down the smell of what I clean it with can make my migraine worse. I am overly sensitive to smell with a migraine so if the trash has onion peels from the night before so I could be heading to the bathroom after unloading/loading dishwasher because the smell might get to me. Also my strength when I have a migraine is just not full because if to have to really scrub a pan that is causing me to move more....which makes my heart rate up (even a little) and that causes my head to pound more. Bending up and down over the dishwasher - the motion - can aggravate my head too - making it spike. I am sure there are other factors I am missing too that I have to add in.

So I wake in the morning with a migraine I might not be able to do it because of all the things that go into that simple daily task. If I am lucky I might get to do it in stages...unload the top rack and then walk away for a while. A pain level of 3 or 4 in my migraine, I might be able to unload and load all at once but usually I do have to rest after because I do cause it to spike a little and by rest then I can get it back to a 3 or 4. If I start to push too much I can send it over and make it the pain level spike to a 7 quickly and stay that way for the rest of the day.

The thing about this all....that if I didn't do things when it is a 3 or 4 I would NEVER accomplish anything. But I do have to say some days when there have been a string of them back to back, I wonder where is my quality of life? I feel angry that I don't get to do some things because of the migraine. I also feel guilt because I can't accomplish or keep up with some things because of it.

So there it is...I try to live each day the best I can and get the most I can accomplished and pray and hope that the next day I won't have a migraine so that I can do even more.

(Okay one friend that I was discussing this post with asked me if I had ever heard of the spoon theory. I never had so she sent me a link. It does an excellent job describing it...I am thankful I don't live with something more than migraines...although they suck I know I could be worse off.)

(cropped image - ATC - Lost)

passing this on....

A Fat Girl Rant....

Friday Gratitude (on Saturday)

We had some hard news this week...of friends lossing loved ones. A friend lost his father this week and then we got a call last night and a friend lost her baby who was about 14 months old. We have lots of friends losing family lately. Michael has become one of the people they call first because of his memorial videos just are so touching. So although it is a hard time right now I still wanted to give thanks...for family and friends....they are blessings...each in their own way gives so much to me and I am very grateful.

(cropped image of Time)

Freebies!

Ten Two Studio does a give away for several holidays throughout the year. She has one going right now for St. Patrick's Day. They are free printable images to use in ATC's, artist sketch books and whatnot. Go check them out!

Friday Gratitude

1. Enjoying so many good books lately!
2. The weather being so nice that we have our windows open
3. Aveeno lotion - as my skin feels so dry right now and the lotion makes me feel not so itchy.
4. Casino Royale comes out next week on DVD!
5. Being able to design a new design for Michael's business website so that we can get that up properly.
6. Michael and I work really well as a team with web design
7. Stromboli that I made for dinner this week was oh so good!
8. Mail love!
9. a cup of tea...or a few cups

(crop of an atc - from a themed swap - Into the Flesh)

Graphic Art

The beginning of this month seems to be all graphic art. I have been doing some web design. As well as just playing with photoshop lots. The other day I made up some sample banners for Michael's site. We just kind of slapped something together to have something there. But never got around to actually designing him a nice site. So it is something we hope to be able to get to soon. Anyway, I played with photoshop the other day and came up with some really nice layers to make it look like almost handmade textured paper. I combined that with his photography. He said he loved all of them and will have a hard time choosing so I guess they came out pretty good!

Just a commentary....

* I am a dork.....cute and lovable though according to what Michael says but he does get a chuckle that I get into commentaries. I love listening to the commentary...when they provide them on movies - televisions shows. Michael bought Angel season 4 and 5 (yes we are going backwards but that is when Michael got hooked on Angel so thus season 4 and 5 first). And I am listening to the commentary on season 5 first episode and Joss is so GREAT! Anyway the little tidbits you get from commentary are just so great!

* A little tidbits I learned from commentary season 5 first episode - Joss is a Dixie Chick fan and he put had Fred putting that poster up in her office not only because of the political upset they caused but also because he is a huge fan of theirs. He also saw a photograph in that CD booklet that was of a sign that said "we are changing the way we do business." And he felt Fred was worried she wasn't going to be living up to department head that she was weak and not strong. And Joss thought Dixie Chicks are strong and basically so is Fred and so that would be coming out in season 5.


We ran some errands the other day and then ran into Tuesday Morning. We hadn't been in there in quite awhile. And we ended up buying a few things. When I moved and then moved again I got rid of lots of things like plates, silverware and glasses because those are really things to me that can be replaced easily. A well loved cookie sheet not so easy to replace so I kept things like that but didn't keep some dishes. When I moved in with Michael, him being a bachelor for quite a while he had mis-matched plates and silverware but GLASSES oh my! He had every size and full sets (more then one set on some) of juice, double old fashioned, tumblers, one other size that I think is for like a mixed drink maybe a highball or collins, several different types of wine glasses and then cordial, margarita, champagne, and a couple beer mugs. So we don't ever look at glasses because there are more then enough in this house. Today though of course I spotted on the back of the shelf that had that hand-blown glass feel. A set of 6 - all different colors. And showed them to Michael and he liked them too. He said, "more glasses?" So I am going to get ride of one set for this set.

lately...

• I have been suffering from a pretty big migraine cycle. It finally spiked to the point where Michael and I both thought he might be taking me to the ER the other night. Luckily I got it under control but since then it kind of knocked me on my butt. Yesterday it was still lingering and then today I just felt out of it and tired. So hopefully tomorrow I will feel more like myself. I have housework, website work, and art all piling up.


• We watched Mirrormask tonight. I really enjoyed it, but I liked Dave McKean's art before I saw the movie so I was pretty sure I would like the movie.


• Made yummy breakfast burritos this past week. (just like these.)
  

Friday Gratitude

Doing a letter today....H...

Heart - Heart...so many ways I am grateful for heart...heart of giving and receiving love and warmth and caring. My favorite quote is about following your path with heart and it is how I try to live my life. Times I have wanted to stomp my feet and get mad or am confused and unsure of what to do....I slow down and listen to my heart and it usually guides me clear and sure.

Health - I have migraines. I am not in the best of health but I am thankful for my health. I am thankful for living and breathing and enjoying each day.

Hope - It is a beautiful word with beautiful meaning. A wish for fulfillment of something...I have hope for many things in my life and my art has been my main reason for hope right now. Hopeful of where I am going with it.

Handmade - I love things that are handmade. I am grateful for the time and craft people put into homemade items. Like my slipper socks that my friend made....they are loved muchly.

Homemaking - Okay I am odd I like homemaking. I like making our home nice. I like the art of keeping a house. I like the zen to it.

Humor - I love to laugh...who doesn't...and so good humor is important. Michael has a great sense of humor and we laugh quite a bit.

Hugs - Hugs are good. I am grateful for hugs and the people that give me hugs!

Hands - I have a thing for hands and maybe it is the artist in me to notice other artists hands. They are so beautiful. I also am grateful for my hands....drawing, cutting, creating.

(crop of a design I did in college - Hand)