~~ Ok, so no picture today, as I'm inbetween (that's not a word, but it's MY word, so there...) getting in and out of the studio this morning..and that's why I'm not trying to take a picture of some of the new things I've made ~~

The reason being, the FULL MOON ~~ is driving me crazy ~~ No, I'm not one to go off the deep end and do things that people tell me about 10 years from now..no, no. It's that the effect of the full moon is making little Miss Muffett act just like a 2-year old, trying out every thing known to man to drive the parents NUTZ !!! ~~

First thing that dog does, is at exactly 7 a.m. this morning, I'm sound, and I do mean SOUND asleep, and I hear this cruuunnchhing sound outside the bedroom window..like an animal eating something that's probably not supossed to be eaten...So I bolt upright out of my good and solid sleep, hop up and look out the window just in time, to see the dog digging crud out of the trash bags...

"GET OUT OF THAT!!!" -- I scream so loudly, that it hurt my throat for about 10 minutes afterwards...The Dog goes slinking away, hiding her head the best she can, and I lay back down in bed, trying to calm myself down, and hoping for the best that I get back to sleep.

But Wait!! ~~ YET again, I'm sound asleep, dreaming something that seemed pretty good, and out of the blue, I hear this very loud, "HEY MAAAAA!!!!"

Naturally I once again, but not nearly to a standing position, just sorta kinda sitting up in bed, get to where I'm thinkin I'm aware of my surroundings, and ask very, very shakily, "WWHHAAATT>>??"

"HI!!..You sleepin?"

It's Noah doin' HIS best interpretation of being a Total Pain in The A** >> Which before now I'd considered his Father the One and Only Household Pain in The A**

I'm so irritated, semi-awake, and feeling pretty Pissed Off at this point, and it's not even 8:15 in the morning...So, with this last "Friendly Wake-Up", I finally decided to crawl out of bed, 'cause it sure as $%^#&* didn't look like I was gonna get anymore sleep this morning...

And after having some breakfast (Can't even remember what kind of cereal I ate..maybe like "Cocoa Roo-iess!!!! Loaded With Goodness for You!!" and on my 2nd cup of coffee, when after letting The Dog out yet once again, 'cause she's actin' like she's GOTTA GO RIGHT NOW..I walk back into my bedroom to get something, and wouldn't ya know it..there Little Miss Muffett is, once again, EATING SOMETHING IN THE TRASH ONCE AGAIN...

Never, ever EVAH let it be said that the full moon doesn't effect animals just as badly as it effects humans..'causele' me tell you..let me TELL YOU..IT DOES!!

I've had to yell at that #%"&$#dog 4 times this morning, an' right now it's just after 9:30 in the morning...

LAWDY ~~ If this is what the New Year is going to be like, well..my middle son said that he saw airline tickets to the Florida Keys at their lowest price of the year..an' ya know what? I may jus' check out a couple of those flights outta here, 'cause this ol' girl just ISN"T READY for this kinda $^%*$ to keep goin' on!! Ya know what I Mean??!!


An' I was gonna talk about all the goodies I got done yesterday, but right now I think I'm gonna go an' pour another cup of coffee instead, an' gently ask Noah jus' why the ###%^ he;s running a drill in the wall between the Studio and his bedroom....

Did I mention the Full Moon and It's Effects on Humans..???


I'm Gone..


Lady of The Tulips

One of the newer pieces from the little work table - "Untitled" - 2009 ~~ Spring Bay Studio ~~

I just love the way the papers blended together nicely with this one ~~ I tried to find some other colors at the Art Store a few weeks before, but the cost for the papers I REALLY wanted were so steep that it about made me dizzy. They were absolutely drop dead gorgeous tho, so it almost-sorta-made up for the cost.

Just that some of the household bills were due, and it's sorta hard to tell the electric company that the reason you didn't pay the bill was because you fell in love with some blenders papers, and they had you by the throat on Isle 9 in the Art & Craft Store...

Either the receptionist would think you've lost your mind, or she's never going to step foot in said Ar & Craft store...thinking there are horrid and frightening things going on that she'd rather not encounter.


Which is fine, 'cause then there'd be more papers for sale that I could grab when the $$ were actually in the checking account!! Ha!!

But anyway, while the project over on the table is drying with the first coat of papers and matte medium, I'm getting ready to cut out little flowers..they have a wonderful gold sheen to them, and they'll look pretty good against the darket blues and grey-greens that I've just put on the canvas. The little flowers were on some paper that I bought some years ago (helps to look in the storage boxes every now & then to see what's hiding on the bottom...sheesh...) but I couldn't ever figure out what to do with gold edged flowers. Boy, what was I thinking??!! There are so many things, but I guess my brain wasn't in the right gear at the time.

But now all things are coming together, and it's time to get them into Party Mode...No, not because it's almost New Years Eve ~~ Tho I'm sure there are some people who would take that excuse and run with it. I'm about the last person who'd be a Party~Hardy type on the eve of the new year...Look, it takes me over 2 weeks to go thru a lousy 6-pack of beer, thats how "Party" I am!! Tom & Noah and the other 2 always make fun of me, tellin' me "Boy, your the party animal..." Whoo- Raww!! Tha's right, let's go get crazy...

Fat Chance!!

But anyway...where was I ??!! ~~ OH ~~ Yeah, the paper ~~ Yup, it looks like it just wants to jump up and dance the night away, so it's put me in a pretty good mood..even tho The Husband called earlier and said he had a flat tire in the parking lot of 7-11 while getting gas....sheesh...

I'm Gone...


Lady of The Tulips

"Fly In Your Heart" ~~ 2009 Spring Bay Studio

Here's one of the pieces that just got finished before the bulk of the Holiday Madness descended on us -- I had fun playing with a group of pens that had been sitting around the work table -- and then I also had to mess with some papers that just cried out to be added in with the fun.


Now the "Holiday Hangover" begins -- Let me say first off, that there is no ACTUAL hangover, just the feeling of being tired, run-over and the overwhelming sense that there was something that happened, but I'm not sure what it was.

Actually it was a lot of fun - I don't think I've laughed as much or as hard as I did during Christmas Day ~~ My middle & oldest were absolutely a HOOT - the oldest kept trying to tell me that some of my very old, worn-out utensils were "GROSS!!" 'cause they've seen far better days, and there fore they need to be thrown away. Hey, look, those were FREE at a yard sale, an' who can do something like THROWING AWAY something that didn't cost one thin dime?!!

And during his rant/lecture, the middle one was feebly trying to find, in order, the bottle opener, a measuring spoon, (or spoons), looking for a potholder, trying to see if the dishes got washed in the dishwasher and several other things, all at the same time, and himself, keeping a non-stop commentary on the Whole Expedition...

I had tears in my eyes, I started to choke from laughing so hard, and once the laughter got so bad, then the oldest got even louder, saying, "IT'S NOT FUNNY"..

Which of course, made me laugh even harder...

And that was all before 1 p.m. in the afternoon...

No wonder I feel worn out!! ~~ Ha! ~~

So now, I'm going to start putting together one of the collages that I've been cutting papers into squares, triangles and other odd shapes for - I've fallen in love with the package of papers I bought from 7Gypsies...yummy colors that combine so beautifully with other packages I've bought. Not the same company, but somehow 7Gypsies seems to have a knack of making their colors blend pretty seamlessly with other companies. I'm not one to try to figure it out...all I know is that they go together realy well, and that's all that matters!!

OOP ~ TheHusband is back - lawdy mamma, I better go find out what kind of damage he's done to the checking account....yikes...


Lady of The Tulips

~~ Here's a Very Quick Post, but with a Very Full Heart!! ~~

A BIG Hug & the Very Best of Christmas Wishes for Everyone!! ~~ And a quick note to say that all of you DESERVE nothing but the BEST!! ~~

I've got to go out to the kitchen & see what the "Boys" are doing with the turkey and the veges! ~~ ACK! ~~

We aren't in the tropics, but the thot and attitude is MOST definetly there!! ~~

All of you have a jolly time, and I'll be back in touch later!!

>> Lady of The Tulips <<

"Fish And Friends Having Fun" ~~ 2009

Spring Bay Studio


Here's a little something I got finished a few weeks ago, but for some reason, I never got it posted on Here ~~ Boy oh boy, I jus' don't know some days why my brain just takes a quick vacation and doesn't warn me ahead of time.


But this little piece was lots of fun to put together, and what with all the cold, cold bad weather a lot of the nation has been having, and is getting ready to have again, it seems kinda like a breather lookin' at some fish in a tropical setting, just havin' a good time an' enjoyin' playing around. Once the storm hits the middle of the country, I'm betting there will be more than enough people who would love to do exactly the same things these fish are doin' - Havin' Fun in a Warm Tropical Setting!! Yes!!

Tha's not going to happen around here, tho - and I'm not sure it will any time soon...just one of those pre-Holiday Dayz where the bulk of the house cleaning got finished, and it has made this poor little Lady about WORE OUT!!! ~~ Why I did 98% of the cleaning in all one day is beyond me, but that's what happened...Maybe I'm just a sucker for punishment! - But at least all that stuff is DONE, so now once the middle son gets here, I can sit back and not have to be thinking.."Ummmm..gotta clean that, oohh, and That...Ghads..That TOO!!" -- How many holidays are pretty well shot when those nahhsty little thots creep in, instead of just sitting around Enjoying the Day!!

So ~~ There!! ~~ All the nahhsty thots are Hereby Banished!! -- No Fretting on things not finished around the house!!! All of those Persons who would look at a window corner and see dust and grumble about it! ~~ HUSH!! ~~ No comments on Dust Bunnies!! ~~ No grumbling over carpet not vacuumed Just Right!! ~~ AND ~~ No Mentioning of Things That Don't Look Clean!! ~~


It's the Holidays, so just CHILL OUT!! ~~ Have a nice glass of Eggnog (Watch it!!) - and enjoy what the holiday means ~ Celebrating the Christ Childs Birth!! ~~ Enjoy one another -- Don't Brag about your job, just ENJOY TIME TOGETHER!!

And worry about Dust Bunnies some other day!!


Merry Holidays!! ~~ From Lady Tulips and all her Tropical Friends!!


Lady of The Tulips

~~ Ok, so now photo today ~~ Tha's cause it's just too darn cold for me to go out and get the pictures of all the little teeny birds that are now flitting all OVAH the yard this morning. Most of them will only be here for the winter, as it's just wayyyyyyy too cold where they live during the Spring & Summer seasons ~ Canada and other points north from here.

We live in a Wildlife Sanctuary, so there is no killing of any animals thruout the neighborhood. And so, that means that all the migratory birds have a Field Day, knowing they are safe and sound for the Winter. And much warmer here than where they flew in from.

That being said, yes, we did have that wonderful weekend storm, where it tried really really hard to snow - even along the shore here...but the weather did something weird, and the snow ended up landing just north of us - not all that far, but far enuf that we only saw pictures of it on the evening news. People saying "Would ya believe it!?" ~ Or, "Boy, it's a cold one, huh?"

People resort to basic speech when they walk outside and see their house under 2 feet of snow for the first time in something like 45 years...


Ok, maybe not THAT long, but when it hits like a sledgehammer the way it did over the weekend, people do DO get a little shell-shocked over the whole thing.

We just went shopping in the rain, got my old tennis shoes good & soaked, and once home, realized that where the sole has seperated from the bottom of the shoe...well, funny thing, it LEAKS - but that will give me reason to go and but something NEW this next weekend..AFTER the christmas Rush-Buy-After-Christmas-Sales is over an' done.

But, we got a couple things - well, actually, Tom got a gift card from his work, so with that I made a bee line to buy some basics (But never think to buy them with our own money, know what I mean?) - Slippers and socks ~~ on sale @ Penny's ~ Then argued with tom over what he wants for christmas ("Nooo, don't get me anything, I don't need anything, I'll be FINE without anything...) so feeling a headache the size of an island coming on, I made him drive me over to Big Lots where I went nearly into a dancing fit - lots and lots of Art and Craft supplies for Crazy prices...$1.50 for some fabric ribbon..denim with little teeny beads in the shape of flowers..some Grungeboard pieces, also for $1.50 -

I MEAN ~~ How could I NOT buy these things? ~~ An' since The Husband was in his "Oh Woe is Me" phase, and giving me no clue on Christmas Wishes..I said The He** with it, and grabbed as many craft/Art supplies that I could carry in me little hands. Heaven, that's what it is !! To be able to find those supplies you've been moping over, wishing you could afford them, an' then in nothing short of a Miracle on Isle 5, there they are..and for LESS THAN $4.00 EACH --

I love good Art Sales, don't you?

And now back to what I was talking about...uhmm..

I don' remember what I had been talking about.

So, I'm going to go and mess with some of the little supplies I found on Saturday..and try to finish the last christmas gift I've been dancing around for the last week...

But I'm secretly hoping I can find a way back to the town so I can go back to BigLots an' grab some more of those grungeboard pieces before they'll all disappear....Hee Hee!!!!!


Lady of The Tulips

~~ "Beach" ~~ 2009 Spring Bay Studio

Here's another one of the canvases I finished this week - got it done before I had to get ready for a couple events with our church ~ There are so many things in this piece, but it felt good to get them all Over it! - It makes me feel like goin' over to the Outer Banks an' just doin' nothing for the next 5 months -

I'm trying to finish some little christmas projects - I know they were supossed to get put in the mail way before today, but the thing is ~ Where is that RUSH that one gets when the DEADLINE is just looming over the head? ~ Certainly not there if you know you've got something like 10 days ~ Oh No~~ The fun thing is to wait 'till the very very Last Minute, then work like a Mad-Man, and let the full-on PANIC descend on you like a herd of cattle ~ Well, maybe not the cattle, but the rush business is definetly the part you need to get things DONE!!

I have no idea how I'm going to wrap the things I'm making, let alone get them into a box that's going to arrive at it's destination SAFELY ~ Oh, I know the Post Office sez they take every safety measure possible to make sure your christmas packages arrive safely..Look, I rode with The Husband in his tractor - trailer for a few years, and I KNOW what those distribution centers and warehouses look like inside...to say that it's a miracle more people aren't smooshed under huge boxes is an understatement, let alone say that the packages themselves are full of breakable items.

The breakable items sometimes don't stand a chance, if Bob is working the forklift, and is in a bad mood 'cause his girlfriend just left him for her old high-school sweetheart...so Said Bob is taking his anger out on those poor defenseless boxes he's supossed to be "Careful" with..

Ok, that was a little bit of a rant on why boxes don't always get to their destination the way they should...

But that's not really what I wanted to talk about ~

I'm trying (tho badly) to say that I NEED to get my work done that is Christmas Gifts, but instead, I've gotten interupted 3 times by text messages from our oldest son...gotten a phone call from a friend, who sez I need to wait 3 more days to have the stitches taken out where the vet sewed up The Dog..an also the walking back & forth down the hall to the dining room, where the wood stove is, and it's 15 degrees warmer than it is back here in the studio...

But I Shall Persevere~~ or however that word is spelled ~ You get the idea, tho, right>?

Must Paint!!

I'm Gone..........


Lady of The Tulips

"Free To Be Me!" ~~ 2009 ~~ Spring Bay Studio

I was sitting on the floor the other day, going thru some of my storage boxes, deciding whether or not to throw away more of the old canvases I'd discovered not too long ago. Some were just so bad, I threw them back in the box, deciding that there will be another day to go thru those.

Some of those that were bad, but looked like they had potential to be re-made, were put into another pile, and from these, this particular canvas got a second life. It's first was so bad, that the Warden had to be called in to review the file on the thing ~ I mean, it was a real crime how bad that thing originally looked.

But with a little bit more color, some markers and beads, fibers and fabric, I think I've brought it back to life. There wasn't much the Warden could say on this one,'cept maybe to go ahead and grant parole ~ The thing had had better days ahead, and it was all agreed that this would be the Day of Freedom. ~~ Thus the title, "Free To Be Me" ~~ Clever? ! Shhurreee.....

There is another piece sorta loose and crazy like this one, over on the table drying. And I've got one done that is somewhat less crazed, but still has that feeling of going out on a limb ~ And instead of falling off the cliff, it's gone ahead and started floating in the sky, releasing all it's pent up anger, stiffness and dullness ~~ Gone on to where it's gonna be experiencing Fun, Freedom, and lots more than sitting in a corner and being a wallflower.

That's what the holidays can do to a person...make your brain just sorta short-circuit and do what it wants to do, instead of doing all Those Things that "They" say to do ~~ Go buy THIS!! ~~ Go get THAT!! ~~ BUY THIS RIGHT THIS INSTANT OR I'M TELLING YOUR MOTHER!!!

Maybe it's just that little streak I've got that sez Ta H*** wid it ~ I'm goin' to do THIS whether you like it or not.

Kinda like wearing spats when you know you should really be wearing Sensible Shoes..

So, with all that, I'm off to get another layer of paint on the existing paint that I just spent 2 hours on...I seem to be getting my wind back, after yesterday's horrid news. A good slap on the head always does wonders for a person ~ gives ya a better outlook on Life. ~~

I'm Gone ~


Lady of The Tulips

>> "Fish in Celebration" - 2009 <<

Spring Bay Studio


Here's something I messed with in the paint-box whatever thingie in my computer ~~ I wanted to make it look sorta-kinda Christmasiee, and Sea-Underwater at the same time...don' know if I succeeded or not, but it was a lot of fun in the meantime!!

And I've also rearranged my page! - Got a Harbor View on the background instead of the one I used to have ~ Thot with all the Shoreline things I do, and the mermaids and all that, well, it seemed a little more in keeping with the work I create to make the background a little more together..know what I mean? I may not have written that all coherently, but I know what I mean...

Besides that, there is the other fact that I didn' get much sleep last night ~ Seems that our middle son has had something of a disaster while living in San Diego these last couple weeks ~ His girlfriend has had a major breakdown after arriving there, and has had to be hospitalized..Major Breakdown. So, this has created some ill-will with the roommates, and now our son doesn't even know if he can still stay in the apt. he's only been in for less than 2 months. A Very Ugly Scene, to say the least. He's dealing with the Hosp. for his girlfriend, her parents, her health care, and possibly relocating her to the East Coast..and him as well. Far too much for one person to handle with ease, so needless to say, he happened to call here this morning at 2 a.m., and proceeded to "chat" for 2 hours..

Somewhere around 4 we got off the phone, him just a little loopy, and me just wondering what's goin' on ~ Well, it's all very fluid at the moment, but it looks like he'll be moving back to the East Coast as well, possibly staying with us for awhile, then re-saving the money he's lost due to the Horror of what happened with the girlfriend and roommates...

It's all quite a Mess.......

So, I'm trying to stay somewhat focused at the moment...plus The Husband is stuck up on the Maryland border, with a load of freight that should have been taken care of this morning around 11 -- it's now nearly 4 p.m., and he's Still Waiting for the warehouse to do their work..(Don't you just hate to have to THINK somebody will do their job??!! I MEAN!! ) ~~ ) Ok, so a little sarcastic, but STILL>>>>

Where was I ? ~

Oh yes..Tom's stuck at a warehouse door, doesn't know if or when he'll get back to the truck terminal tonight, and it's looking like he's not even going to be able to get home 'till tomorrow night......

Whatta weird Monday....

But I do have some other canvases to show here -- just not right at the moment, 'cause I didn't take a picture of them yet....been trying to add some gadgets to my blog, but they aren't doing what the instructions say their going to do...

Maybe it's time to book that trip to the Florida Keys for the duration of the winter...

Ahh...just think...warm sandy beaches...

Cool Tropical Drinks....

Laying in the sand with the warm Ocean Breeze drifting all around......

And now I gotta go check the woodstove an' make sure the fire hasn't gone out..

Must think these things over...continue with the 30 Degree temps for the next few days, or blow it off an' head South?????????????


I'll let you know........


Lady of The Tulips

Untitled ~ Spring Bay Studio ~ 2009

Here's one canvas that had been partially finished not too long ago ~~ But I felt it needed something more, 'cause it just looked too darn sad. So, some more paint, papers and some other goodies, an' now it looks like it feels much better. Sorta like a nice swim in the sea with friends. Yeah. Tha's the ticket!

Not much else goin' on here, 'cept that there are some papers that need to get cut and some others that I'm having second thots about using. Sometimes the first flash of inspiration seems so perfect, then once all the elements get put side by side, ohh the disapointment! ~ What seemed really wonderful suddenly looks like a bad hangover gone wrong. If there is such a thing! ~ So, it's back to doing some rearranging and some more placement here and there...an' then something is bound to jump up and down for me! ~~

There is also some lists to be made for the weekend ~ I told Tom that I need a long winter coat, 'cause it's been something like 10 years since I had one..and with it as cold outside as it is, and only getting colder, the last thing I need to do is stroll outside and discover that my body has suddenly come to a screaching halt. Frozen in Place, as it were....

Makes things very inconvient..or however that's supossed to be spelled...

Hey, look, it's FRIDAY - my brain wants to take off an' go cruise across the Sound..there's going to be some concerts across the water this weekend, an' they sound like FUN ~~

Jus' have to figure out how to get across Said Water....

I'm Gone.........


Lady of The Tulips

"Relax" ~ 2009 ~ Spring Bay Studio

This is the canvas I mentioned the other day - you would not believe how bad the original looked..I MEAN ~ it was nothing to discuss in Polite Company, if you know what I mean.

Kinda like the old episode of Seinfeld where Elaine looks at Jerry, when people were making fun of her dancing, and she very sadly asks,

"Jerry, Do I suck?!"

Well ~~ this canvas said more than that ~ It Really did suck, and it was so bad that I threw almost all of the papers away that were originally on the thing. I don't know what I was trying to do, or where the idea for the mess came from, but trust me, it was really bad.

Not to say that this is truly the bees-knees, but it's a far cry from what it had been just days ago.

And ~~ To make matters even more bizarre ~ The Husband waltzed in the cabin door the other day, all early and not even near 5 p.m. in the afternoon..Scared Me To Death. I thot immediately that something bad happened..like he hauled off and smacked the Terminal Manager across the face 14 times or something.

Ends up that the Holiday Season is here, and since all the Christmas Goodies got delivered last summer and early fall, now all the Spring Things are pretty much where they need to be, so the holiday slowdown is starting to take shape. Not so many freight moves for anybody, and the people working the Ports are taking their sweet time doing anything....So,my fear quickly went away.

But now it's a rethinking of the Christmas Presents for the rest of the family that haven't gotten purchased. Some tightening of the belt, just a little bit more, and then some creative ideas have got to start popping up. That's ok, 'cause the 2 left are Tom & Noah, an' it almost doesn't matter what I get them, they are nowhere near picky ~ Some socks, maybe a package of tshirts...

Their pretty basic guys.

No Big-Screen T.V.'s for our family.

Maybe a new rocking chair for the front porch of our little cabin.

That's about it.

But I Do feel bad for some of the other drivers families, since some of them have small children, and you just can't tell them that the Freight People are off on winter holiday an' won't be back to work till after New Years. That just doesn't cut it. Just keep them in your thots and prayers, for sure.

Must go and get some papers lined up ~ Cutting squares and some circles today..I know that sounds weird, but it's all gonna work out in the end. Wheeeeeeeeeeeee


Lady of The Tulips

>>Just so you can get an idea of the height of this plant, here's a shot of it where I sorta stood back to get at least a full shot of it.


It's really taken off ~~ Just thot you'd like to see what it's doing...



Lady of The Tulips

A few weeks ago, this houseplant in our front room started getting this little shoot, straight out of the top of the plant ~~ I didn't know what to think about it, just thot that it was going to develop some new leaves or something..

Then it started to get these wonderful flowers on it - and they kept growing and growing ~ Getting longer along the main stem, and then they just sort of sat and didn't do anything.

Until yesterday.

I had come back from another trip to the Vet Hosp. - Sara had caught one of her nails on her back right foot on some of the stitches along her belly, so that was a disaster..but she got all patched up and sent on home.

But she isn't what this is all about ~~ This is about walking into my front room, to sit down and just relax and turn on some jazz on the satellite dish. Sort of listen and zone out for all of maybe 5 minutes. That'd be enuf to get me feeling better.

Then I noticed this fragrance sort of drifting around the room.

No, The Dog didn't fart. Tho she is known to do such things, and clear out a room at the same time.

Nope ~ This is about these beautiful flowers, growing from the top of my house plant ~~ They suddenly decided to open out, with their tubular petals all open, and giving the room the most amazing fragrance I've ever smelled. I mean, FOR REAL ~~ The fragrance is something like a gardenia plant in full bloom in the middle of summer ~~ Very intoxicating, rich and full. Smelling it makes you feel like your in the tropics, with a nice cool drink in your hand, while your sitting on a soft and dreamy couch, on a long and wonderful porch.

Well, our front room isn't quite all that. But the fragrance from these flowers is. I mean, it was so suprising, I can't begin to tell you how wonderful these are. I thot the plant was a Indian Rubber Plant ~~ But noah sez it's totally something else...some name I've never heard of. I've had the plant for YEARS - it finally got growing much better after we moved down here - it has this somewhat sunny location along the wall - and it has probably grown 2 feet since last summer.

Same pot, same soil. Different location.

Go figure.

But I wanted to share this with you ~ It is just pretty amazing to me. I've never seen one of these plants bloom, and I've also never seen one get quite this tall before. But I'm not a botanist, so I'm not sure what to say ~~

'Cept it's pretty spectacular!

I'm Gone....


Lady of The Tulips

"Let's Get Goin'!" ~~ Spring Bay Studio 2009

Here's a little mermaid that I finished not too long ago ~ Well, actually it was awhile ago, and I can't even remember when I got her done. My brain sometimes just goes somewhere else, and then I realize that it's out in Left Field, and needs to come in to the dugout...

But besides that ~ I got an email from my son who recently relocated to Calif. ~ He's got a job for now ~ Not anything to jump up and down about, but it's a JOB!! ~~ He'd transfered out there with the company he'd been working for here on the East Coast...got told that he'd have the same job out there ~~ Relocated after selling most of his music equipment and car ~~ Just to find out that once he was out there, there isn't a job with the company he transfered for/with. ~~ Which begs the question, just what the $^&**(_)*#$ is Goin' On!!?? So, he's had to scramble to get something goin', and fortunately found a little job ~ For now it's good, and hopefully in the future the company he transfered with/for/to (whatever..) will get a position back/for him ~~

It's too much for my head to take, know what I mean?

And the GoodNews Here is that Sara is feeling better today - yesterday she had a couple fits where she couldn't breathe good ~ Sounded like some of the old cowboys I used to know way back in the day ~ Hackin'-Coughin-Cussin 'cause they had such bad lungs from smoking handrolled cigarettes ~ Sara DOES NOT smoke hand-rolled cigarettes, but does still have some small lesions on her right lung from the cancer. So, there are times where she has to really work hard to breathe...scares me and her about half to pieces. She gets the most horrible sad puppy face on her ~~ Just tears me apart to listen to her, then have to look at her while she's suffering thru the fits. Fortuntely they only last a couple seconds to maybe a minute or so.

But the sound is horrid. I don't want anybody else to have to hear something like it ~ EVAH!!

But she's tired today from all the excitement of going to the Vet Hosp., and riding in my friends car ~ All a Very Big Thing for her ~ Poor Baby!! ~ And she's laying down in the laundry room, watching Noah paint out the box for the firewood. She loves him to pieces, and follows him around like a sweet little 2 year old ~ Very Cute, even if I don't mind saying so myself. So, for now it's ok ~

Got another canvas in the works - it had been put up in the top part of my antique hutch who knows how long ago - never got done, and still had papers stuck on it with double stick tape from probably 3 years ago...no, mnaybe 2 years ago. So, the pieces that I didn't want got torn off ( I mean, they were really some BAD fish I painted...yuck!) ~ and now I've got some of my new papers from 7Gypsy's on it instead.

Much Better!!

So, once all the paint and goodies dry, I Will post it on here ~~ Not space out for another month or whatever, saying Oh! ~ Here's a Canvas .... an' then go off into No Man's Land...The Husband sez I need to start taking Ginko Biloba (Spelled wrong, so oh well...) for my memory ~ Maybe it's gonna help me with my spelling too.....

Gotta Run ~
I'm Gone


Lady of The Tulips

WIP -

Tha's all - gotta run........

~~ Just another quick post, as I am absolutely WORE OUT!! ~~

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving !! Lotz of fun and food - the oldest son did bring the turkey, DEFROSTED - and he even admitted he splurged on it! - And the results were fabulous - yummy yummy, and then after all that , we had fresh pumpkin pie..veges..all the goodies.

But -- we had a disaster just after we got thru with the dinner.

Sara had been pacing back and forth for about a half hour - we didn't think there was anything wrong with her - she'd been outside to do her business, so all that was fine. I was just about to get some pie for tom, when the dog walked into the dining room, and noah took one look at her, and said, "Uhh..Dad - We have a problem.."

Her cancer spot had started to drain badly, and it didn't look good.

I immediately got the vet hosp. on the phone, and in literally a miracle of a moment, got the vet to answer his pager. He told us to wrap the dog with a towel, and bring her in to the hosp immediately.

The vet wasn't even supossed to be in the hosp. that day..

But miracles happen when you least expect them..and we had one on Thanksgiving Night.

The dog got sedated, calmed down, and cleaned up. She was held overnight, and on friday the vet decided to go ahead and operate on the large cancer tumor Sara had on her side, plus a smaller one that had started to develop as well.

Saturday she was able to come home!! YAY !! Let me say again, YAY!! ~~

Miracles happen and we just are so grateful to Him for giving us one with our dog Sara.

I went back to the vet today, a friend drove us to the hosp. - And the Vet is just tickled to pieces with the progress sara has made - she is healing faster than the dr. had thot, and she is breathing somewhat better..(Cept when she gets all excited, but then she calms down and her breathing comes back to normal again..)

We are saying prayers of Thanks!! -- For Sure ~~ And are so glad our dog is with us for awhile more.

We are also starting to get into the swing of the Holidays - I do have some more shopping for the oldest and middle son, but for the most part, they have almost all their presents. YAY!! -- And this weekend, it looks like the rest will get picked up, and then it's the basics for The Husband & Noah.

Shwoooo!!!! ~~

>>So, that's it for now - I have to go check the dogs stitches, and make sure she's comfy out in the living room...I am wore out from holding on to her in my friends car -- The Dog had an "accident" in the car on the way to the vet hosp.~~ Yikes!! ~~ But it's all cleaned up now! - YIKES !! ~~ Did I say that yet??!

So - I think I'll go lay down on the couch with the dog...

P.S. - I think the Vet. Dr. will have a good summer vacation next year by the time all of this bill is said and done.....sheesh...


Lady of The Tulips

>> Just a quick post, as there are so many things around here to start getting ready for the weekend <<

I'm just finishing part of a new canvas, so that's drying over on the work table, and while that goes along, now I have to go out in the kitchen and start putting things together for tomorrow - seems like a good idea to start baking some of the goodies for Thanksgiving a tad early, that way when our oldest gets here from the city, then I'll be able to spend time chatting with him, instead of being all harried and irritated in the kitchen. And there just isn't enuf time during the day on Thursday to hear all the news from old friends that our son keeps up with, AND be baking the deserts, dressing, and that big ol' bird. ~~ Whoo - Hoo ~~ And Said Son will be bringing the bird with him...

Let's just hope he has it DEFROSTED by the time he gets here! - Yikes ~ Tom asked me if I thot that the bird would still be frozen when it gets in the cabin...uhh...lets just hope not..

Well ~ actually, if it IS frozen, then it's gonna be ok, 'cause tomorrow most of the other things will already be done! - Yay! -

Nothing like Planning Ahead! ~ Shwoo, there's something to be said for figuring things out, now, isn't there?!

Must Run -

oops...where did my notebook paper go that has my Pumpkin Pie receipe on it ~ uh-ooh...


Lady of The Tulips

"She Said, Ooh, La, La, I'm Going to Cut Loose!!"

I think I've shown this piece recently, but it seems to fit just about right at this time of year. People are starting to get stressed out over the Holidays - Family members are showing up at homes, where they haven't shown up for, le's see - a Year? -- And then there are also those children who will be tagging along with some family members - never seeming to fit the description that their parents write about during the rest of the year - "So well behaved! - All his teachers just rave about his wonderful behavior!!"

And this goes thru ones mind when they just happen to glance over, and notice Little Joey, grabbing those nice, expensive, Bought-On-A-Splurge tassles on the front-room curtains, $25.00 each, and Sweet-Adorable-Little-Joey is wonderfully pulling said tassles to absolute SMITHEREENS...

Ahhh, yes, the Holidays.

FORTUNATELY - those days haven't hit this household yet..we only have the son from up in the City coming down for the Turkey Day Festivities - And he'll be bringing nothing that would match some horrid little child/relative...he'll be bringing the Turkey (!!!) and will undoubtedly have some new CD's to sample for us - Mostly some very Up-Tempo Bluegrass that makes ya want to dance yer toes off. And that's just fine with me! - The more Cheerfull-ness, the better!! And along with all the goodies, we'll be having fresh pumpkin - pumpkin pie - Yay! - Noah did a Good Thing, and froze up all the pumpkin he cleaned up and pre-steamed for us. Again, Yay!! Now All I gotta do, is mix it with the wonderful Pumpkin Pie Spice, throw in the mild and eggs...YUM!!

So, that's what's gonna be happening in a couple days.

But, I'm sure there are some of you, who, like the mermaid at the top of the page, who would GIVE YOUR EYE TEETH to be cuttin' loose, grabbin' a good Tropical Drink, and goin' off ANYWHERE ELSE but where you are, stuck with the In-Laws, plus, the Rotten Other Relatives Children...

Ok, You have my permission to just haul off, and go ahead, and BOOK THAT FLIGHT TO FLORIDA --

There...

And, don' forget to pack the Suntan Lotion.

I mean, after all, if your gonna hit the beaches, you BETTER take some lotion, so you come back to the Rest of The World, glowing with a Great Tan, and rub it in the In-Laws Face.

Works for Me....

I'm gone...


Lady of The Tulips

"Ocean" - 2009 Spring Bay Studio

Here's one of the canvases that got finished up just at the start of last weekend. The fun thing was getting all the little fish attached to the canvas, then playing with all those paints. Tom must have thot I'd lost my marbles, 'cause I was just about jumping up and down, kinda dancin' around my little work table, doin' this and that while getting all this put together.

He just doesn't want to have fun, that's all it is.

And there is still another canvas on the work table, and it's getting dry as I sit here. I'd wanted to get a picture today of the yard outside..Noah has been raking leaves for the whole week, and about the time he gets one section done, then the wind blows, and all the other trees start flinging their leaves on the ground. Ah well, at least it's lottsa good exercise for him. Good thing he's young, 'cause other wise it'd just about make other people fall slap over.

But that's not what I wanted to say.

What I WANTED to say, is that it's been dreary here, with little sprinkles, then some rain, then some HARD rain...it's been like this for the last 2 days. But there will be a teeny moment where the sun does come out, and it looks wonderful - lots of color in all the hardwoods, and it just makes it so wonderful - Fall in All It's Glory - that kind of thing. But then, I go outside, and once on the deck or porch, I remember that the camera is INSIDE the house...and once in here, then I start to paint or something, totally forgetting to get a picture of the FALL COLORS out there...

sigh...

And now here comes my interuption - every time I've tried to get something done on the computer, then noah comes in the hall, sighs LOUDLY - then I have to stop everything and go away. Leads to a feeling of having GIN or something.

Not that I would..

But the irritation is definetly there...know what I mean?

I mean, how do you get something done when about 1.23% of the work has to end..don't even get 1/4 of the way STARTED..

Starting to rant about getting thrown off the computer..

So I better just GO and Then I'll Be Back.
Ha! -

Lady of The Tulips

>> Just a quick post, and a little shot of the mermaid that has been hanging out over on the antique hutch -- she said she was going to sit and behave, so I'm going to guess that she will. Some days there are things that one has no control over..

I had a full, fun day yesterday - Got to go into Trader Joe's with a friend - Wow! - My poor brain just about went into overdrive, and it was so hard to just pick up a couple things that I knew I needed - things for christmas, mostly - but I won't tell what they are, 'cause if the people who they were purchased for, happen to read this, then it wont be ay kind of a suprise now, will it? ! So , I will say that the prices are what everybody who's told me about the store -- well, those prices are really not easy to beat. Great thing that there are soo many organic products - lots of choices of Evertything..There will be another trip up to the city to get More Stuff, thats for sure!

And I went to a very nice meeting for church first thing in the morning - had a wonderful speaker, and had some good tea, and some desert - Yum! - And got to meet some people who I'd never met before, so that was fun too - Shwoo! - Lottsa stuff for one day!!

Well, gotta run - there is a warning that's flashing for me just over there..see? == No! - Over THERE>>> Yeah, what's up with THAT?! - Guess I better get ahold of noah an' tell him this is goin' on...jeesh..


Lady of The Tulips

"Albemarle Sound " 2009 Spring Bay Studio

This is another piece where I incorporated texture and added some painting with some odds and ends that I scrounged up from the hardware store - it was sOO much fun! - I got good and messy, playin' with all the goodies, and when I went into the kitchen to get cleaned up, tom took one look at me, and didn't even bother to ask what I'd been doing. Good Guy, that ol' fella...there are just times where it's best not to say a word, know what I mean? He didn't say anything about the finished product, so I don't know whether or not he likes this piece, but there are a lot of my work that he flat out does not like. Somewhere around the 85% range. Oh Well. I think in the back of his mind, he'd rather I got to work at the Mart Place, so I could have a "Real" job, and quit messin' around with my paints. Our one son Definetly thinks that way - matter of fact, when I show him any of my finished canvases, he refuses to look at any of them. Thinks I'm just wasting my time. A great boost there for my self esteem. Go Team...

So, me? - I keep on workin' over on the little table, makin' lottsa messes with my paints, and yesterday I spent over an hour, cutting little shapes out of some heavy paper, not quite cardstock, but just a little lighter. 2 sided, with some wonderful watery prints on both sides, one with some graphic prints, and one side with just some simply fabu shaded colors - naturally, these are with blues, greens, pale greens, watery blues..Can't help myself, they are just too dreamy for me to pass up. And this week, I guess tomorrow, I'm ordering the papers I talked about the other day - the prices for the paks are just too good to pass up - Even The Husband said it'd be all right to order them! - So, before he changes his mind, that will Really Have to get done!!

Gotts to scoot - there are some paints and inks that should be just dry now - lined out part of a bathing suit top for my latest mermaid...shes lookin' like she's gonna go for some Beach-iee Peach and Pale Yellow color for her top..seems like a good choice to me!!

Lady of The Tulips

"Memories Of The Days Back Then" -- 2009

Spring Bay Studio

The piece I finished up while the storm was rolling in last week - This has a lot of texture, and I'm hoping it shows up on this photo - I tried to get a decent picture of it leaned against the antique hutch, so that's why it has a slightly loopy - look to it! It's not Operator Error!, I promise you! Just that it has a list goin' on...

I'm recovering from a horrid telephone call earlier this morning - won't go into details, but it was something that hits between the eyes and leaves one feeling as if the world slid sideways into another dimension. I don't think I'm shaking as bad as I was earlier, but if there are typing mistakes on this, well, that's 'cause the fingers/hands are still shaking a little bit. Just viscious and mean. That's what it was. So, that's all for that.

There is a new mermaid over on the work table..she doesn't have a face yet, but she's coming along nicely. Got her body shaded in, and she'll have some neat "scales" on her twisty tail. I unburied some things I truly forgot I had - sequins and other beads that are pretty cool. And so much fun to add to paper, I forgot how fun they are! - And there are some little beads that will make great Christmas Items, so those will need to be fixed up.

Our oldest finally got to the Dr.! - He called late Sat. evening, asking if we could take him in yesterday morning, and we said of course. He was Really Sick, and every time he coughed it sounded just terrible. We left here before 7:30 a.m., got up to the city, and he sounded horrible on the phone! - He didn't want to go to the Dr. for a bit, but we convinced him to GO, since the H1N1 Virus is everywhere. We are so glad we got him in! - The wait was less than 2 hours, which is saying something, and he does have a flu virus, but FORTUNATELY not the H1N1 Virus! Shwoo, that was a close call. He was given some meds, and we took him to the grocery store so he could get some liquids and tissues for his poor nose! - Ouch, all that sneezing, poor guy. Tom even said, "You sounded like you weren't going to make it!" - But he got to be checked out, and meds too, so we are very grateful for that.

Got some needed supplies yesterday at the Art Store while we were up in the City - new brushes, and looked at some papers, but will order those online - $3.00 in price by not buying in the store, for the package I'm looking for. That's a savings that really adds up, and there are 2 packs that I've been drooling over for the past couple weeks. If tom gets the bonus he's been told he'll get, part of that will pay for the papers. Some wonderful Blues and pale greens, mixed with some light sky blues, uhhmmm...simply wonderful colors! Will show them once I get the order in.

Must get some more papers cut - the new canvas has the background covered, that part is over..seems to take for EVER some days..why is that? Just layering papers, you'd think it'd go like lickety-split! Well, maybe I'm just slow!! Hee!!

Lady of The Tulips

"Untitled" -- 2009 Spring Bay Studio

Here's one of the latest canvases I finished just the other week -- I'd tried to post it online, but the camera was doing something weird, Noah had used up the batteries on some other giz-moe, an' all I wanted to do ws get these guys on Here!! -- Sheesh..

So here it is - finally drying out, and the pictures in the paper out of Norfolk really show just how bad the flooding was - Tom stayed overnight at Danny's apt, first, because Danny has a cold, and didn't go to work, so he got tom to stop by w/some groceries. But - Tom said that the trip to get to the apt. was something of an adventure - going down streets part way, then discovering they were flooded out...going down another street...same thing. Guess he made quite the trip around the city, but finally made it. Got things for danny, and I told both of them, that if the cold develops worse, that it wasw IMPORTANT to get to the Hosp. asap - Don't want to mess around with the Swine Flu, and it scares me to pieces.

But here, it's trying to dry out a little better than up there in Va. - Noah has swept off all the pine needles on top of the roof, gotten some of the yard around the deck, porch and sides of the cabin all cleaned off. The water in the drainage ditch has finally gone down, and the dirt road is looking like a carpet, littered with tons of colorful fall leaves. Most of the trees still have their colors shining brightly, which is something of a mystery - what with the winds for the last 2 days blowing over 30 mph with gusts near 45 -- strong leaves. That's what they are!

And I've got a couple other canvases to post on here, but for now I've got to get some painting done - there are also some orders to be made for some supplies- found a couple sites with sales, so that's a really good thing. We have so little in the way of art supply places down here, and what selection there is is WAY too overpriced. A sheet of small stickers with fish was marked at $1.25...uh? - Saw it at the Mart for .99....so, I mean, people need to make a profit, but I MEAN! -- So it's off to some of the art supply sites and get some much needed papers. They are so wonderfully colorful and make one want to just dive into some of the Sea Greens...Pale Caribbean Blues...ahhh...

Lady of The Tulips

~~ "Peaceful Sea" ~~

Spring Bay Studio ~

Here is one of the canvases that I finished just before the wonderful storm hit here the other day - actually I got this done, and had some thots of putting it in the master bedroom, but thot that when the weather people starting talking about the impending storm, that in case the huge oak tree and pine tree directly outside the master bedroom window decided they would want to come in and greet us during the storm, well, it wouldn't do to have this brand new piece all crumbled to smither-eens...So, it was gently tucked inside my antique hutch, along with a couple other pieces, all untouched by anything other than my little grubby paws.

I'm also getting back into the swing of work at my little table today - the winds are Finally subsiding, and the rain, dare I say, is finally slowing down to something under 20 mph. The branches that would slam against the roof of this poor little cabin weren't all that large, but the SOUND they'd make when they hit!! -- I really expected to see some giant big limbs out on the grass, but thankfully, the limbs that did get whacked were relatively small. It's just with the 35+ mph winds whipping those poor limbs & branches from their trees, well, the combination just wasn't a pretty sound. Hope that doesn't happen again for awhile. And how WEIRD that a "tropical" storm changes itself into a Nor'easter in a matter of hours! Wow. I just feel bad for all the people who have had flood and structure damage to their homes. From the newscasts, it seems that all the people who were fortunate enuf to get evacuated, are all ok, and the work of the fire departments and others, were of great help My hats off to them!!

We also caught a glimpse of where we had rented a teeny little duplex up in Norfolk when we first moved up there..the street had, like it ALWAYS did during just a normal rain, FLOODED -- But this time it was SO BAD..that one of the local tv people was on the air, and said he & his crew - "We're Stuck!!" -- From the angle of earlier shots of the street, the house up the street from us, that usually didn't get any water in the yard, had flood water up to and just over the front door!! YIKES - Tom took one look an said, "That's our old street!!" -- One of the sad things, was the newscaster said that one woman who lived down toward the end of the street (It ends at what's called Pretty Lake) had sloshed her way up to the top of the hill where the street crosses another longer road, and she then realized that even if she kept on going, and walked down the other side, she'd be right back in flood water...DOUBLE YIKES!!

All of those things used to happen during some relatively bad storms, but this one was double worse...uugghhh..that's one of the reasons we moved from that part of the city...

SO NOW -- it's drying out..tom got home relatively unscathed from all the storm, and our oldest said, that even tho tons of the streets around him were flooded, he was able to get to his apartment, by going in a zig-zag pattern all around him, to avoid streets under water!! Poor Guy!! -- He sounded tired, and didn't want to go into work today! - Don't blame him, he's a truck driver too, taking linens to & from the resorts all along the Oceanfront. THAT area is a real mess!! -- No telling how long it's gonna take to clean up all that area!! --

But, now that all the dust has settled, I'm back to the little work table, painting a new canvas - got something a little different too, and will try to post it tomorrow. Right now I gotta check the canvas that's been drying overnight, and hope that some small little boo-boo's have gone away. Other wise, it's some quick little paint-fix-ups an' all will be right in the world!! Yay!

Lady of The Tulips

While we still have electricity I'll post this and hop away from the wall -- We are getting hammered with this Nor'easter that's sitting just offshore from us -- There has been over 12" of rain so far - the ditches that drain off from our property and along the dirt road have been full and flowing for the last 10 hours or so, and are showing no signs of letting up. We're having winds somewhere in the 30 - 35 mph range, with gusts much higher than that. There hasn't been a minute in the last 24+ hours when it's stopped raining, and it has been said by the weather people that it's only going to get worse before it gets better.

Tom made it up to work this morning -barely. The road out of our little place was under water - at least 2 feet deep, and the highway was trying to stay un-flooded, but it was losing the battle. The other part of the main North - South artery was so flooded up in Virginia that there were patrolment stopping traffice and re-routing them onto other streets. The ports had to close, and some of the tunnels around Norfolk and Portsmouth Va are closed as well. Tom worked a total of 3 hours, then very gingerly made his way back down the highway. There are so many branches and limbs from all the trees in the yard that it's useless to try and pick them up - it's raining too hard to try and get out and do anything about them. The "lawn" is under water in more places than it's Not Under Water, and the dog is very irritated when she has to go outside to do her business.

We had our electric out for 3 & 1/2 hours, but it would be safe to say that its probably going to go out again. We are holding on and waiting for this storm to GO AWAY!!! --

And that's the good news -- Bad News is that there are probably people in houses under water, and there's no way to get to them - Tom said he saw the fire department up in Chesapeake VA getting row boats out and preparing to go check on flooded streets, creeks and streams to make sure there aren't any people in very serious danger.

And now it's raining quite hard again..

Must go -


Lady of The Tulips

Well, here I was - standing at the front room window, staring out at the woods across our little dirt road..not really LOOKING at anything, just sorta staring out at all the fall colors...

When I notice this little critter strolling down the road, like it just OWNS the place..like, "Ok, all is good along this part of MY land..this is good...ahh, so is This..."

An' I think, well, that's sorta cool, it's somebody's little dog..looks like it knows where it's going..seems like it's havin'..

WAIT A MINUTE!!

This is NOT somebodys dog..Holy Toledo! -

So I look REALLY hard at this little thing strolling along...and look for the tail..Oops..short/nubby/almost like no tail at all...the back legs are hefty for the overall size of the critter, looking like it could jump a fence without blinking...an' it has short stubby ears...kinda like a BIG cat..

Then it dawns on me -- It's a Bobcat...

Just walkin' down the road like it's a Beautiful Day In The Neighborhood, checkin' out the woods, sniffin' here and there the way cats do, like THEY know who's been down the street.

Then it came to a QUICK stop. Looked in the direction of the neighbors at the end of the dirt road, 'cause as is usual, their dog was barking..an' the cat sorta slinks itself into a sitting position.

Ah Ha! - So I REALLY take a good look at it, and for Real and Wholly Moley, it just looks so beautiful! - Wow! - I'd thot I'd heard it at night earlier this fall, screamin' in the woods the way the females do when their in heat..a sound that ever since I first heard one in 1991 - o - 1992 just made the hair on my arms stand straight up - And now I finally got the chance to see this little thing right in front of the cabin. She (I'm asuming it's the female, cause they do the most meandering.or so I've been told..) just sits in the dirt road, staring at the dog, the way cats LOOK at dogs, like, "Oh PLEEASE, you are SUCH a pain in my A**" And then she very slowly creeps off the right side of the road, makes a couple little hops and completely disapeares into the woods.

I reallized I was standing at the window with my mouth hanging open, just flabergasted at what I'd just seen - I'd wanted to see this thing for what seems like for EVAH, and I finally got a chance to see it!! I just read thru some info from both N.C. State Univ., and UNC on the bobcat in this part of the state. We're in the perfect location for them to live - lots of cover, plenty of downed trees for the female to make her little nest, and pleanty of food for them to survive on.

I'm just glad the dog was inside the cabin - we had a Redbone Coonhound way back in the day, and she was SO pigheaded, she made the mistake of going after a bobcat one night -- we'd been hearing the female making her screaming/meowing noise behind our house for a few nights...and the dog got out of the house, made a bee-line for the woods, and finally came back about 2 hours later. The next day she was whining, and moaning, and acting like it was the end of the world. She had trouble lifting her back legs, and it really scared me, so I took her to the vet. Ha! -- He just laughed!! - Took a couple looks at her, felt around her backside, then looked at me and said, "She's been messin' with the Wrong Critter!! -- Where do you live again? - Oh!, yes, out in the woods..Well (As he looks at the dog...) Young Lady, I Believe you've met your match! - "

Seems that the cat had smacked the dog along her back legs, up around her bum, but didn't break the skin - the area was swollen, sore, and you could see the outline of where the cat had made her "Point" - The Dog was Seriously in Ego Hurt, and moped around the house for the next few days. Next time she heard the bobcat screaming in heat, she started for the window, then REALLY FAST, layed down on my bed, and just stared out the window. HA!! -- Lesson Learned!! -- Don't Mess with the Bobcat!! Thank heavens the vet bill was only like $35 or so for the check-up. I think the dog's ego count went down to about -55...!!

So, that's the news from here - I' m hoping to hear the cat tonight if she is indeed in heat, and will make her Noise!! - I'll post on what happens in the next few days!!


Lady of The Tulips

>> Ok <<

So, what I decided was that being miserable just wastes my time, and doesn't accomplish anything -- And from that I learned that it is much more fun to sit at the work table and make something that I've never done before.

No, I'm not going to post some of my scribblings on here from my paint program - those are just going to sit here an' that's that.

What I DO have, tho are 3 new canvases that came outta nowhere - all full of texture, odd shapes and little things that I'd wanted to do before now, but just thot they wouldn't look right.

AND THAT"S THE POINT!! -- WHY do I need to try and make my work look just like "Everybody Else"?? My work is just that - MY WORK - So, if it isn't all polished and smooth - if it isn't all cookie cutter and ready to be picked up by Wal Mart and sent to china to get mass produced..

Then it is MINE -- And if there are things in/on it that look off shape/crooked, well, they are and that's that!

And they are so fun to DO!! -- Weeee -- and once I stood back and looked at what I'd accomplished, well, it just suprised the very livin' tar outta me! - Whoa!! -- I did THAT?! Huh! So, now there are all sorts of little thots of making even more textures, and a quick trip to the hardware store (You just cant imagine how many goodies there are that can be used in collage!!) will make some even more altered goodies. I'm sure the manufacturers never thot that some Art could be made from Hardware Items.

Shows what they know!

And with that, I'm off to mess with some goodies on me little work table. I'll post the canvases in just a minute - right now I gotta go take my meds. I've given up wasting time calling the Dr's office - If they got news for me, I'm gonna say, Well, how nice of you to call - No More wasting time on HOLD on the phone for 15 minutes..

Nope! - Off to Paint!!


Lady of The Tulips

Just a little something I got done earlier today -- Not sure what it is -- But it let me cut loose and mess with the paint-brush in my computer.

Plus I got to unload some pent-up hurt and irritation that got slammed in my face earlier today.

Won't go into it here, but let's just say that I'm tired of getting kicked in the face by people, and they just smile back while their doing the kicking.


Lady of The Tulips

So, what started out as just trying to find some kind of lettering, turned out to be a search for some thing in the dictionary in my computer, which THEN turned out to be a search for some phrases, which THEN turned out the discovery of the Paint Program installed in my computer..which made me just about jump up out of my chair, then I nearly said some very worddy birds...uh..dirty words..

ANDTHEN with my right hand ( which I barely use 'cause it makes things all wonky..) I got into the paint program, messed around with some of the brush details, messed around some more, an' this is what I came up with. Not much, looks like I'm back in the 1st. grade, but I just love the rawness of the brushstrokes..it really does look like I'm back in 1st grade.

An' that's ok, 'cause maybe by the time I hit 70, I'll be able to actually print legibally (oh hush, that's spelled bbbbaaadddd..so shut up...) and people won't shake their heads and say, "oh, she does need some help on her penmanship.." Or whatever you call it...

As for other stuff - Tom & I went for the monthly Saturday Morning Breakfast at the clubhouse - biscuits with gravy, scrambled eggs, and hot coffee. They also had pancakes, sausage and something else, but I figured what I had was enuf to stall my blood veins for the next 5 hours -- biscuits & gravy, scrambled eggs & coffee. The only time I eat something like this is at the Saturday Morning Breakfast, so it's not like it's the everyday thing to do. I wouldn't be here if that WAS what I'd eat every day..besides, the Dr. would have a field day when my cholestrol screening came back..We chatted with a few people, but then Tom said he had to get back here to help noah with the yardwork and whatever else there is to do. So, that left me with trying to figure out what to do with the project over on the work table.

And I still need to get some type of printing on some tiny pieces of paper..and I'm no closer to doing that than when I started an hour ago.

But It Is fun to mess with the paint program on the computer..now I'm gonna be messin' with it for the nest 5 hours..watch me. ~~ No, there are too many things to get done around here before I set myself down an' be messin' with paint and stuff..

WAIT!! -- Isn't that what I do, but at another location in this very same room?!! WHAT THE....

Ok - I'm gonna go DO something..I'm just not gonna SAY just what it iz..hee, hee...


Lady of The Tulips

Here are some of the little plants that are popping up in the yard, mostly around all the wood scraps and firewood piles noah has near the sheds >> These are some of the wild plants that I want to know the names of, but for the time being, I'll just call them sweet little wildflowers.

I'm also waiting for a word or 2 from the Dr. office, but it seems that waiting for something from them is like waiting for my ship to come in. Wait! - Maybe if my ship comes in, Tom will be able to see it at the Port, and tell 'em to hang on while I drive up there!! Ha!! That's the ticket!!

Ok, so it's been a stressful week, and all this poppycock is driving me somewhat crazy. I'm working on a new canvas, and as for now, there is absolutely not one once or smudge or blip of paint or anything else on that thing - I've got a lot of teeny papers cut for it, and some other elements but as for putting those onTO the canvas, it just seems that something else comes up, and I'm at a loss to get any more work done. It's the aftereffects of the full moon: That's my cop-out for the end of the week. Plus, I'm still wondering what to do for the weekend, since tom got paid $200 less than we'd expected, so that was a teeny bit of a suprise. Goes to show what gettin' excited about pay - day will do. Never count your chickens, or whatever that old saying is - Good thing we make a habit of saving aside some extra every week!!

So, this is short, but I have to go check on the dog - she's refusing to come in from the deck this morning, and it seems kinda chilly. I'm worried about her, and she seems to be actin' kinda funny today. What with the cancer she has, and some of the breathing difficulties she has, it all comes together to make me somewhat nervous for her...poor baby..

Lady of The Tulips

>> So, I got all excited yesterday, and hoped that my Dr. office called me back, and had some NEWS for me..<<

So much for thinkin' -- I called them, le's see...4 times?? -- Nothing. Wait, I mean they TALKED to me, but the answers I'd been waiting for aren't there. As in, the Hosp. where I went this week, hasn't sent the scans, ultra-sound or anything else to my Dr's office yet. And the staff at the Hosp. said, "Oh! - We'll have those to your doctors office this evening, or at the latest, tomorrow morning.." --

Did the earth turn in some other direction and not tell me? -- Did something happen to this part of America and Hospitals are not longer in charge of telling patients what they NEED TO KNOW??

sorry for the mini-rant there, but it's so #%&&@! irritating when I want to know what the #$^%*( is going on with ME, and nobody wants to do their job...OH! -- That's it! HA!! -- How DUMB!! --

Here I am, expecting somebody to do their JOB...

ok..so that's what that is for now..just a bunch of waiting for the cows to come home..or waiting for my ship to come in, and I'll be at the airport...

BUT -- on the ART front, it's much better than waiting for other people to do something..I've got a nice little project sitting on my table, and one that got finished, but hasn't gotten it's picture taken yet..so that will happen in a flash. or maybe in a little while. I'm not feeling up to being rush-ied just yet this morning..not enuf coffee in me to do all THAT. And there are some papers that I've been eyeing since the other morning,when I got a brainstorm to do a little something that I'd seen a few months ago -- a little bit of pattern on some ad or something, and it kinda looked like it could be made/altered just enuf with just the right patterned paper, some paints and maybe a slip of glitter glue thrown in for good measure. Then THAT will all be slammed together into a spiffy little canvas. At least, that's the thot for the morning --

The dog is being good -- she's not getting any better, but she seems to still have her crazy little sense of humor about her. The cancer on her side isn't getting any smaller, but it doesn't seem to bother her..just the lesions within her lung are what bother her the most. If she gets too bouncy and starts hopping up and down like she does when she wants a biscuit, then she starts coughing and has to stop and stand still for a minute. My poor baby! It breaks my heart, and there is just nothing the vet can do about it. How do you go into the lungs of an animal and try to take something out? -- Nope -- It just doesn't work like that. So, we'll leave Little Miss Sara as she is - just another crazy member of this crazy little household, along the shore of the Albemarle Sound. Watchin' all the animals around the yard (Noah and the 3-point buck he saw the other morning...) and catching a glimpse of the leaves turning color and falling slowly to the ground for the winter.

That's what's goin' on here -- just another day in the neighborhood --

Must get some glue on some shells...I'm not goin' to tell what their for, I'll just say that their lookin ' mighty fine on their new home..

Lady of The Tulips

"Smile Everyday" - 2009 Spring Bay Studio

Sorry for the washout appearance of this piece...the new light Noah put in the studio seems to make everything look like it's had better days. This is one of my newer works..she seems to be having a good time..

The conversation on this w/The Husband went totally off kilter..

"So..whaddya think of her?"

"uh..ya mean, who does she look like?"

"Yeah..you said she looked like Dolly Parton.."

"No -- Rachael Zoe.."

"Rachael Zoe?! -- You mean, like, Rachael Zoe..?"

"Yeah..Rachael Zoe.. Why?"

"Well, 'cause I didn't think you knew who she was, or what she looked like.."

"Yeah I Do! An' this looks like her.."

"Huh.."

"Why you say that??!! I told you what I thot of this .."

"Never mind..."

>> So that was the start of Saturday...an' it just continued to get weirder as the day went along..<<

See ~~ I watched a couple of the Rachael Zoe series last month, and one time, tom walked in and stood and watched the program with me for all of about 5 minutes. I didn't think anything of it -- sorta explained who she was, and why the background shots looked so fabulous, cause after all it's all shot in L.A. -- an then tom went on his merry little way. So, it was something of a suprise that he told me that this mermaid looked like Rachael Zoe, 'cause after all, there are MONTHS where tom won't remember what happened the day before, so how wa I supossed to react when he said he thot this looked like Rachael Zoe...Suprised? - Understatement of the year, that one.

So now, anyway, here she is, and she isn't too bad, all things considering..

But now the phone rings, an' it should be my Dr. -- yikes..le's see what happenes from here...


Lady of The Tulips

This time of year brings about an overabundance of things in the yard - sometimes it seems that when I walk around to see what's in the sheds, I find more things happening on the ground than I'd imagined.

This is a clump of one variety of mushroom that grows like crazy around some of the hardwoods in our yard. We seem to have these pop up not when it immediately stops raining, but some days afterwards - they seem to like the moisture that seeps into the ground, rather than the direct pouring of rain on them -- they tend to clump rather like a little plant, and I'm sure there is some fabulous botanical name for them. Me, I jus' call 'em mushrooms -- they get rather large, and this one got pushed over by noah - I'm not sure if he accidently stepped on this clump, or if one of the wild critters that visit every night, happened to do this. But these are a most interesting little plant -- if they are indeed called a plant. Something else, I think, but at the moment it totally escapes my memory.

I do have a ride to the Dr. office in the morning!! -- Yay!! -- so that's one headache avoided. I talked with the couple who are on the list in our community to give rides to people up to Va., and they were very happy to help me out. We talked after church yesterday, and even tho there may be a bit of fanagaling involved the wife is still going to make sure I get to the clinic where I need to have my tests, (or whatever their called) taken care of. SHWOO..whatta relief! - She's very optimistic for me, so that made me calm down a little bit - I told her that my family history doesn't exactly give me the most optimisim, but she said she's gone thru the same thing - Don't worry - an' that's that!! Ok then! Another friend of mine said it's probably the Dr making sure that he has a "baseline" to go on for future reference - in case something does come up in the future. That sound much better than what the assistant said to me. Sometimes people have the wording all wrong when they tell you something - making it sound so much worse than it actually is. That's what this whole thing seems to be to me.

At least that's what I'm chosing to go with for now.

And then -- Our middle son, the musician, called us last week - Thursday it was - to tell us, that on Nov. 1st., he was flying out to relocate to California.

Say WHAT??!!

What is that, like 4 days ahead of time - to say he's moving far, far away??!!

Ever feel like a sledge hammer hit's you between the eyes?

Yup - so, we then didnt hear from him till 'bout 5 p.m. Sat nite - "Can you guys come up an' see me before I take outta here in the morning?!" So, I'd just finished fixin' dinner, an we ate reeeaal fast, hopped in the car, an' drove up to the city. We made one slight mis-calculation, in that where he lives (lived) in in an old, old section of the city, with gazillions of one way streets..AND IT WAS HALLOWEEN..

So, not only did we get lost, turning on the wrong street, trying to get onto the RIGHT one-way-street, we also had to dodge little hoblins, a ton of little Pink Princesses, and some flat out scary lookin' adults walking along with the kids. Not something my eyes wanted to see at 7 p.m. --Our oldest called tom's cell phone, 'cause naturally we werent at the apt,when we said we were going to be..

"Where are you?!!"

"uhh...we're lost.."

"Well, where are you?!!!"

"Didn't you hear me, we're LOST!!!"

Not quite like, "Who's on first, what's on second", but for 5 minutes I felt like I was absolutely going to lose my mind..

Well, we did get to the right apartment, visited with our son, lottsa his friends, and hopped around lottsa boxes, stacks of unpacked things, and far too many odds and ends that still has my brain scrambled. I was very proud of myself, and didn't cry. I think maybe tomorrow it's gonna hit me, an' I'll cry like a baby...but his job allowed him to relocate, so that's good. His 2 other room-mates went too, and they all have the same jobs, so it's all worked out for that end of things. My son said he's gonna play like a good tourist, and take a gazillion pictures in the first couple weeks he's there..soaking in the fact that it IS Southern California, and yes, there will be no snow where he's living. And he'll even take a picture of one of the beaches where I used to go all the time when I was a teenager.

Wow.

Jealous???

Uhmm..sort of -- Even Tom was feeling a little left out of things. And he even said, "Well, I gotta realize I can't be 19 anymore.."

"YA THINK??!!"

So that's the news from here - another batch of grey hairs for ME -- An' so much more goin' on right now that I can't stand it -- Gotta free pumpkin, an' Noahs jammerin about fixin' it up..Lawwdy, I better go make sure things aren't goin' to Hell in a Handbasket...


LAdy of THe TuLIps...

"I Am What I Am" ~~ 2009 Spring Bay Studio


This is the other little girl that's been behaving herself over by the antique hutch. She's going to have a couple little stamps set along the left side of the canvas, so she's dolled up a bit more than now. The paint got dry on the background before I had a chance to get some blending done that I'd planned all out..so much for that. But with the stamps and some messin' here and there, it should all work out.


I got a call from my Dr. office, not more than 1/2 hour after my last post. Seems that the results from my mammo were in the office after all -- some how my spaced out Dr. didn't see 'em, and his assistant caught them just before 4 p.m. -- So she called me with the news..

I've got 2 fairly large spots - "mass" -- and one that is there, but not so large as the others. I had to quick schedule some additional scans for this next week, and if the mass -ess (i'm not spellin' good today..) are what they appear to be, then the Dr. wants me to start radiation immediately. Not sure how that's going to happen, what with me bein' 70 miles from the hospital, but somehow it's gonna go. I was told that these things don't look too "worrysome", - that lots of women get these, and they don't amount to much...but if that's the case, I'm pondering on why the radiation right away?? -- Maybe I missed the train outta the station at a critical time, I don' know...but that's the news for now.

I got ahold of a woman down the street that sez she's going to get me to the hospital for tuesday - Tom threw a fit, sayin' that he's not going to be taking me to the offices, his boss threw a fit this morning telling him not to miss anymore days off, so it's looking more and more like I'm on my own for this fun little ordeal....an' now noah wants the computer and is breathing down my throat as we speak..so I'll go an' ponder just what the hell is going on..


Lady of the Tulips