This picture was taken by noah one day
last week -- I have no idea where it was taken,
or for that matter, why noah took my camera in
the first place..but there ya go...



I only have a couple minutes to pop a quick note on here, and my computer is acting so weird right now, it's beyond me just what the $^"#
*"@ it's doing -- but I'm working on some fabric -- got it all ready to cut for a collage -- there is also some new fabric that got here this afternoon -- yyyaaaa -- for a new blouse --

So things are moving along spiffy -- if this dumb computer would just BEHAVE FOR ME --

Lady of The Tulips --

>> "Here In Our World" << 2009

Here's one of the canvases I finished just this week -- I think it was on monday. I got the rest of the paint on it, got it all cleaned up an' here 'tis

The other canvas I have is drying as we speak..uhm...write? -- well, anyway, it's just over THERE -- on the table, minding it's own business. Which is more than I can say for The Dog -- she's been a little BRAT today -- every time there is some noise from the navy experimental station across one of the peninsula (sp) she absolutely throws a coniption fit...starts acting like IT'S THE END OF THE WORLD..all that. Drives my nerves to their breaking point..

Now, where was I? --

Oh Yeah -- the canvas is drying over yonder, and some of the fabric I've chosen for it is getting set too - some greens, pale turquoise, and soft blues are all over on the table, looking not too bad. The hardest thing this last week, is to try and concentrate on Summer-Type work. The colors that I chose are a good thing to take my mind away from the lousy weather..rainy, rain-sloppy-glop outside. I mean, it's hard to think something like "We've Been Havin' Fun All Summer Long" -- when it's 43 Degrees, rain is falling, the clouds are skirting along the treetops, the Dog doesn't even want to go outside, and my little heater in the studio is not, I mean NOT keeping the room warm enuf so that my fingers can move the way they SHOULD!! --

That was a wayy tad too rant-ish, now, wasn't it? -- But tho I've digressed A LOT -- I just am TRYING VERY HARD to say I'm painting, painting..cutting fabric...and inbetween all this, watching a little bit of Spring Training Baseball from the warm..WARM state's of Florida and Arizona...

Maybe that's why it's so hard to concentrate on making Summer Looking Canvases, when it's WARM SOMEWHERE ELSE...and here my thermometer is barely out of the 40's...

When I least expect it, the temps are gonna shoot thru the roof, an' I'm gonna be suprised like there's no tomorrow.

But >> There IS gonna be a tomorrow -- my fabric that I ordered on Monday got cut in the warehouse on Tuesday, and was shipped out yesterday. So, in THEORY it should be here by Wed. of next week -- I've got another peasant blouse pattern all picked out..very loose and dreamy looking. And -- I might add -- much much less to make than the "SALE" price of one of the largest dept. stores across the country. Theirs is "ON SALE!" for $19.00 -- mine, which is the same pattern...$8.99 for the fabric...HA!! -- I love saving money!!

Must go an' get some dishes finished -- it's starting to rain again, so I need to make sure some potting soil is not too flooded. It's gonna be used this weekend to pot up some tomoatoes, peppers and some additional flowers.

Even tho we had a HERD OF DEER in the side yard this morning (there they are!! Meandering around like they own the place...sheesh) And now tom just called an' said that he's on his way home..an' do I have something for dinner??! -- the fun never endz...

Lady of The Tulips

~~ OOOhhh Keeeyyy ~~~

So, there I was the other morning, minding my own business, when I realize I can hear a bird stuck in our stovepipe for the woodstove. I walked into the laundry room, grabbed up the broom, and banged a couple times on the stovepipe. I'd heard/read/absorbed somewhere, that when you bang on the stovepipe to scare away a bird, it "Always Works" -- HA!! fat chance, and all that...

SO -- I keep hearing the noise off and on through out the day,and then I just sorta ignored it. Didn't hear anything for some time, 'till I went into the kitchen to rinse my paintbrush out, and get a glass of ice-water. I didn't hear the scratch-scratching in the stove pipe, tho...but I COUD hear a little birdie...seeming REALLY close by -- like in a vent..or SOMETHING..singing it's little song..."Taawwhheettt...Tahhhwweeeett"

I stood still...listened again..

And figured it was the bird that had earlier been stuck in the stovepipe...said, Hmphh...an' went on with my business...

And heard the singing again..but a little louder..

I was next to the kitchen window, standing next to the air conditioner, and figured the bird was sitting on top of the air conditioner..

Wrong --- What happened waz...I opened the door to the woodstove, threw in some trash that had come in the mail ("You Can Have Our Credit Card!! With a Low, LOW Interest Rate!" -- yup..that kind of mail deserves to end up in the woodstove...) and when the papers hit the bottom of the woodstove..I see something HOP off to the right of the pile of papers...

WHAT THE %"*&{$#") !!!

So, I closed the door REALLY fast..caught my breath...an' opened the door RRREEAAALLLLYYYY slowly.

And saw a teeny little bird, wayyy in the back of the stove..staring at me.


The bird had somehow gotten all the way down the stovepipe, and ended up smack dab in the middle of the woodstove.

Thank Heavens it was too warm to use the stove. .that poor little babiee..

So-- I looked at him, while he( or she..) stared at me..I realized I needed to get him out OUT of there, so I grabbed up a kitchen towel, and VERY carefully, reached in the stove, and gently put the towel around the bird. This was after I MADE SURE to throw Sara out the back door, so she wouldn't be in the way. But, there was a glitch in the whole works.

While I was gently carrying the little teeny bird, and trying to keep him calm, I got alll the way to the back door, holding this tiny BLUEBIRD (of all things!) in my hands, and in the instant that I went to open the back storm door, I yelled at The Dog to get out of the way, and took my right hand off of the bird.

Do you have any idea of how fast a bird can fly around inside of 3 rooms of a house? I figured it was flying into the dining room, and kitchen in all of about .0034 seconds...

All I could do was run after it, saying over and over.."OOHH NNNOOOO!!!Oh! Little Baby!! NNOOO!!!" And SMACK..SMACK..the little thing would fly straight to a window, and slam itself into the screen.

Over and Over...

I finally got the kitchen towel in my right hand again, and started to kind of direct the little bluebird toward the laundry room..it somehow realized that the towel was keeping it from going back into the other rooms...it flew straight toward the window in the laundry room...bounced off of that..and stopped on a dresser to the right of the window. And honestlt stood still, and while it stood and looked at me, I could see it's little sides, going in and out REALLY FAST -- the poor thing was totally out of breath!! AAKK!!

So, it went back to the window again, and STOPPED...I took the opportunity to put the towel around the little dear again, and gently talked to the thing...and opened the storm door VERY GENTLY, so I wouldn't scare the poor dear again.

Finally I got the bird, and ME out on the deck, an' as carefully as I could, I walked down the steps, and opened up my hands and the towel...and released the bird..

OOOHHHMMMMYYY WWWOORRRDDDDD


The little thing took off like a SHOT -- and as it sang it's little song, it went straight up into one of our biig trees... And I never saw it again.

It'z a wonder I don't drink heavily...one six pack of beer lasts me anywhere from a week & a half to 2 weeks...bnt after a day like THAT...no, I didn't go hog wild with a 6-pack of beer.

But it REALLY CROSSED MY MIND...


Lady of The Tulips

>> No picture today, as Noah has done something with the camera, an' now I gotta figure out how to switch some of my shots to another file..or some weird ThaNg..<<

I've got a canvas finally done...got some papers cut for a current canvas, an' have a nice little sketch ready to paint..it's waiting over on my table for me. An' here I am sittin' around doin' nothing with my Art...'cept lookin' around at what other people are doin' --

I try not to feel discouraged with how I see other work being done...It makes me feel like I'm only a kid again, tryin' to do what everybody else is doing, but my work looks horrid. Something like what I did for a show when Iwas in elementary school. I painted a nice little building..a house, I think. It got entered into the show...got all nicely placed on a display table..and one of the teachers came along, an' tells me, "Well, isn't that nice! When you get up into at least the 3rd grade, I bet you can really start to make some good things!!"

I was in the 4th grade...

Needless to say, that was one of many comments made to me about my Art -- not much to look at, but, hey, it "Looks Nice" -- but let's not bet the house on it. That kinda thing.

So, I'm workin' thru all that Negative -- throwing it out the window.

So what If my work isn't like somebody elses?? -- I'm Certainly NOT like anybody else, an' Thank the Stars in Heaven. I'd hate it if I HAD to be a copycat...

But there are days where I want to BE like everybody else...making fabulous ART that takes your breath away...but I guess it's just all "In the Works.." -- the art is gettin' close, but not quite there.

Or maybe it IZ there, but just not quite...something...Kinda like half a bubble off.

Well -- onward to the painting,..my watercolours are sittin' waiting patiently.

And tomorrow I'll tell ya about the little bird that was in the stovepipe..an' how he came to see me...for real..


Lady of The Tulips

~~ Ok, I admit this little guy is sorta/really..REALLY blurry --

BUT!!

I've been hearing some sorta scratching noise in our stovepipe all morning long, and it dawned on me that there must actually BE something in said stovepipe to make the noise...

And by the looks of this guy, I thot maybe it was him...I mean, look at HIM --- standing there all proud and arrougant...or however that word is spelled.

But I digress -- or actually I haven't said FLIP yet at all...SO --- we are much releaveed -- no, Re-leafed...NO --RELIEVED that Tom is back working this week. He said yesterday that the drivers were looking like they got the manager to be a Nice Guy for a change and keep Tom with the company. The oddball--weird--pisses-me-off thing about the "safety Manager" who DEMANDED tom be fired...WELL -- seems that he is ALSO employed not only by the Insurance Company who insures the trucking company, BUT -- he is also AN EMPLOYEE of said trucking company...in other words, he has 2 incomes from one place.

Now -- I ask you -- does this strike you as SOMETHING like a CONFLICT OF INTEREST??!! -- Well --- apparently it does to a lot of the drivers of the company, as THAT is one of the Big Beefs they had with the Manager of the office. Some schmow who A) Doesn't drive a truck, and B) -- has no idea of what goes on inside a truck, of Anything Else Close...has the power to make one lose their job. Combine all of that with Tom's incident, and there are a LOT of drivers very very angry right about now. I nearly fell over when I was told these little incidents. But -- big money is getting so out of control these dayz, that somethings are just left unanswered.

Makes ya REALLY sick of these fat cats just continually plowing over the little guy...I just hope I'm not around when it all comes back and smacks them upside the head...

So Tom spent the day with one of the other managers..they had a very nice time, and the manager couldn't understand why the dude in the Corporate Office was being such a #}^(+@! -- but who knowz...Tom sez he will be getting a new phone/blackberry type item sometime in the next week or so, as with all the other drivers..this will enable them to process their trucks and freight much faster and let them get additional loads of freight a much sooner than they are now. A win-win situation for everybody...

With all the Fun & Games with tom and his pals...I've been somewhat behind in my ART -- and to top it off, Noah took my camera last week, and I haven't seen it since..No --I did see it on the kitchen bar this morning just before Mutt & Jeff left for work...and I wanted to download my latest canvas on HERE -- but noah took the camera with him..(???!!) in his backback, so I'm left with just this little dude on the top of the page, looking like an old GRUMP -- my last good nerve left town somewhere in the middle of the night, leaving me with a Willy Nelson song stuck in my head..

"It's a Bloody Mary Morning, baby left me without warning
Sometime in the niiiight...."

That's it from here..I'm gonna go check on the dog an' have another cup of coffee...

Lady of The Tulips

>> Finally!! <<

We've gotten thru this rancid week!! -- I'm telling you WHAT -- there were moments where it seemed like something was going to swallow me up an' spit me into the Albemarle Sound...honest and for real!

Tom talked with his Boss yesterday morning, and the manager had a change of heart!! WOW!! le' me say that again...WOW~~!! We are sooo relieved, it's unreal.

We'd gotten a call on Thursday night from one of tom's driver co-workers, and he said that the other drivers were pretty much up in arms about Tom not coming back to work for the remainder of the week. He said the Manager had a Staff Meeting, (which is nothing more than a 45 minutes Rant on All Things Trucking..) but didn't say anything about Tom coming back to work. That really made some of the drivers Pissed Off-- in the words of our friend, "Tom's the most reliable guy we've got, an' the management wants to lay him OFF??!!"

There were other rants from the drivers, too, but they won't be printed here..

What tipped the scales in Tom's favor, is that the Corporate Office was, yes, totally going on the DOLLARS of the incident. They have no idea of who tom is, what his work ethic is, how he comes in early, drives out of state, gives other drivers help and directions when they need it...Nope. It was all totally based on Economics. Made both Tom & I have that warm, fuzzy feeling...NOT!! But the deciding factor, had to be decided my tom's boss, and he just couldn't make himself put tom out the door. He knows that his hands are tied a LOT of times when he needs somebody to drive out of state for the day. Tom's never hesitated. Most guys come up with the Most LOUSY excuses..none of which are worth the effort to type out here...So, he went with how he sees tom work on a daily basis.

We are now left wondering what's going to happen on Monday -- the Boss has only said, "I gotta plan for ya.." --- ANYBODY have any clue what the #%}^}! that's supossed to MEAN??!! No wonder my nerves are twitching these dayz...

But we ARE SO GRATEFUL that tom still has a job...we read in the local paper about the unemployment numbers for this area...our county is at 12% --- one of the counties on the Outer Banks is 17%..not like there's a chance to find Suitable Employment in this region...

Shwoo...

So, needless to say, the Art has been somewhat shoved off the end of the table for the last couple days...but I wanna get a shot of my latest canvas on here probably Monday. Today I have to get some fabric, clean the kitchen, vacuum the floors, make a salad for the monthly Pot Luck Dinner at the "Clubhouse" -- (it's just a big ol' building where there are meetings..tho the title makes it sound Rather Grand..) AND plant up some pepper seeds, 'maters, and squash in my teeny ittle potts...

What's it like to sit around the house an' do nothing??!!

I WANNA KNOW!!

Must run an' get Stuff Done...

Lady of The Tulips

A very quick post will bee this one...I do apologize for not getting a picture on here yesterday or today, but there has something of a fly in the ointment, as it were, as far as thing go around our little cabin..

Yesterday while I had just gotten to the computer an' started to get online, Tom suddenly came walking in the house. MoST UnexPected!! To say the least..Ihadn't heard from him since about the middle of the day, so when I discovered him waltzing in the house @4:30 in the AfterNoon, I was somewhat startled..an' it didn't get any Better whEn he said,"Wait a minute an' I tell you what happened..."

ThaT Is NEVER something you want to hear if a family member is involved in the trucking industry...

Nd it only went downhill from there --- He had an accident yesterday, tho nobody was hurt, or fortunately, killed. He was driving at about 10 miles an hour, when the frozen load of chicken suddenly shifted in the container, and tho he'd checked the hook-up apparatus for the container, it had not been secured completely, and with just a tiny move of no more than15 feet, the entire container lurched to the right, and toppled to the ground. He wasn't injured, his truck is fine. But the container suffered some damage. And THAT is what is the largest problem. And it may cost him his job.

His boss came down to the Port where the incident occured..took a look at Tom, who was in shock over the whole deal (he's been driving a tractor trailer for over 13 years..) and simply said, "I have no sympathy for you.." and proceeded to walk away. That's a very, very BAD thing to hear.

So, now the company Insurance Manager said, "FIRE HIM", and somebody else in charge of MONEY said the same thing..but it's all up to the Boss of the drivers..and he won't say a word till tomorrow..

So we are making it our best to get thru today..I haven't slept too good..for obvious reasons...I feel beat, still somewhat, no, make that still ReallY shell-shocked, and don't know HOW to feel...can't make any kind of plans till we hear from the Boss...can't even figure out WHERE to look for work...what , where..when///nothing.

I'm not sure how to even THINK --

So, I'm going to go and try to keep myself occupied with SOMETHING, just so I wont think about the accident. Lord Willing it'll all turn out --- but it aint lookin' so good..

LAdy of The TUlips

Noah went outside the other day an' took a picture of the wonderful tree we have alongside the dirt road that runs past our little cabin. I'm not too sure what type tree it is, but I think it's a Tulip Tree. The University I attended in Calif., had a long walkway past the main cafeteria and bookstore, with several of these trees planted alongside. It was so fabulous to walk to class in the spring, and look at the color, an' also smell the unreal blooms of a wisteria vine that also grew along an arbor overhead closest to the cafeteria. I sometimes wonder what happened to all of those plants, as the University system came along and remodeled all of the area. Makes me sad to think something as beautiful as this tree would be torn out. But whatta I know?

I've also posted a shot of the apron that I put together last week. It has several different pieces that needed to all come together Just Right, in order for the pattern to become one full apron. That's not so bad, but some of the sewing included "On a Diagonal, stitch #9 piece including the edging.." and this was more than once. For Those of You with wonderful math skills, figuring out a diagonal is a piece of cake. But for somebody like me, who looks at a ruler an STILL has trouble figuring out inches, well, this little "Easy" bit of sewing nearly drove me off the deep end. In the end, tho, I finally got it put together, and stitched up the long ties that go around the waist, and added the smaller ties around the neck.

Needless to say, that's probably the hardest pattern I've ever, EVAH put together. I still need another apron, but the extra pattern I bought needs more fabric than Ihave in my stash, so that one isn't gonna get put together for a while. $$ being tight the way they are with EVERYBODY, we are no exception. BUT -- next week should be a tad better, an' then I can order some fabric online.

The other project that needs finishing is a canvas that's just about ready for it's matte medium. I thot about workin' out one that I have had on the table for a couple weeks..but it just isn't jellin' for me, so that one got put away in the hutch, an' is keeping the other canvases company. This newer one should be much easier for me. That's what I'm HOPING...

Sara went an' done DID a DUMMY-Thing last night. Well, actually it's tom's fault.

I'd been tellin' tom to take the trash to the dump, as we don't have trash pickup here in the county. He'd been sayin' all day on Saturday, "I'm workin' on it.." an' would go off an' do something else. Same thing all day yesterday.

I'd say to him, "You need to take the trash to the dump, 'cause when sara goes outside, she's gonna try an' get in that stuff..."

An' Tom would say to me, "I'm workin' on it..."

And nothing would happen...

EXCEPT -- when he let the dog outside last night, right when I was in the middle of putting together a nice fish chowder. While I as cutting onions, potatoes and fish, he let sara out, an' I naturally had no idea. Sooo..when the cat's away, the mice will play, as the saying goes...

The little BRAT got in the trash, an' by the time Tom went outside to let he come in the house, she was standing in a pile of SOMETHING, that she was eating, very pleased with herself, and altogether having a wonderful time.

I nearly jumped out of my skin, when I realized that she was A) Outside, and B) that she was outside LONG ENOUGH to get into said trash...

I yelled something at tom, which I Won't print here, but it WAS quite good at the time. He in turn, yelled at The Dog to get out of the trash, and while she was turning around to walk away from the pile she had made, tom realized she'd been eating SOMETHING...

I threw a TOTAL fit...he said it looked like she'd gotten into some old pork bones that had been in the bottom of the trash bag, but he wasn't sure...she may have eaten some old chickenbones, too. Either way I was a Complete Wreck. All I could think was that her stomach was going to end up like swiss cheese, with the little-razor-blades-pieces of bones slicing their way down inside of her.

Tom said it was "Nothing to Worry About..." an' proceeded to let me know that I was being a Complete Idiot for worrying about the dog...

I went to bed before 8 p.m. --

BUT THE GOOD NEWS -- is that SAra is quite fine today...whatever it WAS that she ate, went thru her, an' she doesn't seem the worse for wear. As for ME -- I slept about as lousy as a person could TRY an' "sleep" -- kept waking up from some HORRENDOUS nightmares...but that's all another story.

Sara is Good Today..well, I mean, she is Still a Spoiled LittE Girl/Doggie, but that's much better than any other outcome, under the circumstances.

AND -- with that I need to go -- It's lunchtime, an' tom is suppossed to call & let me know if the drivers will actually have a FULL DAY OF WORK -- last week they did, for the first time since the year started..it's been REALLLY slow...no freight at ALL -- not sure what this means for the summer season, but from the Port side of things. it looks pretty slim...

Lady of The Tulips

>>> ok <<

I jus' posted a nice little bit, an' it disapeared out into the Computer World..who knowS where...

Jus' wanted to say that I've been finishing up my apron PattErn -- I'll try & RemEMber to get a pic. of it on here hopefully tomorrow...

It is FREEZING here -- on monday I'd said it was over, get that -- OVER 80 DegRees..now it's a whopping 40 or something like that...lawwdyy mamma..WHEN will WinTer go away??!! NOW!!

Got some fabric to try an' find for a blouse I'm workin' on -- dug out the pattern from a box that 'd been in StoRage..WHOOPiEE -- got it now, an' wanna make something quick...one blouse from each package should get me a good stash of stuFF to wear All SuMMEr...yess!!

Gotts to run an' get kitchen cleaned, dishes washed, an' dinner at least StarTed..no wonder I'm feelin' tired!!

Lady of The Tulips --

>>There is a bit of breeze this afternoon, an' it feelz absolutely DEVINE!!<<

The temps outside have been in the upper 70's all day, and when I looked at the thermometer in the laundry room, it was reading 80 just over an hour ago!! That's just so weird, after all the COLD we had most of the last 4 weeks. It's kinda freakin' me out, 'cause whenever it gets like this, then we have the most horrific thunderstorms. High, high winds, tornadoes, all those fun and groovy stuff. I just hope that the weather doesn't turn nasty tonight. So, for now I'm enjoyin' the warm weather!

~~ On to other things ~~ I found some of my dried flowers that I brought down from the city. Ihad 2 stuffed zip-lock bags of dried marigold flowers, that I wanted to get the seeds from. I'm so glad I found all of those. I spent the morning on Saturday cleaning out the seeds, and getting them all put in a nice big jar. Once I get the 2nd bad cleaned out, I'm gonna start shaking the seeds all around the yard, so we'll have a nice batch of color in the different flower beds. I also spent part of this morning puttin' some seeds in my plastic pots. There 3 1/2 " pots, just the right size for starting plants in. I bought those some 8 - o - 9 years ago, an' they've really held up pretty well. They were pretty cheap -- something like 50 pots for $15.00 -- maybe less $$. I think by the end of this spring I'll have to break down and buy some new pots, 'cause of transplanting so many veges, and flowers over the years, the walls of the pots have gotten pretty cracked an' beat up. I found some similiar pots for just under $8.00, for I think 25 pots. Can't remember how many, but the PRICE is just right!! That order will go out this weekend. I set up 4'O'Clocks, nasturtiums, hollyhocks and something else that I just went blank on. We have some GREAT windows in the master bedroom, that get a TON of afternoon light, so the seeds should pop in within the week or so. At least that;s what I'm HOPING!! this warm weather has me all a-buzz with optimisim for SPRING PLANTING!!!

Got some tomato seeds in the mail last week, but those won't get planted till maybe the last of the month. The weather is juuust a little too unpredictable for me to try an' start them quite this early. Well, I could plant them now indoors, but I wouldn't set them outside till at LEAST the middle of April. We DO have some cold storms that come blasting outta Somewhere during that part of April. An' sometimes in May, too. Those UnWordly Storms that come sweeping outta who knows WHERE..swooshing all the plants in the garden into little blobs of mush. Frozen and horrid looking. Ick, Ick, Ick. So -- the 'maters will wait till I'm SURE it aint gonna do THAT!!

Must go -- The Dog is making some weird sounds in the hallway...I think. She may be in the laundry room, trying to sneak out the back door...tha' little creep...sheesh..


Lady of The Tulips

>> A fast and speedy note this will be <<

This morning I've been duly routed away from Tom -- ok, that sounds much much worse than it is. BUT -- it is the $%@^&"*thing, let me tell you..

Sara has become an EXTREMELY jealous Dog!! And -- to top it off, it I try to sit in the front room, not EVEN near tom, she immediately comes into the room, starts to butt her head against me, trying to move me away from tom, then walks over to the couch tom's laying on, while watching tv., then the dog lays down on the floor, so I don't have a way to walk over and sit on that particular couch...

A Dog, mind you. Jealous as the day is long...

I've never seen the likes of it -- EVAH..

So, I'm in the studio, pouting because Tom just thinks the whole thing is a hoot. He probably likes to see bees stinging somebody, too. No, scratch that thot. He doesn't really like to see things like that. But since I'm in a somewhat Black Mood, that thot just sorta popped up in my head.

So instead of wasting time trying to shove that big ol' heavy dog outta the way so I can sit with tom in the front room, I've decided to make my time USEFUL -- an' am getting my papers set on the canvas I showed on here yesterday. We aren't goin' up to the city this weekend -- Danny has a couple baseball games to umpire (!! -- ALREADY!! YEAH SPRING BASEBALL!!) so he's bizzy for the weekend. And his girlfriend is coming down from the capital to visit, so that sorta keeps US outta the picture. S o oo on to the paper cutting and matte medium and ALL those things!!


I've got some other papers to measure, so for now tha's it -- an' to top it off, I think I can hear The Dog snoring out in the front room....ohhhh my nerves...

Lady of The Tulips

W.I.P. -- Here's one of the latest projects that I slapped together this last week. I can't, for whatever reason, preview it without it getting erased today...there is something amiss with my computer and blogger. I guess they are having an arguement an' my poor little fishies are stuck in the middle of the situation.

The Boat shown is one that Tom nearly bought. I mean, there was one that was close to this color, and some years ago it seemed like a really good idea. At the time. Fortunately there was some SENSE brought about, and the boat and the person trying to sell it were never seen or heard from again. Thank the Stars in the sky. We DID however, have a spiffy little 14 ft. boat that we'd take up on the local lake and have a great time. Sometimes we even caught fish!! How About That??!!

Well. It seemed pretty neat then.

>> And on to other news << Oh Blast!! There's that squirrel again!! Where does that little creature live, anyway? Near my house??!! Everytime I turn around, there that thing is!! Yikes.

Ok -- sorry about the distraction...le's see -- OH!! -- if I can get some little pieces of fabric sewed on to my apron, then I'll get a picture of that to post on here. I got the body of the apron done, some pockets, a clever little piece for a yoke, and a nice floaty flounce along the bottom. I hand-stitched the flounce on yesterday while I was watching some house-remodel program on t.v. -- got the sewing done, but wasn't impressed with the remodel the people did on their house. One outta two things goin' good aint bad!! I've got another pattern for an apron that's sitting on the work table, but I haven't decided which fabric to use for that one. I've got some fabric that a friend gave me nearly 20 years ago. For Real. An' I haven't ever EVAH used it. This new pattern may be just the one to use the fabric with. The friend had brought some 5 or more boxes of fabric with her when she moved down from Ill., and it had belonged to her mother. Well -- the mother didn't want it after all, and the friend didn't know what to do with it. So, Taa-Daa!! - I got some of the stuff, an' have been usin' bits and pieces of different fabrics ever since. EXCEPT for the one that I have on my mind. It's a cotton, very floaty and loaded with flowers. Cute without being OVERLY cute. If that makes any sense..(An believe me, lottsa these days I have a hard time making senze...) SO -- that's what's in the Works...

I gotta run an' check on the dog -- Noah isn't working today, 'cept in the garden!! YES!! It's WARM here today -- the thermometer on the Deck sez 68 DEGREES!! SAY WHAT??!! yup an' for Real. So, Noah checked the soil earlier today, to make sure it wasn't still Frozen. It REALLY had been earlier in the week, what with that Lovely Plunge in the temps -- so once he decided it was soft enuf, he went outside this morning, an' started turning under some of the mulch and leaves he piled on the garden earlier in the Fall -- it looks Wonderful!! Really and For True. I LOVE the smell of a fresh dug garden. Ahhh..something about it just brings me back to my childhood w/my dad. He LOVED to garden! -- Plum Trees were REALLY big after he planted them!! -- An' tropical Palms!! -- Oh Boy!! -- he had a couple that got HUGE!! -- But that was in San Diego, so that kind of climate should make ANYTHING grow good!!

So -- we're starting to get the soil ready for planting...got SEEDS yesterday!! -- an' then some more mulch an' STUFF on the garden an' by time it's warm enuf to plant, the soil will be REALLY GOOD!! -- Now...as long as the bunnies don't EAT EVERYTHING!!! -- I'll fix them...!!

Lady of The Tulips

>> I'm going to make this a Very Quick post, as I'm in the middle of some sewing and cleaning, and some painting AND getting firewood for tonight. Not that I want anybody to think that All I do is sit around the house all day and eat Bon-Bon's. I'd like to just sit around the house and do nothing, but that just isn't in my blood. Or Remotely Close to something I'd feel good about doing..or not doing, as the case may be..<<

There are some pictures that will becoming up tomorrow, but for right now, the computer is doing something that I'm not too sure about. That, and Tom is supossed to call me an' let me know when he & Noah are heading back down here. Noah had the day off today, so I guess he was jus' gonna bum around the city, then ride his bike back over to the truck terminal an' wait for his dad. Tom thot Noah was gonna be workin' at the same job that he was at last night, but I guess that's not the case. Something is Amiss, tho, as the Temp Agency called like 10 minutes ago, lookin' for Noah. I just hope nothing happened to him on the job site, an' I'm just now findin' out about it. Little things to drive me to the brink of Something Bad...

ANYWAY -- what waz I on a roll about??!! -- OH -- I've got some pictures that are ready for posting, but that'll wait till tomorrow. This computer is acting like it wantz to do Something Else besides behave itself...makin' all SORTS of HORRID noises, an' doing little Cute things like waiting till I type an entire sentence, then I suddenly can see the words on the screen. How Fun!! keeps me on my toes, that's what it doez... BUT -- the pictures (back to them..) will be worth the wait, I do Believe...

~~ Not much else to say here...it's been a MUCH warmer day today than it was yesterday ~~ The Weather People are saying that yesterday had the coldest daytime temperature on RECORD..I think the high for the area was a Balmy 28 or so...I kept thinking that it was me, just feeling uncomfortable, but it WAS REALLY COLD for this part of the country. I was NOT impressed. No matter what kind of record was set, it wasn't one that I'll be trying to remember in the coming months. I'm just trying to focus on the WARMTH that's suppossed to be here tomorrow. Well...something like warmth. High's to be in the 50's or so...HEY!! -- that's WARM compared to what we've had here. Just look at the newspaper!!

Must go outside an' get some wood for the evening. I didn't use as much today as I thot I'd burn, so that's a good thing. Means there's more for the rest of the week!! Whoo-Hoo!!

Lady of The Tulips

I named this photo "Moving Day Take Two" - Well, for obvious reasons.

This is part of the mess..no, make that THESE ARE THE TREASURES that we unpacked yesterday after getting boxes out of danny's apt. -- there is another photo, I'll see if it'll work...Hold the phone, here...THIS is a picture of the squirrel that happened to sit...sit..sit...SIT and SIT FOR OVER 1/2 an HOUR!! -- on the railing to our deck. It was something Noah just had to grab the camera for, an' take a picture of the little critter. NO -- don' ask me WHY noah had to take a picture of the SQUIRREL..he said he HAD TO. uhhhmmm...ok...

Le's see if I can get another shot of the STUFF in the studio...hmm..OKaayyyy..there is the shot of the piles all over the floor of the studio. Actually after this shot was taken I managed to put some of the odds and ends away. Got some of the reference magazines and books into the closet in the room, and got some of the bags that contained old bank statements and THAT kind of garbage into the hall closet. I DO keep those things for 7 years. Some people say 10 for the IRS, but I think 7 is the general rule. Besides, if they want to come an' dig thru my STUFF to see what we did or THINK we made LOTZ of extra money, let me TELL YOU -- I'd like to dig thru and FIND EXTRA MONEY!! -- fat chance...

So -- today I've been trying to get some more of the STUFF into little places where I'll be able to find them later on. I think Noah wantz to get the bookshelves done by this weekend. He won't be able to, of course, till be gets a skill saw. He never heard from the person who was selling the one over the weekend, so Noah went up to the city an' got a temp job for the day. Only problem is he can't get back here till tomorrow night. Today's job lasts 'till 10 p.m., so he's planning on riding the bus back to Danny's apt, stay the night, an' come home w/Tom tomorrow. THAT'S the plan..but we know what kind of mayhem can happen to the Best Laid Planz..personally I don't think the busses run past 10 p.m. up there, so who knows how Noah's gettin' from the Oceanfront clear back to Danny's apt. ~~ But that aint my problem. I got this STUFF, STUFF, STUFF all over the place in the studio. And waiting for a SAW to appear outta the blue. Or maybe the $$ to pay for one..whichever comes first. Yeah. That's the ticket...

Got another sketch in the works...an' got a canvas ready to put together. I had planned (not like other Best Laid Planz..) to paint up the existing canvas over on the work table an' slap together all kindza papers and stuff along with it..but got bizzy with takin' care of the heat in the house, washing far too many dishes, an' then seeing Tom come home EARLy-EARLY this afternoon. So, while I'm workin' on my painting, he's in over THERE sleeping...maybe tomorrow the canvas wil get done, an' the house will be warmer FASTER than today -- we're up to a balmy 30 out on the deck, so that's what's been keepin' me bizzy -- keeping the inside of the house above 65, an' tryin' to keep my fingers from freezing..Trick..I won't go into why tom'z home so early, I've discussed why he's been loosing hours before. More of the Same Stuff..drives me to distraction. I don' know how I don't drink..

Must go check on some ink I just put on a nice sheet of watercolour paper..if it's dry, then I can use my spiffy watercolour pencils (Ohh, I just love them!! Been usin' them for EVAH, I'm tellin' ya!!) an' get some Sails done. Tha's all I'm gonna say on THAT...

Lady of The Tulips

>> "SEA" << 2008 Spring Bay Studio


This another piece that I finished just the other day..I think last..no..yea, last week. It seemed to go together much easier than I thot it would. NOT like the previous one that absolutely gave me fits and spits. Something like my camera, but that's another story alltogether...

I HAVE been away for a couple dayz...we went back up to The City to get some more of our odds and ends out of Danny's apt. -- we also made an attempt to pick up a saw for Noah -- he looked online for one an' this guy SAID he had one for $15. So off we went early on Saturday morning..drove up this somewhat scary road, thru lots of swamps and farms. Noah had printed out a map that SAID where this guys house was. I will say right here and now, that WHOEVER it is that makes up some of the maps online, must be having something MUCH stronger than coffee with their early morning breakfast. BECAUSE let me tell you, that map was SO WRONG it must have been a bad day at the Map Office. We drove down another equally scary DIRT road, trying for 20 minutes to find this person's house. Noah even called the guy on the cell phone...no answer. I was VERY impressed with the whole situation by this time, so you must know that by the time we finally gave up and noah had called this jerk OOP..person FOUR TIMES and left messages for him to call on noah's cell phone..NOTHING. With tears in our eyes, dirt all over the Very Fine Automobile, and me sitting in the back seat, smelling residue from the bags of trash that had been in there earlier in the day...You can bet I was feelin' just my BEST about the whole situation...

BUT ~~ There was a Suprise !! ~~ waiting for us at Danny's apartment. GABRIEL was there!! WHOA!! he got kicked out of his apartment by the roomate that said he'd be able to stay there while looking for work...an' even tho Gabriel is giving guitar lessons and is making a tad bit of $$, it just looks like the guy was being a $^"*}! an' kicked him out anyway. Fortuntely another friend wanted to have somebody share his place, so for the weekend, Gabriel had to store his stuff at dannys, then this morning he'll take it all back OUT, and drag it all 4 blocks away and set it all up at his new place. MAN -- makes me tired just thinkin' about it all...Danny was so sweet to help out his brother, and it was Really Great to see gabe..he's still sskkkiinnnneeeeyyyy as can be, but he sez he's doin' fine. May have a couple gigs in the upcoming weeks, so that's a couple $$ more for him. We laughed, and joked about weird goings-on at different bars, an' generally had fun.

Now my studio is absolutely STUFFED with all the books, nick-knacks and what-have-you's that I've kept over the years. Noah was gonna build me a bookcase this week, if that JERK hadn't been such a dumb cluck an' SOLD noah the saw he needs...so for now, there is less space on the floor than there was last week. Wait till you see the picture's I've got for tomorrow. I'm just glad there's a closet for me to store some of the things that can go up on the shelves in there. Other wise it'd bee just a Little Tight. No..check that. It be REALLY tight..in here. Not so much as holding your breath when you walk around in the room to get inbetween piles of books..not that crowded. But Leaning in That Direction...

Must go an' see what's going on out in the laundry room...all of a sudden I'm hearin' something goin' on an' it don' sound good...STOP LOOKING AT MY GREY HAIR...thank you...an' we'll be talkin' to ya later...


Lady of The Tulips