Saturday, January 31, 2009

bummer

No music for now. Kept getting an echo.
How sad!
Maybe I'll get it back tomorrow...

Echo*echo*echo...

Is there an echo in here or is it me?
Yikes...don't know what happened, but I'm trying to fix it. BUMMER!

Friday, January 30, 2009

Trip for sure!


YES! Tickets have been purchased! I will be going to Phoenix March 11 for a glorious, warm, 6 day visit with my dear friend and fellow artist. We are going to visit our friend who moved there last year. She is also an artist, and actually the woman ho taught me encaustic painting. It will be an art and laughter filled visit! I am so excited! This winter is just way to winter-filled this year. Wish I could leave tomorrow.
The pix above is from last year's visit. That's the 3 of us at the top of one of the vortexes in Sedona. Now, that was an interesting experience! I'm a little skeptical about things that are so commercial as the vortexes in Sedona. If something is supposed to be a "spiritual experience" it really shouldn't be advertised all over the place. So, we explored 3 of them. (Ther went my principes!) For the most part there was nothing remarkable, except for the scenery, until the last one, where this pix is taken. When we got to the top of this place, we all felt something. Can't say exactly what, but something. Sort of a peace I guess. Hard to put into words. I still remember it though. Nice. I do believe that there is something beyond our physical universe and that there can be and is communication with that something. So maybe that's what was up there...or maybe the air was just thinner. Dunno, but I liked it and hope we go again.

Thursday, January 29, 2009

What can you say?

So "Helmet Hair" is out. We have a new governor here, but I'm not sure the old one is really going to leave. Listening to him today was actually a little sad. He just doesn't get it. Or maybe he does! Maybe he's using this insanity trick to save his neck. Who knows! Who cares! He's done and hopefully our new Gov will be better. What am I saying? Of course he'll be beter, but will he be any good?! Actually, I have a good feeling about Gov Quinn. He graduated from Fenwick High School, the same school my husband and sons graduated from. Not that that means much. I just know how the Jesuits taught them and I think Gov Q soaked up some of the "good stuff" from them. He started the Citizens Utility Board, so he has at least one point!
Time will tell.
My fingers are crossed.

Wooo-hoo!

I did it!

More?

OK, so now I have to figure out how to put more music on here! This could get kinda boring after a while. Not that Nina is ever boring! It would just be nice to have more music! I think music is one of the most important things in life.

Music...and a wish


Well, almost! I have created a playlist, but I need to figure out how to post it....don't hold your breath, but it'll be here soon. In the meantime, go to Pandora.com and play your own tunes!

Above is a pix of what I wish I was doing!

Saturday, January 24, 2009

silence of the snow

As much as I hate winter, there is something so lovely about the silence created by the snow. There is almost a feeling of a warm enclosure that happens at night when I am out in the snow covered yard. The dark navy sky, the glow of the alley lights, the soft rustle of the pine trees, and the silence. The silence is so addictive. I want to breath it in and keep it in my heart forever, only to bring it out during times of chaos and then store it safely away in my heart until the need is there again.
If only it didn't have to be so cold!

Thursday, January 22, 2009

My life as a shop girl

I started my working life in retail as a shop girl at the age of 15. I needed a work permit so that I could work at S.S. Kresge after school and on weekends. S.S. Kresge was the K-Mart of the 60's. I started at the check-out counter working the register. This was before the days of computers so I had to learn how to give change by "counting back", something that I can still do today. Ah, such talent! Actually, I didn't mind working the register because I liked making people happy and it seemed that they usually were happy when they bought their stuff. Every now and then I'd get a crabby person and I loved to be super sweet just to bug them. So evil! Soon after proving my prowess at the register, I was moved to all of the other departments to learn their inner workings. I was very succssful at some, and failed miserably at others. Which were my best you ask? Well, I did really well in the hat department (yes, we had hats in the old days!) I was also a star in jewelry, cosmetics and home decor. I did ok in the deli until I sliced my hand open. But my worst department was the lunch counter. I just couldn't remember who got what. I made a total of 10 cents in tips for an afternoon stint!For tis I was paid $1 an hour!
From here I went to several other retail establishments to get me through high school and a short college carreer. After leaving college early I was fortunate to land my dream job as a fashion illustrator for Chas. A. Stevens in Chicago. So now I was working as an artist. All I have ever wanted...to be an artist. Now I was making $47.50 a week! Over the years I have worked as an artist in many different venues, as a newspaper artist, a decorative painter, a muralist, a logo designer,and free lancing. I am
very blessed to have had these opportunities.I have learned so much from all of the artists that I have worked with. Much more, I have been told, than if I had gone to art school. Now, in the autumn of my years (wait isn't that a song?)I am, once again, a shop girl! It's a lovely job working in a very nice little boutique in the suburbs of Chicago. I get to put on cute clothes and talk to fun people and then go home with no stress in my shop girl life!I make a lot more money than those first shop girl jobs but that is not the important part. When I am not doing this I get to go into my studio and do what I love most...paint!!! This is what I must do. Except for raising my children, painting is what makes me feel real. It's what I must do. It is my air.
So being a shop girl has given me more than minimal wage. It has brought me to the point in my life where I can do and be what I was born to do.

Monday, January 12, 2009

Gerry

Not sure where to begin.
How do you write about someone who has died?
I guess I just begin.
Gerry was a dear friend, but we were not terribly close for the last few years. No reason, just drifted. She was the kind of person you could count on if you wanted to know the truth. She knew what she believed in and she did not let you talk her out of it. We had some great discussions! I know that she could be seen as being a bit negative, and she was at times, but I think it's because she was so grounded and determined. I'm making her sound all stuffy and stodgy...that is not Gerry! She loved to laugh and joke and was always up for an adventure. Well, as much of an adventure as you can have with a few toddlers in tow! We both had little guys back when we were closer. We spent quite a bit of time hanging out while the little guys created havoc and destruction! There were actually 3 moms and 3 little dudes, but that's another story!
I just have to say that I am glad that I knew Gerry. She had an impact on my life. I am sad that she is gone and grateful for her friendship.

Saturday, January 10, 2009

Here we go...

Well, let's see how this fits. I am missing my journal on Journal Space so I'll give this a shot. The wonderful thing about JS was the community that formed. I have to admit ,though, that occasionally I didn't write all that was on my mind because I knew others would be reading it. Here I don't expect so many viewers...just those I tell about it. So I guess that means you! Often, I will write things that I would not voice, simply because I hate to upset people or cause confrontation. Also if I feel strongly about something, I usually don't want to argue or discuss it, I just want to say it!! So feel free to comment, but understand that I may not reply...and then again I may bite your head off! I will also periodically post my paintings and drawings and poems. No need to comment...unless it is a positive comment. I always love that pat on the back.



My first official post then is :

I really hate this snow!!! It is so difficult for my husband to get around in and it really hurts my bones. OK, OK, it is a beautiful snowfall, and the silence is awesome. Just being outside at night when the snow is new is almost a spiritual experience. It's as if you are the only one on earth and there is total peace surrounding you. If only it could be a lot warmer!!!!