! ! ! ! ! !

As seems fitting in the ridiculously absurd turn my life has taken the last couple years, yesterday was my last day of work - and I didn't even realize until my friend Pam mentioned the possibility. I'd given feb 1st as my effective date of resignation and I've had so much on my mind it didn't occur to me that date was coming up next wednesday already, guess I had the thought there still was a week to go. Of course this is what I'd been looking forward to but I didn't even get to celebrate while there the fact I would not be coming back, nor say goodbye to a few people, be a total slacker on that last day (right). When I went in to get my check just a bit ago (because I only worked one day this week that being yesterday) and inquired, sure enough I was told I'd be spared working next tuesday (actually all hours had been cut due to the fact business is very slow so per usual this worked to their advantage, I am sure it wasn't actually done for my benefit alone by any stretch of the imagination). But, YEAH - that mundane and tedious job is now a part of my history, I am very glad to say.

happy birthday marie

Originally uploaded by blubird.

I think it is now tomorrow in Australia - that being the case:

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MARIE - I hope you enjoy a day in the sun!!

xoxo

insensitivity

Originally uploaded by blubird.

Something tonight really upset me, the letter I immediately fired off to MSNBC.com follows, and the collage one I had quickly pieced together with pictures in our newspaper those awful days, one I'd posted to this blog months ago now.

I'd like to think nothing shocks me anymore as there are such horrors we visit on the news each night, but I have to say that just two minutes ago while watching the NBC Nightly News and hearing Brian Williams read a few comments from viewers with the attitude of "enough already with New Orleans", I find myself thoroughly shocked. And not only shocked but saddened there are people who lack such compassion for humanity. Have they not been paying attention that next to nothing has been done for a great many of the people of New Orleans who lost their homes, their livelihoods, their ways of life on that fateful day?? This was one of the worst natural disasters the United States has ever endured, fellow Americans are still suffering its effects, and the fact is they will for years and years and years to come.

The nightly news, in my humble view, is not meant for entertainment, it is to inform us of the actualities of our world. There is a great deal which is not pretty in this age we live, and I would hope at the very least it gives us reason to keep those less fortunate in our prayers if not moved or able to help in any other way. I, for one, feel we all need that pause and reminder as we go about our daily lives. Thank you NBC for providing that to us.

a long day

Originally uploaded by blubird.

I spent most of it up here sorting and readying the art room to be packed, threw away nearly four garbage bags full - a good feeling. I am tired, to relax I just sewed up a quilted valentine (yuck, I scanned this and the colors look atrocious - trust me, they don't in "real life") while I watched a little tv - about four or five episodes of Friends in a row. Ready for a shower, a book, and bed!

tagged

Tagged by Marie, here are my "FOURS" ~

4 jobs I've had:
school secretary
MOM/domestic goddess (for much of my "career"!)
rubberstamp store clerk
grocery store cashier

4 fav movies:
When Harry Met Sally
Breakfast Club
Wizard of Oz
Amelie

4 places I've lived:
Grand Rapids, Michigan
Kentwood, Michigan
Medina, Ohio
Charlotte, North Carolina

4 tv shows I watch:
Grey's Anatomy
ER
Today Show
HGTV

4 places I've vacationed:
I'm a beach baby:
Virgin Islands
San Francisco Bay area
both coasts, including Keys of Florida
Cape Cod

4 websites I visit daily:
only 4?!, will have to categorize
yahoo groups
blogs
ebay

4 fav foods:
chicken scallopini
apple pie
caesar salad
popcorn

4 places I'd rather be right now:
in my new house
any beach
hanging out with friends/family
having a massage!

4 fav smells:
puppies (Ernie!)
baking bread
soap
ocean

4 things I need/wish for/can't/ won't live without:
health/well-being of my boys & self
art/books/music
romantic love
caffeine '~)

Ok, so I added a couple categories! And, I admit I am becoming a blog voyeur - I am tagging no one as I believe this has finally made the rounds!

xoxo Mary

{grow}

grow
Originally uploaded by blubird

"Out of darkness flowers grow."

--------one day at a time.

life hurts.

Originally uploaded by blubird.

{heart}

Originally uploaded by blubird.

Since I am going to have all my stuff packed soon I will miss being able to create much for valentine's day this year, so sewed up a little something yesterday.

{fabric}

Originally uploaded by blubird.

No getting past it, I am having a full-blown love affair with fabric these days. There is a place in a town about a half hour from me which has a big fabric warehouse/outlet type deal, where all kinds of stuff ends up at great prices. I go for the remnants, and here are the lucious ones I picked up yesterday. Being it may be the last time I visit, I got quite a bit. Hopefully, too, this will be the last time I have to leave the house being it is now sold (they did the inspection yesterday morning, "forcing" me to leave for a two-hour time period) - this is getting expensive!

Imagining all the possibilities......

is this the party to whom i am speaking?

Originally uploaded by blubird.

There are so many tedious things to attend to when moving. The past two days I have spent on the phone, making lists upon lists and trying to keep straight who I needed to call back and in what order as it depended on what I learned from one party as to what I communicated to the next. Oh, and have I mentioned I fired the movers?! Well not fired per se, as the contract hadn't been signed, but I am not up for dealing with some sarcastic and condescending pr--, um, person, at this point in the process. I need someone who will take care of this as they did my last move, those guys even asked to drive the truck down here so they could set me back up, now that's quality service! That thrill of victory evaporated quickly, this leaves me with no packing to be done this weekend as I have used up what boxes I had and will have to wait until I get a company hired and some boxes - like about 300+ - delivered. (do now have someone scheduled on monday morning, bright and early)! All fine and dandy except being a pack rat means that every square inch of space in this house is at the limit of stuff capacity, and why do I have, literally, hundreds and hundreds of books?? I move in one month!!!! Well, when I wasn't on the phone (and I guess even at times when I was) I sorted, and shredded, and god help me it isn't something I am asked for tomorrow as that is how my life turns, it revolves on a very wobbly axis.

I slept tonight - probably about ten minutes. I don't know what woke me, can only attribute it to panic as I have started not sleeping again this week because I seem to have those lists superimposed on the brain. And of course have had some wild dreams - the kind which come because you are feeling less than in control of your life?? Yeah, those.

Maybe it's the full moon, I do hear howling.

marie

Originally uploaded by blubird.

just the best, period.

{ ! ! ! }

Originally uploaded by blubird.

I'm sure most of you readers are aware I am less than enchanted with my part-time job as a grocery store cashier. I'm surprised I've lasted as long with it as I have (a year and a half) yet today the day has finally arrived - I was able to put in my notice! A very good day!

I cannot imagine having my computer anywhere but in my art studio, it is as much part of my creative process as anything. I not only use it to scan and tweak photos I use in my work but to generate the text I enjoy incorporating into pieces. And sometimes it is good to scan a piece I am working on to see it in a different perspective. It also is nice to have the connection to others as I do spend hours and hours alone up here. If I sit for instance to sew on a button or take a sip from coffee or just plop my butt down in the chair to ease my stiff back I have the option to read emails from friends and send them my hellos too. Although I don't like IM-ing there are certainly times I back and forth it with my sisters (which sometimes leads to just a scream and picking up the phone as we've really connected at a moment)! And then there's the inspiration - I can spend hours and hours looking and gathering back my muse from what I peruse while in the midst of my own inspiring stuff (and there is certainly loads and loads of it to say the least). It's funny, when looking at houses I thought of putting it on a loft landing outside what I'd thought I would be able to use as my art room in one house - and immediately thought even that would be too far away, although aesthetically pleasing and a good space, it just wouldn't work for me!

I am excited about the new house, it has a walk-out basement that is mostly furnished but directly across the hall from the bedroom I will set up as the studio there is a large unfinished room for storage which is the exact same size. I envision the cinder block walls painted a funky color, ditto the floor and will use it to do all the "messy" stuff such as large-scale painting, sanding, drilling, cutting, soldering, etc - a real workshop where I'll fill the entire center of the room with a table or tables made from sawhorse bases. And I still have another huge room to use for storage that houses the furnace - space I have craved since moving to this little house here as houses in this part of the country don't have basements as a standard. And although I have never been much a basement person (other than wanting it for storage purposes) even all the houses I've lived in have been finished because they tend to be so dark and cold, this one has lots of windows and is filled with so much light.

Guess I'm getting excited to get up there!

a good day

Originally uploaded by blubird.

I saw this book when I was christmas shopping and picked it up this weekend on one of my shopping forays when the house was being shown. I started reading it late this afternoon, I'm enjoying it immensely, seems to speak to the nesting/maternal instinct in me. Lots of things in there that will never happen in my life - I am not moving to a farm, LOL - but as well much which can be applied to make mine a simpler and more healthy and rewarding life. A kind of back to basics lifestyle in this crazy world. I've just gotten to the section titled, Stitching Room, and am looking forward to picking up some tips to apply to my latest passion. There are absolutely gorgeous photos and some mouth-watering recipes which are even making me crave jello! A fun read.

Kind of a melancholy day - Marie and I got together for coffee this morning which most likely signifies our last time doing so here in Charlotte. She is heading back to Australia to get the boys back to school by week's end and will not be back until just about the exact time I should be moving mid-february. She, too, will be moving from here when she returns - we both are very very happy (to say the least) for each other to be moving on from this godforsaken place but I will miss her very much. However, as I feel I am going back to the land of the living and gaining more energy and zest for life once again (as she too related) I have a good feeling we will see each other still a few times a year. I don't know how I could have survived being here without her friendship and support - I think we have come to the conclusion we had to have this time in our lives to meet. A lifelong friend - I love ya Marie!!

welcome

Originally uploaded by blubird.

Must have houses on the brain, just whipped up this piece using some (but not all!) of the black and white fabric I have stashed. Think this one would look good mounted in a black frame.

{wowza}

Originally uploaded by blubird.

What a day yesterday - there seemed to be alot of interest in the house and after being on the market just a week - SOLD for full price!! I am very excited, and a tad overwhelmed! Although must be relieved on some level as I slept very soundly and through the night - something that doesn't happen too often.

The smell of coffee is wafting up - time to relax before really getting busy now.

happy 21st birthday, joe!

Originally uploaded by blubird.

My baby turns 21 today, wow how time flies! Joe has always had an old soul, mature beyond his years he's been admired and respected by his peers and adults alike. He is a gifted musician, plays many instruments, composes music and writes very introspective lyrics. His band THE FLUKES he formed while in the 7th grade; they play at clubs and parties across Ohio to this day and have released a few cds.

He was a great kid, I am very very proud of the man he has become!!

I love you Joey ~ Mom

and so it begins...

Originally uploaded by blubird.

in the here and now

Originally uploaded by blubird.

My first artistic endeavor of the new year.

I usually never make new year's resolutions, I find them self-defeating as I rarely follow through for any extended period of time. Yet I'd like to take my passion and resolve in this new year to work on art every day, regardless if it is 5 minutes or I get lost in hours of creative pursuit. However, with my impending move that may prove unrealistic - for a couple months anyway. What I can do is at the least read a magazine article or a portion of one of my growing library of art books to keep me inspired and add to the list of techinques I want to try or ideas I want to incorporate into my own artistic vision.

All this was easy to do, something in fact I felt driven to do, before I started working. Even I work only part-time I've found the stress of it, the tiredness, etc leaves me sometimes with very little energy except on my days off (welcome to the REAL world, LOL)! I do believe a large part of this though has had to do with my living situation and I have taken that bull by the horns so to speak - I have bought a new house and the current one is now up for sale. Progress, after alot of indecision and depression.

Moving forward in 2006!!!