"Once Upon a Blue Moon..."

...a New Year and a new decade will arrive.

"The last day of 2009 is a doozy --

triply auspicious.

Not only is it the eve of a new year,

a new decade no less,

there will be a full moon,

a lunar eclipse

and

a blue moon to boot.
When a month is graced with two full moons,

the second one is called a blue moon."

Source: Donna Henes...Huffington Post

"The New Year's Eve blue moon will be visible

in the United States, Canada,

Europe, South America and Africa.

For party goers in Australia and Asia,

the full moon does not show up until New Year's Day,

making January

a blue moon month for them.
However,

the Eastern Hemisphere can celebrate

with a partial lunar eclipse on New Year's Eve

when part of the moon enters the Earth's shadow.

The eclipse

will not be visible in the Americas."

Source: Associated Press

Wherever you may celebrate this New Year's Eve

enjoy yourself, be safe,

and

maybe take a moment

to just glance up at the last full moon

of this decade...

and simply

smile at her universal beauty.

:)

"Wordless Wednesday...(#25)..."

"A True BLUE..."

...Blooming Tuesday Post...presented first...

"Au Natural"...

...then

flipped and texturized using Microsoft Editor.

Ahhh!

Click on images to enlarge...to better see the details.

(It's sometimes the simple things

that are so much fun.)

Have a great day!

Happy Birthday Mom...and you, too, Jan! :)

"I Have a Bad 'Code'..."

...and I cannot breathe.

All I do is blow my nose and sneeze.

No Cactus Monday post today...

and

no cheery quips either!

Bah Humbug to all of that!

I just feel lousy.

Ahhh CHOOO!

"Back In My Journal..."

...Again!

Christmas Season 2009...

Odds and Ends...Before and After...

Normal and Flipped.

I am simply

back in my red Hand.Book journal again...

and madly trying to complete the book

before

the turn of the new year.

Yea!

"Merry Christmas Wishes..."

...from the Arizona desert.

May your days be filled with sweet memories,

and

may your spirit be blessed with Peace, Joy,

and Wonder.

"Wordless Wednesday...(#24)..."

"Inspired By..."

...several ancient middle eastern patterns

is my modern variation

for some "Blooming Tuesday"

floral bling.

The first one is drawn "lead free"...

...ink straight in...

and dressed up in a sheer veil of

Daniel Smith watercolor;

The second,

is digitally draped in rich velvet and white lace

by

Microsoft Editor

and a simple click of the mouse.

Great fun were both! :)

"Greetings from the Desert..."

...on this first day of Winter!

Have a warm and snuggly, happy and heartfelt

Cactus Monday!

:)

"For the unlearned, old age is winter;

for the learned

it is the season of the harvest."
~The Talmud

"One Is for Company Sunday..."

...Jan's veggie pizza...soooo darn delicioius!

See other "Six Word Saturdays" here.

(BTW...One on right...gobbled up tonight!)

"Thankful Thursday...(#20)..."

...on Friday...Well, why NOT! ?? LOL :)

Arriving from Tim in Belgium

is this delightful little design entitled

"Angry Cloud."
I love this card and am a big fan of Tim's art.

Tim also sent a few cards which we are collaborating on...

he made monoprint backgrounds in ink...

and

I will design "something" on top of that!

This art endeavor should be a real "hoot"! :)

From Teresa in Michigan came this happy little zentangle

all dressed up in beautiful metallic effects.

Love the design

and the bright vivid colors she used here.

A really fun card!

Then from sweet Judy in Tennessee

came this surprise package...

just in time for holiday entertaining!

The little coasters on the right are "magic carpets."

When Judy saw these...

she thought of my ATC series of like name...

and decided right then and there that

I just "had to have" these.

A lovely little cactus ATC,

a very endearing note,

and a beautiful card from a blogging friend

accompanied this little "sussie" gift!

(A "sussie" is a Southern tradition...

it is a small gift or treat, but, most importantly,

it is a small gift given

for no particular reason.)

What fun!

Thank you each so much!

Another enjoyable week of wonderful mail art, don't you think?

"Wordless Wednesday...(#23)..."

"Feathers and Plumes..."

...arranged in a floral rosette for Blooming Tuesday.

Happy Day All! :)

"Warm Greetings..."

...from the land of the mighty Saguaro...

the state flower of Arizona!

(I just had to bring this one back again for

another holiday season ...)

May you find peace, love, and light.

Happy Holidays and Happy Cactus Monday, too! :)

"Six Word Saturday..."

Yahooooo!

My binder...from Zazzle...arrived!!!

Click on any image to enlarge...:)

(More "six words" can be found here!)

"Another Migraine..."

...my 3rd this week...

was totally "hatched" and in full torment by noon today.

I took some meds...

then

I slept a bit and then, in a migraine fog,

I drew this...

Feeling better now...but

was it the meds? or the nap? or the art?

that did the trick?

Go figure! :)

Illustration Friday: "Hatch"

"Thankful Thursday...(#19)..."

From Lee in Singapore

came these

beautiful ATC sized prints of 4 of her

pen and ink drawings.

Click on the image to see the detail...

I am so fascinated by the movement and

flow of her lines.

Each card is a mini masterpiece indeed! :)

From Cynthia, in North Carolina, came this lovely angel card

(and a bonus Cat ATC too!)

The musical notes on the angel card

remind me of all my choir days

singing Gregorian chant for church services

at St. Mary of the Woods.

I was such an "angelic child" back then...LOL :)

Cynthia and I have traded frequently...

She certainly has the digital magic down pat! :)

Then from London, delivered by Royal Mail,
came these two whimsical ATC cards from Joss!
The one to the left is entitled "Still Life"...
the one to the right is entitled "Hat in a Crowd".
What a wonderful surprise to receive!
Joss, you must have made over a "bazillion" cards by now!
Thanks for thinking of me! :)

This flower ATC arrived from Ruth in New Zealand.

Ruth makes lovely designs on her ATCs

and

also has a fabulous collection of zen drawings

made a special sketchbook.

I will be starting a book similar to hers and

and Sandra's (another Flickr friend) this coming New Year!

Should be great fun!

Thanks for the inspiration ladies!

These two pieces are from Debi in the U.K.

They are entitled "Cracked Splendour"

and are absolutely stunning in both texture and color .

Be sure to click on this image to enlarge.
According to Debi...

this is how the one on the right

was made:

"Card swiped with Vintage Photo distress ink.

Heat embossed several times with clear UTEE.

Stamped into top layer while warm.

Put into freezer for 10 minutes.

Bent so it cracked.

Rubbed with black ink and gold paint."

For directions for the card on the left...click here. :)

FAB...U...LOUS!

This final batch of eye candy was sent by Marianne

in the Netherlands.

It was a total surprise too! :)

What more can I say...she is an international sensation!

What a treat to receive these beauties.

Click on the image to better see the Holiday card

which accompanied the goodies.

Now that definitely gets one in the mood to celebrate

this glorious season.

Thank you...each and every one!

And

happy "Hellos to All" from my postal delivery person.

She almost loves these exchanges as much as I do!

She has had such a delight delivering

such fun pieces!

I hope you enjoy them too! :)

"Wordless Wednesday...(#22)..."

"A Late Night Bloom..."

"Night time

is really the best time to work.

All the ideas are there to be yours

because everyone else is

asleep."

~Catherine O'Hara

"A Jewel Toned Palette..."

...for a Happy Cactus Monday!

May the colors of this holiday season decorate

your imagination

and dress your spirit with joy!!

“When you like your work every day is a holiday.”
~Frank Tyger

"A Change Of Heart..."

Change is the only constant.

Sometimes we expect it...like the change of seasons...

and it is almost pleasant.

Other times...

it hits us

like a ton of bricks...

coming seemingly out of nowhere-

piercing clear through our soulful self...

leaving us

without

the

right

words.

We struggle to find the light at the end of the tunnel.

Today,

I post this in love and friendship...

for JGL...back "home"

but living in a brand new world.

"Continuity gives us roots;

change

gives us branches,

letting us stretch and grow and

reach new heights."

~Pauline R. Kezer

"Baby...It's Cold Outside..."

Snow, over a foot, is predicted this weekend

in the high country

as well as freeze warnings

in the higher elevations rimming the

the "Valley of the Sun"

here in Arizona.

We covered the bougainvillea...just in case...

and speaking of being under cover...

I'll be snuggled

under my down comforter for sure tonight!

Brrrr...!!!

"Whoa-oh-oh, oooh..."

OOOOOH MY!

Did YOU see it this week???

Wow! Oh my, oh MY!!

It was glorious and clear and enormous

and totally breathtaking

as viewed here

in the open Arizona desert!

Hmmm...What am I talkin' 'bout???

Well...

"There's a (moon out tonight) whoa-oh-oh, oooh

Let's go strollin'

There's a (girl in my heart) whoa-oh-oh, oooh

Whose heart I've stolen

There's a moon out tonight (whoa-oh-oh, oooh)

Let's go strollin' through the park

(ooh-ooh-ooh-oooh)"

~Words and Music By

Al Striano, Joe Luccisano and Al Gentile

Sung by the Capris

(Reached #3 on the Billboard Charts 1961)
and...

it looked just like this

...and, I can't stop singing this song!

...whoa-0h-oh, oooh...:)

"A Thankful Thursday Trio...(#19)..."

Starting this week's eye candy is a beautiful card

from Harriet in Indiana.

I "met" Harriet at Illustrated ATCs.

Among the things Harriet paints are

incredible cards with fantasy trees and romantic moons.

I always look forward

to seeing what she will come up with next.

Thanks Harriet for "Spirea"! :)

(Click on images to enlarge for details...)

This delightful zentangle arrived from Illinois

and the artful hand of Debi.

There is a gorgeous metallic sheen

in each of the colors

that the scanner does not pick up.

I just love everything about it! :)

My last photo is of the Sacred Heart card

I received from Shayna in Alabama.

I feel like we trade

almost every week...it is just so much fun!!

Shayna is always coming up with new ideas...

"Pop in" at her Flickr page for a peek!

Whew!

I cannot believe December is here and the Holiday

Season is almost in full swing!

Santa's elves surely have some real competition

when it comes to the amount of treasures

being made by all of he

artistic souls

out there!

Speaking of which...

I hope to be able to share a special little

"something-something"

I made

as soon as it "arrives"...

(Hint...it has something to do with ATC cards!)

I am soooo excited about it...

Stay tuned!

"Wordless Wednesday...(#21)..."

Three Big Blooms...

...plus one itsy-bitsy batik...

The first three gifted me by my 7 year old twin nieces...

the last

made by my "?7+" year old Muse.

:)

May YOU find

both big and bitsy beautiful things today also!
Happy Blooming Tuesday!