Thursday, April 30, 2009

"I Got Stoned..."

...this past week...
...kidney stoned, that is...
and I'm not doing much LOL either...:(
It all started last Friday morning, April 24th, when I was awakened
about 6:30 am
by a severe pain on my left side.
Thinking it was a bad muscle pull near my hip...
I took some Tylenol Arthritis tablets
and tried to fall back asleep.
That was not to be.
To make a long story bearable...the pain intensified and
I ended up checking in at the
ER at Banner Del Webb Medical Center
about 11:30 am.
After waiting seemingly forever for the triage nurse to check me out
...and the inevitable flurry of paperwork
to be processed...
I was at last admitted into the ER.
The place was packed...
(what drawing opportunities if one was in the mood!)
Lab work began and shortly
a powerful trio of really good drugs was given intravenously
and finally, I could feel no pain...Ahhh! :)
A CT scan came next.
An hour or so later the results were in
I had two kidney stones...
one small..2mm...the other large...6.1mm.
The smaller to pass on my own...the larger needed a procedure.
At 4:30 in the afternoon...
it was decided that I would need to be admitted into the hospital.
A bed was finally ready for me at 8:30 pm.
I stayed two nights and came home Sunday Afternoon.
I now wait again for further input by a specialist
as to my next course of action...
most likely an sonic or a laser blast of the larger stone.
Geesch!
I am most thankful that the reason for my pain was diagnosed,
that the situation was not super critical, and
that things are now hopefully
on the mend.

The drawing above was started the night I was admitted
and shows the views I had from my bed.
It was painted just today at home.
This week has not only zapped my energy level
but also my artistic enthusiasm.
I have just now gotten back to visiting blogs.
Hopefully, the "hospital funk" is gone...
(at least, until I get my bill...LOL...ugh!)
and I will now be back drawing, and painting,
and simply enjoying
the artistic posts of all my friends.

"A hospital should also have a recovery room
adjoining the cashier's office."
~Author Unknown

"No Worry..." :)
~Sandi, my nurse from Australia

Friday, April 24, 2009

"Midnight At The Oasis..."


...Send your camel to bed.
Shadows paintin' our faces...
...Traces...of romance in our heads..."
~Written by David Nichtern 1974...sung by Maria Muldaur
(Format: 7" 45rpm ) LOL! :)
(Dang! I have been singing that song all day long! )
Okay...back to reality...I think...
...to present to you my Midnight Desert Mirage ATC Series...
Cards #1 & 2...of 6.

The world, indeed, is like a dream
and the treasures of the world are an alluring mirage!
Like the apparent distances in a picture,
things have no reality in themselves,
...they are like heat haze.”
~
Buddha

Thursday, April 23, 2009

"Artful Gifts..."

...from across the pond
awaited me on my return from Tucson!
...From dear Soulbrush in London...
3 whimsical soul-filled African themed ATC cards
made for our trade...(click images to enlarge...check out the stamp!)
(Soul...yours will be flying from the desert soon!)

...and from Marianne in the Netherlands...
(a.k.a. "Queen of Mandalas")
two beautiful cards from her Etsy shop which I won
in a lucky draw by Felix...
...a very sweet note...an ATC card for our trade...
and a joyful mandala-filled bookmark!
Aren't I a lucky girl??? LOL :)

"Every gift from a friend is a wish for your happiness."
~
Richard Bach

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

"Plant Your Heart..."

in a good place...this Earth Day...

and this Earth Night...2009.

"I only went out for a walk
and finally concluded to stay out till sundown,
for going out,
I found, was really going in."
~John Muir, 1913

"Those who dwell among the beauties and mysteries of the earth
are never alone or weary of life."
~Rachel Carson

"The earth is what we all have in common."
~
Wendell Barry

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

"Bloomin' at Jerry Bob's..."

...for breakfast in Tucson...
a beehive of local activity and huge portions!
The place was blooming with color and all sorts of interesting
people and things to draw
while waiting...
outdoors for a table...and indoors for our food. LOL :)
Painted once we returned home.

Happy "Blooming Tuesday" all...Yes, I've succumbed to the
lure of yet another little bloggy group. LOL :)
Blame it all on Teri C...
she's always blooming with great ideas!
(After all she suggested this breakfast place and started the group!)

"Bloom where you are planted."
~Proverb

"All happiness depends on a leisurely breakfast."
~
John Gunther

Monday, April 20, 2009

"Buried Treasure..."

(Click on image to enlarge.)
...discovered at sunset Thursday
on the grounds of the San Xavier del Bac mission church
on the Tohono O'odham reservation...
just south of Tucson.
These blossoms...no kidding...
were are large as my hand...with all fingers spread out wide!
She was stunning...
simply stunning...in every way!
I now must find out the name of this exotic beauty...
Anyone have any ideas?
(She reminds me of an Argentine Giant...
but it's the amazing coral blossoms that are throwing me for a loop!
In the meantime...
have a great Cactus Monday all!
Hopefully, this day will
surprise you with a hidden treasure of your very own! :)

"Learning is a treasure
that will follow its owner everywhere."
~Chinese Proverb

Sunday, April 19, 2009

"The Tucson Connection..."

a fanciful...absolutely not to scale...
map of our travel adventures during our little spring getaway...
a mere 150 or so miles from home.
(Details with all the good stuff to follow!)

"A good map
is both a useful tool and
a magic carpet to far away places."
~Author Unknown

Saturday, April 18, 2009

"Back Home..."

...Exhausted...Elated...and on Email overload...LOL :)
Whew!
(A lot happens when one is unplugged!)
So
a little something soothing and serene for today...
...another "China Bloom"
...from my ATC series...#2 of 6.

"You must be a Lotus,
unfolding its petals when the sun rises in the sky,
unaffected by the slush where it is born
or
even the water which
sustains it!"
~Sri Sathya Sai Baba
Indian Spiritual leader

Tuesday, April 14, 2009

"Taking a Break..."

...a mini Spring Break...packed to the brim with sketching...
drawing...
painting...photography...
wonderous sights and new vistas!
And to top it all off...
all that without computer access!
I am already in withdrawl mode...LOL :)
I'll be back in bloggy land Saturday.
Thanks
for popping in! :)

"If you come home as happy as you leave,
you have had a good vacation."
~Author Unknown

Monday, April 13, 2009

"Her Blooms are A-Poppin!"

WooHOO! From My House...
...to Yours!
C'mon...join in on the experience...
Why not "pop in"on a friend today...just for the fun of it!?
Have a Happy Cactus Monday!

"The ornament of a house is the friends who frequent it."
~
Ralph Waldo Emerson

Sunday, April 12, 2009

"May Blessings..."


...joyful peace...and....a full happy heart...
be yours-
not only on this Easter day....but on all the days of your life.
(Art originally posted, last year... here.)

"On Easter Day
the veil between time and eternity thins to gossamer."
~Douglas Horton

Saturday, April 11, 2009

"I Slept In..."


...this morning...
while the desert skies were moody and overcast
and my yard
was kissed with precious sprinkles of rain.

"I love sleep.
My life has the tendency to fall apart when I'm awake, you know?"
~
Ernest Hemingway

Friday, April 10, 2009

All Coiled Up..."

...nice and comfy...into a woven basket mandala...the first of three.
Pitt Pen...7"x 7" Bristol Board

"To be ignorant of what happened before you were born
is to be ever a child.
For what is man's lifetime
unless the memory of past events
is woven with those
of earlier times?"
~Marcus Tullius Cicero
Ancient Roman Lawyer, Writer, Scholar, Orator and Statesman
106 BC-43 BC

Thursday, April 9, 2009

"Full Moonglow..."

...and Mother Nature will paint the Sonoran Desert tonight
gently dressing her
in a palette of silvery blue magic
so soft and serene.
I made my little painting here
by using a base wash
of Chinese White with dabs of iridescent blue
purple, green, and coral DS paint...
then added
lettering and a bit of "border zen" with a silver gel pen...
all to bling out
a small sheet of Strathmore black paper
ripped from my field journal.
Hmmm...

"Ain't nothing like the real thing, baby
Ain't nothing
like the real thing..."
~Marvin Gaye
:)

Wednesday, April 8, 2009

"Stepping Out..."

...of my artistic comfort zone
in an attempt to "urbanize" my art focus a bit.
It is also one of my 2009 art goals. :)
Well...
this little "piece" was left in the back seat of our car by an
auto tech who was working on it.
We didn't notice the gun
until we were clear across the valley at a shopping mall
and went to place our purchases
on the back seat.
(Here in Arizona car windows are darkly tinted
due to the intense sun...so seeing it
through the side windows
was next to impossible...obviously.)
Never even thought to look in the back seat
when the car was picked up...never even thought of that!
Sooooo...what the HECK
was a gun doing in our back seat in the first place???
Well...
we would soon find out...after a few phone calls.
And, of course, in the meantime
before we returned it...I felt it just had to be drawn.
However...
midway through my drawing,
my imagination got the better of me,
and
I felt compelled to google the gun.
I launched myself into "CSI trainee mode"...and found out that
this particular gun was luckily "only" a pellet gun
(and that the bag of white "pill like things" were not drugs, but pellets.)
The very surreal part of this though
was that the gun was
the same exact model style and specs
of the Walther P99 semi automatic pistol used by military
and law enforcement around the world.
On top of that, I found that
Walther also created several limited editions of the P99
including the MI-6 (James Bond)
a marketing tie-in with the new James Bond movies! Wowza!
So now...
my little artistic journey "into the urban jungle"
had instantly, by the click of a mouse,
became one that was
interlaced with espionage and
international intrigue.
My pen now hatched over my sketchbook pages
with a new energy and sense of adventure.
How artistically exhilarating!
And...yes,
to make a long story short...
heads rolled at the dealership and apologies were profuse.

"Move out of your comfort zone.
You can only grow if you are willing to feel
awkward and uncomfortable
when
you try something new."
~
Brian Tracy

Tuesday, April 7, 2009

"The Final Two..."


cards (#5 and #6) in my ancient Chinese floral design
ATC card set
are now completed...
..all "dragon stamped" and everything!

"Nothing is so fatiguing
as the eternal hanging on of an uncompleted task."
~William James

Monday, April 6, 2009

"Eleanor, the "Art Elf"..."

...gifted my twin nieces
with their very first illustration journals
this past Christmas.
Since then...
both Jillian and Joya have been happily drawing all the wonderful
everyday things that matter
to an active six year old girl.
Their journals go with them everywhere!!!
This week was a biggie...
mom and dad's anniversary...
dad's birthday...
and even a crayon Cactus Monday piece by Aunt Peg!
Enjoy!





This last photo really recaps our happy night...
A fancy desert...
journals in hand...and crayons strewn about the table.
You have just gotta love it! :)
I wonder if "Eleanor" is watching! LOL :)

“Every child is an artist.
The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up.”
~Pablo Picasso

Sunday, April 5, 2009

"This Ancient Talisman..."

...was discovered deep within the Middle Kingdom tomb of
Queen Mar-Gara-Tiri...
the Egyptian Lotus Goddess...
guardian of Water Blossoms which grew profusely
in the ancient river civilizations
of the Near East.
The talisman itself is
in the design of the Udjat Eye...
...and is noted to be one of the most powerful of all talismans in
Ancient Egypt.
The Udjat, once brilliant in color, adorned a fragment of finely woven linen.
This potent charm was used to protect its owner from sickness
and
to provide eternal life in the afterworld.
The linen fragment itself was
found placed within a translucent alabaster carved vessel
which was sealed with a golden cartouche
and bound with
finely woven and intricately plaited papyrus reed fibers.
The reeds were tied with delicate knots
bejeweled in amulets of lapis lazuli, carnelian, and turquoise.
Miniature scrolls written in hieroglyphs
were also found within the alabaster vessel.
They indicated that
Ptah, the Egyptian deity protecting ancient artisans,
had befriended Mar-Gara-Tiri
and became her Muse
showering her with good juju.
It is believed, by many Egyptologists, that vessels like these
were used for watercolor painting
and that the colors painted on the cloth
designated the color palette used by the artist-owner
of the vessel.
Such vessels and their magical contents were buried with female owners
to provide colorful serenity
throughout their journey in the afterlife.
It has been said that whoever gazes upon such an artifact as this will be
inspired in the ways of the ancient artistic ones.
They will be surrounded with a lifetime of
good karma...where Every Day Matters...,
and
that the art produced by each viewer
from that day forward
will have
magical and joyful properties.

"So let it be written...So let it be done."
~Rameses II (Yul Brenner)
The Ten Commandments-1956

Illustration Friday Challenge: Talisman

Friday, April 3, 2009

"Sun Shield..."

...#5 in my Sunlight ATC series.

For an impenetrable shield, stand inside yourself
~
Henry David Thoreau

"A Dancing Sundala..."


...#4 in my Sunlight ATC series. :)

"A friend is someone who dances with you in the sunlight,
And walks with you in the shadows."
~Author Unknown

Thursday, April 2, 2009

"Saving the Ta-Tas..."

...at breakfast Monday morning.
Our favorite little "local hangout" for breakfast,
burger basket lunch specials,
scrumptious "homemade from scratch" desserts,
and their infamous Friday night fish fry is
"Martin's"
a family owned and operated business...
located in Sun Village right here in Surprise, Arizona.
Last Monday, a day they are normally closed...
Martin's hosted their first ever
"Breakfast for the Cure."
Food was generously donated by suppliers for the event...
and the wait staff and kitchen staff
not only worked on their day off...but worked only for tips.
The atmosphere was exuberant and joyful...and celebratory!
The place was packed...and decorated in pink...
and even though wait time was bit longer than usual
everyone had a smile on their face
and a glow to their spirit...:)
The positive energy level that day was beyond supersonic!
(I even got a bit weepy it was so exhilarating.)
Susan , the owner and one fabulous baker, and her sister Peggy
partake in the 3-day breast cancer
"Walk for the Cure" yearly.
Proceeds from the breakfast,
as well as generous bids made on each and every one
of the numerous silent auction items,
made the day a stand out!
I get the "happy chills"
thinking about the power of small community coming
together for a worthy cause and making such a
powerful impact.
Days like this are "what it is all about"!

This piece was sketched with a borrowed ballpoint
on the back of a pink silent auction flyer
...taken down from the wall...
(It didn't even cross my mind to bring my sketchbook...really!)
first...on my lap...no backing board...while waiting for our table...
and then continued
while drinking coffee awaiting our food.
I used colored pencil at home to refine details
and improve the readability of my
jiggly lap lettering and lines.
A copy will be given of the drawing and this post
to both Susan and Peggy
sometime today...
as I definitely foresee a vision of a burger basket
on the lunchtime horizon!

Why not help save the "Ta-Tas" Worldwide!???!!!
Click here or here for information. :)

"You give but little
when you give of your possessions.
It is when you give of yourself that you truly give."
~Kahlil Gibran

Wednesday, April 1, 2009

"An Oldie...

...But a Goodie"...
originally posted last year...
for Earth Day 2008...
...and making her comeback today...by special request...
to wish each of you a Happy April!
And that's No Foolin! :)

"April comes like an idiot, babbling and stewing flowers."
~Edna St. Vincent Millay