"At the Stroke of Midnight..."

... I wish you

the beginning of year filled with beauty...

peace...and serenity.

Farewell, 2011.

"The object of a new year

is not that we should have a new year.

It is that we should have

a new soul.”
~ G. K. Chesterton

"Some Desert Moonglow..."

...for my mom on her birthday...today! ♥

With love from...

Susan, David, Joya, & Jillian...

Jack, Sharon,

Vanessa, Lauren, Steve, & Myles...

Mark, Katie,

Christopher, Courtney, & Corey...

and

Scott & me.

“God could not be everywhere,

and therefore

he made mothers.”
~Rudyard Kipling

HAPPIEST of BIRTHDAY wishes

to you, too, JAN...

my dear, dear friend! ♥

"Let the Trading Begin..."

Well...

I am off and running

in another Illustrated ATC swap adventure

which will go for the next 5 days!

Whew!

I really don't know though if I can give this one away...

as

she is on of my "faves" thus far.

I call her

"Tree of Life: Swirled Starlight"...

my touchstone to the cosmic universe.

*sigh*

"When your heart is filled with love...

you will experience

the Divine

in the entire cosmos.”
~Sri Sathya Sai Baba

"Merry Christmas..."

...from my family...to yours.

♥

“Other things may change us...

but we start and end

with family.”
~Anthony Brandt

"This Magical Eve..."

...may your day be sprinkled with spiritual joy...

and nestled in moments of

serenity and peace.

I wish each of you a happy heart...

a joyful soul...

and

memories softly twinkling with smiles.

"Christmas

waves a magic wand over this world,

and behold,

everything is softer and more

beautiful."

~Norman Vincent Peale

Tree Rings...

...and starlit snowy branches,

a hearty, yet magical, winter solstice combination.

"Winter

is the time for comfort,

for good food and warmth,

for the touch of a friendly hand

and

for a talk beside the fire...

it is the time for

home."

~Edith Sitwell

"The State of the Weather..."

in Arizona:

soaking rains here in the desert valley...

and SNOW

in the higher mountainous elevations

around Flagstaff and along the Mogollon rim

with

24+ inch accumulation totals

predicted from just yesterday and today.

Winter is definitely here!

Brrr!

How To Be Alone

I found this on my friend Lisa's Facebook page. It is simply delightful and full of love. Enjoy! :)

There Always Seems To Be..."

...something around to draw...

while sitting around waiting, and waiting, and waiting...

for "this or that"!

The fire extinguisher was drawn lead free...

ink straight in...

(which explains the wonkiness of it)

at the gate.

The swirls and botanical bits were drawn

in flight...

after awakening from a long snooze.

(Note departure time...yawn!)

Color was added back in Arizona.

:)

"A new idea is delicate.

It can be killed by a sneer or a yawn;

it can be stabbed to death by a joke

or

worried to death

by a frown on the right person's brow."

~Charles Brower

"Sending Some Desert Love..."

...your way.

May your artistic Muse be energized...

and

your heart sparkle with thanks.

Have a most rewarding Thanksgiving Day!

"Nothing is more honorable than a grateful heart."

~Seneca

"Being Thankful.."

for those "little" things in life.

I found this on a friend's post on Facebook.

It is filled with exquisite, breathtaking photography...

and worth every second of viewing.

So grab a cuppa,

turn up the sound, then sit back and enjoy.

Thanks, Caroline...

♥

"I would maintain

that thanks are the highest form of thought,

and

that gratitude is happiness doubled

by wonder."
~G. K. Chesterton

"I Love Rust..."

...and things with

coppery green patinas and creaky handles.

Things that are so loving worn

and filled to the brim with silent storied lives

touch my heart.

Hmmm...wait a minute...

I could very well be describing myself!

♥
“A determined soul

will do more with a rusty monkey wrench

than a loafer

will accomplish with all the tools

in a machine shop.”
~Robert Hughes

Remembering...

...my Uncle Al...

who passed away over 50 years ago..

this day.

Some days, I feel he has never left me.

“May you never forget what is worth remembering,

nor

ever remember what is best

forgotten.”
~Irish Blessing

"Seasonal Fabric Design..."

...inspired from an ad I saw

this summer in Chicago magazine.

Drawn ink straight in...

and flipped into the negative format with

Microsoft Digital Editor.

Looks like a snowy branch...doesn't it?

Hmmm...

a rather an appropriate flip

(if I do say so myself)

as it is almost the winter season

and

I am just now posting

this quirky little summer drawing...

LOL :)

"To be interested in the changing seasons

is a happier state of mind

than to be hopelessly in love

with spring."
~George Santayana

Drawn Lead Free...

...without glasses on...

while waiting in a doctor's office this summer.

And, yes, it's another

from my "backtracking" vault of illustrated memories.

:)

“The supreme accomplishment

is to blur the line between work and play.”
~Arnold Toynbee

"Backtracking..."

...in an attempt to catch up...

with all my summer journal drawings

so

I am ready for new art

for the holidays!

This was drawn "ink straight in"...lead free...

while awaiting an

optometry appointment this summer back in Illinois.

This was my view

from where I was seated in the waiting room.

I actually added watercolor just about a week later...

then

flipped it into the "negative" with Microsoft Digital Editor

a few seconds ago

and finally posted it just now...

almost 4 months

later.

Backtracking...at its finest!

"Never forget

the power of silence,

that massively disconcerting pause

which

goes on and on

and may at last induce an opponent

to babble and backtrack

nervously."
~Lance Morrow

"Yeeuup...Some More..."

A "Cosmic Offerenda" (altar)...
...a tribute to "Pink Warrior" women...

..."Hera"...

..."Persephone"...

...and, finally, "Bones, Braids, and Bling"

...Dia De Los Muertos art.

I made and traded 25 such themed cards

last weekend

during Illustrated ATCs online

Halloween artathon.

(If you like...you can check them out

by simply clicking on the pomegranate heart

graphic on my side bar.)

My Muse has a serious addiction to these...

but...

I seriously think it's about time

to move on. :)

"Just cause you got the monkey off your back

doesn't mean the circus

has left town."
~George Carlin

"In Celebration..."

...of loved ones who have gone before us.

Day of the Dead (Spanish: Día de los Muertos)

is a Mexican holiday

celebrated throughout Mexico

and around the world in many cultures.

Here in the desert southwest United States

it is a very popular holiday indeed.

The holiday focuses

on gatherings of family and friends

to pray for

and remember loved ones

who have died.

In Mexico it is like a national holiday.

The celebration takes place on November 1–2,

in connection with

the Catholic holidays of All Saints' Day (November 1)

and All Souls' Day (November 2).

Traditions connected with this holiday

include building private altars

honoring the deceased using sugar skulls,

marigolds,

and the favorite foods and beverages.

It also includes

visiting the graves of the departed

with these as gifts.

♥

During the next several days I will be sharing

with you some of my own

Dia De Los Muertos art cards

as well as some photos of offerendas (altars)

made by professional artists

as part of a Dia de Los Muertos

celebration at the Desert Botanical Gardens

in Phoenix.

They were so beautiful and soulful...

they actually took my breath

away.

"Woo Hoooo!...50 Years...!"

Wishing all our friends, neighbors, and family

a super fantastic time

at the

50th Anniversary celebration

of the Sycamore Pumpkin Festival this weekend

in the beautiful (used to be) small town of

Sycamore, Illinois.

(Festival photos can be viewed here.)

Be sure to

enjoy every single second...every minute of the parade,

every pork chop sandwich,

slice of pumpkin pie, and cup of hot chocolate too!

Mmmm...life is indeed good!

Wish we could be there to party with you. :)

♥

“The nice part about living in a small town

is that when you don't know what you're doing...

someone else does.”

~Author unknown

"On The Road Again..."

...in my sketchbook...

but this time back in Arizona

travelling between Wickenburg to Wikieup...

en route to Las Vegas Nevada.

(...flipped here just cuz I haven't done it in a long time! )

Lots of boulders, Joshua trees,
and beautiful, bold iron-red buttes decorated

our asphalt passage northwest!

Whew!

Do I have a lot of catching up to do!

“To know the road ahead, ask those coming back.”
~Chinese Proverb

"What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas."

~Jeff Candido and Jason Hoff

...advertising slogan

written for the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority

2002

In Memoriam...

"Your time is limited,

so don't waste it living someone else's life.

Don't be trapped by dogma-

which is living with the results of other people's

thinking.

Don't let the noise of other's opinions

drown out your own inner voice.

And most important,

have the courage to follow your heart and intuition.

They

somehow already know

what you truly want to become.

Everything else is secondary."
~Steve Jobs

1955-2011

"Oh, Happy Day..."

October 2nd, 1945

they were wed at Alameda Naval Air Station

just outside San Francisco.

Tonight we celebrated their 66th wedding anniversary

complete with cream puffs...(it's a long story)

We love you Mom and Dad...:)

Oh happy day, indeed!

"Our wedding was many years ago.

The celebration continues to this day."

~Gene Perret

"Happy October..."

...my most favorite month of the year! :)

"There is something in October sets the gypsy blood astir,

We must rise and follow her;

When from every hill of flame,

She calls and calls each vagabond by name.”
~William Bliss Carman

"Heading Back Home..."

"There is nothing like
returning to a place that remains unchanged...
to find the ways
in which you yourself have altered.”
~Nelson Mandela

"Happy Sunday..."

from me to you. :)

It's an overcast, rainy, 57 degree Sunday here in

Sycamore, Illinois.

Some may consider it dreary...but...

to this Arizona girl it is a

perfect prelude to the coming of fall.

It is

a day for warm cozy fireplaces, baking oatmeal cookies,

and having good one-on one time

with my artistic Muse.

Add some take out Chinese sesame chicken for dinner

and the day is complete.

Our past week here has been filled with

visiting apple orchards, walking through pumpkin patches,

playing in corn mazes

and even strolling through a Christmas tree farm.

Fresh apple cider and apple cinnamon donuts have

topped off almost every trip.

I absolutely LOVE this time of year to pieces...

fall is my most favorite season of all.

I feel blessed

to be able to experience even this small slice of it

midwest style...

before heading back to desert and her beauty

by the end of the month.

Our time in Illinois whooshed by so quickly this year.

It has really taken me by surprise...

as I left Arizona dragging my heels...dreading the blast of

humidity I knew was inevitable here.

I sit and marvel at the fact

that I now feel I may be dragging my heels going back to Arizona!

Funny, isn't it?

My blog posts have been few and far between this trip...

sorry 'bout that.

I suppose that is normal when

changing and readjusting one's daily habits occurs.

I thank those of you

who still come back for visits either daily...

or every now and then.

I have lots of art to share...and I promise I will do so...

soon...:)

“Shut the door...
not that it lets in the cold...but that it lets out
the coziness.”
~Mark Twain

"Sweet Serenity..."

...the last of my "Sensitive Floral" series of this summer.

Happy Blooming Tuesday...

and

Happy Belated Birthday to my niece Courtney!!

Love you! XO

“Boredom is the feeling
that everything is a waste of time;
serenity,
that nothing is.”
~Thomas S. Szasz

"Reflections...A Repost..."

I,

like so many others,

remember exactly everything

about that fateful September morning in 2001

when

all of our "knowns" became "unknowns".

September 11th, 2001

started as routinely as any regular school day.

My lesson plan for social studies that day was to

introduce the concepts of

"Fact...Opinion...and Rumor..."

as part of understanding current events.

That is the absolute, unbelieveable, undeniable TRUTH!!!

I still get chills every time I think about it.

Needless to say,

during those seconds, and minutes, and hours

of that teaching day

and

throughout the infinite lessons and journal entries

and broken hearts, and tears, and the thousands of questions

of those days that followed ...

it

undeniably was one of the most powerfully moving and

spiritually inspiring

moments of my entire teaching career.

I remember that day as if it were yesterday...

it is crystal clear in my heart.

My personal memories of it are wrenching and raw

yet paradoxically serene and filled with hope.

Seeing the world through the eyes of a child is very special.

I was a privilege that day to be a teacher.

I dedicate this post to the memory of those souls lost that day...

and

to the junior high students who were in my classes then...

and

to Matt, my team teaching partner,

who "held my hand" throughout it all.

I wish you peace...

Remember...Every day REALLY does matter.

"Back To My Moleskine..."

...after spending an exhilarating, and also exhausting,

Labor Day weekend

making & swapping 25 artist trading cards

at Illustrated ATCs.

So...now I guess it's time that I had better

"SNAP" to...cuz my Muse is really a "DRAGGIN' ".

Get it? Snap...draggin'???)

Hehheheh hahahah! :)

Yeah...I know...that was totally lame...:)

“Through humor,

you can soften some of the worst blows that life delivers.

And once you find laughter,

no matter how painful your situation might be,

you can survive it.”
~Bill Cosby

"The Gathering..."

...posted today in honor of the large gathering of artists

at Illustrated ATCs this weekend

for the 3 day 2011 Labor Day Weekend Artathon!

Pop over for a peek in our gallery!

Just click here!

Wheeeeeeee!

"True wisdom
lies in gathering the precious things out of each day
as it goes by.”
~Author unknown

My Entries...

...for the 2011 "I Love Japan" swap at Illustrated ATCs.

First, a Gion Matsuri Festival Lantern...
...followed by a "Cherry Blossom Geisha"...
then, an "Uchiwa Flat Fan"...

and finally, an "Uchiwa Folded Fan"..."

“Do not follow the ideas of others,
but learn to listen to the voice within yourself.
Your body and mind will become clear
and
you will realize the unity of all things.”
~Dogen
Japanese Buddhist monk and philosopher
1200-1253

"Curtain Call..."

...for the last Blooming Tuesday post of this August.

“Remember to be gentle with yourself and others.
We are all children of chance
and none can say why some fields will blossom
while others
lay brown beneath the August sun.
Care for those around you.
Look past your differences.
Their dreams are no less than yours,
their choices
no more easily made.
And give,
give in any way you can, of whatever you possess.
To give is to love.
To withhold is to wither.
Care less for your harvest than for how it is shared
and
your life will have meaning
and
your heart will have peace.”
~Kent Nerburn

"A Zen Batik..."

...painted with Daniel Smith's magical iridescent sapphire

watercolor.

Tilt it one way and it reads a soft blueish violet

with a rich satiny sheen.

Tilt it the other way...

and it takes on a glowing, sparkling-rich, deep sapphire color.

When digitally scanned

the magic vaporizes and the color become flat and stormy gray.

Such is life, sometimes.

I wish my family and friends on the eastern seaboard

a speedy recovery from any damage

suffered from Irene.

May the palette of your skies and coastlines return to

the sparkly sapphire of summer.

“Never cut a tree down in the wintertime.
Never make a negative decision in the low time.
Never make your most important decisions
when you are in your worst moods.
Wait.
Be patient.
The storm will pass.
The spring will come.”
~Robert H. Schuller

"A Sky Visitor..."

...back for a second blog visit.

What???

Another repeat, you ask??? Why???

Well...

I have been making art like crazy...and have lots to share....

BUT...(here come the excuses)

my nemesis, lately, has been my Illinois scanner

and now, a current bout with

a bit of the lazy summertime blues, blahs, and blehs.

Kids

are back to school today in Sycamore...

Hobby Lobby

has Christmas stuff on display...

and

I feel like I fell through a time warp...

What in the world has happpened to August???

Maybe

that sky visitor had something to do with it!

That's my story...I'm stickin' to it.

“Ninety-nine percent of the failures
come from people who have the habit of making excuses.”
~George Washington

"Sensational..."

...another card in my whimsical "sensitive floral" series...:)

Happy Blooming Tuesday!

The simplification of anything is always sensational.”
~G. K. Chesterton

"Some Subtle, Soft..."

...Summer-Sunday Zen.

These branches are part of a much larger imaginary

"Tree of Life"

which magically sprouted in my Muse's mind

the beginning of this month.

I think she may have had a bit of an autumnal

breath or two in her spirit as well.

I know I most certainly do...
I am totally ready!

"I like trees because
they seem more resigned to the way they have to live
than other things do."
~Willa Cather, 1913

"Visiting My Brother..."

...today for my annual dental checkup.

This illo was drawn ink straight in..."lead free"

in my Illinois sketchbook just about three years ago

and posted on my blog

shortly thereafter.

I thought she deserved a repost today.

Guess we'll have to wait and see how my artistic Muse

actually interprets today's visit.

Maybe another illo might be in the works...:)

"Every tooth in a man's head is more valuable
than a diamond."
~Miguel de Cervantes, Don Quixote, 1605