inspired by

these embroidered illustrations are making the blog rounds - I spied them 1st at Poppytalk

Wow ! LOVE, love, l-o-v-e these and cannot wait to see more embroidered interpretations of Penguin classics - fantastic creative direction here and Jillian Tamaki's illustrations ... wow!
Read more about the process of creating these covers at her blog.

I have had a secret desire to embroider & applique (for years) and in fact just recently purchased 6 vintage wooden embroidery hoops from etsy seller Monkey Hugs to add to my ever growing collection of creative dreams really to come true. Actually it's been feeling lately like all my dreams are coming true. I'm having fun, we're having fun, dreamin' up brand new dreams.





Jillian Tamaki - Monster quilt

fields of gold

Mr. I'm so handsome I can hardly stand it, I will pose pour vous in a big patch of sunlight

You'll remember me when the west wind moves
Upon the fields of barley
You'll forget the sun in his jealous sky
As we walk in the fields of gold

Will you stay with me, will you be my love
Among the fields of barley
We'll forget the sun in his jealous sky
As we lie in the fields of gold

Sting - Fields of Gold

There's another handsome Prince running carefree in the fields of gold. Running with his pack.
Running with Eva, Presley, Rose, Piper, Kevin, Bossy Lulu, Ernst, Em, Jake ... and so many more animal souls who take part of our hearts with them when they leave. Sleep tight sweet Jacob.

There are no words
we're holding your heart Shammy Sham with much love, Susan, Winnie Dixon & les Gang


oh those eyes - handsome kind Jacob

always dreaming

evening clouds over the harbour

Tell your heart that the fear of suffering is worse than the suffering itself.
And no heart has ever suffered when it goes in search of it's dream.

Paul Coelho

I always forget to tell my heart that.
I'm always dreaming. I can't stop.

Michael Stipe & Chris Martin - a song for hurricane Katrina relief

stuck

things I found on the beach 24/08/09 - sometimes I really do inspire my own self ;-)

I can't remember why I was wading around in my own blog archives yesterday, but I was. Looking at the images, so many beautiful scenes from our life captured by me & posted daily.
I'm so thankful for that, so thankful for this nearly 4 year old blog habit of mine. It's as if I wouldn't believe my own life if I couldn't see it here. A life filled most often with incredible daily beauty, personal struggles, goals, battling of beasts, dreams, sadness & loss - and growth and change, so much growth and change. It's quite amazing & very rewarding reading backward, especially some of the posts as I struggled to make or find or figure out a new life for myself & my animals. Missy D and I were so stuck together back then, stuck in our grief & missing the big red dog who we both loved so, of course she & I are still stuck - in a much happier, content way.

25/09/08

things I wrote back then

I will sell this house ... (we're in the process of flipping this old brick house) √
I will be free of all this overwhelming upkeep, maintenance and debt. √
I will have a brand new tiny life with an oh so giant heart ... sigh. √√√√
I will be queen of my own little creative empire. √ (sort of ... gettin' there)

and speaking of stuck, how could I have even imagined the oh so giant heart I'd have
I honestly never believed I'd ever love a human being like this, like this big ol' heart full of love
& for you - the song which will be stuck in your mind all day long ... guaranteed

There you go making my heart beat again
Heart beat again, heart beat again

Sugarland

hierarchy

yesterday afternoon the cat committee holds a meeting dans les sunny chocolate brown room

Who's the boss at 29 Black Street - or les hierarchy

Miss Winnie Dixon - top dog, top cat, queen of all things - Oliver would debate this of course
Oliver - top dog 2nd in command, top cat, current chaircat of the Black Street cat committee, handy-est cat, supervisor, art director, photo associate, parkour master ... blah, blah and so on ...
Me (?) - the boss of a few things, spoiler extraordinaire, especially easy going with cats & dogs
Sam - is OK with Miss D being Queen but is vying constantly with Oliver for top cat position
Bleet - Hey ! I'm just chillaxin' watching the birds - very much a lover, a lounger & not a fighter
Virgil (formerly known as Gus) - refuses to participate in any & all hierarchy/power struggles
Doug - secretary/treasurer of cat committee, feline/canine coordinator, dog walker, Prince of ATG* & tres content in his lowly position, after all, he is the 6th adopted animal at Black Street

* All Things Good

restoration

beautiful light - 2009 Cavallini Butterfly calendar on the door to the chocolate brown bedroom

restoration - renewal, revival, or reestablishment

The monotony and solitude of a quiet life
stimulates the creative mind
Albert Einstein

A good friend of mine and I used to while away many a Friday evening here in this old brick house over drinks and heavy duty, deep conversation - my absolute favourite kind of chat. She used to often say that life is like a funnel, it narrows as you get older. Narrows in a good way.
It, your life, becomes more fine tuned, lean & spare. We learn, with the gift of age & the wisdom of experience, to discard with confidence so many things we grow up assuming we'll eventually embrace. We spend the bulk of our years discovering what we need & what we want. What makes us feel happy & content. We become clearer and clearer about all the things we don't need, what we don't want - ideally we come to know, accept & love our selves ... for who we are. Unconditionally.

That's my goal, it's a kind of restoration project, one I'm always working on - we're working on.

Since meeting Doug (the Prince of All Good Things ;-), falling in love, knowing 18 months later than we're in this together for the long haul I've been able to think of my next chapter, our next chapter, the two of us and our ever growing menagerie of animals (who really run this joint) in a completely different light. We're blue skying, we're funnelling, we're dreaming the big dreams ...

together

A quiet mind cureth all
Robert Burton

red

it's not like I didn't warn you - many more fabulous, vivid red, geranium blossoms - hooray !

We're having a petite relapse of wintry weather. It's snowing sideways, fast & furious, tiny flakes and the ground is white yet again. The fire's been stoked, the coffee poured ... now it's time to bundle up in my fleece and down and take Missy D & Samuel out for our morning adventure. Happy Friday.

two of the best songs ever ...

favourites

lilac blurr - Susan Black

Two of my favourite photos I'm having printed large - 16 x 20 then framed to 28 x 32 with a 6 inch off-white creamy smooth mat with matching creamy white, wood, museum profile frame.

I can't wait.


impatience riot - Susan Black

I choose love

this morning's walk along the harbour to the crescent beach with my best girl Dee

everyday I wake up
I choose love
I choose light
And I try, it's too easy just to fall apart

Submarines - You, Me & the Bourgeoisie

good morning

our backyard flowering crab from last spring ... I can hardly wait

We're all early birds here at Black Street. Our coffee maker, with a much loved timer, begins to gurgle and spurt at 5:30 am. The songbirds are back and they begin singing to us as we sip our first cup of coffee while still in tucked in bed, in darkness. Flannel sheets, cotton pillowcases, a cat, or two. The Prince and Sam head out first on their purposeful, fast paced walk around the streets of this village. Miss Dee & I follow soon after, our approach, camera in tow, is much more unplanned, zig zaggy, lingering & pondering. We don't rush, we have no agenda or time limit we just explore the early morning. This morning she and I walked again for the first time along the crescent beach with the red wing blackbirds keeping us company in the nearby marsh.

Back to soft boiled eggs, toast and an orange at my desk. Dee's in her bed under the TTD, Sam's in his big red arm chair, CBC radio 1 keeps us company, the Prince is downstairs talking to Gus & Oliver as he begins his day of restorative renovations & I have my Tuesday, Mapril 2 to-do list ;-)

it's a good morning

and oh my, heard in the grocery store yesterday - holy cow Phoebe ! - amazing
for that darn Prince cause he makes things alright

bye. bye.

oh my, oh my, how many photos can one colour & flower obsessed gal take of her geraniums ?

I'm gonna confess March has not been my favourite month ... at all. I'm not sure why but I have struggled through these last 20 days, feeling sad, disappointed, frustrated, unsure, pissed off. You name an unattractive & counter productive emotion and it's been wrapped around me like favourite winter scarf. I'm officially ending March today ... and I'm thinking of the next 11 days, not only as the much anticipated early days of Spring but I've decided to unofficially call this a pre- April period. I think I'm good and ready to say a big Bye Bye to those darn Ids of March.

Uh huh ! can you say M. Id, Ego & Mrs. Supah Ego all hangin around & wreakin' freakin' havoc.
Bye. Bye.

After reading this morning's post MLou sent me this article about the motley crew, explaining a bit about the hows & whys of les Self Sabotaging Gang of (often) Invisible Thugs. Fascinating !

muskrats & moonlight

this morning's tres beautiful, sun's just up & there's Spring in the air walk with my girl Missy D

Miss D got a whiff of ode de muskrat ('tis the season) coming from the watery ditch along the road we walk on each morning. It's so funny to watch her transform into the Terrier mix girl she is ... thank goodness (says Mr. Muskrat & me) for retractable leashes and martingale collars or she's be stomping around in knee deep water, huffin' & pantin' trying to oust her a muskrat. Believe me, we've been there ... plenty o' times and it ain't pretty.

A perfect clear sky over 29 Black Street last night & we were all dancing in the super moonlight.

bee

spending the morning with this sweet Bee

we're making us some spring fairy flower bonnets - uh huh !!

the in betweens

reflections from Lake Winnifred a spring thaw, gigantic pond on the lands of 29 Black Street

My formula for living is quite simple,
I get up in the morning and I go to bed at night.
In between I occupy myself as best I can.

Cary Grant

Even God cannot make two mountains without a valley in between

Gaelic Proverb