a wednesday

rhododendron- a big splash of hot pink in our front jungle of green

Try not.
Do, or do not ...
there is no try

Yoda

When I read this quote it hit me ... I'm camped out much of the time in try
I'm going to try to eliminate that word from my vocabulary... oops ! wink

A Blue Skies bath awaits • A walk along a crescent beach with my girl Winn - she's Watson to my Sherlock, we love to investigate and discovery things on our walks Hey Missy D come see this ? • I love her • 7 hours today spent in the little decor & gift shop owned by good friend Harry, I'll take my pile of current work with me • Lots and lots more drawings to do and mock-ups too, things are happily busy here at the teak topped desk • A raccoon is living in our back yard and appears each evening when the light is still golden and the greens have all turned bright and citrus coloured • I am so tempted to leave food for he/she, little raccoon delicacies but I know that would be a mistake, especially living with Miss Terrier Mix girl • the days are sunny and long, the air is warming and summer has begun to creep into this little village.

dandelion

dandelion

Nature is amazing ...
beauty & wonder everywhere you look.
The secret is to look

Silent here this morning. It's one of those rare mornings when I have nothing really to say. It's another day of business as usual here at the teak topped desk and at 29 Black Street. A big list of things that must get done, the game always to see how many of those things I can cross off la list before the fading of my energy begins, sadly most days not much past 6pm. I must remember a cup of coffee around 4pm, I forget to make that new ritual, not really being much of an afternoon coffee drinker but I do think it might help with my pm productivity (even if that productivity means reading an extra chapter or two in my current book). Sigh. There is always so much possibility in each new day.

Our weather's been gorgeous, warm and sunny and perfect.

Hey !! and ps how about a vote for chickory's dog themed wine label and as
M. B. Shamu has reminded me (and all us other polite, reserved and law abiding Canadians) - vote early, vote often ... vote here No. 32 - go Trout go !!!





fields of dandelions

almond bisque

dining room

Sometimes you put walls up not to keep people out,
but to see who cares enough to break them down

Unknown

Goodness ... uh huh ! Good ness. Although I'm beat, I feel drained. These eat, paint, chat sessions are deceivingly multi layered in meaning and purpose. While on the surface it appears to be two good friends getting together for the weekend to work on a project because one of the friends is living a life where she's in way, way over her head and needs help. What miraculously has also been happening during these two day events is a gentle uncovering, a peeling away of the exterior walls, like layers of filo pastry, of the fort I've built around me. Over the past year and a half, since Jake's death (a turning point that jarred my life off it's existing course) MLou, with her friendship, has been helping me to uncover who it is I really am and what life it is I really want to live. We must be getting close to those interior walls because although this weekend was filled with plenty of lightness, it also felt incredibly intense and completely packed with discovery and meaning - far too much to even begin to sort through this early Monday morning.

It's left me feeling unsettled and anxious this morning ... Sadness and Ache unprotected and exposed - my well built and always vigilantly guarded fort is crumbling and disappearing. I know that this is a good thing, that this has to happen but it's a difficult and frightening thing at the same time.

This particular weekend my living room/dining room turned a beautiful almond bisque - a soft warm creamy white while we - laughed at times 'til we snorted, we walked on the beach, we gossiped, we ate, we talked and talked and over the course of two days my walls came tumbling down. Merci MLou !

Steaming hot faceclothes, Tramp bubbles, a second cup of coffee - hello Monday.

eat, paint, chat 2

last night's walk along the harbour's edge

Happiness is ...

A day spent chatting and painting the first coat of creamy white paint on my living room/dining room, coffee and falafels (fixins from the city) for lunch, an early evening walk with Miss D (who patiently snoozed most of the day) along the harbour and down onto the crescent beach, an ice cream cone enjoyed while sitting on a bench in the park beside shimmering waters, homemade pizza for supper and more chatting ... all with best friend and designer gal MLou

day 2 is just beginning

happiness ...

cover of the book Happiness is a Warm Puppy

Happiness is having your best friend visiting for the weekend..

conversations

topics for the jar

MLou arrives later today for another one of our whirlwind project (this time painting) and catch up weekends. Hooray ! My house is a wreck - I say that as if that's an unusual occurence ... and sadly it's pretty much the norm. Happily ... I've become pretty comfortable allowing her witness to my wreckage in all it's glory and these last few visits I've felt little or no pressure to go wild (or should I say to attempt to go wild). Because when it comes to areas of domestic engineering I can guarantee you - no wildness ever occurs at this house. I haven't even thought too much about food (much more my forté in domestic issues) and/or what we'll eat as we paint and chat, chat & paint and chat some more. I'm hoping les menu items will hit me sometime in the few hours left this morning before the grocery store opens. I did round up a bunch of paint chips yesterday and I will stand in good bright daylight this morning and soundly make that creamy white decision. I'll take stock of les painting supplies, I'll make a few lists (with categories and some sub categories). I'll see if I can't find where Madam Vacuum has been hiding and I'll be busy until MLou's chariot arrives near evening.

This morning as I sipped my first cup of coffee dans la nest of down and flannel I was thinking if 29 Black Street was a Bed & Breakfast (I shudder at the thought) I would call it A Hair of the Cat ... by the Sea. I'm sure we'll go through at least one vacuum bag today.

MLou and I have much in common. We're both designers, we met 20 years ago at art college and have been friends since, we have similar tastes, like personalities but our biggest claim to fame when it comes to our friendship is our ability to chat endlessly, effortlessly, intensely and always equally - no one person dominating the conversation. We'll drift away, far, far away many times from the original topic- yet miraculously upon looking at each other puzzled with that how did we get way out here ? look, one of us will always see the landmark, way off in the distance and row us back to where we began only to have us set off again for some other far away, yet distantly related sub, sub topic. We'll sail around completely engrossed for hours and hours on end in a sea of tres stimulating and always interesting conversation - it is awe inspiring and a thing to behold, much needed food for my soul plus we can and do manage all this chatting while multi -tasking (bonus), all while we paint, or walk, or hike or sit at my kitchen table at meal times.

I save up topics of conversation for her visits, topics too big and drawn out for our weekly phone chats. I'll sigh and say to her I think that's one for the jar. Originally joking that I would write all these topics and items down on slips of paper, as I think of them so as not to forget them, and place them in the jar for safekeeping until her next visit. Then when she arrives she can do the honours, pull a slip out of les jar, read it out loud and off to the races we'll go.

I have my jar and she has her social world/family tree - portable flip chart on wheels with pocket laser pointer. She married into a huge family. Her husband L. comes from one of those raucous, famous in these parts (or infamous), very large families (9 children) from Cape Breton (much like Newfoundland considered by many to still be it's own nation). Considering the spouses of these 9 siblings of L's, the children of etc ... they have formed their own unique and large tribe, a vast and complicated category all of it's own - les In Laws (and sub in-laws). She also is a very social girl compared to me, she has a very busy graphic design business with plenty o' corporate-esqe clients and friends galore in her big city life. So when she says to me, mid conversation and then Helen said. I tilt my head, a sign of confusion and she'll wheel out the imaginary chart, flip past the several pages devoted to in-laws and sub in-laws to the section covering friends and associates, and will point (avec les pocket laser pointer) to the head shot and byline (claim to fame or essence of said person found underneath the head shot) and I will nod my head. ohhhhh, Helen ... OK carry on .... it's so much fun. Sometimes I try to guess - without the chart and always feel very pleased with myself when I get it right and I'm able to recite the byline/essence without the head shot.

If you made it this far ... please accept my apologies for the tres long & wordy post. I really try very hard to keep my posts to a paragraph or two as I myself can't bear to read "way too long posts" - just too many blogs to visit and much too little time. If you've skimmed to here ... I don't blame you at all. Wink.

Off to the land of Blue Skies and ready that list - les plan of action.
Happy Weekend.

ritual

Miss D last night around 6pm

Every one of us is called upon,
probably many times, to start a new life.
A frightening diagnosis, a marriage,
a move, a loss of a job or loved one....
And onward full tilt we go,
pitched and wrecked and absurdly resolute,
driven in spite of everything
to make good on a new shore.
To be hopeful, to embrace
one possibility after another–that is surely
the basic instinct .... Crying out: High tide!
Time to move out into the glorious debris.
Time to take this life for what it is.

Barbara Kingsolver from High Tide in Tuscon

Each morning I wake at 5:00 am without an alarm - my alarm is the gentle gurgling, sputtering of the coffee maker, set the night before. I wake to the smell of freshly brewed coffee and the sounds of birds outside my open windows, all just up as well and beginning their day. My ritual every morning, each and every morning for as long as I can remember, is to trundle down into the kitchen, take a minute to feed the Lil' Man who is flailing his sleek ocelot body dramatically around and rubbing crashingly into chair legs because sometime through the night he has reached near starvation and wouldn't someone, any one ... please give him a bite to eat. So I do - faithfully each morning. I pour a big cup of coffee into the same favourite mug each morning, add lots of milk and a tiny bit of sugar and I retreat back upstairs, snug into the nest and I enjoy my first cup of coffee, in bed, in semi darkness these days, the sky just beginning to brighten. I stretch, I yawn, I feel grateful, I ponder the day ahead of me and I just lay there a spell drinking my coffee ... and I stay just long enough until it feels like it's time to get up.

Do you have a morning ritual ? Tell us about it.

This little photo is not of Miss D but of Mr. Duncan. Vicki H from Dallas emailed me this amazing likeness of herself. Duncan's a North Texas rescue dog who just underwent hip surgery and is recuperating while waiting for his forever home at straydog.org Amazing isn't it ? - the exact same Missy D smile, perhaps Duncan is a Southern cousin. If you live near North Texas ... and you'd like to adopt that sweet face ... this boy needs a home. Brenda perhaps ??? or I wonder how far Missouri is from North Texas or the Blue Ridge Mountains. Wink.

more things I love

New York City map - circa 1909 - Cavallini calender

I love old vintage maps & atlases - they amaze me.

After yesterday's spilling of information re: moi I feel unusually quiet here at the teak topped desk this morning. Bubbles and scent are waiting. There's a sweet Dixon snoring under my desk, one eye open a crack just waiting for the word from Mama that it's time to go for our walk. I'm working (a bit of a misdemeanor as it's hardly work) at Harry's shop both today and tomorrow. I have a big stack of technical drawing instructions to mark up on my latest batch of photo frames, a job I'll do at the shop, in between customers. It's been busy, it's been smokin' busy - here at the TTD - would you believe my nether regions are tres sore and achy just from sitting so long in the same position (too much information ?) Sigh. That hardly ever happens. Don't get me wrong, I totally LOVE being busy - busy is always great for my spirit and soul, the busier the better another of my motto's. But I do hate to rush. In my books rushing or that feeling of rushing reads just like anxiety to me and is most often tres counterproductive so I try to avoid it at all costs. Big deep breaths, a neatly penned itinerary (with notes, details and reminders) and strict adherence to les schedule my best and only solution.

That girl's coming for the weekend. Uh Huh MLou - (godsend to this Susan) for another fun filled, gab fest, round of eat-paint-chat or Paintapalooza 3 (distant cousin to the renowned Purgapalooza) - this session we'll tackle my big giant open plan living room/dining room space - currently a deep/pale (uh huh I know an oxymoron) muddy yellow which I am sooooo sick of and we'll be changing that colour to a bright creamy white and ceilings and all trim also white or a slight variation of, 9 windows total in this space) I've yet to choose that white but I have set aside at least an hour to ponder and scrutinize the plethora of beautiful whites found dans la village Hardware Store - and I'll of course be waiting to the very last minute to do that pondering ... Friday morning - I'll attempt that daring designer feat - picking the perfect creamy white. Wink.

Gotta go ... I'm already off les schedule

Yesterday we (Nova Scotians) voted for our provincial premier (like your governor). Big thrilling (to moi) political news an NDP sweep, a big ol' majority government and a historic moment in Canadian politics Uh Huh ! Uh Huh !

ps. taggees please feel no pressure to be tagged. Sometimes I dread a tag (most times) and sometimes I feel like it, and if I like the questions - yesterday was just one of those feel like it kinda days for me.


a bit of a map page from the Collier National Encyclopedia 1932

tag

allium

I've been tagged by Rachel at slow lane life

What is your current obsession? oh that's tough ... I have so many obsessions I'm very much an all or nothing girl. I'm obsessed currently with trying to figure out the next chapter of my life. Specifically, where I want to live, I think about it all the time yet I feel completely devoid of even a semi solid opinion. I'm pretty obsessed about all things design and of course about my family of animals

What is your weirdest obsession? now we're talking ... I think it's safe to say I'm just a weirdly and easily obsessed person. An example hmmmm. I like to rescue any and all insects that I find inside my house by taking them outside (in summer of course) ... mostly I'm saving them from the jaws and claws of the killer tag team duo Gus & Oliver or I just imagine that they'd be much happier outside in the vast overgrown jungle that is our yard - a brand new ecosystem for them to explore.

What are you wearing today? beige fleece and chocolate brown summer weight cargo pants - it's a bit of a uniform

What's for dinner? spanakopita (spinach, feta, onions) pizza

What would you eat for your last meal? plain potato chips, cheetos cheesies and cake & ice cream with a big mug of icy diet ginger ale. M. Invincible would choose grilled fat garlic & lemon shrimp, caesar salad and strawberry shortcake

What's the last thing you bought? a jumbo bottle of plaque fighting mouth rinse which came with a free tres fantastic toothbrush - it's my new favourite thing. Seems I have a thing for toothbrushes.

What are you listening to right now? CBC radio 1 (almost always)

What do you think of the person who tagged you? Rachel at slow lane life. She's very kind, interesting and I love the descriptive, yet spare, witty style of her writing

If you could have a house totally paid for, fully furnished, anywhere in the world, where would you like it to be? Right here at 29 Black Street or Paris (6th arrondissement - s'il vous plait - might as well dream big or stay home) or a house just down the street from MLou's house ... I can't decide

If you could go anywhere in the world for the next hour, where would you go? to visit Jake

Which language do you want to learn? dog

What's your favourite quote (for now)? rock on !

What is your favourite colour? red

What is your favourite piece of clothing in your own wardrobe? a tres homely, olive green fleece, bagged out turtle neck which says (and feels exactly like) comfort & security to me. Sadly I've had to put it away for the warmer months. Stacy & Clinton come to Canada Please !!

What is your dream job? I have my dream job ... but if I were to do something completely different I'd like be a scientist - an entomologist or a marine biologist

Describe your personal style classic tres casual with a twist

What is your favourite tree? I love all trees but if I had to pick one it would be poplars. I love the sound their leaves make in the breeze and they grow really big and tall

What are you going to do after this? I'll go for a stroll along the harbour with my best girl Winnie Dixon

What is your favourite fruit? fresh pineapple followed by cherries a close second and then blueberries - we live in the blueberry capital of the world

What inspires you? pretty much everything

Your favourite books? Gerald Durrell's - Corfu Trilogy top spot by a long shot followed by Ant & Bee by Angela Banner and a big hardcover book - Peanuts Treasury that my late father gave me one Christmas long ago. I haven't mentioned novels because my favourite fiction changes all the time.

What are you currently reading? P.D. James - The Private Patient and Life in the Undergrowth by David Attenborough

Go to your bookshelf, take down the first book with a red spine you see, turn to page 26 and type out the first sentence On the feast of the Annunciation in 1482, the papal town of Ascoli Piceno in Italy was granted limited rights of self government. Are you on the edge of your seat ? from Angels In Art Belinda Wilkinson

What delighted you the most today? Winnie's smiling face when we met up with the girl's and dogs - Baby Duke & Maggy Sue this early morning at the beach and watching Gus & Oliver peel around the house, chasing each other

By what criteria do you judge a person? How they treat animals (all animals - and that includes insects and mice)

My added question:
Are you artistic or crafty ? how does your passion show up in your life ?
and I realize that might be two questions

The rules: Respond and rework: answer the questions on your blog, replace one question with a question of your own. Tag eight other people. And of course, as all tags go, you may choose to ignore this request. Play if you like.

163 Degrees
War of the Nuts
Fucked Up Chick
Textilosophy
Sunshine & Dew
Yoborobo
Chickory
Remembering Paris
Chasing Vulpecula

it's election day here in Nova Scotia and it's very exciting because it's one of those rare times in my life - which comes around like a comet from space every 19 years or so when the party that I vote for may actually win ... and possibly with a majority. Fingers crossed.

another day ...

apricots

crows a cawin'
lavender bubbles pouring
coffee just finished brewing
a messy desk soon to be tidied
a beach to be walked on
a day yet to be organized
the sun's not quite up yet
the harbour's quiet & still
yawns and big stretches feel good
drawings to draw
greenhouses to visit
parcels to package up
plans to make
another busy day just begun
at 29 Black Street




and of course ... my most excellent photography assistant

oh oh !

uh huh ! chocolate fudge cake pour une ... uh huh !

or single gal heaven. I crave cake a lot. I'm a cake & ice cream girl and I know myself good and there's no way I'm makin' a full size cake 'cause I know myself well. I would eat half the cake before I'd ever manage to wrap up a slice or two to take across the street to my cat lovin', cake lovin' neighbour Jean. But this ... this is perfect ! just the right size for Mama. Merci to my sister for sending this recipe.

With a scoop of vanilla ice cream (because any/all desserts go better with cream).

5 min chocolate cake in a mug

4 tablespoons flour
4 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons cocoa
1 egg
3 tablespoons milk
3 tablespoons oil
3 tablespoons chocolate chips (optional)
A small splash of vanilla extract
1 large coffee mug (MicroSafe)

Add dry ingredients to mug, and mix well. Add the egg and mix thoroughly. Pour in the milk and oil and mix well. Add the chocolate chips (if using) and vanilla extract, and mix again. Put your mug in the microwave and cook for 3 minutes at 1000 watts. The cake will rise over the top of the mug, but don't be alarmed! Allow to cool a little, and tip out onto a plate if desired. Makes 1-2 servings.

Of course I adapted the recipe, as we foodies like to do. I decided to bake mine in the oven. I'm never in that much of a hurry and somethin' about baking cake in the microwave creeps me out. I divided the batter between two small oven safe ramekins and used an oven temperature of 350. I substituted melted butter for the oil and added chopped imported extra dark chocolate instead of chocolate chips. Bake the tiny cakes for 15-20 mins watching them carefully (the tops will begin to crack when nearly done) and worse can scenario you may have a little molten action in the centres - as if that's a problem. Enjoy.

batting 500

an evening stroll with Miss D as sunset's beginning

I feel like a switch was turned on in me sometime in the last two weeks. I don't recall the exact time or place but something feels very different. I haven't felt sad or afraid for days and days. It feels like I've been batting 500 and I'm trying to not think too hard about the ins and outs and questioning or analyzing the potential whys of it all (which trust me is a task in itself - the lack of rumination). I'm trying to take my life moment by glorious (lately) moment and I'm doing not a bad job at it. My yard and garden has come to life and is filled with blooms and birds and insects, it feels as if I live in a wonderful private wilderness with a short walk to the grocery store, the post office and best of all - the beach. The weather's been fantastic and I've been really busy. Les secrets of my success ... perhaps.

With the exception of a short spell around lunchtime yesterday, when the lazy voice in my head was trying desperately to convince M. Invincible to throw it all in, and retreat to the nest with her book for the afternoon I had a tres productive and satisfying day. I'm up at 5:00am each morning and that period just after lunch can be a tricky one for me on the weekend's, a part of me would like nothing more than to loll about, horizontally with a book (or not) for hours on end. However, I managed to swig back a cup of coffee for moral support, told Lazy Girl to shut up and I motored on with a new stack of final drawings at the teak topped desk until nearly 7:30pm Good Gawd Girl (?). Could this be a new routine - I sure hope so.

Followed by an evening stroll along the harbour as the tide was turning with my best girl Winnie Dixon, the sky beautiful yet again, the water still as glass, the park a buzz with people enjoying ice cream cones and the great blue herons, all back from their winter's south, focused at their favourite fishing spots. Home to a dinner of homemade pizza for one and a previously taped (pas de commercials) new episode of What Not To Wear - I love that show. Finally to the nest around my normal time with my latest bedtime book. Sigh ... a pretty darn perfect day.

Stayed tuned later for more ... It's Dim Sum Sunday and today's theme is Sweets - Uh Huh !

pale blue

miniature meadows of forget-me-nots ...

abound in the gardens here at 29 Black Street

Sweet puffs of pale blue fog or mist sway close to the ground and float on a sea of greens. Tiny perfect blue blossoms with their bold yellow centres each framed with symmetrical star bursts of purest white. Every spring I find myself staring very closely at them in complete wonder and amazement. We're nearing the end of their season, but thankfully there's always something in bloom around here.

I am tired again this morning although I did retreat post post massage (which was lovely & perfect by the way - Good bye ! tense, aching neck and shoulders) to the nest very early last night with a stack of new magazines and books from our library followed by a great long and sound sleep. I'm not sure what's up with this tiredness ... but it better get a move on 'cause Mama's got a lot on her plate right now, the next whole month is a busy one and I need to be on my toes, organized and as productive as is possible. I'll take that rocket any time now, Please.

My Aunt Sally reads this blog every day and forget-me-nots are a favourite of hers.

virtue

8:30 pm last evening - dining room window

I'm tired. I've stayed up way past my bedtime (of 9pm) nearly every night this week. Life has been feeling full and rich and busy. The weather has been absolutely gorgeous, and our little village is still (thankfully) feeling quiet and sleepy too and not yet in it's full-on summer swing.

Hey ! La Beast Rouge and I took a little spin last evening. The drag about being a perfectionist and having yard help, or any kind of help for that matter, is the Fussy Factor. It may take me a very long while to get around to doing many a household or garden chore but ... when I do, or if I ever do - said chore - of course I have a very specific and detailed manner that I would prefer it to be done. Sigh. Meticulous or bust is kinda my motto (and there's no shortage of bust - fear not). However, I'm not so sure that meticulous is part of a 12 year old boy's vocabulary. Wink. So ... he donned the whipper snipper and Mama pushed la beast rouge around our yard while yelling and gesticulating wildly to him, over the din and sputtering of La's cranked up motor, pointing out the areas that needed to be whipped, snipped & clipped. Sigh. I apologized later to him for being so cranky & fussy (to which he replied you weren't cranky & fussy - phew !). I tried to explain to him how neatness was a virtue when tending lawns (another word not in a 12 year old's book of terms) - Very important I told him and would most definitely help ensure him many repeat customers. 'Tis a bit of a project this one is but one I confess to be enjoying. Patience it seems - is another one of those virtues.

I'm having a massage this afternoon (hooray !) - goodness - part of my much loved and brand new extended health care plan. Look out weekend ... here we come !

a line extension *

bracelet designs - Foundations line extension

* more shameless self promotion and/or potential Empire (creative) building.

The most successful and rewarding product design jobs/customers that I've found in my nearly 8 years of being on my own - of being a self employed product designer/illustrator have been found at monster.com and I continue to look there regularly for new customers and new opportunities. The hardest part is convincing a potential customer that they can and will have a successful, fruitful and carefree working relationship with a designer gal who lives far, far away in some tiny village by the sea. Fortunately a few have been brave enough to take a chance on me ... and I continue to have great relationships with them to this day. Merci ! I've always known, when on the hunt for a new customer .... if I can just get my foot in the door, if they'll just give me one project - I'm pretty darn confident ... I'll be in like flint. Madam Invincible definitely hangs out in this world.

This particular project was with Enesco. They already had a very successful, best selling product line called Foundations based on beautiful stylized angels, mostly figurines and they'd decided to add a line of jewellery to this collection. The tres talented designer of this (and many other) collections with Enesco -Karen Hahn was at the time swamped with other projects and needed to hire out some freelance help - and lucky me I got the job. The existing collection was already beautifully designed and extremely well thought out - my job was to glean little bits and pieces of her existing designs, use lovely pre-existing motifs and icons, and her soft pastel colour palette to create a line of jewellery to go with - ultimately evoking the same feeling and fitting perfectly within the existing Foundations product collection - a line extension. I worked closely with the Karen, she provided detailed art direction and then I was to run with it ... and run I did. I totally loved this project - could have drawn pages and pages and pages of thumbnails. Karen loved my final drawings and the jewellery collection was manufactured, well received and is now selling well. Perfect. A few more of the final jewellery pieces here, here & here

I absolutely love what I do - and the most challenging projects in the end are often the one's I'm the most satisfied with. Speaking of which - I'm just about to begin a big batch of final drawings (hooray !) here at the TTD (teak topped desk). 22 final drawings from the latest big batch o'thumbnails for Customer No Uno - I was aiming for 24 (ya know Mama loves to aim high) but 22's not so bad. So we'll be busy drawing now through to the end of this weekend ... maybe longer.

and ps. my new favourite TV show -' cause laughter truly is the best medicine. Just plain old fashioned silliness. Warning do not drink or eat while watching - Snort ! I gave myself the hiccups last night I laughed so uncontrollably hard. Don't say I didn't warn you.

oh my ! the sound of birds in our yard and gardens is unbelievable - I'm going to see if I can't figure out how to attach an audio blurb for you - you won't believe it - You'll say to yourself that girl must be livin' in an aviary.





another page of bracelets, two of holiday ornaments and a page of necklaces

hello june

Miss Winnie Dixon perched in her ...
upstairs hallway, sunny window, comfy chair, most excellent doggy look-out spot

Hey ! There's a dog walking on our street !
Oh ! Hey ! Here comes the courier man !
Here comes Scragalicious (old grey and white stray cat) looking for breakfast !

No doorbells needed in a home with dogs. sigh.

Overcast and cooler this early morning. I'm off to spend a day milling about in Harry's gift & decor store. It's been a great week so far this first week of June ...
so take that !! April & May I'm realizing now ... I've been waitin' on June.

For all you other Cancer's out there (MLou included) -
how about this pre-birthday forecast ?!! Uh Huh !!! H-e-l-l-o June !

On the 20th, a major power cycle begins. The Sun moves into Cancer that day, which is also the summer solstice. It’s the longest day of the year, so expect a blast of energy and vitality as the Sun spends its longest day in the sky. On the 22nd, the Cancer new moon officially marks your personal new year. A particularly golden moment because a month later, a second new moon falls in Cancer.

Normally, we only get one new moon in our sign per year, but in 2009, you’re the exception. The July 22nd moon will also be a solar eclipse, which acts as an energy portal, rocketing you to a new level, perhaps even a sudden new role or lifestyle. Be especially conscious of what you start this month—or, as the saying goes, be careful what you wish for, Cancer. The eclipse will power it forward times ten. Spend quality time writing down what you want for your life, and taking steps toward that now.

Rocketing ... uh huh !! uh huh !!

* and please note the tres beautiful colour of those walls. Sigh.


she's got cheeks of sweetness