Happy Holidays! The magic has begun over at the 12 Days of Xmas exchange blog. We're sharing all the gifts that have arrived at our homes around the globe, which will stay wrapped until the 13th of December. However, it's always fun to see the pretty packages, wrapped with love in the meantime.
Indy (Indiana Jones) Autumn 2008
I was thinking about and missing my friend Farrell tonight. I was playing around with Mixwit and discovered they had some of her music, live on their system so I put together this mix.
She's been off in Ireland for the last 5 months,releasing her new album and won't be back for some time yet. I especially love these tracks because she introduces each song and it's like she's right here in the room with me when I hear them.
Anyway Farrell, if you're reading this, this one's for you old friend. Travel safe and come home soon we miss you! xox
The last week has been crazy busy, but the good thing is there have been alot of delightful goodies showing up in my post box. My friend Lisa and I decided to exchange handmade journals. This is the one she sent me. It's wonderful and absolutely perfect for the project I have in mind.
My fingerless gloves also showed up. I can't tell you how truly wonderful they are. I find them really nice to wear when driving and they do keep your hands quite warm. No more wearing gloves and having to rip them off to try and do something! If you are interested in a pair for yourself, I bought mine here. Worth every penny, as far as I am concerned!!
On Sunday, Penn had the bee tag books ready for those of us who participated. This project was open to members of the monthly ATC swap.
As you can see, it's a nice thick book. I can't remember how many tags Penn said there were, but I believe it was over 60!
These are a couple of my tags. The "bee hive lodge" is for real-it was on a piece of antique ephemera I had. When I saw it in my pile of stuff, I knew I had to use it!I came across this song a couple of years ago and for me, it's the most poigniant reminder of why we celebrate Remembrance Day in Canada. I am reposting it in the hopes that everyone who reads this today, take a moment to watch and listen to this video.
Here is the back story of Terry Kelly's song:
"On November 11, 1999 Terry Kelly was in a Shoppers Drug Mart store in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. At 10:55 a.m. an announcement came over the store's PA asking customers who would still be on the premises at 11:00 a.m. to give two minutes of silence in respect to the veterans who have sacrificed so much for us.
Terry was impressed with the store's leadership role in adopting the Legion's "two minutes of silence" initiative. He felt that the store's contribution of educating the public to the importance of remembering was commendable.
When eleven o'clock arrived on that day, an announcement was again made asking for the "two minutes of silence" to commence. All customers, with the exception of a man who was accompanied by his young child, showed their respect.Terry's anger towards the father for trying to engage the store's clerk in conversation and for setting a bad example for his child was later channeled into a beautiful piece of work called, "A Pittance of Time". Terry later recorded "A Pittance of Time" and included it on his full-length music CD, "The Power of the Dream". "
***
To the men and woman who have served our country in the past and to those who are serving today, whether fighting a war or keeping the peace, I thank you for putting you life on the line. I am grateful to live in a country where I am truely free.
May those of you still serving come home safely to your loved ones. I pray for peace.
So this was the view from my world for the last week and a half. I spent the entire time curled up on the couch with Indy snuggled up next to me, drinking tea, coughing, watching HOUSE on dvd and dosing in and out.
The whole time Indy was right there with me, catching up on his sleep too. He was very sweet to keep me company when no one else would because I was so germy. Isn't he adorable? And yes, he really is that shiny! And he's soft. People keep asking me what I am feeding him because his coat is so beautiful. Just his puppy chow, fruits and veggies as a treat and occasionally a bit of meat-nothing special. Maybe it also helps that I brush him alot because he enjoys it so much.
Anyway, now that I am finally feeling better, I had a ton of art to catch up on over the weekend. I managed to get alot done. These are mini banners for a swap I am in. They were alot of fun to make and I will probably be making a few more. I want some to keep for myself! If I get my returns back before Xmas, (Mail to Canada at this time of year is crazy) then I plan to hang them in the living room where our tree will be.
I also decided to do a journal swap with my friend Lisa who lives in New Zealand. We've made each other a journal to use in the new year. Truth be told, I am a journal junkie. I have a growing collection of them. Every time I see one I like, I buy it. I don't so alot of art journalling, per se-I tend to write things about my plans for art-making, exchanges, workshop ideas, etc. down in them. My journals are more about the nuts and bolts of art, rather than pretty pages. No matter, it works for me and that's what's important.
Copyright Portals Zine 2008
So I'm still breathing. (Barely!) Last week I came down with some sort of plague. Seriously, this is the sickest I've been in a long while. My voice keeps cutting out on me and I've been coughing incessantly. I think at this point it's morphed into a sinus (and possibly ear) infection.
Also found in my post box on Friday was The Pulse Zine from Seth Apter of the Altered Page. Seth decided to put all the Pulse interviews together as a zine and my copy just arrived. It's great to have them all together so I can read through them again. There was so much information posted during the Pulse, it was alot to absorb. This way I can read it in bite sized chunks. I believe you can still order a copy if you're interested.
