Pods For A Cause....

This pod is finally ready to receive its finding! It will end up at the Breast Cancer Auction at the Bead and Button Show in Milwaukee next week. It is a collaborative effort between Michele Goldstein, Stephanie Sersich, and myself. Come on by and bid on something!

Progress is being made towards that trip and the following ones, Convergence, in Tampa late June, and The Puget Sound Bead Festival mid July in Tacoma, WA. it's all action packed!

I will also be participating in a 3 month long, 7 woman show at The Sandwich Glass Museum. I will be there the first two days of the shows opening demoing at the torch, July 1&2. If you are Cape Cod bound come on by!

An Oasis in the Woods....

Just home after a most action packed trip to central Pennsylvania. 'Had a wonderful time with family and friends and an unexpected journey to a state of the art 'Art Wonderland'.

The C. Barton McCann School of Art is a new school situated in the beautiful rolling hills region of central Pennsylvania. Designed and executed as an oasis where the art student and art teacher can come together and blend and meld with nature, architecture and other artists in an idyllic setting. My family and I were treated to an exceptional day tour of the facility as my sister Ellie, the one who is retiring from one career, is going to be spending lots of time here at this new school!

The Big Pig Gig......

The Big Pig Gig is sadly over for another year. This is the annual fund raiser for The Farm School. This is the local organization/group/family of friends that cultivate awareness, crops and a new way of looking at our lives and priorities. It is where my daughters have spent their middle school educations, fulfilling their parents desire to expose them to 'the things that matter',like cultivating food, living simply, making a small group of friends forcing communication due to the intimate size of the student body. The Big Pig Gig is always a great time. Two of our friends made some stone sculptures of garlic, peapods, mushrooms, etc. They were exquisite. The same friends that made the vegetables auctioned off their talents to erect an outside stone 'pizza oven', this captured the fancy of a few vigorous bidders.

Mavis Staples was the entertainment, this after a fine meal put on by Chef Peter at Henrietta's Table at The Charles Hotel in Boston.

Since, I have been moving from one preparatory activity to the next. I head to Pennsylvania this coming Wednesday to celebrate my oldest sisters' upcoming retirement. She went right to college after high school which put her in the classroom and teaching art at 21 years old. She has been doing that since, now 37(?) years later she can stop doing that....can't wait to see what she does next!

Then the following week I head to Milwaukee where the annual Bead and Button Show resides. I'll be teaching 3 classes, I'll post pictures of the projects just in case you are in the area!

The Platypus is Incredible....

The New York Times ran an article on the duck billed platypus the other day and the facts surrounding this curious creature include: they lay eggs, have venom in spurs on their ankles, nurse their young through their abdominal wall as they have no nipples but are classified as mammals while they share many characteristics with reptiles. So curious...they are small, approximately 2' from bill to tail, are aquatic and live in burrows.

Wikipedia says: The bizarre appearance of this egg-laying, venomous, duck-billed, beaver-tailed, otter-footed mammal baffled European naturalists when they first encountered it, with some considering it an elaborate fraud. It is one of the few venomous mammals; the male Platypus has a spur on the hind foot that delivers a venom capable of causing severe pain to humans. The unique features of the Platypus make it an important subject in the study of evolutionary biology and a recognizable and iconic symbol of Australia; it has appeared as a mascot at national events and is featured on the reverse of the Australian 20 cent coin.

Until the early 20th century it was hunted for its fur, but it is now protected throughout its range. Although captive breeding programs have had only limited success and the Platypus is vulnerable to the effects of pollution, it is not under any immediate threat.

My science entertainment for the day. The babies are called puggles, awwwwww.

Back to the torch, it feels foreign, been away for so long.

Ah, Manhattan...

My knuckles white, my mind full speed ahead....a round trip into and out of the heart of the city in a 12 hour run. My missions were accomplished,(which were to procure some cool new stuff for sale) but man, oh man.....the stress. While traversing the many blocks necessary to complete my task I was taken by the many smokers observed which led me to ponder the stresses of city life. On the way home I listened to a therapist based in the city discussing just this topic. His take was to evaluate your stress level in comparison to 5 years ago, if it was the same or higher, his advice was to just say "no" to any unnecessary commitments and spend more time with family and friends. Sounds sound to me.

Now I can get down to production, I look forward to turning my torch on!

Here's a plea. My husband has a Toyota Tacoma truck. Toyota has recalled all Tacomas from 1995-2000. We need to find a replacement. He's looking for another small 4 cylinder, extended cab truck, either Nissan or Toyota, any leads???

The Gunnera plant has captured my heart...

While at the deYoung museum in Golden Gate Park I cruised around the grounds and there were these prehistoric looking bush like plants with little spikes, bright chartreuse at that, all up and down the stalks. The leaves were elephant ear sized and very leathery with deep crevices and felt kind of like a cats tongue. Deep inside, in the shade of the huge leaves, flowers grew. They were totally enchanting, I need to find if I can grow them here in zone 5. Ah, darn....zone 7+.

The looming reality of Bead and Button is starting to hit me and I see that I've got to get back to the studio. This week has been time spent in recovery, a shiatsu treatment today along with the necessary P.O. run, (all orders are in the mail) and general setting up of circumstances to pave the way to productivity. Tomorrow I need to go to Manhattan and THEN I will be able to really dig in and make objects, kits and who knows what?

A Fantasy....

When the stresses of my life get too large I often goof that prison would be a viable option....no mortgage payment, no food prep, no child motivation, nothing but time.....and where better to flesh out that fantasy. Alcatraz rules!

Just home from a great...but long... trip to D.C. and the west coast. I had a lovely time last Friday when I visited the Cliff House for breakfast and then headed to the deYoung museum where the art of Oceania took hold of me and transported me to another time altogether. I love San Francisco and can only imagine the views from Alcatraz island!

My time with Lisa Niven Kelly and beaducation
was great! She is an awesome human, we had fun and got a lot of work done. Keep your eye on her site for many new offerings, including a free online class to feature felt beadmaking as well as two feltmaking classes, a treasure pouch and a pair of embellished earrings.

The NORCAL Bead Society show was fun, always too brief. I love that I get to connect with all of my bay area friends, and want to thank you for your ongoing support. I look forward to BABE already.