Suggestions Wanted

I have a dilemma. Two months ago, I purchased this piece at an upscale shop that was closing. The cost of the items in the shop was higher than I would normally pay, but since they were selling out at discounted prices, I went in to look around. I spotted this angel ~ high on top of an old antique armoire waiting for me to come in for her. I fell in love with her immediately and paid the price with excitement.

I am not sure what she is made of. At first I thought it was wood but upon closer inspection, I think she is made of some kind of composite. The dilemma: She is seeping a very fine powder. It is only happening from her legs and one foot. I clean up the little piles of powder weekly and then it starts all over again. If this keeps up, she will be hollow someday. If nothing else, she will become fragile. Perhaps she is hollow inside and this is just some of the inside coming out? However, she feels solid and has some weight to her. I keep waiting for it to stop but it never does. Once I clean the stand, by the end of the week there are more small piles of powder.

She is made to look aged and upon close inspection, there are some tiny, tiny holes here and there. I have never seen anything do this. A few weeks ago, I put a light coat of varnish on the areas where the powder is coming out. It did not help. It is still seeping powder. Very strange.

I thought about taking her to an art museum to see if they might know why this is happening. I am open to suggestions or if someone is familiar with this, I would sure like to hear from you. She is a wonderful piece of art and I am not sorry that I purchased her. My poor angel could be disintegrating right before my eyes. Help!

Sweet

June 28 Birthdays

They are gone but not forgotten.
Happy Birthday Aunt Beulah and "Fisho".

A Sunday Thought

"ART WASHES AWAY FROM THE SOUL THE DUST OF EVERYDAY LIFE."
~Pablo Picasso

They Need To Go

Just discovered these guys who've set up permanent residence on my back porch. I think, with my help, they will soon be moving to another neighborhood.

Premio Meme Award

MY FIRST AWARD!

My Blog was recently given the PREMIO MEME AWARD by Marlene of Marlene's Musings. Thank you, Marlene. The rules of this award state that I am to share 7 facts about myself and then pass the award on to 7 others. Nothing outstanding to tell you, but here we go:

1. I LOVE snow ~ the more, the better.

2. I own a VW Beetle and it is such fun to drive.

3. I never have, and never will like going to the dentist.

4. I love trees and they are often the subject in my paintings.

5. I have so many projects on my list of things to do, I will have to live forever to get them all done.

6. It has been a dream of mine for many, many, years to own and run an art gallery.

7. I would love to own a little cottage by the sea that I could go to when I want to be alone.

****************************************************************************

I would like to pass this award on to:

1. Sarah at green weeds

2. Diane at Duda Daze

3. Suzi at Art with a Touch of Whimsy

4. America at Meri's

5. Gail at Art by Gail H. Ragsdale

6. Lulu at My Pink Turtle

7. Missy at In a Shabby Kind of Way

Another Pretty Moth

This morning I found another pretty moth on the window. My backyard windows seem to be magnets for moths. I think this one is especially pretty with the vivid yellow and pink.

New Day

"I have always been delighted at the prospect of a new day, a fresh try, one more start, with perhaps a bit of magic waiting somewhere behind the morning."

~J. B. Priestly

Luna Moth

Thanks to Marlene, of Marlene's Musings, we now know the interesting creature below is not a butterfly at all ~ it is a LUNA MOTH. A LUNA MOTH is a large, pale green North American moth, having a long projection on each hind wing. A pretty moth, indeed.
Thank you, Marlene, for taking the time to research this.

Another Visit Last Evening

This little one showed up again for a few minutes last evening. So cute. I love seeing the deer.

Butterfly??

This large butterfly took refuge on the window screen yesterday and stayed there most of the day. I am guessing it is some type of butterfly. I haven't seen one like this before ~ very large (about 5" long) ~ delicate looking in spite of its size. Could it be in the moth family? It really is fun seeing things for the first time and what a blessing to be able to photograph them. I am going to do some research and find out what it is.

Zinnias

What a glorious showing of Zinnias I saw yesterday while driving past a home in my neighborhood! The entire length of the driveway was a burst of color and the fence background really made them pop. Aren't they beautiful?

And The Winner Is.............

Good evening Friends.

I want to thank each of you who entered my 100th Blog Post Give-Away and thank you for the congratulations that you sent. Thank you, also, to those of you who mentioned the give-away on your personal blogs.

I am enjoying blogging and I hope to keep it up for a long time to come. I still have things to learn, paintings to paint, and quotes and thoughts to share with you. I thoroughly enjoy visiting your Blogs, seeing what you have created and reading your thoughts. You are all so talented and it is wonderful that you can share that talent.

I put each of your names in a bowl (twice for those of you who mentioned my give-away) and pulled out the winner............. ***CONGRATULATIONS*** to gallagherassoc. My email address is moonsfolly@comcast.net. Please send me your information and I will ship the prizes off to you.

I will definitely have another give-away before my 200th posting! It was fun!

Audrey

Lost in the Grass

Could someone please mow this grass? I'm having a hard time finding the worms.

Sunday Morning

Getting cleaned up for the day!

Butterfly Bush

I thought I would share photos of my butterfly bush. This is the first one that has ever grown so large for me and it is loaded with blooms. I had to trim many branches off so we could walk down our path ~ they were hanging over the path and out into the grass. The butterflies are happy and I love watching them dance around the blooms. Isn't it wonderful that we can experience so much joy from just one plant?

Thought For The Day

"YOU CAN'T STAY IN YOUR CORNER OF THE FOREST WAITING FOR OTHERS TO COME TO YOU. YOU HAVE TO GO TO THEM SOMETIMES."

~Winnie the Pooh Quote

Haitian Proverb

"THE STONE IN THE WATER

CAN NEVER KNOW

THE SUFFERING OF

THE STONE IN THE SUN."

(no one can understand the suffering of another person)

~Haitian Proverb

100TH POST GIVE-AWAY!!!

100th POST GIVE-AWAY

Today, I entered my 100th blog post. To celebrate, I am having a give-away.

The winner will receive all three of the items pictured. The paisley chocolate journal was handcrafted in Nepal for Barnes & Noble. The beautiful vintage crocheted doily is from a local consignment shop. The art card I painted today and it is titled "Mountain Sky". It is signed and dated on the back.

Just write a comment to this post. I will randomly choose a winner on Monday, June 22nd, and I will post the winner on my Blog that evening. Mention my give-away on your Blog and I will put an extra entry in with your name. Just let me know that you mentioned it.

GOOD LUCK AND PLEASE PASS THE WORD!

Audrey

FLAG DAY

Today is FLAG DAY. June 14 is observed in the United States in commemoration of the adoption in 1777 of the official U.S. Flag.

Let us all fly this wonderful symbol of freedom, not only today, but everyday.

GOD BLESS AMERICA!

Hungry Deer

I got lucky this evening ~ this deer must have been too hungry to run. He let me get close enough to take a few good photos before he took off. I am still in pursuit of the perfect deer picture. One of these days.......

A Little Visitor

This little one comes visiting quite often but always eludes my camera. This week, I snapped the picture just as he turned to vanish into the woods.

FULL MOON

Historically, the Native Americans who lived in the area that is now the northern and eastern United States kept track of the seasons by giving distinctive names to the recurring full Moons. Each full Moon name was applied to the entire month in which it occurred. These names, and some variations, were used by the Algonquin tribes from New England to Lake Superior.

The other night I took these photographs of the June FULL STRAWBERRY MOON. The Algonquin tribes knew this Moon as a time to gather ripening strawberries. It is also known as the Rose Moon and the Hot Moon.

~2009 Old Farmer's Almanac

Gratitude

I received this in an email the other day. I hesitate to post anything when there is no author name associated with it. However, I really liked this and thought you might too.

A Drink of Water

According to legend, a young man, while roaming the desert, came across a spring of delicious crystal clear water. The water was so sweet he filled his leather canteen so he could bring some back to a tribal elder who had been his teacher. After a four-day journey, he presented the water to the old man who took a deep drink, smiled warmly and thanked the student lavishly for the sweet water. The young man returned to his village with a happy heart. Later, the teacher let another student taste the water. He spat it out saying it was awful. It apparently had become stale because of the old leather container. The student challenged his teacher: "Master, the water was foul. Why did you pretend to like it?"

The teacher replied, "You only tasted the water. I tasted the gift. The water was simply the container for an act of loving kindness and nothing could be sweeter."

Self motivation without gratitude is impossible. Our energy is "sapped" when our entire focus is on what's wrong instead of what is right with our lives. One of our greatest challenges is to live and love in spite of pain and disappointment ~ to find gratitude in the midst of it all.

Gratitude unlocks the fulness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow.

Simple Beauty

Only minutes from the rat race you can find some very tranquil spots to breath in the simple beauty of an evening in Roanoke.