The Magic, Miracles and Joy of an Artist: February 2016

Sunday, February 28, 2016

70th Birthday

HAPPY 70th BIRTHDAY, Father McKay !!

The parish had a party for Father after Mass this morning. Fresh out of the hospital, he looks joyous to be celebrating. Father McKay is battling cancer ~ please say a prayer for him.

Saturday, February 27, 2016

Doxie Love

Three little doxies for Jake's collection! I am truly blessed to have friends who care enough to pass treasures on to me. Thank you, Louis. Hugs from me and licks from Jake. These are adorable!

Wednesday, February 24, 2016

Spring is in the Air

After a grey rainy start to the day, the sun is now shining brightly with the promise of Spring in the air. So, I happily hung a Spring wreath on the door and unpacked my eggs and sweet lamb.

Tuesday, February 23, 2016

Just finished my BOD 2016 Journal Page 2. Moving like a snail. I am taking 3 online classes all at one time. Not a real smart move on my part, but the ones I was interested in were all being offered now. Thankfully, the videos will stay online for quite some time which will give me time to catch up at my own pace. If only I could stay in my studio 24/7.

Foggy Sunday Comments

Sunday's blog post, "Foggy Sunday", was posted on my facebook page as well, and there were many likes and comments. I love this tree. It is in my backyard and towers high. Our screened-in deck is right next to the tree and we can easily see the birds come and go. My brother, Patrick, called our deck "the birdcage". The deck is high and near the top of the tree, so when he was on the deck, he felt like he was IN the tree. When I sit out there at night, I can see a lot of the sky with the stars and the moon. Planes fly by often in the distance. I find it to be inspirational out there and I feel very blessed to have this large tree in my yard.

Monday, February 22, 2016

Amen!!

Sunday, February 21, 2016

Foggy Sunday

It's a rainy, dreary, foggy day! I am heading to my studio to work in my journal ~ the weather can't affect the joy that will bring me.

Saturday, February 20, 2016

Thursday, February 18, 2016

Throwback Thursday

Late 1980's at Alliance Country Club in Ohio.

Casey, Jim, and I arriving at an event. I don't remember the exact year or what the event was, but I like the picture of the three of us, even though we are all squinting.

Ice Storm

Fallen tree from ice storm the other day ~ just hanging up there leaning on the power lines. It was creepy driving under it, but we had no choice ~ it is the only way out. Thankfully, it was removed yesterday.

Wednesday, February 17, 2016

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Monsignor Peter Polando

and Father Kevin Segerblom !!

Tuesday, February 16, 2016

Yep!!

Headlines today pretty much sums it up!!

Snow, Rain, and Ice

This is my front sidewalk after midnight last night once the rain started to fall and then freeze. The scene this morning is a white sparkling wonderland of glistening ice on everything. It is melting, but there are power lines and branches down all over the Roanoke Valley. A lot of roads are closed.

I must venture out later as I have a DDS appointment. They called me to tell me they are open so I am not getting out of having an old cracked filling replaced with new.

Monday, February 15, 2016

Regrets

Snow in the South

Truth. Panic sets in before the snow starts to fall.

Snowed in Again 2-15-16

Mother Nature sent us another snow storm!!

Mr. Magic couldn't wait to get his hands on the snowblower.

I took this photo of the back yard, after midnight. When I enlarged it, it took on an abstract look.

Sunday, February 14, 2016

Valentine's Day 2016

Shower someone with love today!!!!

Saturday, February 13, 2016

Thursday, February 11, 2016

Chinese New Year ~ 2016

HAPPY CHINESE NEW YEAR!!!

The Year of the Monkey began on Monday, Feb. 8th, but it's never too late to send out wishes for a Happy New Year.

Wednesday, February 10, 2016

Living the Creative Life Gathering

Our Living the Creative Life group gathered at Aurora Gallery last night. What fun we had - collage, painting, scrimshaw, brainstorming, and getting to know each other.

The group is growing!

Isha's collage.

Hope's collage.

Audrey's collage.

Jeff's collage.

Mark's scrimshaw.

Mark's bag of horns for scrimshaw.

Susan's painting of her Dad.

Rebecca painting Pooh!

Friday, February 5, 2016

BOD 2016 Journal Page 1

Book of Days has always been a 12 week class led by Effy Wild of Wild Soul Arts. This year, she has extended the class into a YEAR of intentional creativity. I started taking Effy's BOD classes in 2012 and have a good number of art journals in various stages of being incomplete. My "hope" is to keep at it this year and hold a completed BOD journal in my hands at the end of 2016.

Tuesday, February 2, 2016

HAPPY BIRTHDAY

MOM

MY ANGEL IN HEAVEN

Monday, February 1, 2016

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Georgina !!

Wishing you a "knock 'em dead" Birthday celebration with family and friends by your side, and may the next year be filled with good times, joy, art, and good health.

Love and Hugs!!

For in that sleep of death, what dreams may come!

I AM A "SEARCHER"

"I am one of the searchers. There are, I believe, millions of us. We are not unhappy, but neither are we really content. We continue to explore life, hoping to uncover its ultimate secret. We continue to explore ourselves, hoping to understand. We like to walk along the beach, we are drawn by the ocean, taken by its power, its unceasing motion, its mystery and unspeakable beauty. We like forests and mountains, deserts and hidden rivers, and the lonely cities as well. Our sadness is as much a part of our lives as is our laughter. To share our sadness with one we love is perhaps as great a joy as we can know - unless it be to share our laughter. We searchers are ambitious only for life itself, for everything beautiful it can provide. Most of all we love and want to be loved. We want to live in a relationship that will not impede our wandering, nor prevent our search, nor lock us in prison walls; that will take us for what little we have to give. We do not want to prove ourselves to another or compete for love.

For wanderers, dreamers, and lovers, for lonely men and women who dare to ask of life everything good and beautiful. It is for those who are too gentle to live among wolves."

~ James Kavanaugh

I am THE LOVERS Tarot Card

Motive, power, and action, arising from Inspiration and Impulse. THE LOVERS represents intuition and inspiration. Very often a choice needs to be made. Originally, this card was just called LOVE. And that's acually more apt than "LOVERS." Love follows in this sequence of growth and maturity. And, coming after the Emperor, who is about control, it is a radical change in perspective. LOVE is a force that makes you choose and decide for reasons you often can't understand; it makes you surrender control to a higher power. And that is what this card is all about. Finding something or someone who is so much a part of yourself, so perfectly attuned to you and you to them, that you cannot, dare not resist. This card indicates that you have or will come across a person, a career, challenge, or thing that you will fall in love with. You will know instinctively that you must have this, even if it means diverging from your chosen path. No matter the difficulties, without it you will never be complete.