Memorial Day

A day for remembering:

Beloved pets, too:

These are all the pictures I could find, so please don't feel bad about those not here. We remember them too.

Memorial Day is also a day for family picnics, and we had a fine one.

Just for you, another drawing:

(I think I'm still under the influence of our Pirates of the Caribbean adventure....!)

Mother Daughter Day

So, Beth and I had a "Mother Daughter Day" yesterday. I picked her up at 2:30 and we went to see Pirates of the Caribbean On Stranger Tides on the BIG SCREEN, as she says. Here's a link to the preview of this really fun movie: 

http://disney.go.com/pirates/#/characters/

The theater was very quiet, even though it was raining. I haven't been to a movie theater for a couple of years and I was surprised at the price of tickets. But it was pretty nice, almost a private showing. There were only 2 other people in the theater.

After the movie we did a little shopping at Target and then ate supper at Steak and Shake.

On "Mother Daughter Day" one does not worry about eating one's vegetables, etc. We had big greasy cheeseburgers and chocolate mint milkshakes. Kind of a shock to the system but, oh, so fun!

To top off our "Day" we stopped at Michael's and looked at their latest crop of craft supplies. Boy, that place is as tempting as Jo Ann's. I had to get out quick so I wouldn't spend all the money I don't have!

We got home at 8:30 and vegged out in front of the TV 'til bedtime. I was too tired even to draw!

However, I do have a picture for you. Anyone want to guess how the color was done?

Hope you're having a great day!



Check it out: The Mighty Quinn

If you haven't listened to the video on the right, take a minute. I think you'll like it.

"The Mighty Quinn" was written by Bob Dylan (not his best work) and performed in the 1960's by Manfred Mann. This is apparently a video of one of their performances back then.

Somebody asked Dylan what the song was about and he said it's "just a nursery rhyme."

I always thought it was about drugs - every song was about drugs in the 60's.

I connect this song with my student teaching days in Erie Pennsylvania in 1969. I rode in to school with a neighbor and the radio station she listened to played this thing EVERY MORNING at the exact same time. I remember rounding a certain corner on our route as this song came on. By then we were about ten minutes from my school and my stomach was in knots.

I was afraid of the kids, afraid of my supervisor, afraid of failure. And I hated that song!

Now I think it's kinda cute. And funny.

Just goes to show.

So here's the lyrics (I still think it's about drugs):


Come all without
Come all within
You'll not see nothing like the Mighty Quinn

Everybody's building ships and boats
Some are building monuments,
Others jotting down notes
Everybody's in despair, every girl and boy,
But when Quinn the Eskimo gets here,
Everybody's gonna jump for joy.

I like to go just like the rest,
I like my sugar sweet
But jumping queues and making haste just ain't my cup of meat
Everybody's beneath the trees
Feeding pigeons on a limb
But when Quinn the Eskimo gets here,
All the pigeons gonna run to him.

Let me do what I wanna do,
I can't decide 'em all
Just tell me where to put 'em
And I'll tell you who to call
Nobody can get no sleep
There's someone on everyone's toes
But when Quinn the Eskimo gets here,
Everybody's gonna wanna doze

Come all without
Come all within
You'll not see nothing like the Mighty Quinn


Oh, and here's another picture for you:

How to Find Peace Despite the Tornadoes

Well I woke up this morning to the awful news of tornadoes in Missouri. Again, we are reminded of how unpredictable life is, and how fragile.

Someone wrote a book once called Why Bad Things Happen to Good People. Since I never read the book I don't know the author's answer, but as a social worker and counselor, I have tried to get people to understand this:

Without sadness, there would be no joy;

Without worry, we could not experience relief;

Without chaos, we would not recognize peace;

Etc.

All life, literature, philosophy and religions try to teach us these things.

And sci fi, too.

Personally, I pay close attention to the lessons learned by Spock, the logical Vulcan on Star Trek, and Data, the android on Star Trek Next Generation. Hey, that's what speaks to me.

As do these strange meanderings by my pen:

These meditations (drawings) bring me peace and balance.

How do you find peace and balance?

Something Strange in My Garden

Something Strange in My Garden

So here's the good news: I have been chosen to participate in the Life Is Art show on June 18th.

The expected attendance is 300-500. Wow.

Now that I passed that test I'm interested in submitting my drawings to some other shows.

It'll be exciting if anything sells. I've priced them at $75 each.

Here are three others that I found when I was going through my desk. Two of them were scribbled in a notebook - hence, the lines:

I've been having a lot of fun with this. And, these days, I keep my acid free drawing paper and pens handy for whenever I may be sitting in a medical office, watching TV, or whatever, so there will be no more lines unless that's what I want.

And what have you been doing for fun?

Courage

Courage is being afraid but going on anyhow.  ~Dan Rather

So - I sent in 4 submissions to Life Is Art to see if they might think my stuff is any good.

Seeking approval for something so personal is a scary thing.

Here are the pieces I chose:

I Heart Trees

The Dancers

Sophistication

Bud

Choosing just four out of so many was not easy, and how do I know anyway what might appeal to others? Some designs had to be eliminated because of the condition of the original.

And there are a few favorite originals which I seem to have misplaced, but they'll turn up eventually, maybe for my next try.

Last time I entered an art contest was the Viscose Christmas Coloring Contest in 1952. I won, but it was a bit of a cheat, because I submitted a picture which had been started by my sister. I finished her picture and won a prize (first, I think).

It's about time I learned whether I can go it on my own, ya think?

In the meantime - because I promised to show you - here's Faith in her new playhouse. She declined decorations saying, "I'd rather live in a cardboard box."

Do something courageous today, OK?

Hours and Hours of Hard Labor

Days and nights and weeks of colic;
Months and months of diapers and spit up;
Hours and hours of tantrums;
Runny noses, muddy shoes, slimy critters captured in pockets.

Music lessons, swimming lessons, trips to the library, long discussions;
Mostly A's, framed awards, praise from teachers;
Dungeons and Dragons, rocket ships, bicycle trips;
First job, first car, first girlfriend.

Off to college, too fast into adulthood;
Suddenly out of my life, out of my sight;
Still in touch, still call (but not enough);
My children, my greatest accomplishment.

Happy Mother's Day, everyone!