What Happened to My Weekend?

Here's me and Voodoo luxuriating in turkey poisoning. I've spent most of the day ironing pieces of hand dyed fabric to post for sale on the web. Can't buy or make any new stuff until the old stuff is cleared out and as fast as I was posting pictures, people were buying them! Whoopee! Last night I made pizzas from (almost) scratch. The dough comes in plastic baggies at the Publix bakery. I actually got it spinning in the air with nary a flop to the floor. The guys at Redendo's Pizza would be proud. Next weekend we'll have video - I'm teaching eveyone how to make pizza for themselves now that I've found out how much cheaper it is to make your own pies. All in all they were pretty good but the sauce needs tinkering with.

More company for Dinner

Look who heard there was a turkey carcass heading for the trashcan. He just couldn't wait another minute and came tapping on the back door. I have no idea where the Kat Krew is at the moment - probably at the neighbors house playing poker with Angel and Orangelo.

Feast Day

I can't remember when I spent hours and hours embroidering this linen tablecloth. It was supposed to be cutwork done in ecru. Can you imagine how boring? Here's the detail that makes it an heirloom. Jake invited a few friends so we had to have a KIDS table. Fortunately it was balmy enough for them to eat out on the deck. Believe that from a 26 pound turkey there are almost no leftovers. I was most thankful that Jimmy got home at all. Snafu's on the job almost pre-empted his trip home (he and Colin have already gone back down to Macon) and I was about to have a meltdown when he told me on the phone. Things worked out after all and the kitty girls were both mad to lavish love on him. And even though there are (still) dishes to be washed, I am going to sit down, read a book and take a shot a learning a new addiction, I mean technique

Buy Now Button Fixed

PayPal finally got back to me about fixing the BUY NOW button on my Hotcakes site. I still have a dozen of these scrap bags left and the price includes first class postage inside the US.

Food Frenzy

So I'm in Publix doing the last minute holiday provisioning. It's the baking stuff aisle and for a full two minutes I am looking for the paper thingies that get baked around cupcakes. A young woman stocking shelves on the opposite side of the aisle senses my need for assistance and asks what I am searching for. I opened my mouth and for an instant realize that I don't know what they are called. It's not Alzheimer's - I never knew what they were called in the first place. Without any other thought process I blurted out "cupcake panties". The look on both our faces must have been the proverbial priceless. In a heartbeat, she got my drift and plucked a small container from an obscure corner of the display. Made both our days I suspect.

Webwork

This is not a sane way to spend a sunny day off! I started the morning fifth in line the newest of the Gwinnett County tag offices finding out what became of the renewal sticker for our pickup and getting new plates for Colin's car. Oh the joys of being the family CFO. Compared to my near-arrest at the New York DMV, which is all the bad, evil New Yorker jokes rolled into one, this was a piece of cake for breakfast. Then I made the unsound decision to spend three hours pushing pixels and html code around to update my website for the first time in nearly two years. NO - I have not finished the gallery and I probably won't today. My brain is fried so I am going to the park to walk and then spend the rest of the day in the studio. All criticisms welcome.

Loose Ends

Cleaning the studio goes forward with the occasional diversion to finishing a UFO. Imagine, making time to sew on sleeves! This is a dye print with painted accents stitched with gold metallic thread. It's stiff as hell and miserable to sew. Finished I'd say.

the Best Gesture

Rummaging through all the scraps has worked it's magic. I'm improvising at the machine again. When I was in NY I promised my Mom some recent photos of the family and realized that with our busy lives, getting everyone together for a picture will have to wait for Thanksgiving. I could throw large hunks of turkey on the floor and not hope for such a pose of domestic bliss but here it is, warm in my imagination, the Lacativa family. This one is for you, Jimmy.

Sale!

I should be flogged for spending the entire day folding and sorting the jungle that is my studio and have only put a minor dent in things. I'm putting these (and 20 more like them!) quart-sized bags of scraps up for sale on my HOTCAKES site. Treatchaself niiice and spice up your stash.

waterworld

Yesterday, Jan Thompson and I went to see the biggest and best tourist attraction in Atlanta, the new Georgia Aquarium. There's a commercial for the GA on local TV with a woman standing in a darkened room looking up at something with her eyes and mouth opened wide in amazement. You could see that expression almost everywhere you turned. My jaw is still aching. I'm almost glad that, after a dozen bad shots, my camera called for new batteries so I gave up on trying to capture images and concentrated on taking things in directly. This turtle was flirting with everyone she made eye-contact with. Below is a cuttlefish. The acrylic tank and water was so clear that I am certain that the creatures inside could see us at least as well as we could see them. The cuttlefish seemed to be intrigued with our hands which vaguely resembled them. It made me want to paint eyespots on my knuckles so I could communicate with them better

A Witches Work is Never Done

or "Why I Carve Really Scary Pumpkins". Halloween has always been one of my favorite holidays. Now I realize that it's because it was chock full of tradition when I was a child way before Hallmark and Walmart got their hooks into it. My mother made our costumes and the one I remember best was a cat costume. The details are sketchy but I think she converted one piece stretchy pajamas with RIT and a fat, stuffed, black velvet tail that I'm sure I remember hitting my sisters with. She made candied apples that kids came from miles around to snag and there were always a couple of houses in the neighborhood that we just NEVER went to. Too spooky, too much in the spirit of the holiday, all year round. Frankly, that's how my house appears to me, dark and forbidding, and only the brave kids come creeping across the lawn for treats. The stuffed ghosts hanging in the trees may have festive, lunatic grins but if I were a kid, I'd pass on this one, thanks anyway.

Disconnected

I just spent a very interesting weekend fully disconnected from live input - no cable TV, no internet and (because I switched to Vonage - that's Effing Vonage according to my husband) no telephone. Last week the power company decided to prune some trees and did something to the wire that brings all our technology down the hill. At least they made sure we still had electricity, the sports. We live in a HOLLER - that's southern for "I don't care who your carrier is, your cell phone won't work down down here"- and continue to communicate at the whim of Comcast. I got the "Big Muddy" sewn together according to an actual paper mockup that I spent hours fooling with but now that it's up on the wall, I see that using that strong brown to bring some of the blocks up to size has caused design issues that will have be dealt with as one deals with cockroaches. Swift and deadly. Please don't ask how I know. So we talked, listened to music, cooked & ate a practice Thanksgiving dinner and watched a whole clutch of movies and some TV downloaded long ago. Did you know that at a certain age good sex will give you new wrinkles? What the hell is up with that? All and all, a lovely weekend. And this, from the back of the closet where a battered old portfolio mocks me. I made this up when I did some freelance work for a company that built endcap displays for music distribution stores. I have since confirmed that "freelance" means "unpaid".

Oh NO!! Another Postcard Procrastination Period

Just this one, I promise. There is too much else to do before I am seduced into sitting in front of the sewing machine cranking little wonders out one after another. There's lots of machine quilting to do and I finally got all the brown fabric I need to finish off the blocks for Big Muddy, trouble is, I am 99% certain that once finished, it's never going to leave my own personal bed.

Loot from MaryJo's in Gastonia

It would have been un-fibrous of me to bypass MaryJo's on my drive back from New York. It was a convenient pit stop for me and the car. Fiber addicts will admire my restraint. I only bought a few yards of some specific colors to complete a project, a few yards of an astounding fabric telling myself I'll use it for backing (sure I will) and then there was a box of remnants - 1 yard cuts of black cotton for .99 each. Did someone tell them I was coming?? Here is part of one of them discharged. I may never wash dishes with the stuff again.

Playland

I've been up to NY to visit family and haven't lifted a needle in a week. There was a new addition in the backyard. Yep, it's a pirate ship alright. Complete with gangplank, rigging and yardarms although my brother took down the jolly roger because a neighbor complained. Just wait until he puts the Christmas lights all over the mast! They are having the time of their lives with this. That's Rob, Emma, (one of the neighbors who is really happy about the USS Braine being docked at Port Useted) and Rob's boys Reno & Ryder...um, I think that's Reno in the choke hold. Even Debo joins in...

Whole Cloth Mania & Post Season Funk

This whopper has been lighting up the night on my design wall and will be for a while. I don't think I have any batting or backing large enough and I really don't want to cut it up - there's a lot of drama to play with here. Jimmy was home all too briefly but he lifted my mopery over baseball withdrawal and the QN rejection. We always find something to have a good laugh over. Quack-quack-quack, my Darlin' and thanks.

House in Need of Love

I wish I had taken better care of these garden boxes this summer. This and one or two other buds may be the only blooms I get this year. Time for fresh dirt. My whole house needs a serious facelift. Remember the earthquake that was centered in the gulf of Mexico a few weeks ago? Well, I was one of those sensitive souls who felt it in this suburb of Atlanta. I was in the pool when it happened and didn't know it for what it was. I was hanging on to the railing, drifting and listening to a ballgame when it suddenly felt like someone had jumped or fallen into the pool, but no splash, just movement of the water around me. I didn't think a thing about it until it made the evening news. Now, weeks later, I have discovered that we had some minor damage to the house. Up near a peak around the back, a few boards of siding have fallen away and all the nails on one exterior wall have popped out almost an inch! As our house is built directly on a rock ledge it's no surprise.

It was one of the ten best days so far this year, clear and sunny, breezes just wishing they smelled of burning leaves. Friday night was cold enough to have to turn the heat on for the first time of the season. Just love that smell of roasting dust. I had to cook up another batch of hummingbird sauce last night - they are still here and feeding voraciously. Got out early to assure a copy of the NY Sunday Times and was surprised to find that Borders had 2007 calendars on display. I took a long time choosing this one: The Braves played their last game of this season at one today knocking the Astros out of the playoffs as the Astros did to the Braves last year. I almost went to the game alone but would have spent nine innings feeling weird and sorry for myself.

As the UFOs get finished......

....new stuff goes up on the design wall. I spent most of last evening blind-stitching the layers together. I just didn't want to fool with the sewing machine for this one, big as it is 45 x 50 something - there was a game on. What can I say, the season is almost over, then the fur will start flying in the studio. update - I have cut & pinned up dozens of trial colors. It's just not speaking to me,yet.

Influences (Fling & Splat)

"Secret Message" is getting there. This wholecloth dyepainted & discharged piece turned out to be great fun. The original painting was an automatic pilot gesture but I trust my hand, at least I should more often. I wanted to counterbalance the grossness of the large markings when it came to the discharging but I wussed out. I may go back and do some heavier stitching to rectify that lack of unity. During the 60's I spent countless hours in art museums in NYC staring, slack-jawed as an ape, at contemporary paintings and marveling that these guys were getting huge bucks for flinging paint around just to hear it splat and then more hours listening to my stoned professors Explain It All, Abstract Expressionism, that is. No matter what they had to say,I don't think I ever got over the notion that these artists were putting a big one over on critics, museums, collectors and J.Q Public. I imagined them lounging about their lofts, garrets and studios totally fatigued from bouts of hysterical laughter as they "SOLD ANOTHER ONE" nyuk, nyuk, nyuk. Don't get me wrong, I think it's totally smooth operating and marvel that it happens as often as it does and don't mind admitting that I'd love to hold my own sides in pain even as I realize that it takes a little more than fling...splat. Robert Motherwell

Yikes!

Looks like a flock of scalps but it's five crocheted hats drying out on my Ikea Octupus. They're made from recycled sari silk which is a lot like crocheting with jute - rough, smelly and no stretch whatsoever, but once you wash it, it goes all soft and blurry. These will look better once they are completely dry and I find a dummy to model them. Each hat is festooned with beaded braids of varying lengths making the wearer appear to be sporting dreadlocks. I'm told the skaters will be rioting for these. Do skaters have money?

Tattoos

I've been thinking about getting a tattoo lately and don't have a decent explanation except that this doodle I drew on the cover of my sketchbook with a silver Sharpie keeps drawing my eye. I also watch Miami Ink with horrid fascination as people have mediocre art permanently carved into their hides with little or no explanation as to the choices, as if the stuff would just wash off! I've seen some photos of tattoos done in white ink. They look great if your skin tone provides enough contrast. I get very tan without even trying and high on my shoulder seems like the only place that won't continue to wrinkle or stretch as I get older. And WHY do people have tattoos put on their bodies in places where they can never see them without a mirror??? Maybe I'll just sew the design to something and leave my body alone.

Glue as Resist

I finally got out and did some errands today including getting a small tub of soda ash from Leslie's (the winterizing can wait another week) and a replacement darning foot for my Janome. Stitch & Quilt in Lawrenceville had undergone a major transformation since the last time I was there. They've taken over the adjacent storefronts and now carry sewing machines. They not only had the foot I needed, they also had those little round gizmos that go over the spool and keep the thread feeding smoothly. I think my cats have been stealing them from my worktable for cat poker.
A while ago I bought some Elmers because I read someplace that it make a good resist. I've been waiting on the soda ash to dip this piece in blue dye and then see how hard it was to get the glue out. Piece of cake and I like the results.

Happy Rosh Hashanah

"The Jewish New Year is a time to begin introspection, looking back at the mistakes of the past year and planning the changes to make in the new year." I like it - a three month jump on new beginnings but I'm afraid I'll be breaking the "no work" rule because I'm running out of time before Jimmy comes home and the Animal House loses it's charter! I grew up in a predominately Jewish neighborhood and absorbed a lot of the culture and decided early to take the best of all the religions I could find out about - namely, High Holy Days off from School! Convincing my parents was another story. "The Autumnal Equinox signals the end of the summer months and the beginning of winter. At this time of year, days have been shortening since the Summer Solstice some three months earlier, and the Equinox is the point where nights reach the same length as days. After this point, the Sun will shine lower and lower on the horizon until the Winter Solstice in about three months' time." But I still have a pool to clean and put to bed for the winter, as much as I hate it, we have to put the cover on it soon before those trees drop every last leaf in the water. Isn't that some healthy looking algae down there? I have a couple of hand dyes upstairs with those colors in them. I hate that pool cover. I almost Died a few years ago when I tripped on the deck and fell onto the covered pool. It was November. A tie down broke and I was instantly wrapped in heavyweight vinyl, wet winter clothing and 40 degree water. I went in feet first and landed within arm's reach of the edge. The instant I screamed for help I remembered I was home alone and no one would hear me. My arms were pinned to my sides by the plastic and the water pressure. Balanced precariously on one foot, I had time to examine the situation and clearly realize that if I didn't act carefully I WAS GOING TO DIE. My left arm was pinned to my side, my right hand to my throat. I could not move but felt that I could fall over at any minute. I had to ease the water pressure on the plastic so with my right fingers, all I could move, I pulled the cover away from my neck allowing the freezing water down inside the cover. The cold was shocking but as the pressure lessened I was able to pull my whole arm free and grab hold of the rail to keep from falling over. It seemed to take forever for enough freezing water to get down along my body and on top of the cover so I could free myself. It took another several minutes to haul myself out of the pool with about thirty pounds of cold, wet clothing added to my own excess. Once I caught my breath and gave thanks to Buddha,the Force, Quan Yin, Jesus, Allah, Isis, Hera, Yemana, and Jobu (covering all bases) I got up and stripped naked by the back door and ran upstairs and got under the covers and just cowered there for the whole afternoon. What a stupid way to almost die! My deepest terror was thinking that this could have happened to my one of my sons or my husband and what they would have felt or done in the moments that I had just experienced. These thoughts were worse than the experience itself. I still shudder to remember it and give thanks again to the whole Crew that it was only me.

MySpace Idiots

While I can't accuse them of having bad taste, it still pisses me off that all these MySpace losers who think they are SO computer literate don't get the problem with linking directly to images on someone else's website. It's called BANDWIDTH THEFT for a reason. So instead of getting worked up about it, I went to some of my old posts (with the hijacked images) and replaced the images with same-named files of some really nasty pictures that have smart remarks on them about the clever posters. Today I took one girls face and photoshopped it to a monkey's butt - do you think they will get the hint? Now when Buffy, Amber and SwanGirl and the rest of the crew login to their MS accounts to see how much love they have garnered today, the new wallpaper they stole from me is going to shrivel their heads. I'm going to keep track and the little darlings who don't get the message and remove the links quickly are going to be linking to some Class XXX porno-graffee by this time next week.

Off the Soapbox and Back to the Janome

Remember "Secret Message"? I spent a lot of time just looking at it and nothing was coming so I took it off the design wall and put it away. Of course, that's when notions occur in the night. I had a bit of stuff done on it and didn't like the way it was progressing so I stopped the whole process to spend an evening picking all those machine stitches out before starting on the dream path. Scales, snails, and paving stones.

LOL Debra!

You reminded me that the word DOGMA makes me laugh out loud. I always think of Kevin Smith's fabulous movie of that name and just the sound of the word makes me think of a big stupid dog biting it's own ass viciously. Better yet, a whole huge daisy chain of so-called religious leaders down on all fours biting the ass in front of them. Keep them out of trouble for a little while.

Not Quite a Rant

I've been brewing a socio-political rant but I don't even know where to begin now that the Pope has put his foot in his mouth and fuses are being lit all over the world to thrill and entertain Allah, again. How hard is it to see that every bit of misery on this planet (that's not a direct result of human greed) stems from the superstitious voodoo bullshit espoused by each and every religious group that ever claimed a prophet or climbed a pulpit. I wish they would just get on with their frigging arma-fuckin-geddon and be done with it. I'll spade their ashes into my garden and the world will go on about it's business better off without them all. Sam Harris has it right and be-frigged if I know what to do about it. Instead, I offer this - "The Heart of Life" by John Mayer" I hate to see you cry lying there in that position There's things you need to hear So turn off your tears and listen Pain throws your heart to the ground Love turns the whole thing around No it won't all go the way it should But i know the heart of life is good You know it's nothing new Bad news never had good timing But then the circle of your friends Will defend the silver lining Pain throws your heart to the ground Love turns the whole thing around No it won't all go the way it should But i know the heart of life is good Pain throws your heart to the ground Love turns the whole thing around Fear is a friend who's misunderstood But i know the heart of life is good, i know it's good, i know it's good Oh i know it's good Oh i know it's good Oh i do, i do, i do Oh i know it's good

Therapy Continues

I re-wanked my elbow again on Sunday trying to lift an angry cat. Miss Karma has been highly pissed off at me since I treated her little flea buddies to genocide. I tried to give her a lift to the sink for drink (cat owners understand) she struggled and the elbow went "click". Not quite square one but aggravating. But last night I felt good enough for some handwork so I rooted around in the studio for a UFO and found one of the smaller body parts and spent nine innings appliqueing this little Liver. The Braves polished off the Nationals smartly and do we dare hold our collective breath now that they have won two consecutive games? On Sunday they stole a game from the Marlins in the 10th inning when the Marlins outfielders suffered some sort of mass hysteria and began impersonating the Three Stooges. Braves 8, Marlins 7. I love to watch the boys have fun.

Baseball & Fiber Therapy

Painting was painless. Wringing out the fabric by hand was challenging but probably good for me. When I first discharged these two pieces, I left the goo on too long and almost all of the color left town which really wasn't all that interesting so I went back and painted on some dye, sprayed the pieces down with soda ash solution and just left them to dry outdoors. Improved somewhat but I have an awful compulsion to start hand stitching on one of these pieces. Voodoo spent some time pie-ing my back before settling in with me to watch the Braves take another beating. My sympathies to those on the DL.

setback

Ugh. Early tuesday morning I decided the trash cans weren't tidy up to the curb as I was leaving for work. I got out of the car, planted my feet and grabbed hold of one can fully intending to have it do my bidding with one pull only to discover that the can weighed more than I did (we missed the trash pickup last week) and I felt my right elbow joint and shoulder momentarily disassemble and then realign (mostly) themselves. Pain bloomed and I realized that I HAD DONE MYSELF AN INJURY! *&$!@&** *#@!* and more along those lines. Pirates woulda blushed. So I got back into the car and limped off to the office with my right fist curled into an involuntary ball. I have new wrinkles between my eyebrows from going "OW" every 30 or 40 seconds. The fingers work okay but the arm just refuses to answer the helm to varying degrees depending on what I ask of it. Brushing my hair is quite an adventure as were other personal care issues. I almost choked myself with the toothbrush. Left handed eating slows things down considerable - not bad to consider. Rest, Ice, Drugs, more ice, more drugs and it gets better each day. Thank goodness I won't have to pitch in the playoffs (sniff sniff). I can't crochet but I can paint. Tomorrow will see what happens at the sewing machine.