Daydreamers Welcome

Book of Days 2012 - Weeks 2 - 3

2012-01-23T18:47:00.001-07:00

Offered without comment (which is just frustrating the HELL out of my inner critic):

Happy New Year!

2012-01-03T14:16:00.002-07:00

And I do mean that. Completely. It is good to have a chance to begin again. Of course, you don’t need anything to begin again except NOW but we do love a sort of “marker” for the occasion, don’t we? So having a day where most people in the world can mark as a day to begin again is a blessing (and a curse - but I’m not even going to touch resolutions with a long pointy pole).

In an effort to pursue my journaling and to scratch an itch to be all “artsy-fartsy” in the autumn of my life, I’ve signed up with Effy Wild to participate in her Book of Days 2012 project.

To start things off, I took a few of the last days of 2011 to think about what I want from 2012. Then with that in mind, I picked one word to focus my intentions for this book and my real world life. I chose DISCOVER. This fits where I am in my life so perfectly.

The book I chose to alter is a good one. In its former life it was Who Killed Society by Cleveland Amory. I picked it up at a used book sale thinking it was a humorous novel. Instead, I got a book ripping apart a group of people who in turn developed ripping other people apart into an art form. A wholly negative book that I am making into something positive.

I’ve scanned what I’ve done so far. (Click images to enlarge.)

The cover - yep, that's me!

Inside cover. In each envelope/pocket there is a letter
to the year. I gooped this one so deep in paint that it is
STILL tacky! LOL!

January 1, of course. I love Neil Gaiman's
writings and had to include his New Year's Wish.

The weekly spread so far.

My reptilian brain decided to stay with a traditional calendar approach and so I will start every week with a large spread on Sunday and the rest of the week on the next spread. This differs from Effy’s format a wee bit but as she has encouraged us to make this project our own, I will indeed do so.

Effy's pages are filled with drawings and collage which I hope to do in mine, too. Each Sunday in her "Church of Art" livestream broadcast Effy covers new ideas, new techniques, and gives us a prompt for the week. I don’t have the huge stash of art supplies that she does but I do have some left behind by my ex-husband, so LEMONADE! Yay!

Anyway, this project is to encompass a year. A whole year. I hope I can keep focused enough to do it, but if I “fall of the wagon” a bit as Effy mentioned, I will just acknowledge those missing days with a note somewhere and pick right up again.

So, here’s wishing you a Happy New Year! I hope you find it a year filled with discoveries.

Wow. It's been almost a month.

2011-12-22T16:52:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone.

My apologies for disappearing again. Life has dished out one tough year for me. I won't be sorry to see 2011 hit the road, that's for sure!

Well, to summarize it, my personal challenges are mostly over. "Clean up" is all that remains and there is no hurry to do any of that. I've also been backing off from the external chaos in order to quietly listen more to myself and rediscover the wisdom I've carried but haven't tapped into. (Special thanks to Sue Meyn for leading a great online journaling class from Phoenix College!)

Okay, so I'm not going to make any promises for posting in the New Year. I'm going to be selfish and concentrate only on the core issues in order to restore my strength - mentally, physically, and most importantly spiritually.

Thanks for sticking with me.

Here's wishing you and yours the warmest of holidays and blessings for a bright New Year!

Joni

Oh MY!

2011-11-29T16:44:00.000-07:00

I’ve been chosen to receive the Versatile Bloggers Award! Thanks to Julie Okami at In Pursuit of a Hidden Artist blog. I’ve been watching her skills as an artist go from start to wow! over the past few months. Julie has another blog that I follow called Pens Paper Inks…Whatever! If you are picky about your writing tools head on over and read some excellent product reviews.

So. Now down to business.

Rules for The Versatile Bloggers Award

1. Thank the person who gave you the award and link back to their blog.

2. Share seven facts about yourself.

3. Send the award on to fifteen other bloggers whose blogs you appreciate and let them know that they have been given the award. You are not allowed to give the award to any of the blogs that are awarded together with you.

About me:

1. I’m a professional meeting planner for medical specialty societies.
2. I am owned by two cats and a dog.
3. I have a spectacular daughter who just turned 21.
4. Autumn is my spring.
5. I don’t watch television but do watch some shows on Hulu.
6. I drive a manual transmission pickup truck.
7. My favorite sound is a thunderstorm.

15 Blogs that I have recently discovered or follow regularly and would like to nominate for a Versatile Blogger Award.

1. Comfortable Shoes Studio
2. Dion Dior & More
3. Double Decker Days
4. Icy’s Blunt Pencil
5. Things My Kids Won’t Know
6. Spiritual Evolution of the Bean
7. Unhalfbricking
8. When I Walk in the Door
9. Journal Magic
10. Wyrdsmiths
11. Carla Sonheim: Snowball Journals
12. Lovely Listing – Odd Finds in Real Estate Listings
13. Moleskine Exchange
14. The Kandahar Kronicles
15. Neil Gaiman’s Journal (yes, I’m a fan girl)

Okay, so I'm hearing the orchestra start to play me off, so I'd better wrap this up and say, "You like me! You really like me!" **grins**

Some New Art Journal Pics

2011-11-27T12:39:00.000-07:00

I haven't been idle completely in my art journals (yes, I have 4 of them going at once) in these last few weeks. Here are some of the things I did:

Dia de Muertos

Dreaming is Key

Vanity Via Zentangles

Mandala (watercolor pastels and Platinum Black ink)

Surprises!

2011-11-26T14:14:00.000-07:00

Whew! I've sure been busy these past few weeks. Cleaning out old stuff and making way for a less cluttered house is hard work indeed. I've found a range of items that I can not believe we put away. Old crumpled Christmas paper, lots of old photographs, half-done art projects, pencil stubs, greeting cards - new and received, and so on. Most of it went into trash or recycling. I also found

Dust! Lots and lots of dust!

And, a huge surprise.

Let me backtrack a bit. In 2007 or 2008 we had an arson fire that took out part of our back fence and a storage shed. We couldn't remember everything we had in that shed but we put together a list for the insurance company based upon the melted and burnt remains that we found as we sifted through the charred mess. I found a portion of an old photograph from my childhood. I knew that my photo albums and high school yearbooks and all that memorabilia of mine was gone. It has been hard to get passed that angst.

Until today.

In cleaning out a closet in the laundry room I found that box of photo albums and my yearbooks and my high school diploma and my certificate for participating in the Minnesota State Speech Competition and all that wonderful stuff!

Waahooo!

Beth W, if you are reading this, I won't need those photocopied pages from the yearbook anymore!

A Peculiar Human Emotion: Homesickness

2011-10-29T18:49:00.004-07:00

This post is a copy of a writing asignment in a class I am currently taking online.

I regularly read a blog called “Unhalfbricking”. It is written by a young Australian woman who currently lives in Melbourne. She recently wrote a post that not only resonated with me, but also reminded me of a recent journaling exercise that followed in a similar vein.

Lauren grew up in Melbourne under abusive conditions. When she was ready to attend University she eagerly left Australia and emigrated to England. There she found her “soul” home (as well as a husband). Unfortunately there are laws on emigration that must be obeyed and Lauren, visa expired, was forced to move back to Australia. She suffers from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder that is magnified by living back in the town were the abuse originated. In trying to heal, Lauren writes the blog not only for herself but also for those out in the world who also suffer the same.

In her post entitled “Grief for Things Left Undone” Lauren writes about all the places in England that she had hopes of visiting. She writes of the beauty she encountered and of the things that she once had but has no longer. I felt great sympathy for her when I read her post on being homesick for England. I, too have a “soul” home that I cannot return to.

My father grew up on a farm in south central Minnesota just outside of a small town called St. James. It sat on 80 acres. That is quite small by today’s standards, yet it provided a good income for the family “in the day.” When my grandfather died and my grandmother went into assisted living, the farm contents were auctioned off, the land sold; the buildings and the old-growth grove of trees surrounding the buildings were torn down and then plowed under. There is no trace left of that magical place.

Like Lauren, I visit again and again in my mind. For me, I remember certain things: the smell of fresh cut alfalfa, the dusty light in the barn at feeding time, the taste of homegrown produce filling the table at mealtime, the sound of the yellow rose bush scratching at the dining room windows and the crackly stiffness of corn cob leaves just before harvest.

I remember Grandpa hunched over the kitchen radio trying to listen to the Twins game between lightning-caused static cracks. I remember Grandma sitting on the kitchen counter eavesdropping on phone conversations over the party line. I remember the huge lavender-colored lilac blooms on a tall bush that decorated the middle of the chicken yard. I remember the red box elder bugs that Grandma would sweep off the living room walls into a dustpan and shake them out over the chicken yard fence as a treat for the birds. I remember picking eggs out of the hens’ nests and carefully placing them in wire baskets for washing and storage in the coolness of the root cellar where they sat until the egg-man came to pick them up. I remember shoveling silage down out of the silo and breaking apart the bales of alfalfa for the cows at feeding time. I remember the grunts and squeals of the pigs as they bumped each other out of the way to be the first at the trough.

We would walk half a mile up a gravel road to collect the mail from the grouping of mailboxes at the junction. Sometimes Grandpa would use the tractor to go get the mail. He’d let us stand alongside his seat and we would laugh when the bugs would hit our cheeks as we barreled down the road leaving a plume of dust rising in the air behind us.

In spring when the ditches were full of water, we would find long sticks to tie strings onto so that we could try fishing in them. (No one spoiled our fun by telling us there were no fish in the ditches.) We built forts in the grove to the north of the house and we played "Wagon Train" all over the farm yard. Grandma would fill our canteens with orange Kool-aid and pack some candy bars in our lunch boxes.

When I grew old enough to learn to drive, it was Grandpa who put me behind the wheel in the middle of a freshly mowed alfalfa field. He directed me in circles and figure eights until he knew I could handle the car, and then together we set off down the gravel roads.

In time Lauren could find her way back to England to visit her special places or even live there permanently. I sincerely hope, not only that she does, but that she writes about it as well. While I won’t be as fortunate, now that the farm no longer exists, I will honor and cherish those memories and more.

Yard Work - Fun or Foe?

2011-10-16T11:42:00.000-07:00

I just sat down from working out in my front yard. I'm exhausted. There's no one to blame but me for the 23 lawn & leaf bags I hauled to the alley. Whew! So, the front yard is pretty pathetic even after I raked all the leaves, sticks, and pods into those bags.

Water rates have gone up here in the Valley of the Sun and with good reason. We are in a major drought. The City feels the best way to get people's attention on how much water they use is to raise the rates. Of course this only works for people like me who are already struggling to pay the bills. We stop watering our yards.

Needless to say then that I haven't been watering my front yard and I've slowed down on my back yard. I've lost two and perhaps three trees back there because of it. Ah well. I'll pick out more drought tolerant varieties and try again.

Which brings me back to the front. Yard, that is. My neighbor (who has a putting green worthy front yard) walks over to me while I am wheezing over the rake and wiping sweat out of my eyes and compliments my yard. Yeah.

"I think it looks bald now," I said. "Maybe I'll let what grass remains grow really really long and then do a comb-over like a bald guy's head."

He frowned and walked back to his house. Okay, so maybe not.

Have I mentioned this before?

2011-10-14T15:04:00.000-07:00

I love watching TED talks (http://www.ted.com/) and I ran across this one that makes me smile biggly. (That's short for "really really big".)

For all of you who like to doodle while on the phone or during meetings, IT'S OKAY!

Yay!

Notebook Stories has another Giveaway!

2011-10-12T13:54:00.000-07:00

Nifty brings another great giveaway on her site. Check out Review and Giveaway: Some Rhodia and Clairefontaine Goodies, then follow her instructions to enter the contest.

Just Touching Base Here

2011-10-08T07:39:00.000-07:00

Greetings all!

I'm smack in the middle of "Meetin' Season" and I'm barely keeping up on the rest of the world. I'm also buried under with an online college course. What a dash of cold water there! Because they can't see you face to face, the work is piled on heavier and the check-ins are tremendous. I originally decided to try the online class so I could fit it into my schedule. Well, think again. **smile**

On personal issues, one biggie down and another just beginning. I've decided to keep all that "junk" off the blog and not subject you to any more whining than you already get from our Tea Party candidates. **grins** (The glorious news that Palin won't be running is keeping me from gagging over Bachmann and Perry. (Perry actually thinks Viagra is for a health issue but birth control is not. Uh huh.) )

The weather has finally turned cooler. I am loving it! I just wish I could take some time off to enjoy it.

This morning I'm heading off to the Cave Creek/Carefree area to enjoy thrift store shopping and girl talk with my daughter and a good friend. Much laughter expected - which I dearly need. Thrift store shopping is such a grand adventure for me as well as being less of a consumer. Reusing and re-purposing instead of filling up the landfill is what I'm after.

Dang - I'm getting way too preachy this morning. My apologies.

Anyway, I hope you all have a wonderful day/weekend/workweek!

Ten Long Years Ago

2011-09-11T16:52:00.000-07:00

I remember.

It was early in the morning here in Phoenix and I was getting the household ready for the workday. Sipping my first cup of coffee, I hunted down the TV remote. At that time in my life I listened more than watched Good Morning America as I prepared lunches, woke my daughter, changed into my work clothes, etc. And then I "tuned in" to what they were talking about. A plane had crashed into one of the World Trade Center towers.

I woke my husband. When I got him awake enough to understand what was happening, he popped out of bed and we stood, not sat, but stood in front of the TV set and watched. The TV anchors were talking about possible terrorist activity and referred back some years to the fire bomb in the parking lot under the Towers.

Then the screen filled with the sight of the second plane. I screamed.

Thank you to all of those who responded to that hell on earth. We won't forget you.

Hurry, Hurry, Hurry! It's Carnival Time!

2011-09-06T17:26:00.000-07:00

Grab that cotton candy and other food-on-a-stick and head on over to A Penchant for Paper to take a gander at the Carnival!

Wheee!

Oh my!

What the heck is it?

Wow!

Would you look at that!

Gee wilikers, Grandpa, how do they do that?

Hello Again!

2011-09-04T08:53:00.002-07:00

My apologies for not posting for awhile. Life has once more called my attention away so I've had to prioritize my time accordingly.

After being officially declared the hottest August on record for Phoenix, we gratefully tore off the calendar page and are looking at September's promise of cooler temperatures. So far the edge has been blunted somewhat and the light has a definite gold cast in it that tells me we've turned that corner. Autumn is on its way. And that is my all-time favorite time of year. To me, autumn, not spring, is the time to begin anew. I think it relates to the school year.

And since it is the beginning of a new school year and to deal with all the "stuff" going on in my life, I signed up for an online class with Sue Meyn, M.C. This particular class is hosted through Phoenix College, but Sue also has online classes of her own. (Check out Journal Magic for more information.)

I have discovered that online classes are NOT the breeze I thought they would be. Oh, my heavens, no. They take a lot more time than face-to-face classes. Not only is there the homework, but you have to go into a class discussion area to "chat" with the other students. Then there are certain assignments that you post on the class blog. (I'll re-post them here, too, as they are a review of an article on writing and a book on writing.)

It turns out that my sister is also taking some classes right now, too. Becky lives in a small town outside of Houston, Texas. After raising her family and continually dealing with health problems from nearly every member of her family, she listened to her inner wisdom and at the age most women think of retiring, is working hard to earn a degree in nursing. I cannot be more proud of her. She is awesome! (I'll have to tell you about the resistance she faces from the faculty in another post. Seems they don't think an "old lady" can successfully complete the program. They don't know my sister!)

And the transition from marriage to singleness continues. Such a comedy of errors, let me tell you! Nothing is simple and if we don't laugh at it, we'd be squeezing our fingers into each other's throat. (We're laughing, by the way.) After 20+ years of living in this house we have accumulated an amazing amount of STUFF. So it is quite the task of sorting through all this stuff.

Since there is no way on earth the future ex-hubby can take all of his stuff with him when he moves out, we need to store it somewhere. Fortunately, we are blessed with an out building of considerable size. My hubby used it as his ceramics studio for years. Well, if you've ever been around ceramics you know it is lots and lots of dust. Due to the extreme daytime heat, we decided it is best to work on cleaning out the workshop at night. But the dust has clogged the light switches and we cannot turn them on.

So, I trooped over to the closest big box hardware store and made a bee-line for the electrical department. I find the light switches all right. Make note I said switches. Plural. There are at least 25 different switches on display. I am so lucky that a store employee strolled by and asked if I needed help. Yep, I sure did! Thanks to his incredible timing, I was out of the store and on my way home in about 10 minutes.

So that's where we are this morning. My list includes changing the light switches on the workshop, clipping a bunch of coupons and getting some groceries, sorting the mountain range of laundry, and working on some homework.

I am grateful that I have tomorrow off.

BookJournals by Ex Libris Anonymous: A Review

2011-08-21T09:22:00.004-07:00

One of my favorite ways to unwind from a busy day at work is to sit down with a glass of red wine and read blog posts on topics of personal interest. I love fountain pens, inks, paper, notebooks, writing - both fiction and non-fiction, and a smattering of other topics. I follow a great many more blogs on Google Reader than are shown on my blog roll, but you get the main idea.

Not long ago I read a review that sparked my interest. Julie (Okami) from Whatever had a review of a handmade journal that was, well, brilliant! Her review is here.

An appropriately designed business
card accompanied the order.

BookJournals are made from old books. Plain and simple, yet as I said, brilliant. I ordered two that very day. Not only are they unique - no two are alike - but they are very reasonably priced. I paid $13 (USD) per journal. They were shipped quickly and I had them in about a week. Jacob Deatherage even followed up with a personal email to keep me posted on the shipping status. Fantastic customer service.

So, let's take a look at what I received, shall we?

First up is a children's book "The Ghost on Saturday Night" by Sid Fleischman. Or it used to be anyway.

Cover

This book is 8.75 by 5.5 inches and a bit more than half an inch thick. Inside there are a few pages from the book but mostly filled with blank paper for you to write on.

I chose this one because I'm a believer in ghosts. I saw one once and it comforted me to know this proof of some sort of afterlife with no religious dogma attached.

That and the cover is cute.

Backside of "Ghost"

Inside pages

BookJournal details

The second journal I received was made from a 1934 DIY cabin building book. I must confess that the major reason I chose this one is because books from the 1920s through the mid-1940s is "my era." No, I was born much later(hem, hem) but I feel an affinity for that particular era.

So, how does the paper do? I tried out several fountain pens filled with different inks on this very smooth, very white paper. They performed exceedingly well, I must say. Not much feathering to speak of. (I was having trouble with a couple of the pens writing on the dry side but since I experienced the same issue on other paper, I knew it was the pen/ink and not this paper.) There was no shadowing on the backside either, so I can write on both sides with ease.

Tiny, tiny bits of bleeding

I did not try a Sharpie pen here for two reasons. First, we all know that they bleed through every paper there is. Second, I don't own any for that reason. The only bleed through I had was from several spots on the Spirit of Bamboo ink test. This is a wet writer and I deliberately held the nib to the paper in a wee pause during writing.

All in all, I give these journals a big, hearty thumbs up recommendation to anyone who would like something out of the ordinary and performs very well. Please head on over to BookJournals and check out their selection.

Update: I changed "no feathering" to "not much feathering" because I didn't see it until I enlarged the picture after publishing. And please forgive the horrible formatting. Blogger was VERY hard to work with this morning!

When Life Hands You Lemons...

2011-08-03T05:12:00.001-07:00

If you recall, I wrote about our water lines being moved from the gravel covered alley to the asphalt covered streets in front of our houses. The city then patched the cracks with tar. About a month or so ago the street was repaved with a fresh coat of deep black asphalt. It looked like they had taken a brush of black gesso and painted the streets.

They remained pristine for approximately 19 hours.

Sometime in the wee hours, a driver used our sidewalk to add some turning room to their U-turn. This left some deep black tire tracks on the sidewalk in front of our house and torn up dents in the street where the tires turned sharply. **sigh**

But I digress. I want to describe the difference in moving the water lines from the graveled alley to the black asphalt-covered streets.

Yep, you are ahead of me. For everyone else, think summer in Phoenix, Arizona.

I burned myself on the cold water during that first morning’s shower. Fortunately it eventually “cooled” a bit and I was able to finish in somewhat more comfortable temperatures. After I was done with the less than lady-like language, and during the first lather (rinse and repeat) of shampoo, I started to smile.

Dang! I can save some natural gas and turn down the temperature on the water heater. Might as well use the solar power to benefit my checkbook, eh?

Whoot!

Pure Brilliance

2011-07-31T09:41:00.001-07:00

A good friend sent me this link. Rather than try to summarize the whole thing, head on over to read yourself. A very good video is included there.

LINK

THE WORLD WITHOUT US

2011-07-27T05:04:00.007-07:00

A favorite feature on one of the (too?) many blogs I read is the book reviews done over at Scriblets. I don’t know Bleets personally, but I can tell from his subject selections and thoughtful reviews that I would like to meet him one day. Although I cannot hope to emulate his style, I am compelled to tell you about a book I am reading right now.

It is rare that a non-fiction book will grab my throat as this one has. Okay, I’m a “greenie” anyway, but Alan Weisman comes at ecology from a whole different angle. The World Without Us looks at how the earth will react should humans just disappear.

If you’ve ever noticed the tiny plants that are growing in the asphalt cracks or plastic bags blocking a storm drain grate during a heavy rain (or like we see in Phoenix – floating high above the traffic on heat currents and exhaust) or the sad crumbling of abandoned buildings surrounded by tall weeds, you will understand immediately what Weisman is trying to tell you.

A quote from the book:

"'If you want to destroy a barn,’ a farmer once told me, ‘cut an eighteen-inch-square hole in the roof. Then stand back.’”
--- architect Chris Riddle, Amherst, Massachusetts

Beginning with a look at a typical human home through lightning flashes of time, Weisman zooms out to the world as a whole. With a segue into the far distant past that began without humans, we are led step by step into where we are today. Then, with the stories from individual leading scientists and fellow human beings, we begin to see example after example of how humans are affecting the planet and what would happen after we are gone.

From the book jacket

This can get rather frightening to think about and frankly, some of it is scaring me silly. Yet, while the book reveals the horrible impact we are having right now and indicates the lingering poisons we will leave behind, I can’t help but notice the feeling of peace and, yes, hope that surrounds me. After the humans are gone and even allowing for the crap left behind us, the earth WILL survive and hopefuly, thrive.

BUT, the trick is in the timing. We need to take a serious look at what we are doing and how we are doing it. It’s time to straighten up our acts right now.

I picked up my copy from the public library. The Copyright is 2007 so I’m willing to bet you can find this book almost anywhere and I heartily encourage you to do so!

Updated 7-27-11: Corrected formatting error on book title.

A File Sharing Tool I Actually Use

2011-07-24T04:55:00.001-07:00

Several times in the last year or so, I would run across an article here and there on the topics of backing up your work, file sharing, online storage of documents, etc. Each article would list several methods such as emailing documents to yourself or Google Docs or other stuff.

I’ve been emailing myself for years. (I rarely answer me, though. **snort**) However, it isn’t fool proof. A couple of weeks ago, I emailed in to the office that I wasn’t feeling well and was taking the day off. That email was never delivered. A coworker finally called me to find out if I was okay.

Lately I’ve been working with Google Docs for file sharing with one of my client groups. Let me say right out that I love Google. iGoogle is my home page. I use Blogger for this blog’s platform. (I finally forgave them for messing up the Google News format.) I use Google Scholar for tons of work research. I use Gmail for everything non-work related. BUT. I hate Google Docs.

Google Docs reformats everything you upload. You have to download the document to work on it or update it and if you don’t remember to upload it again, it isn’t there for the other people to use. And the same goes for the other users. So needless to say, there I was in a tight situation last week looking for a specific document only to find it GONE. And searching for something in that environment is touch and go, too. Major pain in the tuchis.

Along comes Dropbox. 9 out of 10 articles I read in the past year or so mentioned this unique program. It is a file sharing program for yourself and/or whoever else you’d like to share with. Download the program on every device you have – in my case it is my home laptop and my work laptop – and put your documents in there. It syncs automatically so no special equipment required. Nothing is reformatted. I can use my home Office 2007 with my work Office 2003 (hey, I work for a non-profit corporation) and it is the same document. I can work on it inside Dropbox just as if it was in a file on my hard drive. And it stays there. You can even find your stuff from any computer – just remember your log-in information.

Last week I had a coworker walk up to me and thank me for cluing her into Dropbox. She's a Girl Scout Leader who had tons (literally!) of cookies to account for and this program makes it much easier to keep the documents updated.

Go take a look. Watch the virtual tour thingy. The first 2 gigs are free!

Note: I have no affliation to Dropbox. Just another very satisfied customer here.

Pentel Handy-line S: A Review

2011-07-06T05:33:00.011-07:00

Included in Pentel's goody bag were 3 different items in the Handy-line S category. A dry marker in black, a highlighter in orange, and a permanent marker in dark blue.
They all share the same basic barrel and retractable features which is really nice to have. No more dropped caps that manage to roll way under your desk leaving you to crawl under there in your best slacks or worse, a skirt just as an important client enters your office causing you to bump your head as you scramble back up to your chair. (Yeah, an old trope but since it happens in real life, accurate.)

First up, since I have a scanned writing sample, the permanent marker. From the Pentel website:

Small size, big impact. Permanent marker Handy-line S features a retractable bullet tip that is conveniently compact. Made of 55% post-consumer material by weight. Easy twist, pull, and replace refill system.

Front

Reverse side. Come on now, we all KNEW there would be bleed through - even on Rhodia.

Nothing to write home about. It's a marker. The odor is still there and it writes just as deep and dark as you need it to be.

Next up, the highlighter. From Pentel's website:

Small size, big impact. Retractable and refillable highlighter Handy-line S. Made of 54% post-consumer material by weight. Chisel tip. Advanced seal technology to maintain tip freshness. Pocket-safe clip self-retracts when clipped on. Easy twist, pull, and replace refill system.

Again, just a highlighter. Bright, flame orange and it works just as it should.

Finally, the dry erase marker. From the website:

Small size with a big impact! Handy-line S Dry Erase Markers are new to the Pentel Recycology line. Made of 55% post-consumer recycled plastic, this retractable bullet tip whiteboard marker features a advanced seal technology to prevent drying out. The amazing low odor is ideal for use in any indoor or outdoor environment. The pocket safe clip will automatically retract tip. Smooth, compact and eco-friendly, this marker truly makes a statement! Available in three bold colors: black, red, and blue.

And it too performs just as it should. Since the line this marker makes is narrow, yet dark, this would be more for your personal whiteboard as opposed to one in the classroom or meeting room where you need a bolder line to be seen from a distance.

On a scale of 1 to 5 with 1 being “meh” and 5 being “awesome”, I’d have to give the Handy-line S products a 3.5. Points for being retractable, made from recycled materials, and according to their labels, refillable. Points away for being just like everyone else at the end.

Updated to re-order the text that was shuffled when this post went "live."

Pentel Slicci 0.25: A Review

2011-06-29T05:13:00.006-07:00

The Pentel Slicci is marketed as an art pen. While it writes beautifully narrow lines and can give the most delicate detail to your drawing, it can easily function as a regular writing pen provided you stick to the darker colors.

Pentel sent me the black and the pink pens. From their website:

Journal and draw in fine detail with ease thanks to the smooth-flowing gel ink and precise metal tip. Personalize paper, cardstock, labels, tags, chipboards, and die-cuts. 0.25mm, extra-fine precision tip. Available in black, red, blue, green, orange, pink, baby blue, and violet colors. 1 pack or 8 pack assorted colors.

This image has been enhanced so you can read the pink paragraph.

As you can see, the line of ink is NARROW yet the pen writes very well. As I wrote in the copy above, I have to slide on a cushion for the grip on this pen and the pink is a drawer-dweller for being too faint to read.

On a scale of 1 to 5 with 1 being "meh" and 5 being "awesome", I'd have to give the Slicci line a 2. Points for being a good writing pen and points away for being too thin, pale ink, and nonrefillable.

Pentel HyperG 0.7: A Review

2011-06-22T05:48:00.004-07:00

I’m almost in love. The color of the blue HyperG pen is that tropical blue that sends you into dreams of white sand beaches, palm trees, drinks in coconuts, hot sun and seductive breezes. **ahem** Sorry ‘bout that.

From Pentel’s website:

Ultra Smooth, Triple Safe Ink: - People Safe (AP non-toxic, acid-free, quick drying) - Check Safe (permanent, archival, quality ink) - Earth Safe (Part of our Recycology line and made from 57% recycled content). 0.5mm fine line delivers ultra smooth writing performance with durable metal tip. Sophisticated sleek diamond cut design with silver barrel accents. Comfortable, latex-free grip provides added comfort and control. Conveniently retractable and refillable with Pentel KLR5 refills.

Anyway, these pens are mostly fantastic. They feel good in my hand for short writing bursts but I must confess that the grip and that raised ridge on the front of the tip are a problem. The rubbery part is too far up the barrel for my grip and my index finger is not happy with the ridge. This might be an excellent pen to steal the innards out of and hack it into a more comfortable barrel, for it is the ink that makes this pen.

I’m not a “pink” gal due to an overload of Barbie in my childhood and later my daughter’s. But this pink isn’t Barbie by any means. It is intense and I wouldn’t use it for pages of writing but I would write a book with that blue!

On a scale of 1 to 5 with 1 being “meh” and 5 being “awesome”, I’d have to give the HyperG 0.7 a 3.95. Points for the great ink, made with recycled material and refillable and points away for being uncomfortable for my particular grip style.

Update 07/24/2011: I purchased a dozen blue HyperG 0.7 pens from the online office supply store, Quill. I did not get the tropical blue pen like I had in the review but a standard blue pen. While it writes just as beautifully smooth as the pens in the review, the blue color is darker and, well, just blue. **sigh**

Pentel Rolling Writer: A Review

2011-06-15T05:45:00.003-07:00

The Rolling Writer has been around for a long time. That’s a clue right there that this is a good pen. Pentel sent a purple pen in the first batch and a green one in the second.

From Pentel’s website:

The original and best-known roller ball pen! 0.8mm Cushion Ball Tip™ adjusts to user's writing style and produces 0.4mm medium lines at any angle without skipping or smearing. Smooth, expressive ink is ideal for notes and general writing. Barrel color indicates ink color. Nonrefillable. Stationary tip and fixed sleeve.

I must admit that when I tried the purple pen I was hugely disappointed. It required effort to write with it – even on the Rhodia paper. That’s not good for people like me with carpal tunnel issues. I knew that this pen would be tossed in the drawer and forgotten. But, when I tried the green pen, my faith was restored. THIS is the pen that I remember. It glides like silk across the paper. I guess the purple is just one of those flukes that happen now and then.

The Rolling Writer is not on the Pentel Recycology list nor is it refillable. For that reason alone, when these pens are used up I won’t be buying any more. However, since the green pen writes so beautifully, I will be rationing its use to try make it last as long as I can.

On a scale of 1 to 5 with 1 being “meh” and 5 being “awesome”, I’d have to give the Rolling Writers a 2.5. Points for being easy to write with and points away for being made out of new materials and nonrefillable.

Pentel EnerGel 0.5 and 0.7: A Review

2011-06-08T05:25:00.000-07:00

The good folks over at Pentel must have read my post mentioning how my family absconded with my Whatever blog giveaway winnings and took pity on me. They sent me a second batch. When I found them in the mailbox I checked that no one was watching, then stuffed the package in my purse before going into the house. Behind my closed bedroom door, I opened it. A squeal of delight betrayed my booty. A quick snarl of “keep your paws off this batch or you’ll be doing your own laundry for a month” kept them at bay.

My reviews of these pens, markers, highlighter and automatic (mechanical) pencils will be based on no scientific analysis whatsoever. I’ll call ‘em like I see ‘em. All written reviews are done on Rhodia paper, cropped and somewhat enhanced for clarity. (I think my scanner is starting to hit the old dusty trail of no return.) Also, please note, while the writing samples are scanned, the pen images are pirated from Pentel’s website because my daughter cannot find her camera charger. **sigh**

First up, Pentel’s EnerGel pens. I scrounged up the original pen and lined it up with the newest arrival. From Pentel’s website:

EnerGel 0.7: Sleek and stylish barrel design for the ultimate writing experience. 0.7mm metal tip produces smooth, medium lines. Part of the Pentel Recycology line of products and made with 54% recycled material. Capped Barrel. Nonrefillable.

EnerGel 0.5: Sleek and stylish barrel design for the ultimate writing experience. 0.5mm needle tip produces smooth, fine lines. Part of the Pentel Recycology line of products and made with 54% recycled material. Capped barrel. Nonrefillable.

Both pens are solid and retro-futuristic in design. They remind me of the old Jetsons cartoon. They both write smoothly and effortlessly and feel comfortable in my hand. Both are made of 54% recycled material but since they are nonrefillable I probably won’t buy them on my own.

The black ink is nicely dark and the red isn’t too glaringly red but I’d only use it when making notes on articles and reports that I read. I tested the red 0.7 for smearing but neglected to test the 0.5. Smearing doesn’t matter much to me unless it takes longer than 10 or 15 seconds to dry. As long as I’m aware that it smears I can work around that.

On a scale of 1 to 5 with 1 being “meh” and 5 being “awesome”, I’d have to give the EnerGels a 3. Points for being easy to write with and points away for being nonrefillable.

Some more art journal pages

2011-05-31T05:12:00.013-07:00

Here are just a few pages from my art journal. These are mostly experiments with different media: gel pens, liquid ink pens, markers, and watercolors.

Until recently, I haven't worked with anything art since early grade school, it's been a childlike experience to "mess around" without guilt.

Cheap gel pens and cheaper watercolors.

Cheap gel pens and Unibal Signo on black paper - enhanced with software.

Cheap gel pens and Unibal Signo on black paper. This is what it really looks like.

This is Uniball Signo gel pen, no name liquid ink pen, Prismacolor marker, and Dollar Store watercolors.

I know it all looks crappy and childish but I'm having fun. I've never had the gift of art, but I'm making it mine from now on!

When I Won the Contest at "Whatever"

2011-05-29T08:30:00.000-07:00

Julie (Okami) at Whatever had a contest not too long ago and I was one of the lucky winners. Pentel, the sponsor of the contest, sent me a package of their pens to try out. I had the package open maybe only 2 or 3 minutes before my family started helping themselves. I was left with only the Slicci and the HyperG2.

Jackie Flaherty at Letters & Journals was the other winner. She has a post up today that shows an almost identical haul from Pentel. Head on over there to see it! She promises some reviews soon, too.

A big thank you to Julie (Okami) and Pentel! Pentel rocks!

White Tank Mountain Regional Park: A Review of Sorts

2011-05-01T08:01:00.002-07:00

Yesterday I finally got to go to the White Tank Mountain Regional Park in Waddell, Arizona. I’d been wanting to visit for a while after I picked up a brochure on the parks that are located within an hour’s drive of where I live. There are quite a few, I’m happy to report.

The White Tanks are so easy to get to. All I had to do was wake my hubby up early and drive 3 miles north to Dunlap Avenue and then head west until Dunlap became Olive Avenue and then kept heading west until the road ended in the park.

The drive was one of my favorite parts. We drove through the neighboring cities of Glendale, Peoria, Sun City, and finally Waddell. The only indication of changing jurisdictions in this metropolitan area are the signs posted welcoming you to their city.

After Sun City and on the way to Waddell the countryside was beautiful. Farm country with tall old trees surrounding their homes, county roads with four-way stop signs, a rail road track on the right and an irrigation ditch full of fast moving water on the left. Even on this Saturday, the fields had workers in the middle of them. There are no weekends off for farmers.

Both my hubby and I breathed in the clean air and felt nostalgia for our childhoods wrapping itself around us. I grew up in farm country and when he was young, Glendale was still new and building up around the open farm fields. Today it is full of concrete and asphalt, the farms just a memory.

Waddell is a farming community that is suffering modern housing developments now, too. It won’t be long and Waddell will be another Glendale. But until then, I hope to enjoy many drives over to the park.

The entrance to the park is overlooked by the newest county library building in Maricopa. The fee for entering the park with a motorized vehicle is $6.00 and you use the honor system of paying until someone can get to the little shack to give you the human touch.

We drove into the park and were met with a beautiful, immaculate, and well laid out facility. Having printed a map of the park before we left, I knew that our destination, Black Rock Trail started from Ramada #4. We pulled into the large parking lot, used the very clean restrooms, then stepped out onto the groomed trail.
Along the easy path were stone benches that had bronze plaques dedicated to the memory of someone. Some were simple, others had lines of poetry, but all were read by us.

Also located by the benches were wooden stands that held information about the plants and animals that live in the park. They came in handy when Hubby and I had a mild disagreement on one particular cactus. We were both wrong!

When the trail ended we sat at one of the picnic tables enjoying some fruit that we brought with us and watching the hawks circle in the near distance. The vista was magnificent. I could see for miles across open desert to a blue mountain range on the horizon. It was yet again one of those times when I wish I could paint.

On the way out of the park we turned into the library’s driveway and after a too brief perusal of the art show and nature center, we headed out. Duties awaited our attention at home.

I encourage anyone who lives in my area to make at least one visit to the White Tank Mountain Regional Park. You won’t be sorry. Just remember to bring your camera, binoculars, or a sketch pad!

I'm Still Here... Somewhere.

2011-04-27T10:47:00.002-07:00

Hi everyone! I'm still here but buried under LIFE: friends, family, and work issues abound.

Stay tuned and things should settle down soon and I can then resume posting at regular intervals.

In the meantime, here's some of my journal pages that I've done lately.

Earth Hour 2011

Still in Progress: Hand-off!

Pure Nonsense with Markers

Carl Sandburg Meets Zuko

2011-04-10T09:21:00.002-07:00

FOG

The fog comes
on little cat feet.

It sits looking
over the harbor and city
on silent haunches
and then moves on.

---Carl Sandburg (January 6, 1878 – July 22, 1967)

I wonder what this poem would have been like had Mr. Sandburg encountered our new cat, Zuko. He may have “little cat feet” but he uses them like a water buffalo.

Minerva is grace personified. She has the silent haunches and moves like a ninja warrior. Zuko is so different. He doesn’t run – he gallumps, if you know what I mean. He meows over anything and purrs like a 12 cylinder Jaguar – constantly. And we love him.

April's Started Rather Foolishly

2011-04-03T08:43:00.002-07:00

Okay, had to make some sort of reference to April Fools. The Fools were those of us who live in the lower part of Arizona. Friday, April 1st saw the first 100 degree day for the year.

That sent me up on our roof yesterday morning. Armed with WD40 and a butter knife (the fin comb I bought was useless), I spent the better part of two hours trying to straighten the heat disapating fins on our air conditioner that were mangled in last October's hail storm. It isn't perfect, but the a/c repairman I talked to said I only needed 70% fixed to let the unit work. I'm not sure I got that 70% done but I did as much as I could without dropping off the side of the house from heat exhaustion.

Yes, I could have put in an insurance claim like everyone else in my neighborhood did, but since we've had several claims already in the last 10 years, I am terrified that we would find ourselves with a cancelled policy. (An old lady down the block had hers cancelled earlier this year.) So, we will tough it out and try fix things for ourselves.

This is going to be a long summer. **sigh** At least the next 10 days are forcast a bit cooler.

Earth Hour at Home

2011-03-27T09:47:00.000-07:00

Short post here. My family observed Earth Hour last night sitting around our patio table set with candles and we talked and laughed together as the rest of Phoenix continued as normal. There were no Earth Hour events here - something that makes me feel sad. The best I could find was a mention of it on a tourist calendar. Ah well.

I was pleased to see the rest of the world participate. In particular, the Girl Scouts held several events across the United States and Scotland became the first country to get 100% support across all municipal councils across the nation. Way cool.

The best statement I saw while surfing the 'net last week was found on a picture of a young lady holding a sign that said, "There is no Planet B." 'Nuf said in my book.

Anyway, I'm taking it easy today. What I thought was an allergy-induced cough has become bronchitis. (A work acquaintance in Tucson said it is running rampant down there. Great.)

Join Me!

2011-03-23T06:33:00.005-07:00

On Saturday, March 26, 2011 at 8:30 p.m. for

Earth Hour 2011.

We CAN make a difference!

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:

Earth Hour is a global event organized by WWF (World Wide Fund for Nature, also known as World Wildlife Fund) and is held on the last Saturday of March annually, asking households and businesses to turn off their non-essential lights and other electrical appliances for one hour to raise awareness towards the need to take action on climate change. Earth Hour was conceived by WWF and The Sydney Morning Herald in 2007, when 2.2 million residents of Sydney participated by turning off all non-essential lights. Following Sydney's lead, many other cities around the world adopted the event in 2008. Earth Hour 2011 will take place on March 26, 2011 from 8:30p.m. to 9:30p.m., at participants' respective local time.

For more information Click Here.

First Day of Spring

2011-03-20T04:39:00.003-07:00

The Northern Hemisphere begins the Vernal Equinox today, March 20, 2011, at 7:21 pm EDT and that makes it 4:21 pm in Phoenix – Mountain Standard Time as we (hem, hem) don’t do Daylight Savings Time. This means that at the start of spring (spring equinox) day and night are approximately 12 hours long (at the equatorial plane) and the Sun is at the midpoint of the sky.

For me personally, it means that the oven has been turned on and we are preheating for a long scorching summer. I really wish I could move to the cooler high country but life has chained me here to the concrete and asphalt of the city.

Interestingly enough however, there was an article in the Arizona Republic on March 10th that encourages me to hang in there.

“Tree experts envision the return of Phoenix's oasis of green”

In the early 1900s, the Valley was an oasis of green with lush trees sprouting tall along wide canal banks that crisscrossed Phoenix and its suburbs.

Cottonwoods, among the more common of the area's trees, dug in, drinking water that seeped from the dirt-lined canals.

By the 1950s, as families flocked to the Valley in post-World War II bliss to create a modern community, the oasis withered.

It seems that the people in charge finally figured out the heat island effect and are going to work on planting some shade trees. I’ve got my fingers crossed that they are real shade trees and aren’t like the thin wimpy sticks that get planted in parking lot makeovers only to be broken off in the first high wind that blows through. There is no shade under those puppies, let me assure you and most of the broken ones are never replaced.

Yes, this will be a conflict with the water usage sensitive among us. But eliminating or at least greatly reducing the heat island effect will allow more rain to fall on us. Plus, the temperatures, while high at mid-day, won’t STAY high as long. Natural landscaping sheds the heat faster. All in all, we will be better off having more trees in this concrete jungle.

And this writer will be a much happier person.

In my thoughts...

2011-03-13T07:58:00.000-07:00

And in my heart. I send my good vibes out to those hurting from this horrible tragedy.

But some nights I want to close the drapes

2011-03-09T06:00:00.003-07:00

They say dreams are the windows of the soul--take a peek and you can see the inner workings, the nuts and bolts.

-- Henry Bromel, Northern Exposure, The Big Kiss, 1991

Busy Weekend - Satisfying Weekend

2011-03-06T14:44:00.002-07:00

It's been a wonderful weekend here at Daydreamers Welcome Headquarters and it isn't over yet.

Friday, being the first Friday of the month, was First Friday in Phoenix when the arts are featured for free. Hubby and I took the Light Rail train down to the Phoenix Art Museum. The feature exhibit was one on fashion with a particular emphasis on Ann Taylor. Meh. I'm not into clothes, so we covered that one pretty darn quick.

An impulse led us up to the Norton Photograph Gallery. There is a special exhibit of two photographers: Brett Weston and Sonya Noskowiak. One photograph blew me away. I found a very small copy of it online but it had a security block on it to prevent copying it. It was entitled "Natural Gas Tanks" 1939.

The black and white photo was of two massive shiny tanks rising up in a small neighborhood, their size dwarfing the old buildings in the foreground. The old brick apartments with the turn of the century "gingerbread" trim, led to older brick buildings, then down to wooden houses with laundry strung out behind, and in the foreground were old wooden shacks that were collapsing under the weight of time. This description doesn't do justice to photograph. It was almost as if Sonya Noskowiak saw how big oil would grow and shove aside anyone in their way.

This morning. VERY early this morning. 3:30 A.M. in fact. My alarm goes off. My daughter and I hit the road at 4 A.M. to get in line at Maricopa County Animal Care and Control to have the latest member of the household neutered. Poor Zuko, a black long haired tomcat wanted to be a house kitty but since he sprayed everything he could outside, he had to be "fixed" first.

We missed the lineup for the "Neuter Scooter" mobile unit a few weeks ago at a mall because we weren't there early enough. Taking no chances this time, we set out 3 hours early to take advantage of their SNAP (Spay/Neuter Assistance Program) clinic for cats. First come, first served, and they were only taking 15 cats today.

We arrived at 4:30am only to find about 5 people already there. They had actually camped overnight to get in line. Long story short, a lovely gentleman who befriended us in line, made sure that some line budgers did not benefit from their boorish behavior and we were the last cat accepted today.

Zuko is home and sleeping it off in an undisclosed location. He is a very good kitty and will be a welcome addition to our family.

Kudos to the wonderful staff at Maricopa County Animal Care & Control! These are people who love animals and took great care of their charges. Thank you!

One of my favorites

2011-03-02T06:00:00.003-07:00

What if nothing exists and we're all in somebody's dream? Or what's worse, what if only that fat guy in the third row exists?

-- Woody Allen (1935 - ), "Without Feathers"

Meetings and Star Stuff

2011-03-01T20:24:00.000-07:00

"The nitrogen in our DNA, the calcium in our teeth, the iron in our blood, the carbon in our apple pies were made in the interiors of collapsing stars. We are made of star stuff."

— Carl Sagan (1934 - 1996)

Sorry for the lack of posts this week, folks. Our “Meeting Season” has begun. While these events are labor intensive to pull together and to clean up afterwards, they are way cool fun to watch unfold. I’m always blown away by the quality of our speakers and the distance that some people travel.

President’s Day weekend was our largest conference. It was there that I met two wonderful ladies from Toronto. (Just ignore all those SCTV scenes that are flashing through your head right now. Okay?) One lady came to the conference to learn and her friend came along because she had never seen oranges or grapefruit still on the tree before. I choked up a bit at that one.

Now it is just a steady stream of board meetings, dinner meetings, and a weekend conference here and there. We slow down in mid-summer, crank it up again in the fall and then we inch along through the winter holidays only to begin earnestly again in February.

What does all this have to do with “star stuff”? Not a thing - except that for some weird reason, I woke up this morning with that quote on my lips. All day I’ve been thinking about it. Any ideas out there?

Well, time to hit the old haystack. Good night, sweet dreams, and may the blessings of the Cosmos be yours.

Well, I'm in!

2011-02-23T06:15:00.004-07:00

Dreaming permits each and every one of us to be quietly and safely insane every night of our lives.

-- William Dement, in Newsweek, 1959

Negative Space: White on Black

2011-02-20T05:58:00.004-07:00

After destroying two squares from my Zentangle Kit (a gift from Okami) by trying to tangle inside the heart, I decided to try it the other way around. Working the negative space proved to be the ticket.

Valentine's Tangle for my hubby

For a change-up I painted a page in my Strathmore art journal with black gesso and using the pens mentioned below, I created another negative piece. I'm not sure I like it as well, however, because you can see the strokes made with the pen more than you can with the black pen on white paper.

Uniball Signo and Uniball Signo Angelic on black gesso

It was fun trying it out, though! I have a couple more pages fully gesso'd and will be playing some more. Then I think I'll borrow BiffyBean's technique of painting with black gesso on colored paper and then using the white gel pens over that. See what I mean here.

Tidbit for you

2011-02-16T06:12:00.002-07:00

It hurts to find out that what you wanted doesn't match what you dreamed it would be. -- Randy K. Milholland, Something Positive Comic, 09-07-04

Happy Birthday, Arizona!

2011-02-14T09:18:00.000-07:00

Arizona turns 99 years old today!

Happy Birthday!

And Happy Valentine's Day, too!

More Zentangles

2011-02-13T05:58:00.002-07:00

So here are a few more of my "arty" creations. I must say that having something like this to do while listening to stressful news helps me to cope. I used to knit and crochet (9-11-01 resulted in well over 20 afghans crocheted) but since carpal tunnel set in I was left without my usual method of meditation. This is a wonderful replacement.

Created during the first days of the Egyptian Crisis

Now with RED!

Of course, now I see patterns everywhere. These photos were taken in front of my house. The City of Phoenix, after moving our water lines from the alley (next to the sewer lines) to the front street, decided that it was time to fix the street. It was last treated about 15 years ago. So, in preparation of the slurry seal, they covered the deeper cracks with a tar-ish material.

The City of Phoenix gets into the act.

And for some weird reason, I think of Zentangles when I look at it.

Another nibble

2011-02-09T06:40:00.001-07:00

My bounce-around life had taught me that dreams were dangerous things - they look solid in your mind, but you just try to reach for them. It's like gathering clouds.
-- Kirby Larson, Hattie Big Sky, 2006

Under the Influence

2011-02-06T14:18:00.001-07:00

Last Wednesday, Ground Hog's Day no less, there was a New Moon. I've written before about how this particular point in the lunar cycle gets me off my duff and sends me into a cleaning fit. That post is here.

Today, Hubby and I moved everything off the back patio. We have a bulk trash pickup in a couple of weeks and the set out time started yesterday. OUT to the alley went a whole bunch of stuff that did not weather the elements well last year. I even threw out some items that still work or needs a wee bit of fixing. Why?

Living in our multi-cultural city is a type of person that will drive an old battered pickup truck up and down the alleys during bulk trash set out days. They pick up these items, fix them or use them for other things, and then they drive them down into the deeper parts of Mexico to sell or to give to their families. The best of the best recycling I can think of.

So, now we have to go out there, sweep off the black widow webs and egg sacs, and put the furniture back. We spend a lot of time sitting out there on weekend spring mornings and most summer (pre-monsoon) evenings. Gracie, the dog, and Minerva, the cat, enjoy it when we sit out there, too. It's like we've all discovered a new room to the house!

Groundhog's Day

2011-02-02T06:45:00.039-07:00

"The groundhog is like most other prophets; it delivers its prediction and then disappears." ~Bill Vaughn

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:

Groundhog Day is a holiday celebrated on February 2 in the United States and Canada. According to folklore, if it is cloudy when a groundhog emerges from its burrow on this day, it will leave the burrow, signifying that winter will soon end. If on the other hand, it is sunny, the groundhog will supposedly "see its shadow" and retreat back into its burrow, and winter will continue for six more weeks.

Unless you happen to live in Phoenix, Arizona. **sigh**

And you thought this was going to be about the movie, huh?

Fending Off the Negativity Bull... Charge

2011-01-30T05:23:00.009-07:00

I just got off the phone with and elderly female relative. She lost her husband a few years ago and this is the first time in her life she has lived on her own. At first it was scary for her. Then, slowly she grew to enjoy it. And I was thrilled for her!

Slowly, however, the dark side is emerging. She has no one to talk to except the friends that call or the neighbors she sees outside now and then. To fill the void she watches television. She watches Fox News. She listens to the radio. She listens to Rush Limbaugh. She reads the newspaper. She reads tabloid journalism. All of this is horribly, horribly negative and hate-filled, one-sided reporting. She calls me the minute she hears of a celebrity who has died. She calls me with instant news of bad health from another family member or any other bad thing she discovers from them. She calls me with BAD NEWS. She is so enmeshed into the culture of negativity that she cannot tolerate anyone else's point of view. I hate talking with her.

It's like hanging around with Debbie Downer. There will always be something wrong. They look for it. And if you aren't careful, you go down with them. I've made it a point not to be friends with this type of person because I battle depression every day of my life. It is vital to my well-being that I keep my eyes on the horizon of hope. I actively search for the good things in life. They aren't hard to find, either! But, she's a relative - not someone I can choose or not choose.

Through all of this, my hubby has played a vital role. Sometimes he takes the calls and says I'm not available but then engages her in conversation and manages to pull her out to the "good old days" and you know from his laughter that she is laughing, too. He can gently pull her away from the dark side - so gently that she doesn't even notice it - and for a short time, she can see the light in the world. He has a gift. I wish I had it.

So, with all this said, I urge you to BACK AWAY FROM THE TELEVISION and get out there to look for the beauty in the world: the arts, the music, the natural god-given wonders that can be found in your closest tree. You won't find a sunrise or sunset on CNN, or any other news program. You won't hear birdsong or the wind blowing leaves in a tree on Glenn Beck's radio program, or any other radio program.

I'm not saying we should avoid it or never, ever turn the TV on again. No. Especially with things like the Egyptian riots going on now. My neice is over there working for Al Jazeera, English. Her car and those of her coworkers had to be searched for possible bombs. She bought a gas mask, too. Bad stuff.

What I am saying is this. We need balance in our lives. I'm a Libra. I know about balance.

Just a bit of a nosh

2011-01-26T06:36:00.002-07:00

Those who dream by day are cognizant of many things which escape those who dream only by night.
-- Edgar Allan Poe (1809 - 1849), "Eleonora"

Passing along a request (of sorts)

2011-01-24T11:47:00.000-07:00

Julie over at Peaceable Writer is someone after my own heart. She loves to reuse rather than dispose and purchase more. Her post on wet erase ink was well written. In it she asks a question. Do other people feel the need for refillable wet erase markers?

Well, Julie, I am for refilling and reusing ANY product that I can. I've been reusing plastic sandwich baggies until they cannot be used again. No, I'm not "cheap" - I am concerned for our environment.

Head on over to read Julie's post and let her know what you think.

Dear Pillsbury

2011-01-23T09:48:00.001-07:00

Let me first say that I like your products. I buy them regularly and my family enjoys eating meals that I've made with your products. The fold-over tacos using Grands biscuits were quite tasty!

However, I must recommend that your products not be used for breakfast. Why? I'll tell you.

This morning, while my hubby snoozed on the sofa where he fell asleep in the wee hours while reading a good book, I wanted to fix a nice Sunday morning breakfast. The kitchen is right next to the living room and knowing that a sudden BANG! from opening a tube of biscuits would shock him awake and put him in a sour mood for the rest of the morning, I decided to open the tube in the back yard.

Roofers have been swarming the neighborhood after the massive hail storm we had last fall, so another BANG! wouldn't much be noticed, I felt. So, I proceeded to open the biscuits. This is what happened:

Yeah. Right out of the tube and down onto the grass. I cussed a blue-streak you can be sure! And then I started laughing. And then I couldn't stop. So here I am, several hours later, asking you, Dear Pillsbury, if perhaps there is too much BANG! for my buck?

What I Really Do During Meetings

2011-01-23T07:21:00.009-07:00

Okay, I confess. I don't really pay close attention at meetings unless I have to take the minutes. I am not a "meeting" kind of gal, don't 'cha know. (They mostly end up like something from a Dilbert cartoon.) Lately, I've been doing this:

This took a couple of meetings. I finished on the 7th.

My first FULL page!

Yesterday, while staffing a 4 hour seminar at work, I did the lion's share of this page. It was either this or bounce off the cement walls. I got so hooked into it that the minute I got home I opened up the sketch book and finished the page.

These were done in "Beany" the Rhodia Webbie that I was blessed to review. Beany is such a good size and is rather elegant but not flashy - which is how I get away with it. Ha-ha!

Now don't get me wrong. I love my job and more, I love where I work. I just don't like meetings. I'd be happy as a clam to just sit at the computer doing data entry while listening to music. But, living in the real world as I do, I have to take the not so good with the wonderful.

Wait.. I'm coming... hold on... I'm coming

2011-01-21T18:28:00.001-07:00

**oozes into chair** OMG, I am so freakin' tired and frustrated. Work feels like trying to dig out of a sand pit with a fork.

But, it can't last forever. Ha!

I don't have a single thing lined up to talk about dear readers. I will eventually. I hope. Please check back now and then.

Oh, yeah! I got my white gel pen to draw on black gesso'd paper. Can't wait to seriously try it out. I doodled a bit on a dark blue sticky note at work and a colleague who is a VERY talented artist played with it, too. I'll post some pictures when I get a page done.

Until then, I leave you with this thought:

"He felt that his whole life was some kind of dream and he sometimes wondered whose it was and whether they were enjoying it."

-- Douglas Adams (1952 - 2001), "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy"

Some Quick Stuff

2011-01-15T11:23:00.001-07:00

The post-holiday calm is gone. We got slammed hard at work and I'm looking at a briefcase full of stuff to work on later today. Monday's holiday will find me at my desk taking advantage of uninterrupted work time as the office is officially closed. Yay! No phones or visitors to take me out of the zone. Plus, I can dress in my weekend clothes making it so much more comfortable. Ah yeah...!

So, two quick items to note before that briefcase gets opened. One, if you haven't seen BiffyBean's Mandala Art video, I must insist that you view it. (Insist? Well, highly recommend anyway.) Peaceful music shows off her wonderful art. Click here to see it.

Next, because of another post of hers, I dashed over to Aaron Brothers and picked up some Liquitex black gesso. I have a Uniball Signo broad white gel pen on order from JetPens and I plan on doing some reverse style Zentangles in the new Strathmore art journal. Aaron Brothers has a sale on frames until the 29th, too. Buy one get one for a penny!

Note: I have no affiliation with Aaron Brothers, JetPens, nor BiffyBeans. I'm just one of those wacky people that like bargains and great art.

Okay, no more messing around. Time to open that briefcase.

More Journal Pages

2011-01-09T06:17:00.021-07:00

Strathmore Workshop 1 - Phase 2

This one was pure fun. I love a good mystery.

Inspired by BiffyBeans

Diamine Steel Blue and some time on my hands. (No pun intended.)

Again, a BiffyBeans-inspired page.

Tragedy in Tucson, AZ

2011-01-08T13:36:00.000-07:00

From Guanabee:

Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and at least 12 others died after a gunman opened fire at a public event held at a Safeway this morning in Tuscon Arizona. The 40-year-old Democrat was outside the store holding an informal gathering when a twenty-something (according to eye-witnesses) gunman ran up and began firing indiscriminately. The suspect was taken into police custody. Up to twelve people were shot, so there are more wounded.

Update: Darci Slaten, spokesperson for University Medical Center in Tuscon, says Congresswoman Giffords is ALIVE and in surgery. Slaten confirms that Giffords was shot in the head. The other victims are either in critical or serious condition. One is a child.

Please join me in sending prayers and good thoughts to the families of the people involved. Special prayers of comfort to the family of the child. Thank the Cosmos that the gunman was caught.

What I Did on My Post-Holiday Vacation

2011-01-06T16:14:00.000-07:00

I've been on vacation this week and with Friday on the horizon I'm sitting back and smiling. For once I've had a wonderful "stay-cation" here at the old homestead. What made it that way was letting go of stress inducing things like plans. Whenever I make a plan for my time off, monkey wrenches are tossed in faster than a plumbing disaster at SeaWorld. This causes me undue stress and I can't wait to get back to work. Not this time.

I've been puttering around with my art stuff. Zentangles and the Strathmore Visual Journal workshop have kept me busy. I've also created some other visual art pages that I'll post this weekend. The peaceful meditative feeling of working without words or preconceived thought is quite addictive. I urge you all to find some form of art to work on. We might even put the pharmaceutical companies on the endangered list.

Rewriting my NaNo novel has begun, too. The first step was to clean out all the stuff I highlighted during the first draft scramble for 50,000 words. I'm now back down to a bit over 45,000 and there are plenty of darlings to be murdered, let me tell you. I'll print out what I have next week, read through it, make notes, and see what I need to start on after that. I do know that the beginning will be cut down to a preface - if I even leave it in.

The best thing that happened so far is that I was lucky enough to receive one of the mailart postcards that Julie from Whatever is working on. She's participating in the Mailart365 project.

I have some postcard stock here that I think I'm going to work on and send out, too. Thank you, Julie!

Boomerang Phone Service

2011-01-05T11:29:00.000-07:00

Or maybe I should say it's more like rubber? Anyway, just after I posted the last article on this blog we went off line again. This time instead of the really loud obnoxious klaxon type sound on the line we got total silence. Much better in a way, really.

So here comes today's technician. He's a very nice young man who has been here before. Several times, in fact. This time Hubby meets him and leads the way to the phone box on the house. When the repair is completed and he is waiting to be sure Hubby can get on the Internet, he says he shows no record of a repair call from yesterday. So, I am summoned (hair dripping from the shower) to talk to the young man.

I describe what happened yesterday: two big trucks in the alley, one has a cherry picker, the call of one man to the other for a "J" hook, etc. Today's technician gives me a grin. "Oh, those were the cable guys. No wonder your phone was out. They don't know what they're doing when it comes to the junction boxes. They must have switched something and it looked wrong at the box."

"But we're fixed now, right?"

"Yep."

Hubby confirms that he's online when he turns the screen to us. Google home page is up and looking wonderful as usual.

So, regardless of departmental jabs, we are back online. The question is, for how long?

Still Waiting for the Phone Repair & Visual Journaling

2011-01-04T10:15:00.000-07:00

The Qwest technician has not made the repair yet but was promised to be here by noon. The Internet finally settled down to staying on but is quite slow in responding. Ah well. At least I have access!

Julie from the blog Whatever called my attention last week to a free series of visual journaling workshops by Strathmore. I started my first page and am eagerly waiting for the next step in the project. Mine won't be done like the project will be mostly because I won't have all the "ingredients" to participate fully. That won't stop me from gathering the information for future use or from doing the instructed step my way. Doing the art is the main idea.

This is what I've done on the project so far:

It's sparce, but I wanted to leave room for what comes next. I'll post another picture when I get that far.

Welcome 2011!

2011-01-01T09:33:00.003-07:00

Happy New Year to all!

Our phone is out and our Internet is off & on again since our lovely rain from last Wednesday. The phone company is so deluged with repair calls we aren't scheduled for our repair until Tuesday morning. The telephone infrastructure desperately needs replacing around here. But I have to give a shout out to the repair technicians who come out in all kinds of weather to handle our complaints. Thank you, Qwest employees!

So, while the Internet is up, I want to send out my best wishes to you for a blessed new year.

Change is coming. I will be making some in my life (gently so as not to jar the old attitudes back into place) and I know that there are changes coming "out there." Well, good or bad, we as a human race are adaptable and have survived this long in history because of it.

Again, have a Happy New Year!

Another Blog to Check Out: QuinnCreative

2010-12-28T18:27:00.002-07:00

I am so incredibly lucky to live at this time in Earth's vast history! The Internet is something I hope we never lose but keep making better. It has opened so many doors for me and introduced me to so many wonderful, thoughtful, intelligent, and creative people. And I could gush on for hours.

Within the past month or so, through one of the many (many) blogs I subscribe to in Google Reader, I was led to QuinnCreative. Quinn lives in Arizona as do I. Her posts have always been great reads - until today.

Today was incredible.

Today she told me that she knows "me" - or of my life. Being told which way to go - not asked what I wanted to do. As a teenager who dreamed of college, I was told that was not going to happen. My parents could not afford anything but a trade school after high school graduation. (No one, not even my school guidance counselor told me of grants or scholarships.) We had to learn something that would get us a job, not a career. It had to be practical.

My sister, who was a very talented artist, was told the same. She went into the army to earn that college journey and suffered for it, too. Now she doesn't have the time for art. She has three daughters, one with a life threatening disease, two grandsons that she watches quite often, and a husband who needs her close by. Still, at 56 years of age, she is taking college entrance tests over and over again to get accepted into nursing. Because it is practical. There is no room for art.

I'm lucky that I have a job that I like a whole lot - especially in this economy! Yet, I spend most of my weekends writing, or drawing Zentangles, or collaging pages. I cannot afford to shuck it all to do art full-time and frankly, I'm not that good at it. But art makes me very peaceful, happy, and the most like the real "me" that I can be.

Check out today's post at QuinnCreative. See what I mean. Read the comments, too.

I am Sam. Sam I am.

2010-12-26T08:20:00.001-07:00

And we have cooked Green Eggs & Ham! (When my daughter was young, on Dr. Seuss' birthday, we made green scrambled eggs & ham steaks for our dinner that night. It was great fun.)

So, now I stare at the major portion of a spiral cut ham and try to remember all the recipies I know that would take ham.

"Eternity is a ham and two people” -- Irma Starkloff Rombauer (October 1877 - 1962) the author of The Joy of Cooking.

I look at the index of my New York Times Cookbook and see only a handful of recipes. All of which my family probably wouldn't like to begin with. Next I go online and find tons of recipes - all variations of the same things. How many different bean/lentil soups can one person tolerate anyway? Or scalloped potatoes? **sighs deeply**

I can't freeze the ham as it was already frozen once. So I guess we'll be having ham sandwiches, salads with ham, bean soup, scalloped potatoes, denver omlets, ham salad sandwiches, fried ham, diced ham, slivered ham, lentil soup, fried ham and potatoes, ...

spam, spam, spam, spam....

You see the pattern, right?

Looking Out the Window

2010-12-23T13:19:00.001-07:00

My office is next door to a mortuary. We usually get to see all sorts of ways to see someone off to the next phase of their journey. Beside the usual crowds of people, there have been bagpipers, military officers, and once, even a full-fledged tent-filled fancy-catered parking lot party. With a band.

Today, December 23rd, I looked out our window in time to see a flag-draped coffin being loaded into the back of a hearse. The whole parking lot showed only a half-dozen cars slowly circling around into position to follow it out to the cemetery for the graveside service. My heart went out to that handful of people. Judging from the more than a few flower displays being carried out of the mortuary, this was a well loved person who had the misfortune to leave this side of life at the beginning of the holiday season so not many mourners could be present to lend comfort to the family.

My heartfelt wishes of peace and comfort go out to them.

Season's Greetings and All That Stuff

2010-12-22T17:15:00.002-07:00

I'm not in a great mood. We were supposed to have a rainy day today, but it all went to the north of us. Major bummer for me. Plus, it was 69 degrees F when I walked home from work. In short sleeves. Not very Seasonal, IF you know what I mean....

The Holidays are approaching rapidly and I find that although I no longer consider myself a Christian (click here), I'm getting pulled into the whole mindset anyway. How do the Jews, Muslims, Pagans, and other non-Christians deal with this? While we have not put up a tree, there is still the matter of the Presents and the Food and the Eve and the Day that we still must work around. Very confusing and somewhat depressing.

However, I have come to the realization that Christmas is a secular holiday. Let's face it. It is economically driven if nothing else. The retail establishment counts on it. Jobs count on it - especialy in this horrible economy. And, yes, I gave something to every bell ringer I passed. I wasn't able to last year, but this year I had my travel/expense money from work that I saved up just for the season. So we will go through the motions with family and friends and coworkers.

2011 can only be better for us, eh? By the way, are you going to make any resolutions this year? Let me know in the comments.

Happy Holidays, my friends!

My Characters Have No Character

2010-12-19T06:22:00.004-07:00

The smoke from his mouth disappeared into the stiff breeze that ruffled his hair and played with the hem of his long coat. He pulled hard at the last bit of the cigarette and then with his latex gloved hand, he ground the stub into the ashtray. Nodding at a passerby, he stripped off the glove and stuffed it into the trash can under the ashtray. Shrugging his shoulders, he eased his overcoat to a more comfortable fit and walked on.

I love watching people. Over the years, I’ve seen quite a few interesting and downright quirky people (as was the guy above) that I would love to put in my writing. But I have problems finding the words to describe what I see. And, when it comes to making those characters “pop” in the scene, I fail miserably. I think my problem is that while I see what people do, I don’t understand their “why.”

My favorite books have characters that by the end of the story are almost solid. They are consistent. They have plausible personalities. They could be your neighbor (god help you). It’s like the author climbed into their bodies and hijacked them. I envy that. So, I’m off to try yet another character writing exercise.

And ANOTHER Giveaway: Goulet Pens!

2010-12-16T09:47:00.000-07:00

Head on over to Goulet Pens to check out how to enter Brian's fantastic giveaway! Thank you, Brian!

Giveaway at Notebook Stories!

2010-12-15T08:36:00.000-07:00

Notebook Stories has a great giveaway in the works. Daycraft has gifted several diaries and notebooks to Nifty. Check them out and enter to win!

Poetry Open Mike: Phrases that Grabbed Me

2010-12-12T07:00:00.003-07:00

Indian summer of my life

Is your imaginary friend really your spirit guide?

A head shake hits the reset button

Why is it that we can feel someone looking at us?

The teaching goes on

Random insults to someone I don't know

Wishing the ghosts would come back

Reflection of my shadow

Southwest of Americana

Mad scientist of Idaho

Saint Pantomime

Beauty to the Blues

Darkness where morning is already there

Pop culture the moon to the earth
and my favorite:

The Pope's stage name is Kevin

To My Hubby: I Love You!

2010-12-10T17:26:00.001-07:00

Hubby and Chubby (me) are celebrating 22 years of marriage today. They haven't all been bliss and bling but when I'm really honest with myself, I have to admit that I said "I do" to the right guy.

Happy Anniversary, Babe!

Reflections on Change

2010-12-05T05:00:00.005-07:00

As I walked to the store yesterday, passing house after house, either abandoned or for sale, the cold wind pushing at my face seemed to say, “I’m coming. My name is Change.”

Yes, the “c” word. Make that a capital “C”.

One of the main concepts I took from a brief foray into Buddhism is that nothing remains the same. Everything changes; be it the rocks under your feet, the car in your driveway, or the planet earth itself.

I’m a 54 year old woman. Change unsettles me. Yet, at this point in my life I welcome it. Why? Because things cannot go on as they were or are now. My family struggles financially. My husband of 22 years with a few health issues and my 20 year old daughter in great health **crosses fingers** are both uninsured. None of us has been to the doctor or dentist for several years. We cannot afford to go. Even though I am insured through my employer, I cannot afford the co-pay.

That also points out how quickly we could add another house to that list of vacant houses in my neighborhood. It wouldn't take much to push us over that edge. I don't care what your political leanings are, it is grossly evident that we have to do something.

Yes, I look forward to change. Yet, I’m one of those people who avoid confrontation. I back down rather than fight - unless I see a grave mistake (like SB1070 was/is). So the inclination right now is to pull in my oars and ride it out. Still, I won’t be completely passive. I will use my personal center of gravity, to lean this way or that, to steer my craft through the turbulence of change.

NaNoWriMo Update: Day 30 - Winner!

2010-11-30T06:16:00.002-07:00

Late last night, I crawled over the finish line. Whew! I won.

The work is shoddy, crappy, incomplete, juvenile, ridiculous, laughable, trash, and if I work on it more, might actually become something readable. Might. Maybe. We'll see if I even look at it again.

Anyway, life goes back to normal starting today. Thanks for sticking with me.

Onward!

NaNoWriMo Update: Day 27

2010-11-27T19:26:00.001-07:00

I'm getting there! I'm only 2 days behind and I have the story line still going strong. Two characters were mercilessly whacked off and one is hanging in limbo at the moment. I'll deal with him tomorrow, I think.

CONGRATULATIONS to those valiant writers who have crossed that 50K line!

Onward!

Happy Thanksgiving!

2010-11-24T19:19:00.001-07:00

One of the many things I am thankful for:

Happy Thanksgiving!

AND my total favorite: DIDN'T WANT TO WORK SO the link is here.

The Internet is a wonderful, wonderful thing and I thank the millions/billions of people who make it possible to enjoy old TV shows.

Happy Thanksgiving!

NaNoWriMo Update: Days 22 & 23

2010-11-23T09:15:00.000-07:00

I'm writing again! In a bold maneuver, I pulled a character out of the original story line and began another one and am slowly catching up. 30,155 words at the end of the day yesterday and I still have some scenes in my head to write this evening after work.

Onward!

NaNoWriMo Update: Day 20 and a Fence

2010-11-20T11:56:00.001-07:00

Good News and Bad News for you.

The Bad News is that I'm nearly 6 days behind in NaNoWriMo. I've lost the story and the rhythm of writing. I haven't given up, however. I plan on taking a walk this afternoon that will allow me to zone out into my story so far and figure out where to go from there. Maybe I'll take a notebook with me and end up in the mall to write for a change of writing location. One of the NaNo Pep Talks had that as a suggestion.

The Good News is that we FINALLY have our back fence repaired and reinforced. We may be able to make it through the next monsoon without a section of the fence going down. Repairing the fence in hot, humid weather is just not fun.

Onward!

NaNoWriMo Update: Day 17

2010-11-17T19:48:00.002-07:00

It is with massive guilt that I report that I'm 3 days behind and probably will go 4 days before I can resume noveling. Walls consisted of the following.

Monday: bill paying and a conference call for work,
Tuesday: a dinner meeting for work,
Wednesday: marathon grocery shopping (did fantastically well, though!), and
Thursday: getting in line for the midnight Harry Potter movie.

Sweet Friday, I can hear your noveling call!

Onward!

NaNoWriMo Update: Day 14

2010-11-14T16:53:00.001-07:00

Okay, so I'm on track as far as the word count. And still somewhat lost. Tomorrow is the half-way point. It is really tough slogging right now, but I'm determined to keep going. I had to stop and write out where I am in the story - a list of questions and possible scenerios. Tomorrow, back at work, I will print out what I have so far and read it through.

Jodi Cleghorn, if you're reading this post, how in hell do you do it? How do you keep track of everything and everybody? I've got the index cards for characters, the outline, the synopsis, but I'm still lost.

Maybe once I read it through start to finish on paper, I can figure it out. I can't keep introducing more characters everytime I come to a mini-cliff hanger.

Onward!

NaNoWriMo Update: Day 12

2010-11-12T19:19:00.004-07:00

Whew! I caught up. I'm sitting at 20,279 words. Needless to say that the story SUCKS and is incoherent at best, but I'm plugging along.

What's scary is that I've got all these balls tossed up in the air and I don't know which one(s) will be coming down first. I've got an outline, but somehow it doesn't mean a heck of a lot right now.

I've killed a duck and a dog. I have a human character dying. I have a mean bastard in jail about to get out and come visit my main character. I've got a ghost, two accountants, the FBI, and an army general mixed in there, too. We won't even go into what the hell these people have in common - 'cause I DON'T KNOW!

**deep, clarifying, calming breath**

Anyway, I have a morning at the botanical gardens scheduled tomorrow. Perhaps some fresh air and beautiful scenery will help.

And there's always the "traveling shovel of death."

With Permission From the Poet:

2010-11-12T17:21:00.004-07:00

.
stride and joy

by Gary Bowers

you go out the door
on a lucky day it feels like you're climbing into the sky
and you can't feel the ground when you step
or you can and your spirit does not accept the collect call from the ground

even in the airfouled valley
your lungs fill with gladness
your legs oars wheels thrusters orbiteers

destination stochastic
thoughts pleonastic pleonasms
graceous guttness grassy goldness stride pride ride pride strive strive i've
step step float duck duck gossamer

lamplines curve you into a new tomorrow of space
the asphalt concrete interface is a one-step staircase
you are the whacked tuning fork making its highpurr vibratory song
step step ease almost cry
with the relief of the simple universal

NaNoWriMo Update: Day 11 and Week Two Hurdles

2010-11-11T08:32:00.001-07:00

NaNo update: I've made up one day of my 3 day deficit (from working a 3 day conference) so I'm now only 2 days behind. And it is official: I have encountered the Week Two hurdles. I can say that the majority of comments are right. I've hit the mud-pits.

However, most of my mud slogs are due to other stressors here at home. Writing has been somewhat of an escape from them. If I can just keep going, I eventually disappear into the novel. Plus, by having done a rough outline and a plot synopsis, even when I deviate a wee bit, I'm still on track with the story.

Slowly, I type. Key by key. Word by word. I'll get there, by gummies, I'll get there!

I've also decided that my mouse is dying. --- That's the computer's mouse, not any cute little critter. (I love rodents - and bats - and such.)

Onward!

NaNoWriMo Update: Day 8

2010-11-08T07:42:00.002-07:00

Good morning everyone!

I'm just back from a LONG weekend conference and haven't written a single character, let alone a word since Thursday night. At that time I was on track. Fortunately, after I spend a few hours at work today (conference clean-up), I have the rest of the week off to get caught up.

So, with that, I will leave you for now.

Onward!

Write about packing a suitcase

2010-11-03T05:08:00.001-07:00

It isn’t much fun anymore, she thought as she stuffed an extra pair of socks into a corner of the suitcase. The excitement has worn off and anxiety has taken its place. When did that happen? When did the glamour slip away?

September 11, 2001. That was when the fear of flying set in. That was when going to the airport laden with suitcases and totes brought not so hidden looks of suspicion from the crowds of travelers. Her scarf covered head and long sleeved dress, though expensive and tailored to perfection, once conveyed her dedication to a higher calling. Now it conveyed sinister intent.

While other people were advised to show up an hour ahead of the flight time, she learned to arrive two or even three hours early. Security slowed to a deliberate crawl. Her bags were double and triple checked. When the TSA added the full body x-ray, she considered quitting her job and maybe even abandoning the only comfort that remained: her beliefs.

No. She slammed the lid down on her suitcase, zipped it shut, and set it next to the door. If she quit, they would win. “This is who I am! Do you hear me world?” She stood up straight and looked at herself in the mirror. “I don’t care what you think. I did not hijack a plane. I did not use it as a missile. I don’t even know anyone who did.”

She felt the anger building in her chest again and shook her head. “No! No! I will not hate them for what they think of me! I cannot. If I allow even a speck of hate inside…”

The doorbell rang. Her taxi waits.

NaNoWriMo Begins!

2010-11-01T19:51:00.003-07:00

Day One
Already frustrated: had to type up minutes from a meeting that happened last spring (can you say "procrastination"?) and just when I'm coming close to actually finishing them, my mother calls. Then a pre-recorded political ad on the phone. Then another. I will be so glad when the election is over and they leave me alone.

Note to all candidates who use their trash campaign tactics over the phone lines and then don't end the call after I hang up and then call AGAIN later in the day - and you know who you are: you have lost my vote. I don't want someone in office that runs their campaign on kindergarten playground tattletale platforms. I don't want someone in office that is rude and inconsiderate of their constituants' personal space and time. That just tells me how you will be in office: finger pointing and blaming everyone else for your problems. Nope. I will not vote for you. Period.

Anyway, I've gotten some writing done today, but not as much as I wanted. I have a week's vacation next week so I'm keeping my eyes on that time to really build up a good word count to carry me through.

Phoenix: Night of the Walking Dead

2010-10-30T17:45:00.003-07:00

Your Host for this Blog

(I wonder if I could have this

on my drivers license?)

Whew! What a night. Kudos to the Arizona Ghostbusters for leading us through the darkened streets and passed so many unsuspecting victims. (It was funny how people not participating didn't want to make eye contact with us.)

Pictures are still flooding in from the scene in downtown Phoenix last night. While the first Zombie Walk had about 300 participants, this year I think it is safe to add a zero onto that number. It was almost too many people to really get that lurching gait going full swing.

Anyway, without further ado, here is some of what it looked like:

The Zombie Team Extraordinaire!

The madman

They got Harry!

He'd lose his head if it wasn't attached. Oh. Wait.

One of us, one of us...

I don't think she understands
that this isn't real.

Limits. Always limits. Killjoys.

Proud Mommy Zombie & her daughter

Update 11/02/10: More Zombie pictures here.

Phoenix To Dos: Zombie Walk

2010-10-27T08:17:00.000-07:00

Zombies! Come join us for the Zombie Walk in downtown Phoenix on Friday night! I hope to have lots of pictures to post by Halloween here on Daydreamers Welcome.

Road Maps

2010-10-27T05:41:00.002-07:00

They guide us
They lead us
To destinations
We desire or not

To dreams
To nightmares
To fortunes
To disaster

Exciting
Boring
Exotic
Mundane
Maps

Between You and Me and the Fence Post

2010-10-24T21:21:00.001-07:00

My apologies for being somewhat tardy for the post, my friends. I spent a good deal of the day still working on clean up from the hail storm we had a couple of weeks ago. I worked at a conference all day yesterday and got home quite late. So with only today off and a mountain of laundry to do at the same time - well, you get my point.

Today, hubby and I finally seated the replacement 4x4 post needed to repair the back fence. It was tough. I'm 54 and my hubby is 56 and both of us are WAY out of shape. To top things off, we dug out half of the old cement that held the original post only to discover a mysterious black pipe running through from the alley. I tracked its path visually and it led right to our gas meter. STOP.

Plan B. We put the new post directly behind the cement stub. Now we wait a day or so for the new cement to cure and then we'll go on to wrestle a new section of fence in place of the broken panel. [I bet you're as tired of reading this as I am physically right now.]

So this is how I spent my one day off and tomorrow begins the countdown to my biggest conference coming up on November 5-7 in Tucson. In the midst of all that, I plan on participating in the 2nd Annual Zombie Walk in downtown Phoenix. That will be a post with pictures as I've already called dibs on my daughter's camera. Somehow, she even agreed with that...

Anyway, off to bed. As my hubby tells me every morning: Have a glorious day!

Write about a postcard

2010-10-20T05:18:00.003-07:00

It was a few days later that she found it. When it fell through the mail slot onto the floor, it glided farther than the heavier envelopes stuffed with invoices and promises of wonderful products and services. It landed under the armchair that sat next to the door and remained there until the vacuum cleaner grabbed a corner and started to whine.

“Oh crap,” she said as she switched off the machine and pulled the now tattered card from the brush-covered rollers. She tossed it onto the coffee table and resumed her Saturday morning cleaning routine.

It was a long weekend. Her job had kept her longer hours last week than normal. The chores she usually completed during the week piled up and consumed her weekend, leaving her feeling extra tired and somewhat melancholy. Another week such as the last awaited her tomorrow. And the week after that. The boss joked about “job security” and “get ‘em while they were to be got.” Not funny.

Sunday evening, she sat down on the sofa. Selecting not her usual side over by the lamp where she would turn and stretch out her legs but instead the very center. She vaguely wondered which side she should fall on: her right or her left.

It was then that her eyes fell onto the tattered card. It still lay on the coffee table between the fake floral centerpiece and the artfully arranged oversized photo books that no one ever opened.

“Oh crap,” she said again and picked it up. She rose to take it to the trash but before she tossed it in, she looked at it. Then she stopped. She read it. A smile slowly spread on her face and her eyes glittered with sudden possibilities.

It's Jodi Cleghorn's Fault!

2010-10-17T05:10:00.005-07:00

In case you didn't see them at the bottom of my blog posts, there along the right side, yes, there are the NaNoWriMo web buttons. And, yes, I'm going to try it again this year. And it is Jodi Cleghorn's fault.

Jodi wrote a blog post on daydreaming and writing and how inseparable they are. That, of course, is what sold me. Please click here to read her post and then come on back for the whining. (I'll wait right here. In the corner. On the upturned pile of old manuscripts.)

Back? Okay, so I've started NaNoWriMo four times in the last 5 years. I actually "won" in 2007. That particular manuscript has not seen the light of day since. It's embarrassing for me to read and yet I wrote it! I started again the next year, failed, and tried last year. Spectacular crash and burn. I'm surprised that the fire department didn't respond. **sigh**

Okay, so it's a new year. 2010. The Year of Living Dangerously. And therefore I will enter the fray. My book title is all I have so far: "Hypatia's Seal" Don't ask for more 'cause I haven't a clue. The rest will come as I (wait for it, wait for it...) daydream my way to and from work - which is safe for me, Jodi, as I walk. ;=)

I have no way of knowing how I'll do this year, but I do know that I won't cross that 50,000 word finish line if I don't begin. So, who's in with Jodi and me?

Dreams

2010-10-13T05:32:00.014-07:00

Dreams
by Langston Hughes (1902-1967), poet, novelist, playwright, short story writer, essayist and columnist

Hold fast to dreams
For if dreams die
Life is a broken-winged bird
That cannot fly.
Hold fast to dreams
For when dreams go
Life is a barren field
Frozen with snow.

Special thanks to Bleets at Scriblets for calling my attention to a great poet!

The Pelikan Pelikano Goes To...

2010-10-11T13:00:00.000-07:00

Christina!

Send your mailing address to joni dot bowers at gmail dot com.

This just may be a cartridge-only pen. Fortunately, JetPens has Pelikan cartridges and Pelikan has great ink. Let me know if you have better luck than I did!

Happy Birthday John Lennon! We Miss You.

2010-10-09T05:28:00.003-07:00

Imagine
Songwriter: Lennon, John

Imagine there's no heaven, it's easy if you try
No people below us, above it's only sky
Imagine all the people
Living for today

Imagine there's no countries, it isn't hard to do
No need to kill or die for and no religions too
Imagine all the people
Living life in peace

You may say I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will live as one

Imagine no possessions I wonder if you can
No need for greed or hunger a brotherhood of man
Imagine all the people
Sharing for the world

You may say I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will live as one

You may say I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
Take my hand and join us
And the world will live, will live as one

© LENONO MUSIC

Check out Notebook Stories

2010-10-06T17:28:00.000-07:00

Notebook Stories has a review of a line of notebooks from Turkish manufacturer Arwey that is quite interesting.

While this is a somewhat mixed review on the pros and cons, the notebooks are unique in several ways.

To read the review click here.

Be Careful What You Wish For

2010-10-06T09:49:00.001-07:00

Okay, remember when I complained about the hot weather here in Phoenix? Well, it’s a case of “be careful what you wish for.” The Valley of the Sun was hit by some severe thunderstorms yesterday and several places, including my part of the city, had marble to golf ball-sized hail. Fortunately, there were no serious injuries, but there was plenty of damage.

At the height of the hail storm we accumulated drifts of the marble-sized stones in the back yard and the front yard looked like winter in Minnesota. The street flooded and water was standing up to my house. Yikes!

While neighbors all around lost large tree limbs, my trees kept the limbs but leaves were “pruned” and shredded. My large fig tree now resembles an ash tree. The big beautiful leaves are now down to the size of a quarter. The bougainvillea that shares a lot line with one of my neighbors is bare branches and a few sickly leaves. We also lost a section of our back fence. Again. (Guess what I’ll be doing this weekend. Ha-ha!)

On the walk to work this morning in the greatly cooled down air, I noticed several small trees in the mall parking lot were broken off and leaning. The sidewalks looked like a landscaping company trimmed the bushes and left the trimmings where they fell. One of the residential houses that I pass had their rock border slide down across the sidewalk. I immediately pictured a bunch of little green plastic army men:

Sarge! Sarge, I’m slipping!

Hang on Private! We’ll get you. Alright men, form a line. Men? Men? Aww, heck. Hang on, I’m coming.

As we used to say in Minnesota, “I haven’t had this much fun since the pigs ate my little brother!”

#200 and a Giveaway!

2010-10-03T18:30:00.002-07:00

Yes, it is my 200th blog post. Wow. You have suffered greatly, my friends! To honor you, I'm going to give away a pen. I have a Pelikan Pelikano with an "A" nib, a converter, and an empty cartridge to refill.

I'll be honest with you. I'm giving away this pen because I don't like it. Why? Thank you for asking. I don't like it because:

The nib is too wide and wet for my tastes. Nothing wrong with that if you like 'em like that. And some pen people do.
The converter won't sit tight in the pen. It's fallen out twice - right after I filled the pen. [Very messy, I can tell you.]

Yes, it is the correct converter. I sent the pen back to JetPens for them to figure it out and they sent it back with the assurance that it is correct and it fits the pen just fine. [No, it doesn't.] That's why I saved the cartridge and refilled it once. That worked much better.

So my pain in the tush is yours if you want it. The rules are:

Leave a comment by midnight Sunday, October 10th and tell me how you are following my blog. But please don't enter if you aren't going to check back to see if you won.
I will pick the winner via the random generator.
The winner must contact me before midnight Sunday, October 17.
You do not need to be a U.S. resident. I will be brave and attempt to ship worldwide.

So. #200 is in the books. Thanks for tagging along with me!

Yes, I Gush.

2010-09-29T18:31:00.006-07:00

If you have clicked on my profile link you will note that two of my favorite authors are Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman. I follow Neil's blog and lately posts have been somewhat sporadic due to his writing project deadlines and such.

Today's post had two WONDERFUL bits of candy for me.

One:

From one old friend to another: Terry Pratchett and I met for Sushi in Cardiff the following evening, for Mysterious Reasons That We Are Not Announcing Yet. This is a photograph of us toasting Something Unexplained with champagne.

And Two:

It was a wonderful event, filled with enthusiastic schoolkids, and followed by a signing. I spoke last, and by the time it got to me, Jerry and Karen and Grace had already said everything there was to say, so I talked about the importance of daydreaming and why you should stare out of the window sometimes or actually a lot. [Emphasis mine.]

**Sigh** The man is a genius, don't you think? For more pictures and the rest of his post, please click here.

Autumn has arrived. It has?

2010-09-26T18:46:00.000-07:00

At 8:09 p.m. on Wednesday, September 22, the autumnal equinox arrived. Autumn was here. The light had noticeably changed starting in mid-August from the bright harsh yellow white to the softer golden tones of fall. Now that it was official, we dared to think of cooler weather ahead. However, we are still dealing with record high temperatures in the mid to upper 100s.

Enough already!

Living in Phoenix is tough for at least eight months of the year. Then we get a few short months of cooler weather and approximately 2 days in January when we can wear a lightweight turtleneck sweater under our winterish weight coat.

I complain. Yeah. I grew up in Minnesota where the weather is the exact opposite. Eight months of shoveling snow just to get to work so you can pay your heating bill. And approximately 2 days of heat where you just want to explode. (Yes, you still need an air conditioner in Minnesota. They have HUMIDITY that will drown you some nights. It’s from those 10,000 lakes.)

There is no point to this blog post, folks. I am just venting as I sit in front of the fan I'm sharing with my laptop to keep us both cool. Eventually the cooler weather will arrive and I'll be able to open windows again. Eventually. Yeah.

Have a great week at work and don’t forget to put up those Halloween decorations!

3 A.M.

2010-09-22T04:29:00.002-07:00

Dead time for ghost hunters
I lay awake
Staring at the black ceiling
The black walls
The angry red numbers on the clock
Like ghosts in the night
Sleep slips away
When you look directly at it

Goodbye JB's! We'll Miss You

2010-09-19T08:53:00.000-07:00

The background story to this photo montage is found here.

My sincere apologies for the poor photos. Our camera is on its last legs and needs to be replaced. That said, here are a few parting pictures of a long-time member of our community:

And another thing...

2010-09-17T12:07:00.001-07:00

"Getting old is not for sissies."

-- Bette Davis US movie actress (1908 - 1989)

This morning I put on a new bra. It replaced one that had worn out in a particularly embarassing way - a hole in the cup where my nipple poked out - in public - with co-workers present. Yeah.

Anyway, this new bra was purchased because it has a feature that will prevent this from happening ever again. That made me feel very good, not only because I didn't have to worry about that but because it must have happened to enough women before it happened to me that the topic was addressed in the design team meeting someplace.

"Okay team. The next problem we need to discuss is the nipple poke through. How can we improve our product to prevent it? It will sell like hotcakes if we do it right."

Cool.

So I put it on this morning, secure in knowing I was safe from that embarrassment, only to discover something new. I was facing north but my boobs are now pointing northeast and northwest. Shouldn't they be heading in the same direction I am? Sigh. At least now they are level with the horizon and not pointing at my feet.

I hate gravity.

Yesterday’s Coffee

2010-09-13T04:28:00.000-07:00

Yesterday’s coffee sits in the bottom of my cup
Cold, murky, slicked with oil
Images of mosquito-infested bogs lined with old trash
Flash behind my eyes
Then the haunts from the day before visit
Ill-chosen words, missteps, opportunity not grasped
A yawn returns the cup
Emptied and rinsed, it waits
For the fresh potential dripping into the pot