non-obligatory blogging

This is one of the few new things I've done recently. We draw names for Christmas in our family of 14 adults and I had the brilliant idea last year that all gifts should be handmade...either by us for our person or we had to purchase something handmade. Consequently, I ended up helping to make several of the gifts for other people and my person ended up with something I ordered online. Fail. The image above on the left is one of the projects I 'helped' someone do for their person. The background is painted with acrylic and the tree, etc. was done with a polyester plate print. Quick and fun to do. I tried to do another in reds and oranges as shown on the right but the print slid and when I tried to clean it up it just made a smeary mess. Fail...again. The one on the right has been photo-shopped just to satisfy my desire to see it in those colors. Besides a sunset, it makes me think of a rocket blast or an explosion of some kind. I'll have to try it again someday becau

Jimmy's been interested in working with metal and learning how to make some unusual jewelry with some of the odd bits and pieces he can get out of the trash at his job. Because they do some one of a kind sort of things in the machine shop, they also produce some one of a kind, kinda trash. Today he took some old turquoise beads that we had and some of the copper glob bits that he had brought home from work and made quite a lovely pendant, in my opinion. I don't think he's wondering anymore what he might like to try doing when he retires. :)

I've been so inspired by Elaine and Leau's great photography that I've decided to play some with taking (and messing with) some photos myself. Leau pointed me in the direction of some cool camera apps for my Droid. It was a really boring and lousy phone camera before I discovered Camera Zoom FX and a bunch of other fun apps with different effects. The photo above is a combination of some of the stuff from the Droid camera apps and a little bit Photoshopped.

Found the following quote today in an interview with artist Geninne Zlatkis . Love her blog and her birds. :) Albert Einstein once said “The monotony and solitude of a quiet life stimulates the creative mind." It reminds me of a scripture that I've chosen as my life's goal..."Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business and to work with your hands..." 1 Thes. 4:11

  Yesterday morning I had to take a photo of the warm glow that the sunrise cast on everything. I used to think the dead grass was ugly but over the years I've come to appreciate its beauty (even without the pinkish-golden glow from the sunrise). What a different look we woke up to this morning. I had to take another photo of pretty much the same view from the east end of the deck just to show the contrast. Let it snow. I'm ready for it now. Have a warm and happy winter everyone.