My Outdoor Room

After doing art and craft shows for so many years, I have accumulated several canopies that are past their prime. It costs nearly as much to replace the tops of them as it does to buy a completely new unit so it's always easier to buy a new one and have a new frame as well as top. Late this spring, I took the frame of one of the canopies, and hung some of the window screens that I had used in the past for color and atmosphere and to display jewelry on along the top of the frame. I planted gourds, morning glories, cucumbers, moon vine, and air potato vines at the corners to make a "white trash gazebo". The gourds are really starting to set now. I hope to have a bumper crop before frost gets them. I enjoy sitting out there early in the morning drinking coffee and visiting with my mother when she comes by, and sitting out there late at night sipping a glass of wine. I had planned to hang some little twinkle lights from the top but haven't gotten around to that yet and I enjoy the darkness anyway.

Moving In

I've been moving Felix indoors by allowing him inside for longer periods of time each day. He seems totally comfortable being inside and already has several favorite napping places. His most favorite place of all is the food dish which I keep full for the inside cats, he loves the unlimited access to food. The outside cats are only the first thing in the morning so there are no leftovers by evening.

I've had a problem with raccoons tearing my screens to get in the screened-in laundry porch to get at the cat food I keep stored in a galvanized garbage can. I try not to encourage the raccoons to come back by making sure there are no leftovers to encourage them.

The dogs don't pay Felix much attention but Nellie would love to play with him. Felix isn't too sure about the barking that goes along with Nellie's attempts at play, but they should have it all worked out soon.

He will grow up much too soon, but it's nice to have a kitten in the house again.

A Day of Rest

I was so completely exhausted last night that as bedtime came closer, I became sick with a tension headache. I place most of the blame on the stress of waiting all day long at the market to only make one sale. So this morning I slept in a little later than normal and have taken two naps. I haven't done any work but gave myself the day off.

A cold front came through during the night, and the weather today has been heavenly. I have the windows open throughtout the house, and the breeze has been almost nippy at times. I've made several cups of hot tea this afternoon, something I usually only do during the (too short) wintertime. It's been overcast all day, and the temperature has only been in the 70's for a high. I probably should have taken advantage of the cooler weather to cut, sand, and stain some wood for a sign order or to unload the car, but all I've done is to piddle a bit with some of my outside plants and do a little online research. Tonight I've vegged out watching t.v., but tomorrow I will have to be back to the grindstone.

This evening through the window, I noticed the light to be almost an apricot color. The clouds had broken quite a bit and the setting sun made for an eerie glow. Shortly, the light went to a pinkish color, then almost lavender as sun was closer to setting. It's not often I notice the sunset, but maybe I should more often.

I Should Have Been Selling Plumeria Trees

Today's Market was a total wasted effort for me. I am glad I worked hard this week to build my inventory, I do have that much ahead of me. But I could have been home doing more work.

Instead I got up in the middle of the night to drive 110 miles in the dark worrying about deer darting in front of the car. I arrived and got my booth all set up only to have the rain appear for awhile and when it quit the sun shone brightly and so did the heat and humidity. I only had one sale all day long, so this compounded my misery.

After tearing down the booth at the end of the show, loading it in the car and driving home, I was completely exhausted. I tried taking a nap on the couch only to find I couldn't sleep. I got up and took a bath then tried a nap again. I was unconscious (it didn't feel like sleep to me) when my cell phone rang......I was stuporous, and so was the person on the other end, a babbling idiot....and a wrong number to boot!

Since I was up, I tried finding something to eat since all I'd had was a couple of bites of a McDonald's chicken biscuit the first thing this morning. ( I couldn't stomach any more than a couple of bites... it was nasty, even if it was cheap) I nibbled on some sunflower kernels through the day which was really (not) filling. Nothing sounds good, and I feel hungover. I've been sucking down the water, so don't think I'm dehydrated I'm just tired. I tried another nap and again, I passed out....for a short time. My brother and sister-in-law stopped by. So I have given up the idea of a nap...it's getting closer to bedtime now.

I should have been selling Plumeria trees. That's what the vendor next to me was selling, and he was busy most of the day. I bet he doesn't feel as crappy as I.

When it Rains it Pours

So I've been busting my tail trying to get a nice inventory made for the Kerrville Market tomorrow and found another display to use that really serves the purpose very well ...really trying hard to get my act all together so I can get more than the two hours' sleep I did before last month's show.

My brother came in from New Mexico today, and I got a call about 4:30 from them asking if I'd like to go out to dinner. Ordinarily I would have said no, that I needed to stay home and get things finished for the show. But as a result of the past 7 months, I've learned to take those moments with family and friends when opportunity knocks. So I said yes, and we were supposed to be leaving soon. So I changed clothes and decided while I was waiting, I'd pull the van up to the carport so I could unload the tables and other displays from the last show, and load the things that I needed for this show as soon as we got back from the restaurant. I hadn't driven the van since I came home from the show in the driving thunderstorm Sunday night because I'd used the smaller, more fuel efficient car for the times I had to run around town.

Well, the van won't start.....not a drop of juice...not even the overhead lights or radio....nada. So I will be taking my tiny car to the market tomorrow and it's gonna be a tight squeeze getting everything in. I've already loaded the canopy and limited displays...I came in to cool off and rehydrate, now I need to see about finding a place for the inventory!

What's next???

Be Careful What You Wish For

Suddenly I find myself overwhelmed with more work than I've had in a long time. I was given a wholesale order last week that I actually don't need to deliver for another month, but the sooner I make it and deliver it, the sooner I get the mula. I think that's a nice incentive.

A friend referred me to a shop she wholesales to, and the owner called me asking to see not only the signs, but my jewelry as well. So I have the Market Day in Kerrville this Sat., and then have to get my butt busy replacing whatever signs may have sold so I have a full inventory to take to this shop on Sun., Oct.1 and I have to get a boatload of jewelry made as well. I have my show on the Riverwalk in S.A. on the 6th-8th of Oct. This broad has a lot on her plate right now.

I gave myself some time to mow the yard this afternoon only to find the mower with a flat tire...I got the fix-a-flat to put in it so I could drive it around to where I could use the air compressor only to find that wasn't going to help any because the tire's separated from the rim. My brother's supposed to be coming in from out of state tonight, and I'll put him to work on it in the morning. I really had planned other chores for tomorrow than mowing the yard but it seems my plans got changed for me.

My break time is over....time to paint some more.

Day two

I got what I wished for. It began raining on me this evening when I was almost home. Only about 15 miles to go. It was a horrific storm. The forecast this morning sounded as if we were in for rain all day long, but we only got a few sprinkles. I went prepared with a change of clothing, rubber sandals, towels, and an umbrella. Thank heavens they weren't needed. I think the forecast kept a large number of the customers away however.

I had taken a small display of signs and that's what I sold today...not one piece of jewelry. I'm not picky, I'll take money whether it was jewelry or signs.


I did a little bartering with a friend who wanted some of my jewelry. I traded for some of her mosaic art, and some ironwork her husband makes. Later she came by with some beads she had bought in Santa Fe, and ended up trading me a couple of strands of them for some more jewelry.


Tomorrow I have to play catch up with errands and housework. Also need to get a few groceries to make it through the next week and unload and inventory my signs to see how many of which sayings are left, and what I need to be making for this coming weekend. I'll have to make a quick trip to San Antonio for some lumber, probably about Tues. The lumber yard here is pretty lousy,

Sometime during the week I need to mow the yard . It's a never-ending cycle.

Gruene Market

I am so thankful to be home in the a/c after a very warm humid day at an Art/Craft market in Gruene, (Ger. pron. Green) an historical district of New Braunfels. Had it not been for the fact that it was overcast at times, and we did have a nice breeze occasionally I believe I would have suffocated and then steamed to death. There are several weather conditions converging to bring a "rain event" beginning tomorrow evening. Or at least that's the story we're being sold now. We need the rain and I hope we get it. I just hope it waits until I am packed and loaded and well on the way home tomorrow evening before it occurs. It's not a lot of fun trying to pack and load merchandise, displays, canopy, etc. in the rain. It's not fun in good weather, but especially unpleasant in bad weather.

So my sales weren't great today, just o.k. But I picked up several repair jobs on jewelry and some orders for signs for next month's market. And I have a wholesale order from one of the shops in town which will help pay for the house insurance bill that just came in the mail . And I still have tomorrow to go. Sundays are notoriously slow at most shows but there is the occasional Sunday that is better......that's what I'm wishing for!

I had a nice visit with my friend Courtney, who was back in her regular spot next to me. She had been off in some northern states the past couple of months, doing shows where the weather is much nicer than here. My friend Kim, who helped me on the riverwalk a couple of weeks ago was home with a bad case of food poisoning...and no, it wasn't spinach, but guacamole she ate last night. Another friend Jan, who is battling two different breast cancers...tumor and inflammatory is a regular vendor at the market. She recently had to start chemo again when the inflammatory recurred. She didn't do this month's market because of the heat and chemo combination. But she did stop by to visit with all her friends and brought one of her childhood friends who was visiting from Colorado to shop all our booths. I spent some time visiting with a friend, Eloi, who lost his wife about a year ago. He was talking about the things that made him cry, so I had to ask him if he cried while driving on the highway... (because of of a recent discussion about driving while crying that I had with another friend....)and Eloi said yes, that he cried while driving , too. It's nice to know I'm not the only one.

After the show was over I had a hot dinner date with my friend, Judy. We went to a Chinese Buffet and enjoyed good food and good company before heading our separate ways. I was driving 75 mi. south and west to get home for the night, and she was staying with her son in New Braunfels.

I've been sitting here sipping a goblet (handmade from a fellow vendor, of course) of wine, and the goblet is almost empty so I need to get these tired bones to bed so I can get up early and get ready for another day of sales. Today was a nice "family" reunion.

"Listen" to the Lesson

So I'm doing a little better as far as getting things made for this weekend, but the creativity is still lost for the most part. I did get to thinking about a comment made about my previous post and watching t.v. or even having it on while trying to design.

This made me realize (finally...I had to think on it a couple of days to have this revelation) that maybe I shouldn't even be listening to my books on tape when I'm trying to create designs. I notice I become irritated when I don't quite catch a sentence or a few words of the tape if a truck goes down the street, the dogs bark, or the train blows its whistle. So that means I'm listening too hard to the books, and I'm not letting my mind be creative.

So from now on I'm going to try listening to my books only when I'm doing my mundane, repetetive work such as wire wrapping beads, or basecoating or stenciling my signs. When I'm trying to create designs, I'll listen to some real age type, right brain music. I'll see if that doesn't help me along with moving my drafting table to a more suitable location. Unfortunately, I had this brain storm after it was too late to do much about it for this weekend's projects. Next week I'll be working on signs for the Kerrville Market, so it won't matter so much.

And who knows, it might not make a bit of difference after all, but it does make a good excuse right now! At any rate, all this pissing and moaning and throwing ideas around is making me think and wonder just what sparks my creativity and what dampens it. I've been paying attention because I haven't had it ---so I when I get that spark again, I need to notice the mood.

Feng Shui

Well, o.k., maybe it's Texas-style Feng Shui, but I think I have a big part of my artistic block solved. I had rearranged the studio several months ago so that my work table was where I could watch television as I worked. I had to peek through a doorway to do so, but if there was something I wanted to watch, I could. But I haven't been watching any television when I'm trying to work, I listen to music or books on tape or disc. So basically, I've been staring at a blank wall when I looked up from my work. This tired old brain needed more stimulation than a white wall!

Today I put my drafting table back where I started, and when I look up from my work, I'm looking out at a view of the yard where I have trees (and a yard that needs mowing) and a few decorative plants that have survived the long, hot, dry summer. I have bird feeders and birdbaths to watch and the antics of squirrels.

I wish I'd realized it was so simple this sooner, but at least I realized it today!

I'm sure if I had an outside light to turn on right now, I'd find a skunk to watch tonight, according to my Riley-dog. so it wouldn't just be the birds and squirrels.

My dogs are rescue dogs, so I don't know a lot of their history. But I think the male dog must have a history with skunks. Generally about this time of night is when the striped hydraulic pussycats come out to forage and I always know they're outside because Riley starts growling, and about 5-10 seconds later I smell their presence as well..

Sending Signals?

In the past several days I have had more than normal phone calls and emails from friends and relatives. Then when I was running errands this morning, I ran into several friends I hadn't seen in quite some time. Even in this small community, it's not that often that I run into someone I know.

These events have me wondering if my frustration at not being as artistically productive as I have wanted to be the past couple of weeks has me sending out ESP distress signals. Whatever the case may be, it's been nice hearing from everyone.

Production mode????........later, maybe!

I went to my collage workshop today and came home without really feeling that "git r done" or "joie de vivre" or whatever the hell kind of stimuli I was hoping to find that was going to make me magically produce all these wonderful pieces of art I was going to sell and help me pay the bills.

Instead, tonight I was blessed with phone calls and emails from loving, caring friends and fellow artists who shared the same concerns and bitches as I.

Who could ask for more?

Loneliness

I never really understood what loneliness was until the past six months.

Now, it seems I get slapped up the side of the heart on a regular basis.

Loneliness is not having someone there to hear comments on progress of the new building on the corner, or the local gossip, or City Council antics. (I live in a small town....they're hilarious)

Loneliness is not having someone to give or receive a hug, squeeze a hand, or rub the top of the thigh. I never realized the need for bodily contact, or lack of, until now.

I'm reminded of the lyrics in the Joni Mitchell song, Big Yellow Taxi "Don't it always seem to go that you don't know what you've got 'til it's gone".

Being lonely isn't 24/7, but it's those poignant moments that sneak up on me when least expected.

I lost my spark....again.

My show this past weekend went well so far as having a booth partner went. Business can always be better however, but it was acceptable for the crowd we didn't have. It was a long, very hot four days and I saw my first person to fall into the river. I'm not sure if the man tripped on something, or if his little boy ran in front of him, causing him lose balance and fall in. The river isn't very deep, so that's no big deal but the embarrassment for him probably was.

So now I am trying to get into production mode for my next show and it's very hard for me to do this at times. Usually all my inspiration comes a day or two before I go to a show when there's not enough time to create all the ideas I have. So I am working on a belt, something that is always a good seller for me at the next show, but the making of it is rather monotonous. I hoped that just being in the studio working with my hands would spark other ideas. So far it hasn't, but I will keep on working on mundane things until the creative spark arrives again. This weekend I will be attending an art workshop on one day and another I will go to an Art show as a visitor. I hope those days of artisitic immersion will help my sluggish brain. I feel the need to stay home and create, but sometimes one has to feed one's creativity.

Twilight

It's amazing the difference a week or two changes the daylight. Darkness is coming sooner every night and I welcome the changing season. It's been a very long hot, dry summer for us and the earlier night means the sun won't heat the air and earth so long each day. It's not only that night is coming sooner and quicker, but the colors of the light and darkness are different as well. It's a deeper, more comforting darkness that I witness tonight.

Welcome, Felix!

I had a new kitten move into the yard a couple of weeks ago. It just appeared in the yard, and I don't know whether it was dumped or found its way to my house. There's a bar-b-que restaurant across the street, and the kitten may have followed its nose to the scent of charred meat. It was seriously malnourished and had seen quite a bit of sun because its black fur had been sunbleached red. The kitten appeared in the middle of the night and it's cries kept my dogs barking all night long, and their barking kept me from a greatly needed sleep,. I didn't hear its cries so didn't know what the commmotion was about until the next morning when the dogs cornered it outside the back door. I fed and watered it, and over the past couple of weeks it has adapted to the other cats and tamed down. It is so enjoyable to watch the joy with which a kitten plays. I never tire of watching all the antics. If only I had such a carefree life!