A Heavy Heart : In Memoriam

Sunday morning here in the Seattle area four Law Enforcement Officers were shot down in cold blood as they prepared for their day shifts by stopping at a local coffee shop. The shop, owned by a former officer, was well known as a gathering place for Law Enforcement Officers from a variety of nearby towns & from the State Patrol. I am so unbelievably saddened by this senseless tragedy. Four good people lost  - for nothing other than  one person's sheer, unexpurgated,evil insanity (and  do not get me going on the insanity plea!). Yes, I do believe that some people are just born evil. These shooting come on the heels of another murder of a Police Officer on October 31st in which a second officer was badly wounded as well.

Law Enforcement Officers have affected my life and always for the better really. My first experience with a police officer was when I was six years old and a drunken family member began to shoot people at a dinner party. Several other children and I had been asleep in a back bedroom when this began and it was the calming voice of an officer who helped all of us youngsters understand what happened  and why the house was filled with police. It was a difficult time, but he helped make it less so.

The second time was when I was about 15 years old. Feeling older than my years and having more freedom than most kids did I had felt no compunction about attending a night a concert at the Fillmore East in New York City - in the cities East Village. It must have let out around midnight and I was waiting for a bus to come to take me back uptown when an officer came up and asked my what a young girl was doing out so late and in that part of town. I am sure I answered with far more bravado than I felt - and I am also sure that I had felt invincible at that point in my life. That kind man waited with me until the next, safe, bus arrived to take me home. His kindness and words of caution remained with me - and I have been grateful to him all these years.

I was a part of the 'Woodstock generation' as I have mentioned in the past. Although I was not the sort to get into any trouble I felt my generation's ubiquitous distrust of Law Enforcement & I managed to do my best to stay clear of any situations that would warrant police presence! That was a good thing I suppose. I am not saying that I was an 'goody two-shoes' rather I am saying that I was a careful adventurer! My career in aviation manged to keep me on the straight and narrow - and I am always grateful that it did! I am sure that I managed to avoid a lot of potential heart ache by being in aviation with it's inherent drug and alcohol testing programs & it's relatively strong code of ethics in general. Despite what you may hear in the news, people in aviation are generally quite conservative and most pilots that I knew take their responsibilities very seriously.

My next exposure to Law Enforcement came at a very difficult time in my life when an ex was causing difficulties. Once again, it was two special officers who managed to help me hold it all together and get through it all.

Fast forward a bit. I married a deputy! Now, this caused some of my oldest friends to react with a moment of dead silence and an overheard 'gulp' when I told them that I had remarried, a police person but they all gradually have come to accept my more mature, conservative nature. I have been happily married to a wonderful, kind man who happens to also be a career Deputy for many years now. He never brings the work home.

What I am trying to get at, I suppose, is that for a great part of their time Law Enforcement Officers are the peace keepers, the ones who mange stressful situations on our behalf, the ones who offer a calm voice & a helping hand. For most of their careers, thank God, most officers are not involved in daily dealings with hardened criminals - but evil people are out there lurking - and so is the potential for danger. Sometimes, like today, brave men and women do pay the ultimate price for keeping us all safe, for holding our hands and for dealing with the stumbling down drunks and misdemeanor offenders. It sickens me - it really does.

So many families are now forever changed. The holidays will always bring sadness and the children will grow up with scars from the loss of their mothers and fathers. All death is sad. All death brings heart ache & pain. I know that people are killed senselessly in car accidents, sports accidents, odd quirks of fate but no one should die the way these officers did - preparing for work at a local coffee shop.

I am not generally a person who wishes ill on another - nor do I generally wish anything bad to happen to another person if I can stop myself. I pray however that they capture the perpetrator of this heinous crime right away and that the full extent of the legal system is brought to bear against this insane , evil criminal - and that the system works quickly & effectively.

No person, no law enforcement officer should have to risk their lives by buying a cup of coffee and preparing for work. No one should have to pay this price and it speaks so horribly about our society. I abhor violence - perhaps that's why this incident has left me with such a heavy heart today.

In another bit of sad personal news. Our 'boy', 'Chance' left the house after Thanksgiving dinner on Thursday and never returned home. We don't know if the raccoons or fox got him, or if he slipped and went into the rushing creek. We are bother very sad and find it difficult to understand how we can be the 'parents' of only one cat - after having had 9 cats and our big, fluffy dog all at once not too long ago,

I named him "Chance" because he came to the vet I was working at at the time as a kitten. Someone had found him in their driveway. He had been poisoned - but the vet did not know by what. Possible anti-freeze. We did not expect him to last the night - but he did. I couldn't turn him away after that and so he joined my family which at the time consisted of 4 other felines. He became the special 'boy' for my spouse and they enjoyed many evenings together watching TV.  It was mutual admiration I think! It's oddly much more quiet without him and I think we both half expect him to see him walk in the door - but after this long & this much cold & rain - we know it won't be happening. He was 16 and, having lost a lot of his sight as a result of the poison he still managed to be the stellar hunter of the group. His claws were very sharp. He will be missed.

Scraps" By Elsebeth Gynther & Christine Clemmenson: A great Addition To Your Mixed Media Library

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Every once in awhile I will find a book that is worth cross-posting from my book blog. "Scraps" is one of those books that needed to be here too. Hope you will find it as interesting as I did !

Second to my love of historical fiction & history books  is my love for all books art & craft. I thrive on looking at a variety of different books for inspiration.

"Scraps" by Elsebeth Gynther & Christine Clemmenson is a captivating new title from Lark Books about mixed media & collage. The subtitle of this book is ' an inspirational field guide to collage' and I think that about sums it up. The authors walk you through all of the basics of collage; what materials you need, where to find materials, the qualities of paints & other coloring methods, how to 'loosen up' & free yourself to begin your work - and finally they answer the question "when is a collage finished?" - see page 71!

The table of contents :

I have found several things in this book that I really want to do. I have a very special journal from Jenni Bick Book Binders that I have been hoarding for a special purpose - and I found it in 'Scraps'... make an alphabet book ! What a great idea !

Another captivating project from the book  is  creating envelope art- this is  especially relevant to me since I have been making & mailing art cards a lot lately!

The book guides you through issues that always come up when making collage & mixed media art. What do I do if I don't want to glue or cut a special item? Answer: sew it in! What kind of glues are best to use with special, treasured items? Answer: acid free. There is a lengthy discussion of what sort of glue is best for what & what each glue is best used for. Other sections of the book discuss paper types, composition, "first aid for collages in distress" and on & on. This is one great "go to" book for collage and mixed media enthusiasts.

 

There are several pages in the book with inspired ideas for jump-starting your work; creating patterns,  & a wide variety of theme ideas. Fun things that just gets your mind in gear to make art

 

I really went over this book and tried hard to think of a reason to NOT give it five stars - but I could not think of anything the books lacks, nor anything that would have made it better or more inspiring. This really is a 5 star, gotta have book for anyone who wants to improve their collage & mixed media art work. I feel in love with this book without really meaning to ! It's an addition to your library that you won't regret!

 

News On The Needles

It's that 'lovely' time of year when light is scarce and when I find additional pleasure in being able to watch the tube as I knit! As I have mentioned before, I am hat-phobic. I don't like hats. Never have and never will. That being said I am also finding that the cold is a bit more bothersome - so something about the neck would, at times, be nice - plus having the advantage of pulling something up over my head when it is pouring rain might be great! I have been fascinated by the concept of cowls - maybe it's all of the medieval reading I do! Lo and behold this must be the year for me because I found some great cowl patterns in the latest issue of Vogue Knitting Holiday 2009 Issue. Vogue Knitting also has a great new new feature that shows live photos of patterns in their current issue - so if you want to see this pattern on a 'real' head go to the highlighted link and click on "Think Big" on the right side of the screen.

I really wanted to make this cowl just as it was in the photo because I loved everything about it. Tanglewood Creations yarn is amazing. I looked high and low for it and finally wrote to the company. Sure enough - of course I would adore the yarn - it's cashmere and costs $33.00 per ounce & the cowl requires eight ounces! $264. for a cowl is a tad rich for my worker bee budget. All of their yarns are hand spun and I really admire that they employ home based spinners for their yarns. If I had the money I would happily support them! I considered using my other favorites - Cashsoft or Cashmerino - but I really agreed that this pattern needed something with color - or perhaps seeing it in color just 'colored' my mind about how it ought to look! At any rate I had some Noro Silk Garden on hand in a colorway that I am fond of - so I decided to just use that. I am happy witht the way it is coming out and, if DH ever wins the lottery for us, maybe I will try in with that glorious Tanglewood Creations yarn!

Here is another cowl pattern that I am also going to make called the "Geode Georgene" by Berroco. I actually bought the prescribed Berroco yarn for it too - but in a different colorway - Moss - of course! I like the versatility of these cowl neck 'hats' and scarves ... a fine combination of the two !

Of course I am still making my addiction - fingerless mitts! I have been lucky to have found a couple of new to me patterns that I really like. Chief among them is Susie's Reading Mitts from The Dancing Ewe.

Both of these new to me yarns are awesome and provide beautiful stitch definition and a super soft, luxurious feel. I love the touch of lace pattern that enhances both the top and the bottom of the gloves.

Below you can see a sampling of the great new yarns that I am experimenting with -

there really are some things good about the season of eternal gray!

Hope everyone enjoyed the love of family & friends & lot of good food for Thanksgiving!

Rejoicing With Cards

First let me say that I am thoroughly frustrated with the photos of this group. It's been a week of rain so there is no 'real' light and, obviously, the mixed lighting inside was difficult to correct - at best.

These cards are really a bit of Kismet. As some of you may already have read - I am a very small, very beginning calligraphy student. A calligrapher wanna be - with little skill & an awful lot to learn. & hours & hours of practicing ahead of me. Last week I got a lovely email from a very talented, very professional, calligrapher who had occasion to look at my web site (which has been woefully untended of late) - because of a calligraphy list I have joined - as a lurker for the most part! This wonderful person said that she loved my work and wanted to buy some cards - loved my bags etc etc. I was blushing and, after looking at Julie's work on her blog, Wildman Designs, I thought that perhaps she needed to have her eyes checked! Her's is the work that is wow wow wow! Go have a look and you will see what I mean!

We settled on trade - a felted, quilted bag for a calligraphy piece - plus Julie wanted some cards - count 'em 8 of them! These four are 'Rejoice' cards - the next four will be printed on vintage kimono silks & I can send them off to her the beginning of December. With friends across the pond she asked if  I could get one card off to her now. I decided to just get the after burners going and make four cards to send now so that she would have a choice. Now let me tell you how intimidating it is to letter anything to send to a professional calligrapher! I asked Julie if she would perhaps prefer to add the lettering herself?  Like - p-l-e-a-s-e  would like to letter your cards?!! 'No",  says she, 'my family has enough of my work - I want you to do it'. Uh huh! Okay - so here goes nothing ! Remember what I said about these photos? Well the colors in all of them are actually much more vibrant - the dupioni silk really shimmers & the faces are not nearly this dark and shiny - the only one that comes even close to 'real' color is the top one. That one was one of my least favorite as I worked on it - but it has become my favorite of the bunch I think...well maybe I like the orange with purple dupioni a lot too! Maybe I should not have posted these photos at all - but it's what I have been doing for a few days. I was amazed at how time consuming one card could be. Julie picked a card from the web site that I never had anticipated anyone wanting (it had been a gift to a friend)- so I had to develop a bit of  a pattern for the card - which in the long run is a good thing to have. I have lots of fun making these cards really and could easily spend hours playing around with possibilities, colors, shapes, threads, beads...it could be endless!

I added an ATC to the package for Julie- although it is not the 'official 'swap that we agreed on. Oh! that darn highlight! Ugh! The orange-y global card on the bottom still lacks lettering - that's for the day after Thanksgiving - which I should really get started on I suppose! I should be cutting up the bread to makes cubes - so that the bread dries and can be made into stuffing. Ah! That's for tomorrow - after work and, I might add, a lovely massage in the afternoon by my favorite masseuse in the whole world.

Life is good! Full of unexpected, small, joys, moment of sheer kismet & unexpected friendships.

Peace & joy to you all !

If I don't get back here before then - have a very happy day of giving thanks!

 

My Week In Black & White

I hemmed and hawed about posting this - but decided that, since the issues are, like it not, a large part of my life I would go ahead.

Thursday I braved high winds & unrelenting rain to go to the mainland  My new doctor (because my fav left as you may recall) had new requests. One of the requests was for an updated MRI . Since the last one I had was from 2002 I thought that an update seemed like a reasonable idea. What you are looking at here is my lower spine - a transverse view. I was finally educated on what it all means. I have several herniated discs & what the doctor termed severe narrowing of the spinal canal a/k/a severe stenosis. The second request was to have a consult - another one. I went through a tedious round of treatment & consults in 2002. One would think that my records (all at the same medical center) would give any doctor plenty to review as far as where I had been previously & what I 'd had done before! This consult was no different. Try injections. I told them that I had already done that and that the results had been very painful &, most of all had not worked. Hummmmm - well, that should not have happened. Any surgeon is going to want you to have had shots. Surgeon? Who said anything about a surgeon?! Yes, the MRI indicated advancing degeneration. I mentioned the severe arthritis that I have in my neck, shoulders & hips and the doc said that  having severe arthritis would be reasonable to expect because of the way my spine looks. Nice to know that it all makes sense. Oh ! and had I mentioned the Fibromyalgia? Yep.  Paraphrased  - or perhaps just my interpretation "....I will know when I need surgery - my legs will no longer work too well... "Yippee! Now that is news I can use! Argh! It all just means that pain is an every day issue to which my proprietary sense of physical agelessness will hold no ground. It is is what it is and I am darn well going to have to learn to go with the flow of it all.

Problem with shots - aside from the fact that I had a bad experience the first time - is that I have no way of knowing how much of a difference in the total panoply of issues - these things would make - or how long they might last. I keep feeling that it's a series of dollar signs dancing across my eyes. I guess it's not possible to get a really economically disinterested recommendation without having a qualified doctor as a relative.

So - nothing is different other than that I have fulfilled the latest doctor's list of things to do for me. I doubt I will make any rash decisions - or that anything is likely to change tomorrow. In the mean time I know that when I whine I have a reason to be uncomfortable. Aging, it has been said, is not for the faint of heart. No - it isn't, but I am  grateful for every second of every day that I have - pain or not. I have the days to enjoy while some of my friends - who passed too young - never had the opportunity.

Does anyone else ever wish for a financially disinterested 'family doctor?!!

Now - it will back to our more regularly scheduled programming ! Promise.

The Last Of The Fall Leaves

If there was any question about the season today pretty much sealed the deal. This is how it looked outside of my door this morning. Since then we have had a strong cold front move through and the last of the leaves, those that have not been tracked into the living room, are on the ground now. The most insidious things to be brought in on un-wiped shoes are the pine needles. They get into everything and refuse to be removed without having to bend down and actually pull them out and insert them into the nose of the vacuum cleaner!

Recently I have become more and more involved in the book and book blog communities. For some time I have been rolling the idea of a separate book blog around in my head and, this weekend, I finally did it. I will do some cross posting at times when the books are very pertinent to both blogs, but more or less if it's about books it will be on my brand new blog ! I named it Books By The Willow Tree because of the willow tree that I used to go sit in to read at my Uncle's Jim's house. This grand old dame willow spread her branches lazily out over the Hudson River in upstate New York. I adored that tree & I loved my Uncle who was a large part of the reason that I am so book addicted today. He had a separate little house that served as his library. It was complete with a small wood burning stove and kerosene lamps. Peace in a little place. Anyway, if you're into books I would love it if you would join me at the willow tree!

A Yen For Cashmere or More Joys Of Fingerless Gloves

At night my fingers seems to just naturally drift to a small, easily gratifying bit of knitting. Fingerless gloves have become a passion because I use the almost year 'round since my digits seem to be always chilled. I hunt for patterns that I like - both free &, happily, paid for.

Lately I have become enamored with Rowan's new yarn called 'Lima' - a fine bit of cashmere blend with a really different construction that facilitates great texture, stitch definition and is made with 84% Baby Alpaca/8% Merino Wool/8% Nylon. Can you spell soft?! I found a wonderful little pattern called "CoffeeHouse Gloves" by Lorna Meiser Owner of Lorna's Laces in Knit'n Style's issue for December 2009 #164. It knits up beautifully in 'Lima' and I've made a pair in almost every color that 'Lima' offers. I did change the pattern a bit to make it longer and also to add some length in the thumb - which I find to be much cozier.

You can see some of the texture of this yarn in these small pics.

The gloves in the photo below are made from the 'Coffee House' pattern in green 'Lima Yarn' . They look small but there is a lot of stretch built in and the gloves look wonderful on! The gloves on the left are also made in 'Lima' and are called 'Fetching' from Knitty.com as a free pattern!

I do have a request - if any of you knows of a great fingerless glove pattern please let me know! I am happy to pay for a great pattern . Simple or fancy, long or short! Thanks for helping me feed my glove addiction and keeping my needles going!

A Skin That Says "Mine"!

I am, apparently, a really a sucker for personalizing my things - I never used to think that I was but my actions speak louder than my thoughts! For instance - here is my IPod. My IPod travels with me most everywhere & I use it a lot - at work is my fav spot- not listening to music generally but books from Audible. I never used to think that I would like 'talking' books either but now I besotted with them! Most people know my IPod by the skin that's on it that I got  from GelaSkins. GelaSkins is a compnay that I have blogged about before when I got my first cool IPod skin from them. Recently they have made skins available that can be personalized with your own art work - for the same price as non-personalized. Could I possible resist this? Not!

Here is my new IPod cover using two of my drawings. GelaSkins has skins for most any mobile tool you may own from IPods of all types and sizes to cell phone and notebooks. Can you spell fabulous?!

I want more thins to put cool skins on! No! Iam not affiliated in any way what-so-ever. Just a tickled non-fashionista who loves personalized things! I also think that I proven to myself that I should never say never since I now love things like skins and 'talking' books. Life is very good !

....."Art I Want You ...."

This little video was posted on Roses On My Table by Darlene Pringle and I just could not help but share it with you. It will make your day a happier one! I have to find this song and play it every day !
Enjoy!

Stocking Up For The Season Of Eternal Gray

This is a stack of books that I have amassed recently through the magic of swapping with other book fixated cyber friends. I am stocking up as insurance policy against the season of eternal gray - sometimes called Fall & Winter where I live. Fog hangs heavily here almost every day & the sun quickly becomes  a curiosity. Each & every one of these books is one that I have wanted to read - and each has been on my personal wish list for some time. This will keep me reading for awhile don't you think!

Some of these books are fairly new like "Richard The III: The Maligned King" by Annette Carson while some, like "The Fatal Crown" by Ellen Jones are gems from the past that I was happy to locate. I am looking forward to reading them all - and reviewing them all here as well.  I have more on the way - including a selection of 'old' gold' calligraphy books.

Speaking of calligraphy --- my class through Creative Workshops in 'Italic Calligraphy - A Good Foundation" - Martha Lever, Instructor -  is going very well. It really is a foundational class that Martha offers & I  see - as if I had not already known it - that practice & determination are the keys to success in calligraphy. Although I don't have the time to take from my quilts& paints to become a dedicated calligrapher I do want to master Italic calligraphy & several variations on a theme so that I can use them in my quilts & journals. In only a week - and not a whole one at that I have managed to come some ways. This photo of my piled desk tells that story - oh - and I have finally found out why a slanted board is a very good & helpful thing. Thankfully, dear friend Lauren,  provided me with this board this summer. I am looking forward to 'decorating' it splotches of ink and paint all over it in the years to come!

Books: Teaser Tuesdays

 I have recently set about on a course of intensive pleasure reading, amply peppered with the requisite amount of non-fiction historical times too!  Teaser Tuesday is a fun way to say just a bit of what you're reading. The 'simple directions' for Teaser Tuesdays are shown below!

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers! 
• 
  
• My teaser begins below: a full review will follow when I have finished this very interesting book !
  
• 
  
• ... There is pause, til the jug is fetched and the boy has gone. This time, he does the pouring himself. The old men exchange glances again and one says, "the magister believes that he would dislike the English climate. The fogs.And also, the island is covered with witches. "......"
•  
• From "Wolf Hall" by Hillary Mantel
• 
  
• 
  
•  
  

While Visions of Monolines Danced In My Head

These practice sheets account for several hours

trying to master simple monoline letter forms!

PS: I just had to add back the word verification thing back on comments. I apologize, for that  but recently I have been getting robo 'anonymous' comments. I hope that you will consider leaving me a note anyway!  Hopefully, I'll be able to take it off soon!

I have been fascinated by lovely handwriting & calligraphy since I was quite young. My mother had a very distinctive hand & I've never seen any other handwriting like hers was....so I guess that she was really the reason that I became intrigued by & desirous of a 'good hand'. I've always been a pen addict - and colored pencils, markers, & paints of all varieties - and have used only fountain pens for everyday use for years. Yes, there is a large & active group of pen obsessed, ink fascinated folks. One of the places that penophiles/stylophiles can be found is at the Fountain Pen Network. They are a really great group and my association with them over the last couple of years has made me want to really learn something more about calligraphy & letterforms.

Because of where I live there have been no options for learning true calligraphy. Luckily Creative Workshops & founder Gail Schmidt,  found a great teacher in Martha Lever who is teaching two wonderful, calligraphy oriented classes. One is just plain fun. Called, aptly enough 'Calligrafun'. The other class that just began on Monday, November 11 is called 'Italic Calligraphy' and is is a more structured, formal approach to learning the Italic letterforms. I am thrilled that these classes are availble to me now!

 

This is the first page I started with. These are called monoline forms - & they are more difficult than they may appear. Just getting the right shape for the 'a' is difficult let alone the spacing issues I obviously have !

 

Getting better at the end of my "school" day. Still a long way to go.

I cannot wait to become good enough to skillfully use what I learn on my quilts!

Although It May Appear That I Fell Off the Edge Into The Great Abyss ...

I cannot believe how long it has been - and I really have no good reason to offer. Spouse, as I mentioned previously, was off until last Sunday. I have been working, but working on deadline projects - and I've had little time to post.

I made a series of "N" ATC's for a 'use the letter N' swap and, since I love the Duc DuBerry's Les Tres Riches Heures (this book of hours always rocks my boat) when I heard that we needed to use the letter N I immediately thought of DuBerry's "November". I used a miniature along with other "n" words ringing the card. The cards themselves are made from Etal metal covered materials. Etal was rather popular some time back but right now I cannot find them on a quick Google (or Bing) search I think that perhaps they are no longer. You can see and read about the stuff though on this Australian site. Too bad they are no longer popular because the metal covered material was really interesting and adds a nice heft to ATC's..... glad I bought a scrap bag of it when I did!

 

These are a few more ATC's I made as "thank-you's" & also for a 'personal' swap with Darlene Pringle from Roses On My Table's   ATC swap group. My little card "Be Peace" actually is much brighter than this photo reveals. It's copper leafed with a green mottles background.

So that's what I have been doing for a bit of my time. I have also taken a bit of extra time off to catch up on some online classes - and that has been great to do. I am taking a wonderful online calligraphy class from Martha Lever through Creative Workshops. It's a great class that has only began yesterday - and Martha also offers a wonderful class called "Calligrafun" which is one of my catch ups. Creative Workshops is run by artist Gail Schmidt and there are some really wonderful classes in the lin up. What I especially like about class offerings through Creative Workshops is that the classes are always available - they don;t 'disappear' when the class ends - so it's easy to take the lessons really on your schedule - even if you wait for a long time for one reason or another - i.e. life happening !

I may even have a second post for tomorrow about my adventures in Italic land! Monoline ah ha!