Arizona Bound

It is incredibly cold, dim and crappy in Eastern Wisconsin today; so much so that Tasha had a fender-bender in the rainstorm and I decorated my coat with turquoise sharpie ink after dropping the marker from my cold-numbed fingers. And the wind . . . don't get me started on the wind. Here are my compensating factors, in no particular order:

• The trip to Arizona, of course. This time tomorrow I will be baking in the warmth. Nothing can dim my pleasure at that thought - not even the $40 that Continental rocked me for my checked bags.


• Happiness is a warm puppy. Need I say more?


• My applications to seminary and for the upcoming art show are complete, sealed, and on their way to their respective destinations. One more thing off my plate!


• Rick, in a suit, on Saturday. Res ipsa locuitur.


• Pete and Sara of Sheboygan Monument, who hired me yesterday to write the weekly blogs for their website. This is going to be so much fun! I got to tour their showroom and workshop yesterday and made friends with their beautiful Blue Heeler, Range. (Rick would be so jealous of all the cool tools in Pete's workshop, and I'm jealous of his cozy wood stove!)

I still have a few things left on my "to do" list, but nothing critical. I want some earrings to match my green turquoise pendant and another pair to match my russet agate necklace. (I think I have appropriate materials in my work basket.) Also, I'm puttering with a design for a wool & sari silk purse; just a little thing to hold ID, keys & lipstick when I'm all dolled up on Saturday. I also need to pick out a knitting project for the trip, which is amazing to me since I usually have a half-dozen projects waiting in the cue. We'll just have to see what speaks to me - and what packs small, since I have no intention of adding any more checked bag charges to my bill!

Making Progress

The blue bag of distraction is done, felted twice, and will be taken to the leather lady this afternoon to be fitted with handles. I'll show you the end result, but it make take a little while to work our way down in her cue. And I'm back at the extreme brown shrug, which will probably be finished on the plane. Meanwhile, I finished my essay and other materials to apply for Chicago Theological Seminary. (GULP!) No idea how I would fund such a thing, especially since the deadline for financial aid for 2009 passed several weeks ago. But do you know the joke about the guy who keeps praying, "Lord, let me win the lottery. Lord, let me win the lottery." And God keeps answering, "Buy a ticket. Buy a ticket." Well, the application is my way of buying a ticket. We'll see where we go from there.

I'm also finishing up my application for the Alive in the Arts juried show in Plymouth, which will open in late Spring. I'm going to enter my "Wisconsin Scream," one of the train photos, and another image taken just a few days ago in Fremont. I'm calling it "Making Tracks." Apparently I'm feeling just a bit monochromatic. Let me know what you think.

And finally, just had to share this: http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=2539741. I wish I had a more elegant way to paste in the link, but if you have reasonably high speed access I strongly encourage you to check it out. It's a mix-up version of the classic song, Stand By Me, and it's wonderful. Also, I think the old blind guy with the white beard must be what angels look like. Enjoy.