Boy, are we tired!

**********

Copper's pooped! I mean he's really tired.

**********

This canna at the corner of my house actually has a bright orange bloom on it. My camera just can't handle that color!

My purple sage has been blooming this week. Aren't the colors just gorgeous together?

**********

I won the June ATC Jackpot on paperimagerydesigns Yahoo group. The designs come from the Paper Imagery Designs website. Here are the great ATC's I've received this past week. I should get some more this coming week, too.

Left: by Melissa H. Right: by Lori R.
~~~~

Left: by Wanda H. Right: by Kathy E.

~~~~

Left: by C.T. H. Right: by Angie H.
~~~~

Left: by Donna H. Right: by Tammy L.
~~~~

Left: by Eileen B. Right: by Daisy C.

**********

I made this altered CD for a "winged things" swap for the PID Yahoo group. The little girl is a PID design.

**********

Here are some ATC's I made on wood blanks for a swap of Goddesses of Myth and Mythology for the FiberArtTraders Yahoo group. The last one I will keep for myself.

**********

The saga of the feral cat is over! Animal Control came out and removed the offending animal at the end of a catch pole, hissing and clawing the whole way. What a relief! She had terrorized my MIL for the last few months, and had avoided every attempt to capture her. The poor animal never was socialized as a kitten, and so remained totally feral all of her life, even though she lived strictly indoors. She was not completely housetrained, and the carpets are a real mess.

This Tuesday the carpet cleaners will steam clean all the carpets and the upholstered furniture. I will take my MIL out of the house during this time. She wants to get a haircut, and then she will spend the afternoon at our house while DH supervises the cleaning at her house. She hasn't been out of her house in a few weeks, so it will be a nice change for her; she would only get anxious and upset if she stayed there.

Last weekend DH sprayed her house for bugs while I cleaned out half her kitchen cabinets. We threw away a large rolling trash bin full of expired food, some of it dating back to 1998. This weekend I finished the job; and also cleaned out her refrigerator and freezer, filling another trash bin, while DH vacuumed her carpets and chairs in preparation for the cleaners. She says she is so grateful for our hard work, but I am waiting for her to say something about us taking her stuff. This is what has happened in the past, and so much was thrown away that it is probably inevitable.

We are trying to keep her independent at least through October, when we will be gone for about a week to visit my FIL and his wife, and then attend my family reunion. My son will take care of her while we are gone. When we get back we will have to make some hard decisions for her welfare. She goes back to the neurologist in ten days to see how she has deteriorated.

**********

DH is hoping to get into the Master Gardener program on the 30th of this month. He enjoys working at a local nursery, even though he has to miss work about two or three days a month due to his illness. His boss is a cancer survivor, and understands his absences. There are a limited number of places in the MG program, but he plans on being there early to make sure he gets in.

**********

DS is still doing training for his Iraq deployment. He is excited about it, mainly for the boost it will give his Navy career. I try not to think about it too much. We haven't heard much from him or his family recently, but I trust everything is going well. My DIL is a very capable young woman and will handle his deployment with her usual aplomb.

**********

Goddesses and Cats

**********

I made these "spoon goddesses" from Wendy's plastic spoons colored with alcohol inks, polymer clay faces rubbed with Perfect Pearls powder, batting scraps, dupioni silk, and beads strung on wire.


They were the subject of Technique Week #3 on Fiber Art Traders Yahoo group.

~~~~~~~~~~

Then I made these Dotee Dolls for a F.A.T. trade. They have a flapper-look to them, don't they?


I used rubber stamps to make the faces, and fancy fabrics for the bodies.

~~~~~~~~~~

Bernard here is an ATC I did for the Black and White Challenge for the Paper Imagery Designs Yahoo group. The title is a wordplay on the song title and the phone book page I used for the background.

~~~~~~~~~~

I received my last button fairy, from Barb E. I love her face! Her wings are stiffened fiber paper over a wire frame.

~~~~~~~~~~

The feral cat saga continues! We trapped the most offensive outside cat and took her to the pound. Now we are trying to trap the inside feral cat. We had it trapped today, but MIL felt sorry for it and tried to slip some water inside the trap with predictable results. It took refuge in her bathroom behind the toilet. When we got there three hours later, she didn't remember letting it escape from the trap. We tried to capture it with a bedsheet (and leather gloves!) but the little spitfire got away leaving us bloodied in the process. So we re-set the trap with food and left it for another try. We have left signs on the doors reminding her not to do anything with the cat, but to call us when and if it gets caught again. MIL wants it gone no matter how we have to do it, but we want to be as humane as possible and not injure the cat.

**********

Sunny day

**********

It was a beautiful day today, and I had lunch with a couple of good friends at the local Art Center. While there we toured the galleries and the gift shop. There were exhibitions by the Texas Watercolor Society, the Southwest Sculpture Society, and the South Texas Art League. But the exhibit we went to see was the Fiber Arts Society Show. There were quilts on exhibit that covered almost every technique you could think of, and it was interesting to examine each quilt and discuss the methods used to make them. I wish I could have taken photos of the quilts, but that is frowned upon. But I did take these photos of the marina on the bayfront. This was the view we had while eating lunch.

~~~~~~~~~~

This ATC is for a Floral Challenge, again involving images from Paper Imagery Designs. Using the design called 'Nia', I called this one zinNIAs. I used printed tissue paper, a rubber stamp, and a clipping from a seed catalog, plus a photo of a zinnia bloom to place behind Nia's head.

~~~~~~~~~~

This button fairy arrived today from Leslie C. in Tallahassee, FL. I love her wings! The Roman coin button for the face is an interesting touch. Thanks, Leslie!

~~~~~~~~~~

Little sweet things

**********

This little anole, less than two inches long from nose to the tip of his tail, crawled across my window yesterday. You can see his internal organs through his tummy! (Boy, I guess I need to wash my window, huh? It gets splashed on when hubby waters his plants underneath it.)

~~~~~~~~~~

This hibiscus is named "Ice Cream Float." The bloom is about 6" across. It is blooming on our patio right now.

~~~~~~~~~~

This button fairy is named Audrey, and comes from Pam P. in Carrollton, TX. It's hard to see, but she has a teeny-tiny necklace with a pink bead on it! I love her antennae, too.

~~~~~~~~~~

These two ATCs were made using images from Paper Imagery Designs. I coated them with a mix of gel medium and glitter glue to make them really shimmer in the light. The top one (Nia) has another coating of an olive green ink under the glitter layer. The bottom one (Elizabeth) has a light smear of tan ink which I then wiped off. They are both made on wood bases.

**********

Inchies

**********

Here are twenty inchies that I made for a swap. I've never made any before, so i hope they will be up to standards. I wish I could take a sharper photo, but this was the best of many that I took.

**********

Pendants

**********

I received all three of my painted paper towel pendants, and although the pictures are a little blurry, the pendants are fabulous! The one below is from Meg L., who added copper foil around the edges, and copper wire and beads to the front.

She also sent this piece of really funky fabric--I love it.




This one is from Gloria S. and has a large wooden bead on it with a button and some rattail cord.
She also sent fabric that she bought in Japan; some buttons, yarn, and extra cording to hang it from. Very nice of her to send extra goodies, wasn't it?



The third one is from Kathy H. It's hard to tell from the bad photo, but the pendant is teal with yellow dimensional flowers on it. There are hot-fix crystals on it as well. Very pretty!

**********

I finished up some amulets today for a swap. The top one is mine. The talisman is a doggie angel pin that I was given when Monty died. I think of Monty and Maggie as my guardian angels. This photo shows the inside of the amulet.

These three are the ones for the trade; I won't show the talismans because I want them to be a surprise. This shows how the amulet fastens closed with a small skewer. These are made with felt that has been sealed with gel medium and and colored with alcohol inks. They feel like leather.


My next swaps are 20 inchies for mmartfriends and some Dotee dolls for FiberArtTraders. I've started on the inchies and will try to get some decent photos of them to post when they are finished.

**********

My MIL is really confused sometimes. A few days ago she left a message on our answering machine asking for DH, then me, then DS #2, and finally DS #1, who hasn't lived at home for nearly 10 years! At least she remembered his name. She asked DH to get rid of her outdoor stray cats because they hiss and swipe at her when she feeds them. I bought a Hav-a-hart trap for him to use, but by that evening she called and said she had "forgiven" the cats and no longer wanted to get rid of them. Today she had changed her mind again. This time they are going whether she wants them to or not. We don't want them giving her some disease or an infection.
Her inside feral cat does scratch her occasionally and it will be the next one to go.

She had a problem with her answering machine, and asked me to replace it. I bought her a good one with simple operation, and DH and DS put it in for her and showed her how to use it. The next day I went with DH to check on her. She asked what she should do with the old phone that no longer works. DH told her to trash it, and I motioned to him to take it with us so she wouldn't dig it out of the trash and want to get it fixed. That evening she called and left a message that she wanted it back so she could use it in another room. The next day she told DH that if I wanted her phone that badly I could have asked her for it and she would have given it to me, instead of me "stealing it" from her! Although I know logically that she does not understand what is going on, it hurts to think that she still doesn't trust me.

She is still wearing her Lifeline panic button, and the new unit is working properly. At least we know that she can call for help if she falls. I don't know how long it will be before she takes it off, though.

**********

I was installed as Martha in Eastern Star this past weekend. Martha is one of the Star Points, and that is all I can tell you. I have been studying hard and intend to blow everyone away with my phenomenal memory (yeah, right!) I will more likely forget my lines and have to be prompted. I enjoy Eastern Star--I have met so many nice people and have made lots of friends.

This Friday I have a Red Hat luncheon where one of the members will be "reduating"--turning 50. Now she can officially wear red and purple instead of pink and lavender (ugh!) I enjoy Red Hat Society meetings even more than Eastern Star. We have so much fun and laughter at our meetings that it always lifts my mood. For a couple of hours I can forget all the difficulties with MIL and just have a gabfest.

We still haven't finished painting the woodwork in the bathroom, but we are slowly getting along with it. Most of it has the first coat on it, and the vanity has two coats on it. We still need to put the door handles and drawer pull on it, though. I will be so glad to get this finished.

**********

Surprise!

**********

DH planted these two coleus plants in the front flowerbed. They're a really intense lime green. The flowerbed is now full, and very colorful.

**********

I won a "door prize" at a birthday party online at FiberArtTraders, a Yahoo group I am in. I received it today, and am so thrilled with it! Look at all I got (donated by Dove S.!)

There are six coordinating fat quarters--I love the spaceship theme! Also a small handmade heart pin, a bag of yoyos, and a kit for making the heart ornaments (Comfort and Joy by Nancy Taylor.)


Dove also included this lovely handmade box, beautifully done, which opens up to reveal three drawers. Isn't this great? I will probably keep my charms organized in this. (FAT stands for FiberArtTraders--it's not a comment on my shape, however appropriate!)




All this was packed in this gorgeous hatbox! How did she know that I was a Red Hat lady? I always need another hatbox for my numerous red and purple hats! And this one is particularly nice.


Thank you for your generosity, Dove! I love everything you sent. May the creativity fairy sit on your shoulder in perpetuity!

**********

I had a disturbing encounter last evening. I was sitting in the backyard, enjoying the warm breeze, when I heard a disturbance two houses down. The man was yelling at his dog, and as I watched he reared back and kicked it with all his might! Instinctively I yelled at him to cut it out or I would call the ASPCA on him. He responded with a stream of the most vitriolic invective I have heard in a long time, calling me every name he could think of, spitting at me and using obscene gestures and language. His school aged children were in the yard with him. He obviously has an anger management problem. He was still cursing at me ten minutes later. I am now afraid that he might try to exact retribution by harming Copper or by vandalizing our property in some way. If he makes the slightest move in our direction I will not hesitate to call the police--he really frightens me. I suspect that the kids and wife are probably treated in the same way as his dog. He has verbally attacked the neighbor who lives between us, as well.

I hate this neighborhood! Although the climate here is beautiful most of the year, if I had the means I would leave in a heartbeat. Some of our neighbors are friendly, but I hate living in fear.
We are unable to move, unfortunately. We live on a greatly reduced income now. I am tired of the racial tensions and high crime rate in this area. Our outdoor cable box has been tagged by gang members, we've had things stolen out of the yard numerous times, and now a neighbor who is obviously unstable and dangerous lives two doors away. I will no longer be comfortable relaxing in my own backyard. End of rant.

**********