anniversary

 the 23rd was our 33rd wedding anniversary... that's a long time and it's been what most marriages are... good times, some not so much, struggles, triumphs, lessons, adventures and enough goodness and love to keep it going.  my very sweet dear dh came home with these flowers (proteas), a whole fresh crab and a delicious after-dinner wine... and fixed dinner for me.  just couldn't ask for more.... winner!!  that was anniversary eve.  on the actual anniversary day, (which was thanksgiving eve),

Chris, Kate and kids arrived and we all went out for Thai dinner in Forest Grove.  then there was the tgiving feast day at Jen and Maggie's home... wonderful family gathering with lots of traditional foods... plus 7 pies (i want to know how that happened because i want a repeat!!)  21 people and 7 pies!?  oh my dear goddess of goodness... i ate so much over the last 3 days that i hurt myself... in a good way... sort of.  and then today is Kate's birthday.  it's probably a good thing that they left for home at about noon, before i could make a cake and arrange more feasting.  i'm not sure i could have done another day of that kind of eating.

anyway... i really love these flowers.  they are really exotic looking and Lynne tells me that if i keep changing the water they will last a really long time.  so i will.

time

 for Anna, Judy and Pam... so they can see what's going on with this latest project, which eventually will hang on a wall.  i've discovered the joy of fusing fabric and it is SO much fun.  and i have a huge collection of old watches, most of them i've worn at some time and some are old watches that DeDe, my 2nd mom, had stashed away.  also, i have my mom's and my grandmother's watches. i've always wanted to do something with them, so here is the project.  and it is called "it's about time", with references to old time-worn sayings (sorry) (not really) and quotes relating to time... "time flies", "time on my hands" etc.  if you have any you'd like to suggest.. please leave a comment.  all suggestions are welcome!

so, i've been busy fusing pieces of fabric, cutting out shapes trying to find the best placement for them.  so far, the only thing that's been fused to the background is the tree.  everything else is awaiting its permanent location.  at the bottom right i have pieces i've cut from a very worn and ragged quilt that my great-grandmother made for me way back at the beginning of time.  the quilt top is so worn out and tattered that there's really no way to restore it, so i decided the best way to honor the work of my great-gramma's hands was to include pieces of the quilt here!  it's hard to see, but there's a watch face there.  also, planning to do some beading and hand stitching.  it's a long-term project and so far i'm enjoying it.

some of the watches and pieces  --------

my life as a turkey

now... that's a grabber, isn't it?  watched a fascinating program last night on PBS with that title.. about a dude named Joe Hutto who is a writer and naturalist.  someone brought him 16 newly laid wild turkey eggs  and he incubated them til they hatched, became their "mother" as it were and raised them in the outback of florida until they were finally grown and left.  it was really a touching story and fascinating to watch this guy devote a year of his life to raising up these turkeys.  people and turkeys are so very interesting.......

i LOVE PBS!

and here's a quote for today, having nothing to do with PBS:  "if you go through life with your head in the sand, all that people will see is an ass".  can't remember where i got that, so no attribution.  sorry.....

on creativity

this is brilliant... inspiring and i'm so glad i watched it!!

http://www.ted.com/talks/elizabeth_gilbert_on_genius.html#.Tqq8PMbhUj4.facebook

a really fine week!!

Anna with the grape crushing/wine making crew... Jim and James

it's been a year since Anna and i have gotten together... too long between visits!  she arrived last wed. around noonish and we headed straight for Maggie's Buns in forest grove, one of our favorite places for excellent food, indescribable chocolate creations, and an interior decor which is whimsical, arty, tacky,  and the staff is always welcoming.  they catered my dad's memorial event and i can't say enough good about what they did for us!!  so, we had a huge and fabulous lunch, and took home some dinner for jim and chocolate treats for us.  after over-stuffing our faces, we thought there was no way we'd want anything else to eat for the day.  but we managed to make room for cheese and crackers and wine for supper and that was perfect!

on thursday we went to portland center stage for the matinee of "Oklahoma!" and i loved it just as much as the first time i saw it 3 weeks ago!!  this has never been one of my favorite musicals... until this production and i gotta say it was outstanding and fabulous!  in his researching of the history of the Oklahoma territory in the 19th century, the director, Chris Coleman, learned that there were over 50 all African-American towns and that one in three American cowboys was black.  he decided to do this production with an all African-American cast and boy howdy did he come up with some high caliber talent.  the bios in the program of the cast and creative team are amazing... and they proved themselves on stage.  in case there is any doubt... i really really loved this play!

after the play we made a visit to the Penzey Spice store where i always find more spices to add to my pantry.  Anna found some, too... like how could she not?  by then we were, of course, hungry again so stopped at a sports bar for juicy burger and tater tots.

the rest of our time we mostly spent shopping and eating... good will, some "antique" (junk) shops, mexican food, art sales gallery(Valley Art), Thai food, a community theater play which is best forgotten, brunch at the Hands On Cafe at the Oregon Art School, perused their gallery and found nothing i could remotely afford.  we spent one rainy day just hanging out at home watching movies... and snacking.  the week also included a nap on most days, which we desperately needed after all that shopping and eating!  also had time to discuss our lives, adventures, opinions... and to put forth our solutions for all the problems of the world.  it was a productive and satisfying time and i was sad to see Anna leave.