my wall

a new apartment, a new wall to decorate. actually, there are lots and lots of walls. I'm a bit overwhelmed. but after a flurry of hammering, i have my "collection wall" started with a mix of old and new. note: sewing pins, the kinds with the plastic spherical heads, are my new favorite nails.

a lovely seattle poster from ork posters. i've had this one for a long time, but could never find the right frame. so i finally gave up and decided to use some old hangers that i snagged from our last place.

a mish mosh of flea market finds and an elephant man print by matt cipov. i got it in a grab bag at art vs. craft in milwaukee years ago. it was just waiting for a good home.

the old spools were found in a drawer in sewing table I bought at Goodwill. the sewing table is the wonderful vintage kind with an old black enameled sewing machine tucked inside. it's beautiful. and the spools were an unexpected, welcome surprise.


home sweet home.

lazy Sunday

I haven't felt like doing a ding-dong thing today. I don't have any pictures to share, no fancy art or drawings to post. Nothing.

This weekend has consisted of the following:
- transferring many many gigabytes worth of files from old PC to newish Mac. Boring and tedious, but the end result is soooo worth it.
- washing dog after a muddy stinky trip to the park.
- napping.
- taking many photos of new earring creations. several are up in the shop now.
- dinking around on the banjo uke.
- a trip to the library.
- planning out flower beds.
- going out for a delicious bloody mary and breakfast with Dave.
- Goodwill shopping.
- More napping with a warm dog.

Yep. Mundane. Happy. Overall good.

Danny boy

An Irish delight.

twangy twang

I am very excited about the new (old) little instrument in my life. Behold my Stella Banjo Ukulele.

The ukulele has become a bit of a new obsession for me after spotting my grandfather's old uke at my aunt's house in California. I plunked around on it awkwardly while my brother told me how my grandfather used to play "My dog has fleas." For whatever reason I never heard Grandpa play, but it still tickles me that he had the ukulele. I took a picture of it:


Last Saturday I was browsing the incredible Dusty Strings in Fremont, which just happens to have an entire wall of beautiful ukuleles. I had always imagined that ukes were cheap, almost toy-like instruments. Ha. My error. My dreams were dashed a bit when I realized that I did not have the kind of cash to fork over for one of those beautiful little instruments. I kind of fell in love with an old Banjo Uke they had hanging on the wall, and I decided that this would be my new thing just as soon as I found the money.

After a few days of obsessing, let's just say that a reasonable bid was placed and a PayPal account was tapped, and on Saturday the mailman dropped a lovely brown paper package on my doorstep with a thunk. And the love affair has begun. There are lessons in my future, but in 24 hours I've taught myself how to tune the bugger and play a handful of useful chords. She's loud and boisterous and I adore her.

five senses friday

I'm playing along with abby's five senses friday! Hooray! Below you will find three hours worth of friday.

i taste:
- fresh apples with beecher's flagship cheese, my new favorite combination.
- chewable vitamin c tablets, tart and sweet like candy.
- the absence of coffee. need. some. now.

i smell:
- my jasmine plant, near the end of full bloom.
- rosemary hand lotion and lavender deodorant. i enjoy smelling like an herb garden.
- the dusty earthiness of dog's paws, stretched out in my face at 6:30 this morning.

i see:
- mt. rainier in the distance, still mostly snow.
- geese floating motionless in the bay.
- books, my treasures.

i feel:
- the scruff of dog's fur.
- dave shaking me to wake up. (i hate this.)
- the awkward rub of my polished toes against slick new shoes.

i hear:
- click and hum of the busy printer.
- the white noise of my breath and the ventilation system overhead.
- a happy happy friday song, which played on the radio at 7:18 this morning and is now stuck like glue. that's ok. i like it.


Thanks for letting me play, abby!

back off.

sometimes it takes a good doodle to make things feel better.

yes. much better.

cloud

i made a word cloud at wordle. i rather like it.

clikkit to make 'er bigger

dance

I spent last weekend in San Francisco for my grandmother's funeral. It wasn't a sad event. She was very old and not doing so well, so really it felt more of a relief. The best part was flipping through ancient photo albums, and realizing that my grandparents were indeed young and wonderful and full of spirit. Verification.

The photographs of them dancing make me buzz with happiness.


If you look very closely, you can see my grandmother's cigarette dangling from her hand while she danced in the kitchen.