A heart is not judged by how much you love, but how much you are loved by others.
~L. Frank Baum, Wizard of Oz
Sunday Evening Art Gallery — Hearts
Author: humoringthegoddess
I am a writer of fantasy fiction that often surrounds middle-aged women. I am a married mother of two and granny to three, a BoHo Chic kinda gal. I am recently retired and busier than when I worked 9-5. But writing and blogging is my main game.
Alice … (Repost)
I read this the other morning and thought it was delightful, insightful, and repostable! Enjoy Georgiann and her writings at https://gigisrantsandraves.wordpress.com/.
Alice …
“Why didn’t you stay in Wonderland?” he asked, hands in pockets, as he walked along next to her. “I think I would have stayed.”
“If you found Wonderland, it would have been a completely different experience,” said Alice. “It would have been a Wonderland tailored just for you. It’s that way with everything, especially in out-of-the-way-places.”
“You mean places no one is supposed to know about?”
“I think certain people are supposed to know about those places, either by design or, accident. It’s their destiny.”
“Tell me again. What was it like?”
“It seems tighter,” she said, pressing her arms against her sides, Closer. The sky felt lower. It’s definitely lusher. Sizes don’t always make sense. Plants and animals can speak. The colors are deeper and alive. There is danger and beauty. There are people who might be considered a bit off, by our standers. It’s more colorful, but the Queen…well, she’s a bit of a…”
“Problem,” he asked?
“She was unhappy. Once I realized that, we chatted over tea, and she felt a lot better. It’s not that she didn’t want to be Queen, it’s that her husband was boring, and not at all supportive or helpful. She was hoping for the love of her life and instead, she ended up with Mr. Bland. She was angry because she never felt loved or appreciated. He never surprised her, or romanced her. He was no fun at all, so her anger turned into rage and ended up being directed at the people themselves.”
“I can understand her dilemma, but she shouldn’t have taken it on on the masses.”
“I don’t think she realized that’s what was happening. I told her to get a divorce and marry some hot young guy who liked to dance and party.”
“What did she say?”
“She hugged me and called her lawyer. I think Wonderland itself let out a huge sigh of relief. She felt trapped, was waiting for permission to move forward and get rid of the person who was breaking her heart. She wasn’t sure a Queen could do that. She baked a lot of tarts, believe me. She said it took her mind off of him and she always burned a few pretending they were him.”
“Harsh.”
“You never met him. I don’t think he would have realized he was on fire.”
“That says a lot.”
“Indeed. Now double it.”
“What about the Mad Hatter?”
“He was lovely and I don’t think he was mad as much as passionate. He loved creating hats. His passion was so large, it couldn’t be contained, and that’s why some believed him to be mad, when he was just unbelievably happy and excited.”
“Did you tell that to him?”
“I did and we danced for an hour, while he threw flowers and ribbons into the air.”
“That must have been interesting.”
“It was fun. We laughed…a lot. He also made me another hat.”
“The blue one with the pink and white feathers?”
She nodded.
“It’s my favorite.”
“Mine too.”
“Tell me about the White Rabbit.”
“One pill makes you taller and one pill makes you small…. He was kind of in charge of the drug situation in Wonderland. He’s the one who put the bottles in the foyer. The bottles I drank. I got big, then small. But I don’t really know what he gave me. He’s quite a gentleman, dresses well, uses a monocle, which I don’t think he needs, it’s more for effect. He’s polite, knows how to pour tea and he keeps in touch with everyone.”
“The Dormouse?”
“Adorable. Sleepy, but so cute. I doubt he would like to be described in that way, but it’s a true telling. I think he has magic but he’s too tired to participate in anything. I don’t know if the Rabbit is his dealer, but if he is, he needs to cut back on whatever he’s giving him. It’s possible he just eats to much cake. There is a LOT of cake at the Tea Parties. I’m not sure which it is.
As for the Tweedles. Scary twins. At least when I first saw them They looked like rubber balls with heads, stripped t-shirts and matching beanies. Not the brightest crayons in the box, that’s for sure. But once I got to know them, I liked them. They didn’t have many friends, so were a bit out of touch. I never met their parents, if they had any. I used to tell them stories, now and then. They liked that. I don’t think anyone spent enough time with them while they were growing up.”
“Cat?”
“He was the best. Imagine a cat who could disappear and leave his smile for everyone to see. So funny. Although he didn’t think it was funny. At least not at first. We became very good friends. I’m a cat person and he could tell. He did love to tease people and push them as far as he could.”
“It seems as everyone was starving for attention.”
“They were,” said Alice. “It’s different there. While they are always willing to help each other, and they do have remarkably strong friendships, as children, they all seem to have been neglected. Aren’t you going to ask about the caterpillar?”
“Next on the list.”
“It is absolutely the strangest thing to hear a caterpillar start talking to you,” she said, smiling. “I thought someone was playing a trick on me and hiding somewhere, throwing his voice. But no, the caterpillar had quite a lot to say, he’s also usually as high as a kite. I don’t think he liked me at all, at least not in the beginning. Wonderland is orderly and my appearance threw everything out of wack. He did have some good advice, while looking down his many legs at me. I think we were okay with each other by the time I left.”
“Tell me about the Kraken.”
“Poor thing,” she said, looking down.
“If you don’t want to talk about it, I’ll understand.”
Alice sighed and said, “He wasn’t anyone to be afraid of. All the fear directed at him made him so unhappy. He just wanted to be treated kindly, to live is own life, his own way. He had the same dreams as everyone else, but no one asked him how he felt, or what he needed. People are cruel. I guess it doesn’t matter where they are.”
“Again, why didn’t you stay there?”
Alice shrugged. “In the end, I just didn’t belong. I’m not sure I belong here either, but I know this place. Wonderland felt like living in a dream where everyone dressed up and everything was alive. It was exciting at first but most everything can lose it’s rosy glow, after awhile.”
“That’s true.”
“It wasn’t easy to leave. I made good friends in Wonderland. Friends who wanted me to stay.”
“I’m sure they knew they would miss you.”
“I think I can find Wonderland again,” she said, her eyes glistening, her smile bright. “I’m planning to go back for a visit.”
“Can you take me along?” he asked, excitedly.
“I don’t know,” she answered, honestly. “But I can try and find out.”
Where Do You Get Your Inspiration?
It’s a quiet Sunday morning (except for my barking dog on the front deck). I have just posted my Sunday Evening Art Gallery blog about an artist from South Korea who paints whimsical landscapes and, although I know she went on a 673-day journey across five continents and 46 countries, I wonder what inspired her to paint a snow white horse with trees on its neck or a green grassy door that opens to a snowy world.
I think many of us get wild ideas for doing creative things. Lots of What If’s. Most of them we pass on for a variety of reasons: it’s too crazy; I can’t afford the materials; I’m not really clear on the idea; I don’t have the right color pencils or yarn.
I can see landscapes inspiring painters and fashion inspiring designers. I can see photography of anything imaginable leading to unique images and ancient scrolls inspiring calligraphy.
But what inspires artists like Meg Hitchcock to use type from sacred texts to create optical designs? What inspires Freya Jobbins to make heads out of baby doll parts? Or deconstructed vases by Michael Boroniec? Who thinks of photographing iron filings clinging to magnetic fields like Zac Henderson? Who comes up with an installation art idea of desk lamps running up the hill like Rune Guneriussen? What inspires a transformation of an apple into playful sculptures like Can Sun? Or paint your face in a dozen bizarre evolutions like Dain Yoon?
Where in the world do they come up with these ideas??
I am always amazed by people and their inspiration, and the way their moment can be transformed into something totally out of the box.
I don’t always get what others get when it comes to figuring out an artist’s motivation and direction. But I do appreciate their determination to follow through on whatever hunch or thought they had to get where they were going.
If that makes sense.
I encourage you to try something you’ve always wondered about but were afraid to tackle. Who cares if it makes the Art Biennale of Venice art show or not? It’s a freeing feeling to go whole hog on something not everyone will understand. Even better if people DO understand what you’re doing!
I’m soooo tempted to do something pop art and textured with glued pop can tabs and a gold rhinestone or two and zig zags and …..
Slow down or go for it? Or Add it to the list?
Sunday Evening Art Gallery — Mulgil Kim
Mulgil Kim (b. 1988) is a South Korean artist whose work explores emotional landscapes through serene, nature-inspired imagery.
She is an artist known for her ability to capture the world’s beauty through the ‘Art Road’ project.
This ambitious initiative involved a 673-day journey across five continents and 46 countries, during which she created over 400 artworks, reflecting her daily impressions, thoughts, and discoveries.
After returning to Korea, Kim continued the project on a national scale, renaming it ‘National Art Road‘ and exploring Korea’s landscapes, seasons, and communities.
Kim’s vibrant and expressive works offer a window into the places she visited, preserving their essence.
Through her art, she captures the changing seasons and the beauty of human interactions, highlighting Korea’s natural and cultural diversity.
“Ultimately, my art is about connection — to nature, to imagination, to memory, and to the softer parts of ourselves that are often left behind in the rush of daily life,” Kim shares.
“At the heart of my work is an invitation to pause — to create a quiet space where viewers can breathe, reflect, and gently reconnect with their own emotions.”
More of Mulgil Kim’s lovely work can be found at https://www.kimmulgil.com/.
Faerie Paths — Cats and Dogs
Dogs eat. Cats dine.
~ Ann Taylor
Looking Back — Optical Illusions
The Sunday Evening Art Gallery is full of magical, unique, one-of-a-kind artists with one-of-a-kind art.
I hope that if you see something that tickles your fancy you tell your friends to come check out the numerous galleries waiting for exploration.
No charge, no promos — just unique art. One Gallery at a Time.
This visit let’s take a look at …Optical Illusions ….
(Be sire to click on the name for more images!)
Guido Daniele
Liu Bolin
Alain Delorme
Valeriya Kutsan
Mandalas
Alex Chinneck
Dmitry Lamonov
Optical Illusions
David Zinn
Randall Rosenthal
Dain Yoon
Shadow Art
Sunday Evening Art Gallery –Stan Lee
Stan Lee (born Stanley Martin Lieber), 1922 –2018, was an American comic book writer, editor, publisher, and producer.
Lee rose through the ranks of a family-run business called Timely Comics which later became Marvel Comics.
He was Marvel’s primary creative leader for two decades, expanding it from a small publishing house division to a multimedia corporation that dominated the comics and film industries.
Lee created a rich collection of characters out of his nonstop plotting sessions with his artists, including the Fantastic Four, Spider-Man, Thor, Iron Man, the Hulk, the X-Men, and more.
These and other characters’ introductions in the 1960s pioneered a more naturalistic approach in superhero comics.
Lee was particularly known for his dynamism with copy and for imbuing his characters with a sense of humanity, tackling real-world issues like bigotry and drug use, which would influence comics for decades.
He created a revolution in the comic world through his satirical writing, bringing the elements of the real world into the world of superheroes, making his superheroes viable and responsible.
More about Stan Lee’s remarkable career can be found at https://therealstanlee.com/..
Faerie Paths — Mysticism
Mysticism is not about escaping reality, but about diving deeper into it and discovering its true essence.
~ Eckhart Tolle
Why Blocks?
You know how old people like change.
I think of my mental state as still competent if not a little slo mo. I grasp new content and directions and thoughts with much enthusiasm, even if my retainment level is questionable.
I am not happy with WordPress these days, though.
I didn’t create my blog using blocks. I don’t like blocks. I don’t want blocks.
I get it I get it — it probably is much easier for today’s younger bloggers. Like the whole world of computers and AI, move forward or live forever in the gray.
But I still don’t like blocks.
So I find myself duplicating old blogs and retitling and rewriting copy and images and rechecking the boxes so my blog matches my categories.
Yes, there is a way to get into classic mode, but it’s so convoluted it’s easier to cut and paste the old fashioned way.
What is wrong with me?
Is it that once we get older we get stuck at roadblocks and would rather make a new road rather than go through the alternate route?
Are we that stubborn as to give up learning something new just because we don’t really “get it”?
Or are we just stubborn old fools?
I hate the word OLD. Any form, any insinuation. The word instantly puts a connotation in others minds that we’re worn out, useless, and out of date with the world.
Yet I find myself putting my toes in that pool all the time.
I hate not being able to learn as quickly and thoroughly as I used to. And I hate letting myself get worked up over something that I’ve already found an alternate for.
My husband says I always make things harder on myself… that I do everything the LONG way.
He may be right. After all, I do love the song “Take the Long Way Home” by Supertramp …..
Does it feel that your life’s become a catastrophe?
Oh, it has to be
For you to grow, boy
When you look through the years and see what you could have been
Oh, what you might have been
If you would have more time
So, when the day comes to settle down,
Who’s to blame if you’re not around?
You took the long way home
You took the long way home….
Sunday Evening Art Gallery — Kazimir Malevich
Kazimir Severinovich Malevich (February 23, 1878 – May 15, 1935) was a painter and art theoretician, pioneer of geometric abstract art and the originator of the Avant-garde Suprematist movement.
Malevich, who was born to parents of Polish origin, studied drawing in Kyiv and then attended the Stroganov School in Moscow and the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture, and Architecture.
Malevich was the founder of the artistic and philosophical school of Suprematism, and his ideas about forms and meaning in art would eventually constitute the theoretical underpinnings of non-objective, or abstract, art.
He worked in a variety of styles, but his most important and famous works concentrated on the exploration of pure geometric forms (squares, triangles, and circles) and their relationships to each other and within the pictorial space.
Because of his contacts in the West, Malevich was able to transmit his ideas about painting to his fellow artists in Europe and the United States, thus profoundly influencing the evolution of modern art.
Malevich worked in a variety of styles, but he is mostly known for his contribution to the formation of a true Russian avant-garde post-World War I through his own unique philosophy of perception and painting, which he termed Suprematism.
He invented this term because, ultimately, he believed that art should transcend subject matter — the truth of shape and color should reign ‘supreme’ over the image or narrative.
The term suprematism refers to an abstract art based upon “the supremacy of pure artistic feeling” rather than on the figurative depiction of real-life subjects.
More radical than the Cubists or Futurists, at the same time that his Suprematist compositions proclaimed that paintings were composed of flat, abstract areas of paint, they also served up powerful and multi-layered symbols and mystical feelings of time and space.
More of Malevich’s wonderful abstract paintings can be found at Kazimi https://kazimir-malevich.org/,
My Journey — Doors
Last spring my husband and I visited Paris, Rome, and Florence. For two weeks I was in heaven. I had never seen anything like it — the history, the craftmanship, the food. I doubt I ever will again.
One of my favorite pastimes was to take photos of doors. They have the most WONDERFUL doors in the world over there.
I thought from time to time I would share these with you.
Open one and see where it leads!
Sunday Evening Art Gallery — Helen Gordon
Helen Gordon is a sculptor and painter living and working in Chew Valley, England.
Born in Warwickshire, Helen moved to the West Country, firstly to read European Studies at The University of Bath in 1981.
Having always led a creative life, whether painting in water colors, interior design or garden design, Gordon’s focus for the past fifteen years has been sculpting.
After developing her skills on a ceramics course at The Bristol School of Art, she instantly showed great aptitude, and was hooked.
Creating both animal and figurative sculpture, her pieces tend towards being quirky and amusing and certainly eclectic.
Helen works primarily in wax and clay and most of her pieces are limited editions and are cast in bronze or cold cast bronze resin.
“If a finished sculpture makes me smile then I am satisfied.” Gordon shares.
“If a viewer stops for just one moment to view, reflect and, above all, smile at a piece I have created, then I feel I have succeeded in my work.”
More of Helen Gordon’s sculptures can be found at https://www.helengordonsculpture.co.uk/
Faerie Paths — Fire
The most powerful weapon on earth is the human soul on fire.
~ Ferdinand Foch
Sunday Evening Art Gallery — Sam Cox
Sam Cox, known professionally as Mr. Doodle, is an illustrator and artist from Kent, England.
Cox studied illustration at the University of the West of England in Bristol.
Cox, known for his quirky drawings of squiggly lines and cartoon-like characters, has used his signature monochrome, cartoonish-style doodles on every wall, floor, ceiling and object of of his six-bedroom home in England.
The artist used 238 gallons of white paint, 286 bottles of black drawing paint, 401 cans of black spray paint and 2,296 pen nibs to create his masterpiece.
Doodle decor adorns bedding, the stove, kettle, toaster, microwave, kitchen cabinets, bathtub, door knobs, chairs, the dining table, windows, door frames, chandeliers, the fireplace surround, the chimney, and much more.
For the artist, doodling is first and foremost an escape.
“Doodling requires you to free your mind from stressful or crowded thoughts,” Cox shares. “It is like a meditation for me, and that’s why I love it.”
More of Sam Cox’s mesmerizing doodles can be found at mrdoodle.com, https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/artist-mansion-covered-in-doodles-180980892, . And on You Tube.
Shake My What?
There we were, driving to our cabin up nort’, listening to a music playlist I made years ago which, for some reason, I’d forgotten about.
The song “Shake Your Groove Thing” by Peaches and Herb popped up, a disco-ish song from 1972.
Who downloaded this song? Shake your what?
“Shake your groove thang, shake your groove thang’ , yeah yeah!”
Ah …. another one of those highly intellectual songs from the past. A nonsensical drift from another place, another time.
Yet there I was, in the passenger seat, shaking my groove thing, moving my arms to the beat like I’m fighting off a cloud of mosquitoes.
How could music do that?
Music soothes the savage beast.. or breast … whichever.
It it also pumps up that same beast.
I air guitar and/or air drum Free Bird every time I hear it. Turn it up to distortion volume unless it disturbs the room around me.
I am worse than a little kid.
And I love it.
It’s not just rock/pop music, either. I jitterbug around the room to Sing Sing Sing by Benny Goodman and conduct the orchestra to the 1812 Overture by Tchaikovsky and sing along with Freddie Mercury to “Crazy Little thing Called Love.” Heck— if I could do the Michael Jackson Thriller dance with the music I would!
Music keeps me in constant motion— and that’s not always a pretty sight.
Nothing is better than singing the words to a popular song with your granddaughter, though, or “shaking your groove thing” with your bestie. Music connects humans on so many different levels that one way or another you get hooked.
You may be embarrassed to close your eyes and move to the beat or sing with the singer, but you do it anyway.
You can’t help it.
Don’t ever let anyone tell you you can’t dance and sing and gyrate to the Music of the world. Sit side by side with someone and sing along loud and clear with a proud voice.
“So bye, bye, Miss American Pie
Drove my Chevy to the levee but the levee was dry
And them good ole boys were drinking whiskey ‘n rye
Singin’ this’ll be the day that I die
This’ll be the day that I die.”
Then look at them with a sparkle in your eye and ask….
What song do you want to hear?
Becoming Botticelli
I was watching a fascinating program on Amazon Prime called Botticelli’s Inferno, which analyzed one of the most mysterious works of Sandro Botticelli: the Map of Hell in the Divine Comedy Illustrated by Botticelli which lies within the Vatican Library.
Inferno, Dante Alighieri’s poem about Hell, forms one-third of the monumental epic known as the Divine Comedy, written in Italy between 1307 and 1314.
The Map of Hell (in Italian La Mappa dell’Inferno) by Botticelli – regularly called The Abyss of Hell or La Voragine dell’Inferno – is one of the parchments that the famous Italian painter designed. The Renaissance master spent over a decade creating 102 drawings starting around the mid-1480s with the last stroke happening approximately a decade later.
The Map of Hell parchment shows the geography of Hell in the classical funnel section, which was used in later iconography.
Lots of research, lots of practice.
The manuscript’s illustrations were executed using silverpoint, a technique involving a metal stylus that leaves faint lines on the paper. These initial outlines were later reinforced with ink, and in a few cases, completed with tempera colors. Only four pages received full illumination, while others remained in varying stages of completion.
The point of this history lesson is to emphasize the amazing details found in these old parchments. The works are incredible visionary experiences reflecting an emotional depth in traditional Christian subjects, which was unique at a time.
Botticelli showed the emotions and reactions of Virgil and Dante as they climbed down the nine levels of hell; he depicts minute details like stress in muscles or crinkling of eyes or waves of clothing.
The details are more than amazing. Which makes me reflect on today’s art.
With the advent of AI , details can be computerized to the finest detail, adding depth and style to any artist’s drawing. Artists may still have to draw themselves, but if one makes a mistake it’s easier to erase or change styles with a push of a button.
Drawing with a stylus pen encourages more strokes and character — and no mistakes. Just using basic tools to create such intricate pieces of art is inspirational no matter what field of Art you are in.
I am inspired by the work of the Old Masters. Their knowledge, their talent, their styles with much more primitive tools is nothing but an inspiration for me.
When late Fall comes and my craft shows are over, I am thinking of doing my own Map of Hell and the so-many layers of something. Perhaps Etidorhpa by John Uri Lloyd (A bizarre 19th-century American fantasy novel with secret occult societies and hallucinogenic drugs; a voyage to an inner world inside the earth where they grow giant tree-like mushrooms whose juice creates visions of Dante-like hells) or perhaps follow the story of The Outsider by H.P. Lovecraft. Or maybe I’d make something up like the seven levels up to Shangri La. Who knows?
The point is — wouldn’t it be fun trying?
What impossible creative task are YOU ready to tackle?
Looking Back — Installation Art, Part One
Bet you thought I’d forgotten about looking back through my Sunday Evening Art Gallery galleries to share more awesome unique art with you! I didn’t forget — more like got side tracked.
The story of my life.
But I’m back today with more fun and different and talented artists and their fun and different and talented art.
This time around why don’t we look back at Installation Art?
Gabriel Dawe
Rob Mulholland
Rebecca Louise Law
Lorenzo Quinn
Yayoi Kusama
Naoko Ito
Rune Guneriussen
May Parlar
Sam Gilliam
Faerie Paths — Ignorance
Ignorance is the womb of monsters.
~ Henry Ward Beecher
Friends I’ve Never Met Part Five
Imagine my delight in talking about and sharing another blogger with my name!
Claudias are few and far between in this world. My friend Claudia blogs over at Claudia McGill and Her Art World. She is an artist of many talents — she makes tiny houses, enamel work, collages, painting, artist books — how can she change from world to world, each one different from the other, yet be so consistent with her concentration and quality?
I enjoy watching Claudia wear all her hats. I get so many ideas from her. Some for me, some for future blogs. All the same circle, right?
Do take a trip over to visit Claudia McGill land check out all the things she’s tried!
Long Live Claudias!
Sunday Evening Art Gallery — Carrera y Carrera
Carrera y Carrera is a Spanish jewelry company headquartered in San Agustín del Guadalix, Madrid, Spain.
The jeweler’s origins date back to 1885 when Saturio Esteban Carrera opened a small jewelry workshop in the Barrio de las Letras.
Once Saturio had taught his son, José, all he knew, José traveled to Paris to complete his studies. He returned to Madrid to take up the family business, opening his shop on Santa Isabel Street in Madrid.
Having no children of his own, José entrusted the business to his four nephews, tutoring them in the skills they would need to carry on the family’s tradition of fine jewelry and quality craftsmanship.
In the 1970s, Saturio’s great-grandsons Manuel and Juan José Carrera established the brand, and the name Carrera y Carrera was born.
The brand has become an icon of luxury due to its unique style, imaginative designs, and magnificent jewelry pieces where gold and precious gems come to life.
Today, Carrera y Carrera is revered as the top jeweler in Spain and one of the 30 most prestigious jewelry houses in the world. 
More of Carrera y Carrera’s mesmerizing designs can be found at https://carreraycarrera.com/.
Another Caturday!
With the temperatures near the mid-90s today along with high humidity, today is the type of day to stay inside and pretend you’re on vacation someplace cool (unless you spend the day at the beach!)
So on this Happy Caturday I thought I’d put my cat (if I had one) in Egyptian garb and throw out some fun facts on ancient Egyptian civilization!
Ancient Egyptians used sauteed greyhound’s legs to cure baldness.
A medical text in the 1550 B.C. called Ebers Papyrus recommended some absurd ways the Egyptians could get rid of baldness. They included creating a mixture of fats from ibex, tomcat, hippopotamus and crocodiles. The Egyptians boiled porcupine’s hair in water and applied it to their scalp for four days. Another suggestion that the book mentioned was to sauté the leg of a female greyhound with a donkey’s hoof in oil.
Rhinocolura Was a City Founded by Actisanes Where Noseless Criminals Dwelled.
The legendary Ethiopian ruler Actisanes who conquered Egypt dealt with criminals in a unique way. By his ruling, whomsoever committed a crime had to get their nose cut off. And they were then sent to a city founded by him named Rhinocolura.
Entirely populated by noseless criminals, they had to cope alone in one of the country’s most draconian environments. They had to live on infected water and scattered pieces of scrap.
Egyptians Used Beer as Currency.
The laborers who built the Great Pyramids of Giza were often paid in beer. It was considered both a refreshment and a form of nutrition. Forget about gold or silver; in ancient Egypt, liquid bread was the real treasure.
Ox hooves, ashes, burnt eggshells and pumice were used for oral hygiene.
Ancient Egyptians used a combination of powders derived from ox hooves, ashes, burnt eggshells and pumice on their teeth and gums to protect the teeth from hygiene issues.
Ancient Egyptians shaved off their eyebrows when their cat died.
The death of a family cat was a tragedy in Ancient Egypt. The family began mourning that in many cases involved shaving their eyebrows (according to the Greek historian Herodotus) as a symbol of the pain they felt.
In that vein …..
An ancient cat cemetery was discovered in an archeological excavation carried out in 1890. More than 170,000 cats were buried in it.
Do you know what 170,000 looks like?
Texas Motor Speedway claims to be able to hold 180,000 people, but that includes the skybox seats high above too.
Happy Caturday!
Sunday Evening Art Gallery — Bruce A. Wilson
Bruce A. Wilson is a painter, designer, and illustrator raised in California and now a full-time resident of Orcas Island.
Wilson studied fine art at Art Center College of Design, specializing in figure drawings, portraiture and painting. 
Changing his major to Advertising Design, it wasn’t until he retired from his advertising agency in 2005 that he retired and turned his attentions back to painting.
He began using a heated environment in 1998 while in Puerto Vallarta Mexico.
His painting strokes were fairly uniform wavy lines to achieve an impression of the beaches and water around him, eventually moving on to hills, plants, clouds, trees and now other worlds.
As his interest in this medium continued, Wilson learned to control the heat which would give him thinner and thicker strokes which adds a little more personality to his impressions.
Wilson mixes his own pigments with oil pastels and oils to creamy consistency and applies them to ultra smooth gessoed boards, a technique he calls Thermal Oil and Wax.
The varied thicknesses in his work enables his works to take on a textured abstract/surrealist feel.
More of Bruce A. Wilson’s wonderful textured paintings can be found at https://www.brucewilsonpaint.com/.
I Don’t Want to Understand
To all my friends and listeners out there — (including follower 1,495 and 607), I have a sad, confusing topic to ask you about today.
I have been around death a lot these past years. It started with my mom back in the 70s, then father, brother, mother-in-law, father-in-law, and more, through my son three years ago. So I’m not new to the game.
None of are, really.
All the deaths that have passed through my life have happened “outside” of my experience. Happened someplace else. We had to let my father go after an operation, although he never woke up from it.
This time it’s different.
I have a brother-in-law who has had a rough life physically. Diabetes, kidney problems, heart problems — that part isn’t important. We moved him up to Wisconsin from Illinois and for a while he was an active part of my family.
Now, due to physical complications, he wants to sign over his DNR rights and start preparing to die.
He’s 64.
And not on death’s edge.
He has given up trying to get better through exercise and nutrition; he’s already had it with physical therapy, his Cpap machine, and the rehab center. He wants to go back to where he was living (assisted living) and go on hospice. He wants his last rights.
And I can’t see why.
The first thing you will say — and you are right — is that it’s his life. That we all are born to die sometime, and it’s our right to go out with dignity and peace.
And you are right.
What I can’t understand is why he is willing to give up everything for a maybe chance of heaven on the other side.
He refuses to deal with his depression, with his terrible dental hygiene and his loss of strength on one side due to a stroke. So everyone has decided to let him go his own way.
I find that so sad.
I’m not comparing his situation with anyone in my family who has gone before. Shit happens. But to choose not to fight till the very end to stay in this world a little longer — I just don’t get it.
I know I’m not as sick as he is. I know that if I were, my ways of thinking and responding would be different, too. But I don’t believe I’d ever give up without a fight. And another fight. Especially if I could see some extra time to be had on this side.
Have you ever had to deal with this kind of prolonged sadness and confusion? How do you deal with it? Just do your best to let it go? Help him along his journey?
Sorry to be a downer this morning. But I’d really like to know.
And as for follower 1,495 and 607 — don’t worry. I don’t have a clue who you are.
But I’d like to …..
Sunday Evening Art Gallery — Billy Dinh
Billy Dinh is a New York based photographer whose work captures the beauty and complexity of everyday moments.
Dinh’s dramatic, atmospheric images heavily rely on light and shadow, which coupled with his ability to capture unique moments, makes them look pulled from a film. 
Formally an illustrator, Billy has an eye on capturing the world in a dynamic way.
He documents moments of everyday life and finds the beauty in the usual in his photos, which he presents as almost stills from something out of a movie or a dream.
Originally drawn to photography as a way to document personal experiences, his journey evolved through travel, shifting his focus to capturing the world around him.
Dinh’s approach is grounded in discovering the unnoticed details of life, often portraying dynamic, cinematic scenes that blend light, atmosphere, and storytelling.
Through his lens, Dinh seeks to convey that beauty and reality coexist, and that even in the most ordinary settings, something extraordinary can be found.
More of Billy Dinh’s moving photography can be found at https://www.billydinh.com/ and https://blog.tribul.org/blog/art-after-hours-billy-dinh.
Faerie Paths — Dessert
Dessert is like a cloud that melts in your mouth.
~ Jodi Picoult
THAT Moment
It’s after 9 o clock on a windy June night. Family is camping, and I am outside by myself this late eve, listening to the surf in the distance (I am camping near Lake Michigan) and the wind through the trees, a bit of minor chord music floating through the breeze from my phone.
It’s one of moments that just find you. Catches you Unaware. Open. Impressionable. A moment you find yourself not wanting to give up.
Not yet.
I like to think of these moments as Cosmic Connections. Extended mental moments where everything is possible. You know … that confusing moment where your daydreams becomes real.
THOSE odd moments.
Listening to the waves on the lake takes me back to Florida with my family in the spring. Flushes and flashes of wonderful memories and lots of love. These reflections flash back further memories of years gone by. Beaches or oceans or lakes filled with waves of new ideas, new inspirations, even new loves splashing up against the beach ….. over and over again.
I enjoy minor chord music, often finding it through haunting titles or dark academia playlists on YouTube. Listening to the minor chords softly dancing off the speaker makes me think of faeries or spirits or ghosts of those who hide back in the foggy past. Names that have long slipped my mind or those who haunt my dreams still, all play in my consciousness and my dreams.
And the trees. Staring at the outline above, I’m alone in my appreciation, my interpretation of the dark green against the dusty blue. The view is amazing. nature in all its glory. A stencil created by powers unknown just for that moment.
A stencil created just for me.
Back in the camper, I’m relegated to the bottom bunk, to which I readily agree. I lay with my head facing the window I’m free to open. I am separate from the rest of my family, free to wander where I will, connected yet detached.
Kinda like dreaming.
A moment all by myself. A moment TO myself. More may come, but none like this. A moment singular in its clarity.
So I embrace the unknown, the strange and the cosmic. I let myself wander and wonder. Something curious around every corner. Just for me.
What better place to start wandering than my lower bunk in the camper with the open window.
I hope you find time to connect one-on-one with the beauty around you. Moments are created just for you. And only you.
Listen. Watch. Participate.
Sunday Evening Art Gallery — Jeremy Anderson
Jeremy Anderson is a New York City based ceramic artist and designer known for his sculptural approach to lighting, furniture, and object-making.
Anderson was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota and has been working with clay for over 25 years.
From the beginning of his work with ceramics, the act of creating has served Anderson as a conduit to tap into childlike play: the process of throwing, assembling, and painting built around meditative make-believe.
His work explores form, texture, and surface, drawing inspiration from a wide range of sources, including natural landscapes, architecture, and the raw, elemental qualities of materials.
Anderson creates the pieces by throwing the cylindrical components, before cutting, stacking and blending them. The mesmerizing patterns and textural quality of the porcelain and stoneware vessels are a result of a meticulous process. 
Blending traditional wheel-throwing, hand-building, and casting techniques, Anderson creates pieces that challenge the boundaries between function and sculpture.
“People use the surface of a vessel to tell a story,” Anderson adds.
“For me, these are more like characters. It was really about dressing them up. They take on individual personalities.”
More of Jeremy Anderson’s unique creations can be found at https://www.jeremy-anderson.com/ and https://galleryfumi.com/artists/jeremy-anderson.
I Miss the Mess
I love cleanliness — I love organization.
I love being able to find what I want when I want it.
Yet after running around all week (camping with grandkids), sports tournaments, fish frys, and strawberry picking, sometimes I find I just miss the mess.
Perhaps I leave my workroom/library disheveled just so I can be inspired to get back there to organize — AND create.
I’m coming back soon…. I promise ….
* * *
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Happy Friday the 13th!
Ahhhhh… Friday the 13th….
Friday the 13th is considered an unlucky day in Western superstition. It occurs when the 13th day of the month in the Gregorian calendar falls on a Friday, which happens at least once every year but can occur up to three times in the same year
Though it’s uncertain exactly when this particular tradition began, negative superstitions have swirled around the number 13 for centuries.
Well, I’m here to celebrate this haunty scary day and turn it into a day of bright numbers and positive vibes! Here are 13 various combos certain to take the stigma away from today!
13 Forever!
Faerie Paths — Excellence
Striving for perfection is the greatest stopper there is. You’ll be afraid you can’t achieve it. It’s your excuse to yourself for not doing anything. Instead, strive for excellence, doing your best.
~ Laurence Olivier
Gimme a Gif!
If you’re lucky enough to have found a spare few minutes to peruse my delightful and blingy blog today, I thought I’d leave a few of my favorite gifs! I keep a folder of them on my computer for blogs or posts but mostly because they’re soooooo cool to watch!
Feel free to use them in your OWN blog!
Enjoy!
Faerie Paths — Creativity
Friends I’ve Never Met, Part Four
Although my sharing social media friends may switch frequencies and even days in the future, sharing friendly writers is always a pleasure.
So is my friend Georgiann Carlson.
Georgiann is a writer, poet, artist, lecturer, blogger, vegetarian and native Chicagoan.
She blogs under the title Rethinking Life, and it’s about Art and the philosophy of life and everything in-between. Georgiann has been blogging since 2013, starting with great photographs and evolving into more great photographs and blogs that make you think and feel.
She also creates blogs featuring my FAVORITES: the Chicklets!
I never know what Rethinking Life will offer, but it’s like a wild ride going in all directions.
Stop by some day!
Sunday Evening Art Gallery — Zemer Peled
Ceramic artist Zemer Peled was born and raised in Israel. She earned her MA at the Royal College of Art (UK).
Her sculptures and installations consist of thousands of hand-crafted porcelain shards: a technique that yields a texture both delicate and severe.
The arrangements are a spellbinding combination of colors, texture, and forms that have an otherworldly appeal. 
Peled’s forms are complexly ordered from the inside out, often bulging or spilling over with textures both delicate and severe.
Her ceramic fragments are geometric barbs that mysteriously take on an alluring form, offering a sense of softness despite a sharp actuality.
The forms are never static; the visual dance of sharp ceramic parts conveys a sense of constant movement.
The process behind the installation is perilous: the artist adds the hooked porcelain fragments one by one, pushing the material to its limit to create a precarious yet sustained environment, manifesting the idea of musical notes sustained in time and space.
As the installation grows more complex, the work is continuously in danger of collapsing from the weight of its own individual pieces.
More of Zemer Peled’s amazing sculptures can be found at https://www.zemerpeled.com/.
Sunday Evening Art Gallery — Adam Lee
Adam Lee (1979-) is an Australian artist from Melbourne.
Lee holds a Bachelor and Masters of Fine Art, and a PhD from RMIT University.
Lee’s painting and drawing practice ties together narratives of memory, imagination and transcendence.
With a personal outlook informed by a wide range of interests including folklore and legend to natural history, music, and literature, his works on canvas and paper build elaborate worlds where allegory and atmosphere converge.
Lee’s work references a wide range of sources including historical and family photographs, spiritual narratives, and contemporary music, film and literature, to investigate aspects of the human condition in relation to ideas of temporal and supernatural worlds.
His artwork and vision is reflected by a community of hermits, shawl-shod women and regalia-laden gentlefolk traversing deserts and reposing in tabernacles or dreamed abodes.
These explorations find their physical manifestation in Lee’s well-honed individual style, characterized by moody landscapes and a contemporary take on Tenebrism (a style of painting developed by Caravaggio and other 17th-century Spanish and Italian artists, characterized by predominantly dark tones and shadows with dramatically contrasting effects of light.)
More of Adam Lee’s mesmerizing artwork can be found at https://adamlee.com.au and https://stationgallery.com/artist/adam-lee/.
Upcoming Galleries
I am scooting in for just a moment — between meeting a friend for lunch and taking our puppy to the vet — because I just finished putting together a BUNCH of new Sunday Evening Art Gallery ideas, and am soooo excited to share all this art with you!
I hope you are loving this unique art as much as I am. I wish there was a way to get this art out to a wider audience, but just sharing these artists here and over at the Gallery makes me ecstatic.
Here are a few upcoming artists:
Tell your friends! Tell your boss! Tell your dogs and cats!
See You Soon!
Faerie Paths — Tuesday
In my first 100 days, I will make Taco Tuesday the law.
– George Lopez
Friends I’ve Never Met, Part Three
I find I am enjoying sharing my friends with my reading public on Monday mornings.
Internet blogging, Internet friendship, is something mankind has never experienced until say, 20 years ago. Yes, mankind wrote letters on paper to each other, shared calling cards, and sent messages through second parties to build on whatever friendship they could gather.
Now days people pop up everywhere — Facebook, Word Press, WhatsApp — all to make new friends or to con someone into giving away family codes and secrets.
I am blessed to have made good friends through my blog based merely on writing and sharing snippets of their lives and creativity avenues.
Laura Kate at Daily Fiber is one of those.
Laura is into so many different crafts I can hardly keep up with her. She crochets, knits, quilts, paints — each piece she shares is a mark of craftmanship and of enjoyment. I never know how creative people do what they do, but I’m so glad I found her and have chatted about basics I’ll never really get.
I hope you all continue to make creative friends in the blogging world. Your own world will be richer for it!
Sunday Evening Art Gallery — Philip Anthony Treacy
Philip Anthony Treacy OBE (1967-) is an Irish haute couture milliner, or hat designer, mostly based in London for his career, who was described by Vogue magazine as “perhaps the greatest living milliner”.
His hats are works of art that live timelessly in fashion history, untethered to an obvious decade or trend.
Treacy studied fashion at the National College of Art and Design, where he graduated in 1987. The next year he won an MA scholarship for the Fashion Design course at the Royal College of Art in London, graduating with first class honors.
Widely credited for changing the perception of the hat, he designs hats to flatter and enhance the wearer.
Treacy’s process begins with a drawing, followed by a 3D mock-up in the material.
He then sends the hat shape to a block maker located in Paris who carves it in wood, which serves as the base for the construction of the hat itself.
Everything is handmade as couture manufacturing.
This keeps the hat-making process human as opposed to machine-manufactured and stamped out.
His hats run the gamut between sophisticated and alien, always one of a kind designs from one of a kind dreams.
More of Philip Treacy’s amazing hats can be found at https://www.philiptreacy.co.uk.
Faerie Paths — Literature
Literature is the most agreeable way of ignoring Life.
~ Fernando Pessoa
I Need a Vacation From my Retirement
Don’t get me wrong.
I love being retired. I worked 50 long years to earn this measly social security check. I paid my dues, putting up with chitty bosses and second jobs and downtown Chicago just so I could sleep past 5:30 a.m. most mornings.
But these days I’m busier than I ever was — even when we had babies.
My dreams of retirement included quiet mornings, coffee on the deck, playing gently with my dog, crafting and reading and filling the dishwasher after every meal.
I’ve been retired for four years, and every year seems to get busier and crazier.
I need a vacation from my retirement.
We recently got a second Labrador who endlessly wrestles with the older one, knocking into tables and human legs with ferocity. We have soccer games and shooting tournaments and camping and baby showers and mowing the field we call a lawn and I’m way behind in making purse charms for the craft fair in August and paying bills and I just can’t keep up with it all.
Dare I say it’s starting to take a mental and physical toll on my airy fairy psyche?
Don’t misunderstand — I enjoy being busy. Too many times I’ve heard retirees complain about being bored or ignored or losing interest in doing things that bring them pleasure. I don’t want to fall into that shadow.
Yet I can’t keep up with the constant running around my current lifestyle dictates.
My husband is on his second year of retirement, which had led to him finally being able to do things he’s always wanted to do but had no time to do — volunteering as a baseball or shooting coach, fishing, disappearing into the garage/barn to work on who-knows-what.
I should be able to do the same thing.
Yet I want to go with him to all the grandkids games and grade school performances, work to help my brother-in-law with whatever rehab I can, clean the house, feed the birds, cook new recipes from scratch, fetch the dogs, plant a garden, grocery shop, yadda yadda yadda.
I know you didn’t come here today just to listen to me whine. I didn’t know ~I~ was going to do this much whining.
So I ask you — do you have any tips for slowing down?
Do I just say “no”? Do I put my daily life on a schedule? Do I learn how to prioritize?
Maybe it’s just that I have fewer years ahead of me than behind, and I want to take advantage of every spare minute I can. I’d rather spend time with friends and family than do laundry, or sit and listen to smooth jazz while I craft rather than vacuum and dust.
Be prepared for retirement. You’ll have to put on your running shoes to keep up!
Sunday Evening Art Gallery — Felicity Aylieff
Felicity Aylieff has an established reputation as a maker of large-scale, sculptural ceramics.
Her large-scale works, all hand-thrown and hand painted, are a towering testament to the centuries-old traditions which established Jingdezhen as the “Porcelain Capital” of the world.
Born in Edlesborough, Bedfordshire, in 1954, Aylieff studied at Bath Academy of Art, gaining a first-class Honors degree in ceramics and textiles, followed by a teaching postgraduate year at Goldsmiths College in 1978.
An ‘incredibly liberating’ artist residency in Jingdezhen, China, the historic home of Chinese porcelain production, saw the beginning of a series of monumental pots, the largest of which stands five meters (16 feet) high.
Aylieff works at the ‘big ware’ factory — a family business which specializes in making large-scale pots up to three meters in height.
It takes three throwers working in tandem to throw a big pot, and then, under her instruction, a team of ‘master throwers’ finishes her designs for monumental forms.
Aylieff decorates in detail with fencai colored enamels, painting abstract marks in cobalt pigment with huge Chinese calligraphy brushes. Fencai is an over-glaze enamel technique that dates back to the 18th century used to decorate with color and pattern, porcelain pots made at the Imperial Kilns of Jingdezhen but painted at the Palace workshops in Beijing .
Her work shows her passion for material and process through its use of color, pattern, and historically informed decorative techniques.
More of Felicity Aylieff’s amazing ceramics can be found at https://www.felicityaylieff.com/ and https://www.rca.ac.uk/more/staff/felicity-aylieff/.
Faerie Paths — Normal
If you are always trying to be normal, you will never know how amazing you can be.
―
Friends I’ve Never Met, Part Two
Last Monday I wrote a blog on Friends I’ve Never Met and the influence they’ve had on my life in one way or another.
To repeat, in the blogging world, a good friend is not always what the world perceives. We don’t get together for coffee or dinner; we don’t visit each other’s houses or get into big deep conversations. We know very little about each other and probably never will; our connection is with words and images and responses and smiles we can feel over the Internet Airwaves.
Another good friend of mine is Darlene Foster at Darlene Foster’s Blog.
Darlene lives in Spain and is a prolific writer, especially in children’s adventure books. She is a delight because she has visited so many places and experienced so many creative things and shares them all on her blog.
One of her favorite places to visit on Costa Blanca in Spain is Altea, a charming fishing village north of Alicante with a blue-domed church overlooking the harbor. Her pictures made me want to go there and see this town for myself.
She is the kind of personality you love to love, even if you’ve never met her. Her travels, her books, inspire me to open my mind and explore the world and writing and see what I can contribute to it.
I hope you have good friends that you can share with us on YOUR blogs!
Sunday Evening Art Gallery — Greenhouses
The World Under Glass Still Shines
Sunday Evening Art Gallery — Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756 –1791) was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period.
Born in Salzburg, Austria, Mozart was a child prodigy capable of playing multiple instruments. At age five he began to compose and gave his first public performance at age six.
Through the years Mozart aligned himself with a variety of European venues and patrons, composing hundreds of works that included sonatas, symphonies, masses, chamber music, concertos and operas, all marked by vivid emotion and sophisticated textures.
The central traits of the Classical style are all present in Mozart’s music: clarity, balance, and transparency, yet simplistic notions of its delicacy mask the exceptional power of his finest masterpieces, including Symphony No. 41 “Jupiter” in C Major, K. 551, Symphony No. 40 in G Minor, K. 550, Symphony No. 36 “Linz” in C Major, K. 425, and Serenade No. 13 in G Major, K 525.
Over the course of his working life, Mozart switched his focus from instrumental music to operas, and back again.
Mozart excelled in the field of opera, including Le nozze di Figaro (The Marriage of Figaro) in 1786, Don Giovanni, 1787, and Die Zauberflöte or The Magic Flute in 1791.
Mozart developed the use of subtle changes in instrumentation, orchestration, and tone color to express or highlight psychological or emotional states and dramatic shifts.
His increasingly sophisticated use of the orchestra in the symphonies and concerti served as a resource in his operatic orchestration, and his developing subtlety in using the orchestra to psychological effect in his operas was reflected in his later non-operatic compositions.
His death at age 35 may have resulted from a number of illnesses. Yet Mozart died penniless and was buried in an unmarked grave.
Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition and proficiency from an early age resulted in more than 800 works representing virtually every Western classical genre of his time.
More of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s amazing life and music can be found all through the Internet, including https://www.wolfgang-amadeus.at/en/ and https://www.worldhistory.org/Wolfgang_Amadeus_Mozart/.
Faerie Paths — Cosmic Castles
On many occasions the curious atmospheric effects enchanted me vastly; these including a strikingly vivid mirage — the first I had ever seen — in which distant bergs became the battlements of unimaginable cosmic castles.
~ H. P. Lovecraft
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Friends I’ve Never Met
During my last, what — 11 years — as a blogger, I’ve made many casual friends and fewer good friends.
In the blogging world, a good friend is not always what the world perceives. We don’t get together for coffee or dinner; we don’t visit each other’s houses or get into big deep conversations. We know very little about each other and probably never will; our connection is with words and images and responses and smiles we can feel over the Internet Airwaves.
One of these good friends is my good friend Ivor at Ivor.Plumber/Poet.
Ivor lives in Australia, and to me is a master poet and friendly presence. I am guessing he is in my age bracket and has had a past rich in love and memories.
Ivor wrote this poem for me the other day as a response to my Camping, Sofa and a Sword post. Go visit his world and enjoy the friendship.
Dreams of the Heart
I cannot walk the continents
Like the intrepid Marco Polo
But my feet have felt the sands of time
Pass between my toes
I have not sailed the high seas
Like the courageous Christopher Columbus
But my body has bathed
In an ocean full of kind hearts
I am yet to fly in space
Like the brave Neil Armstrong
But I have reached for the stars
And touched my soul’s dreams
Sunday Evening Art Gallery — Paul Troger
Paul Troger (1698-1762) was an Austrian painter, draughtsman and printmaker of the late Baroque period.
Troger’s style, particularly in his frescoes, dominated Austrian painting until the end of the 18th century and profoundly influenced significant artists of the next generation.
His illusionistic ceiling paintings in fresco are notable for their dramatic vitality of movement and their palette of light colors.
Originally from the Puster Valley in Tyrol, Troger studied in Italy for ten years and moved from Salzburg to Vienna in 1729.
Troger became the favourite fresco painter in Lower Austrian monasteries in collaboration with the architect Josef Munggenast.
In 1753, he joined the Imperial Academy of Fine Arts and became its director in 1754.
His most important contribution to Austrian painting was to reject the strong dark palette, typical of the beginning of the 18th century, in favor of an increasingly lighter palette, typical of the new Rococo taste.
More of Paul Troger’s magnificent art can be found at https://www.paultroger.it and https://artvee.com/artist/paul-troger/.
Camping, Sofa, and a Sword
I have to say I’m a bit old fashioned, but after visiting another place for a couple of days, there’s no place like home.
We just spent five days camping with two of our best friends and 3 dogs, and, except for the huge thunderstorm that came through last night, it was a great time.
But I am now home, bags and coolers unpacked, and I’m loving digging down into my comfy sofa. Last week I was bored sitting on this same sofa.
Aren’t we all just the funniest things?
We love where we are, we long to be someplace else. We make our surroundings as comfortable and magical as we can, yet we dream of experiencing the magic of other places, other experiences.
It’s like we’re happy we ordered lasagna but wish we would have ordered someone else’s steak too.
I think it’s so important to explore other worlds, other foods, other experiences. It doesn’t matter if you can’t actually go to the places you dream about — you can still take that next step and explore it your way. Cook a cuisine you’ve always wondered about; take a virtual tour of your dream vacation; read a book written by someone who sat right in the middle of your travel destination.
At the moment I’m watching Forged in Fire, a reality TV series on the History Channel where bladesmiths make and test bladed weapons. There have been some fine and amazing swords, knives, and other bladed weapons made on that show… a creative world I know nothing about. But it’s so fun to watch artists who DO know about it!
I encourage you to try new recipes, new forms of poetry, and new creative skills. Let me know what you’ve explored, what you’ve enjoyed, what you’ll never try again.
As I always say, life’s too short.
Don’t waste it digging too far into your sofa.
Which Books Would You Bring? (repost)
Which Books Would You Bring?
It’s the beginning of a Glorious Day here in the Midwest.
Being alone with my dogs and cat and fish and computer and crafts room and my messy closet floor, there will be a lot of things I’ll want to accomplish that I can’t always accomplish with company around.
But you know me. That’s not what this particular blog is about.
I had an idea in the shower this morning, and I’d LOVE to hear back from all of you. The more the merrier.
I really enjoyed the end scene in the movie “The Time Machine” with Rod Taylor, where George comes back from the future to grab three books to take back with him. It goes something like this:
Filby: He must have taken something with him.
Mrs. Watchett: Nothing, except three books.
Filby: Which three books?
Mrs. Watchett: I don’t know. Is it important?
Filby: No, I suppose not. Only – what three books would you have taken?
I thought about throwing you/us onto a deserted island or in an isolated cabin in the woods, but then you/we would have more to worry about than what books to read. Food, tools, medicine, is all too much to think about on this beautiful morning.
So here is the question:
If you time traveled into the future (or into the past), which three books would you take?
This time around I’m going to put restrictions on the question. Like being specific on the time period, (forward OR past), what you have in YOUR library (vs. stopping at the bookstore first), and only three books.
After all, those are the choices George had.
And, as a side, if you feel like it, are the three books the first three that came to mind, or did you think about it for a bit first?
I’ll go first. And it’s really hard.
I ran downstairs, tripping over my Tears crafts bins, and looked at my shelves. Ack! An eclectic mix, for sure. Seeing as they have to be books from MY library, for reading I’d take Lord of the Rings Trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien; for art, the History of Art (1st Edition) by H.W. Janson (1982); and for poetry, The Illustrated Household Book of Poetry Charles A Dana 11th Edition, 1868.
None of these books are “modern” in the sense of the word; I’m ashamed I don’t have any current poetry or updated art books. I tossed around bringing a book of Shakespeare or Edgar Allen Poe stories and poems, but their rhetoric might not be as entertaining after the 375th read.
If I had time to think about it, or had time to run to the bookstore or library, my choices may have been different. But, for what I have, for what I would have to share with others for eternity, would be a little bit of entertainment through the ages.
After all, how could you not enjoy a happy ending?
“At last they rode over the downs and took the East Road, and then Merry and Pippin rode on to Buckland and already they were singing again as they went. But Sam turned to Bywater, and so came back up the Hill, as day was ending once more. And he went on, and there was yellow light, and fire within; and the evening meal was ready, and he was expected. And Rose drew him in, and set him in his chair, and put little Elanor upon his lap. He drew a deep breath. ‘Well, I’m back,’ he said.”
Faerie Paths — Women
Each time a woman stands up for herself, without knowing it possibly, without claiming it, she stands up for all women.
~ Maya Angelou
Degenerate Art — Kind of a Repost
I just happened to come across a documentary about Art Thefts and how famous works were recovered. Called “Raiders of the Lost Art” (how cute) on Amazon Prime, the first episode was about all the Hildebrand Gurlitt, a German art historian and art gallery director who dealt in Nazi-looted art as one of Hitler’s and Goering’s four authorized dealers for “degenerate art”.
Hildebrand Gurlitt’s personal collection of over 1,500 artworks by Impressionist, Cubist, and Expressionist artists and Old Masters remained virtually unknown until it was brought to public attention in 2013 following its confiscation from the possession of his son, Cornelius Gurlitt
I was extra excited about this episode because of what I learned and blogged about back in
Hatred and destruction of things you don’t like or understand has been around for centuries. Think of how many books were burned, buildings were bombed, and lives were destroyed by closed minded fools.
The world in general and the art world in particular is fortunate that so many works by now-famous modern artists had been stolen and hidden from sight instead of burned during that horrid movement.
I’m going to repost the Degenerate Art blog and add a few more degenerate art and artists at the end.
Don’t ever let the world tell you what to paint and what to create.
Sunday Evening Art Gallery — Degenerate Art
Degenerate Art was a term adopted in the 1920s by the Nazi Party in Germany to describe modern art.
Descent from the Cross, Max Beckmann
During the dictatorship of Adolf Hitler, German modernist art, including many works of internationally renowned artists, was removed from state-owned museums and banned in Nazi Germany on the grounds that such art was an “insult to German feeling”, un-German, Freemasonic, Jewish, or Communist in nature.
Magdeburger Ehrenmal, Ernst Barlac
Hitler’s rise to power in 1933 was quickly followed by actions intended to cleanse the culture of degeneracy: book burnings were organized, artists and musicians were dismissed from teaching positions, and curators who had shown a partiality for modern art were replaced by Party members.
Portrait of a Man, Erich Heckel
Those identified as degenerate artists were subjected to sanctions that included being dismissed from teaching positions, being forbidden to exhibit or to sell their art, and in some cases being forbidden to produce art.
Street Berlin, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner
The head of Reichskammer der Bildenden Künste (Reich Chamber of Visual Art), and his commission were authorized to confiscate from museums and art collections throughout the Reich any remaining art deemed modern, degenerate, or subversive.
Kneeling Woman, Wilhelm Lehmbruck
All the works that were a part of Bauhaus, Cubist, Dada, Expressionist, Fauvist, Impressionist, New Objectivity and Surrealist style were labeled as sick.
At the Shore, Edgar Ende
These works were then to be presented to the public in an exhibit intended to incite further revulsion against the “perverse Jewish spirit” penetrating German culture.
Pharisees, Karl Schmidt-Rottluff
In July 1937, the German Nazi regime sponsored the Entartete Kunst (Degenerate Art) exhibition in Munich.
The exhibition’s central theme was to “educate” the public on the “art of decay.”
The Blue Window, Henri Matisse
The exhibition featured over 650 paintings, sculptures, prints and books from the collections of 32 German museums.
The artworks were placed next to insulting texts which were supposed to prove how depraved the artists were and ridiculed by being juxtaposed with other works by the inmates of German lunatic asylums.
Despite this, public attendance exceeded all expectations. It is estimated that more than 2 million people passed through the cramped space in 1937.
During this period, over 5,000 artworks were seized, including 1,052 pieces by Emil Nolde (who was ironically a racially pure Aryan and a member of the Nazi Party), 759 by M.C. Escher, 639 by Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, 508 by Max Beckmann, and smaller numbers of artworks by such artists as Alexander Archipenko, Marc Chagall, Wassily Kandinsky, Henri Matisse, Pablo Picasso, Vincent Van Gogh and hundreds of others.
Bildnis des Malers, Franz Radziwill
In March 1939, the Berlin Fire Brigade burned about 4000 paintings, drawings and prints that had apparently little value on the international market.
Die großen blauen Pferde, Franz Marc
A similar act was conducted in the summer of 1942, in the gardens of the Galerie Nationale du Jeu de Paume in Paris, in a bonfire which burned important pieces by Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dalí, Paul Klee, Fernand Léger and Joan Miró.
Les Demoiselles d’Avignon, Pablo Picasso
In this way, Germany began the confiscation of artworks deemed degenerate from a variety of museums throughout the Reich and combined the taken works into one single, coherent exhibition for their further ridicule and mockery.
En Canot, Jean Metzinger
The V&A holds the only known copy of a complete inventory of Entartete Kunst confiscated by the Nazi regime from public institutions in Germany, mostly during 1937 and 1938. The list of more than 16,000 artworks was produced by the Reichsministerium für Volksaufklärung und Propaganda (Reich Ministry for Public Enlightenment and Propaganda) in 1942
The UMMA Exchange has a list with pictures of all artists in the Degenerate Art Show.
A few more:
Bathers With A Turtle, Henri Matisse
Christ and the Sinner, Max Beckmann
‘Three Bathers, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner
Self-Portrait Dedicated To Paul Gaugin, Vincent van Gogh
T
The Absinthe Drinker, Pablo Picasso
Sunday Evening Art Gallery — Ernst Barlach
Ernst Barlach (1870 -1938) was a prominent German sculptor, printmaker, and writer, best known for his expressive works that poignantly captured the human condition.
Barlach studied art in Hamburg, Germany, and later in Dresden and Paris.
His sculptures, often characterized by their simplified forms and emotional depth, reflect the hardships and spiritual struggles of the early 20th century, particularly in the context of war and social upheaval.
Barlach’s work, influenced by both medieval German art and the modernist movement, frequently explored themes of suffering, compassion, and the search for meaning, making him a significant figure in the expressionist art movement.
Stylistically, his literary and artistic work would fall between the categories of twentieth-century Realism and Expressionism.
In the years before World War I, Barlach was a patriotic and enthusiastic supporter of the war, awaiting a new artistic age from the war.
His awaited new artistic age came for him when he volunteered to join the war between 1915 and 1916 as an infantry soldier. After three months of service he was discharged due to a heart ailment, returning as a pacifist and a staunch opponent of war, the horror of the war influencing all of his subsequent works.
Although his work was removed from German museums under the Nazi regime and categorized as “degenerate art,” after World War II his talent was once again recognized.
Despite facing persecution during the Nazi regime, which deemed his art “degenerate,” Barlach’s legacy endures through his deeply moving and introspective works that continue to resonate with audiences today.
More of Ernest Barlach’s body of inspirational works can be found at https://artincontext.org/ernst-barlach/… and https://www.barlach-haus.de/.
Faerie Paths — Saturday Morning
On a lazy Saturday morning when you’re lying in bed, drifting in and out of sleep, there is a space where fantasy and reality become one.
~ Lynn Johnston
Faerie Paths — Evening
When the sun goes down, and the clouds all frown
Night has begun for the sunset
See it with your eyes, Earth’s re-energized
By the sun’s rays everyday
Take a look out there, planets everywhere
When the sun goes down, and the clouds all frown
Night has begun for the sunset
Shadows on the ground, never make a sound
Fading away in the sunset
Night has now become day for everyone
I can see it all, from this great height
I can feel the sun, slipping out of sight
And the world still goes on through the night……..
Mike Pinder, Moody Blues
Have a beautiful evening — tonight and every night.
Sunday Evening Art Gallery — BOND Hardware
BOND Hardware is a sustainable jewelry and accessories label, designed and handmade in New York.
Founded in 2012, designer and stylist Dana Hurwitz started the brand as an experimental project, locally sourcing scrap metal and found industrial objects to adorn looks for New York club kids.
Later joined by creative partner and photographer Mariah Pershadsingh, the duo continues to develop the brand with a focus on innovation and craftsmanship.
BOND Hardware is a forward-thinking jewelry brand known for its sharp silhouettes, fetishistic look and feel, inclusive ethos, and use of stark, industrial materials.
In their jewelry and accessories lines, nuts and bolts become rings, buzzsaws become bangles, and screws become pendant charms.
Unlike most costume jewelry, BOND does not use traditionally plated metals. They instead use PVD Stainless Steel.
Refined from industrial shapes, BOND Hardware forms are made to adorn spaces or the body using materials that are sustainably acquired for the longest and least destructive lifespan possible.
More of BOND Hardware‘s jewelry can be found at https://bond-hardware.com/ and https://www.surfacemag.com/articles/bond-hardware-designer-day/#.
Faerie Paths — Beginnings
Every new beginning comes from some other beginning’s end.
~ Marcus Annaeus Seneca (54 BC – 39 AD)
Want a Puppy?
Everyone loves puppies.
They are sweet, adorable, inquisitive, cuddly, and innocent. They are loyal companions, full of fun and energy and devotion.
They are also a pain in the _______.
Our new puppy makes me feel like a crabby old lady. Maybe I ~am~ a crabby old lady.
But I’m just not up to the 24/7 madness a toddler dog brings.
Our other Labrador is getting on in age, and hubby thought it a good idea to introduce a new pup to the family circle. Past experience has shown that a young dog really does bring some life and spark into your old dog’s life. Adds a few years, as they say.
I’m not sure my older dog is up on all that. She probably wishes she’d run away and not come back.
As for this senior citizen, a new puppy means inside accidents, chewed shoes, 3 a.m. outside pee breaks, underfoot traffic, and more.
She’s in my way. She’s underfoot. She needs letting out every hour and a half. She chews everything. She eats everything.
Oh, you’re retired, some say. You’ve got plenty of time to keep up with a youngster. She’ll add youth to your life.
Well, crabby patty Granny says she’s earned her retirement, and running around keeping up with a puppy is not her idea of fun. It would be like inheriting your grandkids. You love them to death but the younger ones would run you ragged in a matter of days.
Don’t get me wrong. My new puppy is just that — a puppy. She’ll learn. She’ll behave. She will bring all of us years of happiness, friendship, and love. She’s as cute as a button and smart as a whip.
It’s just that these days I don’t have the energy or mental sharpness of a whip.
I’m more like a well-used broom who’s losing some of its bristles.
Yet we all find a way to survive….
Sunday Evening Art Gallery — Joris Hoefnagel
Joris Hoefnagel or Georg Hoefnagel (1542 – 1601) was a Flemish painter, printmaker, miniaturist, draftsman and merchant.
He is noted for his illustrations of natural history subjects, topographical views, illuminations and mythological works.
Hoefnagel was one of the last manuscript illuminators and made a major contribution to the development of topographical drawing.
His manuscript illuminations and ornamental designs played an important role in the emergence of floral still-life painting as an independent genre in northern Europe at the end of the 16th century.
Working before the invention of the microscope and long before etymology was an established field of study, Hoefnagel produced images that are much more than the sum of his empirical observations.
He created his manuscripts not for a wide scientific public but instead for himself and his small circle of friends.
The almost scientific naturalism of his botanical and animal drawings served as a model for a later generation of Netherlandish artists.
Through these nature studies Hoefnagel also contributed to the development of natural history and he was thus a founder of proto-scientific inquiry.
More of Joris Hoefnagel’s work can be found at https://www.nga.gov/collection/artist-info.2569.html.
Unique Flowers (repost)
I was posting images on my Instagram account and came across this blog — you’ve GOT to check it out!
LOOK AT THESE FLOWERS!
(okay… I’ll cut back on the caffeine now…)
Unique Flowers
More in the Gallery! See you over there!
The Lusty Month of May!
Tra la! It’s May!
The lusty month of May!
That lovely month when ev’ryone goes
Blissfully astray.
Tra la! It’s here!
That shocking time of year
When tons of wicked little thoughts
Merrily appear!
It’s May! It’s May!
That gorgeous holiday
When ev’ry maiden prays that her lad
Will be a cad!
It’s mad! It’s gay!
A libelous display!
Those dreary vows that ev’ryone takes,
Ev’ryone breaks.
Ev’ryone makes divine mistakes
The lusty month of May!
Alan Jay Lerner & Frederick Loewe
It’s All About Me!
I never knew I was so powerful.
Especially as I’ve gotten older.
If my computer crashes, it’s my fault. If we get lost driving somewhere it’s my fault. If something is left behind on the table it’s my fault.
I never knew I was so powerful.
Yesterday my computer crashed. Of course that was my fault.
Never mind that I’m very careful where I wander on the Internet. Nevermind I have McAffrey on and delete folders when the pics are online or I keep up with changing passwords and clean my cache often.
Whatever happens I must have had something to do with it.
My partner is a very linear person. He uses his computer to pay bills and search on Amazon and little else. He clears caches all the time and doesn’t wander the Internet looking and/or downloading pictures or articles or recipes. The computer is for work, serious research, and little else. (That’s what his cellphone is for.)
So when I get this weird message about having a non-HP battery in my computer (I don’t) or my Internet connection has disappeared, it must have been something ~I~ did.
And being flighty half the time, there’s a good chance he’s right.
But he’s not.
I am sure all of you are careful where you wander on the Internet. There are bad sites and trick sites and black holes any one of us can fall in. There are security systems you can buy that keep an eye on your wandering, along with Google or Windows warnings of fishy sites.
So when my computer just up and didn’t work yesterday and this morning, I must have pushed a button somewhere or approved some computer change that I didn’t remember. Why else would you lose your Internet connection?
Doesn’t matter that we have chitty Internet service. Doesn’t matter that on occasion it takes forever to get to a common website.
Somehow it was something I did.
I wish I would have known about this ultimate power sooner.
I could have shut down obnoxious websites. Gone to the top of the blogging popularity lists. Gotten books published. Chatted with the Princess of Wales.
With the push of a button I could have taken money from wealthy bank accounts. Gotten into a chat room with Trump and Putin and told them what’s what. Started a world peace movement.
But it’s too late. I’m too old.
All I can do these days is crash my own computer.
Which, as you can see, is now working.
Darn!
Sunday Evening Art Gallery — eL Seed
eL Seed is a Tunisian artist, born in France and now living in Canada.
His distinguished fusion of Arabic Calligraphy and Graffiti has made him an important influence for graffiti artists throughout the Arab world.
eL Seed works in the public sphere. His work is not signed and he doesn’t claim ownership upon them. 
His work is characterized by intricate layers of color, symbols and letters that convey universal messages about coexistence, peace and freedom.
Through his art, eL Seed amplifies the voices of the communities he encounters, using language as a tool to create connections and inspire ideas of unity.
He celebrates the beauty and uniqueness of cultural heritage and draws inspiration from local writers, poets and philosophers he meets on his travels.
Sometimes, eL Seed has a particular theme in mind that he wants to raise so he will search for the appropriate place and quote.
In other circumstances, a community will reach out to him first, so he will look for the most appropriate issue to address with his art.
You can find more of eL Seed’s amazing murals at https://elseed-art.com/ and https://elseedrelated.com/.
The Gallery Is Open!
It is with much enthusiasm and woopies that I announce that my other blog, Sunday Evening Art Gallery, is back in business!
Back in business, you ask? What are you talking about?
Well, like all seniors on social security, there are priorities. Priorities and more priorities. Having blown my yearly wad on vacationing down in Florida, I had to wait until my budget came back around to be able to afford a renewal — one that includes more storage space and no ads.
There is no doubt that every one of us has to budget our life away. There are always priorities that take precedent over other priorities. Food is more important than going to the movies. Paying your electric bill is more important than buying plants for your garden.
Unless you hang out with the likes of Zuckerberg or Gates, there is always a struggle to figure out which priority needs to come first.
Determining priorities isn’t always a life-and-death decision, of course. It can also be as simple as if you want a shrimp dinner next week you’ll have to eat spaghetti this week. You know. Substitutions.
ANYWAY…..
I’m glad I could rearrange my finances so that I can bring you larger galleries of the artists I introduced in here.
I do hope you are going over there now and then to check out the diverse worlds I’ve collected through my journeys through the World of Creativity.
See you on the other side!
Sunday Evening Art Gallery — Janna van Hasselt
Janna van Hasselt is a ceramic sculptor, born in Ōtepoti Dunedin in 1980 and now resides in Ōtautahi Christchurch, New Zealand.
She earned a BFA (printmaking) from Ilam School of Fine Arts, Ōtautahi Christchurch (2004) and, as a recipient of a Fullbright Award an MFA (visual art) from the School of Art Institute of Chicago (2014).
van Hasselt’s work is characterized by a pleasure in materials and a strong sense of spontaneity, playfulness and humor.
The artist works with media ranging from printed and dyed fabric to puff pigment, ceramics, hot glue and inflatables.
Her works often have a feeling of controlled chaos; knots, tubes, folds and stacks are van Hasselt’s forms of choice as she experiments with the tension, stress and gravity of each object made or represented.
She also explores the idea of architectural failure, questioning how far her structures can be pushed before they collapse.
“I find inspiration in the everyday; the minutiae of life as a parent,” Van Hasselt shares.
“My works are created manipulating clay and slip using varied actions present in basic life tasks – kneading, rolling, stretching, extruding, slicing, stacking, piercing, plaiting and highlighting.”
More of Janna van Hasselt’s unique and fun art can be found at https://www.janna.co.nz/ and https://www.seedgallery.co.nz/collections/janna-van-hasselt-sculpture.
Looking Back — Mini Things, Part One
Bringing another Saturday of fun, joy and amazement to you wandering eyes! Today I want to wander back through the art galleries and showcase more unbelievable art.
I ~do~ hope you are clicking on the blue titles and checking out their additional works. That’s half the fun!
:Lets try a different topic. How about ….. Mini Things?
Williard Wigan
Kiva Ford
Snowflakes
Dr. Gary Greenburg
(sand)
Angelo Musco
Tatsuya Tanaka
Izumi Akinobu
Miki Asai
Sunday Evening Art Gallery — Sheryl Tempchin
Sheryl Tempchin’s abstract and semi-abstract paintings are expressions of her deep feelings for the natural world, its beauty and fragility.
Born in Minnesota, Tempchin spent much of her childhood surrounded by nature—the woodlands and lakes near her home on the outskirts of Minneapolis, as well as her grandparents’ farm near the town of Alexandria.
As an adult, she eventually settled in the coastal town of Encinitas, where she continues to live and paint.
Tempchin studied art at Palomar College, in San Marcos CA, UCLA, and the Otis Art Institute in Los Angeles.
Tempchin’s technique involves applying oil paint to canvas or panel with various tools—palette knives, squeegees and bondo spreaders—then blending and refining with brushes.
“My paintings are about the natural world, the sea, the sky, and the life that surrounds me,” she says.
“What I’m interested in is not so much how things look as how they make me feel, and the mystery behind it all.”
“Through my paintings, I hope people can connect to that sense of mystery.”
More of Sheryl Tempchin’s inspirational art can be found at https://www.sheryltempchin.com/.
A Long Time Ago ….
Always Always Always … On my way to doing something else ….
This morning I was all ready to write a new post about a new and wonderfully unique artist when I got the urge to go back through the forest and look at my very first post.
Even the Universe Chuckles. Published April 18, 2011, at 11:51 am.
What a big day that was.
And look at where I am today. Friends with so many of you, hoping still bring some sunshine and smiles into your everyday world.
But I digress …
It was a fun and light-hearted look at middle age, something many of us were going through. I had a lot of ideas back then of where I wanted to take this blog — some panned out, others drifted back into the mist.
I will repost it here today to give both you and me a chuckle, as not much has changed in 14 years.
But more importantly, I wanted to post a reaction from one of my dearest writing friends that passed away not long after I started wandering down this path.
He was a writer, a good person, and the reason I kept attending Wisconsin Writer Conferences year after year. We encouraged each other, talked about how our lives influenced our writing, and other writer/friend stuff. We just enjoyed each other’s creativity. And I’m thankful for that.
He responded to my first blog with this:
Fantastic start, Claudia, my one and only unicorn. 🙂
Middle age? It’s that long period between when young people think you’re “old,” even when you don’t, and when your body starts telling you you really are. There’s no reliable set of numbers on middle age (or young or old). I like to say that age is a state of mind, until your body tells you otherwise. So middle age is probably from somewhere in the 30s to somewhere in the 60s, though we’ll get arguments on both ends of the spectrum, depending on who’s arguing.
I know “kids” who think 30 is “old,” people in their 40s who argue they aren’t “middle-aged yet,” and those in their 70s who refuse to believe (or act like) they’re old. I also know people in their 50s and 60s who think and behave “old,” sadly allowing their zest for living to wane.
Another definition of middle-aged, therefore, might be as long as the zest survives.
Boyd
I miss you, Boyd. A lot.
Even the Universe Chuckles
What exactly is middle age?
You always hear people talking about their “mid-life crisis”: how one particular panic attack or moment of decision changed the second half of their life. But what if your perception of reality has become tilted over time? Would you even notice it?
I know I share the sentiment of many who feel their cosmic clock ticking away, day after day, year after year, without as much as an apology from said clock for moving near the speed of light. Some of us reached this level of maturity easily; others bumbled and stumbled our way here. But all of us have filled our hearts and minds with experiences that made the journey worthwhile.
Humoring the Goddess: Managing the Madness Magic of Middle Age mingles a bit of magic with the madness that surrounds us as we ease away from the dreams of our 20’s to the realities of life past 40. Magic, you say? The older I’ve gotten, the more I realize that magic is nothing more than our point of view.
Magic touches and guides us from within, a mixture of common sense, experience, and nonsense, taking us from dreams to reality and back again. And since it doesn’t cost a thing, it can be tapped into over and over again.
Alrighty. We’ve chatted about middle age and magic. What about this blog? What can you expect from this corner of the universe?
Each week, Momentary Musings will bring you stories that twinkle with honesty, irony, and positive energy. There also will be Quimsical Quotations, witty words from some of the most fascinating minds in history; and Frivolous Facts and Falderal, useless bits of entertainment that have nothing to do with the world in general but keep you chuckling with the universe in particular. And believe me. The universe chuckles.
Sometimes life twists and turns as if we’re traveling down some corkscrew highway. We think we know where we’ve been, where we’re going. Suddenly children and elves and family members come along and fracture whatever notions of normalcy we have. What was simple suddenly becomes complex. We feel slower, chubbier, and denser than we ever have been before. Other times we fly with the grace of a downhill skier. We develop insight like Einstein and patience like Gandhi, making the circle of life complete once again.
Let me assure you, you are not alone in your misgivings about middle age, whether you are heading in that direction or already there. There is a thread of truth that rings through all my stories, a thread that connects us all with smiles and tears, sighs and adrenalin rushes. And hopefully you will come to understand that it’s okay to experience them all.
Enjoy your journey through Humoring the Goddess: Managing the Madness Magic of Middle Age. Before you know it you’ll be humoring the Goddess yourself, no matter what your age.
Faerie Paths — Nobility
When you do something noble and beautiful and nobody noticed, do not be sad. For the sun every morning is a beautiful spectacle and yet most of the audience still sleeps.
~ John Lennon
Humoring the Goddess 