I spent this morning in the supermarket doing my Thanksgiving shopping. I have twice as many cranberries as I need and three times as much turkey as I need and I am DONE. Tomorrow, I'll make the curried butternut squash soup and freeze it but everything else will probably wait till next week. I do not want to go into a supermarket for the next three years. I was happy to see that my bolt of Hoffman PFD lawn arrived this afternoon, although when I will have time to experiment with it remains to be seen. In the meantime, I am studying this piece of fabric and trying to decide whether I should randomly rip it up or not. It is a little too sweet for me but it has possibilities. I think it looks a bit more vivid on the screen than it actually is. It will hang on my wall for another day or so but you know, it just occured to me that if this were paint on canvas it would be another animal altogether. Hmmm...

my wonderful day

I promised not to use the M word - so here is today's list of exciting adventures: #1: Donned 2 sweatshirts and my fleece-lined clogs and went to my 6 year old grandson's soccer game, which turned out to be flag football. What do I know? My first time at such a game and I didn't understand it any better than when I was in high school watching regular football. I did understand that Josh's team lost. But truthfully, I got a kick out of seeing him play. And you should have seen those first-grade girl cheerleaders!! Rah. #2: Stopped at the farm and bought hot peppers, apples, butternut squash, and tomatillos. What kind of dish do you think I can make with this combination of produce? #3: Folded my husband's laundry and put it in the basket. Now, you have to understand that this is a man who loves to do his own laundry, so he does his and I do mine and never do the twain meet. Or hardly ever. But he was out, doing his good deed for the day: playing bingo with the inmates at the veteran's hospital. So this was MY good deed. #4: Started doing inventory of the quilt books on the dining table. The neat tall piles are now becoming messy small piles. When I got to 50 books, I stopped because my battery (and my computer's battery) were running out of power. I'm logging everything into Excel and will be able to sort by title or author or category. Isn't this exciting??? #5: Completed two fabric postcards, including one from the faucets I printed yesterday. There is some gold paint on there but it doesn't really show up in the photo.

#6: checked my 2006 calendar for conflicts. Seems ok. So for #7, I am going to bed.

a long (mundane?) story

My print table is covered with a layer of pink insulation board, a layer of 1/2" foam, plastic sheeting, and a bedsheet or two to absorb the dye. This all worked just great till I started doing batik. The hot wax is making a mess of the plastic sheeting below so I thought I would try using thick carpet felt to cover my table instead. So today, after the dentist, I drove up Route 10 and stopped at a carpet mill 'outlet.' They told me they don't carry carpet felt and said I should go to Home Depot. So I went. When I finally found the carpet department, there was one salesman trying to sell some carpet to a gaggle of women. Ok - that's legitimate. So I stood there while he gave his spiel. Did he acknowledge me and tell me he'd be with me in a few minutes? Ha. Then he took the group over to look at the roll of carpet padding. I followed. Did he even look in my direction, as I stood there lurking? Ha Ha. Well, their padding was kind of cheesy and thin anyway, so after 20 minutes of standing around, I left. Why did I wait for 20 min? Because I was trying to be patient...something that is a big effort for me. On the way back down Route 10, I passed a place called Carpet Depot. It was next to, but not related to, Office Depot. (That makes 3 depots within a half-mile of each other. Nobody has any originality). Nevertheless,I stopped. They were all out of carpet felt because they are having a sale on carpeting and the installers have taken it all. BUT -the young woman showed me several samples of carpet padding and said she'd order it for me. I told her Ididn't need it for the floor, that I am an artist, etc. (the usual speech). Turns out she is artist who braids rugs with recycled materials, is a former printmaker AND was so excited to find another person who uses recycled materials that she asked me if I could use some small pieces of thinner felt she had sitting in the back room and was going to throw out anyway.

I came home with 8 pieces of 18"x22" felt that I can use for portable print surfaces. I was so excited that I printed a piece of material on my cutting table in the upstairs studio. She also gave me an 18"x24" piece of real linoleum which she says makes a great cutting board. I whipped it out and threw it on top of the felt and - yep -- makes a great cutting surface. So, if you need any portable surfaces, high tail it over to a carpet store and make friends.

I ordered 40 lb. felt for my table, took her card and e-mail address, and will send her a note. It's always good to find another artist - and I came home with treasures. Funny how it's the little things that can make the difference in your day!

here's the problem

I don't always have something to say. Unlike some people in this blogring, whom I admire greatly beause they post almost every day with something interesting, I can't do that. I mean, can I assume that you will be interested in these mundane facts of my life? I...

• Took my car in for its 30,000 mi service and came out more than $1,000 poorer. But they did wash my car.
• Did not take a walk today.
• Went out for dinner tonight and did not overeat but made up for it with a ton of Haagen Dazs Black Walnut ice cream, which I am eating as we speak.
• Spent almost an hour on the phone with my friend Helene tonight, which cheered me up immeasurably.
• Ironed 2 more scarves.
• Would go to bed now except that the other resident of this household is watching tv in the bedroom and I cannot sleep with noise. On the other hand, why should he be relegated to the basement tv just because I need my BEAUTY sleep???
• Found out that the Printing from your Pantry class I am teaching11/19 at the Arts Guild of Rahway can accomodate 2 more people. If you're in driving distance of exit 135 on the Garden State Parkway, go to http:///www.rahwayartsguild.org and maybe you'll get lucky. Gelatin Plate printing fun!
• have decided to go up to bed and see what happens. I may or may not report back.

xxx

busy day

I actually accomplished quite a bit today/tonight, considering that I had obligations that kept me out all afternoon. It's midnight and I'm about ready to go upstairs. But first, I thought that since so much of my work today included ironing, I would treat you to a vision of my studio ironing surface. Ok, ok - stop laughing! My studio is too small for a real ironing board so I covered the tops of the two cabinets adjacent to my sewing machine with the silver stuff and it works just fine. Of course, the actual usable space is only 20"x20" (the left half, as you see) which is not ideal when I am ironing a 2 yard piece of fabric. And yes, those are 3 irons you see on the right. Don't ask me why they are all there. Tonight I was ironing a bunch of silk scarves which I have to label and take to the winter quilt and craft sale at the Pierro Gallery in South Orange, NJ. Here I am, ironing on a recently batik'd crepe de chine scarf. I like it so much I hate to sell it. Maybe nobody will buy it and I can keep it. I have this THING: every time I make a new scarf I think it is so wonderful that I have trouble parting with it. Well, not EVERY time - but you know what I mean. Silly, huh?

The other ironing I was doing was taking the wax out of two pieces of fabric and then ironing them again after I had washed them. Here is one, which is rather pastel. I think I shall have to screen some stuff on top, since I am not crazy about pastels. On the other hand, maybe somebody else will be crazy about it as it is. I am pleased with the complexity of the layers. Finally, another piece - before and after I ironed-washed-ironed it. Why does it make me think of candy bars?

I'm making progress on that list from a couple of days ago. I got a teaching contract out in today's mail - and tomorrow, maybe I'll get to make a couple of postcards in addition to finishing up today's odds and ends.

Wednesday night check-in

Well, I seem to have completed half the items on this morning's list, if you count two more cups of coffee and lunch as actual items. I can check off the following... 1. finish unloading supplies sent back from Houston 2. bring them to downstairs studio (and plunked them on my print table) 3. work on outlines for future projects (worked on, did not finish) 4. finish sewing facing to quilt 6. charge my camera battery so I can photograph #5 and #4 (the battery is still charging) 7. have another cup of coffee 11. take new silkscreens downstairs to print studio (plunked them on the floor) 12. have another cup of coffee 16. have lunch 20. get ready to go to fiber lecture and exhibit at William Paterson University tonight ** ** Went to this event, which turned out to be an exhibit of student work from the textiles (or is it fibers?) department, plus a panel discussion which mainly centered on whether we should call it fiber art or textile art. Inconclusive, as you can imagine. I should attempt one more thing on the list before I give up and go to bed.

Wednesday morning blahs

I promised myself a day in the studio today, but alas, I have been busy piling up books to be inventoried so I can decide what to keep and what to get rid of. The bookcase in the hall that I emptied and moved into the studio was overloaded with what seems like every quilt and fabric book on the planet. Here are many of them, piled neatly(?) on my dining room table. Now what? Do I really need traditional quilt calendars from 1994 and 1995? After my daughter-in-law has a go at them and I decide what to keep, I'll probably post some special ones for sale and donate the rest. Before Thanksgiving, since my family has to eat on this table. On another note - I took my mother to Target yesterday and look what I found. You can probably guess what I am going to do with these. Nevertheless, before I can play, I have a little list...not necessarily in priority order. 1. finish unloading supplies sent back from Houston 2. bring them to downstairs studio 3. work on outlines for future projects 4. finish sewing facing to quilt 5. make more fabric postcards 6. charge my camera battery so I can photograph #5 and #4 7. have another cup of coffee 8. go back into fabric I printed on Monday and add a layer 9. mix up some new dyestock 10. mix up some soda ash 11. take new silkscreens downstairs to print studio 12. have another cup of coffee 13. find room for piles of newly printed fabric not put away yet 14. send back teaching contracts 15. call the dentist 16. have lunch 17. clean up downstairs studio 18. iron silk scarves and prepare for winter craft sale at Pierro Gallery 19. inventory the pile of books 20. get ready to go to fiber lecture and exhibit at William Paterson University tonight Off I go to start the day.

a tree grows in Brooklyn

But I didn't take any pictures of trees, or of Brooklyn. This is the Manhattan Bridge which goes between the two boros and is at the end of Canal Street. The Brooklyn Bridge goes to a different part of Brooklyn. Canal St. was one big traffic jam, so I had time to take a couple of pictures. The crowds were out in full force on such a gorgeous day, looking for bargains at such places as the Taj Mahal Car Stereo Warehouse in the middle of Chinatown.(!) The neighborhood is a mecca for accupuncture and other alternative medicines - which used to be illegal. I couldn't resist this photo below. A far cry from when my aunt sneaked into Chinatown and knocked three times on an unmarked door to get accupuncture for her tennis elbow 35 years ago. it was the only thing that helped and it was the only way she could get treated.Jessica and Tommy, whose street has lots of trees I didn't take pictures of, had the apartment painted in great colors before they moved in - and since this is theoretically an art blog, here they are. Uh. Carrot. One wall in the foyer/dining room. I wouldn't have had the courage, but it looks great! Of course, orange stimulates the appetite so I'm not sure what the ramifications will be - but it is cheerful. Bedroom, below. I couldn't get the kitchen picture color accurate or acid enough but it is a light yellow-green which looks funky with their white cabinets and black appliances. you'll have to imagine it.

We brought a bottle of champagne to celebrate our first meal in their new co-op and we had a wonderful artichoke fritatta that Jessica made and great, truly New York bagels that were small and chewy - not like round white bread that you find everywhere else in America.

On the way home, we were going too fast and my digital camera is too slow for me to shoot all the gritty, industrial landscape that I wanted to get. But I did get this shot of something wonderful; I know not what it is: maybe the towers of the Pulaski Skyway. To me, it is beautiful. It was a good day. Even though I am older than I was yesterday. Then again, who isn't?

can you tell I'm on a diet?

You Are Mexican Food

Spicy yet dependable. You pull punches, but people still love you.

What Kind of Food Are You?

Pretty well on target, I'd say. I am ready for a little distraction after having spent all day sorting out papers, throwing stuff away, paying bills, and other annoying things like cooking dinner. And it wasn't anything as interessting as Mexican food.

I must be going through some big transition, since I am compelled to create order out of chaos. I'm putting stuff in three-ringed notebooks with dividers and it is an overwhelming job. Boring, too. But I'm making progress. The room is looking better. I took this picture this morning; it no longer looks exactly like this, but you get the idea. ( Helene,if you are reading this, you can see I've rearranged a little bit.) This is the front corner of the front room: my teensy 11x14 dry studio. I not only sew and design here, but it is my music room, my reading room, and where I sat and meditated when I was going through chemo almost 5 years ago. The chair is really ugly but it was the smallest armchair with ottoman I could find. And I feel peaceful here. I brought the filled-up bookcase in from the hallway, where it was loaded with every quilting book on the planet. Those books are now piled on my dining room table and I am going to inventory them and sell the ones I no longer want/need. Some of them are out of print. Another task for next week.

In the foreground is my cutting table with a mat covered in paint, gel medium, and schmutz. I actually cleaned it off last night - or attempted to. One of these days I'll treat myself to a new one. But it isn't a priority. It is relatively uncluttered in this picture; I am standing in the corner that is diagonal from the chair. When I finish cleaning that side, I'll post another picture. For now, I have to finish the side of the room you are looking at.

an early brithday gift

All those COMMENTS!! Thanks, everyone. You have made me very happy today! A propos of my 20 things, I actually found a jpg of my 6th grade girl scout troop picture: can you find me? (hint: you know how I feel/felt about uniforms). Enlarge for a better view. The hoot is that I can name a lot of the girls (now all grandmothers, I suppose) in the picture. Miss Henrietta Hansen (middle of back row) is best known for making me HATE the Star Spangled Banner forever. She made us sing "and the home of the brave" umpteen zillion times till we got the notes right without a dipthong. The woman apparently never had a life. At any rate, I want to respond to your comments...but I need to do a little cutting and pasting first. How can you tell someone's been reading your blog for 15 minutes? Uh, mental telepathy? You are welcome to join our Eclectic Threads group anytime...if you don't mind the drive. Well, Mary, let's talk on Nov. 19. I wouldn't mind coming as a guest one time. Would be fun! I always say I'm not an animal lover to be polite, but in truth, I dislike animals too! Oh, all you kindred spirits - I should have known! In truth, I would have used the word 'hate' but I didn't want to offend anybody. I am highly allergic to dogs and cats and I am afraid of birds and squirrels are tree rats -- and I won't go on. You're right: it's like saying you hate mother and apple pie to say you hate animals. I once told my eldest daughter that if she didn't want me to visit she should get a dog. Guess what? The person that answered the phone was pretty pissy that I didn't 'punch' the appropriate number to get forwarded to the help I needed - until I told him I was calling from a rotary phone. I have several of them sitting around (unused) in the house, from the '60's. But here's the thing: you should always pretend you have a rotary phone: you can stay on the line and not go through the 'punch one, punch two' aggro they give you. Then the operator comes on right away. Well, maybe not RIGHT away. Eventually. #3 - all sports? Yep. Well, I used to play tennis 30 years ago, but once, playing doubles, my then-husband reminded me that it wasn't a spectator sport if you were ON the court. And I once bowled a strike on the next alley. Honestly. what about gymnastics? Uh, Lisa, what's that? I'm too old. We didn't have gymnastics back then. Watching or participating? BOTH. Yawn. Those genes are not in my family's pool my brothers took gym for dummies and I had a medical excuse for all of high school. I have to admit, however, that my children are sports fans. Clearly, they got it from their father. The sheer thought of ironing stresses me to no end....can I send you mine? Sure, Gabrielle. And I will send you my dirty dishes. xxx Oh, one more thing. Purple, my favorite color! But with one answer that was different, so was my hair color. Hmmm...

Your Hair Should Be Purple

Intense, thoughtful, and unconventional. You're always philosophizing and inspiring others with your insights.

What's Your Funky Inner Hair Color?

tagged

Marlene Reasoner tagged me while I was in Houston and I promised I'd list 20 things about me when I got back and came up for air. Today's air in NJ is gorgeous and mild, although it will get down to the 40's tonight. The trees changed in the week I was away and I missed their peak, but this was at the edge of the woods behind my deck this morning and I couldn't resist snapping it before it goes away.

I can probably come up with 20 things, but they are probably boring. Nevertheless, here goes:

1. Autumn is my favorite season, although I have decided that I will try to see winter this year from an artist's point of view.

2. I am left-handed but do these things only with my right hand: iron, cut with knife or scissors, dial the phone (dial - ha, am I dating myself??), drink.

3. I dislike sports and animals.

4. I don't have a sweet tooth and never, never eat sweets when I am hungry. But, when I eat sweets, I like my chocolate DARK (like Valharona baking chocolate) and when I eat ice cream, it's Haagen Dazs or nothing.

5. I don't do well in organizations that have rules or require uniforms (no surprise to anyone who knows me.) I can't remember whether I quit Girl Scouts or was thrown out. Probably both.

6. No matter how many times I clean up, I am cluttered again within 24 hours. At most.

7. My happiest job was as a promotion copywriter for a computer magazine. My worst job was as a personal shopper for Macy's.

8. I've been married for 23 years -- to my second husband.

9. I believe I was French in another life because when I am in France, I feel as though I have come home. I have always regretted not staying when I was living there 40 years ago. But that's another story...

10. I flunked 8th grade sewing and hate sewing to this day. So why am I working in fiber?

11. My 7th grade teacher gave me a "C" on a tree I drew the first day of class, told me I couldn't draw, and I never took another art class. I still can't draw, but I have finally realized that doesn't prevent me from being an artist.

12. Indian food is my favorite. I could eat it every day. Middle Eastern is second.

13. I am finding this difficult.

14. I listen exclusively to classical music when I work. or silence.

15. When nobody leaves comments on my blog I feel inexplicably sad and let down: especially after I see they have been reading for 15 minutes. Even a 'hi, I was here and today's post was boring' is better than nothing. I shall have to ask my therapist about this.

16. I have never taken an art course, except art history.

17. The first year of my first marriage I refused to have a tv. After Kennedy was assasinated we moved in with my parents for a week so we could watch. Then we bought one. I still don't watch tv. The last time I watched the news was in the aftermath of 9/11. I did not put on the tv to see the Katrina news: I get my news from National Public Radio and the NY Times.

18. When I need to de-stress, I iron.

19. I am a compulsive book-buyer and reader who has not read the DaVinci Code and does not care to. Give me a good British police procedural that is well-written and has characters that are developed and I'm happy!

20. I'd rather be downstairs in my dye/print studio than almost anything else.