Advent Imminent

http://bit.ly/2Se9cI

Saw this in Reader's Digest with this quote:

"A little care and concern in the midst of war will not redeem a violent world. The Christmas promise of peace and goodwill, cynics say, is an illusion. But then there are a million small stories, like the story of a soldier and a dog, to remind us that the impossible is always waiting, straining to become real."

A little reminder of Advent too.

He coulda won a Grammy

For years and years I have loved Steve Martin, from back in the SNL days (reruns) to when our ABC affiliate out in the sticks played cleaned-up versions of The Jerk, to some of his movies, and then to the bittersweet experiences of his books. One thing about him that remains constant is his excellence on the banjo! How delighted I was when I thought that Jay had nabbed us tickets to see him at the Grand Ole Opry, pickin his banjo, on my birthday this summer. Disappointment in not seeing him (my intuition failed me this once) was swayed by a wonderful dinner at our favorite East Nashville restaurant, but I kept thinking, "Oh that was probably once in a lifetime! I'm sad we missed that..."
I learned some months later that he'd scored us some spectacular seats for Steve Himself on tour, at the Ryman, with his banjo and a backing band, and that we were going with some of our oldest friends in town, the Hudsons. He hinted that the seats were "killer"...
Well, they were, and my pictures don't do it justice, but we were so close to the stage we could even see spit fly. Upon entering, we saw the lights set up outside and then heard from a stage manager that, yes, the show was being taped for posterity! I couldn't wipe the grin off my face the whole night; everyone involved was terrific, and even Earl Scruggs made it out for the last song. We heard that Steve's latest CD The Crow had won an award or two at the IBMA awards in town the week before for liner notes and graphic design; the music itself has gotten rave reviews, as well our Ryman show. We grabbed a nifty Hatch poster to remember it all by, since our camera phones suck it... thanks to Jay for yet one more awesome show to add to our list this year!
I forgot about posting this a couple of years ago. Steve at his best! So fun...

Fun workspaces.

I came across the most fantastic site, sort of a clearinghouse of all sorts of finds from design to type to furniture to artwork to sculpture... but the section that caught my eye most was their workspaces photography, chronicling different artists' studios.
Check out the pix below, of awesome studio spaces, via the super cool sharesomecandy.com
All pix are from that site. Inspiring, envy-inducing...












And the picture above caught my eye: a teeny poster I have and love from local Nashville printmaker/awardwinner/illustrator Bryce McCloud, the Look Up Moon. One of my favorite pieces of art of all time!!

And the lovely collages from artist Miki Sato on there! Love looking at them.

My Hen Friend

My friend the Urban Hen is having a giveaway! I love her and have said so here before, multiple times. Not only is Sharon a talented seamstress but a loyal friend and one of the most genuinely friendly people I have ever known. And she will be a fantastic mom!

Check out her etsy shop too. Support handmade!

Pancakes

1 1/4 c all-purpose flour
2 Tbsp sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1 beaten egg
1 c milk
1 Tbsp cooking oil

Stir together flour, sugar, baking powder, and 1/2 tsp salt. Combine
egg, milk, and oil; add all at once to flour mixture, stirring till
blended but still slightly lumpy. Pour about 1/4 c batter onto a hot,
lightly greased griddle or heavy skillet for each standard size pancake.

-- from The Better Homes & Gardens New Cookbook

Mmmmmm!!! I put frozen blueberries in! Yum. I remember my mom using this same cookbook when we were little; you know the one with the red and white plaid cover. Crazy!

Breakfast today was kind of like our yearly anniversary camping trips, because:

a) October: it's that time of year

b) Tents: we are living in plasticked-off rooms due to imminent sheet rock messiness

c) Food: I make Jay pancakes at least once on the Coleman stove

d) Cold: The bazillion-dollar brand-new heating/AC unit won't turn on and it's about 45° today

So, kind of fun, kind of annoying, kind of cold...but in 10 days we get to celebrate 10 years of marriage, so that pretty much trumps the annoyances. Besides, it's always easier to get warmer than it is to get colder!

A magical moment.

My dear husband nabbed tickets back in March for U2's 360° Tour, and this week was the lucky night. Unfortunately it was Bono's night to have a cold, but it didn't hurt the experience by much. There's plenty of goodness even with a sick Bono... the set was incredible, the stage beautiful, opening act Muse very energetic and extra-audible, and of course 20+ years of great songs from the U2 catalog gave them plenty of awesomeness to sing.

Below is one of my all time favorite songs of theirs, from one of the best concert dvds I've ever seen. I'd never seen that song performed with such an opening by The Edge... how on earth does he do that? Maybe because he's from the future...

A great collage artist.

I'm lucky enough to have a few of Randel Plowman's little bird collage treasures. And when I say little I mean it: they are adorably teeny, and so affordable you won't stop at just one. Check out his October sale (bottom). He doesn't just use birds as subject material either, if you're not big into birds. Would love to attend one of his workshops one day.
I'll update my blog with a picture of mine all framed and in my new dining room, but who knows when that "new" will become "reality".
Just move fast if you see one you love: they don't stay unsold for long. You can always check my recently viewed blogs (to the right) under A Collage A Day.

Delicious...

Mmmm.
Mmmmm.
Mmmmmmm.
Orange Grove.

My new favorite site.

ut can you guess?
That would be the Daily Drop Cap, typophiles!
By the talented Jessica Hische.

Thanks, Dan!