One Life To Live

I learned two things this week. One, live your best life and two, stop griping. I met a Holocaust survivor, Eva Brown. And a friend died. Both lived completely different lives, came from different worlds but each one lived their best life the only way they could. Eva's faith, that her father instilled in her while growing up, is what helped her to be a survivor. It also helped her to "forgive" and continue to live after she was liberated. Not an easy thing to do especially after loosing several members of her family. The best way to describe her is that she radiates peace. Sounds corny but I have no other words for her demeanor. She uses her voice to reach thousands about the cruelties of hatred and to show them that it is possible to come out of something very ugly and build a new life and live it to it's fullest. And to think, I tried to back out of going to this presentation. Walking 1/2 mile with a bunch of 6th - 8th graders is not my cuppa tea. LOL! But see how life works? Things happen for a reason. This woman impressed me so much it's been helping me to deal with "what is" because it can always be a whole lot worst. A whole whole lot worst.

The other thing that happened to me was the death of a friend. Very unexpected. Yeah, one of those. I still don't know all the details because he was in Las Vegas with his wife. This man was a friend to everyone. He recently retired from teaching and has a grandson at our school. He made lots of book donations to our school library and most recently he was giving several lesson plans he no longer needs to teachers for ideas, use, etc. He lived his life doing what he loved and he LOVED teaching and talking. LOL! He was a giver and great supporter to his grandson. He is proof that you never know when you're gonna go so make sure you live your best life.

No one should tell you how to live your life unless you're harming yourself but you should make sure to live a life you love and live it to it's fullest the way you can. Appreciate what you have and stop griping cause it can always be a lot worst. A whole, whole lot worst.

Artventurous Observations

Frida says you better............

Can you believe we're at the end of MAY?! I can't. But I feel it cause I've been bitten by the June art bug that bites me each year around this time.

I love this hat box that I found at, of all places, Sav On, an old drug store out here in the Los Angeles area. I had to bring her home. It's so.....me. LOL! Rich colors of blue and ochre with touches of gold.

I've been painting lots of pages for a small book. I'm partial to blues and greens. Can you tell? This book will have 4 signatures and when it's complete, you'll be the first to see it.

I completed my "B" card for the ABC ATC swap I recently joined. We'll be trading one card a week so I'll be on my toes for a long time. Two down, 24 to go! Phew!

I think I've been bitten by the June art bug here in late May. My creative gene wakes up around this time of the year and it itches to do more and get involved with others. Art-wise involvement, that is. LOL!

Now that American Idol is over and it's Tuesday, I find myself wandering around trying to find something to do. It's strange to have this open window now that I'm not sitting if front of the T.V. Perfect timing, I'd say, since I'm swapping out some ABC ATCs and inchies. These extra minutes give me the time I need to play and be creative.

So, you should be seeing a little more posting from me featuring more of my artventures. Whether they be painted pages from a journal, inchies, ATCs or photos from around my home, I will be here to share it with you.

Been Tagged, Here Goes....

I've been tagged by Soulbrush. Here goes......

1. What are your current obsessions?

Well, now that American Idol is over, I guess that makes it ATCs, Inchies and reading blogs.

2. What are you listening to?

Eydie Gorme Canta en espanol con Los Panchos. It's from my parents generation and I can see why it was so popular back then. It's got a lounge-bar-type feel and I like it. A lot!

3. Which item from your wardrobe do you wear most often?

That would be my trusty black loafers cause they're comfy and get me where I need to get to quick!

4. What are you reading?

Blogs, blogs and more blogs!

5. What's for lunch?

Lately it's been yogurt, granola bars and fruit but that's about to change cause I miss "crunch" but not the granola kind of crunch, so, I'm about to have salads with protein and fruit.

6. What makes you helpless with laughter?

Family one-liners which are usually about my silly comments. You have to be there. LOL!

7. What was the last thing you bought?

A crappy pen that I thought would write really awesome in my journal but when I went to post an entry a while ago, all the writing was light and so here I am, typing the questions and writing the answers all over again. Maybe I'll post it just to imagine your heads all shaking sadly. No, maybe not. I just looked at it again and it really is bad.

8. Favorite flower of the moment?

That would have to be a Gardenia because my Gardenia bush is blooming wild!

9. If you were a dog, which one would you be?

A chihuahua because my owner would probably spoil me like crazy and carry me around and lots of people would oooo and ahhhh over me. LOL! Oh yeah, and I'd have a super loud yappy bark to protect my owners and get what I want. Really. LOL!

10. Describe yourself in one sentence.

Wish full thinker and most time do-er.

11. Which art item from your art stash do you use most often?

My glue stick. I have so many in lots of strange places cause you never know when you're gonna need one in a hurry!

OK, so here are the rules.

Answer on your blog.

Replace one question.

Add one question.

The more I think about those two rules above me, the more they seem alike. Hmm. Or maybe you can change one question around and then add one new question. Am I just changing things around a bit here or what? Well, I said I was a most time do-er. Sorry. LOL!

Tag some people.

I'm going to tag....

Bea!

Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

If BT was my neighbor we could sit under the Bottle Brush Tree and compare notes, while having a picnic, of course. She'd comment on how much she misses the country because her Bottle Brush Tree didn't have to compete with city wires in the background. LOL!

If Jolene was my neighbor we'd be digging up some of these purple Lily of the Niles for her to place on her patio because this color was one of her mom's favorite. Well, actually, I think I might be the one doing all the digging up while she'd be taking photos. LOL!

If Bea was my neighbor, we'd be cutting fresh gardenias for her to float in her little glass dishes at home. She'd probably have Murphy with her. He's such a cutie pie. I wonder if he digs holes? Jolene would probably want to take some home for her girls to put in their hair. Or am I pushing it with that thought? Jolene? LOL!

If Soulbrush was my neighbor, I'd probably give her this cactus because she has a thing for the prickly suckers. LOL! Or she'd bring her sketch pad and sketch away. If Christina was my neighbor, she would probably be telling me that she doesn't miss cacti after living in Arizona forever and she'd probably be asking when we could go to the beach cause THAT she missed. LOL!

And if ALL of you were my neighbors, we'd be sharing cuttings with each other to grow in our gardens, and because geraniums take off like crazy, I'd be sharing lots of these with you.

Wish you could all be my neighbors. We could gather at my home and sit down to play with stamps, paint, collage things, etc. Or we could go outside and sit at the patio table to take in the beautiful sky, hummingbirds buzzing around, listen to the woodpecker, while sipping coffee or tea, of course. Yes, it would be so nice to have you all in my neighborhood. But blogging will have to do.

Shakin' Artventures!

Poor Juanita. She looks as if she's saying, "Dammit, Frida, get off my back!" Or "Darn candle, umph, get outta my way!" Please don't click on this picture to get a closer look. You'll only end up sneezing from the dust. LOL!

Native Californian that I am, I will NEVER EVER get used to the shaking, rolling, and jerking jolts that an earthquake brings. The shaking began around 8:30 something and lasted longer than usual. Thankfully, things that fell onto the floor did not break. And thankfully, our house is still standing. I do have a hoarseness due to all the yelling, cursing, and screaming I was doing during the few seconds of the earthquake. Good grief, sounds like an orgasm. LOL!!! OK shhhh. I think the rating of this blog just went from a G to an R. LOL!!!

Inchies & ATC artventures

A recent question made me search for some of my inchies. I arranged and squeezed as many as I could across the scanner's screen. Click on the picture to get a closer look. You may notice backgrounds that scream "ticket stub" and yes, I've used those for instant background art. I've also used discarded catalog cards from the library. Anything works as long as it's 1 x 1.

These will soon be on their way across the ocean. The color "pink" was the theme for this ATC trade and I'm happy with the results.

I'm behind on mail that I intended to send out a couple weeks ago. If you're reading this post and you have an idea you may be one of the "receivers," please know that something will be coming your way soon!

A couple nights ago I got in the mood to create some ATCs for a trade I'm doing with Soulbrush. I went outside my box because the main color was pink. I usually don't do pink very well but I survived! I didn't break out in hives or get fever. LOL! I think I may have started trouble though. I casually asked Soulbrush if she'd ever made inchies. You know, those 1 x 1 inch squares of collaged, painted, stamped, whatever art pieces? She asked me a couple questions about them. I think she might be cutting squares right now. LOL!

ABC "ME" Artventures

I discovered the ABC "ME" prompt from BT the gardener who was tagged by Soulbrush. I decided to do my ABC's in my journal rather than type it out on my blog. I didn't follow it exactly as BT and Soulbrush did. I changed a few of the words represented by each letter but guess what? As I got closer to the last few letters, other words crept into my mind that I felt would have represented me better. Take the letter "F" for instance. I put Favorite Flowers (my choice, the original was favorite color). Well, why I didn't put FRIDA after "F" is beyond me. I love Frida! Where was my brain?! Don't answer that. LOL! This happened with a couple of the other letters.

The whole point of the ABC "ME" prompt is to expose yourself to viewers who want to get to know you better. It was fun but I think there's more to know about me and the best way to find out is to just keep reading my blog and leave comments and questions. Oh, and anyone reading this is tagged to let others know about you through your personal ABCs.

Artventurous Sunday Shoes

It all started because next Wednesday is "Colorful Shoe Day" at school - my day job. How could I resist the temptation to join in on the fun? Just like the students, I generally wear black shoes to work each day. But come Wednesday, WATCH OUT!


Finding a pair of willing victims was not hard. Would you look at these oldies found at the bottom of my shoe pile?! Perfect for altering. No need to primer, smooth surface and will not be missed. Sorry Goodwill, you won't be getting these!

Once I had my colors and theme together, it was time to gather my supplies. Let the fun begin!

After a little paint, paper, adhesive and gems, my vision came together. I wonder what the kids will think? LOL!

What do you think? Besides the fact that I need a fresh pedicure - believe me, my toes will be just as sparkly as my new shoes, I'm extremely happy with my colorful shoes. I am so ready for Wednesday!



You too can have vibrant and colorful shoes. These were super easy to put together. I applied two coats of Folk Art Metallic paint in Blue Topaz. My choice of adhesives were Golden Soft Gloss Gel Medium for the paper on the heels and the birds along side of each shoe and Fabri-Tac clear glue for the sequins and leaves. The leaves each had a fine lined gold sticker from the Magenta collection placed on top of them. Super easy, super quick, super cheap and, I think, super cute!

Religious Artventures

I always had my suspicions that I got my crafty gene from my mother but now it has been confirmed. My mother is a Mixed Media Artist! How is it that I never stopped to look at the hanging pillow with all the little do-dads hanging on it? I glanced at it but never really stopped to LOOK at it. She lovingly placed various religious articles on her small hanging heart. wow. I just read her art. You know that question "What do you think the artist is saying?" or "What does the painting tell us?" Well, my mom has always had a strong bond to her faith and it holds a special place in her heart. You GO mom! Your art shouts and I read it loud and clear!