Windows, Some cool and recent photos!

This is a photo I took down town of Christmas lights but as you can see it is spring and I think the flowers and lights are a beautiful combination. I am also looking at my mom's old photos today and I came across this beautiful white cat. I took a picture so that I could have one and I found that the reflections made even more interesting.

More tales...

These are tales from a recent sketch book!

Velvet markers...

Okay, these things are silly but, also fun. My daughter is quite good at them. Blending colors and everything. Velvet marker! The markers that come with them don't usually work that great. I am not sure what she did these with... ours or the ones in the package. Any way, my velvet marker things don't come out as good as hers. Still fun though.

Tales from sketch books past...

Still cleaning, found some more art!

Best cream soup ever...

All decorated for spring! Hope you like it! Okay, this soup was basically an accident. I just made soup out of what was lying around my kitchen. A collection of strange ingredients. You would not think olives and ginger would go together but, some how they do/did!
Ingredients

1 red potato
1 can canalleni beans
4 green onions
5 stalk celery
5 clove garlic
Salt and pepper to taste
1 1/2 inch fresh Ginger grated or minced
Maybe about a TBSP of dill
5 black olives or might have been calamata
2 TBSP of margarine
About 1/2 a gallon of almond milk

Directions
1 make roux with margarine, sauté celery, garlic, ginger, olives and potatoes.
2 salt and pepper.
3 Add almond milk and dill.
4 Simmer about 20-25 minutes, then add green onions and simmer a little longer, about 5 minutes.

Lucky's

This is loosely based on a place I used to hang out at in New Orleans called Lucky's. It was a bar with pool tables, red lights if I remember correctly. You could also do your laundry which I thought was great! Once, I was really soaking wet because the rain can come down there like crazy sometimes and a bartender who worked there who could be very nice literally tried to give me the shirt off of his back...

Technical difficulties...

Well, I am having technical difficulties. My computer is broken...so, I am not going to be able to post new items in my shop on etsy for a bit. So, I am going to post a few things here and if you are interested in purchasing any thing you can contact me via email. Also, everything that was in my shop is still there and you can purchase them if you want.
This is a 2.5 by 3.5 inch Aceo size painting in oil.

Looks like candy, because it is candy!

Okay, I am about posted out and am going to watch Project Runway soon. This is a picture of candied blood oranges that my very talented daughter made over Christmas. I think it was Christmas, or Thanks giving. Basically, you cook them in simple syrup about 15 minutes. Then dry and coat with sugar. After that you cover them in chocolate. It takes a long time for them to dry and turn into candy. This recipe is kind of rough. I am going to have to look it up or consult my daughter. Looking it up didn't work. Can't find it!!! I really like the picture and the oranges so, I wanted to share them with people. Official recipe pending...

Snow sculptures...

Mother nature/ the powers that be made these snow sculptures that my daughter and I saw on our walk. Can these be possible? Pretty cool!

A very shiny Christmas...

The pink tree is our Christmas display...might not be tasteful...but, we like it! Most of this was bought by my daughter on sale at borders. The other photo is my mom's house. She has good taste...

Stars are out weather is on the way...

The stars are out, there was some lightening which I love!!! I think there may be a storm on the way...yay! I stood out side in a storm the other day because the hail was the size of marbles and I was like I bet that hurts. I only stood out for a second, hardly any of it hit me and it didn't hurt as bad as you would think! I know storms can be terrible and do awful damage but, at the same time you have to be impressed! So any way here are a couple of pictures of the calm before the storm... my mom and I walked my dog earlier, here are some pictures of a beautiful sunset!

Tales from a really old sketch book...

These are some sketches I did from a national geographic a long time ago...I drew them on the back of my piano music and then had to cut them out and put them on paper because, they came out pretty good. Better then I expected I guess...These are from when I used to drink too much, which I don't do now because I am a mom and I got tired of it.

Tales of eerie children...

This drawing I think was an assignment from when I was in high school. Draw an old family photo. I don't know who these kids are but I really liked the photo a lot. These two children look strangely solemn, innocent but maybe not. Kind of like children of the corn...I don't know I can't really remember that movie that well. Or just kind of like they are sweet but might steal your wallet. I don't know. Maybe they just look kind of sad. My mom did not know who they were either.

Tiena...

There are probably going to be a lot of posts like this because, I am cleaning like crazy so, I am finding all kinds of things. This is my cat Tiena who came to me from some people I knew when I was young. I thought of them as cousins but, I think they were just friends of the family. They all had white hair and I think they were all girls. Very girly girls! Originally, I was going to get a cat from the humane society as a birthday present. Back then the humane society would not give you a cat if any one in the house hold was allergic. This is kind of a depressing story. Any way, I picked out a little fluffy orange kitten. But, wound up with hives all over my face. So, we had to leave with no kitten. Strangely, I don't remember being allergic to cats before then. I think maybe I had had allergies my whole life but, no-one knew where they came from. My cousins felt bad so, they mentioned their cat Squirt. I hope that little orange cat had a decent life some where. We brought Squirt home and named her Tiena.Tiena lived to be 19 years old. She was soft as a bunny rabbit. When I got her she was a maniac and no-one could catch her or pet her. I managed to tame her after a lot of effort also, I sort of grew out of my allergies in the process. I think eventually she let other people pet her but, really only would sit on my lap. She ran a way during one of the coldest Michigan winters and came back 6 months later a giant puff ball of fur with skin and bones underneath. When I lived in New Orleans she hung out with all the stray cats and occasionally invited them in! She had free reign going in and out because, it was not possible to keep her inside. She would dive out the top of a window. She died as I said of natural causes when she was about 19. Tiena was one cool cat! Any way, this picture is in oil pastel and I think I made it when I was 11 years old.

Tales of finger painting...

When my daughter was very young we used to paint together. We still kind of do this which I mentioned in earlier posts in that we play a game called you draw I draw. Any way, today I was going through old art because I am cleaning and I found many strange things. Some of them were paintings I made with my daughter when she was very young. I have to say I love these paintings. They look like you could eat them and we had fun making them...Dahlia has turned out to be really great at 3 dimensional things. More recipes, art, possibly music coming soon...See you later!

Tigress, cranky old lady...

This is my daughter's cat Tigress bald, striped, old and some what dignified. I keep taking pictures of her because she is quite a character, then I feel bad about it because...well, she is bald.

Out and about...

Some photos I took while out and about Ypsilanti last winter for various reasons.

Peter vrs. Shop vac...

Ah, the vacuum
With a mind of it's own
Grabs the carpet,
pulls it off the ground and
Roughs it up.

At least the shop vac
keeps working no
matter what it grabs.

I can just pull it out like
Pulling something out of
the throat of a giant snake!

Before, it goes all the way in of course...

Thank goodness for Peter, he growls, he looks at it side ways...

There is no way that vacuum knew what was coming, all 8 times...Peter growled, and rung it's neck.

Thank you, Peter, without you I don't know what that shop vac would have done!

It might have sucked my eye out!

Peter is a little depressed right now, as you can see in this picture. He really likes to be helpful...maybe I should see if I can find a better picture of him...I'll look in to that!