doodle arizona gordian

The aim of life is to live, and to live means to be aware - joyously, drunkenly, serenely, divinely aware.   

Henry Miller

I LOVE decorated palms.  These are on the main road through my neighborhood and we look so forward to their lighting every year at Thanksgiving and miss them after they come down after the First.  One of our main activities is driving through the neighborhoods where folks go all out in competition with lights and decorating.  It's easy here, you can reach the eaves with a stepladder and wear shorts doing it!  The huge palms have special companies that have sprung up to handle things for the over-exuberant customer, or like my friend Judy says, it's OK to throw money at it!  I remember my mother-in-law would call the fire department to come hang lights on her perfectly shaped 2 story pine tree in her front yard.  She thought they 'needed the extra work... '. 

I simply can't believe the number of offers I am getting in my email, 25,40, 50% off, order now!  Trouble is that Christmas presents have to be sent a week ago so apparently it is my own self I should be saving all this money on today.  Too bad I don't have any left.

The osso buco is on the stove for tonight.  I got it all browned up and am slow cooking it now with it's vegetables.  I don't know when or if we will eat it, entirely depends on what else happens today, but I love it so much that it just may make it to the breakfast table.  Now I'm starting the gingerbread trifle I'll take to dinner tomorrow night- if I get all the components done today it will be easy to just whip the cream and stick it in it's bowl tomorrow.

Because maybe I'll be busy throwing wrapping paper hither and yon over my shoulders.  As if.  OK, since I don't have any gifts except the box of cookies from my broker, lets talk some art!  I love these adorable little embroideries displayed in their own hoops~

Circles, from Happy Red Fish

Experimenting with other ways to replace ink was the start of this new approach.

Using needle & thread lead to a series of embroideries with a special edge.

This exhibition shows one of these series, which were weekly published. 

They have been created with love, affection and full devotion.

Liz Climo 

Staying with the little embroidery theme today, we're revisiting Peruvian artist 

Ana Teresa Barboza, who embroiders over her drawings.

Needless to say the Christmas revelries will cease tomorrow.  This was one of the  bad/sad years for all the friends and family we lost and think about continually. And it's sad that we aren't with family, either biological or manufactured, this year.  It's the only time of the year I regret selling the big house, if only for a fleeting moment.  It's time someone else takes over the plans and new traditions are made.  The Christmas Eve thing is deeply ingrained in me, handed down from my own parents who didn't want to get up at the crack of dawn with us so decreed Christmas Eve as present time.  We had such fun ripping through stuff and we continued the tradition with our own kids but Santa came overnight and there was always something special in the morning.  

So, enough tromping down the ole memory trail here.  I'm going to go eat a cookie.

And look forward to the New Year.  I hope it's a good one for all of you, and thanks you so much for reading the Muse, whether sporadically or regularly.  I'll keep it up until I hit the ten year mark in March, then I don't know what will happen.  I take suggestions...