My Top 5 Inspirations

Inspiration Avenue has thrown a Blog Party in which everyone participating is to list our five creative inspirations. So without further ado here is mine


My #1 inspiration is the female mystique. What makes us women, what moves us, grooves us, challenges us, delights us, saddens us, our relationships with our mothers, daughters, and sisters, and forms our perception of our unique worlds.















My # 2 inspiration is music. While I am working I like to boogie my booty. You could say that when I create it is more like a performance art. Latino and hip hop works best. Yes, my bio says I am a hard rocker, but rock really does not lend itself well to creative dance thinking. Since I like to dance why should I not dance while working. Click here for one my favorite working songs. Be sure to turn off playlist on bottom first. Or listen to it first.

My #3 inspiration is scent. Yes, I said scent. Patchouli for one can send me back to my college art study days, rose to my grandmother and her crochet, honeysuckle to quiet summer nights which are good for just sketching and writing.


10% Jasmine
10% bergamot
5% patchouli-because it is very strong
5% distilled water
70% vodka-no, don’t drink it (well, maybe a glass won’t hurt)
A glass perfume bottle


Depending on how strong you want the perfume, you can let the mixture stand for as little as 48 hours all the way to a month. The longer it stands, the stronger it will be. After your perfume has sat for your preferred time, add 2 tablespoons of the diluted water. If the perfume is too strong for you, you can add more water to get your desired scent strength. To make your scent last longer, add a tablespoon of glycerin to your perfume mixture.


My #4 inspiration is Bling! I can’t help it. I must be part gypsy. I love metallic paint, and glitter paint, and iridescent paint, and interference paint, and gold ink, and copper ink, and bronze ink, and beads, and jewels, etc.




My #5 inspiration is my own personal symbols, dreams, nightmares, fears, poems, writings, and childhood memories.


SUMMER DAY

wings aglitter in the late sunlight
a dragonfly hovers over the pond
a breeze whispers through the willows
emerald green water ripples softly
cicadas sound out their mating calls
sweet honeysuckles overtake a broken swing
ghostly laughter barely heard
in the fading summer light

Night of the SPIDER

I was minding my own business when Niko began to bother me, meowing loudly and insistently. Then he would run down the hall to the bedroom and continue meowing, then come back to me to repeat this behavior. Being a good kitty mommy I had to go see what had him in such a state. In the bedroom, on the wall, was the Bane of Niko’s Existence.
What I am speaking of is a little black and furry eight legged multi-eyed demon. AKA a house spider. (yes, my cat is arachnophobic. He hates spiders. Barney just eats them. I know-ehww!) So I killed the bugger to satisfy Niko’s need for arachnid blood. I don’t like them either.
Back in the mid-eighties My parents were living in Florida near Tampa and they wanted me to move down there to be near them. I thought it would be cool, so I went for a visit with the thought to start apartment hunting. Everything was going hunky dory until my last night ever in Florida. I had awaken in the middle of the night with the thought that I was not alone in the guest room anymore. I turned on the bedside lamp and about that time a very large, very black, very eight-legged freak ran across my body. Talk about an EEK! Factor. I think my scream woke up the whole neighborhood. According to the nice, but stern, public servants that answered the calls of a woman screaming I did.
No one told me there were tarantulas in the Sunshine State. Needless to say, despite all me mom’s begging, I left the next day back to North Carolina where the spiders are not big enough to drag a little five foot woman away.

A Blog Party!

Inspiration Avenue will be hosting a blog party on August 1st. Follow the link to Inspiration-Avenue-team to sign up for the fun.

Pink Chocolate

This a recent collage I did using a color scheme I usually don't use-pink and a chocolate brown. I found this lovely collage sheet at our local Michaels and just could not resist getting it.

I normally buy only one sheet of any paper I like to use. I figure one sheet should be enough for a few works, but beyond that would be overload.

I would love to hear any comments (good and bad) from everyone about it. What do you think?

Buried Treasure! Take Two!

This is my second Buried Treasure post. As I remember I was in mourning for a the loss of a furry neighbor that was killed on Halloween that year.

I was trying to clean out a corner of my studio today that had not seen the light of day for an eternity when I ran across a painting I did when I first started painting. It reminded of a simpler time in my life when I did not have so much responsibility, when I was free to choose my own way. A time I was not so concerned about what others thought of my work, or obeying the principles of good design. As I sat there in the light coming through the window staring at this work it dawned on me that I had gone way off course from my younger self and that, surprisingly, I miss her. I miss doing this kind of raw, primitive work. Maybe it's time I re-examine where I am going in my life, my priorities, what it is I really want to do.

Days I Cherish

Today was one of those days that I cherish. And live for. This morning I was sitting on my deck drinking my morning coffee not expecting anything out of the ordinary so of course I did not have my camera. I heard a noise and looked to see a deer emerge from the woods at the edge of my yard. It looked around, and satisfied that it was in no immediate danger, began to nibble on my lawn. I could see the shadows of more of them in the woods, but they never came out. I could of kicked myself for not having my camera, but I knew if I moved to go get it that moment would be lost. I did, however, have my phone with a camera on it. I snapped a few pics. It looked up at me as I took the pictures, but continued eating.
I sat and drunk my coffee, watching the deer contently eat until my neighbor stomped out onto his porch, slamming his door behind as he left for the day.
I checked my pics later and they did not turn out well. Bummer, I really wanted to share them.
It was such a cool day today, more like an autumn day than a day I mid-July. The high today was only 72. I spent a lot of time outside because of the coolness. I planned my fall plantings and yard décor, where I want to place a bird bath, the best place for an apple tree, and better garden placement for the Spring. I worked out there until about five, then painted some, stopping only when hunger got the best of me. After that it was near seven and time for Torchwood on BBCA. And after that, Primeval. So I don’t do too much until they go off.
So, bye. See ya’ll tomorrow.

To Hear A Mockingbird

Birdsong is a lovely thing, one that I have for some reason really never paid attention to. Today as I was getting out of my car after a particularly bad day at work full of drama I was struck by the sounds of a bird sitting in the cedar tree in my neighbor's yard (I think it has a nest there). It was amazing the range of sound coming from this lone bird. I sat down on my deck to listen to it as it warbled, chirped, tweeted, and chirred. Listening to that little bird made my bad mood slip away.

I looked it up later and found it was a mockingbird. The website I found to hear it's song had other birds and I spent the next hour listening to all of them. I never realized that I had heard all of these birds and just never listened to them. Worse yet, I use bird imagy in my artwork alot. I should know more about them.

There was the mourning dove and it's sweet cooing http://www.learnbirdsongs.com/birdsong.php?id=7, the blue jay with it's loud scolding http://www.learnbirdsongs.com/birdsong.php?id=5, the purdie purdie of the cardinals http://www.learnbirdsongs.com/birdsong.php?id=3, and many others. I think my favorite will be the mockingbird http://www.learnbirdsongs.com/birdsong.php?id=4. I was even entertained as said bird attacked a cat that got too close.

To say that I never listened to the birds around me, I spoke wrong. I have noticed the screech owl and whoopoowill on my nightly walks. They have both have been sadly silent these past few years. I hope that they have moved on and not fallen to a bad end. Oh, and of course, there is the ever present ravens in the autumn.

I think I'll go get some bird seed tomorrow and try to entice the little darlings into my yard.

My Favorite Post for the July 16 repost Project

Thoughts On Traffic, People, And Issues
I had gone to town late this afternoon and on my way home I realized something. Everyone growls about having to wait in traffic, but really doesn't bother me.
I was sitting in my car, heavy metal blaring from my radio, sipping on a caramel fappicino from Starbucks, my windows down with the smells drifting in from all the various restraughts along the street. And I was happy.
I loved this time of day.
And I people watched. A favorite past-time of mine.All around me I could see other drivers either on their phones, frowning at the traffic lights, talking with their passangers. Most looked harried, distracted, bored, unhappy. The stress levels around there must of been very high.
I was thinking, like, chill, people. No need to get all hot and bothered. Just sit back and enjoy the ride, like me. Keep the blood pressure down. You'll get home eventally. I try not to get stressed over anything.
Stress causes medical problem.
Don't need anymore of that.
People who don't really know me think that I don't care. Those that do know me know that's not the case. I just refuse to let issues rule my life. (and sometimes I really DON'T care.)
Back to the traffic. As bad as it is now, wait until the holiday shopping begins. I'm planning on shopping online, but I think I will go ride up and down the main streets just to watch the dramas. Woowhoo!

Buried Treasure!

On July 16th, look on thealteredpage.blogspot.com for all those who participated in the Buried Treasure challange. This is where you will find all who agreed to repost one or more blog posts from the past.

Daily Note

Try eating yoplait yogut frozen. It's great. The whipped works best.

Fireworks, Watermelons, and Rain

This July 4th I was forced by the economy to make a decision has how to celebrate. I’m sure a lot of people had to make the same decision. How to celebrate…or more to the point how much to spend to celebrate. I only had so much to spend. Did I want to have a great spread for the family picnic? Or did I want to have a fireworks display? How about a little of both…a small backyard cookout and lesser fireworks? In the end I opted for the fireworks. Why? 1-Because the only ones to show up for a cookout was my sis and her crew and they couldn’t be there until late because her man had to work late. So what was the point? 2-because I’m an unabashed firebug. I love playing with fire and explosives and fireworks. 3-because of the kids in my neighborhood. I wanted them to have a great fireworks display without their parents having to have the hassle of trying to get to the downtown display. So with my fireworks and the display of the neighbors on either side of me we had a great street wide fireworks.

Afterwards I cut up a watermelon for my niece and nephews and we ate it on the deck in the rain. Such fun!

It rained all night and is still raining. This always happens after fireworks around here.