Tequila and Salt

Another long exhausting day and a long hard night of making powerpoint presentations for tomorrow ahead of me, when I come home to this email from Janice:

"Tequila and Salt"

This should probably be taped
to your bathroom mirror
where you could read it every day.
You may not realize it,
but it's 100% true.

1. There are at least two people in this world
that you would die for.

2. At least 15 people in this world
love you in some way.

3. The only reason anyone would ever hate you
is because they want to be just like you.

4. A smile from you can bring happiness to anyone,
even if they don't like you.

5. Every night, SOMEONE thinks about you
before they go to sleep.

6. You mean the world to someone.

7. You are special and unique.

8. Someone, that you don't even know exists, loves you.

9. When you make the biggest mistake ever,
something good comes from it.

10. When you think the world has turned its back on you
take another look.

11. Always remember the compliments you received and
forget about the rude remarks.

Good friends are like stars........
You don't always see them,
But you know they are always there.
And always remember....
that when life hands you Lemons,
ask for Tequila and Salt and call me over!

Way to go Janice you just made my day....

Horoscope du Jour

My e-horoscope for today was: "You have the potential to be sharper than usual today. You're able to see beneath the surface and understand why things are the way they are. Weak arguments crumble in the face of your intense perceptions so go ahead and strip away the fluff to connect with core issues. Words hold the power to make real changes, so use them wisely."
I am to teach High School students today about art, how to think critically about it and what it means to really see. hm....
Thought I'd add this photograph by American photographer Sally Mann, here's a link:
http://www.pbs.org/art21/artists/mann/index.html
She's one of my all time favorites. A girlfriend turned me onto her work many, many moons ago.

Tokyo Dance Trooper

Saw this on someone elses blog...thought it was too funny.

Good Quotes

Yep, used to keep journals and diaries...no time now...blog, only blogggggg.
MAN!! COOL class group I have at CFCC I think we're up to 10. Very interesting mix of backgrounds and personalities. I am PUMPED!

Then tonight stumbled onto this- interesting words from Lelainia Lloyd's website. She's "a mixed media and textile artist living and working on the beautiful West coast of British Columbia, Canada" her site:
http://www.tattered-edge.com/

First of all this should be about motherhood!:
"Sometimes being a friend means mastering the art of timing. There is a time for silence. A time to let go and allow people to hurl themselves into their own destiny. And a time to prepare to pick up the pieces when it's all over."
~ Gloria Naylor

Then this:
"Tell me who you love, and I'll tell you who you are."
~ Creole Proverb

Then thank heavens I found Robert Smith! And honestly, what a nice thing to inventory... all the people I love.
I think I shall list them...love to list things in a little notebook each night. For instance all the things I am grateful for...you know the way cream swirls in coffee early on a cool mountain morning by a camp fire, lightening bugs under banana trees (last night at my best buddies house! awesome!) the sounds baby chickadees make in the birdhouse. that kind of stuff...I like a good dozen each night written down in list form. I'm such hoarder! Even hoarding events, memories and moments, sheesh!

Then this one:
"Do not keep the alabaster boxes of your love and friendship sealed up until your friends are dead. Fill their lives with sweetness, speak approving words while their ears can hear them and while their hearts can be filled by them."
~ William Childs

Oh too true, life is so fleeting and really... can one really squander love? Isn't it self-perpetuating...I mean isn't everyone, even the most miserable humans deserving of some? I can't believe honest love can go wasted.
What wonderful quotes. Thanks Lelainia!
So what are you waiting for? Go tell someone how much they mean to you... go on!

More Surf Music

I am bummed that the local band "The Noseriders" have no website, that I know of, for me to share, but here's another local band I love. The Da Howlies!
http://www.dahowlies.com/boards1.htm

My New Hangout

My new favorite hangout....Ocean Grill Tiki Bar. http://www.oceangrill.us/
Many know that I have a barely contained passion for all things tiki and a companion love of surf guitar. My favorite band is the Mermen of San Fransisco. http://www.mermen.net/music.shtml
But I have finally visited Ocean grill and had the treat of hearing the Noseriders, while there munching on fried shrimp and sipping a lovely concoction called Ocean Potion, which came with fruit in the top. Nothing like yummy coconutty drinks with fruit! No umbrella though, it would have blown away in the constant breeze. My compadre Donna and I dubbed it the perfect cool mom hang out, the kids romp below and leave you alone... well kinda. They drove our bartender crazy asking for refills of shirleytemples, bless her heart. The Noseriders are AWESOME! Their epic tune Rooster Tail is my fav. They even did a great cover of Secret Agent Man. They had to drag me away....

Margaritaville

Just a quick post because I'm on my second homemade traditional margarita, Robert is teaching me how to make them. ahhhhh, the typos will abound. We are working on his website and his Squidoo lens.... shhhhh! not ready yet!
I am excited because I love the computer... I love photoshop and the web and communticating with a huge group of geeks like myself, and I am initiating him. He doesn't copy paste with keystrokes!!! gah! Frankly, he never knew about it all.... I don't think... he says I have mad game skills whipping about in photoshop and dreamweaver... Yay! mad skills!
Well, when we unveil, you, my gentle readers, will be the first to know! wheee! More margarita! did I spell that right? why oh why doesn't blogger have spellcheck...or does it and I don't know?

Sugar in my Coffin

"So if I gotta go I want some sugar in my coffin....." too cool

Curtis Eller's american Circus
http://www.curtiseller.com/

http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=11722000

The Wiyos!

Okay, on the subject of music... can't say enough about these guys.
The Wiyos!
I discovered them at Leaf Festival last year. They played a song I have loved for awhile, "Cornbread and Butterbeans"
I came off the plank bench with a involuntary shriek. Not a song played by many. It was originally recorded in the 40's by the Carolina Sunshine Trio at WPAQ.

Here's the Wiyos performing it: http://truthfacerecordings.com/wiyos/docs/CornBread.mov
God, I love this song... I guess 'cause you cain't stay down whilst its playin'
Enjoy!

To Etsy or not to Etsy

That is the question. My boyfriend thinks Etsy is a waste of my time. He is probably right. Estyians whine about shipping and handling, so you just can't charge much or people won't buy. And you have to list, list, list, and comment to be seen and to generate sales. And I handmake everything, so I'm not like the etsyians who print their work and can push a button to make their product. Though they still have to do the same listing, etc. Still, printing cuts 2-3 hours of manufacturing time. The argument rages on between us and now I have to refund one of my 10 sales. Oddly, it has caused something interesting this refund, it has sparked friendship. The ring doesn't fit so the person must return since it can't be sized. But they emailed me after visiting my site, and my blog, and we've become friends. The letter touched me so much it made me cry. Here's a snippet:

"It (the ring) will find another soul who can smell the Ocean and who has that kind of relationship with the Sea. It was a great and wonderful experience for me!! Artfulness is of the heart. I am better to have shared this aspect of your beautiful life. Thank you for the opportunity."

This is what I get out of Etsy. A connection with other folks who want to connect through things that are handmade. Maybe that is enough. Maybe I won't ever make much money on Etsy. I quit caring.

The Avett Brothers

I think I may be a 43 yr old groupie.
I know it's pathetic,
but aren't the Avetts just the best ever????
Quote from their myspace page:

"It costs nothing to be honest, loyal and true."

Their myspace:

http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=4858210

O! and Langhorne Slim

O! and I like Langhorne Slim....
same concert!!!
Check out Honey Pie its awesome!!!!!
I can't wait! hope he plays it!!!



http://www.myspace.com/langhorneslim

oooo! Old Ceremony!

I really like this band that is playing
at the Harvest Festival with the
Avetts on the 8th!!
Go to their myspace:


http://www.myspace.com/theoldceremony

Get to Love is a great tune!!!!!

Chernobyl Ghost Town

This photo is from a site I wanted to share. Elena rides her motorcycle into the ghost town of Chernobyl to photograph and explore.


http://www.kiddofspeed.com/chapter1.html

The Skinny on the Ring Workshop!

Tubeset Gemstone Ring Workshop with Adrienne Grafton:
Learn to set round faceted stones in tubing to adorn rings, brooches, necklaces and more. In this workshop, you will complete a silver ring with a tubesetting. The instructor will provide a kit for each student that includes burs, tubing and three 3mm faceted stones. The cost of this kit is included in the cost of the class.

Metalsmithing experience required, you should know how to solder and fabricate with sterling.
Please bring your own silver sheet and wire and your favorite small handtools, like pliers and files.

cost of class: $100 (includes kit)
class size: 5

Adreinne's Biography:

Adrienne M. Grafton earned a MFA in Metal Design from East Carolina University in 2005 and a BFA from Edinboro University of Pennsylvania in 2000. Her recent work, inspired by dreams and metaphors, is fabricated sculptural pieces made of copper and silver, often enriched with gold leaf. Adrienne received the Judy Cheteyan Education Scholarship from the Society for Contemporary Craft in Pittsburgh, PA in 2004. She has shown her work at the NC State University Gallery of Art and Design in Raleigh, NC and taught metals workshops at the Society for Contemporary Craft and Pullen Art Center in Raleigh. Her work has been published in The Art of Enameling, 1000 Rings, 500 Necklaces and 500 Earrings. Adrienne worked as the Metals Studio Coordinator at Penland School of Crafts in Penland, NC from 2005 to 2007 and is currently living in Warren, PA working full time in her studio.

Too Precious to Wear -Corals At Risk

Thank you , Liz, for the great link!
http://www.tooprecioustowear.com/

Using CORAL! my pet peeve

its the use of coral.... I love it...can't get enough of it!
But I can't use it anymore.
Lately on Etsy there are loads of women making jewelry with coral and they are saying things like:
"this is made from fast growing non-endangered coral....This is bamboo coral which is not endangered" etc....

They're full of crap.

I have searched all over the internet to try to find a "fast growing coral"
can't find one.
Maybe bamboo coral is faster than others...I dunno...most of the things I read say that it take hundreds of years for layers to build in reefs. So if fishing methods destroy reefs... how can we use coral for adornment and not feel we are contributing in some way to the impact!?
I read this on MSNBC this morning:
"BANGKOK, Thailand - Coral reefs in much of the Pacific Ocean are dying faster than previously thought, according to a study released Wednesday, with the decline driven by climate change, disease and coastal development.
Researchers from the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill found that coral coverage in the Indo-Pacific — an area stretching from Indonesia’s Sumatra island to French Polynesia — dropped 20 percent in the past two decades.
About 600 square miles of reefs have disappeared since the 1960s, the study found, and the losses were just as bad in Australia’s well-protected Great Barrier Reef as they were in poorly managed marine reserves in the Philippines.
“We found the loss of reef building corals was much more widespread and severe than previously thought,” said John Bruno, who conducted the study along with Elizabeth Selig. “Even the best managed reefs in the Indo-Pacific suffered significant coral loss over the past 20 years.”
The study, which examined 6,000 surveys of more than 2,600 Indo-Pacific coral reefs done between 1968 and 2004, found the declines began earlier than previously estimated and mirror global trends. The United Nations has found close to a third of the world’s corals have disappeared, and 60 percent are expected to be lost by 2030.
The Indo-Pacific contains 75 percent of the world’s coral reefs and provide a home for a wide range of marine plants and animals. They provide shelter for island communities and are key source of income, mostly from the benefits of fishing and tourism. “Indo-Pacific reefs have played an important economic and cultural role in the region for hundreds of years and their continued decline could mean the loss of millions of dollars in fisheries and tourism,” Selig said in a statement. “It’s like when everything in the forest is gone except for little twigs.”
Predators, disease are also blamed. While the study didn’t examine the cause of the decline, Bruno said he believed it was driven by a range of factors including warming waters due to climate change. He also blamed storm damage, runoff from agriculture and industry, predators like fast-spreading crown-of-thorn starfish and diseases like White syndrome.
Bruno said the study demonstrated the need to better manage reefs and prevent threats such as overfishing, but acknowledged local measures would have little impact without a reduction of greenhouse gases.
“It is just one more example of the striking, far reaching effects of climate change and our behavior,” Bruno said of the link between climate change and reef destruction. “It is the folks in North Carolina driving their SUVs. It is their behavior that is having an effect way out in the Indo-Pacific.” Ove Hoegh-Guldberg, director of the Center for Marine Studies at The University of Queensland in Australia, said the study should put to rest any suggestion that reefs like the Great Barrier Reef are untouched by “human pressures.” “This is a solid study that produces mounds of evidence that suggests reefs are changing counter to the untested and ungrounded claims that it isn’t happening,” Hoegh-Guldberg, who was not involved in the study, said in an e-mail interview.”

So if we don't change our behavior???? what then? I love coral! I don't want to quit using it...but I think I have to.

Julian Beever

Ashley turned me onto this dude:
http://users.skynet.be/J.Beever/pave.htm
RAD pavement paintings that are optical illusions.
The walls and stairs and guy are real...everything else?
chalk!

Cool Urban Installations

Very cool stuff....
http://www.xmarkjenkinsx.com/outside.html
There are videos of this guy making this stuff....

The Gurls in my Posse

My girls...kickin' it in lower metals at Penland this summer in Joost & Dianne's class.... Adrienne, my former roomy and my girlyfriend Marion. I missed this class at Penland and could kick myself!!! Met Joost and Dianne at the Avetts concert in HOB-Chicago in '06. Uber cool couple.....

Don't miss Adrienne's workshop in my studio this September!!!
She rocks.....

Joost was a previous Saul Bell Award winner.
Here's Joost working:









More of Joost Durlings work:
http://www.newbedfordopenstudios.org/spgm-1.4.4/index.php?spgmGal=Joost_During&spgmPic=1&spgmFilters=#pic

Workshop with Ace!

Newsflash! Adrienne Grafton -aka Ace, and I are cooking up a workshop for you metals junkies! You! yes you, can spend Tuesday September 11th from 6-9 with the awesome Adrienne in my studio making a ring with a tube set faceted gem. Some soldering and basic metals experience is required. Adrienne was the Metals Studio coordinator for Penland School for the last two years. Her resume and metals teaching experience are extensive. She is a fabulous teacher, you won't want to miss this. More details to come.

Today...

Today...such a good day.... bike ride around Middle Sound Loop...low flying osprey parents and offspring cheeping.....
then this...the channel...swimming off a dredge spoil island.
If I moved out into the country, or to Washington state... how could I leave this?

Metals at CFCC

Hey! if you are interested Cape Fear Community College has hired me to teach a night metals class
Here's a link;
https://reg.cfcc.edu:443/WebAdvisor/WebAdvisor?TOKENIDX=9201897448&SS=5&APP=ST&CONSTITUENCY=WBAP

No cell phones

Drifting in the cypress forest, not something many people do...but they should. Its like being in on an alien planet if you spend your days driving the baking asphalt, sitting at traffic lights, on your cell phone, on hold with the IRS....
A little time out here will change you.

Cypress Forest

Our group on the Black river amongst the cypress.











We think these are heron tracks in the shallow tanin colored water.

Black River Wednesday

If you've read my older posts you know how much I love the Black River. I think our group was turned on to how cool it is to have a place like this to just drift here in eastern NC. There's nothing like following the tea colored current and listening to the water and birds.

Robert and our friend Syndey got some quality outdoor time.



Steve enthralled with cypress knees.







My sister in law Tara.

Black River Paddle

A group of six of us went down the Black River yesterday. so wonderful. No really big critters were seen, but we were kinda loud. Still it was a great paddle.by our guess a liittle over 11 miles. Tired and hungry we went to Hollands Shelter Creek fish camp and pigged out!

Paths Chosen

Some things I've learned over the week... best said by Jung:
"Man needs difficulties; they are necessary for health."

"Mistakes are, after all, the foundations of truth, and if a man does not know what a thing is, it is at least an increase in knowledge if he knows what it is not."

"Knowing your own darkness is the best method for dealing with the darknesses of other people."

"Our heart glows, and secret unrest gnaws at the root of our being. Dealing with the unconscious has become a question of life for us."

"Even a happy life cannot be without a measure of darkness, and the word happy would lose its meaning if it were not balanced by sadness. It is far better take things as they come along with patience and equanimity."

"We deem those happy who from the experience of life have learnt to bear its ills without being overcome by them."

What a brilliant soul.....