I Didn't Say I Was Martha Stewart!

BEFORE


"I wish I were a white crayon, that way no one could use me. " ~Author Unknown
*****
Although I have ten areas to work on, I seem to see a pattern here. Creativity and spirituality has occupied a lot of my time since the new year.
I probably should have prayed for the correct creative choices, though- or beat the paint mixer at WalMart.
I decided to brighten up my computer area- but I got a little more bright than I bargained for. Don't even need my coffee to wake me up!
*****
"Color is my day-long obsession, joy and torment. " ~Claude Monet
*****
I needed to paint this area in my home and I had been itching to get a gallon of paint and go for it! I had even brought home the little paper paint swatches and taped them up all over the wall- studied them in lightness and darkness- by day and by night- and fretted over my choices.
I originally wanted a beautiful purple/magenta color. (After seeing Avitar). Or a sea green-
or a dark blue.
I finally chose what I thought was a dark ocean, but ended up with neon turquoise.
Who knew?
*****
"The more ugly, older, more cantankerous, more ill and poorer I become, the more I try to make amends by making my colors more vibrant, more balanced and beaming." - Vincent van Gogh
*****
The great thing about WalMart paint is that it is fairly cheap.I could easily go back and find another color, but the labor is what I can't get back.
I decided to live with these walls for a bit, and come springtime- maybe re-do it if it hasn't grown on me. I just didn't have the energy to do it all again, even though it was just three small walls.
Besides, it looks good in the dark.
*****

"The thing that is really hard, and really amazing, is giving up on being perfect and beginning the work of becoming yourself." - Anna Quindlen
*****
My husband always makes choices for our home- based on resale value. "No one wants a teal wall." he says. People won't like that- or this- or that way...he reasons.
But I live here. I want this place to be me. My nest. I want my feathers to be comfy and colorful and fit me just right. If I sell it- the new owners can paint it all white or beighe or do whatever makes them happy.
I once had a miniature chair collection that I kept on a shelf, but you couldn't see them very well. So, I proceeded to hammer over thirty holes in the wall in order to hang them up. It was cool. They looked great and I loved seeeing them all - tiny rockers and willows and tin chairs ready for tiny little butts.
I got chewed out for making the nail holes, but it was worth it.
I enjoyed those chairs for several years until I finally gave them away. The holes have been patched and repainted and no one can tell the damage I inflicted with my hammer.
They brought me joy and didn't hurt anyone in the process.
Isn't that's what life is all about?
*****

"Home should be a sanctuary, a place that feels safe and healthy, looks beautiful, and smells wonderful. Seriously... make it a place that you can come to and have an immediate feeling of… Aaaaah. I'm home. Awesome." - Christie Matheson
*****
Being creative doesn't always mean being safe. It is taking chances, looking outside of the box, and not caring what someone else will think of you.
Being creative is knowing there is always a way out- that nothing is ever set in stone. That it is constantly changing and re-inventing itself. And we must open our minds to all possiblities.
And, although this fiesta-looking teal was not my original choice, it is almost like my walls are smiling now.
(Or laughing.)
Either way- they're here to stay for a little while. Maybe forever. Who knows?
At least I wasn't afraid to try.
*****

“Decorate your home. It gives the illusion that your life is more interesting than it really is.” Charles M. Schulz

***** AFTER

Todays Five:

1. Eggs

2. Phones

3. Candles

4. Boots

5. Sunsets

Never A Busy Signal

"Call on God, but row away from the rocks." ~Indian Proverb
*****
Let me say first that if you are offended in any way by religion, or God, or all the things that go along with belief in a higher power, then today's post is not for you. X-out of this blog and find another place to go until tomorrow.
Because today I am writing about what is on my heart- and nothing else can be felt or said- until this is condensed into words.
I'm not here to preach, or condemn or convert. I am just here today to share my thoughts about prayer.

*****
"Don't pray when it rains if you don't pray when the sun shines." ~Satchel Paige, 1974

*****
I sometimes find myself guilty of that quote. Sometimes I wait till I am in utter despair before I realize that God can fix things. That He will listen. That all I have to do is talk to Him and He will grant me peace. He may not always give me what I want, but He will always give me what I need.
Why do people only pray when they want something? I think we should pray every day to say "Thank you." To be grateful for another morning, another day of life- and all the beauty and confusion and stress and happiness and good and bad- that comes with it. It's a total package.
You get Life. It's like that.
*****
"Life is like a blanket too short. You pull it up and your toes rebel, you yank it down and shivers meander about your shoulder; but cheerful folks manage to draw their knees up and pass a very comfortable night. " ~Marion Howard
*****
I have been really disciplined in reading my Bible every day. I'm not going to lie and say I understand it. A lot of it is above my capacity to perceive and fathom in my mind. But during those quiet mornings by the lamplight, I know that I am seeking my faith. That regardless whether I apprehend what has been written, I am opening a door in my heart for divine intervention. And with that accepted, I am confident that knowledge will come later.
I'm just dialing the phone. I haven't got an answer yet.
But I'm hanging on.
*****
"The value of consistent prayer is not that He will hear us, but that we will hear Him." ~William McGill
*****
That is what is so cool about prayer. It is a calling plan that doesn't cost a thing. It takes only a few minutes, no equipment but your heart, and a belief that your call will not be dropped.
God has universal coverage, connects quickly, and you can access him anywhere.
My goal for this year is to pray more. Be more grateful, giving, and appreciative.
And, mostly- not to have any roll-over minutes left.
The Devil's calling plan won't let you use them.
*****
"For, after all, put it as we may to ourselves, we are all of us from birth to death guests at a table which we did not spread. The sun, the earth, love, friends, our very breath are parts of the banquet.... Shall we think of the day as a chance to come nearer to our Host, and to find out something of Him who has fed us so long?" ~Rebecca Harding Davis
*****
Some people say they don't believe in God. That prayer doesn't work. That they've never seen or talked to Him.
How can you not see Him? I see Him in every whispering pine tree, each blooming flower, a drop of rain, a speck of dust, and in the colors of the sunset.
I hear Him in the laughter of my children, the song of a bird, the wailing of the wind and the beat of my heart.
Sometimes it's easy to just see and hear these things- and not connect them to their maker.
To see with a faithful eye is a good goal.
To open your soul is a good place to start.
*****
"Maybe the atheist cannot find God for the same reason a thief cannot find a policeman. " ~Author Unknown
*****
What we must realize is that prayer is not just a way to ask God to help us. It is also a way to ask God to help others. Even those who haven't discovered His calling plan.
And, if you can't seem to call on him in prayer, then text him. Write your prayers on paper,
your phone, the computer- anywhere that makes you feel as though your requests have been heard. And a Twitter several times during the day doesn't hurt a bit.

"Dear God, help me."
"Lord, I thank you."
"Where ya' at, today?"

Things like that.

And when your life is over, He's going to see your Facebook.
So live accordingly.
*****

"A little faith will bring your soul to heaven, but a lot of faith will bring heaven to your soul." ~Author Unknown
*****
If I have offended anyone, well...I can't say I'm sorry. Maybe this post will get you to think about prayer and the power that it can have in your life.
It's not a way to tell and get. It's a way to share and hope. It's a lifeline that keeps you connected with the one person who will decide your fate.
Just talk to Him like a friend. He really is your BFF.
I'd say it would be in your best interest to have God on speed dial.
And at the top of your Friends and Family list.
Remember- He doesn't care if you don't have a fancy phone. He prefers the bowed head and folded hands.
*****
"Sunday clears away the rust of the whole week." ~Joseph Addison
*****

Today's 5 things:
1. Pizza
2, Mittens
3. Pay-at-the-pump
4. Violets
5. Door mats

Songs We Must Sing

"Sometimes you've got to let everything go - purge yourself. If you are unhappy with anything . . . whatever is bringing you down, get rid of it. Because you'll find that when you're free, your true creativity, your true self comes out.” Tina Turner
*****
There has been a quiet sadness in me lately. A quirk, a frayed end, a little wrinkle on the sheet of my life. A speck of something...A smudge of unknown fiber...A tiny thorn that causes distress when I go about my daily tasks.
I've spent the past few months trying to zoom in on the source- to identify the root and pull it quickly out.
Then I realized a strange thing. It was not something that existed within me.
It was something in me that was missing.
For whatever reason- laziness, lack of time, depression- I had let my creative urges sink to the bottom- drown under the pressure and responsibility of life.
And in not to letting them breathe, I was actually smothering myself.
*****
“There is only one of you in all time, this expression is unique. And if you block it, it will never exist through any other medium and it will be lost.” — Martha Graham
*****
Everyone should have a hobby- a creative outlet- a leisure activity that has no time limits or restrictions. You must be able to throw away the clock, ignore the phone calls, and let whatever is in you- flow. Until it stops flowing. Then you can go back to the kitchen and cook dinner or watch the football game or read a book.
Ignoring that voice that yearns for fun is like killing the kid within you.
*****
“Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes. Art is knowing which ones to keep.” - Scott Adams
*****
I used to always have some project in the works. Sometimes several at once. Maybe that's why there are a lot of unfinished ones.
But it doesn't matter. It doesn't matter if you have to throw the entire thing in the wastebasket-
it was time well spent.
Just as if you had lost a round of golf to your buddies. So what? You played, you learned, you enjoyed. You wouldn't refuse to play just because you thought you might lose. And it's the same way with art, with writing, with sewing, with woodworking- with any hobby. The fear of failure cannot exist.
I wasn't afraid when I painted my family room walls eggplant. (I love it!)
There was no fear when I decided that the dryer lint would make a great sculpting medium. (Although I was wrong.)
I didn't hold back when I decided I could write a blog and keep it going for a few months. (June will be 2 years).
Being wrong- failing miserably, or messing up doesn't matter. There are no rules. Nothing is lost.
I find that anything can be re-done, re-figured, re-painted or re-purposed.
Just wad it up and start over.
*****
"Of all the people I have ever known, those who have pursued their dreams and failed have lived a much more fulfilling life than those who have put their dreams on a shelf for fear of failure. " ~Author Unknown
*****
I started painting a new gourd this week. I don't know how I got started in that medium, but so far it has stuck. The only problem is where do you put a bunch of painted gourds? They are difficult to store, hard to handle, and make me sound like a weirdo.
"Oh, I'm the gourd lady." I smile.
Yeah. Sounds worse than the old cat lady.

(Click pics to enlarge)
*****
“There is a very fine line between 'hobby' and 'mental illness'.” ~Dave Barry
*****
This particular gourd started out with it's natural color. I decided to add some lines and triangles. I put it on a shelf where I could go by it several times a day and look at it.
After awhile, it just wasn't working for me. So, I painted it an earthy red. Added some Indian symbols and stripes to it. Looked at it for weeks and then realized it was never going to get finished because I didn't like it.
So, I painted it black.
Then added some color with a folded leaf design.
My husband told me it's not his favorite. Translation: It stinks. That sorta bothered me. I thought about putting it away or starting over again. He has this mind set that if it isn't perfect, why bother?
But, you know- I am willing to keep going because I like it. And that's what matters. It's just going up on the shelf with the others anyway. Giant dust collectors.
It's not like I have to eat it, wear it, or drive it.
*****
“A new idea is delicate. It can be killed by a sneer or a yawn; it can be stabbed to death by a quip and worried to death by a frown on the right man’s brow.” — Charles Brower
*****
Just adding this simple craft back into my life has sealed the tiny cracks- has healed that little wound- has calmed my stressful soul.
I feel happier. More relaxed.
The dirty dishes may be put off till noon. Dinner might be takeout tonight. The dust on the woodwork may have to wait another day.
But it's not killing anybody.
*****
“Today is life-the only life you are sure of. Make the most of today. Get interested in something. Shake yourself awake. Develop a hobby. Let the winds of enthusiasm sweep through you. Live today with gusto.” -Dale Carnegie
****
So- I'm adding more creativity to my life. Everyone should. Even if it's knitting while watching TV at night, keeping a flower garden, birdwatching, line dancing, coloring or tinkering.
It is a part of everyone that needs to breathe.
Another of the ten resolutions made better.
*****
“A hobby a day keeps the doldrums away.” -Phyllis McGinley



*****
Today's Five Grateful Things:

1.Old friends
2. Faithful dogs
3. Clean underwear
4. Glue sticks
5. Yellow

Oh, The Things They Remember!

"A child enters your home and for the next twenty years makes so much noise you can hardly stand it. The child departs, leaving the house so silent you think you are going mad. " ~John Andrew Holmes
*****
I never really worried about having an empty nest. Knowing that my kids were going to grow up and leave someday was possibly music to my ears at times. No more fighting over clothes, curfews, MTV blaring, exorbitant grocery bills, lights left on in every room, and the day to day struggles to keep them all on the straight and narrow.
And, most importantly, I knew that my heart would never be empty. I had peace knowing that I gave birth to these children and their lives would always touch mine.
They might have left the nest, but we're all still roosting in the same family tree.
*****
"Your children vividly remember every unkind thing you ever did to them, plus a few you really didn't." ~Mignon McLaughlin, The Second Neurotic's Notebook, 1966
*****
Recently, my kids starting talking about the memories of their childhood. Warm thoughts about special holidays, fond keepsakes, family vacations and sweet bedtime stories.
I smiled continuously while I listened- nodding in satisfaction, and basking in a pride that swelled my head enormously.
"Do you remember how Mom used to yell at us?" the middle child asked.
"Oh...all the time,"my son agreed.
"Like a mean witch," the oldest chimed in.
"What???" I choked, practically falling out of my chair,"Are you kids delusional?
I was a good mother.
"We know that. You were a great mother," one of them said with a smirky smile, "But you used to tell us that if we didn't do something, you would beat us to a bloody pulp."
I laughed.
And laughed.
Hysterically.
Isn't it funny what kids remember?
*****

A mother becomes a true grandmother the day she stops noticing the terrible things her children do because she is so enchanted with the wonderful things her grandchildren do.
~Lois Wyse
*****
I have been blessed with grandchildren. And one goal for 2010 is to spend more time with them. One on one time. When they visit as a team, they veg out in front of cartoons, eat continuously or compete for my attention. I would love to be able to treat each one to their own special day. One child loves to paint, one loves reading, they both enjoy walks around the pond.
I think it would be great to be able to spend the afternoon playing with them. Curling up in a big soft chair with potato chips and Dr. Pepper- a giant story book- and no deadlines. No schedules.
...Or spread newspapers out all over the dining room table with tons of paints and brushes and canvas. To just let them swirl and dab and create- not worrying if they dip the black into the yellow or their fingers into the blue. No rules. No restraints. Just pure fun.
I want them to remember those times. Times with NaNa. Soft, inspirational, unforgettable days when they bloomed into being.
They will look back on it someday and realize how much I loved them.
Even if I may have, once upon a time, threatened to beat their mother to a bloody pulp.
*****
"Most grandmas have a touch of the scalawag." ~Helen Thomson

*****
Becoming a grandparent is like falling in love. You never really understand until it happens to you.
For years, my older sister drove me crazy with the photographs and stories of her darling grand kids. I secretly rolled my eyes - thinking how in the world could it be so glorious and perfect?
Well, now that I am a grandma, I am sure there are people who avoid me. Who detour behind the soda display or the shoe racks when they spy me coming.
It doesn't help that I practically have a rolling suitcase in hand- full of pictures and drawings and video-
ready to whip out at a moments notice.
"Oh- you have grandchildren?" someone will say.
And after an hour of cooing and giggling and smiling insanely over the pile of mementos, I realize that no one is really listening. No one really cares. They are secretly rolling their eyes.
And, in fact, they are ready to beat me to a bloody pulp.
*****
"My grandmother is over eighty and still doesn't need glasses. Drinks right out of the bottle." ~Henry Youngman
*****
My grandmas were always very stern looking. Wore dresses. Hosiery. Rarely carried on conversations. Never took photographs. Never tucked us in or read us books.
I like to think my grand kids consider me fun. And funny. And easy to talk to.
I do wear jeans, utilize my camera at ever available chance, and read bedtime stories. I like to cuddle on the couch with them, watch Sponge Bob Squarepants, and share M&M's. I like to encourage them, compliment them and challenge them. All the while, having them gain respect, adoration and affection for me.
*****

"If I had my child to raise all over again, I'd build self-esteem first, and the house later. I'd finger-paint more, and point the finger less. I would do less correcting and more connecting. I'd take my eyes off my watch, and watch with my eyes. I'd take more hikes and fly more kites. I'd stop playing serious, and seriously play. I would run through more fields and gaze at more stars. I'd do more hugging and less tugging." ~Diane Loomans, from "If I Had My Child To Raise Over Again"

*****
Despite their distorted memories, I know that I have raised some wonderful children. And that their children are being raised in good homes- with good values.
Even at my age, I am still trying to be a better mom. It doesn't stop when they turn nineteen, or leave home, or have kids of their own.
Being a mom is a lifetime process.
It means having your heart broken a hundred times, but finding it can always be mended.
It means changing with the times, even if it's uncomfortable or ridiculous.
It means giving them space when all you want to do is cradle them.
It means letting go when you can't see where they're going.
It means letting them build their own nest, hoping it is secure and warm and won't fall out of the tree.
It means letting them remember things that you never really said-
and forgiving them if they insist that you did.
*****
"It's not only children who grow. Parents do too. As much as we watch to see what our children do with their lives, they are watching us to see what we do with ours. I can't tell my children to reach for the sun. All I can do is reach for it, myself. " ~Joyce Maynard
*****
I am hoping that the new year is a year of family time. Of renewed spirit. Of immense sharing and growth. Of reaching out and knowing my children and grandchildren for the people that they are. To learn their hearts, their dreams, and their hopes for the future.
All I can do is be here. To listen. To laugh, To occasionally give advice.
And to beat them to a bloody pulp if they disobey...
I'm still laughing about it kids! You warped little spoiled brats! lol
*****

"Grandmas are moms with lots of frosting. "~Author Unknown
*****

Today's five grateful things:
1. Valentines
2. Cheese
3. Special K with fruit and yogurt
4. Silence
5. Spring

Sisters, Socks, and Salad

"The belly rules the mind."  ~Spanish Proverb
                                       *****
Well, I said that I will concentrate on whatever of "the ten" comes to me in need. This darn diet/health/appearance/body thing just won't leave me alone. I can't seem to escape catching a glimpse of myself every time I pass a mirror in the house. Or hearing voices screaming "help me" from the bottom of the deep freeze- where I've hidden the Little Debbie frozen oatmeal cakes for future consumption.
And, it sure didn't help one bit to spend yesterday shopping for clothes with my little sister. And I do mean little. Makes me just want to take her thin little neck and choke her...
In a good way, of course.
                                          *****



"Jealousy and love are sisters."  ~Russian Proverb
 

                                         *****
If she had been someone else's sister trying on those small clothes, I wouldn't have noticed. But to realize that our blood and genes are the same- it seems totally unfair that our size charts differ so extremely. 
And to make things worse, I was almost her size just two short years ago.
Until I loaded up on two years worth of food and made slothfulness my little friend.
Why?
The cookies and cakes and extra cheesy nachos were not that good. Not as good as it would have been to be trying on fun clothes and having a bit of sass in my step.
Special K with berries: $2.99
Cobb Salad with fat free dressing: $7.25
Grilled chicken with asparagus and baked potato: $10.00
Being able to wear yoga pants without looking like a giant bag of marbles: Priceless.
                                            *****

"A bagel is a doughnut with the sin removed. " ~George Rosenbaum   
                                            *****
I know that the main problem with my diet is that it keeps being postponed. It is always going to start tomorrow, or Monday or payday.  But just like a tiny hole in your sock- if you don't mend it immediately, it finally spreads across the entire heel and toe until it's past fixing.  
Crap.

I'm a dead sock.
                                          *****     
"Great restaurants are, of course, nothing but mouth-brothels.  There is no point in going to them if one intends to keep one's belt buckled. " ~Frederic Raphael
                                          *****
I don't eat out much. And if I do, it's usually a special occasion or a vacation or a holiday.
(Hey! Isn't Monday Martin Luther King Day?)

The problem with smorgasbords is that they are the only restaurants where you can help yourself to seconds. And thirds. And the entire bakery.
I always lose weight whenever I am a patient in the hospital . No one there ever asks to have seconds of corn flakes, warm milk, applesauce and stiff meatloaf.
                                        *****
"A fruit is a vegetable with looks and money.  Plus, if you let fruit rot, it turns into wine, something Brussels sprouts never do.  "~P.J. O'Rourke
                                        *****
I  love vegetables. Cabbage, sprouts, squash, spinach, beans, tomatoes...But why is it that they taste a hundred times better drenched in sauce, dressing, cheese or butter? Life is totally unfair.
I realize that I am not doing a single thing by writing all of this. My blog is supposed to be about changing and how to go about it.
I really don't know. I suppose I have to start by making the right choices today. To not put things off. To get up and move. To get my mojo back before I turn into a fat old lady with stretch pants and a HoverRound.
Please- listen and learn. If you are sick and tired of multiple chins, a python waistline and those butt puppies fighting in your pants- then it's time to put down your fork and start today!
I choose to count points. It worked for me before.
I just don't know when I crossed the point of no return. Didn't see that one coming.
                                                     *****
"When the world says, "Give up,"
Hope whispers, "Try it one more time."
                        ~Author Unknown
                                                    *****
We must have hope. Vision. A good scale.
We must be able to look ahead to see ourselves as we want to be.
I want to be thin and tan and even have cute toes.
I want to run.
I want to play.
I want to live life to the fullest.
And I want to love shopping with my little sister.
(Without wringing her neck). 
:)

                                                       *****
"Some see a hopeless end, while others see an endless hope. " ~Author Unknown
                                                         *****
Today's Five Grateful Things
1. sock monkeys
2. photographs
3. water
4. smooth rocks
5. Blue jays

Gravity Sucks

"You start out happy that you have no hips or boobs. All of a sudden you get them, and it feels sloppy. Then just when you start liking them, they start drooping. "~Cindy Crawford
*****
Yesterday I thought long and hard about what to write this morning. I was torn between a few subjects, and then nothing at all. I literally drew a blank. My brain seemed totally silent.
Until this morning.
Then, I looked into the mirror and scared myself.
*****
“Yeah, I know I'm ugly... I said to a bartender, 'Make me a zombie.' Then he said 'God beat me to it.'” Rodney Dangerfield
*****

Appearance is something that we must work on our entire lives. Even once we have found love, God, the perfect weight, the best kids and the finest house- our appearance is a daily cycle of do-overs. It is never permanent, always changing, and the source of great concern and concentration.
A beautiful haircut one day can turn horrid overnight. A great complexion on Tuesday may be zit-ruined by Thursday, and thick eyelashes that once adored your eyes may now be growing from your chin.
Beauty is a full time job.
Sometimes it's fun. When you get to play dress up and spend money on new things and shop for new clothes and experiment with makeup.
But most times it sucks.
*****
"Just around the corner in every woman's mind - is a lovely dress, a wonderful suit, or entire costume which will make an enchanting new creature of her." ~Wilhela Cushman

*****
I have problems with my hair. Which probably explains why I hate women with beautiful hair. They make it seem so easy- like a fleeting afterthought before leaving the house- like "Oh, I guess I better brush my hair this morning." (Gag.)
Unlike myself, that has to wash, condition, mousse, part, brush, comb, blow dry, and style- and still look in the mirror with disgust.
I often wonder what I would look like if I had kept my natural color. I have some rather disturbing images in my mind.
The only reason I keep coloring my hair is because it's too much trouble going down to the DMV and changing my driver's license picture. That's all.
Sometimes I wish women would go bald. But then I'm always afraid that I'd be one of those women whose baldness was really ugly. My luck, I'd have a giant freckle or a cranial dent on my head for everyone to stare at.
*****

"Beauty isn't worth thinking about; what's important is your mind. You don't want a fifty-dollar haircut on a fifty-cent head. " ~Garrison Keillor
*****
I know they say that beauty is only skin deep, but that's all I'm asking for. I really couldn't give a flying monkey if my bones are pretty.
But, seriously- I know what they mean. That your beauty is what lies within your heart, your nature, your personality.
I'm hoping that's gonna get me through the next twenty years, or I'm seriously screwed.
*****
"It's important to have a twinkle in your wrinkle. " ~Author Unknown
*****
My goal for the new year is to improve in areas that are possible. My hair will have to find a new beautician, my face will search for new foundation, my breasts will look for a new bra and my butt- well...crap! There goes all my good intentions!
Face it- we can't have it all. Did you ever notice that most girls with beautiful eyes have large shoulders? Or that those with lovely lips have giant ear lobes?
The secret is to work with what you have. Nice eyes? Make sure they stand out. Tiny waist? Accentuate it. Gorgeous neck? Adorn it with fabulous jewelry.
I have nice hands. But they get tired when I hold them up in my face all day. That's the only way anyone ever notices them.
*****

"They call it PMS because Mad Cow Disease was already taken. "
~Author Unknown
*****
Attitude is everything when it comes to appearance. You can be the most beautiful creature on earth, but if you cuss like a sailor and berate your friends and are constantly self-centered, ugly takes over. Big time.
And to me, there is nothing worse than a woman who announces her beauty to the world.
Because, hey- us other women aren't blind- we're just uglier than you!

****
"No matter how good she looks, some other guy is sick and tired of putting up with her crap. " ~Author Unknown
*****
No matter how bad you may feel, it's always a good idea to dress well everyday. Putting on attractive clothing and fixing your hair always seems to make things better. And if you plan on seeing anyone at all during the day, it's best to wear a bra and throw on some mascara, too.
Plus- you never know when Publisher's Clearing House might pull up to your door with a bouquet of balloons, a giant check, and a googly-eyed camera crew.
That's why I do it.
*****
"Shopping tip: You can get shoes for 85 cents at the bowling alley. " ~Author Unknown
*****
It shouldn't take a lot of money to look good. Soap, shampoo, and deodorant are always affordable. Most makeup lasts for awhile. Clothing can be worn until it goes out of style. Shoes- well- better get a bunch of them. Somehow society thinks that a woman needs to have a closet full of shoes in order to be pretty.
But I have never once been told how pretty I look when I'm wearing sweats, a greasy tee shirt, a pony tail, a brand new Nike's.
*****
“I was such an ugly kid - When I played in the sandbox, the cat kept covering me up” Rodney Dangerfield
*****
Plastic surgery is always an option- if you like science fiction. I've seen creatures from outer space that look better than some movie stars who have gone under the knife.
Note to Hollywood: Plastic boobs don't bounce, firmed faces never frown, and tummy tucks are ....the source of my greatest envy!
But I suppose a little Botox here and a little Botox there wouldn't hurt.
Especially if you know for certain that the sweepstakes van is on its way over.
*****
"There is nothing touches our imagination so much as a beautiful woman in a plain dress." ~Joseph Addison
*****
I am going to work on my appearance this year. Find creative ways to use what I've naturally been given. You know- kinda like a pound of hamburger. It gets boring after awhile so you have to start using a differerent recipe.
Try not to get discouraged. I feel as though I've spent my entire middle age trying to keep my chins up.
But I hope that no matter how my hair, or skin, or body changes- that I will still be a good person inside. That I will be compassionate, unselfish, loving, funny, gentle, wise, and real.
Better go now. Gotta find a stamp for my Publisher's Clearing House return response envelope!
Keep smiling!
*****
"I hope you have lost your good looks, for while they last any fool can adore you, and the adoration of fools is bad for the soul. No, give me a ruined complexion and a lost figure and sixteen chins on a farmyard of Crow's feet and an obvious wig. Then you shall see me coming out strong. "~George Bernard Shaw, to Mrs. Patrick Campbell
*****
Today's Five Grateful Things
1. Ink pens
2. Songs
3. Good pillows
4. Electric blankets
5. Yellow finches

Color My World

"My childhood smells like a box of Crayola crayons. " ~Jessi Lane Adams
*****

Creativity.
To me, it's that muffled voice that whispers while I'm folding laundry or scrubbing the toilet. It's that sweet shadow that follows me from room to room. It's that tremor in my hands that wants to paint and draw and play. Creativity is pouring my heart out into a hundred puddles of color.
*****
"To draw you must close your eyes and sing." Pablo Picasso
*****
I realized a long time ago that you don't have to be a Picasso or Ansel Adams or Armani or Stephen King in order to be creative. Creativity can be subtle, quiet, and even ordinary. It can be the simple lining up of cosmetics on your vanity- the smooth, round balls of clean socks in your drawer, the memo board with thick black words and tiny yellow tacks.
Creativity. We all have it. Yet, few pursue it.
*****
"Lying in bed would be an altogether perfect and supreme experience if only one had a colored pencil long enough to draw on the ceiling. "~G.K. Chesterton
*****
The problem I have had lately is that the dirty dishes and dusting and mundane chores have grown a louder voice than my creativity. How can I possibly think of dipping my brush into a palette of wet paint, when my dog needs bathing? How can I concentrate on words and poetry, when the bills drag me down with numbers and sums and brain-numbing balances? Am I supposed to be able to create a mural when the canvas of my life reeks of trash day and dirty toilets and floors that need mopped?
The secret is balance. Or the talent to hush the voices you do not wish to hear, and welcome the ones that you do.
*****
"If you hear a voice within you say "you cannot paint," then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced." Vincent Van Gogh
*****
Most of what I create are simply experiments. Trials that turned into errors, wasted paper, ink, and paint, time spent moving, arranging, leveling and organizing objects.
The result of my efforts is not always a masterpiece, but it quiets the voices for awhile and gives me relief. It feeds the child in me that knows no boundaries- no rules- no limits.
The only voices that discourages me are those who don't understand me. My husband hates the fact that I must change the color of my walls so often. To me, it is like wearing soiled clothes. The freshness is gone, the vibrancy has fled, it no longer fits -and bores me to distraction.
I could not live with all white walls. It would be like surrounding myself with dry fish, constantly gasping for air because they have never gotten to breathe.
*****
"Art is when you hear a knocking from your soul - and you answer. " ~Star Richés
*****
Creativity is alive in everyone. We just have to be silent long enough to hear it, strong enough to trust it, and fearless enough to follow it. I truly believe that.
My sister Tina thinks she has no talent- no creativity. But yet, she would not leave the house without an ironed shirt and a shoe-matches-belt mentality. That is a type of creativity. Of order. Of knowing that she has arranged herself in a pleasing manner.
And makeup. What woman is not an artist that colors herself to be more attractive?
She is an artist of her own skin. She is creative with eye shadows and lipsticks and
blushes.
*****
"Inspiration exists, but it has to find us working." Pablo Picasso
*****
One great thing about taking your creativity out in your wall paint, is that it can be repainted.
Too orange? Not red enough? Another coat will fix that. A series of experiments will lead to success.
Don't be afraid. It won't bite.
If you're unsure of your choices, select cheap paint. But what is fifteen dollars for a
thousand days of pleasure?
*****
"Art is the only way to run away without leaving home. " ~Twyla Tharp
*****
When I was young, I dreamed of having an art set. There was something extremely satisfying to own my own tubes of paint, to touch the thin handles of camel-hair
brushes, to write across new canvas in words of color.
But when I finally owned my own tools, I was frugal with them. I was afraid to waste the paint, ruin the canvas, dirty the brushes.
They sat. And sat. And waited till I was sure of my inspiration.
It was a mistake I have learned to live with.
Your paint will dry up.
Your inspiration of pink petals and green meadows and indigo skies- will fade into dust on the television, lint on the carpet, and crumbs on the counter. You will eventually stop seeing with your heart.
And you will finally silence those voices forever.
*****
"When my daughter was about seven years old, she asked me one day what I did at work. I told her I worked at the college - that my job was to teach people how to draw. She stared at me, incredulous, and said, "You mean they forget?" "~Howard Ikemoto
*****
My goal is to take at least one day a week to pour out my creative spirit. To let the housework go for 24 hours. To indulge myself with childhood thoughts and fantasy.
To build and paste and form and mold and draw and trace and lose myself in another world.
A world where nothing is wrong, everything is right,
and no one cares about either.
*****
"In spite of everything I shall rise again: I will take up my pencil, which I have forsaken in my great discouragement, and I will go on with my drawing." Vincent Van Gogh

*****

Today's Five Grateful Things:
1. Online banking
2, Mittens
3. Tide
4. Velcro
5. Sweaters