Ta-Daaa!!

I have been wanting to make some prints of some of my art work to put in my Etsy store and I finally was able to finish 4. I actually did 3 earlier, and learned an awful lot, it's not as easy as it may seem! So we kept those bird prints, and I made another set of them and also one other thing. I'm still learning!

These are on boards, with black trim so that they are ready to hang. It takes time to prepare the cradlewood boards for painting - the back needs to be taped off with painters tape so it won't spatter onto other areas, a layer of gesso has to go on and dry, then you paint the black on. The print is made on a special paper and adhered so that there is a line  of black showing around the edges. They are ready to hang, no framing needed!

I have them for sale now in my Etsy Art Store. We are hanging the original set of bird prints in John's office. Nothing's really moving in the Art Store yet, but I don't have a whole lot in it and that's OK. It will get there. I'm pleased to be able to have this part done, and plan to make more prints. I hope and pray to be able to paint more in the days ahead!

Click on any photo to see it closer.

Come see my latest postcards I've received on Postcards Buffet!

2 A/C Units In 2 years! Not Happy!!!!

We moved into this house 6 years ago this past January - 2007. It was new, had just been built. We had an inspector come out and check everything. Said the A/C- Heating units were fine, even though they were not new. In 2011, we had to replace the downstairs unit; now we had to replace the upstairs unit. And then we found out from someone who was there that the builder KNEW these old units would not last long!

I have had to pray and pray to not let bitterness take root. The builder cut corners in several places while building and we been finding them out as the years go by. We know the builder, and I don't think I will feel very comfortable in his presence now. He is a Christian brother, and we are very disappointed. John's company has not had any new business for the past 6 months, and it really strapped us financially to have this 2nd unit installed today.

I am thankful that God is the supplier of our needs. Without the unexpected money that came in this month, we would have had to wait. We will just have to be very careful till the end of the month when John's retirement check comes in.

This whole thing has been an exercise in faith, and reminds me of the Bible verse "You can be sure your sins will find you out" (Numbers 32:23). I don't know why some people think that because it's business, biblical principles do not apply, especially the mandate "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you" (Luke 6:31).

We are terribly disappointed with this experience. Some things are difficult to understand.

Come see my latest postcards I've received on Postcards Buffet!

Cross Country

On Tuesday, our daughter embarked on a cross country trip to Los Angeles. She has a friend who has MS and is moving out there and did not want to make the trip alone. On the previous Friday, she became very ill with a bad head cold and we weren't so sure she'd make the trip. But even though she felt only slightly better on Tuesday morning, she made the decision to go and now she's very glad she did.

They are driving on I-40, which ends at Barstow California. I'm familiar with I-40 on this end, as it goes near Asheville NC (about 2 hours above us) and on across NC to Wilmington at the coast, but I didn't know it went clear across the country. Every time they cross a state line, I get a text - "Tennessee!" "Arkansas!" "Oklahoma!" "Texas!" and the most recent - "Neeeew Mexico!". They are making very good time, and will take a side trip in Arizona to spend some time at the Grand Canyon. I am very happy that she will get to spend some time there, and a little envious - I've never been and always wanted to; John went to see it and even was able to hike a little bit when he had a business trip to Phoenix a few years back. Now I'm the only one in our family who hasn't seen it and I really don't know if I ever will. But she will at a young age, so she'll always have those memories.

Anyway, when she gets there, she will return home by plane. Thankfully, her friend will be driving around Los Angeles - I was a little nervous about her navigating those very, very busy highways! We will be keeping her dog Kit tomorrow till she returns; Kit's been staying with another one of her friends and I'm quite sure our big dog Abby will be thrilled to have her here. I hope it doesn't rain and the dogs can spend some really good  quality doggie time outside!

Interstate 40

We're looking forward to seeing her when she returns. She told me on the phone this morning "You know Mom, I really like our country!" How's that for a postive few of the US?

Come see my latest postcards I've received on Postcards Buffet!

In The Mail

Today I received something I was not looking forward to - a large fat envelope from Medicare. It was only recently that I realized that once you are 65 (which I will be in July), you are required to enroll on Medicare. We already have very good insurance through my husband's retirement and I do not understand why the government doesn't allow a person to choose whether they want to enroll or not. Doesn't it make more sense if people are allowed to keep their private insurance and then the government isn't out any money on that person's health care? Of course, a lot of things do not make sense that the government makes law.

Medicare was enacted in 1965, as a way to assist older Americans who were in poverty and received no health care. But now it's a burdensome baggage on the tax payers. And I will soon join its ranks as a consumer of this burdensome baggage.

The plus for us right now is that my husband is 5.5 years younger than me, so his insurance will act as my supplementary insurer until he turns 65. At least that helps, so we don't have to slog through the paperwork trying to figure out who to turn to, at least not for a while.

Ah, the pleasures of growing older. Not.

(Well, OK there are some pleasures, but this ain't one of them!)

Come see my latest postcards I've received on Postcards Buffet!

Well Hello World!

So it's been two months since I posted, and it was a pleasure to hear from some folks that they wondered what happened, and was hoping I'd be back. I'll try to sum up what's been going on for me in the past two months.

January was a pretty good month for me health wise, comparatively. For some time I had been considering opening a store on Etsy so that I could begin to get rid of the things that I still had left from my antiques business. When I had to close it in 2008, I tried to get rid of as much stuff as I could, but there is still enough lying around to warrant trying to sell it off. With my daughter's help, I opened BelleSouth Mercantile, and began to add items to the store.  After some urging from some of my friends to sell my art, I also opened a shop for just that - BelleSouth Studio. I have been blessed with actually selling some things from the first store, but I have not had the time to really put much on the second one, or to do anything really new except for a couple of things. Those who have read my blog before know about the Spoon situation, but those that don't can read about it here. To put it simply, I was using up all of the spoons I had available everyday, and that is not a good thing. So in February, my body laid me out with a relapse, and although I still was able to do some things, I had to take it easier with myself than I had before.

Now it is March, and I am still not back to where I was in January. I am doing a little bit, and marshaling my time better. I even tried some new things with art, going in a different direction that I had before. Here is what I've done:

I call these the Worldly Birds. (You have to go to my art store to see why!) They are done on 6 x 8 flat canvases. It was hard to get a really good shot of them, but they are for sale. I have enlarged them and made prints mounted on wood, and they turned out pretty cool, but I haven't taken shots of them yet. Some of my other pieces will also be for sale and I plan to do some new ones as I have the strength. I also am selling postcards!

           

I also have some on there that were experiments that I couldn't let go to waste, and so I'm selling them as a grab bag. These pictured here were close ups of my texture piece called The Old Mine. And I have a variety of others I will be selling. 

So, I really hope to be back blogging on a much more regular basis, and I would be thrilled if you go to my stores, and "follow" and "favorite" my stores. And hey, if you want to buy something I would not mind that at all!! :) And of you have an constructive comments, please let me know!

Glad to be back!!

Click on any photo to see it closer.

Come see my latest postcards I've received on Postcards Buffet!