A Tribute to "Silk Road Jewelry"

"nepalese nilo fur chank"...handmade in kathmandu, nepal by nilofur (a female tibetian artisan)

"asia meets africa #14...moroccan Tuareg silver pendant

When browsing the many great shops at the new "peace & Love" market, http://www.1000markets.com/groups/peacelove ...i found "silk road jewelry"...WOW...OMG!! was my initial impression...i think i started to salivate. http://www.1000markets.com/users/silkroadjewelry

about a year ago i bought this rather expensive "coffee table art book " called the "world of necklaces"..it showed museum jewelry pieces depicting the craftsmanship from africa, asia, europe, far east & the islands...the jewelry from this shop are so similar, the components of the jewelry probably made by ancestors of the artisans whose work is shown in my book...it's amazing.

Silk Road Jewelry gathers hand-crafted pendants from Tibet, Nepal, Morocco, Afghanistan and other Asian and African countries to incorporate in unique one-of-a-kind necklaces. Purchases support Tibetan refugees living in Nepal as well as women and families struggling to make a better life throughout Africa, the Middle East, and southeastern Asia.
Be sure to visit http://peacelovefanclub.com

Tia Bailey..."1000 Beautiful Things"

tia is a very talented artisan at the new venue "1000 markets". her specialty is photography BUT her collages & small trinkets will also leave you wanting more.

i was privileged to receive one of her collages...there is so much more passion & detail that a picture could not capture from her canvas.

visit tia as well as the other talented artisans of "1000 markets".

In Celebration of "peace & Love at "1000 Markets"

animoto video

Another page from my Inspiration Book...Terhi Tolvanen

terhi tolvanen is a finnish designer...i'm not sure if the artist is male or female...but by her work i'm guessing she is female...i base this purely on intuition & the choices she makes in materials...common and at times kitschy items used in elegant interpretations of jewelry design.

as you can see with her nail polish bottom rings, there is a wit & whimsey about her work.

then you see these "deconstructed turquoise" stones made into exquisite earrings...

or real wood branch part with amethyst pieces purposely bolted down into place :)

please visit her site... i know you will enjoy yourself.

"tuscan sun" revisited...

with the impending 2nd eye procedure, i thought it best to get a few more entries in my "insect series" at etsy...


beetles & lady bugs in particular are good omens in many cultures, but to tell you the truth i was inspired by a movie i saw on cable...i think it was called "under the tuscan sun"...it made the point that relationships of any kind take time & patience & when you find a peace from within & stop searching...a funny thing happens, what you sought comes to you in abundance.

may we all have lady bugs in our lives :)

BOY DID IT HURT!

the laser procedure on my eye was so painful...it felt like a person poking your eye, leaving their finger there & telling me to look to the right...look to the left...look down...look up...and each time hearing an electrical sound like one of those electric insect zapper-lights....ughhhhh!

the good news is that i can still see....but it's taking me a few days for the blurriness to fade.
the bad news...is that i have to go back in 2 weeks to continue the treatment...apparently the damage was so big that they have to try to correct it in stages.

but thank god...my vision is still with me...i'll try to put in a few up-beat entries before i have to go back for treatment in 2 weeks.

i'm a little scared...correction, A LOT SCARED

yesterday, i went to a new eye doctor...i thought it was only going to be an introduction and a quick review of my glaucoma (pressure in my eyes) , but apparently it is more serious than that.

in 1976, i was diagnosised with diabetes & a resulting glaucoma being a direct link to it. for years i knew my sight was at risk, but that it would be a long slow process in the lose. the doctor who i was seeing (for years) always checked my eye pressure. it was high but tolerable and he never indicated anything serious, until he passed me off to his colleague who is a specialist & than immediately stated i had severe damage and some laser surgery is necessary to control the bleeding.

tomorrow i'll be going in... if all goes well, my vision in the left eye will improve, if not...well i'll still have my right eye...thank god they come in twos...the scary part is that she says the right eye is also showing signs of damage & i'll have to have laser procedure on it as well in the future.

as my defensive mechanism steps in ...denial of anything bad happening is in high gear... BUT BOY AM I SCARED.

"strange dolls"...an amazing art doll website

i've had this website under my "favorites" for years...i keep on going back to check what other images she comes up with...they are all "dark & moody"...a little "goth" or other worldly, BUT i'm always fascinated by them.
you know how you look at things and for some reason something just clicks. you're not influence by trends or styles & what's "cool" this week...i think it "clicks" when you finally meet up with a visual artist who knows how to tell a story...doesn't matter the genre, but just tells a good story.
this artist is an excellent storyteller !!!

my favorite website for "jewelry inspiration"

velvet da vinci gallery is named after an old "perry mason" tv episode. located in the business district of 'russian hill', san francisco.
it opened in 1991. it's a gallery of contemporary art jewelry & metalworks. it represents artists from US, Europe, Latin America & Japan.
it's always so inspiring to see different views of art jewelry...checkout their website & enjoy their archives of all their past & present shows.

i had a death dream last night...

it seemed to be a pleasant dream...a high school reunion...people milling about that looked familiar but yet i just couldn't place them...than out of the blue i saw him, frank corona. he was of european spanish decent, handsome & likeable features, always with a smile. i rushed to him, amazed that he still looked so young. i tried to find my husband to introduce him, but he wasn't there. frank then introduced me to his grown son who i swear looked older than him.

i remember when frank and i were in high school he had befriended my brother who was in the varsity "B" team (that's for the boys too short & slight for the "VARSITY 'A' TEAM") with him. frank would drop in unannounced sometimes...and me being the shy akward child would run into my bedroom & hide from him. later in our junior year i started to breakout of my shell once i talked my mom into contacts and my chubby body started to charge into a more "girly" one.

i guess because frank had been a regular visitor to our house & now hung around both me & my brother, he figured it would be okay to walk me home from a football game...we stopped for a soda at the "foster's freeze" and then walked slowly (in the dark) back home...his hand at the small of my back...first time i ever got flip-flops in my tummy and my knees buckled...we didn't kiss, but he held my hand.

when i got home, my mom questioned me where i had been...it was still early and i wondered why she seemed upset. later on frank told me that my mom had come over to his house & talked to his parents and said it was best for frank not to see me anymore except at school, as friends.

my brother asked me what i did...because mom was pissed and told him not to invite frank over again. omg!...talk about not knowing what to think...but on that day i found out how much of a racist my parents were...i was so ashamed.

frank & i did as our parents wished and stayed away from each other...but it must have seemed strange to him as it did for me, but i would sneak around on dates with non-japanese boys all the time after that perfect evening with him...indirect rebellion i guess. in our senior year,

i was dating secretly a fresnman boy who i knew i would gladly leave behind for college...frank was in a serious steady relationship with a beautiful mexican girl that his parents liked very much. by a funny coincidence, we had both stopped in at the "foster's freeze" for a snack...and danced about the subject of "what if.." we continued to see each other after that football game long ago? ....at the end of this dance we realized our different paths were okay...but as he left to see his girlfriend, and turned back to wave good-bye...i answered the question posed under my breathe...i would be that loving yet scared girlfriend, pregnant with his child, knowing he would be gone in less than 72 hrs. to a war, he felt honor-bound to fight in.

(back to my dream)...frank & i made some small talk...his older-looking son seemed distracted & didn't turn to face me much & i never did see my husband nearby which seemed odd at a reunion....when i woke up, i was super groggy and remembered the dream... i remembered that frank died in 1969 in one of the first conflicts when nixon oked the expansion of the war into cambodia. i believe he was in charge of the machine gun in a helicoper that was shot down.

his beautiful girlfriend, crying, holding her newborn in church... i never found out if it was a "boy" or "girl"...i never made it to the funeral...never been able to forget frank and only accepted his death when i saw his name on the "wall"....30 years later.

OMG! another Etsy Favorite

barbara has a lovely shop at etsy called, "a luscious thing"... and it is just that and more. you can immediately see her love of vintage components & antique beads combined with her fondness for all things botanical. her creations caught me as what a "lady" of the turn of the century might entertain herself doing...and combining that with the modern edge of of her love to deconstruct & reconstruct using her well developed skills in drilling, riveting, wraping, buffing & patina-ing.
please checkout her shop at etsy... "a luscious thing".

1KM Favorites Series...JoJo Bell

joanne harrill is the owner/ creator of "JoJo Bell"...when i was browsing thru the "wearable art market" and stumbled upon her shop...i stopped in my tracks & almost cried...what wonderful craftsmanship & vision...i know 'envy' is a sin..just call me a sinner. i love her wire wrapped jewelry...it's light & airy and lyrical. i have seen quite a few wire wrapped rings, and they all look the same to me...BUT joanne takes the time & skill to make embellishments on the band of the rings as well as a complex & layered dome of her jewelry. BUT look also at her more clean & simple pieces...just a continuation of the line & fluidity of her work...all of which is exquisite. checkout her site: http://www.1000markets.com/users/jojobell

My First High Scool Dance

being a short asian woman, i won't tell you i started out as a cute caucasian woman in high school (see picture)...but i wanted to capture that intimate appeal of the first dance.

this is brought on by a surprise invite on facebook (which is a pure mystery to me...so i don't use it very often) by Bruce S....the first boy i ever danced with in high school.

my best friend at the time was Sharon, who was built like me...a chubby asian teenager BUT the difference was she was stunning and didn't really know it. she talked me into going to this dance together for moral support BUT i should have sat down with her to talk about the "rules of engagement" on the dance floor. though sharon was stunning...she was socially awkward, being an only child...of the two i was the better dancer...had some social graces, even as a teenager.

when she was asked to dance....OMG she refused unless her partner found a dancing mate for me...i guess to share the experience with me...i know she probably thinks that was the best thing she could have done as my friend BUT it was the way she did it. within earshot of quite a few people, she told the boy she would not dance unless he found someone to dance with me...talk about feeling so embarassed & humiliated...jeez, what was she thinking!! as he turned away to find a buddy, i protested to her, but she was relentless & kept raising her voice saying she would not dance unless i did too. if i could have thrown her out a window or down the stairs i would have, but i just didn't think fast enough.

before i knew it, the boy came back with a buddy...not just any "buddy" but a guy i had noticed on the grounds in-between classes...he had dark moppy hair (like the beattles), sexy eyes and seemed to have a bit of a "bad boy" reputation...he always seemed "cool" and a bit of an outsider.

the only way i could stop feeling like a "grade A" fool was to not make a fuss and just dance (omg...a slow one!). let me preface here, that i knew i was awkward...chubby, asian w/ unattractive glasses (which i didn't wear to the dance, so i couldn't see to good), and a fashion style that was not quite developed....Bruce on the otherhand was "cool" in my eyes...dressed in a monotone dark hue with a leather jacket (he says it wasn't leather, but hell this is my memory so it was leather).

i remember that he smelled good...his shouldars were naturally broad & not the result of shouldar pads sewn in his jacket...his body was warm & when i leaned into him his breath was warm against my cheek. I don't think we said much..maybe just "hi" and "don't you sit behind me in social studies?"...but what i noticed the most that night, was that he never once made me feel bad about having to dance with me as a favor to his buddy...for that moment in time, i was just a girl dancing with a guy...and it was perfect. i'll always appreciate Bruce for that memory.

note: after that dance i didn't remain friends with Sharon...my version of "throwing her out the window"...and Bruce, if you read this..."thank you".

Another "1000 Market" favorite...Gougogao

what can i say about these fine designers...their banner says it all..."nothing. everything"

their garments are exquisite, yet understated...i dreamed i could fit into all of their line, even being a rather vertically & horizontally-challenged figure, i still have dreams of fitting into the "edge coat" :)

please checkout their site...it's gorgeous! http://www.1000markets.com/users/gougoloft

"Independence Day" the movie

Tivo…a blessing or a curse?? That’s a question I would never have had to to hesitate to think about back in the VCR era of my life. OF COURSE A BLESSING…to be able to record programs at a drop of a hat without wondering if I had a blank or “unnecessary” tape to record over…to not have to worry if there was enough tape to record the 2hr. program that was only going to be on ONCE before it was locked up in a fairytale castle vault, not to be seen again for god knows how long…maybe for as long as that “sleeping beauty” girl was getting bed sores waiting for “her prince to come”…no double entendre intended J

Anyway, with all these holiday programs & surprisingly scheduled music awards, I have been craving entertainment on the tube. “Independence Day” was scheduled on cable & I had it TIVO-ed…days later, I finally was able to watch it in 2 sittings in 2 days. It sort of lost it’s glitter, but it was still far better than the holiday programs scheduled.

After watching it though, a strange question popped into my head that kept my brain leaping for hours till I finally got the answer “just right”

“The Question”: (despite all my health concerns and doctorly advice from everyone, including my doctor)….If I knew I was going to be killed by an alien invasion in 24hrs…what would I want for my last meal?

“The Answer”: ..(I would have my husband drive me to a few of my favorite places…since I would need both hands to gather & nibble such a feast)…

To “China Express”…for the best won ton soup in town

To “KFC”…for a bucket of legs & thighs w/ biscites

To “that Chinese restaurant near the grocery story”…for “Singapore Streetnoodles”

To “Foster’s Freeze”…for a large orange freeze & strawberry shake…the shake is for my husband who is driving.

To “Valentino’s Pizzeria”…for a large ½ & ½..half pepperoni & Italian sausage, half pineapple & Canadian bacon…the pineapple one for my hubby who doesn’t know that pizzas should never be made of fruit.

To “Jack-in-the-Box”…for those amazingly greasy & cheap tacos (99 cents !)

Then for desert…any donut shop that has a wide assortment of bear claws & jelly-filled.

@#$% damn it…where is that alien invasion anyway!!!

Baubles, Buttons & Beads...one of the best...

debbie of 'baubles, buttons & beads' at the new '1000 markets' site is one of the best sellers there...not only for her apparent jewelry design talent, but her generous nature to all her compatriots there. just like her avatar dancing in the grass, her contagious energy & optimism is fueling all of us at '1000 markets'.
i just love the blues in this piece and the way she combines little bits & baubles she's collected...all of which lends a deeply personal touch to all her creations.
don't forget to stop on by her shop at '1000 markets' also her wonderful blogsite.

OMG ! ...Isn't this gorgeous!

just to let everyone know...up until now, i've never promoted anyone else's work on my blog...not that i'm ego-centric, but because i am a major NON-TECHIE...plus a lazy "b" as well :) ...just a fact for you newcomers to my blog, so going to my hubby and asking how i can transport pics off the web was a real challenge for me. BUT OMG...when i saw this wonderful etsy shop, "school of charms", i just went bananas. i love the way she combines the elements of vintage, retro, & kitsch together to compose these remarkable jewelry pieces.

I Was Tagged...OMG!

lia @ bullfinch & barbury tagged me!!!...not quite sure when. i confess i don't read my comments on a regular basis...i know, i know..shame on me!

here are the "official rules":

(1) Link to your tagger and list these rules on your blog.
(2) Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog; some random, some weird.
(3) Tag 7 people at the end of your post by leaving their names as well as their links to their blogs.
(4) Let them know they have been "tagged" by leaving a comment on their blog.

my 7 facts:

(1) the first boy i kissed was roger barsoom in kindergarten...it was a sad story, i was hopelessly in love with him, and yet if they had laws for it back then, i would have been slapped with a restraining order. when i kissed him, it was sort of hard & painful...the only previous experience i had with kissing was on the back of my hand : (

roger was saved by my family moving to another school district...didn't meet up with him again till high school, where i think he actually flinched when he heard my name.

(2) whenever i'm "blue", i find my cassette tape of "the Best of K.C. and the Sunshine Band"...what can i say, you just can't stop dancing like a white man & you can't be "blue" lip-sinc-ing to it.

(3) i don't particularly like/ love my sister...i wish i could count the ways, but let's just say i have this story i've told myself since i was young that she was raised by wolves and left on our door step...even they couldn't stand her.

(4) i delight in telling my in-laws, who are "age-a-phobes" & "sick-a-phobes", what happens to your body as you age..sometimes getting into graphic details.

(5) i don't have children...never wanted children...and the one time i thought i might have been pregnant, i called it "bubba the bobo" (luckily it was a false alarm)....now as i'm older and people ask if i have kids or grandkids, i smile and say ..."thank god, no!"

(6) when i was in junior high, i would run home and watch "american bandstand" religiously to learn all the latest dances...after a while i was the "go-to" person to see when learning to dance was required.

(7) i was a total "wallflower" at all the dances at school...until magically in my junior year in high school it changed...along with the intro of contact lens & a girly figure (finally).

***So now here is my list of taggers***

little gray pixel

pink chevalier

hearts treasure

simplyraevyn

new life designs

crochetedlittlethings

chicy-creations

"boy-toy"

I married my “boy toy”, John. He’s not my first love, but I knew he would be my last.

We met late in your lives. He was in his early 40’s and I was crashing into my 50th birthday.

When you’re young & dating, you have the tendancy to blurt out all your past relationships…thinking you’re just opening up & sharing…trying to have a meaningful encounter with a new potential “love”. But if you take the time to go to the other side of the mirror, you’ll see someone making a damn good point why not to date them.

Both John & I had been on both sides of the mirror. Had all the so called “fun” in dating and were so tired. We did want to have companionship…friendship…whatever. No commitments…just a potential friend to go to concerts, movies, dinners out & talk & bitch about work, our bosses, and life in general.

In the process of not looking for “the One”, we found each other. After a few months, John proposed and of course I said yes with conditions. Though I looked pretty good, I was chronically ill. We talked at length about my health and what would potentially happen. My looks…my stamina…my heart would all be gone sooner than most. I told him I would marry him only after a year when he could think about the situation and see some of the deterioration.

After a year, I think I was more scared than I ever had been when my doctors first announced my prognosis. I thought John might decide to leave…but he stayed.

I know nothing of John’s past relationships and he only knows enough of mine to explain some of my weird behavior. For a short moment I once tried to figure out our marriage dynamics…the only thing I could come up with, was we try to help each other whenever we can…I clean the litter box because I know he hates to do it…he throws out the garbage without a fuss because I’m too weak to do it…I give him free access to the remote & try to make him laugh during the commercials when I know he’s had a hard day…and when I feel too ugly & fat, he caresses my cheek and kisses me just like on our first date.

a new promotional site...testing..one, two, three :)

My Favorite Aunt

Aunt Dorothy was my favorite aunt…you know those cool older women who had one foot in the contemporary scene & the other in the traditional past…able to cross over whenever the occasion dictated.

I first met Auntie Dorothy in the late 50’s…I was an awkward shy little girl, always observing but too afraid to act on my instincts. Dorothy married my uncle, who was a formidable personality, but strangely not very ambitious…he owned & operated the family farm and grew oranges & grapes. Dorothy was the oldest of 3 children, whose family owned a small farm in the next town. Their marriage was arranged by what the Japanese call, a “go-between”…sort of like a matchmaker.

As soon as Dorothy married into our expansive family, she was a force to be reckoned with. She coordinated family gatherings that were memorable for their celebration & elaborate feasts…she soon became a beloved fixture…caring, loving, well organized, gently demanding, and indispensable.

When my uncle died suddenly, she was there ready & willing to take over the farm & take care of my grandmother, AND have a full-time bookkeeping job. If she was stressed, she never showed it. She continued to make improvements to the farm & the land. ..her memorable family gatherings were lessened, but were always attended to during the major holidays.

Years after Uncle Shig had died & left her everything, she married a prominent rancher many times her senior. There was talk she married him for his money, but to be honest, she really didn’t need his money. Though I have no proof, I think many of us thought it was a mutual beneficial business arrangement…Dorothy brought to the table some prime farming land and herself as future nurse & companion…her husband brought power & an even larger farm & properties to her, as his new bride.

And just like she had done with our large family, she had won over his family with her cooking & entertainment skills & her loyal , loving care of him…when he died, she was left with a sizeable inheritance which she invested in her own company. I know there were some problems, but knowing Dorothy, she was very financially savy…at the time of her death she was very “well off” as the gossipers would say…BUT as I said before, I don’t think money was the goal here…power & ambition, maybe, a little…BUT I think it was the ‘game’…the thrill of getting everything lined up in a row so she could make her idea come to life.


I really don’t know the true depth of this wonderful woman. I do know she planned to the last detail her own funeral, to the point her brother who was ordered to do the eulogy was so nervous he would ‘screw up’ and she might jump out of the casket correcting him….she also was the only woman I know who had kept the same 50’s hairdo for 60+ years, and somehow made all us children feel important & heard…I will always be grateful for that.

Snow Day...(excerpt)

excerpt from a letter to a friend...

The last time it snowed in reedley (my hometown), I think I was 6 or 7 yrs old (about 1957..as you guessed, snow day is a very unusual thing here).

I woke up before anyone else and when I looked out the window, I almost didn’t know what it was, but in a flash I remembered all those old films about a “white Christmas” and I knew that it must be snow. As if in an out-of-body experience, I started to laugh & squeal up & down the hall, waking my mom & dad, brother & even my grumpy sister.

My brother, gary & I were the first ones to get dressed & out the door. We immediately ran up & down the yard grabbing the snow off the ground and throwing it at each other…mom & dad came out and took pictures of the snow & us playing in it…but mainly just of the snow. After my parents went back into the house, tired of novelty, they started to call all our family & friends to see if they had snow too, as if the snow gods were that selective on snow placement.

Gary & I had noticed that the snow was melting and there wasn’t a whole lot there to begin with…so we gathered all the snow we could find in both the front & back yards, any on the hedges & side yard too. At the end of all this gathering, we had a small, but decent size snowman with a carrot nose…black stone eyes & twiggy hair.

We were so proud of it, though it was a little smudged with dirt & blades of grass…we rushed into the house yelling for mom & dad to come out and see & take a picture of our creation …BUT when we came back out, the snowman was gone…we saw the back end of an old rusty ford truck driving off fast with our snowman peaking out from the flatbed….OMG! OUR SNOWMAN WAS KIDNAPPED!!!!!

Both gary & I were crying uncontrollably…crying for our parents to call the police & get a manhunt going…I still remember my older sister laughing at us, and my mom pretending to call the police and reporting the crime…I loved my mom even more for that & realized what a bitch my sister was & is to this day.

New Site: 1000 Markets

this is an announcement that i just joined another venue to sell my jewelry. it is a smaller venue than etsy and takes it's payments thru amazon.com...which is why i joined. etsy is great, but for a jewelry designer you sometimes feel lost in a crowd because there are so many of us. now i haven't had much experience with amazon.com payments, but it seems to be similar to paypal.

1000 markets is brand new & is only 5-6 weeks old. it's a beautiful site & all the shops are screened before they are accepted as a member. i'm excited because it will be like etsy in the infant stage, which i never experienced. i'm going to cross my fingers & hold on to my panties for the ride of my life :) ....come join us at 1000 markets!

Mr. Stanley is booked for the holidays...

last night after i woke to shoot myself with that joy-juice called insulin...i went back to bed only to find stanley steinway,my cat, sleeping on my side of the bed. it took a while to wake him so i could get back into bed...but when i did, he did what comes so naturally to him.....he started to "groom" my hair. usually i don't encourage this kind of behavior, but i was so tired...and it sort of felt good, tho a bit wet.

when i woke up this morning, john mentioned how nice my hair looked...then he saw the otherside & in mid-sentence retracted it....BUT strangely, it was the "stanley side" he was completementing me on....who knew that kitty spit made great "product"!!!!

(going to get stanley to see if he can fit me in as a "walk-in" this afternoon.."hey kitty, kitty..")

More...the magazine

As I write this, I tried to find an old issue of “More” the magazine which I subscribed to for a year, but I couldn’t find one. I thought for sure I would have kept the issue of the one with Michelle Obama on the cover…if only because she’s such an admirable woman….but alas, none was to be found.

I guess it was when I joined AARP in order to get a cheaper price on my diabetic supplies that I noticed that there seemed to be a visual connection of “really old” and “old ,yet ‘hot’..” images bombarding me.

With “AARP” magazine, there was the visual impact of really old people, organizing for health, insurance, saving social security at all costs, and geriatric exercise routines while sitting in chairs in an “senior citizen center” because god knows our bones could snap at any moment.

With “MORE” magazine, the visual impact was genetically blessed women of the age range of 40’s thru 70’s, who looked 20-30 years younger than they were, immaculately dressed & styled, enjoying glamorous power jobs as CEO’s or directors of this & that, or actually prospering from a dream job of their own making. Keeping up their youthful appearance with eating right & exercising in provocative spandex gear on yoga mats or harnessed in a palates machine…or dare I say sitting on a ball finding their frickin’ core.

I don’t know about you, but I was hoping to find a magazine that had all that glam stuff BUT also told the truth about aging and the things that might come up, on a personal level…without shame or judgement.

I was surfing on TV, and caught a portion of a game show on MTV I think…there was a group of young men who had to socialize amongst a room filled with retired people enjoying a game of bingo. At the end of this, the winner was the one whom the audience found to be more personable. There was this one man who had a clipped interviewed stating he thought he won because he made the audience “feel young” by being there and sharing his precious time with them…dare I say, he didn’t win…and dare I say, that this young man would be a total asshole whether he was 20 or even 80…it’s hard to shake the “asshole” gene from your DNA.

If there was a magazine that told the WHOLE truth about aging, I would buy it:

THE GOOD THINGS: some genetically blessed women will always look young & sexy…look at Lauren Hutton, a foxy lady in her 80’s…yes there are high powered women now in their 40’s & 50’s who are enviable…older women know themselves & are finally very comfortable in their own skin…& since they live longer statistically, they may choose to reach for more dreams & 2nd or 3rd careers and be admired all the way.

THE BAD THINGS: we are not all Lauren Hutton…majority of us start getting fat in places we never were before… our mothers never told us, but our female parts (tits & vagina) will sag & our sex drive may become non-existent…that wonderful gluteus maximus you’ve worked so hard at the gym to keep up, may stay up, but it will definitely turn “squarish & flat”…your body will betray you by growing things you didn’t have at birth, like heavy facial hair, mutant eyebrow hair & general “growths” that are usually benign, but at times are serious …you will meet with family, friends & medical experts that have their own agenda & concerns, but they all seem to be in their 20’s ..saying “there, there..you’re just getting older…don’t worry, it’s natural”.

This imagined magazine I would like to buy, would then tell me not to take their conclusions at face value. For example, about a year ago, I noticed I couldn’t walk at times. I actually had to use a cane or wheelchair to get around. I didn’t think it was normal considering, it wasn’t all the time, only 2-3 times a week. When I went to the doctor he gave me pills for the pain & said I was just getting older.

Later that month, I went to an eye appointment (another doctor) in my wheelchair…a nurse asked if I had “gout”, since the last time she saw me I was walking perfectly. I returned to my primary doctor, who didn’t want to test me for gout, but I insisted. The test was positive and all I had to do was change my diet a bit & take some oral medication and that year of pain was gone.

So back in the “good things” column…when you’re older, you realize that some doctors are assholes…and as I said before, it’s hard to shake “asshole” out of your DNA.

the smoke alarm

This morning was a bit of a blur…my husband, john, woke me early because he knows I like to kiss him “goodbye” and grab his ass on the driveway in front of the neighbors who pretend not to notice at their breakfast table, everyday that he goes to work. I know it might sound sweet BUT there is a little bit of a devious plan on my part as well though…..you see, I married my “boy-toy” husband, who I fortunately looked quite a bit younger than (good genes I guess) at the time of the marriage, but after a full onset of menopause, I’ve aged 25 years in a 8 year span of our marriage.

But true to his word…he has proved to me everyday how much he still loves me. I know this because I ask him daily….and he always answers….”I love you honey because you’re cute as a button…you love me…and you’re down right crazy!”….all while in a soft, sexy, southern accent and his “magnum” moustache slightly twitching.

At any rate, my husband was blessed with better genes than I, so now I look 20 years older than him….hence the “devilish” ritual of the “goodbye” kiss & ass-grabbing has a whole new kink to it J

Another thing that happened this morning as John left for work…he’s a little deaf in one ear so he didn’t notice that the smoke alarm battery was low…so of course it chirps LOUDLY once every 40 seconds. This would not be a problem, but you see I’m LESS than 4’8” tall (shrinkage due to menopause I think)….even with the tallest ladder I can manage, I can’t reach the damn thing….did I mention it chirps every 40 seconds….as long as the earth moves, or at least all day while my husband is at work.

I don’t mean to get morbid BUT I really hope those insurance statistics ARE NOT true…that of a married couple, it’s the man who dies first, usually.

Before I agreed to marry john, I told him of all my health issues, my finances…talked about age, death & taxes in detail…also required that we live together for one year and if he couldn’t handle it all, that he could walk away without a lot of drama & still have a friend for life…..after our second date, we’ve been inseparable, married now for 8 years…we would have celebrated BUT we both forgot…he might look like my son, but mentally we are the same forgetful old farts that somehow found each other.

Anyway what inspired this entry in my blog was the thought of life without john…unable to fix that damn smoke alarm…unable to scandalize the neighbors…and not hearing my husband say,”I love you honey because you’re cute as a button, you love me, and you’re down right crazy”.

a wonderful new BBEST friend

my wonderful new BBEST friend, pat, at preciousquilts has nominated me for this awesome blog award...i feel very honored for this recognition considering i'm so new to blogging that i had to get advice from my hubby as to how to get this picture transported here :) ....i suggested "magic" but he said "no dear...now write this down..." daa...daaa...magic!!!

part of this nomination requires me nominating 7 more blogmates...but i can't choose just seven, i nominate all who are on my blog roll...i hope everyone visiting this site will browse thru all the beautiful blogs i've collected like little treasures which they all are.

talking about "treasures"...check out pat's etsy shop, preciousquilts... besides the namesake quilts, she does these wonderful needlecrafted ACEO's and please don't leave till you checkout her authentic british recipes.... she's so wicked, doesn't she know i'm on a diet!

pat also has a most giving & creative blog site as well...

http://preciousquilts.blogspot.com

"under the tuscan sun"

i started a new series again. based on "bugs"...beetles & ladybugs to be specific, but hopefully more bugs will emerge...i love the mix of the filigree with the textbook look of the insects. the above pic is my first bracelet in a number of years & i'm sort of turned on by it...sort of gothic in feel....you can find them at my etsy shop...streetnoodles.

beetles & lady bugs in particular are good omens in many cultures, but to tell you the truth i was inspired by a movie i saw on cable...i think it was called "under the tuscan sun"...it made the point that relationships of any kind take time & patience & when you find a peace from within & stop searching...a funny thing happens, what you sought comes to you in abundance.

Estranged Dad

my mom & dad are on the left side....uncles, shig & johnson on the right...

To elaborate on my relations with my dad…we were strangely estranged & different on one hand …than in the end (maybe too late) we realized how much we were alike.

My dad was born in San Francisco to parents of upper middle-class very traditional family who had fallen on bad times as all of Japan had fallen during that time (the depression). His mother being who she was demanded to go back to Japan & raise her 2 sons as her husband stayed to work as a laborer to send $$ back home. He was a lonely child..being teased for being “fatherless”…having retained his US citizenship..and for his slight deafness due to a childhood swimming accident. He concentrated on his studies, his love of the arts, and a growing awareness of his government at large.

There were rumors through old family ties that he was going to be arrested for protesting the government & forced to join the imperial army for a war that was “inevitable”….he used his dual citizenship & family connections to get a steamer to the states. There he met other expatriots with their own stories…one colorful one turned out to be young, dumb “yakuza”, with with one of his fingers cut off (punishment for a failed "job")…who for a while was his traveling buddy.

These were just a few stories I was able to get from my dad after we learned to communicate with each other…literally. When I was young, we had no problems, but then puberty & both our stubbon sides faced off…he refused to learn English & refused to learn Japanese…pretty uncomfortable at family functions.

When my mother died (she was our translator), I thought that would be okay, then little by little the cold heart between us thawed & we both wanted to talk…BUT HOW? I talked to the priest at the Oakland Buddhist Church who agreed to translate letters for us…and for a couple of years, while the priest was still assigned to that church, my dad & I were like two people lost in a desert, thirsting for each others life stories.

When my dad died, my brother & sister almost thought it was a “relief”…he never showed affection to his family (that’s something mom always did)…I guess I felt it too..wondering if he ever really cared about those letters we shared years before. My brother took care of the funeral arrangements, my sister did her usual purging of anything she thought was valuable…after she left his room, I went to his bedside table ..looked inside and found a neatly bundled stack of letters I had written him.

Making art in my past has always saved me somehow…gotten thru rough times spiritually. When I moved back to my old hometown, I was blindsided with such vivid childhood memories. When I started my on-line business, it became my savior as well. I like making jewelry & being creative on a daily basis, BUT when something like this “bird series” inspiration comes about, there is such a strong attachment I have for each piece I make…I hope that comes through when people see my work.

bird portraits...another perspective

http://streetnoodles.etsy.com

i just finished a variation of the bird series i call "bird portraits"...it's just another approach...a smaller more intimate look.