Adventures in Living!

Answering questions...

So, over on LiveJournal, my friend Bryce posted his responses to a series of five questions asked of him by another friend. I haven't done a meme in a while on this blog, so I asked him to give me five questions to answer. Here they are, with my responses:

1. What is the best quality of each of your kids? What is the worst?

With three kids in the house, there are also a variety of personalities and quirks. Sometimes it feels like there are *multiple* personalities. Kira's best quality is that she has a vast imagination and a way with language. Her vocabulary definitely outstrips other kids her age, and her ability to come up with creative insights and new ways of looking at things is amazing. Her worst quality is probably that she often looks at difficult things and thinks she can't do them, rather than jumping in and giving a try. Wren? Best is her boundless energy and rapidly developing wit. Worst is her boundless energy! And for my precious boy, Noah, he is so loving and happy. At his worst, he is supremely stubborn and given to wanting to do everything himself. I think all of my kids are wonderfully unique and vibrant, and really, their qualities change as they grow, so what's "worst" now probably will be different in a few years.

2. Beach or Mountains?

Yes. 

No, really. It's been so godawful long since we had a vacation (six years?), I'd go anywhere. If I felt like being picky, I'd have to say beach. Years of living in Miami, and then near the shore of Lake Ontario have made me into someone who loves the sound of the water meeting land, and the soul-clearing walks that can be had along the sand. It would figure I would marry someone who doesn't like the beach.

3. What are your top five desert island albums?

I so rarely listen to whole albums anymore, so this is a tough one.

In no particular order:

Van Morrison,  Tupelo Honey

Everclear,   Songs From An American Movie, Vol.1: Learning How To Smile

Yo-Yo Ma,  Complete Cello Suites

Billy Joel,  The Essential Billy Joel

Lunasa,  Otherworld

4. What was the first rock concert you went to?

INXS, on tour for the album, Kick, in 1988, which was the year I graduated from high school. I saw them in Miami, on March 1st at the Miami Sportatorium.

5. If you could own horses again, would you?

Absolutely, yes. I love horses, and I loved having them in my life and living on a farm. It's expensive and hard physical work, but I love them. I have been considering starting to ride again (it's been eleven years since I have been on a horse), but it will be a while before I am in a position to have a horse of my own again. I probably would need a full-time job and all my kids in school, at least.

Artistic Validation on a Sunday Afternoon

Yesterday, I spent a few hours taking myself out on an Artist Date. If you've read Julia Cameron's The Artist's Way, then you know what I am talking about. An Artist Date is time spent on something "out in the world" that serves to renew your creative spirit and gives you inspiration and possibly ideas for your work. For my Artist Date, I spent the afternoon at the Visual Arts Center of Richmond's Craft + Design Show. It's a higher-end show held as a fundraiser for the Visual Arts Center, and it is really fantastic. I have to admit I had never been to the show, even knowing about it and living in Richmond for just about eight years. This year, being in the position I am in with my artwork, and trying to develop myself artistically, I knew I had to go.

It was all that I expected, and more. I saw some extremely fine works of art from an outstanding variety of artists, including one of my very favorites, Joseph Craig English, a printmaker whose work I first saw when he created the piece that would be the poster for the Washington International Horse Show in, I think, 1993. I owned a copy of the poster, and I think he had signed it, but as with a number of my things, it was lost when Kira's dad and I split. I think the poster might be in the barn, but who knows? Anyway, I love his work, and if I'd had the money, I would have bought one of that print. As with all his work, he produces a number of prints and when they are gone, they are gone.

There were a number of fine jewelry artists, and beautiful wearable art, glassblowers, potters, and woodworkers. I chatted with all of the glassblowers, of course, and most of the jewelry artists. It was wonderful to see how so many people took ideas and turned them into beautiful artwork. I thought the jewelry-maker who showed a line of work that was based on renewable energy sources was really interesting, as well as the silversmith whose jewelry was made of cabochons of felted wool. I spent a long time talking beer, Upstate New York, and the fun of going to college in the pre-internet era ("college kids these days!") with Allie Dryer of Pistol-Stitched, who makes the coolest funky handbags. She sews them and makes the wooden handles, too, and I loved them all! Very cool. And a fun person to chat with as well!

Then I discovered the only lampwork artist at the show, Jasmine Keen, who works out of her home in Quincy, Massachusetts. Her work was fantastic, and I think I spent about a half an hour talking to her about glass, getting her recommendations for glass to buy and torches to consider, and sharing my suppliers for silver and copper wire. I had on one of my new necklaces, and she admired it, so I took it off for her to look at. She was amazed by my wire-wrapping and asked if I'd consider doing some wire-wrapping for her if she sent me beads. !!!!! Of course I would!!!!!! I gave her my card and hopefully we will be able to connect again by email and be long-distance glass buds. One of the things I like best about her work is the clear, clear bright colors she uses. She also has a line of earring that are similar pairs, but not identical, and that si something I have wanted to do too. Of course, Richmond is a funny place....very conservative at times, but also very funky, so I don't know if that would go over very well. I'm going to try it though. The conversation Jasmine and I had was outstanding, and I felt SO much better about my own work, the direction my work is going in right now, and what I want to do in the future. She urged me strongly to upgrade my torch setup so that I could expand my working possibilities -- work smarter, not so hard. I have to get the cash together and get my torch and oxy concentrator. I. Have. To. The things I could do with a fast, hot torch...oh, the possibilities!

On my way out of the show, I stopped to complete a survey, and the woman at the exit noticed my necklace. She asked me where I got it and when I told her I made it, she wanted to know why I wasn't an exhibitor. That alone made me feel good, and I gave her my card so she could look me up. Wow.

Oh, this was the necklace I had on. It's called "Gaslights" and it's one of my Industrial Revolution series.

It's a quick and dirty picture, so I didn't catch the focus on the beads. Here's a better picture of the beads:

They are hollow, and the wirework is all copper with a dark patina. And no, it doesn't turn your neck green.

I finished up my day with a quick trip to Barnes and Noble for a new magazine, and then spent the evening in comfy clothes, looking at artist websites and drawing my new ideas in my sketchbook.

All in all, a really fantastic day. Like I said, really validating for me as an artist. I needed the shot in the arm, so to speak, and now I am redoubling my efforts to get my work out there.

I need a better webpage, and a better online shop, and I need to take better pics of my work so I can apply to better-quality shows. Much to do...

We Love Halloween!

I was not impressed with the hot, sticky weather we had, but Halloween at the Brandel household was  terrific !

Friday night, we carved three massive pumpkins...

 

 

 

 

RAAAAWR!!!  (Wren is so awesome...)

Noah says "Raawr!" too!

Halloween Night...spooky dinner...Mummy Hot Dogs....Monster Face salad...and a glass of sparkling green Monster Juice to drink!

Getting ready....everyone gets glow sticks and glow bracelets.

Going out....the bat, the Tinkerbell, and Professor McGonagal (from Harry Potter).

At the neighbor's house....."Trick or Treat!!"

The kids had a blast! It was unseasonably hot and humid, which reminded me of Halloween nights in Miami. Travis and I were sweating by the time we got done. The kids were great; polite, cooperative, and everyone had fun. There was one fantastic house that was totally done up with spooky decorations and a fog machine and a scream soundtrack. Wren was a little unsure, but Noah just marched right in with Kira. We have to spend more time decorating our yard next year. I definitely want at least one inflatable things, and to put some ghosts and some lights up in the trees. I think we might need a spooky graveyard, too. 

Kids are in bed now, lights are off, and I am trying to stay away from the unsupervised pumpkin buckets full of candy. We'd set a big bowl of candy on the porch before we left, only to come back home to find someone had stolen it! Low-rent jerks! Ah, well, it IS trick OR treat, right? I can get another bowl next year.

I think I will also avoid getting started on my yearly Halloween rant about the people who DRIVE their kids from house to house for trick or treating. I could understand it if the houses were a quarter-mile apart, but this is suburbia! Sigh...you walk, or you don't go. That's how it should be. (well, unless you're two, then you can ride in the wagon)

Anyway.

I love Halloween. We had a great time! Hope everyone got lots of candy, got scared if they wanted to, and had the best costume ever!

Been a long time...

Okay, I have been a slacker. I have failed to post now for ....many....days. It's not like there's nothing going on around here; hell, *something's* always going on around here! I guess I could just blame my recent attack of Life. Good excuse as any, I guess.

Let's see....the kids are all back in school. First day was successful for Kira at middle school, and the little guys are loving being back in preschool. Honestly, Mom loves them being back in school a little bit, too. I like having structure and some semblance of order to my day, and the little bit of free time and peace and quiet doesn't hurt, either. ;)

Travis and I continue our quest to obtain motorcycle licenses and scooters. I cannot wait. We got a little piece of junk Chinese import scooter the other day, and Travis ahs been working on it and we have both been riding it around the neighborhood. It's really fun, and it totally solidifies my desire to have a bigger 'real' scooter SOON. It's only 50cc, so top speed is 40mph if we're lucky, but it's prefect for practicing riding around and stopping and turning and such. I feel so much more confident now, especially with turning, since I have been riding it.

This is not our 50cc scooter. This is Kira's Razor scooter, which is battery-powered and attains a top speed of 10mph. Noah loved riding up and down the driveway on it with me. Poor Wren is dying for her own scooter.

We went to the Children's Museum with my brother and his two kids and my mom. It was great fun, especially since we just about had the place to ourselves!

Noah has the worst case of strep I have ever seen in one of my kids, so he is down for the count, but rallying back with some antibiotics. We were so sure it was the H1N1 flu -- super-high fever, lethargy, vomiting -- but thankfully, he "only" has strep. Yay for bacterial infections.

Today my mission includes ridding the house of all the outgrown kid clothes, putting things in the attic and taking things out of the attic, and planning an assault on the bedroom of my pre-teen, who seems to be incapable of throwing anything out. This weekend looks to be full, with a trip to the farmer's market, the Richmond Folk Festival, and other enjoying-the-fall weekend fun.

Pumpkins must be obtained, and costumes decided upon, as Halloween is coming! I need to develop the pre-trick or treating weird and wonderful dinner menu. Last year's supper included such delicacies as Worms On A Bun and Dirt Dessert, so I want to find something equally startling to eat this year. I love Halloween!

I also have a rant going on in my head about the people who continue to refuse vaccination for their children and place all of us at risk for resurgence of crap like smallpox, polio, diphtheria and widespread measles because of their uninformed opinion that vaccines cause autism.

Additionally, I have something to say about awarding the Nobel Peace prize to someone based on the things they *might* do, rather than the things that HAVE been done to further world peace, but hey, then I'd be branded a hater, and I don't have time for refuting that kind of nonsense today.

And the proposed names for the Richmond minor league baseball team? Seriously, the Richmond Rockhoppers? Flatheads? Flying Squirrels? HAMBONES!? What. The. Hell? If I cared more about baseball, I'd probably be more upset, but since I don't have a dog in this fight, all I can do is shake my head incredulously at the dorks who are potentially making my beloved city a laughingstock.

The tourism people should be having a cow about now.

Ah, well. Lots to do. Guess I'd better get to it.

More Scooter Love

Ok, so the picture is teeny-tiny. BUT!

I rode a scooter ALL BY MYSELF for the first time yesterday!!

Thank you Jennifer for letting a total motorcycle novice take your Buddy out on the road. It was a total and complete BLAST and I cannot wait, cannot, cannot, canNOT wait to get my own scooter!

And Mom and Dad, I didn't die. :)

Playing in the Kitchen

So, my kids really like to play 'kitchen' and use their (and my!) pots and pans and plastic food to make dinner and serve snacks and all that. We used to have a big, upright Little Tykes kitchen for Wren that we got from Craigslist, but over the year or so we had it, it got kind of trashed to the point that it wasn't fun to play with. Plus, it was a fairly good size, and took up a lot of room.

Once we started the remodeling of our living room/library area, it had to go. I kept all the nicer pots and pans and utensils and play food in a large fabric bin for the kids, and just ignored the fact that there was no kitchen. I noticed recently that both Noah and Wren were getting into kitchen play, and this time, they were using all kind of flat surfaces for their stove. I thought how nice it would be if they had a kitchen again, but there really isn't room for one, even in our larger living space.

Hooray for the internet! I found a blog, Balancing Everything, that featured a tutorial for making a fabric roll-up kitchen play mat!  It was really cute and looked like something the kids would love, so I read through the tutorial and adapted it for my own purposes.

Took me about two days and I am especially proud to say that I bought nothing to make it. All the fabrics and embellishments were already in my stash! Yay !

Anyway, here it is:

 

It has a grill in full flame, a sink, and four stove burners. I used bleached muslin for the top, with cotton fabric for the appliances and various ribbon and felt scraps. The electric burners are detailed using a big fat Sharpie marker, and there is dimensional fabric paint for the stove knob tops. I drew the sink drain with the Sharpie, added a few water droplets with a glitter paint pen, and used packaged tubular bias for the grill grate.

The whole thing is backed with a layer of cotton canvas and a cotton print. I sewed a strip of bias binding to one end to use as a tie when it is rolled up. The three layers of fabric have a nice weight, and it rolls up and stores in the fabric basket with the kitchen toys.

Best of all, the kids love it!

Here is a detail of the stove:

 

and a shot of the sink:

 

and the grill:

 

Noah really liked it; when I took this picture, Wren was busy gathering her 'gredients' for the lunch she cooked.

 

I have to say that normally I HATE machine applique, so in making this project, my skills were definitely tested. However, it really came out nicely, so I am not complaining. And it kind of encourages me to do a few more projects with machine applique.

Hmmm....maybe Noah needs a toolbench....or a soft busy book to practice dressing skills...

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To all of my friends who are traveling to Charlotte this weekend, safe travels, and give our love to Valharic. Please let him know we are thinking of him.

Philosophy

"Life's too short to be taking risks on things that may be considered fun."

Illustrious wisdom from a family member of mine whom I love dearly, but who obviously has a much different perception of what living is all about.

I know what was meant in the above statement: that risk-taking is a dangerous thing, and life is too precious to just cavalierly participate in an activity that could end your life. I have much to live for, and people who depend on me and love me, and I cannot be selfish and do what I want without regard for them.

And that's true, for the most part.

I guess the part where I have a differing view comes in with the concept of risk-taking and potential selfishness. I see all of life as a risk-taking adventure. Especially in modern times, where we (literally) go faster, have developed more technology for adventure sports, and have conquered (we think) so much more of the natural world. The world itself is larger, more accessible, and the sense of community most of us has encompasses the 'global village', rather than just the folks down the road or in the church pews.

The old chestnut, used when talking about risk assessment, "I could get run over by a bus tomorrow!" still stands, although I am not sure how likely I am to get run over by a bus in an area that doesn't really have sidewalks to step off of, much less a proliferation of city busses.  Now, I am no adventure-sporting adrenaline junkie. I like my adventure relatively tame, on the whole. Riding horses, flying in small airplanes, moving to a new area without excessive amounts of research....you get the picture. Not exactly setting the world on fire, except in my own little corner of it.

Oh, I dream of learning to kayak the James River one of these days (but not the class V rapids), and of learning to rock climb (but not free-soloing), and one of these days, I am sure that I will. I also have an intense desire to travel, to get out and see the world for myself. I'll get to all that. I know I will.

It's been a long time since I fed my personal sense of adventure, and I don't mean by having another child. Lord knows, life can be enough of an adventure with my bunch! No, this time it won't be horses or airplanes or moving house, or joining the Peace Corps.

I'm going to get a motorcycle license.

It's something I never saw myself doing, not really ever, particularly since I am not much of a biker chick. But it will allow me to safely and legally operate a 125cc motor scooter on the non-interstate roads of the commonwealth. This one, in particular. 

Right now, I am going to take the Basic Rider Course from the Motorcycle Safety Foundation, buy my helmet and gloves, shop for a motorcycle jacket that IS NOT PINK (or baby blue or white, for that matter), and save money like a crazy person.

Hopefully, I'll be scooting around town by next spring.

I can't wait!

There's a reason this blog is called Adventures in Living.....

I try, oh, how I try, to look at life as an adventure. There are so many things to do and try and see and people to meet and good food to eat and places to go that it would be impossible to get to them all in one lifetime. I try not to focus on that, because the possibility of missing out on some really cool stuff is depressing, but rather to make my little journey through life with a sense of wonder and uniqueness, and focus on the opportunities I have and the things and people around me. It's not always easy to remember that life is about the journey, that it's not about always doing the 'perfect' thing, or even the 'right' thing, or worse, the 'always expected' thing. You get bogged down in the dailies: money (or lack thereof), job (or lack thereof), raising kids, keeping the roof from leaking, taking the dog to the vet, buying groceries, paying the bills....you get the idea. Some days it's hard to remember that YOU are a real person with real, interesting ideas and desires. Some days it's hard to remember that your life is your own, and while it is important to take certain people and things into consideration, ultimately, YOU are the one who lives your life.

Picasso was quoted as saying, "Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up." It's one of my favorite quotes. I think there are a lot of descriptive words that can replace 'artist' in that quote...'every child is a dancer'.....'adventurer'.....'is creative'....'is fearless'....'is non-judgmental'...

Lots of things.

Then we grow up, and Life takes over, and before you know it, we are all afraid. Maybe we don't call it fear, but that's really what it is. Afraid to take that trip, afraid to run out of money, afraid to get hurt, afraid to screw up your kids, afraid to climb that mountain, afraid to lose your job, afraid to be alone, afraid to die. The path you travel becomes straight and narrow and limited, and the journey is more about some 'destination' -- lots of money, prestige, power, material goods, 'making it big' -- rather than about what you encounter on the side of the road. Sometimes there's a big stinking hole, but most times there are so many interesting and wonderful things to be found....rose gardens, and picnics, and castles....people with courage and interesting stories and new ideas...art...languages...mountains to climb. Why miss out on all of that?

Life is about risk. Every single day is about taking risks....big ones and small ones. If you spend all of your time trying to figure out how to avoid all the risk, you remove yourself from the possibility of encountering real pleasure, and of finding out things about you that you didn't know.

Life is too short NOT to try out whatever you want to try. Someday you're going to be gone, and the best legacy is a life well-lived.

"Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, Chocolate in one hand, strawberries in the other, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out and screaming WOO-HOO! What a ride!”

Amen.

Scooter Love

Ok, so yesterday, our friend Jennifer came by with her scooter. Travis has been talking about wanting one for a while, so she offered to let him try hers out.

It was so cool! He rode it all over the neighborhood, and even (carefully, slowly) let Wren stand on the floorboard while he rode up the driveway (don't panic, grandparents, I could walk faster than he was riding). She loved it.

Jennifer took me for a ride afterward, and I have to say, it was a total blast! I have no direct experience with motorcycles that I can recall....we're not a motorcycle type of family....but this was so much fun. It's a smooth ride, just fast enough, and hardly noisy at all!

At 100 miles to the gallon, it's a hell of a bargain in terms of gas mileage. Especially since Travis works four miles from our house. Obviously, you can't carry the little kids on it, so it would only be good for running errands, going to work, and tooling around town. Still, for the number of times that one of us leaves the house sans kids to go do something, it would be worth it.

I was surfing around, checking out prices and dealerships, and well, now I want one, too.

In red.

I love my friends

Aside from the fact that my friends are totally cool, pretty much ALL of them are supremely talented in one way or another. Among my friends I have jewelers, metal artists, glass artists, costumers, quilters, knitters, fantastic cooks, leatherworkers, writers, visual artists, and bakers.

This Sunday was all about the cake decorator, though. A friend and I threw a baby shower for another friend expecting her first child in August. We did all the food for the party,save for the cake. Our pregnant friend's sister is a professional baker and cake decorator, and we relied on ehr to make the cake. No way was I going to make a cake (something I do like to do, but am nowhere near trained to do) when Lynnze could do it so much better! This was the cake:
Isn't that amazing?? She did it all...baked the lemon poppyseed cake, and did all the sculpting and decorating. Granted, she does it professionally, but STILL....so amazing. I always love seeing her creations. Here is a detail shot of the baby:

And this is the side of the cake:

The detail was really incredible, and the cake was so delicious! I know everyone loved it.

This is definitely NOT a candidate for Cake Wrecks! Well, maybe for the Sunday Sweets entry....this cake is totally terrific!

Today was incredibly HOT and HUMID, typical summer-in-Richmond fashion. It was fantastic to see so many friends we don't get to see very often anymore, and I had a good time. A sweet way to end the week.