T Stands for Dream Without Limits

From my January Journal, the prompt for the day was Note to Self and Postcard. A marshmallow snowman from a Christmas card relaxes in a hot tub of hot chocolate. The note to self: Open your heart and dream without limits.

Under the snowman card is a postcard of Ogunquit Beach, Ogunquit, Maine. The view is from the ocean looking towards the Norseman Resort. Two Old Ladies On The Road are anxious for warm weather and running away to Ogunquit.

Drop by hosts, Bleubeard and Elizabeth's blog to find out what the rest of the T Stands For gang is up to. If you want to play, include in your Tuesday post a beverage or container for a beverage. Don't forget to link your blog to Bleubeard and Elizabeth's page.

Monet and Me

took some time to admire the thoughtful card sent by Finnbadger from Envelope 100. He sent the card because it reminded him of me, Ink, Calli, and Quill. Embiggen the card and you can see all three cats.

I also joined Lindsay Ostrom's Facebook group working on a January junk journal. I've really been enjoying the group even though I've gone my own way. My journal with a Winter theme is more scrapbooky, scrapbookish...more like a scrapbook than a collaged and painted art journal.

I like the idea that under flaps, you can have room for some personal journaling

While at the annual, family gathering, gifts for the grand-nieces were wrapped in snowman paper. Before the paper was tossed out, I asked if I could have some. At the time, I wasn't sure what I would use it for. As I began working in the journal, it occurred to me that I could punch the snowmen out and use them as page numbers or dates in the journal.

On January 2nd, Lindsay demonstrated how to make paper beads from strips of paper. I stuck a couple of strips of paper as borders on this page and rolled the ends to make the beads.

January 3rd was the Full Wolf Moon. I like the background for the page and the silhouette of the wolf against a full moon. I like the moon dangling from a string. I'm not sure I'm that crazy about the yellow banner.

The cool thing about the junk journal is the pages don't have to be complete. You can always go back and add more or take something out. This idea needs to percolate more

Having worked in a hospital laboratory for 6 years, I'm a firm believer in the full moon. The crazies come out of the woodwork. It's like a virus. Three days coming, three days with you, and three days leaving. It happens at the New Moon, too, which is a full moon we can't see. So the back of the wolf tag the wolf is howling: The crazies are OUUUT

While gathering ephemera for the journal, I went through some school papers the girlies created.  I photocopied this  poem the Young One wrote when she was 6 years old. 

Finnbadger has a beautiful, circle, return address stamp with a cardinal in the center. I fussy cut the cardinal and colored it in. I also colored in the snowman's carrot to make it stand out more. The cardinal poised on the tip of the snowman's nose is asking: Is it July, yet?

The journal prompt for January 5 was Tuck Spot. Lindsay demonstrated making pockets by folding pages in triangles or rectangles. The tag was a gift card to me from The Young One. The snowflake on the front fit the theme and with a little bit of a trim, it fit into the pocket. 

Since I'm not a fan of Winter and tend to hibernate, I saw a craft about making a polar bear bookmark. He fit into the second pocket. On his back, I wrote the instructions for folding pockets. With the white dots, he looks like he's peeking out from his cave. Wake me when Winter is over seemed to be a fitting sentiment for the page.

How Does Your Garden Grow?

Not my backyard, but the chiropractor's backyard.

Icy steps and walk

Icy trees. Since the beginning of the year, every other day was either a bit of snow or ice.

Not my backyard. This was on the way home from Teague's house. In the 40 years I've lived in this area and driven this street, at all times of the day and night, I have never seen a train come through the crossing. It was a very long train. As long as the trains that go through downtown Framingham and Dennison Crossing.

Not much snow left in my backyard.

No snow in the front yard. 

How does your garden grow?

Happy, Little, Time Waster

 

WHIMSICAL CAT POCKETS are so cute and easy – thanks to dear Ada! 

The video is a little longer than I usually choose, but you get the idea after she makes the first cat.

The Friday Five Good Things

 

Five good things that happened this week.

1. Marked the New Year with the annual family gathering. The two, little grand-nieces will soon be joined by another baby girl in March.

2. I texted with Nan about the junk journaling group. She's a good source for inspiration

3. I misplaced a card for the junk journal. Tore the place apart looking for it. Found it!

4. We got a new trash company and pick up day. They pick up trash and recycling the same time every week instead of recycling every other week. This week, I got the trash and recycle out without falling on the ice

5. After a nearly three week hiatus because of the holidays and vacation, Teague and I are back to weekly visits.

How was your week?

TBT Reprints from CJ's Whine and Cheeze

 In 2003, Ma had a stroke. Dad was her full time caregiver until he he had a car accident that totaled the car. So in 2006, I became their chauffeur among other jobs.

At the time, to deal with the stress of running two households and working, I kept a blog entitled CJ's Whine and Cheeze. Egged on by some friends who enjoyed the first read through, you'll see your part when it comes by.

Thursday, June 21, 2007

Never Miss An Opportunity to Keep Your Mouth Shut

Monday, day two of the trifecta, the Weebles had an appointment at their primary care physician. I arrived to hear Ma singing the lament of no one doing anything for her. I was going to point out she didn’t have to walk to the doctor’s office, but decided it would be best for me to keep my mouth shut.

She noticed I was alone and wanted to know why the girls weren’t with me.

“They’re teens. They don’t want to be with old people.”

“I’m not old, I’m their grandmother. They should be here.”

I tried to keep the ‘Help me, Lord’ look off my face.

“You were never left alone.”

I shouldn’t have risen to the bait, but I did. I reminded her she worked, and was not home in the afternoons. I had my own key to the house when I was seven years old. I was a latch-key child only we didn’t have that term back then.

My keychain was attached to the side buttonhole of my uniform jumper. When I forgot or lost my key, Himself, who grew up next door, would break into my parent’s house to let me in. Usually, Himself enlisted the aid of his skinny Middle Brother. At that time, we had a 9 pane bow window. Two of the upper windows were like transoms. Himself would get Dad’s ladder, haul the Middle Brother up the ladder, pry open the transom and push the Middle Brother through while holding onto his legs to try to lower him the 4 foot drop to the sill. The Middle Brother would then unlock the front door to let me in. When Himself wasn’t around, I sat on the front steps waiting for someone, usually The Brother, to come.

I didn’t tell her about Himself breaking into the house. I didn’t tell her about the exciting times with The Brother, ever creative. Lighter fluid squirted into the toilet, set alight with a cigarette lighter, and flushed in a swirling blue flame. A hair raising ride ass over teakettle, in a sealed, cardboard box down a flight of stairs. Being told a cigarette was a punk and when I took a puff like the older, cool kids and began to choke, I was rushed over to The Brother’s friend’s where they put the garden hose down my throat and turned the water on full force. Water fights with basins of water that soaked the walls and were dried with a box fan. Shaken bottles of ketchup that exploded, and a red rose bloomed on the ceiling (forty years later the stain still bleeds through!) Sitting on the roof while The Brother pinged birds and dogs with a BB gun. Putting piles of pennies on the tracks of the subway while waiting for the trolley to take us to Grandma’s house. Yup, never alone and never well supervised.

Ma seemed surprised at the doctor’s office when she was asked to give a blood and urine sample. Of course, she blamed Dad.

“You didn’t tell me we were having tests.”

“For heaven’s sakes, Ma, you’re here every other week. You should know by now that you will have a blood and urine test.”

“We’re supposed to go have the tests a week before our appointment.”

“Save me a trip. The doctor will have the test results later in the afternoon. If something is wrong, he’ll call you.”

Back at the house, I put the kettle on for tea. Made a mental note to pick up milk and bring it the following day. I was not going to get roped into a trip to Market Basket for a gallon of milk.

At the table, Ma sighed. “I want to go into a nursing home.”

I almost said, “From your mouth to God’s ear”, but kept my mouth shut. I just sipped my tea.  Wasn’t going to poke that bear for love nor money. On the surface it sounded as if Ma realized she needed round the clock help. Couldn’t be further from the truth. Ma would like either myself or The Brother to take them in. Neither one of us have the room for one, or the energy and inclination. Ma was hinting since The Eldest would be heading off to college, I’d have a spare room. Help me, Lord, I’d check myself into the nursing home, first.

Gluing Tool

 

In the junk journaling group, we're doing a lot of gluing. While watching videos of various junk journals, I came across the Sili Glue Brush. The tips are silicone with a hard shaped plastic end. The tools were meant for woodworkers to get glue into tight joints.

I thought it would be good to spread glue on paper and other ephemera without the nasty cleanup of washing out brushes or throwing them away.

Cleanup is very easy with this tool. Just rinse under water or if glue dries to the tip, you just peel it off. (I was one of the kids that enjoyed spreading Elmer's glue on the palm of my hand, waiting for it to dry, and then trying to peel off the "skin" in one piece)

The downside of the tool is the wide tip is a lot narrower than I hoped. It's great for gluing small bits, but not so great for larger sheets. I think a silicone spatula or basting brush would work better.

Any of you mixed media artist out there have any other tips for gluing?