Sneak Peek

Zoe and I have been working on a little something special.

We'll tell you about it.

In a minute.

Zoe wants the anticipation to build for a minute.

First, she's going to show you a picture of Herself. If you're lucky, She'll share two.

"Why not?" She asks while taking a little bath next to the hay box. "It's what I do. They want to see Me after all."

True. Isn't it?

First, then, are two pictures of what Miss Zoe is currently doing:

A bird's eye view to show off her Lovely Spots!

And a ground shot so you can clearly see
Her annoyance at your impatience.
"Humans!" She scoffs.

As you can see, She is lounging.

That's because of all the hard work she did today!

On, then, to the Sneak Peek.

As you know, we discussed last week the fact that Halloween is on the way. It's an exciting time of year, here at the Lilypad.

In honor of the excitement and to help build up to the holiday, Miss Zoe and I have painted about a dozen Halloween Bunnies. Bunnies in costumes. Bunnies who want to Trick you rather than Treat you.

But you can give Them a Treat.

Of course you can!

(WRITE THIS DOWN!!! Bunnies like carrots and banana chips especially well. And raisins, and kale, and alfalfa, and cherries, and timothy hay, and apples, and romaine lettuce, and herbs, and parsley, and, well.....you get the idea.)

Ready? OK!! (Sorry the picture quality is poor. The light is low in the Rabbit Room this morning. But, you'll get the idea i hope.)

Full Body

Detail

This is, of course, a Witchy Rabbit, but there are many more bunnies painted on small, wooden, hang-able or sit-able plaques and dressed in different costumes!

There's a SuperBunny!

A BunnyZorro!

A BunnyPirate!!

And Many More!!!!!

The Blisschick is in the process of loading them up into a store, and then they'll all be needing good homes!!

How about it? Will you help a Rabbit in need of a home? It will promise not to eat much.

But, I can't promise These Rabbits will be nice..... You're on your own with that!

Big Announcements and Such

This weekend, the Lilypad was all abuzz with ideas!!

Due to the Blisschick's and Connie's BIG ANNOUNCEMENT, it was like there was electricity in the air. The Blisschick was flapping around Doing Things, and asking me questions, and talking incessantly, and in the middle of it all, we got an idea for... Something Else, which we're not sharing yet.

What is all this Announcement Business anyway?

And that was all cool.

Miss Zoe and I did some painting. We are almost done with our Portrait of a Certain Someone. If I hadn't had to work at the Library yesterday, we might have finished it. But then, it was also, like 1000 degrees here yesterday with about 150% humidity. So we might also have melted into a puddle on the floor. (Needless to say, I was glad to work in a lovely geo-thermally cooled building for the day!)

Also, the wine was ready to bottle, so we took care of that. Miss Zoe did not help with that, as she is much too small to hold the siphon or use the corker. Also, she's not much interested in Helping, per se. Miss Lilly, however, looked on with much interest. She tried to get a sip here and there, but was foiled.

No one needs a drunk cat in the house.

We bottled 28 and a half bottles of Chianti. YAY!!


Below, you see the corker. It may be, like a Portuguese Corker or something. I can't recall it's Title. Nevertheless, it looks a little like a torture device. Le Corker!! And, I guess it is a torture device for corks, now that I think about it. You drop a cork into that little black hole you see, and it squeeeeeeeeezes the cork and shoves it right into the bottle. The Blisschick loves to use the Corker!

Besides the Blisschick Excitement and the Painting of Portraits and Bottling Wine, we were also informed that it was Leave a Zucchini on Your Neighbor's Porch Day at some point recently. So, we took advantage of that day by leaving a little something for Neighbor Bill:

So far, sadly, we don't think he's been on his back porch to notice it. Sigh.

Stupid Zucchini!

It better never be
Leave a Bunny on Your Neighbor's Porch Day.
I'm just sayin'.

That was Our Weekend in Review.

How about you? Did anyone else leave a zucchini for a neighbor?

I think there's still time.

A Day in Pictures

It's been a hectic day. Sometimes that happens.

I'm finally getting around to writing this post, and it's already after 5PM.

You see, last night, Zoe and I agreed that she would be in charge of writing today.

But then, she didn't quite get around to it. I asked her what came up, and all she would say is this: "Something Super Important."

I have no idea what that means, do you?

Well, no matter. I understand that she is Super Important and has Super Important Stuff.

Super, Super Important, even.

OK, so what I thought I would do is illustrate my day in photos.

First, I went to work. But on my lunch hour, I walked a couple of blocks up the hill on State Street to the Erie Art Museum. On the stairs for a lunchtime concert were 2 Heliotropes (in case you've missed out on my last couple of mentions of the Heliotropes-- there's usually 4 or 5--, they are my new favorite band. And, they are LOCAL ERIE-ITES!! Even Better!!):

2 Heliotropes jamming in the sunshine!
(A short video of them will surface for Flip Friday!! Stay tuned!!)

After a lovely bike ride home, my parents stopped by to drop off my most excellent kayak, The Loon:

The Loooooooooooooon!!!!

And, now, after I write this, it will be time for a little painting before dinner. The Blisschick is downstairs dancing (like a loon!) and Miss Zoe and I will do a little painting. We're working on a bit of a portrait of....well...someone:

Our cat will probably visit, too:

And lastly, Miss Zoe would like to reveal to you, her Loyal Followers, a wee glimpse into what she calls her Super Important Stuff.

Turns out, it is this:

Rolling!!

ROLLING!!

AND, MORE ROLLING!!!

Well, I guess that is Super Important. Therefore, we will excuse Miss Zoe from her writing assignment. Clearly, I should do my own work, yes?

Clearly.

Blame it on the What???

First off, I'd like to say that there's some sort of Animal in my Writing Room.

It's staring at me.

Look at it. See?

Please, save me from this Animal!!

Please!! Someone help me!!

What is this intense stare about, you ask? Well, that's a good question. And, one I'm prepared to answer.

As I mentioned on Monday, since I had my

"I LOVE LOVING THINGS!!"

revelation on Saturday, Miss Zoe and I have been painting and listening to...well... Motown.

OK, so you have to understand. I've not ever listened to Motown. I grew up listening to a lot of things (as I've mentioned in the past).

We listened to show tunes.

We listened to Hawaiian music.

We listened to our share of Herb Alpert.

We listened to classical, jazz, 40's and 50's tunes, Johnny Cash, and on and on.

My sister, almost 5 years my senior, listened pretty exclusively to Classic Rock. (In fact, one of my first concerts was going to see The Who with her and her friends. We ended up sitting next to a very friendly, giggly, and relaxed group of people with a giant bag of "oregano.")

When I was in junior high school, I discovered punk and alternative (or "college music" as it was called by Billboard). And that was sort of where I stopped until the last few years.

Never Motown. Nope. Skipped it.

Well, my Motown Era has come. And, I LOVE IT!!

(Blisschick here: Frog has completely opened up MY music horizons. I was a little...limited when I met her. BUT I must take credit for the Motown! I have love love loved it for a LONG time. Her first real sampling came about a year ago when I showed her the video for Don't Stop Til You Get Enough.)

That's what the staring was about. Miss Zoe also loves her some Motown. We've begun to call it Rabbit Music.

It's so happy!! It's so fun!! It makes you want to dance!!

Zoe and I have our Pandora Radio application on our iPod tuned into Jackson 5. (That means we also get a little 80's Michael Jackson, and I have to say that Miss Zoe was a little distressed that we had to endure Man in the Mirror yesterday. But, hey, it's only like 4 minutes of her life, right?)

You may wonder, "Well it all sounds good-- all the fun, happy dancing. But what can you learn from it?"

So, let me share a few things I've gleaned:

1. Gotta lay that 9 to 5 up on the shelf.

2. Smokey Robinson's songs all seem to center around clowns. The Blisschick has assured me that it's only because there were a lot of songs about clowns during that time. Hmmm...

3. You shouldn't blame it on the sunshine. You shouldn't blame it on the moonlight. You shouldn't blame it on the good times. You should blame it on the boogie.

4. You should make an effort to shake your booty down to the ground.

I can see myself using #3 at work. Can you picture it? Someone's at the library circulation desk complaining about her fines and saying, "What is wrong with you people that you just can't check things in right?"

I would look directly into her flashing angry eyes and respond: "Must be the boogie."

Well, maybe not. But maybe...

For now, Miss Zoe and I will just say these things to each other. And to the cats and the Blisschick, of course. :)

In closing, I'm posting a couple of pictures from the Rabbit Room walls. The first is a picture of the wall above my easel. You can see the picture of Baby Audrey in the lower left hand corner.

The second picture is a detail of the Baby Audrey section.

Zoe the Rabbit!!

Detail of the Baby Audrey section.
She's boogie-ing on to Sparkle Pond!

OK, well, I'd better get the Motown going. Goodness knows what will happen if I don't.

I mean, you saw that face, didn't you?

You'd put on the Motown pretty darn fast, too. Trust me on that.

The Problem With Dogs

A Disclaimer: Before I start, let me just say, the above title may be misleading. I, personally, have no problem with dogs. However, I cannot speak for any rabbits or cats who may or may not be in the room, and who may or may not approve (to use Cinnamon's word) of dogs.

That being said, I would like to clarify that my problem with dogs is simply that painting them and drawing them can rather stymie me.

I love dogs. Big, small, whatever.

The thing is, I've never had a dog.

I did once exist in the same space with a dog, I think, when I was first born. I seem to recall seeing some pictures of me as a very cute (of course!) baby pulling all the canned goods out of the cupboard to build a fort, and there in the background of the picture is a black dog.

But, it was so early on that my psyche has no recollection of ever "having a dog."

Baby Yard Rabbit is fine with no dog!

Baby Rabbit update:

Baby Rabbit is growing and doing fine.
Liking the dogless yard.

Someday, I hope to maybe have a dog. Who knows?

But, presently dogless, here's the problem for me: Not having had a dog makes it challenging to draw and paint them. It's as if I don't know their ins and outs, you know?

A cat? Easy. I have had so many cats in my life that I could draw their sweet little faces in my sleep.

A rabbit? Now that I've had Miss Zoe for 5 years and have spent hours of each and every one of those wonderful days of those years playing with her and staring at her cute face and body while she does, well-- everything, the same thing goes for rabbits. Could draw them in my sleep.

Me with the Sweet Miss Zoe.

Look at Miss Emmie's sweet Cat Face!

I say all this ("There," you're thinking. "She's FINALLY getting to the point!") because I recently got a commission to paint a dog, and every time I get a commission to paint a dog, it's the same. It's as though my muscles have forgotten the dog shape. Their eyes, their noses. I have to relearn it every time.

For this one commission, I have gone through, like, a dozen incarnations of the dog's face, trying to get it right, trying to get the eyes just right.

You have to get the eyes right.

Anyhow, just thought I'd share my recent art trials and tribulations. If you dog people out there have any suggestions, I'd be happy to hear them. What makes a dog face a dog face?

That last sentence made Miss Zoe laugh. She is rolling around on the floor saying "Dog Face! Ha, ha, ha!" right now. Funny bunny.

Miss Zoe is not at all interested in hearing your dog comments, so send those to me.

When I do finally get that dog done, I'll post a picture. Hopefully, that will be soon.

Also coming soon: The Wee!Art Contest Winners.

Stay Tuned. Same Rabbit Time. Same Rabbit Channel.

Wee!Art Original Pet Portrait Giveaway

The Time has come!!

It's the Moment you've been waiting for.

Well, maybe not the moment in the Grand Scheme, but it's a a pretty good moment. You have to admit that.

What is this moment all about, you ask? Why should you be SO EXCITED?!? It's time for Miss Zoe and I to announce the Winners of the Wee!Art Pet Portrait Giveaway!!

But then, you knew that, right?

Right now, Miss Zoe is resting from the harrowing work of nosing her way through many little folded up pieces of paper to pick the Winners.

Miss Zoe rests in her sunspot.
Please, she doesn't wish to be bothered just now.

But, since you weren't here for the actual event, let's rewind and view a pictorial representation of the choosing process.

Assessing the competition...

Nosing through...

Choosing Winner #1
(this paper went all the way in her mouth--
you can barely see it sticking out.
And, yes, she got it pretty gooey.)

And, Winner #2
(she took Winner #2 away to a more
remote location, but #2 didn't get so gooey!)

AND THE WINNERS ARE...

Luckily Miss Zoe didn't munch them
so much that they were unreadable!

Kavindra's Wee!Art Pet Portrait will feature none other than her wonderful cat, Lucy. (By the way Lucy, I think everyone misses the litterbox once in awhile!)

Ash's Wee!Art Pet Portrait will feature not her own animal companion, but another animal who was special-- a poodle named Dexter who belonged to her voice teacher.

Kavindra and Ash, please send pictures of your Animals and your mailing addresses to Miss Zoe and me at zoejobie(at)gmail(dot)com.

Many thanks to all those who sent their stories in for the contest. We have to admit, many of them were so sweet, they made us cry. Though, even if pressed, Miss Zoe will not admit that.

Oh, and Kavindra, Miss Zoe says to feel free to send that yummy carrot you promised. She'll be waiting...

Flip Friday!

Yes, it's that time again!!

FLIP FRIDAY!!

Zoe would like to thank all of you who have participated in her (and MY!!)

Wee!Art Pet Portrait Giveaway!!

She has been especially fond of all the nice comments she has received about... well... herself.

Seriously, you have been too kind!!

"No, they haven't!" Miss Zoe just threw over her shoulder on her way to the hay box. "I think they've been just right."

OK, well, be that as it may, Miss Zoe and I are offering up a couple of great movies this week to thank you. These movies capture Zoe in some of her more private moments.

She thinks you deserve that much.

But before we get to today's features, she wants to remind you that there is still time to submit your own Animal Companion Story for the Wee!Art Pet Portrait Giveaway!!

Zoe won't draw the 2 lucky winners' names until

Sunday, May 10th at 5 PM!!

There is still so much time to submit your entry!!

OK, so without any more fanfare, here they are. The Flip Friday Features:

Wee!Art

But first.. a quick update regarding Monday's post:

Treehousejukebox Emma asked via a comment, "Was the ring found?" (referring of course to the ring that was dropped down the toilet on at the library on Saturday when I was working.)

The answer to that question was almost as amusing as the event itself (though I realize I am easily amused).

When I got to work yesterday, I had received a note re: Restroom Man from our Maintenance Guy that read, "Tell [Restroom Man] to call the Water Waste Treatment Plant and ask them to keep an eye out for his ring."

And I immediately pictured a veritable treasure trove of the items that may wash up at the Water Waste Treatment Plant, and how many guys who work there have girlfriends who have been presented with those "gifts" (or would they be "re-gifts?"). I immediately picture a young man presenting his fiancee with a lovely engagement ring, and she, in her innocence saying, "Oh honey it's lovely! Where did you get it?" and him shuffling his feet around and saying, "Oh, you know. I got my sources..."

"And, again, I say: This is why cats don't wear rings."

Yes, Miss Lilly. We heard you the first time.

In other news... I may or may not have mentioned that I had the opportunity on Sunday to make a bunch of new stuff for:

Ordinary Enchantment, The Store
(our new adventure in the world of Etsy.)

Along with some cool new pendants, we are introducing(... drum roll, please...)

Wee!Art

It's small! It's cute! It's affordable! And Wee!Art is 100% collectible, original paintings by Miss Zoe and me. Sometimes Miss Lilly helps. (For instance, this weekend, she sat on my painting table many-a-time as I worked. For anyone who's unawares, in the Cat World, sitting or standing by constitutes "helping.")

The other cats and the Blisschick just walked by occasionally to offer constructive criticism. Or, to meow. Or, to ask for food.

Wee!Art is cats!

Wee!Art is bunnies!

Wee!Art is just plain FUN!!

And, it's wee.

FUN Friday!!

I know. It's not Flip Friday, but we went through all that on Wacky Wednesday.

And, Miss Zoe and I resorted to Wacky Wednesday only because the thing we had planned for Wednesday wasn't quite ready.

So, now, it's Friday, you've already enjoyed your Miss Zoe movie fix for the week, and it's time to move on to other things. Like the little surprise we have planned.

Don't you love a surprise?

Miss Zoe LOVES a surprise.
Especially if it's Willow Balls coming in the mail.

OK, so first, a little history: You remember how I asked all of you to help me to choose my new logo and you all voted and sent me the most wonderfullest of comments? (Did I hear a yes?)

Well, someone who lives with me who is extremely wise and has long ears (hint, hint), brought up some of those comments a couple of weeks ago. In her great wisdomosity, Blisschick (did you think I meant Zoe?) said to me, "What is it that you really want to be painting? What is it that you want a logo to really represent?"

I thought about that for a moment. I exchanged glances with Zoe. She looked away.

"Because," the Blisschick continued, "you have to think about all that. You made a nice logo and you have lots of ideas, but what is it that you love to paint more than anything else?"

Miss Lilly jumped into the Rabbit Room and cleared her throat. Miss Zoe coughed a bit from behind a pile of hay. I scratched my ear.

They were being a bit obvious, but they were right.

"Animals," I said with confidence. "I LOVE to paint animals. Especially cats and rabbits. But also dogs."

Another cough from Miss Zoe. (She's not too sure about dogs.)

And the Blisschick replied, "Animals. Then that's what you need your Etsy store to be. That's what you need to be painting and focusing on. Paint what you love."

With that in mind, then, I set off to sketch some ideas, which incorporated my new love of milagros with my obvious love of painting animals.

From there, it has all fallen together.

Add this bit of history: Over the past two years, we have said goodbye to the Fur Suits of two extraordinary cats who we were fortunate enough to know and love during this life. Those beautiful cats, Jobie and Ernie, have gone to a place we call Sparkle Pond.

If we want to visit Jobie or Ernie, all we need to do is close our eyes and trek to Sparkle Pond.

It's a gorgeous place. There's the Pond, of course. There's a rock Ernie likes to sleep on that's always in the sun. There's a Paper Ball Tree ripe with juicy, crinkly paper balls that Jobie loves to sleep under. And at night, there's always a clear and swirly sky filled with stars and a bright and lovely Moon. And, the cats are almost always wearing little hats or crowns. Sometimes they glow or wear wings.

And so, my new paintings and pendants come from here. They originate at Sparkle Pond and are meant to celebrate the Lives of Animals, whether they are in Fur Suits or Sparkle Suits.

Without further adieu, I hereby announce the opening of my new and improved Etsy Store, Ordinary Enchantment.

It's a pretty small inventory at present, but it will grow.

I want to thank you all for your help and guidance, for without your comments, suggestions, and votes, I think I'd still be a little lost about what I wanted to work on.

So thank you. Let Miss Zoe know what you think. She'll break it to me gently.

Illuminating Mystery

It's been Spring for a couple of weeks now. YAY!!

In the overall picture of the year, Springtime represents new growth. Rebirth. Perhaps a re-awakening and/ or re-dedication to habits or practices that are still a little sleepy from a long and very cold Winter, things that might still be in bed, bundled up under a blanket (or is that just a cat?).

In other words:

Springtime = Creativity!!

Of course, Spring also equals Gnomes starting to do their yard work (or "work" as we refer to it, as it seems to mostly consist of looking busy. Though, perhaps our yard Gnomes are just lazier than others.)

This Gnome is bringing flowers to distract you from his laziness.
Not a bad tactic. I could almost forget that he's supposed to be cleaning
garden beds with his tiny wheelbarrow, couldn't you?

Of course, I'd be remiss, too, if I didn't mention the
Importance of Rabbits to the Springtime.
"Rabbits are Important to every season, really," adds Miss Zoe.

But, back to the Idea of Creativity.

Last Summer, through the Magic that is Blisschick, we came in contact with a person we now refer to as Abbey-Of-The-Arts-Christine (to distinguish her, of course, from Blisschick-Christine). A-O-T-A-Christine was a reader of and commenter on Blisschick. And, at some point, she wrote to say she liked my Art, which the Blisschick so nicely displays and links to at every opportunity.

We began to read Abbey of the Arts, (A-O-T-A-Christine's blog). Then, Christine asked me to paint her beautiful dogs, Abbess Petunia and the former Abbott Duke. She commissioned a triptych, with one of her dogs on either side and a Tree of Life on the center panel.

That's Petunia on the left of panel of the triptych, and Duke on the right.

It was an honor to paint such wonderful souls.

And then, soon after that was finished and off in the mail to its new home, Christine contacted me again. This time to ask if I would like to be a part of her next Reflective Art Journal, due out in the Spring (which would be now).

Well, that was a no-brainer!! Of course I wanted to participate.

And then, last week, Mailman Rick delivered this lovely publication!!

Illuminating Mystery: Creativity as a Spiritual Practice
Reflections in Word and Image by Christine Valters Paintner, PhD
and a wonderful gathering of sacred artists
(Gnome sold separately)

This issue is based on Christine's Sacred Artist Interviews, a feature of her Abbey of the Arts blog. It is full of excerpts from the Artist Interviews along with questions from Christine to inspire you to think about your own Creativity and Creative practices.

In addition to questions, Christine has interspersed into these excerpts and questions some poetically and eloquently written reflections on Creativity: its role in our lives, its Importance to our Spirituality, and also the role Creativity plays in making us whole and alive, and in making us "artists of the inner life."

I am extremely proud to be a featured artist in this issue of the Abbey of the Arts Reflective Art Journal. It is a beautifully made full-color, glossy paged little powerhouse of a book that is perfect for anyone in your life who needs a little kick in their Creative Pants!! (see here for a more extensive view of Illuminating Mystery on A-O-T-A-Christine's blog.)

If you'd like to purchase your own copy, you can do so here (you can also find her past publications here as well).

And one of the coolest parts is that all proceeds from your purchase will go to Christine's non-profit, Abbey of the Arts Fund for Scholarships and Outreach Programs. AWESOME!! You just can't go wrong.

And, the Journal's back cover-- this is one

of my favorite paintings featured in this issue:
"I Create" by Shiloh Sophia McCloud

Thank you to Christine for asking me to be a part of this and of her world in general. It's been a pleasure.

Logo-motion

Lately, things have been busy here at the Lilypad.

Busy in a good way.

Part of what makes it feel busy is that in addition to the work we all need to get done here in the way of writing, painting, blogging, entertaining, drawing, making rabbit salads, feeding cats, scooping litter, etc. etc. etc., there's often, also, a good deal of monkey business going on around here.

See for yourself:

Exhibit A:
Blisschick and Rosie

Exhibit B:
Lilly and Zoe

Really. Need I say more?

Anyhow, amidst the silliness, some seriousity does take place. Some.

Working on my logo for Ordinary Miracles was one of those recent seriousnesses.

I still haven't gotten too far with that. I keep putting it off in favor of other things. I guess because I'm still thinking about its function, and also because I'm still mulling over a lot of the ideas and questions I got from those who do things in the graphic designy arena for a living like this person and this person.

And then, in the midst of all this thinking, which is pretty hard work for me anyway, another logo thing happened.

Our friend, Al, asked me to design a banner logo for his partner, Emma, to use on her blog.

We met Emma and Al Steinfeld about 6 years ago or so at CelebrateErie. Blisschick and I were there to sell my art in the art booth, and Al and Emma walked in to check things out. A month or so later, Emma called me up and commissioned me to paint their pug, and then later, their Siamese cat, and our friendship was born.

A few weeks ago, Al came to see me at the library with a sketch already made of what he thought the logo might look like, and we went from there. It actually ended up pretty much like his original vision.

I'm pretty happy with the result. Check it out here, at Emma's blog, Eriepressible.

Back to the monkey business!!

Deep thoughts... by Marcy and Zoe

Here's something I've been thinking a lot about lately:

If you ask someone like, say, a nurse or a teacher or a social worker or any of a number of other kinds of people, and you ask them why they chose to do whatever it is they do, they usually say and can very certainly say that they chose that field because they "wanted to help people."

That's a great reason to want to do something, right?

"I help people just by being cute.
It does feel good to be helpful!"

I've used that line before, myself. I have an undergraduate degree in English, which led on to a secondary teaching certification in English, which led into a graduate program in English where I worked my way through as a teaching assistant. I come from a family of teachers. And if you would have asked me why I was choosing that field that I thought I would spend my life in, I would have said it was... you guessed it... because I wanted to help people.

It seemed like a worthy thing to do.

But, you know, when I first started painting, I never would have cited "because I want to help people" as a reason for doing it.

That thought wouldn't have occurred to me.

I started painting for me. I did it because I love it. It's fun. It brings me joy. It helps me to think about and see the world in new ways.

Painting/art is a way I connect to the Divine. It is in so many ways my spiritual path.

The more I paint, though, the more I realize that while, yes, painting and creating art is fun and fulfilling for me, it is also a way of helping other people that is just as legitimate and worthy of a choice as anything else.

[An aside, here: Though all this stuff may seem obvious, I am writing about all this, I guess, because I think that too many people make wrong choices about not following a path they should probably be on because they think the arts are frivolous hobbies as opposed to real life choices and professions. This is too often reinforced by our government cutting money to arts programs and schools making cuts to arts programs in favor of what they see as more "practical" choices. It is also, unfortunately, too often reinforced by parents.]

"This post is getting a little too pedantic, don't you think?"

I know-- Zoe's right. I'm a little preachy today, perhaps. Hang on, while I shove a banana chip in her mouth to quiet her down...

There.

OK, so the larger point is this: Doing what we love, whatever that is, is what helps people the most. (See also Blisschick!)

When I paint a commissioned portrait of someone's beloved pet or when a milagro I've designed and made helps a friend to focus her intentions on hopefulness and healing, I've helped someone just as sure as I would have if I had been teaching a 10th grader about reading Shakespeare.

When I look at a beautiful piece of art on my own wall or hold a set of lovely mala beads that someone has made for me or look at a little felt bunny that someone else has crafted with love and good intentions, that helps me just as much as a nurse giving me stitches. Reading poetry or prose can heal better than any medication if I let it.

Art and artists change the world. They help people in ways that nothing else can.

It may be less measurable than a a standardized math test or even an essay, but it's no less real.

The brain is wider than the sky

Rosie the Cat can't even believe you're real. Are you real?

Tonight, Blisschick and I are having dinner with some wonderful people at Miss Kitty's house. Miss Kitty is a Children's Librarian at the library where I work and perhaps the best chef on the planet. Seriously. She could give any of those newly famous chefs a run for their money if you ask me.

One of the people who will be at Miss Kitty's diner party tonight is our good friend Ken. Ever since we met Ken, he's been battling cancer. What started as colon cancer went to his lungs and also to his brain.

The most amazing thing about Ken is that he never gives up. He travels. He lunches. He creates. He loves his life. He has his ups and his downs like all of us would, but his downs never keep him down.

It's why he's lived so long and so well against all the odds. If you saw him right now, you wouldn't even know there was anything going on with him. Amazing.

Ken is also an artist. He paints and he decorates like nobody's business. When he told me that he liked my art, I was thrilled. It meant a lot to me. And what painting was his favorite?

This bunny.

I love this bunny, too. It's not a bunny whom I know. It's just a bunny that I had sort of a vision of and whom I subsequently painted. When Ken liked that bunny so very much, I knew that was why I had painted him.

For Ken.

Next time we went over to have dinner with Ken and his wife, Debbie, we took the bunny painting. Of course, Ken had just the right antique frame for him.

A couple of months ago, when Ken was anticipating brain surgery to remove a tumor, I was inspired to paint him a brain. I had been reading about and running into the idea of milagros for some time by then, and it just seemed like the right thing to do. I had to paint this brain for him.

Brain Milagro for Ken

The idea behind this brain was to help Ken to focus on healing thoughts about his brain. To focus his intentions on the part that needed it. That's the whole point of milagros or ex votos or talismans or whatever you may want to call them. They are a tool to help you focus your thoughts, prayers, or intentions.

I have to say it felt a little weird to send someone a picture of a brain. I wasn't sure how Ken would react. To many people, it is kind of weird. Paintings of body parts? But they serve a function.

And Ken and Debbie used to live in New Orleans. Nothing is weird to them. :)

Ken actually framed the brain and then hung it near to the bunny painting and linked them together with a chain. Something about that is very special.

Brain II, The Sequel: A Brain Pendant

Soon after, I made another brain, this time a pendant, for a friend whose brother was recently operated on for a brain tumor. She mentioned many times to me how that brain pendant somehow comforted her and somehow helped her to think more positively. Her brother, who is a mathematician, is recovering quite well at this point with no adverse affects so far. Cool.

Miss Zoe thinks that focusing on her cute belly
will help you feel generally better in all ways.
She's probably right.
She also said it works even better
if you give her a banana chip and then focus on her belly.
I'll have to try it.

We leave you today with this thoughtful poem from Emily Dickinson:

CXXVI

THE BRAIN is wider than the sky,
For, put them side by side,
The one the other will include
With ease, and you beside.

The brain is deeper than the sea,
For, hold them, blue to blue,
The one the other will absorb,
As sponges, buckets do.

The brain is just the weight of God,
For, lift them, pound for pound,
And they will differ, if they do,
As syllable from sound.

Zoe and I hope your dinner tonight is as good as ours is going to be. Good friends and good food. You just can't beat it.

The Naked Truth

Don't look so surprised, Coconut Sun.
Haven't you seen it all?

I want you to think back. Right now, I mean. Close your eyes and picture the illustrations from the picture book that was your fave. It can be either your fave from when you were little, or a current fave you now like to read to your bunny or your kitten. Oh -- or I guess, your child. :)

OK, let me edit that request a bit. Picture the picture book with animals that was your fave.

I'm talking Pooh, Bedtime for Francis, Wind in the Willows, Ferdinand, Sylvester and the Magic Pebble. Or, newer ones like Olivia, Guess How Much I Love You, Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus.

Now, do you have one in mind?

Tell me this: are the animals wearing clothes? Are they partially clothed? Or, are they naked?

This is a great conversation to have at work, in particular if you work at a library.

But it's also a great conversation for a party in case you're looking for a good ice breaker.

Just what is the criteria for clothes on animals in stories? Has there even ever been a criteria?

I think back to the story Bread and Jam for Frances for instance. Sometimes Francis has on a full outfit. Other times she wears only a shirt. Francis' mother wears a a petticoat, dress, apron, and even a bonnet. Francis' father often wears only pants. The baby, Gloria, is almost always pictured completely naked.

This cover shows the range of clothes on animals:
from the overly clothed to the naked. Disturbing? Perhaps...

Pooh, on the other hand, along with Olivia, and the Wind in the Willows animals consistently wear shirts with no pants or in this picture of Olivia, below, pants with no shirts:



When I draw animals, I have to say, I usually refer to the wishes of my client or audience. For instance when I painted this representative Zoe in Miss Zoe's room, Zoe and I discussed the issue at length before the mural was painted:

Obviously, we decided on clothes...

So, tell us, then. Where do you side on this issue?

Clothes?

No clothes?

Partial clothes?

Answer carefully...at your peril.