absorb this

believe me! i am not quite sure how these new shoes of mine came to be worthy of a post but they are. they're supposed to be my lifesaver. or rather my leg saver. over three weeks ago my left leg began bothering me up a storm. it's a nagging sort of dull pain, reminiscent of hyper extension or arthritis of the knee but behind the knee pain. really i think i must have done something while playing tennis and dread the idea of pain from growing older. it's inexcusable to be thirty one and have such pain. i suppose that's why if i don't join a gym or fitness together now, i never will and i may never find myself pain free. i definitely do not want to be an elder person hobbling around or rather transporting myself via hover round. it'll be a blessing if i don't shrink down to four feet, let alone be disabled to a rolling walker. so my new shoes, a once a year splurge, a must have, and a complete fine way to end my day.

in other news: i am nearly, if not finished with the coral castles project. i'm nervous about all of it. and don't even feel comfortable showing photos until i get the band approval. thankfully i've done a couple of things, incase one doesn't fit.

i'd also like to encourage any of you fellow bloggers to think about Blog Action Day. i know i'm thinking about it a little bit. no matter what your opinion of our environment and the constant conversation, drama, and urgency we seem to be creating regarding it, it's probably a really good idea to take some personal responsibility and or action, even if taking part in Blog Action Day is all that you do, at least you're apart. i'm going to think about the environment and my art and how it relates. afterall my art is about much of the environment {trees} and i'm specifically using, reusing, recycling paper and non toxic materials and adhesives to create. it's a worthy plug. and a challenge.

i think that's all i've got for the day.

into their arms

i think life in it's real physical way has taken over and blogland has become a minor scene. life in it's delightfully unpredictable way has taken it's turn in the game. i'm subject to be a witness, to take a breath, to lay sight upon, to watch and to feel all that begins in the morning and ends in the evening. on inwhich an introduction is due, to new life in this family, another branch in the family tree begins it's sprouting, it's growth. caleb b. welcome! come in, stay for awhile. enjoy and take joy little boy! we are all so happy for you and your mom and dad. we have loved you for so long, waited so long, your mom and dad have worked so hard to have you, hold you, call you theirs and now a celebration of your life begins. we cannot wait to see you play and make trouble with all of your boy cousins. we can't wait to hear your first words and we definitely can't wait until you begin to talk back. to tell us how you feel and think, it all will be fun.

aside from this little boy becoming apart of my life i feel like i've taken a break, not one purposefully. just so haphazardly i suppose. i long to have the evenings off. it is shocking i know but i am now finally aware of the toll having two jobs has taken on me. i don't feel like battling the torn feeling i get when family and work pulls at me. i am beginning to feel numb about it all. i must be honest about the transistion i find myself in though, and a good transition. in many ways, shapes and forms i am finding through help, a new me, a new line of thought and need to just relax. it's difficult to explain, especially because i'd like the real important stuff to stay well close. but the big things are as you all know already. quitting cvs. quitting smoking. joining a gym. making art and having a total of 8 paper quilts published. there are two commissions that must be completed and i'm struggling with time. like i said the war with time has been going on for about three years now. i also am learning to take action and to well, think more positively. it isn't really all that natural of me to be so happy and cheerful and exploding with joy, but simply smiling at people has been a challenge as of late. a challenge i really ought to practice.

finally i am just so thankful that caleb has found his way into his parents arms. i mean what else can i ask for? have a wonderful weekend. i cannot promise anything but hopefully i'll be back with some completed art...uh?

go ahead:search me

i seem to remember reading somewhere along the lines, another blog, and her hilarious, slightly enlightening way of sharing how others were finding her blog by their searches. i have desperately wanted to share this funny wealth as well from the phantomcrimes perspect. searches and referrals are strange, and i wonder if what i write, will have any effect on, say, my job future or what have you. it's a curious thing, wondering how the words create a path, give an impression, and leave you with a tedious hedgy:superficial www reputation.

baby raccoon notecard art:on 06.22.07 i wrote about purchasing notecards and seeing baby raccoons while biking

three strikes:on 06.15.08 it's just seriously hilarious to see my own spelling errors, unga!

phillip sandee painting:you all remember this right?

button wreath:the ever popular, i never ever got around to making one, i hope this person looking for a tutorial actually found one.

i thought this one was funny. BI-LO employee handbook

how are tidal waves to fast

oh well, have a good weekend.

cooking juice

isn't exactly the way i'd like to put it, but it is a little less confrontational, a little less abrasive, a little more creative than saying that the pressure is on, on you. if i were a blender i'd like to pulverize, mince this person to pieces. that person being, the "$14.96 guy/gal". this said, he or she decided it would be alright, justified waging war upon my banking account, more specifically my check card. "awh, whatever, it's only $14.96", they nonchalantly said as they purchased a "yahoo domain:*phantomcrimes". what they neglected to see, ignored to comprehend is that phantomcrimes will remain untouchable. it remains mine insofar as:

1. you have got to think i am an idiot if i don't question-quiry a charge that i know i did not charge to my account.

2. you will not steal my account information and make a small purchase for a website using my website name as your website name. i mean, yeah, it's possible, it happened but i am not letting it go quite yet. ha! you're not getting your domain with my moolah!

3. you oughta believe i know where you live

4. my bark is louder than my bite but i'm stressed about it, just a little bit. thankful mostly for internet banking and for being able to check my account every day, to regulate/prevent this sort of thing from happening in the future.

5. also want to warn others that the leak, may have potentially happened through paypal.

6. i'd like to cook this said he or she for dinner. howdoyoulikemenow?

***bside:

i'm going to round up this week by thanking david&the boys of cc for the nice writeup. it is a pleasure, it is affirmation, it is what i am here for as an artist, to be called upon, that is if you like my art, it is exciting and i cannot wait to have all of the loose ends wrapped up, after this weekend.

also a huge thank you to julian @ fitness together. if you're interested i have a handful of art hanging and he has graciously hung titles and prices. thank you.

while i'm at it moo is having a fling with facebook. talk about a blast of light at the end of the funnel! i'm not so sure i'm ready to partake but heck if you try let me know how it goes.

for those of you interested...the ethan collier fam has successfully, safely reunited here in the states. let the celebrations begin!

so many hits

i couldn't figure out for the life of me, why in the world this photo was getting the hits it was getting. until of course today. surfing the web turf i came across this post with a link to my photo. unga! it's the sixth link, if you're curious and don't wanna sift through, amazing, isn't it? i'm not amazing i mean, it's amazing that a simple photo of my moo stickers would be used:found. i suppose i feel sheepish about the exposure, or wish in some ungrateful sense that i could chose my exposure. heck i really don't care, it is just so much fun, all of it, it's just a sweet little peck on the cheek, when someone finds something you've created and likes it enough to post about it. thanks denise.
moo and all of it's offerings is incredible, nearly brilliant, so close in it's ways and means it makes me crazy. i ended up using the stickers as envelope seals with my cards. the cards and stickers correspond.

i worked at the rx last night. one of my coworkers was assaulted, yesterday afternoon, by a woman who was attempting to steal beer. the woman threatened to pull a gun and my coworker, we'll call her LS, proceeded to grab the woman's purse away from her, all escalated and the cops were called but didn't get to the rx in time to catch this female and her male accomplice. my manager did happen to get their tags and a piece of skin, so to speak. it's never been that insane when i'm there from six until nine. i really don't want that kind of action.

ethan and caleb are flying through the air, on their way home, from Kazakhstan, today. the anticipation has been steadily growing and i know my sister in law is about to burst, it's like the second round, another incredible day, a reunion. i cannot wait!

bye now.