Friday, July 29, 2011

Welcome to My World

For the past few years I've shared a large multi-tasking media suite with another co-worker.We had 5 computer systems (3 MACs & 2 PCs), a scanner, a color printer, dvd duplicator, and media library, etc.This is where videos for all kinds of purposes were edited, graphic art created, electronic signage programmed, scripts written, ideas tossed around...and sometimes out. Lots of stuff happens here! This co-worker happens to be my son. (Notice the divided decor of this space? One of us collects Transformers. The other likes crowns). We made it work for a pretty good length of time, but you know... really, who wants their mom in the same room every day? Right, that's what I thought. So recently, due to some staff changes - very good ones, I might add :) - an office opened up and The Great Office Shuffle of 2011 began. Ten offices, with all the accompanying accoutrements, were either moved, re-arranged, re-painted, re-floored, re-decorated and generally cleaned up and re-organized. It was a sight to behold. And here is my new home away from home! I really wish I had taken "before" photos. This was the worst office in the complex. It was like a basement. The unwanted ugly step-sister. Dark, dank, smelly, and very depressing. Nobody wanted this room. Neither did I! But as Mick says, "you can't always get what you want.." My fabulous husband took time from his crazy schedule & ripped out the musty carpet, pulled up a section of worn out parquet (yes, both on the same floor; oh my - that was a day that tried his patience) and put down a laminate floor for me. Then he helped me paint, put up the glass shelves, and installed a new bi-fold door for the closet (the previous occupants had removed the old one, and the next person covered the gaping hole with curtains, thus upping the heebee-jeebee factor.)What's been fun about this big shuffle has been the re-purposing of everything. Desks, tables, lamps, chairs have found new homes & fresh usage. I even changed up the look of my crowns by painting a canvas & attaching them to it. These chairs were in storage & the little table was a cast-off from another room. I got the glass shelves from another co-worker who didn't want them in his "new" space. Everyone put their own money and sweat equity into their workspace. My beautiful afghan hound pictures, by artist Violet Skiles, are the first thing a visitor sees when they come in the door. I think they look great against this paint color. It's called "Heather Plume." I did an accent wall in a darker color called "Tibetan Temple." The colors don't quite get their due in these photos. Trust me, they're beautiful.Some items on my shelves. The teapot is "Big Ben" given to me by a previous supervisor, from her trip to England. Of course, a little crown. Next to that is a real alabaster jar. Some time I will have to tell you about that.I couldn't get a good shot of this rhinestone crown. It's a keychain, a gift from a friend who knows me well! I'm grateful to work for a company that allows us to decorate our workspace as we like. I think it's important for people to surround themselves with things that make them feel good and encourage their creativity.
This new room is so tranquil, I don't think I need my Zen garden anymore. But I still keep it on my desk because other people enjoy the soothing doodling in the sand.


Let's see, how does the rest of that song go? Oh yeah! "But if you try sometimes you just might find - you get what you need!"

Saturday, July 9, 2011

Heat Wave

Remember this? Lookin' pretty good right now. It's been over 100 degrees for the last - I don't know how many days but I think it's going into "weeks" now. Maybe months. Yeah, it's been over 100 for about 6 months now.OK,ok , it just seems like it. This was one of my two favorite snowfalls of all time. It's not last year's Snowmageddon. Mercy! that was something else. This one was January 2010. The snow was so moist & heavy it stayed for days on the trees. It looked like a fairyland. "Twas sooo gorgeous!My other favorite snowfall happened on or near the first day of spring 2010 (I guess that was a good year for snowfall!)I was at my very first art-doll-making workshop. The room we booked at the library had a lot of windows and we could see these huge fat snowflakes falling. We couldn't believe it would accumulate but it sure did. We got dumped on. Between the fun of creating & learning something new with a wonderful group of new friends and this gorgeous snowfall, it was a magical day. This is not the actual doll we made in that workshop, but one I made on my own afterward. I called her "Ice Empress".
OK, I feel much cooler now!

Sunday, July 3, 2011

Quote of the Week

"Sandbags and nuclear power shouldn't be put in the same sentence..."

~Arnie Gundersen (Chief Nuclear Engineer, Fairewinds Associates and a former nuclear power industry executive.) click here for his Wikipedia Bio

Saturday, July 2, 2011

Special & Fun

I had a fun & special thing happen recently. Another blogger whose site I enjoy was doing a "give away" from her blog. All you had to do was leave a comment and/or become a subscriber. Well, I did and I won! Now there's a special story about this - actually a couple.

I bought 2 afghan hound paintings about 6 years ago from this artist. Sometime later I discovered her blog. It's beautiful and I always feel uplifted after visiting "Create Beauty." From time to time, we've visited each other's blogs & left comments. I just love that this little connection has grown beyond an internet purchase of some paintings. This was the give-away prize. Isn't it lovely? Here's the 2nd part of the story... 2 days before she wrote the post with accompanying picture, I had a dream that I was a ballerina, but first I had to taken a written test. Dreams are interesting sometimes, aren't they? When I saw Violet's blog about the give away, I figured this painting was destined to be mine! But it gets better ~ When she emailed me that I had won, she jokingly wrote "should I add an afghan hound to it?" Of course I responded how special that would be but it was up to her. Well, she did! I just love this picture and all the more because of Violet's sweet spirit and special touch. I hung it above my work area for inspiration. Thank you, Violet!I got another little bit of whimsy last week. I saw this miniature "dresser" at HbyLby on the clearance shelf. It was stained a dark color and has brightly colored ceramic drawers. I think it's supposed to have one missing (there were a couple other ones on the shelf, also missing a drawer). It adds to the whimsy factor. I painted it to match my storage dresser (formerly my baby son's changing table-dresser). What do I store here? It's a great place to stash my supply of embroidery stabelizers, glue sticks, and serger thread cones.Silk paints, brushes, and silk blanks go in the middle drawer.It's handy and has sentimental value! SO ~ there ya go, a couple simple pleasures in the week.