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| Thursday, November 12th, 2009 | | 9:13 pm |
 Now that I no longer have a 9-to-5 office job, my plan has been to work on making things that I can sell at arts and crafts shows and also on Etsy. I've been concentrating on cloth dolls dressed in 1920's era fashions, and through a fortunate set of circumstances, 5 of my dolls were in a show this past Saturday at a local art gallery, Waterloo 7. It was a fun and unexpected experience, and helped give me encouragement to keep working and see where it takes me. The photo above was taken in the outdoor area of the gallery that is filled with wonderful metal sculptures by the gallery owner, Jerry Schmidt. I can't get good night time photos with my camera, so you can't really tell how nice the space looked all lit up at night. The weather was warm enough so that people could sit outside and there was live music outside as well. It's a very cool space. ( MORE ) | | Tuesday, October 27th, 2009 | | 9:01 pm |
 The fall weather this year has not been as nice as it usually is. At the end of September it got cold and rainy, and has pretty much stayed that way, but there have been a few nice days in the past couple weeks. Yesterday I took advantage of the beautiful weather and went for a walk and took some pictures. ( PHOTOS ) | | Wednesday, October 7th, 2009 | | 10:11 am |
 The past few weeks seem so unreal. Friday, October 2nd, was my last day working. I'm officially retired! For my last week, I decorated my cube and set up cookies and candy corn in a vacant office and celebrated all week long. I'd thought about this moment for so long and carefully planned my exit and I was so happy and grateful that everything just came together and flowed smoothly. It was a very enjoyable final week. I was surprised by all the nice gifts and well wishes I received. Now the challenge begins. I have to find a new way of life and new things to do to keep me busy and fulfilled. For the moment, it just feels like I'm on a much-needed vacation. ( MORE ) | | Thursday, September 3rd, 2009 | | 7:37 pm |
| | Saturday, August 22nd, 2009 | | 8:46 pm |
BEYOND THE CUBE
 Even though it's where I spend most of my time, I rarely mention my job because it's simply what I do to earn money and doesn't feel related to who I am, but in six weeks my life is going to be very different because I'm retiring. Yes - retiring! Arrghhh - makes me feel so old! But one of the perks of my government job is that I can get out while I'm still young enough to create and enjoy a different life. The picture above was taken a couple months ago during an office renovation. The floor I worked on was getting new carpeting, wallpaper, furniture, file cabinets, everything; and while the work was being done, we were temporarily moved to another floor. It was the first time in my many, many years of office employment that I got to sit by a window. It was so wonderful! Natural light! A view! I loved it! It lasted only a little over a month, but it was such a different experience from being stuck in a little cube all day. I felt lighter, more free, and, oddly, more grown up. Following are some photos of my beloved window and my brand new cube view . ( PHOTOS ) | | Saturday, August 15th, 2009 | | 8:24 am |
For all cat lovers - be sure to check out her other videos too! | | Sunday, July 5th, 2009 | | 4:51 pm |
 Hope everyone had a good 4th of July. I went to the Boston Mills Art Festival - didn't buy anything though, and later saw the new Woody Allen movie, Whatever Works, which was funnier than I was expecting. I went to the Madison Hotel in Morristown, NJ, for the wedding last week and it was really nice, and I even managed to stay upright in my new shoes. Didn't have much time for sight-seeing, but we did check out the Short Hills Mall (I love looking at beautiful merchandise, even if I can't afford any of it!), and we ate at this restaurant, Guerriero's. Here's some leftover pictures from a few weeks ago. After attending the Parade the Circle event, we went to the Rockefeller Greenhouse, which is another one of those great places that I've never been to even though I've lived here all my life. Also a couple pictures from Morristown. ( PHOTOS ) | | Tuesday, June 16th, 2009 | | 9:49 pm |
Parade the Circle
 Saturday afternoon was Cleveland's annual Parade the Circle event sponsored by the Art Museum. It's a fun event where anyone can sign up to be in the parade and design and make their own costumes, floats, etc. The parade winds around the streets that are known as the University Circle area, which is where the museums, the art and music institutes, as well as Case Western Reserve University and Severance Hall are located. It's a beautiful area that's always been one of my favorite parts of Cleveland. The weather was perfect, the colors spectacular, and I took lots of pictures. ( PHOTOS ) | | Monday, June 1st, 2009 | | 5:03 pm |
Bad Kitty . . .
 I had an unexpected day off work today. I went to start my car this morning and the battery was dead. Called AAA, they got it started and I took it in and got a new battery. I used the extra time this morning to finish repairing the above creamer . ( MORE ) | | Thursday, May 21st, 2009 | | 9:52 pm |
 Here's the latest photos of what's been going on around my place. ( PHOTOS ) | | Tuesday, April 7th, 2009 | | 9:30 pm |
| | Sunday, March 29th, 2009 | | 8:04 pm |
 At last! Plants are coming to life, and the temperatures have been in the upper 40's and 50's. (I just stopped typing this for a minute to let Dixie outside, and it's freezing rain and snow outside! What happened?!) I started raking and picking up sticks and debris, which included an empty packet of Popeye's Hot Sauce (not mine!). ( MORE ) | | Wednesday, January 21st, 2009 | | 7:17 pm |
 The weather has been so freezing cold here that I haven't always felt like putting out bird seed on a daily basis. The other day I went outside and this little guy was sitting outside the garage as if to tell me I better get the food out, and make it quick. He then hopped up on the neighbor's fence and I finally told him "ok, ok, I'll go get the food!". He immediately ran to his feeding spot in the backyard and waited for his handout. I've been trying to get rid of a cold lately, as well as going to weekly physical therapy for my knee. Years ago in a freak accident at work, I hit it against my desk and dislocated it. Until recently, it had been ok, but a few months ago it really started hurting, so I've got to strengthen it up again. Here's another squirrel photo, plus a couple pet pictures taken while they were helping me put away the Christmas decorations. Also, a couple pictures taken at Cleveland's Lakeview Cemetery. It's one of those places that because I live here, I've always just taken it for granted and never really visited. I was there briefly a couple months ago, and I hope in the spring to really get a better look and take more pictures. ( PHOTOS ) | | Tuesday, December 30th, 2008 | | 2:13 pm |
| | Wednesday, December 24th, 2008 | | 11:38 pm |
 Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! I wanted to get a cute holiday photo of Rory and Dixie, but as you can see, they were completely bored with the idea. Napping was their priority. ( Photo ) I did get a couple pictures of a beautiful sunrise this week, and a few weeks ago, the full moon was still visible in the morning. ( Photos )Have a wonderful Merry Christmas!  | | Wednesday, November 19th, 2008 | | 10:42 pm |
Les Paul Tribute/Artistic Luxury Exhibit
 Went to a couple of events recently - the Les Paul Tribute concert and the Artistic Luxury - Tiffany, Faberge, Lalique exhibit at the Art Museum. More info and some photos behind the cut: ( MORE ) | | Thursday, October 30th, 2008 | | 4:46 pm |
| | Friday, October 17th, 2008 | | 6:03 pm |
 This past weekend was perfect fall weather - warm, sunny, leaves gloriously colorful. Went to a wedding on Saturday, Friday night a friend from my yoga class asked if I wanted to go to a Kirtan featuring Shantala. I didn't know what to expect and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Beautiful music, voices and rhythms, a great evening. Took advantage of the nice weather to go for a walk in the park and take some pictures. ( PHOTOS ) | | Tuesday, October 7th, 2008 | | 1:59 pm |
 Rory is safe and sound now, but I had a real scare a week ago. I've been using the cat walking jacket for a couple years to take him out in the backyard and it's worked really well, but a couple Sundays ago, I had him outside and he heard some voices and got spooked. He started leaping and pulling and jerking around and before I could get him back in the house, he managed to get himself out of the jacket. The jacket never came open, he just violently wiggled out of it, and I couldn't get hold of him. He spent all day Sunday under bushes/shrubs way in the back of the yard by the neighbor's fence, and wouldn't let me get near him. I sat up all night with the backdoor open, hoping he would calm down and walk back in the house, but he never did. I stayed home from work Monday, thinking for sure I'd be able to somehow get him back inside, but any attempt to get near him, and he took off running. I was so upset, worrying that he would get lost and that I'd never get him back. I bought one of those Havahart traps and set it up in the back of the yard that evening, and around 9:30, the neighbor's dogs were barking and she said there was something in the trap. I did catch a cat, only it was someone else's cat who obviously couldn't resist the tuna fish bait. I released the intruder, gave up and realized I had to get some sleep and I would have to go to work the next day. Tuesday morning it started raining and I was frantic thinking about Rory outside in the rain. Around 5:00 a.m. I heard meowing coming from the garage and I quick ran outside and closed the door. It was too dark to do anything, so I waited until it was light and went back out to begin looking for him in the garage (my garage is ... uh, well - a big mess!). I was so relieved to finally see him back in the corner under a small table. I spent two hours sitting in the garage with him - talking to him, calming him down. Eventually, while I was sitting on the floor next to him, he was calm enough that he actually started to go to sleep, and that's when I grabbed hold of him by the back of the neck and stuffed him into his carrier and took him back in the house. Whew! It was such an upsetting ordeal and I was so, so, so thankful that everything turned out ok and that he was safe in the house. I was too exhausted to try to make it into work, so I took another day off. It was like everything in life stopped - all I could think about was getting Rory back. Everything is back to normal now, and Rory will not be going outside again any time soon. I don't know if I'll ever use that jacket again or not. | | Sunday, August 24th, 2008 | | 9:16 pm |
 I was looking forward to a summer of taking vacation days, relaxing and doing things around the house and the yard, working on long neglected craft projects, and basically just slowing down a bit and enjoying myself. The universe, however, had something else in mind. Lots of chaotic changes at work, so I haven't been able to take much time off. My few days in Cape May have been it, and I'm really thankful I was able to do that. Chaos, too, with people around me in my personal life. The Tarot image of The Tower is how I'm feeling. Everything seems to have exploded and nothing will be quite the same again. That isn't necessarily bad, but it will take a while for whatever new is happening to reach its final form. On a lighter note, I painted and rearranged my bedroom a few months ago and I've been enjoying it very much. I was surprised by how something as simple as changing the position of the bed could make me feel so different. It's almost as if moving the bed was the start of other movement in my life. I have to thank ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) the_two_sisters for this Foujita print. Years ago I came across it on another website and really loved it, and I wanted to know who it was by. She kindly gave me the information and I was able to order this inexpensive print. When I painted the room, I decided to splurge and have it nicely framed, and I'm so happy with it. I think I like it so much because it reminds me of one of my favorite writers, Anais Nin, and also because it allows me to imagine myself spending my days in a Paris cafe instead of an office cubicle.  On the wall opposite the Foujita, I put up all my Paris watercolor prints. Three of them I bought myself at local antique shops, and the other ones a friend of mine found at a couple different garage sales for only a few dollars. I love them. I put a large image of them behind the cut so you can see the details.  ( PHOTO )Last, but certainly not least, Rory seems to approve of my decorating choices.  |
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