I hit the motherload of free tickets last weekend (not that these are my favorite bands, but I rarely pass up free live music) and saw three concerts in three days at the New York State Fair. Were you there?
Guess which was my favorite. And which one was really tough to sit through.
A. Ratt
B. Hootie and the Blowfish
C. Carrie Underwood
D. Poison
E. The Counting Crows
F. Rodney Atkins
P.S. Did you know a cow produces 127 gallons of saliva PER DAY?! I learned that at the fair.
Every once in awhile I'm going to do a post called, "I Want to Know!" This is the first one, and it features one question for you to answer.
Today's question: "What color or color combinations are your favorite?"
I love, love, love making this kind of bead. It is so fun and of course it's my new favorite. Luscious, dripping-down-your-arm peach. Mmm. Want to see more?
Never underestimate the power of reading. It actually saves me time on my drive home! No, I'm not reading while I drive, but I am a patron of my local library. Since I know where it is, turning down the road it's on creates a short cut to get around some congestion that occurs at a turn further down the road.
There is nothing else on this road - no homes, no businesses - just the library so the only people that realize where it comes out are library goers and the directionally gifted of which I would never fall into the second category.
I can almost always see the person who was in front of me who went straight instead of turning down the library road waiting 10 cars back to make a left turn, and I can't help enjoying it.
It hasn't rained in ages it seems, but today it dripped softly all day. Here are some good things that happened because it rained:
1) The nasty carnage of bugs on my windshield has been washed away
2) It made my after-work run more fun; it cleans the roads and my clears my mind
3) The tomatoes my friend is growing got a much needed drink although I love when she brings me the green ones
4) My husband cooked an awesome dinner. Which probably had nothing to do with the rain, but the rain did make the weather cooler which puts him in a cooking mood so I suppose it may have had something to do with it after all.
I hoisted myself from sleep this fine Saturday to go running on trails in the park. I scared three rabbits and smelled skunk but thankfully never saw one. Morning really is the best time of the day. Everything is yet to be and quiet rules the land.
As I was jogging I came upon a stand of pine trees. Pine trees are quiet. Other trees with arms outstretched, are waving around, catching the wind, whooshing and swaying. Pines embrace you with down turned limbs in a gesture of hushing. Hush, be quiet, be still. I stopped to be quiet with them for a few moments.
After my run I went to the market for peaches. My husband loves peach cobbler so that is what a few of them will be destined for. I also got a teeny pecan pie from the Amish there. It is about 3" across; can't wait to share that with him as well. From the vendor who sells fresh cut flowers, I picked the ones you see in the photo. Nearby an elderly gentleman picked up a small bouquet in a jar and told the person behind the table, "I'm going to take these for my wife. She will really enjoy them." Right you are, sir!
I also couldn't resist a pint of fresh blueberries. Some still have little stems and there are bits of sticks in the container. I love that. Their flavor is exquisite. No candy is as good as this.
This Treasury is only up for four more hours and most of you will likely be tucked away in bed, but if you can't sleep, check it out.
Did you miss it? Don't fret - visit my dear friend's Etsy shop and check out her favorites. She created this funky collection and you'll find them - and more - all here.
An excerpt from the Aria Images by Melody blog of an interview with Helen from Pepperina Press reads like a novel:
"I met my future husband on the night train to Venice, because he was wearing a South Africa Rugby t-shirt. That's really how it went. I was at the start of a three-month solo backpacking adventure around Europe, he was travelling with a high school friend for a few weeks, and we were caught in the chaos of an Italian railway strike. I asked him directions because I thought he was South African (false advertising, I tell you – he's Texan!) and somehow we talked all night on the train. We ended up in Venice, although he and his friend had intended to go to Rome. We spent two days hopelessly and wonderfully lost among bridges and canals and winding streets. We thought it was just a summer fling – I had to keep travelling, he had to go back to America to start medical school... but somehow it stuck. Four years, several countries and a fortune in airline tickets later, we went back to Italy to get married. You never know how a t-shirt's going to change your life...."
Read more and discover her artwork here.
Why is running in the dark so much easier than during the day?
I was contemplating this as I put one foot in front of the other. You can't really see where you're going, and where you've been isn't clear either. And maybe that's it. You are forced to stay between the lines of what was and what will be, and the only thing that takes place there is a single footstep. Easy.
A friend just e-mailed me pictures of a bunch of amazing sculptures created by Ron Mueck. Watch this! Then you'll be prepared for this. Maybe.
Here it is until midnight! Bacon has a personal meaning for me, so I'm not a voracious bacon eater, but it is tasty. A friend of mine knows a vegetarian who's downfall was the smell of bacon frying. She hadn't eaten meat for years, but one morning she ate nearly a whole package of crispy, salty goodness!
On Etsy there is something called a Treasury and you get to highlight favorite pieces of your fellow artists. Wait, that didn't come out right.
Anyway, I had a lot of fun making my first one ever tonight, so if something blows your hair back, go check it out here until midnight Friday! After that it will be a whole different animal in a matter of speaking with all new featured artists.
I've been wanting to post this picture and this week's Etsy Bloggers theme, Carnival of Colors, was the perfect opportunity. I had been building up my inventory for a craft show this past June and wanted to take a neat group picture of a bunch of my creations before they went to new homes. At my booth, people signed up for my e-newsletter and a chance to win the fish!
It's a great time to get in a summer road trip. Make Me Melt and S.W.A.K. have just embarked on one to the sunny southerntier of New York State.
"Thousands of tired, nerve-shaken, over-civilized people are beginning to find out that going to the mountain is going home; that wildness is necessity; that mountain parks and reservations are useful not only as fountains of timber and irrigating rivers, but as fountains of life." -John Muir
Every minute was spectacular, but here are some highlights from this magical place. This year the Jiffy pop went off without a hitch (last year it leaked oil all over the camp stove). Cute as he was, we did not feed the chipmunk, but he sure was persistent. The wood grain is from the bottom of an uprooted tree that lies exposed to the lake winds. Isn't it gorgeous?
An excerpt from my camp log: "Each night the first thing we see in the sky is a planet. You can always tell because planets don't twinkle. B thinks it might be Saturn. Tonight is our last night and we stand with our heads upturned for what must be over an hour. The sky gains depth the later it gets and is filled with layer upon layer of celestial illumination. The lake reflects the starlight - and planetlight as well. Seeing the reality behind the daytime's pale blue facade is fascinating. I could stare all night. We make wishes on a handful of shooting stars and promise to tell if they come true."
Check out how small the people are in the bottom right of the photo.
So it's August already! I've been on a couple little vacations in the last few weeks and not on the computer so much. Good for the soul and the posture! I've been to a glacier in Colorado during a visit to my best friend since fourth grade and camping with my hubby in one of our favorite places in the Adirondack Mountains. Good times all around. Instead of yammering on, I'll just show you some pictures. 
