Sorrow and Cemetery Art

I'm a bit down today - that's fairly rare for me and I'm sure I'll bounce back quickly, but I am so I'm thinking about appropriate pics for today's blog while writing this. A couple of things have led to this feeling - one is that I'm between stories and even though I love doing artwork, it's a bit harder to carry along with me. I could continue working on my o-fic novel, but for some reason my head just isn't into it right now. I hope that Sunday I'll be in an art mood and can get some serious ink-work done.

The other reason is that I received a general email from a friend of many years this morning. The email was issued to a select group and informed us that she was entering hospice and was looking at about two weeks. She has been fighting a re-emergence of cancer that she beat several years earlier, but it didn't respond to treatment this time. I know when I go to Milwaukee this summer I'll look towards where her usual table would be and I'll be blinking back the tears, just as I am doing now. I'm celebrating her life because she is still with us, but I am hating the news that I know will be coming soon and I know that the world will be a darker place in a few weeks because a light will have left us.

So in honor of buried tasks and people, I think I'll concentrate on cemetery monuments for my pics today.  (For a look at the meaning of various cemetery statuary, click the link...)

This angel is hidden by the brambles, yet still keeps watch.

I loved the way this family was decorated for the
holidays. The candy cane is particularly colorful.

A while ago I had a pic of a veiled marble statue in my
blog. This cemetery mourner is outstanding.

Love this mother and child, beautifully carved and posed.

I wanted to leave on a lighter note and loved this child with the bear skin.

So, as I try to pull myself back to a bright and happy life view, I'll celebrate the artistry of these sculptors and enjoy walking through cemeteries as I always do because they are places of peace and love and excellent art. Have a good weekend...

My Sympathies and Amber Alerts

First of all, DH's car is fixed at minimum cost, so we're happy.  Now on to the blog...

The snow on this Wichita, Kansas roof shows how deep it got.

To all of you who experienced the extreme snowfall yesterday, especially those around Kansas, my sympathies. A snowfall of eight to seventeen inches fell in a little more than twelve intense hours yesterday causing all sorts of problems. We're getting somewhere between two and six inches today which will be a pain, but nothing anywhere close to what these poor people are experiencing. I hope that all of my friends and readers are safe today and can get shoveled out easily.

Here's a loving picture of a sunny beach to make up for the snow and ice.

On Wednesday afternoon my phone made a very odd sound. I had it with me (as always - yes, I'm addicted to having my smartphone with me) and when I picked it up I saw something I had never seen before - an Amber Alert coming through on my screen.

For those not in the US, Amber Alerts are issued by police departments, usually when children are missing. They are effective because they are localized - broadcast in a limited range very quickly after a child is reported missing or abducted. Apparently there now is a new agreement in effect with all of the major cellphone carriers that will send alerts automatically to all cell phones as well as the automated billboards, radio broadcasts and streaming on TV screens. This time it worked - really well.

A person who got the alert on their phone looked out their window and saw the listed car parked nearby. They contacted the police and within an hour the abductor was under arrest and the toddler was back in the arms of his mother. Bravo to all concerned. This is one time when our overly-wired and electronic world paid off.

I'm juggling screens and tasks but it's getting done, one small step at a time.

My days at the shop have been filled with inventory and updating. the shop's website. I've sold beads online through our website since 1996 and prices change all the time. I knew I was behind, so instead of shuffling through pages and pages of price changes, I've been working with my laptop working on the website, set next to the main store computer where I am going through the inventory, one item at a time, and updating any changed information. It's a big job. But doing it this way is working and working really well. So, by the middle of March my website will be up-to-date and I can start working on adding new products to it again. Yeah-I'm happy about that...

Happy 80th Birthday Edward Gorey....

Careful Inspection and Car Issues

I had a lovely day off and got a good start to one of the larger illustrations for CB's Big Bang story, did laundry, and played chauffeur for my DH whose car had vapor lock and wouldn't start. We were hoping that if he let it sit for the day, it would start when we got back home at night. Unfortunately it still didn't start, so I'll be phoning AAA this morning and getting it towed to our local repair place who will fix the car. DH has the day off today so I'll just drop him off at home and he can do whatever he decides to while waiting for the car to be worked on.

Since I've dealt with large-scale photography with my posts earlier this week, I thought a look at more detail might be fun for a change. I've always found micro-photography fascinating and wanted to share some pics with you. I didn't take these, I don't have the talent or the equipment, but they are very unusual and so fun to look at.

I'll start out with these incredible droplets.

I don't know what this almost psychedelic grid is from, but I really love it. I suspect it's a pollen spore or something else similar to that by the structure, but I really don't know. I love it, though.

I'm allergic to bees, so have a healthy respect for them, but they are so beautiful when viewed from this aspect. This little guy wanted to be here especially for my friends who love the striped honey-makers.

The iridescent wings of this insect just called to me. I'm afraid I couldn't identify which insect it was, but it's such a beauty that I had to share.

A simple match head as it begins to burn made such a wonderful photo. I love the smoke swirling and the hint of heat that you see at the actual head as the flame works down the shaft.

And finally, to end things out, this fabulous spider. The colors were so spectacular and those little hairs. I'm not a great fan of spiders (I loved them when I was a kid, but that was then and this is now...) but I had to include her. She's stunning and can't you just see her in Valinor killing the Two Trees under the direction of Melkor? Pretty and deadly - a winning combo. Have a totally FABULOUS day. We'll get 4"-6" of snow overnight tonight and tomorrow will be icky, so I'll enjoy Thursday until I see those first flakes...

Cold Run Around Day

Today it is frigid. I'll be running around doing errands wearing a long-sleeved T-shirt and my hoodie (Le Tour de France, of course) underneath my down coat and ear warmers. I'm grateful that I will only have to be out in the temps for a while, but I know I'll have at least two separate in/out of the home today. Ick!

Who can resist a pug dressed for winter's cold?

Last night I submitted the final copy of my newest story "Straw into Gold" to the publishers for consideration in their newest anthology. I'm pleased with the work, and I think it will meet their criteria for the format, but I don't know if it will be accepted or not. As I recall, last time it took quite a long time before I heard that "Dragon Seeks a Wife" had been accepted for Dragonthology, so I'm not expecting a fast turn-around on this either. But after almost three weeks of work on a story of less than 10,000 words, I'm happy with the quality of what I wrote and I hope they like my twist on the well-known Grimm's Fairy Tale.

I'm not sure if this is the cover of the 1819 version, but
it is one of the older editions. Can you help?

Oh, a call-out to anyone who may have access to the 1819 version of Grimm's Fairy Tales. I have one citation that I need to find in the original or re-write if it is not there. It would have been in the 2nd edition of Grimm's which was published in 1819 (actually published twice in 1819). All I can find on this is secondary sources which are always questionable, so if you can help, please get in touch with me.

I'll start working on CB's illustrations today as my next project kicks to the front of the line. I hope all of you are warmer than I am today. I'll be thinking warm thoughts while I run around...

Frozen Beauty

As we dive back into the freezer here in Minnesota, I wanted to share some of the beauty that winter and cold temperatures can bring. Winter is harsh and pushes all of us to our limits, but snowflakes are incredible micro sculptures of nature and when water freezes incredible things can happen.

Snowflakes are so amazing. This photo is a stunning
example of nature's symmetry.

Before I flip over to pictures I also wanted to send thanks to Kei, Aearwen and huinare for their assistance on two recent stories of mine. Huinare caught one sticking point in my SV story. I'm still working out a suitable replacement but it was a good catch and I thank her here publicly. Kei and Aearwen looked over my newest o-fic that I want to submit to my publisher for consideration in a new anthology and both of them were very helpful and sets of new eyes that I desperately needed. Hugs go out to all three of these friends who came through for me and helped my writing improve.

Now...on to waterfalls - the frozen variety...

This amazing waterfall is from Estonia. The colors are so rich!

Some people enjoy climbing frozen waterfalls. I'd rather
be sitting comfortably warm in front of a fire with a cup
of tea or hot chocolate...but that's just me.

Looking at frozen waterfalls is always rather
amazing. Waterfalls are so powerful, and winter's
cold has pulled that power to a complete stop.
It's rather freaky in a way...

This waterfall frozen rather puffy - it's really fun to
look at, isn't it?

I hope that you day stays warm and cozy and that all goes well for you today. I'll be wandering out in half an hour to shovel in sub-zero temps - time to bundle up again *sigh*...

Growing Things

I've been spending most of my writing time over the past two weeks pounding out an original fiction submission for Untold Press for a new anthology they are putting together. The first direction I chose simply didn't work at all. After several days I abandoned it and chose a different direction. The second theme worked much better, but it was hard writing. Some parts just jumped from my brain to my fingers, other parts were slogging through the marshes being eaten by midges. After the initial write and editing it several times, I decided I needed new eyes.and sent the story off to two friends to read through for me. Thank goodness for friends. Errors were found, comments were made, and I'll have a stronger story after I'm through implementing their suggestions. I'm much happier about the story now.

The flower ball almost floats above the water in the Sunken Garden room.

On Sunday DH and I went to the Como Park Conservatory for several hours of photographs and warm air. We had a really lovely time wandering all over and playing with our cameras. DH is starting to get more comfortable with his camera and starting to take some decent pics, and I was very pleased on my hunt for textures and colors. So, since today is a crazy day and I'm running really, really late, I'm just going to put a few pics up for sharing.

I loved the patterns that the palm fronds made against the sky.

The thorns on the trunk of the Silk Floss Tree are very
random but so amazing.

This fluffy guy is the European Ran Palm. It's actually soft to the touch.

These thorns were narrow, long, and wicked. A very protected tree.

The gentle colors moving up this palm frond were so attractive.

My friends in warm climates will laugh at me, but I fell in love with oranges on the
tree, even if they were quite small. They're so colorful and pretty.

I took a lot of pictures of this palm. I adore the ombre coloring of the base.