Visioning

The retreat is going well so far. Reading and writing a lot. Tomorrow I will engage with friends who are doing the same.

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Prairie Skies

The prairie skies are cooperating today with my wish to be in retreat. A cold rain makes contemplation the order of the day and night.

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Retreat

The next few days I will not be online very much, so I expect blogging will be sparse. I genuinely appreciate that people are concerned about me on the rare occasions I'm away from the blog for a day or so. Beginning Wednesday after work, I am in retreat through the weekend, and I will not be inviting the world wide web along as this will require quiet, focused attention.

I feel it necessary to have these times when we step back and take stock of our lives, and decide where we want to go next. I find it inspiring to gather with friends and engage in activities that lead to contemplation. This is the time I've set aside for that this spring.

People often comment to me that I do so many different things and I never seem to be tired or overwhelmed. In reality I experience both of those things. And there are dozens of things I can think of that I could and maybe "should" be doing the next few days. But, instead, I set aside this time some weeks ago and it is sacrosanct.

I will be in retreat, visioning a new approach to life, bonding with people in a meaningful way, and participating in a group that will have its ups and downs but will create a moment, a space, an experience, that has never before existed. And that is extraordinary. I will bear witness to the journeys of others, and they will do the same for me.

Six of us have devoted ourselves to this process and we will be changed on the other side of it. I'm fortunate to know people who are willing to accept such a challenge without hesitation, who will say "yes" to taking the road less travelled. I am blessed.

Quote of the day

"Children almost broken by the world are the adults most likely to change it." Frank Warren

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Facebook and Privacy

There's much discussion these days about Facebook and privacy.

News Flash: If you're reading this, you're online, and you've already given up your privacy.

Okay... lets move on to a more interesting topic.

Not ready yet? Of course not. Because people love to discuss their privacy concerns in completely non-private forums. If you're concerned about privacy why would you ever, in a million bazillion gazillion years, interact with something called the WORLD WIDE web? Why would you ever have made that decision?

Look, here's the deal, you gave up privacy when you got an email. Wait, when you got a cell phone. Wait, it was when you got a landline. Wait, it was when you bought a house. Wait, it was when you got a driver's license. Wait, it was when you got a birth certificate. Regardless of when it was, that ship has sailed. Let it go. Stop worrying about it. What are you doing that you need so much privacy for, anyway?

News Flash Deux: You do not have to be on Facebook. If you really believe it's the devil just deactivate your account, have it deleted, and move on down the digital highway. Actually, you'll need to shut off your computer and never connect to the internet again. Absolutely no wireless signal. You also need to get rid of your cell phone. No more ordering from Amazon and no more using GPS.

If you need this much privacy, I'd suggest you stake out a small cabin in the wilderness somewhere and work on your manifesto. You'll need to do that off the grid, of course, because you can't have privacy and have electricity, gas service, cable television, a credit card, health insurance, social security, a phone, or a few thousand other things most of us think are pretty nifty. Of course, if privacy is this much of a concern, you certainly won't want any medical care, anyway, so I guess health insurance is not an issue. Please, no magazine subscriptions or checking accounts.

But one of the fabulous things about living in the United States is that you have the free will to have all the privacy you want. But lets not pretend you're that concerned about it when you're zapping emails hither and yon every day, chatting on your cell phone and - heaven forbid - using a garage door opener that has a radio signal in it that could be picked up by... well... by... gosh... who knows... maybe the guy down the street. But, not to worry, he's probably absorbed in Facebook and won't notice. See how Facebook just protected your privacy?

Participating in Life

A friend and I were talking this weekend and she was saying that she admired the way I was "participating" in life and she felt like she was a "spectator." Her perception, which I've heard from others, is that I do "cool stuff" and go to "interesting lectures" and have "neat events" at my home. She mentioned, as others have, that I have "a gift" for gathering people together.

She has asked if I would give some presentations about how to be a participant in life instead of letting life just happen. While I love to do speeches, I'm unclear what information I need to share in this case.

All of these things are natural to me. Because new thoughts inspire me I seek them out, and make things like lectures a priority. When I have an idea for an event I just pick a date and ask some friends to join me.

Because it all seems very straightforward to me, I cannot identify what would be beneficial to others. I asked her, "what do I know that others don't know?" She's thinking that over. Obviously, if I'm going to give a presentation on the topic I need to know what to cover. If you have any thoughts on the subject I'd be delighted to hear them.

Old Friends, New Friends, Christmas Cactus and Tracing Paper

Tonight my friend, Kristine, took me to El Dorado Lake to meet her friend, Vicki, who has a fabulous house with amazing vistas. This Christmas cactus was blooming and I couldn't resist a photo as dusk fell and the brilliant blue out the window was framing the red blooms. Of course, a couple of kitty cats asleep in a window seat only adds to almost any scene.

Vicki took us on a tour of her home, including her creative space where she sews and works on other projects.



These neatly organized buttons and notions caught my eye.



Vicki and Kristine have birthdays that are close to each other on the calendar, and this was their birthday gathering. It was so nice of them to include me. Vicki had gotten Kristine's favorite - angel food cake and strawberries. It was delicious.

It was a nice end to a full Saturday that started at the Farmer's Market.



Today was the opening day and it was hopping. I didn't go until after 11 and it was still busy. It occurred to me it might be a good place to set up an art booth on occasion. Don't know that I'll ever do it or if it even fits their criteria, but it could be cool.



After the Farmer's Market I met Greg at Roy's. I can't go as often these days now that I work in an office with other folks who might not always enjoy the smell of barbecue all afternoon. So, it was good to correct my Roy's deficiency today.



After Roy's I made a stop at the Et Cetera shop where I got some treasures. I was more than a little excited to find the tracing paper on the right here. It has been used, so has little indentations from the tracing wheel on it. I know it will be a great addition to an art project. A little paint on it to accentuate the indentations will do wonders.

While I was still excited about that find, I noticed another package, which is an even older one. Grand total for both purchases was 30 cents. That wasn't all I bought there today, of course.

It has been a very nice Saturday. Nothing on my "have to do" list got done, but I had a great time.

Beauty in the Day

Last week (or was it the week before) when I was driving through the Flint Hills I noticed these beautiful clouds. The photo doesn't do them justice. They were different shades of blue - perfect, clear, beautiful blue.

The prairie has a beauty that is unlike any other kind of beauty. It's more subtle, some might say more stark. I'm from a part of the country where beauty is very evident. Everywhere you look there are green trees, rolling hills and a lush landscape. The prairie does not give up its secrets so easily.

For the past few years the message has come to me multiple times in different ways that I need more beauty in my life. I'm never sure what to do with that. I try to pay attention to beauty around me. But it seems the universe is telling me there's more to appreciate than I've noted.

The days can slip by so quickly, with little time for noticing the beauty around us. Now I spend my work days in a windowless office, so the beauty of the outside world is not available to me during much of the day. But of course there's beauty beyond the natural world.

Earlier this week I spent a day outdoors with campers from one of the summer camps at work. These were eighth graders from El Paso, and they gave me a good feeling about the future. They were kind and helpful to each other, self-assured, intelligent and delightful company. I took photos and video of them doing their various activities.



Today I made a quick trip to Wichita to be on one of the midday news shows, talking about the Coffee next week, which I'm sorry to say I'll miss because I'll be out of the office.

I'm going away for a retreat. I need it. There is much going on in my life and I need to do some sorting and prioritizing.

Quote of the Day

All changes,
even the most longed for,
have their melancholy;
for what we leave behind us
is a part of ourselves;
we must die to one life
before we can enter another.
~Anatole France

I find myself thinking a lot about change these days. In everyone's life comes a time when we have to decide if we're going to make changes or if we're going to remain in the pattern we've established. I find myself at one of those crossroads. I'm not sure what the answer is. Yet. But I will.

Story Telling

"There have been great societies that did not use the wheel, but there have been no societies that did not tell stories."
---Ursula K. Le Guin

I'm continually reminded of how important it is to tell stories. They inspire us, teach us and warn us.

This leads to the questions, "what stories do I need to tell" and "what stories do I need to help others tell?"

Unfortunately I don't have the answers to those questions yet.

White Roses and Remembrances

Nine years ago Mama's life was slipping away. When I left the hospital late that afternoon I knew the end was near. My brother, Jim, called the next morning to tell us she was dying and if we wanted to be there we needed to go. I was already on my way out the door even before the phone rang.

That 30 minute drive to the hospital was long. Jim met us in the parking lot and as I got out of the car and walked toward him he shook his head and raised his hands in a gesture of helplessness. I knew. We hugged and cried, there in the parking lot of Western Baptist Hospital in Paducah, Kentucky, while the barely dawn sky grew lighter by the moment.

We went up to the room and looked at her body, the shell that was left, the face that had smiled on us thousands of times and never would again. I was thankful she had not lingered in the state she had been in the last few days, but pained that I would never again have the feeling of a mother's love except in memories.

Fortunately, I had been storing away memories for a very long time. When I would visit I would lie in bed in the mornings and listen to the sounds of my mother's life. Yes, I was sleeping in. But I was also fiercely making mental notes so I could recall the feeling of being surrounded by a mother's love because I knew once my mother was gone I would never have it again. We only get one chance at that feeling.

Mama was always my rock. She loved me like no one else ever has or ever will. You only have one mother. I knew, no matter what, that someone in the world loved me. I knew I was a priority to someone as long as she lived. And I knew once she was gone that feeling would be too, but I relish the memories of it.

And I remember... the sound of the freshly shelled peas my mom had picked from the garden that morning falling into the plastic bowl nestled in her lap as her thumb pried them out of their shell... the taste of fresh blackberries she had picked just for me... the selfless way she accepted whatever I wanted to try, even if it didn't make sense to her. I remember the sound of her voice, calling my name, and my reaction to it. Sometimes I still hear it.

Mama died at 4:32 a.m. on Friday morning, May 11, 2001. We buried her two days later, on a beautiful Mother's Day. She had one last mother's day corsage made with three white roses, one for each of her children.

When I was a girl and we would go to church on Mother's Day we would pick roses from the yard to wear. Red if your mother is living and white if she's not. I've never worn one with white roses, but I did plant a white rose bush in the front flower bed of the house I bought later that same year I lost my mother. It has bloomed every year in time for Mother's Day.

I'm not a mother, and I have no mother, so Mother's Day is sometimes hard for me. Depending on how the dates fall there is a series of days that is difficult surrounding her death and funeral. I try to keep busy, but leave time for remembrance on her birthday, April 24, on through this time.

It's a delicate balance and falling into the abyss of despair is an ever present danger. I can be sent over the edge by a harsh word from someone or a slight someone doesn't even know they're delivering, and today was a hard day in that regard. We never know another person's pain.

Sometimes what we all want is to be heard, to be acknowledged, to know that we are accepted even with our pain. That despite the fact that we are weakened by the pain that people will still listen to us and take us seriously. But not every day offers that, and today certainly didn't.

But one of the greatest gifts Mama gave me was teaching me to be happy. It's just not today, but I'll be happy again.

Alice Cooper

We went to see Alice Cooper and Rob Zombie tonight in Wichita. I was the recipient of a ticket that was going to go to waste. I always enjoy Alice. I know, it's not exactly the sort of thing you'd expect from me, but he really puts on a show and I appreciate the extra effort.



Of course, some of Alice's bits are long time favorites and he doesn't disappoint.



Rob Zombie has one of the more interesting stage shows I've seen. I don't have any good photos from the Zombie portion because the lighting was not something my camera liked, so we'll have to make do with Alice-only photos.

Art Show a Success

The Art Show today was a huge success. I really enjoyed visiting with folks and talking about my art process.

A little after 6 a.m. I had everything piled on the sidewalk, thinking I needed to turn it into an art show booth.

I'm so thankful to Pam for loaning me her tent. I wouldn't have done the show otherwise, and would have missed out on today's fun. And to be thinking a Saturday that started at 5:07 a.m. with the alarm is still fun at 10:30 p.m. is no easy feat.

I had some paintings and also some jewelry. I had hoped to have more pix, but I never had time to take any.



There were some memorable moments:
1. A woman who just loved my favorite piece and talked to me for a long time about how my artist's sensability was so evident in the work. I didn't even know I had an artist's sensability so that was an enlightening conversation to say the least.

2. I heard the following words about my work - "interesting," "vivid," "unusual" different," - most people really loved it

3. One man did walk up and look at my work and say, "that's weird." I wasn't sure how to respond so I went with "thank you." He then pointed at a large piece with his walking stick and leaned over and said, "that's REALLY weird." I responded, "thank you very much." I wasn't sure what else to say to that.

4. A young girl about 8 or 9 who bought a journal. She had looked at them earlier, and picked out two she liked. When she came back to get one, one of her favorites was gone, but she got the other and paid for it with her own money. I thought it was so neat that she was using her own money on a piece of art instead of something more typical for a young girl. Very cool. Obviously some great parenting there. In fact, she bought the blue one visible on the left side of the table in the wicker basket.



5. A woman who talked to me for a long time and the art and encouraged me to put my stuff on etsy. I've had an account since they first started (2007?) but I've never used it. I will. Really I will. Honest. She's about the 10th person to tell me I should be doing it.

6. I had a piece that was designed for a sewing room - included pattern pieces and some vintage ribbon. I thought it would sell very quickly but I still had it at the end of the day. A lady came by after the show was officially closed and we were talking and she bought it saying she had a purple sewing room. The board was painted purple. I guess it hadn't sold because it was meant for her. Cool how that worked out.

7. A young lady probably in her teens named Tammy who was with some friends and bought a piece. One of her friends asked, "Is this your first art purchase?" Very excitedly she said, "Yes! It is! It's so great!" I applauded their interest in supporting the arts at such a young age. Then Tammy asked if I would sign the back of her piece. Of course, I was thrilled to do it and asked if she wanted me to sign it to her. "Oh, yes, that would be terrific!" she said. So, I wrote a note to her on the back and signed it. A definite highlight of the day for me.

My friend, Jocelyn, who's an exceptional artist has always told me she likes shows partially because she likes to talk to people who like her stuff. I get that now. It's fun.

I talked to a lot of folks about how I do things. It was obvious many of them were just wanting info to do things themselves, but I decided I was just going to be generous and share. There's enough art love for everyone in the world who wants to create.

A couple of people from work stopped by, which was fun. I'm not sure any of them had seen any of my artwork. If they thought it was "really weird" they kept it to themselves, or at least didn't say it to my face.

It was great to visit with lots of folks I know who were there for the show. Really cool to connect that way.

All in all it was a really neat day. I had intended to take photos of all the pieces, so I'd have a record of them, but I never got a chance to do that. So, I'll just have to think of it like I think of mail art and let it go out into the world. I hope they all like their new homes and their new keepers enjoy them.

Art Show Tomorrow

Tomorrow is the art show and I think I'm ready. I've got the car packed full of stuff and one more load to take out in the morning. It's sort of like going camping - you pack up a bunch of stuff out of your house and then have to bring it all back in.

It's supposed to be a high of 64 tomorrow, so I won't be wearing the cute skirt I had originally planned when I expected it to be warm enough I wouldn't want to bundled into jeans. Instead I've laid out long underwear.

I'm glad I don't have any delicate little plants out yet. I decided I'm not putting them out for awhile because they don't really do anything until it gets warm and stays warm so there's not much point.

Well, off to bed for me. It's going to be a long day tomorrow. I hope it goes well. I'll have a report later in the weekend.

Flower Petal Nests

Researchers recently discovered a tiny, solitary bee that makes a nest of flower petals and lays one egg in each nest. Ironically, two different teams of researchers made the same discovery in different countries on the same day.

Seeing these beautiful little nests, and reading this story, reminded me of how much we don't know. And, of course, we don't even know what we don't know.

Humans have been noting the natural world for centuries, and yet there are still discoveries to be made. And these wonderful, tiny little bits of beauty, practical but lovely, just serving their purposes, waiting to be noticed.

How many beautiful bits of daily life are just waiting for an eye to turn their way?

Birds of a Feather

When Fred Kaplan spoke here a few weeks ago he mentioned that it's now possible for people to get "news" and never encounter an opinion that differs from their own. He was using it as an example of why we are so fragmented politically these days.

I've been thinking about that concept a great deal since then - not necessarily with regard to politics, but in general.

People who study demographics insist there's a tremendous similarity of people who live in particular zip codes. I can't argue with their research, but it's hard to accept that we're this easily figured out. However, if you compare your neighborhood with another one in your town that's starkly different, you'll probably find you're more like your next door neighbor than someone in the other neighborhood.

Why do we seek people who are like us? The proverbial "Birds of a Feather, Flock Together," would seem to be true. But, why?

Are we only comfortable with people who are like us? I would quickly jump in and argue that I know people from many walks of life, who do blue collar jobs and white collar jobs and inbetween jobs. I would point out that I have friends ranging from age 17 to 93. But, when you get right down to it, the people I spend most of my free time with are more similar than different as far as their world outlook.

Was that a conscious choice? Certainly not. Do I even want it that way in particular? No. Do I know how to address it? No.

Of course, it's very easy to point to age and job as divisive factors when, in reality, they have little to do with who we really are. What we think about, the dreams we have and the way we live life is not determined soley by those things.

At various times I have reached out to someone with a very different approach to life, and it has never resulted in a long term friendship. We can certainly be friendly, but we never get beyond that.

Maybe this, in a nutshell, is why it has been difficult for me to develop lots of deep friendships. I grew up in one kind of world, and live in another, and am not fully at ease in either.

It always seems to come back to how we, ourselves, process the world.

Life Is Moving So Quickly I Ended up Having Accidental Plastic Surgery

It seems I keep getting further behind in keeping up with the blog. Life is offering so many experiences lately there isn't time to write about them all in a timely manner. But I will catch up eventually. I took this photo a few weeks ago - three weeks ago at least - and am only now getting it online. I would tell you to go look at it, but I'm sure it bears no resemblance to this now.

I have flowers blooming in the back yard that I planted last year - daisies and lily of the valley. I love, love, love Lily of the Valley and have tried to get some to grow for years. Last spring Pam gave me some starts and although they didn't all survive, I do have a few and I'm thrilled. I hope now that they're started they'll multiply and do well.

I spent the weekend at the Kansas Sampler Festival in Leavenworth, and it was great. I was working with Linda from the salt museum and we made an exceptional pair, if we do say so ourselves, and we do. We talked about both the museusm until we were hoarse both Saturday and Sunday. I'm not sure how to tell people these are two world-class attractions - not like anything else you'll see in the state. People are amazed at both places every day. I just don't know how to express that when trying to tell people to visit. Maybe I'll figure that out.

Thursday and Friday I was at Free State Social, a social networking conference. It was incredible to be spending time with like minded people. The first morning, before things got underway, I looked around and realized I was in a room where we were all on our phones, but no one was talking. For some reason that just really amused me. I knew these were my people.

When I got home Sunday night the lawn was awful, and I knew it would be, but it was worse than I imagined. I tried to mow last week before I left and the mower wouldn't start. The mower I just bought last year. I wrote a friend asking him to look at it and he had planned to but hadn't yet.

Tonight I had a meeting after work and came home to find my next door neighbor, Bob, mowing. He is the BEST neighbor. I talked to him briefly and told him my mower wouldn't start. He was so very generous to do that for me. It was such a load off my mind.

Greg came over tonight to see if he could see anything obvious about the mower. He said, "Okay, what do you do to start it." I reached down and turned the key and it started right up. Magic! So, I started mowing the back yard. It was so tall it kept choking the mower and I had to restart so many times I used all the charge so had to plug it back in. But, at least I made some progress.

I cannot believe how wonderful Bob was to mow for me. And did I mention he edged too? Yes. I know. Incredible. I need to do something wonderful for him and Ruth but I don't know what it is.

This is what I call the "drug house syndrome." A little real estate tip for you here. I bought the house on the block that at one time was the neighborhood drug house (so I'm told). When you do that, and you don't sell drugs, your neighbors love you regardless of the state of the lawn, your home, or pretty much anything else. They think, "Gosh, Patsy's lawn looks really bad... but... she's not selling meth so it's all good." See how that works out?

In other news, yesterday I had what I'm calling the "accidental plastic surgery." My doc referred me to a dermatologist for this purplish discoloration on my forehead I had asked him about. It wasn't very noticeable but you could see it in bright light and I kept wondering if I would wake up one morning with a bright purple forehead.

So yesterday morning was my appointment and the dermatologist looked at it, told me what it was called, and that it was nothing to worry about. Then he said, "And I can just zap those away if they bother you." Zap? Away? Right now? Just like that? Poof! They're gone. Yes - the wonders of modern medicine. I figure who am I to question this marvel.

So, he gets out this little widget and touches it to me so I get a sense of the prickly feeling, which didn't bother me. He started working on a couple of the spots. And next thing I know he's going to town with taps here and there. I said something about how it was so cool he could just do that in the office, to which he replied, "And, besides, it's so much fun," as he was zapping more of the spots I didn't even know I had.

He sent me on my way with an admonishment that it would take a few days for the places to heal. It was only later that I realized I'd just had a cosmetic procedure done, with no forethought whatsoever. So, there you go, the accidental plastic surgery - although it wasn't really surgery - or maybe it was. I hope this isn't some slippery slope that I now start wanting to go back every week for something else.

I'm also trying to finish up getting things ready for the art show this Saturday. I need some time to sit down and focus on it, and that just doesn't seem to be happening lately. This is one of the necklaces I have. I painted this on paper and then put it inside this jewelry finding I bought and glazed it so it had a clear coating over it. I think these are really cool, and whenever I wear one I get a ton of compliments on it. I'm still debating pricing, so if you have thoughts, please share.

Well, time for me to get some rest so I can be fresh for work tomorrow and hopefully accomplish much when I get home tomorrow night, too.

Guenter Wendt is Dead at 85

Guenter Wendt, NASA's Pad Leader for the Mercury, Gemini and Apollo missions, died this morning at his home in Florida. Guenter was the last person to see the astronauts before they went into space. I wrote about him before I started working at the Cosmosphere, because I thought he had such an interesting place in history.

Guenter was here a few weeks ago for the 40th anniversary celebration of Apollo 13 and he was a delight. One afternoon I drove him and flight director, Milt Windler, back to the hotel after a presentation. It was only about a five minute drive, but in that amount of time Guenter had Milt and me both laughing at two different stories.

I'm sorry that Guenter won't be making another visit to Hutchinson, at least not in a corporeal body. But, I can guarantee you he lives on in the hearts of everyone who had an opportunity to meet him. I consider myself very fortunate to have had even a brief interaction with a man who was central to one of the greatest achievements in our history.

Godspeed, Guenter.

Cosmosphere's story
NASA story
The Lope remembers Guenter
Collectspace.com story

My deepest sympathy to his daughters and their families.

Reconnecting With People

Lately I've had the opportunity to reconnect with a couple of people from my past. It's amazing to learn where life has taken people and what they've done since last we spoke. In those intervening years people become artists, teachers and engineers. They learn to speak French, to farm and to fly. People experience deep love and bottomless sorrow. And, yet, despite these changes, there's still enough in common to build a new connection. Amazing.

A Little Americana in Leavenworth Kansas and the Sampler Festival

I knew you needed a little bit of Americana in your day, so here it is. Can you get much more Americana than Dad with his two sons at an old fashioned soda fountain? No, I don't think so.

This is at The Corner Pharmacy in Leavenworth, Kansas - in business since 1871. Yes, 1871. In this really cool building on, as you might guess from the name, a corner.



There are, needless to say, some wonderful scenes inside.





And they make their own pies. From scratch. Which is really the only way anyone "makes their own pies," but people have odd ideas about this concept sometimes - believing that thawing a pie, or heating a ready-made pie, is the same as making a pie - so I feel the need to say they're from scratch. This coconut cream was a little heavy on the almond extract for my tastes, but I know lots of folks love that taste. (By the way, free cooking tip of the day - many people's "secret" family recipe is to put almond extract in instead of vanilla extract - I'm not a huge fan of either, but less of almond, myself. But I digress...)



There were special guests wandering around downtown this evening. I caught them at the Queen's Pantry Shop.



I'm in Leavenworth for the Kansas Sampler Festival this weekend. You should be, too, if at all possible. Come visit me at the Cosmosphere and Salt Museum booth.

Bring Norman Rockwell's ghost along with you, if you can... he's got work to do in Leavenworth.

Chris Brogran at Free State Social

I spent the day at Free State Social in Lawrence, Kansas, listening to people like Chris Brogan talk about social media. It was cool to get to meet other people who are interested in these tools, and hear some of the well known folks in the field share their thoughts.

Chris Brogan started off the day. As you might expect if you read his blog or follow him on Twitter, it was fun and insightful. He made a number of cultural references that only geeks would know. I resisted the urge to give him the "Live Long and Prosper" sign during his speech. I saved it until later.

There are only three folks here from Hutchinson, I think - Jill, Jessica and me. Jill and I oculdn't resist asking Chris to take a photo with us. And, yes, we know it's cheesy, but it's fun. Fortunately, he gets the fun aspect of it.



Once I have time to go over my notes I'll share something more substantive about the day. But you know I can't resist sharing fun with you nearly as soon as it happens so had to post our photo.

Ironically, I didn't post much to Twitter or Facebook today as the conference about using things like Twitter and Facebook was going on. I wanted to focus on my note taking. I was even doing that the old fashioned way - and I don't mean on a laptop instead of an iPad - I was using pen and paper.

Although I'm a huge fan of new media, it's hard to beat the simplicity of pen and paper. Chris Brogan referred to his notes today as his "personal analog device." I like that.

Beauty

I was treated to this gorgeous sunset this afternoon and reminded once again how much beauty exists in our daily lives that we take for granted. While I was pulled over taking pictures, cars were zipping by me very fast, taking no note of the sunset. I always want to marvel at such beauty.

Amy and Chocolate

This is Amy. Amy is a cook extraordinaire. Today she posted on Facebook her latest experiment in the kitchen - pots de creme.

Just seeing the photo reminded me of my long time desire to be one of Martha Stewart's friends that show up to eat for the television cameras. I'm starting to think Amy is our local equivelant. She needs a cooking show. And I need to be a regular guest showing up to eat the goodies.

Just as I got in the car to come home from work she texted inviting me over for "dessert before dinner." I'm never one to turn down dessert at any time. Conveniently, Amy's house is between my office and my house. Of course, I would have driven to a neighboring town, much less a few blocks.

It was delicious. Incredible. Melt in your mouth yumminess.

Thank you, Amy.

For those of you who are feeling like experimenting, Amy used this recipe.

And... for the record... I'm delighted to come over and provide a taste comparison for you. Just call me. Or text me. Or facebook me. Or email me. Or use smoke signals - whatever works - I'm there for you.

Lunch With Andrea

This is the lovely Andrea. She invited me over for lunch today. Lunch she was cooking. Real cooking. From scratch cooking. And it was delicious, as you might expect.

On the menu was tomato mushroom soup with grilled cheese, and apples with caramel sauce. She's stirring the caramel sauce - yes, real caramel sauce.

Needless to say, lunch was delicious!



We had much to talk about today. We were both in Pittsburg, Kansas, Thursday night to see Frank Warren of PostSecret. We've both been fans for a long time so it was great to see his live presentation. Of course, other topics were on the agenda, too, but that's one that just keeps coming up.

Andrea is someone who really thinks, so conversation with her is always interesting. It would have been a delightful lunch if we'd just gone to a restaurant, but I felt very honored that she cooked for me.



Andrea lives in this ultra cool loft apartment, complete with kitty. I love kitties so getting to pet Timi was just an added bonus.



Someone providing food, the basic necessity of life, that they have prepared themselves, is an incredibly generous act. It's something we undervalue, that we take for granted, when it's really quite extraordinary. I feel so blessed to have been the recipient of such generousity today. Thank you, Andrea.

Testing Things

I'm testing things on the blog... there may be some downtime in the next week or two... please let me know of anything that looks odd on your end. Thanks!

Blog Changes

I'm working to make some changes to the blog behind the scenes. You shouldn't see much difference, but if something is in the middle of being worked on it might be temporarily unavailable for some reason. Also, if something just isn't working for awhile, please let me know. It may mean I've messed up some setting I don't really understand!

I am building in much redundancy so I can fix anything I mess up! Blogger is requiring these changes and I didn't want to wait until the last minute to do it so I'm starting six days before the deadline. Yes, they announced it in February. I'm getting to it now that May 1 is looming.

It shouldn't make any difference to readers in the long run, but they're sure making those of us who availed ourselves of some of their tools jump through hoops.

Thursday night I had a wonderful lecture experience and I have photos to share with you, but I want to make sure everything is functional before doing that post. Hopefully tomorrow! Thanks for letting me know of any weirdness - you can always email me - patsyterrell@gmail.com. Thanks!

Art

This is the latest piece I've finished for the Art Show. May 8 will be here before I know it so I'm trying to focus on not just making art, but getting everything ready for sale.

I love this process. This piece includes pieces with paint, dye, calligrapher's ink and pastels. I've used pages from old books, postcards that were going to be recycled, freezer paper, and vintage papers, as well as traditional art papers. Each kind of paper takes the color differently and they all add to the texture of the finished piece.

I love color. I love texture. I love pattern. No wonder I love this process.

Apollo 13 Astronauts

That's Apollo 13 astronauts, Jim Lovell on the left and Fred Haise on the right. Sue sent this photo she snapped of us during the Apollo 13 celebration this past weekend. It's the only photo I have of myself with any of the VIPs from the weekend, and I'm glad to have it.

Free Will?

Do you know what you'll be doing in two minutes from now? Even if you don't, your brain may. Is that cool? Or is that scary?

Researchers in Berlin have learned that the brain subconsciously makes decisions before we are consciously aware of them.

They hooked people up to equipment that shows brain function - particularly decision making areas - and asked them to perform a simple task of pushing a button held in each hand - their choice of button, whenever they felt like it. The scans show the brain already knew which hand/button they were going to push before the subjects themselves knew.

I find this a fascinating look into the way we function. There have been tests before that showed motor skills activity in the brain showed up a second before the activity, but this is the first time it has been illustrated on decision making.

I'm still thinking about what this means. But I know it's interesting.

Days Off

I had the day off today and didn't get nearly as much done as I had hoped. I guess that's always the way it goes. It seems I work constantly, and never seem to get "done." I'm not sure what "done" is, but I haven't achieved it.

I did spend a couple of hours in the studio, which was nice. Never enough time for that either.

How do I find more hours in the day?