Song for Friday...the things I chose

 

Montreal singer songwriter Rob Lutes is

number 1 on my radar these days.

He is akin to some of my favorites including Marc Cohn,

Tony Furtado, Ray LaMontagne and Glen Hansard.

Genuine music, I call it.

Honest guitar playing.

Truthful lyrics.

This song in particular has been tugging at my heart strings lately.

"The things we didn't choose".

Clips of old home movies reminding us of how

life evolves around us especially when it comes to

the matters of heart and home.

So today I choose Rob Lutes for you and a beautiful song,

from his latest cd The Bravest Birds.

Have a great weekend all!

 

One word Wednesday...morning

Mouse nests, moths and basketballs for pillows...

Is that the weirdest post title?

Caught your interest I bet!

It's the season, now that the days are getting warmer, moths are all a flutter at the window at night.

They flick against the glass and venture through the cracks in open windows.

Yesterday morning I found one in the bathroom, snuggling up to the night light...

...wearing the most lovely velvet cape. 

Rich browns and taupes...all the rage this spring I'm sure!

As I was cleaning up around the pond the other day, in amongst the dead, dry grass,

I found an old mouse nest...

 First I made sure that there was no babies or evidence of it being used recently...

 ...a perfect little ball of grass, woven expertly by tiny pink paws...

 I've found these before, some having bits of string and tissue.

This one was pure grass though...

 Definitely not something you want in your house, but out there in the open, I can imagine furless

little pink skinned babies, curled up in the coziness of this house...

 It weighed next to nothing...

 I set it by the door, nestled in a concrete leaf form that didn't seem to

have a purpose for much except looking pretty.

 Now a vessel for this little marvel.

Speaking of being cozy...I just had to share this picture of Rueben.

He was trying to find a nice slice of sunlight one morning...you know, that perfect spot to have a 12 hour nap? As the sun was moving through the living room he manged to snag this spot...

 

...beside Griffins 'toy box', amongst ripped stuffies and numerous partial toys,

 head perfectly resting on a basketball pillow.

He slept here for quite a while until the sun shifted and then moved with the sun 

to another spot previously occupied by Griff...as evidenced by the bone...

Oh the life of a cat...

Or a dog for that matter!

As promised...

Yesterday I posted this picture.

It was a box I recycled and repurposed for a piece I just finished.

It's a nod to those who appreciate the unique and handmade

and are a part of the movement to support artisans.

To remind those who may not be totally familiar with the term artisan...

"An artisan^[1] (from French: artisan, Italian: artigiano) or craftsman (craftsperson)^[2] is a skilled manual worker who makes items that may be functional or strictly decorative, including furniture, sculpture, clothing, jewellery, household items and tools or even machines such as the handmade devices of a watchmaker. Artisans practice a craft and may through experience and aptitude reach the expressive levels of an artist."

I like this definition. It gives a wide berth to many a creator and doesn't limit the work to one thing.

I admire the work of a cheese maker and a cabinet maker just

as much as a sculptor or photographer.

My most recent commission was from a man (whom, him and his wife have bought several pieces

of mine), was to make a likeness of this card...

 Do you know of this illustrator?

His name is Jan Van Sandwyk and he does the most

whimsical and lovely work.

He spends his life between Vancouver and Fiji...hmm...nice life ey?

So my task was to make a likeness of this hare as a gift from my customer to his wife.

 ...horse-tail hair for whiskers from my neighbour up the road.

She has a 32 year old horse!

 Nothing says spring like a March hare!

So here's to those who keep artisans going...Cheers!

Wordless Wednesday...to be continued

Is it really?

They say a picture is worth a thousand words.

I suppose in my case, today, it is.

It seems that today my words and pictures have equaled 1000!

Yes, this is my 1000th post and I can hardly believe that I've had 

that much to say and show.

Just goes to show you that a little rambling and wandering and wondering goes a long way.

So what's new...lets see...

Yesterday I took this equipment...

 Clippers to cut the nettles and of course gloves because they

don't call them stinging nettle for nothing!

 After a long winter of eating rich foods, nettles are one of the best detoxes around...

 I also picked some kale since it has become very sweet with all the cold weather...

 Norene came over with her daughter Haley and our mission...

 ...besides avoiding the sting of nettles...

 ...Was to make a monster batch of pesto!

After steaming the nettles for a few minutes (to take the sting out) we added garlic (lots!)

cashews, walnuts, Parmesan cheese, nutritional yeast, salt, lemon juice, basil and olive oil,

whipped it up in our food processors and...

Presto...Pesto for the masses!

I spread mine into a cake pan, about 6 cups worth and threw it in the freezer...

 ...this morning I took it out by lifting the parchment paper and cut it into squares and

then threw it in a freezer container, ready to use as much or as little as I need.

they look like pesto brownies!

 ...just as yummy in a savory way...

 My latest passion is being inspired by this new book I just bought, 'Art Made from Books'.

When I was visiting my brother he had a similar book and I knew I just had to have this one

when I saw it in Paper Ya on Granville Island.

It's full of artists who have taken cutting paper to a whole new art form...

They actually cut stories and lift them out of the book but keep the book in tact and 

the pages come alive...

 How beautiful is that?!

 I'm not sure how far I'll get with my endeavours but I certainly want to try.

 So that big stack of old books Ive collected....BEWARE!

You could be my next art project!

You probably think I'm crazy to cut up a book. I wouldn't cut up any of the more valuable ones

but I do have a few that were really cheap and somewhat falling apart.

Anyway, the weather is grand and I even hear the drone of a lawnmower outside...it must be spring!

So I'm off to take Griff for a ramble and another daily adventure!

(1000...whew! who knows whats next?!)

A song for Friday...a little something from the south

A few weekends ago I went to a 90 year olds birthday party and during

a slide show of her life they played a song by this band.

After I researched them a bit I became obsessed with quite a few of their songs.

After much deliberation I wanted to share this one with you.

The lyrics are akin with a Cowboy Junkies song called

'Misguided Angel'.

The tale of a daughter trying to reassure her mother of her 

undying love for the one her mother disapproves of.

So here for you, out of North Carolina,

Mount Moriah.

Have a listen here...
Have a great weekend y'all!