(what it used to look like)

I know what you’re thinking. I promise you, I’m not on any drugs. And yes it’s pretty easy to tile a bathroom. The hard part is cutting tiles to fit around stuff, like round stuff. That part really stinks.

So this is just one of my many excuses for being absent here at the blog. I got in the shower a week ago today and thought “this is gross”. The fiberglass panels were starting to come off because moisture had gotten in and the adhesive wasn’t so adhesivey anymore. The mold was starting to grow underneath the trim at the base of the panels.

I had enough.

We picked up a bunch of tile, brought it home, ripped off those panels, and I started putting tile up. Grouting was a pain, waiting for it to dry was a pain. Taking baths all week instead of showers was unpleasant, but not as bad as the grouting and cutting. The doors came down and went back up – twice, because I screwed up and put them too close and the bottom rail overhung the tub. I sealed it lastnight and took my first shower in a week (P.U.) this morning.

While I was waiting for the adhesive to dry, I worked. While I was waiting for the grout to dry, I worked. While I was waiting for my hubby to put the doors back up for the second time, I ordered pizza.

Okay I lie. Yes I worked. I am working on another illustration/drawing for a business. And today I’m sorta working, I sketched out another blog design project that I’ll work on after the 6 I have in queue are coded up. Once I get the go ahead on the illustration, I’ll get a clean line drawing done on that and flip back over to design for a week or two.

It’s always something, and you know what? I’m grateful. I couldn’t be more tickled that business is good, that I’m busy, and things are just rolling right along. It’s a great thing!

No, I am not on speed. Yes I’m handy around the house. I really don’t know how or where this energy comes from, and I am happy to report that I do get 5-7 hours of solid deep sleep every night. I only take a generic multivitamin, I swear it.

Please don’t hit me. If it makes you feel any better, I can do all this AND gain 5 pounds at the same time! Go me!

• Kids. First day of school. Today. YAHOO!
• Physical Therapy. Today. Not what I expected. Cool. We’ll see. Pelvic tilts are interesting!
• Project (-2) days until launch. Negative Two. I wanted to launch on Wednesday. I’m working on it!
• Behind on e-mail. Very behind. I need to launch, then get caught up on everything else.
• Totally still reeling from the Peacock.
• Hubby got a promotion & raise. Congratulations, honey!
• Another one of my photos is featured this week: WeAreQC. You can see it a little bigger here on my blog.

TTFN!

I finally had my camera in hand when the Mr. stopped by this morning, perched his little ruby self down on my feeder and warned me not to come any closer. I zoomed in on him from my kitchen.

Yesterday morning was nerve-wracking for me. I was just a mess, my heart was racing, sweaty palms, I couldn’t hold a pen without shaking. Why?

A few weeks ago, my hubby picked up the paper. He left one page folded over on my desk, the headline “Putnam looks for bird photos for new contest”. As you can imagine, that caught my eye! So I read the article, and immediately knew which photos I wanted to submit. There are four categories – birds of prey, water/game birds, backyard birds and pet birds. Here were my selections:

  
(all of these are available as prints, click them for their print info.)

I matted them, filled out the paperwork, and dropped them off yesterday. They’ll go up on Friday, and be exhibited through November 19th at the Putnam Museum as a part of the Celebration of Birds exhibit.

Take flight as A Celebration of Birds soars into the Putnam Museum’s exhibit galleries! This impressive museum experience combines the stunning artwork of Birds In Art from the Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum with unique specimens and artifacts from the Putnam collections. It’s the perfect synthesis of art, conservation and science!

I’m nervous because there are prizes and awards involved. There are judges, both public and and a panel representing the fields of art, photography and conservation. The criteria: “Accurate or expressive depiction of the subject species; photographic skill; and general appeal”.

Other than getting juried into the MidCoast Fine Arts Organization (I don’t know when, if ever, they update the website, I’m still not listed.), I don’t know when I’ve been this nervous – putting my stuff out there for public criticism and/or acceptance. It’s a very personal thing to have on display for people to judge and give you either a thumbs-up or thumbs-down. My work has never been on exhibit before, either. My MCFA exhibit isn’t scheduled until Spring 2006.

So. They have my prints, they look quite lovely matted and we’ll be seeing them among the competition this weekend. I’ll take photos of them on exhibit, because this is a first for me, and I’m nervous and excited now just to see them on the walls. The general public will get to vote on their favorites, too, so if you’re in the area, please stop over at the Putnam Museum and cast your “People’s Choice” vote between August 11th – 24th!

Have vent, will follow!Tucker is making huge progress! Yay for puppy training!

I am kennel training him, and he can hold his potty for 2 hours at a time now, he also sleeps through the night. He’s more like clockwork than I expected for a 15 week old. He’s even beginning to learn commands now. He sits, lays down (with some prompting), obeys “let’s go” for the most part, and I’m working with him now on “no biting” and “stop”.

He loves to bathe, he does not sit still for a furcut, and he’s teething like the dickens! (He only chews on his toys, so far!) He’s been doing great about NOT jumping – we taught him that right off the bat, however when I pat on my thigh, he will come up to me for me to pick him up and hold him like a baby. He follows me from room to room, flopping down on the nearest vent.

In short, he’s still frappin’ adorable. I don’t think he can help it!

Every time I say “GOTCHYA!” I automatically add “A TOASTER! Gotchya a TOASTER!”

You’d get it if you saw that episode of Will & Grace.

So. This morning at 6 AM, just after the rooster crowed and I shot it, I went and checked the glueboards I set out lastnight before bed. The fourth board caused the first word out of my mouth this morning to be “gotchya!” A TOASTER! No. I got the dang mouse. Now what. What the heck do you do with a mouse glued to a glue board? What’s protocol? Rinse in warm water and release? Uh. I needed coffee.

And so I put the mouse, glued to the glue board, on the counter. And I pondered it over a cup of coffee. And I looked at the cute little pictures on the sides of the glueboard boxes I had out.

I’m a wildlife artist, and this is NOT my nature. Uh, can I keep him? He’s so cuuuuute. No? Back to the box.

Seriously. Just throw him in the garbage? It would have been more humane to poison him. “Here, buddy. You’re totally stuck to this board and your fur is completely buggered up with glue, you can’t move, you’re freakin’ out because this was totally unexpected – here you were just running along your normal path and what the… what is this sticky stuff?!?! and I’m sorry, here’s your brown paper bag casket.”

“The Neighbor Kid” (because I know he’ll get a tickle that I called him that on my blog) said I should take him by the tail and peel him off the board. OMG. Wouldn’t that be like scalping the hair off a beggar? No way.

And so my conscience weighs on me again, another beautiful innocent creature dies at the hands of the so-called “Nature Lover”. But before you cast all those stones at me, let me just say – as God and my Husband are my witnesses, I didn’t mind having him as a house guest until – UNTIL – I had to reposition my monitor yesterday morning and guess what? Mouse turds. ALL OVER MY DESK. No, thankyou. He was making out with my mouse while I was sleeping. That just grossed me out. At that moment, it was him or me.

Boy do I feel like a hypocrite, though.

 

The conversation was short, it went something like this:

Chickeymonkey: Hey Ma?
Me: Yeah Chick?
Chick: Have you stopped to smell the roses today?
Me: Nope, I haven’t. We should do that, huh?
Chick: Yeah! Let’s go!

And so we went. And it was one of those moments where you think “what a smart little kid.” and you wonder if she realizes how profound her little question was, and how in the midst of a day of working and a mind full of stuff – it is truly important to stop what you’re doing, get up, and go smell the roses. And the daisies, too.

Afterward, if you’re sweating like a bugger after being out there smelling roses in 100+ degree heat, you can follow the lead of our smart little Tuckerhead. Flop your daggone belly right over the vent, and take a nap.

Hope you’re staying cool, too!

Our sweet Catybug turned 10 this past Monday, here she is after her birthday dinner on our way over to the Enchanted Forest for an evening of carnival rides. Isn’t she turning into a gorgeous young lady? I think so. Of course I fully realize this can only mean trouble, having such a smart, sweet, pretty young lady as a daughter. Especially now that we’re in the double digits.

Her new favorite carnival ride? The Tilt-o-Whirl, of course! Smart girl, she is. This was her first carnival experience, yes we lead a sheltered life. (Really, who wants to ride rides and catch bugs when ya scream out here in farm country?) She and I rode the Tilt-o-Whirl 4-5 times. I think I was the only one screaming my fool head off in it! Something about that ride just takes me back and makes me feel like a kid. Something else about that ride reminds me that I still have 20 pounds to lose – I think it has to do with the G-force that whips the excess poundage up against the seat when you fly around in circles.

😛

Of course this whole thing got me curious, what’s your favorite carnival ride? Are you a roller-coaster-er, or a spinner?

Tucker is our new little boy, he’s a Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier. He’s a sweetheart of a pup! (He’s also afraid of the pig! It’s hilarious!)