My hubby finally asked for a Christmas gifty this year! Can you guess what he wants? Hint: Martina McBride is going to be here in January. He has a big ol’ celebrity crush on her and her voice!

Boy got a couple of seriously good seats to that concert, Merry Christmas honey! Tickets went on sale yesterday so I snatched up two of them all sneaky like while he wasn’t looking. I’m a spoiler, he already knows. 😛

Funny thing, I had been listening to Martina (and that’s unusual for me) during the painting of this last commission. I tend to pick music and stick with it if it keeps me in my groove, and her self-titled CD did just that. Now we’ll see her in concert! Who’s the last person/group you saw in concert? I think the last one I went to was 5 years ago or so, we saw KennyG. I’m a party animal, I tell ya.

In other news, I’m completely exhausted. I finished J&L’s portrait yesterday (it’s drying), went back over to my neighbors (I’m glutton for punishment) and put a new floor down in a 20×15 room. That was the main accomplishment anyway. My hands look like “the claw”! I wish I could spray some WD40 on my knuckles, shoulders and knees – know what I mean?

Today is Gaudy Overdone Outdoor Christmas Lights and Decorations day. Hubby has truly missed Christmas the last couple of years and it’s his favorite holiday. This year he has promised to make our house a Tim the Tool Man Taylor replica! Yahoo! I can’t WAIT!

/sarcasm.

I just updated all of the links to yesterday’s Thirteen. My apologies to everyone, yesterday was CRAZY! One thing after another, you know how that is I’m sure.

I have not even been in front of my computer long enough to read any 13’s either. I will visit everyone this weekend, pinki swear! If you’d like to, go on and pick a number between 1 and 44, and go visit that person on the list! Leave a comment to let me know who you’ve visited. Sorta like Michele’s Meet & Greet, and you all know how much fun that is!!

I know I’m missing some links, too. People must have forgotten to stop by. If you know of any off the top of your head I’d appreciate their link so I can get them on the list. Grazie!

Soon, I’ll have a completed portrait to show you, too.

I’ve gotta get out to the easel, back soon!

After this last week’s Thursday Thirteen, I’ve about lost track of who is on my blogroll and who isn’t. My blogroll, in case you didn’t know, is neatly tucked into “Shiny Happy People”. Are you shiny? Are you happy? Have I missed you? If you have an art blog, you’d be “Oh-So-Pretty”, just in case you wondered how that all works.

Couldjya do me a favor? See if you’re there. Let me know if you’re not there, and I’ll get you there promptly. I like to (at least try to) keep up with everyone who has joined in on the 13’s! Grazie!

(See Seenyohreetah! Or something.)

Here’s another shot that was a bit of an accident. I was in my studio trying to focus in on the fire, hubby walking toward the house – I really didn’t want him in the shot but at this crop and with this screened effect I thought it turned out really cool! Er… I mean hot.

Yesterday blew by like it was only 2 hours long. I swam in the morning and felt good and refreshed and energized. I came home and my neighbor had called (ahem. The one that is supposed to be swimming with me every day, Ms. Sleeperinnerhead.), so I called her back. She has a Very Important Person visiting next week so took this week off to prepare. Her house. By redecorating every room. And she lives next door to an artist. Heh.

It’s yardwork day for dear old Dad, I just wondered how I might be able to capture burning leaves. Now I know.

I don’t listen to the radio often, for a couple of reasons:

(1) I’m a recluse and rarely go anywhere in my car, which is the only place I’d be inclined to put the radio on.

(2) When I do drive, I usually pop in a CD. No commercials, you know.

I did, however, catch the tail end of a song a week or so ago that caught my ear. I wrote down the lyrics I remembered when I got home and was going to search for it but didn’t, until the other day. I finally found it on Walmart.com (you can listen to the windows media clip of it here). I listened to the clips of Anna Nalick’s entire album, and downloaded it all. I’m kinda stuck on Breathe, though, and can’t get past it for some reason.

I wanted to learn the lyrics, so I went and found them, printed the sheet, and proceeded to teach myself the lyrics. Instead, I found myself bawling. I couldn’t tell you the point that the melody and lyrics caused me to burst into tears, but I was deeply moved by this song and it’s been a lonnnnng time since a song has done that to me.

Here are the lyrics:

If you know me well, you know how in love with music I am. I think I have some damn fine taste in tunes too. The only kind of music I really can’t listen to for very long is rap – and I mean RAP, and heavy metal. SUPER heavy metal. Otherwise I am a huge fan of musical talent.

Today is Retro Wednesday in my studio, I’m starting with Color Me Badd and don’t know where I’ll go next. What are your favorite retro tunes? I’ll take your suggestions and burn myself a Retro CD (and hey, maybe I can burn multiple copies for those of you whose suggestions make it onto the burn?) – I’ll be painting today so it’s gotta be motivating, and fun to listen to over – and over – and over!

Psst, is it bad thing that a conservative white girl (mother of two…) is jammin’ to early 90’s hip hop? :rofl:

“Yet even in certain defeat, you must cling to the belief that life is not merely a series of meaningless accidents or coincidences, but rather it’s a tapestry of events that culminate together in an exquisite, sublime plan.”

“If we are to live life in harmony with the universe, we must all posess a powerful faith in what the ancients used to call ‘fatum’, commonly referred to as destiny.”

From one of my favorite movies, Serendipity. I originally posted this on January 8th, but when I was searching for other pics I’ve posted of our home I stopped and read it, and wow. I think I should have read this Saturday morning, huh? Though maybe if I had, I wouldn’t have accomplished the living room makeover. heh!

Did you watch Serendipity? Does this quote make your mind get all pondry? (Is pondry a word?)