Tuesday September 28th ~ 2010

Can you believe this week? This has been a week of "what the heck is going on in the world."

A PLEDGE OT AMERICA
A ~  I down loaded the GOP's "Pledge to America" and was mystified by the number of things that they "PLEDGE" to do that have already been done by the current administration. Just the section on health care alone made me want to throw something hard at John Boehner's head. What a load of whooie this piece of propaganda perpetrates. If you want a really good laugh and you really want to get irritated, download the document and pour yourself a strong drink to wash it down with. Be careful you have to wade through page after page of images in between the "pledges."

THINK PROGRESS
B ~ Think Progress had a very interesting article made possible through the Freedom of Information Act, that uncovered proof of what we all knew. The Bush administration was looking for any excuse possible to start armed conflict with Iraq. How many of our nations men and woman in uniform died because of one individuals obsession and why are we not making more noise about it? He is living a secluded life of comfort and isolation and we, as a nation, are left to deal with his disastrous legacy.

THE TEMPEST IN A VERY SMALL TEAPOT
C ~ "Is the tea party one the most successful scams in American political history?
Before you dismiss the question, note that word "successful." Judge the tea party purely on the grounds of effectiveness and you have to admire how a very small group has shaken American political life and seized the microphone offered by the media, including the so-called liberal media."
• Add to this quote the conservative media of Fox News. Here is a broadcast station that states it is delivering the news and it is doing nothing but spoon feeding people who do not want to research for themselves the truth about anything. I have news for you all: 1. The President IS a citizen of the United States, he was born in Hawaii. 2. He is NOT a Muslim, but even if he was; why should we care? Who the heck give a flying fart. 3. The mess we are in right now is NOT his fault. The bailout of the Auto Industry and the TARP deal was all done under Bush's administration. This dude is having to clean up the jerks mess.

HIDDEN UNDER TAX EXEMPT CLOAK, POLITICAL DOLLARS FLOW
D ~ Do you really want to see what is happening in the world of Political Action Groups? Many of these so called Grass Roots groups are run and organized by big business that only have their own pockets and their own profits in their sights. These are dangerous people with an amazing amount of political clout. They are lying to the public and hiding their agenda behind the cloak of "Tax Exempt." They do not have yours or my interests at the forefront of their minds. They just want to put people in power that will continue to turn a blind eye to their unscrupulous business practices. Just go to the Americans for Job Security site and see what a good job these people do to hide behind the mantle of GOOD FOR AMERICA and be afraid, be very afraid.

WHAT TO AMERICANS KNOW ABOUT RELIGION
E ~ This one was my favorite of the week. Our nation is under attack and is under the influence to religious groups who cannot even answer the simplest questions about the faith that they espouse to. The simplest of questions were asked and most could not answer them. The agnostics and the atheists did a much better job because they have actually questioned religion and not just gone on "faith" or just believed what they were told to believe. I for one actually want to understand what I believe in, not just regurgitate doctrine that I was spoon fed.  Can you actually believe that less than half of the people asked knew that the Dalai Lama is a Buddhist?

GLORY DAYS
F ~ My BEST news of the week? My beloved Cincinnati Reds won the National League Central Division Title tonight with a walk off home run in the bottom of the ninth inning. Way to go Jay Bruce.

Thursday Sept. 16th ~ 2010

Can't believe how time just gets away from me. Right after I got back from Tacoma I had to actually try to finish unpacking and get my house into some sense of order. Adding to that insanity, I had to get my submissions for Bead & Button 2011 made and photographed and submitted.

To accomplish this, the last week of August and into the beginning of September I actually got to run away and hide from the internet and from email and distractions so I could hunker down and get my submissions done.

We escaped the dry-ish heat of New Mexico south, to the 100º plus humidity & heatwave in Texas for a week. I  got back into the groove and back to my AZ routine of getting up amazingly early, working for several hours while downing an entire pot of coffee, grab a snack and dive into the pool for an hour swim and then get back to work till dinner time.

I found a good rhythm and I think I got some really nice new classes stepped out and it felt really excellent to get the creative juices going as well as the "fix it" & problem solving part of my work that I so truly love.

At Bead Fest Philly,  Gail Crosman Moore & I taught our last session of Color & Patina on Metals with Cold Joining Techniques. We had a blast  but we did not get nearly enough time together since she had to leave the next morning to teach up in Maine.

The remainder of my classes went great, but I had my most embarrassing teaching moment. I got to the classroom nice and early on Friday I could get all of my wire cut, handouts passed around, tools redistributed, my teaching bench cleaned and organized. It was 20 minutes before class was to begin, all of the students were sitting in their seats, I was TOTALLY prepped to teach a full day of Low Tech™ Metalsmithing. The problem with this was that I needed to be set up to teach Hand Forged Cuff. Glad I got in early and had that extra 20 minutes.

Almost the moment I got home from Bead Fest Philly, Terri & I left for a real vacation in Toronto for 10 days. I know… what a luxury… and it truly was.

A good part of these days was spent at Shadow Lake about 2.5 hours out of Toronto. Listening to the loons in the morning mist and kayaking on a clear and calm lake, cooking excellent dinners, reading for hours in the sun and just relaxing. It was just amazing.

View of Shadow Lake from our cabin

While in Toronto, we got to go to a Blue Jays game and visited the  Royal Ontario Museum to see a wonderful exhibit of the Terra Cotta Warriors from China, got to go up to the top of the CN tower and see all of the city laid before us. 

View of CN Tower form our seats at the ball park

View of Toronto from the top of CN Tower

View of Toronto from Center Island

But the best day in the city is when we took the ferry out to Center Island and road bikes around the connecting islands all day long. My best discovery of that day was this collection of toys arranged and hidden in some bushes. The only reason that I found this delightful display of dinosaur combat was that I wanted a picture of the house across the way and I happened to look down. I love the child's mind that created this little scene but what I love even more is that is was left for others to discover and enjoy.

A wonderful discovery of Dinosaur Combat

We need more of these things in the world, small discoveries of joy that make you smile and stop for just a moment.