Saturday, January 30, 2010

Wonderland

another little memory if Italy. i would love to walk through this door every day. imagine heading out for a sexy night on the town, wine and dancing, a pair of red high heels clicking across that floor. Italians know how to do it right!

prints available in my shop!

Thursday, January 28, 2010

photographic, finally


it's almost been a year since i adored Europe in the flesh. for two weeks i explored both Italy and Scotland and sadly, i have yet to post photos of the trip. so now, now i begin. these two are available in my shop and there are more to come.

top photo was taken in Riomaggiore and the bottom at Eilean Donan Castle. One sliver of Italy and one taste of Scotland.... for now.

Sunday, January 24, 2010

a letter to green (and other colours)

Dear Paint;

I love you, i truly do. I long to be with you, play with you, experiment with you. A smile crosses my face whenever i look down at my hands and find slivers of reminiscence of you under my finger nails. I know that you will always be there for me.

I'm saddened, however, by the fact that your lids keep breaking open on me. I simply wanted to take your top off yet you refused, fought back. I was forced to draft my teeth into war. My molars went to work, they bit down on your tiny cap while my hand twisted clockwise to unlock your colour. As i extracted your body from my mouth a carnage of green flooded the palm of my hand and lower lip. Your lid had not come unscrewed, it had broken at the top.

How am i to keep you fresh now? Why would you commit such a suicidal act? I suppose i can resort to cling wrap and tape but I'm not sure you are deserving of such measures. My darling, you are not the first colour/shade to do this to me, I am at a loss. Perhaps I should let you dry out to teach you a lesson? Who am i kidding, i can't do that. I can't AFFORD to do that. You are a series 4 colour, I need you! You have your talons deep in my flesh Mr. Sap Green Hue, I will let you live...... THIS time. I will use you in every single piece I create from now until your death, you're lucky i adore your hue.

Yours in anger,
Amanda

cove

another new original piece in my shop! 10"x12" acrylic, mixed media, abstract on wood panel. free shipping within Canada!

Thursday, January 21, 2010

my city in abstract

just listed in my shop! 'Metropolis', an original abstract, mixed media painting. 10" x 10" on wood panel.

Saturday, January 16, 2010

pig herder

the date, Wednesday January 6th 2010, morning. a young 30 something girl is going about her extremely busy day at work when all of a sudden her legs begin to ache. she must have been sitting for too long. she climbs out from behind her desk for a little stretch, a lap around the office to get the blood flowing. she arrives back at her desk and sits back down, a chill flows through her entire body starting at the base of her neck trickling down to the tip of her baby toe. that damn HVAC system, why must it fluctuate from hot to cold so erratically? time travels on into the afternoon, the chills become more frequent and the aches more permanent. a headache begins to take up residence in the base of her skull. busy day indeed.

two thirty rears its head and our girl is ready to go home to die. the aches, chills, and headache have formed an alliance, this way they can gain strength and devour our hero at a faster pace. awaiting further information from two journalists, regarding travel the next day which our girl is booking, was keeping her from an early departure. at this point it was quite clear that something was not right. it was not due to extended periods of sitting nor was it the heating system in the office.

five o'clock finally appears and our girl drags herself to the subway in between flashes of hot and cold. time moves in slow motion.

fast forward to six thirty and a virus unleashed fully. our girl is immobilized, confined to the couch with a thermometer in her mouth. tiny beeping signifies the end of a reading, the device is removed from under her tongue to reveal the number 101.3. the final indication of REALLY sick.

yes it's true, i'm just getting over a lovely bout of Swine Flu. it was horrendous, i don't remember the last time i was so sick. the aches throughout my body were brutal, i couldn't sleep, couldn't find a comfortable way to curl up without pain. then there was the battle between hot and cold. at one moment i was freezing cold and the next boiling hot to the point of soaking wet bed-sheets (pretty, i know). i stayed home from work the next day, naturally, and my temperature stayed in the hundreds. when Damian got home from work i said "i think i need to see a doctor". he started the car up again and i struggled to get dressed. we drove into town to the nearest walk-in clinic. upon entering there was a notice posted on the door with a huge stop sign noting "if you have the following symptoms please ask the receptionist for a face mask right away". of course i had all of the symptoms so, i was entitled to sport the high fashion mask. on top of feeling sick i also felt embarrassed that i had to sit there amongst all of the other patients with this damn mask on. i was a straight up pariah, i should have been whisked off to an island of misfit sickies. Damian took care of my humiliation and made it a lighter situation, he took the pink sharpie out of my purse and began to draw a suave mustache and beard on my mask. i was no longer your average every day (possible) H1N1 victim, i was classy.

after a wait i was escorted into the doctors office where i was told, after noting all of my ailments, that i had just described swine flu to the T! a note was written to my work expressing my duration of quarantine, a prescription for Tamiflu jotted down, and i was on my way.

i was hoping the sickness would be done in a couple of days so i could enjoy my quarantine but no way. this thing was a nasty little bastard. a week after i was diagnosed i was just starting to get over it. i couldn't do anything except lay down. i couldn't eat, couldn't read, couldn't go online, couldn't even sleep (comfortably). it's now saturday and i'm feeling better, still coughing and short of breath but i have some energy back.

i had roses from Damian (along with pots of soup and loving care), calls from my dad and step-mom in Australia, flowers delivered from my Mum & Dad, calls from my little sister (who's baby shower i missed because of this pig bug) to get me through it. i highly recommend avoiding this beast if possible.... especially if you're a woman between 30-40 with asthma.... apparently i was in the highest risk group and was warned to "get thee to a hospital" at the slightest concern regarding breath. i'm thinking this is my fill of illness for the year, i've lost a week and a half of my life in this new year, this new decade, it's only fair i don't get sick again.

i'm not sure why the pigs are so ticked at me, i don't eat them and haven't done so for about 17 years. is it because i still like the smell of bacon when it's cooking? apologies little piggies, apologies all around.

Sunday, January 3, 2010

thank you Maria-Therese.....

... for sending me some of that gorgeous snow you have so much of. it's been blurry white outside all day today. whipping around in all directions, creating big drifts of chilly fluff. i thought it would be a good idea to go for a little walk to buy a bottle of sparkling pinot grigio i've been wanting to try. i thought it would be nice to celebrate my last day of vacation instead of moping around wishing it weren't over. i mean of course i wish it weren't over but, i have to think positive AND one should find time to celebrate every day!

celebrate life, celebrate a moment, celebrate love, celebrate happy, celebrate dreams, celebrate wishes, celebrate desire, celebrate chocolate, celebrate YOU!

and so, i ventured into the white. it was a lot colder than i thought minus 29 (with the wind chill) sounded. my cheeks burned with every tiny piece of iced snowflake that landed on them, my lungs begged me to turn around and breath warm air inside, my legs questioned my sanity as i trudged through un-shoveled sidewalks. i cracked on, enjoying the "pain".

i was pretty glad to get home though, i have to admit. i was also glad i didn't crumble and say "forget it".

the snow is wonderful, blissful, quiet, and still. it lies out there now sparkling under the street lights, perfect in its solitude. i find that wintertime is a great chance to connect to yourself, talk to yourself, make plans, dream elaborate dreams. in summer we tend to be too busy running around doing "things" but in winter we often have no choice but to hibernate. even though i like the cold it does get a bit much and there is nothing more to do than hunker down inside and keep warm. there, we are alone with ourselves. the world around us shrinks to the size of our house/apartment/flat/cottage. maybe this is why so many people "hate" winter? a forced alone time with yourself.

as the snow continues to pile up in the corners of my window panes this season, i will enjoy my time with me. when summer comes i will take that "me" out to explore and to fulfill those dreams i had while in hibernation.

i promise myself that i will take winter as a moment to be still. even amongst the busyness of day to day life that continues on without regard of season. i will be busy when i need to be, in those hours that need/require it, but when those hours end i will breath and take time to be in the company of amanda.

Saturday, January 2, 2010

newly listed in a newly year

Happy New Year Everyone!!!!! this one will be good, it has to be. i have to keep my thoughts on track, my dreams and goals on track, make changes baby!

i've just listed these 2 original pieces in my shop. this year my shop will be more successful, i will be selling more originals (on larger scales) AND i will also finally be adding my photography. watch for it ;)

oh yeah, snazz new banner too! my mind is always a whirl of different ideas and images and thoughts and fantasies.... it's hard to keep up with it. *hence the blog name - "loop.dee.loo", it's like a carnival ride all up in here yo!* so things change... often. i like change, i don't have enough of it. that's why this year, i must create more. it can be scary, daunting, tedious, you name it, but in the end it opens you up to creativity. an artist needs newness, fresh perspectives, inspiration of every kind. universe, i open myself up to you. bring it on!