il dolce far niente

i've been missing for a while but i have a good excuse.  i'm in Italy!  i've been here for a week now and actually, leaving today.  just arrived in Lucca yesterday and it's the first place with internet.

i came here with Damian, my sister Kate, and her hubby Kevin to surprise my dad for his 60th birthday.  our brother also came all the way from Australia. i couldn't say anything here about our plans or my major excitement in case he read it.  we've had this planned with our step-mum since last year.

for the past week we've all been in Santa Margherita lapping up sunshine, the most amazing food, and copious amounts of wine.  the above photo is of Vernazza, one of the towns in the Cinque Terre.  i conquered all five in one day but that's a story for another post.

today we fly off to Scotland for a week!  two places i have always wanted to visit and i'm doing them both in one trip.  i wish i had longer in each place but north american vacation policies at work are poo compared to Europe.  see, i've already gotten used to the way of life here, the passion for living, not sure how i will adapt back to rush rush rush back home.  for now i will drink this up and continue exploring, photographing, and loving.  perhaps another post from Scotland, if i'm not hiking a lush green hillside or in the pub that is.

ciao bellas.

prism

i woke up feeling blue today, my head a whirl with all sorts of shades of it.  Damian and i headed out for brunch with his dad for father's day and it was gorgeous outside, the first day of summer.  i could smell the green stretched out before me on the passenger side of the road, the fields both overgrown and freshly cut.  purple and yellow dots of petals softly harboured the line between the dusty brown road and the verdant pastures.  i love dropping the window in summertime and turning my head into the breeze, if you close your eyes you open your nose to the menagerie of scents floating around.  even the sky lends a particular sweetness.

after brunch we headed to a mall (yuck) in the hopes of finding some new summer clothes.  no luck in that area, we immediately felt the pull downwards that a mall can create.  tangled in the crowds of people we both started feeling the mean reds come on so decided to find the nearest exit out.  just before our exit we came across an art shop.  this mall is a huge new-ish mall and all the stores are outlets,  i hate outlets.  they always seem to have the most drab clothing and an over abundance in the irregular sizes.  the prices may be low(er) but i'm not all over buying something i'm "settling for".  on the other hand an outlet art store?  now THAT is something i can have a little taste of.  the price of canvas got me all excited, my new place for stocking up.  i adore gallery wrapped canvas but it's more expensive than the standard.  not here, here it's affordable.  i couldn't decide what size to get, Damian stood there watching me with a smile on his face.  he was aware of my interior blue shades and i think he liked seeing me in a place that made me happy.  i had three different sizes lined up, studying them, eenie meeny miny moeing them, so hard to choose.  in the end i chose the biggest one with a triumphant "i deserve it!", a sexy 36" x 48" gallery wrapped canvas joined me on my walk to the front of the store.  before i had a chance Damian whipped out his wallet and slid his debit card across the counter.  i protested but he said "it makes me feel good to buy this for you".  i love him.

now i have a large space of white watching me from across my studio.  it sits there stretched on a wooden frame awaiting life.  it's incredible how intimidating it is, all of that open space, all of the possibilities, all of that white!  i'll have to wait for a brave day to put that first spill of colour onto it.  i tend to think way too much and it's obnoxious.  just go for it, more often than not the best pieces come out of the mistakes.  i have to trust this more.

next stop, Julia Roberts' closet

in my last post i said i'd be back to write about a few things. one of those things was house sitting for Julia Roberts. before i get into that i just want to do a little shout out to the wondrous and delicious baking skills of my loverly Mum.

she's recently taken up a new hobby, that of cookie decorating. fabulous, gorgeous, splendiferous, iced biscuits that haunt my sweet tooth. so far i have only seen two of her creations, the above "etoile de mer" and the 2 dozen wedding cakes she made for my cousins shower last weekend. it was hard but i saved my cookies so i could photograph them, i think i rushed through the "shoot" due to the tempting looks they were giving me. they have found a new home now, on my hips. i set up a flickr site for my Mum so she could share her creations (and hopefully get a little biz later on). the wedding cake cookie is there too, check it out (and don't be afraid to comment, she'll love it!)

ok, Julia time. i toyed with making it sound completely legit then doing the old "it was all just a dream" thing but you know what? that's way overdone. so, my DREAM about being Julia Robert's house sitter.

It's bizarre really because i'm not a huge fan, i haven't seen a movie of hers in ages, yet she popped into my subconscious and asked me to watch her house for a while (the nerve of some people). the odd thing was, she was still there, wasn't on vacation or anything. anyways, one day i met a reporter whom Julia told me to avoid but rather than ignore him, i fell in love with him. i would invite him over to her house when she was out and we would wander the vast corridors of her mansion. he clearly knew the house well and told me of a secret room that only Julia and he knew of. for days i begged him to show me this room and he finally gave in. he took me to this narrow door at the back of her house and opened it slowly to reveal nothing but black, solid darkness. we walked inside yet he turned no lights on, he told me to be patient. it felt like we stood there in blindness for hours until all of a sudden a flickering haze of red light bled out of a corner. the haze grew bigger and brighter and changed from red to white. within seconds a full sized double decker bus appeared full of jovial people of all sorts, waving ribbons and throwing confetti. people were cheering and singing, dancing and twirling. there were bright bold skirts made of crinoline, top hats and red velvet waistcoats. rosy cheeks and feathers in hair, accordions and fiddles. colourful people on an otherworldly adventure. and all of this was tucked away in Julia Roberts' house. celebrities get everything.

i love when my dreams do that, go completely wild and unexplainable. what goes on in my head when i'm comatose blows me away. so much cheaper than going to see a movie.

where for art thou?

i've been neglecting my blog, i should be ashamed.  i've had thoughts and bits to write about even but have just not had the time.  busy at work (le sigh) then coming home to do an intensive exercise routine with Damian.  doesn't leave us with much time to do other things besides eat then go to bed. sad yes, but i am developing some biceps which are a new phenomenon on this bod.

i have however created 3 new pieces which are now for sale in my shop!  I'm also still having a sale so swing on over and check it out.

i WILL be back soon to post about the kitties growing up (photos included), housesitting Julia Robert's house, and the enduring love of the handwritten letter.  for now i must sleep.  I can hear 'The Music Man" coming from the wall behind me, 76 trombones are leaking through the drywall.  Damian loves that movie and is currently taking a trip down memory lane via the bed. sort of like "Bedknobs & Broomsticks", if you don't know what I'm talking about watch the movie.  After you see it you'll question every bed knob you come across with an arched brow of "I wonder" curiosity. 

to slumber i go.  goodnight goodnight.  here's to hoping for dreams of tall grass, wrap around porches, and flying kites.

out with the old...

i'm having a HUGE sale in my shop, selling some of my pieces for crazy prices.  Making room for new works.  Check out the sale section, a couple of originals are even 50% off!  Help a girl in her goal to escape the realm of 9-5.  :)

saturday rambling

i've been loving lemon lately, a fresh squeezed wedge of juice in boiled water, a "hot lemon" as my dad calls it.  that tart burst of a piece of pulp that finds it's way between my teeth, it makes my eyes squint into a Renee Zellweger sort of face.  i love it, keeps me on my toes.  it's very good for you too, helps clean out that ol' liver.  

speaking of Zellweger, Rob Marshall (who directed 'Chicago') has a new movie coming out soon that looks like a lavish feast of delicious for the eyes.  the shots, the lighting, the costumes, the song, the sets, they all make my want to take up residence and settle down on a cozy piece of fantasy.  not to mention Marion Cotillard is in it, yum!  watch the preview and may your dreams be filled with shadows, sparkle, dancing, and maybe a bit of naughty afterwards.

i've been trying to upload a video to my blog but youtube isn't letting it work for some reason. it tells me the video will appear shortly but then... nothing.  i will march on, keep trying.

~sometimes a post of randomness is good, good to write the way my brain thinks sometimes.  so many topics rambling through at one time~

i'm about to enjoy a Spanish wine that i bought purely because of the label.  i like to try new wines and i tend to let the label do a lot of the work in helping to choose a bottle.  hey, if the liquor store isn't gonna give out samples i have to decide somehow.  besides, how beautiful does this sound (from the back label), "... where sidewalk cafes fill to watch a vibrant world pass over the rim of a wine glass".  that's where i would like to be every day.

back to the theme of movies, i'd like to someday write a screenplay.  i took a night school course a few years ago and is it ever harder than you'd think.  there's more technical aspects then i would have thought.  it was fascinating to learn the back end of a craft that has captured my imagination and heart for so many years.  Within the first 3 classes we were to come up with an idea, our film, and pitch it to the class.  Hard work.  of course the idea i came up with was one of the toughest types of screenplay to write, so said my teacher.  i have a tendency to think large, and complex.  my piece was an ensemble piece, the story of a man who finds out he has a year to live and who's wife and friends help him to live out every last one of his dreams. totally done before but hey, what hasn't been done before?  at least i wasn't writing the script for the re-make of 'Breakfast at Tiffany's' (starring Mylie Cryrus & Zac Effron... *shudder* i fear the day).  are there no more struggling writers out there with original ideas?  what's with all the re-makes?

anyways, off i've gone on a babble.  i'll be putting some pieces up for sale in my shop shortly, have to make room for new work!

goodnight moon.

wayward flight

another new print in my shop.  i get the sense my subconscious is focusing on a certain topic. running away seems so dramatic but FLYING away, now that has a more ethereal romantic quality.  don't you think?  

imagine flying away from all that is stale in your life, all that holds you down.  closing your eyes and picturing a neverland of sorts in the near reachable distance.  all you need to do is stand on your toes and blow a kiss to the sky with arms outstretched and you're off.  wandering the clouds heading to an imagined somewhere.  when you land no one will know you, you can start fresh and be who you were meant to be.  no judgements, no worries, no time limits.  everything flows to a natural breeze, nothing is forced or contrived.  your smile tastes like raspberries and your deepest breath feels like a warm hug made out of love.  

this is where the bird is soaring, that place in the imagination that can only be true if you believe it.