Category Archives: Art

2024, Art, Nature, Seasons

Neither Snow Nor Rain….

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One of my holiday projects is a handmade calendar in a 6 x 6 format; I make four of them every year.  You may think that it’s a little early to start worrying about this but 3 layers of paper per month times 12 months times 4 versions comes out to 144 pieces of paper.  One of my rules is that I can’t purchase anything but the paper to make these calendars.  All the stamps, die cuts and assorted accessories have to come from my stash.  But 144 pieces of paper is still a chunk of change so I do have to keep an eye on cardstock sales and since I almost always get the paper at Joanns (they have the best selection), I start watching the sales early on.

The best sales are the 50% off sales but this year Joann’s went all out for President’s Day and offered 10 sheets for $3 on all the open cardstock (normally .79 to .99).  Even though it’s only February, I haven’t seen a price this good before so I didn’t want to let it go by.  I kept the sales mailer on the dresser waiting for the first day of the sale.  It was listed as a Doorbuster, which sometimes means the sale price is only good for the first morning, so my plan was to be there Thursday morning at 9 a.m., when they open.

Then on Monday the forecast said we would get a dusting on Wednesday.  Then on Tuesday, the snow jumped up to a possible inch.  By Wednesday afternoon they were talking 3-5 inches.  Yikes!  By bedtime on Wednesday it was snowing but now they were only predicting 1-3.   Woke up to about 4 inches and a big pile at the bottom of the driveway.  I waffled for about an hour about how much I really needed cheap paper and then headed out.  Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night can stay me from a good paper sale!

What will you brave the elements for to get your hands on?

2024, Art, Fantasy, Games, Mysteries

Dragon Forge

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I just finished the Dragon Forge puzzle.  1000 pieces.  And I promise, this is not a blog about how I succumbed to temptation (repeatedly) to sit for hours at the table working on this thing.

I chose this puzzle from the fantasy section of the Puzzle Warehouse in St. Louis, a fascinating place I discovered on a visit to Nonny right before pandemic.  It’s a huge warehouse with puzzles sorted all kinds of ways – mostly by the company that produced the puzzle but also in theme areas including my favorite.  Fantasy. 

My first big plunge into science fiction/fantasy was Star Wars, which I saw at the Grand Theater in Northfield.  Four nights in a row.  Then came the reading of The Hobbit when I was 20.  This was followed immediately by all three volumes of Lord of the Rings.  The barn door was open – the horse was not going back in! 

I’m usually more drawn to fantasy than science fiction and it’s almost exclusively due to dragons.  Sure, wizards, witches, fairies are great but dragons are the draw.  I’ve been known to search the library website using “dragon” as the keyword.  There are amazing numbers of books out there with “dragon” in the title.  I prefer sympathetic dragons, dragons who can communicate, smart dragons, dragons with magic but I can handle the dark side as well. 

Nobody that I know is into dragons like I am.  This is where my problem is this week.  I love the artwork on this puzzle and I’d love to know that the next home that it travels to will have someone who appreciates it as much as I do.  I’ve thought about keeping it and maybe putting in in a frame but I don’t really have any wall space and I’m pretty sure that YA would object anyway if it went in any communal space. 

I know that there are occasional puzzles swaps around the Twin Cities but I’ve never gone to one.  A friend said that they are opening a permanent spot in a Hennepin County Library for jigsaw puzzles; I haven’t found any information on it yet.  Hopefully I can find a good swap or location for Dragon Forge, so that it goes to a good home where dragons are appreciated!

Where do you like to get rid of your excess stuff?

animals, Art, Mysteries, Travel

Helping the Javelina

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This is the last post about Nashville.  I swear.

When I did the blog last year about Henrietta (my stuffed javelina) going to Madison, it was kinda funny and I enjoyed it.  So I thought it would be fun to do it again on my trip to Nashville.  What I didn’t expect was that others would take on the cloak of silliness with me.

My friend Pat was absolutely obsessed with getting a photo of Henrietta wherever we went – zoo, Strawberry Café lunch, shopping, pizza place, the winery.  You’ve already seen the photos at the Goo Goo Cluster store and the Moonshine distillery and the breakfast place.  But she wasn’t the only one concerned that I get a good photo with Henrietta. 

A complete stranger at the zoo volunteered to take a photo of me and Henrietta with some flamingos that we out doing “meet & greet”.  Is demurred, not too sure how close I wanted to get to a huge (they are much bigger up close than you think) strange bird.

The woman working the bookstore at the Belmont Estate also noticed Henrietta in my bag and asked about her.  We were waiting for our tour to start so Pat was happy to go on and on about all the places that we had taken Henrietta over the past couple of days.  The woman got all excited and led us to a spot we would never have seen on our own… under a staircase on the second floor of the mansion.  There was a small statue of a pig, complete with a red bow.  This was a photo I couldn’t resist. 

Although it’s been fun, I’m not sure I need to keep it up.  I will probably take her to Tucson in March; it is after all her birthplace (my friend purchased her for me while I was there last year) but I’m not sure she will go to St. Louis with me this month.

Do you take selfies when you travel?

2024, Art, Gatherings, Kids, Movies

Blinding Lights

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YA came home from work yesterday asking if I had watched the Golden Globe ceremonies.  When I looked at her blankly she asked if I had “heard” about them.

I actually don’t really know what the Golden Globes are.  I mean, I know it’s yet another way for the over-paid and over-glamorized folks in Hollywood to pump up their egos, but other than that I don’t know what differentiates it from the Oscars.

One of my friends always makes a point of seeing all the movies that are up for the best picture Oscar.  I’m pretty much 0 for 5 every year for the past 10 years.  I did see Shape of Water on Christmas Day 2018 – I didn’t know anything about it at the time, just that it was showing at a good time for us.  I didn’t actually like it very much so was surprised to find out a few weeks later than it was an Oscar contender.

Apparently the Oscar nominations are due out on January 25 although there are lots of websites trying to predict who will be on the leaderboard.  Since the only movie I’ve been to in the last year is “Migration” (an animated film), I’m pretty sure I’m continuing my streak.

I’m fairly certain that none of my favorite movies have ever even been nominated for a big award, much less won one:  To Catch a Thief, Moonstruck, Princess Bride, People Will Talk, Sneakers, Murder on the Orient Express (1974 version only), American Dreamer, Dial M for Murder…. 

Do you follow the Globes/Oscars/Sundances/Cannes, etc???   Do you have a favorite movie?

2023, Art, Family, Fantasy, holidays

Festive Display

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When I was growing up my family and I used to drive around at the holidays to look at homes all decorated up with festive lights.  But that was the only time of year that folks decorated outside.  At Halloween, most folks put out jack-o-lanterns but usually just on Halloween or a couple of days beforehand.  It just wasn’t a thing that people did.

Well, it’s a thing now!

YA and I spent a little time driving around on Saturday, looking at the fall colors and some of the fascinating displays in yards around South Minneapolis.  Lots of ghosts hanging from trees, lots of skeletons lounging around on porches or adirondack chairs and, of course, pumpkins galore.  We saw one house with their long windowbox filled with little bitty pumpkins and squash of all colors.  We also saw a huge blow up arch that looked like a monster with outstretched arms that you had to walk through to get to the front door.  Wondering if that will too scary for small kids on Halloween night.

There were two stand-outs of the afternoon.  First was the class of skeletons, apparently waiting to have their school photo taken. Very creative and very funny.  Also a LOT of work I bet.  I kinda wish I lived across the street from this house so I could have watched as this scenario was set up.

The second photo YA snapped was such a mish-mash of stuff that we couldn’t resist.  Little ghost lights along the sidewalk, a funny looking ghostbusters car (looks a bit like a VW Beetle), a dog with a pink hat, a minion, pumpkins, and over-sized skeleton and (my favorite) a dragon!  We did see two other yards with this blow up dragon but this one won the prize for being part of such an eclectic collection. 

I’ve never been big on decorations outside, although I will admit to a cornstalk along with my pumpkins this year, but I do enjoy looking at others’ displays.  And I did look up the inflatable dragon online – not horribly expensive, but a bit much for someone who isn’t prone to overdoing décor outside.

Any Halloween/fall decorations (outside or inside) at your place?

2023, Art, Farming Update, home, Theatre, Uncategorized, work

Don’t Forget Your Jacket

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Today’s Farming Update comes from Ben.

This week has all been about the theater. Well, Covid and Theatre, I guess. Wait, Covid was last week. It’s all a blur. I’m over the symptoms, but still testing positive. Good thing I work alone most of the time. And by now I shouldn’t be contagious anymore.

It’s rained a lot lately. And now it’s getting cold. We’ve had more than six inches of rain since the end of September. Oh well.

We open a show Saturday, and then next week will be two shows a day for all five days. Kids are bused in from the local area elementary schools. This kid show has always been a big hit for us, and of course we haven’t been able to do one since 2019. We were afraid we had lost a lot of the contacts at the schools and weren’t really sure what kind of reception we’d get this year. We feel really lucky to have an audience for all 10 shows, including three that are sold out. The play is an adaptation of Shakespeare’s ‘Twelfth night’ called “Lions in Illyria” by Robert Kauzlaric. Very cartoony and big and goofy and the kids should enjoy it. And short at 65 minutes. The three days I missed with Covid would have been helpful about now. I’m sure the paint will be dry by Saturday afternoon. Things will be ‘good enough’. I did take a few shortcuts, I called in some favors. The show must go on. As long as we can keep cast healthy.

I have a can full of stir sticks at the college. I’m pretty sure some of them were here when I started the job 17 years ago. I do know that I threw out a bunch a few years ago and for this show I decided to put all the ones that I’ve used a different container, because I feel like the sticks at the back of the first can were being neglected. Kelly was in to help paint one day and her goal was to use up all the stir sticks. She made a good dent in it. The can on the left is the unused sticks for the show, and the can on the right are the ones that I have used.


I learned how to paint marble for the show. The white and pink one I painted using a ripped T-shirt. My friend Paul came in and painted the green one. He makes it look so easy. And he enjoyed having an easy project like this.


I’ve talked with Crop Insurance about my soybeans. We started some preliminary claims just so the paperwork is out there. I’ve got until December 10 to get them harvested. After that we just write it off and let them go to insurance. This week of 20° temps at night will certainly freeze everything, but honestly, I’m not sure if the beans will ever dry down enough to harvest. We would need a good week of clear sunny, warmish temperatures and that’s really pushing it this time of the year. But with these weather patterns, who knows. I get home about 10:00 PM these nights (after rehearsal) and I was out picking up hoses and taking the outside faucet off the wellhouse. I need to pick up the pressure washer and hand sprayer yet.

Luna has moved right in and made herself at home. Our bed is her favorite place to be now. She loves to play catch and Tug-O-War. She’s shredded a few toys. And we’ve left her home alone and she’s just fine. Doesn’t like it, but at least she’s not chewing up the furniture.

THINGS THAT NEVER WEAR OUT?

2023, Art, Uncategorized

Public Art

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The main north-south highway route through my town sports a deep underpass beneath the east-west rail tracks that pass through the middle of town. It is prone to flooding, and for many years it was the only way to get from the north side of town to the south side of town when a train was passing.

The underpass has large cement walls. About 10 years ago a civic minded friend, with the blessing of the City and State authorities, commissioned a California mural artist to paint the sides the the underpass. He painted regional images, like Ukrainian dancers, rodeo cowboys, wheat fields, and Badlands on the cement walls. It was really lovely.

Over the years, moisture has leached through the paint and it has become unstable. The paint was peeling off with no way to restore the images. There was surprisingly very little vandalism, I should add. A couple of weeks ago, the city closed the underpass and painted over the murals with white paint. It was sad, but there wasn’t anything else to do. I wonder how much public art we have lost over the centuries due to problems like this.

What are your favorite public art works? What would you want to paint on a mural?

2023, Art, Food, Uncategorized

Decorative Arts

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This is a purely silly post for Friday. A friend posted this on Facebook yesterday, and I was entranced.

Once the Dutch part of me got past how wasteful this is, I was entranced with his creativity. I would have so much fun doing something like this. I am not a cake decorator sort of person. I haven’t the patience. But this seems so satisfying. I wonder if the creation is edible, and how he might serve it.

What is your favorite kind of chocolate? If you could make a chocolate sculpture, what would it be? What is your decorative style?

2023, Art, education, Family, Uncategorized

Silk Purses

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I have no artistic ability whatsoever, and I am amazed by those who do. Husband can draw quite well, and his mother painted landscapes. Our daughter also has some nice artistic abilities.

I don’t think Daughter really liked art projects very much in the early grades, but seemed to really like an art class she took as an elective in High School. One of her projects was to weave a basket. It seemed to start out ok, but just didn’t work out as she wanted it to, and thought she had failed the project. The art teacher, however, saw something more in her failed basket.

He noticed that instead of a basket she had created a lovely Flamenco dancer. You can see her head thrown back, with her orange hair, and the outlines of her body under her dress. Daughter was surprised I still had the dancer. It reminds me that lovely things can come out of what we think are failures.

What kind of art are you best at? What kind of art do you like to have around you and look at? When have you made a silk purse out of a sow’s ear?

2023, Art, History, Travel, Uncategorized

Higham Ferrers

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When I was a junior in college, I went on a month long seminar to England, France, Italy, Germany, and Switzerland sponsored by the Religion and Philosophy Departments at Concordia College in Moorhead. We studied the transition from medieval to modern in thought, literature, art, and architecture. One of our stops was Higham Ferrers, a small town in Northamptonshire noted for its memorial brasses in the church.

The most famous brass is that of Laurence St. Maur, (pronounced Seymour), a parish priest who died in 1337. The brass dates from that time, and was originally on the floor. In 1633 it was placed on a tomb about four feet off the ground. . We were able to do rubbings of the brass on black paper and gold crayons. It is six feet long and two feet wide. I managed to get mine home rolled up in my backpack, had it framed, and managed to haul it to Winnipeg, Indiana, and North Dakota in one piece. He hangs on our hallway with framed Jim Brandenburg photos. You can see the top part of the rubbing below. It was hard to get a good photo without glare.

He doesn’t look too happy. There is an inscription farther down around his chest, ornately decorated robes, and two active dogs at his feet. He doesn’t have a head dress, but I gather that many brasses did, and the brasses were often used to show the decedent’s sense of style. Animals at the feet were often symbolic of how the person died. Flowers were also popular and symbolic. I read about a brass on someone named St. Margaret of Antioch who had a dragon at her feet. I gather that she was swallowed by the Devil in the form of a dragon, and emerged from his side unscathed.

What inscriptions or symbols would you want on your memorial brass?