PASTE POTS

Recently I've been smitten by the collage bug. I guess as children we cut and pasted to make those posters for school.So, back to childhood with a twist. I'm a painter, primarily, with most of my work in watercolor. Moving into doing some collage works puts me into a new arena. It's so much more tactile or touchy feely. It's fun to CUT an TEAR. To smear paint rather than meticulously apply it to a finite space. So I did my first collage. in my collage book. (a 25 cent relic from the library) I'm using Elmer's white (diluted) as an adhesive. The label was scanned shrunk and printed. I've put them in a book for....well, I like books!

Valentines Day

Every year I make a Valentine card for that special someone in my life. This year was no exception. Instead of a new idea, I resurrected one from the unused idea file. I wanted to do something interesting, surprising, and, perhaps a little risque. Also, I wanted to stretch myself a bit creatively. That meant that it would not be a simple card. I have long been a fan of pop-ups and paper sculpture. And, of course, words and pictures have to work together. I decided to use the readily available blank greeting card that comes with the correct size envelop. I also knew that the surprise element would be photo of me in the buff!! I took several photos using the timer function on a battered Olympus digital camera. Then used Photoshop to place the image of a Valentine heart on the photo in a strategic place. I printedd theis image out on glossy photo paper and left a border around the image reminiscent of a commercially produced wallet sized photo. Via a search of the Internet I found the exact image of a lady's purse. I combined the visual elements of the card on the computer and printed it out on the blank greeting card. Using an craft knife I made an incision for the photo. This almost almost finished the project. I glued a piece of card stock to the back of the card so that the photo would not fall through.

It's Been a while....

It's been a while since I've posted. This political thing is keeping me busy. I'm running for Berkeley County Council from Distict 5. There are lost of suff to do. I decided that at this time in my life I would get involved in politics. But I did have achance to make Claudette a Valentine card. The painting of David won a prize in a local show.

Just stuff

Wowsers! The Christmas season is here and the year is almost gone. and I'm happy. We just had the best Christmas party ever at 105 Queensbury here is the Creek. What fun! David with assistance from Aimee provided entertainment. Straight (well, almost straight for AK). My sis and her husband were here along with nephew and wifey-mate. Lots of music and food and fun. About 50 personages.

But now is the time for buying and wrapping gifts. Both of these skill somehow elude me. I think that they are probably gender specific. But alas the deeds are semi-done. No wrapping yet. Should I use the Sunday comics again for wrapping paper?

David has gotten me started on playing the guitar again. I have flirted with this idea for over fifty years. But I'm practising again. A Santana I will never be! The weight loss program is still working. Without my muse this would indeed be and impossibility.

self-relaince

Remember when? Like a lot of people in my age bracket I frequently receive e-mails recalling days gone by with the title "REMEMBER WHEN". The nostalgic look at the past is good and we can learn from the past and apply it to tomorrow. Self-reliance seems like one of those old fashioned characteristics that we and our parents had. I haven't seen much reference to it lately. Why? Perhaps there isn't much self-reliance any more. Is there a place for self-reliance in an entitlement society? I don't believe there is one. Could self-reliance replace entitlement? I believe it can. But it must be and individual group effort. Is that a conflict of terms? Yes and no. Let's ask ourselves what is self-reliance. From the dictionary: self-re⋅li⋅ance--reliance on oneself or one's own powers, resources, etc. Would everyone embrace the idea of determining there own future? If each of us take control of our futures, indeed the future of our governing body, then we can obtain self-reliance. It must be and individual decision0n to act collectively to obtain this common good. And that, my friend, would reclaim the freedoms we have lost due to and entitlement mentality. We could rely on our own decision about our future whether tomorrow or for the next generation.