Halloween and 'Stuff'

OK...so I have been missing in action once again... lost in the hinterlands of life... no excuse really other than ...there is so much of 'it' (life) going on...really hard to get all my ducks in a row...those little suckers like to wander off!! I do short little blips here and there on Facebook...that is because Facebook is designed to be in that format..short posts of this and that...like texting with pictures! But as I have said about a billion times Blogs are like a Great Big Hefty Chunk of what you really want to say... my problem...I never allow myself the time to actually sit down and say em!! But this morning I had a long talk with myself about my blog absence ...giving myself a piece of my mind (and now we are not speaking...looooong story) anyway...here I am... Popping on to say Howdy do just a few short days before All Hallows Eve.....BOO!

So ...what have I been up to you may ask... and I would answer.... a little of this, and a whole lot of that! Working on a few commissions at the moment ...with a couple more to start shortly.. then we just finished an auction on EBAY that was super fun... 3 little 'Monster Kids' Trick 'O' Treating ...and by monster I actually mean the real thing...not costumed kids... The Mummy's Kid, Wendy The Witch's daughter, and Frankenstein (aka the 'Monster) little boy...you might say a chip off his old man's block! This is the only time of the year they can blend into public without people freaking out...and besides...Lil Monsters like candy too! So that auction finished Tuesday...

I have been in the process of re-vamping my studio for weeks now...basically that's a really nice way of saying 'Cleaning' it up!! Out of control...and if it is driving me nuts you can imagine what it is doing to my neat-nik hubby!! I think I have gained control (for the time being!!) ...

Now that our weather is nice and not boiling hot any longer we are outside working on projects that desperately need to get done ... first up fixing the ground and fire ring where our new tipi cover will sit.... Yes! we ordered our new tipi cover and it should be here within the next 2 weeks...YIPPPEEE!!! We needed to do some repairs to the ground (leveling) and we are mortaring in our fire pit rocks . When it gets here we will paint the top and then put it up and paint the bottom...we can't wait...planning a bit tipi sitting party when all is ready...

We are also building a small patio area cover (shade) next to the pool...for BBQ and just sitting and relaxing. Also fixing our patio outside our back door that houses our pool table and kayaks...it is our little Wicked Waheni Lounge with rustic decking, grass roofed tropical feel meets English Pub Billiard room...I know I know bizarro combo...but it works, believe me!! But we are now needing to fix permanent sun and cold barrier walls in the form of cool painted (looks like real brink) covers ...we want to back them swivel in and out for air and light... Richard has it all jotted down on paper how it will work... should be very cool! The floor in that room is concrete that we have painted a solid warm green ages ago...we had grass mats all over the floor...but..they are falling apart with wear and people are beginning to trip on them...SooOooOoo I am going to actually attempt to 'paint' faux realistic looking grass mats on the concrete...I think it should look pretty cool ...maybe a few crabs, shells and a billiard ball for good measure! We already have a neat wooden deck stage that we painted a few years back for a party we had...with a band... So...this is my plan...and I hope to get started this week... I LOVE to faux paint..must be in my blood from my Grandpa.

We have been repotting lots of plants around the yard .. and trimming and pruning many already planted...and you have not lived until you prune 'Cactus' ...stickers, glochids , spikey thingies...and lots of other things that REALLY hurt...we spent one evening just picking things out of our hands and arms...ouch!

And we are also planning to clean out the garage by have a huge garage sale... and or giving to the local Pet rescue shelter.

On top of that all Richard is teaching me some guitar, I am trying to juggle again, I am sewing a bit and am about to paint the living room. Oh Oh...just got a wine chiller yesterday... something we have wanted for a few years now , they finally came down to a price we could afford...and we LOVE it...well...actually we got '2' ...because the area we wanted to put it in was to small , so we have this lovely older oak stand that would believe it our not hold not one big one but 2 smaller ones...so that's the route we went... so they sit side by side...and I keep my white in one and Richard keeps his red in the other...hey, works for me... ended up actually spending less!!

So this brings me to Halloween ...for some weird reason my heart is not in it this year...I mean, I have a 'few' things up...very few and certainly nothing like what I normally do...we get no kids...grrrrr...they all go 'Trunk or Treating'... BS if you ask me!! anyway...I decided to combine holidays...Yes...I am going to combine 'Halloween, Thanksgiving in the middle and Christmas'...I understand from another artist that there are a few out there doing this very thing ..like a club...I think they call it 'Hallowthanksmas' ..I think I will call mine 'Hollygobbleween' ....I will attempt to join my Halloween decorations...with my fall colors and Christmas Spirit and lights...should be interesting to say the least... I have always wanted to do a Jack Skellyton and Sally and Zero so I will be cutting them out of thin plywood, painting them and putting up all my gravestones with faux (there is that word again!!) snow... lots of stuff like that.... I promise to take pictures....

OK I have bent your ears (or strained your eyeballs) long enough...for those that stuck with this loooooong posting...I thank you and will pay up to 10% of your therapy bill!

I wait long times between but make up for it with non stop jibber jabber...

Great seeing all my Friends again.. and to those New Friends...Welcome!

Happy Halloween or as I like to say 'Happy Hollygobbleween'

Hugs,

Jodi