A Painting a Day... Day 6!!

Lovin the cello...

A Painting a Day... day 5!!!

Banjo man.

Painting a day... day 4

Man playing didgeridoo!

A Painting a day... day 3

Hippie chick playing an Irish Bodhran, drum.

A painting a day... day 2

Ok, here is today's painting. Again all will be 6X6 3/4 wraped canvas acrylic medium. I am enjoying this painting a day thing, very gratifying to finish a painting and I'm doing it daily... we will see how it goes! Yahoo!!! Be well... Tj.

A painting a day...

I have been trying to wait until my home computer has all the fixes needed and all our files restored to update my blog. But that could be a while. I have some things I want to post like the video of me playing my ukulele in public for the very first time… my debut! Some photos of the Swell Sister first art show, that was fabulous. A few holiday moments I want to share. But I guess I'll wonder back in time when I can get to those files. (Hopefully that will be soon) For now I want to post about 2 things.

First, I have been given a new challenge. A painting a day for 30 days! It is for an art show in February for Second Saturday, that's right I'm in another show!! That is 4 months in a row now… WOW!! Who would have thought, a year ago or even 6 months ago that I'd be showing now, I have the Swell Sister Society to thank for that. I have been inspired to move forward in my art and to take leaps instead of baby steps. Thank you to all my Swell Sisters for your inspiration and support!!! So back to the Painting a day…

Here is my day one painting. They will all be acrylic on 6X6 stretched 3/4 wrapped canvas. I decided because it was a month long challenge to do the phases of the moon. Each day I'll paint the moon in what ever phase it is in, and in the foreground there will be a musician of some kind! So day one… January 12th 2009, the moon was full on the 11th, so it is just barely in the waning gibbous phase, tiny shadow on the right, not quite full and a trumpet player doing his thing! I am very jazzed about this project. We'll see how I feel 2 weeks in and I have to fit in to my busy schedule to do a painting a day! It should be an interesting project, emotionally, physically, artistically, spiritually… we will see! I am going to try to post each day, so anyone who wants can follow my progress too… if there is anyone out there??

The other thing, my very good friend Carolee sent me this photo of me and my hubby from 1993. (Thanks Carolee!) Who are those kids? Dang my husband was damn sexy back then! He’s sitting there all mysterious in his Beer Dawg shirt looking so cool. (He was the original bass player for the Beer Dawgs, for those of you who don’t know) I love you honey!

Ok, I'll be back tomorrow with today's painting. Be well! Tj.

Happy New Year!!!

Just a quick note to say Happy New Year to all!!! I will be at the Torch Club tonight, my hubby Joe is playing with Stacie Eakes and the Superfreaks. This is our 4th New Years Eve there with Stacie, always a great time!!! Our home computer had to be rushed off to the PC hospital, hopefully we will be back on line soon and I'll resume my blogging. Be safe and enjoy! Tj.

What lies beneath...

I am so confused this time of year. I want to be happy and joyous and I try to be but you see I am conflicted. 21 years ago tomorrow, my mom passed away. Yes on Christmas day 1987. And 19 years ago yesterday in 1989 my first husband and my son's father passed away, he wasn't my husband any longer but we still spent time together as a family and I still loved him.

I watched an old video of Christmas 1989 the other night. I saw my adorable little kids opening their presents, Nick was 8 and Lindsey was 3, they were so cute. I saw a smile on my face, but sadness in my eyes. What lies beneath.

I heard Nick ask in a sad little boy voice as he opened a present from his dad, how do you know this is from my dad? Because I wrapped it, my response, with a half smile on my face. What lies beneath.

Still today I say out loud Merry Christmas, and when I do it feels like a stab in my heart. What lies beneath.

I try to put up lights and decorate with Christmas spirit, but just want to scream. What lies beneath.

I want nothing more to bring back that Christmas joy I used to feel this time of year but I am torn. What lies beneath.

My smile feels like a cardboard cutout on a stick, I hold in front of my face. A facade to cover the sadness that overwhelms. Why is it still hard today so many years later… well it will probably always be. I'll dust off the cut out smile on a stick, and hold it up for all to see. I will wish merriment and joy, love and celebration to the world because that IS what I want. That IS really what lies beneath, I just figured it out, OMG I get it now. Tears of joy!!!

Wishing everyone the joy and wonder of Christmas. Thanks, love and blessings to you all.

I have my Swell Sister Laurelin to thank. We have a writing thread on the Swell Sister website where someone writes something and then gives the next word or phrase. Laurelin gave "cardboard cutout" as the next phrase. I have been struggling the past few days and I started to write about my struggle for my blog. Then I read the post with the phrase cardboard cutout and it all made sense to me. I started to write and it brought me a revelation. I thank you Laurelin with my whole heart.

Be well... Tj.

Dedicated to my mom...

Memories of youth explode as visions of sugar and creamy butter this time of year.

Mom's yearly ritual of creating sweet treats for all who crossed our porch

Caramel, divinity, fudge, marshmallow

The sound of scissors slicing waxed paper to small squares

Spooning golden gooey caramel hoping to hit the paper

Rolling and twisting attempting to trap the sweet surprises

The feeling in the spoon handle as it scraps the metal bowl

Scooping pink, blue and white clouds of whipped mixture

Puffs of sweet corn syrup confections float through my thoughts

Pouring smooth creamy cocoa brown melted concoction from the pan

Hoping to level the luscious liquid on the plate with the old wooden spoon

The smell of chocolate fudge whirls through my memory, I still smell it now.

Rolling the sticky white marshmallow in a messy mound of chopped walnuts

Fingers covered in nuts and candy

Mom’s smiling face smudged with who knows what

and her singing off key

The sights, sounds and smells of my mom’s kitchen rush back to me for the holidays

The kitchen table was the place to be. I miss that.

But mostly, I miss her.

Be well! Tj.

Long time no blog!

Gosh I haven't blogged in so long where to begin?? Ok, well last I blogged was just before Thanksgiving. Ours was nice. My brother Tim and nephew Thaddeus and my daughter Lindsey's girlfriend Kelsi all joined us. So there were 7 for dinner. The turkey this year came out juicy and delicious and I had a big bird, 18 pounds. So we had left over's for quite a while!


I had that week off from work, so we got a lot done. There were still boxes and bags of stuff we didn't know what to do with in our dinning room left from moving Lindsey downstairs, our office to Lindsey's old bedroom, and creating my art studio in our old office. How do we collect so much junk anyway?? Oh yea, we are collectors of stuff that is for sure! But the time off gave me the opportunity to go through those boxes and bags left and I got rid of a butt load of junk. Also, we organized and filed things that needed to be put away. My hubby Joe was amazing. He cleaned and scrubbed the kitchen and help organize. By the time Thanksgiving arrived we were very clean and organized! Wonderful!!!


I did some painting too, I had to have my 2 pieces for the Swell Sister's Gather the Women Second Saturday show done by last Saturday for hanging. So I had work to do! But I have to say they turned out really great! I painted on repurposed tile board that we had left from the downstairs bathroom redo. And I purchased old frames from a thrift store. The painting flowed into the frames, making the piece one large piece of art, not a framed painting. I think it is very folk artsy! I am going to do more of them! I took some photos, but am hoping to get better photos now that they are hanging. I used a gloss varnish on them, and when I took the photos it was not very light, so I had to use a flash. The gloss finish really picked up the flash, so I am hoping I can take some photos without a flash now that they are hanging. Once I have better photos I'll post!


Lets see what else happened, oh I went to a rehearsal with the Jahari Sai Trio. That was fun! My hubby Joe and I have 2 songs worked out to play at the Swell Sister show. So, at their rehearsal I showed up with my ukulele and plugged in! First time I ever plugged in my Uke. It sounded pretty good amplified! I am a little nervous about my debut, in public, playing music. What what??? Ok ok, deep breath, I'll be fine, Joe will be right there and that helps a lot! And, the room will be full of my swell sisters, family and friends so it all helps!


My son Nick had a birthday. He turned 27 on the 23rd. Yikes! He's getting old, what does that say about me??? We all went out for dinner, well Joe had to work, but Lindsey, Kelsi, Tim, Thaddeus, my niece Heather and of course Nick went. Then we played Phase 10 at our house and Nick was the victorious winner!!! We also played donkey, I, as usual, was the first to be a donkey! I am just too slow now days to play that game! Seems like I can't get a penny for anything!!! Nick was the winner for that too! It was a fun night and I think he enjoyed his birthday. Here is a photo of me, Nick and Lindsey what seems like just a year ago... Not! Ok, it was 18 years ago!


I created a book over the weekend. The Swell Sisters have a writing/poetry group, and we had quite a bit of haiku's and poems that had been written. We have been trying to encourage sisters to read some poetry on the breaks at the show, so I thought what better way to encourage them but to have their writings in a book. So, I took it all and put it in a book! I created it on http://www.lulu.com/ it is a self publishing site. Really cool. I order just a couple of books to be sure they print as well as they looked. Then I'll share the link and people can order it!


Well I guess that is it for now. I am getting so excited about the big Swell Sister Second Saturday show this next Saturday!!! It is almost here!!!!! Wahoo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Be well.



Until next time... Tj.

Another new painting...

Also not for the December show. I'm working on them too but, well my cousin Patti is retiring today! Lucky her!! 35 years with the State, now she is FREE!!!! Yes I am jealous much! Anyway, I painted her a quick little painting, 8X8, I was told by her sister that she loves cats and Lantana flowers so here goes... I hope she likes it! Happy Retirement Patti!!!

Be well, and Happy Friday!!! Tj.

It's Fall in Sacramento!

You just have to love the Fall weather in Sacramento! I always complain in the summer, I hate the heat, but the fall is the best. The last 2 weeks have had highs in the mid 70's and the leaves are turning and falling. It's beautiful! I've been busy working on my pieces for the Swell Sisters Second Saturday show. They are coming right along.

I took a little break to paint a small painting for a kind of second daughter… Jamie is my friend Patti's daughter. Patti and I have been friends since high school, so for quite a while, our kids grew up together. Well Jamie just celebrated her 28th birthday and I wanted to give her something special. Her family loves to go to Disneyland, and I found a photo of the backs of her children on her MySpace page and it gave me the idea for this little painting. I thought, hum a sunset with the kids in Mickey ears! It is 6X6, sides painted black. I was quite pleased with it, and when Jamie opened it she squealed! I was happy.

Not much else going on. I have all next week off. I am going to paint, and clean house and shop for Thanksgiving. I am having Thanksgiving dinner at my house just a small group. Should be very nice, I'm looking forward to it!

Oh we had raccoons visit our backyard pond again last night. Joe and I tried to scare them away. He was very brave and went down with a big stick and tried to scare them, well it did. They ran up in the trees to hide but as soon as he came back in they were right back in the pond. Thanks for trying honey! We'll see if we have any fish or frogs left! Oh well. That is the circle of life I guess!! Be well. Tj.

Prop 8 protest at the Capitol

My daughter Lindsey and I attended a Prop 8 protest at the Capitol on Sunday afternoon. The day was beautiful, the energy superb. I think the photos speak for themselves.

We still have a long way to go...

Today I sit and I feel so proud of my country! We got it right this time I think! President Elect Barack Obama wins by a huge margin! We have come a long way in my life time. I have childhood memories of segregation, busing, riots, ugly hatred thrown at other humans because of the color of one's skin. Now I sit and am proud we elect a man to the highest position in the USA based on who he is, his ideas, intelligence, courage and NOT judge based on the color of his skin. I am proud and have a renewed sense of love for my country. But we have a long way to go.

I am at this moment not so proud of my state, or at least more than half of them. Prop 8 the last I heard is winning by a 5% margin. Prop 8 if you don't know, is to constitutionally define marriage as between a man and a woman. It is to take away the right of same sex couples to marry each other, a right that was given to them in June of this year. More than half of the voters in California have voted to take away a liberty that has been granted by our courts. To strip the ability of two loving people to stand and say this is my spouse. I am sad and disappointed. If prop 8 does pass, and it looks like it will, we are taking a step backwards for humanity.

One of the great honors I have had in my job with the State of California was leading the domestic partners project, working with same sex couples who retired before it was possible to register as domestic partners. Legislation was passed that would allow those members to sign an affidavit of domestic partnership, declaring the date their domestic partnership began, a date that they would have met all the criteria to be eligible to register as domestic partners had registration been available, a date always earlier than their actual registration date, a date in most cases long before they retired. Using that earlier date I was able to establish domestic partners as eligible survivors where none otherwise existed. Making partners eligible now for death benefits, and health insurance. Some of the couples I assisted had been together 30 or 40 plus years. The tears of joy, the absolute appreciation and love I felt from them. I was honored to help them legally establish their unions, to put in print that they were a couple committed to each other all those years. Many of the who early in their relationships were forced to hide in shadows because of discrimination against them. I can only imagine how that validation help to improved their states of mind and self being. I spoke to many of these couples in the last few months again, they were getting married and had questions on what to do. The excitement and joy they were experiencing was beautiful. Now, if prop 8 passes, well, I am disappointed in all who voted yes on 8. I am sad you have not come further in your ability to accept others, to take joy in diversity and learn from each other. In fact really I am sick about it, but I have hope.

To those of you who voted against prop 8, be well. To the rest of you, please be better. Tj.

Lesson learned...

I was in a total panic this morning. Last night I gave my painting "In a Sea of Pink" one final coat of varnish. It was not the best lighting when I did it and I was getting sleepy. But I wanted to get it done so it would be absolutely dry by tonight when I take it to Tangent Gallery. Well, I got up this morning to find a hair found it's way into the finish! Ahhhhhh!!! It looked terrible. And was so obvious to me. I worked and worked on it and finally I carefully caught a piece of it, just enough to pull it off. Whew. I very carefully gave it another coat of varnish this morning. It will be plenty dry by tonight. So, lesson learned. Varnish in a well lit, very clean area!!! I was lucky this time. No disaster! Be well and GO VOTE!!!!! Tj.