Category Archive for "Animals"

Mid March Update

Friday, March 14, 2025 0 Animals, Art Projects, Crochet/Knitting, Living in Michigan, Misc. Blatherings, Painting, Weather Update, Zines No tags Permalink

It’s mid-March, and so it’s time for a Mid March Update. I’ve been working on various projects, and experiencing some bits of joy in between some mental issues most unpleasant. I’ll focus on the former here, and obsess about the later in a destructive manner of my own making.

Art

I’ve been making more Artist Trading Cards, both collage and some small paintings as well. My goal is maybe three painted ones a week, quick studies. Will I improve if I do this type of practice for a year? Probably not. The first three are pictured above. I rather like the one with ink on the right. I’ve used both the neocolor ii and gouache paint for them.

I finished the full-sized Who is Who zine and had 50 of them professionally printed. They are up in my Etsy store, where no one has purchased one. I have sold a couple more of the Cats zines though and might need to consider printing another round. Maybe I should just make zines about cats.

Crochet

I have almost finished the crochet baby blanket for a Board member who is going to be a grandma for the first time. It’s Lion Brand Ice Cream Baby Yarn, waffle stitch using a 5.0mm hook, and has a ripple edge. If I had yarn left and some ambition, I’ll make a hat to match. I also signed up to make eight or so crochet cup cozies for the Whisker Mixer coffee pull May 15. I can just about finish one in an evening.

Substack

I joined Substack. So far, I’m posting “interviews” with some of the shelter cats. I got one of those kiddie cameras that prints thermal black and white images for something new to play with, above. If you are interested in that kind of thing, check out my Substack here.

Misc. Other Stuff

Mom had cataract surgeries the end of February/beginning of March. She did great with the first one and hopefully will heal up with the second with no issues (we’re only a couple of days out). She can’t bend over for a week after each eye, so I’ve been on litterbox duty with Fanny, pictured above.

The weather has been a bit better, though still up and down. In the 70s today, very cold and maybe snow tomorrow. We are less than a week until the spring equinox, so the cold won’t last forever. The maple tree buds have started to pop and the pussy willows are out on the CWBP trails.

Year’s End 2024

Tuesday, December 31, 2024 0 Animals, Misc. Blatherings No tags Permalink

Suddenly, we are at year’s end 2024. Mid-week New Year’s is odd, really. It gives a feeling of just wanting to get on with it already. Last night’s meltdown was remembering that, although I start the new year, Cass will remain forever in 2024. Nothing I can do about that.

The handsome buff cat above, wearing the bandage, is Bagel. He was a stray, feeding at a colony since October. In December he showed up with some pretty severe injuries from a likely dog bite, and we admitted him to our shelter. Since then, he’s had surgery to clean him up and neuter him, and he’s had his bandages changed out every other day or so. He is the world’s sweetest, softest cat.

I’m working on my bujo for next year. It won’t be completely ready by the start of the year, but it seems like a lot of things will work out that way for me. Year’s end 2024 just came up sooner than I expected. Maybe it was the late Thanksgiving. Maybe it’s that I’m older and time just moves like that now.

In 2024, we had the glory of breakdancing in the summer Olympics. A huge part of the maple tree fell on our roof. Biden halted his campaign for president, Trump was shot but survived, and Kamala Harris lost the election. I taught a couple of craft classes, sewed a bunch but sold very little for the Mutt Market, and made and sold zines. I did a great job with exercise and continued to work on not eating garbage all the time. The word of the year for me in 2024 was CREATIVITY and I think I achieved what I was looking for.

In 2025, I expect Trump will continue with policies and appointments that baffle the world. We will likely stop our support of Ukraine and that war may stop as a result. If that happens, it will be a win for tyranny. I hope to make more YouTube videos and make more zines. I hope to have a better sense of calm around me, as CALM is my word for the year.

If there is someone, anyone, out there continuing to read this blog and not just bots, my wish for you is a year of health and happiness.

September Recap

Wednesday, October 2, 2024 0 Animals, Crochet/Knitting, Garden, Kitty, Living in Michigan, Misc. Blatherings No tags Permalink

It’s October, yo. And so fast! Time for a quick September Recap before we start on spooky season.

Cats

In September, we managed to snatch the cat we had been seeing since early spring, aka Tuxie Gilbert. He turned out to be really sweet. We had him neutered and I was fortunately able to find placement for him in Ann Arbor. Unfortunately, this guy wound up kicking me into a compassion fatigue meltdown literally 16 years in the making. Spoiler: I’m doing better now.

This guy is Jett. He is having an eye issue of unknown origin, so he went with me to see Dr. Ben. He’s on new medication, but the prognosis is still unknown. I’ve been spending extra time cuddling him.

Matthaei Botanical Gardens

I made a quick trip to Matthaei Botanical Gardens. It is glorious.

Crafts

Mom and I stopped by the Craft Queen craft fair. It was a nice day and I supported some local arts and crafts businesses, which is always a win. I took a break from sewing to work on a couple of scarves for a local Facebook group that makes scarves and hats for Battle Creek children who don’t have appropriate winter wear. I’ve also been working on a super fuzzy lap blanket for a friend who needs a hug. I didn’t intend the colors to look like candy corn, but there you have it.

Misc. September Recap Stuff

We went to see cousin Evan in Urinetown at the Great Escape Stage Company in Marshall. It was really good. Charles Burr and Kelly VanRyswyk were also in it. It’s a lovely little theater and they really did a good job.

The mushrooms are now making an appearance on the Bark Park trails. We worked on the roof and indeed, finished the lower back half. Hopefully the upper portion will be done quickly, before the weather really turns. On a rainy day, I cleaned up my craft space some so I can paint my new zine (Clean Slate) when I get the opportunity. I’m ready to be done with the crochet projects so I can also get back to sewing some. I did get my Covid and flu vaccine, so hopefully I will avoid any sickness this autumn. The gardens need cleanup, at least to some point. I like to remove the leftover mess from the vegetables while leaving the perennials for the critters to use for overwintering. It’s been so dry I’ve had to work on keeping the birdbaths full.

Coming in October

Spooky season is upon us, and has me reminiscing of my glory days of Halloweens past. October 31 is on a Thursday this year, and the lobby is open to the public, so I could dress up. I’m not sure I have it in me though. I will do a post in October about past costumes I think. Before the pandemic, I had collected some parts of a Mrs. Peacock costume. For work, we will have our State inspection and Soup Day! I’ll send out some Halloween cards and small gifts to pen pals. I need to prep for the first class I am teaching at the senior center, “Slow Stitch Meditation Rolls” taking place the beginning of November. No Etsy sales in September, and my social media stats were down, too. Hope your autumn is off to a great start!

Misc. Snowy Day Thoughts

Thursday, February 15, 2024 0 Animals, Crochet/Knitting, Living in Michigan, Misc. Blatherings No tags Permalink

Time for some Misc. Snowy Day Thoughts as winter has returned with a rainy/snowy mix of misery.

I just used a little roller therapy thing that is supposed to help headaches. Now I smell like the sawdust used in elementary schools for puke. Also, I still have a headache.

I used the puke-sawdust-roller as I’m getting ready to have a colonoscopy next week and I can’t take my regular Aleve or ibuprofen. I’m all ready for the procedure prep. I have my Miralax, Ducolax, and two bottles of Gatorade (green and yellow, no reds or blues).

I recently had AI perform some avatar creations on photos from my phone. Every single image gave me a bright red nose and cheeks. Thanks, AI, for showing me that the world indeed only sees my rosacea. Fantastic for the old self-confidence.

I finished one SugarBlush Shawl with Arcane Fibre Works yarn (Just Breathe) and started another SugarBlush Shawl with Arcane Fibre Works yarn (Crashing Waves, pictured with Cass, above).

Yesterday was Valentine’s Day, and I did get little Valentine bags ready for all of the staff members. I try to always do that for Valentine’s Day and Halloween. I also sent out Twin Peaks Day gifts through the mail. I’m not doing InCoWriMo this year, but I’m behind on my letter writing so it seems I am doing InCoWriMo after all. We have 33 days until the official start of spring.

February Update

Thursday, February 8, 2024 0 Animals, Art Projects, gouache, Misc. Blatherings, Painting, Weather Update No tags Permalink

Today’s high is supposed to be 57 degrees. That’s unusual for the first week of February in Michigan. In fact, today’s normal high/low should be 34/16. It will drop back down and there’s word of a potential winter storm for Valentine’s Day. With 40 days left until the official start of spring, we do have a fair amount of time remaining for cold and snow. Even though it has been a very, very mild winter so far, and we’ve had more sunshine in the first few days of February than in the entire month of January combined, I admit I’m growing weary of winter.

I did complete one painting for January. One of the folks who signed up to do the Humane Society pet portrait punked out, so I painted these two parakeets in gouache. I’m working on a zine now for February also painted with gouache. Hopefully it will turn out well and will be completed this month.

January was a bad month for cats. Cass, above, had a health emergency and spent 48 hours at the vet with IV antibiotics. I really thought we were going to lose him. Bob went with me to take Cass, which really made a big difference to me. I went the next day to visit him at the vet as well, so he knew I didn’t abandon him. Cass is also featured in my Cats zine I created last month. That little cat has my heart, and I don’t know what I’d do without him. We also have ringworm in our kitten population at the shelter, and two different illegal cat drops. The first one included a FIV+ cat which thankfully we were able to transfer to a sanctuary, and the second one involved the police.

End of September

Thursday, September 29, 2022 0 Animals, Crochet/Knitting, Living in Michigan, Misc. Blatherings No tags Permalink

It’s the end of September, insert Green Day reference here. It was warm and sunny and lovely right up until the equinox (photo above is the last day of summer), and then it turned cold and rainy. Temperatures have had highs in the 50s this week, and some counties near ours have already had frost. I need to get a video of the end of September garden, and I need to get started on cleaning it up as well.

I crocheted this blanket for Melissa’s mother, and have been working diligently on crochet wash cloths since then. I also have a plan for reusable cloth paper towels and about 100 other projects waiting to be started. So many projects in fact, I’ve had to write them down on a list so I don’t forget them.

At work, we had the lower driveway paved. Pi had a leg amputation and is back in the kitten room. There is a frustrating amount of calls daily for us to take in cats, and as usual every shelter and rescue in southern Michigan is completely full. People need to spay and neuter their cats.

I finished The Betrayal of Anne Frank by Rosemary Sullivan and am now on The Girl with the Golden Scissors by Julia Drosten. Kirsten and Dustin came for a visit this month. I got a CPAP machine and have been sleeping a bit better thankfully. Overall, the month has gone by more quickly than I expected. I’m honestly feeling a bit “off” and I’m not sure why. Hopefully October will bring clarity.

Special Guest

Friday, July 8, 2022 0 Animals, Kitty No tags Permalink

We had a special guest over the Fourth of July weekend. Kitten Pi, who has an injured hind leg, stayed with us and brought us all kinds of joy. When he’s not playing, he’s sleeping, and he prefers to cuddle up close when he sleeps.

He’s gone on to another foster home until he’s ready for surgery. In the few days he was with us, he let me know that perhaps I can love another cat again. Pi is a special little soul, and we were lucky to have him as our special guest.

The summer is half over now, which seems incredible. I’m having a weird situation, where I have so many thoughts of so many things I’d like to do, I feel it is all overwhelming to the point where I should just go to bed. I’ve always had a list of the projects, ideas, things I want to learn about and do, but I’ve never before felt like it was all too much.

We are getting ready for our first of two in-person events at work since the pandemic. I haven’t been in a crowd in two years, so I expect this will feel a little uncomfortable.

The garden is looking pretty good. While June was exceptionally dry, we’ve had a bit of rain in July. We now have tiny tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, and eggplants. The flowers look good, too.

It’s Gonna Be May

Tuesday, May 10, 2022 0 Animals, Garden, Living in Michigan, Misc. Blatherings, Weather Update No tags Permalink

It’s Gonna Be May? No, it already IS May, and well into it. This week May feel more like July though, with highs predicted in the 80s. I saw a meme the other day that said something like Summer? No, Outdoor Depression. With the state of the world, it’s hard to look positively on things outside your own home. I’m lucky to have happiness there.

While I did not manage to create my own postcards to send this year for National Postcard Week 2022, I purchased some cards from amazing artist MN John (check out her website here, postcards and stickers and all amazing!). I didn’t send out many, just enough to feel like I sort of participated this year.

The flower beds have been all cleaned up, though I haven’t started on the vegetable garden. I did install our tiny water feature, and this Thursday will be putting in the water plants. I’m super excited to see how it turns out. The perennials are coming right up and looking good, but nowhere like they will be in a few weeks. It’s an exciting time of year for gardeners. Just over two weeks until greenhouse day.

Work has generally been a giant dumpster fire of stress. Not enough staff, unhappy staff, not enough money. Typical nonprofit stuff, I suppose. Kitten season has started, and as I’ve said before, you should never give your heart to a kitten. Cass here has spend some time in my office helping me work. He’s a good boy.

Ideas on the horizon? More linocut printing, book nooks, more YouTube videos and follow up on My Michigan Garden. Gardening, reading Nature is a Human Right, and waiting for my sleep test. Hope you are having a decent spring, or at least enjoying better weather.

Misc. Blatherings

Wednesday, August 25, 2021 0 Animals, Kitty, Misc. Blatherings, Painting, Soft Pastels, watercolor No tags Permalink

Time for some misc. blatherings. Can you believe we’re nearing the end of August? I did finish a sewing project, an altar cloth, for Mom. It has some decorative stitching on it. Work is a bit stressful now. I’m trying to chill out, but you know how that goes. Most of the time, I wish I was home painting.

I have been doing a little bit of painting. I’m not counting these, above, in my official paintings, so they don’t have numbers. They are small, postcard sized, trying out some new paper and new techniques. Again, I figure it is fair to show the things that aren’t working out so well and not just the good ones. Cousin Marlene sent me a pack of vintage postcards, including this one of cacti. The piece one on the left is in watercolor on watercolor postcard stock. The one on the right was my first attempt with soft pastels on sanded paper. It’s obviously not good. But, I think maybe I like pastels? Last night I started a bigger one, of the boat on the water images I did with watercolor and ink in the previous post. I don’t quite have all of the right colors but I think it’s coming together anyway. I’ll post it when it is done. It seems you need a bigger size piece for pastels, especially the Terry Ludwig variety as they are chunky.

I belong to a large number of facebook art groups. So many in fact, they are taking up all of my feed and with a lot of crap. So I have taken to hiding a lot of the artists from the groups as if it isn’t inspiring or I just don’t like that kind of art, why look at it? And horse paintings? Automatic hide. I would guess horse paintings are the number one subject for people just starting out in art. Why? I don’t care how good it is, when you’re done with it, it’s still a freaking horse.

Such sweetness of a sleeping beast. I had last Thursday and Friday off work to join an online MSU gardening conference and Maxy sure enjoyed having company on the couch. He really misses Bob during the day.

We’re going through another round of 90 degree days, so summer hasn’t quite given up yet. It’s been humid, too. I’ve had two migraines in the past week, and headaches every other day. At least we did get rain last night so the garden was saved from certain death by dehydration.

Ocqueoc Painting & Bird Updates

Tuesday, May 26, 2020 0 Animals, gouache, Living in Michigan, Painting No tags Permalink

I continue on with my gouache odyssey with this latest painting. The reference image is a photo I took of the field from my Grandparents’ place back to the woods, taken when Mom and Kirsten and I were last up north. I am pleased with how it turned out. I wish I had more time to paint.

I have also been spending some time with bird photography. Above is the female oriole, and below is a cheeky robin. We had our first hummingbird on May 21, quite late this year. Next update should be the garden expansion. We are putting in a monarch butterfly way station.

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