Art All Night

Have you been to this great event in the past?  So much talent in one small space.  It is really worth the effort to visit.  Anyone can show a piece of their art too.  You'll see work form the everyday Joe to some very well know local artists.

I have shown some photos in the past, it's so hard for me to pick just one.

Visit the official website is here


some reasons not not miss it!



Please visit, I guarantee you will have a great time!

Wordless Wednesday June 19, 2013

Wordless Wednesday

Early Spring

The weather this winter has been mysterious. A huge snowstorm for Halloween, then little snow the rest of the year, unusually warm, very strange. Now we are blessed with a very early spring. Some areas have freeze warnings, but typically, we are a zone 6, with frost possible right up until May.  Now, I look outside my window an think I am seeing snow balls! The magnolia, pear and cherry trees are blooming away, with dashes of forsythia.







I'm enjoying some NJ finds like this cute bunny from the shop fromnancysheart on Etsy !

There is still a chill in the air overnight, so we still need to bundle up. How about this cowl from happiknits?

Ther eis nothing so precious as having a flower that will last forever.I love the craftsmanship in this beautiful flower necklace by Debbie at stoutdg. It's perfect for you favorite girl, don't you think?
 Remember, shop local, help a real person!

Wordless wednesday

Salvadore Dali, where are you?

I had a very unusual day today. Was awakened by a phone call about 5 am to go to work, I wasn't expecting to work until late in the afternoon. My life is full of these surprises.

Atlantic City here I come. To run a train from Atlantic city to New York. I travelled over 500 miles today on the ground. My Prius claims it got over 60 MPG. Locomotives are very energy efficient. I was happy to have a green day.

Atlantic City is very alluring, blue skies with white and pristine buildings as you approach it during the day, red accents and sleek towers by night. It wants your money, so the seedier side is not so apparent at first glance.

New York slaps you in the face and says, “WAKE up baby, you're here! Pay attention!”  Contrary to what you have heard Penn Station is the epicenter of New York, not Times Square. You will see everyone there, from the homeless, to the rich and famous, as well as tourists from around the world. Yes, it's true. I met Bill Cosby once, he was taking the train to Princeton. Places like Times Square are for tourists and the natives avoid going there unless they are going to a show. The area around Penn Station has retained a sense of the the real dirty world we live in, it's not all glitz and glitter. The Empire State building looms in the East, the neoclassic Farley Post office squats to the west, the skyline a jumble of new and old boxes and towers. Taxis and buses and crowds, oh my!

I had decided on Chinese food for lunch. The Chinese food in New York is probably the best anywhere, except of course for China. I walked a few blocks to order my lunch. There were a few people of questionable gender in the plain restaraunt, a scene I had not expected at lunchtime. My lunch was made quickly and I returned to the station and employee “lounge” to eat.

Back on the road, or rather the rails to return to Atlantic City.

I was thrilled to stop at my favorite place to a quick dinner before I went home. Many tan bodies and gold jewelry, happy families with children enjoying a relaxing meal. What a contrast between the Jersey scene and New York, New York.

I'm reeling just a bit, Dali would have loved it!

Queen of the World

In case you haven't heard, I am now Queen of the World. Yes, that's right Queen of the World!

Laura Stamper made this ring and when she announced it, I saw my name all over it, so it's mine and I am now Queen.







 I went to my favorite place in the kingdom today, the Grounds for Sculpture.   If you don't believe me,  my friend and protector, King Lear will affirm that indeed, I am Queen of the World!








I love visiting this place.  The landscaping is so interesting and tonight it was so quiet.  I sat by this pool and admired many of Laura's mermaids swimming silently.

So I must tell you that while there can only be one Queen, you can feel special when you find your self at Laura's shop!  I am sure that you are there, just take a look!

Bitbots & the Animals

I know you are wondering what the heck is a bitbot?  They are creations of a brilliant young man, Asher.  You can read more about them here.  I've started a clan.  They are very amiable, and have come to be very fond of my cat Gracie.  In fact, they are quite concerned about the welfare of animals.  They decided that Ms. DeVille needed to be educated about the way puppies should be treated.  I really don't think she paid much attention to what they had to say.  But she had better watch out because their numbers are growing and they will return to check on the puppies.

Next, they decided they wanted to head far away and meet the most unique creature, the kangaroo.  While they are in Australia, I think I'll ask them to stop and see another very talented jewelry artist I know, Mandy from Beadsme.  I've been lusting for this necklace. I sure hope the bitbots remembered to take some money with them!

Birthday Fun!

BOY

PLUS BIRTHDAY CAKE

EQUALS

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ENZO!

Wordless wednesday

Get on the TRAIN!

As seen in Hoboken!

Summer's Bounty in the kitchen

Most of my day today was spent managing food. In the morning, I went to Trader Joes and Wegmans. Friday I went to the Greenmarket at Union Square for fresh peaches, blackberries, raspberries, apricots and vegetables.

Right now I am away from home a long time for work. I'm tired of trying to find healthy food when eating out. The solution is to take more food with me. I am trying to eat fresh, whole foods, unprocessed.  It's a bit strange, but the more I eat whole foods, my cravings for other foods which are less healthy have diminished.

Today I cooked:

Roasted turkey breast

Roasted vegetables, check out the photo! Two kinds of eggplant, green and yellow squash, garlic, purple peppers and tomatoes from my garden.

Lunch was organic tempeh with lettuce and tomato on whole grain wrap.

I made turkey, broccoli, carrot and organic red quinoa salad for lunch Monday. Also berries with organic yogurt. Breakfast will be turkey, tomato and spinach on a pumpernickel bagel.

I cut up celery and carrots for snacking with hummus.  I love grazing, having small samples of any food.

Made tuna salad with celery and grapes for Tuesday.

Finished blending my nut mix.

Dinner, I was bad and had a white hot with string beans. Only some of you know the delights that a white hot brings to the taste buds~! A minor lapse that will not happen often.

I hope you are enjoying the bounty from your gardens or your local farmers- eat local, eat fresh!

Atlantic

A view from the Cape May lighthouse.  The ocean was a strange color yesterday, brownish, muddy blue. I can't help but wonder if it's unhappy by the oil spewing in the Gulf of Mexico.. when will we learn?

Nature's Gift

Adventures

I get very restless. I have a thirst for new and different places and activities.  I have heard about Ringing Rocks Park for a while but have never been there. It's only about an hour away.  It was a nice afternoon yesterday so I started off on my quest.

I missed the first turn off Rt 32 and had to take another road to get there. A tiny drive, you would miss it if you blinked. Another couple arrived when I did, and we finally found the trail through the woods to the boulders.
Definitely a strange place. The other people there were hammering away, some rocks ring more than others.

I started back on the trail to find the waterfall.  I had forgotten that the bugs are out and left home without bug repellent. Gnats are just so annoying when they fly in your face, and there are so many of them.  And then I came upon a guardian on the path.  I am no fan of snakes, and although he was small and harmless, I decided I would come back another day!

New Uniform!

I was headed up the Delaware today for dinner, and something caught my eye as I drove through Frenchtown.  I've always wondered how Frenchtown was given that name, but have yet to find the history.  Many towns along the Delaware were thriving at the turn of the century, due to the railroad that was built along the banks, the canals, and shipping traffic on the Delaware itself.
I stopped after dinner to see there is a new consignment shop. And in the window something quite extraordinary! How did this extravagant corset come to rest  this sleepy river town?  Your imagination could spend hours inventing stories about this outfit.  However, I think it makes a fitting uniform for my lovely group of jewelry designers I know from Etsy, the Jet Team.
. (With apologies to our chief blogger and all around super- man, Bob!)

Wealth of Roses

I'm just an average working gal. Don't have much money, but enough. But right now I do have a wealth of roses. We're going to have a rain storm later, so I had to go out to my two rose bushes and cut all that I could.  I have over a dozen, a bonus from my own garden!
The photo does not show the colors well. There are deep red blossoms from the Don Juan climber, and burnt red from the Cocoa Via.   I have had the Don for a long time now, the Cocoa I bought a few years ago for the front of my house. It is very thorny which discourages unauthorized picking of the blooms.

The best way to keep roses fresh is to keep them in a cool spot, change the water and clip the end of the stems every other day.  Also, make sure to remove any leaves from the stems in the water.  I know I will be enjoying my blooms for the rest of the week!

More fun in NYC

I really applaud whoever invented the small and smaller digital cameras. I try to have mine with me all the time.  You never know , especially in New York, when you will see something unusual.

For Ann

Happy Valentine's Day