More Fun with Friends and Food

Here's an old pattern, but a goodie, Friends, with Polymer clay faces. The pattern is in the new edition of PAMELA'S DESIGNING A DOLL AND MAKING FACES INSPIRATION BOOK.

Spring in the Northwest, especially one as nice and sunny and warm as what we've been having seems to lead to increased time outside and increased socializing.









Mike and Katie invited Sally and me over for dinner at their totally CUTE cottage, which has probably already sold, even in this poor housing market. Luckily they will be living in Sally's new apartment (almost finished) until Mike can retire on his 62nd birthday, then off to be Warm in Sunny Arizona.




Sally has already retired from the Post Office and Katie thinks retirement is FINE! Good for them for knowing what they want and how to Go for it!!!

If any of my patients are watching, Don't worry, I can't afford to join the ranks of the retired for at least another five-ten years....but I do believe that knowing I have limited time to work on ART makes me use my time more efficiently and I'll keep churning stuff out, for the amusement and delight of my art fans...and My Self!



A friendly gathering would not be complete without the Food Picture! Thai Coconut curry beef (thanks to David H's recipe and Kafir leaves) and Katie taught me how to make salad rolls in rice paper wrappers...Gorgeous and Delicious!

The Hood Canal Bridge is Open again!!! David and I met in Sequim for the Art Walk and dinner in the garden at Alderwood Bistro...We were having such a good time eating clam fritters and fried oysters and elegant flowered salads that I forgot to take a picture for you, then my camera wouldn't work when we went out to the Pacific coast yesterday, but he's going to send me pictures.





I LOVE rocks, and they make a lot of sense here in the NW, where it may not rain for months in the summer. Collecting, sometimes re-locating, and arranging rocks in my yard is a spring/summer/fall passion. I can easily stay outside working way past 9pm and it's still light.

I'm spreading the tumbled mica you saw in a stack previously and the gravel pile, also reinforcing my spirals and symbols done in white beach rock. I see an analogy between the rocks worn smooth by time and my own self being worn smooth by age and experience.

I work to appreciate the positive aspects of aging. David and I talked about the difference between the way we look now and the way we think of ourselves as looking. He thinks of himself as twenty-five and I think of myself as thirty-five.











Me mentally, in my back yard in Burlington, VT, in the Eighties.

My back yard in Port Angeles now. I'm working on sedums up top, with interesting arrangements of rocks. I hope to vanquish most of the weeds by the time I'm in my Nineties and maybe too tippy to climb up the hill...although I try hard NOT to act my age! I'm looking forward to dancing to the Soul Shakers next Saturday at Gray's party.


The larger areas of green is some kind of ropy-rooted thing that comes up everywhere. I am working on exerting my control over Nature...I think Nature is winning, and perhaps I won't always need to act so controlling.

As with painting, I work over the whole area each year, and gradually patterns start to show up...a kind of terraccing, perhaps water-like flows of rocks with small surprises tucked within the surface. I re-located some lovely starry blue rocks from Second Beach yesterday and must find a special new place for them to dwell.