Free for use

The image below is a close-up of three vintage products that I found at the junk shop. You are welcome to use this image for use in your artwork if you choose. I'd love to see what someone could create with this. I have some ideas myself but will have to jot down the idea for another time.

I'm working on addresses for Mom & Dad's anniversary party this weekend. I need to get a number for guests for my Aunt Kathleen as she's ordering the cake. Enough of my boring chat; here's the image:



Have a great weekend and God Bless You

Silent Secretary

Here's a close-up view of one of my junk finds from this past weekend. It's called a silent secretary; really a daily planner. The book is dated for 1961 but it appears that the previous owner used it for 1964 and 1965. At first glance, entries are not in any particular order.



Below is a close-up of script inside the front cover. It seems the owner was describing symptoms of "intestinal gas, belching, bloating and flatulence". YUCK! I hope they found something to help :-)



What I found really cool about stumbling across this book is that I was born in 1961, the year the book was printed for. Neat, huh?! I love coincidences like that. Always makes me feel the presence of God even stronger. I know, I know, I have an off-center way of looking at things sometimes.

Hope you enjoyed the images; there will be more soon.

Have a great Friday and God Bless You!

Junk Finds

Went junkin' last Saturday and found quite a few good items; all bought for less than $15! I can hardly wait to get some time to work on some ideas using these goodies. I'll post a big photo of all I got today and then post close-ups of individual items with detailed info in days to come.

Left to right: old newspapers, spools of thread (mostly wooden), old theater program, Father's Day card with personal message intact, metal bird, old report cards, vintage advertisement, a typed play [pageant] written in 1947, old tape measure, various product containers, bingo numbers and wooden checkers, wire egg cup (?), plastic baby ornament, spice rack.

I have found so many fantastic ideas and images on the web and now I want to give back to the web community as well. I also want to share some of my art too. I've done more collecting than creating lately and I want to change that.

My sister, brother and I are hosting a 50th anniversary party for my parents in October. That will keep me fully occupied until it's over and there probably won't be much time for creating. I hope to at least complete a few small items and get them posted. I've been putting it off for alot of reasons but I'm hoping if I get a few things completed and posted that it will unleash a torrent of creativity from me. Maybe this weekend I can get at least ONE thing done and posted :-)

Cash for Clunkers is over as far as anything we can do at this point. All we need now is for the gov't to issue some funds. Hopefully it won't be the nightmare some are predicting it will be. I'm just glad we're aren't as busy as we were. We've had a couple of days that we could actually get some 'normal' work done.

Nelson and I moved Blake into Ole Miss this past Sunday. I talked to him a few minutes tonight and he sounds so happy. He had found some guys to hang out with and had spent some time in 'The Grove' playing frisbee and just having a good time. I imagine he's got many more good times ahead. Especially since Ole Miss is known as 'the party school' LOL

Have a wonderful Thursday and God Bless You

Turning into my mother

I have the best mother in the world; she's wise, loving, understanding and a true vision of grace and beauty. I don't mind that I look exactly like her and I can only hope and pray that I age as gracefully and kindly as she has. I catch myself saying things or thinking things and then immediately thinking 'Oops, guess I'm showing my age' or 'Gosh, that sounds like something Mom would say'.

The event that brought on all this introspection is the glut of sex-themed content on television. I mean, it's bad enough that most of the so-called 'acting' on television is centered on sex. When I say 'acting', I mean the actual programs that aren't REALITY TV. I watch tv to get AWAY from reality most of the time, not see more of it! :-)

Is it just me or doesn't it seem that 90% of the commercials are using sex to sell everything from deodorant to vehicles? I don't think I'm a prude and I TRY to be 'cool' and not too 'old school'. I guess I've finally hit the point, however, that I'm just tired of being constantly shown half-naked, sweaty people jumping at each other in a commercial to sell a simple product like blue jeans.

I often think of my grandchildren and wonder how much they'll actually be exposed to in their young lives? How much of what they see and accept as 'the norm' would have shocked my parents speechless if it were aired when I was a child? Even the so-called 'children's channels' are showing content that I really don't want my grandchildren exposed to.

I fear for my great-grandchildren. With all that is allowed to be shown on television today, it won't surprise me a bit if there is no such thing as privacy or respect for a couple's intimate lives during their lifetime. It is my belief that the more we are exposed to subjects that 'push the envelope', the more accepting we become of yet a little more than our parents were comfortable with. This is a continuous journey that inevitably will end badly. The line between public acts and private ones seems to be fading too quickly.

Just my opinion and rambling thoughts on this Wednesday evening. Have a wonderful Thursday and God Bless You.

Forgot to post my progress!

How could I forget that? I weigh on Monday mornings and my 1st week I've lost 4 pounds. That's with no exercise (not proud of that fact). I have not been hungry and have snacked on low-fat munchies when I wanted something. This is definitely doable and I am so excited. I just want to stay motivated. Enjoying Jamie as my FIT buddy and posting my intentions and progress online will help too.

Since 'FIT' is a becoming theme for me and Jamie, maybe I need to start a free image habit too. I'll have to think about that since I don't have that many vintage images to post. Hmmm, wonder how I could manage something like that to keep the FIT theme going; maybe a free image on Thursdays? Something for me to think about and figure out if I want to work on.

Thanks for reading!

New friend

It is so gratifying to find a new friend and when you connect with someone on the web, it's even more miraculous. If not for blogging and cruising artists' sites, I would not have 'met' Jamie at Art-e-ology. She is so sweet and she and I are now buddies! When I blogged about getting fit and healthy she contacted me and now we are encouraging each other and having such a great time getting to know each other. We live several states away from each other but that just gives us more to talk about. I can hardly wait to check my email now in hopes of finding something new from my friend. Ironically, a feature on her site is 'FIT' or 'Free Image Tuesday' and now she and I are getting 'fit' together; life is strange, huh? I love it!!

I've met several people over the years through the internet and am really blessed to be able to call them friends. I met Lynette from Australia and she and I have had many interesting conversations both by email and by phone. I always learn something from her; she's one of the most intelligent people I've ever met. I love her Aussie accent and she loves my Mississippi twang :-)

I met Aimee from Hawaii through a fibromyalgia website and she had a tremendous impact on my life. She introduced me to many sites that gave me the information necessary to educate myself about fibromyalgia. More importantly, she helped me learn how to live with the condition and also to work while handling the symptoms of fibro. I will always have a special spot in my life for her; she's given me more than she'll ever know. She and I have lost contact with each other over the years but I will never forget her.

There have been others that I've developed friendships with and really enjoyed our time we had together but have since lost contact. I think people come into our lives for specific reasons; some will continue on with us as we journey through life and others will impact us in great ways but not end up being life-long contacts. While I would love to stay in contact with everyone I've ever met and developed a friendly relationship with, it's just not feasible. Not for me anyway.

Life is so full and so widespread that it's inevitable that we lose touch with some of our acquaintances. I've always been the type to have a small circle of very close friends and lots of 'casual' friends. My best friend, or BFF, is Linda who lives pretty close. She and I used to get together quite often but lately it's been longer and longer between visits. She and I have been through ALOT together and I do not know where I'd be today without her love, friendship and most of all her wisdom. At first glance, she and I are so different but once you dig just a bit deeper we're very much alike. She and I have a 'date' to get together next weekend.

Jamie and I are just beginning our friendship journey together and I am so grateful that we found each other. She has already brought joy and sunshine into my days and we have more good things to look forward to in the days ahead. She and I are both doing well on our get healthy quest and her encouragement is precious to me.

Treasure your friends; there are some people who have none.

God Bless You!

Cash for Clunkers

Oh my; I'm simply too tired to put into words how much work this government program to help car buyers has turned into. Cash for Clunkers is the program that the government came up with where if you trade in a gas guzzler for a new vehicle that gets better mileage, the government will allow you money towards that purchase. That's a very simplified description and of course there are a TON of hoops for the dealership to jump through since it's a government program. I'm sure it's a great deal for the buyer and we have sold quite a few vehicles but since I'm on the paperwork end of all these sales, it's had me in a bit of a 'tizzy' today haha!!

Just popping in to record my status with my 'Fit by 50' quest; so far so good. Yep, it's only been 3 days in all but that's 3 days that I was good rather than bad. I have not done any kind of exercise yet and with all that's going on at work, it may be a bit before I can. Stress of any kind, physical or mental, always hits me in my lower back. Guess that's where my weak spot is. After all the back problems I've had I'm not surprised. It sure does get old dealing with it though.

Actually I did have a great day and have been surfing a few blogs tonight. There is so much incredible talent out there; I'm just in awe of the beautiful art that's to be found on the web. I LOVE cruising around blogs I've heard about and then seeing what blogs they follow to find even more fabulous eye candy. Here's one I found tonight; hope you enjoy Nancy Baumiller's blog as much as I do.

Here's hoping you have a wonderful Wednesday and God Bless You!

OK, no more excuses!

I am starting today, not tomorrow, but TODAY! I am going to eat healthy and get fit. I am going to lose weight and get in shape. I will be 50 in two years and I want very badly to be FIT BY 50!! I just want to feel better and do as much as I can to stay healthy. I have 5 beautiful grandchildren that I want to be around to watch them grow up. I want to see their grandchildren graduate! Ok, that may be pushing it but I do want to be healthy and feel better. I want to not be so tired all the time. So, wish me luck and pray for me. I'm sure praying for myself and all the others out there trying to get healthy.

I've been blog surfing alot lately and if you have any time at all, you've just gotta check out Tumblefish Studio. Marsha is the most amazing artist and just the sweetest lady! Her post from today has a giveaway listed at Val Zdero Art. I am going to add her to my 'follow' list because she makes jewelry and just the type I like too. Good luck in the giveaway (but I really want to be the one to win haha)

Have a great week and God Bless You!

This Quote Makes Me Think

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Originally uploaded by fourfiftythree

I found this while cruising thru flickr and the quote is so powerful. Read it and really think about what it says. I want to write this down somewhere I can see it all the time; remind me to not over-stress about a situation. Just work it out. Pray about it.

Reminds me of another quote I picked up somewhere. Everything works out in the end or it's not yet the end.
That one's a real thinking prompt huh? I pondered on that one for a long time when I first heard it.

Like the Garth Brooks song 'Unanswered Prayers'. While our troubles, concerns, problems, what-have-you may not work out like we wanted or even like we thought, they still work out in some way or other eventually. Kinda makes it seem crazy to worry so much, doesn't it?

Just me rambling.

Has this ever happened to you?

Yesterday and today have had some weird happenings. Someone called my office yesterday and when they gave me their name it startled me for a moment. She said her name is 'Theresa Boyette'. Well, that is my maiden name. I was actually struck speechless for a moment. (Rare occurrence) Before she hung up I told her of the coincidence and she and I both got a chuckle out of it.

Later last night I was reading one of the 'Ya Ya Sisterhood' novels and the name 'Boyette' is used for one of the background characters. This had me thinking if the name is actually of French heritage like I've heard from distant family members. Louisiana Cajun country is the setting for the Ya Ya novels so it's quite possible.

THEN TODAY, I was cruising some of my favorite blogs when I stumbled across someone with the last name 'Boyett' which is the spelling most of my family actually uses. We use the 'e' at the end because my Dad stumbled across his birth certificate when I was around 11 years old and he noticed that his name did indeed have an 'e' at the end; we ended up changing the spelling of our last name when I was almost a teenager. Enough to confuse anyone, huh? :-)

It's almost a deja vu feeling for me to run across an unusual name like that 3 times in just a short time; less than 48 hours. Not really deja vu but I don't know what other word would describe it. A definite coincidence or is it? I've had similar experiences before though not with my name. It makes me wonder if there's something God's trying to tell me or bring my attention to. I have been extra-sensitive to the little happenings today; trying to figure out if there's a message not immediately apparent.

I even felt my stomach flutter when I ran across the blog comment of the woman who shares my last name. I left a comment at her blog just to say hello and tell her of our shared name. Are we connected by a bloodline? Who knows. I just know it's not a very common name; not in this area at least. It's always been a name I'm proud of even though some of my relatives may not be the type you would drag around with you to show off to those you want to impress. LOL I'm sure there are relatives who feel the same about me :-)

Have a great weekend and God Bless You

Weird creatures

I don't know if the South is the only habitat of these insects or if they thrive all over the place but these have got to be one of the strangest creatures on the face of this earth. It's extremely difficult to catch one in a position where I can actually get photos but we got lucky with this one. People probably walk right over or right by them most of the time because they look exactly like a stick. I'm posting two photos here; the first one shows my husband pointing out the back end of the bug and the other pic shows the antennae better.




Strange, huh? I don't know what their proper name is but we've always called them stick bugs.

Anyone else got pics of weird or strange creatures? I'd love to see them.