Sunday, August 9, 2026

If it's Sunday, it's time for Rocking Horses

 

It's time to unveil a few more rocking horses.I'm also joining Nicole for Sunday in the Art Room or SITAR, and Gillena with Sunday Smiles.   

This is my quartersawn oak writing desk.  On it are five rocking horses.  There are also over thirty rocking horses in this photo.  I will share some of those next week.
 
The first one is a mug that holds pens, pencils, and even scissors.  The crystal, picked up in Arkansas, sits atop several books.
 
The see-thru glass rocker is a candy dish.  
 
The brass rocker on the grape holds a teddy bear.  A brass candle holder and candle, along with a brass tin complete the small vignette.
 
While in Omaha, Ne on my internship, I shared an apartment with a beautiful young lady who took me shopping one day.  She bought the rocking horse and I bought the engine and caboose.  It is one of my favorite pieces because of our friendship.
 
This is one of two wooden rocking horses I found somewhere years ago.  One is a blue horse with green rockers, and one (this one) is a green horse with blue rockers.
 
 
Also on my writing desk
 
is this music box that also holds a container of a roll of postage stamps.  Pretty AND functional.
 
Thanks for visiting today.  Also, please join me at 
 
 and  

 

 

Saturday, August 8, 2026

Trash Day

 

As many of you long time readers and followers know, once a year my neighborhood association and the city of Wichita get together to have a trash day.  It's a time when you can get rid of things you normally wouldn't.  Items that are too large, or that have gotten out of hand.

Usually we have a month to get our trash together.  This month, I got my newsletter last Saturday, which gave me seven days, since items need to be at the curb by 7:00 p.m. Friday night.

You might be asking what's in all these buckets.  Actually, I was asking the same question, too.  The bottom shelf holds three you can't see and I failed to photograph the top shelf.  
 
On the shelves are various other items that I have thrown there over the years.  It was time to go through these shelves, as well as the tubs that originally held litter until the company got smart and started using cardboard boxes to hold litter.   This is not going to be a quick or easy task.  It certainly wasn't for the faint of heart.
 
Fast forward to yesterday evening.  I am finally finished and very happy.  I have taken the last of the trash to the curb and am back to take an "after" shot.
 

One of the baskets on the shelves held shells.  I brought shells from other locations and placed them all in one spot.  I corralled all the spray paint and small containers of wall paint to specific locations.  There are now only two tubs and they are filled with rusty bits that I can use when I rust fabric.  They are even labeled!

 

   I threw away a TON of baby food jars I had saved to make assemblages like the ones above.

  I also threw away a ton of tin cans that linked back to when I created recycled art. 

The middle shelf holds my prized photos of The Arch in St. Louis, Missouri and one of the many times I visited the Veiled Prophet (VP) Faire in the 1980s and 1990s. 
 
Here is one final view of what I believe to be a job well done.  I'll see you at the clean-up. 
 

 

Friday, August 7, 2026

She Sells Seashells

 

Today you will find me at Art Journal Journey, where I'm joining my friend Erika, who many of you know as BioArtGal.  Erika's theme for the entire month at AJJ is In the good old summertime.  And because it's Friday, I'm also joining Nicole for Friday Face-Off and Gillena for Art For Fun Friday.

Obviously, this is entitled She Sells Seashells By The Seashore.  Details are below.
 


  The tongue twister "She sells seashells by the seashore" became widely known in the 19th century and was later turned into a popular 1908 song by Terry Sullivan.  It is a well-known tongue twister that gained popularity in the 19th century and is often recited for fun and used to improve pronunciation skills.  It is also used in educational settings to help children with phonics and pronunciation.  The phrase continues to be a popular and entertaining linguistic challenge for people of all ages.  The complete tongue twister is below:
She sells seashells by the seashore,
The shells she sells are seashells, I’m sure.
So if she sells seashells on the seashore,
Then I’m sure she sells seashore shells. 
 
I began by adhering a napkin from my stash to 5 X 8 in (12.7 X 20.32 cm) 110 lb cardstock using a glue stick.  I then added the little girl that I found at The Graphics Fairy.  Next, I added the computer generated tongue twister using a glue stick.  Finally, I adhered the star button from my stash using E6000.  
 
Thanks ever so much for dropping by today.  It means the world to me.  I hope to see you and your interpretation of In the good old summertime at Art Journal JourneyI'll also be joining Nicole at Friday Face OFF, and Gillena at Art For Fun Friday.
 

Friday Face OFF   

Please visit Bleubeard and me today at these three art blogs. 

  

Thursday, August 6, 2026

Haircut Day

 

Today is haircut day.  Not mine, although I need one.  I'm talking about herbs, not hair. 

I've done a number to the two tubs of Genovese basil.  I stuffed 16 quart baggies and three gallon baggies full of the basil.  I left one stem full length, so you can see how tall it was before I gave these two tubs a second haircut of the season.
 
The far right brown tub holds Thai basil and I haven't cut it yet.
 
Thanks for visiting today,  I had to put my weekend project on hold because I forgot it was time to share my second set of basil cuttings of the season. 
 
 

Wednesday, August 5, 2026

Voting

 

If you live in the United States, chances are you voted yesterday (or earlier) in your state's primary.  I learned there are three types of primaries, depending on in which state you live.


  I voted. 

An open primary doesn't require voters to be affiliated with a political party in order to vote for partisan candidates. According to Wikipedia:

In a traditional open primary, voters may select one party's ballot and vote for that party's nomination. As in a closed primary (such that only those affiliated with a political party may vote), the highest voted candidate in each party then proceeds to the general election. In a nonpartisan blanket primary, all candidates appear on the same ballot and the two highest voted candidates proceed to the runoff election, regardless of party affiliation.
In an open primary, voters may choose to vote in one party's primary election, regardless of their partisan registration.  In a semi closed primary, voters registered with a political party may only vote in that party's primary election. However, unaffiliated voters may vote in either.  In a closed primary, like Kansas, voters can only vote in the primary election of the party in which they are registered.  This is probably very confusing to anyone not familiar with our system of government. 

Yesterday was another of those unbearably hot days where the high for the day was around 106 F (45 C).  
 
The sign showed this was a designated voting place.

This church is one of several where voting booths were set up.
 
If you live in the States, I hope you exercised your right to vote yesterday or earlier.  Thanks for dropping by today.
 
 

Monday, August 3, 2026

T Stands for Cluck, Cluck, Cluck

 

Today I'm back at The Spice Merchant getting my "free" pound of coffee.

This rooster and hen caught my eye and I had to take a photo for my shop-aholic friend Kathy who decorates her kitchen with all kinds of chickens.  The Spice Merchant certainly had no shortage of mugs in July.
 
I've shown you mine, now it's your turn to share your T entry this week.  The rules are extremely simple.  Your drink related post may be anything from a photo of a glass, cup, or mug, to an actual drink.  You may choose to share a sketch or a digital, hybrid, or traditional page in your scrapbook, art journal, or altered book, as I have done.  Maybe you'd prefer to share a tag, or wow us with your photography.  You might choose a postcard or decorated card.  You might even draw an image on a used tea bag.  Or perhaps you prefer to review a place you visited, a movie, or book.  It makes no difference as long as it's drink related.  And don't forget that the more unique and outside the box it is, the better we like it.  Please tie it back here, and please link only to your T post, not your entire blog.  When you link, Bleubeard, the T gang, and I will be by to visit.   Bleubeard would also like to remind you that your photos may be taken any time. 
 
I will be by very late tonight or early tomorrow morning.  I am working on a project that I hope to share over the weekend.