Neighborhood Clean-up

 

 Below are photos of our recent Neighborhood Clean-up.

It didn't take long until we heard the packer truck and the volunteers who were picking up the trash.  It made it hard for drivers who chose to be out early on that Saturday morning.  There was often a line behind the packer truck.

You can see several of my neighbors were also taking advantage of being able to get rid of items that would not normally go to the landfill.  You can see the remains of the recent rain.

These are the volunteers who picked up the trash on my block and the packer driver who is wearing the yellow shirt.

 

One of the volunteers

 

 

came ahead to look through my trash.

She certainly found lots at my house.  You can see I photo bombed my photo. 

Yes, I wear very, very  loose gowns.  The lady was opening the boxes I had carefully packed with old brochures I had saved for my 7 Continents altered book.  I guess they are afraid I might have included something that wasn't allowed.

More volunteers are starting to show up.  They are trying to decide if this bumper that belonged to my neighbor is metal or plastic.  No metal was allowed accepted in the packer truck.  There was a man who came by for metal scrap.

They soon agreed it was plastic.

Those boxes were heavy.  I felt sorry for the lady because I could barely lift them.

Thankfully, one of the men picked up one of the heavy boxes.  You can see one of the boxes is still open.

The remains of my new TV are now gone.  My next door neighbor, whose bumper and mattress were added to my "trash," was told he wasn't needed because they had plenty of volunteers.  Other volunteers picked up items from the side street.

Even more volunteers caught up with more items not from my yard.

There was more trash coming.

Of course, they had to wait because it was time for the packer to crush what they had collected.  Two guys had driven the side street and picked up more trash.

They brought items to the packer truck.

Wish I had seen that cubby item the volunteer on the far left of the photo was carrying.  I would have grabbed it for my own use.  Instead, I had my head in the lens of my camera.

And just like that, the volunteers moved to the next area.

This was our annual clean-up.  Thanks for dropping by so I was able to share my photos of the clean-up.  I appreciate your comments.  They make me believe I'm not talking to myself.

T Stands For A Bit More MUD

 

 

These last two MUD mugs had me laughing.  I use a straw for everything, including my coffee, so this straw sentiment was perfect.  In case you can't read it, it's "Let me get you a straw so you can suck the life out of someone else."  I've actually known people who have tried to do that to others. 

The other mug reminded me of something the little princess CJ would/might say: "Not bossy, just aggressively helpful."

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.  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, even months or years ago, if you choose. 

 

In the graveyard

 

We are joining Elle from Empire of the Cat in the graveyard. She is our host this month at Art Journal Journey.

Bleubeard, Squiggles, and I are spending time in the graveyard tonight.  Detail images are below.

I created the background using water soluble crayons.  All images were stamped, except the gravestone, which I created using a black Posca pen.  Because the background was rippled from water, I had a hard time getting the stamps to properly adhere.

Bleubeard, Squiggles, and I thank you for spending a bit of time with us today and hope to see you soon at Art Journal Journey with your own Halloween or Steampunk Halloween entry.

 

 

September, 2025 complete and October written in

 

 It's time to share my monthly calendars.

September, 2025 is complete.  You can read about my very boring life.  At least I wasn't as sick as I have been for the previous two months.

October has already been written in, but here is the calendar before I started writing in it.  This is for Elle from Empire of the Cat, who is our host at Art Journal Journey this month.

 

  I don't have anything Steampunk, but I DO have a few pumpkins.  I also recognized Columbus Day and my neighbors to the north who are celebrating Thanksgiving on that date.

Thanks so much for visiting today.  Your visit means the world to Bleubeard and me.
 

Second on the 2nd: Honoring Halloween

 

As most of you know, I like my second look each month to reflect our host at Art Journal Journey's (AJJ) theme. That means I needed to find something related to Elle from Empire of the Cat's theme which is Halloween or Steampunk or both.  I'm really not good with Steampunk, even though I actually love and appreciate it.  That means my second look will focus on Halloween only.

I love Halloween and often show off some aspect of it for T on Tuesdays around that time.  Here's an altered book I created in 2004, not long after I started making them. 

This tip-in above is especially important, because it came from my dear departed friend Gina Wise. It is the only tip-in made for a swap that I will show, other than a few I made myself. This was sent as a gift from Gina because whatever the swap was in which Gina participated, I was not one of the original players. 

For this page I stamped a pumpkin using a foam stamp. I also added a slide holder that I covered with handmade (by me) paper and stuck some Halloween confetti behind a bit of organza.

Here I used several UNICEF boxes left over after collecting for UNICEF. Actually, this is from two different years, because I was quite involved with UNICEF back in the early 2000's.  Note the left side of this spread is backed with a Halloween napkin, while the right side has my handmade paper.

To compliment the tip-ins, I decorated pages near the tip-ins. This is one I actually liked. Once again, I used my handmade paper, something I had an ample supply of when I was first getting started making altered art.

I have a few more pages to alter before it is finished.  I will also need to decorate the cover 

then I can call this book finished after seven years.

This page was created directly in the altered book.  I was happy when I found a use for the skull napkin that Darla sent me.

I'm not a card maker, but I made these cards several years ago to send to a few internet friends.

Of course, I also made a few tip-ins, too.

This is the reverse side.  Were it not for the wonky sewing, these would be a bust.

These were two Halloween themed ATCs for a swap. I made each person one of each. The left one is called "The costume." I started with a black napkin for the background, then layered die cut paint chip pumpkins over it. Finally, I added a glittery pumpkin that I bought at a garage sale.

I printed the cats and made one extra. I'm glad I did, because the first "Happy Halloween" I used a Sharpie and it didn't give me the look I was going for. Consequently, I switched to orange paint and a liner brush. Since I'm not a painter, I had about as much control over the brush as I would have painting the Sistine Chapel. I felt very fortunate that the words are half-way legible. Any other time, I could have gotten drips from the paint without trying. Since I was going for a drip, of course I couldn't get one on its own. I added Halloween ribbon and named it "Black cat Halloween."

I made these ATCs for a private swap.

I must have loved ATC swaps when I first started making mixed media art.  This is another one I made for a swap.  I got the copyright free image from a web site. I added the hat and painted the "trick or treat" bag with orange paint. I punched a bunch of leaves from paint chips and a moon from a German textbook. I mounted all on a black napkin background. The hardest part was mounting all those tiny leaves!!

Another year I made these cards I sent at Halloween.

This was for a Halloween houses swap in which I participated in 2011.

These are Halloween inspired playing cards for a weekly challenge.  I altered two cards a week in 2014.

I made this small art quilt (quiltlet) for a friend who celebrates Halloween.

I made this journal page to celebrate Halloween one year.  The sacrifices I make in order to create art!

Now it's time to share your own Second on the 2nd.  The rules are quite simple and everyone is welcome to join the fun look back.  All you have to do is bring back a post that you are especially proud of, or perhaps one you shared before anyone knew your blog existed.  It could even be one that holds special meaning.  Any post, any genre, any artistic endeavor is acceptable, as long as it's been published sometime in the past.  Then link below (direct links only, please) and Bleubeard and I, along with other Second on the 2nd friends, will be by to visit.  This link will be good until Monday October 6 at 4:00 p.m. my time.