Strange Days

Life is still full and has been... interesting lately. I haven't done any enameling work since my last big push before I had to send everything down for the show. I ran out of flux in the process and since starting to use it again and do everything right, I'm not about to waste materials and time on an inferior result. I find myself missing it even though it's been stressful.
It's been nice though, I worked long hours at home to finish everything in the past couple months and to make time recently for gardening, house cleaning and general sittin'-on-ass has been wonderful.

Things that have also been wonderful in the past week:

1. The change of seasons. Fall equinox came and went and somehow in North Central Florida, this meant an instant change in weather. The breezes are cooler, the evenings are mild and this morning I had to wear a sweater because it was 56 degrees out. This is particularly awesome because it was the exact same weather pattern the year before for our wedding weekend. How coincidental for our anniversary to come each year with the most glorious weather imaginable.

2. Collin and I planned and installed an invisible trellis for our flowering vines on the backyard fence. The passionflower is still growing like crazy but ran out of room in its little corner and started to spill over into the neighbors yards. Woops. Hey, at least it's pretty. We've been meaning to help out our little yard for weeks now but with working on the show pieces and the incredible heat it just wasn't happening. Pictures soon, although it's "invisible" so they're not as awesome as you might imagine.

3. Also fixed up the front yard some more and replaced some of the boxwoods and flowers that had died since putting them in this spring. Thank you Lowe's for having a 1 year return policy on potted plants. I will never pay for one again this year.

4. Because it is so nice out we were able to walk Early down to the Northeast dog park this week. She and Smokey had a blast and it was fun to see more of our neighborhood that I had yet to discover. Something that makes me want to stay here forever. I need to take a photo tour of our area and show off the picturesque homes we have.

5. Cooking up a storm for Collin and myself. First it was the need to get in the last of the late summer meals. The bbq and burgers and salads (like we won't be eating that kind of thing all winter or something). Now I'm suddenly struck with the urge to bake casseroles and roast pork loin and winter squash. I can feel the knit sweaters and hot cocoa now.

6. Kara came to town! I was able to see one of my best friends (even if just for a few hours) meet her sweet boyfriend whom she's been dating for a year now and catch up. Something about our wedding - Anna and TJ, Kara and Ben and Meggan and Ben all started dating just before then and are still going strong, Rachel and Nick are engaged even. Am I some kind of good luck in love charm or what? We had good times at The Top and a delicious brunch at a new place in town. It's not close to our house but it's right by the interstate which will make for a nice meet up spot with the family in the future.

There were a few things this week that weren't so good.

1. Timmy, the beloved cat of our neighbors at the Fat Tuscan Cafe, was hit by a car and killed this past Saturday morning. This was the same little boy kitty we found and were feeding under our house. I'll never forget the first day we met him and coaxed him into a carrier with some wet food. Man he was pissed. I was crying with laughter at his pitiful little growls he was trying to make while still eating. Grrrnomnomnomrrrnom. So cute. It shouldn't have happened - but it did - and in many ways the situation unfolded in the best ways possible. Whoever hit him was kind enough to move him over to the grass near Eve's driveway. She also was out of town that week. This kept her and Timmy's owners from having to see him first thing that morning or lying there in the road, worse off. Collin and I were able to move him onto an old towel and cover him up (we were already wearing gloves and working in the yard) before getting and telling his owners. I took his collar off for her too, that way if she didn't want to look at him, she would know for sure who it was. This was... hard. I haven't had a reason to cry like this in so long. Collin had the hardest parts of moving Timmy onto the towel and going to tell his owner. I couldn't thank him enough for being strong that day.

2. While we were in the front yard later, working to keep our minds off of it all, our upstairs neighbors cat escaped and sprinted past us into the next door neighbors yard. OMFG are you kidding me? Right after we are emotionally drained by sad kitty issues, we're chasing a cat around a giant yard hoping he hasn't found any of Timmy's pass-throughs. Now I don't mean to brag, but I was the one who was finally able to sprint and catch him - half his body already over the fence - by the tail and the scruff. I carried him back to his home and he was so scared! This one is definitely not an outdoor kitty, and after seeing Timmy that morning and the stress of chasing his own little one around outside, our neighbor has no plans to let him live outdoors.

3. Our new landlord is awesome and helping us in a million ways by fixing up every problem we have with our place and then some. She is however starting to rub me slightly the wrong way over little things like storing items in the garage that we - not she - cleaned out. So we can store our stuff in there. It's silly, and I can't imagine it would ever be a real issue, but Eve and I were talking last night and both were a bit taken back by how she seemed to think that it's in any way cluttered at the moment. Maybe I need to show her some photos of what cluttered really looks like.

4. I took photos of all the last pieces I made for the show and promptly forgot to load them on the computer. By the time I noticed, Collin's sister had already taken her camera home and erased half of them. Boo. My fault entirely, but I hope she can find them in her recycle folder!!


Tomorrow marks the start of October and it means I need to boogie down and get some Halloween plans started. I want to decorate the house and porch this year, carve pumpkins and figure out a costume that requires minimal effort and money. And one I can easily eat/drink in and doesn't require a wig or face paint. I'm thinking we may make animal masks or costumes and wear them with our regular clothes. Eh?
October will kick off this weekend with a wonderful start.
Thursday night is Ladies Night and then Islands are playing at 1982. Done.
Friday Collin and I are going to the salon to get his hair cut and my nails done. My yearly manicure - what a treat! Then we'll drive with Early Girl down to Sarasota for the gallery reception and hanging out with our friends Matt and Janelle and their dog Toby.
Saturday we have plans to go to the dog beach for Early's first visit with dinner later that evening to celebrate the one-year anniversaries in the family. Also that night, more catching up with old friends and visiting our favorite Sarasota eateries. Including Muncheez 420 Cafe - a spot close to the bars that was recently featured on the Sarasota episode of Man vs. Food.
Sunday we'll pick up freezer goodies from Granny on our way out of town before driving back for a quiet evening on our real anniversary. Maybe a movie in with some popcorn and, weather permitting, a cozy fire.
Then, it's back to the grind. If only it were like last year and I had next week off and we were looking towards vacation in Savannah.

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Fantasies

I can't stop listening to the new Metric album.
No really, it's been on repeat for a few hours. It's burned to a cd and tomorrow morning will be put into my cars player. I'm going to guess it won't come out until Collin ejects it to put in something heavy.

This is one of those bands for me. One of those bands whose albums I know I will love before they come out. Take this as my recommendation (not that you think I have any taste in music) that you go get it somehow. I say this fully aware that I am biased entirely. Almost every part of my adult life has a metric song that goes with. Freshman year college parties, to late night city walks in Boston, heady love and heartache in Sarasota, early morning driving on I-75. So much more. It's all there.
Somehow this band ended up as a soundtrack of sorts. I wouldn't have guessed until tonight. Not until I got this latest album for myself. It's new but sounds like all the songs that push old memories right to the front. I would have listed a dozen other bands before Metric - and they would still be appropriate - they all have the same effect. Really, it makes perfect sense.

I'm excited for this - to make new memories to these songs and mark this time in my life so vividly. I know it will happen like the rest. I know that a few years down the line I'll dig this burned and scratched up copy with pink sharpie scrawl from the depths of my Ford Focus and I'll wonder, "What number is that one song with slow intro I loved?".
I'll rub it on my t-shirt to clean it off.
I'll turn up the volume.
I'll roll down the windows.

I'll remember it all.
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photo dump

Today I borrowed Meggan's camera (because it is amazingly better than mine at macro shots) after we hit up Michael's for a few fun things. I needed to take photos of all the work I will be sending to the show in Bradenton in a few weeks and also take good shots of the pieces I'll be putting up on Etsy soon.

I think the swords may be my new favorites.
Maybe.






(or maybe the spring oak leaf is my favorite for real)















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A few weekends ago, the night we took photos of our work for the art show, Meggan, Ben and I drove one of my armchairs and a small table and 100 feet of extension cord down the block to the Thomas Center gardens. We were there to take photos of Meggan with her fabulous anthropologie inspired birdcage chandelier and get a few sister-shots while we were at it. Thankfully we were familiar with the setup of the grounds and knew right where the electrical box was (and how much length we'd need to make it into that tree). Sometimes you just get the itch to set a scene and make it happen. I want to do something similar again as the bike tire chandeliers Meggan makes were my original inspiration but she'd just sold her only currently finished one. When you have the inspiration, the perfect location and a sister in law with talent and a great camera - why not?

We set up, opened some wine, and played around with scenes and backgrounds until dusk really settled in.

Here are my favorites:

sisters
Ben took all our duo photos and I took a few of Meggan by herself. She even sat me down for a couple shots at the end of the night. You can really see the difference in lighting between the two group shots and the portraits of me. I love the blue cast - it's all Alice in Wonderland nighttime glow.


We both fell in love with the blue evening light and tried for a few more photos together. Some were alright but the light fades much faster after the sun sets and before long we both had ghoulish shadows making us both look less than attractive. Without wanting to mess with any other light source or flash we called it a night and packed up our things. Ben used his skillz to drive in reverse back to the house with the chair and all the other goods.

Without getting all sappy - I love these photos. Not just becuase they're photos with my new sister whom I am so lucky to share so many interests with, but because they once again show me how in love with our neighborhood I am. In love. Never a day goes by that I am not aware of how lucky we are to have found a safe and beautiful home, in an area with neighbors who care and gorgeous public spaces to enjoy as we please.
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Lovelies

Looks like that little art show is getting some attention down south. A small magazine in Sarasota called West Coast Woman is writing a feature on the Bradenton show. The event was originally going to just be listed in the calendar but with it as a feature the writer asked for some photos. Meggan and I spent some time yesterday taking pictures of our things to send her way (and some fun sister pictures just because). These are the ones I passed along.









I realized after I was editing some of these that I only took photos of a few things and those were all similar in shape or color or design. Crap. Maybe I can get Meggan back here in a few days with that fabulous DSLR of hers to take a few more. I took some on my own with my little point-and-shoot but it's just not the same. Look out next week for more photos of more lovelies.

Collin will be on the road to the Palm Beach area for work all day Wednesday and Thursday. This isn't so bad (that money is much needed) and I can enamel Wednesday all night with the pop music station on as loud as I want (without being embarrassed). Thursday he'll miss my allergy skin test but I'm sure I'll take some photos of that fun time. I have a feeling that I won't want to work much after my forearm is injected with all the stuff that makes my immune system work on overdrive.
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I'm working on it

Yesterday Erin sent me along the press release for the gallery show in October - how exciting! A real press release that has my name in it and tells people that I make things and that those things will be on exhibit and for sale in an art gallery.
It is very hard to express the squeals of excitement that have come out of my mouth over this for you via the internet. I am both simultaneously excited and freaked out. I am relieved that the whole family and all the Betty's will have their items on display as well. A big party, with all your favorite people. It's a very non-harsh environment in which to reveal my enamelware and Etsy.com store to the world (hah).

Here are some little earrings I've made. They probably won't be sold on this kind of hardware, but that's what I had in the jewelry box today.


I finished writing up my storefront information; about me, store policies, shipping, etc. Etsy is so easy to use! I'm glad I signed up for an account way back when I did so that I can have a little more street cred with an anniversary date of about a year and a half a go and 8 whole positive feedbacks (from shopping, of course). I was contemplating setting up an additional account for selling, something with a new shop name not connected to my own. I even went so far as to procure this name for myself on etsy, blogger and wordpress should I ever change my mind.
Instead, I stuck with what I have. Having my real name connected to my store will keep consistency (and that anniversary date and feedback that is oh so important in my mind). I can also integrate my shop with my blog if it ever becomes something other than a part time hobby.

love, LindseyKaye - it has a fabulous ring to it, no? Also, I think it's sweet that upon sending people their purchases I can include my business card and it will serve as a slautation and thanks; a reminder that this was handmade with love.
I have yet to list any items - I'm waiting until most of what I'm making for the show and site launch are done to pick between them and figure out who will be sold where. Until then the shop is set to "vacation mode" with some information about the upcoming show. Hopefully if anyone stumbles upon it until then they will be intrigued enough by the pendant in my profile photo and the fact that I'll be in a real art show in a real art gallery to come back.

What do you think?
www.lindseykaye.etsy.com

Simple and clean. That's what I'm going for these days.

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Homecoming

Welcome home, Early Girl.



I can't believe you're finally here! To be honest, I didn't ever really see myself as a dog owner. I liked dogs alright, but considered myself a loyal cat person. It wasn't until I lived with Mark and Mud that I ever even thought about having a dog friend of my own. Mud was so sweet and even-tempered. He was playful and an irreplaceable guard dog. I love that boy.
Then Collin came into my life and even though a loyal dog person - he always loved and cared for Lucky. Still, when family or friends with dogs would visit I could see it in his face. I knew he wanted a dog of his own; to raise and love and come home to.
Now, here she is.


Recall this post and it will be clear that we jumped the gun a little on our adoption plans. I was thinking that it wouldn't be until the beginning of 2010 that we would be in a favorable situation to bring home a dog. After Gabe told us of his plans to move in with his girlfriend, we thought we'd get things started. It might have been nice to have a little time with the house to ourselves before adding a pup to the mix, but it wasn't necessary. In fact, because we'll be living with another roommate come November, this was the exact right time to take her in and get settled as a family. She will know us and the house and feel comfortable and safe before we add another person and all the excitement that comes with.

I took Thursday and Friday off work for some "maternity leave" - basically to help Gabe with his moving and keep our house from turning into a tornado field in the wake. Thursday had us working our asses off deep cleaning the kitchen. Moving the fridge and stove to sweep/mop underneath kind of cleaning. It was gross and therefore all the more necessary. We even got around to switching the door handles on the fridge so it doesn't swing open into the counter anymore. Man, that was hard.
That afternoon we drove out to Alachua to pick up our girl. Came home to a quiet house and a lover who almost immediately found her toys. We have given up keeping her off the couches (and resigned to the fact that when we buy new furniture like that we will just have to keep her in mind) but she still isn't allowed in the bed. Being the ultimate good-girl she is, she knows right away when she's doing something wrong and it takes us no time at all to correct her. A snap of my fingers and she'll get down, sit, lay down, come, and so much else.
Early even met Smokey and they have a lot of fun chasing each other around the back yard. Gotta love that crazy-dog-run dirt spray. She met Inca too but they didn't hit it off as well. I even heard Early bark when she was with Inca so I knew that she wasn't happy at all. This was after hearing her bark for the first time when we were walking and a stranger came up behind us. I am so glad to know that she can bark and we'll be working with her to reinforce good barking behaviors (like barking when someone comes on the porch or knocks at the door).

Mostly, she likes to sleep. On the couch, on the wood floors, on the rug, on her bed. She snores and farts and is adorable. She even seems to always have a pillow under her head. Her favorite toys are the skinny fox, the rope ring and the baby bone (a plush bone-shape toy with a squeaker she never squeeks). I would still say that her very favorite is the toy we gave her when we came to visit the second time. Just a little rope knot, but I think somehow she knows that this is hers and it came from us with love. Read more...