Hmmm, the thing about making blueberry ink? It makes your hands blue if you forget gloves. DUH.
I got raspberries cheap for $1 a punnet so I'm testing them as an ink as well. Blueberries are 6-98 for 150 gms. My eyebrows shot so high, I won't need a facelift for years *g*

I'll have to get Dad to send down some mulberries to use as well.

I also need to make new glair. If I use what I have now, I won't need to paint any beards or hair, I can just put glair there and they will grow all by themselves. Eeew. I spose I could market them as Living Art. heh.

Ok, I'm off to keep playing kitchen chemist. Catchya's


Feelin' - cooking with gas LOL
Hearin' - Living on a Prayer - Bon Jovi

Slipping & Sliding

I had a fun day today.

Some freaking moron idiot changed his mind about turning the corner at the roundabout & planted his foot on the accelerator to get through.

I was already moving out into the roundabout as he had his indicator on to turn, so I accelerated to get out of his way and the back end of the car slid out, hit the concrete barrier and bounced back out, no damage except it stuffed my wheel alignment. All I remember is he was a dark purple truck/van.

I stoppped and so did the other truckie that had seen it all and asked if I was ok and something about the fuckwits on the road this side of Melbourne. He didn't get his rego either, but if I wanted to make a complaint he'd give me his details. I was a little amazed as normally noone would stop.

It's true, for some reason the SE side seems to be busier with more trucks and 4 wheel drives than the other side of the river.

Also, honestly, I really think they should bring back the Give way to the Right rule as everyone on your right never stops anyway. Too stupid to actually know and comprehend road rules.

So, make it easier for them, they can't understand the concept of give way to vehicles who are there before you. Much like Amber & Red lights don't mean pull out to the middle and turn out quick when the light turns red or plant your foot to beat the red light.

Highlighting the moronic turn driving life has taken this week is the ongoing saga of the running of the bulls. For years, the parents park in the back part of the school grounds, all in rows, well, sort of.

This year we had some daft cow who was told you can't park past the end of the cricket nets go absolutely ballistic. She said there was no white line indicating she couldn't park there [errr, no, but you'd think a gajillion kids walking past her would be a clue of how dangerous it is to park there & why we have the imaginary do not cross line] So, they've had to draw a white line across the entire length of the carpark area, just for her.She must feel really special now. Wonder what she'll do when they put up the plastic barriers for damaged grass and we get to play obstacle course. I can hardly wait for that tantrum.

I've made a deal with the devil Immun Specialist, I can go back to making my own paints & inks as long as I don't use any of the toxic pigments & wear gloves, face mask etc. I didn't have the heart to tell him. LOL. So, I'm making some blueberry ink instead and researching a couple of others. It sounds simple I guess, but takes time to check lightfastness and how stable it turns out to be.

Ooh, I also bought a new sable brush. It's so pretty I may put it in a shrine and worship it every day.It's verrrry pretty. See, I told you all, I can be bribed with pretty shiny things very easily!

Well, I'm off to research some more. Hope everyone is well.

Feelin' - busy
Hearin' - Stupid Girls - Pink

Elite ArmchairAthlete

Well, this week has been interesting in many ways. I didn't go down for the WSBK. I did get more gesso made for gilding. I also got given [yes, I almost fainted dead away] some platinum leaf to play with. So, as a thank you, I am going to use some of it to make an ATC for him. I'm also playing around with Melaleucas bark [paperbark tree] that some kids had ripped off a tree near the school. I don't know if I can salvage it for use in an art piece though as the outer sides look like they've been burnt from car exhaust emissions. Hopefully I can peel that part off.

Speaking of which, if you want an ATC, email me at antikva at gmail dot com and tell me your favourite quote, colour and mailing addy and I'll send you an original signed miniature artwork. ATC's are 64 X 89mm so don't expect a full size artwork. These are free and come with no strings. Some may have gilding, some not, it depends on what I do at the time. May also take a couple of weeks.

My left shoulder has been sore ever since I first fell down the stairs, now it appears I have a small tear in my rotator cuff. So the moral of the story is: Always drink before you fall down stairs. You don't tend to think quick enough then to grab the rail and yank your shoulder out of it's socket.

I now have to do special excercises in addition to the other excercises to stop me turning into an elite armchair athlete. No longer am I allowed to fling my hand to my brow in anguish [damn. there goes my drama queen fantasy!] or raise my arm while I am sleeping. But,I am allowed to smack the MOTH one for waking me up to tell me to stop raising my arm in my sleep. heh.

Well, I am off to work on a new image. Nite all.



Feelin' - creative
Hearin' - Reckless - Australian Crawl

Gremlins must be loose around the Internet today. My Blogroll keeps vanishing. PITA. How can I read blogs I actually like if they're not listed? I took the plunge a couple of weeks ago and removed my manual blogroll list and replaced it with BlogRolling. So, now it's having a brain fart and I am left with blogs I read rarely as they aren't as interesting. How Rude!

Then recently, for the last month, I haven't been getting comments by mail, so I'm not being rude on purpose. Well, at least not in this case.

The mechanic comment in my last post was related to a discussion with MOTH.

me: how do you stop that whine in my car [ power steering pump thingy or something :-)]
him: keep you out of it

how rude! but funny. heh.

Gah! Next time I say I have a bright idea, someone smack me back into reality!
Yoda's 11th birthday was on Tuesday, so by Sunday, we'd done 3 cakes, 6 pizza's, 9 candles & a truckload of gifts.
I had an empty wallet, 3 burnt fingers and a singed fringe and now know the reason I am not a teacher or provide any kind of childminding related services.

He had a birthday party on Saturday night, so I had 7 boys running around drunk on sugar for 5 hours. Huge storm just as it started, so I couldn't even release the pack out into the wilds of our backyard. It was supposed to be a pizza and dvd party, instead it degenerated into a Who can be the loudest and most obnoxious party. Guess who won? ME! heh. MOTH ran for the garage and hid out there, all the while claiming urgent repairs to his car. He's a mechanic, remind me to tell you about that later. heh.

So, Sunday, off to MIL & FIL's for the day. People who are older, really shouldn't get offside the only person likely to let them live with her rather than a nursing home. We are now the proud owners of a Hammond organ. Do I need say more?

Of course, this adds to Mia's repertoire of noisy musical instruments used to annoy the total crap outta of me, as teenagers do. The MOTH knows only one song to play, Amazing Grace, which when you think about it, is highly disturbing! and freaking irritating too, when it's been played 100 times in one day. Could be worse though, I could be teaching them! I can't even hum in tune to save my life, so they must have got the music genes from Dad.

Let me tell ya, by last night, I was thinking of packing and running away from home. No, not to join the circus, but I am seriously considering applying for an Internship in New York for an Illuminator. If some guy can get money to paint trees blue, I might have a chance to get a grant for airfare. Keep your fingers crossed for me.

Bargain!

I have been busy. I bought 116 pkts of fimo clay for 50c each as discontinued lines. Luckily for me, the colours are more suited to what I want it for but not for most people who buy that type of clay. I can always paint it anyway, so I saved over $500-. I'm a happy lil vegemite.

I'll put up pics later today of what I have done so far in the clay.

Woman's remains found in unit - BN NSW - Breaking News 24/7 - NEWS.com.au

Another one! When I was a bankie [yes, a witch one, I still have my broom in the cupboard] I was at a branch which worked with the Red Cross to have Volunteer staff make telephone calls to local elderly residents each morning to make sure they were ok. They rotated the calls around monthly so you didn't get too attached in case something happened. If you didn't get an answer, you rang the RC and they contacted the police. It didn't cost the person any money and obviously it cost the branch the cost of the local calls each day and the few minutes of each staff members time, but it did help stop this type of thing. Something so simple and easy to do and cost effective.

Maybe the Red Cross could actively market the service again to Corporate Oz. What about the pollies sitting in their electoral offices in each electorate? You know, give back to the community in a small way that isn't expensive or hard AND meaningful.

Adding:
Just after I read this story and was feeling a bit depressed, I read a great entry by Bill that made me feel there is hope for us humans. Even though he could have gotten into trouble at work, he stopped to help someone out. Bouquets to Bill for being a top blog bloke!

capping & casting

Today my thoughtful hubby gave me a huge box of chocolates for Valentine's day. Hmmmmm, guess he's forgotten about the $2500- gap payment for my dental surgery. hehe.

So, I toddled back down to the dentist today as the temp filling for the crown part was a tad sore. I thought it was no big deal & he was gonna tell me I was a big wimp, go home etc. Errrrr, no. It turns out it was infected, so he whacked the temp off, chucked some really seriously disgusting tasting stuff in my mouth and redid the temp.

Once he realised, poor hubby raced off and came home with 1/2 dozen roses and the Rogue Traders cd for me instead. Isn't he a darling? So, I regifted him the choccies as his present didn't arrive in time. I know S.A is behind us timewise, but not THAT much! You watch, it'll rock up tomorrow. GRRRRRR

I was laying on the couch before watching the news and Yoda suddenly says, Mum, look at my goatee. HUH? Did I fall into a coma and wake up 10 years later or something was my immediate thought. Nah, he stickytaped black paper onto his face and was singing Shannon Noll songs. Yes, I took photo's, I am an old hand at recording kids for future blackmail purposes.

Well, I think my cold porcelain clay has cooled enough to knead, so I better get casting.

I hope you all had a nice Valentine's Day.

Cocomment'ing all over the blogosphere

I am a sucker for pretty shiny things that scream USE ME, I am going to be the next best thing. You have to be INVITED to use me, I am not just for anyone.
See, I can be shallow and egocentric, just like everybody else. heh.

I am not a gadget person in RL unless it's related to computers, yes, I know I'm geeky. That's a very desirable trait donchyaknow! This is where my Gemini'ess comes into play, the arty farty & geek parts of my brain that constantly battle for control. So, if I see the words on the web " Beta, by Invitation Only" to me, it's the equivalent of Manolo Blahnik shoes on Sale after Christmas. Get out of my way, I want that. I must have that.

Sooooo, word must have gotten out about my Beta tester fetish and I got sent an Invitation to Cocomment. Pretty cool, you know how you comment all over the place and then have to remember where? Well, that's what cocomment does basically. In a nutshell, you sign up, add a link to your browser & comment as a normal, cocomment saves a copy of your comment in your conversation page or to access as an rss feed in your reader, then you can see where & to who you've commented.

I can see where some problems could arise, but they seem to be actively working on them. So, based on that, it seems like this could be a really good way to keep track of your own conversations on different blogs.

Here is my latest finished piece. It's the Hippocratic Oath in Latin with an illumination based on a 15C woodcut Anatomy Lecture by Joannes de Ketham & painted in the style at the time. The latin on the image side says, First Do No Harm.
It's done on Parchmentine with gouache & watercolour with 24ct gold leafing.
He loved it.





You can see more of my artwork at Antikva Art & Design

Well, my theatre date with the dentist went well. No major drama's except I woke up with a bloody nose, no, I didn't get punched out, I did pay the Anaesthetist. Apparently the right side of my nose didn't like the tube, so they had to change sides.

Root planing by quadrant is not as painful as it sounds when you wake up either.

So, I'll be able to tell you in a few weeks if I think the anti-amalgam brigade are correct or not.

Arrrrggghhhhhhh

I'm tempted to slap a stamp on the MOTH's forehead and ship him off to whoever wants him.

Going to hell in a handbasket.

Seriously. Yesterday I was tidying the family room while the kids were still in bed snoring and saw a group of Jehovah Witness people outside. So, I turned off the music and sat on the couch quietly resisting the urge to answer the knocking on the door. I didn't even grit my teeth and send nasty Go Away vibes.
So, it's very quiet except you can hear them knocking still, thought I had them fooled as the stoopit doorbell is not working, but they obviously caught onto that.
Suddenly a small head peers through the staircase at me and says, Mum, there is someone knocking at the door and he runs halfway down before I managed to hiss in my best Evil Mum voice, Open that door and I'm taking away your next birthday, Go back to bed!
heh. He turned tail and ran.
They came back later just as I was weeding the garden bed. *sigh*

Normally I don't mind doorknockers, however lately, they just won't take a polite No Thank You and GO. I've had 4 or 5 phone, gas & elec salesman who I've practically had to shoehorn off the verandah to make them go away. Not to mention, the number of telemarketers who also do the same thing on the phone. Which, btw, we have a silent phone number, so I always have to go through the rigmarole of saying, No, sorry, this isn't the *******'s number anymore. [They changed their number at least 5 years ago and even their friends still ring it] Most of the time the response I get is "Are you sure?" heh. Then the conversation just goes downhill from there, because then they want my surname to alter their records. One lot kept ringing back, obviously on the off chance to see if I would change my mind about who I was. I can be politely nasty when necessary, it's a by-product of being a bankie so long. They've never rung again. I think I made him cry.

The funniest one I've ever had though was the Privacy Commission dept coldcalling people to do a survey on Privacy & telemarketers. Huh?

I'm a busy little bee the next few days. I have a new source to check out [opals] and another supplier to freak out. Hope you all have good one's!

PS. Who knew 2 blogs would be such a PITA to do. I really wish the baddies would take a break. Sheesh.

Feelin' - tired
Hearin' - Fox on the Run - Sweet [Oh shut up! LOL]

Hello

I repeated my earlier trick of falling a over t down the stairs with pretty much the same success rate. Stupid bloody thick carpet on the stairs. I managed to hurt the same shoulder but luckily it doesn't seem as bad as last time.
The kids are talking about rigging up a motion activated camera so that they can score $500 from Funniest Home Videos. harumph.

The new washing machine arrived yesterday, hooked it up and nothing. doesn't work, so now they are delivering another one tomorrow. The MOTH is working all weekend so I told them that they'd have to send a guy to install it as well. The weather has been shit for me so I've been doing that cool walk I do when my joints stiffen. No way would I be able to undo/redo the connections up myself at the moment.

My saphhire and black spinel order arrived today! Veeeery Nice, Thank You Andrew and Leah fromAussie Sapphire Beautifully drilled sapphire & black spinel beads & gems, so pretty! Gazing upon them all day has pretty much kept me entertained. I can't decide what to do first *g*

I also made friends with a semi retired jeweller and he's interested in what I'm doing, so we're going to join forces and he's going to make the connectors I need and I'll be using some of his cast designs on the book covers and quills as well.

So, I've been pretty busy running around between the artshops, antique/2nd hand shops and not to forget the bookshop and music shop. Strictly for business and marketing purposes. heh. [ hey, it's my story, I'm sticking to it!]

Kids have settled back into school easily, except we're all glad it's the weekend, so we can sleep in. Well, except the MOTH cos he's working and won't be home till Sunday night.

Ooroo, avagoodweegend mateys!


Feelin' - sore
Hearin' - Play Me - Adam Thompson

WooHoo!

Kidlets go back to school tommorrow! I will have my house & computers all to myself for 6 hours every weekday for 6 weeks until the next lot of holidays.

What am I going to do? Shove 'em out the car door and scream down to the beach or go stick my nose in books at Borders? Decisions, decisions.

I really should do housework but that's nowhere near as much fun. Depends on the weather I guess.

Mia lost her USB drive for school 6 mths ago, she found it today in the pocket of a pair of her school pants. I'm not quite sure what caused me the most shock, the fact that she had just tossed them in her cupboard without putting them out to be washed OR the fact that she was cleaning her room properly AND without being told!

Oh, has anyone tried the new Silver Art Clay from Japan? I'm really interested in trying it out to sculpt some dragons but it's extremely expensive to use as a test. I've just ordered some sapphires from a mine in NSW, so should get them later this week and have pics of the books up by Monday.

I've just finished a commission, so will put that up at the same time.

Well cobbers, that's all that I can think of at the mo, no neighbourhood drama this week to moan about.



Feelin' - tired
Hearin' - Bat out of Hell - Meatloaf

Stolen Clagg guitar equipment - Melbourne

Melbourne based band Clagg had some gear stolen, if you see any of it around, you can let them know at teamclagg@hotmail.com

This is what the little gnats pinched:

-Marshall JCM2000 DSL100 head
-Marshall JCM900 1960A speaker cabinet
-Gibson Les Paul Classic 1960 reissue (vintage sunburst)
-Epiphone Les Paul Studio (blackish with a woodgrain finish)
-Marshall JCM2000 TSL100 head (a few knobs on the front are missing, also had a Shakira sticker - could leave a residue if peeled off)

I told you this neigbourhood is suddenly busy, now nature is conspiring against us! Last night we lost power for hours after a huge tree fell across the road wiping out the powerlines. Luckily noone was driving through when it fell, so noone was hurt. They ended up getting the cops to block the road, so for hours we had their flashing lights bouncing all around. I felt sorry for the poor guys that had to just sit there and do nothing.

This arvo we've had a bushfire threatening to jump the road and come through, so all you could hear was fire engine sirens as more units kept turning up. They got it under control after a couple of hours though, so we thought it would be a bit quieter. Nope, Police chopper come screaming through at a great rate of knots really low. Have no idea what it was about, but he was moving.

Hope everyone is managing to keep cool. Remember, drink plenty of water, if you don't have a/c, wet towels or cloths & stick in the freezer to drape around your neck.

Andy Caldecott

I've had a lot of people searching for information on Andy Caldecott's funeral service. Click here for the family notice

Awwww, my baby is all grown up. He passed another rite of childhood last night. heh.

Yoda had a late night snack of fruit loops and milk, Mia [not her real name] & Yoda [not his real name either] were stuffing around & Yoda snorted what was in his mouth up his nose.
And it truly was an impressive amount! It took him 10 mins of sneezing and blowing his nose to get all the fruit loops back out. He started freaking out thinking his nose was bleeding, but it turned out he had actually snorted a complete red fruit loop into his nose that was one of the last to be removed.
I would have taken a photo, but, ewwwww.

Did you know that the phrase often credited to the Hippocratic Oath - First, do no harm - is not actually part of the Hippocratic Oath? I never realised that until I had to research it. Also, the latin version is much longer to write out that the English version. *sigh*

I'm rearranging my studio today just for something different to do.

Catchya's later!

Feelin' - exhausted
Hearin' - Made in Heaven - Queen

I am not a hoon

I feel like I'm conjuring people up today. Bit scary!

I am getting a slap in the mail from VicRoads as the parker lights on the front of my car are illegal. Apparently, you can have every other colour except red. Guess what colour the MOTH put in? Yeah.

What happens when you knock over a jar of water onto vellum? I scream and kids run for their lives. They even cleaned their rooms. I'll have to remember that one for the future. Altho, I think I'll fake it next time.

Feelin' - a bit of this, a bit of that
Hearin' - Midday Hurricane - Adam Thompson