Squirrel Babies and Snacks

More Favorite Things

2009-03-19T20:11:00.001-07:00

I love Etsy's articles in Quit Your Day Job! It's inspiring to read about other artists who have dedicated themselves to their art to the point where they were able to take the plunge and quit their day job. Not that I want to quit my day job... I like the people I work with, and I have my very own desk for once, but there's something about reading what their average day is like. Oh, the freedom to come and go, and create all day! Or most of the day. There's that business-y type stuff that has to be done. Overall, Etsy is a great site.

Another great site is Craftzine' blog. I've been getting into the habit of checking out the site every other day, but if I'm at work, then everyday. It is filled with everything from art techniques, recipes, artists, shows, growing houseplants, mending sweaters, EVERYTHING! Just look to the right for a very long list of categories.

Writing

2009-02-10T20:02:00.000-08:00

I love Miranda July. Ever have a weird, off-the-wall thought and wonder "what the hell"? Then you quickly throw it out of your head and try to think about something normal like buying coffee or doing laundry. Well, Miranda July takes those weird thoughts and turns them into stories. I just finished No One Belongs Here More Than You, and I must say, I am encouraged to hold on to my weird thoughts. They're not that bad...

Contradiction?

2009-01-14T20:22:00.000-08:00

So this is odd: A new shop I like is called Necromance and it's a taxidermy-type shop. (I saw it on L.A. Ink.) Yes, I'm a vegetarian, but I would never buy the baby chick or duck in a box, or a piglet in a jar, but I would buy the seahorse. I need the seahorse. I also need the Phrenology head. I know phrenology is a dead science, but the head is just so cool. It would be great to model off the hats Dante or I make.

I love odd things.

Favorite Things

2008-12-07T22:02:00.001-08:00

I love to get lost in other artists' blogs and through mazes of links in search of great art and things that make me happy just by looking at them. I came across a great shop, Egg Mercantile, and it has become a new favorite. I'd like one of everything from there, but to the left is my first choice. It's a tray that can be used or hung on the wall. But it's too beautiful to put food on top of! And at 98,00 euros (plus shipping), I don't think anything should touch it.

And then there's the artist, Lyndie Dourthe (right). I always feel happy when I look at her website. I wonder how I'd feel if I owned one of her pieces?!

Next up is Something's Hiding in Here, a husband and wife team who make things I think I need. And I do need them. Who doesn't need a wooden mustache on a stick? I also need their loft. It's one of the most amazing live/work lofts I've seen. What makes it beautiful is it's open, clean, and everywhere you look, there is something interesting, something beautiful.
~Linda

Dedication

2008-12-02T18:18:00.000-08:00

I haven't been dedicated to this blog for quite some time, but I will change!! Really I will.
I won't gab about what has been happening, but I will gab about what will be happening. I decided to be a good person and think about events in advance and prepare for them. My favorite event is Dia de los Muertos, held annually since 2005 and run by a wonderful group of artists. Dante will be in charge of the graveyard next year and so I plan to build a mausoleum. Yes! A mausoleum!
But since it's a huge project, I will build a miniature mausoleum first. I started an online search for small things like picture frames, chandeliers, lit sconces, and wallpaper. I came across the artist Diane Almeyda who I think is insane in a good way. See this?
Wouldn't it look nice in a mausoleum? It's sterling silver and glass, and is also a little over 1 and a half inches in diameter!!! See? Insane. I don't know how much this lamp costs, but her other miniature lamps run $1000 to $2800. I assure you I have the right number of zeros.
So since I can't afford the luxury of a 1 inch high lamp, I may have to make a bootleg version. And while I was getting lost looking at miniatures online, I can't help but feel that I may just make a lot of the pieces instead of buying them. Will I have time to make the life-size mausoleum? Will I even want to make a life-size mausoleum? Well, I have a year.

-Linda

I Was Discriminated Against!

2008-04-20T21:03:00.000-07:00

It was at J. Crew, and it was class-discrimination! Yup. Apparently I look poor.

So my friend, Shezza, and I walk into a J. Crew at the God-forsaken Crocker Park in Westlake. (Why were we there, you ask? We saw online some dresses that would make great wedding dresses for the beach, that's why.) We walk all over the place to get the dress we saw in the outside window. No "hello" from the sales people, no offers for help. (I really don't care about that. I prefer to be left alone when I shop. Less pressure, you know?) We find the dress, pick a couple sizes and head off to the fitting room. There was no attendant, so we walk in and find an empty room. There's a couple of tops in it, but I'm thinking it's like all the other stores: people leave them in there. Well, no. We find out later that the sales people pick up stuff that customers are carrying to "start a dressing room". Then when the customer is ready, they get a little bottle of water, put it in the dressing room, then get the customer. What service!
So I walked into a dressing room that was already started for another customer. I was oblivious to all of this, but Shezza saw it all. The saleswoman brings in the customer and says "I'll show you to your dressing room." While I'm down the hall looking at myself in the 180 mirror, Shezza is looking back as the woman goes up to the dressing room where my stuff is in. She sees my clothes piled on the plush seat. She didn't seem too happy. She takes the customer's clothes out and apologizes to the customer that someone took her dressing room. The customer replied that it was ok, "It's not your fault".
And Shezza took a catalog from an empty dressing room. The sales lady didn't like that either...
So anyway, the dress fit perfectly, I'm unaware of what just happened, and Shezza said the place was creepy. I asked if it was because she heard that little girl answer a cell phone in the next dressing room.
So I go to the checkout. The woman asks me who helped me. I said, "noone" and she paused uncomfortably. Then the transaction went on as normal. I even got $20 off the dress! And I don't know why. It wasn't listed as on sale. This place may not be so bad after all. But then she put my receipt in a tiny hunter green envelope with J. Crew on it and handed it to me. I think the receipt doesn't want to touch the other receipts...
So we walk out and Shezza tells me everything that happened. I'll send a complaint to J. Crew. Maybe they'll send me a gift card. Maybe my dignity is worth $20 off.

-Linda

A Dream I Had

2008-04-13T17:10:00.000-07:00

Last night I dreamt I moved into a house. There was the thought that my brother and a bunch of other guys were renting it out before Dante and I bought it. The place was very dirty. As if it's been exposed to the out side. There was dirt, twigs, pebbles. Cobwebs everywhere with those little "wishy" dandelion fuzzy things stuck in them. But the house was very interesting. Balconies inside, large windows. Green carpeting. There was an immense fireplace in the living room. It was white marble with stairs leading into it. There was a white marble Guan Yin statue seated in the middle of it.
I decided to get started on cleaning the place. I new it would look great once it was cleaned. I though it had huge potential. I sat on a sofa across from the fireplace. Then I heard an angry, deep, demonic voice say "Out!". I looked at the fireplace and wondered if it came from there, and whether I was making things up. I realized I wasn't. The voice repeated, "Out!" Then a wind started to come from the fireplace. I stood up and the wind increased. I faced the fireplace and said, "No, because God is here." As I said this, my breath was being taken away and it was hard to speak.
I woke up in my bed unable to move. My heart pounding.

So what was that supposed to mean?!

-Linda

Adios Pepa......

2008-03-15T22:25:00.000-07:00

Earlier this evening, while at the table painting, I recieved a call from my mom telling me that my godmother, Pepa, died. And towards the end of the call she told me she has cancer again in her breast, and surgery was schedule for next week. How does a person digest or react to such news? My godmother, who I loved dearly, passing away, and my mom having cancer again shouldn't be in the same phone conversation. My senses were numbed from the shock. After telling Linda the news, she immediately was in a state of sorrow. She canceled going out this evening. I felt that I was Ok to go out. Later I realized that it would be better if I stayed at home when Linda questioned me again about my feelings. I felt a little wierd that my emotions weren't mirroring those of Linda. It usually takes me a while to process such news before I start to mourn. But I did something new that I never did before after hearing terrible news, I did this drawing - a really tiny one. This really sums up what I'm going through at the moment.
During the phone call, all I remember was trying to console my mom as best as I could under such circumstances. There is nothing one can say to lessen the pain, I wish I could be next to her and hold her silently in my arms. She was devastated, crying and regretting not seeing her in the past 4 years. 2004 was the last time they saw each other. We've always talked about making plans to go see her again, but nothing was ever decided. I, like my mom, regret not seeing her. Although my godmother and I hardly spent a great deal of time together, I felt a close connection with her. I feel awful that I didn't make more of an effort to get my passport and start saving money for a trip. I always thought of her and prayed for her since she was a sick woman and still in mourning for her son, who past away more than 9 years ago. I hardly called her, but when I did she started to cry and told me how much she loved me. Her emotions made it difficult for me to talk to her. I always believed I communicated better with her through my prayers and thoughts, and now, maybe through drawing. She was a sweet, sensitive, and kind spirit who was devoted to her religion. I will always remember how beautiful and graceful she looked. She always displayed a peaceful demeanor with a radiant smile, and I can never forget the purity and joy in her eyes that I saw constantly on our last visit at her home.

Pepa, I miss you dearly and I'm sorry that I wasn't there when you passed
away. You always had a home in my heart in which you constantly dwelled. I
promise to never forget our time together and will cherish every hug, kiss,
advice, and sweet tamales you've given me. We will see each other again,
but now you can enjoy being together again with your beloved son and
parents. Adios Pepa.
Love,
Panchito

A Bit of Writing

2008-03-04T17:51:00.000-08:00

Jesus Punched Lazarus.
You see,
Jesus was burying toys and sticks in a little mud mound.
It was a nice mound.
Its treasures concealed inside.
The mud was smooth and glossy.
"That's how people should be buried," Jesus thought.
How nice to be buried with things that were important.
Some toys, food, clothing, tools maybe.
Then the earth would be pregnant with your soul, your spirit, your livelihood, your life.
We could be born again.
And again. And again. And again.
We would always have life.
We would fall in love again. Take our first steps again. Enjoy everything again.
And all the while we'd store our histories in the earth, and over time know each other.
We'd understand each other, be more compassionate...
-STOMP!-
Lazarus purposely squashed the perfect mound.
The mud spotted Jesus' face.
It stung his eyes.
It dripped into his mouth.
Jesus stood and looked Lazarus in the eye.
Lazarus stopped laughing.
Time held its breath.
Lazarus was new, as was Jesus.
Neither of them had been buried in a mound.
The earth had not been pregnant with them. Nothing was stored. Histories not yet collected.
So,
Jesus punched Lazarus.

-Linda

Good Quote About Art

2008-03-04T17:38:00.000-08:00

"Art is what you can get away with, said somebody or other, which makes it sound like shoplifting or some other minor crime. And maybe that's all it ever was, or is: a kind of stealing. A hijacking of the visual."

-Cat's Eye by Margaret Atwood

Getting Over Stuff

2008-03-02T16:28:00.000-08:00

So, I've been thinking about my life. Myself. Understanding the part of me that acts the way it does without my input. Sometimes that part can be great, like if I'm quick to act in a situation. Or I go into overdrive when I need to meet a deadline or come through for a friend.

Then there's those parts that hold you and don't let you breathe. The part that makes you give and share yourself to a person who doesn't care. To a person who's indifferent. Then I think about life. There's only about, what, 75 or so years in it? And should any of those years be ignored or insignificant?

This topic has been coursing through my brain on and off for months. Today I found a sentence written about a musician, Sara Bareilles, that perfeclty words what I've been struggling with. It read that her latest album covers "her past relationships, insecurities, and inner battles with trying to trust her instincts".

...relationships, insecurities, and inner battles to trust my instincts...

Trust my instincts. Yeah. I think I oughtta do that.

-Linda

Why "Squirrel Babies and Snacks"?

2008-02-23T18:09:00.000-08:00

Because everyone loves squirrel babies and snacks! Squirrel babies are adorable and have not grown up to be the rabid, sneaky varmints they are destined to be. And who doesn't love snacks? Popcorn, chips, fruit leather, walnuts.
And one day when the weather was in the single digits, Dante was wearing his long john underwear with a defective elastic waistband. He lifted his shirt to reveal the overstretched waistband and said he really ought to buy a new pair. I said he shouldn't because it created a nice pouch. Perfect to store snacks. Or nurse squirrel babies. With that, I laughed so hard and declared those words were going on my list of favorite words. (I have a list of words I hate, but that will be in a different blog.) Since then, all Dante needs to do to make me smile and laugh, is to simply say, "squirrel babies and snacks".
And why this blog? Dante and I have been talking about writing a blog together about our thoughts, stories, art, travels, and life in general. After all, isn't life adorable before it turns into that rabid, sneaky varmint?
So here it is. Enjoy.