Closer!

As many of you know, I have been saving for a camera, since whining about it to Cora has not helped.  She hasn't just run out to the local camera shop and gotten me that very expensive camera like I had hoped she would.  She's a wonderful woman, don't get me wrong, but she just has not got the "expensive gifts that I don't absolutely need" thing down...but then, I guess I haven't bought her any jewelery lately, either, so maybe we are even.  Still, she was generous (?) enough to tell me if I could find a way to be rid of the two albatrosses cars in the back I could use any money I got from them for my camera.  Well, I am now $450.00 closer since I sold the Mazda.

I still need to sell the accursed Buick...it has failed to garner even a single call!  I am going to repost it at a lower price and try and give the add a better spin tonight.

In the meantime, when word gets out that you can draw and paint, people start asking you to do things.  I have now been asked to do a mural on a child's wall (I want to do this, it'd be fun) and, more recently, I have been asked to re-do a sign for Cora's work.  Any money I get for that sign will go to the Camera Fund!  (I am sure you are all saying, "Camera?  What about the baby?"  I want to use IT to take PICTURES of the baby!  I know! Genius!  And still, Cora has not rushed out to buy me a camera!  DRAT!)  I brought the sign home last night and began working on it.  I chipped and scraped and sanded and primed it.  Soon, I will replace the old lettering and logo.  It should not take too long and the sign will be as good as new.

before

during

Soon, I will have an after photo.  It may be of interest to you that not one of those letters on the old sign were the same height.  The "S" was 35 inches from top to bottom, while others were just a little over 32 inches from top to bottom.

I get to work alone today.  The other two guys are doing ten hour shifts.  I am pretty happy with the amount of stuff that got done this week.  I think we did a good job and the boss will be pleased.

This weekend?  Hmmm, I can't wait to see what it holds!  Have a good Friday!

Poetry

My Uncle Larry was an artist of many sorts.  I have only been exposed to a fraction of his photography, but I have seen his use of found objects to create a living space that made him happy.  I appreciate that kind of sculpture and arrangement.  He is gone now.  He passed away almost four years ago.  I never took the opportunities I should have to know him better.  It seems the saying is true about youth.  While he may have rubbed some people wrong with his hippie ways and un-mainstream beliefs, I always found him to be one who was enjoyable and agreeable to know.

I saw my aunt yesterday.  She still grieves for him.  I know this.  I know the pain never leaves after you lose a loved one.  Some days are better, but they are never easy.  Seeing her reminded me of this.  And of his art.

I need to appreciate the loved ones I have now.

Forgive me for leaving my normal tempo and narrative form.  Today, I write for my Uncle.  And, in that vain, I submit this poem:

FITFUL

Awake

It seemed

All night long.

Sleep

Was an

Inconsiderate lover.

Still

I long

To go back.

  

Jim R. Huffman

4-7-2010

Good News On The Fertility Front!!

Ok, that title should have drawn you in. No, we are not pregnant, however, a miracle ocurred today!! I found the location of the ever-important and handsome Fertility Spoon. Cora stole it and hid it over a year ago! She claimed, at the time, that some Mormon Boys had come and she had offered it in hopes of saving their children...see her post here.
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I had placed it in the most ostentatious place, in an effort to draw out the fertility from the air and maybe even speed the adoption along. Cora claimed that it was ugly and explained to me that she would hide it. I did not believe her and took no special measures to protect the Spoon.

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I had carved it some years ago. By myself. All alone. In an artistic way. I used all my best tricks and lots of love. When I finished it, the carving looked to me to resemble an African carving. So, I bought some ebony stain and stained it black. I was VERY proud of it. Cora, however, smiled and said, "that's nice." You know, that smile she uses when he doesn't really mean what she is saying? When I finally hung it up in a place of honor she explained to me that it was much too ugly to be in our house. I did not believe her, since she obviously had no idea what she was talking about. Since she found it repulsive, I thought I would give it a name that might make her like it. "Fertility Spoon."

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It didn't work.

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We played the hide it, put it up, hide it again game a few times, until she over did it. I have to hand it to her, she hid it VERY WELL. I can't believe it has been gone a whole year!

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Here are a couple pictures, surely you can agree with me, it is a thing of beautty! (I'd take better pictures, but I'd have to take it down and I am worried she might take it again. She makes no secret that that is her intention!)

Praise for Music Teachers

Yesterday, I subbed for a music teacher. She's great and always leaves nice non-musical plans, that is, I don't have to play anything more complicated than a CD player. She usually puts on a spring and fall program and does lots of other stuff with the kids. Lately, though, I have more respect for her. She has these African instruments, probably 20 or 30 of them. Some are big, some are small. You are still waiting for why I have more respect for her, aren't you? Well, the kids come in at various times during the day to practice. Did you get that? PRACTICE, that means not all of them are good. Or even if they are good, it would be difficult to tell from the cocophony of sound and notes booming out from all the other wonderful, LOUD, instruments. I suppose it is just that none of it was in harmony...no, that's not true. A few of them would play together and you could almost hear them over the others.

I guess I have become used to the relative quiet of the classroom and the (what's another word for formless, tuneless, loud, cocophony)... it was just a strange assault to the ears. It was like no other sound. Oh, I managed to get stuff done and prepare for the next class, and I suppose I could got used to it, but WOW! So, I take my hat off to all music teachers, because I am sure when your kids practice it must be hard for you to concentrate.

I got a few more paintings further along last night. I got one finished and I will show it tonight. A few others are further aong. I hate it when I get to a spot where I realize this painting is just not working like I thought it would and then I have to go back over it. For example I had planned on doing an elephant in a forrest, but decided the background wasn't good enough. So, now there is a different background...third try. Ah well, they all eventually turn out...I don't give up until they do.

Oh, I shipped out my first painting yesterday! "The Red One" is now on its way to its new home. Cora and I both had grown accustomed to it hanging on the wall. I guess I will just have to make another.

Monday is over, where is Friday?

Chinese New Year Dinner and Pictures

First, the best: Piety Flats, my favorite!! Mercantile Red!

Look at it while you can, it is an endangered species in this house.

Dinner: We made stir fry and....drum roll please...Egg Rolls!!!!!! Home made! Now, our last attempt was not particularly wonderful, but this time there was perhaps an Egg Roll Fairy sitting on my shoulder while I cut the veggies. They were divine. I always forget to take pictures of the work up to dinner, but at least I remember to get pictures of the final product.

Little Miss will at least be able to enjoy an occasional Chinese-esque dinner.

Those are dips in between the food. One is Soy Sauce, Cilantro, garlic powder, cayenne, rice vinegar and lemon juice. the other is soy sauce, teriyaki sauce, dried hot mustard, and some cayenne pepper. Cora liked the former, I preferred the latter.

So, this is the Year of the Ox that we are boldly stepping into. I hope it brings us a daughter or son.

Cora has already mentioned not cleaning on the Chinese New Year. Apparently it is said to clean the good luck away...it was not until I began dinner that she decided to tell me that using sharp knives on CNY is bad luck and I thought, shoot, that's just a dumb superstition, what kind of bad luck could it be? I continued chopping happily. A few minutes later, I tried to take a piece of vegetable off my knife and promptly sliced myself. Ahh, THAT kind of bad luck. And, can you believe? Cora laughed at me! While she was putting the bandaid on my wound she was laughing at me!

At least it was a delicious dinner. Happy Chinese New Year! Gung Hay Fat Choy!!!

I had second graders today. They were considerably more annoying than last time. We spent some time discussing the best way to walk in line. We spent some time practicing quiet. We spent lots of time with our heads down. Still, it wasn't a horrible day, and I am really much nicer than some.

I walked into a class to say hi to my neighbor and she had my blog up showing someone else...(I had no idea I was SOOOOO popular!) she said she was trying to see my painting...I subbed in that class the other day and left some pictures for the kids to color, and she was trying to see...I hope I get this right...if I did other kinds of art. So, here you go Edna! These are some I did for our living room because the previous ones had grown boring.

This one I did once we got back from CA...circa 2007

This pear is the first one, I like it better than the Apple. I did this one in CA. Cora's job includes juicing such fruits, so it was my intention to showcase those.

But my paintings are not all I do. Below you see the diorama I built for my small ships. The diorama is only 5 inches by 7 inches...everything but some of the ships are hand made and painted. This diorama currently resides at the McCalister Air Museum...if you get a chance swing by. I originally just wanted to share it with a couple people who volunteer there...but ended up leaving it for a time. When I came back to reclaim it one of the gentlemen there had built a stand and put up a plaquard describing it...I decided to leave it a little longer...pride, I suppose.

My dad enjoys HO scale trains. I built this water tower for him for Christmas a couple years ago. Every piece made by me...well, shaped and painted by me. The engine is his...I needed something for scale.

Then in 2007 I built him this shop building...not the best photo, but it looked pretty good.

Then last February, for his birthday, I bought a few train cars and then proceeded to vandalize them. I used a small paint brush and emmulated the graffiti you see on them in real life. Surprisingly, they don't sell them like that. They turned out very nicely. He was happy and surprised. I don't have photos of those, though...

So, yeah, I do other things. Thanks for reading the blog! And Happy Chinese New Year!!!!