Happy May Day!

As a child, May Day was always special. My mother helped me cut flowers & assemble little cone baskets to deliver to the neighbors. After assembly,  I ran up to our neighbors homes, hung the baskets on the door, rang the bell and ran away! Today, the lilacs are blooming and I’ve assembled a cone for my neighbor Gail. Hopefully she’ll see it when returning from work. This is probably the first basket created in over 35 years!  I took the photo at my house because I thought it would look silly taking a photo at her front door.  🙂

Lee, my father, is doing better. His blood count went up to a level he could take on more chemo this week. Hmmm, kind of a double edged sword. It will inevitably drop his blood production and make him feel tired and unspunky. Hopefully, on this round, it won’t make such a big drop in his energy levels as round #1. Time will tell.

With the last couple of weeks of home instability, I decided to drop out of the Plankton show. Probably just as well since Hester let me know she had an overabundance of participants. I’m still planning on submitting for the  Rural Arts Installation project and creating some fun work for the ArtShop during the Plankton show. A kinetic sculpture is in the works for the installation… I hope! More sea squirts and screen printed objects to come.

Dave did return from his 9 day adventure to India. I was super happy to have another dog walker back in the house! 5 miles a day is too much for me, but about right for Moby! Saudi Arabia is the next possible county to receive a visit from Dave, but I’m not letting him go for at least 6 months!

Right when Dave left, I started a gluten free diet after a mysterious intestinal incident. The doctor thought it might have been food poisoning, but I’m not so certain. My mother had a major history with food allergies, but wouldn’t admit it. Needless to say, I’ve inherited the dreaded lactose/casein intolerance and possibly the gluten issue too. My brother Mike has the same problem…. I hate it when I’m like him!

Both of the cats received the dreaded vet trip this morning. Nigel happens to be a cat at ease where ever he goes. Once you open the kennel, he saunters out and rubs his cheeks on anything not moving. He also flops down and just enjoys all the activity & attention. MeMe is the opposite. She wants to hide in your arms. If you leave her on the table, she freezes. An entirely different personality than at home. Unfortunately, she has a grade 4 heart murmur and a joint issue. Those darn valves! George had the same problem. Fortunately, she has been chosen to participate in a training session for vet techs! In a couple of weeks, she’ll spend a Sunday hanging out at the vet getting checked over… for FREE! Yippee!!! One less diagnostics test to pay for!

Moby the magnificent is certainly getting me out for serious daily walks. We’ve been managing 3+ miles daily. Jogging might become possible in the next few weeks if my feet & knees hold up. That’s still a dream of mine, to be able to get back into jogging a 5K. Seems like most races have moved to 1/2 marathon or marathon modes. One of my friend’s husband just won the Eugene Marathon last weekend. Way to go Mike!

My dad and I are still at work on genealogy stuff. He’s wanting all the family crest images to create a cool screen print or embroidered sweatshirt. I’m trying to gather as much info as possible prior to his kicking the bucket, which isn’t expected any time soon! He’s got years to go in my book! Plus we’re still in the design mode for creating a shaman rattle for his oncologist. Life with my dad is never dull… he’s always moving on to new projects even before the others are settled! That must be the secret to life, always having many irons in the fire to keep things moving.  🙂

Thanks for checking in! Artwork images to come for the September show….

Voting is still open for the Corvallis Fall Festival Poster Image! Please click on the highlighted words to connect! Closing date is May 2 @ midnight!