The Lovely LiliT requested a header for her Blog. I had a blast setting that up for her.
Here are some of the images that came out of that project.
Pomme Grenade
None of these photos are cropped or edited in any way.
Those pomegranate seeds were even more delicious after staring at them through the lens forever.
Chaotic pile of ideas
An ever growing Todo List for the setup.
What color theme to use? How much stuff can I cram into one image?
A Ravenous idea
We’ve been over this before. Apophenia : finding links between unrelated objects or subjects. This Obsidian involuntarily carved Raven directing me to have a lunch break.
Joyful Despair
Typical mid project feeling
Tools of creation
I love those glass pens
Crystal Ball geode photobomb
Pareidolie : seeing faces in objects: yes the geode is staring at me
Life is incomplete without tea and doodles.A writer’s Napkin: emergency notepad
Ok! Now that we’re finally capable of taking a step back, What are we missing…
When in doubt, ask a friendAnother Friend
Ahhh! There we have it. And for the final result see LiliT ‘s Blog headder!
Did you know that there are at Least 75 Celebrated Holidays From November 1st through January 6th?
Many of which actually overlap!
Many are of a Religious Nature, while others are purely secular.
Quick sketch I did
Did you miss Cake Day? This year it fell on the same Day as Indigenous Peoples Day (as well as Thanksgiving)
Most know of: la Toussaint, Dias de los Muertos, Kwanza, Christmas, la St-Nicolas, Ste Lucie, Yule, Diwali or Hannukah. These are only a few of the Widely Accepted Religious Fêtes.
Homemade Steampunk Wreath
However some of the true Gems of our Times lie in the secular and creative branches. Lying in wait for unsuspecting victims, in search of an excuse to celebrate.
These include : Wolfenoot, Celebrated on November 23rd. December 8th marking ‘let’s pretend we’re time travellers’ day.
And January 6th is « La Journée des Fous ». To name only a few.
Thank-you to wolfskulljack for the original greeting card
Mama Cybèle was rescued Midwinter from the cold, already pregnant with her litter, by a friend.
Cybèle
Cybèle was thus named for 3 reasons:
The first being the reference to the French phrase « Tu est Si Belle » (You are so Beautiful). Si Belle being pronounced identically to the word Cybèle. Because she is a truly Beautiful Cat.
The Second being in reference to Impératrice Sissi. Because as Cats go She is utterly Regal in both Attitude and Demeanor and definitely maintains her territory well. As would be expected of any Good, Proper and Legitimate Monarch.
Photography in Austria provided by Pexels
The third Refering to the Phrygian mythos. More specifically the Goddess Kybēle (Cybèle). The ‘original’¹ Archetypal Matriarchal Divine Feminine. The Mother of Gods.
Particularly appropriate for this maternal feline: Considering that, of her spawn, at least 2 were Baptized for deities in their own right, that we know of. Sekhmet (Egyptian Goddess, counterpart to Bastet) and Déus (Latin Appellation of the Judéo-Christian Deity.
First Week Home
We adopted Both Cybèle and Déus while her other four offspring were graciously adopted into seemingly Good And Loving Homes.
The Mother and Son Duo Have since reigned Supreme over their adopted domain.
Déus Occupying my Chair
If you would like to know more about the adoption process, stories about the cats or fun little bits of information about them feel free to ask away!
So the following thoughts whilst ‘on-brand’ with the Holidays Season, were originally prompted in my mind by the following realizations:
This is both Hilarious and Accurate
We always hear about how different people speak different Love Languages. Generally followed by some adorable and cheezy rant, trying to sell you something, about how we have to learn to listen to our partner’s and friend’s Love Language and do our best even if theirs isn’t the same as ours or especially if they do not match up.
Hmmm…?
The problem is that, while we certainly all have our prefered or predominant ‘Language’. What is often, if not systematically, overlooked is that we all need all of these languages to at least some degree! We can’t just ignore one and try to apply the others! Each of these Love Languages speaks to a different need. Every Human Emotional Need, if ignored for too long, will eventually run Amok.
Coffe Analogy
As December Begins and we move towards Winter, with it’s crisp sparkly mornings and deep quiet nights, I would like to propose that you be direct, and ask the people in your life:
« what type of Gift would mean the most to you? »
An excellent wine for Shenanigans
« What could we do, even with the pandemic still raging on, that you would most enjoy us doing together and creating quality time? »
What kinds of things, even if they seem small or ridiculous to you, can I do to be of service? How could I best help you? »
I’d like to help too…
Physical touch doesn’t have to be long hugs 😁. 🎩🧐😉😁✒️It can be quite challenging to accomplish this one during a lockdown. Please be patient. 🙏
Mama and Spawn. Invading my chair…
And Last but not least: TELL THEM HOW AMAZING THEY ARE! ReAffirm their place and importance in your life.
Not what you’re expecting. But with Thanksgiving coming up this week, I wanted to share something.
View from Hall
I had fun taking a bunch of photos of when we renovated the House. And figured I could share some of the pictures with you all!
Yup, right through the ceiling fan
On that note: mini story time!
This is a tale about how my mother decided that wallpapering a quote onto a ceiling was a good idea…
From the kitchen
I might muster-up the energy to give more of a house tour another time. But at least you’ll have some insight on how these photos became a thing, if not why.
All the wallpaper, Artwork, Paintings, Stained Glass, Countertops, Backsplash, even the WineRack and folding Photo filled Paravent, & The Floor! Is all either my Mother, Grandfather, my Sister, or mine own doing. And when it’s not, it’s a heirloom item or family photos mostly.
Two old photos of the family and ‘big’ house
The cabinet doors? Hours of calc-ing original designs or traditional Norwegian sayings and imagery by hand onto parchment paper, only to wallpaper it onto each cabinet door one at a time.
Hand crafted cabinet panels
The stained Glass window? My mother designed, put together, and installed it as a gift to my grandmother.
Not flagstone
The Floor: you are looking at is a concrete floor…
No. That is not Fieldstone. Nor marble.
That is days, weeks, of painting cement, tinting concrete, by hand, until the desired effect was achieved. And tracing each individual stone.
One. at. A. Time.
I mean it. It’s concrete… Literal cement…
So, after watching my mother paint a garden door scenery
« to look like one of those gardens in the magazines »,
by hand, because she
« couldn’t stand the look of the grey fuse box ruinning the decor » …
Find the fusebox… I dare you…
I can’t say I was surprised by the proposition to wallpaper a section of the ceiling to match the cabinets and floorboards…
This does not do the stained glass window justice
The Quote that was ultimately stenciled on by hand, was, granted, one of my Grandfather’s favorites.
And reads like a balm on the souls of most creatives, artists and marginalized folks alike.
So to all of the photographs and artists, to the creative thinkers, tinkerers and creators of worlds, to you I say: remember this:
« If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away. »
When in doubt, set it all out on display
Never Let Anyone convince you your Dreams are too big, Ideas too wild, for you to achieve them. Even if the person trying to convince you is you.
Black Friday, Small Buisness Saturday, CyberMonday. They’re all going to be extremely harsh for Artists and Artisans this year. So all that for a word of encouragement: just keep your head up. It’ll be worth it in the end.
Have we forgot Our history While we sing and make merry Shouting praise and Dancing For joy now we're happy For the end of this presidency It's all over the TV The end, quite Hopefully To 4 years of sheer misery Uncertainty and tragedy. Yet take heed too much folly Could plague still your belly, Your head even your family. This prospect seems scary And the outcome so dreary But hope came with the tally For A new page in the story Of our ongoing journey So feast now be jolly And never again forget our history