Paint Party Friday - Jenn's Seagull

Happy Halloween!

Welcome to Paint Party Friday! Today's piece is entitled 'Jenn's Seagull' because it was inspired by a photo Jenn posted on her blog the other day. She kindly gave me permission to use it. The piece is done in my art journal in watercolour pencil (5"h x 7"w).

This is Jenn's photo:

A Good Book

Fall Afternoon

I just finished reading the memoir 'Shattered Love' by Richard Chamberlain (remember Dr. Kildare? Shogun? The Thornbirds?). It was published in 2003 and he decided to 'come out' as a then 69 year old gay man. The Amazon reviews sum the book up accurately. If you are expecting a sensational 'coming out' this is not the book for you. He is simply a gay man focussed (or focused) on spirituality and a deeper meaning of life. He is an artistic, intelligent, (I would say introverted) writer and I enjoyed the read. He did not have a good relationship with his father, a reformed alcoholic, now deceased. The father was a domineering patriarch. It was interesting how Richard came to forgive and realize his love for his father well after the man's death.

Discriminatory?

Carpet of Leaves

'All About That Bass' by singer Meghan Trainor has become a number one song worldwide this year. This fun song is about a positive body image for more voluptuous females. I thought it was great until I heard all the skinny females were complaining that the song was discriminatory! One has to be so careful these days.

Creative Tuesdays - Minty

Creative Tuesdays' current theme is 'Minty'. I did a greeting card (4 1/2"h x 5"w) in acrylic on some glossy paper scrap I had lying around. Mint Chocolate Cake anyone?

Chemistry of Happiness

Just a cool fall photo

I was reading the October 2014 issue of Best Health magazine and there was an article by Susan Biali on  'the chemistry of happiness'.  I won't go into the details of the body chemicals involved (dopamine, oxytocin, etc.) but if we didn't know it already, listening to music you love, daily exercise, eating right, carbohydrates, lots of hugs, a hot bath, meditation can all be used to induce happiness.

Sunday Sketches - A Face

This piece is entitled 'A Face'. I started sketching this face I saw in a magazine, it evolved into this girl. It looks nothing like the original, but she is appealing nonetheless.  Her features are a bit crooked, I didn't spend a lot of time perfecting the drawing.  It's done in my art journal in watercolour pencil (5"h x 7"w).  Happy Sunday Sketches!

Coconut Shake and Bake

I tried this recipe I found in Roger Mooking's cookbook. It's called Coconut Shake and Bake. It was easy and delicious. The breading consists of half a cup of Panko breadcrumbs, and 3/4 cup of unsweetened shredded coconut. It's a winner!

Paint Party Friday - Whisky

This piece is entitled 'Whisky', done in my art journal in watercolour pencil. It's (5"h x 7"w).  It was inspired by a photo I saw in a liquor store brochure, loved the shape of the glass.  I added a few leaves because they are so plentiful on the ground at this time of year.  Happy Paint Party Friday!

Almost Halloween

Well I've bought my pumpkin, and got lots of chocolates and some decorations yesterday in preparation for Halloween next week. We don't usually get a lot of kids, but we always have candy!  I got Mars bars, Oh Henry bars, Twix bars, M&Ms, Kit Kat...the snack size kind.

Are you ready for Halloween?  What kind of candy do you buy?

A Reunion of Sorts

I had a social Sunday. After church, I ran into some family friends and they invited me over to chat at their table at the McDonald's restaurant nearby. A daughter in the family had recently gotten married. I was shown fabulous wedding photos on her dad's cell phone. Wedding photos always bring me near to tears for some reason, I guess it's such a beautiful, sentimental event. Coincidentally, I had gone to university at the same time as one of the dad's brothers and he had come over from Australia for his niece's wedding. I was treated like a long lost friend! It's amazing how we can remember people from over thirty years ago, and be able to catch up on the past somewhat. In fact, they said the occasion marked 46 years since all the dad's siblings had been able to re-unite. They are spread all over the world.


Then I had to run off and go about my business. I had to go to the Roger Mooking Executive Chef series downtown (see yesterday's post). It was a busy day.

Had So Much Fun

Last Friday, I noticed this special offer in my email. We collect Air Miles and they were offering free tickets to select Executive Chef Series at the Delicious Food Show downtown that weekend. It would be first come first served. Shortly after, I was confirmed for 2 tickets to see Roger Mooking. I had long been a fan of his 'Everyday Exotic' show so I was beyond excited. Husband M had no idea who he is, but he would soon find out!

'Each exclusive chef series is 1 hour and includes food to nibble on as well as refreshments. In addition to meeting and cooking with your favourite celebrity chef, each participant will be able to sample what they have created in the session as well as receive a complimentary apron. Maximum number of participants per session is 24.'

We had so much fun! The event actually lasted 2 hours. We were given goodie bags full of freebies as we entered and invited to get an expresso coffee, flavoured water or some wine. Then we had some gourmet appetizers as pictured in the photos below, yum.

Then we were introduced to the celebrity chef Roger Mooking and led to the kitchen for our cooking class! We watched him make Lemongrass Chicken, Cornmeal Cow Tongue Dumplings (no tongue, just tongue-shaped dumplings), and Grandpa Moos Country Chutney. Then while the chicken was baking, we made our own dumplings and chutney.

Afterward, we sat at tables to enjoy our delicious cooking:

We then went up to Roger to get our complimentary cookbooks autographed! He is an outgoing, talented personality.

We then spent another couple of hours browsing the actual Delicious Food Show with its hundred exhibitors. There were lots of food samples to be had, some of them you had to pay for. We had been given ten free alcohol drink ticket samples at our event, so we used them to sample tequila, wine and cocktails.

What a great day!  This is my idea of fun.  Besides, it was free.

What's your idea of fun?

Freezer Jam

So I made my own freezer jam recently!  It was delicious, quick and easy.   Laurie had told me about this some time ago and I finally got around to buying a packet of freezer jam.  You can store this in your fridge for many weeks.  It was so easy to make and tasted delicious because you put your own fresh fruit into it.  As you can tell, I'm not a jam maker, (the kind you preserve in sterilized jars).

Sunday Sketches - Fall Card

Just a fall greeting card today for Sunday Sketches!  This piece is on textured acid-free blue cardstock (5 1/2"h x 4 1/4"w), in acrylic.

Travel Persona Quiz

I took this neat Aeroplan Travel Persona quiz, want to try it?  I got this result:

You're the Inquisitive wanderer

You believe in taking in the sights, making sure you’ll bring back info as well as souvenirs. Why go abroad if not for things you can’t find at home? You’re the type of person who reads the museum captions or does want to go visit a third temple in a day. Have you considered Boston or Cambodia?

You know, I've never been to Boston or Cambodia.

Paint Party Friday - Kay's Orchid

Welcome to Paint Party Friday! This piece is entitled 'Kay's Orchid' as she kindly allows me to paint her lovely photographs. I was inspired by this one here for this piece.  It had deceptively simple lines and turned out to be more difficult that I thought!   It's acrylic on textured grey cardstock (8 1/2" h x 11"w).

Easy Pasta and Cheese Bake

All jokes aside, I'd like to share my easy pasta and cheese bake. It uses raw pasta, half a jar of tomato based pasta sauce, a jar of alfredo sauce.

Ingredients

8 oz (2 cups) uncooked pasta such as macaroni,bow-tie,shell, etc)
1/2 of a 650ml jar of tomato-based pasta sauce
1 (410ml) jar of alfredo sauce
1 1/3 cups water
1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese
1/2 cup breadcrumbs

pre-heat oven to 350F

In a casserole dish lined with parchment paper add uncooked pasta, pasta sauce, alfredo sauce and water. Mix together and ensure pasta is just covered with the liquid. Sprinkle breadcrumbs and grated cheese over top. Bake 40 - 50 minutes until golden brown and the liquid is all reduced.

That's it! Enjoy.

Flu Shots

These pumpkins were on display outside a grocery store.

Husband M, son K and I went looking to get our flu shots last week. The walk-in clinic had run out, but said they would be getting some more in this week. Most places aren't getting the flu shots in until closer to the end of the month. Do you get the flu shot every year?

Daughter L encouraged us to watch the movie 'The Book Thief' and we loved it.  To quote wikipedia, 
'the film is about a young girl living with her adoptive German family during the Nazi era. Taught to read by her kind-hearted foster father, the girl begins "borrowing" books and sharing them with the Jewish refugee being sheltered by her foster parents in their home.'

Creative Tuesdays - Found Object

Welcome to Creative Tuesdays! The current theme is 'found object'. Michael always comes up with interesting challenges and I am able to learn so much from them. There are tons of maple leaves blowing around outside at this time of year. So I chose a brilliant red maple leaf as my 'found object'. I glued it onto a textured dark green cardstock sheet (12" x 12"). Then it became a necklace with the help of some acrylic paint!  Hope you love this one as much as I do!

Happy Canadian Thanksgiving

It's a long weekend in Canada in most of the provinces. Families gather usually on Sunday or Monday and eat lavish meals with the turkey being the centrepiece.
We gathered with husband M's extended family yesterday. It was fun to see all the new babies in the family. I ate a bit too much.

Sunday Sketches - Angel

This is my angel for Sunday Sketches. She was inspired by a photo of a bird that I saw.  This piece is (4 1/4" x 4 1/4"), I did The angel in watercolour pencil on a post-it note.  Then I cut it out and glued it to the background which is actually a scrap of coloured cardstock.  I just did the wave ripples in navy blue acrylic.

Have a wonderful Sunday and Happy Canadian Thanksgiving if you are celebrating today!

Some Fall Colour

I read an interesting article that said 'time really does fly as you age'. So once we have gotten used to something our brains go on autopilot. Time seems to go faster. The recommendation is that you can force yourself out of a routine to make time go slower.


I've been snapping some fall colour on my walks through the neighbourhood.  Here are a few for today:

Paint Party Friday - Sailboat

Welcome to Paint Party Friday!  This piece is on textured acid-free cardstock, a greeting card (5 1/2"h x 4 1/4"w) in acrylic.  The painting is actually (4 1/4" x 4 1/4"), specially made to fit a  4" x 4" matted frame I bought on sale for $7. 

Here it is framed:

Here it is with another one I did recently for Sunday Sketches.

Here they are on a bathroom wall at home:

Rose Hip

This is the flower of the rose hip plant.  Isn't it pretty.

Here is a touching story I read in the newspaper last week.
'Toronto girl, 8, lauded as a ‘hero’ for quick action when mom collapsed'

White Pumpkins

I'm noticing these white pumpkins appearing in the stores now.

In case I forget, it's my and husband M's 26th wedding anniversary today, time flies!  that year, it coincided with the Canadian Thanksgiving long weekend so we served turkey as the main course, what else.  I guess we can celebrate this Thanksgiving weekend with the extended family.

Some Fall Colour

I read a touching story in the paper yesterday, about this dog that wouldn't die. He survived a euthanasia attempt and a car accident. He has now happily been adopted. Talk about 'meant to live'.

I've been snapping some fall colour for you around the neighbourhood. Enjoy! Soon it will be the winter shots.

Stress Ball

I have a bad habit of biting and picking my fingernails, especially when I am stressed or feel under pressure. So I found this old stress ball at home, must've been something one of the kids brought home from school. I started using it and squished it too hard and it popped so I got another one from the dollar store! I'd like to find one with a different less rubbery texture, but this one will do for now.

Sunday Sketches - Tipping Over

Welcome to Sunday Sketches! This is a greeting card in acrylic called 'Tipping Over'.  I hope you can notice the boat is tipping slightly. The card is (4 1/4"w x 5 1/2"h) on acid free textured stock, but the actual painting is 4 1/4" x 4 1/4", I made it specially for a matted 4" x 4" picture frame I had bought on sale for $7.

Here it is framed:

Cracker Jack

Husband M came home with some boxes of Cracker Jacks the other day. He ate one box and gave me the surprise inside. It was this neat optical puzzle pictured here. It said on the back 'how many prongs do you see?' Hint: cover top of prongs and count again.

Do you like Cracker Jacks (caramel coated popcorn and peanuts)?  They've been around forever.

Paint Party Friday - A Bug's Life

Welcome to Paint Party Friday! This piece is done on textured burgundy cardstock in acrylic (8 1/2"w x 11"h). It's called 'A Bug's Life', it's actually the underside of a wasp I'm thinking. It was inspired by a Jim Steele photo I saw.  I believe it's ok to use his photo as long as I don't make money from it! He once told me that when I asked.

Quiz

I did find it pretty quickly.

My Lilly Cards

There was a card special at Shutterfly for ten free cards so I decided to print some using my original art. I just paid the $7.99 postage. It's good quality paper cards and I am pleased with the result!  Also, it was fun just receiving the package in the mail.