Since we haven’t been traveling anywhere interesting, or really doing much of anything new and exciting, I have resorted to turning inward for new blog material. Today’s blog, therefore, is all about what our refrigerator in Pennsylvania is sporting these days.
Some of the stuff on the fridge has been there for years, such as the recipe for crepes, and some of the magnets. When our daughter and her friends go up for their annual New Year’s Eve celebration, new items often appear. The ample poetry magnets (two sets, merged) make for an ever-shifting literary experience.
When we visited last week, we hadn’t been there since December. The new items included a blue paper snowflake and the drawing of two cats in cowboy outfits roasting some mice on sticks over a campfire. (Sorry, mice fans.)
What’s on your fridge? Chances are it is full of wild and wonderful magnets, stickers, and works of art. If it isn’t, I’m not sure we can be friends.
This was one of many art snowflakes produced by the snowbound over New Years.Artwork by Steve during a Pictionary type game. This is real artwork by our daughters friend Annie. Though not sure what is going on with that one cat and the happy looking roasted mouse. Annie, can you explain?One of the sets of poetry magnets was a successful bid at a Public Sector Section Auction at our annual American Folklore Society meetings. They are Cowboy Poetry magnets. Crepe recipe. No instructions necessary for us, but if you want to try it: Mix it together, let it set for a little while, mix again, and then pour a little into a flat-bottomed frying pan and swirl around to make it thin and pancake-sized. Cook till light brown on either side. Serve with whatever you like in your crepes such as fruit, cheese, sauted vegetables, etc.
I have already reported on my foray into collaging, which I can thank my good friend Martha for. But the practice merits an update and highlight. Indeed, in these times of uncertainty and limited activities, an almost-every-week Sunday evening collaging session with Martha has become a constant, and I’m loving it.
Some articles I have seen extoll the virtues of the “meditative power of collaging,” during which you lock yourself in a secluded and quiet room somewhere, freeing your mind of all else and becoming the art, or something like that. The heck with that. During our collaging sessions, via Skype, Martha and I work on our projects while we chat, gossip, update, complain, and laugh, all the while working away at our latest creations. Sometimes we consult each other on what our respective art works might still need to elevate them from good to great, and usually at the end we have a “big reveal” of what we’ve accomplished.
She’s more into creating larger, wall-worthy artwork. Being ever so practical, and knowing I’d never get around to adorning my walls with my creations, I’ve been making cards for friends and family. I have not kept any of these, but I take a photo of them each week for the record.
I don’t pretend that they are Picassos, or harbor any idea of starting my own Etsy shop. It’s just fun, a great way to stay connected to a smart, creative and endearingly quirky friend, and hopefully bring a smile to the recipients. I highly recommend “putting the pieces” together in this otherwise largely fragmented time.
Here are snaps of my January/February creations. FYI, the featured image collage at the top of this page is supposed to be Aeolus, god of the wind, which would take a whole new blog to explain. May he blow in some positive energy for us all!
Crazy quilt.Lunar New Year card using some leftover holiday paper.Agave plants inspired by our trip to Mexico last February. Not quite anatomically correct but still happy looking blue crab.
