A distant moment- A fresh memory,

I feel it, as the magic tugs deeply at my soul... The garden calls to me and bekons me to sow... Then nature divides and begins again, anew.

~*True friends stab you in the front.-Oscar Wilde*~

~*True friends stab you in the front.-Oscar Wilde*~

Now, before you get all huffy and tell me that a true friend would never stab you at all...
Consider that a true friend will tell you to your face when you are in the wrong about something very important or socially... Rather than cut you up with words behind your back.
So there. A true friend opens their mouth and SAYS it to your face!

I like to be corrected.
I enjoy criticism!
ESPECIALLY from people who love me!

How else can I learn to be a better human being? A better Artist? A better friend?

Bouncing

I like it when ideas bounce around.
Sometimes, when I'm not ready to execute my thoughts into a tangible form, the ideas maintain a random bounce and often return again at an opportune time.

The Open theme in Charmed_Designs

(((The color part with the face is the paper signature and info tag that the charms are attached to.)))




Punched & stamped metal heart charms with peacock crystals and metal beads.

Charm swap- Jackie's "Quotable" theme

I used Japanese doll house food and arranged plates of food

that I do not normally indulge in. :o)

Last call for Think Pink charms!

SO many people asked to join and SO many people also dropped out at the last minute!
We went from almost 30 participants to less than 9!
HELP!!!

All you have to do is send in 12 nicely made mostly PINK charms and you'll get 10 back.
The extra 2 will be used to help raise funds over on Girl Gone Thread Wild (Monica Magness)

If you forgot that you signed up and are reading this, it's not too late!
PLEASE join us!!!!
We need your help!

Details can be found here- www.makesawish.blogspot.com

Have you ever gone WAY back and found the roots to your roots?

I've often been very curious why certain people and I are connected in profound ways.
Why I can feel their energy from across vast expanses of land or even across large bodies of water.

I just feel connected.

One day, while I was sitting alone thinking about my own family history and wondering how possible it would be for me to share common ancestors with these specific people I started to doodle.

I then started doing a math and visual calculation of how many people had to get married or have an affair in order for my life to be here at this very moment.

What I came up with, if in fact it is accurate, was amazing to me.

It took me some time to think it through, but what I discovered (as I said before, if I did this right) is that 21 generations ago, I had great/x19 (ex. great great great great great great great great great great great great great great great great great great great) grandparents- that were made up of 2,097,152 people...

1,048.576 boys/men and 1,048,576 girls/woman.

That is to say that it took, 20-21 generations ago, TWO MILLION NINETY SEVEN THOUSAND ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY TWO people to get together and have babies that would then get together and have their own babies and so on, to make *ME*.

If you had that many people *21* generations ago, getting together from all over the land/world, how possible is it then that many of us in fact do share more than one common ancestor(s)?

Now here is the brain buster.
That was just the number of people that had to get together 21 generations before me.
But now consider the fact that those people had children and their children had children and those- continue on for 20 generations... you add those all up because they are your great x20, x19, x18..... all the way down to the third generation right before you (your own grand parents which are just 4 people and your own parents which are 2 people)...and if I haven't lost your attention, and if I am being clear about this... listen to this!-
You have(((Only doing this starting from the people in your family tree going back just 21 generations)))
FOUR MILLION ONE HUNDRED AND NINETY FOUR THOUSAND THREE HUNDRED AND TWO people all getting into a relationship of some sort who then became YOUR BLOOD FAMILY.!!!!!! And that does not include the brothers, sisters, cousins, aunts, and uncles. This is just you, your parents, your parents' parents and their parents' parents etc.
4,194,302 people made you... ALL OF THOSE PEOPLE made ~*YOU*~ That is 2,097,151 joint couples, joint hearts, joined bodies to make ~*YOU!*~

Just an interesting fact I came up with last year which I found in a pile of papers I was just cleaning up right now. (I can throw this paper in the trash now!)

So now, it's a bit more clear, my life that is, that no matter who I am next to on line, in a theater, at a store, any place I am... I am usually as kind to that person as I would be to my own family.
Why?
Because in my heart and mind I am convinced that somewhere down the line, we are related. If not actually by blood, we have shared ancestors that may have been best friends growing up, special people who cared for each other in old age, team mates, friends in battle, their ancestor might have saved mine at some point.
The picture is so deep and so beautiful and so amazing that I really have no words to describe the depth that I feel within my own heart.

It's just amazing.

(((Feel free to correct me if I have made any errors! If you figured this out in a better way than I have, please let me know.
Also spelling corrections would help too if you have found any.)))

So true.

Nothing astonishes men so much as common sense and plain dealing.
R. W. Emerson; Art, 1841


It's often sad when people question the motives of a plain dealing person.
Why must there be a hidden motive?

Those with good common sense are cool

Going to watch for Perseids!

Good night all!
I am off to enjoy the night time sky!

Good laughter! Esther in France & Joseph in India!

I just had some really smart and funny messages sent to me re: my laptop mishap.
To better explain the set up and HOW I could so easily knock this thing over...
Imagine a wooden bar stool less that 2 feet high in front of a couch.
That is how I keep the laptop while I am working in the living room.

Since I almost knocked it over *again* after I posted my last message I was able to remember my first mistake and stop myself really quick from doing it again!

I cross my legs while I work on my jewelry and charms. Earlier, I uncrossed my foot while not looking at where I was swinging my leg and that is when it caught the underside of the cooling mat which hangs over the stool seat edge and under the laptop. The whole thing flew to the floor with impressive speed... eeek!

I hope that visual explanation helps!
*Smiles*

I've been keeping my lap top like this for a while, but for some reason tonight I was just so distracted!

An interesting discovery!- There is a little computer chip now exposed between the screen and the keyboard. I never knew that it was there before!


Thank you lilibule and Joseph for making me laugh!

OUCH! I just dropped my laptop and the screen half popped off and...

ouch ouch ouch!!!

I was sitting here, happily reading emails and watching a movie when my hand or foot, I'm not even sure(!) knocked over my poor computer!!! Crashed to the floor, cooling mat slamming on top of it.

:o(

Waahhhhhhh!!!!!
I do feel happy that the screen is still working because it cracked off of the unit, but hey here I am venting to all who care to read what I am saying!

Thank you for listening.

The shock just wore off and I feel much better!

Smart kids ask questions.
-Marie Washington

~*WINNER!*~ The August Winner is #85

~*The winner of the month is GoldBettyBoop from the UK!*~

You get to choose what you wish and I look forward to hearing from you
Congrats to you!
(((:::Throws confetti:::)))
(((:::Noise makers whir:::)))

YAY!

Picking the August winner from the followers list this week. Add yourself if you are interested!

I'll be picking a winner from the followers list this week.
If you follow my blog using another service and are not listed on the right hand side of the blog, the part that says "followers" please add yourself now. You need to follow publicly for me to see that you are there
The winner can choose from the following-

1~ Assorted Japanese seed beads 4 colors in *tiny* vials with tiny corks.- The vials can be used to make adorable charms!
or
2~ 3 yards of hand dyed silk ribbons made by, Pat Winter.
or
3~ A mystery assortment of findings beads and trims.
or
4~ An assortment of 5 handmade charms that I have gotten
in swaps that other people have hosted.
or
5~ A custom designed tag for you to use with your art work, trades or sales!
It will be sent to you as a PDF file if you would like.

This follower request is to allow those who already do, the chance to be entered into my monthly drawing.
:o)

I am not asking people to add themselves if they do not already or will start to follow this blog.

Please only add yourself if you visit from time to time.

S.T.E.M. Bounce is now #2 on the IMN network and #1 elsewhere I am SURE!

Do you remember Michael Damian from the 80s and 90s?
He performed "Rock On" on MTV?
Here he is hosting on IMN and announcing Bounce on the show. Go to Mainstream- Segment #3 http://www.independentmusicnetwork.com/downloads.html

AIR DATE SUMMER

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hosted by Michael Damian w/Jason Rennebu

SHOW #61 SEGMENT 3

I'm telling you people, this band is talented!
You may not like progressive rock- but these boys ::::clears throat:::: I mean *men* are going to make it big doing creative things!

I'm also hoping that their music can cut through the slime, goop and muck that is griming up the airwaves these days on main stream radio!

I love this animated movie!

I never posted about how much I *LOVE/Adore/really appreciate* The Triplets of Belleville. (Not for little kids)

Someone bought it for me last night and I have it on in the background right now.

There is nothing else like it and if you can make it through to the end without getting bored, let me know what you think of it!
:o)

I give this movie 2 thumbs up with a twinkling eye grin!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

~*My books!*~

Just curious if anyone here would be interested in any of the books I am creating?
One is on how to make fun and innovative art to wear charms and charm jewelry.
One is about my mixed media art to wear and display/decor.
And the other is a compilation of my graphics, philosophy, and zine pages!
:o)

Just curious if I have any potential readers?

~*Anyone out there?*~

My carpenter is the one wearing the racing stripes.

(11 years ago)

Although my furniture is STILL in progress, it's being used!

Me 50 lbs ago!

This picture makes me laugh!

Space

A little piece of me-

The little one is on a dime to show you size comparison.

I really *had* to work with the clay without the gloves - I LOVE my results.

I cannot share with you everything I made because some of it will be submitted for publication...

But here are a couple of cute clowns--- What do you think?

~*It's my friend Red playing the keys at the concert*~

~*Virtual Vacation...*~

This week was supposed to be full of traveling and camping in the woods. But the rain and humidity has kept us home, in the city.
We've been making the most of it, taking in new sights and visiting new places in and around Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens and Long Island.

We've made a few new cool friends and just happened to cross paths with really old and good friends!

It's been a really restful time.
Something we've needed really bad.

I'm happy to say that I feel peace.

:o)

Wishing you a happy and healthy weekend!

1 link I found in my queue that I forgot about but need to read more often...

Known and probable carcinogens - things that might, can or will cause flare ups of cancer-
Save your children...Save your pets.... Save your family... Save yourself.
Read the lists! Here<----------

S.T.E.M. their song Bounce is moving quickly up the charts!

IMN Independent Music Network debuted Bounce just over two and a half weeks ago at #30!
Last week it moved up to #17 and this week is all the way up to #7!
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*TOTALLY COOL!*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

S.T.E.M is a pretty good progressive rock band and I wanted to share with you their lead guitarist Greg Bolomey who actually teaches riff variations from their newest album. He also teaches other guitar tricks and treats so be sure to check him out! (That is him below.)
I encourage you to TRY to listen to their music, if you like heavy rock-



Really cool guys, good hearts and hardcore beats!

It's hot!
:o)

May I offer you some treats? OK guys and gals, the pastries below are CLAY! Not real! PLEASE see the very last picture for the SURPRISE! :o)

So - none of this is painted it is all plastic/polymer clay!

My first time touching the clay in a LONG time! Has it been a year yet?!

IT WAS CALLING MY NAME!!!

"~*Aaaaammmbbberrrrrr*~

So I answered the call and had some FUN!
I USED GLOVES!!!

What do you think?

:o)

I am happy!

(((And please forgive the roughness! My goal was not perfection it was for the expression!)))

~*The Winner is Roxi!*~

Hey Roxi!
You were randomly chosen out of a pool of 90 people as this weeks winner!

Congrats to you!
Please refer to the previous post to see what you've won!

~*::::Throws virtual confetti and cheers, "Hooray"!!!::::*~

::::Party horns and rattle noise makers for effect::::
~*Please comment me with your mailing address ASAP*~

I'll be doing another drawing from my followers list in August!
~*Stay tuned*~

~*Picking a name from my followers list to win a prize!*~

It's been a fun week for me!
To celebrate, I have decided to pick a name/picture from my followers list to win a prize!
I would hate to exclude those of you who follow my blog regularly that have not yet clicked on "follow" on the right hand side of my blog...

I will draw a winner this coming Monday night!

What does the winner get?

The winner will be able to choose from a selection of 4 categories.
#1- Beads
#2- Antique and vintage tooled metal findings/charms
#3- Charm making supplies and some raw metal chain or plated chain.
or #4 scrapbook embellishments!

So, if you have been following my blog, and would like to enter, please click "Follow"

~*Have a SAFE and HAPPY holiday!*~

~* S.T.E.M. *~ Really cool sound! Worth far more than the $ I spent!!!

Space Time Energy Mass...

That is what S.T.E.M. stands for.

A progressive rock band from New York.
(((Each of their songs have seriously cool and catchy changes!)))

Vocals: The epic maximus composer & chalice drummer -Ryan Safarian
Guitar: The mighty plectrum striker -Greg Bolomey
Bass: The anchoring tone keeper -Jeff Romano
Drums: The beat & rhythm master Tony Consalvo

I bought their new digital album, The .7 Compromise, (it's less than $9.00!!!)
just a few weeks ago and enjoy the unusual time signatures and ROCKING melodic music they play. The lyrics are very poetic and nothing short of deep.

The album sounds even more INCREDIBLE with headphones on!!!

It sounds SO good on the iPod!!!! (The computer speakers are not good at translating the delicate vocal tones and "face melting" guitar riffs.)

They are not a heavy metal band per se, but do play very hard core melodic sounds fused with Mediterranean ethnic soul, kicking beats... A GREAT guitarist, bassist and drummer!!!

I am :::REALLY::: enjoying most of the songs and feel that the album was a Very Good purchase.

The whole band has serious talent and a great sense of humor, worth checking out!
LINK TO S.T.E.M. on AMAZON.COM
Here is a comment which I found posted on Amazon.com-
(Posted by Romik)

"progressive... YES
HARD....YES
ROCK..... YES
simple carpenters... ONLY ON SUNDAYS

if you're into Rush, Tool, King Crimson, Pink Floyd, Dream Theater, Peter Gabriel

Get THIS Album! look up ineffable and apotheosis then Get THIS Album to achieve IT.
If you don't believe me just listen to the lyrics. The music itself holds a sick dichotomy of darker themes with beautiful tones of what I like to call harmonic devastation! Their unique perspective brings a fresh originality that's been missing for quite some time. Unrivaled talents... I know that's BIG but if your sick and tired of whats out there, then you seriously need to belly flop into this mess: space time energy mass


by the way tracks 2, 5, and 6 played in that order opens the gate to the 7th dimension."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
(If you see this, Romik, I hope that you do not mind me quoting you...)

Many of you live in areas where their song "Bounce" has made it to your radio already!

If you have heard it, like the CD or have voted for them on IMN , I would love to hear your feedback!

Leave me a comment by clicking on the comments link just below this post, right next to the date.

~*Please VOTE for S.T.E.M. It would make ~*ME*~ very happy!!!*~
(((Vote by clicking on S.T.E.M.)))
"Ryjin - Dirty Little Minds (RRM) Between the "R" and the "S" on the list
S.T.E.M. - Bounce (RedPig) <------------ Sabrina Taylor - Ferris Wheel (STR)"
HERE <----------- VOTE Join their mailing list! Even if you don't buy the songs- They are always entertaining! Click HERE


The .7 Compromise