blog

36:365:2011

*photo by Elaine A. Russell


I've been slowly... but surely... adding links to my "blogs I follow" list here on Blogger... wow.
I didn't realize how many wonderful blogs I have had the great opportunity to find and follow.

It's amazing to me... not only how much supreme talent and creativity is out there... but that we have the ability to actually find each other... It's a strange and wondrous world.

As we were driving around in the dark the other night... I was overcome with how pretty the lights are... and how... we are all sort of like those little colorful lights in the darkness... shining brightly for others to see... if they only look...
(I'm the little aqua one in the middle)...

360:365


I have been procrastinating writing this post... because I'm sorta at a loss as to what to say.
I am humbled... and thankful; as today is my "anniversary" of sorts... having written this blog, every day... for 2 full years now. I hope you are enjoying it.... THANK YOU so much for reading.

When I first started writing this blog... I really didn't expect it to last. I figured... that I would run out of things to say... or just sound like an idiot... and it would fade into the sunset. Over time... it carried me thru alot. My kids graduating... my son getting married... gaining a grandchild... starting and running a gallery.... leaving the gallery... starting an Etsy store... more or less "coming into my own" as an artist... focusing on my photography... getting published!... winning awards... having shows... traveling...traveling some more... and traveling even more... my parents being sickly... my father getting cancer... and passing away... It's all been so much. Thru it all... has been my wonderful hubby (BAJ), my awesome kids and fur faced kiddos... my faith... my friends... my photography... and this blog (and all the wonderful people I have "met" on-line here).

The blog too... has evolved. Featuring some original Haiku... "Sneak Peaks" into local art shows/ venues/ galleries... my 365 Photo A Day Project... and tabs and links to other places you can see my stuff...

And so... as we enter a 3rd year... I am taking suggestions from you... the readers.
Is there anything you would like to see more of or have featured?


*photos by Elaine A. Russell

time, time, time...........


photo by Elaine A. Russell


Where has the time gone? Exactly one year ago today, I started this blog. I have posted every single day since. Wow. 365 posts. And pics on every one!!!

When I first started this blog, my goal was to get some of my photography out there in cyber space so that people could see it... and hopefully enjoy it.
The response has been fabulous. Beyond my expectations for this humble little site. At one point; I was getting over 800 hits a day....I have since stopped looking. I figured I would either get discouraged by the drop-off, or anxious as to how to keep hits up.

It has been a very interesting year. One full of enlightenment, fulfillment, joys and wonders.
I hope that you will stay with me over the course of this next year... who knows what will happen?
OR where this journey will take us.

In celebration of my blog anniversary... I am going to be giving away 9 gifts to 9 lucky winners. ( in honor of this year 2009). All you have to do... to be entered in the "running"... is to send me a note at moongipsies@msn.com.
Let me know what you like/ don't like about my blog... things I could do to make it better, etc
Oh! and let me know if you have a preference on any particular gift you may get :)
Prizes may include: a handmade scarf, an OOAK art piece, a fine art photograph, a handmade piece of jewelry, a stash of supplies for crafts.... who knows....

(winners will be notified on January 9th. Submissions for the give-aways...must be in by January 9th at 9am).

ABC Wednesday

ABC Wednesday is a blog posting with a twist. The host (Mrs. Nesbitt) hails from Great Britain... and there are participants from all over the world. Each week, people focus their post on a letter of the alphabet. They started with the letter "A" --and each week you post something in regards to the next letter of the alphabet. It is a fun, imaginative exercise... and it is great to see what everyone comes up with. This week's letter is, "S".
"S" is a pretty easy letter to try and come up with a post for... and therein lay my dilemma. Too many fabulous and creative choices. I thought about doing something with "shadows".. or I could do something about my love of stones, or stitching (needlework), or the saxophone.....

And yet, I wanted to do something a bit different, a bit unexpected....and I saw this grouping of words.....

selenic: of, like or pertaining to the moon
selenocentric: relating to the moon as a centre; as seen from the centre of the moon
selenodesy: study of the shape and features of the moon
selenography: description of the moon's surface
selenolatry: worship of the moon
selenology: study of the moon
selenomancy: divination by studying the moon
selenoscope: instrument for viewing the moon


Which would make for a fabulous post... except that I really don't have any good pictures of the moon to go with it....other than this shot I took with the hazy moon peaking through some dark clouds as the sun was setting in the Sandias....

And so............. I will sigh... and leave you with a symphonic rendering of a song... by the stunningly sweet Muppets....or maybe that's just too silly :)


mostly bright skies



So-- today I woke up to mostly bright blue skies. There are still some clouds, but it looks like the storm that has been here for the last few days is clearing out.
I had another doctor's appointment today. Mostly good news. Somehow I have gone from severely qualifying for medical disability to being (mostly) the picture of health... in the past 15yrs. It is really quite amazing. The downside in all this, is that I had finally worked up the courage to apply for disability... and now I probably wouldn't qualify. Course, the good news, is that I am much healthier. So--- extra money each month.... or better health. Easy choice.
Now, apparently I am quite deficient in Vit D, Vit B12, and Iron... so I need to take supplements. And, my cholesterol is a bit higher than it should be, so we are gonna try a new medication. Plus, I will do my best to improve my diet a bit :)


As a treat, I drove up closer to the Sandias for some photo taking. My camera has a panoramic function.... but I am having trouble seeing the screen in bright light in order to "stitch" the photos together as I take them. Will have to try again some other time... but in the meantime... here is the one that turned out OK.

**all photos by Elaine A. Russell (click on photo to see the panographic larger)

overcast

photo by Elaine A. Russell

It's been raining off and on for a couple of days now. Unusual weather for Albuquerque. It is sunny almost every day here.. and already people are wishing and waiting for the sun.
Myself, I like rainy days. I like the sky being overcast and cloudy. I like the chill in the air. I like the feel of the moisture on my face. I like any excuse to stay warm in a quilt and read or laze about, drinking hot tea and eating toast.
Today the daughter made pancakes. And not just any pancakes... each one had a different flavor. One with nutmeg, one with orange zest, one with poppy seeds.... and so on. What an adventure.
The hubby is due back from his work-trip tonight. It will be good to have him home.

MsBonz says...


photo by Elaine A. Russell


I took this shot the other night, peeking in the window at Que Chula! on Central Ave. (of course, altered a bit in Picnik). She is fabulous. Things like this really really inspire me. I've been doing Day of the Dead art for several years now, and it never gets old.

So-- the hubby is out of town on another work related trip (yikes). I hate it when he is gone. When the kids were little, we used to make a game of it. We would have "theme nights." For example...One time we got Chinese food, watched Mulan, ate at a table low to the floor on pillows, used chopsticks, and slept on futons. That was a typical venture.
Now that the kids are grown.... it has become more about photo days or some such. But today, the daughter is making "samosa" from scratch. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samosa). I slept in til the afternoon... enjoying my comfy bed and soft quilts and snuggled with my puppy. And I have spent several hours just reading and surfing the net for interesting bits.

Another great day :)

bumbles bounce


photos by Elaine A. Russell


Some days are just strange. I have been feeling overwhelmingly tired as of late... not sure if it is the lupus; or just the daily grind....but I have been in sort of a fog the past couple of days.

I had posted a camera lens on Craigslist for sale, it was given to me, and never fit my camera (and the camera is now gone). I had a buyer-want-to-be, and we scheduled a time to meet at the Sunflower Market. I love Sunflower... but I digress. 45 minutes later, my hubby decided to wander the parking lot, and found the people equally looking for us. Go figure. The lens did not fit; but I think there are adjustment rings that you can purchase for connecting lenses like that. SO.... I ended up giving them the lens in hopes that they could "make it work."
In the process, I managed to slip on this puddle of grease that was on the sidewalk where I think the store had been grilling food. It was a classic FLIP fall-- just like the 3 Stooges. It was embarrassing... but like any good bumble... I bounced. ((http://www.entertonement.com/clips/kgdjchfgkk--Bumbles-bounceChristmas-Rudolph-the-Red-Nosed-Reindeer-Yukon-Cornelius-))

Then there was the seemingl long time where I desperately kept trying to get up; only to continue to slide in the grease... legs slipping, feet sliding, sandals coming off repeatedly....
And then (once up)-- here are the hubby and I using handy wipes to try and get grease off of me and my skirt (right butt cheek was plastered with grease)... I'm sure it would have made an interesting video. Guess you had to be there... but it was definately amusing after a minute or so.

And like a dear hubby... he took me out to Flying Star anyway... and got me a treat :)

From there we had to go find him a suitcase for an upcoming trip, and we found one at J.C. Penney's on clearance for $43!! Woot !!!
Then we went to see "Where the Wild Things Are." -- I always loved the book... and remember reading it alot to my nieces when they were little.

So-- photo 1 is of the truck outside of Sunflower Market, photo 2 is at Flying Star, and photo 3 is of the poster outside the theatres at Cottonwood Mall.

blessings from Old Towne





photos by Elaine A. Russell



We have lived in ABQ for almost 15yrs. We were able to afford this house because the previous owners had gone thru a major domestic battle... and had trashed the place. Since then, we have done mostly structural things....removed carpet, put in tile flooring ...new roof... new stucco... re-enforced walls around the property... new water treatment system...new furnace... new swamp cooler...stuff like that.

For the past several years though.... we have had barely functioning bathrooms and kitchen. Today is the end of that. Today I have 4 guys who are seriously demolishing the main doors to our house... tearing apart the bathrooms, and soon will be tearing apart the kitchen.

Buffy and Genghis are "holed up" in my daughter's room... breathing heavily on the windows where they can see people coming and going. Sabrina is at my feet... not liking the sound of reciprocating saws much at all.
But it is all good. I think the chaos in the house is reflective of the way my life has gone for a long time now... and the change is good. Soon the house... and I... will be "up to par."

Yesterday, I spent part of the afternoon strolling around Old Towne. It was wonderful. It was a beautiful day, and there were lots of people enjoying the area. There was a mariachi band playing near the gazebo. I got a few fabulous beads at NM Bead and Fetish. I stopped at the beautiful San Felipe de Neri chuch. http://www.sanfelipedeneri.org/
And I also stopped at a small grotto-like chapel in Old Towne called The Our Lady of Guadelupe Chapel. ... with thanks and prayers said for the work ahead.

Photos for today's post are from my visit yesterday afternoon.

lazy weekend in progress




photos by Elaine A. Russell

Yesterday I had to take in my SmartCar for a check-up. I have had it over a year now, and put about 17,000 miles on it (mostly due to the cross country trip this summer). Since getting the car last July... it has been a wild ride. I love my car.

This weekend is (hopefully) going to be a quiet one. Seems like I have been sooo busy for sooo long... and with too much emotional upset... that I feel like I just need to step off the merry-go-round for a turn or two.

Thursday would have been my sister's birthday. She would have been 56. I miss her. I know she is in a better place, and I would not wish her back to be sick and spending her days in pain. But I do miss her sweet smile, her words of encouragement, her intelligent insight into so many things.

Photos for today were taken at SmartCenter in ABQ... where I got my wonderful little car :)

Nob Hill Nights

Masks Y Mas

Nob Hill Grill

fire guys

drummer dudes

photos by Elaine A. Russell


so-- last night was pretty cool. The hubby, daughter and I went to the first-ever "Nob Hill Nights." This is a new idea proposed by the merchants of the Nob Hill area in ABQ. Essentially, they close off a bunch of the streets in Nob Hill, and only allow pedestrian traffic in the evening on the first thursday of each month. Shops and restaurants are open late to allow browsing... there are street musicians and special events. http://rwarn17588.wordpress.com/2009/09/21/just-another-nob-hill-night/

We left the house around 6pm, and ended up staying past closing of the events which was around 9pm. First stop for us was Masks Y Mas. This is a fantastic locally owned store (actually... several store spaces in one). The owners have one section of the store as a gallery space, and tonight they were featuring 2 young local artists: Rain Green and Noah Valencia.
http://www.masksymas.net/index.htm

From there we stopped in at Astro Zombies. This is a very cool shop that features a wide selection of comics, graphic novels and figurines, etc, etc. Awesome selection! http://astrozombies.com/

Then we went to the Nob Hill Grill. We got sucked in by the free green chile stew samplings... and ended up having a great meal. Our server; Maureen... was gracious and accommodating. The food was great, and affordable. ($45 for 3 entrees, drinks and an appetizer)http://www.upscalejoint.com/

We got done just in time to see the fire jugglers... doing awesome feats of fancy with fire. And we got our groove on to this awesome drumming group. ... and we also got to see a demonstration by the Tango Club of ABQ. http://www.abqtango.org/


All in all... a pretty fabulous night out.

part 3: NM State Fair








photos by Elaine A. Russell


So -- when we last left off... Jim and Elaine were foraging the NM State Fair for sweets and treats :)
And now, ladies and gentlemen... I bring you to the highlight of the fair for most people... the rides and games.
The hubby and I are not ones to usually ride the rides... or play the games... but we do look at everything. And I have had a long fascination with the carousel, so we actually spent alot of time at the 2 different carousels at the State Fair. Plus.. there were lots of shows: Winn's Thrill Show, The Marcan Tiger Preserve, Valentine's Performing Pigs, The Dock Dogs, and The Latest in Game Technology shows. And music ! (too many performers to list).

We strolled around the midway for a couple of hours... taking way too many pictures of rides in action. I was amazed to see some features/ spectacles ... of shows I remember when I was a kid. Such as: the World's smallest Horse, the tiniest woman... etc. The posters for these events seemed straight out of Guinness Book.
Then there were the usual roller coaster type rides, twisting type rides, the epic fall type rides.... you name it. And the Ferris wheel.... the old-time favorite. I love taking photos of Ferris wheels.. so we spent some time there too.

I talked at length to a couple of the "carnies".... both of whom were looking forward to the end of the fair season to go home to their families before the next fair tour in another town. When I was little.. I remember that one of my cousins actually ran away and joined the circus. He spent a couple years cleaning and taking care of the elephants... then we lost track of him. At any rate... I always had a soft spot for the workers at such carnivals.

Anyway.. so there you have it. A magical time at the NM State Fair. Hope you all had a good time... I know I did :)

part 2: The NM State Fair







photos by Elaine A. Russell

After seeing all the art exhibits, our attention turns to the critters at the McDonald's Barn....after all, who can resist baby animals ?? Besides, it's my duty to vote for the baby bunnies as being the cutest. ((bunny lovers unite))

This year, it was actually a tough call for me, because they had brought in a mommy pig and her newborn babies. Gotta say... the pigs were adoreable. They also had chicks, baby ducks, pheasants, roosters, young calves, young kid goats, miniature horses, puppies and kittens.

From there... it was all about the food. Ya gotta love going to State Fair's for the food. Corndogs, frito pies, Indian tacos, french fries, turkey legs.... and our yearly quest... Corn on the cob. I'm talking fresh picked corn on the cob... smathered in butter and sprinkled with lemon pepper seasoning.

Sated and satisfied.... we wandered about looking at the booths of junk fair food. Deep fried oreos, deep fried twinkies..... eesh. Sounds like a heart attack on a stick... and yet, I was tempted to try one. Cotton candy, pretzles, popcorn... Tom Tom mini donuts ! We got a bag and sat on the benches to enjoy their sugary goodness.

And of course, the night doesn't end until you enjoy that last bit of funnel cake.....

More tomorrow on the rides and games !

the NM State Fair





photos by Elaine A. Russell


Fairs and carnivals have always held an interesting allure for me. Aside from a deathly distaste/ distrust of clowns.... it is heaven on a stick. And even the clowns are cool in a macabre point of view.
So it was with great excitement that the hubby and I went on our yearly excursion to the NM State Fair. http://www.exponm.com/fair/

We usually have a few goals in mind:
  • see the art exhibits
  • see the baby animals (*must vote for the bunnies)
  • get fair food (especially corn on the cob and funnel cake)
  • take photos
  • come home happy and satisfied
And, not unlike in years past... we stayed from mid-afternoon til way after dark.


This year, I was taking photos with a camera that I had only had for about an hour... so I was a bit nervous as to how the photos would actually turn out. But we plunged on in anyway.

First stop was the art exhibits. Wow. I am constantly amazed at the talent here in NM. In the Fine Arts building, we saw gorgeous paintings, cool stained glass and fused glass pieces, mixed media art, and some awesomely cool metal mesh sculptures of the human form. What was so very cool about them, was not just that they were extremely well done... but because of the way they cast these fantastic shadows on the walls. Wow. Unfortunately, no pics allowed in that building.

From there we went to the crafts building. We saw everything from woodcarving, stained glass, dolls, quilts, homemade jams, needlework, coins, altered books and jewelry. And one of our favorite exhibits.. the LEGOS. Demonstrations were being held on woodcarving and book-making. I was able to make a little hand bound book in about 5 minutes (with expert help from LIBROS guild members).(( http://dir.groups.yahoo.com/group/librosnmbag/?v=1&t=directory&ch=web&pub=groups&sec=dir&slk=16 and one member's site: http://atgbooks.com/index.html ))

The photography was displayed this year in the African Arts building. Another WOW. Truly, some excellent stuff out there... and I recognised some names from local FlickR groups.

More on the fair tomorrow !!!

having fun

photo by Elaine A. Russell

Yesterday I bought a Kodak digital camera for about $150 ( camera--on sale, extra memory card, camera case ) at my local STAPLES store. I usually prefer anything NIKON, but I chose the Kodak EasyShare camera/ model Z1485 IS, because of it's many features, 14 megapixel capabilities, and the fact that I already own the printer dock to print ACEO size prints from.
It is a pretty darn cool little camera.
(new nickname *Koda -- and he's blue)

Yesterday on our "date" -- the hubby and I went to the NM State Fair. I took about 400 pictures. Yes, really. It was awesome. Now... for all I know.. most of the pictures are crap. They look OK in the LCD display on the back of the camera...but my battery died (after 6-7hours of constant use)... so I can't upload them to my laptop til I can get a new battery :(

That said however, it is an incredibly fun camera to use. It has a 5x zoom lens, with a range from 35mm-175mm....so you can get those landscape shots as well as fairly close portraits. The manual only has about 20 pages of user information... but they provide a link on-line for additional info: http://store.kodak.com/store/ekconsus/en_US/DisplayProductDetailsPage/productID.145102200
One of the problems I found... was that the manual didn't explain all the extra SCENE modes you can have the camera program in for you... night portraits, night landscapes, etc. So... it was very lucky that I ran into a person at the fair who showed me where these features were on my camera (she has a similar camera). And off I went to try some nighttime shots of the fair.
I also ran into some friends from our local FlickR photo group... and I'm sure I raised some eyebrows and a few chuckles.. as I stood with them, chatting and taking photos... with my little point and shoot :)

Tomorrow... I will (hopefully) have shots from the fair, and more on what we did and what we saw there :)

Today's photo is from the other night, using the free Polaroid and free film. Because of the age of the film, there is a serious color cast to it. So... I scanned the original Polaroid photo into my computer, and converted it to B&W. I then added a dark purple tint, and added a little contrast. The program I used on-line is a free program called Picnik: http://www.picnik.com/

it's been a week

photo by Elaine A. Russell


It's been a very traumatic/ emotional week for me. Life's lessons sometimes come hard...but it makes us stronger.

Today the hubby took off work, and we are going to run errands and go on a date. :)

Today's photo is one I took last night around midnight. Sabrina and I always take nightly walks, and this time I took the polaroid. This photo is of the tree near my driveway, with the moon casting shadows upon the leaves. I did tweak the colors slightly in Picasa, as the old film has a strange color cast to it.
It is fun, and really challenging to take photos with cheaper *in this case, free* materials and equipment.

an experiment in progress


photo by Elaine A. Russell

So --- Using a free camera (old polaroid) and free film (with serious color cast cuz it's old)....this became the photo for today. Shot at one of the post offices in ABQ at like, 2am.

Can't buy a camera yet... spent most of the money on supplies to make jewelry yesterday for my class... flux, solder, sterling sheet, bezel, sterling wire, pliers, tweezers... But... I am learning alot. In the meantime.. I am enjoying seeing what I can come up with.

another busy day

photo taken by Elaine A. Russell at the We Art the People Show


In the past 48hrs, I have sold almost all my camera equipment. Now, before you all despair.. there is a method to my madness. It was on it's last leg... and the lenses were not good. With the proceeds from selling my stuff, I hope to get a very affordable ($100 range) digital camera. Not the best of equipment I know. Especially for professional shoots. However... if I am worth my grain as a photographer at all ... I should still be able to take reasonably good shots no matter the camera... right ?
I am viewing it as a challenge. Sort of .. a poor man's answer to the on-going debate: is it the camera or the photographer ? !!


AND -- I am finally taking the plunge and taking jewelry fabrication classes/ metal-working/ soldering... etc. I have been making jewelry for over 15yrs.. and this is the next logical step to becoming the jewelry artist that I hope to be someday.


So -- bring it on :)