It's my son's birthday...
AND it's Fat Tuesday!

Congrats to my wonderful son... I love you very much.


The first photos are of my son when he was little...
and the second set of photos are from New Orleans.... when we lived near there in 90-91.

MondayUPs



Monday's can be rough... But I'm here to help.
In celebration of my 15th year selling my handmade stuff...
I am going to start a special feature on Monday's.

Over the years... I have consistently and gradually gone to an almost completely recycled theme in my shops.
I not only use recycled and re-purposed items in what I make... but also in what I use for the packaging.
I love recycling, re-purposing and re-using items... and love the adventure and puzzle of making something out of something else. To that end... I am going to be featuring things I've seen on blogs, on the internet, in books... wherever inspiration strikes! On making new items from old goods...

Here are today's links for MondayUPs!

Pinterest boards - always fun
Upcycle US - a blog
Upcycle Your Life - a website
Love2Upcycle - another blog
The Upcycle Blog - another blog


Happy New Moon
Happy Chinese New Year
Happy Year of the Black Water Snake
---much love to you all---




I started selling on Ebay back in 1998.... and on Etsy in 2008. 
(And of course at shows, in galleries, and at events).
Hard to believe that I've been selling my handmade goods for 15years.... but it's true.

...So it's time to shake things up a bit.

I will be closing the ETSY shop for a complete overhaul on Feb 13th thru March 1st.
This is my 15th year selling online.... and there are going to be some amazing changes!

If you've been eyeing something in the "Stuff to Make Stuff category"
..."Just Earrings" category... or the "Vintage" category
... better get it now.

Surprises to come!

friday's finds



I read... alot.
I love the written word.

I have decided to feature some of the blogs I read on friday's... hence the title... Friday's Finds.
I have about 250 blogs currently on my reading list... and I'm going to be sharing those links over the course of this year... on Friday's. (plus any more I come across).
If you have a blog.... or have a favorite blog that you want me to feature... just shoot me an email (moongipsies@msn.com).

Today's Finds:

Feather Spirit


(the photo for today's post is one I took at the Albuquerque Railyards.
To me... it's a very I SPY kind of shot...
which seemed perfect with the "treasure" you will
find at these awesome blogs)



fruit of my efforts
soon to burst forth with new life
coming with the spring

***

I took this photo out in California... a year ago.... of some orchards...
(and edited it today)
...just waiting to spring forth with new life.
And it seemed so timeless... 
and so full of promise.
Just like spring.



yesterday, I had a burst of energy... and got alot done around the house.
(I vacuumed, swept, took out the garbage, washed dishes, washed laundry,
 made some home-made soup, and a (quite) small pot roast)...
but today... no energy at all. 
None.

This is typical of my Lupus... 
some days I can do things... some days I can't.
Some days it's all I can do to get out of bed.

And that's OK.
It is what it is.
And I am grateful for the good days... and the bad.

Today's photo is from a photo shoot at the 
Albuquerque Railyards.
I love this place... so much color... so much decay and loveliness.



winter is restless
and setting the alarm to 
make sure spring gets up 

***

or so it seems.

And we are preparing for spring around here too.
Cleaning a little... opening windows during the day...
singing praise to the sunshine
dreaming of gardens
and finishing up old tasks.

(and on a completely different note... somehow we've gathered 7 new readers...
from Belarus! Welcome!)



I'd like to see New Zealand.
And Key West.
And Reykjavik.
And Bali.
And Paris.
And Munich (again)...
...and so many other places.

Wanderlust is a painful thing... especially when you feel sorta stuck in the here ...and the now.

But spring is coming... 



celebrating Imbolc in little ways this weekend...
getting fresh groceries, flowers for the house, changing out the altar space... 
opening windows...lighting candles

and of course... working on photos.
This one is from my trip to California last year
(exactly a year ago today)


Dance! The demon said...
(the devil made me do it)
--- much love to you all

***


... hard to believe it's February already.



"for use with OHM"...

Because of the Lupus... I have learned to work around "how many spoons I have"... for that day.
Case in point...

It's 3am... and I can't sleep.
I can't sleep because my back is hurting and my joints are hurting... and I really don't have anything to take that will help... and that won't knock me out for an undetermined amount of time.
I should be able to sleep.... as I've been up all day... did the "usual" chores... ran some errands, etc.
So... I am sitting in bed with heat packs in appropriate places... sipping pain tea (a concoction of herbs for pain)... and doing what work I can ... knowing that at some point... I will fall asleep... no doubt sleeping during the day... losing "normal" work time... so I am doing as much as I can now.
It's tricky... because I want to do what I can... without doing too much... and causing more fatigue and pain down the road... and yet... enough that I can offset not being asleep now... and potentially sleeping later.  

Anyway.
So. I am trying to be all zen-like... resting.... yet being productive... 
and it occurred to me... that this (photo above) would be excellent for a post.... and so it goes :)

I took this photo at the Albuquerque Railyards.



i can't think of anything really to write about...
so I will leave you for today with this photo I took almost a year ago (to the day).
Taken in New Mexico... at a little "tourist trap" in the middle of nowhere on the way to Arizona.
(photo edited just now)



crashing and howling
it whips thru here... slamming windows
and kicking up dust

***

well... according to the weather... the wind is only at about 33mph...
but it feels like it's much more than that.
It is slamming the house, rocking the windows, shaking the roof... 
and kicking up tons of dust and sand.
Needless to say, I am working from the warmth of my bed...
while a puppy snores at my feet.



what are you seeing
when you peer through your windows
and gaze on the world

***


just walking around downtown...
... and saw some fabulous street art...
including this stunning mural by Ernest Doty 
(not only is he super talented... but he's a nice guy)
(see more: HERE)






storm clouds are brewing
let the blackened sky open
and pour on us all

***

somehow, I managed to sleep well into the afternoon...
and awoke to a refreshing light rain.
Now, as the sun is setting...
huge storm clouds are boiling over and spilling across the city...
perhaps some more rain to come.
It's a good night for a movie.




"We're made of star stuff. We are a way for the cosmos to know itself.” 


"You are all stardust" 
-- Lawrence Krauss, American Theoretical Physicist

"we are all made of stars"
--Moby, singer

***

have a great Friday

((this is a photo I took down at the VLA in winter... edited a couple nights ago with a layer of stars...))



saloon doors swing wide
revealing our cowboy past
bellies to the bar

***

so much I could say...
My dad was a HUGE John Wayne/ westerns/ Louis L'Amour fan...
and I grew up exposed to all that; and love it.

What I will say though... is that I took this photo
down in Socorro, NM... and love the shot.