Up-cycled Crystal Chandelier
 I went shopping for a beautiful light, but the one I wanted was 600$, so I decided I could make one!
This one is made of:
Old copper from a telephone line found in the little woods behind our house, coat hangers, necklaces, crystal wine glasses, salt shaker, earrings, mosaic glass, beads from Israel, ribbons, Christmas tree ornaments, and an old ladies scarf. All recycled stuff, and I love adding to it when I find more goodies!

Oscar

This was fun to paint!

Metal Grates

When you walk in a big city,
what is it that you fear?
Is it the dreaded hoodlums?
I’ll confess my fear right here.
As I walk, through our own streets
I spot a metal grate,
I sidestep quite un-gracefully,
don’t want to tempt my fate.
Not the roundish ones that guard
the roots of sidewalk trees.
If you fell in one of these
you’d stop right at your knees.
The ones I fear are treacherous
guarding the big black deep.
We walk above, oblivious to,
the secrets that they keep.
Especially the one that fronts
Brews Brothers coffee shop.
It is so bent and twisted up
my heart jumps and I stop.
I have to go around this one,
I’m chicken it is true
But someday, unexpectedly,
Some lady will fall through.
Her heart will leap, and with a gasp
computer bag go flying,
torn fingernails grasp for the grate
there’s really no use trying.
And with a thud she finds herself
in a dark and goopy place,
with twisted knee and broken heel,
something smudged across her face.
She’ll try to sit, with aching knee
and torn up business pants.
But what is that, that awkward smell...
I can not take that chance.
So there you have it, I confess,
my fear is on the table.
I’ll keep side skirting the grates
as much as I am able.

Art Journal

I had such a great time making this art journal/ sketchbook out of leftover paper, and bits of stuff! Sewed the signatures, laced them together with string, cut the edges so it would somewhat resemble a book, and covered it with some great old fabric! Oh ya, ready for some serious creativity.

Time Suckers

Time Suckers

So what-my friend is sucking your day?

Taking from you the way you should play,

stealing away what your life wants to say?

Time suckers.. time suckers

The clicker in hand, flipping around

twenty-four channels just to hear sound.

There’s nothing worthwhile tonight to be found.

Time suckers.. time suckers

Or is it my friend that sucking facebook?

I’ll be just a minute, must take a quick look

that turns into an hour, my precious timesucking crook.

Time suckers.. time suckers

Is your day sucked up in bits and in snips?

Stolen eack time the cellphone it blips.

Grab it and soon your fingers they fly

send a new text in the blink of an eye.

Time suckers..  time suckers

I did not mention e-bay or craigslist

or the queen of all suckers they call Pintrest
There’s so many suckers my brain needs a rest!

Time suckers.. time suckers

So what would I do, and who would I tell
the things that I think, the thoughts that I sell?
And how would I know if the world went to hell?

Time suckers.. time suckers

I’d paint, and I’d sew, and I’d get things done.
I might even break out in a run.
But there is one thing I know is true,
I’d surely have more time to play with you!

This is my latest painting in oils. I discovered the palate knife, and had a blast using it. Is the sun too sunny? I am thinking of calling it Repicheeps journey. 

A Pot of Boiling Quiet

A Pot of Boiling Quiet

You may think that peace and quiet

walk always hand in hand,

but that’s not what my life declares

through hourglass of sand.

On the bench at Marmatton

in the midst of Claude Monet,

or wandering your favorite path,

quiet hour in your day.

This is when our peace and quiet

shine through so bright and true,

but something odd can jump right in

and do it’s thing to you.

A pot of boiling quiet-

there is no peace involved.

It is so hot and bubbles up

get ready for the scald.

Now the quiet’s not so peaceful,

full of angry bitter strife.

And the tension is so thick,

you can cut it with a knife.

So I try to paint the picture

to give you a small view,

of a miss-matched quiet

hopefully not true for you.

So if your peace and peaceful

and you’re quiet real,

bask in that moment in your life.

Thank God for how you feel.

New Blacks

New Blacks

Do you shop Goodwill

and get depressed?

In the fitting room

you get undressed.

It happened every

single time,

so much, I say

It needs a rhyme.

I’ve had enough,

this misery,

the things I like

too small for me.

It’s time to change

the shape I’m in.

I am not big,

no where near thin.

It’s diet time!

I dump the sweets,

grab ham and cheese

when I need treats.

I did this for

a month until,

my starburst raving,

became still.

The diet’s done,

my skin it sags.

My black pants look

like black trash bags.

My work shirt comes,

untucked a lot.

My bellys in

a different spot.

I head to the

goodwill to find,

new blacks to fit

my new behind.

I need work pants,

I’ll pull size eight.

Oh glory be!

they fit just great!

My eyes? they play

a trick on me?

Could this be an eight,

this blur I see?

So I go back

squint at the rack.

a pile of pants,

I will attack.

Oh, it is true,

oh me oh my!

e-ven a random

six I try.

Oh I can’t wait

to wear some blacks,

that aren’t old lady

high waisted slacks.

All my young kids,

will look at me

and say" hey dude,

what do we see?"

"Is that high waisted

Jilly Bean?

In the coolest blacks

we’ve ever seen?"

I still can’t see

or think too fast,

but old lady pants

are a thing of the past.