Talkin' 'Bout My Generation

I love this video of Grace Slick singing White Rabbit at Woodstock back in 1969.
Yeah, she was tripping...as were many...


Just for fun late on a Thursday night...

Hey Kids, Do You Know What Day It Is?

Well, with one of those weekday holidays some of us think it is Tuesday, when it is actually Wednesday - but that is not what my blog title is referring to :)

Today is the 30th (!) of May (where did the month go?) - which means in TWO DAYS we are going to draw the winning name for the May GiveAway!

As of this morning we have 40 entries!

On Friday, June 1st the winner will be announced here.

So here is another incentive for today and tomorrow...tell a friend who has not visited here before about my contest. If they leave a comment and say "_______ sent me here" I will enter them (once) AND enter YOUR name TWICE :) Double your chances!!

TOMORROW, MAY 31st IS THE LAST DAY TO ENTER!
GOOD LUCK EVERYONE!

Two Grandfathers: Journal Pages

Yesterday (Memorial Day) I relaxed and created a two-page spread in my Visual Journal.

Both of my Grandfathers are the focal point of my journaling.

One Grandpa I knew well, and loved.
And one I never knew, yet I feel I would have loved.

I was not able to complete the pages yesterday because I had yet to find the perfect piece of junk-mail to incorporate (the challenge I gave myself when beginning this journal).

In today's mail it arrived in the form of an advertisement for home furnishings.
A WORLD GLOBE...I cut the globe in half - gluing half to each page...then making it appear as if the two halves were stitched together - illustrating how these two men's lives intertwined to create my world.

Excuse Me While I Go Bleach My Mind

An Artist? Who? Where?

I had vowed to myself on Friday afternoon - sitting at a red light - seeing the aftermath of a terrible accident on the bridge going over the Back Bay that once my errands were completed I was staying at my art table all weekend. Art is what makes me happy. It defines me.
Or does it?
I awoke on Saturday questioning who I was. An artist? Me? Oh, I dunno. I dabble. I play. I have fun with it. But other people I know are true ARTISTS.

And I found every excuse I could to NOT make art. Vacuuming the already spotless carpet. Preparing things for veggie sandwiches for dinner. Hell, I even made a Jello fruit salad. Pathetic!
I blogged about 'sounds' in the 'hood. Read friends blogs. Wrote emails about nothing in particular. Chair danced to 60s music on iTunes...

Finally I knew I had to create something, because I didn't feel like doing anything!

This is when I fully realized the VALUE of VISUAL JOURNALS.
Playing in my journal doodling with images and words. Expressing myself. Ha!
It was then I felt my spirit lifted. It was then I acknowledged to myself... I am an ARTIST!

(Another page from my junk mail journal. The word SHUTDOWN, the words LIFT YOUR SPIRIT, and the image of the window with the ocean view are all from junk mail I found in my mailbox this past week. Art is all around us. No excuses. Go. Make. Art.)

Do You Hear What I Hear, Here ;-) ?

I am at a loss for words today. Rare for me, I know.
So, I thought ...if I just sit still for a moment, what do I HEAR?
And then I got to wondering what YOU hear as you sit reading this.
So, here's the deal...
I am going to ramble here for 15 minutes...telling you what I HEAR. After you read this - either on your blog, or in my comments tell me (and others) what you HEAR as you are writing. I thought it would be an interesting idea to help us to know a little more about what our environments are like.
*-*-*-*-*

The loudest thing I hear right now is the crew working across the street building yet another massive multi-million dollar home that replaces an original 'beachy' duplex...the cement mixers, shovels clanging, workers laughing, and sometimes singing beautiful Latin songs have become the norm around here for a few months. It will seem quiet when they are gone. But alas, we can count on other original cottages and duplexes to face the bulldozer on our avenue...
A delivery truck rumbles down the avenue, shifting gears...heading for the market or one of our neighborhood restaurants around the corner. I can hear it's brakes squealing as it approaches our STOP sign...

A dog barks - the mail carrier must not be far away!...

The Newport Beach Police choppers are circling the beach...the thunk-thunk-thunk of it's blades making it difficult for me to hear my music...listening to an iTunes radio station...all Beatles...rifts of Magical Mystery Tour fill my room...

A car traveling way too fast speeds - heading towards the ocean -- and I wonder what the freakin' rush is...you are supposed to relax at the beach!...

Another temporary mail carrier (vacation time around here!) clangs open our mailbox and fumbles with our mail, I can hear him shoving the mail in and quickly slamming the little door shut...

Sirens have begun to wail down Pacific Coast Highway -- a sound that always perks my ears up...a sound we hear all to often living a half block off PCH...

The low rumble of jets approaching John Wayne Airport a few miles inland and the putt-putt-putt of one of the little planes that fly advertising banners over the shoreline on holiday and summer weekends...

A breeze has just picked up and the neighbor's wind chimes are making soft sounds that soothe...
Which are now drowned out by the beep-whack-beep-whack- waa- waa-waa of a car's alarm system!!!

DING!
The timer has signaled my time is done...
Your Turn!
:)

Yo Ho

Yo Ho A Pirates Life for Me!
In about three and a half hours we are heading out for the midnight showing of
Pirates Of The Caribbean - At World's End.
How will I ever sit through 2 hours and 47 minutes of Johnny Depp?
(snicker...snicker)

Summer On My Mind...

Our June Gloom lifted and we are seeing blue sky and sunshine again here on the coast.
There is no doubt that summer is on my mind...as you can tell from my two latest Visual Journal pages below.
I don't like the heat of summer anymore, now that I am older (wiser? nawww!)- but I do love the loooooong days of summer, the warm evenings and the beautiful sunsets which bring applause from everyone in the 'hood as we watch the sun slide down behind Santa Catalina Island with it's quick green flash...ah yes.......summer is on my mind.

(and now for a plug....please visit my Etsy Shoppe by clicking HERE!)

A Glimpse Of Me

My latest journal...

~ A Glimpse Of Me ~



*~*~*~*~*
You won’t have to face the intimidation of a BLANK PAGE to begin your journal!

The first leave in each signature have been painted and stamped with acrylic paint...waiting for YOU to make it your own.

The PAPER in this journal is 140-pound Index – this paper is PERFECT for visual journaling. You can layer acrylic paint on this paper and it will stand up to it with no wrinkling! You will LOVE this paper!
There are 5 signatures of 5 leaves each. 100 pages when using both sides.

Covers are made of 100% cotton canvas panels – Archival quality.

An original design of collage and richly layered acrylic paint.

Journal cover measures: 6” x 8”

Paper measures: 5 ½” x 7 5/8”

Exposed spine, 6-needle Coptic Binding using waxed linen thread imported from Belfast, Ireland in BLACK & VIOLET.

Coptic binding allows the journal to lie flat when open.

If you would love to own this journal or purchase it as a gift please visit my Etsy Shop at:

www.jolenemarie.etsy.com

I Have Such Cool Friends :)

Tomorrow is my Dad's 92nd birthday. I got this crazy idea of how I would love to have an old photograph of my parents done as a painting for his gift. Of course I am not that kind of artist.

So, I turned to my wonderfully groovy talented friend, Ellen - who is an amazing artist. Ellen was two years ahead of me in high school - and we never knew one another. We did share the same art instructor...and Mr. Cochrane would always share Ellen's work with me when I was taking his Commercial Art classes. I was a huge fan of Ellen, and she didn't even know it!
Years...hmmm...okay...light years later...I was playing around on Classmates.com and I came upon our high school message board. Lo and behold - Ellen had left a post. I quickly replied to her telling her how I was so happy to have found a way to let her know, years later, that I was in awe of her artistic ability.
And a friendship began.
I LOVE the Internet!

So, a few weeks ago I scanned a favorite photo of my parents together. This was taken in 1938, six months after my parents were married in Los Angeles. The photo was taken on the steps of the courthouse in Santa Barbara, California. The coastal town of Santa Barbara has always been a favorite destination for our family all of my life. It is filled with fun memories of long summer days on the beach, walking around the eclectic shops, and savoring all the rich history of the area.

Ellen took a look at this photo and worked her MAGIC...

Thank You Ellen -- you ROCK girlfriend!

Sunday Scribblings - Masks

Sunday Scribbling # 60 - Masks
Masks. Literal: making or wearing masks for Halloween, Carnival, Mardi Gras, the theater, any other masky occasion. Or, you know, psychological: a mask you wear, that you hide behind; the face you present the world, or that you present just to one person.

*-*-*-*-*
You could call this guy a real FLOWER-CHILD
behind his MASK of petals.
I wish more people started wearing flowers in their hair again, and the world was filled with peace & love.

Photo taken at Disneyland a couple of weeks ago during the parade down Main Street.

(click image to enlarge)

PHOTO Friday

Today's PHOTO Friday theme is LARGE
This photo was taken at Disneyland a couple of weeks ago during the parade down Main Street.
I present to you...
Ursula from Walt Disney's The Little Mermaid.

Waiting For The Barefoot Days Of Summer

My second page in my first Visual Journal:

I noticed I wrote 'global warning' - ha...well, it still rings true...
a global warning on global warming!

Do you know that clicking the image makes it magically appear larger?

Dreamers & Thinkers

Dreamers and thinkers

Woodsmen and tinkers

Craftsmen of wood…words…and whim

Come out of your hiding

Your light is worth shining

We all need a friend now and then.

The forest was quiet

No one could deny it

We all wondered ‘Where’?

Wondered ‘When’?

Will the light soon start shining?

Will there be no more hiding?

Would each creature be each creature’s friend?

Oh, the three of us swallowed

And the three of us shivered

But we all knew we all must go on

For the Garden of Seekers

Would have no more Keepers

If the dreamers stop dreaming for long.

The trees of the forest

Spread out their limbs toward us

And the feeling just welcomed us in…

We stood in the light

What a beautiful sight

For man and the earth were both friends.

No one was left hiding

There was no denying

Each creature was each creature’s friend

And when the energy touched us

We all felt so much of

The love that was growing within.

There were dreamers and thinkers

Woodsmen and tinkers

Craftsmen of wood…words…and whim

And the Gardeners and Keepers

And all of us Seekers

Knew we had found life once again.

Were we scared? Not a minute

For their hearts were all in it

They were loving and caring and wise

And they knew we had come from a land not so kind

For they said that it showed in our eyes.

And they told us to bring you a message

And to make their message quite clear –

And to those whom it’s told

It will never grow old

For the message is simple and dear.

They told us to keep on believing

And to live fully one day at a time

And that life truly does have more meaning

If we’d just keep an open mind…

Then they quietly all started weeping

And we gently spoke asking them…why?

And they said, wiping tears, to all those who’d hear

Only few would find truth in their lives.

Then the sun slowly was slipping

With the-man-in-the-moon on the rise

And we knew that our journey was ending

For we all felt the tears in our eyes.

Someone had gathered the music

That they’d found somewhere in the wind

And the mountains all sang

While the trees clapped their hands

And we knew we’d be back here again.

So, to you dreamers and thinkers

The woodsmen and tinkers

You craftsmen of wood…words…and whim

Come out of your hiding

Your light is worth shining

We’ll all need a friend until then.

copyright - 2007 ~jolene marie elliott

Visual Journaling

Although I am now making and selling hand bound coptic journals I must admit I have never kept a visual journal myself (hanging my head in shame!).

So, this weekend, as a means of relaxation I began one.

I am actually working on the pages and then I will bind them into a journal afterwards.

The challenge I gave myself for this one:

All of my images need to come from...
1.) junk mail and catalogs
2.) free magazines (like those found outside the health food and art stores I shop at)
3. my own original art, photography or carved stamps.
At least one piece on the page must be from from numbers 1 & 2 above. Junk mail frustrates me (like I am sure it does most of us), and I wanted to find a way to put it to good use other than tossing it in the recycle bin.

Here is the first page I created.

Click on the image for a better view.

Sunday Scribblings - SECOND CHANCE

With the prompt this Sunday being SECOND CHANCE the first thought that came to my mind was reincarnation. A few years ago I did this piece in an Altered Book I created titled:

Our Lady of the Lost and Found.

*****

The text reads: A Reunion of Body, Mind and Soul
are released without warning. Exit.

When the 'veil' is lifted from the page it reads:

...these mysterious affinnities must be evidence for reincarnation.

*if you click on the image a larger view appears*

Santa Catalina Fire

Photo: Santa Catalina Island
as seen from down the road from the cottage.
* note: I took this photo during a winter sunset - that is not the fire, simply the setting sun.

**UPDATE: Today (Tuesday, May 15th, the fire on the island is 100% contained. A total of 4,700 acres burned. They are keeping 270 firefighters on the island as a precaution. A HIGH FIVE to all the wonderful men and women who helped save our island!!)

I am heartsick. Tonight, as I write this post, a 500+ acre fire is raging on 'my' island - Santa Catalina. Most of the island has been evacuated, as far as I can discern from the news reports. The fire is approaching Avalon, the only 'city' on the island.

All during my youth my family and I spent at least a couple of weekends a month docked in Avalon Bay. My uncle Lee had been a commercial fisherman all his life. In later years, Uncle Lee became the Captain of a 65 foot yacht that belonged to a major corporation -- one great perk was...on the weekends it became the family yacht.

I would awaken on misty mornings, peer out the port hole and gaze upon the Casino in Avalon. The beautiful art deco Casino was built in 1929 -- just walking into it you felt its history. In the evening we often would go to the movie theater on the first floor of the Casino.

When we would leave the docks in San Pedro and get out to sea, my uncle would ask me if I would like to 'Captain' the yacht -- and as I did I would often hear the history of the island...uncle Lee was a walking, talking volume of history. It was because of him I came to love the sea and all things nautical.

Catalina closed to the public during WWII and was used as a military training facility. It was also the training camp for the Chicago Bears who were owned by William Wrigley, Jr...yes, the chewing gum Wrigley -- and his home sat beautifully on a cliff overlooking Avalon Bay. In the 1940s Marilyn Monroe lived on the island for a short time!

To me, Catalina holds some of my best memories. So tonight I hold on to hope that containment comes quickly - and the morning brings good news.

Wordless Wednesday

Sometimes (?) I Question My Own Sanity

Hot! Hot! Hot!

That's about all we've heard around here the last two days. Not even a breeze off the ocean to cool us down. We are parched and on red flag alert in Southern California. And SUMMER isn't even here yet.
So, what do I do?
I spend an hour standing over an eleventyhundred-pound cast iron stove top grill fixing something to eat tonight when it finally (hopefully!) cools down.

Ah, but it will be worth it when the sun sets...
We are vegetarians so lookey what I grilled up. In the background is Chick'n Free Nuggets by
Veat - we love their products, the Chick'n Free Nuggets aren't coated, so you can grill 'em...and they taste nothing like those McThings from McWherever. Along side those on the plate is grilled asparagus spears.
In the foreground, grilled pineapple...ahhhhhh...and grilled artichoke hearts...Oooooooo! We like our grilled food cold or room temperature so we always cook it ahead of time.
Oh I also reduced some orange juice for dippin' the Nuggets. YumO!
Ok..dinner is done and ready for sundown -- now back to work!

(this food porn is dedicated to Dagny, who can outcook any of us here!)

Current & Coming Attractions!

If you missed seeing the other two journals I currently have for sale,
please click here:

hand bound journals by ~jolene marie

There will be more coming soon!
I am saving some of them to offer on my daughter's website when she has her
Grand Re-Opening at:

BellaKarma.com

*****
Remind your friends to stop by and enter my drawing.

And when you are checking out BellaKarma.com,
join The Fan Club
for a chance to
win MORE free prizes!

I've Been Tagged!

A very cool artist, whose work I love - GardenPainter - has tagged me.
Her instructions to me are:

--List seven random facts/habits about yourself
--Choose another seven bloggers to tag and list their names in your blog
--Leave your seven tagged bloggers comments to notify them of their tagging along with directions.

Now, I see some of you averting your eyes from me...but face it, sooner or later someone is gonna tag you...so it might as well be me :)
*****
Disclaimer: Look, we are all weird in some way, so please don't stop coming to my blog after reading these ;-)

1. When I was little I ate dirt. Just little morsels. It was crunchy. It was fairly organic back in the 1950s. I am obviously still alive.

2. My parents bought me a doll once for Christmas. I threw it across the room and cried. I wanted a football!

3. When I was three I kicked a Doctor in the stomach because he put an oxygen mask on me before telling me what it was. He never wanted to see me again. :) !?!

4. I can have a conversation with anyone, anywhere. People randomly come up to me in the produce section of the grocery store and want to tell me their life stories. I have no idea why. But I listen. And I ask questions. And then I get my carrots and zucchini and tomatoes and go home.

5. I lived in Germany in 1972 and I walked around the village in "Vans" (tennis shoes) and everyone knew I was an "American" because of them. My, how times have changed. I got 'flipped off' a lot too...because it was during Watergate. A lot of people did not like Americans. My, how times have NOT changed.

6. When I was 18 I yelled out for Bobby Kennedy, who was riding in a convertible. And he heard me, stood up in the back seat, leaned over the trunk, and shook my hand.

7. I got hired by a company one time as a 'Clerk Typist' (yes I am dating myself!) and I didn't even know how to turn the electric typewriter on.
*****
OK kids, you can run, but you can't hide!
I am tagging YOU (I won't come and leave a comment on your blogs since most of you visit me at least once a week)...and seriously DUDES and DUDETTES, NO PRESSURE. Play if you want. Oh, except Jill..you better not let your Mama down!

1. Jill (because she is my daughter).
2. Dagny (because she feels like a daughter).
3. Tami (because she feels my pain).
4. Tammy (because she is a good sport and plays well with others).
5. Gene Black (because he can sing) ?
6. britt-arnhild (because she lives in Norway and I am jealous).
7. Kelly (because she just isn't BUSY enough!)

Sunday Scribblings - OCEAN

This is my first participation in Sunday Scribblings.
~ Ocean ~
**********
This photo was taken at the harbor down the road from our cottage. There is something about evening and the lights on boats that appeal to me. Everytime I look at this photo the song by Donovan comes into my head...
"do I see you coming home, coming home to me....from your day on the sea..."

Thank You Walt !

* Welcome to the Magic Kingdom *

From The Blue Cottage to a blue castle :)
Disneyland, as always, was magical and fun!

Loving It

Wow, the first day of my month long contest had a great turn out! I've 'met' some very groovy new readers - and I love YOUR blogs.

This is the FUN part for me....I am being turned on to new blogs I would have never found if not for this. We are making connections all over the world from the comfort of our own home. How cool is that?!

Please tell your friends about my contest and send them over for a visit.

The journal "A Little Bird Told Me" has sold ....and it will make its way to Los Angeles, California where its pages will be filled with ART and WORDS and all sorts of magic :)

Speaking of magic. I think we might go to Disneyland tomorrow for an early celebration of my 57th birthday (on May 5th). My FIRST visit to Disneyland was in 1957!!!!!