MY GOODNESS MONDAY!

It's Monday and I have decided to do something new! Each Monday I will feature an artist I think is absolutely amazing, and SHARE that artist and his or her work with you! What inspired me to do this is, of COURSE, all of you and your wonderful and diverse talents! You all inspire ME, so I would love to share that inspiration. Gotta pass around the love, right? On this, my first MY GOODNESS MONDAY, I am spotlighting an artist who is just incredible! Not only is she talented and creative, and always trying (and mastering) various genres of art, she is vision impaired to a degree. I can't believe the things she accomplishes with limited sight! Who am I featuring, you ask? Well, she's a lady whose work I know well because I am lucky enough to own a number of her beautiful pieces! She's also my other best friend! (I have TWO best friends.) Her name is Jan Demetralis and the lovely woman below is my Jan! Her blog is http://jandeesthisandthat.blogspot.com/  Some of you may be familiar with her, but if not, NOW you WILL be! I have a LOT more pictures of her artwork. I'll just give you a small sample here! Jan has been featured in magazines for her winning Gypsy dolls. You wouldn't believe how real they look! One of the many things that blows my mind is how she can take the simplest components and create a lovely doll! Her techniques are unconventional and actually make a great deal of sense because they are easier to execute once you  understand what she did! She works with everything from clay to fabric to metal to sketching materials and paints to - well - everything! My Jan doesn't like being in the spotlight but that's honestly where she deserves to be. She is so generous with her mini-tutorials to her stupid friend (that would be me - LOL) who has never DONE half the things she knows how to do! I would give about anything to have her here at my craft table with me to drink lots of tea (I'd make you cookies, my Jan!) and just WATCH her make her magic. Please, go and visit her blog! Go way back because you will have your socks knocked off by how many kinds of things she has created. Now I have to go TELL her I wrote this post. She's so modest I have a feeling I may get my over-sized BUTT kicked! It's worth it though to have all of you SEE my beautiful friend and her TERRIFIC art!  

I'M MELTING! MEEEEELLLTING!

   Well, not really MELTING! Just disappearing into a sludgy mess of 'too much to dooooo'! LOL! I've been pretty darned good about answering emails! I've answered EVERYBODY who'd written, and have even responded to some of the responses. I still owe YOU a response to MY response, Rebecca. I will get to it sooner or later, I swear. But Thursday morning I will be mailing you the book I promised! It's wrapped and ready. And I owe you an answer, Nat, but you know I'll get to it. And Jude, if YOU are reading this, where the heck did your BLOG go? Is your brother working on it again? I MISS YOU! Christel, I need to 'visit' with you soon as I catch up! Chirp, remember you are special. You understand that, right? LOL! Anyway, what I'm trying to say is I'm up to my curly hair in editing, classes to prepare (I'm in teaching OVERLOAD) and normal day-to-day stuff. Also October's a busy birthday month. Seriously! Between family, long-time friends, all of my sweet bloggy friends, and people at places like Barnes and Noble, Target, McDonald's, and other places I frequent, there are EXACTLY 59 birthdays! Trying to do what I can. Too poor to do much! I'm GETTING there but not yet quite where I would like to be. Soooo, for a few days - well, no more than a week - I will MOSTLY be keeping up with all of you via blogs - mine AND yours. Forgive me if I don't ALWAYS comment. I WILL be reading each post of each blog! You can quiz me later! HAHAHAHA! I swear what I would REALLY love to do is go settle in at my craft table and play forever! Wouldn't we all? Been so tired lately I am also way SLOW in reading my books. I generally read at LEAST 3 books a week - often more. But this old eye is protesting that right now. So my big behind is dragging the ground and I am going to hunker down and kick out all this work so I can start Autumn with some FUN stuff! I'm HERE if anyone needs me for anything! Truly! Just may be slooooooow about answering most emails. Viv, YOU write 'cause you KNOW I need to learn how Frannie's doing! And Susan, I'll be checking in to see how doggy's vet visit went and if she had a chip. Keeping my fingers crossed that Andy can freely take her! Okay! For someone with so much to do, I surely am stalling, aren't I? Hugs to everyone! Toodle-oooooo!

PIECE OF CAKE! NO, REALLY!

Well, I thought I was finished bugging you all with my birthday silliness. And, after THIS post, I truly will be! HONEST INJUN! (Bwahahaha!) But I HAVE to share this with you! Last year,  made an off-hand comment about never having had a birthday cake. I THINK originally it was in response to someone's asking me what KIND of bd cake I prefer or if my housemate was going to make or BUY me one. Anyway, I said I'd never had one and never gave that another thought. But someone DID. One of my sweet friends was bothered by that. SO much that she planned (I was unaware) for the entire YEAR to see that I'd receive a bd cake THIS year. And yesterday, the mailman arrived at my door. Now I KNEW my friend (Ria Johnson of  http://craftyria.blogspot.com/ ) was sending me a package through someone else because she TOLD me.) But I had NO idea what it was. When I opened the big old box, I pulled out a smaller box that was sitting atop a larger one. IN that box was the loveliest teacup & saucer EVER. I LOVE teacups!Believe me when I tell you that I'm as big a hot tea freak as I am a coffee freak! IN the cup were three tea bags (yum) and a pretty drawstring bag with  ... birthday candles! Need I tell you what was in the BIG box? I didn't think so. Just LOOK at the darling & lovely cake! Ria's friend had opened a cupcake shop awhile back and she made, wrapped, and mailed the cake! OMG! I have to confess that I have YET to eat any of it! I mean, it's my FIRST BIRTHDAY CAKE, folks! I know I have to, but ... well .. I feel like a cannibal. My housemate watched as I opened it and could NOT understand what the Sam Houston I was blubbering about. (Yes, I did. I cried. I'm VERY sentimental, and this GOT me!) Anyway, I realize I'll HAVE to eat it (Noooooo!) but I wish I didn't have to! I took photos of it this morning. I set it out on my countertop to keep it room temp. Isn't it the prettiest lil' cake? I LOVE IT!!! And I have to say that Ria's surprise rates right up there in my 5 best EVER favorite surprises! THANK YOU, RIA!!! When I blow out my candles, I will wish for something AWESOME for YOU!  

THANK YOU TIMES A MILLION AND A GUILTY LIL' PLEASURE

   GOOOOOOD MORNING! I wanted to post and let all of you know how truly special you made my birthday! THANK YOU for EVERYTHING! The last few birthdays have been either HORRIBLE (Hurricane Ike hit us at exactly midnight on Sept. 13 in 2008 - UGH) and the next two were BETTER but ...! This one was birthday perfection! Seriously! I got TONS of hugs from the kiddos at Barnes and Noble (I crave hugs like most women crave chocolate! LOL!) and didn't have to pull out my $$ even once for cappuccinos! Ahhhh! Luxury! One of the guys brought me a HUGE piece of cheesecake drizzled with chocolate syrup. I thanked him and when he left I pushed it over to Ray. (Too early for sweet stuff AND I'm allergic to chocolate. But it was SUPER nice of him!) I received 8 books the staff KNEW I was thinking about buying. I'm NOT allergic to BOOKS! Bwahahahaha!
    Later we went to lunch (which I DEFINITELY ate) and I got home to phone messages from my daughter, grandkids, and - YAY! - Bradley, my almost two year old GREAT grandson who said, "I LOVE you, Graygramma Kai!" I LOOOOVE that! GRAYgramma! How perfect! He's just now speaking in actual sentences and it makes me even MORE in love with that sweet-natured little boy! 'Course THEN he had to crack me up by adding, "I'm a MONKEY BUTT!" and laughing hysterically! That's what his mama calls him 'cause he loves to climb.
   Anyway, in addition to all that, and all the AMAZING messages from each of you, I had a looooooong talk late into the night with my best friend, Mar! AND - best of all - the firefighters got the big old wildfire relatively near us here in Houston contained. They are, however, still watching it carefully this morning.
   Finally (Are you applauding because I'm about to stop chattering? LOL!) I SWEAR I will get to each email that you have sent me and have all of them (currently a whopping 35) ANSWERED by Saturday at the LATEST, hopefully by Friday. 
   And, oh yeah. What, you ask, is my guilty pleasure? And what does it have to do with thanking you? Tonight is the 2-hour season premier of ... SURVIVOR! WOOOOOHOOOOO! Yeah, yeah, yeah! I'm a moron. But I have NEVER missed so much as one episode - not even five MINUTES - of any Survivor season. Even when Ike knocked out our power for 29 days, we bought batteries for an OLD and TINY tv we had in the garage and I watched my Survivor and SVU! What an addict, huh? And THAT means I will lose 2 hours of emailing tonight because I have a standing 'date' with Jeff Probst and a tribal council.
    For now, just PLEASE know how very much I truly appreciate each and every one of you! You made my birthday wonderful and you ALWAYS enrich my life!

THE TIMES THEY ARE A'CHANGING! (AND OBVIOUSLY, SO AM I!)

It's a jolly good thing I'm comfy with my age because - guess what, folks? I'M OLD! LOL! Today I am 61. And, with the exception of the physical limitations (not from age, actually, but from illness/accidents/etc.) I genuinely love being older! Why, you ask, would you LIKE being old, Kai? Okay, I'll tell you! It's FREEING! Yes, it really IS. Here are things I can now do without giving them a second thought!
1. Proudly wear COMFY shoes. HEELS? Bah! NO WAY!
2. Toss OFF even THOSE comfy shoes plus my bra the MINUTE I get home from anywhere. (Oh, now! Stop looking horrified. HAHAHAHAHA! I HATE bras!)
3. Give younger folks unasked for advice! Sometimes, give ANYONE unasked for advice!
4. Say outrageously silly things.
5. Walk right up and tell cute guys how hot they are. (They just look at me and smile indulgently because they think I'm a lil' old lady and I'm (a) not SERIOUS and (b) totally 'safe'.) NOTE: That's what THEY think! BWAHAHAHAHA... hmmmm.
6. Fit SO comfortably in my own skin, I no longer worry about being ANYTHING besides crazy old Kai! And, with that said, let me give you a progression of pictures - ages almost 3 to now (right after the last chemo when I finally got hair again.) Yeah, I know. It's not pretty, huh? But it's me. And I LIKE who I am ALMOST as much as I LOVE who all of YOU are! And, with that, I am going to get myself together (bras, shoes, and - sigh - even makeup) and go to Barnes and Noble to aggravate talk to the kiddos who work there, MAYBE go to Michael's a bit, and finally get some sushi because my housemate promised to take me to lunch today. Wish all of YOU could be here! (You DO like sushi, right?)

THE LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS

A mesmerizing, moving, and elegantly written debut novel, The Language of Flowers beautifully weaves past and present, creating a vivid portrait of an unforgettable woman whose gift for flowers helps her change the lives of others even as she struggles to overcome her own troubled past.


The Victorian language of flowers was used to convey romantic expressions: honeysuckle for devotion, asters for patience, and red roses for love. But for Victoria Jones, it’s been more useful in communicating grief, mistrust, and solitude. After a childhood spent in the foster-care system, she is unable to get close to anybody, and her only connection to the world is through flowers and their meanings.



Now eighteen and emancipated from the system, Victoria has nowhere to go and sleeps in a public park, where she plants a small garden of her own. Soon a local florist discovers her talents, and Victoria realizes she has a gift for helping others through the flowers she chooses for them. But a mysterious vendor at the flower market has her questioning what’s been missing in her life, and when she’s forced to confront a painful secret from her past, she must decide whether it’s worth risking everything for a second chance at happiness.



I LOVE this book but I confess I FOUGHT getting it. For some reason, I thought it was going to be a mushy romance. I don't DO romance novels. Romance WITHIN a novel is okay as long as that isn't the main purpose of the book. But mush? Huh-uh. Not for me! So I told several author friends who kept insisting I read it that I'd 'think about it.' Finally, an author friend I respect tremendously said, "Kai Naconi, you'd BETTER get a copy of that book!" So I did. I could barely STAND to put it down, and desperately wanted to read it cover to cover in one sitting. My great aunty who thinks books are nothing more than a recipe for 'forgetting the oral stories' (sigh) would find me some more work to do every single time I'd get into a chapter. Grrrr! But I finished it despite her disapproval (no disrespect meant, Aunty, to you or to oral tradition) and - OH, how I loved it! It was beautifully crafted, heartbreaking, and one of those stories I hated to see end, yet I wanted to know what happened so I couldn't WAIT to read the ending. I DO hope some of you will pick it up in a store or library and give it a chance! It will be worth your time!  



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SOME HAPPY LIL' PHOTOS

It's Friday at about 1:30 P.M. and my sighted eye NEEDED a teeny break from the editing. So I decided to take a one and annoy uh - bore - hmmm - ENTERTAIN you with a few pictures that make ME smile!  Also making me smile today: sweet comments on my other post (thank you!) MY yummy coffee (as opposed to my great aunty's traditional 'Indian' coffee - YUCK!) a touching surprise birthday gifty from my daughter, and a REALLY surprise invitation and KISS (any invitation and ESPECIALLY any KISSES at MY age and size are a surprise - LOL!!!) Told you I'm feeling more myself! (Happy dance over here!) And, with that, I'll head back to the editing! HUGGRZ to you ALL!

Granddaughter Megan and her 'intended', Tony

My crazy housemate with his birthday gift from my friend, Jan



Beautiful Jessica, youngest granddaughter 




Grandson Jake finding new uses for his beach towel and ways to make everyone laugh - naughty boy!




Jake's stepson, the adorable Neo, as Scooby-Doo!




My daughter Leah



Silly granddaughter, Megan, with her 'wedding savings' thus far! LOL!



Great Grandson Bradley aka Lil' Man who will turn TWO next month!



The lazy, VEEEEERY HAZY, crazy LAST days of Summer!

Houston LOOKING like a fire zone but it's smoke from a county some distance away. Air is oppressive!

One HORRID fire in Magnolia, WAY too close to Houston.

Fire and smoke mar the sunset.

   I'm baaaaaa-aaaack! In fact, I'm back 2 or 3 days earlier than I intended because I needed to check on the fire situation in Houston. We are NOT in a good place here in Texas. Our relentless drought and strong winds have cause massive fires which have destroyed SO much of our state and so very many homes. Thus far, except for random grass fires, Houston has been spared. Still, we are reminded by the oppressive and heavy smoke how close the fires are. But counties around us have not been spared. What a terrible and frightening thing to be given a mere 5 minutes to evacuate a home. That, I understand, is the case with hundred and hundreds of familes in the line of fire.
    On the rez, we had only a sporadic account of what was going on here, and I knew it was time to return. Besides, I've kind of gotten a second wind, so to speak, and am once again more myself. This summer has NOT been a particularly happy one, but I'M happy again. I worked HARD on the rez, helping my great aunt do a lot of things (that little old lady KEPT me busy - LOL) and digesting my recent losses while healing my heart with family. I returned to an early arrival of some BIG editing jobs, a housemate glad to see the chief cook and bottle washer back (for you youngsters, that's an old tag for the one who handles most of the house stuff) a messy house (grrrrr!) and plenty to keep me good and busy for awhile. Also, some relief in the way of a cool front which ended (for NOW) the 105-109 degree temps. I have peeked at a few blogs since I returned earlier today but not had a chance to comment. Will get to it soon! As for emails to those of you I generally write, expect at least a short one by the end of the weekend! I've MISSED everyone. And I can't tell you how much I appreciate your sweet, caring comments and your friendship! THANK YOU! Now I will post this and see if I can't get back into my normal routine! HUGS TO YOU ALL!