the great north

well...not quite that far North...but it was north, and it was great. I was up in Washington last week taking a break and visiting some friends. Times were good and I got a much needed space to breath (you could say both figuratively and literally!) A chief reason for trekking up there was to visit my friend Troy and the progress on his mural. He's working on a large mural in Tierra Nueva's building. Tierra Nueva is the organization that my friends Troy, Chris, and Nick all work with - which does a lot of work with migrant farm workers. Lots of neat things are going on up there along with a great community of people.

I think other then just being among great people - the best parts of the week were finding some space with God in a tree (!), doing art with Troy, and traveling out to Lopez Island to visit Nick.

start yer' engines!

Today I heard my Studebaker start for the very first time (with her new engine)! It was very, very exciting...the exhaust isn't on yet, so it was very loud...but sounded great!
I got to work on the interior for some hours today. I got the side and door panels finished (except attaching the door panels). Then it's just popping in the windlace, putting in the seats, etc.
Here you can see the nifty panels (I left the chrome accents off because they were a little tricky and I'm not sure they can be used again due to the way they were constructed (some parts have been crimped together). So...simple susie is the way to go.
And also a pic of the dash...the boys insisted on painting it while the wiring was all undone...so it's all shiny - it'll be needing a lil' pinstripping of course!

This is a sticker that i found tucked in our weekly magazine, LA Weekly. I'm not sure if it was a marketing ploy...or if an independent person came along and tucked them in. There's no other info!? I like it though.

okay, okay

I've been wanting to transition the blog into something sligtly more thought-filled rather then activity-filled. In the midst of that decision, my thoughts and activities have bordered too-much-to-handle. But...I've decided that I need not finish a thought before it is expressed (as my loving roomates of past and best friend have demonstrated time and again...and have urged me to do the same!) So in following my decision, I will attempt to post more frequently--albiet it may be a blib of my day or an unfinished thought, or maybe just a picture.

Speaking of pictures, my art group LA Street Productions (well, not MINE, I do like speaking of things in term of "possession"...but more properly it is the art group I am a part of!)We've decided to take the first steps towards getting a group website and in thus direction we've been encouraged to each make our own blog...mine (still a work in progress) can be found at pupsterina.blogspot.com

Yesterday I enjoyed a day off...

• sleeping in
• going to the library &
• returning books
• buying an amusing book that I just couldn't refuse (in part because I'm in dire need of good ol'mindless enjoyment reading!)...Lost in Austen: Create Your Own Jane Austen Adventure--a must have for a grown-up 3rd grader who adored the Choose-Your-Own-Adventure series of books (so much so that I've incorporated them into an activity for my sexual education classes!!)
• looking at the new exhibit in the Getty Gallery (which I always enjoy them so much) of non-cliche' photographs of Paris
• eating Thai food
• sketching a particular intersection for an art peice I've been brewing (more of a vision really that I've had a hard time getting on paper via being perspectively challenged.)

Which I must say...I haven't done much sketching in public - really it scares me as it welcomes strangers to see an unfinished peice of work as well as talk to me (God forbid!) But it was an interesting experience last night, sitting tucked on a perch next to a building on a busy corner. A couple people talked to me, mostly giving me stories of their own lost attempts at art--and two 20-year-olds who wanted me to buy them liquor...I think they were somewhat amused by me. Perhaps I'll post my progress of this piece onto my blog, :create:, to further publicize my private process.

In transit to and from the sketching intersection I listened to these nifty pray-as-you-go podcasts I downloaded last week for lent. I know, I'm a little late as we're now more then halfway done with lent. But I've been enjoying the guided thoughts they've induced and I've made myself free-form sketch throughout them (which I really do enjoy but fail to do because I get concerned about outcomes)...here are a couple I did last week, maybe i'll post more to come.