Showing posts with label Cat. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Cat. Show all posts

Thursday, July 2, 2015

July 2 of birthday month



I actually had a few things that could have qualified today for my birthday month celebration, but I HAVE to say that spending time with, shopping and lunching with my dear friend Cat was the highlight of 7/2/2015!  It was such a nice afternoon and we had a lovely lunch at the Crimson Cafe in Rhinelander.  It had been ages since we had spent more than a few minutes together, so we had a lot of ground to cover.  YAY for reconnecting with friends.

Rhinelander was a nice place to do a little thrift shopping and a little health food store visiting and it was super to head that way with Cat.  It was a gorgeous day,  and I am very sorry that I neglected to take a photo of the two of us like I usually do.  Falling down on the job, I guess.

Apparently this is  also the day that the Mad-Art teacher crashes from the excitement of the last few weeks.  I went from giddy to sad in about 5.5 seconds after I arrived home. I could actually feel it happening when I got up this morning.  I know that this is typical for me, but I really hate it when I fall.  sigh.  I am mostly back to myself, but the sads are lingering in the background. 

Ah yes.  Such is life, right?  But I did have a wonderful day and I am carrying out a plan that I made a couple days ago.  I am  not going to give it away quite yet!  :)  It is much more fun than I anticipated.  HAHAHA keep y'all in suspense!  **rubs hands gleefully together**

Anyway, nice end to the night- went for a mini photo shoot and took a couple photos of the orange sunset.  All courtesy of the wild fires out west.  It's sort of sullying up the blue skies, but I guess there is nothing we can do about that!  

Anyway, have yourself a pleasant evening and hope you have had a day with at least a little joy!


Tuesday, March 26, 2013

Living room- BIG ole update and a "brief" story of color gone wrong

So when we last had a livingroom update, the Mad-Art Teacher was rethinking her whole "I can do it all, AND go ahead and conquer the world" attitude.  Of course I still think I can conquer the world, but I just need to not try to do it all in one week.



Last Thursday I was laid low, REALLY low, by a nasty virus- which showed me that first of all, I am dispensable, as the children got along just fine without me for that big practice/performance for the play.  gulp.  Crow eaten, message understood.  AND I need to make sure I am much more diligent about how I conduct myself when there is said nasty viruses spotted at the elementary school.  As in, less touchy the children art teacher and more douse myself in hand sanitizer and good old soapandwater art teacher!!  Anyway, when we last saw the livingroom, it was about to be mudded, taped, and primed, which you will find below here!  It was an amazing thing to come home and see this, it really made things look great!  Since then, the primer applied and then the weekend marathon of painting began!

I literally was either at the play or buying/prepping/painting/repainting the living room (or sleeping/eating) from Friday night until Monday morning.  You think I jest????  Friday during the day I ordered the paint from Park Falls Builders (I will get to that story in a moment), then the play on Friday night.  Saturday found me retrieving the paint, grocery shopping, spraying the furnace dealie right before having lunch, then rollering on the paint until I had to LEAVE for the play.  At the play until 10:30.  Get up Sunday morning, detest with my soul the darker of the colors (explanation to follow!), prep area for painting, paint light color, run to town for more makeup, prep area for painting, paint, eat quickly and go to play from noon until 6:30, come home and paint last of wall.  The Mad-Accountant managed to be home for the last bit of rollering, which was nice, as I was able to do a little cleanup- very little, but still.  Monday morning I got up to begin staining the wood trim at 7 to get done by 8, which is when the Builder came and I rushed off to a dental appointment and then to school to finish my grades!  WHEW!!!

So the tale of the color- briefly- is this: The MA and I were perusing paint chips and I was definitely leaning towards a honey goldish color.  I wanted two tones and we decided to make the ceiling the light color and I decided that one wall should accompany it.  Then that of course leaves the other 3 with the darker color.  I, of course, understand the uneven nature of composition, and my dear, symmetrical, analytical hubs does not.  He kept wanting the walls to be divided into 2 dark and 2 light........ oh honey, no.  Just no.  So he asked me about 85 times where the 2 light wall were going to be- jeez.  Now go make some poor tax payer cry, will you?? Anyway, we decided to go really dark and we chose the lightest and the darkest of the grouped paint chips.  Now sometimes, I admittedly am dense.  The name of the darkest color was "Golden Image".  Had I not the ability to totally block out my home life during school and my school life whilst at home, I would have realized that "Golden Image" is YELLOW BRICK ROAD YELLOW- THE DARKER ONE!!! Good GRIEF!!!  Which in and of itself is  not bad, BUT I KNEW that Golden Image is a nasty ass color to work with.  Transparent and streaky and obnoxious.  And godknows how dark it is. Anyway, I painted the lighter color on, and didn't really like it too much, but that is typical of me.  I always tell the kids at school- Don't make judgements about value until you get all the white of the canvas or paper covered and then adjust your tones.  And this is what I had in mind!!  So I start painting this Golden Image stuff and it SOON becomes apparent that I have worked with this beast before. It looks like hell when it goes on.  But I kept saying to myself, get rid of the white, get rid of the white....... don't make judgements!!!  Oy.  I finished it and may I just say it was JARRING.  It made me groan with displeasure.
But NEVER FEAR!  Armed with my art teacher knowledge and having my friend Cat as my muse, I went ahead the next day (when I still detested the color, even more so in the morning light) and mixed my own damn color!  I softened the color down to what I now call (I mean just this second named) Sunshine Honey and proceeded to erase most signs of the errant Golden Image.  whew.  I LOVE it.  It is now so warm and lovely and I can't wait to see the floor all finished later today!!  Ok, so maybe that was not a brief story, but you should know I underestimate my stories!

Anyway, when I got home from my day at the dentist, school, lunch (the electrician was at our house doing his electrical magic) and llllaaaaaa (that would be angels singing)- the GYM -  I arrived home to beauty!!!  Ceiling fan up, golden toned paint glowing, and a light in the middle of my livingroom.  I walked in and the words- it's so pretty- fell from my mouth and I promptly sent pictures to many many MANY of my friends and relatives!!

I'm in love!  And I have to shop!!  For a few things, most notably a floor lamp.  That would be tomorrow's adventure!

Pictures please!

Tape and Mud:
Tape and mud- frontroom angle
Kitchen angle


hallway angle


window angle

ceiling
 Primer:

front room angle

kitchen angle


Hallway angle


Hallway angle

window angle


preparing to paint furnace thingies

cutting in corners, etc.

the beginning

***NOTE***

This is a group of pix that probably should never be seen, and yet here they are!  I am sure my hotness factor has quadrupled in everyone's eyes after seeing the fashion forward painting ensemble I have donned- but that can't be helped.  Everyone try not to drive here all at once to behold it in person, I think I am going to throw it away. And then there is that unfortunate color thing going on there...... 

Yellow brick road yellow- ugh

Tell me you don't see the similarity!!


The look of "this color will be gone by the time the play comes if it kills me" desperation



Before tape is removed- front room


kitchen angle



Note who is not listening to instructions and removing tape before photo journaling is complete!
Morning pic of paint job!  Staining about to commence

Staining action to begin

This is where  you should insert angels singing and so MUCH joy~

Ceiling fan and electricity!! Front room angle

Kitchen angle

Kitchen right
Kitchen left

Hallway right



Hallway left

Window view of arch 


Today is the day the floors get sanded and refinished and I am going to make myself scarce!  I have a date with the gym and then a nice pedi planned and then a run up to Glidden to visit my dear friend and muse, Cat.  I am so anxious to see what it looks like when the floor is finished!!!  I am so excited!  Then the trim will be done and I want to touch up my arch plaster, and Thursday is move back in day!!!!  And I get to collapse on my couch finally and do a little relaxing and find more than a little joy!!  

Wednesday, August 15, 2012

Stroll along Lake Superior

I love traveling up to Lake Superior and one of my favorite shopping, strolling, talking partners is my friend Cat!  We do have a good time together!

This trip was multi purpose and included a stop at the Goodwill store, the Black Cat, the beach and the walkway along the lake and the down town area for some window shopping.  OH!  And the Chequamegon Food coop!!




But as you know, my primary purpose is always to get some good lake pix!








Cat at the lake






Unknown wild flower growing along the path









The landscape is just so different up there!!  I just love it.

Hope the photos from my day trip help you find some joy!!  :)

Thursday, July 19, 2012

Fabulous Tuesday and preparation post 2

I had SUCH a good day on Tuesday!  What an awesome random birthday month day.
Lake Superior

I started off with that whole pullup thing!  That is a good way to start a Tuesday.  I wouldn't have ordinarily have been there at that early hour, but I needed to get my workout underway, as I was going to Ashland with my dear friend Cat.  First of all, I always try to get up to Lake Superior at least once during the summer.  Love seeing the lake, love the beautiful town of Ashland.  Anyway, I met her at the school parking lot in Glidden and up we went!

We had several errands to run and one included going to ahem- Walmart- for a little shopping.  I have great hopes for our new "Hometown Shopko" that is replacing the Pamida in Park Falls.  I sincerely hope that I can do much of my shopping in town and not have to go to Walmart out of town at all!  But that is beside the point, I needed to get some items for this camping trip!  A few things like small portable insect repellent, sunscreen, stronger lip balm, etc.  Since we have to carry in EVERYTHING that we bring with us, smaller is better!  I picked up a lot of things that I needed, with only 2 more items that need to be retrieved today!  Not bad!  It was kind of exciting to be going through parts of the store and finding just the right thing, or at least something that will do the trick.

SOME BUMP!!!


Cat was of GREAT help to me when it came to determining what I should be getting.  She has been camping for years and gave me some great ideas.  We basically talked nonstop the whole time, it was so so nice to catch up with her.  We are such good traveling companions, and she tolerates me needing to stop to take pictures and is always up for a little walk if we have time!  YAY!

The wind in our hair !!
AFTER Wallyworld, we went for lunch at the Black Cat, then to the Chequamegon Food Coop and the Ashland Bakery!  They are wonderful places to go.  The Black Cat has fantastic food- I had a wrap that had some dill havarti cheese, veggies and a garlic/redpepper vinaigrette sauce that was excellent, not to mention the iced mocha that I nearly swooned over.  The Food coop has a great selection of natural foods, organic items and other hard to find things that I wanted!  And the bakery.........  Oh my gosh!!!  Plus I was able to go to a vegetable stand and get some sweet corn.  It wasn't terrific, but it was fine when grilled and I topped mine with lime and chili powder!  I really miss the corn and tomato guy in the parking lot of Southside!  I assume the road construction has f-ed it up for the summer.  The MA is under orders to pick up some corn when he sees the stand down in Phillips!!!  We shall see.....



THEN we had some time left, so off to the park we went for a little tiny photoshoot!  Got a few good landscapes and a cute pix of Cat and I, well except for the wind and the squinty eyes!!  :)  It was a fantastic trip- nothing special, just entirely good.











CERTAINLY it was a joyful day!  She is one of my joygivers!!!