Lessons Learned From Storms

 There is so much unspoken wisdom in this piece of wood. Wisdom felt…not spoken… of how to survive storms that cause you to lean and creak…break and regrow…straighten and lift yourself back up.  I recognize myself in her…and the lessons learned from storms…..

A Symbol of Peace

 Flames from the fire caused by the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima still burn today. 

“In August of 1945, a woman who lost her son in the bombing went to the city while it was still burning and, believing that the spirit of her son was inside that flame, captured a bit of fire and brought it to her home a hundred miles away. She kept it burning for more than twenty years, and then passed it on to a Buddhist priest, who decided to make it a symbol of peace, and took the flame on a walking pilgrimage across Japan, burning in a lantern, and passed it on to others, lighting new lanterns for those who would take the flame. “ ~ Masanori Oe/The Abundance of Less

I won’t comment on what is happening in our world currently as my opinion is most probably not that of the general population. All I will say is…there is good….and there is evil at play here…and in the end…God wins. I am thankful to be present during this time in history and may God bless all those who have fought and are fighting for humanity.

The Craftsperson

 "A craftperson's job is half meditation...half creation. It takes creativity to design whatever you are working on...but it takes meditation to do it right. Making things with one's own hands cultivates a certain generosity and openness of the heart. It nourishes the state of mind in the craftsperson themselves...which is intimately connected with an entire way of life. The process of making something cultivates humility while connecting us with something fundamental about our humanity:  the interaction between the remarkable capacity of our own human hands and the ingenuity of our minds. Looking back on the things you've made is an enjoyable experience. It is almost as if the energy you put into making something remains stored in the object and feeds your spirit every time you look at or touch it."

I am called to work with wood. It's as simple as that....a love affair I cherish with my whole heart.

Evil Eye

 

I made a trip to one of the larger cities about an hour away from my little town yesterday. During one of my stops, as  I was going to the car, I saw a pendant on the ground. When I picked it up I saw that it was an Evil Eye pendant. They are supposed to bring you good luck and protect you. It was a small parking lot behind several businesses and the parking spaces were really close. As I started to squeeze into the car I made the decision to gift the pendant and placed it on the door handle of the car beside me. I hope they will realize what they got and that it brings them lots of luck and protection.

Hypnotized

 

 

 If I could only choose one app it would be Procreate. I have Photoshop and more apps than I should admit to but.....Procreate is da bomb!

This is a simple digital drawing done and animated in Procreate. Fun! Fun! Fun!

ET Phone Home

 

I’ve had this one cut out for several weeks waiting for the moon to cooperate. These are all taken with my iphone, which usually takes pretty good pictures, but didn’t do this moon justice.

There’s always that primitive part of me that wants to howl at the moon. This one’s been waiting patiently also. 

I have a pocket folder where I keep all my cut outs, carrying it around in my car so I can be inspired by locations. I hope to start doing some day trips to some of the interesting places near me and get some great shots.

I’m Baaaaaack!

 Lordt….I have seriously neglected my blog! Is there a reason….nope. That’s just how I roll.

So… what have I been up to…. a little of this…a little of that. I’ve lately been obsessed with paper cutting…which lead to animating my paper cuts. I began paper cutting with the generic things and then got into photographing places around where I live with a paper cut in the picture and posting them on my Facebook feed. It’s been so much fun although I struggle with keeping the photos geared towards my local “audience”…. my mind works in strange and mysterious ways that most people don’t “get”. 

I’ve been teaching myself to animate my cut outs using the Procreate app. It’s so much easier than when I first tried animation using hand drawn art and multiple apps. To say I’m obsessed with this art medium is an understatement. 

Here are a few samples:

And a few of my animations:

This is where the magic starts:

and ends up here:

Just one more thing:  Did you miss me? 

My Octopus Teaher

 

 WOW!

I wasn't sure I could watch this because I'm

totally creeped out by the octopus but ...oh my

this film is beautiful in so many ways.

I AM The F'n Dragon

yesterdays journal pages

yes....

i AM the fucking dragon!

Wabi Sabi

Wabi Sabi: "Wabi implies a rustic simplicity...a quietness, freshness and irregularity...and sabi is about the beauty and grace that only become visible with age. Wabi sabi is a way of viewing the world that accepts the impermanence and imperfections of our surroundings and existence. Spending time with something not conventionally beautiful, but rundown instead, maybe even what you consider ugly, can be incredibly enlightening, aesthetically exciting and inspiring. Thinking about its life, its past and what it may become is an invaluable creative contemplation of time and life that will lead to a richer way of expressing yourself...and give you reason for seeing with new eyes. We are bombarded with images of beauty and perfection, but it is the images of real life and subtle imperfections that will always resonate with us more deeply." ~ philippa stanton/conscious creativity

 

 i LOVE this book!

it's just what i needed to kick my creativity

in the arse... and the author has synesthesia!!!

i'm so jealous...i want to be able to experience

the world like that!

 

Mad As The Hatter

Been that way all my life!

Wanna go howl at the moon?

 

Time Traveling

how often do you time travel on a smell...

or a sound...

a taste...

a texture...

 

I Fail

 There is no way I could even begin to count the

times I've failed....in all aspects of my life.

But I keep trying.....

Tricked Out

 I tricked out my junking vest today.

This is an old fishing vest that I use when I go junking.

I love all the pockets where I can squirrel away things. 

And now all this color.....

Makes me happy.

Grandma Prisbrey

I can see my future in her.....lol

 

Ma and Pa

i LOVE outsider art.

it's challenging for someone who tends

to be a perfectionist to make this kind of

art. this is my journal page for today. i'm

thinking i'll start painting and collaging

on some of the cardboard i've accumulated

since our recycle centers won't accept it

due to the whole covid thingy. that way

i won't feel as stressed about "messing up"

a journal and also use up the cardboard.

win win

Anado McLauchlin

 

 

 i LOVE this!

color...color...color

check out his webpage here

Imma Check This Out

 another journal page with the remains of a 

failed image transfer. this is an actual photo

of the firetruck in cornelius, nc where my

grandparents lived. since the transfer didn't

work i just used the gel plate pull in my

journal. oh well....

honestly...blogger has gotten ridiculous! things

won't stay formatted...images have to be

manually resized...there is a terrible lag when

updating or deleting drafts. my widgets are gone.

SUX!!!!!

Holy Mosaics!

 Wow! Look at this mosaic wall!

The image is by Monica Carretero but I

don't know who the mosaic artist was.

I just love this!

Feeling Blue

 i can't figure out why i can do an image transfer 

using a magazine page but not with something

 printed with my laser printer. 

imma figure this out!

(((why did blogger get rid of the option

to decrease line spacing??????)))

Some Days

seriously.....

Lose That Girl in a Strange Land

my tipping point

 

 always....

other than...

Batwoman Fails

 boy howdy...i'll bet you can hear

all the snap crackle pop of dem bones

from where ever you are

i bought a laser printer specifically to be able

to do image transfers using my art and a gelli plate.

i spent the better part of a day jacking with that

thing...i can get an image using a magazine

 photo but nothing with anything printed

 with this printer. i'm ready to toss it in the yard!

Just An Artist

 none of that follow the rules for me

been that way all my life

New Journal

I've started a new journal this week using an old ledger

I found in a local shop.

 

 

It's been a while since I did any journaling. You'd think being an inmate

due to Covid I'd have gotten myself back into my studio but that hasn't

been the case. It's been in the 90's every day for a month here and I've

not done anything outside other than venture out to cut grass. Anyway,

now....I journal....

 

 

 

 

 

I Published A Book!

another items checked off my bucket list.....i've published a book! it's not the great

american novel...it's an art journal with a peek into my childhood and the trials and

tribulations my mother encountered in raising a bipolar offspring. i'll have to say...

i'm kinda proud of it. (I do NOT like the new blogger! Why doesn't my photo resize

to fit?????)

tetched

ruminations, art &a...

By jody brakefield

Book Preview

Bent And Creaking

Got out this morning and started some cuttings:  Butterfly Bush...Hydrangea...Lady Banks Rose. I've never been very successful with cuttings but it only cost me a little energy since I already had the pots...soil...and rooting hormone powder.

Relocated some Lemon Balm and mint to around the log planter so it can spread.

Dug up a couple of pieces of Jasmine from the back of my property and planted them in front of this dead Ornamental Cherry so it will climb. I've left that tree for the birds and critters. There was also a sprig of Virginia Creeper with a few roots that came up with the Jasmine so I stuck it in the ground. Might be too small to make it but I've got lots more to relocate.

Relocated two Wild Cherry trees and I'm ashamed to say I wasn't very careful about planting them...just opened the ground with the shovel and stuck them in. Around here they are really prolific so I'm thinking they'll be ok.

I've got to move these roses. They're around my Mom's house that is here on my property. It's become derelict and I hope to have it torn down before fall...so I need to move the shrubs from around it. My Mom was not a gardener but she loved flowers so I planted them for her. Nothing gave her more joy than sitting on her porch watching the birds...especially the humming birds...flit around the flowers. There's a Butterfly Bush...Hydrangea...Nandina...and some others that I've forgotten what they are that will need to be moved also.

I miss the days when I could work the whole day in the yard and feel like a day well spent. My sixty six year old back and knees complain loudly now with just a half days work. It's still a good feeling to end the day with dirt under my nails and well worked muscles...even if I have to hobble off to bed bent and creaking.

Walking With Plant Spirits

I went out this morning and watered all the plant spirits that I've relocated. Some are a little droopy and several of the smaller willows definitely look like they've given up the ghost. I talked to them all and blessed them as I watered them ... hoping they will be happy here.

I took some cuttings from my Rosemary bushes...stripped the bottom leaves...and pushed them into the ground around the little ones that appear to have given up. I know this isn't the usual way to root Rosemary but it benefits from being cut and if it doesn't root it can be in remembrance of the little ones.

This is one of my current reads. This passage resonated strongly with me today:

"Only when the ego is dropped can the voice of Spirit be heard. Most often it is in times of crisis...when our egos are humbled...that we are able to receive intuitive impressions and spiritual knowledge."

It made me wonder if having a blog and sharing my experiences is ego driven and something I should stop doing.

I'll think on that a while....and hope for guidance.

Four Trees And An Update

My Bay Tree is looking like a happy camper! It's doubled in size since I planted it two weeks ago. I'll probably try to keep it in a pot so I can move it to a sheltered place each

winter since it's not really cold hardy in zone 7.

The Elderberry and Red Dogwood cuttings are looking promising. I've had them in water.. trying to root them before planting them outside but I just kinda felt like they would do better in soil so I put a little growth hormone on them and stuck them on the porch to see what happens. This may be one of those live and learn moments.

I relocated two of these cedar trees...more gifts from the feathered ones. Both were in places underneath grown trees where they would have to compete for a little sunshine.

This is a little volunteer Cherry Tree that came up beneath my big one...so I've dug

it up and moved it to the area that I'm trying to rewild.

And this unhappy looking girl is an Oak that was relocated from my woods. I'm hoping she decides she likes it where I put her eventually.

I've still got plenty of dead fall from the recent storm for mulch and I have to say I'm loving the chipper I bought. I'm pretty sure it's already paid for itself.

Now I think I'm ready to put my feet up and stick my nose in a book for the rest of the afternoon....and maybe have an awesome cup of coffee!

Casualties And Crossed Fingers

I was gifted this Sassafras Tree by one of

Earth's creatures...bird..animal...who knows.

I noticed it the other day in the middle of some

briars... being choked by vines. 

After I freed it from the vines I dug it

up and replanted it in the place I'm trying

to rewild. Poor little thing looks all

droopy even though I watered it well

after planting. The ground is pretty

saturated from the recent storm so I'm

hoping it'll perk up.

I also dug up this Winged Elm from

the edge of the woods on the back of

my place. It's probably way bigger than

is good for transplanting....and I'm aware

that I should have done this before it

leafed out but...it is what it is. I'll just

give it as much TLC as I can and hope

it gets off to a good start.

This whole area has begun to fill with flowering

"weeds". I have no clue what they are and don't

care enough to look them up. I just like them!

These are everywhere too. I haven't seen the

bees around any of these yet...they've been too

busy with all the clover in another part of my place.

I'm so ready to scatter the wildflower seeds that I 

ordered but we aren't usually frost free until the end

of April so I'm holding off on that.

 

I checked on all the willows that I planted the other day.

There've been some casualties...mostly the ones that were

around toothpick size ... although some of those are doing 

well. I'll leave everyone alone for a while to see if they rally 

before replacing them.

 

 Now to see how the old back holds up. Tomorrow may be

a stay in and read day.