And nobody likes ‘eh’… enough said!

Today’s the day… now go out an embarrass someone!!!

The city was beautiful this morning. The sky was clear and the sun was shining!
And surprisingly warm… so I decided to ride my bike downtown to watch them dye
the Chicago River a beautiful shade of Irish Green! An annual tradition here in Chicago.
HAPPY ST. PATRICK’S DAY CHICAGO!!!

Let the games begin… and let the color “splash” across the Chicago River.

So the first boat drops the orange dye into the water… yes ORANGE!!!
The orange powder surprisingly turns an oddly phosphorescent lime green in the water!
As the powder is dropped in, the second boat follows closely to stir it up into the river.

After several passes back & forth, the river has taken on a vibrant shade of green.
Striking as it spreads and changes the entire look of downtown for one Irish day!

The dyeing of the river is an annual tradition, and yet somehow, I’ve never been downtown
to actually see them do it. But this being a Saturday, and an unusually sunny & warm day,
I thought it would be fitting to ride my bike down. I thought I was on top of my game.
Until I saw a bunch of kayakers in the river… color me JEALOUS!!!…
thinking I might need to try that next year?! What better vantage point could you find, huh?

And to top off the morning… they were passing out free swag!
Well it’s not my favorite flavor, but it was free… and oddly fitting for today! I guess their
marketing team gets this one day each year to promote their product!

Here’s another entry in the Valentine Vase pool.
This time it’s from my friend Kelly who is showing off yesterday’s Valentine flowers
in one of my stamped vases.. plus some textured salt & pepper shakers to boot!
Her husband Kel did well again this Valentine’s Day. Thanks for sharing Kelly!

I hope you all had a wonderful Valentines Day today.
And possibly received some flowers from that special someone
that you “just had to” put into a Fire When Ready Pottery vase of some sort?!!!
Like my friend Pam who’s Valentine flowers make my vase look even better!
Well done hubby Pat.

Remember, flowers always look better in a handmade ceramic vase.
Just like food always tastes better off a handmade ceramic plate!
Go figure…

Happy Chinese New Year… Happy New Lunar Year… Happy Spring Festival…
Whichever… you choose!!!

If it were only this easy… and a handful of new crayons
could end the issues of racism & promote equality around the world

A beautiful dream Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Thanks for sharing.

It’s been so nice taking some time off these past few weeks.
Time off from both the pottery studio and my “glitter gig” responsibilities.
Time off for the holidays – both Christmas and New Year’s Eve.
Time off to play with friends – sharing meals, stories & gifts.
Time off to watch FAR too much television!!! And I do watch too much TV.

And I seriously don’t think that my TiVO has EVER been empty!
Except maybe the first day when I first plugged it in?!!!

This window on my TiVo is usually filled with shows, hours & hours of TV all
piling up because I don’t have time to watch them! Many shows with that little
yellow symbol threatening to delete shows if you don’t watch them soon!

Now that I’m all caught up on my favorite shows…
I can’t wait to get back into the studio! Starting tomorrow!!!

Wishing you all a wonderful New Year.
May it be filled with great times with family & friends, good health & fulfilled resolutions.
Many thanks to everyone who has helped make my 2011 a wonderful year. To all of you
who supported me, encouraged me or just stopped by with a friendly smile — thanks.
The path of a self-supporting artist is not always an easy one, but knowing that I have a
great support system out there to keep me going, makes it a lot more fun that going back
to a “real job” in the corporate world! Ha.

And as we begin a new Year, take time to reflect on my personal motto…
If it’s not fun, don’t do it.

It’s tonight!
I’ll be spending my New Years Eve with some old college friends, their kids,
and a LOT more friends of their kids down in Central Illinois. It’s become an
annual tradition. I laughingly refer to it as my “Norman Rockwell New Year’s Eve.”
We sit around all night and play games, eat too much fun food, goof off and then
bang pots & pans on the front porch at midnight. Nothing too raucous or rowdy.
Just some good old-fashioned fun with friends.

But what are YOU doing tonight for New Year’s Eve?
I found this wonderful will video by Zooey Deschanel & Joseph Gordon-Levitt.
Sure, they may be big TV and movie stars, but they’re never too big to pick up a ukelele
and serenade us with a great holiday classic! And who doesn’t love a good ukelele?!!!

Two celebrities hanging out and asking that age-old question…
Click here for the video… “What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve?”