Knock-off adventure

A recent conversation at the beauty parlor found me telling my story of 'Susan buys a knock-off Coach bag in China Town'.

Here is a recap:

Wonderful husband, Glynn, myself and my dad took a trip to New York City 3 years ago.

"P L E A S E buy me a Coach bag, mom!" begged our daughter. "You can buy knock-offs in China Town and no one will know it's a fake!" Having priced genuine Coach bags $300 a pop at the Manhattan Macy's, the only way Stephanie would get a Coach purse from me would be by theft or forgery... so we hopped on the bus to China town.

A myriad of people, smells, motion, color and sound assault the senses when one steps into China town. As luck would have it, we quickly found a street full of three sided shops selling nothing but bags. While Glynn rested against a light pole, I began to explore.

A tiny, grandma aged, Asian woman tapped my arm and asked (with heavy accent), 'Missy! You looking for purse?' She led me into a shop lined top to bottom with nothing but purses. A quick perusal of the inventory revealed no Coach bags so I turned to leave.

'Missy! You can't find purse?'
'No. I'm looking for a Coach bag.'
'Ohhhhh. Missy, you come with me.'

Little Asian grandma grabs my arm & leads me back into the bowels of the shop. She steers me around the back counter, past the cash register to the back wall where I see a door cut into the plywood. My heart begins to pound. Glynn is waiting for me out on the street. He has no idea that I'm soon to be entering into the bowels of New York City! Fleetingly, I wonder if I'll awaken in bathtub of ice minus one kidney already implanted in a patient waiting for organ donation. Or, will I be robbed, my throat slit, and body flung into a manhole, only to be found days later as flotsam and jetsam in the sewer....

I enter a room approximately 10'x10' with purses covering its walls. They are all designer bags! On one wall I see Louis Vuitton bags. One another Juicy Couture, Gucci and other names which likely didn't register with this 'I-buy-my-purses-at-Target' shopper. The room is staffed by a young, Asian American woman who helps me find a Coach bag that I hope my daughter will like. The price? $39.99.



So ends my China Town adventure. I'm alive and retained all my organs. And Stephanie can fool the world with her knock-off designer bag.

Weekly gratitude

A phone conversation I had at work today:

She: 'I need a storage unit. Do you have any available?'
Me: 'Yes, we do. Do you know what size you need?'
She: .....Long sigh.... 'I really don't. I'm flying to WA tomorrow because my mother has died. My brother and I need to clear out her home. We simply cannot face going through her possessions when our emotions are so raw so we'll just store her stuff for now.' (By now she's crying while apol0gizing.)

As she fought to regain control of herself, I expressed my condolences and started asking her basic questions to help us zero in on a unit size. I gave her a recommendation for a couple of movers and shared some tips to help in packing and storing household items.

Ten minutes later, I could hear a smile in her voice and she thanked me profusely for my understanding and help. (She also said she had no need to call other facilities because my kindness made her decide to rent storage space from me.)

I'm not sharing this for a pat on the back or recognition of some stellar act. ... I have a heart for helping others. And when I am able to do that, I feel like I'm living the life I'm suppose to live, doing what I can to make this world a better place.

I'm grateful to recognize my own talents and passions and even more grateful for those times when I can put them to good use.

old box addiction

Along with loving old paper, I love old boxes.

A few years ago, I decided my house was too cluttered. I put my old box collection away in storage where I promptly forgot about it until today. While searching for some elusive paperwork in my storage unit, imagine my delight when I came across my box of boxes! I'm obviously OK with clutter because the old boxes are once again on display - this time in my studio.

Our final 'she art' project is to create a scene with a modern day image of ourselves. Although I don't wear butterflies in my hair, this depicts me.



Waiting until circumstances are just right to pursue my perfect life is no longer an option. These words appropriately express my heart.....


I learned tons from Christy Tomlinson's on-line She Art course. She is offering an on-line art journal class next month. I've already signed up!

Sisters weekend

This is the second year that my sister Kim (and her girls) headed to Redmond, OR to say with my other sister, Debbie. Debbie's daughter, Jenny, surprised us on Friday night by crashing the party. Good thing Mel was gone - it was a testosterone free zone!

We lounge, laugh, eat, and shop. Here we are at a coffee shop having tried lavender lattes - a delectable treat!

Sophie, catching up on current events.

I made a gift bag out of waxed paper, ribbon & misc ephemera for Deb's birthday present. I think she liked the bag better than the contents!

Women (and sisters) need each other. We'll repeat our trip next year....

Gratitude

Hmmmm.... Perhaps I need to increase my gratitude factor as I seem to be forgetting my weekly gratitude post.

Around this time of year, most of us in the PNW develop an arch nemesis: the rain. Much like the neighbor in the cul-de-sac who lives like a pig & lets his young children run amok (yet smiles widely and waves furiously as he drives by and is the best 'neighborhood watch' a person could ever want) the rain moves in around late October. We expect it and drop phrases like, 'without the rain we wouldn't live in this virtual green paradise'.

By March, we are afraid to walk across our lawns out of fear of sinking into a quagmire of soggy topsoil. We keep our fingers crossed that March 'will come in like a lion and out like a lamb'...

.... so we can enjoy the bright spring days of April, vibrant with color from early blooming azaleas, camellias, daffodils, tulips, and the like.

So, rather than grouse about the continual rain and colder than normal temperatures, I do declare to be grateful for the wet stuff. My niece living in Midland, TX says they have not received rain there in over 7 months. My daughter in Colorado Springs claims they are in a drought and desperately need rain to dampen the earth ahead of fire season.

It's really all about perception and attitude. I am re-posting the following as a reminder that attitude adjustments really do help make life easier to navigate.

'There once was a woman who woke up one morning, looked in the mirror, and noticed she had only three hairs on her head. "Well", she said. "I think I'll braid my hair today." So she did and had a wonderful day.

The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror and saw that she had only two hairs on her head.
"H-M-M-M", she said. "I think I'll part my hair down the middle today." So she did and had a grand day.

The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror and noticed she had only one hair on her head. "Well", she said. "Today I'm going to wear my hair in a pony tail." So she did and had a fun, fun day.

The next day she woke up, looked in the mirror and noticed that there wasn't a single hair on her head.
"Yeah!", she exclaimed. "I don't have to fix my hair today!"'

Publish Post

No purse for my dog

Otis' sentiments exactly.

One day soon we'll see proof that our earth is indeed happy!

Look at this cute ring I bought from Etsy. I also bought some loose cabochons to somehow incorporate into my art.

All in a day's work

From this

to this
in 5 hours flat! (Don't ask about my achey-breaky arms....)

It might have reached 50 degrees yesterday but the cool air didn't deter me. I was determined to work in the yard because we were promised no rain until early evening.

I resolved many of the world's woes, my own included, while weeding.

It's all good.....