My week in bits and pieces

Things - Strawberry flavored makeup. Playdough confetti stuck on my rug. Half eaten Oreo cookies. Welch's grape jelly. Corn dogs. Pop tarts. Goldfish. Hannah Montana songs. Minnie Mouse drinking cups. Sponge Bob Square Pants. Caillou. Elmo. Cotton Candy. Candy. Hot dogs. Pizza. Teddy Bears.

Words - Cheryl, I want...--Mommy, I want...--Hey, that's mine! --No, it's not! It's mine!--No!!!--Gimme!--Can you..?--Can I have...?--Can we go...?--I'm so starving!--Why you hit me?--Go to sleep!--One more sound and you get a spanking!--Stop it!--I hate you, stupidhead!--Stupidhed! Stupidhead! Stupidhead!--Be quiet!!!!--Are we there yet?--How long is it?--Ten minutes.--How long is ten minutes? One show or half a show? - I put makeup on my wips. See? Smell. - On your wips? - No! My wips!

The girls trying on my shoes ^

Places - Capitola Beach, Half Moon Bay beach, every playground in Alameda, Golden Gate Park, some place in Napa where I had the best Tuna & Wasabi burger, and...

Santa Cruz. Olivia and Lili about to ride a roller coaster on their own for the first time...
Vivienne's camera face...
All wrapped up for a California evening at the beach...

Some sketching bits and pieces I've done in cafe's, workshops, and during train rides...

which about sums up all the artwork I've managed to create lately.

Lili's family portrait...
Two months and half a week to go...

My life right now

1. One sister, three nieces, five people, one small apartment and one car...for another two months and one week. (Long story, but basically two of my nieces need special schooling for two months for dyslexia, something they can't get over in Fiji, and with my sister's ridiculously high mortgage, the most practical solution is to squeeze in with me for a few months.)
2. One story to write. And rewrite. And rewrite again.
3. Four more community service hours...
4. One kickball game I was really looking forward to (because kicking things is really good therapy)...canceled. Darn.
5. Five blessedly solitary hours to write...or not write.
6. Six nights (and counting) sleeping on the floor.
7. Three totally free (ahem) art programs to install on my computer...if I only knew how.
8. One horoscope reading by an astrologer friend who basically said all this plus the drama, heartache, disappointment and frustrations of the past year is because that tiny, faraway planet Pluto has been and will continue to press down on me until April 30th, 2013. For my own good supposedly. Out with the old, in with the new, big changes are being forced upon me. And the more I fight this weeding out process the harder I'll make things for myself.

So, with that in mind, instead of getting frustrated over all the words constipating in my head maybe I should instead see this as an opportunity to write a rather simple but long needed blog post and to eat a big bowl of peach ice cream--(worse for you, cholesterol wise, than a plate of spare ribs, someone told me recently. But I am choosing to forget that pointless bit of information.) As for the four visitors who've taken up most of my living space, including my big, comfy bed...It is nice to be needed. Within limits. And little Vivienne is awfully cute.

Still, can't help wishing it were 2013 already.