The Adventures of KJ & The Dreamy Giraffe

(Mis)adventure #81: This Is Not The KJ You Know & Love

Dear You,

After a long stretch of getting pretty good at blogging regularly, I've suddenly gone almost a week without any posts at all.  I want to write about Kaylee turning two, about how I dreamed I was on Tim Gunn's Guide to Style and all I got out of it was a t-shirt from Wal-Mart and a bra (a very pretty bra, but still), and about 500 other things.  And I could claim that it's busy-ness that's kept me away but I think it's mostly the words "if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all" running around in my head doing it.

But, thinking about it, I kind of believe that if you're going to blog about living your dream, about doing what you love as a career, about working for yourself, about being a professional artist -- it's a little deceptive and unfair to edit out the not so dreamy parts.

Adventure #80: KJ Is Stuck In The Middle

Dear You,

I am happy to report that the birthday party (or birtday pourty, as pronounced by Kaylee) was a smashing success.  However, as you may or may not know, it takes a lot of (wo)man hours and errand running and Cat-in-the-Hat themefood-making to put on a smashing success of a  birtday pourty for a two year old, so I am one exhausted giraffe and not in the frame of mind for writing a long-winded recap of my weekend today, so that will all come...soon.  Soon is nice and general and doesn't wind up with me waking up in bed and in a cold sweat panic around three a.m. a couple of nights from now, thinking, "OH MY GOODNESS, I said I'd update about Kaylee's birtday pourty yesterday and I didn't and I am SUCH a liar!!!!!!!"  So soon it is.

As for something I can give an update on all short and sweet and in under five minutes or less, my collage for the swap has taken a turn for the not so dreamy.  I still have five steps left to go, but I'm slightly quite apprehensive terrified that this isn't going to turn out well.  Of course, there's every chance that it COULD turn out way better than I'm anticipating.  But right now I'm sort of stuck and thinking, "Ehhh...should I just tuck this one away in the nearest trash receptacle, pretend it never existed, and start from scratch?"  I think part of the issue is since two of the techniques involved words (text & writing), I'm sort of having writer's remorse in having used the words in my ink step.  Oh, well, live and learn.  I AM going to finish it up tomorrow and we'll see how it goes, but if the finished product isn't something I'm 100% proud of, I'll do a second one that I DO love to send off to my swap partner, because I want to give her something completely dreamy.

Anyway, here it is, at this point:

And some other WIPs: 

They are going to be a little surfer girl (who started out as something else altogether but I began this piece so long ago, I don't remember WHAT she started off as now), Rapunzel Variation #3 (here are #1 & #2) and Cut & Paste Girl, a Dreamy Giraffeland superhero, respectively.

This week I am working on two big custom pieces that both intimidate me and make me a little giddy -- it's definitely a stretch for me, more realistic portraits, and though I AM slightly apprehensive, I'm so excited to see what I can pull off. 

And now, as Miss Kaylee says, I go night-night!

Night-night!

KJ

P.S. Maybe it's just because my eyes are tired and my contacts kind of blurry, but in the scan, the collage looks kinda cool -- I love how the picture of the hand looks like it's just reaching off the page.  The picture of the drawn hand needs some work to actually look like a hand, but work it will get tomorrow, so it's all good!

Adventure #79: KJ & 100 Flowerinas

Dear You:

Here's an imagined conversation between me and you (yes, YOU, and yep, I KNOW proper grammar would be "you and I"), because, well, imagined conversations make the world go 'round, don't they (or is that love?):

Me: BET you can't guess what that picture is of (and yep, I know, I shouldn't end sentences with prepositions, proper grammar again, blahdy blah).

You: Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeelll...it looks like...a stack of something?

Me: But a stack of WHAT?

You: A stack of greeting cards?

Me: Nope.

You: Well, your title for this post is "KJ & 100 Flowerinas"...so is it a stack of 100 flowerinas?"

Me: OH MY GOODNESS.  You are so smart!  It IS a stack of 100 flowerinas.

You: Yay, me, I'm so smart and quick on the uptake...but KJ, what ARE flowerinas?!

Me: I am SO glad you asked.

------------------end of imagined conversation--------------------------------------

Adventure #78: KJ Is On A Mission

Dear You,

This was written on September 10th, around 9:30 P.M.  It's being posted on the following morning, at around 5:00 A.M. because on September 10th, around 9:30 P.M., my scanner decided, "Hey, you're not paying me or anything, so why should I scan?"  Thankfully, by 5:00 A.M. the following morning, it had come to its senses.

Yesterday, I was bloghopping and just HAD to sign up to do Mission: Collage, the first ever Land of Lost Luggage swap -- & also MY first ever official group swap.

It's explained here, but basically every dayish, Julie of The Land of Luggage is explaining three techniques from a book by Sally Jean Alexander and you use those techniques, in order, in your collage.  There are 18 techniques in all.  This is sort of scary to me, because I'm using a 5" X 7" gallery wrapped canvas and here's what it looks like at this point in time:

 

(Pssst: Up close & in person, it's much prettier: the colors are more vivid, the papers are sparkly, the metallic paint is shimmery and any little unattractive specks and blechs you see in this picture aren't actually present and accounted for -- they were inherited from my in-much-need-of-a-wipe-down scanner during the scan.)

Y'all!

So far that's only THREE techniques (Paint, Paper, & Ink). 

I still have FIFTEEN more techniques to fit in on that teeny tiny canvas.  Yipes!  This is definitely looking like Mission: Impossible, but I'm excited to do the next three techniques, and the three after that, and the three after that.  It's going to take some creativity, but I'm determined that it can be done. 

I'm feeling a little I-messed-up already, because one of the later techniques is apparently Write and I already Wrote with my Ink.  Is that cheating?  Oh, well -- the most exciting thing about this "mission" is my decision as I was starting to just Go With It and not worry about Being Perfect or even Good.  Just to have fun.  And fun I'm having!

I was so excited about getting started on this today, last night, I dreamt about it. 

In my dream, I was at some Etsy convention in Las Vegas and good grief there were some WILD Etsyians in attendance.  I kept saying, "Calm down, y'all, we're gonna get arrested" -- they were that WILD.  Anyway, I got a phone call to come play golf with the girls from the Mission: Collage swap (and Dave Coulier -- do not ask, I haven't even watched any Full House reruns or anything lately so I cannot explain it -- who kept hitting the balls at me and who apparently is almost fifty -- I didn't know that (until I Googled to make sure I was spelling his last name correctly.)). 

Anyway, I leave you with this neat-o trick I learned today:  If you've ordered a package that's going to be delivered UPS and you have a tracking number, you don't have to go to the UPS site,  you can just go to Google and type in said tracking number and hit search -- and it'll take you right to the page with your info.  I don't know if it necessarily saves any time or steps, but it's still cool!

And another neat-o trick I learned is how (for you single girls) to meet two friendly, good-looking guys in one day. 

It goes something like this: Look a total mess and do nothing grooming-wise other than brushing your teeth because you're not going anywhere and will just be home working all day.  Ooh, and wear velvet pajama bottoms from two years ago that are kind of too tight because it's laundry day and all of your other "uniforms" (which in my case are paint-splattered track pants and paint-splattered t-shirts) are dirty.  Whatever you do, don't do anything about your bedhead, except maybe to pin your bangs up in a way that looks like a science experiment gone awry.  Expect a package that's going to be delivered via UPS and another that's going to be delivered via USPS.  And just wait.  Because your normal mail-lady will have a substitute that day and it will be a friendly, good-looking guy who shows up at your door with your package to witness you looking like the polar opposite of Miss America on pageant night.  And then, don't learn your lesson.  Stay exactly how you are.  In fact, allow your appearance to deteriorate throughout the day, so that when the UPS truck pulls up into the driveway at 5:00 p.m. -- it won't be the regular way-older-than-you-and-married UPS driver whom you've known since you were twelve -- but surprise, another substitute!  Another friendly, good-looking guy substitute!  Don't bother signing up for eHarmony, ladies, -- just follow the above outlined steps.  Or maybe that will technique will not work for you.  Maybe you will have to be me to work THAT magic.

And I still haven't brushed my hair or put on lipstick, but I'm not expecting anymore packages, so I think I'm safe for the evening.

Sincerely,

KJ

Adventure #77: The KJ Diaries

Dear You,

I've been meaning to blog about this for approximately 95 years (which is quite a feat since I've only been alive for 30), but have you heard about the Diary 2008 project?  It's too late to participate, but it's not too late to check it out, and it might not be too late to still order one and you can purchase a copy of your very own right here, if you'd like to.

What exactly IS Diary 2008, you ask?

Well, it's a diary (duh) for 2008 (duh again), which was started and put together by Fantazya and consists of over 390 pages (one for each day of the year, plus address pages, notes pages &  such).  Each page was designed by a different artist (all who sell their work online), following the same basic format (including the date, space for writing, some kind of artwork and the page creator's link).  The covers are blank so you can decorate them however strikes your fancy.

Here's an info page about the project, including all the nitty gritty details, a list of all the participants, some examples of pages, and a bunch of other neato stuff.

Here's the Flickr group for the project, where you can take a looky-loo at even more of the pages.

And here is the page for January 31, 2008, designed by a certain dreamy giraffe you may've heard of:

                      

It was SO much fun to do and if there's a Diary 2009, I definitely want to be involved again.

Speaking of diaries, I personally have never been able to keep a handwritten diary consistently for more than a week and a half or so, but I did have a personal (VERY personal) Livejournal that I wrote in regularly (like more than once a day) for nearly five years.  And now, for your amusement, via a snippet of that (VERY personal) LJ I'd like to introduce you to the March of '05 version of KJ, y'know, the one that was still a stressed out officemonkey in a local law firm:

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I'm sick. I've been sick since, like, birth. It seems. Unwell in this winter that's like a recurring dream. Saturday, we went to the beach, and it was a perfect beach day. Sunny and blue and warm. Then, today, I found myself drinking hot chocolate.

I never drink hot chocolate. I despise hot drinks. AND it may sleet. And/or snow. HERE. In South Carolina. It is almost April. April in South Carolina should not require a hoochcoat, it's wrong. But what is really, extraordinarily wrong, is that an hour after we came back from lunch (which consisted of the aforementioned hot chocolate and CHEESECAKE), I was STLL wearing the hoochcoat.

Huddled up in the hoochcoat, hovering around Summer's heater (which on typical days I despise almost as much as hot drinks) like it was a freakin' fireplace, shivering like I was working up to a nice jitterbug.

And it occurred to me that I am a very hot-natured individual that doesn't get cold like that and the room was sort of spinning and I wanted to ask if, you know, I could just clock out and sleep on one of the couches in an attorney's office until the feeling passed.

I think I've finally succumbed to the flu.

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Hee.  I occasionally read back over those old entries and laugh and smile and realize that indeed life does consist of more good times than bad and...I wish that I'd documented more of them.

I was going to take a picture of the hoochcoat to go along with this post ('cause I KNOW somebody on there in blogland's gotta be curious, but I can't find the darn thing, so just picture the J.Lo-iest coat you've ever seen in your life and it probably looks something like that.  It is honey colored quilted satiny material with a matching faux fur poof poof collar and cuffs and, yes, I wore this thing on a regular basis.

Much love from the '07 Version of KJ!

P.S.  Who says DUH anymore, anyway?  And unwell in this winter that's like a recurring dream?  Who, other than Shakespeare, TALKS  like that, man? 

Adventure #76: Surprise! KJ's a Weirdo!

 

(dreamy plate with giraffe & butterflies by Oladesign)

Dear You & You (And You -- Yeah, YOU!),

I was tagged by Jo & MrsDragon (linked above), for the 6 Weird Things About You meme, so here are six weird-ish things about moi, and since I was a sick giraffe for pretty much the last half of August, surprise, surprise, half of my weird-ish things are health related:

6. I will never, ever, ever eat a tomato, but I love some ketchup & have no problems with spaghetti sauce, either.

5. I didn't get my driver's license until I was in college, and I didn't particularly want it, then.

4. I occasionally have nocturnal seizures.  I've never had one when I wasn't sleeping -- but I'll wake up in the morning with sore beyond belief legs and arms, a headache, bruises here there and yonder, and, yes, a bit of amnesia, too.  This happened early last week and the next day, I had a chat with my mom about how I was concerned that I hadn't heard from a buyer whom I was waiting to approve a custom piece so I could varnish it.  Later that afternoon, I was looking through my old mail and saw that I HAD gotten an e-mail from that buyer and read it the night before at 2:23 a.m. AND had gotten a Conversation via Etsy from her as well and had read that, too -- and had no recollection of it.  The time before that, for whatever reason, I hid my glasses in my computer stool underneath all of my disks and it took almost two months to find them.  Once, back in 2004, I went on a first date with a guy I really liked, had one of the seizures that night, and didn't remember the date the next morning, until my mom told me about it. Only once has anyone seen me having one of the seizures, and that was my sister waaaaaaay back in 1999, and they took me to the hospital and all of the tests came out normal, though they did put me on medication for seizures and I wasn't allowed to drive for six months.  My "seizures" may actually involve some sleepwalking, too, as during one (the 2004 one to be specific) I have knocked over an entire exercise bike.  But who knows. THAT'S WEIRD. 

3. I am 98% sure I have Alice in Wonderland Syndrome, which is a rare form of aura that comes before migraines.  That IS WEIRD.  In fact, that's how I tend to describe it: "I feel weird."  You can Google it and read more about it if you like, but it's pretty much impossible to explain, except, "I feel weird."

2. I have two uteruses.

1. I didn't find out that I had two uteruses until I was 27.

Weird enough for ya?

I wish I could show you what I've been working on this week, because I'm pretty much in love with it, but it's a commission for a gift, which is a surprise, so I have to keep it under wraps for a l'il bit longer.  Speaking of surprises, though, it's Try Day @ Create A Connection once again and this week, Try Day is all about SURPRISES...so head on over there, read my post, and get involved!  Ooh, and if you're wondering just WHAT the story is behind the picture with this post, that's explained over there, too!

Weirdly yours,

KJ

Adventure #75: That's three quarters of the way to 100 Adventures, people!!!

Dear Jo (and Anyone Else Reading This),

Okay, in the adventure before my last adventure, I made some mention of an announcement and a painting inspired by a certain good girl.

The painting:

Meet Fawn & Ferris, the perfect couple. 

Why are they they perfect couple?  Well...he's a magician with only one trick -- pulling a rabbit out of a hat.  But HIS rabbit refuses to participate in that trick.  So he's really a magician with no tricks. 

And SHE'S a princess with a frog that absolutely will not transform into a prince, no matter how many times she kisses him, no matter how much she begs, no matter how much she pleads.  Somehow...the no-trick magician and the no-prince princess are just right for each other, but they just don't realize it -- yet. 

Well, Miss Jo(hanna), I bet you're wondering how you inspired that one! Or maybe you remember making this comment (can I trade my frog in for a new one...I think he's broken ...& perhaps also broke!  Bummer :D) on this post?  Yes, the original idea for the painting was a little girl at a pet store, wanting to exchange her frog for one that was NOT broken and would properly morph into a handsome prince when smooched.  However, I apparently don't paint pet store  return & refund counters good, so after about six failed attempts at getting the sketch to even remotely resemble a pet store return & refund counter, I had to move on (though I may make a seventh attempt in the future!).

Ooh, and as for the announcement...wait a second...let me put on my Deep Manly Announcer Voice...wait another second, I don't HAVE a Deep Manly Announcer Voice, so bolding my font will have to do:

In addition to Etsy and my website and out of the trunk of my car, etc., I'm super duper excited to now be selling my art at Glitter & Grunge!  Each month, there will be at least one piece for sale there that you won't be able to get anywhere else -- but this month, all four of my pieces (it's The Perfect Couple, the Besties original, All Packed Up & Nowhere to Go, and the little captain girl) for sale there are Glitter & Grunge exclusives! 

If you've never stumbled upon Glitter & Grunge before, you should go check it out -- there are some amazing artists, including MiMissy Ballance, who is running the show, and I'm so happy to be a part of it.

Adventure #74: KJ Tries, Tries Again

Dear You,

Guess who is the Hostess of Try Day (which is every Saturday) for September over at Create A Connection?!

That would be ME! 

If you've never visited, is a great community blog, which is the brainchild of  the lovely Melba.  I first found Melba back when she was hosting Mixed Media Memoirs.  I only participated once, but was sad to see it go, and am thrilled to be involved with her new(ish) project. 

Here's the mission statement of Create A Connection:

"The mission of the Create a Connection blog is for our creative blogging community to exchange knowledge and energy, to embrace each other and new ideas, and to expand participation and our relationships."

And a little about Try Day:

"We all need a little encouragement to open up and Try something...maybe something new or maybe something we needed to be reminded about! Participate by sharing your experience in the comments or on your blog."

So, one Try Day down and three to go for me!  The first one was a lot of fun, and I hope the others are even more so.  I'm looking forward to them!

Here's a hint at this week's Try Day: 

                                                

The above is the results of my trying...head on over to see exactly WHAT it is I'm suggestion you try!

Come on...try it!

KJ

P.S. I just checked the calendar and there are actually five Saturdays this month, so I've got FOUR more Try Days to host -- yay!