Today found me running around like a disheveled mad woman as I raced to make appointments, pick up Jake from school, run errands, do the housework and laundry and finish up the day with a nice dinner. All of it was accomplished and I am looking forward to the next hour or so of sitting in front of the television and turning off my mind and settling into the " zone ".

The Christmas tree.

What a beauty, tree and dog.

She is trying so hard to sit still for this picture.

The holidays add so much to my to do list and although I love the lights and trees, gifts and gatherings, I am feeling sorely pressed for quality me time. My studio calls to me to create and organize. Daisy nuzzles under my elbow as I work at my bench all the while she is saying, " come play with me, throw that ball, rub my belly... ". Jake says I am out of touch and as I stare off into space simply because there is too much in my head, I think of warm, sunny days lying on the beach near a grass shack as the ocean waves play along the edges of the shore. Fantasy and daydreaming becomes my refuge! How about you?

Yvonne's Book Signing

Last night during Gallery Walk at my shop ( Wynwoods Gallery ) my friend, Yvonne came and signed copies of her new book, A Suitcase Filled with Nails. It was a fun evening with Yvonne in the shop and my paintings on display upstairs in the classroom. I loved all the activity happening in the building and all the bustle that came into Port Townsend with the arrival of Santa and the tree lighting. Whew! Christmas is under way. Here are some pictures taken of Yvonne, she is very photogenic and I loved shouting to her, " work it baby, work it! "

Arabic writing is read right to left.

Showing off the necklace I made that has even been worn while standing next to Jane Fonda!

I just turned this laptop on and suddenly, fifteen minutes are gone. Being on line is like a time activating sucking machine. Slurp! and hours are gone. I can not even say where I have been while time passes me by. I wander from this site to that and still accomplish very little and then, in a daze, I glance at the clock on the wall and I realize that other activities are calling my name and my lover, my cold, slick, can't be without you lover of a computer is still holding me captivated to it's icy heart. Must break free...think I am getting sleepy so ..... I'll post a few pictures from around my shop and call it a night at the end of a long day.

Jades

Brass pieces.

Dichroic glass daggers.

Divine Protection

At work, which is what I call my shops, is a little altar that I have created. It is mounted against the wall behind the counter I stand at and wait on my customers. I build these little altars wherever I am because I need the reminder all the little figurines offer me.

Mother Mary, Buddha and Ganesh along with a fine feathered chicken.

The reminder that I have divine protection and to keep the faith. Times are difficult, no make that hard for so many right now and every day my heart breaks a little more when I hear of the troubles people are having. Children living in cars, people homeless and foreclosed on, pets being abandoned, jobs lost, hopes trampled on.

Somehow, in midst of all this chaos my little altar reminds me of the divine in my life, the divine in other people and to never forget to pray for hope and peace, love and healing.

Wherever we get our sense of religion, however it may be presented to us, it serves to remind me that there is a higher purpose in all that I do.

Buddhas, Confucius, Guadalupe and another chicken. *

The altar also starts so many conversations with customers and friends. People ask to see the figurines, hold them, turn them over in their hands and often remark on what a piece means to them or how they should begin their own altar. Almost everyone has a piece they have collected through the years and I hear the stories of what their figurines mean to them. Conversations that allow me to form a deeper relationship with a person and the divine light that lives within them.

And somehow, this has all become an extension of the beads. It is the beads that brought to me  joy and  prayer in my daily life and it is the beads that bring people in.

There you have it, the divine side of life according to the charms of Lois.


p.s. Someday, I will tell you the stories of my chickens and why they also are on my altar.

Just a Drop By Note....

This little mixer was given to me as a wedding gift in 1976. I still use it every time a mixer is called for. Phil has his big Kitchen Aid mixer ( is that what it is called ? ) and he drags that huge thing out when he needs to mix away but I like this little two speed mixer. This Thanksgiving weekend, I am celebrating my old friend here, my faithful mixer. All appliances should last so long and perform so well. It even outlasted that marriage!

This is the end of Thanksgiving day tired cook all collapsed and dozing in his arm chair last night. What a fine job he did, too. Two pumpkin pies and a turkey dinner plus for the two days previously, he helped me with the shops' Christmas window displays. He deserves his nap and I need to get to bed tonight!

We are in the midst of a big windstorm tonight blowing in a week's worth of rainy days. There are strange, squeaky noises coming from the sliding glass door in the living room and flashlights stand at the ready in case the power goes out. We are blowing steadily at 35 mph and are expecting gusts to nearly 70! Blustery is such a humorous word to describe this evenings' blow. From all my years of living on the beach in this area where I worried continually about the house blowing away or the bulkhead washing out, the wind still unnerves me and I am agitated and pacing most of the night.

 Somedays success is a figment of my imagination and I end up feeling like I could chase it for a 100 years and never attain it. Today feels like one of those days. In my head, even though I might be physically making jewelry, I am painting. Big, colorful pictures in clear crisp layered paints. I am lusting for paint. I feel like I will not be breathing until the brush is in my hand and paint is smeared on a palette
ready to be splashed across a canvas or paper. Inspiration is in my every waking thought and soon, I will need to put medium to paper and paint or fairly explode with the want of it. I guess that is the setting on fire I need.

Must close out on this night and snuggle for a while deep into the covers of my bed because soon the wind will be taking the power with it.

DZI and Delight

Two wonderful things happened today. First of all I had my birthday lunch with Marlene, a fellow November girl. We had a fabulous Parisian style lunch at Sweet Laurette's in uptown Port Townsend. We enjoyed a late morning breakfast followed by a dessert that was a torte for two called " chocolate
oblivion ". Rich, small and dark, the torte was heaven on a fork. I say again, " Damn you, Marlene! "
"  Damn you for introducing me to such sin! "

Marlene and what is left of our dessert.

The second wonderful thing that happened today needs a background story. I have a customer that has been using beads from her lifetime collection and making necklaces. She has been donating the necklaces and brings them to me for advice, pricing help and the names of the beads. Last week she showed me a necklace made of beads that she purchased in Asia in 1970. I told her that I thought she had some real D'ZI beads from Tibet. These are precious beads and can be hundreds of years old. They are inscribed with special markings that have spiritual meanings to Tibetans. I have never been lucky enough to see a real one let alone hold one. I referred my customer to Robert Liu of Ornament magazine, who referred her on to a dealer in Bellevue who viewed her beads and said they were worth
$ 2000.00 each! When my customer came in this afternoon to tell me this, I was so excited for her! I also felt special just to have been able to identify the beads for her and then be correct about them. Is that a bead story come true or what?
All in all as I sit here in my comfy living room leather chair on this snowy, rainy and hailing evening; I can reflect back on the day and say it was good. It was fun. It was companionship and history and chocolate all rolled into one birthday celebration day.
 pronounced Zee) is a Tibetan 
AAl in allword to describe a patterned agate bead of mainly cylindrical or tabular shape called "Heaven's Bead" in Chinese. Such beads were etched black-and-white or brown-and-white, with symbols comprised of circles, ovals, square, waves stripes, lines and various other symbolic patterns. To the Tibetans, each of these symbols represents a specific meaning. They are precious possession to the Tibetan, with so many fascinating stories of its mystical power attributed to it.