Tuesday, January 19, 2010

everything but the kitchen sink ... or ... in this case ... just the kitchen sink ....

do you have a favorite blog? 
do you have a bunch of blogs you love? 
do you have a couple you follow well and then others that you follow as time allows?
do you remember discovering the blogging world?
do you remember your first favorite?
how long ago was that? 

well ... 
i ask all of that because 600ish blog posts ago ... threeish years ago, i was starting out as a blogger ... and spent countless hours cruising other blogs .... trying to figure it all out ... and ... that's AND ... i found darla at bayside to moutainside .... she seemed just like me ... she did art most days and blogged about it in a matter of fact way ... aren't i pretty matter o' fact? i like matter o' fact .... i don't like ranty blogs or cussy blogs or live like me blogs or tutorial do this blogs .... plus, darla is a big reader ... like me .... and i like reading about what she was reading .... so ... darla was the west coast bloggy artsy version of east coast bloggy artsy me .... (uh oh, what if darla reads this and says WHAT? that e and i are NOTHING alike... eek!) 

so ... anyway .... today on darla's blog i read this ..... and she had a lovely kitchen sink quote that she has framed by her kitchen sink .... and i wanted it .... so ... i went and got a notecard and wrote it out to put by my sink ... so that i can remember to be contemplative and constant ....
and ... because sweet darla had a kitchen sink picture ... i thought i should too ... plus i had just emptied and filled the dishwasher so their weren't even any breakfast dishes in the way .... just one glass in the sink .....(and yes, i did all this blog picture taking and planning this morning before an overly busy day ... and am now finally sitting with enough time to blog at 10 o'clock pm ..)
can you recognize all that good stuff up above? 
on the far left is a doodle calendar and some good color pencils ... the yellow is missing .... that calendar is my girls biggest new happy of the new year ... there are prompts for each day .... i think i've colored ONE .... they've done the rest so far ... 

and below here is a pic of a notecard i have up ... i grabbed the words off a pal's facebook page ... they just seemed simple and perfect .... i might should do a painting of it one day ....something along the lines of how to live a good life:
and here below, on purple, is the quote i got off darla's blog this morning ... it is flanked by some pachysandra rooting in a tiny antique pitcher that was my grandmother's ... and a dishsoap with an asparagus rubber band on it ( i could do a full blog on how i love asparagus rubber bands ..... my kids think that love is why we eat so much asparagus ) .... a button that is my disposal switch (wow, how cool is that newfangledness!) ......and a candle and another candle and some burt's bees lotion and some cinnamon in a shaker (because it is HIGHLY used and when i put it away no one seems to be able to find it but me) .... and hand soap ... and a dora cup .... the dora cup is what we use to put water in the dog bowl ... it's the perfect size for that job... and my pitiful holding on to little.e.beck.artist's babyness .... and some christmas cactus rooting gift from that same little.e.beck.artist ......

and then  a bit down from that it says ... today i wish you a day of ordinary miracles .... 'cause i want to remember to notice the ordinary miracles ....like my children's doodles .... and asparagus rubber bands .... and magic disposal buttons .... and cinnamon on your waffles .... and kitchen sinks that are ready for the next meal's big ole' pile of dishes ......and that meal's conversations about how your day was .....

so .... what's your kitchen sink like? got any ordinary miracles sitting around? 
... and no, no art today .... hopefully tomorrow, though, right?

10 comments:

cath c said...

thanks for the lovely reminders that ordinary holds the wonders of the universe...like love and beauty

:)

Darla said...

Why thank you my dear. I'm honored and thank you for your friendship. Yes, we DO have lots in common and I'm tickled that you feel that too. What do you think, do I need some yellow in that kitchen? It is a very Calm space but maybe needs some Happiness color to liven it up.

Darla

Chris said...

I've always loved your matter of factness! However, I like most of the other kinds of blogs you said you didn't care for. In fact, I would wonder how many blogs I could read if I only read the matter of fact ones, because they are rare! Thanks for the site you recommended. It's amazing that you've got over 600 posts!! I'm only at 405 or something. Yours has always been a pleasure to read, for many reasons.

Happy 2010!

artmom said...

you do not want to know what my sink looks like! I am trying to clean up a brayer with years of old crud on it.....soaked it in Awesome (everyone needs a bottle of Awesome especially if they are artists!) for four days which loosened it up partly and now am scraping it off....not fun, but rather productive, sort of the feeling you might get when polishing something that needs it very badly!
Dollar stores have it - huge bottle for $1. takes dried acrylic out of most anything.
Back to my newly restored- to- factory -settings computer - ugh!
longg saga but progress iss being made........

Rebecca said...

I can identify with this post about the kitchen sink. I love the miscellany that collects there. To date, I didn't have the courage to photograph the items that have accumulated at my particular sink. The sight of so many "perfect" counter tops has me shaking in my boots. Maybe one of these days....

e.beck.artist said...

cathy ... you are so welcome ...

darla .... your kitchen is perfect ... yellow makes anything happier, but your bright white is lovely ....

chris ... i like most any art blog ... and some others .... and then i did start on some art blogs and keep following when they turn into something else ....

mom ..... i think i ran out of AWESOME .... and your chore makes me thankful for my messy studio sink ... glad you got your 'puter back ....

rebecca .. hi .... i'm sure your sink is just lovely judging by the photos on your blogs ... how on earth do you keep up with SO many blogs!!!??

artmom said...

Computer is back in town but basically empty so I took it to a friend who is trying to fill it up with what he had from the data transfer he did but of which he has lost some....glad we have a second one in the house!
But the kitchen sink is clean after the brayer incident! Your dad said when he saw me trying to clean it, "go buy a new one!" So I guess that makes sense. The old one has great texture on the surface!

Anonymous said...

I love your kitchen sink. Mine is straddled on both sides with paint brushes and sponges.
I'll have to add more uplifting quotes...that will make dishes so much more "doable"

Very Mary said...

There's a kitchen sink in my studio currently filled with antique bottles that are soaking in a bath of polident. Perfection!

Heidi said...

Such a happy spot in your kitchen! Nice to visit again, you're up to your cheerful-self as usual! Hugs! Heidi