Little things from a very big year.

 A lot happened this past year, most of it resulting from my choices.

And that's nice.

I'm looking forward to 2012. I have plans, and things to look forward to...and nothing so dramatic as a cross-country move. 

I made a conscious choice in the spring to step away from blogging and internet business, because I was occupied with packing/moving concerns, making books for two big handmade events, and the stress/anxiety/teeth grinding of that time.

But until my little camera quit on me, I was taking pictures. Here is a sampling of some little things I have seen this year, and evidence of some little adventures...

Crane on Los Feliz Blvd.

Some good looking chairs in Downey, California.

Santa Anita, Arcadia, California.

Pickwick Bowling Alley, Burbank, California.

Crab Cooker, Balboa, California.

Hollywoodland, California.

The road to Visalia, chaperoning some teenagers.

California Grand Bethel, JDI, Visalia, California.

Sequoia on a whim with my girls.

Beautiful breakfast with Yvonne, at the Village Bakery.

Colorful carrots at the Hollywood farmers market.

And a fancy cake I made.

I said goodbye to my goofy students at CSUN.
(and we all wore ties.)

I said goodbye to a wonderful ol' couch, now re-covered at
my grandma and aunt's house. Glad we didn't have to move it. 

I said goodbye to a beautiful apartment in Los Feliz.
This was the little brass peephole in the front door.  

 Next....books of 2011.

The New.

Here's to a year of reinvention.

Love and luck to friends who have gone or are going places, deciding things, taking a leap, living in the moment, planning plans.

I'll see you there.

Anywhere.

And thank you strangers, friends, family, and well-wishers who read my blog. Thanks for your support and interest in my art and related nonsense.

The future is now. Happy start of 2011.

Let me tell you about September in Los Angeles.

After being back in LA as a grown-up for 3 years, I think I finally get it.

For a few days I ask myself, "did it cool off dramatically, or am I catching a cold?"

Then it warms up, and I ask myself, "did it warm up again, or do I have a fever?"

This repeats several times, and wears me down until I DO catch a cold.

It has been very cool and pretty the past few days, but I have not totally enjoyed it, (see above) add to this general fatigue of start-of-the-semester, and working hard to finish piles of books.

Speaking of bookbinding, I have discovered, (and I think I discovered this last year too, but have learned my lesson. again.) that 29/30 seems to be the age when sitting on the floor for hours, tearing/folding paper does not work so well. Don't get me wrong: I am damn flexible for any age, and won't stop working on the floor sometimes....but my GOD! has my back been killing me this week! This morning I got up at about 5am, just thinking, "I will be so much more comfortable standing." After work I was flat on my back on my yoga matt for a good long while, in my skinny hallway.......cause, you know, there's paper all over the floor in the living room.

But you know, rather than making it all about age, (Michelle,) I can also say that 29/30 is a perfect age to consider needing a BIG good-working-height table...right? I mean, I own my own tear-bar now. I'm moving up in the world.

Here are a couple of things to look at: no more complaints, I swear!



One of my students brought me (and the class) early-birthday-cupcakes today.
She works in a cupcake store.
(Yes, you read that right.)
More exciting than the cupcakes? The arrival of some new metal RULERS and yardsticks for CSUN Printmaking! And they are flush-to-edge, which is my favorite kind.

I love rulers.

So, speaking of new and birthdays and stuff, um, I bought a new computer! Long overdue, AND Apple had a back-to-school free ipod w/ a new laptop promotion. For students. AND educators.

Everybody wins.

Here, enjoy this obligatory narcissistic "I-have-a-new-laptop-with-a-camera" picture. As those of you who know me really well can attest, (Jenni, Maranda, you with me?) Few things in life delight me more than making faces at myself.



So this new toy is trouble.

But, hey! LOOK AT THAT PILE OF BOOKS BEHIND ME!

(and I moved them there for the photo...I don't actually store finished things so haphazardly. And anyway, they're not all finished.)

I promise I'll tell you about my summer. I promise.

Twenty-ten!

Happy New Year!

My mom and I went out to the Huntington Library a few days ago. It was a bit crowded for my taste, (I'm guessing all the folks who come out for the rose bowl/parade have to do something else before they leave town) but I'm planning on going back soon; the camellias are on the verge of blooming like crazy all over the gardens. I'm also thinking of planting a couple of camellias in my own garden.



We also found a beautiful (although sad and sorta creepy) pomegranate tree that had lost its leaves for the season, but still had some dry, bird-eaten pomegranates on it. Lovely!

We overheard an excited little boy who summed up the experience of the Huntington Gardens well: "I never know nature could be so fun!!"

The Happy Ones.

So, I've been on spring break from CSUN this week, which has been a pretty successfully balanced time of rest and productivity. Okay, maybe a little more rest than productivity...

I've also had lots of good news this week.

The "calculations and waiting" in my last post refer directly to my apartment-hunt. I've lived in the Los Feliz neighborhood of Los Angeles for almost two years (well, come august), and I've been in my current apartment for over a year. I like where I am, and after a brief investigation into moving more drastically out of my neighborhood, I decided I'd rather stay put for now. I know these streets, I like walking to places around here, I like driving up to the observatory as needed, and I like having a familiarity with the check-out folks at my market.

But dang it, I need more space! My little studio apartment has been good to me, but in recent months I have felt more and more crazy because of the stiflingly small space. And street-parking. So I've been looking at apartments for a while now, and it really helped me clarify what I want in a place to live.

Geeze, this is wordy.

To sum up, I am moving May first into a place that I am very, very excited about. Besides having room for a couch AND a bed, it also has a petite dining room, hard-wood floors, a GARAGE, a telephone niche, and all sorts of 1930's detail that makes Michelle a bit giddy. It's the one-bedroom apartment that feels like a home, and it's the same price as one I looked at that was in a dark building with EIGHTY units. Bizarre.

Okay, so that's the big news. Let me tell you about my summer plans.

In July I'm planning on making a short trip up to Seattle, (never been there) to stay with my friend (from WVU) Myra. I'll be teaching a two-day bookbinding workshop at the Kirkland Arts Center, where Myra is the educational director.

In late July/early August, I will be at Penland (as I mentioned last post) for Arthur Hash's metals workshop. So excited to play with metal again. It's been a while!

Afterwards, I'll be hanging around P-land for a few more days to do my thing at the fancy-pants auction, and I hope I can persuade these girls to join me:



After THAT, I'll be making my way to Atlanta, Georgia (not sure I've ever been there, either...) for a residency at the Art House. I'll be making things and having a show. I'm excited.

I'm planning on posting more work for sale in my shop today. Not all of it is brand new....as I begin organizing/packing for the move, I've been finding pieces that I've forgotten about, (most have been in shows and have been resting in frames in a closet) and I'd like to find good homes for them. I do not make art to hoard it all in boxes and closets.

The newest new you ever knew.

I'm back from faraway, and unusually optimistic about the months ahead.

I'm still healing from the wisdom teeth episode, but it is a great relief knowing that they can't bother me anymore. And yeah, I kept them:



Besides the teeth, this caribbean blue le creuset cast iron pot is new:



My family and I watched all three seasons of "arrested development" over the holidays, while I spun lots of yarn:



oh, and this is new to me:



There are more new pictures on my flickr page, I listed new-ish pieces for sale in my etsy shop, and much more news to share in the coming days....stay tuned.