My love for the South.

5 things I love about the south:
1. Roadside memorials to those who have perished "en route."

2. The front porch...a perfect setting for a cup of coffee or a glass of wine and some great conversation.

3. Cicadas. They make the most soothing and reassuring noise at night....even for an insomniac like myself who tends to wake up at 3am for no good reason.

4. Folk Art. Probably, the one "type" of art that consistently inspires me with its authenticity, passion, color and beauty.

5. Those signs that sit outside of churches with catchy "headlines." The below is not a picture of mine, but, rather something "leveraged" off of the internet.

My most recent favorite phrase seen on my drive home was, "The way that you live your life is an expression of what you believe about God." I love that. It seems that we live in a society that always has a LOT to say, a lot to preach, a lot of advice to offer. One of my favorites: "do well by doing good." Often it seems as though the people who need to say these kinds of things are most often the ones incapable of actually following through with "good behavior." The proof is, indeed, in the pudding. It is not enough just to say that you care, that you love, that you are a friend, you must live your life caring, loving and being a friend. And we all fail, but the point is to take responsibility, learn the lesson and move forward with the understanding that we can always do better. Growth is change, and growth can be painful but it is necessary to live life to the fullest.

ASPCA.

Because we all love animals enough to give a little bit!

*smile*

It's true. I do. I get to work with smart, interesting, funny, kind, and talented people. How awesome is that?

what you missed.

A BIG thank you to all of you who came to Candler Park Fall Fest this weekend. The weather was beautiful and I had a very successful weekend! Here are some photos from the weekend:
My booth:

"What's it gonna take to get you in THIS painting, TODAY?"

My groupies...they bring brownies (Thanks Holly for keeping us fat and happy!) and keep us smiling!

BE THERE!

Here are a few more reasons to come check out the Candler Park Fall Fest this weekend, Saturday and Sunday 12-8pm.
Candler Park Fall Fest

Mary's Top 5 Reasons to go to Candler Park Fall Fest this weekend:
1. Despite global warming consuming our planet, the weather is going to be beautiful...like, the reason you would want to ever live in Atlanta in the first place.
2. Artists with outrageous student loan debt are going to be selling their wares (I'm not naming any names here...).
3. Supporting local artists is better for your karma than going to Church.
4. Christmas is coming up and you KNOW there is someone in your family who needs some hand-made yard-art.
5. Basically, it's just the right thing to do and you know it.

Think about it.

As if figuring out the holiday arrangements with a Republican, conservative family and a same-sex partner weren't hard enough...now this.

From the New York Times... Aging and Gay, and Facing Prejudice in Twilight

hello, my name is fox.

this is fox.


fox is, basically, a mammoth-sized dog in a mixed-breed terrier's body. in addition to this, fox believes with every fiber of his being, that he is, indeed a human-being. (note that he sits at the table as if HE is goingto be served...)


probably fox's most significant talent is that he can make himself comfortable in nearly any position (see below); this includes, but is not limited to sleeping on my head via my pillow when he is allowed in the bed.

I finally got it!

So last night I watched Zoolander. I have wondered why on Life of a Harpy's blog, my "name" is "Blue Steel"....now, I totally get it and I just about peed in my pants laughing last night. Yeah, I'm a little slow....

Happy Thursday!

Candler Park Fall Fest

I am going to be at the Candler Park Fall Fest this year on October 13th and 14th! It's my first festival since I finished PC and I am so excited to be painting again! Check out the website www.candlerparkfallfest.org for more information. It should be a fabulous day and I hope to see some familiar faces :)

ps. I think my invite is cooler than their poster...what do you think?