My Whale Tale

The January-February EBW challenge theme is Tropical Holiday. Melody of salamanderhouse made a cuff featuring whale tails http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=20422737 that is just wonderful. I commented on it in our forum posts and told her I had had an up close and personal experience once with a whale. She posted back that she would like to hear the story. So I thought, why not just blog it. Here it is, Melody, you asked for it. :)

Actually, it was probably one of those "you had to be there" kind of moments, but it has stuck with me for years and I will probably never forget it. In the early 90's, back in my "golden family years" we took a vacation to Oregon. This was pre-divorce, kids were all still in school, life was normal. You know. We stayed in Lincoln City, Oregon, in a motel right on the beach. It was wonderful. One day we drove along the coast to Depot Bay and I think it was on the way back that we pulled into this spot along the highway where you could look out over the ocean. It kind of jutted out and there were coves on either side. We were all just goofing around, watching the waves, my ex was videotaping the kids, usual vacation antics. My youngest son was sitting on a fence post looking out over the ocean when all of a sudden I heard him yell, "Whales! Look, whales!!" I'll never forget the excitement and awe in his 11 year old voice. We all ran to look, and sure enough we saw the water spouts and the tails as they went back under. I think there were just two. We watched for a long time, trying to get a good picture and then we realized that one of them had swum right into the cove alongside the pull-off. She came to the surface and it was like she was checking us out. I could plainly see the barnacles crusting her head and as she rolled to go back under I was staring right into her eye and she was staring back at me. I have never felt so close to nature and the Creator before or since. For those who have the opportunity to view whales all the time, this may seem like no big deal. But for a land lubber from Kansas who was seeing an ocean and all things of the ocean for the first time it was a once in a lifetime experience. I have since visited the Atlantic Ocean, been to Sea World in Florida, visited the Gulf at Galveston and sailed alongside dolphins in Galveston Bay, but nothing compares to that split-second communion between me and that gray whale off the coast of Oregon.

So there it is, my whale tale.

Wish I was there!

January is either a cold, dreary month in Kansas or a cold, snowy month but whichever is the case, thoughts of warm, tropical places help take the chill off. So the EBW challenge theme for February, Tropical Holiday, was especially fun for me to create. Tropics, to me, is warm sun and sandy beaches. I've been to both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans as well as the Gulf of Mexico on vacations and they are some of my fondest memories. I loved walking on the beaches, collecting bits and treasures that the seas washed ashore. I loved the touristy shops, the smells and the colors of the oceans. These were the things I drew on when I started creating my challenge entry. I had an old coral necklace that was begging to be repurposed and it served as the foundation. Using the colors in the coral beads, I made a mix of seed beads and started weaving branch fringe and then I randomly added pewter charms with a beachy feel, pieces of dyed shell and pearls all surrounding another repurposed item, a bone colored fish pendant. It's all finished off with a silver dolphin and wave toggle clasp. This was such a fun piece to make, even if it did take me way longer than I thought it would. I'm hoping it will remind someone else of warm memories and it will find it's way to a new home.

Another Episode in My Craft Show Saga

Hooray for Friday!

Can't believe I haven't blogged anything since the end of September! It's true that time flies faster the older you get. The last time I blogged I was riding high on having the best show of my life. Since then, I have had what could be the second worst show of my life. The worst one was two days, this one was only one day. It was in a large city, in a supposedly well to do neighborhood, the environment was outstanding, the promotors lovely people. But there was no crowd and no one spending money. It's discouraging to do all that work and wind up going in the hole. Oh well, when you do craft shows for any length of time, you learn that you will have bad ones. Those are the ones you think twice about doing again.

I've got two more shows to do this season, both will feature my Christmas/Holiday creations. That's what I've been busy working on since the middle of October and I only have two more weekends before the first of those shows. I love making Christmas wreaths and tried a new angle this year. I have put some on tabletop easels. We'll see how they sell.

Anway, Friday is here. The drudgery of the week almost over. It's time to get in the creative zone.