Toscana Gallery "Pause for Beauty"

Paintings along the desert trail, Toscana Gallery Reception


The Rogue Speaks:

Well, the show was FABULOUS! We had a huge crowd, and the tables in the studio were laden with food. The wine was seriously flowing! The desert trail was alive with lights and art, and the gallery simply glowed with beautiful paintings! The breast castings are below:





I was seriously humbled at having received a ribbon for one of my paintings. It really blew me away, because there were such beautiful works of art to choose from. Here are a few photos of some of the entries:











The breast castings will be put on-line, and may be bid on until November 29. Once they are on-line, I will give you all a heads-up so you will have a chance to bid for this most important cause. All proceeds will go directly to breast cancer research, so please consider making a bid.

We had a harpist for our entertainment, and she also had a beautiful singing voice. We were all enthralled!


The bartender was kept pretty busy!


Our next show at Toscana will be in the spring. I hope it is as successful as this one!

Black Hole

The Rogue Speaks:

I just can't leave well enough alone. A totally black photo? Nonononono! No can do! It is against my nature! Without further ado, here is my 25 word offering for Jenny's Saturday Centus, Halloween Edition:

"But Mom! Everybody's doing it!"

"Flying your supersonic broom into a black hole is NOT an option! And don't roll your eyes at me, Missy!!"

Tomorrow I will be reporting on the reception at Toscana Gallery tonight. The gallery is holding a benefit for breast cancer, with a silent auction of work by 26 artists, me included. We are expecting over 200 patrons to be present at this event. Be sure to check it out, because I will be showing you a photo of my work. Don't check back too early, though. This has been a whirlwind week for me and I plan to sleep in in the morning!!

Oh! Here's some late-breaking news! Our son, Keil, carved this pumpkin:

The Big AUTUMN Reveal

The Rogue Speaks:

Well, it seems that the Drive-By Face Lift place was closed down by the health department, so I decided that I would just be myself yesterday for the fun outing Jenny and Ames and I had been planning for about a month. After all, these were my "sisters of the heart" and they certainly would be non-judgemental when they saw how much I had aged since my Cancun photo from 2010 was taken. Sometimes, the aging process just sneaks up and drives a steam roller over your body, but thankfully it leaves your young at heart spirit nice and smooth and happy.

We had soooo much fun! It was as if we had all been childhood friends who had been separated for a while, and had recently found each other again.



The two of them came into Tucson bearing gifts:



I got fabulous olive oil made right in AZ, wine glass charms, cocktail napkins for my collection, and a darling wind chime with really glam flipflops on it. But what I got the most of was wonderful blogsisterly love. Now that's something to last a lifetime!

We had a wonderful lunch, with some excellent wine, then we all drove to Toscana Gallery to preview the breast cancer event that is taking place this weekend. Then we went to my house and had little, teeny-tiny slivers of a sinfully rich chocolate peanut butter torte that a friend had made for Bunco the night before.

We definitely plan to do this again!!! Thanks, sisters, for a memorable day!!

O.k., so I cheated here and turned this into an autumn story for this Thursday's post for Jenny's blog. So those of you who read it earlier will see a slight change in the title. I'm old. I'm allowed.

Bunco, Halloween-style!!

The Rogue Speaks:

Bunco is a mindless dice game that enables folks to talk and play at the same time. I had 4 tables of ladies here last night, and appropriately we had two "ghosts" to replace two absent members. Below, you will see photos of a few of the guests "en masquerade."


Cat and Mouse



Card Shark



Sleepy Gal



Jail Bird



Dracula's Sister



Fifties Housewife



Kindergarten Teacher



Biker Babe



Edwina Scissorhands, Mother of Edward

Let's Play "Gossip"

The Rogue Speaks:

“Nadine! Don’t you know this girl?”

My daughter stood transfixed, her eyes wide in amazement. The newscaster announced that a popular teen had been found hanging in her closet, dead.

Nadine’s eyes filled with tears. “She was a cheerleader at my school. I didn’t know her personally. She was very popular, though.”

“Why did she do it, I wonder! Those poor parents! She was their only child!”

“Someone told a lie about her,” whispered Nadine.

“Who would do such a thing?

“It was me. I did it. I planted a little story seed.”

“Oh, Nadine!! Why?”

“I was jealous, “ she said, with shame and regret.

This is quite an interesting prompt that Jenny Matlock has given us for this Saturday Centus. Please read the other offerings. They are fascinating and varied!!

Pensive Autumn

"Autumn on the Little Pigeon River--Photo by Judie McEwen

The Rogue Speaks:

I grew up in the southeast, and lived not only in Georgia, but Tennessee as well. One of my favorite places to visit in the fall has always been the Great Smoky Mountains, and particularly Gatlinburg. The town of Gatlinburg is way over-commercialized from that little village I knew when I was younger, but I still love to drive through it to get to the Little Pigeon River.

The Great Smoky Mountains are part of the Appalachian Mountains. The "Smoky" part comes from the natural fog that hangs over the mountains. The fog is a result of warm, humid air from the Gulf of Mexico. In the lower elevations, hardwoods abound, and the autumn, the forests are alive with brilliant red, orange, and yellow leaves. The Great Smokies are also home to the densest population of black bears in the eastern United States.

Pigeon Forge, Tennessee is located on U.S. Route 441, AKA "The Parkway." That road will take one straight into the Smokies, and it follows the Little Pigeon River. It is such a lovely and peaceful area any time of the year, but in the fall, when the trees are cloaked in their finest fall fashions, and there is a bit of a chill in the air, a calm hangs over the landscape, and makes one feel at peace with nature and the world.
"A River Runs Through It" photo by Judie McEwen

FRIENDSHIP AFTER LOVE

"After the fierce mid-summer, all ablaze,
Has burned itself to ashes, and expires
In the intensity of its own fires,
There come the mellow, mild St. Martin days,
Crowned with the calm of peace, but sad with haze.
So after love has left us till he tires
Of his own throes and torments and desires,
Comes large-eyed friendship. With a restful gaze,
He beckons us to follow, and across
Cool verdant vales we wander, free from care.
Is it a touch of frost lies in the air?
Why are we haunted with a sense of loss?
We do not wish the pain back, or the heat,
And yet, and yet, these days are incomplete"

Ella Wheeler Wilcox
(1850 - 1919)


"Cade's Cove" Photo by Judie McEwen

Now that you have seen my visions of autumn, please go to Jenny's blog, and check out the rest of the offerings. I know they will be wonderful!!

REUNION

The Rogue Speaks:

I knew he was waiting for me. I could feel his essence prickling my neck. It was silent in the grove, save for the call of a crow to its mate, and I could smell the pungent, familiar aroma of dry pine straw beneath the trees.

The floorboards creaked as I approached the door. Silently, he appeared and held out his hand. I touched his fingers, and a current ran through me, to that deep, secret place. I gasped. I could taste the sweat on his lip.

In the decrepitude of that dwelling, everything was once again fresh and new.

Z is for ZARF!!!

The Rogue Speaks:

All of my boys' childhood friends know what a zarf is. When we lived in Chicago, the winters were brutal! Lots of snow and ice to contend with, and not a lot of driving to be done if one could help it. Kids always seemed to congregate at our house, and it was up to me to entertain them. We had a running Scrabble game going, and the rules were a little different for these young teens and pre-teens. They were allowed to use the dictionary to find words, BUT if they used the word, they had to define it and use it in a sentence. We made English FUN for these kids. They didn't even realize they were actually LEARNING something!!

So now on to my "z" word--ZARF! A zarf is a holder for a handleless coffee/tea cup. Zarfs have traditionally been used in the middle east. They are made from silver, or gold, brass, and occasionally wood. They can also contain jewels or precious stones.




You have probably used a contemporary zarf yourself. Check out the example below!



Doesn't that look familiar?? And there is an even more streamlined version as well:


Zarfs are great for keeping your hands from being burned from that hot coffee cup. Even Starbucks uses a form of a zarf--that cardboard sleeve--so they won't get sued by the customer! Remember the McDonald's lawsuit??

The best thing about the word ZARF, though, is the fact that it can be worth as much as 78 points when you use it in Scrabble!

Well, that's all I have for today! Please be sure to read the other offerings for Jenny's Alphabe-Thursday. I tried to keep this short so you would have plenty of time to check them out!

REVERIE

The Rogue Speaks:


In the blessed coolness of an October evening, we lounged on the patio. The sounds of the Friday night football game at the high school drifted over the darkened houses. Our life had changed in the last several years, and the desire to start fresh, in a new place, was mixed with a sense of longing for the not-too-distant past. We were younger then, and more energetic. Now the excitement of living away from our roots had begun to wear thin.

The desert is a beautiful place, but it can be dangerous. If the heat doesn’t get you, then the critters just might!


Just so you know, this is a work of fiction for Jenny's Saturday Centus. We don't actually sit outside at night, because I am scared of snakes, gila monsters, and scorpions, all of which live in close proximity to us on a daily basis. We actually had a gila monster try to get in our slider to the bedroom one night. They are the only poisonous lizard on this continent.

I hope you found my offering at least mildly interesting, but for some REALLY GOOD STUFF, now go read the rest!!!

Y is for YEARLY BATH

The Rogue Speaks:

Life in the 1500's was certainly tough! For one thing, people generally only bathed once a year, in May. By then, those folks were smelling pretty ripe!! Weddings were held in June, because the bride and groom, having had their yearly bath in May, were still smelling reasonably o.k. There was a slight odor, however, and to cover that smell, brides began carrying bouquets of sweet smelling flowers!! This sounds like a pretty good story to me, and it is one of several floating around as to why brides carry flowers down the aisle!!



Speaking of those yearly baths, they consisted of a big tub of hot soapy water. The man of the house always had the first bath, while the water was still clean. Then, because of the chauvinistic society, the sons had their baths. Then the women and children got their chance to scrub off a year's worth of grime. Finally, it was the baby's turn. By that time, the water was so scummy, that one could not see the bottom of the tub. Now you know where the expression "Don't throw the baby out with the bath water!" came from.



It's been a pretty long day for me, what with my abstract class, and delivering flowers and a card to Dr. Nunn for saving Little Liz's life after she was bitten by the rattlesnake, then getting my Alphabe-Thursday offering ready for publication. Now I am ready for a nice hot shower--my second one today! Aren't we lucky????

HOMELESS

The Rogue Speaks:

“I’m freezing!” she cried, teeth chattering.

“She’s having chills with this fever,” he thought.

“I’m thirsty,” she whimpered, and he put the water to her parched lips.

“I know it’s been four years, but they really need to know how sick you are,” he said earnestly.

“It’s no use. I’m not welcome there any longer. They threw me out! Said not to come back until I was clean and sober!”

“You’ve been clean for two years now. Tell them! You need antibiotics and some nourishing food! Please!”

“Oh, o.k.,” she said, weakly, and recited the number for him to dial.

“The number you’ve reached is no longer in service…”


Isn't it sad to see homeless teens? Oh, you know what??? I can't write this! I have no idea how parents can cope with a teen out of control! I tried, but wasn't successful. Please read the other offerings for Jenny's Saturday Centus, because I guarantee they are a lot more entertaining than mine. Sorry!!


p.s. Blogger is screwing with us again, and I am having a lot of difficulty leaving comments. Please know that I read every offering and comment. Hopefully this is only a temporary annoyance!!