Fireworks stands  pop up over night, people rush to them  the  same way they  run to the malls in the  middle of the night for black Friday! They stock up and then those with little or no self  control  start celebrating as soon as they  get home and get the  car trunk open.

Earlier today I  posted on  Facebook that ,” I hate fire crackers” and a friend jokingly called me, The Bad Santa. Fireworks make every muscle and nerve in my body tense. This causes stress which causes me to be jumpy and grumpy.

Today is  America’s birthday 237 birthday! The noise has been  non stop all day. If there was a  scheduled time frame for civilians to  set off explosives as a way to  celebrate  it might not be so agitating . Ppublic shows with a start and stop time they are okay. But come on people! When you buy the boxes of racket makers to set off all week are you thinking about the people with PTSD, or the pets and wildlife your disturbing ? Are you thinking of your neighbors? What about the risk for starting a fire?  The below photo was taken today  July 4, 2013 in Prosser Washington, caused by fire works

All I ask is that you exercise the muscle between your ears and think about your actions and how they might impact the lives of others.

I  often wonder if people ever wonder  where fireworks come from, or who makes them. Most are made in China and India, so when you are spending your hard earned dollars on explosives you are not supporting the American  economy. 

Before you  go and say that I am not  being very  Patriotic please  understand that I am  very  patriotic. I  served in the united States Army  and  am disabled war veteran.

I personally  prefer the sounds of Peace over the Sounds of War.

Happy Birthday America!

Now  I an off to watch the musical 1776, hopefully the music will drown out some of the outdoor noise!

An hour with a stranger can change your life forever.

It was  2004 and we had  just moved  back to Washington from  Austin  Texas  and my youngest daughter and I drove out to  Centralia to visit my sister.

On the way we passed a house that I could not resist  stopping to  check out.

We  pulled up the the house and we  walked up to a gate . There was a  sign that said come on in. We walked  around the yard admiring the sculpture and after about  45 minutes a man appeared  from out of  no where.

We talked about his work and he got excited and invited us into a  secret  basement underneath is  house.We hesitated for a  second and then we took a  risk  and  followed him  down under the  house . What we saw was  breath taking. Stacks and  stacks of art on tables some stacked all the way to the  ceiling. I  pointed to a  piece on the wall that I  liked and he said  let me get a knife.

He came back with a rather scary looking knife and  proceeded to cut the  art off the wall and then he  handed it to me. I  offered to  pay him for the  piece and he said he did not want money. I argued and he said,” If you give me money I will  just hand it to the  next person who comes through the door.” I told him that would be fine and I  handed him $20.  He then got a  twinkle in his eye and  said to me, ” If  you like would really like to to  do  something  for me I would like some wooden toothpicks . But  don’t  bring them to me bring them to the sculpture  garden and  hide them for me to  find.  I  just love a  treasure hunt. ”  My daughter and I left his place  and heading to the local  store . We  brought back  a few boxes of wooden toothpicks to hide.

I am glad we stopped off at to admire the  Styrofoam  sculptures and had a chance to  explore and  play. We had a lot of fun  hiding those tooth picks!

During our visit Rich Tracy  told us that he does not  create art to make a living  he creates to  live.

I found this photo online  which gives you another view of the  Rich Art sculpture garden. 

RichArt’s Art Yard, July 2012: Rich reported retiring, taking apart all art.

This morning I  woke up today to a  couple  nice  surprises.

My see me account is  no longer zero! I have  my  first donations totaling $5 ! This might not  seem like a  big deal  but as an  artist I am  here to  share that every penny  counts.

You  can see my  See me account here. It does not cost you a  penny to  click the  I support  button! https://evergirlart.see.me/ if your an  artist I  suggest you  check out See me and try out the  free trial.

I also received an invitation to have 3  photos of my  work  shown at a  newly installed digital exhibition room  in a New York City gallery. The show opens on Thursday, July 25th and will run through the Tuesday September 10th. I will have more details on that  later.

This photo was taken at Blue Flames Spirits  located in  Prosser, Washington

Yeah, I am  shipping shoes to  Colorado on  Monday!  I really  love it when  people  like my work enough to make a  purchase! 

This little bird  is packing up and  will be  moving to  a  new nest  next week!  Bye  bye  birdie!

It is hard to believe that today is the first day of summer! I have been so busy the past few months that I missed spring!

As an artist one of the main frustrations is figuring out what to do with work when it is completed.  Some artists hang on to their work and others send it off to galleries.  Some artists enjoy working street fairs while others cringe at the thought. Many artists prefer to create.  For me as soon as I finish a piece of work I want it to  go away so that I can work on something new.

Over the past 4 years I have been fortunate to have a hand full of galleries show my work and sell it  for me.   It is not easy sending work off to a gallery.  Some of us like to know where it will end up!

A few months ago I was offered an opportunity to partner with a fairly new gallery located at Seattle Design Center.  It was been a ton of work but I am finally ready to invite you all down to see what I have been up too!

Our next event takes place along with the Design Centers Third Thursday art Walk, July 18 from 5-9 PM

Gallery Context  suite 262  located at  Seattle  Design  Center (SDC)  2nd  floor of  building that has  the  covered parking garage!  Parking is free!   On third Thursdays 14 galleries participate featuring over 100  artists! 

Invite your friends to come experience art

My mom was  a child herself when she became a parent, having me when she was  16 years old and  by  the  time  she reached 21 I had two sisters.  It was not until I  became a parent myself that I was  really aware of the  struggles one faces.   My  mom  died before she turned  40 so I  guess I am  lucky  she started young.

Parenting is a  tough  full time  job  when you have two parents.  I really  don’t know how some single  parents  manage to  do  such an awesome job!

Young moms  on  public assistance  trying to  make ends meet , wanting the  best for their children  yet  feeling trapped in a system where no one cares.  Frustration,  depression , low self esteem,  hungry  , tired , over worked at the  minimum  wage  under the  table jobs,  suicide attempts , hating life, yet masking the pain.  These are the  things that  so many children see.

Life is not fair.  It is hard work to  ensure that our experiences  empower us and not  cripple us . From a distance It may  seem like some have better luck in life but you  never really know the  pain and suffering that someone is  coping with on the  inside.  Some folks just have better masks.

 Tonight! May 16th 5-9 PM  

We are celebrating the Birds and the  Bees!

Gallery Context located at : 5701 6th Ave S  Suite 262, Seattle, WA 98108 Seattle  Design  Center  2nd  floor of  building that has  the  covered parking garage!  Parking is free!  13 galleries  featuring  dozens of  artists! 

From North or South Interstate 5

From Interstate 5, take Exit 162 (Corson Avenue/Michigan Street).

Turn right on Michigan Street.
Turn right at the next traffic light, Sixth Avenue South.
Seattle Design Center is located one-half mile on the left side of the street.

From the Bellevue/Eastside area

Take Interstate 90 to Interstate 5 and head south.

From Interstate 5 south, take Exit 162 (Corson Avenue/Michigan Street).
Turn right on Michigan Street.
Turn right at the next traffic light, Sixth Avenue South.
Seattle Design Center is located one-half mile on the left side of the street.

Parking

Free parking is available in the Seattle Design Center Garage located on Orcas Street, between 5th and 6th Avenues, and in the Atrium parking lot located on Sixth Avenue, as well as on the surrounding streets. Please plan to arrive early on event days.

Opening party is  tonight  May 10th from 6 -10 PM  and the  party  continues Saturday May 11 from Noon-5 

This is the owner Sheri Hauser, wearing a hat I picked up for her

There was a time when I looked forward to interacting with the public and talking about my work but recently I find myself getting a bit annoyed. I might need to go see a professional to get some advice on the best ways to deal with things like;”How long did it really take you to make that? “Well, I had a dream about it in 1992.. No really I am not joking… then I had to find the right items to create the piece, I had to learn how to weld, drill holes in rocks, and buy tools…. So when asked, “How long did it really take you to make this” I really do not have a simple quick answer.

“Is there really $500 worth of work in that?”  I have learned to smile and pretend they said,” wow only $500″

And then we had the lady at the show that has been by 3-5 times to look at a piece of work. Then at the end of the show she shows up with her husband and says” oh honey you could make me one of those”,” excuse me Miss can you move out of the way so we can take a photo? “Really?

Tonight,  I got a call from the owner of Alki Arts letting me know that  a piece of my work was sold to a couple that just love it and they are having a party on Sunday where they will show it off! This call made my night! 

Gallery owners do more than you think they do! I might have to share more details on that in a future post.  So, when I am asked at gallery showing, “If we wait and buy it from you direct is it less? ” My reply is, ‘ No it would be double!”  No, I am not joking!  I price my work at the galleries at a discounted rate as I really do not enjoy hauling stuff around these days.

Special thanks to all the friends, business and galleries of evergirl art that have been supporting me and my work over the past few years!  I couldn’t do it without you!

I would love to give you all a big hug! oh and if you have advice for me on how to deal with the  friendly folks that   think I  snap my fingers and a piece of work is done, leave me a reply!

Photo: Turning Tides now has a new home!