Carry It Home!

On our way to Monson I did a little paper cutting in the car. Just a few simple things....and just the inside cuts. 

Today I enjoyed some time on the patio and did the outside cuts with a pair of scissors.  They will come in handy in my joy journals or on one of my tags. You can never have enough leaf shapes.

 

I also made a few photo montages to send to Alyson...and Janice and Patsy....so why not share a couple of them here. This first one needs a little explanation. Janice, Patsy and I walked a mile or so into town on morning. It was a lovely day and downtown Monson is cozy and quaint. There's a pottery shop, a little general store and a very nice art gallery with all kinds of magic from local artists.

Patsy and Janice bought beautiful handmade baskets. Janice's was small and easy to carry....but Patsy bought a handwoven hamper. Yes...a hamper. Luckily it had two handles so she and I were able to walk it the mile back home. We had to switch hands every 10 minutes or so...but we were pretty tickled with ourselves not going back with the car.

I've carried many things home over the years and I still have several of them in my home that have been painted or rehabbed. I love repurposing other people's cast offs! 

This was a great find that I carried home with the help of Anita and Janet:

https://joyfulputtering.blogspot.com/2015/04/one-persons-trash.html

And this repurposed table is in our entry way that Paul carried home:

https://joyfulputtering.blogspot.com/2023/08/another-table-project.html

And this found coffee table is still in our living room...it got driven home:
https://joyfulputtering.blogspot.com/2021/04/no-1123-12-d.html

One more montage with the truckload of stuff from the boat house that went to the dump the next day. It was so nice to help with a camp cleanup project!

Something To Celebrate!

There's something to celebrate in the Shupe household! Paul has been friends with Bill, Bill and Bob for 40+ years since their Vanderbilt Divinity School days, and for the past 20 years they've spent a week together somewhere in the wilderness...most often in the mountains of Colorado. They've just written and published a book called The Wilderness of Friendship in which they share their friendship journey and explore events and ideas that gave shape to their friendship. I'm so proud of these guys!

All of their royalties will be donated to the James Lawson Institute, an organization dedicated to inspire people to engage in preparation, dialogue, and research for social justice.

The Wilderness of Friendship offers a counterpoint to the consensus that there is an epidemic of loneliness among men in the United States. Four men, friends since their days at Vanderbilt Divinity School, explore and describe the values and actions of more than forty years of friendship. Among them are hospitality of place and ideas, risking vulnerability to share life fully, a shared wonder at the amazing blessings of life, and a love for the wilderness, both literal and metaphorical, where there is always more going on than can be understood in the moment. What emerges is one vision of what it means to be a man, husband, father, friend: open, teachable, and above all, joyful. 

I have a feeling that this book may be more important than perhaps it at first appears. Our country's woes have many sources, but surely one is the sad and isolated condition of its men, who have been told to stand on their own. As the authors make clear in this lovingly written chronicle, alternatives are possible!"

-BILL MCKIBBEN, author of Here Comes the Sun

"With honesty, humor, and love, these engaging essays—individually and collectively—offer a healing balm to men like the authors and to all of us, especially in these times of disconnection and conflict over gender norms. By letting us in to their four decades(!) of friendship, the authors invite us to reconnect with each other and with ourselves. A true gift!"

-ELLENT. ARMOUR, E. Rhodes and Leona B. Carpenter Chair and Professor of Feminist Theology; Vanderbilt Divinity School

"Here we witness an extraordinary friendship forged over decades and deepened through shared commitments to curiosity, self-reflection, and justice. With honesty and humility, wit and wisdom, four friends, chosen brothers to one another, recount the stories of their shared life, shaped by seasons of joy, loss, discovery, and care. The building blocks of that friendship—intentional time together in wild places, deepening vulnerability, and a longstanding dedication to learning and unlearning—offer a counterpoint to the epidemic of loneliness. Wise, generous, and deeply humane, this book offers both a testimony to authentic male friendship and an invitation, especially for men willing to confront the privileges of whiteness and patriarchy, to cultivate deeper relationships: with one another, with the hurts of the world and with the sacred."

-ALLEN EWING-MERRILL, Executive Director, The BTS Center

Art On The Porch

Our time with friends at the lake was everything I hoped it would be. It's a good thing to unplug for a bit with people you love.

We walked and talked, played lots of cards, swam, read and even cleaned out the boat house! It was a wonderful weekend getaway. 

I carved out a little window for some art on the porch for old time's sake. Yes Dotty....the 1950's vintage laminate table is still there. I meant to take a photo of the whole table...but I forgot. Using a Gudrun's catalog...I made my first tag for my Tag Project #2. I do enjoy working in this small format!

 I was inspired by the flowers Janice brought!     

   

Unplugging

I'm in the middle of my 12th year writing this daily Joyful Puttering blog....and I've only missed a few days here and there. Every now and then I wonder if I'll know when it's time to slow things down....or maybe even wind things down. I don't think that time has come yet but...but I am taking a few days off.

Paul and I are going to spend three nights on lake in Monson, Maine with four dear friends. There's no WiFi...and virtually no cell service....so we'll be unplugging...and enjoying every minute. Even it if rains.

There will be swimming and cards....good food and laughter. Just what we all need! 

Patsy's family invited our family once a summer when our kids were growing up....and we have such fond memories of the boys fishing off the dock and diving off the float. I've spend hours and hours on this porch stitching with my buddies during our girls' get-a-ways. As a matter of fact this is the very porch I started my cathedral window quilt  I just blogged about a few weeks ago. 

I'm guessing this table is still there on the porch.....I'll let you know when I'm back here on Sunday evening. Have a great weekend everyone! Maybe you'll unplug for a few hours this weekend!

Unfurl

Where did this day go? Some days are like that! 

But don't you just love the playful way black-eyed Susans unfurl? I know I do!  

   

 

I thought I would share of my favorite photo montages from Alyson.

It's a curling and unfurling montage!

And here something curly from the past. Starting in 2024 I worked on a tag project....making little collages on a set of tags gifted to me from Roseann. I loved these mini collage projects....and I do have another set...so maybe I'll revive it!

All those posts are here. https://joyfulputtering.blogspot.com/search/label/tag%20project

Plenty of Potential

The art of not being ready and doing it anyway will take you far! Rob Dance

Becky had a beautiful blue, white and gold floral calendar hanging in her studio. I wish I would have taken a photo of that whole wall...it's so magical. Every time I go...there's something new.

Before I left I asked her if I could have a page from one of the previous months....she sent me home with two. I knew they had plenty of potential.

Ever since I came across the little paper cut from a another calendar with gold highlights....I've wanted to try another one. The random color images and gold accents give the cut piece such character....not something you can plan.

So I cut off a swatch from one of the pages and took advantage of the glorious afternoon on the patio and started cutting. No particular plan other than doing leaf shapes. 

I worked from the back....it's much easier to see what you're doing on the white side. All those little leaf cutouts will be useful too.

Once I had the leaf shapes cut...I did the fussy cutting around the outside with a pair of scissors. That's so much easier than trying to do it with an exacto knife. It doesn't look like much at this point....but I knew the potential was there.

I love it....and I'm going to send it to Becky so she can tuck it into one of her art journals. I intended to cut a stem...but I forgot. So it's just a fun starburst of leaves with plenty of potential.

See the Magic

I saw this pop of red from a distance on a morning walk....and HAD to see it up close. I was gobsmacked. Mother Nature's magic blows me away sometimes.

Marita came over for breakfast this morning. We had a wonderful visit on the patio...a nice little walk...and just enough time for a quick cyanotype.

I have given her a couple of cards/prints over the years and she paid one of her fern prints forward to a friend and asked me if I would make her another one. I absolutely love that she passed it on to someone who loved it....AND wanted to replace it.

Rather than make one for her I offered to help her make her own so she could see the magic first hand. There is nothing like experiencing the process in person. I will do this with ANYONE.....even on Zoom. 

While I was at Becky's I was in awe of a small set of stencils in her stash....so many geometric patterns and so many ways to use them. Little did I know that she ordered me a set and they were waiting for me when I got home. Thank you Becky for picking up on my joy and being so generous!

The stencils are translucent (until they have acrylic paint on them) so they work for cyanotype.....but some sun gets through the stencil leaving a light blue design rather than crisp white. Once I've used them for gelli prints....they will be opaque so the sun prints will be crisp white...if I want that. I did a quick experiment with a few....and will certainly do more. I'm going to have fun experimenting with ALL the ways I can use these fabulous gifted stencils. Thanks Becky!

This was the montage I sent to Alyson this morning...a nice mix of just some of the magic that landed in my last few days. I hope you saw some magic in your day today!

For those of you new to the blog....Alyson is my sister-in-law and we trade photos every day. They are often these montages that we make on an app called Unfold. These photos exchanges are a great way for us to connect and celebrate some the magic that is around us. 

Here are a couple of recent montages from Alyson in Colorado.

I love our daily photo trades.

Slug Shenaigans

Laughter and sorrow often travel together, and sometimes the silliest things carry us through the hardest moments. Diane Wilk

Yesterday while I was visiting Patty I got to hear more about Sluggo...her precious banana slug. Sluggo is now featured in a book called ADVENTURE IS IN MY SOUL. It's true story of how after a tragic loss an entire extended family found connection, comfort, and laughter through a stuffed banana slug named Sluggo. 

Patty was instrumental in making sure all the family members had a cousin of Sluggo that could comfort them and accompany them during family gatherings and travels. Patty's clever like that!

Everyone played along and over a period of several months shared their slug's shenanigans through group texts and emails. Patty's sister-in-law Diane turned these adventures into a book. It's just a delight.

Even in life's darkest seasons, there is still room for laughter, joy and absurdity. Family Matters. Loves survives grief. And sometimes the best way forward is simply to hold tightly to on another and keep smiling at the wonderfully ridiculous parts of being human.

After our visit....Patty brought Sluggo down to photograph him in my garden with The Traveling Flowers....they seem to be related not only in color....but in spirit. Cherie and Dale had fun on their wonderfully ridiculous journey with these flowers. 

The whole Traveling Flowers journey can be tracked in these posts...in reverse order.

Hydrangea

Magic exists where you choose to find it!

It was a glorious summer day with just the right mix of chores and play.

I'm not sure if this was a chore or play...but I got the papers cut and folded for 50 more match boxes for Folly 101. It was a picture perfect afternoon on the patio while I folded...and I was hoping to get a glimpse of the baby bluebirds that fledged while I was gone. No such luck.

Look at this fabulous found object Paul found while was gone! And the best part is that it lights up when you bounce it.    

 

I had a good visit with Patty today....and her hydrangea were gorgeous...coming and going.

I ADORE her peace flag...that color is just perfect!

We could sure use a little world peace right now!

Speaking of hydrangea...going with my now and then idea...here's a few little arrangements I did a while back that still make me smile. I'm choosing to find magic in hydrangea today!

Shoutout

The body heals with play, the mind heals with laughter, and the spirit heals with joy.

No matter how wonderful a trip is....it's always good to be home. I have to give a shoutout to Paul for doing such a wonderful job taking care of the plants and the birds. Everything looks happy and healthy!

It was such a delight to come home to several sweet white rain lily blooms. And how comforting it was to start to slide right back into my quiet daily routine. 

Romanticize the routine, not the result.

Honorary Family

After the family events were concluded....my whirlwind of a trip ended with several days with the Finnerud family. Since Becky and I have known each other so long.....we're pretty much honorary members of each others' families....especially me to hers.

I got to experience first hand the fabulous and chaotic festivities of a full Finnerud family gathering on Sunday with Becky's kids and their partners and a couple of grandchildren. They know how to celebrate with all wonderful food....laughter.....live music....and oh yes....a World Cup Soccer game. 

Then Becky and I spent a couple nights with Emily and the kids while Keegan was away. We worked on the furniture shuffle getting things ready for Max to move into a new big boy room making way for baby Miles in the nursery. We made excellent progress! Helping them move along with their house projects always brings me joy. 

Miles is getting good use out of the quilt I made for Max.

Just a little more time with Miles this morning after Max went to nursery school.

I just love being an honorary member of the Finnerud family! 

Next stop HOME!

Farm Roots

There is nothing like the farmland of Wisconsin that pulls at my heart strings. 

Midway through my visit....I spent a night with my sister LaVonn and her husband Tim on their Evansville farm. I am rooted in life on a farm and will always be drawn to the country landscape.