Life...

As seems to frequently be the case, I have been too busy with 'life' lately to have time or inclination to blog, and as 'life' has also interfered with my torch time, I haven't had anything to show anyway. In the last 6 months I have started a new job (which I'm loving, but it's taking a lot of my time) and had some health issues which have been getting in the way. I'm also completing an online course with Harvard Wide, which is really interesting - I'm enjoying it a lot, but it is one more demand on my time.

An Arthroscopy a few weeks ago has revealed I have no cartilage remaining in my left knee. Some fairly drastic suggestions for surgery have been bandied about, and I'm off to get a second opinion this afternoon. In the meantime, I've quit tennis, haven't taken the dogs to the park in ages (rough ground makes my knees hurt) and have also been avoiding the Wii workouts, as all those lunges and squats were also causing me a lot of pain. So, I'm not really in pain anymore, but I'm avoiding anything that might aggravate it.

On a more pleasant front, as of tomorrow I'm on holidays, and I am intending to focus on my glass in the next 2 weeks. I often say that, and it never seems to happen, but I'm hoping to stick to it this time. I haven't really torched since before Easter, and that was all historical recreations. I am really looking forward to producing some new contemporary work and building up some new stock to re-launch my Etsy store. I have decided to give up the Abbotsford market, as it has been very quiet since before Xmas. I am looking into a couple of other venue options, but now the global financial crisis has eased a little, I'm hoping I might be able to go back to mainly selling my work online.

I have also had a photography spread on my timeline beads, and a tutorial published in this months The Flow magazine, which is very exciting. I cant wait till my copies arrived so I can see how it came out - and they held one tutorial back to use later, so I will get published again in a future edition, which is great.

Holiday Plans

I just realised I never did come back and add those photos, so I'll have to post some fishy pics with this entry. Today was my last day at my current school, and now I have a blissful 5 weeks to regroup, refresh and get organised for my new role next year. I am really looking forward to teaching Art full time again and working with a new staff to support elearning. I'm hoping to spend some time this holidays really working on some new glass related skills, so I hope to make some posts about my progress as I go along. I normally tend to be a bit hit and miss with new skills - I give them a whirl, and if they don't work, I leave it for a few months and try again. But, like my fish, I am going to have to actually practice my off mandrel work, and making more advanced murrine. I have several SCA projects I would like to work towards and I need to master these skills to get there, so that will be my focus. I have been addicted to making fish since I got home from the US, but I also learnt how to make off mandrel pendants, marbles and face cane and all those skills will take a concerted effort to really get a handle on. Sometimes I wish someone would hurry up and invent an instant transport device, so we could really have that theoretical global village we talk about. I am really missing far away friends at the moment, and it is quite painful to know it will be a couple of years at the soonest before I will likely see any of them again. Thank heavens for the intranet is all I can say!

The Daily Grind

Week 7 of the new term, 8 weeks since I came home, and my US trip is beginning to be a very distant memory. It doesn't take long at all for the daily grind to take over and fill your thoughts. Since I got home I've been back at work, flat out busy as another colleague was having their turn on leave and I was working on our major project for the term. The group this term have proved to be quite a handful, which has also kept us busy. I have been spending my brief torch time mainly making fish and birds, enjoying playing with sculptural forms - thanks Deb! I really want to start working on some face murrine, but I need more than a couple of hours concurrently on the torch to get stuck into that. Once I have the Christmas markets out of the way, Ill devote some days to it on the holidays. The market has been pretty quiet lately, but I sold a bunch of jewellery at work yesterday, which was a pleasant surprise. Speaking of work, there are some changes on the horizon for me again. I'm turning full circle, and heading to my old Alma Mater to start a new position next year. I was a little torn about the decision, but I think it is the right thing for me at this time, and it's going to be fun heading back to my old stomping ground.

Hmmmm, Blogger seems to be having some issues, so I'll have to add some photos later.

Show & Tell

Sometimes I find life gets so hectic you don't have time to write about it... other times, life seems too mundane to bother writing about it. Not sure exactly why I've been absent the last few weeks - a little from column A, a little from column B...

So, I have some new Jewellery to show, and a new addition to the family to introduce... meet Mojo.

Monty has grown a lot, although we didn't realise quite how much until we saw him with the new puppy. They are getting along like a house on fire, which makes us a little superfluous!

I am still selling at the Abbotsford Convent artist market once a month, and I made a few new pieces for last months market. I'm afraid I wont have much in the way of new stock this week - the last few weeks have been way too hectic.

Just to finish off, here is a bit of video footage showing the initial introduction of Monty & Mojo...

Growing Up

My little furbaby is starting to look like a real dog. Just when he grows out of the cute puppy stage, we will have a new one to 'awww' over. Monty's prospective little brother is about 3 weeks old and has just opened his eyes. It will be great when there are two of them, and they don't need quite such undivided attention from us. Monty is definitely an attention leech. :) I have a few new beads waiting to photograph, and its market week this weekend. The beads for this new bracelet were inspired by Fox Glacier, that I was lucky enough to visit in January.

Artists Spotlight on 'Heather's Ramblings'

My good friend Heather has included me in her weekly Artists Spotlight on her blog Heather's Ramblings . Heather is another glass beadmaker, jewellery designer etc and also writes a blog on skincare where you can get all your questions answered! I wanted to return the linky love with a heads up to Heather's Artfire store, where she has a range of beautiful goods, from lampworked beads to hand died silk ribbon, including this lovely necklace, Purple Fantasy.

Ups & downs

I've been on holidays this week, so life is at a less hectic pace at the moment. I've even managed to torch several times in the last few days, and I'm intending to tomorrow as well. I'll also make some time to take some photos of some new pieces, so I'll have new work to post later in the week. I made a set of 3D flowers today that I'm quite happy with....

The last few days have been a bit of an emotional roller coaster. I've spent a bit of time with a very close friend of mine, which has been a joy. Not so joyful is the fact that she is moving to the UK for a couple of years on wed, so we've been packing for her, having farewell drinks etc. It's been quite weird, to have so much fun, and then feel so miserable at the end of it. I don't want to pull her down, it is such an exciting trip for her to undertake, but its hard to feel entirely positive about it when I know how terribly I am going to miss her.

It reminds me of when one of my bridesmaids moved interstate 10 years or so ago... I was so distressed to have my closest friend move so far away, and while we can pick up where we left off when we get together, there is years in between each brief visit. I think a part of my mind is assuming its that final - that I'll hardly ever see her again. But I know she will be home in a few years, with some wonderful experiences under her belt - that is my wish for her anyway.

Growing like a weed...

It's been about 6 weeks since I said I'd keep the puppy pics to a minimum. I think that shows a fair measure of restraint, so it's time for a Monty dose. He's grown a lot, almost doubled his weight, and instead of being a round fluffball, he looks really lanky at the moment - hasn't grown into the new long legs yet.... Getting grotty at the park....

Which means bath time!

Oh, the indignity of it all....

All beautiful again. :)

'6 Degrees of Separation', Web 2.0 style...

I am well aware of the power of Web 2.0 - some of my closest friends were 'friends' online for years before I met them (and some of them I've still yet to meet face-to-face). I sell my beads online, and I collaborate and network with educators all over the world. But this morning I had an experience that drove home to me just how interconnected the new Global Village can really be.

I received a comment on my last post from Red Rock Creations. She seems to have found my Blog randomly, either browsing through Blogger, or perhaps through the One World, One Heart event - I'm not exactly sure. Having liked the beads I posted here, she has followed the links in my sidebar to my new Artfire store. One of my floral implosion beads has caught her eye, and she has Twittered about the technique. SquareOneBeads is one of Red Rock Creations many followers on Twitter (she has over 1000) and recognises my work. We have been friends for several years, through our association on 2 Glass Bead Forums. We met f2f in 2007 at the ISGB Gathering. SquareOneBeads lets me know on the forum that someone has Twittered about my beads. That's the first I knew she used Twitter, so I search for her username and 'follow' her, and am then able to find Red Rock Creations on Twitter, 'follow' her, and see the original post. Wow.

This whole experience has really made my day. I find it incredibly cool how all of my online social networks came together in this way. And there is a lot to learn from this experience, about connectivity, networking, the lack of anonymity online, and the reality that even in the huge realm of the Internet, someone we know may be 'listening'. So play nice!

Life's Good

One week down, into the new school year. With how stressed and 'over it all' I was at the end of last year, it's a bit of a surprise to be able to say I had a fantastic first week back. I defy anyone who says teachers get too many holidays to sit in front of a class of year 9's for a term and not be ready to kill for their term break. But holidays did what they are supposed to, and I am refreshed and ready to tackle a new year. One that is off to a very good start. The kids have been great, the program is going well and we were successful in our application for a rather large grant for ICT. Work life is good.

On the glassy front, I have 2 new venues - the market, and I signed up for an Artfire account today. I was hesitant to commit to a new site, but it seems to have potential, and I was determined not to miss the bandwagon again, like I did with JustBeads and Etsy. So, I'm torching more, which is great, and I'm hoping to attend some classes in the US later in the year.

1.5" Lentil - both sides of the same bead.

And at home, there is a little bundle of fur and energy who alternates between amazing us with his smarts (and cuteness) and trying to tear me limb from limb. We have a slight problem with over excitement leading to puppy fangs embedded in skin.....

I have an appointment in the morning, and the staff have requested puppy pics, so the easiest thing is to post them here. I promise to make an effort not to over indulge in the puppy pics in future... I promise.

It's getting hot in here....

Wow, who would have thought that living in Melbourne we would have to cope with a heatwave like the one we have seen this week? The hottest period on record, and the 2nd hottest day ever recorded. 3 days reaching over 43 degrees Celsius, and today was 45.1.

Of course, those were the 3 days that teachers had to go back to work this week, in preparation for school starting. Days of struggling to concentrate in meetings and professional learning sessions, while we sweltered, even in the few spaces with air conditioning.

It's also the week I wanted to spend every possible moment at the torch, as I will be selling at a juried artists market on Sunday, and have been working on new stock. Torching in 40+ heat is no fun, especially when my studio is a tiny cupboard upstairs... As the 'cool change' has come tonight, so we are expecting 30 odd tomorrow instead of 40, I'm hoping I will get one more chance to torch in the morning.

It's been a tough week to have a tiny puppy in the house, although he would have been just as hot at his previous home, since we are getting our weather from Adelaide anyway. Luckily we have air conditioning, but going outside has been a bit of an ordeal with his fur, and he has had a few impromptu baths to cool off.

The Full Monty

Our new arrival is finally here - and it is amazing how much laughter a puppy can cause in a home. Despite the hard work and frequent frustration, little Monty is certainly a joy to have around. And you have to admit, Kees puppies are pretty darned cute - only a hard heart could resist this face......

Another hotel room...

I've had a mixture of relaxation and busyness this week. Spent the first few days after we got home vegging out and washing clothes. Didn't get much of the planned school work or puppy planning done that I intended - I became the queen of procrastination... Later in the week, I unexpectedly got accepted for a juried art market that is on next Sunday, so suddenly I have a LOT to do in a short period of time. I spent 2 days torching - need to get a couple more done, then I will be making jewellery and getting a display together. I'm hoping it will be a good venue to promote my beadmaking classes, as well as sell beads and jewellery. I need to get my school planning finished before wed too... Eek!

I have also spent a bit of time editing photos this week, so I will post some random favourites over the next few weeks, that I haven't posted yet. Right now I am in a hotel room in SA, as we are picking up our puppy and making the 8 hour drive home with him tomorrow. Be prepared for numerous puppy pics... :)

Wrapping up Christmas

We had a lovely relaxed Christmas this year. More than usual, that's for sure, as we are generally hosting at least one meal for family. This year we were out visiting for lunch and dinner, so other than a day of baking on Christmas Eve, so I could take some mince pies and shortbread, there wasn't much to do. It was wonderful to spend Christmas morning with our nieces and see the oldest enjoying the whole process so much. I've never seen anyone get so excited (and so frustrated) having to wait to pull the cracker. It looks like we are in the final stages of organising to get a new Keeshond puppy. That was the easy part - the impossible job is going to be deciding on a second dog. We thought we might downsize for the second, rather than having 2 kees. But DH has his heart set on a Boston Terrier, while I'm open to other possibilities (and not all that keen on the whole 'they are so ugly they are cute' approach...). I'm leaning towards a Griffon Bruxellois but I'd need to learn a lot more about them. Actually, I know I really just want another Keeshond - the breeder has 2, do you think I can convince my other half to just take both? Either way, looks like we will have a little fluffball by the time I go back to work.

Tis the Season

Only 4 days till Christmas! I love this time of year, although it's feeling a little less festive as we don't have a tree up this year. Just us at home - we are going out for all the Christmas meals this year, and as we are going away shortly after Christmas, it didn't seem worth it. I'm missing it though - I'm tempted to cave and put it up, but seems a bit late now...

I got into the spirit this week though, making a mountain of chocolate fudge to give to colleagues at work as gifts. And I wrapped all out gifts today, so that put me in the Christmas spirit as well. Maybe I should have some spiced mead tonight - we always say it's like drinking a Christmas pudding.

I hope everyone has a lovely Christmas - I'll be blogging all about my adventures in New Zealand after New Years.

What a month... or two

The last few months have gone by in a blur. I have done back to back shows, both of which went really well, been sick more than I care for and gone through the madcap period of report writing at school. I've been too busy or too exhausted to feel like blogging through that time though.

Calamity Jane with Babirra was a success, and lots of fun. It was nice to do a full musical for the first time since 2005. To keep me crazy busy, I was also in the PEP variety show I'm Perfect, I'll Change You, That's Love just a few weeks later. That was a much smaller cast, 11 of us providing duets, solos and ensemble numbers. The one weekend season was well attended and all the audiences seemed to enjoy themselves. Going back to large scale musicals was a great experience, but its great to have a more intimate cast, and be able to share the limelight between us a bit more in the smaller shows. I've done a lot of variety shows in the last few years, and I really enjoy that style of performing. And to my great surprise this week, I got a bit of kudos for one of those performances. The Lyrebird Award nominations came out this week, and I received a Judges Commendation for Best Female Performer in a Variety Show, for my work in Laugh Out Loud at the start of this year. Actually, all of the 4 shows I've been in this year have been nominated for something, which is exciting for all the companies.

I have spent the last week crashed out on the couch with what started as Bronchitis, but is threatening to become something worse. I cannot believe how much time I have spent doing nothing, because any effort caused me to cough so hard my ribs are sore.

I've barely torched, but the few sets I have made have been going up on Etsy this week. Online sales are pretty much non-existent at the moment, I'm not sure where I should go with my beads at the moment. I need to torch to keep expanding my skills, but making beads with no outlet for them is a problem. Something I'm really going to have to think about over the holidays. Here's a preview of one of my new sets - a lovely etched set of copper green and the dreaded EDP...

Bring On Christmas...

I know we all usually start complaining around this time of year, that Christmas is hitting the stores earlier and earlier. So why on earth would I be saying bring it on, in September? Well, because when Christmas does get here, it will mean the crazy months of Sept, Oct and Nov are all behind me. I'm not quite sure how I'm going to get through the next couple of months without going stark raving mad (or 'crazier' - better get in before anyone else does...). This week we have interim reports due, and I have a heap of major projects at work - big grant applications and the like to get finished. I've got Bronchitis at the moment, which is wearing me down, and I'm going to be helping out in the kitchen at a feast on Saturday. Calamity Jane is on in early October, so I am rehearsing 3 times a week, and by this time next month, it will be every night, in anticipation of opening night on the 10th. Because I'm a glutton for punishment, I have also just been cast in the upcoming PEP show, which is on a month later - so just 2 months to put together a show, whilst Calamity is racing for the finish line. Just as I get those 2 nailed down, it will probably be time for end of year reports. At least that will mean the end is nearly in sight. I am really going to be looking forward to the Christmas vacation this year. Hopefully Jason and I will be heading to New Zealand after Christmas, so I will hold onto that thought when I get the urge to throttle a few students in December....

There's no accounting for taste...

I have a favourite set of beads in my stock at the moment. I made them quite a long time ago, but I loved them immediately. The glass was a bullseye odd lot, a beautiful shimmering teal. And the focal has the added sparkle of dichroic glass throughout. They have a raised floral decoration, a technique I acquired at the Anastasia class I attended in Chicago last year. Not a difficult technique at all, but I think it's very effective, and looking at these beads reminds me of that wonderful trip.

These beads were also featured in my artists profile in the beading magazine - in fact, they had the largest photo. I can see that the design might be a little challenging to work into jewellery, but they are lovely beads and I'm very pleased with them.

And yet, they just wont sell. They were up on JB several times when I first made them. Recently they have been on Etsy for several weeks. I've decided to give them one more go on Just Beads, so that's where you will find them at the moment.

So, is it true? Is there really no accounting for taste? Is my affection for these beads misguided? Or perhaps they are just destined to be mine - maybe I should go with the flow and make them into jewellery for myself.

We shall see...

Sharing the Love

This week my lovely, talented friend Lisa tagged me as the recipient of a blogging 'award'. Apparently now it is my turn to 'tag' another 7 or so worthy blogs. My taste in blogs, like my music, is quite eclectic, so they might be a random bunch! Here goes...

• Drape's Takes is a great blog by educational technologist Darren Draper, a teacher in North America. Always interesting, and often thought provoking, it's a blog I've been disappointed to be a bit behind in reading lately.

• Common Craft. Perhaps 1 in 10 posts in this blog are really relevant to me, but it's worth it to be the first to see their amazing instructional 'In Plain English' videos about Web 2.0. If any of your friends or family don't get the 'blogging thing', point them here.

• Gal Lori is one of several blogs written by talented beadmaker Lori Greenberg. I particularly love the gems of wisdom from her kids.

• Real Tart is written by a British ex-pat author now living in New South Wales. He hasn't been blogging for the last few months, but he is back again now, and his posts are always good for a chuckle.

• Otter's Odds 'n Ends. I guess some people will think this is a strange nomination to make, as Otter doesn't blog anymore. But the posts on this blog have frequently moved me to tears, so it is well worth scrolling back through and reading them, despite the time lapse.

• Jennie's Palette is the blog for my talented friend Jennie, who paints nudes, and recently had her first solo exhibition.

And two that definitely don't need a plug from me:

• Confession of a Pioneer Woman. A humorous glimpse into a world that couldn't be more different from mine....
• The Impatient Blogger, crafty woman extraordinaire, Margot Potter.

Here’s how it works:

1) Add the logo of the award to your blog

2) Add a link to the person who awarded it to you

3) Nominate at least 7 (more or less) other blogs

4) Add links to those blogs on your blog

5) Leave a message for your nominees on their blogs

Getting Results...

Well, after the excitement of the snow on Sunday, life is very much back to usual this week. Back to the daily grind which includes work, rehearsals, and my daily workout on my Wii Fit. I have lost 4 kg since I started using it. I am hoping they will bring out some new software soon, as some of the activities are getting repetitive, but on the whole, it's great. The scoring system for everything, even Yoga poses, appeals to my competitive side, even if it's only myself I am competing against. I am especially proud of my perfect score in heading a soccer ball :) , but Jason beats me hands down in the slalom skiing. I am only 3 points off a perfect score in the advanced step aerobics, which combined with the rhythm boxing is my main aerobic workout.

I am also hoping to get some positive results with bead sales in the coming week. I put an orphan focal auction up on Just Beads yesterday, and I have several new sets that will be up there and on Etsy in the coming week.