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Here are some views of our wonderful Botanical Gardens from Wednesday. My daughter and I started off at a cute little coffee shop on the "Hill", which was in a converted bank building, called Shaw Coffee.... Then we visited the gardens, trying to capture some images, and then a lunch in the Sassafras Cafe, with it's outdoor seating. THE DAY WAS DELIGHTFUL !!
Aren't these cute? I recently found them and just sold them on ebay... I haven't sold much that way lately. Still busy with the house and other ventures. Our son Jim's birthday was this weekend, and the family came over for dinner, and lots of yardwork has kept me busy , especially when the weather has finally been pleasant.
I think these two porcelain figurines are possibly German. I found them in Perfect Condition.
My newest paintings, a commission from a dear friend who just retired, These cuties are two of her darling grand children, and I'll be doing the two girls (who live in Australia) after I receive the pictures. I've been seeking out commissions for portrait painting lately, and have taken a few examples to display in Kirkwood and Glendale, at the Recycled Rose, a darling shop on Sappington Rd. The creative woman who owns the shop has such great vintage things there, as well as fabulous hand-made gifts and items for the home. Sue does the most fantastic flower arrangements and wreaths, also. Her shop is the place to stop in Glendale for a little charm and inspiration. She also has wonderful vintage and hand crafted jewelry... Sue is having a "Flea Market" on her parking lot on Sappington Rd. across from the Glendale Fire Station, this Saturday, starting at 10:00. She has arranged for 12 or so people to be there selling their things, It should prove to be REALLY FUN !!!!
You haven't heard from me for a few days or weeks, I guess, but I'm here, sorting out the various challenges that our 90+ year old house has lately decided to throw at us !!
First off, our central air conditioning "conked out" on us, leaving us with the choice of staying in this house for the long haul, and investing $8,000. in a new complicated a/c arrangement (it's in the attic, you see)...Next we woke up several days ago to find no hot water.... Our hot water heater would not light after 3 tries, and we finally realized it, too, would have to be replaced.
I still got to stay with Gracie, and instead of cooking our usual crableg birthday feast, we all went to the Miso restaurant in Clayton for sushi-- It was a delightful change, and I think we have made it over the worst in the house.....
4 window air conditioners are humming along, in different parts of the house, and a new hot water heater... I guess it says something about being flexible, because you certainly can't control some stuff, so you just might as well " go with the flow" and make the best of it.. HA !
Here we are for Diane's 32nd birthday,( We love you, Di Di) and a few choice one's of sweet baby Grace...
Here's a few of the Savannah pictures....
The city, weather, food, and fellowship were so fun !!
click to enlarge pictures 
These beautiful sculptural ironwork decorations are everywhere in Historic Savannah. I've tried to capture a few of them for you.
The Historic district is composed of mansions interspersed with wonderful Squares every block or so, completing the "grid" of the old city. The homes are fabulous, including the home from the family of Johnny Mercer, the famous lyricist (Moon River, and over 1,000 songs) . This home was the setting for the book, "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil" where the true story of the murder took place. The book was later turned into a movie with Kevin Spacey. We also passed the beautiful birthplace of Juliette Low, the founder of the Girl Scouts of America.
The architectural detailing on these homes is amazing, and they are beautifully maintained.
The surrounding area is alive with ART, as well, with the famous Savannah College of Art and Design popping up everywhere. Their campus seems to be the entire city, with locations all over, and galleries around every corner. We never saw an actual "campus" but all through the city there were buildings designated as S C A D .
This is the first of a few collages I will post about our fun adventure in Savannah!
We're at a friends condo on a little island off the East Coast of Georgia.... It's beautiful here, and in Savannah, especially in the Historic District. You'll get to see some pictures when I get home on Thursday, although I've already filled the card up on my camera. The art is so cool, and the design community and art community are very extensive. It's really getting hot, though, and it probably is no cooler in good ole St. Louie ! More to come, stay tuned !
Last evening was Mehlville School Districts Recognition Night, where Educators, and all personnel are honored for years of service, and each of the many schools awards their, "Teacher of the Year" award. Jessica Riddle, a Mehlville High School art teacher, and my co-worker for years, and well as a former student of mine, was given that honor by her colleagues. I wanted to attend to give her my support and praise....
I felt like I had never left, and enjoyed the company of my very best buddies. We always had such fun together, and it was good to be a part of the group.
Mehlville has Six full time art teachers, with an outstanding teaching staff. The work that their students produce is fabulous. I always felt priviledged to be part of that elite teaching staff....
Here we are, with Vince Viviano, the head principal after the festivities...
Congratulations, Jessica ! We're all proud of you !
We had so much fun this week, at Sylvia's house ( striped shirt in picture) discussing our book club book, "Captains and the Kings" by Taylor Caldwell. It's a hefty one, at about 800 pages, filled with great characters, well developed and multi-leveled, and a story line which has been compared to the Kennedy family, although it is in fact, fiction...
I had read the book long ago after my dear Aunt Nita recommended it to me, and it has been my favorite book for a long time. One reason she had recommended it was because of the references to a world-wide Secret Banking organization, which supposedly controls lots of the politics, wars, and affairs of countries around the world. It is based on facts, and still is in existence today. It is "eye-opening " to read and think about. In fact, Sylvia mentioned during our discussion that Taylor Caldwell has been on the F.B.I. list of people investigated for many years. They have "kept their eye on her"
Since we are officially "Wine, Women, and Prose" I thought I would show us before the discussion in our "wine mode" tee hee. We always have a lively discussion, Barb keeps us all on track, and we enjoy hearing and sharing our ideas. !!
Here's Debbie, one of the secretaries at my old school. She's holding the picture of Lacey, her daughter, that she bought. Debbie works for Angelo, one of the 5 principles and Lacey was my art student 7 or 8 years ago in Drawing class. At that time Lacey had white blonde hair. Lacey now works at a wonderful salon in Webster called Naturally Pure, and she cuts my hair. She is an absolute doll, and talented..
This week my sister, Lin, and I worked a bit on our booth at the Antique Mall in Eureka. Lin is so good with rearranging, and Heaven Knows, we NEEDED to re arrange !! Anyway, we took some stuff home, and brought new things to sell, and both of us gave lots of the afghans away to the nursing home in Eureka, and they were happy about that... The folks there would have an understanding of afghans, we figured, and would know what went into making them.
We always have to go to lunch afterwards, and this time we tried a cute little cafe in downtown Eureka called, "Michelle's" and had a wonderful little lunch! Right on Main Street, worth a try !!
Here's Lin, with the cute convertible high chair I found, that converts to a desk when you flip it over. -- How unique and clever !!
Gracie is so inquisitive... The last time I stayed with her, I had my usual tote bag full of stuff, my book, my projects, my camera, and other goodies, and she was so interested in it. I watched, as she took each item out, and had the most fun exploring !! It's so fun that they are always learning new things !!
Yesterday, the portrait show came down, and there to help me was a former student, Godiva, who wanted to "shadow" me for the day for a school assignment. She is a very talented young lady, with wonderful artistic ability, and she wants to pursue a career in art. She will be attending either Washington Univ. or USC next fall, and is trying to decided between the two. ! - Not a bad choice to make, I'd say, either would be excellent !
We spent the day taking down the art, and then chatting over tea about the countless possibilities in the field of art. She is not interested in teaching, but rather combining her art with Medicine in some way, or possibly business. Lots of "food for thought" that can seem daunting when you are finishing High School and looking ahead to all the choices !!
We were joined by my daughter, Tracey, who echoed lots of my thoughts about getting started as an artist in the community, and then we took off for lunch !- Well, eating always goes so well with visiting !!! Anyway, we all had a fun time, and hopefully were a bit of help to Godiva....
Good luck to you, looking to the future ! Such a darling girl, and such an exellent student, you will surely be a success at whatever you choose !
On Sunday, my daughter and I went to the St. Louis Symphony to enjoy Beethoven's only Opera, "Fidelio". It was wonderful, with full orchestra, and many strong voices in the cast. All was in German, I think, but was translated on the big screen into English for the audience. It has been a long time since I had been in the magnificent Powell Symphony Hall, and it still is gorgeous !!
Upon seeing the grand staircase, I remember coming there as a 5th or 6th grader, and being utterly amazed at the sight. They still bring students from the area to the Hall for performances, which is a great tradition !!
If interested, you can show up 90 minutes before some of the performances for FREE tickets. They give away as many as 50 per performance, and you get a punch card good for up to 10 events per year. A great deal, and a wonderful afternoon of elegance and entertainment !! Parking was 8. on the secure lot, but there is plenty of parking on the street free of charge, also.
The Beethoven was wonderful, and since we were there early, someone very knowledgeable came out before the performance and thoroughly explained the story of the Opera to the audience. This was very helpful as a synopsis, and made the listening more enjoyable for both of us. What a fun afternoon with my daughter, and Beethoven !! Quite Nice !!
John Adams is a fabulous mini series, catch it if you can on HBO.....
Thanks to the Lisa See novel, "Snow Flower and the Secret Fan" our book club will be discussing this fascinating book dealing with girls growing up in China over a century ago. The practice of "footbinding" is one I had never had much knowledge about, but this book started me looking into the practice. Small feet were thought to be a thing of beauty, and in order for a young girl to marry into a prominent family she would have to have her feet bound to keep them from growing. Between the ages of 4 and 7 the process began with mothers and grandmothers wrapping the feet so tightly that the toes would curl under the foot and break from the pressure. This was an excruciating experience which lasted for years for these little girls. In some cases girls could even die from their footbinding torture. Infections were common, which could lead to death. The feet would continue to be wrapped, and remolded into grotesque deformed cone shapes. This of course rendered the girls and young women and older women alike, weak and unable to do very much walking. The servant class were allowed to let their feet grow, and thus would give up the chance to every have a very successful marriage. The marriages were all pre-planned by the parents, and matchmakers, as well. Women in that culture for 1,00 years had no choices in how their lives would turn out. They were at the mercy of a barbaric and sadistic system of footbinding and caught in the web of a society which did not value them at all, or give them a voice.
Footbinding was completely outlawed by 1911, and had not been practiced in most parts of China, except the remote villages.
Lisa See helps us to understand the struggles the women have faced throughout this time period of history. Do we still suffer and put our young girls in jeopardy for beauty sake by exposing them to countless advertisements showing the ideal women as rail thin, and unrealistically beautiful ? Do we show unattainable goals to these young girls, subliminally telling them that they are NOT okay because they are REAL and are of average weight, or possibly larger sizes? What do we base our values on? Is it only how someone LOOKS ?
