BSM: Best Shot Monday 5-4-09

Happy May, everyone!

I chose another nature-themed image for my BEST SHOT MONDAY this week ... this is the 'Chicago Peace' rose in our garden. I chose 'Chicago Peace' over it's parent rose, 'Peace', because my father was born in Chicago. So it's a sentimental rosebush for me, and this year, the bloom is spectacular.

And if I haven't mentioned it before, I want to make note here that I do not have, nor do I know how to use, Photoshop.

Any images I post were taken by me, with my Canon G9, and if anything, they may have been cropped. But never photo-shopped.

I don't know that it would make a difference -- someone's BEST SHOT MONDAY could be crazily-awesome after a session in Photoshop, so I'm not against it or anything.

I just wanted to be clear that mine aren't ... for whatever that's worth.

-- Princess Magpie

BSM: Best Shot Monday - April 27, 2009

Here is my BSM shot for last week:

This was taken just yesterday, Sunday, at "grand" Trevor's travel ball game. He's on a travel team, the SO CAL AZTECS, and they play in the 13 yr division. Last Sunday, they won both their games in this Wood Bat Tournament; yesterday, they lost both games - by one point each game.

That's baseball. And THIS is my BSM :-) ...

LOOK CLOSELY at the photo - the bat is in mid-air. Cool, huh?

-- Princess Magpie

So many things to catch up on ...

It's been crazy hectic around here, and I know I am woefully behind on BLOG POSTS here --

I'm signed up for a BOOKS WITHIN A BOOK class on Saturday ... if you have an interest in what that's all about, here is a photo that inspired the project -- and I'll be taking the class at SAN CLEMENTE ART SUPPLY -- for details, visit them at: http://www.scartsupply.com/

I've already been to two (yes, 2) MIXED MEDIA WITH PAPER & CLOTH classes with Jane LaFazio and a whole room-full of amazing artistic folks -- and I think I have yet to blog about what we're doing in there. My apologies for that. I'll get caught up -- soon -- I promise.

this is Jane, showing us the difference between a drawing on ARTIST'S TISSUE and UNWAXED SANDWICH PAPER {for applying on top of our background papers when doing collage work}. Week One, Mixed Media with Paper & Cloth {through the La Jolla Athanaeum}.

-- Princess Magpie

BSM: Best Shot Monday - April 20, 2009

Here is this week's post for BSM: Best Shot Monday.

this is our 'Forest Pansy' (aka, cerces) in Spring leaf & bloom (you can barely make out the tiny pink blooms in this photo ...)

And because I noticed that my first three BSM posts were all nature-related, I wanted to also post a more personal image this week ...

this is our amazing Rat Terrier, ROCKY ...

sporting his Woofstock 2009 bandana on Easter morning !!!

Wishing everyone a beautiful Monday and a terrific week .... and sending out a HAPPY BIRTHDAY greeting to our niece, Barbara, too.

-- Princess Magpie

Music works ...

... on so many levels.

if you didn't yet click to see/hear SUSAN BOYLE ... what are you waiting for?

On another music note (pun intended), if you scroll down the right side of this page, you'll see a MIX TAPE from "MixPod" (it's cool, it's easy, it's free) that was part of an assignment for my Read-Along with Dr. Brene Brown. Not only did Brene's mix-tape inspire me, but the songs that other participants posted really got me to thinking.

Take a listen.

-- Princess Magpie

P.S. if anyone's wondering - YES, I will get some posts up soon re: ART in the forms you are used to visiting my Blog for ... :-) !!!

I Dreamed a Dream - Ms. Susan Boyle of Scotland

If you never click on another link, or view another YouTube video clip, TAKE THE TIME TO VIEW THIS ONE.

Do it with your eyes open. Do it with your eyes closed. Just Do It !!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lp0IWv8QZY

Last night at dinner, my friends Gigi and Linda and I were talking about American Idol, when Linda asked if we had seen the clip of the 'stocky little older woman' from Britain that wowed judges Simon Cowell, Piers Morgan, and I don't know the gal's name ... it doesn't matter (for these purposes, it doesn't; no disrespect meant to her).

This morning, I saw a bit in the newspaper and then Googled "Susan Boyle" and up it came. It's highly viewed, this clip.

ENJOY. Just enjoy.

And whatever you do, keep on DREAMING your DREAMS, be they artistic, interpersonal, whatever they might be.

-- Princess Magpie

Best Shot Monday, week two

I am posting my BSM image on Sunday evening, because I'll be getting up & out of the house EARLIER THAN USUAL tomorrow, and don't want Monday to slip away w/o my 2nd ever "Best Shot Monday" post.



So here it is ... my BSM from this past week:



it's called "KRISTINA'S BIRTHDAY ROSE", because I shot this on Friday, April 10th -- our oldest daughter's 33rd birthday. :-)

So, what do you think?

The rose is actually known as 'Honey Dijon', and that is a pure white rogue Sweet Pea climbing up through the bush; all that floral loveliness backed by a stormy sky {that failed to drop any rain on us until 13 hours later}.

Thanks for taking a look at my BSM image of the week.

-- Princess Magpie