Max

We are finding ourselves faced with the devastating task of trying to decide if it's time to put one of our beloved cats to sleep. They are both sick but one is doing better than the other. Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers during this difficult time. I am keeping this short because Sarah has written about it in detail on her blog. Go here if you would like to read more.

Rehearsals, Rehearsals, Rehearsals

Starting yesterday we have rehearsals for our church's Christmas musical every day or night thru the performances which are the 6th thru the 9th of December. Throw in a couple of Christmas parties here and there and a trip to Iowa and that makes for one busy holiday season for the Gordon's. I still hope to blog when I am able but there won't be much going on except for the aforementioned activities. Go here if you want to see what our Christmas musical is all about.

Marty Recommends...

Once - This movie is great! Okay, so the cinematography isn't so great but the rest of it is excellent. It is a wonderful musical love story. You really fall for the characters in a big way. The music is excellent. After the movie, Sarah and I went to Barnes and Noble to get the soundtrack. I think the best thing I can say about this movie is that it is so authentic. No glitz, no glamour, no schmaltz. It is very, very human.

Fido - If you are a fan of Shaun of the Dead, you will love this movie. The premise is simple...a boy and his zombie. It has a great cast including Tim Blake Nelson who is one of my favorites. Billy Connelly, another fave of mine, plays Fido...the zombie w/ a heart. This movie is just plain fun but caution...there is a lot of blood and guts. It is a zombie movie after all.

Dead Like Me - Sarah and I are enjoying this series a lot. It centers around a girl named George who is killed at the age of 18 and recruited to be a Grim Reaper. We are in the middle of Season 2 and it's a very cool series.

Amazing Grace - This movie tells the story of William Wilburforce and his battle to abolish slavery in Britain. This movie is well-done with a great cast, great story and a great look.

Eureka - This is a Sci-Fi Channel series that tells the story of a small town in the Pacific NW that houses all the great minds of the world. As a result, they have access to technology that no one else has and problems that require unique solutions. Keeping the peace is Sheriff Jack Carter who has his hands full in more ways than one. This series is formulaic but enjoyable nonetheless. The characters are completely likable and the special effects are exceptionally good for a television series.

Georgia Baptist Resolution Criticizes Baptist Blogs

Those kooky Baptists are at it again. Once again they have proven that they are better at demonstrating what they are against rather than what they are for. I'm so glad I'm not one of them anymore. They make me sad.

Story Link

Ready or Not!

We had a nice Thanksgiving yesterday with friends. It was a low-key, laid back day and best of all, since we had it at our house, the leftovers stayed here.

Today, I had to go to work (yuck) but it was a quiet day since no one else was around...so that was good. When I got home I found that Christmas had exploded all over our apartment. For those of you who don't know, Sarah is very much a Christmas person and I am not. I don't mind the decor and all it's just that I don't get into the holiday spirit. Sarah does and in a big way. We're not even going to be here for Christmas this year. We're going to Iowa to see her family. But we're having our NW Arts Christmas Party here so Sarah put on her Martha Stewart hat today and went to town.

I will have to admit that I have 95% of my shopping done this year. Thank goodness for the internet. So, ready or not, Christmas is on the way.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Encouraged Again

I took a little trip to the Pike Place Market today to drop off some art at Twilight. I gave them 52 prints and around 12 originals to sell. The three gals who run the place came in so I got to talk to them for a bit. They are opening a new place in West Seattle. That's very exciting. That's double the selling potential not to mention the fact that West Seattle is a more artsy area than the Market downtown. My stuff will probably have a better chance at selling over there. They also asked if I wanted to do a solo show at the new place next year. I, of course, said yes. They said it's really big but I told them if they book me I'll fill the space. No problem. As long as I have shows lined up it gives me the extra drive to produce art. I'm sure the show will be mid to late next year so that we can put some space between the January show (which they are sponsoring as well). Things are still happening so I am encouraged.
In January, in addition to the show I have lined up w/ Twilight, I am also involved in an Art Party where I will be selling my art and prints and I am also involved in the Pop Tots Alphabet Show. They have lined up 26 artists to interpret each letter in a funky but kid-friendly way. I am doing the letter "R". Should be fun.
So, that's all the art news for today. Remember kids, it's fun to be creative...it's just not always financially lucrative.

A Little Discouraged

The life of an artist is a roller coaster. True, I've sold quite a few pieces recently but I've also had some discouraging moments.
- The Edmonds Art Walk was a bust due to bad weather.
- A gallery I would really like to get into downtown keeps rejecting me. They like my stuff but they have someone doing stuff kinda like mine already. (Yeah, right. It's collage but it's nothing like mine. They can't have 2 collage artists?)
- I got an email from a Canadian magazine today. They love my art and wanted to commission me for something they needed in a hurry. I called but they had gotten someone else.
So, I am a bit bummed at the moment. The little victories are nice but I wouldn't mind something a bit more substantial...something on a scale befitting my genius! (HA) In reality, I would like to be a big deal (Jeff's phrase) in the art world. I've always wanted that. Luckily, the life of an artist is full of rejection and disapointment. I have a thick skin. I can take it.
I'll get over this hump and keep on working. It's all I can do.

Booklist

Shiva Descending by Gregory Benford and William Rotsler

"A gigantic asteroid the size of a mountain, Shiva is set to hit Earth with the force of a hundred thousand nuclear bombs, poised to destroy all life on Earth and blast the human race into instant extinction. Only a last-ditch space mission has a chance of saving the Earth--or what's left of it after the first asteroid rainshower."*

I've had this book sitting on the shelf for a long time. I think I picked it up at a Dollar General in SC. Well, I finally got around to reading it. You know what? It's pretty much your standard, garden variety, asteroid-is-going-to-hit-Earth kinda story. It was written in 1979 so I guess it's one of the precursors to Armageddon and Deep Impact. Lucifer's Hammer came first. It was published in 1977 and it's a better story. But, I guess if you like those end-of-the-world type books...and I do...it's worth a read. Just don't expect to be surprised. It's been done and done better.

*Link

Dead Art Walking

Well, the Edmonds Art Walk was a bust. It rained and rained and rained and no one showed up. Well, a few folks but not near the crowd they are used to. One of the organizers said they've only had 3 bad turn out nights in the 6.5 years they've been doing it. Guess what? I got one of them. Yippee! Hopefully they will ask me back during the spring or summer when the crowds are big. That would be great.
I did have a yummy Thai dinner at a local eatery and I did eat some yummy cheese while hanging out at the cheese shop. Man, that was some good cheese...and expensive. The manager gave me a hunk of this awesome cheddar to bring home so Sarah could try it. That was very nice. They also had this nice Irish brie served on these funky fruit cake looking crackers. Awesome! If it wasn't so blinkin' expensive I would have brought some home. Maybe next time we're in Edmonds I'll splurge for some. If you like cheese and you're ever in the Seattle area, I recommend the Resident Cheesemonger in Edmonds. It's worth it.
So, I'm done with the art shows until January. Probably a good thing. December is going to be crazy!

Edmonds Art Walk

This Thursday night I will be showing and selling my work at the Edmonds Art Walk. I will be camped out at the Resident Cheesemonger (204 Main St.) from 5 -8 pm. I will have prints of my work available for purchase as well as a few select originals. The good folks at the Resident Cheesemonger will be giving out yummy samples of their cheese. It looks to be a grand night of cheesy art and cheesy snacks. Join us, won't you?

Mickey Health Update

I got so busy I forgot to update you all on Mickey's progress. After his very expensive ultrasound they determined that he has a kidney infection. He is on antibiotics and appetite stimulant. He is eating more and feels like he has gained a bit of weight back. He didn't lose too much. He is still fat and sassy. Thank you all for checking up on him and thinking about us during these difficult geriatric kitty years.

Batman: Dead End

If you like Batman and you haven't seen this, watch it now!

Too Busy to Blog?

I hope the dozen or so of you that check my blog will forgive me for being a bit infrequent with my posts. The holiday season is upon us and things are getting very busy for the Gordon's. Christmas musical rehearsals are kicking into high gear as well as having a lot to do in preparation for my upcoming art shows. I will post when I'm able and actually have something interesting to talk about. See you soon.

Kitty Update

Mickey is at the internal medicine vet as we speak. They are sure it's a kidney infection so he will go on antibiotics and an appetite stimulant and can eat whatever he likes for a few days. (He's loving him some Bumblebee tuna) Hopefully we'll see an improvement in a few days. We're thankful (at the moment) that it seems minor compared to other things it could have been. We'll keep you updated.

Our Sick Kitty

Mickey's condition continues to be a mystery. He still won't eat his regular food but we've managed to get him to eat a bunch of treats many times a day. At this point the vet just says to get him to eat...anything. Sarah is trying to get an appointment for more tests...ultrasound and whatever else. I'm certain it's going to be expensive. Some people might balk at the expense and have the animal put to sleep. Sarah and I are not built like that. The only way we'll consider that is if Mickey's quality of life is going to be greatly diminished...if he is going to suffer in any way. Otherwise, we will do what we can and deal with the money issues as they come.

Sarah's two boys, Mickey and Max, have been with her a long time. They've only been my boys for a couple of years but I'm quite attached to them. When my cat Trinity died a couple of years ago, Max became my buddy. It's almost like he knew I had a loss and he was trying to help me. Mickey is entirely a mama's boy.

Remember us in your prayers and positive thoughts. Everyone in the family's been sick this year except for Sarah. She's worn out from trying to take care of all of us.

If you want to read more about Mickey from Sarah's POV, go here.

Long Weekend

Due to vacation hours building up and the impending loss of some of those precious hours, I am taking Tuesday of this week off. Since we're between shows I didn't have to work Saturday so that means I'm in the middle of a 4-day weekend. It's not all fun and games, however. Saturday and Sunday were busy days.
Our cat Mickey is not eating like he should so Sarah took him to the vet on Sat. morning. They took blood and will let us know something on Tuesday. It's either nothing or something very serious. We knew that one day the medicine for his Inflammatory Bowel Disease would eventually stop working but we hope that is not the case. We're not ready to say goodbye to our little furry guys. They are precious to us. The good news is that his personality has not changed and he doesn't seem to be experiencing any discomfort. We'll see.
Saturday, I prepared for a long day of rehearsals but gained a reprieve when Jeff sent me home early. Sarah and I took advantage and had a date night. Just dinner and a movie but it was nice nonetheless.
Yesterday was a full day. First, we forgot to set our clocks back so we ended up at church a full hour too early. We went to the local coffeeshop and had breakfast and beverage. When we got to church we found out that we won 2nd place in the Trunk or Treat contest. We got a $50 gift certificate to Olive Garden. Sweet! We didn't want first place since it was tickets to the Christmas show at Taproot. Jellybean the clown won that prize and she deserved it. Her trunk was a huge draw w/ candy and balloon creations.
After lunch with our lifegroup, we jumped into a long afternoon Stumble Through of Act 1 of the Christmas musical. We did finally stumble thru the whole thing, laughing alot. I need to get off book in a bad way. Memory work is tough for me. I don't know why. But, no excuses...I've got to buckle down and get that stuff in my head and in my body.
After rehearsal, we came home, ate and watched a movie. Then, off to bed. We don't have rehearsal tonight but we do have it on Tuesday and Thursday night. I have memory work to do to prepare for that since we are going to work on one of my songs in a big way. I'm looking forward to 2 days of chores, art, memory work and enjoying being away from work.
Laundry beckons. Off I go.