Unexpected Gifts

So I keep thinking of all kinds of little important things that happened over the last few months, but were engulfed by the phenomenon of "THE MOVE".

Bad Cats

Such as a few surprise packages I've received in the mail. One of which was an absolutely hilarious li'l book about "Bad Cats"... When Cats Go Bad, or something like that. Fussbudget sent it for my birthday. It has been thoroughly enjoyed by all (ie: Gram, Mom and Pop)... and Fussbudget just told me today that she and her Mom were crackin up over it, too. Today's the first time I've had a chance to talk to her since I received the book. I'm not good with thank-you cards, but I've been assured she's not offended for not receiving one. :)

Amway, the book features 300 some pictures of cats caught in hilarious poses, expressions and predicaments. Accompanied by li'l wisecrack titles. Flipping through it provided a pleasant diversion from the chaos of the move.

Coffeehead

The other couple of packages I've recently received were from an old friend who currently lives in Iowa. I'm not sure if I've come up with a pseudonym for her here... or if I've even mentioned her. I'm sure I have... she's a pretty important friend. She and Halloween Nut and Radish and I were pretty tight back in high school. Her and my relationship has evolved separately from mine and theirs, but we're still very close. I just can't think of whatever name I've come up for her, and don't really wanna dig it up just yet. I'll call her Coffeehead for now... it's her own internet handle, actually. I think it's pretty explanatory, so I won't go into details... lol

Amway, during one of her visits years ago we read her medicine cards to find out who her animal spirit guides are, and she found out about mine. She wrote them down, and a year or so later, I received a surprise gift in the mail. It was a charcoal drawing of one of my animals (the turtle)... one of those hidden-images kind of drawings. It was (is) gorgeous, and I loved it.

Artsy Fartsy

I suppose I should clarify here that Coffeehead is definately the artsy fartsy type. Had some kind of art major in college... loves to create. I mean, down to the creation of yarn from raw wool to create fabric. She's actually going back to school to get into agriculture... she's a lot like me in that she's very socially conscious about a variety of issues... probably even more so than me. She's big on the environment, and I think her focus at the moment is hydroponics. However, she still loves art, and appreciates every possible avenue to creative pursuits.

Since she drew my turtle years ago, she has rendered 4 more of my animals into art form. And I gave her carte blanche to make them any way she pleases. My only request was that each would be created in a different format. My fox was put together with acrylic paints and art paper. My raven was painted in oil paints... in the style of the native american imagery. I believe my opossum was created with all sorts of different materials that have depth and texture, including actual bits of wood. And the most recent, my tiger, was rendered in two alter-images of black and white outlines and chinese emblems, with a bamboo background and ribbons. She says she plans to work on my dragon this summer... into a sort of patchworked banner. I honestly can't wait.

Since I'm at the very beginning of my decorative pursuits in my new home, and the arrival of my 4th and 5th animals within the last few months, I've decided to showcase her artwork in my bedroom... saving room for the rest, of course. :) I'll try to take some pictures of them to post here.