burning the candle

I got 9 days to go and I am burnt out. I did great today but I will be thankful when it is over. I have been staying later and later on the street. Tonight I closed up at 7:30 pm and it was busy, busy busy. I set up frurther east right next to Miss Demeaner so I can use the window dispaly lighting to light my stuff when the sun goes down. The sun is so close to the horizon all day that the noth side of the street is always in the shade. Now that I think about it in the summer I am going to boil/cook/fry. Then I am getting an orange clear film to lay over my work to protect it from the sun. Tomorrow it is going to rain but I might try and go out and get a clear plastic drop cloth and go out in the rain. Hmmm or not. still undecided. I have no stock. blah this is never ending, which can be a good thing. My goal is to have the funds available to pay for all the material for the paintings I am doing in Oromocto (whick will be a lot a lot a lot and pay for my living). I am so excited about this xmas and the move. It is a whole new adventure for me. weeee. The one thing I did like about Toronto while I was here was Steam Whistle Beer, so yummy and light. So on that note. Check out the new video directed by my friend Bradly Cayford, who use to visit me my first year selling on the street three years ago. Thanks for the support. Well here is the latest video he animated for the Most excellent Jimmy Swift Band. www.belowmemusic.com/turnaround/ and vote for it next week on Muchmusic support our local artist. When I saw the video I told him I felt cooler cause I know him, haha. Bradly Cayford works for corpernicus studios and also did the Nelly Furtado video Explode, he is a native of Toronto now living in Halifax Nova Scotia. I also ran into the amazing Folk diva singer extrordiar Jenn Grant today and Jason Burns drummer from Down with the Butterfly www.downwiththebutterfly.com Nice chattin with u guys. Hope to do work with u guys real soon. And them I think Buck 65 walked by, and then I sold two painting from these guys from Halifax. They were like yeah we are from Halifax, I'm like Me too. Look out everyone Haligonians are on a tear on Queen.

Warm winds

There was a cold front that just past. On Friday I did not work it was too cold. Instead I went with my sister and her family to the Yorkdale Mall. Wow what a mall it is too. We had dinner at the Rainforest Cafe and it was pretty cool. The food was okay but mostly you were paying for the environment. It looked like it was a labor of love to keep everything working fine and the fish tanks alright. It was like you were in a rainforest and there was even thunder and lightning and lifesize elephants freaking out. On Saturday and Sunday I worked and I did great and it was warmer.
On Saturday people from PETA were protesting in front of a store for selling fur. They had posters of ugly pictures. So many people called the cops. I had enough and called the police when they started yelling at a woman in a fur hat, saying she was a murderer and had blood on her hands. Now is that really necessary. They have been there for three weeks every Saturday parking their SUV's and wasting paper by handing out flyers that people rip up. One of the other artists asked them to keep their area contained and not scream and lay picture of blood animals all over the sidewalk and spread out so much. Cause people were not looking at art anymore. The protesters told him to go fuck himself. Is that any way to treat a street artist. So they can only protest on the Saturday cause they have jobs to go to on the weekdays. How would they like it if someone ruined their day so they couldn't get paid to work. This Saturday it was not so bad with the protesters. One of them tries to talk to me but I told him to go fuck himself, naturally. But I am sure to see them next weekend. And again I will wear my hand made rabbit fur hat I bought in the flea market bins at St Eugines Church in Morin Heights Quebec. Taking one for the team and looking good doing it.

ANNA G and Me

It is Minus 7 out there. Below normal temperature and I am contemplating going out to sell. Honestly, deep down I do not want to. But there is that very large voice in my head that is always bullying me to do so. I feel burnt out from the summer and I don't really want to sell for a while. I guess the winter season and the xmas shopping buzz is a tempting lure to participate in. I have gone out a couple time so far this winter and this is the latest in the year and the coldest time of year I have ever sold on the street. It looks like it will warm up this weekend and we will have warmer than usual weather coming up so I am just going to stay in and restock.
I have decided to pack up all my belongings and move it to Oromocto. Just because it is cheaper to do so rather than pay for storage for how ever many months up to ten. With this being said I have decided to Purge everything I own. Everyday I throw loads of stuff out. From clothing to mostly clothing and then some bits and pieces of clothing. When I finish that I move on to throwing out more clothing. Why do I have so much? It baffles me. I have 20 pairs a pants and I wear only one of them for the most part. (random thought chicken and spaghetti is not a good mix)
Here is a pic of my new pendant. It is the Anna G by Alessandro Mendini, a Designer for Alessi. I love her. The pendant was discontinued last year and I think Trevor got me the last one. Thanks babe, I love it. love it. love it.

Cutest Little Kitchen on Earth and Our House

In a Remote Area of Town

Joey and Me and Aaron

dashchunds

Oromocto Flow

We went out for dinner in Fredericton last night. We went to the Blue Door, to try out their pad thai and we got a curry dish as well. Um yah for a $16 plate of food, we got crappy rice in a pork curry with potatoes. half a potatoe in dried up curry and over cooked meat on crappy rice. The pad thai was drowned in a coconut milk with green and red peppers???? Do Not go to the Blue Door, unless you would like to get ripped off and eat some crap.
I just got back from a meeting on Base with the public affairs department. Holy this Base is huge. like wow, i think its apx 30km in diameter at some parts. The meeting went well and the info on my project is going right up to the Base Commander, How cool is that.
I am posting some pics, the paintings I did for JayWells Salon. I stayed at my friend Sarahs house while I was in Halifax. Thanks Sarah You Rock...here is a pic of her kitty Joey. A pic of me in my new hair do done at Jay wells salon, Love the doo. a pic of Trevors TV, whick baffels me every time I look at it. 56 inches...why? I have to admit it is cool to watch movies on with surround sound. but yah wow big..this is a guy thing right? and pics of our little house and our street. You ever get the small wooden toy train set with the litle houses and the wooded trees and stuff. We have one at home that we put on the fire place mantel or around the xmas tree well the PMQ's personnel military quaters are just that. I think of the most excellent and coolest song ever by Metric "Rock Me Now" 'where she says a remote part of town'

All in a week

Where do I begin. I arrived in Halifax and Westjet lost my carving of the lure. I was stunned that they could lose a 6 foot long box. So I did not have the carving available for me to have for the silent auction. The auction dinner was nice. I gave a very nice speech and I was in great company. The Auction (must remain positive) went Okay. The mermaid went for $1000. I was told prior to the auction the starting bid was going to be $1000 but the auctioneer said at first bid $5000 then said ha only kidding and the started at $500 and went up $25 increments. It was painful to witness it. Anyways I have to let that go. I waited and called Westjet for days and my cell phone bill will be through the roof. Finally the day after I arrived in Oromocto New Brunswick the carving shows up at a post office in Halifax. I was able to get the carving of the cedar lure shipped to Oromocto and for the four days it was in westjet's hands they had no idea where it was and how it ended up at the post office. Finally getting the carving back broken. It won't take too much work to fix it, but I don't have the tools to do that so I had to put it in the basement out of my sight. I am too upset to look at what Westjet has done to it.
I am in Oromocto, literally 700 meters from the base entrance in the cutest little house on earth. I wake up to the sound of Oh Canada blaring from the elementary school in the back yard and to the sounds of exercises of guns firing from the base. My boyfriend Trevor who lives here and works on base is pretty happy about my arrival. We went for a run through the trails in CFB Gagetown yesterday. It was beautiful. Oromocto is very small. We went into the Saturday market in Fredericton and it was very cool. Don't try the Pad Thai, its terrible. This week I am working on my grant application for funding. The Canadian Arts Council creators grant. To help fund the research and creations of the paintings of the guns and vehicles issued to the Canadian military, as a still-life series. I am soo excited. From Jan to May I will be living here working on these painting with access to the base and a liaisons officer to help with my research. So keep checking my blog the images will be exciting.

Talking a flight tonight

I am on my way to Halifax for the auction of my mermaid and my lure. I am soo excited to go back to Halifax for a visit and see all my Pirate Whores. I finished the paintings for Jay Well salon and he is going to be very pleased I will put the images on line after I give them to him. They are three painting of his dachshund dogs. One painting per dog. He removed all the art and stuff from his house and he is apparently looking for a very sleek grey look. I think I got it. Will see. HEhe...I am pretty excited. I am going to visit my friends at the Little Mysteries shop on Barrigton and giving them new stock. I put some of my art in a store in Toronto called the Occult. Yah wow this is like the "hardcore of wicca". Well that what the owner said. As I stood there buggeyed looking at all the vials of herbs and oils. Rows and rows of the stuff...Wow I guess if you wanna make a spell you would go here to get ...ummmm what you need? Actually it was pretty cool and they seemed really nice, my kinda people. Oh well gotta get my lure packed and get ready to go.

Not to into Green

I am trying to shake the flu. I was in bed for Monday night all Tuesday and Tuesday night with a fever. Yesterday was beautiful and sunny so I went and work on the street for a couple of hours, just to get some fresh air and enjoy the sun. My sister went to San Francisco for the week. When she got back yesterday she told me she went to the Alessi store. Only two in the states and she went to one of them. I am so jealous. Although, she got me something for xmas from there..weeee.
This year we are have and ugly shirt present. We put our names in a hat and we pick a name. There are ten of us. And we have to buy whom ever we pick an ugly shirt. We open the present at xmas eve dinner and you wear the shirt for xmas dinner. It is going to be a hoot. Well at least this year something will match the silly xmas cracker tissue crowns we always wear. here is what I did yesterday.

Election day

Here I am sick as a dog, Could it be because I live with kids?? Who knows. All I know is I have a sore throat and I am pretty sick. The toronto flu??? I am just hoping this is just a cold and I don't need to see a doctor. I went to get some medicine at the drug store on my break while working for the inbound call centre for elections canada in the North York Civic Centre. The pharmacist said I have an infection and I need antibiotics. My Question is why is that always the solution. Are we drugging ourselves too much. I think that we are all going overboard with the drugs and medicine. I am leaving for halifax in a week and I am excited and stressed at the same time. I worked yesterday on the street and did pretty good. It is getting too cold to stain frames on the street and the stain just does not dry. I am only able to sell for a short peroid before I can't stay out any longer. I wear plenty of layers to wear and then I just get too cold, I even wear a snowsuit dress, two pairs of pants, four shirts, mitts, hat and a jacket and brrrrrrrr. I can get one painting done while selling on the street. I am at the call centre right now working for the city of toronto election. How funny is this I barely know the city and I am helping people find out where they need to go to vote. Well the computer system is amazing and all I am doing is typing in their address and "poof" it come up a map and where they need to go. this is prettty fun, but my butt is getting sore from sitting all day thought. Oh well its 3 now I only have 2 more hours.

Warmer November

This month has proven to have warmer and fairer days than October, the only sunny Saturday in October was the 7th. Here is a pic of my latest crows. I like em. This month I am applying for a creators grant that is given by the Canadian Arts Council. I would like some extra funding during the winter months while living near (Gagetown) in Oromocto New Brunswick doing the painting for the show Canadian Issue. This Monday is a municipal election for the City of Toronto and I am happy to say I am working the election. I will be working the inbound call centre for electors to call during the voting hours. That is going to be one long day. I start at 7am and I have no clue when I finish, I assume when the poles close. I think it is going to be a nice day. I am going to work on queen street today and Sunday. Saturday I have training for the election day and it is going to rain. How convenient. I apparently is going to rain on Monday too.

DeadGurl

Say hello to Deadgurl

Say hello to my new character Deadgurl, who has a favorite toy doll Dead Kitty. She not really dead but she wants to be a ghost. I guess her favorite song would be "Happy Phantom" by Tori Amos. Bombgurl is almost done and perfect timing too. Deadgurl is haunting me for sure. I worked today and it was nice and warm for a November day. I was only out for 4 hours as usual. I think I might go out tomorrow and then friday to sundays only.

On the street

Holy freezing my butt off,
That snowsuit dress I made has come in handy, haha. I am selling on the street every sunny day and it is getting pretty cold out there. I can only sell for 5 hours then I just can't take it anymore and I have to come home. I have to bike up a slow incline all the way home and it is a 20 minute bike ride sitting up on my BMX towing all my art. It is a great work out. I get home sweaty pealing off layers.
I am going to Halifax in 19 day I am a little excite to see how the auction goes. The auction wants to start with no minimum bid on my mermaid and that make me feel very nervous. It makes me think am I really worth nothing. I have to be Buddhist about it and let it go. Thinking it is not the value or the end piece but the it is the action of creating that is the reward. How many learning experiences does one have to go through when things start feeling fair.
thought I would introduce you to a new addition to my family of critters and friends. Say hello to Dead Kitty

Happy Halloween

Apparently at this point I can't upload the images that I really wanted because when I took the red eye out it made the files very big???.Oh well. I'll try later

Online

I have internet at the place I am living and I am able to be more attentive to my blog. Thank DOG. I am no longer at a PC room trying to do internet stuff while having to endure listing to teenage gamers blowing things to bits in their games at full volume and swearing the whole time. I worked the St Laurent Market on Saturday and it was the worst market day I have ever had. I took in a huge loss that day. I honestly felt like I was in a gigantic fridge and I was on the door of the fridge in the shelf under the butter or some place crappy like that. In the Halifax Farmers Market their set up is great, it's food table, craft table, food table, craft table and so one. At this market the crafter's and artisans are tucked away in the back corner. It really sucks. I might try it again when it is close to Christmas for one day if there is a lot of snow on the ground and I can't sell on the street. I have been selling on Queen and Spadian and I have been doing great. I really love it. I will be there today, tomorrow and this weekend. Well I'm off to book a flight for Halifax. Wish me luck. Here is a picture of my niece in the coolest Halloween costume ever, she is a fairy Princess.

Housewarming

Here is a pic of my latest Alessi piece. It is a (as you can see) q-tip holder. A gift from the amazing Trevor. Thanks Babe.

Traffic

I can't stand the traffic in the city. I have been hit in the elbow twice by car passenger mirrors. It sucks, it gives me such a fright. Road rage at a whole new level.
Here is a picture of my lure that I carved out of aged cedar several years ago. The cedar was uses as the structural base for the water pipe in my parents back yard in Morin Heights we have a damn in my back yard, actually the damn use to power the village. So the water went throught a large pipe and would go up and pour over a wheel and the motion of the wheel powered electricity. Over time the city of montreal powered electricity to the village and the damn in the Simon River went to decay. To the delight of a carver like me. There was a bounty of cedar soaked in water for decades and large and excellent for carving. The eyes and tail of the Lure are made from rare BC Red Cedar, the red cedar was a gift to me. I love it cause the cedar looks like perfect pieces of raw salmon fillets. the combination of the two make a beautiful balance.

Back in Toronto

Oh my gosh I haven't seen the sun in like a week. It has rained so much. My sister and two of her kids and I piled in to her car on Tuesday and drove through the rain to get to Morin Heights where the funeral was held at. It rained the whole time making the drive brutal. Arriving at almost 2 in the morning. The next day we went to My grandmothers funeral and on the write up about the service and Nan was a poem. One line in the poem said "I am the autumn rain". Well she sure was. Pretty much all the cousin's were there and some of the greatgrand children. Totaling over 40 of up. I have a very big family with my grandmother having 5 children and then 19 grandchildren and 26 greatgrand children (so far)this does not include all the spouses and partners. I brought all my stock up to my moms house so all my cousins could see and they were able to get a good idea of what kind of art I am doing. I just got back in to Toronto last night. I am going to get a table at the ST Laurent market for Saturday. Keep yah posted.

whos got the voodoo doll

I went to the Ontario woodcarvers association meeting tonight. I was asked to come and meet some of the carvers and maybe find a mentor while I am here. when I first arrived in Toronto, The lovely Trevor and I were checking out the city when we found the associations annual meeting and show,live carving. We checked it out and it was very cool. They had a silent auction and I placed bids on all the tools. well I won one of them. I so needed it...I got a 4000 grit cone gouge slip stone for 15 bucks. It was a real trek getting to the meeting.I first biked to summerville station and when I got on the train with my bmx my leg went throught the gap between the train and the platform.I have to be more careful.well with a bleeding leg I have to indure a crazy woman rambling on about nothing at the same time thinking in my head that pain is really just nerve endings sending a message to your brain and to not think about it.I am going to have a nasty bruise all the way up both calfs. then I got off at york mills and biked up york mills to bayview. All for a slip stone. well I am off to Morin Heights for the week to my Grandmothers Funeral. I am bringing popcorn cause there is going to be some drama. The will is crazy. My best advice to anybody is if you want something ask for it. I asked my grandmother many times how much i loved her inuit HOHO print and the native eagle carving and how I would love her to leave it to me. I am going take very good care of both pieces that I have admired for decades. You would have to pry them out of my cold dead hands.

karma please????

What did i do??? I set up yesterday in a mood no good for working. I woke up a bit emotional and like I have been all week..... tired. It rained suddenly and hard and destroyed all my work. this left me in bad modd and i packed up my soaked stuff and went home. With rain clouds in my mind I arrived home and got everything inside right before a freak hail storm. for everybody out there who really knows me. and for all the true maritimers. I cracked open a beer. I knew it would talk me a whole days work just to restock and I was just whiped out at the thought of it.
just then I got the phone call that my grandmother died. One of the reasons why I moved closer to my family. she was a great woman. We called her Nan. she was 96. when I was a kid we would stay at her house north of montreal southwest of morin heights My hometown. She was making a Black forrest cake and I asked her why do you call it blak forrest. she said the shaving on the top of the cake come from a black tree that taste like chocolate (adults can be so crule).and told me she needed more and to going the woods and find the black tree and take some bark. running back and forth i kept on getting the wrong tree barks. I was out there all day.

changing seasons

I am mostly scattered all the time and seldom able to find focus in my transition. I am still looking for a place to live. I am thinking about a shared apartment. The problem is I wont be living here for a full year. I will be working on a show in the winter from mid january to march, possibly living on a canadian army base. I am then trying for a residence in Ottawa for two months at a place i can't reveal yet. then I will sell on the street in the summer in toronto and possibly do a project in Halifax. Then mid september, I am moving. To where I don't know. well if you keep up with the blog you will eventually find out. I have an idea of where but I know for sure it is not here.

I was working on two paintings today in the basement and was rushing to get out the door to sell. when I felt a wave of exhaustion just hit me like a ton. I had to lay down. This happens once a month. {hint,hint}I feel like there is a ton of bricks on my chest. I told myself okay only 20 minutes and then get going well right when i laid down I passed out in a storm of dreams and chaos in my head when I woke it felt like I was out for an etenity but it was just an hour. at that time the wind picked up with crazy gusts, I would have destroyed my work had I of left on time. then it started to rain. a very cold rain.

I am getting focuse on why i moved here. I am trying to center my energy on doing the last images of bombgurl and finding a publisher. I am also applying for a creators grant with the canadian art council. will see how it all goes.

In november on the 13 I will be working the Ontairo election which excited the beans outa me. I am hoping to have more control of a pole station. last election I was a DRO. this time I want to run a whole poling station

I will be in Halifax for 3 days in November from November 21-23. On November 21 in the evening Abilities Nova Scotia is having a gala and unvailing their image they are asking artist to paint. One of whick I will paint for the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic this coming spring summer. They will auction off May-Lynn that night in part to settle the costs of me making the piece and the rest will go abilities nova scotia. I will tell you now I will cry. I will be giving a little speach to introduce the autioning of May-Lynn. I will cry for sure. It's kind exciting.

well I am off. I don't have internet where I am staying. I am feeling the deprevation. and I am at a korean pc internet place on bloor. holy it is filled with teenage boys playing games on the internet. I gotta go I can't handle the sounds of all the explotions and crap coming from the games. This is when I miss my Ipod, the most. I some times pick it up at home and push the button hoping it will come alive. i can't write about this anymore it will make me cry. My next big purchases. 8G nano, airapple, mac laptop.....mmmmmm and docking station would be nice too. Now that I am working on a pc because I have no internet I love my emac so much more. I feel like I am cheating on it.

comfortable transition

well here I am in Toronto, been here for a week now. you can find me on sunny days on queen and spadina in front of the 360. usually from 11-6. I am biking around looking at different places to live. Where I am staying there is no internet so i feel somewhat detached. I stayed at my parents house for a couple of day on my trip to Toronto it was so beautiful to be up north in the laurentiens of quebec. we rented a 14 foot uhaul and it took us 4 days to get to toronto. we took our time and had an awesome time doing it. The color of the leeves were in their full fall glory. I was stunning to see them. so much red. I picked an awesome time to travel. everything is going great. I have had people who recognize me from the waterfront and even two years ago on the springarden road fence. Saying Oh my god Bombgurl. pretty funny. I am now on the pad thai kick. we ate at every pad thai place in toronto practically. well I am addicted to bloor street, I love it.

more pics

unveiling went well

Well yesterday went very well my unveiling went off smoothly. It was an awsome experience to do this with the museum. I am packing and moving today and tomorrow. I have major mixed feelings about the move but everything happens for a reason. I have cried a lot. I kissed my mermaid goodbye May-Lynn I called her and she has come from the centre of my soul, crying right now as I think about leaving her behind. I put a boiled linseed oil on her as a finish and she look great. the truck is almost bpack and i will be on the road soon. thanks to everyone for all your support and look out toronto here I come. as I was closing up everything and making sure everything was put back in the right spot at the museum and as I locked up the doors of the glendine a huge bald eagle flew over head and was heading northwest. I will take that as a good sign. oh and two days before i think it was tuesday, yah a huge school of black porpoises were in the harbour. I saw two of them jump out of the water a the same time .There must have been over 50 of them. They were black dolphin like things with a white belly. so cool I got pics but they are not great.

done like toast

She is all done the unvailing is tomorrow at 4pm behind the museum. come by and see me. here are some pics of her done but before a finish is put on. i cried and i love her.

operator???

I can't used the number 0 on my cell. So my unvailing for all you to know will be on Thursday at 4pm. Today I have to pack and organize my room and start putting all my stuff in boxes. I will be on the waterfront tomorrow all day doing the final touches on my carving. thanks to everyone for all the support.

cell works

After using a hair dryer on cool and letting it dry out the cell works. yahhhhh. The ipod on the other hand i think is a gonner. gettong ready for work send yah all pics.

oh shoot

The worst way to end and exhausting day was to have a drink in my bag spill all over my cell phone, ipod, itrip and ipod charger. all of it ruined. All my phone numbers are gone. I am devistated, I don't have alot I live a very minimal live mostly because of my career choice. The things I do own I take very good care off. I can't even afford to go to the dentist let along get health insurance so replacing these items is a long shot. anyways enough whining, I am just really upset. I am hoping that they will work after a few days of drying out.

muggy

it was a very muggy day, the sky didn't open up at all, it was just clouds hanging over and a little mist and rain in the morning but it was so heavy humid and hard to breath. It was like in a steam room. I did a lot f work on her face and neck I have more work to do. I am becoming more critical of the piece and there is so much of the piece that I have some issues with> I am sure no one else sees this but me. I worked in the Boat shop today because of the weather. Hopefully tomorrow will fair better skies.

american hardcore

Went to a movie at the atlantic film festival. saw American Hardcore, a documnetary of the hisory of hardcore punk music. Very good and interesting. kinda want to go see loud quite loud a film about the pixies. I finally took pics so quit all your whining.

me and todd

Here is a pic of me and Todd Coopper one of the crew members of the Amistad. I think the pics are awsome. going to go carve now and this time I won't forget to take pictures. I have been so busy doing my carving that I haven't had the time to do any paintings, its really frustrating. I have a lot of images in my head that I want to just get out. I am planning an unvailing event and end of residence thingy on Thursday September 28th. keep yah all posted on that