Hey friends, Happy Monday! Happy Columbus Day, and Happy Thanksgiving to our Canadian friends. Not a bad way to kick off the week. We've got fantastic Fall weather here on the NJ Shore. After a gloomy week of grey mornings we're back in the sunshine...being woken up by the slanted beam of eastern sun that peeks between our curtains. And it's been a little over a week now since we've changed our morning smoothie habit to a proper breakfast with forks and plates or spoons and bowls. Today's offering was Paleo banana pancakes, and they came out perfect. Being that we're pretty psyched on breakfast foods right now I'm thinking we may have to blog some fave recipes soon.
We are about 10 days away from our trip to Atlanta! So so excited for the event! We can't wait to see everyone and make some really pretty stuff together! And when you couple the event with the Country Living Fair it's a pretty huge deal for a couple of recluses. And it makes total sense for us...we are able to get a whole lot out of one big day or weekend. We've been this way forever...we spend months locked away...and then we get out there for a very brief moment...expose ourselves to a million happy things...overload our senses with friends, art, and fun...and then we return home and live off the residual energy for the next few months. So this is it...this is our one big "Fall Thing"...and we can't wait for it! We are finishing up some last minute things for our class kits, and have to search the upstairs closets for our luggage. We did lose a bunch of stuff to hurricane Sandy, so we are holding out hope that we may have stashed a few suitcases in an upstairs closet when we first moved in. That would be a relief...one less thing to take care of...because jeez...there are only 10 days before blast off!! ahhh!!
We have been working non stop on orders and we are almost totally caught up. We shipped a batch on Saturday and hope to ship more on Wednesday. So if you are waiting on a package, thank you so so much for your kindness and patience.
Over the past 2 weeks I took a few minutes here and there to work on some personal art. Making art just to make art has become a very rare practice for us lately. But when we get stressed...it really is such good medicine. In fact, it's medicine that we probably couldn't survive without.
I had this great round board sitting around, and before I knew it I had this background. I instinctively rendered it in a fall-ish color palette, and I used a few of my new contour tools to help me achieve the rustic texture I was going for. I added to it here and there over the two weeks, and yesterday I finally committed and added the handsome fellow. He just felt right to me for this piece. In the very beginning I wasn't sure where I was going with the piece but then when I had the background mostly done and looked at the size and shape of it I just knew that making it a portrait piece was the only way to go. I added a few details earlier this morning and made the declaration that only the artist in charge can make..."he's done."
I'm really liking him and I think for once I'm gonna follow through with what my gut is telling me. I'll make sure to find the time to do more of these portraits in a very similar style. I feel like it's a series that just needs to be painted...and by gosh I'm gonna do it. Do me a favor and hold me to this pronouncement. Bug me every once in a while about it. Say "hey Jenny, we're still waitin' on some more paintings with bearded gentlemen..."
We've been cooking some really yummy stuff lately. Fall flavors. And we will be sharing those recipes soon. Above are some of the ingredients that went into a meal that absolutely floored us, and when I find the time to put the recipe post together you guys are gonna all have grumbling, mumbling bellies.
And speaking of cooking...I had shared the below video on instagram the other day and just had to share it here. A few months ago after a trip to Costco, we came home with this small cardboard box. We emptied it, tossed it to the side, and within about a minute little Jack claimed it as his own. Whenever we are cooking in the kitchen or emptying grocery bags, he runs right into the safe confines of his "good boy box". There he patiently waits and observes our kitchen duties. Meanwhile his older brother is totally under foot, doing his best to cause us massive bodily harm or death. Go ahead and try to hurry across the room with a boiling pot, sizzling skillet, or razor sharp knife whilst a nervous black chihuahua scurries beneath. But good boy Jack is just the opposite...keeps to his self proclaimed "safe spot"...and the most bother he will bring us is the occasional pathetic whimper. (which makes us turn our heads and laugh silently...since we don't want to embarrass the boy.) Anyway, we promised Jack that we will never get rid of his box, even when we finish renovating the kitchen. He will forever have his safe spot...and forever we will have an answer to the question that we ask each other so often when we don't see the little guy walking around with Carlos.
example...Question: "where's Jack?"
Answer: "Jack in the box."
We are very big Cassavetes fans. And I would say that you either love or hate his films. They are manic, crazy, strange, focussed yet all over the place. Scenes will exhaust you, truly truly exhaust you. Me and Aar are physically effected by his films. If art can do that...wow. One of my all time favorites is A Woman Under the Influence with the amazing Gena Rowlands and my first crush Peter Falk. Oh it is just incredible. I could go on and on. So just the other night we watched Minnie & Moskowitz, well actually, due to the aforementioned symptoms of exhaustion we watched it over two nights, on the laptop in bed. After the first half we both agreed that we needed a long night's rest before we could take in the remainder of the film...exhausting and amazing. As far as Cassavetes flicks go...this is a really good one. Again, you may love it...or you may think that Jenny and Aaron like some awful strange stuff. I also loved seeing Seymour Cassel as a young guy! Before seeing this film I've only ever seen him as an older gent. And in Minnie and Moskowitz he's not only a young man...he's a hairbag! And wow does he have some head of hair...the color was fabulous! Moskowitz is such a character! So...like I said...I recommend it...but I'm not promising anything. ; ) (it's on netflix)
And.... GUYS!! It's back!! Need I say anymore!!?
We watched in delight as our favorite post apocalyptic crew tried to make sense of their new community within the prison walls. Oh gosh...it's all gonna fall to piece so quickly...and what could be more entertaining than that?!
Hope your week is great! Thanks for popping in!
xo Jenny...and Aaron says hi!