Merry Christmas!

It's Christmas Eve. Life may be busy, but one ought to make time for simple pleasures--luminarias on your front walk.

Cool stuff in my basement.

Spencer has some really beautiful historic homes. I've noticed a number of well-kept Craftsman style homes, including my own. My house was built in 1911 and has been well-maintained. (My only complaint is that the arched fireplace has been partially covered up.) One of the things I like about old houses is their history. Even if I never know the stories or who it was that once lived there, just knowing that people experienced the place decades ago is enough to create intrigue.

This is the first old house I've lived in. Among other things, here are a couple of interesting things in the basement:



How long since that's been used, do you think?



Evidence of a former radio enthusiast.

What sorts of interesting things have you found in your basement/attic? Got any interesting stories about your house?

Light behind PLAC

Windows covered in ice:

It's beginning to look a lot like...

It's really winter now. Our jack-o-lanterns sit half-rotten in the compost heap wearing jackets of snow.



This half-buried stone sculpture was created by a Japanese exchange student who didn't want to lug it on the plane home. It resembles some sort of temple.



Dormant raspberry bushes dusted in snow.

If it's wintry outside, I can't help but want to get Christmasy inside:



This photo isn't very clear (sorry), but that's mistletoe (artificial, about $10 at the Hen House) in the center. Glass icicles by Tony Curiel (available at Arts on Grand, $6.50 each). It's a bit dark, but at the top of the mistletoe is a feather bird with gorgeous, iridescent tail feathers ($3.95 at the Hen House). Gold glass balls from Menards.



I hung paper snowflakes from the dining room chandelier.



Put lights on the ficus (20-light strand from WalMart, under $2.00).



18-inch table-top tree from Menards for 99 cents. Red decos from WalMart, gold from Menards. Vintage red raindeer do-dad from my grandparents--received years ago on a Christmas package.

By the way, I would like to plug Arts on Grand as a (Christmas) gift shop. I've managed to find several beautiful gifts which I would love to post, but I wouldn't want to spoil any surprises. 10-percent discounts for members on purchases over $10!

Studio time at AOG

Arts on Grand offers studio space for cheap. It would be difficult to find something this affordable in a bigger town. It gets even better the more people use it.



Levi, Chad



A little something I'm working on.

Grand Meander

Seasonally appropriate ice sculpture by Jim Schooley.



Habitants of Santa's Barn.



Herod, his bloke, and some wise men. Check out the sweet beard on the man on the right! This window won first prize! Way to go, Grace UMC's Journey to Bethleham (Sun., Dec. 16th)!



Ballerina in progress by Chad Elliott in front of Arts on Grand. For some reason it makes me think of the Venus of Willendorf, though I don't think there is a good reason why.



The young Mr. Curiel arting his glass for SPACE in the window of Rudy Salem.



Grand Avenue.



On the way home, I saw Santa chillaxing in the window of Telco Triad.

AOG's Gathering of Wreaths Afternoon Tea

Arts on Grand served a scrumptious tea this afternoon to open the Gathering of Wreaths holiday fundraiser. Through the 8th, you can bid on wreathes crafted by local artists and businesses.

Tea by Shaky Tree, sweets by .. I don't know, but they were decadent! Baclava, cheesecake bites, all sorts of rich goodness.

Bad day for sunshine

Today was to be the 4th Annual Holiday Art Sale at the Pearson Lakes Art Center. This event has been postponed til next Saturday (10 a.m-4 p.m.) due to weather. Fortunate for me in that I'd forgotten to get a state sales tax number and now I have time to, but unfortunate because I won't be able to be there next week due to work. Still, I'll make sure my work is there. (By the way, did I mention there was a great article about me in the November 24th edition of Discover! magazine regarding this event?)

Another event that was postponed is the afternoon tea in association with the Gathering of Wreaths event at Arts on Grand. The tea will take place tomorrow at 3.

Frankly I'm glad I'm not out. I already had my eyeballs impaled by sleet just walking from the store to my car today. Is winter like this always in northeastern Iowa?

Let us escape from this dreariness for a moment and take a look at the weather on the OTHER side of the world:



*Sigh*

Photo blatantly ripped off from my photographer sister who currently resides in New Zealand, where summer is just beginning.

P.S. You can buy photos from her Alaskan salmon adventures at Arts on Grand.