Tuesday 1/26/21 Pigeons!

 Well hello there. Fancy meeting you here. 

So, I had a lady contact me through Etsy and ask if I would do a painting of pigeons for her (she had bought a pigeon painting I already had in my shop). She loved the painting she bought and wanted another one, but larger (the original was 5X7). I said yes. She told me about her pigeon themed room. It was kinda weird. But kinda cool. In a weird way. 

Here's the painting I did for her:

It's an 8X10, watercolors. She LOVED it. Here's the funny thing: I was going to charge her $30 for it. She refused to pay anything less than $50. She told me to edit my Etsy listing for it and charge her a "more appropriate price". Yeah. I was taken aback by that response. So I did, I charged her $50 for it. Both her and hubby told me I undersell my work. I'm my own worse critic I think. Well, I know this. I don't know what to charge for my paintings. I'm an unknown artist. I want to be fair. And I'm always worried that people don't like my work. And then today I got on my Deviant Art page and I had 96 notifications. All of them "likes" or comments on this painting. I was blown away. Seriously. People, apparently, like this painting. So maybe $50 is an appropriate price for it. 

In other news, we have snow here in Colorado. Lots of snow. And it's cold. Like, really cold. I'm over it. I'm ready for warmer weather. I mean, I love wearing my hoodie and all, but I wear it every. Single. Day. Because it's so cold. And I have to go to the post office today - which sucks in and of itself - but now I have to be out in the snow and cold, which makes it worse. Oh well. At least I have beefy new tires on my truck. 

I'm also excited because my tattoo will be finished next Tuesday! I've been impatiently waiting for Feb. 2nd to come along so I can have it done. I can't wait to see how it looks with color. I'll share pics when it's done. Also? It's much larger than I had originally planned. And I LOVE it. I was worried at first that it was too big, but nope. It's perfect. I'm already planning what to get for my next tattoo (probably much to my hubby's dismay). I would like a dove, on my right forearm (the inner part, by the crook of my elbow) to remind me that the Holy Spirit is with me, always. 

Anyhoo, that's about all for now. 

Thursday 1/21/21 Sock Rats and Violation

I should be at work today. But I'm not. I was "delayed" (which basically means I'm "on call" but I don't get time and a half if I get called in). So I slept in, sewed a little, and sketched out a drawing of pigeons that I'm doing on commission. And now that I'm full with lunch I could use a nap. But sadly, I just got notified that I'm going into work at 2:30, so no nap for me. Bummer.

So maybe you're wondering what the "violation" in the title of this post is. Well, early Monday morning, our 4Runner was broken into. The passenger side window was smashed out and everything had been rummaged through. I was at work when hubby texted me a pic of the window. My stomach dropped and I felt a little sick inside. Having your vehicle broken into is such a violation of personal space. I was angry and frustrated and saddened. People are assholes. Hubby got everything cleaned up and got an appointment to have the window replaced the next day. But still - people are assholes. 

Let's move on to something a little more light hearted. 

Sock rats!

Yes, in addition to making my plush zombie animals again, I'm also making my sock rats. I've made 3 and have sold them all already. Phillipe, Josephine, and Banjo. They're pretty adorable. And they don't take too long to make. 

Here's Josephine:

Each rat is made from one sock and some felt. They're pretty cuddly and all are epic. I need to find more beads for the eyes, though. I'm running out. 

In other news, I've been freaking tired lately. I want to take a nap every. Single. Day. And I don't know why. I mean, I know some nights I don't sleep well and so I'm tired the next day. But even when I DO sleep well, I'm still tired. I'm sure my doc would pin this on either A. depression (I actually haven't been depressed since, like, last July), or B. fibromyalgia (which I'm not convinced I actually have). So I don't think going to the doctor about it would be helpful. It really is annoying though. I don't want to feel as though I need a nap every day. And this isn't wanting a nap. It's NEEDING a nap. I feel tired and groggy and worn out by the afternoon. Caffeine doesn't help. Nothing helps except taking a nap. It's stupid. 

Oh well. At least I was productive today before having to go into work. Go me!

Thursday 1/14/21 Stuff and Stuff

 Well, well, well . . . if it isn't Thursday. Kinda snuck up on me. This past week has gone by relatively quickly. But not quickly enough. 

I got my tattoo last week, though it's not finished. I still need color in it. My arm was swelling enough that Don, my tattoo artist, wanted to hold off on color until another day. And that day is Feb. 2nd - groundhog day! It can't come quick enough! We went bigger with my tattoo than I had originally anticipated. A LOT bigger. But I absolutely LOVE it! And I can't wait for it to be finished! Surprisingly, it didn't really hurt at all. Which is good, cause I didn't really want to be in pain. 

There's not a whole lot else going on. I spent part of this morning picking out and writing about my Catholic saint. I am converting/becoming Catholic and part of the process is picking out a saint to pray to and emulate. I chose St. Dymphna, for obvious reasons (she's the patron saint of mental illness). I will be baptized before Easter and confirmed. I'm not really sure of the whole process. Don't judge - I'm new at this. 

And apart from that it's been work and sewing. I've taken up sewing again, did I mention that? I'm making my plush zombie animals again. So far I've made two bunnies, a squirrel, and a horse. The horse is a little derpy (the pattern is hard to sew). But yeah, I'm sewing again. I'm hoping people want to buy them like they did in the past, that would be nice. I'll have to upload some pictures so I can post them here. But not right now cause I'm too lazy. 

I got the second Covid vaccine last Thursday. I had chills Thursday night into Friday and my arm was crazy sore, but that's about it (apart from some fatigue). Not bad. And yeah. That's about it in the boring life of me. 

Wednesday 1-6-21 Tattoo Day!

 And just like that it's the new year. 

I skipped a week in blogging, though I doubt any of my 1-2 readers will have noticed. But yes! It's 2021 already! This past year has been the slowest yet quickest year ever. It's been weird and awful and sometimes wonderful. I've been stable and happy for 6 months - a huge feat for me! And I don't see that going away any time soon. 

So what's been going on . . . not much of anything really. Christmas was very low key - we did presents and dinner with my mother-in-law, and that was about it. For New Years I was in bed by 9:30 - I worked New Years Eve and New Years Day so no staying up late for me. Speaking of work, I've been working full time for a few weeks now and it's going great! (The extra money is nice, too!) But for the most part things have been pretty boring and status quo, which is fine by me (who needs drama anyway??). 

One fun thing of note is that I'm sewing again! Got my sewing machine up and running, bought fabric and thread and stuff and set about making my plush zombies again. I thought it would take me a while to figure out how to sew again, but muscle memory is a wonderful thing - it's almost like I never stopped! (I'm a bit slower sewing right now but I'm sure I'll pick up speed soon). Yesterday I sewed a plush zombie rabbit and he's not too shabby for my first plushie in 5 years. I'll be sewing more and my zombies will be going up for sale in my Etsy shop. I'm excited about this! And it gives me something more to do (because painting wise I've been feeling a bit uninspired). 

But now the really fun thing . . . I'm getting a new tattoo today!! I'm so excited and a little bit nervous. It's been a long time since I've gotten a tattoo (this one will be my 14th tattoo). It will be 2 magpies in flight -  two for joy - and will be on my right forearm. The tattoo, of course, is of a painting I did:

Most of my tattoos are my own artwork, which of course gives them more meaning to me. I happen to love magpies (all corvids, really, but especially magpies). Two magpies together represent joy - and I've been especially joyous since I've been stable and happy. This tattoo represents that joy and stability as well as my love of the bird. Aack! I can't wait! Noon today. An hour and twenty minutes from now. Don't worry - I'll share a pic of it in my next post. 

Anyway, that's about it. I hope everyone is having a great week so far and I hope 2021 is a better year for us all.