Wexford Girl

Mary Janes

Tonight we went to Target on the way home from the studio and I picked up two pairs of shoes that in total came to about 40 bucks. I love Target!

Eric gave me the "Do-you-really-need-another-pair-of-shoes?" look, but he didn't have a leg to stand on; when he joined me in the shoe section he was clutching his Target must-have - The Muppet Show on DVD.

What I really wanted to go to Target for was a cute dress like this one, but alas, there was no dress even remotely cute and there are so many online. Strange.

We left the store with stuff we hadn't needed an hour before. Then we went home and watched the Muppets (brilliant!) and I walked happily round in my new shoes. Yay.

(Kisses to awesome nephew Aaron in Wexford. Happy 12th birthday kiddo!)

Sketch Tuesday Tomorrow

I'll be at 111 Minna tomorrow (August 26) for Sketch Tuesday. Come and say hi!

It's from 6 to about 9:30 and it's always a really fun time, with music, beer, and affordable art.

Girl on Thing

Indulge me once more. This was also in the sketchbook. I did this same painting a lot and gave copies to friends. I was really proud of it.

But the best part is the title:

"Cocaine 1" (I guess it was part of a series, but I don't remember "Cocaine 2").

What? This is clearly the work of an 18-year-old who has never done drugs, and never even heard first-hand accounts of doing drugs. Where did I get the idea that doing coke was like flying over water near a lit-up city on the back of... a snake? a demon flying carpet? all the while pointing imperiously, "onward, beast!" Wow.

More Early Galvins

More from my 1984 sketchbook. The purple dress cracks me up.

And finally, a self portrait that was also in the sketchbook. Apart from the terrified expression, this is pretty much how I looked in high school. I'm in my Presentation Convent school uniform - green sweater and skirt, white shirt, red tie. And my hair was always short and puffy, the worst cut possible for someone with thick curly hair. I didn't even know my hair was curly until I went to college and let it grow out.

Hanna Barbera World

When we were visiting Tommy and Brenda last week, I was reminded of my all-time favorite story. Brenda must have told me this at least 10 years ago.

Many years ago, Tommy was living in southern California with his girlfriend and her young son. One day, the girlfriend suggests that they take a weekend trip to Fresno to visit Hanna Barbera World. Tommy says OK and they pick a weekend to go. The weekend arrives and the three of them - plus the boy's friend - drive several hundred miles to Fresno and check into their hotel.

Next morning arrives.They get dressed and put on comfortable shoes and sunblock. Then they go up to the front desk to ask for directions. "Excuse me, can you tell us how to get to Hanna Barbera world?" says Tommy's girlfriend. The manager stares at her with a puzzled look, "Hanna Barbera World?" The girlfriend starts to explain, but suddenly something dawns on her and she turns to Tommy. "Oh my God," she says, "I think I dreamed it."

The funniest part is if there was a Hanna Barbera World, you know it would be in Fresno.

 

Tiny Entrepreneur

Our friends Albert and Shannon's little girl Sofia set up a lemonade stand at the weekend, but being a typical San Francisco summer (especially in her neighborhood - and ours - the Outer Richmond), it was foggy and cold, and she only had one customer, her dad.

So she and Albert set up a virtual lemonade stand, with proceeds going to her college fund and the homeless pre-natal program of San Francisco, and now she's in the running for INC. Magazine's Best Lemonade Stand in America. Such a great idea; she accomplishes something with her dad, and learns product development, marketing, e-commerce, and giving back - all at once. Go Sofia!

And while we're on the subject of awesome kids, here are my dear friend Desiree's three girls, Renee, Belle, and Ella. It was their 2007 Christmas card photo. I just love this shot.

Early Galvins

Here are some drawings I did in 1984. I found a whole sketchbook of them when I was back in Ireland last May. These represent my early foray into fashion design. Look at that pink string vest. Oh dear.

What's with the Women's Olympic Swimsuits?

Why are they all squeezed into them like this? Where is the room for boobs?

Sacramento

On Saturday we drove to Sacramento to visit friends Brenda and Tommy. We arrived to a warm welcome and cold drinks and nibbles on the back patio. Great to see them!

After a while we set off walking towards J Street, where the evening was getting going. We went up there to experience the 2nd Saturday Art Walk, a monthly Sacramento event where galleries and stores stay open late and the whole mid-town area is thronged with people enjoying music on the street and having a good time. It really was a scene - Great fun. I encountered this gent in a gallery:

We ended up at Mulvaney's B&L restaurant where we sat out in the lovely courtyard (no sweater required in balmy Sacramento!) and enjoyed a fabulous meal, catching up on each other's lives.

The next morning, after strong coffee and slightly burnt (but nonetheless delicious) scones, we went to a store Brenda and I peered through the window of last night. It was so enticing that we resolved to come back as soon as it was open the next day. It's called Freddric Bradford and it's awesome: carefully curated, unusual, well priced home items. Brenda and I both bought stuff. I got a wedding gift, a pretty ceramic pitcher, and two silver-plated mint julep cups.

Here is Brenda with Fernando, one of the owners:

Inside the store:

And our gracious hosts:

New Shop Goods

I finally got around to updating the shop with new paintings. Check out the sleuth of new bears too. I took out all the sold and old, and now it's all fresh fresh fresh!

Eric is in Minneapolis this week, and as he's usually my wake-up call (he's early-to-bed, early-to-rise, and I'm the opposite) I had to find another solution. I left my cell phone at the studio yesterday, so I was somewhat stranded, waking wise.

A quick Googlish investigation and voila, a free wake-up call. It worked perfectly this morning. An automated voice spoke the gentle sentence I had entered, something like "It's time to get up." So tomorrow I programmed it to say, "Get out of bed, you lazy whore," because nothing amuses me like a foul-mouthed robot!