Number 33 Meet Your Childhood Idol

September 10, 2011

When I was a little Edith, I wanted to be a cartoonist. I drew all the time. I would rush through my schoolwork because then I could draw until it was time for the next subject and then rush through that one so I could draw again. I liked to draw with a black felt tip marker and drawing Peanuts characters was my favorite. I can still whip out a Charlie Brown with my eyes closed!

Then  along came Peter Max. Um...wow.

 I was in first grade when the Pop Art thing really took off and Peter Max work was the coolest thing I'd ever seen.  What child wouldn't be attracted to all these vibrant images? And the color! The black felt tip marker was put aside, I learned to spell P-S-Y-C-H-E-D-E-L-I-C and I drew groovy cosmic drawings all over the place trying to imitate Peter Max. I even drew all over my body like Goldie Hawn  on Laugh -In until my parents made me stop and I wrote in groovy bubble writing on my school assignments until my teacher made me stop.

America was like me- just couldn't get enough of this guy. You saw Peter Max artwork everywhere when I was a kid.

He kinda fell of the grid in the 1970's. When he reemerged, it seemed he had also put aside his black marker and had gone in a vibrant new direction with  acrylic painting on canvas rather than drawings:

It was different but you could still see him in the artwork. It was still Peter Max.

So...I found out about an opportunity to meet Peter Max in Atlanta. Really? In Person? The same Peter Max from my  childhood bedroom wall? I got on this so fast, I left one of those cartoon clouds with a zinging noise in my wake!

I hooked up with the beautiful Mary from the Wentworth Gallery and she gave me all the details and on the designated day,  I donned black and white clothing and drove the four hours to the gallery.

It was a quiet affair with wine and crackers and only about twenty or so people but there they were - the paintings. There were pieces from his cosmic period, from his newer period, small ones, huge ones, almost all in the five-digit price range. Well, at least I got to see them up close.

Then along came Peter Max. Um...wow! It was like meeting an icon like Mickey Mouse or Woody Guthrie. He was right there and just as charming as he could be. He's 74 now but he is still very much the Maxiest!

I can't believe I did this but...I bought a painting! It was one of his smaller pieces  from his hearts series and I'm going to be eating ramen noodles and hot dogs for about a year to pay for it but I just got caught up in the excitement and wanted a piece of it. The best part of it was that  when he dedicated it to me, I was telling him how much I liked his cosmic heads but how they werer way out of my school teacher budget  ($23,000) so HE DREW ME ONE (with a black marker)! It's on the paper on the back of the painting I bought.

Number 75 - Get a Tattoo

August 18, 2011

I know it's really trendy now but, when I was growing up, tattoos were just for sailors (or really trashy girls). All of my siblings have tattoos and both my children, as well. It's seems that now everybody has a little sumptin'. I went with my son to a tattoo parlor once when he was having one done and there was an grandmother bringing her  teenage granddaughter for her first tattoo. She turned to me in the waiting area and said, "I never thought I'd see the day." I understood completely.

Daughter's butt

Son's arm

The whole tattoo thing is just so...permanent. What If, down the road, I wasn't into whatever I had put on my body? I put the question to my son about his Nightmare Before Christmas tattoos. He asked my what tattoo I would have gotten at his age. Easy. Kermit the Frog. And today? I was still thinking Kermit the Frog. Or maybe a claddagh, or maybe one of those breast cancer ribbons. I was still trying to decide when I read about  something some cancer patients were doing -permanent make-up! This is where you have your make-up tattooed onto your face. Although I was never a big make-up person (except for that creepy Human League period in the 80's),  I was having to use make-up now to cover up the fact that  my eyebrows and eyelashes had come back in random patches after the chemotherapy and radiation (I also still have no leg hair or hair under my arms but I don't mind that so much.) Wanna see my history in make-up? Here are passport and ID photos that show my journey


As a teen- too cool for make-up






 
 
 







 





In college- a little much



Now - the minimalist

 I went to Sandy at The Locks and Lashes Salon and explained what I needed and found out out that she had helped many others in my situation.  Our plan was to tattoo the eyebrows and a little eyeliner to give the impression of eyelashes and after that healed, she would hook me up with some semi-permanent lashes made from the hair of minks (harvested by brushing them, not killing them). So, I was joining the ranks of the tattooed!!

Here are the before and after pictures from the day of the the tattooing. My eyes are still swollen in the after pictures but I was extremely pleased with the results!

Took this pic right before the procedure.

Swollen but happy!

I'll post again after the lashes are attached so the finished (and unswollen) product can be seen. the tattooing hurt like a son-of-a-bitch but it went quickly and I like the way it turned out. I'm not giving up on a possible Kermit tattoo in the future but it won't be the near future; I need time to forget the pain!

UPDATE - August 9, 2011. All healed and semi-permanent lashes applied:











Number 58 Compete in a 5K

Number 58-Compete in a 5K

I am not a runner. I do not care for the activity at all. When I was a kid, my dad was put in charge of this  military running program called Run for Your Life at Fort Benning and we all had to go out and set the example as a family - hated it!
I ran ALOT in the army because they threatened my life if I didn't but I can't imagine running just for the fun of it. Still, the list has brought me to this place so I will be a good sport about it.
When I was sick, someone else usually walked my class to and from the lunchroom, their other classes and recess be cause I could barely walk across the room. At this point, a five 5K run seemed impossible.
At the end of the year, the running club at our school holds a 5K run/2K walk. That year, I decided I would come out and walk the 1 mile part. It almost killed me! The next spring, I was feeling much better and decided to try to run the 2K in preparation for dreaded 5K. I didn't time myself or anything, I just wanted to see if my body could hold up. Here are some pictures from that race:

I did it!



 

Here I am warming up with my friend, Jen.
She is a marathon runner!

 

Stretching





 

Okay, I can see the humor in
getting lost in a race now
but at the time, I was pretty upset.

Next step:Register for a 5K.  I went for the Run for the Roses sponsored by the Alpha Chi Omega Sorority at Georgia Southern University. Results: DISASTER!! I'm ashamed to admit this but, during the race, I managed to get LOST and ended up running 6K instead of 5K (left, below). Still, made a good time (for a 6K) and finished the race without dying.



     Bad news followed. During one of the follow-up medical exams, I was told that the chemotherapy had left me with some major bone loss and that this kind of  slammity-slammity-slammity activity was ill-advised. So, I transferred to the elliptical while we worked on this medical issue. After about nine months, I was told that I had reversed the bone loss and  as of this date, I am beginning the Couch to 5K program to get ready for a 5K around the September time frame.

Stay tuned for details!

September 17, 2011-Details.

After I wrote that last post, the weather here in southeast Georgia stayed in triple digits for weeks so I pushed back my training schedule so I wouldn't...um...die. Despite this, a friend, Rob, managed to talk me into running in the 3rd Infantry Division's Top of the Rock 5K Fun Run. My goal on this day was just to finish the race and get some baseline data for improvement so I could work toward finishing a 5K in 30 minutes or less. I had exactly 30 minutes of running music in my Droid for this purpose.

So, here's the deal: I ran most of it walked some and finished in 30:14. I was feeling pretty good about myself for the first run I'd done in a year.Walking tall! Still, many suspected that the run was not really 5K. Too many people had unbelieveably good running times for 5K. I didn't want to hear this!!! After the race, we clocked it in the car. Only 3.25K. First, I run too long, now I've run too short. Can't catch a break, can I?





Number 29 - Break The Law

Number 29 Break the Law

I am blessed enough to have had more than 101 people respond to be adventure companions for me on my  101 adventures. Because I of this, I've had to spread a few of the adventures out. In this case, instead of simply breaking the law, I will break one law for every letter of the alphabet. That lets me bring in at least 25 more people, ya dig?

Breaking the law will not be easy for me because I am SUCH a goody-goody. I am Debbie-Do-Right,  the poster child for always doing the right thing. I was that kid in school who always had her homework, never smoked in the bathroom, always told the truth never cheated at cards. I am sure that, after each one of these  illegal events, you'll be able to find me on my knees in a confessional or trying to make amends for my dastardly deed.

Naturally, I will not engage in any felonies or do anything that will cause harm to anyone. YOUR part in all this is to NOT rat me out to the coppers. I'll start looking for opportunities to do my illegal acts and report back as I hit each of the letters.

June 27, 2011 Letter D - D is for Deface. I defaced this dollar bill  which was in circulation to look like a vulcan. This is in violation of US code Title 18, part 1, Chapter 17.

 

June 14, 2012 Letter S - S is for Stole a Spork. When my beautiful Toby was visiting me, we went to Kentucky Fried Chicken to get some macaroni and cheese. It came with a spork. He had never seen such a thing in his life and just couldn't get over the fact that it was both a spoon and a fork at the same time. So, even though we had sufficient eating utensils for what we had ordered and for which we had paid, I swiped another one for him to take home.

June 18, 2013 Letter U- U is for Uploading and Unauthorized Drawing- So, I went to this major museum and the security staff was very fussy about people with sketchpads. I had to get a sketching permit and sign these papers that said that I wouldn't upload any of my sketches to social media. Well...I'm gonna. Hopefully, no one will recognize this statue.

They made me stay in certain rooms and they had restrictions on paper size and sketching medium. I had charcoal which I had to surrender and they gave me a little golf pencil to use so I did the best I could. While I was sketching, a class of kids came through the museum and declared "Gross! She's drawing a butt!"

Number 41 Be Friends with You Ex

June 10, 2006 - Present
Easy! For this one I chose Roger, my most recent ex. This is a love story that spans three decades and three continents!
We met in Europe right after I graduated college in 1984 and became friends because we were both from Boston and had the same birthday. We then found ourselves stationed together again in the continental United States. This is where we began our romantic relationship and maintained this relationship long-distance when he accepted a transfer to Asia.

We eventually figured out that we  simply couldn't work out the logistics of this relationship  not only because we couldn't get our selves on the same  side of the planet at the same time but his promotion while  overseas made it impossible for us to work in the same place because of fraternization regulations. Being sensible people, we decided to end the relationship on friendly terms and look for other possibilities. Roger is a great guy and I still count him among my best friends. He always had time to talk , a ready smile and a hanky (yeah, a hanky) - that's the kinda guy he is. He was recently lucky enough to find a soulmate in Asia and they married. I can't be jealous; she sounds like a great person and he sounds happy. I would want nothing less for him.  Roger will always have a special place in my heart. It was a good four years.

Number 98 Go on a Demonstration

May 22, 2011

Sometimes doing this list forces me to do new things and sometimes it just facilitates it. Number 93 is to go on a demonstration. In this case, I'm not going just to check off a list item. I was moved to go and it just happened to be a list item.

     Our fair town of Savannah will be visited this weekend by a hate group. In particular, the infamous Westboro Baptist Church will be on our shores on Sunday to spread their message of intolerance and I have decided to participate in the counter protest. If you are unfamiliar with this group, here are some photos from previous protests:

I felt the need to do my civic duty and go throw rocks at them but them I remembered that I live in America and we have the freedom of speech and all that good American stuff.

 I REALLY liked this idea

 but, again, America...even these douchebags have the right to be heard (sigh). So, the counter protest was pretty much my only option.

Now... for my sign (because it's not enough to just stand there.) Here are some ideas I found from some of the other counter protests against the WBC:





This was a popular one

Funny!

Profound...

Ha!!

and...

I am certainly not bold enough to go with this last one and I promised

 my mom I would behave myself according to the way

 I was brought up so I'll have to think of something milder.

 Hmmmmm....still thinking

May 22, 2011- They're heeeeeere!

We were reminded again and again that ours would be a peaceful
counter- protest and they asked us not to say anything nasty
 so I decided to  only be a bad hostess during their trip to the Hostess City.
 I would offer them no refreshing beverage nor a comfy chair.
So there!

We received an email this morning warning us to wear any
 medic alert bracelets or dog tags we had in case we
 passed out from the heat; it was supposed to be close
 to 100 degrees today! Didn't care;
off to the Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist!

With me on this adventure was my friend, Gaby, who told me
 she had always wanted to go to a demonstration. She said
she couldn't go in the past because of risk to her husband's military career.
 ( For those who don't know, before 1983, a soldier's
 evaluation report included a place for his wife to be rated).
 Her husband retired and then passed away so she figured
 it was safe to go now and I was able to take this five-foot stick
 of dynamite with me. Here we are in Lafayette
 Square before the demonstration with our signs:

Her sign says" Love is Greater than Hate"

 in symbols and mine says "God Hates

No One" in Latin.

I was rather sad that all this nastiness was
occurring right here in this  particular spot.

I had my very first teaching assignment at Notre Dame

Academy here on this square. Our first art project

of the year was always to draw this fountain

in the square (above). You can see it behind Gaby
 and me in our photo. We used to wave

to the trolleys and have picnics in the square
 and we learned about the Hamilton-Turner
 House and the Andrew Low House and
the Flannery O'Connor birth house,
all on this square, as well and,
of course, we attended mass at the cathedral.
I had lots of good memories here

and I didn't like strangers coming in and saying

 this was a bad place. Still...America...
first amendment...if I wanted my rights,
I had to honor theirs.


We got there about half an hour early and

 chatted with other protesters and the Savannah

 Police, people from the cathedral and

some of the news reporters. Here, we are in

the news report from our local NBC affiliate:

The counter-protesters lined up and waited for the hate group.

The group arrived surround by police. I heard on the news that there were over 200 police assigned to this protest.  I couldn't believe the audacity of these guys!! The leader got out of their vehicle with an American  flag, held up one end of it, dropped the rest on the ground and STOOD on it

Many in the crowd asked the police to stop her but they said nothing could be done. She continued to abuse and desecrate the flag in ways I won't honor with blog space. The organizers of our group pulled someone with a flag up to the front and everyone cheered.

 The hate group continued to try to bait the crowd but it remained  peaceful and dignified on our end.

The monsignor, my old boss, stood on the stairs of the cathedral during the whole protest. A weird photo effect happened in this photo. Look at the people beside and in front of him. They have "halos."

They left exactly at the scheduled time (again escorted by the police) to a chorus of "Na na na na, na na na na, hey, hey, GOODBYE!"

 Here we are after the protest trying to cool off in the extreme heat at The Mellow Mushroom