~ Starry Waltz
~ Dancing in Space

Available now at Art166.com!

* * *

Ah, the International Space Station --

. . . another of my dream destinations! One of the big projects for the recent Atlantis shuttle mission was to install some gi-normous solar panels on the International Space Station (ISS). They'll eventually be used for power (additional panels will be added by another shuttle crew).

The side effect of these panels is that the ISS is significantly brighter and more easily visible in the night sky. Last Thursday evening, our local meteorologists made a pretty big deal of letting us know the ISS was headed our way, and gave a 15-minute window of time when we could clearly see it crossing our skies on Friday morning. (As long as heavy cloud cover or rain didn't move in, and really, what were the odds of that?)

So, there I was, in the too-warm, yuck-clammy dark of 6:30 a.m., saying a hushed, but friendly, "Good morning!" to several of my early-to-work (or late-to-home) neighbors, pacing and staring into a brilliant, starry sky. Not one of my neighbors bothered to ask why I was out in the dark, or what I was looking for. (Hm, it's possible they know me better than I thought they did. Have I already become the "strange lady in the house down the block"? I like it!)

Anyway, at about 6:39 a.m., Eureka!, I spotted what looked like a very bright star coming my way (well, if stars were in the habit of smoothly sailing right past Orion's Belt)! It was approaching at a steady pace, from the southwest corner of the city, headed diagonally to the northeast. No telescope or binocs necessary -- my less-than-perfect vision was all it took for me to be part of this very exciting 4 or 5 minutes. As I watched the space station soaring almost directly overhead, I tried to create a telepathic link to the crew, just so they'd know I was thrilled to spend a few minutes of my day with them.

Okay, the telepathy thing didn't actually work, but it's the thought that counts . . .

You'll probably get a chance to see it, too. Click here to read a great article about the new solar panels and for more info about when and where you might see the ISS

* * *

Today's images are posted purely because I'm in a celestial state of mind. You can purchase them at Art166.com or read more about them, here.

* * *

In other news, I've somehow managed to lose, throw away, give away, hide, or otherwise misplace the power cord that goes to my trusty, if old, Fujitsu Tablet PC. How is it possible to misplace something that only serves one function, and, for 5 years, has ALWAYS been stored in the same place???

Which reminds me of the time I dreamed about putting my TV remote in a safe place and, a week later, found it in the freezer! But, that's a sleepwalker's story for another day!

~ Untitled
(click on image for larger view)

This futuristic hybrid will be available soon at
my "Small Works" art shop or at
Art166.com.

~ ~ ~

And then, there were two . . .

~ Untitled
(click on image for larger view)

This futuristic hybrid will be available soon at
my "Small Works" art shop or at
Art166.com.

~

The backstory -

My friend Lynette Clay, Artiste Extraordinaire, has tagged me to reveal eight facts about myself. Since I do business here, I decided long ago not to join in all the reindeer games floating about. There's always the possibility that if people know how peculiar I am, they'll choose to do business elsewhere!

On the other hand, isn't it supposed to be "cool" for artists to be a little . . . eccentric? In which case, I should be raking in the big bucks!

But, I digress . . .

I decided to respond to Lynette's challenge by revealing two things about myself, which are a direct tie-in to today's posted image:

1. I, absolutely, believe in extra-terrestrial life; (E. T. phone home.)

2. I love robots! (Danger, Will Robinson!)

Which leads me to wonder, if an extra-terrestrial and a robot had a baby . . .

*

There's a series of a dozen or so of these square, 8"x8", hi-tech personalities currently in production. They'll be available as Open Edition printings at a cost of $17US + shipping. If you can't wait, and need to own this one now, feel free to email me at:

*******

* * *

I'm off to have a peek at NASA TV. I'm riveted by their mysterious "space junk" situation. Let's all send some positive vibes their way.

Have an amazing day!

~ Gathering Force
(click on image for larger view)

Three variations on a theme.

~

The backstory -

The great joy of working in a purely digital medium is that once you've created a good source file, it can be manipulated, at will, into countless new and exciting images.

Every element is changeable: image size, colors, textures, shapes, etc. The original source file for the three images, above, is a simple, square, 3-color (blue, grey and black) .GIF image. I've created dozens of manips from that file -- none of them being simple and only some of them being square.

Ah, the creative thrill of having my fingers on all the digital buttons! I sometimes feel like Dr. Frankenstein on a good day in the lab:

"It's alive!"

Now, if only Igor were here to make my breakfast . . .

* * *

See more of my work at Art166.com

~ Friday's Rose
(click on image for larger view)

This 8"x10" image is available at
my "Small Works" art shop.

~

The backstory -

This gorgeous (but, essentially doomed) little rose was sitting in the grocery store Floral Department, minding it's own business. Little did it know that I, with my ubiquitous Canon, was mere inches away, preparing to launch it into digital immortality ...

* * * *

Today's posting was inspired by Betty's new 'rosy' avatar!

* * * *

Remember to peek in on the Shuttle/Space Station mission! See it here:

http://tinyurl.com/rl4ul

~ Paradise, Found
(click on image for larger view)

This island dream is available at
my "Small Works" art shop.

~

The backstory -

A year or so ago, I found myself impatiently standing in line behind a woman wearing a striped sweater. As usual, expecting the unexpected, I had my camera in hand and was fiddling with it to pass the time. Later that night, while uploading the day's photos, I saw that I'd accidentally snapped a pic of the back of that striped sweater. I thought about deleting it, but saved it to my "Iffy Stuff" folder, instead.

Look closely at the island 'trees' and 'land' in "Paradise, Found", above, and you'll see the striped pattern of the sweater.

Since then, I've done a couple of other pieces from that same "accidental" photo. If I can find a copy of the original shot (which seems to only exist on a CD my computer refuses to read -- AARRGH!!!) I'll post them for you to see.

These days, I never toss out a crappy photo. They're handy for all sorts of things!

* * * *

Thanks for all the great comments on my last post, and special thanks to Dr. John, as usual, for sending his "Marathoners" my way!

Speaking of Dr. John, his blog post is so hysterically funny today -- I laughed until I wheezed! Whew! Now, I need a breathing treatment!

* * * *

It's cloudy, damp, and cool in San Antonio this fine Saturday morning. This is my favorite type of weather, and I'm crossing my fingers in hope of it sticking around a few days.

Have an amazing weekend!

~ Meanwhile, In Another
Part of Town . . .
(click on image for larger view)

A 5"x7" version of this work is available at
my "Small Works" art shop.

~

Blocked!

As I seem to be drowning in an acute case of the dreaded Writer's Block, I'll mostly post images until
I've regained the ability to string a sentence together.

Please stand by . . .

Speaking of drowning, it's been raining in San Antonio today, and is about 30 degrees cooler than a few days ago.

Yep, I said raining -- well, not hard rain, but wet!

Whether or not this indicates Hell has frozen over is anyone's guess.