Philosophy Friday - Love, Art and Life

                                        

                                                        " Generations "                              



" When we love something it is of value to us, and when something is of value to us, we spend time with it, time enjoying it and time taking care of it. "
                                                                                             - M. Scott Peck

Taking time out from art this week to care for those I love.   L

Philosophy Friday - Keeping Your Head above Water

                       " You can't stop the waves, but you can learn to surf."
                                                                -  Jon Kabat-Zinn

                                  

June 8th - World Oceans Day !

                                            


Today is World Oceans Day.  A day to bring awareness about conserving our oceans and to celebrate their beauty, their abundance of life and their essential contributions to life on our planet.

I have long had a love affair with oceans, seas and lakes and I can't stress enough how we have to take better care of them.  They are essential to life itself ( 80% of the oxygen we breathe comes from our oceans )  and they are being abused in so many ways.  The carelessness and outright flagrant destruction of coral reefs, pollution and the near extinction of precious sea life plants and animals by mankind is taking it's toll and we need to become more aware of how we can preserve and protect this valuable asset.  To learn more about issues that are negatively affecting our oceans follow this link:

 http://www.worldoceansday.ca/7143.html

And here are some ideas and solutions

that we as individuals can implement to

contribute to the welfare and preservation

of our oceans:

http://www.worldoceansday.ca/50665.html

And yes, this can be textile related too in several ways but in particular,  I would like to salute Paul and Luana Rubin of e-Quilter http://www.equilter.com/ who have selected Ocean Conservancy as one of their chosen charities associated with their business. 2% of all sales are dedicated to selected charities and my choice, Ocean Conservancy has been ringing up some funds from this girl's fabric purchases (-:  What a win-win situation! 

Olympic Pennants on the Move

                          


For the month of June and early July, many of the Olympic pennants will be exhibited at The American Museum in Britain set in Claverton Manor on the outskirts of Bath.  Bath itself is a fascinating city graced with stunning architecture, steeped in history and embracing literature and the arts.  I spent some of my early days there at the Royal Photographic Society when studying photo restoration and have a special fondness for the city.

The American Museum was set up to foster ties between the USA and the United Kingdom and was opened in July of 1961.  It harbours a magnificent decorative arts collection, including over 200 historic quilts, folk art paintings and sculptures and a wonderful collection of Shaker furniture, along with Native American exhibits.  It's extensive grounds and gardens of over 120 acres include an Arboretum of American trees.  The Museum has a beautiful countryside view of the Limpley Stoke Valley and the River Avon. What a magnificent setting with a strong textile influence to house the Olympic pennants exhibit.

Time is clicking away and as of this writing, there are 49 days, 17 hours and four minutes ( according to the official London 2012 site)  until the Olympics officially are underway!  Currently I have no further information as to where the pennants will be displayed during that time but will keep the blog updated as information becomes available.

Philosophy Friday - The joy of Sleep

 " To die, to sleep:                                   
    To sleep:  perchance to dream..."
                      - William Shakespeare ( Hamlet)

With apologies, Philosophy Friday, this week, has become Sonnet Saturday!

Having just finished a stitching marathon on a piece for the Alliance for American Quilts and their "Home is Where the Quilt is" contest  and running on just 2 1/2 hours sleep on the final day or so,  I slept away Friday afternoon and night.   To die, to sleep is right - I just took a short course of death.

The piece entitled " The Spirit Lives Within" is currently winging it's way to N. Carolina and I will be blogging about it and the Alliance, once jurying etc. has taken place.  The good news is that funds from the auctioning of the  quilts will go to the Alliance, ( of which I am a member ), a non profit group, to maintain their dedicated work in documenting, preserving and promoting the understanding of the quilt as an important American art form. 
Definitely worth losing a little sleep over!