for your holiday viewing pleasure

It's a long, lovely 3 day weekend. My big plans include some gardening, BBQing and romping with the pups. I plan on getting in some drawing as well as I have been selected to participate in the juried Old Town San Diego Art Festival. I just love the area and this trip will give me the perfect excuse to bask in luxury at the Hotel del Coranado during my free time.

Following are a few of my more lighthearted offerings....

"The Cats: le Chapeau"
I seldom actually I LIKE something I do, but I will admit, this twisted version of the cat in the hat is one of my favorites. The model is one of my homeless cats, Fluffy, who likes to sit on the top of my back porch fence each morning and worship the rising sun.

"Dinner"



"Grey Luv"



"Off Kilter"
My first meeting with an ostrich was not pretty. They are the oddest looking birds and this one was none too friendly. And I'm sure Mr. Ostrich was equally unimpressed about meeting me!

Kathy

Beauty

"I have loved the stars too fondly to be fearful of the night."

She graced our life with the brilliance of a shooting star. And has gone too soon. But oh what joy she brought in her 4 years as part of the tribe. Beauty's brilliance will now light up the heavens as she takes her place among the stars.

Beauty lost her battle with lymphoma this morning. She had done so well with the first part of her treatments but shortly after they were over she developed a slight infection. That went away quickly and things seemed OK. Early last week some of her nodes began to swell again and by Friday she was not eating nor holding down what little she did eat. Our vet did everything possible but cancer has a mind of it's own.

This morning, we knew.

She was our Beauty Girl in a beauty world. Our little old lady. The mama of us all. She was the celebrity of the family, appearing with Rory in the book "Rescued". She was prolific and spunky and sweet and just a bit of a princess. She had Rory wrapped around her tiny paw from the moment he saw her. When I joined the family, she made sure I learned how to be a member of a greyhound pack.

So together again with our Marty and all the friends she knew and meeting my lovely Winston and all the friends she will soon get to know, the little cowgirl named Buxom Beauty starts on a new adventure. She will be missed by a family who loved her dearly and who's hearts will forever be missing a piece. It's nice to know that Beauty's essence will live on in her pups, grandpups and great-grandpups. So if you see Buxom Beauty in your greyhound line, please tell them that Beauty was a wonderful girl.

The evening sky will have an added twinkle tonight.
Our eternal Beauty 1996-2008.

Kathy

Catching up

It's been a while since I've bored you all. My lack of posts have been due partly to laziness and partly to the fact that between traveling and drawing and taking care of the tribe, by the end of the day my brain is a goo-ball that can barely grasp the topic of a "South Park" episode. Overall, life has been pretty darn good. I've ventured into the world of reptiles. This is a looooooooooooon story that you'll be hearing lots more about. Last month ago we found out that Beauty has lymphoma. I'll write more on that soon, but so far things are ok and Beauty is still her sassy, spunky 12 year old self. Last week I was notified that I was accepted into the Old Town San Diego Art Festival so I'm very excited about that and have hardly put down my pencils and pens. A new generation of homeless cats have moved in under my front porch. Oh dear! The 4 kittens have been christened Sundance, Butch, The Kid and Fred (as in Right Said Fred). They are a bit too quick for photos, but I did manage to get one of the blue eyed Miss Sundance through the front window...

Not sure exactly what's going to happen but most likely we'll round them all up and take them to the local shelter to be fixed. Oh well...eventually every homeless cat in the neighborhood finds it's way to my home.

Well before my brain shuts down for the night, I thought I'd share a few of the new doodles ~

"Pink Poodle"

"Nude #1"

"Danserez-vous, Remy"



Logo for the 2008 GPA/Southern Nevada picnic....

"Puppies" (for some odd reason the flash causing a glare on the paper, so I had to tilt the drawing in order to photograph it!!)

"White Star"

More exciting (???) adventures tomorrow. Or the next day. Maybe.

Kathy

An M is just an upsidedown W

Three years ago today, my lovely Winston left my side. I still miss him. Lots. Every day. He was my first greyhound. My universe. He was perfect. He made me look like a great "mom" but that's because he was so wonderful.

Early this morning I was doing some mindless walking and shopping. Mainly to get my mind off of the day. While shopping, I came across a funky bracelet made from vintage Bakelite mahjong tiles. As I love mahjong (OK, I'm addicted) I decided to take a closer look. One of the tiles on the bracelet was the 8 bamboo...which is 8 sticks forming the letter "W" with a mirror image forming the letter "M". The cosmic side of my brain decided that this was a good omen as not only was it a "W" for Winston, but also an "M" for my dear old boy Marty who passed away in July.

I've been wearing the bracelet all day. Maybe it does have some magic powers. Perhaps it's just wishful thinking. On what started as a sad day in my world, turned warm and soft, like a greyhound's ear and my heart was comforted because I truly believe both Winston & Marty found a special way to say hello today when I most needed it. But ya know, Winston always knew how to make me smile.

"You never know when you're making a memory.
They will wish they were here together again,
Someday..."
Young Blood - Rickie Lee Jones


Kathy

Happy Birthday Remy!

You are my little one.
My BFF.
You are the one who gave me your paw and told me it was ok to love a greyhound again.
You don't like storms so I keep lots of pillows in the closet when you hide in there till the "boomers" go way.
You have a little football spot at the top of your head where all my kisses go
You like to sleep with me at night but I'm not sure why you like to sleep on my head!
You are a very good model.
You chatter quite a bit but I guess that's because you have a lot to say. Think about getting a blog of your own.
You are my Remy and today you are 8 years old.
It's great to be 8!!!
I love you my silly girl. Have a very happy birthday.


Kathy

It was a dark and stormy night....

I attended the Arizona Adopt-A-Greyhound picnic on Saturday and as usual, it was a great day. I've met oodles of greyhound adopters since I've been out here but every now and then I get a knot in my stomach as none of these people will ever know the face that inspired every one of my t-shirt designs. True, I mention that the beautiful brindle on the pebble colour shirt is my first greyhound but it's not quite the same as when year after year friends would drop by my booth just to heap lots of love on my boy. His name was immediately recognized. He had an extended family who loved him as much as I did.


So as I vended at the AGGI picnic, you can imagine my shock when a voice called from the booth next to mine...

"I'd know that greyhound t-shirt anywhere. IT'S WINSTON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"


And there stood my old friends Pam and Chuck from Illinois. I'd met them at one of my first shows when their group, Greyhound Angels in Disguise (aka Greyhound A.I.D.) allowed me to share booth space with them at a pet fair. Back then everything I sold came in beige and my entire "empire" fit in a 14"x14" box. I'd last seen them in 2004 and knew they were moving but had no idea they'd ended up in Arizona. It was hugs and happy tears and we caught up on what was we'd found life to be like in Arizona and told each other about the new greyhounds in our lives.


I suppose that it was a most perfect pre-reminder of the fact that today, is the 11th anniversary of the dark and stormy night that my lovely Winston arrived on my doorstep. He was just a young, shy brindle pup in a yellow collar who didn't quite know what to make of this strange blond who was grinning from ear to ear. And you know, he always kept me smiling.


And tonight, as I always do, I will say a silent goodnight to Winston and tap the tags on his collar that is above my bed before I go to sleep. I will remember all the wonderful adventures we had. And I will be forever thankful to him for the joy he gave me and for being the most perfect greyhound. And I know tomorrow when I have my morning romp around the yard with Scotty, Dee, Remy, Harley, Nutmeg, Beauty, Blueberry, Bobo and Huey, that Winston, and Marty too, will be watching from a place just beyond the fig tree.



Kathy

Come on, get happy

I enjoy good news. It starts the day on a positive note. And it's always welcome. Blah, blah, blah.

A week ago I received a notice that I was accepted into my 1st juried art show. Cool. Way cool. Happy dance way cool. I vaguely recall bouncing up and down in my dining room for 15 minutes. So OK...I like good news. I've been working like crazy creating new pieces for this show (and a large greyhound event I'll be attending in October). The extra good news is that the show is in the Las Vegas area, which means that I can not only drop into The Capital Grille for dinner one night but also get out to Lawry's. (ooooh!!! I can just feel my arteries clogging as I type.) The Lawry's in Chicago, along with Bistro 110 (don't miss their monkfish and be sure to get a table in the back as a window seat there screams "I'm a tourist") have long been my favorites. Oh that reminds me. I need to book my November trip to Chicago. Be right back.....



(38 minutes later)


Phew! All set. Now where was I? Oh yes, Las Vegas art event. My greyhound nephew Nate's mom aka Shel will be there too with her paper art. I love what she does and as I have no clue how she does it, I'm a devoted shopper. I believe I also heard something about a wine walk on Saturday nite. Hopefully it will be a good weekend sales & weather wise or it just may turn into a whine walk.


Good news or not, being an avowed pessimist ensures I'm never disappointed! Now here's a few offerings I hope you won't find disappointing....



"And I Didn't Say"





"Elenora"




"#4"

I recently took photos of the adoptables at the Tucson Greyhound Park kennels and this strappin' boy was the fourth greyhound I met that day.




"Red Deco"





"mon petit Bobo"

Yes, that is my very flexible Bobo who prefers playing with a box of Kleenex over a stuffy any day.

Well, braketime is over. It's back to the drawing board for me.


Kathy

Trickle, trickle,spalsh, splash...

...tell me how long will this rain last?

It's monsoon season time in the Valley of the Sun - and it's NOT a dry heat by any stretch of the imagination. But I think this offering from Remy's diary will enlighten all of you, in a roundabout way, as to what happens at my house during the rainy season.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

2 August, 2007

Dear Diary ~

Well Blondie...who is no longer blond by the way. For some reason she decided to be one of the brindle boys (Dee, Bobo & Huey) and now has blondie, copper, chestnut and brown hair. She's very stripey. It's a good thing I take a peek in her paint box to learn about such things or else I'd never know what Blondie is talking about half the time. To tell you a secret, I don't know what she's talking about half the time but she's very nice to me and rubs my tummy and snuggles with me at night and calls me her "BFF" and I love her very much. But I digress....anyway, however....Blondie and I had a long discussion about this rain-storm-thunder-lightning thing that's been going on here. And to be frank, well actually, to be Remy, I'm not a happy camper. (to digress once again - I don't like camping. I've never been camping but I know I don't like it!) I mean the wind blows and makes lots of racket and sometimes the branches from the trees fall down. The lightning makes the rooms all bright and I just cannot get a bit of sleep when the lights are on. Then there is the thunder. What's that all about??!!?!?!?!!??? Angels bowling, my eye! I just told Blondie that she's better do something to ease my stress during these storms or I was packing my knapsack and checking into the Hotel del Coranado for a month!! And guess what??? Blondie did some redecorating for me. First she rearranged her closet (read: she put away all her shoes) and layed down 2 very comfy pillows. It's a really big closet and I find it a nice place to hang out during a storm because there are no windows and the storm can't see me. Wonder if Blondie could put a water dish and a treat cart in the closet, too? Then she put up new curtains in my room...well, my room is not actually "my" room as I have to share it with rest of those mopes so I guess it's my dorm room. Theses drapes have special powers 'cause they make the room really dark and the storms sound more quieter. And they are very pretty with roses on them. I like flowers. Lots of people don't know that even tho I look and pee like a boy, I am very feminine and I really like flowers. In my 1st home I would go in the garden and pick all the pretty flowers but that didn't go over very well. I don't do that here but Blondie has planted some very nice flowers that I think would look swell in my dorm. And a lot nicer than the baby birds that Harley brings in. Oh drat...I digressed again....Now I'm not too stressed when the noisy storms come. If it get too loud in the dorm room, I just go into the closet and wait. Sometimes I fall asleep in the closet and Blondie forgets I'm in there and starts running around calling for me. Well DUHHHHHHH!!!! Like I'm going to go outside in a storm? HELLO!!Hummm...clock radio...maybe that's what I need in there...I'll talk to Blondie about putting one of those in too. Ya know...if she'd move all her clothes and shoes out of there, I'd have a nice little apartment for myself...

Healing a heart that aches

Upon the tragic death of his wife Clover, Henry Adams wrote to his publisher, "what a vast fraternity it is, - that of Hearts that Ache." With the passing of each greyhound I have known those words always come to mind. There is a part of me that will never get over Winston. There is a part of me that will never get over Marty. Yet unbeknownst to us, the heart coaxes a tiny bud to bloom and renew the bond that we thought was gone forever.

Marty's passing left a big hole in the heart of our family. I cannot put into words how much we miss his quiet (and not so quiet) woofs, his "Brighty of the Grand Canyon" ears and his gentle, loving soul. Marty was the old sage, knowing every greyhound who has passed through the house including the most recent foster Huey. You may recall that Huey has been "the greyhound who came to dinner" since November. There were no intentions to keep him. Yet a new family never materialized. The fit was never quite right. So Huey settled in, waiting for a forever home. I began to get worried as Huey quickly bonded with all of us and became my shadow. He would watch Scotty and try to mimic the things he saw. He'd see Bobo race around the yard and follow in hot pursuit. During the day Huey claimed the bed and matching pillows, made by my friend Elaine, and guarded my bookcase full of Russian and English history books. At night he'd snuggle in on one of the pillows at the foot of my bed. Every morning Huey would wait his turn as all the pups wished me good morning.

The bud was starting to open.

Huey was scheduled to have an "overnighter" with one of the adoption group volunteers who was going to take him to meet & greets on July 6 & 7. There were a few families who expressed interest and were coming to see Huey. I knew it had to be. Huey deserved a chance at a forever home.

And then Marty passed away.

It's funny how things are right in front of you all along. It seems that an average sized red brindle greyhound with a long, heart shaped white face and little tiny feet and funny looking ears and a skip-walk (due to an old injury to his back leg) had his life all figured out. After all, he already had Marty's approval. Huey just waited and let the rest of us catch up.

On July 2, 2007, I adopted my newest greyhound - Huey Lewis. Funny, I always thought if I had a rock star greyhound I'd name him after Bruce Springsteen who I have adored since I was 14. Oh well...maybe next time.

The bud was now in bloom.

I don't really think Huey has any clue to the change in his life although last Friday I did get him a brand new mallard blue collar. He continues to worship the ground I walk on and gets all wiggly when I come in the back door, whether I'm returning from a 3 hour shopping jaunt or just taking out the trash. He is still my shadow making sure he's at my side whenever I go into the yard. He enjoys sitting with his head in my lap as I draw. Huey has also enabled me to become a member of the "I Failed Fostering 101 Club". One the weather cools off, we'll start taking walks around the block and to the park and shops as he is very good on a leash.

I know my lovely Winston approves of the heir to his kingdom and that my lil' Martykins is happy to see the circle he started continue.

Please raise your water bowls and welcome Huey to his forever home. Sometimes the best gifts are the ones you never expected.


Kathy

My week

It has been a difficult week. I can hardly believe Marty is gone, let alone for a full week. The house has been very quiet. No one has taken up Marty's job of starting a group roo. There are no thump-thumps of Marty's lopsided stride through the house. There is no woof to wake me up at 5am. Nor is there a woof to let me know I need to get breakfast ready. I have no one to give me stinky kisses on my cheek. There is no one to sit by my side for hours on end while I draw. But for all the things I miss, there are so many more wonderful things that I will always have in my heart, the best of which is simply having had Marty in my life.

The rest of the pups miss Marty as well. Some more obviously than others. The pack has begun to readjust and that's as it should be. They are proof that life must continue on. Maybe not exactly as before, but go on it must. There are others depending on me. And we will get through it together because we are a family and that's what families do.

There is a spot in the garden where I can think...about Marty...and Winston...and wonder what sort of adventures the 2 of them are having. I have been reminded that an "M" is just an upside down "W". And so on my heart I will carry my 2 special brindle boys.

Kathy

Lights, camera...no action

It was a case of when good ideas go bad. I wanted to take a group photo of the pups and I. Nine greyhounds and I all looking good AND at the camera. How hard could it be?

OK...stop laughing.

Presenting for your amusement, highlights (lowlights?) of the backyard photoshoot ~

Everybody line up. Big dogs in the back row, little dogs up front.

Hey guys, the camera is thataway!!

Apparently no one has a clue as to what we are doing.

Ahhhhhhhhhhh!

Harley smiles for the camera.

Huey takes a kiss break.

WOW!!! It's the incredible 3-headed greyhound!!!

Nutmeg ponders what the other pups find so difficult to understand.

Marty & Kathy start a roo.

Another kiss break. This time it's Bobo.

Ok, everyone say "Kitty".

At least Dee is willing to take a nice photo.

HELP!!!! ;)

Dear Lord, please let the next bright idea I have be doable....

Have a picture perfect day!!!

Kathy

The Remy Diaries - Part II

It appears Remy is having a hissy fit about Bobo’s 15 minutes, based on her latest diary entry….
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Life with Bobo is no bed of roses. He does not know the meaning of the word “no” – literally. Now that might have a lot to do with Blondie naming him Bobo. As I learned from my close personal friend, Lee Livingood, it’s very unhelpful giving your dog a name that sounds like something else…Bobo…no no…oh no Bobo no NO!!!!! Cripe, Blondie is clueless. She thought Bobo was a cute name. I’m sure glad I had a name already cause I’d hate to think of what moniker she’d stick me with. Bobo enjoys peeing in the house but to be fair, 80% of the time he does pee in the bathroom. And his idea of treats are a box of Kleenex, a pair of fuzzy socks, Blondie’s art erasers and unshelled pecans fresh off the tree. Thankfully it all comes out in the end so Blondie knows exactly who the problem child is. And he will play with a squeaky stuffie until my ears bleed. Then he does it in the middle of the night so I am forced to grab the stuffie and disembowel it myself just to get rid of the squeaker. Bobo has perfected this Alfred E. Newman look (“What, me worry?”) when caught in the act of civil disobedience or rearranging the garbage can which he follows up giving Blondie kisses all over her face which makes her giggle. Ya know, she fails to giggle when I give her kisses all over her glasses. WOMEN!!!!!

So now Bobo is going to be totally impossible as he thinks he’s soooooooooooo special cause he's famous just because he got his picture in a magazine. All I know is that Blondie has never done a drawing of Bobo but she has done a lot of me and people ooh and ah over them and then buy them and say how pretty I am...Hey…wait a minute! That means I’m famous too. OHBOYOHBOYOBOY!!!!!!

Bobo Daze

My Spring 2007 issue of CG Magazine arrived yesterday and on the inside front cover and on page 35 , are my photos of Bobo. For those of you in the greater Southwest and parts of Mexico, that was not an earthquake you felt, it was just me doing the dance of joy. I’ll admit, I’m a sentimental slob when it comes to photos of the pups. Sure I can draw them any time I want, but I feel such unbridled joy seeing their actual photo in a magazine. After I finished making a fool of myself, I took all the pups into the yard. Sitting on the grass, surrounded by 9 fuzzy faces I began crying my eyes out. Yes, it was a good cry. Thanks to Bobo, I could once again be that silly, goofy and borderline obnoxious (borderline???!!!???) greyhound owner who’s friends’ eyes grow wide with fear as I drag out my dog-eared copy of the latest CG Magazine and bore them to death for the 100th time with how “my greyhound made it in the magazine!!!!”. I promise not to be such a stage mother this time around, but there’s nothing wrong with being Bobo’s PR babe.

I’m going to cut this entry short and get out into the yard as from what I can see out the window, Bobo is prancing around there woofing “Superstar….superstar".

Kathy

Dee

Dee is my quiet greyhound. I have never heard him bark. He will lie on the bed, barely lifting an ear when the pack begins a roo. He’s a big red fawn brindle who measures in at 30 inches at the shoulder and has an impressive 24 inch tail. He likes to run but is a bit of a klutz and always comes in with a scrape or two. I wonder if it’s because he has a vision problem that requires daily medication. Dee knows how to sit and can give his paw – either right or left – if asked. He’s not what you’d call a “chick dog” but he follows me around and snuggles up to me whenever possible. He’s also very fond of my mom who is just crazy about him and is always giving him treats. Dee is a very social greyhound who will happily stand for hours when we’re out and about, which I find odd as he’s the ultimate sleeper at home. And for some reason when he sleeps, all 90 pounds of him likes to sleep on me. Dee has big sad looking brown eyes and an eyebrow that occasionally wrinkles giving him that quizzical cartoon dog expression.
My old friends will understand how emotionally difficult it was for me to get to know Dee. I may have subconsciously not wanted to get too close as in almost every way Dee reminded me of Winston and it hurt a lot even looking at him. I would often burst out crying just giving him his eye drops. But as time passed, I found that Dee helped me overcome my feelings of loss and allowed me to remember all the fun, silly and happy times. In the process, I found I had been given the gift of a truly beautiful greyhound who I came to know and love for who he is.

Dee is very special to me because he brings to mind wonderful memories. But Dee is very special to me because he is Dee and is giving me wonderful new memories.

Huey, my foster (left) and Dee (right) in my pen & ink drawing "Waiting".

Kathy

In search of greyhound "stuff"

I enjoy finding unique and unusual greyhound related items aka greyhound "stuff". What greyhound owner doesn't? But when one of my favorite places is the source of a greyhound find...well that's even better.

I've long been a fan of Pewabic Pottery in Michigan and have a small collection. Their selection is always interesting, natural and really gives you the feeling of the beauty that you find across Michigan. While they have an on-line store, I breathed a huge sigh of relief to discover Pewabic in a Flagstaff boutique during a recent day trip.

The Pewabic gallery contains an adorable greyhound statue....




Oh my...I bet The GEM Babes from Greythounds of Eastern Michigan are making plans for a field trip to Pewabic right about now!! ;)

Kathy

Catching up

No, I haven't forgotten about all of you. Just been a tad busy. In Arizona, this time of year is the start of gardening season. Amid my blooming daffodils, I'm busily planting bulbs, snapdragons, herbs and plants I've never seen before let alone heard of. The pups have done their best to dig holes for me but unfortunately, not where I want them.

I've also been drawing like crazy. The West Coast Greyhound Gathering in Solvang, California is less than a month away. I'm doing logos for 2 upcoming greyhound events. One is still under wraps but here's my design for the 2007 Phoenix Invasion.

If you can't make the event, you can order a tshirt. Drop me an email at greyhoundstudies@yahoo.com and I'll tell you how to get one.

I'm also doing some non-greyhound related artwork. Other breeds, the Southwest and just some fun images.

This drawing was based on a photo from a Greytalk friend.

I'm very pleased with how this image worked.

Remy's been pretty busy as well. I know she's still writing her diaries and now she wants to be a dancer. Something about trying out for "Dancing With the Stars". Here we are - with Dee looking on - taking a twirl around the yard.

I've done more hiking the last few weeks. The weather has been perfect for it. On Friday I tried a longer trail that went up into the mountains.

OK...I'm not ready to scale Mt. Everest quite yet. But I did see a deer and took I did take a few photos along the way.

This weekend was our 12th Annual Chocolate Affaire - a little music, a little romance and a whole lotta chocolate. Chocolate covered everything. Strawberries. Cheesecake. Key Lime pie. Chips. Turtle crepes. Make your own heart shaped chocolate pizza. And all within 3 blocks of my house. Oh and the horse drawn carriages were back, too! The Chocolate Affaire was recently listed among the Top 100 Events in North America by the Washington Post. I did my best to up the weekend's chocolate consumption in addition to a bit of shopping.

Now, enough about me, what have you guys been up to? ;)

Kathy