Rainy day - and one too many funerals

Maybe it's just me... but it feels like I've said Good bye to too many people lately.

Sadly, Saturday was no exception.

Carol, a friend from church died recently after a 3 1/2 year battle with cancer.

She was one of the first people I met in St Louis.

She worked at the publishing house where my husband got his first job.

She was an author (of over 200 books), teddy bear artist and an essential member of both choir and a Creation Spirituality group that was a huge part of our lives for decades.

She was irreverent, creative, funny and brilliantly eccentric.

She was also one of the few people with whom I still had a relationship who remembered me from the 'married' portion of my life.

After her Memorial service, I resorted to a coping strategy I rarely utilize - retail therapy.

And, while I wish I could say it didn't help, it did - and supported several other eccentric artists in the process.

I picked up something for Art Boys new studio, a 'flag' by Paul Webb,

and something for myself.
Despite how it looks, this is a totally flat piece of wood, painted to look three dimensional... and that screw? - yup, painted!
Mark Sheppard, an amazing folk artist!

I also poked around in an antique store and found a wonderful flock of pipe cleaner birds!

“Some birds are not meant to be caged, that's all. Their feathers are too bright, their songs too sweet and wild.

So you let them go, or when you open the cage to feed them they somehow fly out past you.

And the part of you that knows it was wrong to imprison them in the first place rejoices, but still, the place where you live is that much more drab and empty for their departure.”

Somehow, it just felt right to get them.

I think Carol would approve.