TODAY'S UPDATE

So I'm going to keep it short and sweet.

Believe it or not I've been sick with the stomach flu the past three days....NOT my thing.  I just don't get sick, EVER.   I literally go years and years without a sniffle....however, after the whole kidney stone thing had worn me down and some super stressful stuff going on here, the kid's were scary sick and  I guess that was all I needed....my immune was shot and boom!  Sicker than a dog for one entire twenty four hours.  And now I'm attempting to get my energy back.  

In the meantime I'm working diligently on my computer, mainly on a HUGE marketing program for my book.  So at least the down time is being used for something important, other than the first day when I couldn't do a single thing but moan...I'm getting a lot done.

And now the update.

First we finally found someone with a duck.  Yes, a new duck to partner up with Vida.  In case you forgot, Dolce, our male duck was killed by a hawk in January, (or possibly Feb, I forget by now) and our girl Vida, has been very lonely.  Wasn't sure how she would take to having a baby boy around...well she took to it....well like a duck to water!

She started preening him instantly...it was the most amazing thing ever when I first introduced them, I wish I had it on film.  She was squawking when I brought him in and he stretched his neck up as far as he could to peek out of the box as if to say, "hey I recognize that voice, that's one of my own." She began pacing for me to let him out of the box, speaking the entire time.  They literally ran up to each other and had an entire conversation face to face, seriously, quacking back and forth almost bill to bill for a few minutes and that was it.  Vida protects him and won't hardly let me get near him...oh, his name is Doug by the way, and he's almost as big as she is, but he's a baby.  And she was heavily molting in these photos, so no judging!

He  seriously follows her around, everywhere....it's just the cutest thing ever. I'm so glad we found him.

Dougie!!

Then the question was brought up by Linnie..where's dad at the ball game and his Xmas jacket?  Well here he is!  Finally up and around, we made it to a game and it was a good one.  This is our ballpark seat neighbor Carmen.  And our mascot is an elephant, if you can believe it...Stompers, for god's sake!  

And last but not least...my roses are going off!!  This is just a teeny tiny sample and not at all a perfect depiction to real face to face...but close enough.  The orange one has a deep blood orange color with bright yellow innards, and then there is a coral one in the center and a red one on right...doesn't show up well, sorry...but the lavender in the middle is amazing!

So that's it for today...too exhausted to go further, seriously, this thing really takes it out of you...so be careful to stay clear of this bug...the headache that comes along with it is mind numbing!

Mucho love my dear sweet friends....xoxo juner

OPENING NIGHT AND WEIRD PAIN...I'LL EXPLAIN

Here we are at the opening night of the Oakland Athletic's...it was packed and fun!  They lost but we still had a great time...and after the opener and the next day,  they've won eight games in a row...so they are on fire!! YaY!

The Athletics and the Raiders still share a coliseum so I couldn't resist getting a photo with my Raiders...I'm even a bigger fan of NFL, so fun for me.  And they passed out the yellow fan rally towels, it was CRAZY to look out over the sea of yellow...it was GREAT FUN!

Fireworks and a big hoopla to begin the season...again, GREAT FUN!  Below is the older son, Cal, who came in from SF to enjoy the game with us, which meant we had to drive him back to the city and was a treat to be there at night, it's so beautiful, the bay.  

However, for as much fun as this night was, I was in pain for the entire event. Now comes the explanation.

I thought I was having a bladder infection and it was grim...however, two days later I ended up in the hospital, thinking I had something SEVERELY WRONG with my colon as that is where the pain was exploding on Wednesday afternoon...seriously had me on my knees and scared out of my mind.  All I could think about was, geez, what if I need surgery, this is crazy....I honestly thought my colon was in big trouble, especially since the pain came on so suddenly and I was running to the loo, (not to get too personal), but as it turned out, it was my old foe...the little demon that has not darkened my doorstep, or my kidneys as it were, in twelve years...stones!!

So that's where that's at...kidney stones, which I passed a tiny one on Saturday morning, but it's still not right, almost went back to the hospital today....we'll see what happens in a day or two, cause I'm pretty certain we got some residual gravel/sand floating around...caught a bit just a while ago and let me tell you, that sand can hurt almost as much as the stone!

So that's life around here...oh, I almost forgot to mention.  My maid of honor, Jamie, who has been working on a show in LA for the past month, and in from NYC, came up this weekend to hang and to perform some of her duties as my right hand gal...considering I was losing my mind Friday and Sat...I felt a bit up to par on Sunday/Monday, so off we went in search of the illusive wedding dress.  

What an ordeal.

Actually, it's a bit of a story, and since I'm beginning to fade I'll have to catch up on the drama another time...suffice it to say, we found the dress!  Super simple, age appropriate, and French country garden ready...so there you have it...now I can rest for a while!

Hope all is going well in your world...mucho love to my home girls...xoxox juner

PS. so good to see your jamers..I miss you so much...tons of love coming your way...thx for all the support, and helping my find my special dress...smooch!!

ART SALE FROM THE ART OF JUNE

Okay, it's that time again...I just posted to my face book and wanted to get my followers here  a head start as those folks over there really stay on top of things...geech!  I don't know how they do it.

A couple years ago I "Cleaned Up" my studio and put the call out that my work was on sale...the "Making Room Sale".  
Here's how it works...make me an offer....that's it!   Seriously, any offer on any piece, let's see if we can't get you and your friends an original large scale piece of Rock history!
Just as reference, I had a thousand dollar tag on a piece that I let go of for five hundred...to a VERY dear friend.  So no offers are wrong...I'll consider them all.

I really want to clear out the space for some new and exciting pieces I'm getting ready to start...here's the line up for the next four....Stevie Nicks, Bette Midler, Robert Plant and James Taylor...who is already in the works...Joni Mitchell didn't turn out as well as I had hoped, so back to the drawing board for her...but count her in. I just need to stir the pot...and create some open, clear space...so off with ya now...get on the horn to all your friends and offer away....yay!

Oh, and I have a 40 x 30 gi'clee of the Green Buddha that I would love to place somewhere, as well as a couple others...just go to my web site and view what I have, then we'll take it from there...wish me luck!!  And thx for all your tremendous support thus far....have a great one..oxo Rock On! juner

ps. if you go to my Etsy, it will more than likely cost you a bit more...maybe, maybe not...that sale starts on Friday at 400 off each piece...however, it works better for me through this venue...so just contact me with any requests/offers...thx.

TODAY....

This is one of my very favorite photos of my dad....I'll always, always picture him this way in my brain...and heart.

Gene Pace   

August 18, 1932   ~   March 18, 2012

EVERYTHING'S FINE

So Ray's dad, Julius, had open heart surgery on Monday....he is 93 just to remind you...anyway, all is perfection today...WHEW!!!   Wayyyy to emotional a day for me, as not only is this the same hospital I sat vigil in for almost two weeks when my best friend Pat died a year and a half ago...so the memories were brutal, as his death was extremely unexpected...this is also near enough to the anniversary of my own father's death on March 18 of last year.   The same worry, and the visual of the his father with same heart pillow he holds onto in recovery...too hard.  Here he is just going into surgery...he's now walking about and every one at the hospital can not believe he is 93...!!  So YAY for that.

Nice hat!

And here is the pretty close to finish remake of our breakfast nook...if you recall, when I first moved in the entire "clan" that lived here used this tiny little room to squish up around a large orchard table and eat every night...and the living room and dinning area was filled with a pool table, a set of drums, a grand piano and a large screen tv....yes, it looked like a frat house.

So of course I needed a dinning room and a real living space.  In the meantime I had no place to paint and set up my easel.  I remember crying, "I have no space of my own here, where am I going to paint...I need my own room."   And that's when Ray said, "Well, just use the nook."  So that's what I did for three years.

Not a clear photo, sorry, I actually took a photo from my website as I cannot find the original....but you get the idea...beyond yellow and white.  This was already after I moved out another cabinet in the opposite corner...everyone literally filled the room, you couldn't move.

The first incarnation was a sitting room...cuz that's what we needed!  But I at least had my green, blue and gold stripes and wood painted casings.

The last change led to being my complete studio..what you can't see is a book shelf on the right and a tall chest on the left with a little cabinet on the wall above it all holding every art supply I had...with exception to the ones in the laundry room...ha!  I had my easel in front of the chair to work.  So if I had a painting set up I could barely maneuver around the space to get in and out.  Not fun...but again, at least I did have a space.

Unfortunately this space is directly off of the kitchen and on it's way into the den...so everyone passed by constantly.  At parties we kinda kept the light off because it was an art studio....you know..a bit of a mess.

Finally right before the holidays I was talking to Lisa, who made the comment... "to bad about the giant pool table in your den...the room you could have would be awesome."  And I of course agreed with her immensely, as it had been my dream to turn this space into a library someday.  With walls filled with builtins and a huge desk to sit and write my book.  And a space on the other end to paint.  So I broached the topic with Ray...and before I could finish my point he said, "let's take out the pool table and move you in there."
What?
See, unfortunately as cool as it was, and is, to own a pool table...our family was changing and no one used it anymore...it literally sat empty for the past two years.  I played a couple of times by myself, as in the old day I was a pretty good player...and I really enjoyed it...however, the only time it was used was during the holidays...and the last one Ray, Mark and myself played one game.  So we decided to store the table for now and have the plan to add on a room off of the living room that will be the big family game room, big tv, pool table etc...room...and there you have it.

So, no pics of the almost finished library/studio...that needs a bit more time to say the least....but here is the new breakfast nook.

I really wanted turquoise in there, something brighter...so that's what I did...I changed up my green and blue stripes to more vibrant  green and blue and painted out the wood to my gold...which is still not aged down a bit..but still looks cool.  We had some seriously outrageous tooled leather chairs that I used and exchanged that thinner antique French orchard table for the big thick vintage wooden one that has that Spanish flavor to go along with the chairs and the turquoise.
Oh, and the chandelier needs to be lowered...enjoy!
Oh and ps. we haven't sat at the dinning table in a month..this is our cozy little nook and we love it!

So everything is fine at the moment...when I get a chance I'll get some photos of the library going...but still in the beginning stages.   
Hope everything in your life is fine today as well...mucho love to my besties...xoxo juners

ANNIVERSARY, PETS, AND WEDDING...OH MY!

So I'm catching up here.

Ray and I celebrated our three year anniversary two weeks ago.  Cal and his girlfriend Caroline were here for the weekend to celebrate Case's 20th...geez I can't believe I have a twenty year old kid...where did the time go! ha ha...(soon to be step son for reals..yay!), anyway, we decided to drive them back up to the city so we could spend the day and tool around and have lunch on the Haight..which was super lovely!

We ate in this super groovy grill/brewery...
they had organic food and great beer,
as you could imagine.
It felt like a New York eatery...
it was packed and perfect!

Looking out our window onto the color of the Height.

                            

you gotta look up close at this one
with the 67 mural painted across the top

They plant herbs around the street trees and
pay homage to the lost rock gods with photos collages...
can't see this one, sorry

Street art on a wall...it was tremendous in person

Spare me would ya!  How spectacular is this?
Now that's leaving your heart in San Francisco!

So now we're up to the simple pleasures.

Like looking out our kitchen window and seeing Bodhi and Louie just watching the yard...how freaking cute is this!  They literally sat there for quite some time, never blinked!

Or Frankie deciding to take a cat nap on my desk chair,

just plopped himself onto the top of the pillow and let loose his little kitty legs to dangle...he was snoring...it's the simple things like this that make my heart giggle...

And now we're up to wedding.

Here is just a sample shot of the colors I'm working with...at least some of them.  The one thing missing is some real pink.  The vases will all be flat blue and the flowers will be coral, pink and orange....with some green/blue antique hydrangeas for effects in urns and such.  
These are just some stand in silk flowers I had at the house.  Still gives you the idea of the vintage/chic with the bright gold filigree and candelabras.  I'm going to have little surprise touches of vintage green glass and pink salt and pepper shakers, and candy dishes, etc...to add to the color.  

All this will be laid upon a deep beige drape covered with an ivory sequined organza table cloth...and some kind of runner yet to be determined.  Should it be green to ground all the rest or blue, or simply remain ivory?  I really want the flowers to stand out, so no pink or orange..and probably not the blue so the pots really make a statement with the coral flowers...we'll see...All this to be decided as things progress...when I see it, I know it!

Some very cool old vases I found...
actually the cherub is new,
the doggie is old, very..
but I painted them anyway.
I know, I know...
but it really will be perfect when I'm finished,
 I promise...I have a vision...just hang on.

So I found a set of old tarnished brass candelabras
and I'm giving them a face lift with the bright gold
to really stand out among the blue pots and coral/pink flowers...it's really pretty in person.  I'm super excited!

Well, I believe that's enough for today...stay tuned...I'm getting back to some "real" work here this next week...Stevie Nicks on board...and thx to all my friends who are supporting my work...loads of feedback from the face book nation...first time I'm using fb this way and it's really causing quite the uproar...had no idea that's where everyone was!

Mucho love to my besties...have a glorious day! xox juners

MY SWEETHEART!

I wanted to share this a couple weeks ago, however, no computer for a couple of weeks made it a challenge to keep up with my blog...so I'm sharing today....which seems apropos.

When my father died last year we planted a cherry tree in his name on the back hill, (his favorite cherry pie was the inspiration).  
After the kids moved out of the cabin and dismantled the entire back hill from fencing, years of run down gardens, eleven ducks and all that that implies... it was a mess, it just sat with piles of rubbish, pots and dead things, poles stuck out of the ground and when my mother moved out, no one ventured to the back hillside anymore...except me to water the cherry tree and say hello to my father.  

Finally, forlorn by the fact that it felt like I abandoned my father,  I asked Ray to help me relocate the cherry tree to the front of the house where I could see it daily.  THIS made all the difference in the world.  My father's tree is planted next to the brick walkway into our courtyard and his garden bench sits facing out across our yard and looks out into the forest revine.  It was a good choice.

Fast forward to now.

When Ray and I were driving home from the jewelers house where we were discussing the design of my engagement ring, this was our conversation, (more or less).

"I talked to your dad today."
"You did?"
"Yea, I sat out under the cherry tree and talked to him."
"Really? That's nice."
 "Yea, I just sat there for a while, it was sad thinking about him, but then I asked his permission to marry you.  I wanted to get his blessing."
"You did?" (tears choking my response), "You know that if my dad were alive, that is precisely what he would expect from you."
"I know, that's why I thought I should talk to him.  It made me sad, I got teary, but I knew I had to do it.   "
"What did he say?"
"He said yes."

And by this point we were both crying....

This is the man I am going to marry.  My first marriage ever, my first wedding ever, at my ripe old age of 57.

He's the one dad, it just took a lifetime to find him.   And how I wish you were here to witness this day.

One of the last things my father ever said to me was this.

"He's a really good man daughter.  I'm really happy for you.  The kids will turn around in time, just be happy, that's all I want for you.   I think you've made a good choice here."

And today, Valentines day,  I walked down to my desk and I found this.   It's a box he made to house the red brick ocean formed heart we found walking down the beach one day.  It was lying in the foamy waves with some broken up red clay surrounding it...we were amazed the water created this shape.  This is the nature of our love....hope your sweetheart is as good to you as mine is to me.

look how well this is made!  he's unbelievable!

Enjoy your world of discovery and love...xoxo juners

BACK ON TRACK!

So WEEKS without my computer!  I had no idea how much of my life revolved around the thing!

I ended  up having to get a brand new computer...a MacBook Pro of course...and because I hadn't backed up since the beginning of December, I lost some files...mostly ALL my Xmas family photos, which is sad, and all the new art shots I've taken...which truly causes some difficulty for me.  And then there are the smaller things like a game I've been playing since July, where I was not only the highest score on the planet, but I completed a super challenging set of games that I wouldn't want to do over again...but it looks like I've lost all of that...damn!!

In the meantime, getting used to the changes on a new Mac.  Considering that my old one was only three and a half years old, I am shocked by some of the differences...but again, I'll get used to this in time.  It just feels so damn good to be able to get into things I haven't been able to in weeks.

So here's the latest news.

One.
We have begun the outside, yard work, that was not only just simply needed, but is a definite need for the wedding.
 

So here's the beginning.  What you can't see is how SPECTACULAR this flagstone is.  When it's wet, or even simply close up, it's blue...seriously, it's blue like slate, periwinkle, and a little mossy green and some purple...it's amazing.  So we're taking out the small gated fence in the foreground, as that was temporary for the dogs anyway, and the patio will only go as far as it is in this photo on this side....and the whole yard will open up.  Just next to the garden fence here on the left we will be setting up a terraced level, which when we are finished will add three feet to the yard!  Then the fence going up on the right will travel all the way down to the orchard below and wrap around up to the back of the chicken coop behind the garden.  The little whimsical fence is replicating the little magical fence we have surrounding our courtyard and entry....no photo today, but I'll get one soon,  So LOADS going on with the wedding in mind.  Which by the way, if I haven't already mentioned is August 31st.

So now that brings up to the eggs.

I finally figured out just yesterday that the large taupe eggs I've been thinking came from my big spotted sussex, aptly named Spot, are really from my little girl Vida, the lonely duck!  Which makes the little brown/golden eggs really Spot's, and the two shades of blue/teal come from my two Americanas,  Ester and Lester!
So this whole time I had it completely wrong!  It was so weird to finally follow the trail to this surprising conclusion!
It began when I lifted the cover over the work area, storing benches and pots from the winter, looking for my barrel of dirt to cover the roots on a couple bare root trees and bushes I picked up, (walnut being one, how cool is that?),  anyway, I reached down and found this!  I know they don't look it here, but they are all blue!

Apparently every time I let the girls out into the garden they went under the cover and did their thing...I found 19 eggs!  This lead me to my final outcome and now everything makes sense...at least to me.
So I will not be getting another spotted sussex as I had intended, thinking I would get these super large eggs, no, I will be bringing home two Blue Cochins, to take the place of my last one that was dragged off into the forest.  And in loving memory of both Hester, (who was an Americana), and Marilyn, (the Cochin),  I will be naming them Marilyn and Norma Jean...I mean really, can you ever have too much of Marilyn?


Oh, yea, the wedding is already a daily on going thing around here.  Poor Lisa Oceandreamer, from a Whimsical Bohemian...she wanted to help!  I've got her sending me updates on design ideas and have piled three projects on her lap, (for today anyway..ha ha).  One being a canvas that will be painted with something special...something whimsical, that will be the guest signing.  Then we will hang it in our home...how sweet is that.  I can't wait to see what she comes up with, she is so clever and good at this kind of art.
Oh, yea, I've become a card carrying member of Pinterest now.  And if you're like me and have never heard of this, by all means go check it out.  It's basically inspirations boards that people collect images on and share, and repin, etc...I have three boards now, although the wedding one is getting most of my attention.

Oh, yea, here's the ring by the way...
it's way bluer than it looks in the snap...the light flashed it out...but you can get the idea.  It's on a more square band of diamonds...and the wedding band will be a thin band of diamonds...simple.

Two
Now we're caught up with everything but the art thing.
So here are the final completions of my last three paintings that were included in my recent installation on Jan. 26th.  For some reason I took this photo of Frank before I signed it, which is weird, hope it's the right one.  The other one I have listed on my website is a darker pink...where as this is more true to the painting.

Then I did a quick small piece of Lennon to put in the show...unfortunately it's the only photo I have right now, and it's not very clear....as the whole right side of this painting is a deep plum color, and you can't make that out on this at all...but you still get the idea.

Then of course my tribute to Rod the Mod....I began this piece several years ago when I finished Mick, and was attempting a threesome to include Elton as well, all with the Union Jack...so even though my tastes have changed and I would do an entirely different painting of Rod today...I still needed to include him in the show.  This one's for Linnie.  (also the photo looks faded, or bright, whatever, I'll fix it later)

And I believe we are finally caught up with the past couple of weeks.  I'll pull some things together to share with photos for the wedding ideas.  And I'm beginning work on several new paintings, one is a commissioned piece I'm supposed to be doing for Jessie James and his upcoming nuptials...how funny is that?  And a Stevie Ray Vaugh for a dear friends birthday, and a Stevie Nicks, just because.  
Oh, yea, and a seriously cool idea I have for the Divine Ms. M...Bette Midler....and of course the perfect pose of Robert Plant.

So that's what's on the horizon for me.
Oh, yea, and back to the book...FINALLY!  It's been on hold long enough, I simply must get it out there already....but this ebook stuff is not meant for an author or artist to figure out...geez!! they really make it hard on us bohemians!

Hope all is well and everyone is living their joy!!  Rock on!  xox juners

NO COMPUTER!

I am using Ray's computer...it's  weird!

Mine fell into a serious disaster when a cup of tea spilled behind it and shorted the whole damn thing out.  So it's almost two weeks and I ran into other complications with my protection plan...or what I THOUGHT was my protection  plan and coverage....so needless to say, it will be a bit longer before I have my computer...which as it turns out will be brand new!...back in my hot little hands...chomping at the bit to catch up and let you all know what has been happening with all  my work around here and  my ensuing wedding plans...ours, I meant ours..ha ha...anyway..please  bare with me and I'll be able to download some recent photos and share the scoop.

For those  of you, my personal friends that are a part of my broadcast....this was a way for me to get your attention as I don't have everyone's email address available to me..Rona in particular...and I wanted to make sure no one thought I was moving on without them.

Keep the faith, keep rockin, oh! and Linda...Rod is hanging in the exhibit!  You'll have to wait until I get things up  and running again to send the photo...mucho love to everyone, hey Kelli...xoxo juner

TWO NEW PIECES

Here is the finished piece of Bob Marley...and a new one I did this week of the beautifully aged David Bowie...enjoy!

Rock On!!