Monday all day and I am finally recovered from my week with the CSI....

On the last day of the workshop I came home and fell asleep..the children were absolutely great but I was extremely exhausted from the hot, humid and hazy weather. It was 94 degrees and with the heat index it felt just like 104 degrees. Ken had driven to Marion, IN to visit Mom Stewart and to play golf with Bubby and Kaz :O)! Whenever I over do my body responds to deep dark bruising in the most unusual places...places I may have bumped ever so gently but now I look as if I have been in a car wreck. I am including the last of the photos to document the closing of an energetic week of chasing 16 investigators on their individual quest to discover the hit and run driver who abandoned the victim on the side of the road. I immediately began revamping my outline for the next session in July...this group will be a little older and on the ball with the science and manipulative materials.

I must have had six or seven phone calls on Saturday morning so sleeping in was out of the question. I got up , showered and headed to a friend's garage sale to purchase an oak bar with a black slate top and storage underneath to employ in my new studio space ...wooohooo! I need to stop but this came with a family history and will look great after I sand the top a wee bit and apply minwax to the finish. I bought some glass mugs for nearly nothing for my Tina...the family goes through glasses like crazy and these will be great for both hot or cold foods. I had lunch with the girls...my favorite peanut butter and jelly and cold iced tea. Then I headed to the grocery for a quick pick up of milk and bread and fresh fruit. I came home and collapsed into a deep sleep. We had thunderstorms and lightning most of the night so the pup and the cat stayed close to me in the bed as we watched the natural light show outside my bedroom window.

Ken came home and I cooked some beautiful thick pork chops with fresh garlic and carrots and we had a baked potato for a round "square meal". It was good to have him home and I knew I would not have the energy to make the five hour journey to and from Marion. I enjoyed my quiet freedom to nap nap nap ...whenever I needed to escape from my fatigue. I spent time watching old movies and National Geographic specials while I reorganized my art supplies for the next workshop and made mental notes to include several books that share personal artist journals so we can see more than one style and perspectives. I will need to get a few more Tumble Dyes for the students to experiment with stencils and alphabets and profiles...this proved to be a popular exercise for all.

We are celebrating our friends Susie Shie and Jimmy Acord's 20th wedding anniversary tomorrow with dinner and homemade fudge. Then on Wednesday we will all go down the the gallery and I will give a brief artist talk to anyone willing to stay and listen. We have been close friends for over 20 years and through thick and think we stay in touch with each other family as they have grown up and flew the nest. now we share grandparent stories and adventures as well as our journeys as artists. Life is good. Have a great week and hopefully the humidity will break this week...the 4th of July celebrations are already exploding around here and if you enjoy fireworks Ohio has something every night. Imagine and Live in Peace, Mary Helen Fernandez Stewart