One howlin' wolf is awesome enough...but three???

Trust me, you need to check out this magical piece of apparel on amazon.com. It could only be better if the t-shirt was made of velvet. I was thinking that I should get one for Jon's birthday next month, but I'm afraid its powers may be too great and he'll leave me before we get to go to Paris. It's cool and all, but dare I risk it?

Seriously, go read the reviews and see for yourself. There are 1,187 of them. And if you've got a lot of time on your hands, click on the Product Forum where they have discussions. About this shirt. With the wolves. Oh, oh and the pictures! Remember to click on Customer Images.

I love the internet.

Thanks for the link, Courtney!

Friday Fill-Ins

1. She had a great life and she knew it.

2. Karma, the wonder dog is by my side, always during firecracker season.

3. I know this: MJ makes a kick-ass mix CD! Really. You should ask her (really nicely) to make you one. Her music choices are wonderful and perfectly suited to whomever she's making the mix for. Thanks MJ!

4. It is nearly impossible for me to sit still during the LIFE is Good Conference. I'm running around doing something even when there's nothing left to be done.

5. These words apply to me: Je vais à Paris!

6. I went for a long walk when the sun was shining.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to working on my latest altered book, tomorrow my plans include helping Qacei find a friend who is available to go with her to the first Corvallis PRIDE Parade and Rainbow Rave and Sunday, I want to go for a hike with my hubby!

Get your own Friday Fill-Ins.

Top Ten New Titles for Jon and Kate Plus Eight

I'm not even going to try to pretend I didn't watch Monday night's painfully sad episode of Jon and Kate Plus Eight. I've already admitted to being a reality show junkie. But just in case you are above all of this, here it is in a nutshell. (Oh and what a NUTshell it is.) Two parents plus two sets of multiples equals one cute idea for a fluff TLC show. (Which is probably exploiting the children but hey, at least they have a nice house and college funds now, right? Not to mention plenty of money left over for the therapy the kids are going to need.)

Anyway, fast forward five years, lots of camera time and millions of dollars later though and you get...a trainwreck. She gets bitchy, he steps out and now they're divorcing. Have I mentioned they have eight very young kids? Sad. And Lord have mercy did we learn nothing from the world's first reality show, An American Family? Cameras in your face do not help an already stressful situation.

But you know me, Laugh at the wonder of it all. Plus, you know, I like to be helpful. So here are my Top Ten new titles for Jon and Kate Plus Eight.

10. Jon and Kate Plus Berate
9. Jon and Kate Plus Unattractive Personality Traits
8. Jon and Kate Plus INFLATEd Egos
7. Jon and Kate Plus "How About a Date, I'm on a Reality Show You Know"
6. Jon and Kate Plus Eight Attorneys
5. Jon and Kate Minus One Mate
4. Jon and Kate Plus Jail Bait?
3. Jon and Kate plus Fate
2. Jon and Kate Plus Eight Kids Who Never Asked For Any of This
1. Jon and Kate Plus Hate

Juvenile, with a side order of misogyny

Classy, huh? Jon first saw this on Daily Kos today. I found it later by Googling "BK blowjob." I wish it was a joke. It's not. Kind of like that Quizno's Toasty Torpedo ad campaign . I'm sensing a trend here.

When I was in college I wrote a paper for a Psych course about subliminal seduction in advertising. Nothing subliminal here. They're not even bothering to be clever. They're relying on lame puns and heavy-handed innuendo. I think they're going for the drunk frat boy "dude-you-said-blow" level of humor.

Yeah, um, no thanks.

Coming, Goings, Beings and Doings

Bonjour! Kajitsu! Good day, eh? Hey y'all!

Well it looks like we're going to be racking up the frequent flier miles here at the Gold house maison d'Or. I'm not sure how this all happened, but happen it has. And will. In a matter of weeks and months even. Yes friends, the zen family is hitting the road and taking this party international. More importantly, for the first time we're not all traveling at the same time or even to the same place continent. Gulp. My little family is growing up.

First up on the itinerary is a much anticipated regrouping in Canada for a week of unschooly fun with a rad group of friends.


This will be the one trip we're doing together as a family and I'm planning on cherishing every minute of it. We'll practice our "ehs?" with the hosers as we get our unschooling tank filled from a to zed. (in litres, of course)

Then a few weeks later it's off to Not Back To School Camp for Qacei and Burning Man for Conor. Oh yeah, my baby's going to Burning Man!

Both events have been described as life changing, albeit for slightly different reasons. I have to admit that I'm actually thinking it's too bad they don't go to school. Because I'm pretty sure they would each have some interesting content for a "What I did on my Summer Vacation" essay.

As we head into the fall, Qacei will be flying solo (for the first time!) with her friends MJ and Chloe to Atlanta. From there they head to North Carolina to hang out on the beach with even more unschoolers. Look out y'all, the girls are a comin'!

In early November Conor is also heading off without the family, but he's flying in the other direction. He'll be joining a half dozen other unschoolers on a three week tour of Japan! They start in Tokyo and will travel by rail throughout the country. That is going to be an adventure for sure. I'm intimidated just looking at all those people in Tokyo. And I grew up in New York!

But Conor knows much more about Japan and Japanese culture than I do. I'm pretty sure positive he will have an amazing experience.

The final bit of traveling news concerns Jon and I and our upcoming 25th anniversary. Yes that's right, 25! (aka we're old) It's a big one and should be celebrated, right? I mean we should give ourselves a vacation alone every now and then, right? Let's see, the last one was in 1987. Hmmmm, I think we're just about due to get away again.

So.....we toyed with going to the aforementioned Beach Unschoolers Gathering in NC. (We do love being surrounded by friends, but maybe this should be a couple thing, huh?) We toyed with going to Hawaii or Vegas or Catalina Island. (Beaches? Gambling? More beaches?) We toyed with doing nothing. (Nope, we do enough of that already.) In the end we picked...

drumroll please...

thanks, Keith

.
.
.
.
.
.
.

PARIS!
Magnificent. Romantic. Full of itself culture and brimming with art, music and beauty. The land of crusty French bread and full fat yogurt. Historic monuments and breathtaking museums.

Here's the Google Earth street view shot of our hotel.

Très magnifique, no?

Works for me...

Don't you just love milestones?

Even Especially the meaningless ones.

See that Neo-counter over there on the sidebar? I know what you're probably thinking, but it has NOTHING to do with Keanu Reeves or the Matrix. It should though, right? I mean c'mon...Neo.

But no, it's just to keep track of people who tip toe through my garden. And amazingly, it says that there have been 50,000 visits to the garden since its creation. Mostly 2 second drive-bys no doubt. But ya gotta wonder what the folks in Estonia or Malta make of all this if they do take a moment to look around. I'm thinking they'll come back for the bacon.

Stop me before I glue again

No, don't actually try to stop me because I'm having a ball. But I must admit I'm being somewhat consumed with the whole process of collage theses days. I've been cutting and gluing and rearranging and gluing and altering and gluing and antiquing and gluing. And gluing. And gluing. And...

Whoa dude, glue.

Where was I? Right, collage.

There are other aspects of collage that I also find to be totally tripping thoroughly enjoyable. First, there are the images. I love to work with vintage images, portraits mostly. Luckily there are entire websites devoted to collecting such images and they're meant to be shared. The best site I've found so far is art-e-zine. But there are so many more. So. Many. More. Needless to say (but I will anyway) I've been online quite a bit in my quest to find just the right ones. And oh have I found some beauties. Literally.

Take this amazing portrait from the flapper era. Isn't she lovely? I put her in this collage I made for Diana as a housewarming gift.

It's called Sweet Painted Ladies and that particular sweet lady is up in the top window. Click on the picture for a slightly closer view of the whole gang.

I also love hunting around for old junk vintage items and ephemera. Jon and I went to some thrift and antique stores this weekend and I found lovely bits of vintage lace, tacky costume jewelry, rusted nuts and bolts, and a cool clock to take apart for use in some Steampunk inspired art. Here's one little piece I already started. Maybe she's even finished. I haven't quite decided yet. Art is like that.

Obviously it was a dark and stormy night and some serious secrets were unleashed. I do believe that's Mitzi in there, getting into mischief. She can be like that sometimes. Gotta watch her.

I've got a lot more ideas and a few more pieces in process. I won't bore you all with every single one, but I'm liking this little note card a lot so I'll end with it. It's simple and to the point.

When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be.
~Lao Tsu

Everyone Is Beautiful

I think this video is just lovely. So is the post by The Bloggess that led me to it. It all started with the book Everyone Is Beautiful by Katherine Center. (Which by the way has just been added to my summer reading list.) You can check out the first chapter here.

Friday Fill-Ins

1. I grew up thinking there was only one right answer. I've come to discover that it all depends on what question you're asking.

2. Facebook was the last website I was at before coming here. It's taking over the world, you know.

3. Why don't you create something beautiful today?

4. A nice mug of kava tea in the evening helps me relax. Oh yeah, it helps me relax reaaaaal good.

5. Thanks for the connections. I appreciate each of you more than you can ever know.

6. A life with too many "shoulds" is very off-putting to me.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to working on some new collage pieces, tomorrow my plans include nothing in particular and Sunday, I want to do more of the same!

Get your own Friday Fill-Ins.

Best line I've read all week...

From Frank on Singularity. In answer to a question on a [lame] Homeschool Meme:

13. One subject you didn’t get to this week:

Frank replied: "I always use a subject with my verbs. Otherwise, they get lonely. Verbs are just so fucking needy."

Amen to that!

Mitzi Returns!

She's still a work in progress,
but aren't we all?

I'm calling this one She's A Star. I hope to get a better picture where the colors aren't so washed out. But you get the idea. It feels good to make art again!

Friday Fill-Ins

1. "One of the oldest human needs is having someone to wonder where you are when you don't come home at night." ~ Margaret Mead

2. My favorite thing for dinner lately has been a bowl of Cheerios with a banana. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day after all.

3. Karma says, "bark! bark! bark! Where are you going? Bark! Bark! Bark! Can I come too? Bark! Bark! Bark! Who's at the door? Bark! Bark! Bark! Is it time to eat? Bark! Bark! Bark! Wanna play? Bark! Bark! Bark! Wanna rub my belly? Bark! Bark! Bark!"

Karma the wonder dog

4. A nice long walk has been the key to keeping me sane.

5. I love when my friends have some good news to share.

6. When all is said and done, shut up about it already.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to NOT planning a conference, tomorrow my plans include creating some art and Sunday, I want to create some more!

Get your own Friday Fill-Ins.

Too hoffin' awesome for words

Forget the cowbell. We need more Hoff!

Click to Hoffify:

Forgive me blogoshpere for I have sinned

I have a confession to make.

It's hard to admit, but I have been neglecting the most sacred of the sacraments. Yes it's true. It has been two months since my last Daily Bacon update.

Two months with no new bacon? Oh the horrors!

But the thing is, I've been busy. And stuff has been happening. And good bacon takes time. And really, what was I thinking calling it a "daily" update? And, and, and...no one really cares but me.

You probably haven't even noticed the lack of pork-inspired posting. How do I know? How can I be so sure? Because nobody ever clicks over there. It's a lonely little sidebar button. All alone and feeling greasy blue. Well maybe one or two of you click now and then, but for the most part it's a hidden treasure. That's right T-R-E-A-S-U-R-E. Because surely, life is better with things like bacon bubbles, Mr. Baconhead and bacon peanut butter cups.

Am I right?

Hell yeah! So what to do?

At first I thought it might be time to close down the operation.

But, no, that just prolongs the agony. And hello? No? New? Bacon? I think not.

So instead I'm jumping back into it and doing a bacon update. Right here on the main page. And also on the Daily Bacon sidebar link. It's a two-fer! And seriously, I'm going to devise a clever way to let you all know when that thing gets updated. Or maybe I'll just post them here. Or maybe... Never you mind. I'll figure something out. And it will be for the good of all bacon-kind.

In the meantime, here it is. It's Big. It's Bold. It's silly BACON! This one has more bacon than your average pig farm. Take it away heart attack on a plate:

The Bacon Hamburger Fatty Melt

Oh yeah, a double bacon burger with two bacon-stuffed grilled cheese sandwiches as bun.

This is what they're calling "The Autopsy Shot."

Thanks to Conor for finding this gem.

Lather, rinse, repeat

I was just looking through some old posts as I was sprucing up the blog for the upcoming summer season. How do you like the new look by the way? That groovy birdie reminds me of The Partridge Family and makes me smile in a big way.

Hello, world, here's the song that we're singin'
C'mon get happy!
A whole lot of lovin' is what we'll be bringin'
We'll make you happy!

Oh man, remember David Cassidy and puka shell necklaces?

But Jesus H. Christ on a pogo stick have you seen what Shirley is up to lately?

But seriously, does the new design make my ass look big?

Anyway...I was looking through old posts and I stumbled upon one about the power of our word choices. I wrote it three years ago, but it still holds true today. It has nothing to do with The Partridge Family or groovy birdies, but in case you missed its premiere, here it is again. (Don't you love repeats? And it's not even summer yet!)

Word, Words, Words

I was surfing around the blogoshpere the other day. On one particular blog a mom was giving a quick moment by moment account of their day. Time consuming, but a cute idea I thought. As I read it though I noticed that several times the mom's entry was "Fought with ______", naming one of her kids. It struck me as odd and I couldn't put my finger on why at first. After all, the other entries were about having fun and being together.

Then I realized what it was. It was her choice of the word "fought." We have our grumpy days here, don't get me wrong. We have days when our agendas just don't seem to match up very well. We can get short tempered with each other or say something in the heat of the moment, but I don't think you could call what we do fighting.

According to dictionary.com, a fight can be defined as "A confrontation between opposing groups in which each attempts to harm or gain power over the other, as with bodily force or weapons." I try hard not to oppose my kids. I'm on their side in this world, even when we have differing views on a particular topic. I also don't wish to gain power over them by force or otherwise. And obviously I don't ever want to harm them. So no, we definitely don't fight in this sense of the word.

Then there was this entry, "To engage in a quarrel; argue." Okay, maybe that's closer. But then again I'm not going to "engage" myself or my kids in any kind of quarrel. Why would I do that when we're on the same side? Isn't it better to discuss, debate or strategize? Maybe there are times when they try to engage me in battle, but I don't take the bait. (This took a long time for me to understand BTW, but I think I've got it.) It's not personal and it doesn't happen often even with two adolescents in the house.

Reading on further I found :

"To contend with physically or in battle." (Nope that one doesn't fit.)
"To wage or carry on (a battle)." (We try not to "carry on" thank you.)
" To contend with or struggle against" (Note the word against.)
"To try to prevent the development or success of." (HELL NO!)

The words we choose really do matter. If we think "fighting", if we talk about "fighting", if we write that we're "fighting" with our kids, then this is what we're carrying around with us. This is what we're layering onto our perception of our life with our families. If we think in the positive, we live in the positive.

I'm positive I'm not going to fight with anyone tonight. :o)

It Was 20 Years Ago Today

And it's gone by in the blink of an eye.

Happy Birthday Conor!

You are so loved.

Tales From the Cafe

Apparently a little girl came into the cafe over the weekend and ordered pancakes. Not just any pancakes, she wanted a daisy. And not just any daisy. She was very specific about what it should look like and even took the time to sketch it out for the waitress. I think she's a James fan.