DO NOT READ THIS ... if you plan to watch *The Return of the King*!!!

We went to watch it on the 24th of December (could we have chosen a beDer day? neeeeee! :P) ... we went there at 10.00 am and it was the only theatre in Hamburg which showed the movie in original version with no subtitles.
(happy sigh)

And gawd that was GUUUUUUUUUUUUUUD!

There was almost nobody there, too early I guess, so we had the delicious feeling of intimacy with the movie. That was already fantastic.

I've been surprised again by the mirror effect between the third book and the third movie. I could not expect a beDer interpretation of Tolkien's work.

If I was forced (with torture) to criticize anything, hmmm... I would say the moment I found the less well done was with all what surrounded Arwen, I did not find it very clear. Oh and I still don't enjoy the Gimli character in the movie... his face does not move! ...last point was the music, I have to listen at it again, but ending with this annie lenox song... (cough cough)

Now I was really happily surprised with the Dead army, the battles again, the oliphants, the importance given to Pippin and Merry, the interpretation of Eowin (for once, I say one Blonde worths 10 Brunettes! hehehe), of Faramir, Eomer, king Theoden and Denetor! They were all purrrfect!



***~~~**^* ***happppppppppyyyyyyyyyyy sigh**~~^^^* * * *^^* *

I can finally sit down and relax for a minute today (G)
I've decided I would not work (maybe just a lil bit though) before the New Year and just enjoy the day right now for what it brought me.
Our rendez-vous went extremly well. Pascale (the author) and I did not expect all would go that well actually.
If everything goes as expected, you should be able to order on amazon.con or about anywhere else a lil book with OUR NAMES on it before Easter!!!!!!!!!!!!

(FAINTING)
(FAINTING)
(FAINTING)

I need some time to realize! hehehe

Bang!
We're just back from Hamburg! Holidays can't be over, I wanna more of dem, NOW!

No time to surf at all, not even a minute to check about emails... (SIGH)
I gotta prepare my rendez-vous with the publisher tomorrow, so I'd beDer run (with one of my new pairS of shoes!!!!! noss noss !!!!!)

hehe*~**~~*^* * wooooooooooooooooosh

Dancing with my Met' ticket around the snow flakes (that we should find in Hamburg actually :P)
It's so so unexpected and miraculous (no, I'm not a fan at all ;-) that they come back in 6 months!!!! Weeeeeeeeeeeee**~~*^*



I just regret we haven't bought them earlier in the morning... we would have had better seats (it's just that, I wanna see dem in details!!!!)... Ha well, I'm fantabizoobidy happy with what we have already!

Laaaaalalalaaaaaaaaaalalaaaaa

Phewww... the luggage is almost ready! (it's been 3 days I'm making it!!!)
I hesitate a lot to take with me some work to do overthere... I will just take the book cover painting I think, it has to be ready for the day I come back.
Working at home, RILLY, what a great idea!!!!!! grrrmmmpppphhhhhhh

We will leave tonight when Lola should go to bed..about 10.00, 10.30, I dunno. And we'll arrive -maybe not so fresh- in the morning for a yummy german breakfast!!! Anyway, as long as Lola AND Joe sleep well, it will be rilly ok!

Gwenola (sister) has just found a new job! Her last one was to finish next week... and she's got an offer starting on the 5th of January! Just purrrfect! She'll work for her cityhall in the "youth department". I don't know exactly what will be the job but that sounds kewl.

Oh, and I've discussed with the publishing house today... olala... it's so exciting! We've a rendez-vous on the 29th of December! Weeehooooooooo**~~*^* *

My weekly contribution is really RILLY classic. I'm not specially sensitive to the charms of actors from the 1950's and 1960's, but I gotta say that if I had to chose one of dem, it would be Jimmy Stewart.
There's something in him, a mixture of male-ishness and sensitivity that makes him rather purrrfect. Unfortunatelly I've not found real *sexy* picture of him! ;-)

Cheers nonetheless! :P

Having no time to work on a new painting (and I have to finish this book cover for Wednesday... impossible mission!), I just *had* to do a lil something for Xmas.
So I just started a lil competition! The winner will get one of my prints (the one he/she wanna actually).

If I had time, I would create one or two other websites, more dedicated to visual arts in general and to music, with lots of lil challenges and competitions in dem. That is usually a source of extreme creation, always very interesting!

And here it is! Just published on the second page of Le Parisien, not bad hey :P
hehehe
A pity though they haven't put my website URL!!!!! The journalist told me he did not know what they would cut or not...
(sigh)
Anyway, they say I'm a painter and that I sell online... and with my name, people can find my site. Huuuuu

It was a funny experience!!!

I just had to show you my papier family of faeries which is full process of creation! There are actually 5 of them, requiring much time and patience:)

Right now I'm still with the hand in the glue and paper but soon, they will get a proper face and body (I don't like to know they're all nekkid with such a cold around!) hehe

Okies, the interview is done (have I mentioned here I got interviewed by a French newpaper about the Internet? I've been talking for 40 minutes non-stop! ... I was inspired ;-) ... tomorrow at 10.00 am, a photographer comes here for a photo cession! LOL
And the article will be published on saturday!
weeehooooo!

(what a week, I'm dead!!!! **~~*^* *^^* ^**^*)

Gawd, yesterday was such a day! The house, Metallica, the book publication.... and it was on the 9th of december.

I think number 9 is definatly *our* number... we married on the 9th (january), Lola was born on the 9th (october), and it seems again the 9th is again a lucky day!

I don't know much about the meaning of the number 9, except I found 9 was often linked to the universe, the brotherhood, and the challenger.
I don't know -yet- what all that means. But I'm going to have a look at it **~~*^* *^^* * *

ohh ohhh and what a day it's been yesterday .... our notary has signed for the house!

**~~* *we are the proud owners of our lil Breton hobbit's home**~~**^* *

We should receive the keys tomorrow (then only we open champ'!) .... and start to pay for 15 years ... now! lol

(happy happy sigh)

Some days, life can get RILLY full of suprises......

(popping around like a wild wild lil creature!)

Yesterday I found an email from a publishing house telling they were interested in the story the Belgian woman has written and that I have illustrated....!!!!!!!!

I had send the first copies of the book to publishing houses on Monday, and I got this email on Tuesday... which is already unbelievable!!! It takes 3 months minimum before you get back a (negative) answer.

This email sais they loved the story and its illustrations and wanted to get in touch with us.
My Belgian friend (because we turned to be friends :) called them and they repeated what they had said in the email!!!!! They added they would send a contract for publication and that they are interested to make a collection with us around the topic.

....

.......

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The dream of every writer or illustrator is happening... just like that!
I still can't believe one second that there might be a published book soon with my name on it..... !!!!!!!!!

(falling from chair, lying happily on the floor, watching the ceiling!)

I don't know how will be the contract, my Belgian friend will tell me all about it. But I don't worry, if I have already a very little chance to be published, the rest does not count at all.

That is a crazy story which is happening, crazy crazy crazy!!!!!

wooooooohooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!

I feel so many things at once...
.... the pleasure of having a positive answer that quickly and ... that easily somehow!
.... the pride to be really starting my own business based on my own work and passion.
.... the happiness to see all the efforts are rewarded
.... the conviction that we should never give up. We say getting published is like winning lottery, it almost never happen.... Well it does!!!!!

Ok, I wait to see the book on my shelves before getting too too excited (well, too late I fear! LOL)
But just a positive answer, publication or not, means a LOT to me.

**~~*^* *^^* ^**~~* *

Et voilà! Tonight is our Metallica night!!!
I can't wait to see and hear the Metal guys and be part of this Metal atmosphere!

laaaalalalaaaaa
Say your prayers little one
Dont forget, my son
To include everyone
Tuck you in, warm within
keep you free from sin
till the sandman he comes
sleep with one eye open
gripping your pillow tight

(trembling in my boots! lol)
(on my way tofind some metal outfit! hehe)

Full Moon tonight!!!!
Let's all get our blankets (Gawd it's coooooold today) and run out around the burning totem!!!!
**~~*^* *^^* ^^* *^^* *~~*^*

My second sketch is accepted for the book cover!
I'm so excited! I gotta finish the painting before Xmas and woooooooooosh I send it to Oz lands!
I'm prouuuuud of the work so far, I hope the painting will be as I expect it to be!
RoaaaaaaaaaRRRRRRRRR

It's been more than 3 months that i've seen my papa, who lives at about 15 minutes from here...
And finally I think we see each other about 3 times a year.
He's always too busy, playing music or whatever.

Strangely, I'm used now to not be a priority for him, and vice-versa.

My in-laws are coming later today and stay for 5 days in Paris (which explain why I woke up at 6.30 to clean the flat... eeeeeeeeeeeck! That can't happen more than once a year, I tell ya! hehe)
They haven't seen Lola since August and 3 months in a baby's life is huge! I can't wait to see them discovering all the lil changes, and I hope Lola will get used again to them quickly :-))) **~~*^* * *^^* *

Oh and they come from Hamburg by car... and they leave by plane.
Yup.
They let their (our?) car here.
They actually have sold us their car!!!! Woooohoooooooooooooo!!!!
We've been looking for a second-hand car but quickly Martin's parents worried we could find a not so good car (with techie probbies) and offered to sell us their car (they were to buy a new one). For -you can imagine- a VERY interesting price! A *parent's price* (haaaaa parents, what would we do without them!!!!).

Our future car is almost as a new one, and very practical for a lil family who gonna travel a lot!
Her design is kinda unusual and weird, and cute, which I like for a car. Oh and it is SO SO comfortable inside, you can't imagine!
We're so lucky!!!!!
I gotta find a name for her now, it's urgent. I can't arrive and just say "hello, my car"! neeeeeee

Have you ever tried the milk just taken from the cow? Way to creamy and heavy for me. Beuuuurrrk!
I prefer "industrialized" milk (lol)... what a shame!

And my weekly contribution will be named Keanu!!!



There are times (when Keanu gets sad eyes or does smile) when I find this Keanu rilly inspiring :P
Unfortunatelly these expressions can't be seen in the series of Matrix, where he is quite expressionless.
I really enjoyed My Own Private Idaho, but since then I think he hasn't got the roles he deserves!

The book cover on which I'm working is a really really exciting work!!!!
What's a bit frustrating is that I won't be able to show it around (because the buyer asked, and for a first online sell, you accept almost everything :P).

Argggg, the full story is complicate, but the more it goes, the more I really can't stand notaries!

Did you know that notary was the only profession in France that makes CONSTANT profit?!!!!!

(gimme my bazooooka)

Because I'm maaaaaaad yes!
We've asked our notary to sign for us for the house.
We pay him for that too.
But he tries to make us accept that all the papers get signed by the opposite side, by the notary of the sellers. (we learnt that via mail).
Ya follow me?
And we don't want that at ALL!

Because our notary does not want to move his ass on a friday afternoon, we're getting more delay.
I can't believe it.
We call him again tomorrow morning and if he does not react in 10 seconds to defend ofur interests, we go there asap.
The probbie was that we had no time right now to go to Bretagne, but if it's getting baaaaaad, we won't hesitate!
RoaRRRRRR

sendin an s.o.s to the world

I'm looking for a KEWL online advent calendar... and so far I've found rilly ugly stuff! Nothing lovely and funny!
Grmmmppppphhhhhhh

If anyone find something, don't forget ol' candy :P

One of my daily moments of total, complete happiness (happy sigh)
Makes ya wanna have dozens of angels around **~~*^* *^^* *



When Lola wanna a cuddle, she just forces you to lie down (she can do that!)... then she comes and stick herself against you while purring (she really make the noise of purrrrr!!!)

16 days before we get the final part of the Lord of the Rings!!!!
We'll go and watch it in Hamburg, with a pub before and after (I can't wait for that either :P)
I'm so impatient to watch it and just a very lil bit sad it gonna be the final part... "No, no, I don't want it to be the end, puleaaaase"

It's always like that when you expect something with much excitement, isn't it?
All what comes before, this boiling feeling, is so pleasant and delicious. We would not like this feeling to stop even though we wanna enjoy the *source of pleasure* itself. But enjoying, consumming it also means putting an end to it.

Maybe I'll wait and watch it in a couple of years, then? //oO\
lol

I could not start my day in a beDer way! I got one of my highest score at my daily quizz!!! (yeah I nooooooooeeee, that sounds like a lil grannie's habit, but who cares :P).
I got 16/20 instead of a usual... 7/20 or 9/20... or in my bad days 4/20 ! :P

Haaaa I was to forget my contribution to the world's harmony this week!!!

Phewwww... glad I have still some working memory.
So here it is, and for once, it's been really hard to find a *different* picture for this one (I always try to find a picture we don't see often).
I luuuuuve his movies, the aura that shines around him, these eyes and smile! Wooooooooohoooooooooooooooo

I was surprised yesterday evening when I almost fell down like a dry flower!
I discovered I had high high temperature and then felt suddenly really broken. With some pain like in the bones everywhere.

The temperature went down in the morning, but I always worry I could transmit anything wrong to the shrimpette. Soooo wooosh, I went to the doc'. "A virus. You've just caught influenza, your temperature will go high then down like in cylcles for the next 10 days, you gotta rest".
LOL

I feel ok right now. And I'm sure it's because I gotta take care of the shrimpette. It seems I somehow keep my lil virus in a box and it will just open by itself when I know Martin is back and near the shrimpette!!!
Dat's magic!

I wanted to wish a special happy Thanksgiving to my Rican friends (+ big smooooch for Ariel here**~~*^* *) !
Just to get a bit of its spirit, I'm going to cook turkey with cranberry sauce tonight! Who said Frawnch were not inspired by American culture, hm? :P

I really enjoy painting Science-Fiction topic, as much as Fantasy ones actually! Both genres are open doors to imagination, at least to mine. A big source of pleasure :-)

...Pleasure that I got when working on this one (!) :



The Ultimate Trip


Among other things with this painting, I really wanted to try to draw a real kiss. Have you ever drawn one? Gawd, that is one of the most difficult subject I think. The practical trick is to hide both face if you make the characters with bending heads (you know?)... hehe... I tried to make my version of a *spatial* kiss. I like the painting, put I think the characters could be more stuck together, lips included :P ... anyway, that was a first try! :-))

I'm just back from the doc' and the shrimpette has caught her first otitis. And a bad bad one! The doc asked me to come back in a couple of days to check how it goes.
The eardrum in her right ear is pierced and the doc' fears the other will follow.
She's under heavy treatment for 10 days.

Fewwwww, now she gets an appropriate treatment, I'm reassured.
The poor shrimpette is also having stomach probbies (due to the otitis probably) and a rhinitis. All that added to her teef pain. That is much!!!

Anyway, I'm being initiated to all these devilish lil virus that are so frequent with babies. I know that it sounds weird, but I feel even more a *mama* than I did yesterday! LOL
**~~*^* *

Just a month before Xmas, time's driving a very fast red car, huh!!!

There gonna be so much to do till then... I luuuuuve Xmas, its colours and lights and cinnamon smells and warm spirit.
But I wish Santa Claus could be around more often because finding presents is pretty boring.



One sure thing is that I won't run for shopping, no desire... and no $$$ !
With such a big family and 3 xmas to celebrate (one in Hamburg, one with each of my divorced parents' families), we gotta be inventive, I tell you.
Martin and I agree to make a papier mâché Xmas this year!!! We gonna create papier mâché angels and faeries and devils... I just cross bits so that we get the time and talent!!!!

I usually spoil my papier mâché sculptures once I paint dem. I make them so kitsh that nobody would like to show them! lol

Anyway, Martin and I have different technics, that's very funny. We've started to build "bodies" yesterday while watching Terminator 3 (the kind of movie that allows multitasking :P)

And suddenly a new word came to life, maybe good enough to be added to the Magical Dictionnary by the way!....

TO FRICOT
(fricot-fricot, irregular verb, lol)
example: Oh you've been fricotting again with the neighbour, haven't you?
...hehe
meaning... having an affair with someone or at least knowing someone enough to play at the nurse and the doc... There is a part of "secret" + "not very honest" dimension in it. It's cute enough, not a nasty word.

In French, we don't use much "fricoter" anymore, but I can see very well mamas in the 1950s using it a LOT!

Sorry for the linguists, we can't help creating Frankensteinish words when we need them.... which are not easy to understand when you don't *nooooe*, I reckon!

Oh, btw, this word has been created by Esox and I on last weekend. We're kinda proud! :P
(Esox is a new member of the Dog House News Chatroom... I let you discover Esox there :P)

Ohhhh ohhhhhhh and I was to forget!!!
(slappin own face)

Lola has made her first steps yesterday!!!
She's not ready to run and seems to prefer to be on her all four, but dat's a beginning :-)))

personnal victory: I've finished my illustrations of the children's book about hyperactivity!!!!

weeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!

It's been 2 months I've been workin on it, I really needed to finish it. It was getting too long, preventing me from working properly on other projects.

Now I work on 2 projects: the Aussie book cover and an SF painting **~~*^* * *^^* *

3 new teef coming out : Lola's been crying the whole sunday! :((
They say 20% of babies do not stand it at all when the teeth are coming out... Lola has a bad time with them, having very red cheeks, biting all lil things she can, putting her hands in the mouff to try and ease the pain. But there's not much to do!

She cried last night from 1.30 to 4.30. Poor shrimpette, I hate it when she suffers that way.

Anyway, I think it gonna be a LONG day for Martin and I ... "2 zombies in Paris", that would make a fine Z movie ;-)

To the stooopid question "What would be your preferred way of dying", I agree with 90% of people that during one's sleep is really fine.

I'm all the more convinced of it when I hear such stories as....(you probably heard of it too).... this woman from Bangladesh, 38 years-old, who's been eaten "to death" (head to waist) by a 3 meters long python.

arrrrgggggggggg
And when I read such thing I always get stoopid questions popping out like... did she have the eyes open when her head entered the python?
Was she dead before being eaten or while being eaten (which would not change much to the horror of such a death)!

snakes, sharks, chicken and pigeons... enough to feed all my nightmares!

eeeeck

In case you wondered (I know at least ONE who did!!! hehe :P).... I haven't forgotten my contribution to the World Harmony!
So here's a picture of the man who's been selected as the sexiest one by People magazine.
I could have made the same choice, no problem! :P

Grab your sun-glasses and enjoy!

"Ask me a-n-y-t-h-i-n-g!!!! ......... I'm in the *muuuuuuud* to say YES!"

"Oooops, your time is over :P"

I've spent my day being after Lola telling her...
...NO (don't play with Joe's litter),
...NO (don't try to suck the plugs),
...NO (don't eat anything that look small and pretty)

OR...

...STOP (throwing the food around),
...STOP (screaming each time I tell something),
...STOP (tryng to drink all the water in your bath)

And I tell you, when you spend your day with these ugly words in the mouff, you can't keep on with that!

I'm glad it's the weekend!
YESSSSSSS!
I'm glad Martin can also take care of the shrimpette!
YESSSSSSS!
I'm glad the shrimpette is sleeping hard while I'm having a glass of wine!
OUIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!!!!!!!!!!

hehehe

Black is beauDiful



We've been baaaadly beaten by the All Blacks today, but it was a great game! The game itself, the players, their t-shirts (woooooo!!!... kiddin!!!... not!), yeah fine moment!

It was funny, when we did a drop, the spectators weren't happy at all!!! ... That should make a funny atmosphere on Saturday :P

Anyway, we're not good enough... not yet... but soon! And guess where the next world rugger cup will happen, hm?!!!
lalaaaaaalalalaaaaaala

A purrrfect day is a day where I'm able to multitask.
Yup, i've just realized that. Kinda scary and stressing, but it works that way for me.

Today was not a purrfect one, I've been a mama at 400%, and it is just too much. Lola was in bad mood, she hasn't slept more than 40 minutes in the whole day (usually she makes heaven's naps of 2 hours), so I've had no time at all to do anything more than taking care of my princess.

And I need a 2 hours break, to relax and work (work is even more relaxing than taking care of a devilish 1 year-old shrimpette, rilly rilly ;-).
Now it's about midnight, and I'm not in the mood to start anything.

Tomorrow will be another day, huh :-)

Now... while I've been monotasking, the shrimpette has shown huge qualities for the multitaskin thingie... see:


watchin the teleBubbies+having her boDle+givin a massage to Joe!

I'm a proud mama!!!
RoaaaaaaaaRRRRRRRR
hehe

I've just seen Matrix, no not the final one, just Matrix #2, Matrix Reloaded.
I, so crazy for cinema, am now forced to watch movies only once they come out as a dvd. Try to go to cinema more than 3 times a year when you get a baby, it's an impossible mission!



Anyway.... I've been really disappointed. Just fed up with their serious faces and sunglasses, fed up with their slow action scenes, fed up with the story itself.
Oh and once I thought the real story could started, the movie stopped. Just like that!

I don't know about the third part, but they should have stopped with the first me thinks.

Martin tells me there are lots of elements coming from William Gibson's books (Neuromancer, etc.).... well then, he's not convinced me yet to try reading Gibson's books again! LOL

I had started, but nenene... I did not enjoy at all.
Even though the concept of *cyberpunk generation* sounds terrific (I think I just luuuuve the "cyberpunk" word ;-)

Martin tells now that Gibson's books is a "guy's stuff"... just like... Frank Zappa!...
...dunno, Martin might be right on that at the end! :P

Lola's getting good at playing with Gulliver! She's managed (maybe by chance, but several times) to move the mouse so that her little teletubbies film can start! Not bad, hey :P
I really wonder what she will be able to do with the computer in a couple of years. I think we gonna get some surprises :P

I've just been offered to make the cover of a book!
The author, an Aussie one (yup yup!), has written a Fantasy book and needs a cover for it now.
That sounds great!
But... I'm not sure he's ready to pay for it, and in this case I won't do anything...

Anyway, we'll see. At least I'm contacted for projects, it's already a good thing! :-)

I was surfing when I saw again Le Baiser by Rodin and... I realized I did not like it much! I dunno there is something which is not natural here. It seems the goil is forcing the man (who agrees to respond positively okok), yes dat's it! I think this kiss is not trooooly shared.

OR, the man is shy. Look at his hesitating hand!

Oh santamariajoseph, I've discovered we had pretty kewl neighbours!
Our neighbours, who live just the door in front of ours, and we have friends in common.
These friends had planned to visit us and them yesterday evening, and finally we all gathered for a delicious dinner :)
That was practical to check if Lola slept well, just the other door to open :-)

It was again pretty international, franco-german-canadian. The English Canadian (married to a French goil) one who was there seemed a bit surprised by our manners, maybe because we had all drunk. Dunno. Btw, we've tried about 4 different red wines and real delicious ones!
And we finally ended at about 3.00 with a lil glass of very old rum.

It's 8.00 now, no headache, and I feel ready for the Walloooooooobies / Blacks match! Wooohooooooooooooooo!!!

Today I wanna defend the right and freedom to be SLOWWWwwwwww.

I often see and hear old people apologizing because they just can't hurry.
I think that's kinda terrible because finally they are sorry for what they are: creatures who need time, persons who wish their body could always obey their desires.

So they're sorry for being too slow, sorry for not walking quickly enough, sorry for not always understanding quickly what they're told.

And I still wonder why we all put so much pressure on them since we will all visit these slow lands one day. We should feel concerned.
And I don't know but... sometimes we should even try to be slow ourselves.
Sitting down and relaxing.
Enjoying, for instance, looking at a lil Breton snail making the trip of his life **~~*^* * *

Here's the painting I've just finished, and one that I finally like, which is not often the case!
Oh and again a very female-ish one :-)


Cattitude

I've heard thousands of protesters (against Iraq's occupation I think?) are expected in London next week!
:-)))

The situation is not easy. I wouldn't enjoy being in the shoes of Tony Blair at the moment...
Of course an Iraq without Saddam is better. There's no comparison possible, yes. So weeee *pacifists* are forced to recognized there was no other way than using war to get rid of him?
I still can't agree with that for hundreds of reasons.

We talked of that last weekend, in a sober moment (;-), and we agreed that one of the means that could have helped the Iraqi would have been to stop the embargo years ago. That only was a way to starve the population, deprive it of the means to go against the power and support finally Saddam's dictatorship.

Anyway, I wish the American soldiers to be back at home as soon as possible. It must be terrible overthere.
I'd be the mama of one of dem, I'd go there take my son under the arm and take the liver out of anyone who would try to stop me (lol, did I say I was a pacifist?! ;-)

And here's my weekly humble contribution to the World harmony ;-)
This week, I've chosen an appropriate rugger symbol... Cheers!

(entering my bloggies' cottage... no dust around! kewl! -I wouldn't have cleaned anything anyway :P)

Our weekend in Bretagne was... TOO SHORT. And Fantabizoobidy. And amazingly sunny. And warm inside.
(happy sigh)


early morning view from the front garden

Again we spent much time in our future hobbit house, making plans, talking with the mason, tasting grapes we've discovered in the front garden, enjoying our *Life plan* :-) **~~*^* * ** ^^* *

We've also spent much time kinda partying, creating culinary challenges with other relatives. Gawd, if you wanna try new food, come at home one day. They (we) 're crazy with that when we start!
Each of us prepared a meal. I made "moules à la charenthaise" (curry mussels), Martin cooked *rabbit à la Martin* (his own recipe :P), others cooked stuff like porc with banana and mango or ris de veau (calf sweetbread), etc. All was delicious! Not the right place for those who wanna lose weight, I tell ya! hehehe

We also drank more than reasonnably. I mean much more! Wines, beers and calvas (calvados). Every single bottle we tried was simply terrific: no one got an headache in the mornings!!!
Unfortunatly we were kinda too drunk to go out to dance at 2 fest-noz which were organized just near. Ha well, you just can't have everything :P

It was also absobloodilutely fantastic to spend evenings near a huge old fireplace while enjoying loud muzik.

Too bad it takes 4 hours to go there otherwise we'd be there almost every weekend ;-)

I just could not leave for a long weekend without adding a lil painting to my gallery!
I'm working right now on a quite big one, which is almost finished, but today I show you the commissioned work i've finished last week.
(for my mama's company. Well, you gotta use your relations in biz!!! hehe)

It's a painting for a Xmas card which had to be traditionnal enough.


Santa's Blues

I could call it my own Call of the Wild...
It's getting very intense since a few days, and this Wild I'm talking about is desire for maternity. I'm feeling like an empty nest, ya know? hehe... that will only mean something to some mamas probably ;-)

It's never been like this before, my body feels like ready to welcome a new treasure.

What a unique feeling! What's strange though is that my body might be ready, but I am not! So I will wait a bit, a few months maximum, till my inner and outter selves come to a kind of agreement (G).


This mama feeling is even being a powerful source of energy. Must be the hormones or something.
hehe

No, I dunno really how to explain, it must be very female-ish, but it's here and I can almost feel it pulsing in my veins.

I did not *know* really if I'd rilly want to be a mama another time. Now I get my answer, i'm surprising myself :-)

Martin's down down down :-(
We should have signed for the house on Friday, but we just got a call and the owners's notary has fogotten to order and administrative paper which is necessary!!!

It looks as if it was the first house he's sold! RILLY!!!!! Grmmmmmmmmphhhhhhhhh
I'm more angry than down, but I understand Martin. We've had a lot of pressure to find money with the banks and it's been now 2 months we have it, and we still wait to sign!

And we had organized everything to leave for Bretagne this week. Martin had taken 2 days off, we've warned the bank we needed their cheque now, had taken rendez-vous for the house insurance, etc etc.

Fookin notary who must be the richest guy in his lands.
Remind me to be a notary in my next life, it seems to bring some kind of lazy life while you're sure to be highly paid!

Anyway, reasonnable or not (rather "not"), I told Martin we'll leave for Bretagne anyway.
I think a break is more necessary than saving a few euros;-)

We'll have long walks near the river, happy times near the fireplace and groovy atmosphere with relatives around (a few relatives had decided to join there to celebrate the house with us).

I'm just wondering, is 1st november the Catholic celebration of the Saints or of the Dead?
I think it's of the saints (gonna be my day then!!!! hehehe) actually.
But I'd rather speak of the Dead today.

Yesterday I just forgot to speak of one of the most talentuous artists (to me). Tim Burton! Halloween was really appropriate to tell a few words about him. I rilly luuuve most of his movies, Edward Scissorhands, Beetlejuice, Sleepy Hollow... The nightmare before Xmas. Funny, macabre, poetic, unique. That's about my feeling concerning his work.

And I could use the same adjectives to tell how much I enjoyed his lil book *The Melancholy Death of Oyster Boy* (the title itself is revealing about Burton's world I think ;-). I rilly RILLY recommend this book. I think there's nothing that can be compared to this one :-)


For Halloween,
Oyster Boy decided to go as a human.

And to finish with the Dead...
As a catholic I should be confident in the "after life" time. I am confident, but not because of my religion. Rather because of my intuition. What I know is Death is not THE end. Whatever it is, there's something after death. I don't tell that to reassure myself, I rather find this scary to tell the truth.

Anyway, we'll *see* when time will come!

(waving at my grand-fathers and my grand-mother overthere, oh and at Jim Morrison too :P)

Rugger on a friday morning! How weird... Rugger while having cawffees... how unusual!
Poor Martin at work who gotta follow the results on his puter screen. Life's not fair (well though it is wiff me :P)

HAPPY HALLOWEEN !

I hope you will all celebrate it, even if it's just a little. Halloween is one of the most inspiring time to make the city/country purple, don't you think?
So let's ALL booogie-woooogie!

My Halloween will start deliciously with a rugger match between the Bloooooes and the Eeeeeeagles (waving to Ariel, we play your country today! :-))) good luck to both teams!)

I've also just finished a painting, which is a quite appropriate one today ;-)

The Shrimpette and I cough now as if we were "human Harley's engines"... ya see what I mean?
At least I can take strong medicine, but Lola is too young for dem.
But ill or not, she's in a quite good mood, a mood that leads her to do all what is forbidden... as sucking my watercolour pencils for instance!!!





She's making so many faces (I wonder where she's learnt that?!! :P), that I can't help adding more photos of the clownette :-)))

taaadaaaaaaaaaaaaaa.... We sign for our Hobbit's house next week on Friday!!!!!!
I'm overwhelmed with pleasure and stress at the same time. Very weird mixture, but not such a bad one ;-)

I expect difficult times financially speaking. We're now decided to abandon our little comfort to catch the train for our *Everest* **~~*^* *
I think that's a very important thingie in life, accepting to leave habits and easy routine to face new realities and reach other dreams.

I hope it will be fine :-)

And here's my weekly contribution for a more harmonious and balanced world! Amen!!!
hehehe



Not easy to find -how can I say- *inspiring* pictures! I thought this one of Brad with his hairdryer was just purrfect!
RoaaaaRRRR!
hehehe

Watta night! When the shrimpette manages to sleep, it's our *tiger of siberia* who's in party time mood!
Everybody who gets a cat *nooooooooe* this specific belly noise which means your walls are about to be paint again!

When Joe is bothered with all the hairs he swallows, naturally he manages to vomit them. Why does that happen always in the middle of the night? I don't know.
Great I always wake up very quickly because Joe had come to sleep under our blanket last night. And it's there that his belly chaos started.
I just had time to catch him and throw him out of the bed (poor boy!).

Anyway, maybe we can expect a real complete night tonight... who knows!

Despite much attention so that Lola is covered enough when we're out into ParisAntartica... She's just caught a baaaaad baaaaaaaad cold. And so have I. I thought it would get better but I'm wearing 3 thick woolen pullovers and I'm rilly freezin and coughing like an old smoker right now!

And I think Martin starts with it now. I wanted to make him a toddy (as Doc' Jack adviced me earlier), but Martin's been quicker!!!
We've not had our dinner yet and he's already having his 2nd toddy! I did not know he knew toddies! He explained me he discovered that when he was making a bike tour of Ireland. One day he got rilly ill with bad fever and all. He arrived with his bike to the only pub of the area, a pub full of Irish farmers who ordered him directly a toddy! hehe

Anyway, I'll have my toddy a lil later. I already feel drunk with the only lil glass of wine I've just had! hic!

I really cannot stand when the night falls at 6.00!!!
At 6, Lola and I really start our afternoon (after her nap and my work). But it's dark outside and the world seems about to fall asleep.
SIGH!

Fookin winter time. For one little hour saved on a lazy sunday, we gonna suffer early nights for months (or is it how *Nature* works? ;-)! Grrmmmphhhhhhh
Thank Gawd, a third pumpkin pie (made by Martin, the house' chef!) will soon be available to remind us this season also gets its very pleasant charms ;-)

Et voilà!
While I'm enjoying a very *comfortable* weekend with my lil family, others are out to defend their ideas and freedom :-)))



I wonder sometimes how much I would get involved to "save the world", as these people do (that's what I think at least).
Isn't it too selfish to think about our own happiness and pleasure before anything else?
Of course it is.
Then should I spent my weekends *saving the world* (involving in associations, etc)?

I've often think about it and I believe the best is doing a lil something at least to participate. Like writting a bloggie? well, maybe after all. But that is a minimum :P

I also think you cannot make the world better if you do not take care of your own family but rather involve in whatever humanitarian associations.

I wanna make my lil family the happiest, do that make me an active defensor of our lil planet?
hehe

....
I think: YES!

I wonder how many $$$ Colin Powell expected from countries like France and Germany... and I RILLY wonder why he's so surprised that these 2 countries don't give him without counting...
I'm not good at politics but sometimes the most obvious seem to be very complicated for politicians :P

Anyway, Iraq's reconstruction is naturally necessary, even more when you see what's left of it now. But I find Frogland and Krautland get a point when they say they will more tend to give money to Iraqi to rebuild their country rather than to Americans. It sounds kinda logical.

(that was Candydator, in direct from rotten PoLticaLand ;-)

I'm a very regular reader of FHM mag'. I simply luuuve it. I find it very funny and very male-ish (even macho). It's kewl.

But I regret there are only nekkid goils in it (well I noooooooooooe... it's a mag' for men!).
Anyway, I wanted my lil bloggie to participate to a more fair balance. Dat's why I thought I could add from time to time *inspiring pics*! Cheers, goils!!!

I've just finished another illustration for the lil book I'm workin on :-))))
And I've started with a Xmas card for... my mama! hehe... well she will pay for it! It's a professional request ya see! So Far i've started with a Santa Claus playing guitar and Mama Claus dancing on his music ;-)

I gotta finish the card before Sunday (we've rendez-vous at my mama's for a Roastbeef-Samoa rugger game, followed by a seafood lunch!)...
So I don't know if I will have time to start with a "Candy Froggie" painting... Gawd, I need TIME!!! **~~*^* *

Well.... it's been a long time since I did a fookin stoopid test! hehe... As usual, I'm not happy with the result :P

My inner child is six years old!

Look what I can do! I can walk, I can run, I can
read! I like to do stuff, and there's a whole
big world out there to do it in. Just so long
as I can take my blankie and my Mommy and my
three best friends with me, of course.


How Old is Your Inner Child?
brought to you by Quizilla

The thing is... I answered I luuuved sex in the test... that makes me 6 years old?!!!!!
okok... why not after all! hehehe

I'm 6 years old today and I'm having a glass of delicious white *milk* (I'm in advance for my age :P)
(putting my downloaded Beyonce's crazy for luuuve and jumping around!)
I need some ice-cream, quick!!!

Zorro's back with "Dude, where's my country?"!!!
Weeeeeeeeee!



As soon as I find it on ebay or priceminister at a fine price, I'll read it (which will take me about 4 months! LOL... reading's being ZE challenge with the shrimpette around)
I wanna see if what he says here sounds fine and not exagerated (I'm like saint thomas... I don't believe what I've not seen :P)

There isn't any beDer time get into pumpkin *muuuud* than right now, sure thing :-)
Halloween... the purrrfect moment for happy colours, devilish laughs and yummy pumpkin pies!

My grand mama was trying to explain me yesterday her catholic point of view towards this celebration. She seriously find it a celebration of Evil! hehehe... I love her for that too :-)))**~~^**^* *

Actually motivated by a pumpkin inspiration, I gave life to my *pumpklin fairies*. But still and again, I'm frustrated by the small size of the painting online. The visitor cannot *see* the difference... but the details, the colours, the resolution... I'd say 50% of it has disappeared once in the gallery (grrrmmmpppphhhh!)

Have you ever seen a movie by the Cohen brothers? .... Raising Arizona... The Big Lebowski... Fargo...

O Brother, Where Art Thou!


On my quest to watch all the movies I've missed lately, I've just found this one. And it was excellent despite many negative critics.
Cohen's movies are definately special, you never feel they try to convince or please the spectator, they just offer you to share for a while their weird vision of life.
I enjoyed a loooot Raising Arizona and Fargo, and O' Brother's been a great surprise. I found that george Clooney played like a bull in a roses field in Solaris, but here, he's simply fantastic!

That would never happen this way with a "man" and a "woman"... it would be the opposite, don't you think?
hehe
Yet, my explanation for the pic here is that the boy must get dust in the eyes. Have you ever seen a male-ish creature refusing to watch?
lol, nope!

I will *neeeeeeeed* another massage tonight!
(Poor Martin, I ask him one almost everyday! ... LOL!!! Lucky Martin!!!!).
My back and neck are completly tensed and that's only because of the last 4 days spent working almost night and day on several paintings.
I promised to myself not to start really my weekend before I finished at least one painting. Well, it's half past midnight and I can confirm my weekend has just started!!!!!
Weeeeeeeeeeee!!!!***~~* ^* *

I wonder if I had "paid" commissions how I would organize at home. Because I already work a lot for unpaid commissions.
Money's motivating, of course. I guess it's one of the risks when you work at home... letting yourself get overwhelmed with work.

But I won't let that happen!
RoaaaaRRRRRR!!!!

Getting pierced ears.
Yeah why not? My ears have been pierced 8 times anyway, so, yeah, dat's kewl, I like it. And well, I like piercing in general.

*but*
Having your baby's ears pierced is something different!
And when I said to this group of mamas I would never ever do that to my shrimpette, they looked at me with big eyes, as if I had just told them I go to church every sunday!
(I never go to church!)

Rilly, I'm kinda shocked these mamas did not think one second that maybe their baby do not want to get pierced ears.... and that even if there's only little pain... there IS pain! And it takes more than 3 days to heal!

I respect their choice but I really wonder about the motivations. Because a baby with pierced ears is cute? maybe, ok.
But just the idea of a baby suffering this lil pain for the pleasure of their parents make me shiver.

Lola will have to ask it and insist a lot before we accept... and not before 12 years-old!!!! (as she won't get any boyfriend before 18 years-old!!!! Mwahahaha)

(joking)
(about the boyfriend!)

Space. Have you heard about this Chinese who's just been sent into space?
It's great but I always find it amazing how little results we get regarding the Space exploration.

Well, little results are not the exact words, but the human imagination has been way further into this space exploration than the reality has allowed us.
Finally, we've been on the moon and we've sent robots further to explore one or two planets, whereas our imagination has already discovered thousands of paralel galaxies with hundreds of extremly intelligent (and often nasty :P) creatures.
What a gap!

And honestly, maybe reality should inspire itself from our imagination because I dunno but a rocket looks much less comfortable than all these space ships we've seen in movies or comics!!!!

And there in Normandie, my mama found a pic of meself 27 years ago in front of THE house.
I could have done the same pic with Lola yesterday.
That feels very strange :-)))



(and you see that pheasant in my arms! eeeeeck! I can tell now that my bird phobia started after 2 years-old!!!)

Yesterday we went to the family house in Normandie to help my grand-mama to move her stuff out of the house.
More or less forced, she gives the house to one of my uncles.
Which is not so so so bad at the end, since my grand-mama could not take care of the house properly anymore.
She will now live in a flat, just near Paris.

While everybody was busy, I went with Lola in her special backpack and with Lassie (lol, yeah I know... the one who gave the name to this beauDiful dawg was 2 years old at the time!) for a walk around the house then inside, revisiting every corner of it.
I took lots of pics because I fear I can forget one day all the fantabozooby adventures I spent there in the house.
Holidays, Xmas, all these so early mornings when we woke up with my grand-parents to go with them to work in the farm.

I hate it when you've to realize that time has passed, relatives have died, and that this family house who was full and noisy years ago... is now so empty and so quiet.
boooooooo :((((

(I'm glad we start another *family* house in Bretagne soon!!!!!)

Here are some pictures I took of the house:







The few from the house:



Lassie, the one who will stay there with my uncle's family



The kind of memorable touch to remind me my grand-mama is a marquise (LOL!!!)