August 25, 2014 TCBH

It is not ourselves that we are proclaiming, but Christ Jesus as the Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. It is God who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ that has shone into our hearts to enlighten them with the knowledge of God’s glory, the glory on the face of Christ.
The New Jerusalem Bible. (1985). (2 Co 4:5–6). New York: Doubleday.

I have been tagged on several occasions to participate in the different blog hops. I have not agreed until now since there are just too many things going on this summer and time has not been something I had to spare. Sorry but for me it was not the opportune time and I apologize. Mary H. asked me to participate this week and I voiced my concerns. It has been agreed that this branch of the hop will end with me. I just do not have the time to find someone who has not done the hop or is willing to do the hop. I do feel however that it would be nice to let those who are interested, know a little about me and where I am coming from.  Now you know why I have not visited many of you this past week or so. This was not easy for me. Grab a drink and a snack (or two) and get comfy. This is a fairly long post.

About he hop!

The hop is held on Mondays only. At that time the TAGGED person will answer four questions and tag one to three other people to participate. As I have already said, the problem becomes getting someone that has not participated or is willing to participate. This was a concern for me as I do not have a great deal of time I can spend on this. It is for this reason I will not be tagging anyone to continue this branch of the hop. However, my DW, JD/Jill of Ribbon Challenged has agreed to post with me on her blog. This what you might call a twofer (two for one). 

A little something about my TAGGER.

Mary H. from Carolina Cards is a very personable and talented Lady.We pretty much clicked as soon as we met.

In the 8 months I have been blogging she has become a very good friend. She is an honest and straight forward individual which is right up my alley. I always enjoy the conversations we have when we email one another. I love to visit her blog. She is a very talented and passionate lady. If you haven't already, you should stop at her blog and enjoy her creations. You will not be disappointed. Don't forget to leave a comment and follow her if you like what you see and I am certain you will.



About Me

I came from a poor family. My father worked hard and so did my mother. He was a non-union plumber and she was a seamstress. I am the oldest of four and was always expected to be mature. I guess for that reason I was pretty much a loner. I joined the Navy after high school and spent  my time in the security division of an air base and the rest of my active duty aboard a destroyer in Cuba during the Cuban crisis. (4 Years active and 2 years inactive duty) I have had many Jobs in my life and enjoyed most of them. Among them I was a licensed plumber and also worked in most of the building trades, Insurance sales, 20 years as a telephone employee (force retired as a management person due to pending layoffs and contract buy outs), 7 years with a mutual fund provider ensuring funds were correct and fraud free, as a stock person both ordering and stocking for several different companies and various different jobs for the major temp companies. A very diverse employment experience.
My dear wife, JD/Jill at Robbon Challebged, tells me I am deep. I am not sure what that really means but I suppose that comes mostly from my thought process and how I write to express my thoughts. The Profile under my picture tells only part of the story. My first love and hobby is amateur astronomy. I have built and repaired many telescopes over the years. I love working with my hands and mind. I love woodworking of any kind. I love to cook. Sudoku is my

favorite kind of puzzle (especially the ones with 18 numbers instead of 9). My interest in art and science is all over the spectrum. I love to read. The Bible (My Favorite), biblical archaeology, physics articles, Astronomy Magazines & books and Nature are some favorite kinds of reading. I am currently wading through Einstein's Theory of Relativity, The layman's version. Can't deal with the heavy theoretical calculations in the full blown explanation. This one is heavy enough. My interest in the card making hobby stems from my love to create and the need to give back for my gift of life. My DW was making cards to send to shut-ins, terminally ill, military over seas and the disadvantaged. This appealed to me in a big way. She needed images so I started coloring them for her. I have always loved to write, draw and color. In the writing area, I have written poetry, prose and personal thoughts for as long as I can remember. I submitted a poem to Sparrowgrass' "Poetic Voices of America" and a poem to Sparrowgrass' "Treasury of Literary Poetry". They are now in the Library of Congress. I wrote a book of poetry and prose but could not find a publisher for it so now I just share parts of it in my blog or wherever. Drawing was never a major strength of mine but it was

never really pursued either. 

Recently, as you have seen in my posts, that has changed. I

have now ventured into that area as well. Photography is another hobby. It did come together with photography. The use and effects of light color and subject. I also take old damaged photos and restore them.

 Then there is sewing. Yes, needle thread and cloth sewing, as well as needlepoint, crewel, cross stitch and etc. For our 10th wedding

anniversary I made my own suit with bonded pockets, lining, vest and pants to wear when we had our marriage blessed. I still have the jacket and pants. The owl picture at right is a sample of that particular craft. I think you get the idea that there is little that I am not interested in. If there is a challenge involved it will be considered and possibly taken on. As the Blog title indicates "Love The Detail."








What am I working on now?

I am currently working on an acrylic paint by numbers project.
Paint by number canvases were a favorite when I was a teen. They were oil paintings and not very intricate or detailed. One of them is displayed at left. 

This new one is not your grandfather's paint by numbers. I should know. I am that grandfather. They didn't have anything like this when I was young. Water soluble acrylic paints make a difference but I am finding out they don't cover as well. It is a challenge which is always something that will get my attention. It is ongoing and will be shown in it's present state at the end of this post. For now here is a picture of me working on the canvas. Yeah, that is a circle magnifying lamp. This is like fine print except you have to paint it. This was taken by Jill since I can't paint and work the camera too.  Well, I could but I can't seem to press the shutter button with my big toe.

 How does my work differ from others in my genre?

This is a loaded question. I don't know if there is an easy answer to this question. It is geared and motivated by a need to share the connection between heaven and earth. It is a love of all of creation and the one who created it. All of my posts are synchronous and the art is geared to the message or the message to the art. "Great Spirit important message. Do good work." And then there is Cherokee. A fiddling of my common sense imagination. "Actually Irish is made up character of Cherokee." All this is unique in the posts and presentation of the gifts I have been given. Serious and at times entertaining but, hopefully, not boring. "Cherokee never boring. Irish not always funny but he tries. Cherokee is better at making people happy". You certainly never know what to expect in one of my posts.

Why do I create what I do?

There has always been a need to share what has been created. There are things in us that we feel need to be released and shared. Inspirations that are somehow incomplete and still need expression. No matter how much we create and inspire the need is never quite satisfied. Others find inspiration from what we do and that is important because it lights a new spark in us to create more and expand the message we are sending. It also is helping to complete who we are. Others are inspired and uplifted in a positive way by what we share and what we see in others. There is positive in every created project out there and I take that and translate it into something that has meaning and purpose to some one. I do what I do because it is where I am supposed to be. My blessings and gifts are worthless if not shared or given away. What good is a beautiful creation that no one ever sees? How can you be an inspiration if you hide everything from view? Yes there is a joy in creating and sharing even when there are no comments. Yes, comments are a great help because they help give a direction for more creative projects. The number of hits always far exceeds the number of comments. That alone says you are visiting. That makes me happy. Why not take a few seconds and comment too? As Christians it is how we live and what we share that is important not what we preach. It is how we live life that will shine through and give hope and witness first and foremost. This was the reason for starting this blog. It has become much more than that. It has become a place to meet other great people and share life.


How does my creative process work? 

I am not sure how to answer this. In our lives there are always things that inspire us. An exceptionally beautiful piece of artwork, nature, something you read or maybe just a revelation of some kind. This is where it starts. The course to follow at this point is almost automatic for me. There is seldom a random process. The project is governed by what art form is chosen, what the subject is, or what is available to complete the project. It is difficult to answer this question because the medium will change the requirements. For cards, stamped images or paper projects I prefer true to life rather than abstract, although I do enjoy other art forms. Copics are the preferred coloring medium but oils, pencils, crayons, water colors (liquid, solid and pencil) and Charcoal (not preferred) have been used. Pastels may be something to try somewhere down the road. The medium usually dictates if it is colored at all. Mixed medium is the same. It is almost instinct that kicks in. I usually go with the flow and create within that flow.
  

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Well, I said I would give an update to the painting so I guess that needs to be the next thing on the agenda provided anyone is still reading this. I could have done several posts worth but don't want to chase everyone away completely. "Good. Cherokee have hand on door knob. Get ready to go back to wickiup." I thought you lived in a tepee! "Move into wickiup. More room. Maw squall want more space for her things. Have closet full of moccasins. No more storage." Ooookay. Not going there.
 There has been a lot completed and at present there is a bunch of hours involved. I stopped counting, Makes my head hurt. Any who, here it is.

The six colors at the bottom of the photo are the ones currently used. Some were single and others in combination.
Unfortunately they do not tell the actual color but you can see what they are fairly easily. Only a bunch more to go. LOL.

I will be Taking some time to visit and comment this coming week.  Thanks again Mary for the opportunity to participate in the hop. Now it is time to play catch up and get things done. LOL. Please be sure to visit JD/Jill at Ribbon Challenged. She is partly the reason this blog exists. Thank the Lord for making time to do the hop and sharing  with you. Please visit Mary H. as well. Her Creations are well worth the visit at Carolina Cards. Until the next post, remember to LOVE THE DETAILS.