Wednesday, November 30, 2011

I'D Miilad Said ous Sana Saida

( Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year in Arabic)

miniature horse foal with bird

I picked Arabic for my greeting today, because I want to talk about horses.
And Arabian horses are world-wide known.

I read an article today that has deeply disturbed me,
and I hope it will deeply disturb you.
That's right.
Deeply disturb you.

You can read the entire article here:



"Humankind has not woven the web of life.
We are but one thread within it.
Whatever we do to the web, we do to ourselves.
All things are bound together.
All thing connect."
- Chief Seattle


On November 18, US President Obama signed a bill that lifted the 5 year old law banning slaughterhouse horse meat inspections. 
What does that mean?
I never heard of it!
I bet you didn't either, as our Congress reps have pushed this through
 very quietly.
Why? I think because they know that we the people would be against it.

So okay, the govt. is saving money or what?
The lift of the ban means that slaughterhouse horses no longer have to be shipped to Mexico or Canada to die.
It will be cheaper now for the slaughterhouse owners.

Do you smell something rotten here? I sure do.
This will profit mainly the slaughterhouse owners.
Yep, it will provide jobs.
But at what ethical cost?

"Contempt for animal life leads to
contempt for human life."
- Edward Abbey
neglected and starved horse arrives at

Here  is some more info that your reps forgot to let you know:
Slaughter houses in the USA could be up and running in as little as 30 days.

Currently, there are no slaughterhouses in the US that butcher horses for human consumption.


Pro-slaughter activists are scrambling to get a plant going, possibly in Wyoming, North Dakota, Nebraska or Missouri. Eventually they could kill (‘process’) as many as 200,000 horses a year. The meat is then shipped mostly to Europe and Asia.

Lee Ruonavaara HonMent with Horse therapy for the Disabled

Eating horse meat is virtually unknown in the US at this time.
California and Illinois have banned the slaughter of horses for food. Other states have laws that tightly regulate the sale of horse meat.
Does your state?
Where were these lawmakers when the lift of the ban was being pushed through Congress?
Where were the representatives that have been voted to express MY opinion and convictions to Congress?  I answer phone surveys for public opinion. I have a listed number. No government organization ever asked me what I thought about the lifting of the ban of slaughter. Why?

Because it is yet another of Washington’s Big Secrets.
I think our reps knew that we would protest, and protest loudly against killing such a noble, intelligent animal for food. Food that we do not need. Our land is a land of plenty. Yes, we have starving people, and children living below the poverty level. We also have farmers that are PAID to let their crops go to waste. They are PAID to NOT grow crops in their fields.

Hello?
Is anybody with reason listening out there?
Anybody that is not connected with the for-profit slaughterhouse special-interest lobbyists?


Are YOU able to spare 3 minutes to make a call to your Congress representatives and express an opinion?  Take 3 minutes and send your rep an e-mail?
I have had things that I wanted to tell my Senator and State Rep,
but have always had the excuse that I didn't know how to reach them, etc.
Well, today I am so upset that I went onto Google and found out how to contact them.
This is the place to find your senator, and all the contact info:

To find your Representative:

you must have your zip code + 4. If you don’t know what your +4 is, check out your bills or magazines. Most of them have it on their labels.
(I found my +4 on the mailing label from the Qwest.)


I do realize that different countries have different ideas about what is acceptable to eat,
and what is not.

I think that American history is so infused with the horse,
that it is almost impossible to separate the romance of the horse
and our American History, especially Western history.

c.1909

Horses were used by our native Americans for hunting and travel.
In the Plains region, where I live, the many tribes that make up the Plains Indians used the horse for transportation, hunting and war within their nomadic  lives.

c.1903

So, would Paul Revere be so famous if he walked to tell 'the British are coming'? 
Would we have had such a rapid development of the West
if the pioneers had to carry everything they needed?
Because horses would have been used for food...
not helpmates of the human race.
Paul Revere's Ride to rouse the Minutemen before the Battle of Lexington


Erica Flamand

Oh, I know I'm being silly now, so I will close.
Please consider this issue.
How you feel about it.
Why you feel that way.
What are the facts?
and then.....
Contact your Representative and Senator.
They really are supposed to be reps of what we think and what we want.
But they can't know that if we don't tell them!
vintage Annie Oakley poster

Please copy and paste this blog and send to all your family, friends and aquaintances.
You can also copy and paste this blog address to send.
being sad today at our lack of empathy and care for the animals that God has directed us to care for -
inkspired



Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Geseende Kerfees

(Merry Christmas in Afrikaans)
 
Radio City Rockettes rehearsing for the 2011 Christmas Spectacular
photo by Timothy A. Clary

Wouldn't it be fun to see the Rockettes?
I would love that!

Today, again, I will have a short blog.
Only
4
more days until my Craft Fair!

For those of you in the Denver area, stop by and say hi!
I will be in the Main Exhibition Hall, right next to the rotunda in
the Adams County Fairgrounds
just a little bit East from Riverdale Road
Dec. 3, 9am - 4pm
Dec. 4, 9am - 4pm

I had a fun discovery today -
several completed altered paper dolls!
2 of them are Halloween themed, but I'll still put them out.
Here are 3 that I have scanned. The others need to be resized, etc. and I will share!
'Brigette Dark Angel'

I used recycled images for the under-dress and Brigette's face.
I really like how my gown turned out with all the free flowing ribbons.


'Boo' altered paperdoll by inkspired

I still have to fiddle with the color a bit, as the 'Boo' is a bit more glow-in-the-dark orange. Her spider is hanging free. The legs are from a paperdoll, and her round 'skirt' is a recycled tarot card.

'I dare you' altered paperdoll by inkspired

Again, I still need to fiddle with the color, but I do like her attitude!

Next is a copy of a greeting card - Chrissie:




Thank you to OrigamiBears for sharing this paperdoll with us.

What, you don't know what a 'OrigamiBears' is?
Check out her blog right after finishing my blog.
Her addy is to the right.

I need to get to the post office.
I sold my first Collage Art Doll!!!

ooooooohhhhh, I am so happy.
Except...
I really like her and am having a surprisingly hard time letting her go!
sigh.
Here she is:
'Time for an Office party'

Sorry, that's it for today!
Have fun on OrigamiBears' site. She is just wonderful for sharing her
humongous paper doll collection.

:0)
inkspired



Monday, November 28, 2011

Holiday Paper dolls

Welcome!

3 vintage dancing girls

I have been at the computer for 2+ hours, and still have not started my blog!
Oops!
I have been going through my etsy shop, and my etsy favorites (I have quite a few!) and updating a few of my treasuries.
Those are good things, but not what I was supposed to be doing!
Oh yes, and I read the Yahoo News, and clicked on some stories, and...
it is not hard to spend 2+ hours on the internet and not really accomplish anything!

I have been struggling with extreme fatigue, so today I have to write a SHORT blog, and then grab a nap until my friend comes over this afternoon and we will bead together.
Always a pleasure.

I thought it would be fun to offer some 1 -2 page paper dolls.
Of course they will be holiday themed!

Good 'ol Betsy McCall!

This next 2 page spread is from 1944 -

I really really like this pair!
For one thing, Santa doesn't look like he is on the verge of a
diabetic coma or heart attack!

this cutie-pie bear named Russel is for your personal enjoyment!

Let's finish with a wonderful Holiday Bear set -



See you tomorrow!
The countdown to my last Craft Fair has begun
5 days

until my Show!!!
:0)

inkspired

Saturday, November 26, 2011

It's all Greek to me...

irini

That's the closest I can get to saying
Peace
in Greek.
There's a little mark above the middle 'i'.

I thought it would be fun to feature one of the countries
that have readers that follow my blog!

Today I will feature Greece.

girl in traditional dress

flag of Greece

Greece is a country with ancient beginnings.
It's rather a huge undertaking to really explain Greece,
so I will just do some highlights!
 
Greek ruins in Athens 

Greece is made up of a mainland and then several large islands.

Crete - southernmost significant island of Greece

general map of Greece
 
In the northern part of Greece in Macedonia, we find Mount Olympus,
legendary home of the gods in Greek mythology.
Mount Olympus is the highest mountain in Greece.
It is also one of the highest mountains in Europe!
 
the summit
 
There were 12 principal gods of the ancient world of mythology.
These were known as the 'twelve Olympians'.
 
Zeus
Poseidon
Hades
Hermes
Demeter
Athena
Hera
Apollo
Artemis
Hephaestus
Ares
Aphrodite

All of these gods were representations of some aspect of human life and nature.
some info is from:

engraving of the Greek mythological gods

I found this interesting map that shows different volcano sights in Greece:


It also helps to show us that all those islands are Greece!

Okay, so I know it's not Valentine's Day, but it is a perfect costume!
:0)

photo of women in traditional dress, 1937

I thought this list was helpful, as I always get the two sets mixed up!



sorry, I couldn't find the painter's name for this one

'Delphi Athena Sanctuary', Delphi,Greece (mainland)

traditional dress, teen years

Here is a paper doll for you to color!

Bonus! You also get Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and Alaska!

This is such a great paper doll for making your own costumes!
If you haven't tried it yet, this would be a great one to start with!
You can even modify the face, and it could be a boy!

Parga, Greece

This is from an ancient ruin in Thessalonica, Greece.

The Thessalonians of Thessalonica, Greece were the recipients of the letters from the apostle Paul that we have recorded in our Bibles!

This next one is a great drawing of the main participants in
the Trojan War.


For those of you not up on your history,
The Trojan War is what the movie "Troy" was all about!

Zakynthos, Greece - an island.

Saints Day Festival in Olimbos, Greece


I thought this regional map could helps us sort out where things are!

Okay, a little bit more of history:
As you can see from the different maps, Greece is surrounded by
countries that historically want to gain more territory.
Think Alexander the Great.
I'm not going to get into all the wars that the Greek people have had to fight in order to retain ownership of their country.
Because we have ancient philosophers and writers,
much of their ancient history is even known.
So, I thought I would mention
Otto, Prince of Bavaria.


Otto, Prince of Bavaria became
Othon, King of Greece
and was made the first modern King of Greece in 1832.
This is when Greece became a new independent kingdom,
under the protection of the Great Powers.
(That would be the United Kingdom, France and the Russian Empire.)

some info courtesy of http://www.my.opera.com/
 
The entry of King Otto in Athens
by Peter Von Hess, 1839

Demands of the Greek people proved to be overwhelming
and Otto granted a Constitution in 1843.

King Otto, 1865,
in Bavaria after the overthrow.
He does not look like a happy man...

The Temple of Olympian Zeus in Athens, Greece 

traditional men's clothing, Greece

The picture above brings up an interesting point
that I kinda' always wanted to know -
What's up with the red hat thingy with the tassel?
Well, okay, I knew it is called a 'fez'.
 The origins of the fez (or 'tarboosh' in Moroccan) is not really clear!
The design may have come from ancient Greece or the Balkans.
In the 19th Century it became very popular when the Ottoman rulers
moved to modernize traditional costumes.
The brimless hat did not get in the way of a Muslim's daily prayers
and was cleaner and less cumbersome than a turban.
The name 'Fez' is thought to be from Fez, the city,
which once produced the hat's red dye made from crimson berries.

(thanks for the info, www.visionarydance.com)

So.....why is it a Greek thing now?
Dunno!

Zante Island, Greece

Monastery of Agia Triada Meteora, Greece

Yes, there are tons more interesting things about the country of Greece,
but I need to get back to preparing for my Craft Fair
THIS COMING SATURDAY!!!

I will not panic,
I will not panic.
I will not panic,
I will not panic.......
yeah, right!

Santorini Church, Greece

Hopefully, this has stimulated your curiosity so much,
you just have to go find more about this beautiful country!
:0)


inkspired

These are some of the awesome ancient Greek architecture that still stands today!