Julie Pippert: Using My Words

My kids have been driving me stark.raving.mental lately. They are wonderful children, really. Nevertheless, I offered to sell them to my mother, cheap. I said both came with their own wardrobes and furnishings, as well as toys. Anyone in the know knows just how much the accessories cost---far more than the actual children themselves. I also offered that if she acted now, shipping would be free. She turned me down, without even needing a moment to think (which I offered). I ask you, is that anyway for a grandmother to behave? Yeah, I know, she raised her own already. But did she need to add, "HA! As IF! I thought you were tough to raise but HA HA HA then I met your children!" She laughed some more. Probably thinking how well that curse worked out. You know the one, "SOME DAY I HOPE YOU HAVE KIDS JUST LIKE YOU! OR WORSE!" Look at that, bonus curse on me for no extra charge. Anyway, they are cute but very, very high-maintenance. SHHHHH!!!! I know what you are thinking,...

It strikes me that George Bush is right: we ought to wiretap and spy upon all who might be up to something we just don't like or might could cast as suspicious. In fact, to make my point easier, let me assure you that I think all people who, for example, use leaf blowers, are actually TERRORISTS who are UP TO NO GOOD WHATSOEVER. I'm positive that my national security, peace of mind and right to pursue happiness (oh wait, let's not bring the Bill of Rights and Constituition into this) is totally vulnerable and at risk by all people who use LEAF BLOWERS. Think about it: they are loud, they blow, they spew... They make excellent weapons of mass destruction, or at least weapons of mass "make my mess your mess and blow out your eardrums in the process." I secretly think that is the best terrorism ever---better even than make you all afraid of one another and wear you down by constantly keeping you in fear of Something Wicked This Way Comes---to drive each one of us law...

...and today, it grabbed my photography side as well. It's the corn in my backyard. The corn is this huge metaphor somehow for me. Out of that stinking Rita diasaster that followed the Katrina Catastrophe---the big tree falling and swamping our yard, nearly hitting our house, taking out half of our only big shade tree in the back, the horrid and traumatic evacuation, the big shuffle of furniture, the expense, and everything---comes this cornfield. Somehow, the Hurricane winds picked up corn seed, planted them in a straight row in our backyard, and miraculously, they grew and bloomed...in such an unlikely place. One ear is almost ripe. I'm obsessed. It's like my own living totem pole or something. By Julie Pippert Artful Media Group Museum Quality Digital Art and Photography Limited Edition Prints Artful by Nature Fine Art and Photography Galleries The Golden Orchid: Original and Unique Wearable Art © 2006. All images and text exclusive property of Julie Pippert. Not to be u...

Me? Not so great on the direct, but fairly decent on the redirect. At least this is me these days. My confidence stumbled and stubbed its toe today. I am taking on a lot. I am hoping for a lot. I am betting on a lot. While driving today, it all hit me and I thought, "Good grief, can I do it? Can I pull this off?" There is no wondering. I absolutely positively have to . On the upside, I am having entirely too much fun with that Bush's brain game. By Julie Pippert Artful Media Group Museum Quality Digital Art and Photography Limited Edition Prints Artful by Nature Fine Art and Photography Galleries The Golden Orchid: Original and Unique Wearable Art © 2006. All images and text exclusive property of Julie Pippert. Not to be used or reproduced.

I know it's easy to attribute things to someone who is no longer here. But I miss my cat. *She* would have understood. Yes, I'm still wallowing in my turtle mode. But I think I know why: sick. In the absence of anything good to say, I will---instead of being quiet---take on the tag challenge my Zama friend set me. What were you doing 10 years ago? Ten years ago...1996. After having been packed off to Hell by the economy, my husband and I were traveling the US and throwing darts at maps (not really, that'd be too random for us LOL) looking for somewhere more *us* to live. What were you doing 1 year ago? One year ago I decided to not return to the work world in the traditional sense, and I began seriously pursuing photography, not just as a hobby, but as a business. I had a three year old and a newborn and should probably have been committed, but instead people supported me. Thank goodness. Five snacks I enjoy (Thanks E for making my typing easier here) 1. Cashews 2. Cheese ...

Something is festering inside me. It makes me irritable and impatient. I either float along with the current, like a buoy with no option, or fight the current madly. Ah the melodrama. I really don't know what is bothering me. I definitely feel a pull to "turtle in shell" mode, though. Also a pull to sweets, phone avoidance, procrastination, slacking off on my neat freak chores...all sure signs. Until I figure it out, I've sort of got an emotional side screen up. Only problem is...it blocks incoming and outgoing. The kids are making me crazy, demanding every single second, both of them competing for Most Needy award I think. I don't know whether that is the cause or effect though. It might be being blitzed with an overwhelming amount of good news/bad news scenarios recently. Our oven---the broken one that needed at least $400-$500 worth of work---magically began working. The next day, my tire went flat. The following day, I got it fixed for free, but we learned our...

Only imagine how fabulous this picture would have been...had I had the proper lens. I squatted for a Very Long Time to get the birds to Not Notice Me (ha ha ha). And then...despite careful setup and timing, it isn't what I had pictured in my head. I need an upgrade. I admit it: I like photographing birds. This requires a new lens. I wonder...if I begin panhandling on street corners, how long will it take to amass the AHEM $2500 I need? By Julie Pippert Artful Media Group Museum Quality Digital Art and Photography Limited Edition Prints Artful by Nature Fine Art and Photography Galleries The Golden Orchid: Original and Unique Wearable Art © 2006. All images and text exclusive property of Julie Pippert. Not to be used or reproduced.

It is beautiful. I will say, however, that sometimes, there can be too much of a good thing. By Julie Pippert Artful Media Group Museum Quality Digital Art and Photography Limited Edition Prints Artful by Nature Fine Art and Photography Galleries The Golden Orchid: Original and Unique Wearable Art © 2006. All images and text exclusive property of Julie Pippert. Not to be used or reproduced.

Julie Pippert Museum Quality Digital Art and Photography Limited Edition Prints Artful by Nature Fine Art and Photography Galleries The Golden Orchid: Original and Unique Wearable Art © 2006. All images and text exclusive property of Julie Pippert. Not to be used or reproduced.

I found this flower---ranculus---and it has usurped hibiscus as my muse. There are several varieties (different petals, leaves, colors) and they are all stunning. A friend said the most beautiful wedding bouquet she ever saw was made up entirely of ranuculus (ranuculi?). By Julie Pippert Museum Quality Digital Art and Photography Limited Edition Prints Artful by Nature Fine Art and Photography Galleries The Golden Orchid: Original and Unique Wearable Art © 2006. All images and text exclusive property of Julie Pippert. Not to be used or reproduced.