Mushrooms!

I have been meaning to make more mushrooms out of clay, for terrariums or potted plants.  They are a little bit more time consuming, because I paint them by hand to get different effects.  I use a white or terra cotta clay and then prime, paint, and glaze.  I enjoy the red and white mushrooms myself, and it seems that lots of other people enjoy them as well.  I'm going to focus on a series with red and white for a while.

See?  They are fun!

I do enjoy real mushrooms and fungus too.  I try to base any mushroom designs off of real life, but my creations are certainly more stylized. I enjoy taking pictures, whether it's with a crappy cell phone camera, or with a slightly less crappy Sony Cybershot.  Here's a mushroom I found at a client's house two years ago.

"Nature alone is antique, and the oldest art a mushroom."--Thomas Carlyle

Back to work...

My old client FINALLY got re-approved, after 2 1/2 months of waiting.  I'm certainly thankful to have steady income again, but part of me is not excited to return to a job that has a lot of cons.  I had a different post ready to publish, but it was too negative for my liking.  I don't want to wallow in the downsides of my job, because I enjoy the job itself.  The interaction with my clients and their families, is what makes me keep doing what I'm doing.  

Most of my clients are on the autism spectrum, and have low verbal ability.  I have been bitten many times, had clumps of my hair ripped out, had clothes torn, watched a kid eat one of my toys, been spit on, peed on, and dealt with a kid purposefully pooping on the living room floor during a tantrum.  And still there are hugs and squeezes, a kiss on the cheek from a child, a parent saying "Thank you for what you do"...the love that I feel from my clients and their families is overwhelming.  The first time you witness a kid make a full sentence you can understand...just wow...you feel like you've helped make a difference.  And not just a "I make a difference in the world" feeling, but a very specific "I'm making a difference for this kid and his family" kind of feeling.  That is worth all the other junk I have to deal with.  Part time hours, no benefits, lots of driving, working in the evening, tons of paperwork....when I sit down to look at a behavior graph and see a downward trend, it helps me keep going.  I'm smiling as I write this.  

I didn't intend to get into working with kids with autism.  I had graduated with my B.S. in psychology, and wasn't sure what to do with it.  Getting my first full time job at a school for autism seemed like a good step, even though I had little experience with education or special needs kids.  There was certainly a learning curve...for the first month or two, I felt like I needed to quit almost every day.  The job was difficult...stressful and exhausting, with a hint of danger (wearing arm guards and jean jackets to protect from bites and scratches).  I even got hit in the back of the head with a chair when a student threw one.  But I stuck it out...and I've learned and grown through this work.  I am able to stay calm during a crisis and I have more patience than I thought was possible.  I've learned to not hold a grudge (you can't stay mad at a kid who bites you, and then kisses you 5 minutes later), and I've learned that kids will feed off your energy and model everything you do.  This kind of work forces much more self awareness...you have to know when you are starting to get burnt out or need to step away because you're losing your temper.  Growth is never a bad thing, and applies to many other areas of life.

6 years later, I'm still working in the autism field...I know I won't be doing this forever, but what a ride it's been!

I'm crafting more clay items, and I'm still plugging away at my first blanket.  Hopefully I'll have some more craft stuff to post soon!

Frustrated with the Universe.

It happens to the most positive and inherently happy of people....frustration has creeped in.

Things in my career have not worked out the way I planned over the last few months.  It's funny how when someone gets attached to an outcome, the disappointment is felt more deeply.  It's a very Buddhist concept, and one that I've learned the hard way over the years.  Yet, I still occasionally fall into the trap of expecting events to unfold in a particular way.  It is human nature, and a Buddhist would argue, that it isn't our true nature.  It's all part of this brain, body, soul intertwining experience...and the brain and body are able to trick us into believing that they are "where it's at".  That they are the truth.  But they aren't...emotions pass, thoughts are fluid, and the essence of YOU ultimately isn't what you experience through the senses.

Anyway, I'm getting a little too philosophical...back to the original discussion.  Frustration, disappointment, and lessons learned.

I started a position at a new counseling firm, and 2 1/2 months later, I still don't have a client to work with.  That's right, I haven't worked at all for the last few months.  We have clients that are waiting for approval from Medicaid, but until I get an authorization, I can't work with them and don't get paid.  It has been frustrating, to put it mildly.

This position was supposed to be a positive change, a way for me to remove myself from a toxic work environment, and have more opportunities.  I was going to making more hourly, have more freedom within the constraints of Medicaid requirements, etc, etc.  The list of benefits, as perceived by me, can go on and on....

While this change did not manifest itself in the ways that I had planned or expected, it managed to be a positive change in many ways.  I have tried to find meaning in the ways of the universe, and I think I have found some insight into this situation.  Here is what I have learned during this experience:

• I wasn't taking enough time to do things I enjoy, and this forced time off has allowed me time to experiment.  I knew I needed time off from what I was doing to recharge...I'd factored in two weeks of rest, but after the two weeks was over, I still didn't feel rested.  Working with kids with autism can be difficult.  Working as a counselor can be difficult.  Counselors and therapists are frequently burnt out, and a burnt out counselor is not as effective.  

• I was able to remove myself from a toxic work environment.  The anxiety I was feeling was not worth the job security.  I didn't feel supported by my clinical director, and she was focused on money and not the human aspects of the job.  Counselors aim to help people...if you got into this field to make money....well....you're going to be disappointed. 

• My husband and I are able to live off of a lot less money than we thought.  This has not been ideal, financially speaking, but it has been done successfully. I am super grateful for all the comfort we have in life, even when we are "struggling".  We have been able pay all of our bills (mortgage, two car payments, utilities, etc), and still eat well, on one paycheck...with a little frivolous spending left over.  We made some smart financial choices in the last year, and they've paid off.  We lowered our mortgage payment so we could buy a second vehicle.  We canceled our exorbitant cable bill and just pay for internet...with an old school antenna on the plasma TV.  We cancelled a pricey cell phone plan and just deal with 20 bucks a month on iPad data and some pay as you go flip phones.  All of these little things have added up to a significant savings...and I've been thankful for it.

• Avenues of opportunity have opened, even if it was not in the way I anticipated.  The day I quit that job, there was an energy shift.  That same day, I got a call for a position that I'd applied for more than 6 months before.  I've been able to work on items for my Etsy shop.  I have expanded my ideas about what is possible in my career...looking in different cities, applying for a broader range of positions, looking into ways get my license and broaden my expertise. 

The moral of this story is:  when there is no plan, all the potential paths and opportunities are opened up to you.  I feel that the universe, God, whatever you want to call it, gives you opportunities that you can choose to take...or not to...the choice is ours.  We can choose to see them or choose to ignore them and keep going about our business.  

I am still frustrated, but I can see that there is a larger picture unfolding.  The frustration mostly stems from impatience in knowing the outcome of the current events...I'm want to see the results,  instead of waiting to see where these circumstances are leading.  

I will work on staying present, focusing on the "now".  I'm going to take a break to watch and listen to the rain in my garden.  

Plants vs. Zombies Desk Buddies

I finally finished my first attempt at PvZ desk buddies.  I think they turned out pretty fabulous...but I'm biased.  This is one of my favorite games to play when I am bored!  I have all the plants in my in-game zen garden, and I might try to make all the plants for my clay zen garden.  I'm not sure yet!

 I wish I could get the colors on my camera adjusted properly.  I tried many settings and none of them are right.  One of these days, I will buy a better camera.  My camera is an older Sony Cybershot, and I think at this point, the camera on my iPad might be better!  The only issue I have when I take photos of my work, is that any imperfection is magnified.  You notice all kinds of little fuzz and dirt pieces you didn't see before.  I'm determined to have a hepa filtered craft room one day, to help reduce the dust.  A girl can dream!

Anyway, here are the pics.  Enjoy!

Who else is excited about PvZ 2 coming out for iOS soon?!  I can't wait!

Gardening and Crafting

Over the last few days, I haven't been doing much else other than gardening and working with my clay.  We have had a LOT of rain, so the storms have impeded the garden progress at times, but I can't help being thankful for the rain.  I only wish we had installed rain barrels already!  

Here is the newest bed:

I know, I'm a little late putting them in the ground.  I had issues getting the seeds started.  Plus, the plants are still a little small, and I was hesitant to put them out too soon.  My smaller, tender, tomatoes were shredded by some unknown force of critter origin...and I didn't want the same to happen to these guys!  I'm hoping now that they are out in the sun and well fertilized dirt, that they will start growing better.

We have our first heirloom Amish Pie Pumpkin!  I'm so excited to make a pumpkin pie with a pumpkin that came out of my yard!  This plant is a little cramped for the beds I have, but I learned my lesson for next year.  A large portion of the front end of the vine snapped when I tried to move it away from the bunny fencing, even with my efforts to be exceptionally gentle.  It eventually rotted apart, and I had to toss it.  I was sad at the loss of two potential baby pumpkins...but that's gardening I guess.  At least it has more room in the bed for the few pumpkins that have started already!

Here's one of the bunnies we have in the neighborhood.  There are a few, and I've seen two at a time roaming through the yard while gorging themselves on our dandelion field (aka the back yard).    I enjoy watching them, so I haven't wanted to repel them.  But I was super paranoid about them getting into the beds, hence the bunny fence.  However, I was reading that bunnies tend to stay out of raised beds anyway, due to fear of putting themselves in a vulnerable position.  Even so, I'd rather be safe than sorry...and the fence still serves a good purpose:  it keeps some of the roaming neighborhood cats from pooping in my beds!  Cleaning someone else's pet's poop piles out of my garden beds, was not something I was expecting...

Most recent crafty endeavors have involved working on some video game themed items.  I just finished up some Plants vs. Zombies based desk buddies.  I've gotten some really good feedback on these, so I'll be making more soon.  This is one of my all time favorite games, which I keep on my iPad and my PC.  I sucked my husband into playing as well, and he's taking to playing on the iPad while we're settling in bed for the night.

These pics are while they are still in progress.  I'll be posting some "formal" pics when I finish up the touch ups and sealing.  I've got a big pile of baked clay items to paint and seal, which I can hopefully get done this weekend.

Granny Squares are Great!

I'm still a noob when it comes to crochet.  I've been steadily working my way up to more complicated projects.  I had always looked at a granny square and thought "That looks hard!  I better wait to try that till I'm a little better at crochet in the round..."  But really it has been quite easy, and I regret postponing my attempts.

One day at the store, I was looking at acrylic yarns and thought "Screw it, I'm going to start a blanket."  I picked out a color palate I felt was pleasing to the eye and bought some yarn to start.  I went with Caron Simply Soft yarns, in Pagoda, Persimmon, and Heather Grey.  I can't seem to capture the true colors with my camera.  The pagoda is much more green than it looks, and the persimmon is much more orange/coral than it looks in the photos.  I need a better camera!

It's much easier to do a granny square than I previously assumed, especially when you get in a groove.  It takes me a little longer sometimes because I frequently attempt to watch a show while I'm crocheting.  There's lots of eye movement from my hands to the screen, and it slows me down quite a bit!  9 squares completed, only about 90 more to go!

I originally thought I would keep my first blanket attempt, since I knew there would be some measure of trial and error.  I've made some mistakes.  The first two squares were more difficult while trying to figure out the pattern and what worked best with tying off and changing colors, etc.  And in one spot, I have 4 double crochets instead of 3...I didn't catch it until I had tied everything off....oh well!  When I picked out the colors, I was thinking that my mother would love them...and sure enough, I asked her if she wanted this one and she was thrilled.  So my mom will get the first blanket ever made by her first daughter! 

Since I still haven't had any progress on getting a client started up again with my counseling, I continue to not be working at all.  I'm up to 2 months, where I'm technically employed but do not have a client to work with.  This has been stressful, but I'm trying to keep my mind off of it by crafting, cleaning my house, and cooking awesome dinners.  I don't have much space to craft, so the dining room table gets overrun.  This is what it has looked like for at least a month:

I'm finishing up quite a few video game related pieces.  During this last month, I lost some steam...I've been slacking on putting the final touches on some of the items, but hopefully I'll be finished up by the end of the week.  I also get sidetracked by crochet projects which are easier in a lot of ways...they are often less steps, less cleanup, and more instant gratification.  Completing one project before starting another, should really be a goal of mine!  

Enough chit chat, back to crafting!  Hope to have some more pictures up soon!

Escarole and Bean Soup: A Tutorial

A lot of non-Italians might be asking:  "What is escarole?"  Well, it's related to chicory and looks like this.  Looks kinda like lettuce, but it certainly doesn't taste like it.  It's a bitter green, in my mind, comparable to kale or collards.  We live in Virginia, and escarole isn't the easiest thing to find.  Collards are in abundance in the regular grocery store, but escarole is harder to hunt down.  I found this bunch at a locally owned natural food store, Ellwood Thompson's.  And this escarole was local to boot, grown right in Henrico County!

A popular Italian American dish is escarole and beans.  I decided to try my hand at making an escarole and bean soup.  It's really healthy, easily modified to your tastes, and simple to make with few ingredients.

Ingredients:

A head of escarole
1/2 an onion (red, white, yellow...doesn't matter really)
a few cloves of garlic
1 can of cannellini beans (or great northern beans)
4 cups of chicken stock (I used a box of low sodium, organic, but use what you like, homemade is best!)
salt and pepper
crushed red pepper (optional)
olive oil
Parmesan cheese

Step 1:  Clean your escarole.  Isn't it pretty?!  Just chop off the bottom and rinse really well.  Use a salad spinner if you have one, to get most of the moisture off.  Just treat it like you would lettuce.

Step 2:  Chop your onion and garlic.  Honestly, the onion is optional, I just happen to like the extra flavor.  You could use extra garlic if you want.  I use a LOT of both.  I coarse chopped the garlic, and the onion could have probably been sliced a little thinner in retrospect.

My husband felt that I should remind you of the all important beer drinking (in my case, cider or wine drinking!) that should occur while you prep the food!

Step 3:  When everything is prepped, heat up some olive oil in a decent size pot (I think mine was a 6 quart).  Medium heat.  Saute the onion first, until it starts to sweat a little.  Then add the garlic and continue to saute.  Sprinkle with a little salt.  Right before I add the escarole, I add my crushed red pepper to help bring out the flavor.

Step 4:  Once the aromatics have sweat a little (onions will be getting translucent), you can add your escarole.  As you can see, it will cook down quite a bit.  

Step 5:  When the escarole is starting to soften, add your beans, and your stock.  Some recipes suggest adding a chunk of parmesan while you simmer, but that's optional...it adds some extra salt and flavor.  Cover the pot, and bring to a simmer.

Step 6:  Let it simmer for a while.  Add some salt and pepper, at whatever level you prefer.  Taste it, taste it, taste it!  Add herbs if you feel like it needs them!  You want the beans to warm through, and flavors to meld together.  It shouldn't take too long, maybe 20 minutes maximum.  You don't want a big bowl of mush.  In the meantime, grate your parmesan.  I'm sure a nice romano would work here too.

Tada!  Finished and ready to eat!

I had never made escarole for my husband before this dinner, and he enjoyed it.  If you like collards, kale, or other greens, you'll probably like it.  This is just one of many ways you can use it!  Experiment!