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This Week’s Story - "New Art Shows"

"It's been raining all day," said Helen, speaking by phone to her friend Andrea. "Where is spring? It keeps coming and going."

"I know," said Andrea. "I've been inside all day, did not leave the house once. "

"Well," replied Helen, "I had errands to run so I had to leave. But I came back as quickly as I could. Then I worked around the house and finished a small painting."

"Don't you have a group show coming up soon?" asked Andrea. "Can't wait to see some of your new pieces. You've been very quiet about what you've been working on."

"Yes I do," answered Helen, "But I only have two paintings in that show. I'm actually working on a new series that will be a part of a studio show I'm putting together at the same time. Been meaning to tell you about that."

"Wow," replied Andrea. "You really have been quiet. Is there a surprise involved or something? What are you working on?"

"Animals, right now," said Helen. "I've done four of them so far. They're in my cell phone. Here, I'll show you."

Helen pulled out her phone and showed the artworks to Andrea.

"Oh my goodness, these are fabulous," smiled Andrea. "Will there be prints available? I need a print bigger than your actual painting."

"Of course," replied Helen. "Just let me know what size you need and which animal you want."

"Definitely the giraffe," smiled Andrea. "You know I love them. As a matter of fact, why haven't you done a series of them? That would be great. Then I could make a decor statement in the room I want to put them in. When you do your series, can I request that you work in the color scheme I want?"

"Don't know about that," answered Helen. "We'll see."

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This Week’s Story - "Friends, Movies, and Their Love Lives"

Helen and two of her good friends, Andrea and Yvonne, sat in their favorite coffee shop discussing a movie they had just seen, Tina Fey's "Whiskey, Tango, Foxtrot".

"I liked it," sighed Yvonne. "But it was somewhat of a downer for women, don't you think?"

"I see your point, but on the other hand," said Helen, "she did leave her boring job and up-end her life to go live for awhile in a dangerous country."

"I agree with you, Helen," said Andrea. "I didn't see it as a downer at all. She was a fairly brave person. Could you leave your home by yourself and go off and start another life?"

Yvonne laughed out loud. "Perhaps if I had, I wouldn't be in the boat I'm in now. But I really shouldn't say that. I'm ok with the life I have now."

"Hmmmm," sighed Helen. "Do we detect a little regret in your voice or is that resigned contentment?"

"More or less the latter," answered Yvonne. "But is that a bad thing? At our age, shouldn't we try to be satisfied with our current men, instead of constantly seeking something better? Otherwise, we're gonna end up alone if we don't settle on someone soon. Contentment is not the worst thing in the world."

"I totally agree with you," added Andrea. "But it would be nice to be deeply in love."

"How long are you willing to stay out here, looking for ‘deep love’”?asked Helen. "Are you willing to be alone while looking for it? Because we all know how long it's been since you broke up with that last ‘deep love’ you had. And as I recall, Yvonne and I had to support you through a few sleepless nights over that situation."

"And that is why I'm alone today," replied Andrea. "I didn't want just any old body, after what I went through the last time. But I still want to be deeply in love, just with the right person next time."

"Well good luck with that," smiled Yvonne. "I don't like being alone for long periods of time so I'll take resigned contentment - for now."

"Here, here," said Helen, raising her glass.

Yvonne raised her glass, as well.

Reluctantly - Andrea raised hers, too.

"Ok, I agree, but just not right now for me," she added. "I'd like to wait a little while longer before resigning myself to mediocrity."

They all broke into hearty laughter.

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This week’s Art Story - "Birthday Surprise"

Helen had just rang her friend Yvonne's doorbell. Yvonne opened the door.

"Oh my God!" shouted Yvonne. "You brought a present?"
 

"Happy Birthday!” smiled Helen. She handed Yvonne the gift. As she was taking off her coat, Yvonne was un-wrapping the gift.
 

"I'm so excited! What is it?" asked Yvonne as she opened the box. It was a casual painting of Yvonne that Helen had done a few weeks ago from a picture Helen had taken of Yvonne with her cell phone.
 

"Oh my goodness!" said Yvonne, holding the picture up. "It is beautiful! When do you have time to do this?"
 

"I've been working on it a little at a time for weeks. I really wanted to give you something special," said Helen.
 

Yvonne laid the picture down on her table and gave Helen a big hug.

"You are a wonderful friend. And I love it! Thank you so much," said Yvonne.
 

"You are so welcome," smiled Helen. "I'm glad you like it."
 

"I made dinner but now I feel like it's not special enough," said Yvonne. "The painting makes me feel like I should have whipped up something super special."
 

"Oh come on, now," said Helen. "You know I love your lasagna. But if you want to whip up something else another time, I won't turn it down."
 

"You got it," smiled Yvonne, as she held up the painting again. "I love the way I was smiling in that picture. You completely caught my expression, I felt so good that day. And the lighting – wow."
 

"I was pretty pleased with it, too," said Helen. "I'm thrilled you're happy with it. Now let's get to that dinner, I'm starving!"

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This Week’s Story - "Two Friends Hanging Out"

Helen and her friend Yvonne were having lunch at Yvonne's job, where she was an assistant administrator of a small private school. Yvonne had gotten the school's cook to prepare a couple of extra school lunches. She and Helen were in her office.

"Wow, these lunches aren't bad at all," smiled Helen. "Do the kids usually eat all their food?"

"We generally don't have problems with that," laughed Yvonne. "The problem occurs when they ask for seconds and thirds."

"That's great," said Helen. "I hear complaints about school lunches all the time. Anyway, what time can you leave today?"

"I thought I told you," said Yvonne. "I have a big errand to run for the school this afternoon so you and I will leave in about a half hour. It will take about an hour to do the errand and then I am off for the day."

"Oh," said Helen. "I do remember you mentioning that the other day but I had forgotten it."

Later, the two headed for a nearby florist. Yvonne had to pick up corsages for a "Daddy-Daughter Dance" and drop them off back at school. Then she and Helen headed for their favorite clothing store to pick up a couple of items. Yvonne was in the fitting room while Helen sat in a chair, watching the outfits.

"I love that suit on you," said Helen. "That blue color looks great, too. Do you wear suits to work a lot?"

"Yeah," replied Yvonne. "But I also wear matching two-peice outfits a lot, too. They tend to be more comfortable. Suits are more structured and I wear them when I have business meetings."

"As a full-time artist now," said Helen, "I almost never get to wear suits anymore. I miss that."

"When you leave the house, simply dress up a little," said Yvonne. "Even if you're just going to the grocery store. Sometimes that makes you feel important and you carry yourself with a little flare."

Helen laughed. "I'll try that next week. And I'll report to you on how that works out."

Both women laughed.

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This week's story - " CLASSTIME"

Helen's friend Yvonne leaned over and picked up the check she had accidentally dropped on the floor.

"Here's my donation to your education fund for the teenagers," said Yvonne. "Your class will be starting soon, right?"

Helen took the check. "Yes, it's starting next week but I'll be accepting donations until the end of the class. These girls can't afford art supplies and I want to provide everything they need," said Helen.

"I think it's a great idea," said Yvonne. "Please let me know if you need me to help out with any aspect of it."

"Oh, don't you worry," smiled Helen. "You know I'm planning to call on you to help out a few times. It's always good to have a few extra hands when you're dealing with a group. But they are really nice girls. I love chatting with them and listening to their personal stories. I hope you can come to help out soon. You'll love meeting them."

Helen had scheduled a six-week basic painting class for a group of teenage girls she had met through one of her other teacher friends. The class was starting that up-coming Saturday and Helen was finalizing all the plans.

If things worked out, she was thinking of scheduling more of these classes. She loved the idea of volunteering for future generations, particularly for those less able to afford the classes.

Later, Helen and Yvonne met their friend Andrea for dinner. The three friends had not seen each other as a group in weeks.

"It's so good to finally be with you guys," smiled Andrea. "I know our schedules have been crazy. I've been helping my niece with her wedding and that's been a circus! But I love being a part of all the craziness."

"When is the wedding again?"asked Yvonne.

"Early June," replied Andrea. "Her plans are so cute. My sister and brother-in-law are so thankful for her level-headedness when it comes to costs. She's been very careful with expenses. And her future in-laws are great, too. They're kicking in on some of the expenses."

"Wow," said Helen. "What more could you ask for?"

"Are we still on for this weekend's party at Joan's house?" asked Yvonne. "I noticed neither of you mentioned it."

The women continued chatting for the next hour.

(A Glimpse into the Life of a Fictional Artist.)
These “art” stories are a compilation of real and fictional experiences. I started writing these stories some time ago for my blog and now want to share my stories with my new clients and all my Facebook friends.

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This week’s story - "Morning Art Exhibit."

Helen and Yvonne sat in their favorite neighborhood cafe having lunch. The art exhibit they had just visited was still fresh in their minds.

"The women's bodies very much reminded me of Botero's women - Nice and voluptuous," said Helen.

"Yeah, you're right," said Yvonne. "Are artists allowed to do that? Copy each other's styles?"

"Well," explained Helen. "It wasn’t true copying, because the total picture and backgrounds were different. You have to make changes and have different concepts telling your story."

"I guess it was different from what I'd seen already," replied Yvonne.”I loved how happy her paintings were. Even though I know that's not realistic. But right now, I love seeing happy images. It gives me hope for the world."

"So what do you want to do next?" asked Helen. "Do you want to head home or go shopping?"

"Can't go shopping, I'm officially broke for the rest of the month," said Yvonne. "Besides, I need to house-clean a bit. I haven't been home all week. Sometimes I over-book myself. This afternoon gives me a chance to catch up a bit."

"OK, home it is," laughed Helen. "That will force me to save that money I would have spent on shopping."

Later, Helen was home, sitting in her easy chair. She was catching up on her reading. But her mind wandered to an interesting experience she had just a few days ago.

She was in the grocery store, picking up a few items when a very tall stranger bumped into her as he tried to pick up a loaf of bread he had dropped. She turned around to see what was happening as he stood up and looked at her face. Their eyes met briefly and there was an easy silence for a second.

"Excuse me, miss," he said. "Sorry for my clumsiness."

"No problem," smiled Helen.

The two stood there, gazing at each other for a few seconds more. Then Helen suddenly turned and moved quickly away.

Now, sitting in her easy chair she wondered what happened in that moment. She had thought about it ever since. She hadn't felt that way in a long time. She started to mention it to Yvonne but decided not to. She didn't want to sound foolish and carry on about a stranger.

Anyway, she needed to put those thoughts away for another time…

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(A Glimpse into the Life of a Fictional Artist.)
These “art” stories are a compilation of real and fictional experiences. I started writing these stories some time ago for my blog and now want to share my stories with my new clients and all my Facebook friends.

GIFT IDEA - The holiday season is approaching fast. Are you ready for it? I have handcrafted computer tablet carriers that will make great gifts for friends and family. See them here – http://www.asjartworks.com/category/hand-crafts/computer-tablet-carriers/.

“After-Thanksgiving Lazy-Days.”

Rainy days and Mondays…

Helen watched intently as the rain drops fell softly against her windows.

She could feel this was going to be a very lazy day. And that was ok. Some days need to be lazy days. After visiting her family and friends all day long on Thanksgiving, she needed to stay home.

She still had plenty of left-overs, though. Helen could make various sandwiches or a small-serving meal. She would decide on that at dinner-time.

Helen's friend Evan stopped by for lunch so sandwiches were definitely on the menu.

"Mmmm," said Evan, as he bit into the sandwich. "What is the sauce flavor I'm tasting? It's different."

"Do you like it?" asked Helen.

"Actually, I wasn't sure at first,” said Evan. "But it snuck up on me as I was chewing." He wiped his mouth before trying another bite.

"It's one of my trade secrets," laughed Helen. "So I'm not going to tell you."

"You're a meanie," laughed Evan. "And here I was going to offer you one of my free movie tickets."

"Which show?" asked Helen.

"Doesn't matter," smiled Evan, taking his final bite.  "You won't be going."

"That's ok," laughed Helen. "I've been planning to trade you in for a newer friend, anyway. One who humors me."

They both laughed.

"Hurry up with my tasty sandwich," smiled Helen. "I want you to go on an errand with me and help me carry some things back home."

"Are you kidding?" laughed Evan. "Ask your new friend to help you."

"Then stop eating what's left of that sandwich," smiled Helen. "My new friend will be here any minute."

They both doubled-over laughing again.

But they left Helen's house very shortly. And it was still softly raining outside.

(A Glimpse into the Life of a Fictional Artist.)
These “art” stories are a compilation of real and fictional experiences. I started writing these stories some time ago for my blog and now want to share my stories with my new clients and all my Facebook friends.

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This week’s story - "A Good Movie Story"

Helen was taking photos at a local park that would become the basis for her next series of paintings.

She was also meeting her buddy Evan any minute. The two of them were going to see the new Tom Hanks movie "Bridge of Spies." She continued shooting the photos she needed.

Evan arrived and parked near where Helen was taking pictures. "Are you ready to go?" he asked.

"Yes, just about,” replied Helen. "We're taking your car, right?"

"I guess so," replied Evan. He picked up some paperwork he had on the passenger seat. "I'll finish reading while you finish up your shots."

Ten minutes later, Helen slid into Evan's car and off they went.

"I hope this movie is better than I think," sighed Helen. "The previews seemed so dark and boring."

"Remember," said Evan, "My buddy Dan told me it's a sleeper. We're gonna be pleasantly surprised."

When they arrived, Evan parked and they went inside. Hardly anyone was in the theater.

"Is this an omen?" asked Helen, as she looked around. "Where are all the folks?"

"Aw come on," said Evan. "It's the middle of the day. Don't be judgmental yet. Let's give it a chance."

Later, after the movie, the two were walking towards the car.

"Wow," said Helen. "That was powerful."

"I loved it," smiled Evan. "See, I told you to hold off on judgment. My friend Dan and I usually agree on movies. And he did not disappoint this time either."

"The Tom Hanks character embodied old fashioned goodness," smiled Helen. "He had righteousness on his side. And the story was well told."

"Good, for a true story," replied Evan. "The darkness proved central to the story, too. Did you feel that?"

"Oh, absolutely,” replied Helen. "That's the way things were historically. I just didn't expect to like it so much."

The two friends continued their discussion as they walked towards the car.

(A Glimpse into the Life of a Fictional Artist.)

These “art” stories are a compilation of real and fictional experiences. I started writing these stories some time ago for my blog and now want to share my stories with my new clients and all my Facebook friends.

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This week’s story - "Pizza, Anyone?"

Helen and two of her friends, Andrea and Yvonne, were having snacks at Andrea's house while Andrea babysat two of her nieces - Candy and Regina. The girls were sitting on the floor enjoying the pizza that had been delivered, while simultaneously being on their cell phones.

"I love your nieces," whispered Yvonne, out of hearing range of the nieces. "But they've had their thumbs glued to those phones since I walked in."

"I know," sighed Andrea. "But that's what all kids do. I'm watching them until my sister gets back and I don't want to be hard on them. They've done their homework so they can have a little freedom right now."

"I agree with you," said Helen. "But I can't help but be amazed at how different we were at that age, before cell phones. Anyway, are we ready to plan this holiday party?"

"I'll go along with whatever you guys say," laughed Andrea. "I'm too exhausted to wrap my head around any plans tonight."

"Sure about that?" asked Yvonne. "You know you'll be upset if we plan something you don't like. So you'd better throw in a few ideas."

“Alright, alright," said Andrea. "But let me make a quick phone call."

As Andrea left the room, Helen and Yvonne continued their discussion.

"Should we ask Carol to volunteer her home this time?" asked Helen. "She did mention last year she might do it this year."

"Laura's house worked out so well last year," said Yvonne. "I had a ball decorating it. Didn't you?"

"Yes, it was fun," replied Helen. "And Carol's house would be fun, too, if she agrees."

"Let's call her tonight and try to lock it down," said Yvonne. "I'd hate to get excited about it and then she tells us she's busy or something."

"Good idea," said Helen.

"Is there more pizza?" asked Candy, one of Andrea's nieces.

Helen and Yvonne looked at each other in a puzzled way.

"Did you guys eat all of the pizza already?" asked Yvonne.

Candy and Regina laughed.
 

"Hey," said Regina. "We're growing teenagers!"

Yvonne and Helen starting laughing, too.