...PUNK and ART MUSIC

Does an image like this bring back SERIOUSLY good memories to YOU?  Then you can probably relate to the 'bopping around' that I was doing the other day, as one of my fav-thrifts was cranking a little COMBAT ROCK / The Clash...
**DISCLAIMER: I give myself permission here... it was a dreary, dreary day ~ the thrift was completely abandonded except me and the one employee who is used to me and my 'quirks' ;-) !!

'LOST ART of CASSETTE DESIGN' by Steve Vistaunet

HAPPY MONDAY EVERYONE!!

(now, just try to get this one out of your head today...)

"Now the king told the boogie men

You have to let that raga drop

The oil down the desert way

Has been shakin' to the top

The sheik he drove his Cadillac

He went a' cruisnin' down the ville

The muezzin was a' standing

On the radiator grille

The shareef don't like it

Rockin' the Casbah

Rock the Casbah

The shareef don't like it

Rockin' the Casbah

Rock the Casbah

By order of the prophet

We ban that boogie sound

Degenerate the faithful

With that crazy Casbah sound

But the Bedouin they brought out

The electric camel drum

The local guitar picker

Got his guitar picking thumb

As soon as the shareef

Had cleared the square

They began to wail

Now over at the temple

Oh! They really pack 'em in

The in crowd say it's cool

To dig this chanting thing

But as the wind changed direction

The temple band took five

The crowd caught a wiff

Of that crazy Casbah jive

The king called up his jet fighters

He said you better earn your pay

Drop your bombs between the minarets

Down the Casbah way

As soon as the shareef was

Chauffeured outta there

The jet pilots tuned to

The cockpit radio blare

As soon as the shareef was

Outta their hair

The jet pilots wailed

He thinks it's not kosher

Fundamentally he can't take it.

You know he really hates it.

...dog-day DayTrippin'

Started off the new week of the 'New Year' with a Girl's Day-Trippin' adventure!   (Picked a local town/city that we had been wanting to explore more 'in-depth'... and did it!)

good sign.  First 'Angel Trumpet' blossomed in our garden on the eve of our journey...

R (my comrade in travel) is stamper / cardmaker extraordinaire!  I got lots of inspiration from her patient explanations of techniques as we visited every little boutique and shop that piqued our interest! 

 

Fun Garden nooks!



Primitive Local Art!



A beautiful, eclectic day.
 

...and at the ripe old age of almost 46, it's nice to know that I can still have 'FIRSTS'  ;-)
YEP!
I got my first parking ticket.
 

 After that FULL day of inspiration (and a bit of purging, as I did sell some clothing to a second hand shop!!) I was ready to hit the 'attic studio' for some creative work...

NOT.TO.BE.

~apparently the planets aren't quite aligned-just yet~



Craziness with 'real-world-work' sent

 me to my favorite beach for solace,

where I ended up scoring some

 beautiful specimens!!

 

Another day I joined my Parents who are camping in our part of the state, for a day of 'flea marketing'!  Dad had brought me an old metal spool (from his shop at home) filled with some copper wire - he thought I might be able to use it in my jewelry endeavors.  While saling I also found a vintage cast iron based 'solder clamp' which had been on my 'wishlist' for quite a while ($2).  The box of solder and the spool of Brass wire were also flea market finds that set me back a whopping $1.50!
If you are wondering,
Yes.
That is an arm.
just. an. arm.

It was a present from my Brother, (that my parents had delivered to me from him). He knew I was looking for one...(photo prop!!).   Now, it just makes me smile because EVERYTIME I look at it I have an 80's flashback, as this song goes through my head
"Let's hear it for the boy
Let's give the boy a hand
Let's hear it for my baby
You know you gotta understand"
Can you name that Movie/Song??
(can you get it out of your head now?)

 

Planets MUST be aligned now... right?
  Not quite. 

Meeting up with A (part of the college crew) for a girls' this afternoon! 
Then maybe!
...or maybe not.

...Tiffany, Lucky and MINARDI??

Friday, a friend offered me the rare chance visit a local factory that produces high-end hair care products.  Since they are an employee, they were able to get me into their 'seconds' area, where a tote-FULL can be purchased for $5.



Let me give you some background info here so that you can fully appreciate this whole scenario...  (I'm NOT bragging, mind you, I'm just REALLY LUCKY!! and it's a good thing, because I'm REALLY LAZY when it comes to my hair!) *My hair tends to be on the long side (around shoulder to mid-back length) - short hair would require more than an annual or semi-annual trim to maintain a 'style', plus I wouldn't be able to just pull it back into a pony-tail or braid it on mornings when I was running late!  *Being almost 45 and of natural light-streaked hair I have never colored (okay, in the 80's I did do a neon orange thing with my rat tail, but we don't have to go there!) or highlighted my hair - and have only found (and promptly pulled!) one Grey.  *Through friends I found this Great Lady who cuts hair out of a salon in her house for.....  $5 !!!
Getting the picture??
LOW MAINTENANCE... NO FRILLS, What-so-Ever!!

So, that is me.  J is 'hair-challenged'... need I say more?  Yet, he is pickier (sp? word?) about his shampoo than I am!  My main splurge is on 'Leave in conditioners'.  SO - I filled a bag with each 8-) !!  There were names there that I had never heard of (Ion? Joico? Kpak?), but an aisle over was a Factory Sales Rep doing their thing for a 'potential customer', so I eavesdropped, and learned more about hair products than I EVER needed to know!!!
I DID make sure to go find some of these MINARDI line that they were talking about ;-)

The next morning after I got out of the shower, with all of the NEW hair care smells in the air, I put on my LUCKY jeans that I got this summer at the Maine outlets, and the TIFFANY bracelets that I have been picking up while saleing.  I took a look in the mirror, and I almost wasn't sure who that girl was looking back at me.  Time for reflections and housekeeping of a different sort - maybe time for a little 'soul keeping'... perhaps.  All I know is that  one song kept going through my head...

You may find yourself in another part of the world
You may find yourself behind the wheel of a large automobile
You may find yourself in a beautiful house with a beautiful wife
You may ask yourself, well, how did I get here?

Can any of you name or relate to that song?



...Standing in the rain...

; The temperature reached 48deg yesterday - which by CNY (Central New York State) standards is a heat wave in February!! It was Pouring *a*l*l* day long, but without the threat of a SNOW storm, I had to venture a few towns away to get a MUCH need 'stuff' fix!

First stop - Linden Exchange Consignment shop... TWO!! VERA scarves @ $1 ea - YIPPEE!!

2nd stop - The SecondHand Shop ... nothing.

3rd on the route - Center of Concern... Found this cool grey & pink bag - perfect for keeping in the car for 'grocery shopping'. Nice alternative to those plastic store bags that I am trying to stay clear of! I was thinking that it is an easy enough pattern, that I could 'whip' up some of my own creations and clear out some of my fabric horde, but... after more consideration, I'm thinking 'hunting' for bags may be more fun than 'sewing' bags!! You never know though, stranger things have happened!! The Bag + a Moderne Italy knife = $1.00

Pulling out of the parking lot to continue on the hunt, I hear on the radio...

"...Standing in the rain...".

Instantly the volume dial is maxed out (...well, almost.).

Blame it on the fact that ALL of my teen years (+) were enveloped in the 80's.

Blame it on the fact that I was raised in the outskirts of Rochester, NY .

Blame it on the fact that I have seen Lou Gramm in concert TOO many times to count.

Whatever.

JUKE BOX HERO by Foreigner, for those of you youngins out there (Yes, yes, I can hear it now 'Cheesy 80's hair band..." yeh, yeh.), just HAS to be cranked. That's all there is to it.

Okay, so revitalized, I had two more stops which produced...
... a retro filigree metal tissue cover (.49c) + a couple of retro mugs (.19c each) + retro OWL spoonrest (.25c) + a couple of New containers of candle 'glue' for holding tapers in the holders (.25c) = $1.62.

There you have it folks. My $4.62 fix! (well... and the cost of gas, but I don't count that 'cause some of the things are for E-bay, so hopefully they will balance out!!).

until next time, remember...

Gotta keep on rockin

That boy has got to stay on top

And be a juke box hero, got stars in his eyes