Poss

It's hard to think.

Poss is 95 years old.   She is the sister of my Grandma.  Family legend is she picked up the nickname Poss because when she was born she looked like a wrinkled up possum and it stuck.  Just the Poss part -- no one would dare call her possum!

She's a tough old bird-- always has been.  I get the feeling she wanted kids but she and uncle Ed never did.

My mom is the oldest of 8.   She spend some years living with her grandparents, which means she lived with poss when Poss was a teen-- and later she lived with Poss and Ed as a young adult.  She was living with them when she met my Dad.

Poss has always been a weird mix of older sister and Mother to my Mom.  Which means she is like a grandma to me and my siblings .  In some ways she's been more my grandma than Grandma was-- we certainly saw more of her and Edie growing up.  I remember that when my brother Kit and I visited she would give us baths in her kitchen sink!   She would clean her house wearing a t- shirt and panties because it was more comfy.  

She loves babies and young kids.  Once I hit a certain age I didn't like her , because she didn't seem to like me anymore.  It took me awhile to figure out she just didn't know how to relate to a teenager.  Admittedly I could be a huge brat.  ( still can )

Even when I didn't think I liked her I still loved her.   I remember I tried to call her grandma Poss.  She said she didn't like it it wasn't right-- Vera her sister was my grandma.  She said I shouldn't call
her that but I think she was secretly pleased.  I honored her wishes -- but every time I said Aunt Poss it echo-ed as Grandma Poss in my head.  I like to think she heard that echo as well.

Don't get me wrong - I loved my Grandma as well but Poss And Ed were special and me and my family didn't have to share her with zillions of other Grandkids like with Grandma Vera.    Since my father's parents passed away long before any of us were born-- we needed more Grandparents.  Frankly I couldn't ask for better ones.

I feel better now, thinking about her this way.  The last couple of years she been in bad health, mostly called old age I guess.  The last few weeks she been really confused-  she didn't recognize my husband and I think she thought I was  my older Sister Gretchie.   I thought she was doing ok again or at least not worse but she's not.  They are giving her just a few days and she's under hospice care.

I have her name-- her middle name,  Amal.   It means hope in Arabic.  I didn't know this until I went
 to Israel on a archaeological dig in 1991.  That's not why Poss got the name-- I got it from her of
course -- She got it cause it's a family name passed down for several years.  My mom does genealogy and thought for years it was a Indian name -- that was the family story.   There is suppose to be a couple of Cherokee 's in the family tree but Mom's never been able to prove it.  (This isn't as strange as it sounds -- it was common that if a female Indian married a white man to assume a white name along with the marriage so it's possible  and makes it hard to trace.  At the time it would have been cause for shame so the family would try to conceal it.  Now try to figure it out 150 years later).  A
few years ago Mom found out the truth , which I think is horribly funny.  Amal is the corrupted form
of a doctor's wife name.  I'm not sure why-- but that's a little disappointing compared to hidden Indian blood!
I've always wondered what Poss thought of all of this.  I think she would see the humor in it as well.

hunting pocket watches.....

DRRROOOLLLLL!!!

I realized about 1 week ago I'm dangerously low on kewl watch parts for my jewelry.  Now as a professional hoarder, that means I have less than 100 of something, but more than 5.  Anything under 5 and I freak out. 

So I've been haunting eBay and etsy looking for good lots at reasonable prices.  this is a pic of one of them.. which I'll hopefully get soon.  This one is the "Mystery" lot because it's hard to see what's all included.. but it looks very promising. 

Half the fun is getting a good bargain, and finding surprises... hopefully of the pleasant type.

Fingers crossed!!!

My next show is a new one to me and Hubby and we are driving out to Deerfield IL.  My fingers' are crossed for this as well.... We haven't done a show in IL for a couple of years ( mostly a distance thing) and never one so close to Chicago.   So I'm excited!! If you are in the area, stop by the Deerfield fine Arts Fest Sat and Sun 10-5pm

chainmaile pics and weekend plans.....

This one is so fun and colorful.. it sold a couple of shows ago....

Not sure on the status of these.. pretty sure the 2 bottom are gone

Just finished a fantastic Farmer's Market.. I've got to get a few things to get done for the weekend, and then I can spend all the rest ( and that lovely, gorgeous extra day!) making Jewelry.  I'm actually very excited... I've got some fresh supplies both from Jerry's deconstruction talents and from our friendly mailman, and ideas in my head and I'm ready to go!!   So this entry is short... in my on going effort to clean out my photo files, I present the results from my latest chainmaile efforts.  I tend to do chainmaile in batches.  This weekend I'm concentrating on my Mechanical Romance line as it's been hit hard from all the great shows so far this season....

Fun earrings....

random pictures

1946 singer ready to be ripped apart...

 OK so I do random thoughts from time to time, but my brain in fried in a light mix of extra virgin olive oil and butter, so how about semi-random pics?

vintage key earrings, thank you dear Neighbor!

ever popular and always different pocket watch necklaces....

This is Kya, grumpy cause I woke her up to take her picture.

Variety of brand tags from various machines.  all but one of these is sold.... the bottom left that says Model AAA still left.. from 1950's movie projector...

I'm Back!

vintage pocket watch ceramic face, brass stampings and chain.

Or rather the Internet is!! I'm so happy that I can actually do things on the computer for the first time in weeks without it stopping every 5 minutes!!

Tomorrow is Valley Junction Art Market 11-4pm.

I've got to say, I love the hours on this!! As long as Jerry and I get there for set up around 9am, we will be ready by 11.  I actually get to sleep in on a show date!!

Don't get me wrong.. I adore Farmer's Market and we had a lovely time today... but getting up at the butt-crack of dawn really isn't my gig.  I mean for heaven's sake, my company name is Midnight Kat Productions!! There is a reason the Midnight part is in there.  I just don't stick a word like that in my company name just cause it sounds nice....

To get to Farmer's Market in a timely fashion, we get up at 430 to 5am.  Seriously, do I look like the 430am gal to you??

Some shows are even worse.. typically, any show within 2 hours of driving we will drive that morning and save a hotel for a night.  So if a show starts at 9am, and it's 2 hours away, that translates to getting up and out the door by 5am... so it's 3 to 330am call.  ugh!

Still not complaining really, cause we do love Farmer's Market.  One of the nicest parts of a Farmer's Market weekend is we are done by 1pm, which leaves most of the weekend intact for other activities.  And I love the energy at the market.. and the variety of food stuff of course.

We almost always get fresh farm cheese curds, and some of the best bakers in town do Farmer's Market, and you all know how much I enjoy a good cookie.  (Sadly, my favorite cookie pusher at the market wasn't there this morning... Confections by Kelly They have wonderful oatmeal scotchies and snickerdoodles) 

We get to do another Farmer's Market next week... and then not again til July.

Bead Soup Blog Hop Reveal!

Earrings, aren't they cute?

The lovely clasp with some dangles, cause everything has to have dangles...

I wanted to keep it simple to really hi-light the wonderful focal bead she gave me!!

 This post will be quick quick quick.... for the past 2 weeks our Internet access has SUCKED.  It works for 10-15 minutes then goes down for hours and hours... so I have this one thin slice of time.

I wish I could spend an hour or so going gushing how lovely the beads are that I received from my Partner Kandice but I've lost the Internet 3 times trying to just get this.

so check out Kandice's website today, and all the other blog hoppers..

and hopefully you get to see this, and eventually the damn Internet gets fixed!!

boy am I tired....

brass wing stamping, crystals, chain. 

Just finished day 2 of the Pella Dutch Market and boy, I'm tried.  The show runs 9-7pm, and that's a long long long day.  One day left... The weather today was sooooo much better than Thursdays' weather... heck, last year we got snowed on!!  And tomorrow's weather will be even nicer, it's going to get up to 68 tomorrow.  So come out, smell the tulips ( yes, some of them are in bloom!) and buy neat stuff at the market.