Your Lid

It's "THE HAT" if you need to beat the cold, set the style, or make it your own "can't live without it" piece of art! Wearable fiber art at its best.

The Hat by Peggy Eldridge-Love is just for you. Whether you set its crown vertical or horizontal, or put it to the front or to the back it takes on your personality!

Available in an array of colors and mixes.

The Hat

Photos: Copyright Peggy Love

I made this hat after making one similar that my husband picked up and started to wear. He called me a few days later to say "hey, I thought you might like to know that I'm getting tons of compliments and inquiries about this hat you made!" I was surprised because I hadn't really been that excited about his when I finished it.

But, after his comment I thought "hmmmm" and decided to make one for myself. I wore mine and before the day was over I'd had numerous requests that I make them for people for themselves and to give as holiday gifts.

The thing I like is that each hat contours to the wearer's head and becomes a very individual creation! I didn't use a pattern, I just thought I'd try something that came to me in an "ah ha" moment that seems to be working out well!

So, this is "The Hat"!


Email me for more information.

More colors, more fabrics!

Photos: Copyright Peggy Love

If You Know Someone Who Wants One for Christmas

This is before she slipped into her "Body Magic"


And this shot is right after putting her "Body Magic" on!

*****************

Click here if a Body Magic is on your wish list or your gift list for details, sizing, how to measure and anything else you need to know.

Merry Christmas!

Common Sense the Baby Boomer's Ace

Photo Copyright Peggy Love

Not too long ago I found myself in a situation in which I was confronted with an avalanche of information that I needed to absorb and absorb in a matter of a few short weeks. Just about everything seemed to be riding on it, but I realized I was no longer 21 with a 21-year-old steel trap for a mind. The temptation was to panic, but that task demanded action, not panic, so I shifted myself into fifth gear!

As a little girl, my mother used to tell us to put our book under our pillow when we went to sleep after we had studied our lessons. I realize now it was a physiological ploy on her part, but it always seemed to work! So, under my pillow went the materials I needed to absorb, night after night.

Read it aloud, record it and play it back to listen to throughout the day as time allowed. Yep, the age old study tactic, but I employed it also. The old art of focus and concentration through listening and comprehending returned full force.

I also remembered a possible memory enhancer supplement I'd recently purchased but hadn't yet started to take regularly. I began that regiment, too.

I don't know which of my actions was the catalyst for success, but when time came to meet the demand I was facing I met it and accomplished it with confidence and ease! It was a reminder that even in this age of light-speed information it may well be that ageless common sense that we fail to remember and draw upon when we need it most that tips the table in our favor.

Why not dust yours off and see where it takes you some time

*************

This looks interesting:


And this is my recently acquired constant listening/recording companion!

Give the Best Gift to You

If it is change and a brand new you, a brand new attitude you want this Christmas click here!

Taking control feels so good. You've been hearing about it, thinking about it, your curiosity has made you really want to try it, but until now you've been reluctant, right?

Yet that inner you, the feel-good-about-me you, is finally tired of doing nothing! Well, you can do something right now, and do it your way with no conversation, no one pushing you or selling you. You browse, you explore, you consider, and you decide. If it's for you it is there for the taking and the brand new you begins.

Merry Christmas!

My Favorite Funny Valentine

Friday the 13th

You can do all your Christmas shopping and also make a significant contribution to a very worthy cause on Friday, November 13th, 2009. Check it out! Time, location and directions here!

She Saw Me See Her

I decided to do NaNoWriMo. Yes, I'm four, almost five days late getting started, but, well, to be honest, the story I really want to flush out just took its rightful place in my mind. It has been there playing on the edges, filtering on the peripheral, hinting, and even occasionally hissing at me. But, last evening it came into its own. At the end of November I do anticipate it will have at least two legs, maybe four, and will be ready to make it all the way to the finish line. The first line: She saw me see her.

It's a thriller.

All in the Family!

PHOTO CAPTION: Amelia Earhart, who was a career counselor at Purdue for two years before her ill-fated flight attempt around the world in 1937, has inspired many women to fly, as well as to pursue careers in science and engineering. Her legacy continues to influence people today, including some of the Purdue female aviation technology students pictured here with Purdue President, France A. CArdova. From left are senior Juliana Lindner, sophomore Jill Grable, CArdova, senior Alice Tam, freshman Dekiyra Love and junior Lauren Steele. (Purdue University photo/Andrew Hancock)

...Are You Lord God Almighty

Breaking Through

Thought for the day:

Remember, the place of greatest opposition is often the place of greatest opportunity.

Poets and Artist from Oranges and Sardines

Ever wonder where your "muse" is? Check out my Blogging in Black entry entitled "Circle of the Muse"! You might be surprised!

************
Also, just released is the much anticipated issue of "Poets and Artist" from O & S (Oranges and Sardines)! This is an absolute bonanza edition of who is who in contemporary poetry today, including former U.S. Poet Laureates, Pushcart nominees and winners, and a host of the celebrated and the Avante Garde poets and artist of our time driven by their own ethereal beat!

The true intrigue of the Poets and Artist issue is that it is compiled of 'self-portraits' of the poets and the artists, in their own words, from their own pens, pencils, and brushes; the view of who they are from the inside out. It is vulnerable, revealing, and sobering on many, many levels.

I'm included in this issue! My poem, which is entitled "Me, Currently", can be found on page 54! The journal is online now, with the print edition slated to be available within the next week or so! Check us out!

----------------

Poetry, Plays, Scarves, Handbags and Fun

Photos: Peggy Eldridge-Love - Scarf and Handbag Designed by Peggy Love

Available at Etsy Perfect Nudge

So, what have I been doing this summer? Stuff, all kinds of stuff. I've been writing more than I have in a very long time. My voice is changing just a bit and that is both a little unnerving and exciting at the same time. A lot of new poetry, a number of new published pieces, and more coming in the late fall. A play opportunity is being bounced around, and some initial conversation about a new anthology has just begun.


Who would have ever thought I'd fall in love with knitting at this stage of life, but, I have. As with most things that I discover I love, I've been giving it my all - well, I've been giving it a piece of my all. Of course I'm attracted to the unusual yarns rather than the traditional ones, and I have yet to learn to read a pattern because I just have to do my own thing and wait and see what the end result becomes.

Looking forward to Fall with a ton of creative thoughts in mind! Life is short and now everyday I try to make sure has an element of just plain ole'fun in its equation. Fun is a must!

Body Magic Passes the Test on Fox in Kansas City

 

Well, in the "Show Me State" (Missouri) you truly do have to "show me" and that's what happened with both the men's and the women's garment in this Kansas City FOX network news segment on the Ardyss Body Magic. Watch it for yourself!

I think what is so overwhelming is it is genuinely for ordinary people and that is what has Ardyss' products spreading across the country. These are products that improve my life and your life on the for real side.

Like I said previously, and I say again:

We are all focusing on stronger, healthier bodies and you can learn more about our direction for nutrition, personal care, rehaping and even cosmetics by clicking here.

You can buy now,
join our Ardyss family, or
just get more information on Body Magic, Men's Reshaping Garments, or the ultra tremendous line of nutritional product immediately.

Have a few questions? Email me!

Men's Girdles on the Rise for Toning and Support

You can buy and sell this product now:
Click Here to Order!

Men, it's your turn!





No doubt you heard about them on network news this week, or, like here in my city it's the one of the lead interest stories this weekend. Men's girdles are here, and they are here to stay!

Not only are these cinching garments making you guys look like you want to look they are finally offering some other health and comfort benefits that make a big difference in the quality of any day. This is what the Ardyss CorsyMen does:

Correct your posture and rest your back.

This garment is designed to provide special support to those who are on their feet a lot, experience annoying back aches from being behind the wheel of a vehicle, or do a lot of bending and stooping.

Functions:

A highly orthopedic garment in nature. Acts with the spine by encouraging proper shoulder back posture and relieves tension in the shoulder and back muscles. Tones the muscles in the abdomen. The elastic bands support and protect the spine making it more resistant to loads and trauma.

The Ardyss Lumbo Men garment brings more specifically targeted support:

Perfect support for back muscles.

It is scientifically designed to protect the spine and provides an effective method for reducing pain.

Functions

Designed specifically to prevent and correct annoying pains in the lower back. It protects the spine. The belt compacts the abdomen and improves positioning and shape. The design and method of applying pressure makes the back more resistant to new pain and trauma.

We are all focusing on stronger, healthier bodies and you can learn more about nutrition, personal care, rehaping and even cosmetics by clicking here. You can start toning now, become a memeber of the Ardyss family, or just get more information on both the CorsyMen or the Lumbo.

Tick Tock

Photo and Art Copyright Peggy Love - All Rights Reserved

I'm frame hunting. Getting ready to show some of my watercolors and colored pencil drawings. Plus, I'm working on a few fiber art projects that look promising.

I'm going to have to manage my time a lot better from here.

A Date with Jesus - Carla J. Curtis

Have you heard about this book yet? A Date with Jesus? If you have not, you will. It is quitely becoming one of the most sought after books by Christian women's groups as a true inspirational guideline for a closer, truer, more intimate walk with the Savior Himself. It is serving as both a wonderful handbook for workshops and retreats, but more importantly a beautiful, personal bedside book for times of meditation and prayer.




Carla J. Curtis is a well-respected inspirational author and a much sought after public speaker. Other of her books include Grip the Rope and A Single Woman's Parenting Journey: Tips for Survival. Carla's simple and profoundly insightful ability to translate the needs and desires of the Christian woman into meaningful,unforgettable solutions between the pages of her books leaves you certain she is divinely touched.

King Michael's Golden Sarcophagus

Felt like the ceremony for the burial of a beloved Pharaoh who would be laid out in his golden sarcophagus for time immemorial. Very fitting farewell.

Social Media's Exploding Frontier

Wow! When you're thinking about taking it to the next level; that need to reach out and reach more, it is probably already there waiting for you on those social media sites you frequent (probably everyday) just waiting for your light bulb to go off.

Case in point! It occurred to me that Twitter might be a great place to reach out to women who needed an instant morale and self-esteem boost! I've been going a little bonkers trying to figure out how best to share my absolute thrill with what I've been exposed to through Ardyss International. I have actually been experiencing some self-anger and exasperation because I felt like I might be cheating some folks out of something they really, really wanted and needed because of my inability to share.

It was with that sense of frustration that I noticed something on a friend's Twitter (a friend I highly respect), something about Magpie. I clicked it and bang! it was exactly what I was looking for!

What was so kewl about it was I felt like I was really in control of how I would use it. Better yet, it offered me the affordability that I really, really needed to at least take a stab at really sharing the things like body reshaping and to get a feel for what I was thinking would really be advantageous to someone else. And, while the first attempt has just begun, I am so encouraged! I feel like I'm pro-active now and not just reacting to my frustration ineffectively!

Time will tell and I promise you! I will let you know!

In Memory of Michael Jackson

Spun Wax

She took me to Hitsville so we could mourn together
the passage of what was gone forever,
for her a lullaby, for me a sultry slow dance.

We walked through yesteryear barely seeing
the sequined glove used to tilt a Moon Dancing hat,
antiquated microphones in musty little rooms

where I caught slivers of shadows flitting through -
she thought it was them, I knew it was you
taking one last turn on the round.

©2009 Peggy Eldridge-Love

Click here to listen to this poem on Youtube.

(In memory of my sister Hawice and Michael Jackson)

Polished Pieces of Eight - OCHO #24

My poem "Polished Pieces of Eight" and a number of other poems from the OCHO #24 issue, Poets Who Twitter, have been read and recorded by their authors. Take a listen!

"Holding it Together with Band-Aids and Safety Pins"

This is an eBook and is ready for immediate download. It is a candid examination, through poetry, of those things we struggle to absorb, to get through, and to move on from. It is a 101 Poetry guidebook for coping and healing.

Order now.

"Holding it Together with Band-Aids and Safety Pins"

A new slim volume of poetry entitled Holding it Together with Band-Aids and Safety Pins was released as an eBook today! I'm excited about it. It is a different kind of collection; real, probing, and reflective of those of us who populate this first decade of the twenty-first century. Here's an example:

The Queen of Bags

No one comes downtown on Saturday anymore
but you encompass all it ever was
with your uptown clothes, white gloves,
high heels and perfectly tipped hat.
How you manage to keep every hair
in place may never be known
but we all talk about your impeccable
style, your regal stride
and we wonder why it is your
destiny rests nightly under
the west end of the Chauteau Bridge.

It's about them, it's about us, because we and they are one in the same. Take a peek! You might enjoy. Click here.

OCHO #24 Featuring Twitter Poets Just Released!

Open publication - Free publishing - More mipoesias

Okay, so yes, one of mine is included. Check out page 46! Enjoy!

Long Live the Corset!

Okay, so I'm writing poetry about women (and men) looking and feeling good about themselves again! It's like Patti LaBelle's classic tune said: "I've Got a New Attitude!" I guess you could say "Long live the Corset!" Look what kind of excitement it's bringing back!

Time to Fall In Love Again...with yourself! Time to celebrate you!


SUN LIGHT

A momentary glimpse halted my stride, caused me

to back up, make sure I was seeing what

I thought I was.

It was awesome, really, so much so

I backed up, made sure

it was real.

Sure enough there it stood,

crisp, stunning, the kind of sight

you see only now and then.

The smile caught me a wee bit off guard,

made me self-conscious that I had been

caught staring shamelessly

at the reflection of me

refractured by the rays

of the sun of a brand new day

dancing off the windows

of my world.

c2009 Peggy Eldridge-Love
=



I'm still completely awed by what I have been seeing happening to individual self-esteem with "Body Magic!" Clearly, I'm not the only one!

Poems in Denver Syntax Literary Review

I'm really, really pleased that two of my poems, The Cat on the Short Yellow Bus and Endings, appear in the recently released Spring 2009 issue of Denver Syntax Literary Review! Boy, am I in some good company! Check it out here or you can enter the direct link: http://denversyntax.com/

TENDER

What lies between a man
and his dreams
is rarely reality
rather the totality
of old wounds
still too tender
to shoulder the
cloak of faith.

Peggy Eldridge-Love
From YOU BECKON

Wow! DId That Really Happen?

I witnessed a hand full of miracles over the weekend and I'm still on a high as a result of what I saw take place.

I got an invitation from my niece and sister-in-law to attend an event they were hosting when they came into town for the Mother's Day weekend. My niece sent a couple of intriguing pictures of her mother along with the invitation. (Yes, these are those pictures!) They made me think "hum".

Despite being primed for what we were meeting about I came loaded to the gills with my seasoned, very healthy portion of skepticism! The pictures had piqued my interest, they'd even caused my husband to comment on how impressive the transformation was, but, well, I doubted seriously I'd have more than a passing interest.

How wrong I was! Wrong because I saw a room full of bright, intelligent women who came from numerous walks of life have their lives changed in the twinkling of an eye ... literally. (Sorry for using a cliche.)

When they slipped out of the room where we all were, slipped into a place where they could try on the miracle working garment that was supposed to let you drop two dress sizes in 10 minutes, and came back into the room looking two sizes smaller they simply were not the same women!

It wasn't that suddenly their tummy was tight, they bust high, and their hips firm, it was that they had been given a brand new vision of themselves instantly and they absolutely, unequivocally loved it!

I know. I was one of them that did it!

I told a hand full of people about Body Magic immediately, but then I decided to back off a moment and see how I really, really felt about the product. So here I am, dozens of unsolicited compliments later, still feeling great about myself because I not only want to look how the garment makes me look, but because I like looking like that again so much I'm willing to invest some energy in more exercise and intelligent living to look that way without the help!

I'm vested and invested in sharing the feeling! Just thought you'd like to know!

Pink Chanel was April's #1 Download

Whoa Ho! I got a tweet from Didi Menendez letting me know that my poem Pink Chanel was the number one download for the month of April! That was definitely unexpected and a double pleasure since April was National Poetry Month.

It is number 24 on the Miporadio play list when it comes up (you can click here to hear it) and surrounded by some of today's most talented contemporary poets, so I was just happy to be in the neighborhood with such outstanding artist. How nice to discover that it was meaningful enough for poetry lovers who paused to listen to the some or all of the play list to have downloaded it!

The print version of Pink Chanel was included in the Cafe' Cafe' Edition of Mipoesias some time ago. You can see it online by clicking here.

Pink Chanel, like The Knoll Frames, are rooted in the impact the assassination of President John F. Kennedy had on me as a very young girl, and Pink Chanel speaks to the dignity that we witnessed First Lady Jacquelyn Kennedy maintain during that terrible time of national tragedy; a dignity I sought to emulate in a moment when I was faced with a personal tragedy beyond my ability to comprehend.

Clearly, this was a special thrill.

Tweeting Emerging Music and Other Things

Today was eventful on many levels. I felt a sense of special favor on my life throughout the day as one wonderful thing manifest into another, and then another, and yet another. I am too grateful for the wealth of blessings not to acknowledge them.

Something that is on my mind though is that I'm trying to figure out what, if anything, I'll do from here as it relates to music. For the past five years I used the Emerging Music column to give exposure whenever and however I could to raw, beautiful talent and talent that just needed one more little push. I truly loved doing that. But as of the early part of this week I ended my tenure as Editor of Emerging Music at Bellaonline.com.

While I don't want the expectation of a weekly column, which is a requirement at Bellaonline of its Editors, I do want to showcase someone extra special when I see them or they are brought to my attention. So, I think I'll start to "Tweet" about Emerging Music talents for a while. See how that feels and how that works for those artist. The challenge is going to be how to whet appetites in 140 characters or less, but I love a challenge. And I guarantee you, if the talent is there I'm going to make sure the world knows it for certain, regardless of the boundaries!

So, that said, I guess I need to go through my latest CD slush pile. There is bound to be something truly powerful and worthy of a Tweet or two in it! Give me a nudge if you, your management team, or your record company sent something to me recently that you think I ought to be on the look out for! I'm ready to try to make it happen for somebody!

Human Swine Flu

I'm just making sure I say this loud, say if far, and say it wide: Take every precaution you can to avoid the Human Swine Flu. This is a very real, very deadly threat to the world as a whole. Do your part to try to keep it from spreading!

Introducing "Living on the Edge Creative"

It looks like it is time to have a central location for showcasing and introducing new (along with older) creative endeavors I'm engaged in. The beginning of that new spot is a blog entitled "Living on the Edge Creative!" Take a look!

This is the direct link:http://livingontheedgecreative.blogspot.com/

Seeing the Rose Open

Sometimes it is hard to appreciate the beauty of a rose if it is fully open when you see it for the first time. It is the same way with life, I believe. Some of what we treasure most is sharing those extraordinary, unanticipated moments with someone who knew us when all we were was a pocket full of outrageous dreams, and they still thought we were special, and still believed in us.

I had such a priceless experience a day or so ago. It was truly a Godsend. It put a smile back in my whole person.

The Art of Healing with Yarn

When life becomes challenging ... I mean really, really challenging ... I resort to art as a means of coping. Shortly after Christmas a friend (Carol Kariotis at Kaw Valley Arts & Humanities) introduced me to "loom knitting" and it was the best gift she could have given me. Throughout the next few very stressful months I took the basics that she taught me in that two hour session and began to explore its possibilities with a variety of different yarns, including some extremely interesting ribbon yarn. Once I got the hang of it I started to add my own little twists, turns, and accents. It has been wonderful therapy! Here are some of my creations.

My personal stash of yarns! All Photos: Peggy Eldridge-Love

This is a double knit created on the knitting board. I just played with the stitches I'd read about and this was the end result. I doubt seriously I could duplicate the pattern! The pink bag below was also made on the knitting board.




What you see in the next few photos are a few abbreviated scarfs that I made. These are made on the round loom. I say abbreviated because the first one I was intending to make as a long scarf and my impatience -- my need for more instant gratification -- made me halt in the middle of the process. I wasn't sure what to do with what I had made and then I thought, "hum", and I wrapped it around my neck, found a lovely old rhinestone from my collection of vintage jewelry and was quite pleased.

Note: Okay, yes, if you see something that interests you I will consider making you one. Drop me an email at plovewriter@gmail.com and let's talk about it. :) Thx for asking TL

Peggy Reads Peggy

If you click on their title, you can hear me read a few recorded poems from my original collection of poetry, YOU BECKON. I don't read often, but whenever I have (or do) both Dungeon of My Imagination and Rhino Rising normally are extremely well received. I guess that's why I selected those two to share.

And the third, Gossip, happens to be one that I really like. I've been asked what in the world it's about, and for a while I was reluctant to try to explain it, but once I did the "ah" factor was so rewarding I became less reluctant.

So, here's the scoop on Gossip: Traveling across country on a train through the southwest there is an area in which there are these enormous rocks and boulders, the kind that you find wherever there are mountains or vast hills, but in this area, for what seems like a hundred miles there is absolutely NOTHING but flat land ... no place for these rocks and boulders to have come from. So that is what sparked my imagination ... the "where" of the origin of these southwestern rocks. The kind of unexplainable occurrence that might even have caused the constellations to resort to "gossip".

PS: If you want a copy of an autographed copy of YOU BECKON send me an email at plovewriter@yahoo.com or you can always purchase a copy from Amazon.com or Barnes & Nobel online.

PSS: Coming soon: USHER IN THE SUN

Hawice

The last couple of months have been incredibly difficult. I definitely did not think I'd be revisiting such a painful path so quickly, but less than a month ago I lost my only sister. It is still impossible for me to come to grips with the reality of that, and for now not accepting that reality entirely provides just a very small cushion to get me through each day.

I think I decided to make this entry tonight because there have been a series of things - good thing, very positive things - that have occurred over the last week or so that are the types of things that I would have picked up the telephone to share with her. She would have been as excited or thrilled or hopeful about them as I, if not more so, just as I was with all her victories, adventures, and achievements.

There have been a few other things, flashes of frustration, shock at some newsworthy issue, or some stupidly funny circumstance that I could have only gotten the kind of satisfaction or closure I needed by sharing the incident with her that I obviously wasn't able to. The pain of that void defies all words in any earthly language. It was an emotional pain so great my whole body had to get involved to try to handle because my heart and mind simply couldn't absorb the whole assault.

But there is something else that is incredible. It is that as awesome as the pain of losing her is, the pain of having had her in my life, in my world, as my very own big sister is such a thrill that the knowledge and memory of that, of her is so utterly powerful it has had the ability to assuages the pain and return me to a place of endurance washed in thoughts of her.

So, yes, I'd love to tell her about the short play that was published in a literary journal today, or mention the Writer's Digest article that included a little spill from me on my poetry collection, YOU BECKON, or breathlessly tell her blow by blow about the new opportunities to produce my plays, but I can't. As time goes on acceptance of that will take hold, but not just yet. That's why tonight I needed to tell you about her and about this. Tonight missing her feels like fire.

Need Your Feedback

Which of the three possible covers for my next volume of poetry do you respond to best? You can comment here or send me an email with your comments. Thanks!

Yesterday's Dream Becomes Tomorrow's Reality

Whom we celebrate on January 19, 2009 and whom we will inaugurate on January 20, 2009 are proof positive that dreams do come true.

Inauguration of Hope

Copyright Peggy Eldridge-Love - 2009

Look what happened when they took the chains off and gave us access

Look where we went with the width and the breath of the wisdom

given us

by He who created the universe.

When the doors opened we rushed through them,

Not to pilfer, but to drink from the fountains that used to tell us ‘no’.

Those who came before us bent their backs willingly for us

To step up on them and reach a little higher.

Those who had the vision knew that sometimes it would require

The very life they lived for a few to make it over to the other side.

When we got there, the mantle finally passed our way,

We did not scream for retribution or blood gifts to right the wrong,

We came with hope and change, promise and dreams for all.

Suppose there had never been chains to contain us

Suppose we had always been privy to the dream

But suppose only for a moment since the path before us starts today.

All Things Work Together for Good

"The Hat" (Watercolor - Copyright Peggy Love)

This has been a remarkable year, a blessed year. I am most grateful. Funny how one simple things can really have a great impact on so much. This time last year I was commenting about 2007, which had been a most challenging year for me. While making note of those things I was grateful for I made mention of something that was to result in a very uncomfortable situation. Perhaps, in retrospect, it was one of the best lessons and experiences of my life.

It was as though that event started a number of chain reactions that resulted in door after door after door swinging open for me. So much so, that on one occasion someone remarked that the way things were unfolding was "synchronicity". Duh?

I believe it really resulted from my need to understand mindsets, to delve deeper into the world of art and its mechanics, and my genuine desire to better comprehend what mattered beyond what just really mattered to me. I find I am ending 2008 light years beyond where I started it and I am absolutely certain I would not have been privy to the strides and quantum leaps of knowledge and wisdom that I believe I have had I not made that faux pas.

A Cup Full of Wisdom

I spent the day at home recovering from a nasty bout with a traveling virus. It seems most people that I have encountered recently have had it in some form or another. Regardless of the amount of vitamins C and E I've been taking, it took hold for a couple of unpleasant days. But, all was not lost. No, actually, much was gained.

This little window of downtime gave me an opportunity to just stop and to focus on some of the thoughts that have been vying for my time that I've ignored. It gave me an opportunity to be brutally honest with myself about what I think about a number of things that I have perhaps preferred not to examine too closely. I realized that in many ways I am far more at peace with 'me' than I have ever been, and that I have also - without even being aware of it - released a large quantity of 'things' that I once allowed to take up mental, emotional, spiritual, and even physical space unwisely.

I found myself laughing somewhat at the notions I have had, since I was a wee little girl, that surely I am royalty and that some miraculous fate awaits me just around the next corner, most certainly ridden in on or drug in by an enormous white horse. Laughed because as far-fetched as that notion may have been it somehow etched itself on my psyche and has been a part of that subliminal drive that has caused me to throw open door after door after door in search of my yet-to-be-found royal bounty.

The other day I was excitedly telling someone about the history of a beautiful pottery cup that had landed mysteriously in our cupboard. I knew its manufacture, the time frame when it was made, all about its particular trademark on the bottom, and its probable value were it to be offered for sale. The person I was talking to commented with surprise at the breathe of my knowledge on that subject and I immediately responded "oh, pottery and porcelain from that period is a passion of mine". The return comment was "you sure have a lot of passions". Before I knew it my response had leaped from my lips: "I do." I said. "I live every single moment of my life with passion."

So, I guess I will continue to believe, with passion, that I will see a cloud of dust rising on the horizon caused by the determined hoofs of a wonderful white stallion bringing me my long awaited royal treasure chest. I guess I will always believe in fairy tales and happy endings. I guess I will always believe that life is to be lived with every ounce of hope and dream, desire and energy you can muster. I know I will always believe in God's unmerited favor.

I'm glad this nasty little virus stopped me long enough for me to realize how truly blessed I really, really am. Until it did, the rigours of my recent days had begun to cause me to cheat myself of my lust for life. It almost had me thinking my cup was half empty rather than half full.

The Equator's Sun

Is there a perfect order to life? I believe there is, and even in those moments when all feels chaotic, when there are occurances that defy any ability I have to comprehend or embrace them, I still believe they are divinely ordained for the life I have been given to live.

I thought about that as it relates to President Elect Barack Obama. Having heard him repeat his own story and that of his mother and father - how they met, married, gave him life, and then parted - I wondered if they perhaps instinctively knew theirs was not just a coming together by chance, not just an ordinary girl and boy, man and woman relationship, but if they knew in their innermost beings something far beyond their own understandings had been manifest.

Those thoughts became this poem. I hope you receive it in the spirit I have written it.

The Equator's Sun

He is a kiss of the equator's sun against a cool Pacific breeze.
Intended, yet a surprise, come too soon,
but right on time.

Neither knew what drew them,
any more than they knew what
repelled them

only that once
upon a time
love demanded their obedience.

He was the gift left unwrapped when the guest had gone.
Intended, yet a surprise, come too soon,
and right on time.

He is the kiss of the equator's sun,
the hint of the days
before

and the days to come
in the simplicity
of his understanding

love
demands
our obedience.

He is the sound of a cool
Pacific breeze,
the kiss of the equator's sun,

an intention
come too soon
yet right on time.

Peggy Eldridge-Love ©2008 – All Rights Reserved

A Moment in Time

And then the clock struck 10 (at least where I live) and the whole world changed ... for ever!

Truth Be Told

It pains me deeply to see the very core and fabric of who people are twisted and used as weapons against them. I stand back and watch in amazement as people that I know do not intentionally wish to cause anyone true harm become like a once beloved pet bitten by a rabid skunk tragically becoming something dangerous and deadly, foaming at the mouth with the throes of poison that has invaded mind and spirit.

It is so difficult for me to accept that these “good people” are so deafened by the rhetoric of divisiveness that they cannot recognize that it is they who will lose the most. What they fear most, what they want to fight against with flailing arms and wild punches, is not that non-existent enemy that a bevy of shrewd, soulless front men are trying to convince them want to rob them of the rights we all hold most dear. Surely, I keep thinking, they cannot and will not fall for those snake oil tricks again. Yet, I see far too many being drawn in and pulled under, and I know that the only thing they’ll be offered when they are desperately trying to make their way back to shore will be a double-edged sword.

How is it even remotely possible that one who speaks of faith, who has deep abiding faith in a loving God, could ever be deluded by merchants of hate regardless of what those opportunistic merchants label it? Whatever happened to discernment, to the discerning spirit that we all have if we will pause and listen? It hasn’t changed – it doesn’t lie – it will not compromise. It is still there prodding and tugging at heart strings that want to ignore it and the truth is it will not rest. That is the piper that must ultimately be paid.

Though you may exercise a will that is yours to chose because it feels good to strike out, feels good to malign, feels good to hear someone making snappy, rhetorical punch lines – the kind of punch lines you wish you had thought of on the playground as a kid, or perhaps even now in the lunchroom or even the boardroom at work – dark, ugly, cutting words, words that minimize and castrate, belittle and disparage – words that your inner most being knows are not valid or true or justified…words that in the long run will cost you what you can never pay and not just you – but your children and your children’s children, too.

We don’t always know what’s right, but somehow we do always know what’s wrong. Take a minute to examine the choices you are making and your reasons for making them in this election. If your reasons are wrong and you know it – to thine ownself be true and do what’s right. There is still time.

Rising from the 'Free Write" Ashes

I had to create a fictional character today for a writing exercise. A "free write" fictional being with no connection to anything and anyone but my "free moment" imagination. Don't know why I'm sharing this unedited, straight from the hip particular result, with all its flaws, but I am.

Morris Hetch, nearing sixty-five, six foot two inches still, walks across the pine floor to the crackling fire place and warms his hands. Funny how cold his hands seem to stay. His eyes travel to the white oblong alabaster box on the mantle and he wonders about his will power. It has been over 48-hours since he reached for the box, took one of the Benson & Hedges and lit it with the tip of a rolled up piece of newspaper he stuck dangerously into the fire. It was as if he knew each cigarette was as potentially lethal as the embers that fly precariously from the burning newsprint.

He’s strong today. There will be no cigarettes. As strong as he was for over fifteen years, until just this last week. His stomach makes an unattractive noise. It is becoming far too familiar as is the discomfort that accompanies it. He plans to make an appointment, go see Melissa, Melissa Sturgis, the woman who has been his physician since his accident, but he knows he’ll put it off, forever if possible. It isn’t that he’s afraid of what he may learn; it is more that he’s afraid of what he may not – about Melissa.

His hands warmed now, he makes his way to the back room where he has set up his small desk, ignoring the pain in his knees, and the sharp mind wrenching pain in the center of his back. He slept wrong, again, and for an hour or so he’ll be reminded of the fact. But it is the fact of what lies before him on the edge of the desk that is most agonizing. He has no choice but to attend to it today. No choice at all.

Content copyright © 2008 by Peggy Eldridge-Love. All rights reserved.
This content was written by Peggy Eldridge-Love.

Don't You Dare Talk Back Mama!

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I saw a child in a supermarket recently with arms folded tightly across her tiny chest, her head bowed in full-combat defiance, and her bottom lip stuck out so far and apparently clutched so tightly it was the size of a tulip bulb and deep dark purple. This little one was mad!

I watched as her mother sought to reason with her about why the object of her desire was not something they needed to acquire. I watched as the mother explained, cajoled, and pulled out all the diplomatic tactics in her playbook to get Missy to understand. Missy wasn’t giving an inch.

Suddenly I realized what I was really watching as I saw Missy’s mom’s shoulders sag, her continence fall to a level of self-defeated disgust, and I saw the lines of bitter stress etched deep into her far-too-young-for-those-lines-to-be-there face. As Missy’s mother reached for the box of multi-colored yuck cereal and handed it to Missy who snatched it from her mother’s grip and threw it in the basket, I realized I was watching the demise of family, the loss of structure, and the end of a great deal of hope for America.

Missy is already running this country. All the little Missy’s who have been handed the reins and given their heads to take us wherever it is they think we ought to go now rule -- poor babies.

No wonder we are a nation in crisis.

Putting Meat on the Bones

The first thing I did when this particular idea took hold was to check Amazon to see if there were any books that already were using the title that I felt would be perfect for this new story. There were a couple, also a couple of variations on the title, and then a book or two that was using a portion of the title which apparently just came up with the title search.

Okay, so at least the title is not totally seminal. What about the theme?

I searched again, and thus far there is absolutely nothing that seems to have gone my direction with this set of circumstances! No where could I find this theme (that is blowing my mind) touted elsewhere.

Wonderful! It looks like I've found virgin turf.

So, now comes the tough part, the fleshing it out to see if it is strong enough to withstand what will need to occur over the next several months, perhaps even years to bring it in for a landing! I think this one is solid, I think it has the meat it needs to cover the bones of a "good concept." I'm excited because I am almost certain this one can stand and withstand whatever is tossed at it and I can't wait to wrap my mind around it totally!

Now honestly, isn't this what every writer lives for -- no matter how often it happens?

Keep the Faith: A Memoir is Slated for August Release

Ever now and again I am intrigued by what might lay between the covers of a memoir and one such an intrigue is slated for release August 29, 2008. This book is entitled Keep the Faith: A Memoir and it is written by Faith Evans herself, with contributions by author Alyia S. King.

For years the name Faith Evans has been synonymous with that of her late ex-husband Notorious B.I.G., but it appears that this memoir will introduce us to the long before and the ten long years after woman who has lived and continues to live a life that is worthy of its own recognition.

So, I'm awaiting the dropping of the new memoir and I have a fairly solid feeling once I pick it up I won't be able to put it down until I read the last page.

What's On the Wall?

Carol Karotis, Gallery Director, and Cathy Denning, Art Intern - Kansas City Art Institute, hang the current exhibit, Native Son: A Retrospective of the Works of Leroy W. Allen at the Kaw Valley Arts & Humanities Gallery

Keep your eyes peeled and glued to the TV while watching the new reality show, Family Foreman! Don't know if you'll see it, but there is a Leroy Allen painting in the background. Early on the producer's of the show contacted us to let us know it was a part of his collection and to get proper clearances should it be included. Great!

The painting itself is very poignant because it, like a number of Leroy's works, had special family significance. In this instance, the picture is of a country church and several of its patrons as they are leaving a Sunday service. A couple of the patrons are deep in conversation! The church is the church our grandfather attended -one he rode his horse to every Sunday and tied his horse up to a nearby tree until time to ride him home again. Our grandfather was also the subject of another major one of Leroy's works that is currently a part of a national tour. Our grandfather was from, and the church and patrons in the painting in George's collection, are located in Mississippi.

So make sure to catch the show! It comes on Wednesday nights on the TVLand Channel. Picture in the background or no, it is a really fun reality show!

Exhibit Opens Tomorrow

This show opens tomorrow evening, July 11th, at the Kaw Valley Arts and Humanities Gallery in Kansas City, Kansas! This is the second exhibit of my late brother's works that I've coordinated. I am excited because this one is in our hometown.

Wish you could be there! Come to think of it, why can't you be?

Your Turn

Copyright Peggy Love - Charcoal

It would be so easy to miss it. In the midst of it, as it whirls around you, virtually consumes you, there is the possibility you may not understand or recognize its appearance or its purpose. It is change and you are dead off in the middle of it. We all are.

There is a reason for all of the upheaval, the climatic changes, the economic shocks, the social and political never ending dramas that keep us on the edge. We became complacent, got socked in and desensitized to even our own internal cries for introspection and renewal. As a result we have allowed our authenticity to implode in quiet little episodes that threaten not just us individually, but everything.

Minus the chaos that has risen up all around us we might not lift up our heads and at least consider what is going on. It is all being shaken so that we might be tumbled out of our apathetic denial that we are who will and who must make a difference.

Wake up and do something! We need you!

American Poets

Now this is exciting.* An oil portrait of me painted by Didi Menendez has been added to her intriguing series entitled American Poets.

In this collection, Didi captures an unusual view of a variety of contemporary American poets that is as telling of their individual essence as are the words they write. I am so honored to be included in this series.

*Flash Update: I just checked to see what new portraits had been added and, if you blush easily, be prepared - Didi has added a most unexpected twist to her American Poets series! But, as with all things Didi, it is very tasteful.

Beg You and Pay You: The Oxymoron

Copyright: Leroy Allen "Ma'am" (Tribute to P.Polk) Charcoal & Chalk -All Rights Reserved

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Breaking News!
The migration has just taken place - after nearly a year!
As stated below: He moves mountains! Believe it !
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If you visited my personal web site recently and thought I either abandoned it or have become very lazy about having its content updated you are wrong. What is afoot is a terrible situation with the web host that involves countless domains like mine that can no longer access the web site itself to make changes.

For nearly a year now they have been in the throes of "migration" which very obviously has now become a major disaster for both them and countless numbers of us who have remained loyal trying to ride out the storm of transition.

The obvious question may be why not just change web hosts. The honest answer is the quagmire that others who finally tired of the wait have encountered in attempting to make that switch. Can you spell a n-i-g-h-t-m-a-r-e? Then you have the answer to the issue of change. The cure has more often than not been more painful than the current dilemma. Irrevocable loses of content, domains, and more have been alleged and the anguish is palatable among those caught in this circumstance.

I have been with this particular host for six years and have loved the ease of management for the site. It was perfect for me initially as a novice, seat-of-the-pant grassroots, and guerrilla self-promoter and continued to work well as I grew. I recommended them to anyone who would listen.

I have sought to be logical, patient, and reasonable in all my interactions as I've sought diligently to get my own personal situation resolved. It was excruciating that I was not able to post anything regarding two major art exhibitions that I had occurring and even more painful that I couldn't post newspaper links to information about me, or show new creations or whatever.

I even swallowed my pride and begged on a number of occasions. I really, really don't like to have to beg and pay you too. That goes against my grain, but since I'd already paid for the period of time we were in and I knew any thoughts of a refund were out of the question I just humbled myself and crawled time and time again. But, a couple of days ago, when I saw the charge for the new service period was arbitrarily processed against my credit card early I lost my cool.
I am no longer cool with it, patient, or tolerant. I want it resolved. For me that means praying about it first - telling Jesus on them for real (smile). It is a perhaps surprising confession of faith, but I don't take it lightly at all. He moves mountains for me and I expect Him to move this one.
I'll let you know soon.