kittens, cars, hospitals and fireworks

The last week and a half has seemed like an eternity. It started with a 1000+ mile car ride down to Austin, TX. I helped a dear friend move with her three cats in my little Toyota Yaris hatchback. For the most part the cats were surprisingly well behaved. Within the first 20 minutes one of the cats, named appropriately as Lucifer, tore out of his travel cage and ran amuck in the car the rest of the way to texas. By the time we arrived there was cat fur and cat litter everywhere and I had a brutal case of drivers knee. (my car while adorable as hell, isn't equipped with the luxury of cruise control) When we finally arrived at our final destination in Austin it was a blistering 106 degrees in the mid afternoon, the moving truck (driven by my friends boyfriend and father) had already arrived and to all of our dismay we found out that the airconditioning in the house was not working. I don't know if you have had the pleasure of unloading a moving truck in 106 degree weather into a 100 degree house, but if you haven't it's pure hell. I felt like I was going to die. Day two in Austin was a bit smoother, and the next day was even better than the second.

While in Austin...my bathroom ceiling decided to cave in and FedEx decided to mess up my shipments. Apparantley they pay very little attention to addresses and if one of their employees puts the wrong barcode on the wrong box they deliver it to the address attached to the barcode regardless of what the address marked on the box reads. A package of paintings for Chuck in Denver arrived in to Rachel in Philly and vice wersa. Of course all my paperwork was in Chicago. FedEx ruined day 2 in Austin. Now a week and a half later, the shipments have been rerouted, but still in transit.
My bathroom ceiling is half repaired.

Driving 1000+ miles by yourself is a chore. A beautiful, gorgeous, scary, fun-loving and peaceful chore. I drank a lot of caffiene, smoked a lot of my $2.60 a pack cigarettes from Oklahoma and had many sing a longs while cruising down the highway. Next time I'm going to leave the solo trips to 6 hours or less.

Upon my return there were more shipping mix ups and emails to attend to, some I still have to sort out. Pilsen started their 4th of july about a month ago and they're still going strong. On the 4th itself, I felt like I lived on an army base or that I was in the middle of a war. The street were filled with smoke, children were lighting fireworks and shooting them at eachother from across the street. Fireworks being purposely shot through windows and at moving targets (me included) My alley was one big cemetary of used explosives. Sulfer residue on the steets and sidewalks will last for many weeks to come. After braving through the warzone I live in and a very unsuccessful grilling experience we ended the night on a neighbors rooftop and then sat on another neighbors porch into the wee hours of the night. Pilsen is definitely growing on me.

The Friday before the fourth was spent bringing my best friend, my toothtwin, into the hospital for testing. Then later that day I brought him to get his first pair of prescription glasses. I love him so. Friday was a really rough day.

Now I have 10 days to clear my head and finish prepping for Coterie which is the Art Fair inside The Pitchfork Music Festival. I have quite a good amount of wares prepped already, but I need way more than 10 days to finish all that I have left to do. Then right after Pitchfork wraps up on the 19th of July I have to ship off my wares for The Big Ass Indie Art and Craft Show in St. Louis. Then I have a custom order to fill for a wedding by the first week of August :)

I believe caffeine is once again going to be a dear friend of mine these next few days. You're more than welcomed to come over and help me with all the little painstaking prep work if you'd like!

Hopefully my paintings will arrive in Denver tomorrow and Rachel @ Square Peg Artery will receive her order.

xoxo
natasha