Soggy....oh so Soggy

The city of Brisbane is today starting to clean up the horrendous mess being revealed by yesterday's flooding. It has been a terrible few days. And even though the sun is shining today...the destruction is not over just yet. I have put some pictures up so that you can see, they are not my own pictures, but they give a good cross section of views across the city and inner city suburbs.

I was unable to get near any of the areas (except locally) to take any photos due to road closures and general chaos. Just way too dangerous to be out and about. The city centre has been without power for a few days now, bridges are closed, people are unable to get to work, supermarket shelves are empty and the list goes on.
Even for those of us who were lucky enough to be on relatively dry ground, the horror of seeing our beloved city go under has been an ordeal. I don't think there is a single person in Brisbane who has not been affected in some way.
But in typical Aussie style...people have maintained a great sense of humour. Perhaps one of the most popular photos on facebook right now is of 'king wally'.. his bronze statue stands outside Suncorp Stadium near the city heart. As the stadium (where all our footy games are held) slowly turned into a great big swimming pool of mud before our very eyes....someone adorned the statue with snorkeling gear and floaties !
There is also a photo of some very unique shoes spotted in a window somewhere in Brisbane. I think they really sum up how we are all feeling.
Me? I'm ok. I have about a foot of water under my house and mould growing on EVERY surface inside (due to the excessive dampness over the last few weeks)...but I'm safe and my family is ok.
It's just heartbreaking to see our city get trashed by mother nature in such a way. They think it will take years to fully recover.
But as I speak....power is slowly being restored to some areas and mass clean ups are starting as the Brisbane River slowly goes down, leaving behind a trail of the most putrid smelling sludge you can ever imagine.......oh it's so gross !

Photos were sourced from: http://www.triplem.com.au/ and www.facebook.com/9news

Also......please take a look at http://news.ninemsn.com.au/national/floods/8196580/massive-clean-up-begins-in-brisbane

Near Coronation Drive - Inner city

Inner city..Milton suburb

New Farm on the River banks - inner city

Bulimba - inner city riverside suburb

Milton Road

Pedestrian bridge down to the bikeway that follows the river all the way into the city. Normal water edge is on the farrrr right of this picture.

Hanging on for dear life...

Shopping is a nightmare...even in the outer suburbs. There is literally nothing left.

Coles supermarkets after the water subsided..

Bikeway/walkway down the eagle street end of town.

Swollen waters were so FAST carrying with them boats, pontoons, gas tanks, fridges and more.

Western suburbs

Suncorp Stadium

Inside the stadium...they had just put down new turf/grass...which cost one million dollars !

King Wally

Queensland's newest fashion 'must have'

The river edge is usually in line with the letter T in the 'triple m' logo

My City is Drowning

http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/queensland/severe-weather-warning-for-brisbane-flooding-cuts-off-coast-20090520-befd.html

As I write this, my City is flooding. I hardly have words to describe the sights I'm seeing on TV. It is surreal to think it is in my very own back yard. It makes me realise how we all see things like this on TV so often but never really 'get' what it's really like until it strikes close to home.
The last time my city suffered this kind of flooding was in 1974, when I was only a toddler...and today they are saying that the current floods are as bad, if not worse. I can hardly believe that just last year we were in the midst of the worst drought in history. Finally our poor farmers got some crops going, and now they are washed away in a wall of water.

The started as a result of a severe weather system that has drenched our 'once dry' area with so much rain over this summer that the ground is now completely saturated and unable to take much more. But the rain keeps going, and going...and it's still pouring outside. This together with massive amounts of run off water up in the ranges caused one of our regional towns - Toowoomba, to suffer what they are calling and 'inland tsunami'. This town is on a plateau, some 700m above sea level. How shocking that it has been hit so hard.
As a result the devastation is now flowing downstream, flooding all the western townships to the west of the range, and swelling the Brisbane river that flows east right through our capital. That, together with king tides filling up the river from the sea side today...is making this probably the most shockingly devastating day of Brisbane for a long long time.

My heart, thoughts and prayers are going out to all those people who have lost their homes, lost their loved ones, lost their pets and, lost their livelihoods...along with all their possessions. I feel both blessed to be dry and have a roof over my head, yet at the very same time I feel so helpless, as we all do. I look out my window at the pouring rain, and pray for my city to survive because it is such a beautiful place. Mother nature surely does work in mysterious ways.

Please take a look at the following pictures and links....this was what happened overnight.
As I write this entry, the Brisbane river is rising, houses are going under and people are fleeing the city to be home safe, or worse still...pack a few belongings and evacuate. Everyone is scared, everything is soaked and the skies are so grey and ominous. I feel sad.

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/slideshowajax/139318/floods-ravage-queensland.slideshow

http://video.theaustralian.com.au/1733787708/Brisbane-Flash-Flooding

Catching Up before the new Year

Oh my gosh I can't believe that the last time I wrote here was back in October !
I have been very busy with art works but  everything came to a grinding halt in mid Novemberwhen I fell ill. I have been off work for over a month now, and even though the home time has given me ample time to create, it's been quite a challenge physically to keep up with my active imagination.  I'm starting to come good now and fired up to meet the goals and challenges I have set myself for the new year.

I spent most of the month of November madly working on several projects which I was unable to post until now because they were all gifts for family and friends. I didn't want to ruin anyone's surprise. But now that they have them I can share them with you all and I hope you like them.

I focused on a bit more traditional style quilting, creating a table runner for my mother. It measures about 1m in length and now proudly sits on her kitchen bench (when the cat isn't trying to claim it as hers). This project was basic block work together with a little free form machine embroidery - which I have been teaching myself. I had a lot of fun making it and even more fun hiding it from prying eyes every time she came to visit !

The second project I have been working on was a small table runner/centrepiece for a very close friend of mine who is a 'caffine enthusiast' ! I would use the word 'addict' but fear that is a bit harsh. It measures approximately 50cm x 50cm and I finished it in rich colours of coffee browns and creams. To personalise it I used free form machine embroidery to stitch on the words 'coffee' and 'friends' in both English and Finnish (his native language). He was thrilled with the gift and I look forward to sharing coffee's with him over it.

I've enjoyed getting back to the more traditional quilting style for a change. It was good to re-learn the basics and co ordinate fabrics and patterns on a different scale and shape. Of course the biggest reward was seeing them go to people I know will love them. That makes all the hard work worthwhile.

I'm presently finishing up multi segment art quilt project which i hope to have posted here very soon. And I'm also working on a series of 'recycled fabric' bags and purses that I'm hoping to put  up in Etsy site in the new year....here is a sneak peek of what's to come....

Thank you so much to those who have been following me here and a huge thank you for all the comments left. I was very touched. I'd also like to thank Rose Hughes for mentioning me on her blog...She continues to inspire me in many ways. So I am wishing everyone a very creative, healthy, happy new year...filled with new friendships and lots of laughter and smiles. See you in 2011.

A new face.......

Not long after the passing away of my beloved Coco, I also lost another pet. One of my pet cavys became very sick and sadly had to be put to sleep. It broke my heart. But I knew she had a great life, even if it was short. She originally came to me from a rescue shelter, where she had been rescued from a life of neglect and poor health. They had rehabilitated her and she spent the rest of her time with me and her room mate Paris. Her name was Somali.
Since Somali's death, Paris was lost. Guinea pigs are not solitary creatures. They thrive in groups. Paris was so lonely and depressed.
So in early December a new piggy graced my home. Her name is Snickers...which she was crowned with because of her chocolate and caramel coloured hair and the fact that she is a little 'nutty'. I thought I'd post up a picture of her for you all to see. Paris is a new girl since Snickers has come to live with us. They live very happily together in a totally pampered lifestyle with me and my 3 cats.

Rainbow Fields

The month of September this year saw the passing away of my beloved companion 'Coco'. He reached a ripe old age of 15 before being sadly struck down with kidney failure and passing away in my arms on the night of the 8th of September. He was the most beautiful boy - rescued from a community recycle bin with his brother Scooter (who is still with me), remembered for his deep rumbling purr, is fluffy dark brown fur, bizzare sleeping positions (see pic) and his human like ability to eat with this paws......he is sadly missed.

During his final hours, late into the night when I could not sleep as I sat with him knowing he didn't have long to live.....I decided to start a mini art quilt in honour of his life and to help him pass to his next life which hopefully is very beautiful. I wanted to surround him with positive feelings around the time of his death that would make his transition a peaceful one. I found it very calming to be creating a picture of the place I hoped he would go, and this quilt which is now framed and in my room depicts the 'rainbow fields' that I hoped he would play in. Based on Rose Hughes' 'fast piecing applique method and pattern', the picture depicts fields of grasses, shady bushes, a stream to catch fish in and distant hills of more adventure...all under a beautiful pink sky with stars.

I named it Rainbow Fields because I hoped it would be the place just before the Rainbow Bridge...where I know I will meet up with him again one day. Most pet owners are famliar with the Rainbow Bridge - (essentially a place in the afterlife where we are reunited with our lost ones).The black cat in the frame is him, and he is kept company by an orange Tabby whose name is Sam. He was another of my 'kids' who passed away a few years back now. I pray that they are happy and pain free...and we miss them both very much.

The quilt has inspired me to continue on my journey of mini art quilts and I'm currently working on a series of trees.....

http://www.rosehughes.com/index.htm

Explorations in Op Art

I have been experimenting with optical art this month (among many things) as inspired by a regular monthy ATC art history swap and my love of zentangles. I wanted to find a middle ground and decided to play with my designs and see what would happen if I took them just a little further.

Below are the original 6 cards I completed in pen and ink on a standard ATC size card....

I then scanned them into the computer and in photoshop I experimented with adding colour and textures to made them into a separate piece of artwork which I then used for a digital swap.

 Doing this not only helped me to apply one of my designs to various methods of interpretation, but I taught myself how to better use various tools in photoshop to colour in patterns. Most importantly...it was a whole lot of fun !

Targets

I participated in a swap earlier this year in which the theme was 'Targets'. Anything goes as long as it includes a target of some type. I had a lot of fun with this one and did a series of collaged pieces with random magazine and print images that took my eye, along with watercolour and acrylic paints and stamps. It was a very free form exercise which was not only good for generating ideas for future pieces, but relaxing in that I didn't really have a clear finished product in mind...sometimes just diving in with no idea can bring out surprising results.