Headed to Pena Blanca's 1st Annual Sunflower Festival

Well it's been over a month since my last road trip so I'm headed to Santa Fe, NM for a week to visit Family and to help a little bit with Pena Blanca's 1st Annual Sunflower Festival.  I was originally going to show my art at this Festival, but timing isn't going to work out for that.  Next Year!   This is actually a really big deal for "little" Pena Blanca, which is located between Santa Fe and Albuquerque in a small Valley where my mom lives - she's on the committee to help pull this off!

Patrice Harrison-Inglis who started this whole crazy, wonderful idea of planting Sunflowers in all the empty fields in this small town has an unbelievable entrepreneurial spirit.  She used to raise beautiful goats and processed the milk for wonderful cheese and yogurt. She did that for many years and did a wonderful job.

I love Patrices' spirit of never giving up and just "Going for It".  A little over a year ago she started with this crazy idea and in no time she had grants given to her to buy seed, people planting their fields with the seeds, a 1974 John Deere 3300 Grain Harvester Combine  purchased to process the sunflowers and lots of dirt to plant the seeds. These things take a few years to catch on, so hopefully next year all we be wiser and more committed to Rock It!  I'm looking forward to helping at the festival and seeing how it's all doing and hopefully I can get some great shots of the Sunflowers if they haven't faded by the time I get there!

Patrtice.... I don't know how you've pulled this off with only giving yourself 30 days before you decided you wanted to have an Festival.  Just shows you if you're determined.... anything can happen!  WAY TO GO!!!

Here's a little video they did regarding the project.

photo by Jim Baca

What a beautiful site!  I hope their faces are still shining up towards the sun by the time I get there!

I'll be checking back on all of you soon!

Barbed Wire Heart & Flowers

The end of a HOT HOT week hasn't produced what I'd like to get done, but I did brave the heat to play with the barbed wire I gathered a few weeks ago.  Truly just messing around with it - and since I love hearts I created a caged heart surrounded by many hand shaped hearts, just for fun.

Then I had to clean out the garage of all those dishes I gathered for the glass flowers I was making.  I don't think they will be something to add to what I sell since they are too fragile, a pain to transport and I've moved on from them..... so I just made a few more just for the heck of it.  The yard is filling up with beautiful sparkly flowers that will never die ~ even in this heat.

 This is what you do when you're brain is fried in the heat..... just stack them all up and you've got some crazy flower totem.

I'm outta this heat late next week for another adventure..... stay tuned.  :)

+++Birds+++

I've been jumping from one project to another these days.... working on shovels again - the inventory of those is almost down to Zero ~ still making crosses as my supply of scrap wood is found, barbed wire hearts, but also started making a few little bird sculptures for the garden, or up in a window, or on the stucco wall.  They're a work in progress as I find scrap pieces, bend rod and rummage thru the Junk pile.

Some have scrolls I made representing a branch.

Center one is on a car leaf spring.

 I found a lovely little forged candle holder at the thrift store

so I just embellished it with a few of my creations and sent it off to my Son.

 Candle Holder or flower.... you choose

Used lots of little pieces of Junk to create a little nest and pull some scrolls from a junk pile - needs to rust more and will add some little babies in the nest later.

 Another carrying a little barbed wire flower

115 in the Shade!

I've managed to make a few more crosses from the junk pile,

but I tell you the heat is gonna fry my brain...

115* today 

same tomorrow and sadly no cool breeze on the horizon anytime soon.

Put a fork in me ... I'm officially cooked

“To practice any art, no matter how well or badly, is a way to make your soul grow.  So Do It. “ 

– Kurt Vonnegut

Eclectic Monkey Emporium

My friend Glenn (who more than supports my JUNK habit by selling me lots of fun and crazy items) runs the "Eclectic Monkey Emporium" in downtown Mesa, AZ.  I stopped by the other day to see what was new and had my name on it.... and man was I blown away!  He's is in the process of painting his store and it is over the top awesome.  It's basically made to look like it's melting in the Arizona Sun.  I think he's accomplished that vision for sure! It's just amazing what you can do with a flat wall and basically 4 colors of paint.  It's still a work in progress so as soon as it is all complete I'll update and even show you some of the cool collectibles he's got in the shop..... I keep pressing him to let me buy some that are behind the counter, but so far it's a no go.  I will however endeavor to wear him down!!!!

Outer Peace begins with Inner Peace

I believe that Outer Peace
begins with Inner Peace

and what gives me Inner Peace is working on Metal, or really anything that I can be creative with. 

I'm usually not one that jumps on different bandwagons for the latest cause nor do I have a tendency to follow the actions or beliefs of others.  I've always followed what pulls at my heart strings.  However, with a cause such as PEACE and the opportunity to join with friends I've made in this wonderful blogging community that have participated in this wonderful celebration before,  I decided to jump on this bandwagon of kindred spirits that are creating Flags of Peace, which will be flown on

International Peace Day, September 21.  

My inspiration was a recent road trip we took through the backroads of our beautiful Arizona desert and I fashioned these after the beautiful paper fiesta flags that hang on many occasion where I grew up.  I've always loved the intricate nature of these paper flags and the many colors they come in.  So, I have created each flag with those images in mind.  Each flag measures about 9x13 and is hand cut from a piece of steel using my hand held plasma cutter.  I envisioned all the beautiful Cactus plants, Roadrunners, Javelina, Saguaro's, and various other animals that live in our beautiful Arizona desert and with the center being the symbol of PEACE.

If you wish to contribute to this wonderful group

Please feel free to join the
Peace Flag Project
where you can find all the info.

The Treasure was the Journey

What a beautiful weekend it was - storms clouds, rain, sun and the beautiful Sonoran Desert!  For those of you who have never experienced the Southwest and the High Desert I'll show you why so many love this beautiful state of Arizona.... 

We headed out to our property in the High Desert to gather GOLD..... 

well ok I may have just exaggerated just a bit... it was to get some old barbed wire that has been on our property for more years than I could possible guess  - rolled about 300 feet - mission accomplished. Guess I'll have plenty more when I need it... maybe 2000+ more feet to go!

We love this property and it's beauty, open space, story book clouds and wonderful history. We had plans when we bought this land to build our dream home with the rich history that surrounded us especially our "little Hill".  In the early 1870's a one armed U.S. Army general met with Cochise, a famous Apache chief, in an area on the eastern side of the Dragoon Mountains known as "Council Rocks'.  In this half mile wide bowl, surrounded by tall balancing boulders, the general and Cochise made a treaty regarding a reservation for the Apaches.  As the General and his small Army detachment left the meeting and headed back to their fort, Cochise had a large white flag erected on top of "Treaty Hill".  It could be seen for up to a hundred miles in most directions and notified his small bands of warriors about his success with the treaty.... and to not attack the solder on their way home.

This is our view of "Treaty Hill" from our beautiful 40 acres of property we were going to build on.... sadly we are not going to see that dream come true.  The housing market has not made it a wise choice anymore.

 but ever time I go back there it pull's at my heart strings.   Who knows if we can't sell it, we just may make up our minds!

So after our little "treasure hunt" we decided to just CRUZ..... and so we did.  The desert seemed to be more beautiful than ever especially after the Monsoon rains cleansed and nourished it. So follow me and I'll take you on a little CRUZ thru this beautiful Desert.......

Majestic Saguaro - they stand like guards in the desert

 Prickly Pear Cactus 

Makes wonderful Jelly (just make sure you get all the thorns out first!)

 We encountered Desert Creatures - Oh My!

Desert Spiny Lizard

 Almost ran over this guy - Gopher Snake

 Bird of Paradise (even though it's a flower)

 Roadrunner Nesting

 Rock Formations

Ocotillo - in full bloom

Mesquite Tree Grove

Met an old Indian Squaw - been shot thru the chest....

my friends all I can say is 

The Wild Wild West... It Ain't for Sissies!