"I like talking to a brick wall, I find it is the only thing that never contradicts me."
It's the birthday of Irish writer
Oscar Wilde, (
books by this author) born Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde, in Dublin (1854). His mom wrote Irish Nationalist poetry under an Italian pseudonym meaning "Hope," and his dad was a prestigious ear and eye surgeon who served Dublin's poor population. Oscar Wilde studied classics at Trinity College Dublin and got a scholarship to Oxford, where he became involved in the Aesthetic Movement. He grew his hair long and dressed unconventionally. He displayed peacock feathers and sunflowers in his dorm room. He professed a belief in art for art's sake. And he began to say a lot of witty things.
"Never trust a woman who tells you her real age;
a woman who tells you that would tell you anything."
He taught in London and then left for a lecture tour of North America. He'd been invited by the producer of Gilbert and Sullivan's new comic opera, Patience, a work that made fun of the Aesthetic Movement. The show had done well in New York City and was due to go on tour, but the producer wasn't sure if people around America would be familiar with the thing about which the opera was poking fun. The producer hoped Wilde's lectures would familiarize the nation with the Aesthetic Movement so that they'd all get the jokes in Patience, Gilbert and Sullivan's opera.
Twenty-seven-year-old Oscar Wilde arrived in New York in January 1882. He went to Pennsylvania, where he drank elderberry wine with Walt Whitman. He lectured to coal miners in Leadville, Colorado, where he saw a sign on a saloon that said, "Please do not shoot the pianist. He is doing his best," and called it "the only rational method of art criticism I have ever come across." He made stops in Boston, Topeka, Des Moines, Houston, St. Paul, San Francisco, and
dozens of other cities.
"Consistency is the last refuge of the unimaginative."
He returned to Europe, settled in London, and concentrated on his literary endeavors. He edited a magazine, The Woman's World. He had two children with his wife, Constance Lloyd Wilde. In 1891, he met 22-year-old Lord Alfred Douglas Ross, a poet from Oxford 16 years his junior.
In those few years after meeting Lord Alfred Douglas Ross, Oscar Wilde had the most productive period of his literary life. His only novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray, was published the year they met, 1891. He wrote his best and most popular plays: A Woman of No Importance (1893), An Ideal Husband (1895), and his masterpiece The Importance of Being Earnest (1895), the first draft of which only took him 21 days to compose. Most of his writings from that time span revolve around men leading double lives. (Courtesy of The Writer's Almanac)
"Beauty is a form of genius--is higher, indeed, than genius, as it needs no explanation.
It is of the great facts in the world like sunlight, or springtime, or the reflection in dark water of that silver shell we call the moon."
Believe it or not, it's frosty cold here in Las Vegas with brisk northerly winds blowing around icy grey clouds. Finally, Old Man Winter is here! I created more spiral beads in honor of winter, the grey and white mimic cold winter skies and the caramel and white remind me of autumn leaves skidding across early frost-laden earth, or creme brulee, whichever you prefer! Have a perfect Sunday!
This poem reminds me so much of my Grandpa who rose early every morning to prepare a hearty breakfast for the family beginning with my favorite grapefruit, which he always sectioned with care.
Here are seven facts that you probably don't know about me:
Yes, look into my spirals...My husband thought they were cookies and so did the dogs! These are fresh out of the oven, unsanded and unbuffed. I like the color effects in the large spirals, the smaller ones have less blue and white even though they all came from the same colorway recipe. That's what I love about polymer clay, there are always colorful surprises! These will be in my Etsy shop tomorrow. Enjoy your Sunday! 
A Prayer for Saintly Grace
The fabulously talented Cindy Wimmer's copper bracelet graces the newest Easy Wire Magazine cover! Cindy is celebrating her cover girl status by having a very generous giveaway. Visit her blog and leave a comment for a chance to win these awesome prizes, everything you need to create her Inspire bracelet! P.S. I'm in the magazine too!
"I like talking to a brick wall, I find it is the only thing that never contradicts me."
Today I tried something new, ink transfers on polymer clay, and I'm hooked! I love the rich, deep colors achieved from the laser ink so I decided to make some autumn themed necklaces, especially after I oxidized every piece of copper in sight! I took the above picture outside in the dappled fall sunlight, so the colors are pretty saturated.
