Happy whatever it happens to be when you are reading this, at the moment it is post Thanksgiving, smack dab in the center of the pre-Christmas craze, my absolute favorite song in the history of music is currently playing, Moonlight Sonota, and I am sipping on some Gypsy Cold Care tea.
How are you de-stressing from this mad time of year?
I stepped away from holiday things for a moment and got together with @ChavezWho and shot a few things. One of which was this^ very not normal shoot for me. I tried my best to dress up like a chola and we went to the Spanish Village. He was fun to quite work with, we shot a few other things, here is a summery:
Other then pictures than that kind of stuff I had my family out from Wisconsin for the week of Thanksgiving. It was fantastic to see them all, it's been over a year since I was able to visit last and my kid brother and sister grow so much every year they are almost like new people each time I see them.
I think my mom definitely got some therapeutic relief from spending time at the ocean, every one did I'm sure, the sea can be quite healing. My brother has grown so much, he's becoming much more mature and that pleases me greatly. My little sister is in quite an awkward phase, she is 13 and between going through her transition from being a normal kid to learning to deal with her diabetes and the difficulties of being a 13 year old girl, she has a lot on her mental plate! It breaks my heart a little to see her choosing to use her diet and health as her source of rebellion. I understand it a little bit, it's the constant thing that my mom has to nag her about, and I'm sure it's extremely frustrating being that young and having to start to pay attention to things like nutrition and all of the bullshit that comes with it, not to mention her battling with an already distinct sweet tooth and the typical eating habits of the typical Wisconsinite - not exactly the healthy eating capital of the world.
It really was an awesome chance to see every one and enjoy family time.
I made a point to have some one on one time with each person, I took my little sister on a surprise beach horseback ride, the super cheesy kind where you are on old lame things with big western saddles and packs for you cell phone and other devices, but it was something she had been talking about forever:
It was a neat gift to give, for the sake of over analyzing and never just enjoying a moment, I feel like I didn't spend enough time talking with her and too much time talking to the guide and or not talking at all.. Curse my negative hind sight.
My brother's one on one time was fucking awesome. I drove him up to the marine base where they have ENORMOUS airsoft/paintball fields full of kill houses, downed helicopters, broken military vehicles, even a tank. We absolutely owned the field! I really enjoyed doing something that he could go back home and tell his friends how his sisterwas one of the best players on his team. I'm sure I'm over thinking it, but that could be story that causes some young kid to reshape his thought on gender rolls before becoming a sexist pig.
I have no fancy photos or super thrilling story about my mom and my time together, but her and I took a long walk on the beach and talked for a while. That was our special moment. Aside from the entire trip that is. Her getting to spend some time in my home and in my life was really special for her I think.
In other news, we got a Christmas tree! Having that pine tree in my house for the month of December truly makes my heart warm. I'll just sit under it and touch it's needles for ages. It's one of my absolute favorite part of the holiday season.
I wanted to make some kind of ornament for it, something that was unique and hand made. I tried last year making a cast of one of my bone specimens.. DISASTER I tell you. So I had the idea to make ornaments out of pine cones! I collected them, baked them to clean and dry them out, and dipped them in bright glossy red paint!
I love how they turned out! And aside from a little paint I had to use, it was basically free and from nature, here's how they turned out:
I'll post a picture to show how it all looks on the tree when they are dry and ready ^_^
I'm trying to keep that similar principle in my gift giving this year, as much as I can, I'm giving gifts that I have collected or made. My phaux mother in law is getting a pendent with a pressed flower from the camp site we went to, where their family has been going every single year since her grandfather rode in to the site on a model T holding lanterns sitting on the hood with his brother so their dad could drive. I'm really excited to give that, I think she will be ecstatic. I'm collecting sea glass for my little sister, making another pendent full of sand from one of the beaches my mom fell in love with, this beach:
You get the idea.
In ETSY news, I added 5 of each of these prints to my store, Venomblackbird.etsy.com:
Both of the above shot by @chavezwho
This image from my shoot with MakeShift clothing (which reminds me how heartbroken I am that I didn't ask to keep that dress ToT)
And lastly:
By Gregorio.
If you decide you want to purchase one before the 18th, enter the coupon code : PYTHON at check out for $5 off your print. :)
I hope every one has a wonderful stress free holiday season. Take a few extra deep breaths for me ;)
xxVenom
PS: Don't forget, all of this is temporary, enjoy it while you are here ^_^
IG: VenomBlackBird
