Happy Valentine's Day...

This post is a tribute in a way to my friend Holly, who often blogs with a few photos and a few words. I, of course, can't seem to do small things (I'm trying) but also am a little hopped up on cold meds, so I offer this visual storytelling of this Valentine's Day. And a link to an old post, which was not posted on Valentine's Day, but I think fits here.

My tools of the trade. I have committed to doing a collage a day for every day this month. At the end of this month I'll maybe hear from the secret Midwestern school that I have an interview. The collage project means that at the end of the month, I'll have 28 collages, whether or not I have an interview. (I started on the 2nd, I know this is a leap year.)

Cuppa tea in my favorite Polish pottery tea pot. My slippers either need major reconstructive surgery or need to be replaced. But aren't they pretty?

The boy and I both have a nasty cold. Happy Valentine's Day!!

Every year my dad sends me flowers with the same card, "thanks for making every day Valentine's Day." (It's an inside joke.) And every year as I get older, I wonder, will I get flowers this year? So when I bought my vaporizer last night at Walgreens, I bought myself three buds (also, they smell great, which I think is important when you have a cold.) The card is an old one...I keep EVERYTHING and especially those cards. 

Today's collage, from More Magazine, November 2011. Minimalistic, but hey, I have a cold, PMS, and there are no rules for a good collage. Do I like it? Yes. There you go.

Vindication for my love of Kathryn Stockett's book "The Help."  How did "Kitty" come about writing this book? THROUGH her friendship with Octavia Spencer. Her friendship with Octavia inspired the book. And then, hello, Octavia won a Best Supporting Actress Golden Globe for the movie. This article in November 2011's copy of More magazine was about women's friendships. I'm not trying to start a fight in the comment box.

a piece of the collage on my bedroom wall.

The monster from "Pat the Beastie" a book that parodies "Pat the Bunny." I gave it to my grandmother and well, I got a lot of those gifts back when she died. The safety pin earrings are my own addition.

Valentine card from the boy, with my Valentine card to him still in the envelope.(Yes, lucky me, I got mine early b/c he wanted to make sure the address was correct.)

A long time ago, someone told me about someone buying a pair of men's jeans at Goodwill and praying for God to fill them. I bought this shirt at Goodwill YEARS ago and prayed for God to fill it.(It looked a lot better then, it was beautiful and pressed.)

My breakfast. I am cooking more and enjoying both the process and the results. Also, there's a whole raisins thing with Song of Solomon if you want to go there.

Our family has always loved frogs b/c my mom's friend V. always says, "someone you know needs a frog." So I have a lot of plastic frogs. This is the top shelf of my kitchen shelf. It is a formerly gray utility shelf that I painted white.

Some cute toys I've bought at Valentines Day over the years. Yes, a frog. Push his "heart" and he says "I love you."

My watch, ring, earrings, from when I took them off last night.The pine bookcase is one that I've had since I was at least 7 years old.

"Nobody sees a flower really; it is so small. We haven't time, and to see takes time - like to have a friend takes time." Georgia O'Keefe. This is from when there were stamps of some of her flower paintings, years ago. If you bought a sheet of stamps, you got this great image. It's pasted onto a cover of an old ledger book.

My grandma and me. The cigar box is probably a Honduran box, from when we lived there. The wood smells so wonderful, and the boxes are so great for holding stuff.

A paperclip that I twisted into a "W" ages ago. The books are mine, too, and the "W" is on a Jacob's Ladder, an Amish toy.

Close-up of a tray that is also made of Polish pottery.

some fake pearlish flowers. I like the colors.