Rellacafa

Dear Audy,

Sticking to my perspective that art is productive, I have had a very productive day! I’ve been getting over a cold and today, after a few days of fog, I woke up feeling inspired. I was so inspired that I had trouble going back to sleep (as it was ridiculously early when I woke up) and kept coming up with ideas about different projects that have been stirring in my mind for a while…I came up with a brilliant sewing project that I’m dying to try, it’s a small item so I might be able to do it even incapacitated. I’m keeping it a secret until I can see if it works…

Today I decided to focus my energy into finishing a project that I can’t believe I’ve had sitting there unfinished for so long…my painting of Ada. I seemed to hit some sort of block and just wasn’t inclined to work on this painting for a while…but today I was back at it full throttle. Ada is the latest in my collection of imaginaiaids, she’s the nymph that inspires a friend of mine.

I got swept up into the painting realm and played there in that reverie for five albums…inspiring my ears today were Stephanie Dosen, K.T. Tunstall, She & Him, Regina Spektor & Jenny Owens Young….I guess you could say it was a girly sing-a-long kinda day!
Here’s a little sneak peek at where she’s at…it might seem like I have been painting this for as long as time has existed…but it’s all in the details, Audy.



I’ve had a few little smudgy mishaps and learnt a few valuable lessons, but I reckon she’s pretty happy with her depiction!

In other news…we had an awesome hail storm a few days ago. Hail the size of marbles came pelting down like the clouds had decided to go to war. They seemed to be flying onto my balcony from all angles…my poor little succulent babies suffered a little damage, they don’t fair so well in hail!



I’m all worn out now! Hope Rella is fired up again tomorrow!

Love & Random Inspiration,

Caf

Dear Audy,

Ha, check me out…writing to you again so soon…I just missed you and your pretty multi-personed face!

The episode of sbigpod featuring myself as a giggling reviewer is now up at sbigpod.com….I’m suffering from that hearing your own voice on tape thing…I thought I had abolished my little lisp but apparently not!

Listen here:



I was up early yesterday (I was up with the birds)…sorry, I can’t refer to being up early without hearing the Holly Throsby song that goes…strangely enough…We’re up early, We’re up with the birds…I decided to use my early rising to be productive and after cleaning as much as my limited abilities allowed, I was feeling pretty chuffed with myself. One of the most important aspects of me staying sane is remembering that just because I can’t do all of the things I used to doesn’t mean that I can’t do anything…it’s about little bits at a time. As a result of my cleaning I was free to enjoy an afternoon with my watercolour pencils with no I should be doing something productive guilt….hmmm, Audy….next step is remembering art IS productive!

Da da duuuuuummmmmmmmmm……it was a fairy crown! Well, it will be a fairy crown with some more detailing, now it’s kind of a blobby crown. It also turned out that I needed to paint the forest around me and that is wading through the blobby stages also…It’s my first background!! And I didn’t even know it was coming…art will surprise you like that. Does art sneak up on you, Audy?



I did love the suggestion of a bird on my head though….that might be my next adventure!!

Love & Fairy Crowns,

Caf

Dear Audy,

I’m a one handed bandit on the keyboard today. The going is slow.

Last night I had a horrible attack of burning pain…right through my body. It’s calmer today but feel like my left arm got mushed in a giant ironing press (giant things=scarier). Constant pain, more if I move it. I still have weeks before I get the second lot of test results for rheumatoid arthritis…but all I know if is that’s what this is then it sure burns like RSD. I’d describe the pain as unbearable, except that that description never made sense to me…quite obviously if I’m not dead then I’m bearing it…but my face flinches a lot.

I can’t explain how frustrating it is to be attacked from the inside…and as frustrating as it is to be misunderstood, for your sake I really hope that you don’t get it, Audy.

I am going to continue to keep calm and distract myself in any way I can…yesterday I spent a couple of hours painting on my lap with my watercolour pencils, they are the easiest medium to control with minimal wrist movement. ‘m working on a self portrait, most likely destined to be a profile pic…I figure if I practise drawing me then I won’t insult anyone with an ugly painting! This is the first watercolour I’ve built without sketching…aim is to be semi-realistic but with the alterations that happen once Rella gets a hold of an image…she likes things to be pretty and frankly I don’t have a problem with that.











Wanna guess what’s going to go on my head? Go on, guess, it will amuse me…actuallly I think I sent you the picture in an earlier letter…

Love & Hoping for Respite,

Caf

P.S. Thank you dearly for your letters, they are very comforting…I will try to reply as soon as I can but please understand when it takes a while…and don’t forget to leave a return address!

Dear Audy,

My break from the city is winding down and whilst I’m looking forward to going home to my own bed, I’m definitely going to miss having space around me! I’m also a little concerned about where I’m going to get my trash fix without daily America’s Next Top Model….sigh….I really have been living in the lap of luxury! Grin.

I touched up my puppy painting and decided not to give Vito a hat in the end. You see, Audy, it’s my first painting and I’m kinda proud of how it came out so I don’t want to go messing it up! I’ll just paint him in a hat another day…What do you think?



For my next canvas (oh, check me out Audy, using artist talk) I’m painting a couple and a pretty dress. I copied the sketch from a photo in and Australian Ballet book. The photo is black and white but I am going to do the dress in colour…although I haven’t quite decided which or how much colour. I scored myself some cheap but effective, wide, flat paintbrushes that made painting the background a lot easier. It definitely pays to have the right tools! I currently have a lovely black canvas…with a slightly smoky floor for them to dance on. I might get a chance to finish it off this afternoon…but I might also take my book to the park so the dancers might not be able to get their groove on until I go home to my home.



It’s a beautiful day outside and I’m going to go make the most of it. Until next time, dear Audy, stay safe, stay happy….and watch out for wayward kites.

Love & Canvas,

Caf

Dear Audy,

The good news is that my test results were all negative….so on to the next batch of tests. This time I have to sit in this waiting room of my life for another 6 weeks….sigh

I had an exciting lesson this week! A friend came and showed me how to work the crazy acrylic paints that were outwitting me. Vito the Gobbledog was our handsome subject, however we decided to paint him in his puppy days when he was significantly cuter.

Here’s me working away…shortly after I was barked at to “Move onto the second layer!”….it’s hard to move on. It has taken me a long time to get to this point and teach is already far, far ahead….her puppy has a face and everything.



My painting speed was too slow for my lesson and thus I soldiered on alone, enjoying myself mixing up colours and playing around. Finally, the sun started to drop and I realised it was packing up time. Here’s where I finished up….



I am adamant that he needs a funny hat…a birthday hat maybe, or a top hat, or an Akubra, or a bonnet…there’s something about Vito that demands to be made fun of. He’s far too hilarious to just leave him like this…with no hat. What do you think, Audy? Bunny ears? Oooh….maybe bunny ears….Playboy Vito….

Love & Brush Strokes,

Caf

P.S. It would be irresponsible of me not to add…if you are planning on getting your glam on this spring racing carnival….DO IT IN FLATS!

Dear Audy,

It’s less than a week till the next doctor’s appointment…I’ve been ok, my hand is ok as long as I don’t stress it too much and the rest of the joints are leaving most of the pain to the RSD…in my world this is a good thing!

I’ve been working a little on Lalaini’s story…Audy, I’d like you to meet Lala’s best friend in the world, Nora Andrews.



Nora bears a strange resemblance to a cabbage patch kid and is showing some serious dimples in this pic…that’s more of a representation of my heavy hand than her actual dimples, which are reasonable dimples, not serious ones…

The other image I’m working on at the moment is when Nora and Lala first made friends…some bullies were picking on Nora, but they were no match for Lalaini and her silver tongue.



Hi Nora, I’m Lalaini. You can call me Lala, or Lalaini. People usually call me Lain when they are trying to get friendly so nowadays I stick it out there straight away. I am not Lain. I am not a lane. In fact, if I were to be any sort of road I would be a rocky mountain trail with dangerous corners and spectacular views…not a boring little lane way.”

I’m still scribbling around with the perspective. Drawing whole people is pretty new to me so it takes me a while to figure out which way the lines should be going when I’m not copying from something…I’m missing my cherished soft rubber as the regular kind regularly sucks, but it’s on it’s way down with my prince this evening and won’t be a problem for much longer!

In other news, I have just embarked on the nail-biting journey that is Lost. Yep, sometimes whole TV shows happen but remain completely absent from my life until they are several seasons in…or have run their lives entirely…then, somebody lends me the dvds and, suddenly, I am sucked into a state where I cannot convince myself that I should not watch the next episode and go to bed…Lost is possibly the most addictive form of crack TV I have come across yet…In other, other news, how awesome is Heroes??

Love, Lead & Lost,

Caf

Dear Audy,

I’m terribly sorry to have not written for so long, I’ve been settling into a new location, struggling against connection issues and a suffering a lingering pain in the belly. The wind must be blowing the right way today as I’ve managed to stay online all morning…my right hand is being a little brat lately so I’m having to get used to typing and mousing with the lefty.

The wait for an answer continues…tests beget tests beget tests….my battle for distraction drives on!

I’m enjoying a break from my little shoe box, dogsitting for a dear little Australian bulldog named Vito. He is possibly the most hilarious dog I’ve ever known and has the least understanding of the fact that he is a dog at all. This is where he was when I got up the other day…having a little outdoor party for one…



He is also a fan of sitting up in recliners and purrs like a cat when he gets pats…like I said, Audy, very strange little guy…

It’s been nice having some peace and quiet, I’ve had a chance to play with my new paintbrushes, with a new medium. Acrylic paints are still outwitting me. This is my effort at a background…I dripped some water down the front that I’ll have to paint over. The texture is sticky and strange, I’m a gonna need some work to get the hang of this…any advice, Audy?



I kept myself entertained doing a little writing for a friend during the week. She is directing a play for a little drama class in a dance school. Apparently, Friends is really hip with these kids…go rerun power! My friend wanted to give them a script they could get excited about, so I wrote them a little Friends spoof entitled Buddies ep 1: The One With The Talent Show. Chandler and Ross had to become girls (Charlie & Rose) and it had to include ‘Dance in Film’ somehow so the plot revolves around a little production to find out whether Phoebe (Pippi) or Monica (Monique) has more talent. Ahhhhh, it was fun, I had to channel that inner high school Caf that had to write this sort of thing for Drama classes…

I’ve also been doing a little sketching, I’ll introduce you to a little friend of Lalaini’s soon.

Love & Distractions,

Caf

Dear Audy,

It turns out there is some sort of rheumatoid thing roaming around my blood. Just roaming around…inflaming whatever it likes…snickering at my pain…I don’t know much more than that because I need to see a rheumatologist – at least there is an ologist for everything!

I’m naming the rheumatoid factor after the evil villain that was constantly thwarted by Superted, Texas Pete. I plan to make like that streak of red and do some thwarting of my own!

It is nice to know that there is a reason why weird things keep happening to my body and that I’m treatable…now I just need to wait to find out what the treatment is! I wish I could explain the concept of waiting to my hip…it is being a right turd. Yes, turd. It’s like it’s angry at being found out…well, hip…busted! I am so gonna fix you!!

I try to hold back on the head foggifying medication as much as I can…sometimes I win and sometimes the pain wins and then I get grumpy and groggy…but hey, I think I’m playing my cards okay, all things considered.

I drew this quite a while ago with smudgy oil pastels…



sometimes she don’t wanna face facts
sometimes she just wants to relax….

It’s a groggy day but I’m not giving in to the grumpies…I have a pretty vase of yellow and blue irises keeping me company thanks to my charming prince and an amusing book set in Wonderland called The Looking Glass Wars and I’m pretty sure there’s a nice hot bath in my near future…



I think there’s something magical about blooming…

Love & “Patience”

Caf

Dear Audy,

You know how pain is annoying? Pain is seriously annoying. I think we need to organise some sort of rally against pain…banish it….better yet…vanquish it! Nothing can return once it gets vanquished…I’m gonna need to change my name to Paf and wait for my long lost P-named sisters to show so we can make with the spell writing and get this thing into gear! (No, you have been watching too much Charmed…no you)

Oh Audy, I’m all doped up. My pain got a little bit nutty and kinda threw a hissy fit and now I’m waiting for blood tests and my ketamine infusion is on hold till we see what the blood has to say. It just better speak only good things or I’m gonna smack it in its stupid bloody face….

I thought my brain was fried and nothing new or exciting was going to come out of it…then yesterday I met Lalaini Liardet. In my head, I met her in my head (duh). In her patented one hand in her front pocket and the other in her back pocket pose I introduce to you….Lalaini Liardet



Lalaini is an eccentric 11-year-old. She cuts her own hair, each strand whenever she feels like it, which is whenever the strand vibes to her that it wants to be cut and she snips to the length it decides. Not surprisingly, she has a pretty wild do, but so far her mother has been incapable of stopping her daughter’s crazy hair antics (Lalaini does not think she’s crazy at all, she thinks her hair is exactly, precisely, perfect).

Lalaini (or Lala as she’d introduce herself) had a growth spurt over the last 6 months, however she hates to shop and doesn’t feel like her old clothes are done with. She is quite happy to spend the Summer with her tops not meeting her bottoms and her bottoms not meeting her shoes until the desire sets upon her to wear something different. She doesn’t know this yet, but she’s gonna have to figure out how to handle herself amongst ghosts….oooooooooooooooooo

Keep it real, Audy. The rappers reckon that’s a good way to keep it.

Love & Elephant Trunks,

Caf

P.S. I’ll send updates on Lalaini’s adventures as I hear from her…as I hear from her in my head…duh…

Dear Audy,

It’s becoming a pattern that whenever things seem to settle a little or (heavens forbid!) get better, that the sky suddenly opens up, lightning strikes and the good is transformed into bad…POW!! Earlier this year my left hip got a little up close & personal with some surgical tools. Their union was peaceful, they agreed on the healing terms and the verdict was that hip would just get better.

Hip is not behaving. I thought I was well enough to sit on a tram (trolley for those of you who don’t speak Oz ). Miss Independent took herself to her appointment. Miss Independent was an idiot. Hip went Ow. Hip went Ow bad and now it is the 5^th day and it is not getting better so it’s back to the doctor for us...again…we won’t take the tram this time.

Things might be crappy, but I can still move my hands and thus I can still take little holidays to drawing land. I took a trip there yesterday…

Since I started drawing I have been determined to do it my way. The only truly original inspiration has to come from one’s own life, things seen the way that only the artist can see. At the moment, I’m working on turning parts of my life, my observations and my thoughts into pictures.

I know this and that….<



This one was inspired by Holly Throsby…she was singing Warm Jets and it was so pretty and the artist in me screamed to paint the moment. The urge grew until yesterday I sketched this…It’s a portrait but even though that’s what I was drawing it wasn’t intended that way…I just want to keep a snapshot of that part in the performance that really moved me…it wants to be a painting…it doesn’t want the harsh lines of a sketch…it wants to be soft and lightly colourful and a little hazy. I know what it wants but it might have to settle for being a sketch until I can sit back up at my easel….

How awesome would it be if you could just know what was wrong with any part of your body? Like you can see a cut on your arm…come on evolution…you’re letting me down…

Love & Lullabies,

Caf