December Art Events

I'm participating in two special events in December. The first is Lucia’s Garden Holiday Open House, this Sunday, December 2, from 1-5 p.m. Lucia will have her famous Christmas and Winter Potpourris, mulling spices, scented candles and oils, ornaments from around the world, and other treasures. Debbie Tubbs will be there with her luxurious handcrafted goat’s milk soaps and lotions. I will be there with angels, snowmen, holly leaf elves and other winter whimsies. If you are in the area I hope you'll stop by and enjoy refreshments and a cup of Holiday Tea.

 

Lucia’s Garden

2360 W. Alabama

Houston, TX  77098

713-523-6494

"Holly Harmony"  Janet Bodin ©2012

The next event will be an Art Benefit to raise money for the reforestation of Memorial Park in Houston. The 2011 drought killed half of Memorial Park’s beautiful tree canopy. “Art For the Trees If You Please” will take place on Tuesday, December 11th from 6:30-9:30 p.m. at

Mixed Emotions Fine Art Gallery

95 Tuam Street

Houston, TX  77006

713-861-9666  

I am one of the participating artists and will have work for sale at the benefit. You can find different ticket purchasing options and more information about the event here:

www.theartfullumbrella.com/art_benefit



Cemetery Tour

I took a little trip this week to South Central Texas to visit some of my ancestors’ graves (genealogy being my second passion, after doll making!). My first stop was Amphion Cemetery, 4 miles outside of Poteet.

Amphion, thought to have been named after a figure from Greek mythology, was located within the 17,000 acre ranch of Jose Antonio Navarro, a prominent local rancher and signer of the Texas Declaration of Independence. Amphion was at one time a thriving community with several general stores, a hotel, a post office, blacksmith shop, cotton gin, churches and school. When railroad lines were built that bypassed Amphion, business activity declined and the community eventually dissolved. Virtually all that remains of the former town is this cemetery.

My great grandmother, and her parents (and other family members) are buried here.

 

My next stop was Oak Island Cemetery.

The Oak Island Methodist Church was established here by circuit rider John Wesley DeVilbiss, during the time of the Republic of Texas.

 

My great great grandparents, great great great grandparents and 4X great grandmother are buried here with other family members. My 4X great grandmother has a plaque on her headstone that reads “Citizen of the Republic of Texas”. How cool is that?



A Night at the Opera

This past weekend Mr. B and I went to the opera: La Bohème.

This was fun and different for us, as we had not been to the opera in more years than we can count. Not being opera aficionados, we opted for the less expensive tickets in the balcony. But the muses were smiling on us: the day before the performance we received a complimentary upgrade and found ourselves sitting in orchestra seats that cost five time what we paid for our tickets! The music was gorgeous and familiar to us mainly from one of our all-time favorite movies: Moonstruck.

This is the opera that Loretta and Ronny go to see and the music from the opera is played in the background of key scenes in the movie. There are parallel themes in the opera and the movie which I never realized before and now I want to see the movie again (for the 50th or 60th time!).