Deb Trotter, Cowboy's Sweetheart

Tags: bird, buck, Cowboy's Sweetheart, Deb Trotter, deer, Digital Art, Happy New Year, nature, Vintage Cowgirl, Wild West
Posted in Art and Life, Cards & Invitations | 4 Comments »

It's beginning to look a lot like CLUMSY.

Just in time for Christmas – a nice, swollen, bruised and bloody nose! And no. This is NOT a digitally altered photograph!

Do you have even one inkling of the meaning of the word, "Klutz?"

"Doofus" also comes to mind.

Also:  Idiot.  Maladroit.  Lummox.  Crazy.  Stupid.  Uncoordinated.  Silly.  Bumbling.  Blundering.  Gawky.  Lumbering.  Inept.

Dang nabit, pardner. I should go get my Thesaurus.

(And how about "Dumb-Ass?" which I doubt is listed by Webster's.)

I am known in my family for consistently doing stupid things that result in ridiculous injuries. In grade school, the week before every school play, I always fell and skinned my knee. BAD. Not just a little skinned. We are talking down to the bone. My fifth grade year, we presented a play on countries of the world, and I had a five-inch scab in the shape of South America to show off. I'm sure I was the talk of the school, especially among the teachers, who likely warned each other… "Look out for that Branch kid. She is an absolute nightmare and she will fall on the playground and skin her knees up right before she has to perform in your play!"

I didn't learn to ride a bicycle until I was thirteen – my nine year old brother was the one who taught me how! My parents were afraid to let me ride one for fear I would kill myself in the process.

When I was a majorette in high school, each and every year, halfway through the Christmas Parade I would turn my ankle. By the end of the parade my right ankle was so swollen I couldn't get my boot off.

And to this day …

I stumble over "cracks" in the sidewalk that aren't there. Slip on invisible banana peels.

Just as sure as shootin', if I put on a white t-shirt, the first thing I do is drip or spill coffee right down the front of it.

My friends and family usually know if I've just eaten a chili-dog (which isn't very often – but, hey – who doesn't enjoy a nasty concoction every now and then?) because most of the chili winds up on my shirt.

Don't even get me started on ice cream cones.

I can be walking around my house, cleaning, just happen to look down at my hand, and I have blood dripping from a knuckle. You'd think I'd feel it when I bang my hands up. But no. I guess my body is so used to the cuts and bruises that it has become immune to the minor irritation.

One year at Christmas – just as I was finished decorating our eight foot tree with that final Christopher Radko ornament ( do you know how much those things COST? ) – the whole tree keeled over. Whit was only a toddler at the time. The shards of broken glass from all the ornaments was a nightmare – not to mention the cost and sentiment of all those ornaments, which had been special Christmas gifts from my husband. (Needless to say, I don't receive any Radko ornaments anymore.)

So, what happened today?

I return from the grocery store. Pull the Starship Enterprise into the garage. Get out, open the hatch, and grab the grocery bags. Get ready to pull the hatch back down. And BAM!

Down it comes, right on the bridge of my schnoz-ola!

"Seeing stars" does not even begin to describe the experience.

As soon as I drag myself into the kitchen I can feel the blood dripping down the front of my nose.

I use up about ten wet paper towels for about ten minutes. Switch to a cold bag of corn from the freezer to hold as a compress against my nose. And I know this is going to be bad.

John comes home at lunch, takes one look and says, "I'm surprised it's not broken. You really did a number on yourself."

Who knows what this post truly says, because it's too painful to put on my glasses. I can only hope my memory for the keyboard is good!

I usually end with my favorite "Happy Trails," but not today.

I'm off to grab more Tylenol. But I think I'll ask my son to open the bottle for me. Otherwise, I might break a fingernail on the bottlecap.

Tags: broken nose, Christmas, Christopher Radko, clumsy, Cowboy's Sweetheart, Deb Trotter, humorous, Klutz
Posted in Art and Life | 15 Comments »

Playing With Photoshop. FUN! … Feel free to upload and use this background in any way you choose in your own artwork … BUT …

READ ON !

I just joined and put up a gallery at Fine Art America, encouraged by a great guy – a fellow artist with my same last name – Patrick Trotter, with whom I connected through Zazzle. Patrick's "drip paintings" are SO COOL – check them out here!

Fine Art America is another place for my work to be seen, marketed, and purchased, and it's a great site with lots and lots of cool artists.

While on the Fine Art America message boards today I came across a VERY interesting post regarding problems with artists' artwork being stolen via Photobucket. This is piracy of which you should ALL be aware. I have never used Photobucket, only Flickr, and now I'm so glad I never uploaded anything there. Looks like many artists have had problems – part of which is Photobucket's User Agreement, a bit difficult to "get" in some ways, and not something everyone thoroughly reads.

I'm posting a link to a 9 minute video on YouTube. It's worth every second to watch if you're an artist. If you have images on Photobucket, you need to be aware of this! Go RIGHT NOW and watch: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M1m3Z9iOyts

On the homefront, it's presently MINUS NINE DEGREES! So no going out unless it's essential. Talk about COLD! They cancelled last night's lighted Christmas Parade because it was too dangerous to attend due to the weather conditions. Wow, would this Cowgirl LOVE a trip to the Southwest about now!

Hope it's warmer in your neck of the woods, pardner.

Happy Trails!

Tags: artists, Cody Wyoming, Cowboy's Sweetheart, Deb Trotter, flickr, photobucket, plagarism
Posted in Art and Life | 4 Comments »

"Horse Friends"

Tags: "old west", Collage, Cowboy's Sweetheart, Deb Trotter, Digital Art, horse, Vintage Cowgirl, Wild West, Zazzle
Posted in Art and Life, horses | 1 Comment »

Yee Ha and Woof Woof!

I'm havin' a "Happy Howliday!"

Just got my complimentary Special Holiday Issue of City Dog magazine, where they featured my "Don't Need No Cowboy" necklace in the Cool Products For The Holidays section. (And how 'bout that cutie on the cover with the turquoise studded collar? Is he Cow-Dog cool, or what? I wouldn't mind wearing it myself, pardner, and that's the truth.)

City Dog, billed "Life With Dog In The West," caters to dogs and their owners in the Seattle, Portland, and San Francisco areas. I was quite taken with my copy, especially the "Deluxe Digs" and "Weekend Getaway"  sections that feature beautiful and fun dog-friendly places to go – and there are some handmade "artist" dog tags that would make beautiful necklaces (seriously)!

I've picked up some nice business from dog lovers since the issue came out, and that's great – but mostly I'm just tickled that this piece was featured … having four dogs in our household I don't have to tell you what a canine lover I am. Dogs Rock equally with Cowgirls!

Happy Trails!

Tags: "City Dog", "vintage cowgirl jewelry", canine, Collage, Cowboy's Sweetheart, Deb Trotter, Dog-Lovers Christmas gifts, Dogs
Posted in Art and Life | 7 Comments »