Schedule update, and getting out of the house

It did seem like I was about to dive back into the studio post-Mardi Gras, but plans and schedules change. This is a good change actually--when considering the current economic landscape, anything resembling a real job or a regular income cannot be allowed to slip away!

From the Goblin Art website:

• I am not accepting new special orders, wholesale orders or commissions at this time.Over the next few months I will be the primary caregiver for our 2 yr old while my husband is working full-time outside the studio. This will allow me as few as 5 hours per week for maskmaking. So I am not accepting new orders over this time, and I have cut back my 2010 show and event schedule. I will however, be using my limited studio time to prepare for my two remaining Pacific NW events , and I hope to still provide my main two US retailers with a limited number of masks.I do not know how long this schedule will remain in effect, but I thank you for your patience until I am once again able to accept your orders.

 I will have an update here as well as on my orders page at that time. And in the meantime, I'm looking forward to spending lots of time with the Sproggling over the warmer months. There's a vegetable garden to get started, rickshaw-trike rides to go on, parks to picnic in, and lots of friends to spend time with.

And after returning from Mardi Gras, I am especially inspired to get out of the house and do interesting things! Portland is very different to New Orleans, but a few of the things I love about the French Quarter can actually be found scattered about this city.

Portland archituecture does not have a myriad of secret courtyards and hidden gardens. But I think we can satisfy some of our thirst for those at the Classical Chinese Garden downtown.

The French Quarter's Royal St has a wonderful and ecclectic selection of street musicians and performers. So we'll just have to get ourselves over to Portland's First Thursday and Last Thursday events when the weather gets a little warmer.

Our street cars and light rail trains are not as quaint as New Orlean's charming trolley cars, but they are still a fun way to ride about town.

Most of New Orleans' walking-parades occur during Carnival time, but Portland has a plenty of walking parades at various street festivals throughout the year, and a plethora of quirky costumed bike rides. I hope that this year we will finally build a trike float and join in!

And one of the Sproggling's favorite things from our trip was just sitting by the Mississippi river, seeing the ships go by. Portland has two rivers waiting for us to come down to for a lazy afternoon of boat-watching and skipping stones. It will be a lovely summer!