A Bouquet of Sharpened Pencils...?

1998. Ten years ago: it was a simpler time, the end of an era.
(Work with me; I'm trying to set a mood.)

The story is a timeless one, of competitors caught up in the rat race of the business world, who fall in love in their own spare time. (See? People had spare time, ten years ago, I promise!)
The tale has been passed along by many skillful storytellers. This particular one happened to be from a very talented movie screenplay writer and director, Nora Ephron.

In the story "You've Got Mail," the protagonists are both in the book business, something very close to my heart. They are also really into their personal computers. (Need I say more?)


Yet the way they become involved in one another's lives is by sharing things that have so little to do with the A/S/L-type chat room talk. They share thoughts, personal moments, humor. The philosophy of Starbucks customers, the mysteries of bagel flour, the love of the small-town-within-a-city where they both live, the anticipation of opening email from a dear friend.

One of my favorite email exchanges is near the beginning of the story, when Joe (NY152) is saying how he loves New York in the fall (autumn). It makes him feel like buying school supplies. Joe tells Kathleen (Shopgirl) that he would send her a bouquet of newly sharpened pencils, if he knew her name and address.

A man after my own heart! As an artist and a writer, I have a special love for pencils, myself. But he really had me at "school supplies."

Who doesn't love getting new paper, new notebooks or binders, folders, pens, pencils, crayons, erasers? Years of memories crowd into my mind.
As an adult, and especially as a parent of three children, I saw Back-to-School season in a different light, too. Yet when I went back to college and got my degree in elementary education with my minor in art, I went to a whole new level. I could have spent hours in the College Heights Bookstore, looking at acrylics and oils, Arches watercolor paper, bamboo pens, sable brushes, drawing pencils, painting canvas and stretcher bars, mat board... ah. Even now, a dream-like feeling of contentment steals into my psyche as I remember browsing the art department. There were so many things to see and dream of, I felt happy just looking, even if I couldn't afford everything I liked.

Wouldn't you love to send that bliss to someone you know?



I drew pencils and added colors, then tied them up with a red ribbon to create a bouquet. The scent of the freshly-sharpened wood is exquisite.

I created more than one text option by using one cursive font for a more grown-up look on some items, but a hand-drawn manuscript font on others, for a fun graffiti effect.




If it hasn't yet, wherever you are, school will be starting soon. You can get or give these happy colored pencils with either Our Favorite Teacher or one of the Happy School Day designs.




Pencils are a tool of creativity. Remind teachers, students, and parents that school is a time of new beginnings and infinite possibilities.


Some parents may even be so happy at the prospect of school that they would consider putting this sign in their yard to celebrate the season.

In the meantime, I'll be using my pocket-sized journal --



-- to draw and to make notes of new ideas for TeachersPets.com ...

Parking Wars and other games -- you're addicted to WHAT???

P.L. is not yet the owner of a car. She doesn't even have her driver's license. But she routinely parks vehicles of varying shapes, sizes, and colors in streets -- often illegally -- and then attempts to move them before they are ticketed or impounded. Even stranger, she takes delight in writing tickets on her own friends' cars!

What madness is this? It's Parking Wars, an online game she plays through the social networking site Facebook. The game was inspired by the A&E television series by the same name. P.L. has several friends and a few unknown neighbors who compete to get badges and higher scores by outwitting each other. (They also help each other, as P.L.'s best friend Emily could tell you!)

Of course, P.L. has now adopted Pet Pupz and Cute Catz, and the Hatchery Eggs which turn into funny little monsters when she and others nurture them.
She has planted a Lil' Green Patch so she can tend environmentally-friendly plants and help friends with their own virtual gardens. She sends hugs, wild animals, and SuperPokes to others, so she always has a lot to keep her busy when she gets online.

But probably the most annoying thing she has done with all these social networking games is to infect me with the darned things. Weren't Solitaire and Bejeweled II Deluxe enough? Now I have to check my account, even before I open my email, to see if someone's parked in an illegal zone on Lorilei Street. Worse yet, I have to worry that the parking signs will have changed while I was away, and someone may have ticketed one of my cars. Oh, no! Another violation!




What can be done? I'm sure the fever for the game will cool after a while. In the meantime, it's all good fun that keeps us off the streets -- so to speak.








I'm making a new mousepad for P.L.'s computer desk with the Addiction to Online Games design on it. In fact, she's getting a t-shirt like this, too. You can get one to remind yourself (or your roommate) to get back to work! You can check your cars after a few hours, as a reward for keeping on task.
(That's right. It's only a game....)

Now Accepting Applications for New Daddy

It's a fact: more and more children are being raised in single-parent families.
Most custodial single parents are female.
You can say kids get married too soon, you can say children shouldn't give birth to children... you can say any number of things regarding this single-parent phenomenon, but it will not stop it from being true.

Teenage pregnancy aside, this can still happen to anyone, at any time. It happened to me, after several years of marriage and three children. Now it is happening to my daughter. Although she is a mature young woman, with nearly 10 years in the US Army, and she first met her husband when they were in grade school together, she has recently become the single parent of her own little boy.

My daughter is braver than I am. When my marriage ended, I said I would never love anyone again. She is in no hurry to be romantically involved, but she isn't going to hide in a shell the way I did.
This design is inspired by my daughter and my little grandson, who both deserve to have someone else to love them. -- Maybe not tomorrow, but some day in the future.

Now accepting
applications for
new daddy.
Please send current
resumes to Mommy

Generally speaking, this design shouldn't be taken too seriously!
But, still, you never know when the right person might see this and arrange for you to meet their husband's brother, or whoever.
There are good men in the world, too, you know -- the kind you want your son to be someday.

Jr. Jersey T-Shirts sale!

Artist at Work offers t-shirts in a variety of styles. From time to time, we add different styles, replacing others we currently use. One such tee is known as the jr. jersey.

We'll be replacing this item soon, so it's available for a limited time at a $4 savings off the original price.

• Coupon code: 4JRJERSEY
• Sale starts: Immediately!
• Expiration: While supplies last*

Stock up on these sweet tees now, before school starts!

InfiniStitch™ embroidery

This is not your mama's embroidery.
Oh, no. It's new. It's different. It's cooler than even PL imagined it might be.

It's the new InfiniStitch™ embroidery process from CafePress, available at Lorilei's Artist at Work and other shops.

Currently, the gear available with this new process includes two types of caps, lightweight performance jackets in men's and women's styles, black mesh polo shirts for both genders, and a long-sleeved denim shirt in a unisex style.
It looks like a patch or appliqué with the design stitched in, yet it's printed.

Trust me, PL was skeptical, as usual, but she's impressed. She loves the stonewashed raspberry cap shown above at the left.




I love the Lil' Brown "Feeling My Oats" design on my black polo shirt, too.
PL and Lorilei are going to be very busy for some time, tweaking designs especially for these new items.

In addition to the new InfiniStitch™ embroidery products, there are also two new stoneware bowls in Lorilei's shops. These bowls are suitable for pet food, of course, but they are also dandy for human food! They are microwave- and dishwasher-safe. You can serve ice cream, cereal, or ramen noodles in them. Just don't try all three foods at once, like PL's little brother did. (You don't want to know, trust me.)





Stay tuned for more pictures and reports. Or order something yourself. After all, you deserve the best!