And I stretch the word runt a bit to also mean quirk-filled, three-legged, etc.
On the few occasions where I got to select an animal (rather than an animal selecting me), I selected the weirdo of the litter. The tiniest, or oddly marked one, or the one all the litter mates were stepping on.
Those make the best pets, I swear.
My quirkiest friends were always the best friends too. The least judgy. (Yes, I know that's not a word, but I just made it a word.)
Sometimes when Maddie needs her hour long hug every day, or Splotchy sings the song of his people all night, I think - I sure am glad they ended up with me. I'm not sure everyone would have indulged their quirks to the degree we have.
Yesterday when I sat down to make card, I took a look at the new All Ye Faithful set, and I challenged myself not to make a Christmas card.
That ruled out at least one of the other images in the set, and possibly the third, as they are fairly traditional Christmas images.
I LOVE this artist's style. I love the sketchy lines and the gentle abstraction.
So as I looked at this image, I shut the Christmas carols out of my head and I thought about the job of a shepherd - human or otherwise. He has to protect all the little sheep in his care, and probably sometimes from each other.
So as I wondered why he was holding that one little guy I thought - IT'S THE BLACK SHEEP!
How sad it would be to be the black sheep, right? But look how nice this guy is to the black sheep :).
So I scoured my shelves for a sentiment that would work for my little black sheep, and ended up where I end up most of the time - Feel Goods. These are my favorite sentiments in the catalog, and this one is perfect for little Blacky McSheeperson.
I did a video of this card, but as happens about every fifth video, the codecs got jacked up and so I just have the card today. It is just a simple watercolor with Brusho, and the sheep (can't see in the pic) are sparkly with clear Wink of Stella.
It wasn't that exciting anyway :). I just saved you 12 minutes - you're welcome.
I hope you are having a relaxing weekend.
We made our first brisket in our new Primo Grill. I splurged on this sucker after I earned some Stampin' Up! bonuses and it was worth every penny. It's made in the USA (vs. the Big Green Egg, which is made in Mexico and China.) It's INCREDIBLE at temperature regulation, and for our first brisket smoking attempt I have to say - it was darn near perfect. I think the only thing that could have been improved was that it would have been better if it was an untrimmed brisket. No one likes a skinny brisket. But the bark was PERFECT, it was falling apart, and it was delicious.
I want to become the brisket queen of South Austin and have brisket flash sales where I tweet about a brisket and I'm sold out in 20 minutes.
If only there was more time in the day.
Loveyameanitbye.
As always, I love your story and the card is stunning. I love how wonderful you are with shadows and everything. And thanks for thinking of the black sheep. I of course am one. XOX Meg
ReplyDeleteI love this.....and its message. My last three dogs were " nobody wants" and they all lived to 15.....well except the little one I have now who is only 13. I hand fed one liverwurst and cottage cheese because she was only 4 weeks old, so tiny and was going to be "destroyed"....omg what is wrong with people!! The second I took from a "professional" breeder and saved her from life in a cage because she was not show worthy with a notched ear and outie belly button....heavens! And my latest was a one and a half pound runt who is still all legs and bones at 13. And I do love quirky.....
ReplyDeleteBeautiful card - the coloring and the sentiment --
ReplyDeleteYea, I seen to be the pied piper of the quirky and dented anything.
ReplyDeleteAll my fuzzy butts have been lost and founds or ones their owners got tired of (really?)! They are truly the best and love the most! My latest one was born with a bobtail and Is FIESTY! (Which is why no one wanted to adopt her.). My orange kitty has an autoimmune deficiency of some sort which requires antibiotics regularly. (Ever pill a cat?). Soooo totally worth the trouble! Go and befriend the fringe! They add so much to our lives!
ReplyDeleteSweet card. And great message. Shelter and rescue pets are the best. My kids insist on buying expensive dogs from breeders and they always end up being very expensive - suffering from all sorts of health problems. Our two cats came to us and now we are theirs. Wouldn't have it any other way. Oh, I love being the black sheep of the family. I think I am much more interesting!!
ReplyDeleteLove the card. I have overlooked the stamp set "Feel Goods" till now. It is now on my list! As for runts, I have a soft spot for them as well. My last adopted cat was a 4 pound feral cat (calico) from the pound. When our family first got her, she would steal hot dog buns, in the package, to eat - or just "squirrel away". Thankfully she now knows she doesn't need to worry about her next meal. I named her Ripley after Sigourney Weaver's strong character in the Aliens trilogy.
ReplyDeleteWhat a treasure this sentiment is...and the image with it, perfect. We all need friends like that. Successful brisket smoking, what could be better. Sounds yummy. We should have collaborated...we had ribs for dinner.
ReplyDeleteSo glad I found your blog!! Your artwork is amazing...your chats thought provoking to humorous... Thanks for bright spot to any day there is a post in my inbox! This card really brings home the point of acceptance.
ReplyDeleteWhat a beautiful card. Great shadows. I think there must be something wrong with my brain because when I read that the sheep were sparkly I wondered if they were vampire sheep. Then you mentioned Brisket on the grill and was so glad you didn't say you had lamb chops.
ReplyDeleteLove this card! I am totally a black sheep. And I always do things the hard way. Are those two things connected? I really like how you found an alternate use for the stamps. Brilliant! And happy belated birthday!!!
ReplyDeleteI absolutely LOVE this! We painted a full wall in our daughter's nursery with a good shepherd mural. It was beautiful. You have totally captured LOVE with this! Your shadows look fabulous too!
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