Goddess of the Lake Legend

Ms. Muse was fascinated with the Lake Goddess legend. She likes to repeat the local folklore to anyone who will listen.

Reverently Ms. Muse begins her story, “It is told that a long time ago a young girl was paddling a canoe to meet her lover in the village aross the lake, but before she could reach the other side a violent vortex appeared out of nowhere and swallowed the canoe whole. Unfortunately the young maiden was never to be found.

When the young girl settled to the murky bottom the lake creatures told her that she was not human after all, but actually the Goddess of the Lake and she was accidently netted as a baby by her wicked family. The ill-mannered father decided to keep her instead of releasing her back into the lake, because he thought she might have special powers. He hoped to use her talents for his own means.

In the meantime her young lover was so distraught when he heard the news that he ran to the edge of the lake and prayed to the gods for help. It is said, because of one tear that fell into the lake during his prayer, the predestined Goddess of the Lake is granted the ability to appear once at the beginning of summer as a water spout bearing the lotus flower in honor of her lover and those fortunate enough to see her are blessed with a bountiful year.”

FORGOT

It was horrible! Ms. Muse and I heard about her disappointment and determined that we needed to address it in some fashion so we created FORGOT.

She had had turned 70 years old and three of her children didn’t even call her to wish her happy birthday nor did they bother sending a card. They simply FORGOT their mother. The town had a celebration in her honor and the mayor created a proclamation commemorating that special day, but none of those children were present!

This incident distressed her until she actually FORGOT why she was upset.

Sweetie

I repeated the childhood poem. . .

What are little girls made of?
Sugar and spice,
And everything nice,
That's what little girls are made of.

Ms. Muse snorted at the words. She couldn't believe I would repeat such drivel. And I agreed, but reminded her why we made Sweetie. It was to challenge everyone’s perception of sweetness and the feminization of sugar. This poem became favorable in a time when sugar started to become cheap in our society. While once upon a time sugar was revered for its economic factor and men became rich; it was a time in our past when one teaspoon cost more then an acre of land. A good homemaker would keep it locked away and knew almost to the ounce how much sugar was on hand. They even used a devise called a sugar nipper to cut off pieces of sugar from the packed hard cone shapes that were created to transport sugar.

When the production of sugar became cheaper so didn't its feminization. Now it is wildly believed that sugar, sweetness and women go hand-in-hand.

Ms. Muse snorted again and then pointed to Sweetie. "What do you think our intent is for this sculpture?" she asked.

"Why to point out how we wrapped our myths of sweetness and abuse into a neat package regarding women," I replied.

Again she snorted.

"Although Sweetie is desirable, next to the sugar nippers, she has become vulnerable and defenseless" I noted. “And because we covered her head, she has become a representation of all women.”

Ms. Muse agreed then closed the cabinet door because Sweetie became harder to look at in all her weak helplessness.

Field Trials

The day was perfect with white clouds floated in bright blue sky, wispy here, puffy there. The fields had tall stems of annual and biennial grass which waved in the light breeze. Shrubs and small trees provided the backdrop on the landscape as the gallery of onlookers moved down the path and handlers moved into position with their eager dogs. Artemis entered her dog in the Bird Dog Field trials which is a great way to get some off-season action. Field Trials offer practical demonstrations of a dog's ability to perform, in the field, the functions for which it was bred. Her dog is a beautifully trained animal which moved left, right, or forward or halted by whistled command. The bond between her and dog is a thing to behold, a true joy!

Winter would not let go...

Ms. Muse and I hadn't seen Demeter for quite awhile so we were going to surprise her the other morning with coffee and bagels.

Spring was a long time coming this year as Winter held on to its last long death rattling breath. Just what were we thinking??????????? Why we would have found her in her kitchen was beyond us. Of course she was out in the fields planting her crop of wheat.

We met her on the back 40 and she stopped plowing when she saw us. We had a morning picnic sitting in the fresh turned earth, and enjoyed each others company for the hour, sipping coffee and nibbling on the bagels.

She was held against her will....

We watched the news avidly looking for some answers, but none came. Ms. Muse and I were beside ourselves as they held our dear friend Libertaria the goddess of Freedom as a hostage for several weeks now.

The last communication was over a week ago and we feared for her life. What would humanity succumb to if she died?

She Needs Some Sunlight

Aega was the Harlequin Sun Goddess but her reign did not last very long because she was the daughter of the sun god Helios, she was hidden away during the attack of the Titans so that the enemy wouldn’t compromise her loveliness.

Ms. Muse, found her wandering the garden in circles. She had gone quite raving mad from being locked away in a cold, dang underground room for so many years. But since Ms. Muse knew her circumstances, she took pity on her and made sure she went out to the garden every day to help get some color back into her pale cheeks.

A Long Trip to the Rocky Mountains

Ms. Muse went on a trip and visited the Rocky Mountains. When she got back I could believe what incredible shape she was in thanks to the mountain bike she purchased. She really enjoyed herself and brought me back a “snap shot” of her escapades.

Persephone

Hades had abducted Persephone. Her mother, Demeter, was consumed with rage and sorrow and was determined to demonstrated her anger by punishing the earth’s inhabitants with bitter cold and blustering winds. When she told Ms. Muse about the kidnapping, Ms. Muse followed their route and came upon Persephone immediately after the horrible rape. She quickly took control of the situation and called the police and an ambulance. There was considerable commotion about letting Persephone leave the underworld for treatment, but Hades didn’t stand a chance when the police arrived.

An Unexpected Surprise

Sometimes things come up and if the timing is right we realize we have an opportunity to brighten someone’s day immensely. When it happens and you can also enhance a birthday it makes is doubly special. Because I had several lovely pieces already created to make a gumpaste flower bouquet along with some pre-made lace points, I actually came up with the idea to create a birthday cake for Sharon. When Ms, Muse heard about it, she jumped on the project and proceeded to define the design and finish the little six inch dark chocolate, mocha frosting and fondant covered tidbit.


My heart jumped in pleasure when Sharon squealed with unexpected delight. Sometimes the simplest thing brings the greatest reward. And of course Ms. Muse was very pleased with herself.

February 14

Ms. Muse and I have been so busy in the studio making sugar sculptures, but we needed to stop and take a break to create a lovely cake. My mother's birthday is on Valentine's Day and all mothers, especially mine deserve a gorgeous cake. This cake is in honor of my wonderful mother.

A Secret Admirer

Ms. Muse and I have been so very busy in the studio these past few weeks as we are preparing for upcoming art shows. However, Ms. Muse just received a package from a secert admirer. So we have taken a break, grabbed a glass of milk and dug in. Oh la la, rich dark chocolate, three layers with raspberry buttercream . . . hmm and a hint of liquor. Yummy. I have to say it, when Ms. Muse gets someones attention, there is no telling what fun things show up!