i have some stories to tell you, but i can’t really recall them at the moment. due to the the move (of the art store that i work at), i have been slightly delirious of late. and that means i am not so great at story telling. or, for that matter, remembering the stories i’d like to tell. i’ll keep writing regardless.
at our art store, as of this morning, d*mn near everthing is 90% off. that is pretty much unheard of for most blow-out sales, much less for an art store that sells high quality supplies well below cost in the first place. i received the call this morning around 10:30am from my manager. she said, quite simply, “mark it all down to 90% off.” so, to the two customers i had in the store, i announced this brand new sale and within forty minutes, the store was packed with people. it was so packed that we closed the front gate to prevent more customers from coming in (because with one cash drawer, twelve people in line, and only two people working – there’s only so much we could handle). regardless, those who left kept letting people into the store despite our request(s) to keep the gate closed. one of the clerks who had the day off today, came in upon hearing about the new and improved discount, and he ended up staying to help work the register just so that me and the other clerk scheduled for today could catch a break. thank you, Nick !
in other news, i am part of this very cool project called El Travo Callabo. i described it once before. it’s basically eight or so wood panels traveling across the country to artists. four or five artists work on each panel and at the very end, the panels will be displayed nationwide from San Francisco to New York. so, the leader of this collaborative project is named Leanne a.k.a. El Rod. as of this evening, she’s made a post on the El Travo blog about me and the dead mouse i decided to paint on this panel.
this brings me to the dead bird. i will preface this story with the pure and simple fact that i love animals to such a degree that some may perceive this love as excessive. about a week ago, or less, Leanne (of the blog above) came into our store and informed us, with a very sad face, that there was a dead bird outside of our store. not on the sidewalk, but in the parking zone. being the animal lover that i am, i immediately leaped into action. i ran upstairs with a plastic bag and a few folds of paper towel. i know that it is impossible to save every living thing on this planet, but if i can provide an animal with a decent burial – i will do so.
i remember growing up in a house with many windows. birds have a nasty habit of flying full force into clear glass windows, under the impression they are about to fly through a house as opposed to into a window. i remember burying a handful of birds. or at least paying them a certain homage or respect to the fate by which they had succumbed. so, when i heard about this dead bird on the street above, my instinct kicked in and i ran upstairs prepared to conserve it and bury it later that day on my lunch break.
no offense to the bird (a sparrow), but it’s still sitting in our mini fridge at work. i even placed a large hand written sign saying, “BURY THE DEAD BIRD” by the register in an effort to not forget about it. the poor thing is still in our fridge and though i don’t use the fridge too frequently, i have used it enough in the past week to open it up, retrieve what i need, and then look with complete shame at the little paper towel plastic bag wrapped sparrow perched (pun intended) on the top shelf of the fridge. each and every time i have seen it, i exclaim, “oh f*ck ! the dead bird !”
i’ll bury it as soon as possible. work has been chaotic. lunch breaks have been rather sparse (not so much sparse, but i use them to just stare at walls in coffee shops, forgetting about burying the bird in our mini fridge). that said, we are set to close up shop at our store for a few days and during those days, when i know i will have more time, i will give this bird the funeral that i am sure it deserves.
and the Triple Bypass ? i feel like i’ve said too much already. and i really ought to get back to painting because i have the day off tomorrow and therefore must take full advantage of the fact that i can go to sleep past my usual bed time. the Triple Bypass is a painting i am in the middle of. it has to do with hearts, love, and the rocky uncertain terrain that one uses to navigate the topic of hearts and love.
jessi
Year of the Pig Studio 