oh my.

hear ya'll, here ya'll....no, really.

We're gunna need all the help we can get......and yes, we do need 300 pints of guinness.  Urgently. All the love & money in the world are welcome. <3 DONATIONS FOR OUR HONEYMOON ARE ACCEPTED HERE. You will not only get personalized pics and updates but also documentation of how your specific donation was used :-)

Emma Lou Alma

An Interview with Awesomeness: March 18, 2002

Lou Pardew -

My grandparents came from Kentucky in a wagon. There were five boys: Uncle Clarence, Uncle Tuff the reason he was called Tuff was because he fell off the top of their house, he wasn't hurt too much. Uncle Tuff was also deaf. There was Thonk, Vernon and Winfield. Vernon died as a young man - lost arm. There were two girls, Emma and Artie. Their mother and dad died when the girls were very young. Aunt emma and aunt artie were very little. Dad was the one chosen to cook and take care of them. Uncle clarence was the business man. Thonk also died as a young man. They built a big house and had a nice farm, they worked. They worked very hard. We were loved without question. Daddy was very soft spoken always was so proud of us. He thought he had the very vest children in the world. Mother was more strict. Daddy was 20 years older than mother. He treated mother almost like one of us. He would tell us to do something but he was always there to give up a helping hand.
I didn't know either of my grandparents, well expect for my grandfather normon, mom's daddy. He died when I was about five years old. The only thing I remember about him was he was tall and thin and very stern. And has a mustash.
One thing I remember most was a lie I told them, and remember two lies I told and I was in more trouble than I had ever been in. the lie got bigger and bigger until I was caught. My dad was so dispionted, I'll never forget thinking, I'll never do that again. After the spanking and going to the smoke house. I don't remember ever lying to them again.
I was born in the country at home. We lived a long way from town. A mid wife was with mother, it was a normal birth. Robert was born three years earlier and she had a very bad time and almost died, but my birth was normal.
My dad had two sisters and four brothers, one brother that was close to him at that time. They were just going to name me after aunt emma and from my aunt artie Lou but they didn't want to hurt aunt alma's feeling so they named me Emma Lou Alma.
I always loved robert and looked up to him, I wanted to do everything with him. But he was a very quiet person and loved to read. I know I was a pest. As wer grew up we became closer and closer. Now I think I have a perfect brother.
Family activities were not too often, we worked to gether every day we may go to a neighbors house and make hojme made ice cream. Or go to a neighbors and make crape paper flowers. Decoration day was a big thing we worked weeks on making flower. Decoration day everyone brought their best dish for a big dinner at the graveyard.
I lived on a farm in Green County until I was 18 years old.
We had a ditch that was on one side of our farm and then another ditch just a little farther on snother side. We would swim in the ditch in the summer and skate on it in the winter. Sled down the ditch dump when it snowed. We didn't have sleds we used a old wooden straight chair. We didn't have crayons.
I didn’t have my own room. Robert and I shared a bed that was in the kitchen for a long time. Robert moved up in the attic later. Then I moved ther. To separate our beds we hung up a bed spread between our beds. The roof was made of wood shakes and when it snowed, our beds would be covered with snow in the morning when we got up.
We would never jump on the bed. All of our beds had feather beds on them. After the beds were made, you couldn't even sit on them.
My favorite was fried chicken. We only had fried chicken in the spring, when the little chickens got up to be pullets or big enough to eat, corn on the cob, fried potatoes.  Mom did the cooking but daddy also cooked a lot.
We didn't even know what a popcicle was. We seldom went to town and never out to eat. 
I had long skinney legs my hair was a little curly. They said I was pretty but I don't think I was. No I never played cards. We didn't have any.
My favorite game was ball, hop scotch, jacks and hide and seek. Jumping ropes. 
The only sport I played was soft ball and I was captain of basketball team. I was good at both I also ran. I was a fast runner also.

I was very active, climbed trees or we rode trees down. Climbed up a small tree and ride it to the ground.

I don't remember how I made friends I just did it naturally. One Easter when I was about 7 my cousin, Elsie Mae, had come to live with us, her mother and father were dead. We loved each other and had a good time paying together. Mother didn't have any easter egg dye. So we went to a neighbor's house for dye. Well we never got there with the eggs. We ate them and came back home. His house was about a mile from our house we told mother she refused to dye our eggs. We got into a lot of trouble.
One time daddy was down in the field. We ran down to meet him and told him our house was on fire for some reason we didn't get into much trouble for that.
I would say I was a happy child. The depression things were hard, but we didn't realize it. We were not used to much money. Daddy worked on the PTA they were clearing out the underbrush on the ditches he made 50 cents a day.
They took off more times than I did, but when I did go with them, we would hitch hike all the way to Paragould, have a coke, fool around a while and get back to school before the bus ran.
In the 6th maybe 7th elizabeth owen and I left school and rode in the back of a truck up the road about four or five miles. When we got back to school her mother was waiting for us. She took us in a class room, which was next to the study hall, she gave both of us a spanking. Everyone in school could hear what was going on. That was the only spanking I had ever had in school. Needless to say how embarrased we were, out in front of the whole school and the boy we both liked.
Over a three year period. I graduated in three years. I had several very good friends. Quara Pankey was a roommate after we graduated. We lived together in Memphis in a one bedroom apt. my first close friend was Bearmice Vaughn we did so many fun things together. Jackie Martin, a girl friend of Robert's and I did have a lot of fun. Elizabeth Owens was a very good friend. She and her mother moved to Alexander, her father was dead. They didn't know anyone when they moved to Alexander. We became very good friends. Amanda Reddick was early, like the 8th grade. My good friend Cleo Duncan, Amanda and I had a lot of good times. We played hookey together. The only ones I ever played hookey with. They had more nerve than I did.
My best memory was when I was in the 9th grade. Alexander had a contest to elect a Min Alexander. Each vote was a penny each. The girl I was running against was Toatsie Washington. She was very pretty with blonde hair. The family was a very well to do family - all the clothes were hand made, her mother polished her saddle oxfords every day, there was no question in my mind who would win. I remember mother and I went to graber dept. store and found a dress for $2.00. It had a black skirt with a white top. My sponser was Margaret McNeil, her sister was a good friend of mine. Looking back I know how sad I looked -  but I won.
I was in the 5th grade and my teacher, Mrs. Sylile Wood Ask me to spend to spend the night with her. I felt like a queen. I wore a wine stripped dress and tried to look my very best. I had never spent the night in a house with inside plumbing. Beautiful white towels and wash cloths hanging in the bathroom. It was so beautiful to me. I always made good grades but not top of my class.
I didn't think too much of education but I liked to please my teacher and mom and dad. I loved to go to school to be with my friends and get to play with them. We didn't have any dances in high school. The first dance I learned later was the jitter bug. We didn't have a prom. We didn't have a hand out until high school. There was a gas station and restaurant called 51.
We wore what you call broom stick skirts and bouses, sweaters and dresses. The skirts were full gathered sometimes they had tiers of ruffels.
We didn't have curfews. I was 12 years old and my boy frined was Robert's best friend. We walked to church and the boys would walk us home, which was a long way. We would sit on the bus together going and coming from a basket ball game. We had parties at someones house - never at our house. Our house was a log cabin and not to much room. Later we would go to a movie in Paragould, have a coke after the movie.
I was about 12 years old and I thought O'Neal Reddick was the greatest thing in the world. But he didn't feel the same about me. I got over it after a long time. Then when I was 16 I fell in love with Tody Wolfe we dated all the time. I was at Lake Side. I never owned a car.
I don't remember a girl ever wearing pants to school. We wore long cotton socks that came up over the knees or long legged underwear. The under wear had long sleeves and legs. I wore short sleeves and long legs, with socks over that. There wasn't much to do except school activities. When I got older like 16 and 17 we didn't go to a movie in town or go to Riverside. We would meet there and drink coke and maybe a hamburger if we had the money.
One of my best friends, Martha Young, worked at the skirt factory. She bought a nice car for $700. I just helped out at home. Robert and daddy did the barn work. I helped mom with washing on a board, pumping the water (that was always my job) ironing, cooking supper, gathering the eggs, feeding the chickens, bringing in wood for cooking and heating. Even milked the cows when robert and daddy couldn't.....washed the dishes in a pan with lye soap.
My first job was at Wyatt's furniture store as a bookkeeper. I made $15 a week. Growing up my worst job was pulling cotton bolls when it was cold and washing dishes, and pumping water. We were at the dinner table, mother asked robert to go get fresh water to drink. He ask me to do it for a nickel. I jumped up and went out to pump the water. When I got back he said the first wooden nickel he saw rolling up a hill he would give it to me. She made him give me a nickel.
I don't remember what time we had to get up but before daylight in the winter. We walked to meet the bus which was about a mile or we waked across the slue. When the water was up, daddy would take us across the slue in a boat to dry land and then we walked on to school. I loved school we had all do now, each grade had one big room,we had classes and recess just like you. We didn't have inside bathrooms or central heat. There was a stove in every room. After recess the teacher blew a whistle and everyone ran to get in line to go inside.
I left home right after I graduated high school. Went to memphis to business school. Draughn's Business school. I was so scared, I was all alone and had never been away from home before.
We borrowed $300 from our doctor Ellington for me to go to Memphis. He charged %10 interest, we didn't realize how unfair that was. We were just proud to get the money. It took forever to pay that back. Robert paid the remaining balance for us.

une réflexion simple

nearly a decade in review....what's on the books.

I still can't believe I found him.

11.11.02 (chicago) study for art history exam, 10 days till home to arkansas
11.11.03 (chicago) counting down again.
11.11.04 (chicago) study script shave DODGEBALL, mom leaves to visit, arteau play with joseph ravens :-)
11.11.05 (chicago)babysit for Susan Orleans?, NO CLASS, Maya Homework, Jimmy/Lance/Hannah
11.11.06 (chicago)Insurance, splenda, dishes, clean aprtmnt, wash hair, excalibur?, Lance/Hannah/Kaleb visit
11.11.07 (paris) versailles
11.11.08 (new orleans) Napoleon - sentinel NO CLASS, prep for presentation 10-15 for latin am avant garde
11.11.09 (new orleans) Napoleon - sentinel, movie OWL
11.11.10 (new orleans) Napoleon - sentinel
11.11.11 (new orleans) Napoleon - sentinel, get married


November 22, 2009 BLOG POST:

on the nature of sadness...

be it a blessing and a curse to care too acutely. my babies are well. the world is here. the holiday season brings with it another year to admire and relish and reveal the things which bring meaning to one's solitary disposition. stop. categorize, clean, bake, make puns, shoot guns - even unloaded. laugh. breathe. pet dog. re-evaluate. stop evaluating. stop judging. stop. envy. thank someone sincerely. be happy for others' happinesses. be aware of others' sufferings. be nice. but skeptical? accept distress gracefully. smile, only sincerely. (unless you're getting paid to either way?) see the romance in tragedy but don't demand their confederation. wish to speak thoughtfully. dream to act on impulse. (and, in such a regard, HOPE that goodness is more natural in you than you might think it is in others.) a selfish fool waits alone never bothering others, only their self. still wonder whether it is worth it to choose understanding over happiness...and don't feel bad for wondering...
I am thankful for good stories, told and secreted, heard and missed, lived and imagined. I am thankful that...I feel, at the very least, somewhere, sometime, I must have done something good.

Posted by heady at 11:47"

Queen for a day...

Through the Looking Glass - NOLA Wedding Guide from Studio Vieux Carre on Vimeo.

instagramtagious....

more accompanying visuals for the next post :-)

"raydon 9"

only in nola

the summertime rash is back :-(

hardly work.

dive bar in apalachicola :-)

table with a view

next time....

July fifth from room 106

best breaky nominees

last chance to turn back :-/

Africa

we died for a moment and found ourselves drinking a pina colada and a bloody mary garnished with potato chips

magic wand in the magic kingdom

napoleon guarded the nest whilst we played.

but was more than happy to see us return :-)

makeup after 3 hours underwater - worth the money.

pardewville pool party

Whitney's Mason Dixie.

don't ask me how we have this luck.

pizza inn buffet and audrey - my favorites!

movie time.

wedding gift table - oh my.

catch up on your hot damn.

Well, to say the least, we've been a bit busy.....

I had been painting like crazy to finish up 17 new pieces for Sean Shrum's Summer Art Show in Jonesboro, AR.  After I cleaned up, the Owl and I left on the fourth of July off to Florida for the last space shuttle launch among other things.  We decided to stop in Apalachicola for the night where we were blown away by their oysters and room with a view. :-)  It's a quaint little bay town that neither of us had visited before.  I found it while I was searching for Florida's best kept little restauraunt secrets and found the OWL CAFE (which was closed unfortunately but we will definitely be back.)  

After an amazing breakfast on the fifth of July (Owl had an oyster gouda omelette with a cathead biscuit and I had a great big bagel and lox :-) we were on our way....

Somehow we ended up in the Magic Kingdom where we realized that the grounds were drier than Ghandi's flip flops.  After our long and admittedly dumb way of getting there (by car and boat from the Contemporary instead of a 5 min walk out the other door) we pacified our urge for a cocktail with a huge hot fudge sundae.

Snow White trying to pinch my head off. :-/
So we made it back to New Orleans safe and sound just in time for another photo shoot.  The Amazing team in Denham Springs that is Ali Beasley, Jesse Arnold, and Eric Vosberg dressed me up in an amazing bridal ensemble and sunk me in the bottom of a pool in Baton Rouge to get some (fingers crossed) awesome things in the frame.

 Then we left for our big Wedding Shower Weekend in Jonesboro, AR.  My awesome siblings, bridesmaids, and backup moms threw me a great couples shower on Saturday night and a beautiful brunch on Sunday morning....

The spread was amazing...flower arrangements by the awesome, Janice Cranford.

My favorite sisters. ever. They did such a good job.

The beautiful Lauren helping me notate gift givers :-)
Ok, so after the brunch.....Owl says "We can still make it to St. Louis in time."  And we did.  We drove 3.5 hrs to the ARCH to see Owl's favorite, U2, in concert.  I must admit, it was an amazing show.  Then - we drove back - that night.  yep.  After some nasty Jack In the Box @ 2 a.m.  It was epic.

The next day I dropped off all of my work at the gallery and had a great time catching up and talking art with Sean.  

We went to see my nana pardew after that, she gave us fudge muffins, fresh beets, peaches, and tomatoes. The last night at my family's home ended beautifully.  All of us, including the babies, went to gorge on pizza at our favorite place in town.  We watched a movie on the couch and passed out early :-) Now it's time to mow the yard, pull weeds, write thank you cards, and absorb it all.  

.....Until the next adventure <3 This is the life. <3

La Routa de Fortuna & Loaded Silhouettes....

There is a distinct difference between fortune and fate....  In 1994 Ylenia Carrisi, the "Italian Vanna White," went missing on the streets of New Orleans.  She is still qualified as a missing person.  

I am incredibly excited to be exhibiting a series of paintings quietly inspired by this curiosity.  Still in progress....my work will be on display at The Sean Shrum Gallery in Jonesboro, Ar in his summer show. ::

THURSDAY, JULY 28th a 

RECEPTION: 6-10 pm 

OPEN HOUSE: FRIDAY & SATURDAY 12-8 pm

 ::

The rest of the paintings combine my layering techniques with elements of portraiture, sculpture, and graffiti while using loosely ambiguous and somewhat 'biased' shapes to experiment with color and pattern.  

Check out h e a d y s t u f f for updates and works in progress.....