Dear Mom, It's that time again. But this time it's even fancier. http://www.dearmomloveruth.com Love, Ruth

Dear Mom,
Then the next day, Ron put up greyboard and framed the new counter.


Then he added rebar. You know a project is good when it needs rebar.


His boss came over and spent four hours with him pouring the concrete.


That's right, cast concrete. He wanted to learn how to do it so he could utilize the knowledge in future sculptures, so rather than doing a small piece of practice art, he made the focal piece of the kitchen.
Love,
Ruth

Dear Mom,
Although the communications from Chez Zelambert have been sparse, there has been a lot of hub-bub. Besides traveling a lot, Ron decided it was high time to renovate. So while I was in San Fransisco in May, Ron demolished the kitchen.

He first took off the counter top and removed the sink.


And he fixed the plumbing.


And since the backsplash was plaster made to look like tile, he took that out too.


More tomorrow.
Love,
Ruth

Dear Mom,
I think I need a sign out by the garden that says, "Patience, Grasshoppah." In other words, LEAVE THE VEGETABLES IN THE GROUND UNTIL THEY ARE DONE.
They're getting there!

Love,
Ruth

Dear Mom,
If one can make it through the wild hinterlands of Kentucky, you can rest assured that all your needs will be taken care of at the Welcome Center Rest Stop in Tennessee.
You'll be able to get your Vienna sausages:

Your lip gloss:

And, very importantly, your toe separators:


Phew!
Love,
Ruth

Dear Mom,
Yesterday we drove 4+ hours each way to Cincinnati to their beautiful museum to see the Tara Donovan show on its last day. And it was worth it.


The piece above was in the lobby, the only place we could take pictures. The exhibit was breathtaking, in a nearly literal sense. One piece, made from millions of clear white drinking straws undulating along a wall, created such strong sound-proofing that the guard told me to put my ear next to the piece. When I did, the sound was so deadened that it seemed to suck all the sounds out of my head, and made me completely deaf in that ear. It was amazing. Also, looking at the hole-end of millions of straws confuses your eyes; they cannot tell where to focus. So a most mundane material becomes something that silently, and colorlessly, affects (very strongly) two of your senses.

It was unbelievable.
Love,
Ruth

Dear Mom,
It's been a busy week. I have been working hard in the studio against a deadline, and we had a house guest for three and a half days. Our friend was a visiting artist, so there was a presentation of his work and hitting the town until the wee-hours. There were was a senior show and an end-of-semester party.

I am happy to report that at least a couple things have started to grow in the garden!
Beets:

and radishes:

I am going to add a little decorative fencing to keep Tucker out of the beds. He's not digging, just tromping through and leaving big paw dents where I've planted. I still have a few more plants from the garden store to plant, and hopefully some of the starter pots I planted will sprout soon.

Love,
Ruth