Blogger Profile - Lady Roots

Our next visit with other bloggers takes us down to the Caribbean for a visit with the most distinguished Lady Roots

1. So why is Clay Perry your favorite blog to read?

I find it soul-refreshing to read the heart-felt writings of a man who is so deeply in love with his wife and both of his sons. His respect and love for his father fills, for me, a void that my own father left. He cherishes his Mother. He is a craftsman who puts the best of himself in each carving. I give thanks for each small entry I am allowed into the lives of the Perry clan.

2. What is it that you love about Jamaica?

This is where my soul is most at peace.

3. When you left the states what did you miss the most upon arriving in Jamaica?

My Mom, kids, grandkids, sisters, and brothers who still live in America.

4. What do you use as inspiration for your bead work?

Prayer and a willingness to follow the beading muse where ever she takes me.

5. What led you to decide to leave corporate America for a life in the Caribbean?

Nineteen years of vacationing in Jamaica and realizing each year it was harder and harder to leave.

6. When you have completed a piece of jewelry, do you ever feel a bit of separation anxiety when its handed off to someone?

Every time. It is like giving them a piece of myself.

7. In speaking of spirituality, what motivates you?

I am motivated by faith and prayer.

8. Favorite musician?

Ernie Ranglin - Brushy One String - Taj Mahal - Lightning Hopkins - BB King

9. From all the experiences you have had throughout life, what is the one moment you find yourself revisiting the most?

March 6, 2002 when I learned something that ripped the fabric of my entire life. I am still recovering, but not willing to reveal specific details.

10. Giving your life as it is right now, what one word do you feel would best sum it all up?

Deserved!

Blogger Profile - Among Mad People

The next visit with other bloggers takes us over to wendy... She is a great writer with wonderful ideas... so after you read the interview, go over and check her blog out...

1. So why is Clay Perry your favorite blog to read?

Favorite is a strong word. I do love to read this blog. I lived many years in the south and reading Clay’s posts brings back memories for me. I love the interviews Clay does. Brilliant questions that make the interviewee think for answers. I may regret saying that. Let’s see..

2. When you were seventeen, or thereabouts, what did you imagine your life would be like now?

At 17, except for the cash my ‘single mom’ mother could help me with, I had gotten myself into an out-of-state college and worked and was on my own so I’m not sure what I thought. I always knew I’d be a mom, though. I just didn’t know the whats and wheres of it all. I have never looked that far ahead my entire life; a few years ahead maybe at best. I just always seem to take life as it comes at me, dodging at times and hopping on for the ride at others. I have always thought we should plan for what we’d like to happen, but realize that life may indeed have something else in store. It usually does.

3. What is the one moment from your early childhood that you drift back to in thought most often?

One moment is hard. I lived in 9 different towns in 6 different states before I was in the 5th grade (not an army brat, just a brat in a mobile family) so there are many moments I think about. But there is one I am fond of I can share: My parents owned a bakery in Independence, Missouri when I was 6. The bakery was next door to the Truman Library; Harry Truman, the president. Truman died that December and I remember the funeral ceremony they had for him there. They shot cannons and had a band, and I could see it on the TV inside the bakery and then run outside onto the sidewalk and see the exact same thing happening right there. That was pretty cool for a 6 year old.


4. What is your opinion of organized religion?

Short answer, not for it. I have such a deep respect for people and their beliefs. I just don’t think we should segregate ourselves based on those beliefs. I was raised in a Christian, regular-church-going home. As an adult I wanted to ‘get it right’ for myself and I spent many years researching and studying religion. If you really want to know in any depth what I think about organized religion, email me, we’ll talk.



5. If you decided to run for president, did so, and won, what would your platform consist of?

Taking care of ourselves. We are constantly trying to impose and impress the rest of the world with our democracy and politics, we need to switch the focus back to us and get back on track for our own well being. A country is a business. It’s time to put some money back into the business and implement a stock repurchase; stabilize our assets and protect ourselves from hostile takeover.


6. If you could have dinner with one person, living or dead, who would it be and why?

My answer is not going to be conventional. (If the question were: whose brain would you like to pick, I’d pick someone who I could Q & A with. But that’s not the question. ) When I eat dinner with someone I want it to be fun, not about business, enjoyable with good conversation about anything and everything they want to talk about, with someone who feels the same way and is nice to look at. By those criteria, my answer is Matt. Plus he can take me home if I drink too much.


7. Favorite movie?

You are mean, Clay. You have read my blog and know I have a hard time picking a favorite movie. But for you I will. Bull Durham: for many reasons, none of which will probably make any sense. I don’t make sense usually.

8. Describe what you would consider to be your perfect day...

It’s warm, not hot, in the 60s, perhaps; blue skies, partly cloudy so the sun goes behind them just often enough that you remember to appreciate the warmth when it’s not behind them; a light breeze is blowing. As long as we are not working, we don’t need to think about things that need to be done, and get outside to walk or take a drive; anything we do on a day like that is perfect.


9. If you could have everyone on the planet listen to you at the same time for one minute, what would you say?

Choice of words Clay: I’m not sure they would listen. They might hear me, but to listen takes more than ears. Nonetheless I would say something like this: We are all the same. We all love. We all hope. We all dream. The things we love and hope and dream are different. We are all the same. We should not hate anything about each other, ever. Disagree, yes. Never hate.



10. Given your life as it is right now, what one word would best sum it all up?

Lucky.

Blogger Profile - Retail clerk with a heart of gold plate

Next in line with a blogger interview is Lauren photographer extraordinaire...


1. So why is Clay Perry your favorite blog to read?

Cley kan right good. Seriously, because I know he's full of stories and knows just how to tell them. I'd let him write my life story.

2. What early life influence do you attribute your current lifestyle to?

I bet it was pop culture even then. Living in the same house as my aunt and grandparents has probably instilled some kind of family values somewhere. I also think being the middle child made me more prone to going with the flow of things and not getting bent out of shape easily.

3. Have you ever had a supernatural experience?

One time I was jerked out of sleep by the sound of one of my cats trying to shimmy open my bedroom door. There was no cat in front of the door or behind it, and as I walked away from the door it pushed open on its own. I think my cat Sparks was trying to let me know it was ok that he got put to sleep. Or it could've been a crazy poltergeist. I'm just banking on it being my cat so I'm not sitting awake all night holding a bible, some holy water, and a blankie.

4. Having worked in retail for many years, what is your worst customer story?

Oh. Where to begin? Should I tell of a stack of cds by a guy named James Morrison artfully displayed on the counter, and the resulting idiocy? One lady said "Isn't James Morrison the lead singer of Morrissey?" Another lady said "is that Jim Morrison from the doors?" After I told her "no, he's someone with the same name" she said he should be sued for false advertising. Then there's lady trying on bras in the lingerie section of Kmart. Or the former CVS employee who had some girl he knew fill a shopping cart with stuff and both were too drunk to think about the parking lot full of cops she pushed the cart full of stolen goods into. None of these are the worst though, I suppose. I remember them fondly. The worst ones are stupid angry people and I've managed to store them away in one scary lump in my subconscious. They're better forgotten.

5. When did you realize that you had a talent for photography and do you intend to pursue it as a career?

I wasn't aware I was good enough for people to pay for. With an infant it's hard to do things. My photography centers around him at the moment. When it's nicer outside, who knows? I can justify sitting outside on a street corner selling prints by saying he needs the fresh air.

6. Given the current state of the geopolitical standing of the globe, how do you think we should best handle the situation with Iran having nuclear capabilities?

Don't ask me. I am the Ostrich. Goo goo ga joo.

7. What one thing about your life would you most like to change?

The answer to this all depends on how I'm feeling when you ask. Sure, there's a lot I'd like to go back and do with the knowledge I have now. I'd spend more time making memories my uncle Steve and my great grandma and my Grandma Hill. These people are ghostly type memories, if anything at all and that saddens me like you wouldn't believe. I'd like to have met Steve earlier, but I think if I had changed things then, I wouldn't have the life I have now. And things are pretty good right now.

8. Favorite movie?

I cannot pick one favorite, but I will tell you to go see Coraline. In 3D if you're able. Anything Neil Gaiman is involved with is pretty good.

9. Being a new mother, how has this influenced your outlook on life?

I try not to sweat the bad small stuff and I try to inhale every solitary second of the good small stuff. I talk more about poop than I ever have in my life. In our little family sleep has become more valuable than cigarettes and handsome boys in prison.

10. Given your life as it stands at this moment, what one word do you feel would best sum it all up?

Crowded, but a nice, warm, fuzzy kind of crowded.

Blogger Profile - Witch Hollow Primitives

Continuing in my series of interviews with other bloggers... Today we shall visit Witch Hollow Primitives . Once you're finished reading the interview, go check out her sites, her work is wonderful...

1. So why is Clay Perry your favorite blog?

Hmmm...did I say that?


2. How did you become interested in the type of artwork that you do?

I have always loved art since I was very little, I was always creating something with whatever I had. I would have to say my biggest influence for my love of art comes from my grandmother Christina Maria. She was from the old country (Italy). I think thats where my love of primitives comes from. My love of Halloween has always been a strong influence as well, that time of year is magickal to me. Many Halloween artists always seem to inspire me as well as nature, and the beauty in the things around it.


3. What early influence do you think has attributed to your current lifestyle?

Do I have a lifestyle lol? I lead a pretty boring life it would seem to most. I guess music was a huge influence and that has kept me young at heart. To feel some of the most powerful words put to music causes the soul to stir and that helps me to create.


4. Do you miss working in construction, and have you found the skills you picked up in that experience helpful to your current artistic endeavors?

Funny enough I do miss working construction. Like art I guess you look at a concrete floor you just poured as your canvas and when you drive by it later you say, "I did that". I am constantly building something and it does tie in with the handcrafts I do so yes, it has helped greatly. It also widened my vocabulary to work with men.

5. Have you ever seen a ghost?

Real or fictitious?


6. How does being a mother impact your art work?

Gives me very little time to get anything done, but I have always worked best under stress. Kids make you look at things differently. When you see things from a childs perspective it makes you see the honesty and purity in the world that is scantly present these days. I couldn't imagine my life without them, so my art I think would wane as well.


7. What is your opinion of current events in the middle east?

I have no opinion on the middle east, I have a hard enough time watching the 10 o'clock news let alone know whats going on anywhere other than my studio.

8. Favorite food?

I love a wide variety of foods, but absolutly Italian would have to be my fav. I hear baby is the other white meat I might have one of those to try if she doesn't stay out of my paintbrushes.


9. If you could create the optimum living experience for yourself right now, what would it be like?

Far from Illinois I know that. I would probably venture out of the country, Ireland or Italy to find my roots. We need to be a country of more "just being" rather than the constant "doing".

10. Given your life, the way it is right now, what one word do you feel would best sum it all up?

There isn't one word really, I guess beautiful disaster.

(personal note from me... i love this painting she did)

Blogger profile - Solid Snake

The next installment of interviews with other bloggers finds us at solid snake...



1. So why is Clay Perry your favorite blog to read?

If I don't say yes all my freedoms as a teenager will be stripped from me.

2. What is the worst thing about highschool so far?

Do I have to say just one? Bad food, obnoxious jocks, and, probably the worst, the stupid pot heads who think they are above everyone else.

3. Have you ever seen a UFO?

Do any other cryptic beings count? I am sure I have seen a few around here somewhere....

4. Favorite movie?

Dark Knight...only because it features Two-Face.

5. What do you think would be the best answer to the Palestinian situation?

I don't think I can give you an informed answer to this question, because I don't know enough about the situation.

6. What is your favorite part of the day?

The time when I lay down to sleep. Because then you cam dream whatever kind of day you want. The mind has no limitations.

7. What do you think of our current President?

I would have preferred McCain, but it is too late to whine now.

8. Have you ever considered writing your own comic book?

Yeah, I just can't find a good artist to draw out my ideas for free.

9. What do you think is the best gaming system on the market?

Definitely the Sony PlayStation 3.

10. Given your life as it stands at this moment, what one word would best sum it all up?

Neutral, not in any particular mood.

Blogger profile - Angry Georgian

Continuing the series of interviews with other bloggers - next in line... The angry Georgian

1. So why is Clay Perry your favorite blog?

I like reading about the adventures of a four year old soldier / secret agent / cowboy / professional hide-and-seeker. Wood carving is also an interest of mine, even though I am not the least bit good. I've only carved reliefs in scraps of 4x4's before. Not to mention you're very well written.

2. What is the scariest thing that ever happened to you?

Nothing really scares me, per se. If I had to nail it down, I would have to say the time in Colorado when I was out walking with a friend through a field in the dark looking for her brother and his girlfriend. She took off running and I followed her, but I was fat and couldn't run to save my life. This overwhelming sense of dread came over me and I looked behind me to see a man standing in the middle of the field. He was as black as black could be and I knew he was there for me. Hey, I think I'll put that in my book!

3. What influence do you attribute your current lifestyle to?

I don't know that I can attribute my lifestyle to any one particular influence. Where I am at is the direct result of the decisions I have made over the years and it just so happens that where I am is where I just ended up.

4. Where is your favorite place to go in Georgia, and why?

I'd have to say Blood Mountain up on 129 outside of Cleveland. It's the highest point on the Appalachian Trail in Georgia. And the view is stunning. It's a great place to go and just be alone. I like to find a spot a little ways off the trail and just sit down for a while and take in all the purity of nature.

5. When did you first start writing your blog, and for what reason?

I believe my first post was in early 2007. I wanted a public forum to bitch about everything I thought was wrong with the world and where I could engage in my general smart-assedness. It's evolved into more over time and now I hardly bitch about anything anymore.

6. Favorite movie?

My favorites change as new ones come out. I don't have any one specific all-time favorite as some people do. If I were to give a movie such a title, I think I would say Braveheart.

7. Is there anything in your past that you would change, and why?

I would have participated in more physical activities and tried to live a healthier lifestyle in my teenage years and twenties. Thirty-plus years of junk food and soft drinks combined with a very sedentary lifestyle have definitely taken their toll on my body. I wish I could trade it in. Also, I would have joined the Marines out of high school like I should have. I was very anti-authority back then and refused to enlist. I had a change of heart when I was twenty-seven and by that time it was too late. It's ironic if you think about it. When I was able to enlist I wouldn't, and now that I want to enlist I can't. I should have done it when I didn't have health problems.

8. What was the worst customer service experience you ever had?

Several years ago I had an attorney steal money out of my bank account after I had given them my info. I was naive then. I stopped payment on the check numbers and they just created new ones. When I called the bank to find out why they were allowed to do that, I got a we advise our account holders to never give their account numbers to anyone for any reason reply. Even though I had done what I needed to do on my end, they allowed them to fraudulently take money from my bank account and all I got was a "tough shit" from Bank of America. Because of that, they will never get another dime of my money as long as I live.

9. What would you do with the money if you were given one million dollars tax free?

I would dole it out in $25,000 increments to various investments and live off the interest. And I would, of course, take a very long vacation.

10. Given your life as it is at this moment, what one word best sums it all up?

peaceful

Blogger Profile - Rooked

Here begins a series of interviews with other bloggers.. first in line is Rooked...


1. So why is Clay Perry your favorite blog?

He told me if it wasn’t that he’d slug me in the arm.

2. What influences from your early childhood do you attribute your current lifestyle to?

My parents, obviously, the landscape of the place where I lived and all the books I read.


3. Have you ever seen a UFO? And if so what happened?

Well…yes. We just saw a weird light that came down on us, shined its beam on us and then shot away in the blink of an eye. It’s the strangest thing that’s ever happened to me but I don’t talk about it too much because nobody ever believes it.


4. What's your opinion of our current President?

Jimmy Carter Part II


5. If you could pick one person to have dinner with, who would it be and why?

My father. Mostly because I miss him terribly and I still have a lot of questions I need to ask him.


6. Favorite song writer?

Bob Dylan.


7. Given the statement "If I could go back in time knowing what I know now" what, if anything, would you change?

Well…I might have changed my mind about marriage. And there’s a seemingly endless list of girls I would’ve worked much harder to bed.


8. Being a new parent, what advice would you give to those that are considering having children?

All the stories are true; the good and the bad. And it really is worth it. It really does change your life. Your child’s smile can wipe away all the frustrations of the worst day of your life. But you have to be ready for it and deadly serious about making sure you do it Right.


9. Imagine that you had won the lottery today... What would the next month be like for you?

You would never see me again. So…if I ever vanish in the mist…you’ll know I won it.


10. Looking at your life as it stands at this point in time, what one word would best sum it all up?

Transient.

I love her work

She does amazing work.. go check her out... Witchhollow primitives